Eli's wish list

Eli's birthday is in a few weeks and he can't wait to turn 4...well, actually he would tell you that he's already 4, but he's excited for some presents.  While we were in Target waiting for a prescription, I let him browse and show me what he wanted. 

He's really into Star Wars Angry Birds.

Telepods...you put them on the iPad and they open up new games

Angry Bird Jenga

He still loves Thomas and has several of these Take-n-Play sets (they all connect together).  He has his eye on this mountain one:

He also loves cars of all sorts and the Cars movie:

True confession:  I get the boys birthday's mixed up all.the.time!  I even told my mom the wrong day this week!  So please don't let me forget that Eliot's birthday is April 11th!

Catching up

As with the rest of the world, our weather has been all over the place.  One day it's warm and sunny and the next it's cold and rainy.  We were running to the car one day from the Y and it started to snow/rain on us.  Eli shouted, "Hurry Mommy!  We have to go snuggle!".  Oh I love my snuggle bug!  He still continues to ask several times a day to snuggle.  The minute we get home, he puts on pj's, grabs his blankie and is ready to snuggle up.  One night at dinner he was telling me all about his snuggle plans:

Colin, on the other hand, has no time for snuggles.  He's kind of like our weather; all over the place.  He tries so hard to be a big boy and will climb up in our bar stools, but then demands his Carnation Instant breakfast in his bottle.  The perks of his ambition to be a big boy?  He's mastered the stairs and we were able to take down our baby gates!  Yeah for freedom!

Our boys are so different, but they love each other so much.

I've been cleaning out the kids' closets and resurrected some toys that had been buried in clothe boxes.  We found our puppets Nana made the kids a couple of years ago and they finally appreciated them to the fullest.  They played with them all day and put on several "skits" for us.

Happy 31st to Ben!

I'm excited that Ben's old with me now :)  Even more excited that we got to be together for his birthday this year.  I made him bacon and eggs for breakfast before he left for work and thanks to daylight savings, our kids were still sleeping and we got a nice, quiet date.  It was a beautiful way to start the day...starting with bacon doesn't hurt either.

That afternoon, Ben got his first professional massage and we gave him our presents.  He got a french bread pan and 2 shirts.  Eli knows his birthday is next up, so he was convinced that once Ben was finished opening his presents, it was officially his birthday.  He's convinced that he's already 4!

Last night, Ben and I went out just us, to a new restaurant we've been wanting to try.  The food is all local, organic, farm food and made from scratch.  It was amazing.  The service was terrible, but the food made up for that.  I was impressed and it was fun to go to a new place.  Our date ended up at Target buying diapers and toilet paper.  Getting old is sad, but I'm thankful I get to go through it with Ben.

Happy Birthday Ben!

Historic Day!

My friend Christen, who we do preschool co-op with, teaches swim lessons at the Y.  She started a class in the morning, right after some of us teach aerobics classes.  She asked Eliot if he wanted to come to class and he told her that he would learn to swim when he is a daddy.  If you ask him what he's going to do this summer while at the pool, he'll tell you that he plans on playing cars on the side of the pool.  Let's be honest, we all know he just wants to sit and eat a snack.  All that to say, he is flat out not interested in going anywhere near a pool.  Last class we signed him up for he screamed the whole. entire. time. and clung to me like someone was trying to kill him.  Christen is a mom of 4 and has more patience than anyone I've ever met.  She asked me to bring Eliot to a class, just to expose him but not to expect anything from him.  I didn't even sign him up, we just went to watch his friends swim.  We made it really low key and he knew all the kids and Miss Christen, and when I asked him if he wanted to sit with his friends, he just marched over and put his feet in the pool.  I almost cried.  Thankfully one of my friends had her phone with her and snapped pictures of Eli's first non-screaming swimming lesson.

Eliot's on the far left:

I couldn't believe he actually participated in the lesson!

Just to be snotty for a moment; he even did better than some of the other kids :)

 

He did amazing and I've signed him up to keep going.  We celebrated with orange juice donuts at Ringo's with his bff, Nash.

How quickly things change

Yesterday:


It was a beautiful day...we had the windows open and spent the afternoon outside playing.  Although Colin was sick, it was still a great day.

Today:

 

Alison woke up to a "snow day".

Can't you see all the snow?

Ben was even sent home from work because of some sleet coming.

Now we're huddled inside and Alison's teaching the boys ballet.