Vacuum

We got a new vacuum- the best vacuum in the world. I never thought I would love anything as much as I love my VitaMix- who knew. I adore my vacuum- so does Elliott. You can take this back piece off and the air blows out (it is also an air purifier). Elliott sits in the breeze and goes to town laughing and being silly. I love things that make us all happy.

The Elliott I love

These are the faces of Elliott lately- minus the really ticked off/angry faces of late. Phases- I am tired of the "fit" phase- does it EVER END??? Seriously- not fun. Thank the beautiful heavens for those perfect moments of love between E and I that make the fits somehow disappear. Seriously- what the heck- fits. And- what a dumb word for it- fit- I admit at moments it is like E is having some sort of physical fit- rage out of nowhere. We need a better word for this problem.

The things he says-

Tonight while having his bath, both Craig and I kept asking him to stand up so we could wash him- he was totally ignoring us- so we asked again- for like the 5th time- reluctantly and with a bit of exhaustion in his voice he says:

Yes, your majesty.

The things he says-

Elliott got a little Leapster for Christmas- such a cool toy for kids this age- if you don't already have one. They have learning games of all kinds with a few built into the piece.
However, they have this little button you can push and it has a bazillion commercials for their other games you can buy for the little leapster (stinkers)- one being Batman.

Oh, for our new love of Batman.

E hardly even knows who Batman is- superhero-good-Spiderman's equal-drives a cool car-and the Batman song. Now he is enamored by Batman- well this little commercial.
This little 3 second blurb has got his little brain thinking.

Where does Batman live?

In a cave with the bats, that is why he is called Batman.

Mom, I want to go to Batman's house.

2 1/2 hours later- right after he wakes up from his nap-

Maybe we could call Spencer (a friend of ours little boy) and go to his house to play Rock Guitar... and then we could call Batman- and go to his house.

The things he says-

While playing with some Legos-


...and there was a tremendous boom.

small pause

...in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Swingers

We went to the park a few weeks ago- I know this video is long- but the two of these guys just crack me up! Nate is an old pro at this swing thing. As of recent- E has been pretty skeptical of many of the physical "triumphs" for little ones- you know- slides, jumping, riding on the swings like this....He really takes his time when he wants to try something new. He must not be pressured. It is really fun when he attempts something new and exciting. Oh yes, this is a few weeks after he was trying this for one of the first times and totally overshot and flew off landing on his stomach. Craig and I were in tears it was so funny- poor guy.

I am so proud that he got on and keeps trying. Sweet El.

Tag- My lover and I

How long have you been together? Married for 10 years in August- I know- crazy long time. It has FLOWN by- that is a great thing, I am happy with Craig.

How long did you date? We don’t know when we started dating- it wasn’t something we paid that close attention to- then we were kissing and then engaged- so- a little over a year- we’d been good friends for over a year before.

How old is he? 38 and perfect- I know, I am such a cheese.

Who eats more? If dark chocolate is involved- him.

Who said "I love you" first? I don’t know.

Who is taller? Craig

Who sings better? Good question- I think he sings well- he doesn’t sing often- I like to sing- so we're both fine but nothing special.

Who is smarter? Definitely Craig- we each have our things that we are smarter with- but he just keeps me grounded. I usually ask- “Hey, did anything happen in the world today that I need to know about?” (I hate the news) and he usually fills me in. Also, with regard to the gospel- he wins big time- he is always knowledgeable about the good details. This is something that has always made me really appreciate Craig, he really is smart.

Who does the laundry? I wash and dry and try to always have it all done- but he usually ends up helping me put it away, total champ.

Who does the dishes? Usually me- He runs off to play with E while I clean up- I prefer that they have their play time before bed- this is really important to Elliott.

Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Craig- he is closest to the gun.

Who pays the bills? We usually talk about them- then I usually go in and pay them (I love auto bill pay).

Who mows the lawn? The best gardeners in town- :-) we spoil ourselves- we look at it as time we could be apart working or time we could be together doing something meaningful- the later won out.

Who cooks dinner? Me, I like to have dinner ready so we can be done with it and be on to bigger things- this usually involves- pirates, Harry the Hedgehog or light sabers- but well worth the dinner being made earlier.

Who is more stubborn? Totally depends on the situation. I am pretty stubborn- but if it is something that means more to him- he can be stubborn one.

Who kissed who first? He totally kissed me- MacDaddy.

Who asked who out? We really don’t know- seriously- we were such good friends we were with each other practically every day anyway- it sort of just happened.

Who proposed? Craig did- it was cute. I totally knew it was coming because he was acting so funny and nervous. It was at a park where we had first kissed- so I knew something was up. It was perfect.

Who is more sensitive? Again, totally depends on the situation. Craig is a pretty sensitive guy-so we take our turns. I'll go out on a limb here and say it is usually me though- something about us girls- seriously- what the heck?.

Who has more friends? Craig

Who has more siblings? Same on both sides.

Who are you tagging? Karlea, Janice, Jennifer S., Jennifer G., Mandy and Wendy- Come now, I know you all have sooooo much free time.

Motorcycles

My brother-in-law has a motorcycle. E thinks it is so cool! He was totally stoked the other night to get to sit on it and pretend for a bit. When Kenyon generously passed over the helmet- he was in heaven (sorry for the blurry picture). Elliott LOVES motorcycles. Every time we see one from the car he must make sure that everyone inside of the car has seen it go by. He is such a boy.

Hair

Sorry this has taken forever- E took this picture today- (my cameras seem attract him- he is always wanting to take photos)- so thanks be unto Elliott. I have had so many tell me it isn't that short- I realize it isn't that short- it still seems so short to me. My hair used to go all the way down my back- so- change is good.

Children's museum

I am a little behind on my posting- we went to a children's museum with Craig's sister, mom and my sister and all the kids last week. We had the GREATEST time and plan to make it a place to go more often. It was one of the only places that we have gone where I didn't have to say one time- "oh, don't touch..." it was a little piece of heaven for littles- it was all hands on for them- every single thing was for them to touch and play with and to make a mess with- they loved it all- it was a really fun outing!

Time for a change

I go through strange hair spurts. I will grow out my hair for years and then chop it off one random day- well this time I chopped it off for a good reason. It was time for a MUCH needed haircut- I wanted to cut off 7 or 8 inches anyway- so I thought, what's 3 or 4 more- right? 11 or 12 inches later I was able to donate my hair to locks of love . I am in a bit of shock- I don't think I was really ready to cut soooo much off at once- but happy to share something with a little one that will make them feel better about themselves. I have had some random cuts here and there since E was born- but for the most part- 3 years of hair.

The things he says-

I was singing a song to El last night that ends with "...yes I know Heavenly Father loves me." and here is our conversation...

Mom, Does Heavenly Father love me?

Yes, he does, very much.

Heavenly Father loves you too and Daddy.

Yes, he does.

Does Jesus love me?

Yes, he loves you very much too.

Mom, when I am bigger and you are smaller, I will let you ride on my back and give you piggybacks.

CLASSIC

Lately- he has been doing things- like putting on an article of clothing or jumping or doing something he deems as "big" and he will say-

"Look (Mom or Dad- whoever is there)- I'm a man."

The gift that keeps on giving...

Craig's parents gave E a drum set for Christmas- he just got it a few days ago since all of Craig's family was out of town for the holidays. Anyway- we LOVE it- seriously. We are just trying to learn how exactly to hit it- as hard as possible to soft but still completely audible. Let me tell you- as hard as possible keeps on winning. So today Nate and Kenyon came over and Collin was asleep so we gave them a different option. Heavenly option. I told them they could hit this one as hard as they wanted and Shelly and I wouldn't say a thing. It was hilarious. The other part that was hilarious was how TEMPTING a real drum set is when it is RIGHT there in front of you! They had to keep walking up and stepping on the peddle. So funny! I am stoked to have a little one that loves music as much as I do.

Family New Year

The day started with a train ride to a petting zoo. The kids had a blast on the train-it was so exciting for them.






Petting zoo excitement. No really- we had a great time. The kids had a great time which made it really fun for all of us adults.


I love Elliott's face. He was a little bit skeptical about feeding the animals. He would really just kind of drop the carrot and if the animal happened to catch it- well it was a good moment for all. Then he got a little bit more cozy with them and started holding them for the animals to actually take from him.




As you can see- more of a throw than a feed.

We had a great New Year's with Craig's family. His two sisters and their families were able to come down so it was great to see them and enjoy our time with them.

Family Christmas

This one CRACKS me up! My mom wanted a little Christmas story reenactment- well it sort of worked. Elliott was totally stoked to be a shepherd and Nate was totally stoked to be a king- however- miss Kenyon was not totally stoked and decided it was way more fun to be the boss and get everyone in costume. The boys loved it all.



My mom, Lauralee and sweet baby Collin.



My cute brother, Spencer- I wish we would have got a shot of all of us adults with all of the gold crowns on our heads. We were showing the kids how cool they were and we seemed to just keep them on- the kids wanted nothing to do with them.

It was a lovely holiday with my side of the family. I feel like I so rarely see them- it was really nice.

I Love to see the Temple !! ( Rock Version )

The things he says- Stall tactics

Elliott can work the system like no other. He especially can work all of his grandparents.
Last night Dave and Ede watched Elliott so that Craig and I could go on a date. When it was time for bed he was pulling out his best- putting the tent up, sleeping with all of his stuffed animals (especially those he never even notices are in the room- those high up on the shelves), and of course- our new favorite-

"I'm dirty, look at me... I need a bath"

For those of you who know E- he doesn't particularly like to get clean. It is a chore to get him in the shower or the bath- there is usually some sort of bribery involved- so this one is a classic.

Then he will proceed with-

"I need......" (moments go by waiting while he decided what exactly it is that he "needs")

I know those with kids all know what I a talking about- the bedtime stall system.

Lights, Lights, Lights

There is a neighborhood not too far from ours that goes CRAZY around the holidays. In the past the streets have been shut down to incoming traffic just so people can walk around and see all the craziness of this neighborhood. It was good this year- but not as crazy as in the past. El was totally into the airplane with Santa in the drivers seat. He wanted to go touch it and get close. It was pretty cute. Seriously- the holidays are sooooo much more fun with little ones. He makes everything so exciting. I am starting to wonder what in the world we are going to do until Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas roll around again. I better get creative. I guess it is good to have all the craziness for once a year- then it is fun and new again and appreciated and looked forward too.

Boat Parade

Last week we went out on the boat to watch the boat parade in the harbor. It is much more fun with kids. Elliott and Luke were cracking us up just chillin as captain and co-captain of the little boat. We need a name for the boat? None of us can think of anything worth using- any ideas?

Handyman Elliott

I grew up with a dad that could fix things. I had no idea how few and far between a handy husband is to come by. Thank heavens I happened to be so lucky to get one of those! Craig is awesome- he can fix pretty much anything that breaks (as long as he has the time) once in awhile we have to have some help with pool problems because there just isn't enough time- if there were, he'd be able to fix whatever is broken.

Elliott likes to use his little tool box (that was Craig's when he was little) and hammer nails (or the garage door, or my car tires, you name it- he has "fixed" it). I know that my little guy will be a great little fixer when he is older.

Dryer

The other day was laundry day- E decided he wanted to get into the dryer. He has never even thought this one up until now- he totally cracked me up- climbed on it and then asked me to turn it on! I tried to explain the pain that might follow from heat and from thrashing about, however, he insisted I turn it on. No, I didn't. Hello?

31

I turned 31 last weekend- humm- haven't decided how I feel about being "in my 30's" quite yet- seems old when I think about it but I feel like I haven't changed at all- a little wiser- same body, a few (okay a ton) more scars, but nothing else much. I have decided that we don't really change much- time goes by so fast but we remain the same. Then, before we know it our bodies just look old. Poetic ehh?

The things he says-

We have been trying to teach Elliott about praying- every prayer we are thankful for the food, please bless us, amen. It is getting strange to bless the food when we are kneeling in his room ready for bed- so lately we talk about what we are thankful for while we are kneeling and tell him to talk with Heavenly Father and thank him for those things- this is what we got tonight.

Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank you for this day
thank you for blow up Frankenstein, pumpkins and spiders we could see.
In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Santa, Santa, Santa

This one cracks me up- sometimes when E is talking (especially when he really wants to get his thought across) he puts his hands on his hips like that and goes into his schpeal- it was like he was bartering with Santa for the goods. He has ALWAYS asked so far for a snowman and a train for Christmas this year. Interesting huh?


So it is like the 10th of December and E has seen Santa like 5 times. He loves the man. The first few pics are from a church party. E was in the car with Craig when Santa arrived and was walking into the church- E was FREAKING out that he was strapped in his car seat "Dad, Dad- it's Santa- I have to see him, let me out, let me out....." Craig couldn't get him out fast enough- then I was meeting them in the parking lot (I had just walked by Santa) and E goes blasting by me "Mom it's Santa...."- it was so cute and so totally innocent and one reason Christmas is so much fun with little ones. He was so stoked to see Santa- he was up the stairs in a flash and so were Craig and I- camera in hand. I love the spirit of Christmas in Elliott- EVERYTHING is soooo exciting and so wonderfully new. It makes us see the whole season differently. It is so worth every little thing we do- we are keeping our schedules pretty full of holiday stuff- so fun!

Snow in Orange County

E woke up on Wednesday morning of last week with this statement for me- "Momma- I want to go to the snow today."

Well- I find lately that I am a little bit ashamed at some of the so called "winter" things we do here in Southern California. Every year at a few parks here they truck in snow for the kids to play with- they build a sled hill (concrete hill) and make a few piles of snow for the kids to just play in- a bit shameful. Although Craig is from Southern California he has spent probably more time on snow covered mountain tops than I have growing up in Idaho. So- we were laughing on this crazy day- knowing full well how strange this scene was that we were introducing Elliott too. He thought it was cool and fun to play in- so now when we get to see the actual REAL thing it will be even better.

Santa's Sleigh and Raisin Beard

The other morning E was being so funny. Out of the blue he was like "Oh.." then he disappears- opens the front door and is gone for a second. Comes back with my produce box off of the porch and the next thing I know he says- "Mom, I am Santa and I am in my sleigh"- so random and so silly- as usual.

Then that afternoon we were eating raisins and he decided he needed a mustache and beard- he had more on there but they kept falling off.

Rain, Heavenly Rain, Heavenly Cold Weather- FINALLY

I love living here- do not get me wrong- but it is TOTALLY WRONG to have 80 degree weather in December. Wrong I tell you. On Friday we woke up to a cold wet rainy day-I think I died and went to heaven- so did Elliott- we LOVE the rain. We got all bundled and set out on our way to jump in some puddles. We were soaked and water logged (literally- Elliott's shoes made a suction cup sound coming off of his feet) and it was so wonderful. Elliott had me jumping in puddles (I haven't done that in YEARS), letting the rain drop into my mouth and laughing so hard. He was so cute and totally into this rainy day weather. We needed it and we have been loving getting bundled up ever since. I hope this stays for a good few months.

Smile

Making faces in front of the mirror- good times. This one was just learned. He, he, he.

Fishing

We love being outside. We are constantly finding new things to introduce Elliott to (one of the best parts about being a parent)- this time- FISHING.
We had the BEST time- didn't catch a thing- not even a bite- but had a good time. My favorite moment was when Elliott saw this little fishing pole and realized it was just his size. (My thoughts being- "awesome now he can turn with pole in hand and I don't have to worry about ducking or yelling to someone to duck".) It was cute to see in his little mind- this little click moment when he realized it was a perfect size for him. Dad gets it all ready and baited and El reels it in and we start over- so fun. I highly recommend to you all with little ones- and if you fish off of a public pier or dock you don't have to buy a fishing license. Practically free fun.

TARGET

Shelly and I totally (against much of what I believe and stand for) bribed our children with Target popcorn to keep them in the cart while we did a little shopping. I have shamed myself. How funny do they look in there? They were hilarious- popcorn EVERYWHERE- just dropping out as we moved the card- leaving our little trail everywhere we went. Oh well- they had fun and we got something done without having to say one time "Come here....". Popcorn induced bliss.

Blow up Father Christmas

What the heck? I thought I would never be "that family" that had the blow up items in the yard- well- here is our Santa. We got him last year at a White Elephant party and he was pretty cool to El last year- but HOLY STINKING MOLY is he COOL this year! Elliott was asking us weeks ago to get Santa out- we held him off for a few days and now he has been up for almost 2 weeks. It is a daily adventure to see when Santa will "wake up"- 5:00 pm when the sun has set
he inflates and all the Christmas lights turn on- we are out there like clockwork. It is so fun and so worth being "that family"- Christmas with the Eldogs is soooooo much fun! Magical really. I think I am starting to believe in Father Christmas again.

Christmas Tree Time

Dave and Ede and Mandy, Jason and Luke will be out of town for the holidays so we all decided to get our trees early and made it a night. It was a little crazy with the kids- I thought it would be more fun for Elliott than it actually was- he was WAY more into the carts at Home Depot than the tree shopping. Having my birthday close to the holidays has been so fun- I have always enjoyed all the little details. Especially shopping for the tree- to me that makes the house feel like the holidays are here- I am LOVING having the tree up- I think we will get our tree early every year.

Happy Birthday to Mandy!!!

Happy Birthday Mandy!

One more year and you rank with us "in their 30's"- not so bad. You'd never know- he, he, he. As we all seem to be saying- "You look good for your age". You are a great person, friend, sister and mother. I admire you and think the world of you. Happy Birthday!

Been a bit

Sorry- I seem to be a total blogger- then die off for a week or so. I am back on and have a ton to post- so please bear with me. First things first- a birthday.