Eli Quotes

I haven't done an Eli quote post in a while, and he keeps saying the cutest things (some of them managed to be scribbled down to remember for later and some not unfortunately!). Here's some of the things he's been saying lately:

• Daddy knocked over some of Eli's trains a few weeks ago and said sorry, and Eli replied, "That's okay, Daddy, I still love you!"

• In the car Eli was asking what movies we had in our visor CD storage. One of them was an old Baby Einstein video that he liked to watch. He wanted it put in, but after about five minutes told me to, "Turn off, Mommy, that baby movie is not fun." I didn't think it would be at age almost-three, but he had asked for it!

• We were in the play area at one of the local malls, with a breakfast food theme. There was a GIANT plastic waffle for the kids to climb on, and I asked Eli if he wanted to have that waffle for lunch. He looked at me with a Mom-you-can't-be-serious-look and said, "No, that waffle too big for me!" I asked him who could eat it and Eli turned and looked at it thoughtfully, in serious contemplation, for literally, about 15 seconds, then turned to me and said, "Maybe Daddy?"

• Mommy: "Do you want a sister, Eli?" Eli" "No!" Mommy: "What do you want then?" Eli: "A girl!" He'll figure out they're the same someday. Until then, just for the record, Eli is not having a sister, he's having a girl. :)
  

• After playing at Lexi and Tori's one day and becoming completely obsessed with Harvey the Crane Engine (he has a book about Harvey too), Eli was quite upset that we had to come home and not take Harvey with us. He asked Mommy, Daddy, Grandma, and even Aunt Lori if he could take Harvey home and we all said no. When we got home Eli immediately went and told Grandpa the story about Harvey not coming home. Jon and I went out for coffee, but when we came home Grandma told us that Eli had told Grandpa about Harvey about four times, and kept saying, "I wanted to take Harvey home, but Mommy said no. Daddy said no. Grandma said no. I tried Grandpa, but everybody said no!" Eli still wants to take Harvey home with him every time we're at Lexi and Tori's house - so of course Grandma went running out and got Harvey for Eli. Mommy is making her wait to give it to him though since this kid already has more toys than he knows what to do with. He'll be happy to have Harvey though!

A Visit to the Butterflies!

Even with all the house craziness going on, we have managed to do some fun things over here - I just haven't managed to post about any of them! A few weeks ago Lori and I took Eli and the girls over to the Fredrick Meijer Gardens to see the butterfly exhibit and play in the children's garden. The day was just beautiful, with clear skies and sun. The kids liked the butterflies for about two minutes and then were pretty much done with experiencing the wonder of being surrounded by hundreds of butterflies. They liked the cave (below), though:

Eli: "We're in a dark dark place."

One of the beauties that I was able to snap a picture of.

We also stopped and looked in the little hatching house where they have the hatching cocoons of the butterflies. The kids thought that was interesting for much less time than Lori and I thought it was interesting . . .

This one was on the inside of the glass,
so I got a neat shot of the bottom of a butterfly!

After spending not very much time in the presence of the butterflies, we headed outside to the children's garden. I think the kids could have spent much more time out here than what we had - we needed to leave to eat lunch and pick up Noah from school. I'll definitely be heading back to the children's garden with Eli and the girls too now that spring looks like it's going to stick around!

Heading through the little gate to the garden.

Where should we go first?

Eli's favorite - the little sandbox
(he wouldn't play in the BIG one next to it)

Chasing each other in the maze was another hit!

Only a child could make "candy" out of a pail of rain water,
some leaves, and a stick.

I don't want that baby in here with me, Lexi.

Haha! Lexi stepped away and I just threw her baby out of the cradle!

While we were at the gardens we ran in to my cousin Catherine and her son, Joshua, which was a fun reunion. We caught up with them again at the giant sandbox play area, so we got to chat a bit. I had a great day at the gardens, though I would have liked to spend even more time actually looking at the butterflies. But kids' attention spans and fascinations aren't the same as mine.

I asked Eli later if he liked the butterflies and he said, "No, the butterflies made me sad," complete with little hunched over shoulders and a pouted lip (he got his dramatics from his Mommy, yes indeed). So then I asked him if he liked playing outside and he shouted, "Yes," and ran around in a circle with his arms up. I'm guessing it will take a few more years before he really likes the butterflies, since the girls at age 4 and a half also weren't impressed with them for long. Maybe Mommy will have to go by herself to enjoy the full beauty of the butterfly exhibit! I know that we'll be back to the gardens again soon, butterflies or no butterflies!

Sold!

Jon and I were beginning to think we were never going to be able to say this - but our house is SOLD!!!

Goodbye, house, you served us well!

It's been almost a year since it went on the market, and after three price cuts and some good negotiating with buyer, we were finally able to sell our home. I'm so thankful that we will be all moved out and everything settled before the baby arrives!

We officially close on May 5, and will be moving everything the weekend before in to a storage unit here in GR. We have the truck and movers lined up and the storage unit set, so packing will begin in earnest this weekend.

Jon and I are looking forward to starting the new chapter in our life here in GR officially, without the monkey of a house on our back. We're excited to see what God has in store for us now - and glad that we've been able to get off the roller-coaster of the housing market in Michigan. The plan is to keep living with my parents for a while and recoup some of our losses from the house so that we have a down payment for a new house - hopefully one where we get the awesome deal instead of losing our shirts! :) Here's to new beginnings!

On an interesting note, the buyer asked if he could purchase the art in our kitchen. That art is a series of framed photographs that I took in Thailand and then hung. We turned him down, but it made me feel good to have someone want to buy one of my pictures! Maybe my dream career in photography isn't that far off . . . :)

Eli's favorite number

Eli's favorite number, for the moment at least, is 6.

If we ask Eli how old he is, he'll say, "6!" (He'll actually turn 3 in May.)

Sometimes when Eli is counting something, he'll skip to 6 and then just end there (even if there are more things to count). "1, 2, 3... 6!"

It's just another aspect of Eli having is own unique personality. I don't know where he picked up 6 as his favorite number, but it's cute that he has!

Mommy's Helper!

While I was vacuuming this morning, Elijah said he wanted to help Mommy clean up. So he picked up his whole train track and all his cars, toys, and movies that were strewn around the living room. He even picked up the blankets and pillows that were out of place. All by himself! The only thing I did was vacuum the floor . . . and look at the finished product (the spot on the floor is from the camera flash, not a toy or a stain)!

Eli surveys the clean living room.
Good work, little helper!

Of course, when Mommy asked where all his toys went, Eli replied, "Behind the chair!" Yep, that's where they were!

At least they're all in one place, right?

Mommy appreciates the helping spirit of her little boy though! Next time we'll work on exactly where we should put the toys away. :) When Daddy came home for lunch Eli was so proud to show off the clean living room.

Look at how much space there is in here now, Dad!

And Eli and Daddy put the clean space to good use immediately - with races under the fan (one of Eli's favorite things!). Without the toys in the middle of the floor it's a lot easier to race. Good job cleaning up, Elijah!

Catch me if you can, Daddy!