Fun in the Sun

Thursday afternoon I set up Eli's little pool on a sheet on the deck (it was really hot to walk on for some reason), along with a little water play table for him, and we headed outside to play in the sun! Elijah couldn't decide whether to play in the pool or standing up at the water table apparatus, so I moved the table so it was partially in the pool. That was a big hit with Eli! He kept walking around the table, climbing in and out of the pool, and also putting his blocks from the pool to the table, back to the pool, back to the table, repeat, repeat, repeat. He had such a good time, and loved splashing around outside! It's nice to be home with him and have the opportunity to enjoy the summer weather together. Sure beats being stuck in an office while Elijah's in daycare!

Rocket Man

Yesterday Eli figured out how to actually get on and off the “Retro Rocket” toy he got for his birthday! He had tried before, but would always end up either on the floor or frustrated calling for help. Well, Elijah and I were in the master bedroom putting away clothes yesterday and he was pushing the rocket around and then stopped and tried to get his leg over the side a few times, with no luck. But then he finally did it! A few tries at getting off and he got that down as well. He further expanded his skills by learning how to climb on and off his riding fire truck too. Of course, once he's safely seated he still can’t go anywhere but backwards on either one, but he loves climbing on and off!

I'm on it! Yay!

Look Mom, no hands!

Can You Send Me to Bed Without Dinner? Please?

The last two days Elijah has only taken one long nap, in the morning, and been up the rest of the day. He runs out of steam around 6 pm though, which is right when we eat dinner. So we’ve eaten dinner the last two nights and then taken him straight from the dinner table to bedtime. Last night he ate a little dinner, then put his head down for a rest, and then finished his meal laying down in his highchair! The little bean fell asleep right away when we brought him upstairs, and slept all night. We tuckered him out!

I'm so tired, Dad, I can't keep my head up any longer!

I'm tired, but still a little hungry,
so I'll just finish my dinner lying down.

Since Our Last Update . . .

Here’s what Elijah’s been up to in the last week, since we last posted:

We went to eat lunch with Dad, Grandma, and Uncle Jeremy at Grandma and Jeremy’s offices in Ann Arbor. We ate outside (until it started raining) then Eli went inside and had a chance to play with fun electronic devices!

We went to a Tastefully Simple party at Grandma Amanda’s house, and got to play with our step-cousin, baby Alexis, who is 5 weeks older than us! We climbed the stairs, played together, and had fun. Though Elijah wasn’t so sure about having to share his Grandma with another baby. Elijah and Mom stayed overnight on Friday night, and then Elijah stayed with Grandma Saturday and part of Sunday too while Mom joined Dad, Grandpa Bob, and Uncle Jeremy at home to seal the deck (home maintenance, yippee!).

Elijah discovered his belly button! And Mom’s belly button. And Dad’s belly button too. He thinks its great fun to lift up his shirt and poke at his tummy now, with a big smile on his face. What a cutie-pie!

First Swim Class for Elijah and Mommy!

Elijah and I had our first swimming class together this morning – and boy did we have fun! Class started late, because they couldn’t let people in the pool with lightening going on outside (it is an indoor pool, but its Michigan law apparently), so we didn’t get going until about 9:30. Eli didn’t like being held by another mom while I got in (and out) of the pool, but he warmed up really quickly to being in the water, and was all smiles and giggles after that. Once class got underway we had lots of fun singing and playing. Eli’s favorite activities were:

• Singing Humpty Dumpty – Elijah sat on the edge of the pool until Humpty "falls" at which point all the kids get to be lifted in, with lots of splashing of course.

• Singing the motorboat song – We spun in a circle in the water slow, then fast, and then you "step-on-the-gas" as you spin super-fast. He loved this!

• Singing the Little Fish song – I can’t remember the song now, but at the end I counted 1-2-3 and then lifted Eli up in the air and splashed him back in the water. He went nuts. It was adorable.

• Playing with the lane marker – there was one lane marked off on the side of the pool for people to do laps, and whenever we got too far away from the lane marker Elijah wanted to “swim” back to it (I’d hold him on his tummy and he’d kick/squirm until we reached it). He really liked spinning the marker and trying to “swim” back and forth over it while I held him.

Once the class activities were done we had about 10 minutes of free time where we could play with the toys, rings, water noodles, kick boards, and balls that they brought out for us. Elijah and I got a kick board and a squishy sea horse toy and he thought it was great fun to throw the toy, then swim after it and scoop it up with the end of the kick board (as Mom made the appropriate motor boat sounds of course). What a fun way to spend a Wednesday morning! These swimming classes are going to be lots of fun!