Dale, Emily, Eli, Kayla, and ....?

One Little, Two Little, Three Little Monkeys

2011-09-04T18:27:00.000-07:00

How did we come to be so blessed with such amazing friends and neighbors? Meals, play dates, offers for 'what ever you need, just let us know', and well-wishes galore primed our first month with three little monkeys.

We've gone from topsy-turvy to almost calm waters.... as calm as it gets with three babies.

Eli and Kayla absolutely adore thier new little brother. And he returns their adorations with coo's and smily-squeels. We sure do hope he gets to be a permanent part of our family.

Eli tries to explain how to be gentle with a baby (heheh, that's so cute) and Kayla, as usual, refuses to believe that there is any way but her way.

Loves bath-time as long as there is no coldness involved.

Such sweetness.

Tummy-time is not a favorite. Can you blame him.... look at that noggin'!!

Look! We fit all three without having to purchase another vehicle. I personally would love a new vehicle but we don't need it.... I guess.

Little Brother at his WIC appointment. They report that he's coming along just great! Didn't get pictures at his two-month appointment but that went well too.

Mommy's Helper#2. Keeping her on the counter helps with less trouble around the kitchen and we get to talk together. :D

Eli's play is frequently interrupted with his request to hold and/or feed Little Brother (aka: Baby Mac/Little Mac) who tends to want to visit more than eat during mid-day feedings. Such a sweat-heart.

PS - Please, don't get your feathers all ruffled that we, the parents, have not found an agreeable name for Little Brother. Most people do get nine months to think options over. We'll get there in a few months and baby will be just as loved. If that just doesn't work for you, you can call him.... ....Bartholomew.

No Tweets? No Facingbook?

2011-09-04T18:15:00.000-07:00

We are one month past the 'unusual to-do list' and our big "What?!" announcement from Facebook and since much of our family does not 'tweet' or 'facebook', we figured we'd better update our blog a bit.

unusual to-do list:
"8/1/2011 12:46am - TO DO: wash vomit covered laundry from last night - CHECK, pack car without leaving things behind - CHECK, thank everyone for a great vacation - CHECK, drive 8 hours back home - CHECK, pick up 7-week-old baby boy - CHECK."

"What? ???????":
"

Yes!!! A little boy!!!! And a very calm and sweet one at that. I could have coo-ing conversations with him for hours. We received a call Friday afternoon while on vacation with Dale's family and relatives last week..... "[we have a 7-week-old little boy that needs to be placed in a home while the parents figure out what they need to do to get him back. He is the biological brother of the little girl you adopted last year. Are you interested in having him stay with you?]"

Have you ever had that strange experience where one day you find out you are expecting a baby and then two days later you have that baby in your arms? Well, I have... twice now. And I've learned approximately when the 'punches' will come and I've learned how to 'tuck'n'roll' with them a lot better than I ever imagined I could. I predict 'recovery times' to be a lot quicker through this year's process. Wish me luck. ;)

A few stats. and info. ...born June 7, 2011, at about 7 pounds ...almost two months now and almost 12 pounds ...in size 2 diapers already (hoping I can use all the diapers I currently have before he grows out of them :D ) ...great eater ...great sleeper ...really needs to work on his belches, I personally think he can do so much better ...eyes look brown some times and hazel-with-a-tint-blue at other times ...loves to look around and coo at people sweetly talking to him ...custody hearing today have us as the Special Respondents ...this is a D&N case with an EPP (dependency and neglect, expedited permanency plan) ...birth parents are trying to get him back ...if they choose not to make significantly better choices, it is predicted he could be our little one forever in about 14-16months ...Kayla is absolutely head-over-heals excited about her new baby (and I'm working overtime to keep him safe but still let her be involved) ...Eli has named him Mighty Mac and dotes on him as often as possible ...if baby boy sprouts fangs and develops a red hue to his eyes we will keep the name of Jasper ...yes, his head is just as ginormous as Kayla's but I think they look different when comparing their two month photo shots ...please 'send a message' so I can get back with you about anything else you are curious about.

Kayla about 9weeks

Kayla about 7weeks

Kayla about 9weeks

Kayla about 6weeks

Little Brother loves looking all around - 8weeks

Little Brother getting sleepy - 8weeks

Nigh-night Little Brother - 8weeks

sweet dreams - 8weeks"

Play Dates of Yesterday, We Miss You

2011-09-04T16:41:00.000-07:00

Like four peas in a pod, these little cuties. Learning to share and communicate but mostly just being silly and making each other laugh, in addition to thier on-looking mothers.

Trying it out.... first play date to see how things worked out. Sooo glad it did. Wouldn't trade it for the world.

Is there really any other volume besides LOUD?

Tumbling (unfortunately the best picture I have right now... anyone want to share the ones they took?)

Snack-time/Lunch-time

Happy Mother's Day!!!

2011-05-08T17:03:00.000-07:00

Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers out there!

I was so excited to see this on the counter from the night before. Daddy and Eli went to the store to pick up something special! (They also picked up some chocolate doughnuts and Daddy made special dessert-waffles.YUM!)

Who can just LOOK at flowers, not us. ; ) We have to EXPERIENCE the flowers. Couldn't have it any other way.

These flowers are pokey, Mommy. They have pokies.

Flowers make her sneeze. But that doesn't keep her away.

Easter

2011-04-24T19:37:00.000-07:00

We had a great little family lesson about the resurrection of Jesus Christ during Family Home Evening last week. Eli loves to hold the pictures and copy what we say to the other parent and/or Kayla. On our way home from church today Eli asked, "So, what did you talk about in your class today?" and we were able to discuss the topic of the day a little more. He's such a sweet little cutie. I keep telling him that he can't grow up, he has to stay my baby and he replies with "No! I have to grow up and go to school! You can get another baby when I go to school, Mom."

(really like the style of Simon Dewey and a few other artist's who paint stories from the Bible)

Eli was so excited to show Kayla her new classroom. Gave her hugs and kisses before leaving for his class. Kinda funny..... he still doesn't realize that head-locks are not communicating what he is trying to give. (two bungling toddlers - hilarious! aren't we all just like that sometimes?)

Kayla started going to Nursery today (18 months-old this Friday!!!) Sooo social.

'Pancake Sunday' is becoming a regular at our place. With a huge lunch after church, we're not always up for a huge dinner and pancakes tend to 'hit the spot'. They are easy enough to have Eli help cook. He had so much fun making egg-shaped and happy-faced pancakes.

Can't wait to gobble them up.. I could only stop him long enough to take a picture. :D His stomach is a bottomless pit when it comes to eating pancakes. Kayla could go either way.

Dale's sister and family were all able to make it for a Saturday egg hunt in the community and then the children enjoyed another one at home. We love their visits!!!

Kayla had fun picking up eggs and dropping them or putting them in other children's baskets.

T, Mylee, Dale, Kayla after a fun egg hunt.

Eli deep in thought.

So tired, she fell asleep on the way home. Wheew! Picking up the same egg over and over sure is a lot of work.

Egg hunting in our yard.

Eli had an unfair advantage, besides being a bit quicker than Mylee, we did practice egg hunting all week long... he was just so excited (and he loves identifying colors and any activity that he thinks fits within 'home-school-pre-school').

YUMMM!!!! CANDY!!!!!

My Mom and Dad surprised us by crashing at our place for a few days on the way back home from a graduation, visiting with friends and family, and bringing my baby brother back home for a semester break. It's always great to have family visit!!! Good thing they don't expect much. ;D xoxox We had tons-o-fun gallivanting around the open space.

Kayla discovered the heel-bum inch-worm method of getting down the trails.

Uncle Nathy (recently returned from the Guam Micronesian Islands mission).

Nathan LOVES climbing and Mom enjoys encouraging him (far right taking pictures of Nathan left at the top of a tree).

What a cute little mom/grandma. :D

Enjoying her new-found freedom walking all around the park.

Seven Months

2010-09-03T16:30:00.003-07:00

Sitting, trying new foods (starting with veggies, of course), discovering, and rediscovering are at the very top of our little girl's list of 'likes' this month and we just can get enough of her cuteness.

Eli is enjoying having his little sister around. He may start to change his mind when she starts scooting around and slobbering on his toy cars and such. He is thrilled to finally be outside more and I'm noticing that it isn't as difficult to go places with two toddlers, at least not as difficult as I had imagined. We're all learning.

Sandy (CASA-court appointed something aid) gave Eli some super-fun sandbox toys AND a train whistle! WOW!

(sitting at the park)

(peas please)

(chair chat)

Court appointed, and monitored, visitations started up again after a few months of not happening. Birthmom was kind to let one of the court aids take a few pictures for us since these moments in history are important for children in this situation as they grow older and start to understand more.

Six Months

2010-09-03T16:30:00.001-07:00

Doctor appointment. Kayla's CASA was there for several of them. Very nice of her.

We also had a visit with Geneal, BF's mother, and Jennifer, biological older sister. Jennifer thinks Matt is an awesome brother, BF's younger brother.

Five Months

2010-09-03T16:29:00.000-07:00

Aaaaand we're back! For a few moments. Never stopped taking pictures though and now there are a TON to sort through. Except for March 2010. I unknowingly deleted those before I copied them to my computer (kicking myself).

During Kayla's visitations (since BP were working on adequate parenting skills) Eli and I would go to different places like the Littleton Museum, House of Bounce, raquetball court, different parks close by, and out to eat.

There were also a few good snow falls (early spring 2010) and Eli really enjoyed helping Vern plow and shovel the cul-de-sac sidewalks, walkways, and driveways. As well as taking breaks to catch the latest on sports and munch down some popcorn or apple slices. Those two sure do miss each other.

Four Months Old

2010-04-11T12:24:00.000-07:00

February 29th marks Kayla's fourth month of life. She is noticing her hands and other objects such as rattles and other toys hanging from her play mat or floor mobile. She enjoys swinging, listening to music, people singing and talking to her, and watching everything in her immediate environment.

Bathing and swimming seem to be two of her favorite activities. She also enjoys cuddles and being rocked/bounced/patted to sleep.

Mornings start as early as 6:15am when she wakes up cooing and babbling happily. By 7:30am she is ready for breakfast. After eating, burping (dry and juicy), and getting a clean diaper on, Kayla sits in her bumbo (infant chair) and watches everyone eat, make lunches, and even joins in on the breakfast-table conversations with her smiles and squeals and grunts.

Valentine's Day

2010-04-11T12:23:00.000-07:00

Kayla is very vocal these days exploring all of the sounds and pitches her little vocal chords can muster. I think in this sitting she just might be singing, "You Are My Sunshine". Getting those hand and foot prints wasn't easy since she is still a very wiggly baby. Bet she'll be a fast crawler... look out! :D

Months Two to Three

2010-04-11T12:14:00.000-07:00

Kayla's starting to get the hang of things. She is startled less and less. She practiced smiling for a few weeks and finally got both sides to do the job nicely (about 7 weeks old).

Now she's working on using her voice for more than just crying. She coos and babbles as much as possible while she's awake.

Bath time is getting easier.

Awake time is getting longer and longer too. What used to be a 10 minute cooing session has now turned into up to an hour of looking all about, babbling to everyone, watching Eli play music and dance, trying to sit up with assistance, and generally enjoying looking at things and listening to music (mostly classical and other soft, gentle tunes). She also LOVES being rocked to sleep in the swing, and of course, she likes to be held.

Her first Christmas was filled with activities, hugs, cuddles, and visits with cousins, great-grandparents, and all kinds of family and friends.

Newborn

2010-04-11T12:08:00.000-07:00

Emily started setting up a separate blog just for Kayla, but we decided it would be easier to just keep them together. So we're finally getting around to copying those posts over here.

Trinity, a beautiful healthy girl, was born on Thursday, October 29th at 9:02pm to Amber and Jeffery at the Denver Hospital.
Weight: 7 pounds and 4 ounces
Height: 21 inches

After a few days she had grown from 7.4 oz to 7.8 oz!

Trinity arrived at our home when four days old. Eli loves to hold and play with her, but we have to watch him carefully since he STILL doesn't understand that he can't be rough with her like he is with us. After a few months, we decided to call her Kayla.

She slept and cried A LOT for the first two months of her life. Everything startled her... sounds, temperature changes, diaper changes, and lighting. Aside from all that, she was great at processing food!!!!

New Baby Girl

2009-11-08T17:36:00.000-08:00

A week ago on halloween (the day before Eli's birthday), we got a call that there was a little baby girl who had just been born and needed a foster home. Turns out that we have distant relatives who happen to live in the same Denver suburb as we do, and they were trying to find any family who would be willing to care for this baby. Trinity Hope was born on 10/29 at 7 lbs 04 oz and 20" long, and she was placed in our care on Monday 11/2, 2:30pm a day after she was released from the hospital. She is Dale's dad's cousin's granddaughter, or in other words, Dale's second cousin once removed. She has an older sister (14 months old) who has been in the care of her grandparents (Dale's dad's cousin and her husband), and will be adopted by them soon.

Trinity's parents aren't able to care for her right now, but they will be working with the county social workers to try to regain custody of her. If things don't work out, then we may end up adopting her, but we are trying not to think that far ahead right now. For now we are just helping out, taking care of a cute little baby girl. We took her to the doctor this week and the doctor said that she is perfectly healthy. Seems like she cries more than Eli did though. Eli loves having a baby at home. When the caseworker brought her to our house, Eli sat down next to Emily and giggled and played with her - it was pretty cute. Here are some pictures that we took of her this week:

Emily thought the blue hat wasn't fitting - it took us a few days to get some girly clothes. Many thanks to all of the great ward members and friends who brought over tons of clothes and diapers and food! We really appreciated it.

OK. Now for a bunch of pictures that we never had time to post over the summer.

Emily decided that she and Eli would be a Who for Halloween. Costume designs were partly inspired by the Grinch Who Stole Christmas. She did a pretty good job and everyone thought Eli was the cutest, although he looked a little bit like a little girl with the hairdo and all the makeup Emily put on him.

Before Halloween, Emily had Eli try on a bunch of other halloween costumes.

Emily said that Eli wanted to try on the dresses, but I think every mom likes to play dress-up with their little boys while they're too young to know better. :) (ahem, Dale, then why is he smiling... not a sign of coercion here. He really enjoys dressing up. Hope he doesn't decide to start changing his clothes several times a day too. True, this mom does like to play dress-up with her children. :D)

Finally, a manly costume.

Trick-or-Treating at a neighbor's house.

Dale's parents and Grandma Alta came to visit for a few days at the beginning of October.

Eli loved taking Grandpa's dog (Sly) for a walk. Although it was more like Sly was taking Eli for a walk. Eli would just stand there until Sly decided to start walking and then Sly would pull Eli behind him wherever he wanted to go. If Sly stopped, then Eli would stop and wait patiently for Sly to start walking again.

Eli loves it when Grandpa reads to him.

Like we said before, Eli LOVES pretending to drive.

Over the summer, we went on vacation to visit Emily's parents who recently moved to South Dakota where they grew up. This is a picture of us with Emily's grandparents Bill and Joyce.

Emily's grandparents Norbert and Char.

Grandpa Norbert took us for a ride on their pontoon. Emily had fun being pulled along on a wakeboard.

We thought Eli would enjoy the boat ride, but he insisted on sitting in my lap most of the time. Probably because he didn't understand what was going on and load noises (the boat engine) scare him. Whenever he sees us handling anything with a power cord (drill, wheat grinder, iron, etc.), even if it isn't plugged in, he gets a really worried look on his face and says "All finished? All done?", meaning "You're not going to make any noise, right?", and asks for a hug. Then if we turn it on, he'll start crying and run away. I brought a new belt sander home one day and even though he had never seen a belt sander before, he knew that power cords mean noise, and I thought it was funny that he was scared of it even though he had never seen one and didn't know what it was.

Eli, Grandma Wendy, and great-grandpa Norbert waiting for Emily to fall off the wakeboard.

That vacation included some long car rides. Good thing Eli is good at entertaining himself (and mommy).

While on vacation, we stopped to visit Nick and Tiffany (Dale's brother) in Iowa. They fed us some pretty good food, and we found out that Eli loves corn on the cob.

Eli playing with Nick and Tiffany's kids: Brynli, Ari, and Chance.

Nick caught a fish and Eli gave it a kiss.

(Eli signing "fish")

Eli and Chance playing at the pool.

Eli loves steering wheels. He played with this one for about a half hour before we had to drag him away kicking and screaming.

Lookin' cool.

Eli loves tractors, so we thought he would love a ride on Uncle Nick's riding lawnmower. Turns out that the loud engine scared him and he wanted to get off.

Playing on the dock at Bill and Joyce's lake house. So glad Joyce had some toy cars to distract Eli from the unfamiliar surroundings.

Handing mommy a little flower.

We went for a bike ride a few months ago, and stopped to get something to eat.

Emily and Eli went to the zoo with Teila and RJ and Mylee.

We celebrated our anniversary at a park in Park City. Thanks to Grandma Becky for watching Eli for us!

Emily insisted on playing on the trampoline, even though the line consisted entirely of little kids. The kids kept trying to cut in front of her since they thought she was just standing there to watch.

Our baby isn't a baby anymore! Happy 2nd Birthday!

2009-11-01T21:07:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday Eli!!!! We have tons of pics we want to post, but we seem to have a hard time getting around to it, and there are other things going right now (stay tuned!), so we'll just post a couple special birthday pictures. Hopefully we'll be able to post more pictures later this week. It's hard to believe that it's been 2 whole years since we brought him home. He's the cutest, sweetest little boy that you could ever imagine.

Eli watching Mommy make the birthday "cake" (actually, brownies, since last year's birthday cake and icing didn't get Eli's approval). It was a tractor/digger theme since Eli LOVES construction machinery.

We were surprised that Eli actually blew out both candles without any help from us! He's getting so big.

Eli likes trying new things (dirt, rocks, flowers, snow, etc.). This time the "rocks" (mini M&Ms), "dirt" (brownie crumbles), and "snow" (powdered sugar) were mother-approved. He especially likes M&Ms. After he ate the tractor though, he went back to driving his car instead of finishing off his piece of "cake".

"A CAR!! A CAR!! I DRIVE!" Eli is also obsessed with driving. Whenever we go somewhere, he begs to get in the driver's seat and "drive". We can leave him in the driver's seat for a LONG time before he'll get tired of it and move on to something else. He often looks for anything that remotely resembles a steering wheel (eg, a swivel deck chair turned upside down, a toy-tractor tire, etc.) and stays occupied with "driving" it. So we figured he would really enjoy this birthday present. After he got in, the only way we could get him out was to offer cake, and even then he was pretty hesitant to climb out.

18 Months

2009-07-28T19:29:00.000-07:00

Giving Grandma a kiss.

Grandma and Grandpa stopped by to visit one week while on a road trip.

Eli is a dipper. Whenever we give him some sauce, he'll just keep dipping his chicken in it and sucking all the sauce off. If it doesn't go inside the tummy, it'll surely end up somewhere on the outside of his tummy. :)

Eli made a mother's day flower card in nursery at church. This would have been a cute picture to put on the card.

Playing in the sandbox at the park. Never passes up a chance to play in a puddle.

Emily gutted our new (used) car to clean all the carpets and seats. Eli loves to sit in the driver's seat and play. It didn't seem to bother him that he didn't have a seat to sit on this time.

Emily turned Eli into a father's-day card for Dale. :)

Getting ready for a haircut. He's holding a sucker to help pacify him. It sounded like a good idea at first, but pretty soon hair was all over his hands, and getting in his eyes. And rubbing your itchy eyes with hair-covered hands only makes the problem worse. And then the sucker quickly turned a little hairball, which didn't taste good anymore... Poor kid.

Playing with Daddy's glasses and looking brainy.

We flew to Utah in June so Emily and Dale's sister (Teila) could run a marathon. Eli had fun watching the airplanes.

Eli making the sign for "scared". It's soooo much cuter in person. We really need to get a video of it sometime.

Eli throwing a fit for something... It happens often enough that we have a hard time remembering what this one was about.

Helping Daddy mow the lawn. Hope he's just as eager to help when he's a teenager. :)

Eli loves to sit on the motorcycle. Whenever he hears a motorcycle outside, he'll say "psycho (cycle), vroom vroom, hemet" (helmet - cause Daddy always wears a helmet), "sit sit sit" (ie, I want to sit on the motorcycle). And no, Dale didn't put the dent in the tank - it was there when he bought it.

Emily insisted on taking one last picture of our car before we sold it.

He's so cute when he's sleeping.

Playing in a tree in the back yard. Bye bye!

February Through April

2009-05-03T19:00:00.000-07:00

Finally getting around to posting some more recent pictures...

Painting Easter eggs. Too bad the rain ruined the Easter egg hunt.

He's not very picky about what he eats, so the shells probably wouldn't even bother him. One day Emily handed him a half-peeled banana, and instead of biting from the peeled end, he bit off the other end and ate peel and all.

Reading stories with Grandpa and Grandma.

Yep, he's finally walking. It only took 15 months.

Playing with Grandpa's puppy. Eli LOVES animals. One night we went to visit a friend who has some cats, and Eli spent the whole night following one of them all around the house. Seems like he's too shy to touch them though. If they ever stop long enough for him to get close, he just sits there and stares at them.

Playing at the pool. Eli must have liked the goggles because he left them on for a while.

Swimming in the lazy river with Aunt Teila and cousin Mylee.

Mylee is almost as cute as Eli. :)

Playing with daddy's glove. Who needs toys when there's so many more interesting things around the house? :)

Helping mommy clean off the beaters after making icing.

Christmas Vacation

2009-02-08T15:46:00.000-08:00

We've been slacking on putting up new pictures, so these first few pics are a few months old. For Thanksgiving vacation, we drove to Utah and spent a week with Dale's family, and attended Emily's brother's wedding.

Exploring the shower.

Emily's brother was married in the Salt Lake temple the weekend before Thanksgiving, which was convenient timing for us to be able to attend. The extended family picture is not yet in our collection, we hope to get a copy soon.

On the airplane heading for Idaho to spend Christmas with Emily's parents. It was way past Eli's bedtime, but there was no way we were going to get him to go to sleep. So it wasn't a very pleasant ride.

Looks like Grandma is spoiling Eli again.

Eli enjoyed being entertained by Auntie Leah.

Playing with blocks. The Uncles, being the engineers that they are, had to put the blocks to good use and Eli wanted to be right there with them. About 14 different buildings were constructed and creatively destroyed.

It was so great to visit one of Emily's college roommates and her family while we were in Idaho.

Eli playing with his cousins a few days after Christmas.

Lots of time lounging, reading, playing with cars, trying to get in on a pool game, and crawling everywhere.

Spent a lot of time with Uncle Aaron.

Emily and Eli try to get to the library for story time once a week. He loves the magnets at the end of the bookshelves. He also loves giving the librarians more books to reshelve if Mommy isn't paying attention.

Toy snake and alligator, two of his favorite toys at Grandma Becky's.

Eli loves to "help" mommy with the dishes.

Uh-oh! Emily just had to get this picture of Eli 'helping' when she wasn't looking. Why is it so difficult to get after toddlers at times like this?

10, 11, 12.... Updates From The Last Few Months

2008-11-06T20:43:00.000-08:00

Good morning cute little bed-head! Independant eating. It seems he's having trouble getting that oatmeal IN his tummy.

I love fresh tomatoes from the garden. Eli does too!

Can't get enough of playing in the water... swimming, shower, bath, sprinkler, faucet... We'll have to get locks for the toilet lids pretty soon.

We find him sleeping like this every once in a while. He used to sleep like this a lot more often but he is obviously getting too big to continue the habit.

His hair doesn't stick up like it used to. It's getting longer.

There was a free zoo day in October and since Dale was out of town, we decided to get out of the house and brave the crowds. Eli made a barking sound for every animal that we came to, even the crane from this video clip. Did we mention that he loves dogs?

Em created a scarecrow costume for Eli this Halloween and visited a few neighbors. He loves how cozy-soft it is. He wouldn't keep his little hat on so it is pinned to the back of his costume. Yes, his hair is spritzed for volume.

We heard the neighbor's dogs and since Eli loves dogs we stop and mimick thier barks. 'Dog' has become his most signed word this month. Even more than 'eat' which he signs a lot.

(Shhhhhh--- I'm hunting Screamapillars.)

(...don't want to startle him)

In addition to leaves, grass, dirt, and flies, Eli enjoys chewing on rocks. No doubt, any dental hygenist would squirm at the thought. The sound is similar to fingernails on a chalkboard.

(more information on 'screamapillars' can be found at: http://screamapillar.ytmnd.com/ and also at http://www.thesimpsons.com/index.html; It appears that the episode is no longer available. I searched for hours and couldn't find it in the archives.)

Happy Birthday, Eli!!!!!

2008-11-01T11:56:00.000-07:00

Pizza for dinner

Looking at cards and opening up presents

Of course, we had to read them for him.

Playing with his cars and eating Skittles

We haven't been able to catch any of his sign language on video but we did catch his sound effects while playing with his cars! He's been doing this for a few weeks now and we think he is so adorable. Unfortunately, the sound here is not that great.

Scaring Mommy by getting too close to the fire. She quickly blew it out for him. He does a cute little puff of air when he tries to copy us.

What can we say, the boy hates cake. And now we know.

After cleaning up the cake fiasco, he wanted a cookie. And thanks to a certain little friend who likes snickerdoodles and NOT peanutbutter cookies, we have several dozen snickerdoodles... no joke. Some neighbors might be finding bags of cookies on their doorstep this week.

Boy's got style -- classy

Daddy wasn't home on the actual birthday day so before he went out of town, he took us out for a birthday lunch. We had his party after Daddy got back. Love'n dessert!

Camping Trip

2008-08-31T17:00:00.000-07:00

Eli's favorite toys to suck on are his brush and comb.

See the two bottom teeth coming in? Looks like the top ones might be coming in soon too.

Eli loves playing in the water at the rec center.

When we put Eli in the car seat, he hasn't figured out that he has to tip the bottle up to get the milk. Solution - tip the car seat back. :)

So many things to put in the mouth, and so little time...

We went on a family campout in Utah. Eli stared at the fire with a dazed look for a long time.

Ashley (Dale's sister-in-law) snuggling with Eli.

Uncle Luke has a baby boy (Todd) who is only a month younger than Eli. But Eli is so much more fun to hold. :)

Lil' cub finds the grub.

Zonked in the tent with one leg up on the air mattress.

Sitting on Uncle Russell's motorcycle.

Going for a walk with Grandpa.

Eli meeting great-grandpa Dale Francom for the first time.

Eli loves to touch other babies (this time it was Mylee - Eli's cousin). We have to be careful though because he still doesn't understand that it will make them cry when he pulls their hair.

Fun Days

2008-08-05T21:12:00.000-07:00

Eli can't crawl yet, but he gets up on his hands and pushes himself backwards just a little bit at a time. One day, he backed himself up until he was stuck under the bed.

Couldn't lift his head up since the bed was in the way, so he got tired and just laid down.

Emily bought a cute little hat for Eli before we went on another hike, to make sure that he wouldn't get sunburned.

Starting a hike up Quandary Peak. Didn't make it to the top though - we'll have to go back another time.

Whenever Eli hears a sound he doesn't recognize, he gets a worried look and looks around until he figures out where it's coming from. Today it was a dog in the neighborhood that startled him.

Visiting Teila (Dale's sister) and RJ and baby Mylee on the way to Utah for an overdue vacation.

Mount Evans

2008-07-13T18:41:00.001-07:00

Eli likes watching the washer, but the spin cycle scares him. :)

We drove up Mount Evans last weekend. It's the highest paved road in the US, up to a parking lot at 14,130 ft. The peak (in the background) is a 1/4 mile hike to get up to 14,264 ft.

A view from the summit. We had a hard time getting Eli to look at the camera since he was enjoying the view.

Look at those long eyelashes.

A herd of big-horn sheep looking for food near the parking lot. Too bad Eli didn't get to see them.

Eight Months and Growing

2008-07-06T20:05:00.000-07:00

Eli has been rolling over onto his stomach in the morning and then whining (and waking us up) since he couldn't roll back over. Fortunately, he learned how to roll onto his back today, and was rolling all over the floor. Shouldn't be long before he starts crawling and getting into stuff.

This was Eli's 4th-of-July outfit (thanks Sis. McLeish!)

Laying on the grass at the park with some friends, waiting for the fireworks to start. We sat Eli up and he watched the fireworks intently for a while, and then went back to playing with his toys. Also, notice that he usually holds his own bottle now - that's been a nice change for us. :)

Emily and Eli went to the Children's Discovery Museum with Laurie and Trish when the Aldermans were in town.

Eli sitting in a giant bird nest in the habitat area.

Kate was helpful pushing Eli everywhere.

Eli sitting on the firetruck...

... and then starting to get grumpy because the hat was a little heavy.

Laurie holding Eli at Kate's birthday party.

Teila (Dale's sister) and RJ had a baby on June 10th. Happy birthday Mylee!!

It doesn't seem that long ago that Eli was that small!

Playing in the back yard.

Emily made a ballerina costume for a neighbor's birthday party, and just had to try it out on Eli. Looks like Eli was enjoying it just a little too much. :)

Firsts: Hiking, Pie, and Rolling Over (Almost)

2008-06-08T19:54:00.000-07:00

We took Eli on his first hike this weekend. As usual, he acted pretty indifferent to the experience.

After about an hour of hiking, Eli started getting tired...

...and then he completely zonked, in spite of the bouncing with each step.

This was a surprise: Eli hasn't ever rolled over on his own, and we usually lay Eli down to sleep on his back since he cries if he has to be on his tummy for more than a couple minutes. But one day we found him sleeping almost on his stomach. We figured that he probably fell asleep while trying to reach for one of the teddy bears at the head of the crib.

Eli plays with his toes a lot now. He even tries to suck on them every now and then.

Dale had a birthday recently, so we let Eli have his first taste of pie. He loved it, but had a hard time figuring out how to get it into his mouth. He usually picks stuff up by closing his whole hand around it, which makes it a little difficult to transfer it into his mouth. :)

Bath time again... Emily decided to try a spikey hairdo this week.

Special Weekend

2008-05-25T19:24:00.000-07:00

Eli and cousin Todd having a good time in the stroller.

Eli is looking hopefully for a taste.

Getting a picture with the judge at Eli's case hearing.

Dale's and Emily's parents came to the hearing with us.

Kelly (our caseworker) holding Eli outside the courtroom.

Outside the Denver temple after our sealing.

Emily's parents.

Dale's parents.

A few of Dale's siblings (and their spouses and kids).

Bath-Time Fun

2008-05-11T20:32:00.000-07:00

First time sitting up in the bath tub. Actually, he can't sit up by himself yet, so he tends to slip forward or sideways every few minutes.

Looks like he's bald because he just had water dumped over his head. Had to post a large picture here so you can make out his adorable, wet eyelashes. (For best results, click on the picture to see it full-size.)

Showin' some attitude

Eli recently learned how to find his feet, and now he plays with them all the time, which can be kind of annoying when we're trying to change his diaper.

Look how big he's getting! He doesn't fit in the tub anymore...

Flirting with older women already. ;) We love hanging out with the Hansens.

Messy Meals

2008-04-27T19:42:00.000-07:00

Bowling, Swings, and Puppies

2008-04-13T18:32:00.001-07:00

We met Dale's parents at Teila's house this weekend. Grandma loves taking care of Eli.

Teila's dogs love Eli too, but Eli's not so sure he likes his ears being licked. At first he cried whenever they barked (sudden loud sounds scare him), but he got used to it after a while.

Kickin' back on the couch with a good book.

Emily likes to read to Eli...

... but Eli seems to think books are just another thing to slobber on.

We had some free time one day, so we went bowling. We found out that Emily needs more practice. :)

Eli still has the cutest smile in the world.

Eli fell asleep and the bink gradually slipped out of his mouth, but his tongue kept moving like he was still sucking on it. It was really cute.

We started letting Eli drink from a sippy cup recently. He can't hold it by himself yet, but he's learning fast.

Sitting in a swing at the park. He acted as indifferent to it as he has towards riding in the stroller or swimming at the pool.

Denver Car Show

2008-03-30T19:46:00.001-07:00

We went to the Denver International Auto Show this week. Having never been to a car show before, we were expecting to see a lot of cool, futuristic cars with new fuel sources. But it was mostly just a show for the new car models coming out this year, so we were a little disappointed. But they did have a few interesting cars, like this ginormous F-650 pickup.

Standing in front of 4 lamborghinis. You can see how excited Eli was about them. Oh well, maybe in a few years he'll show a little more interest.

The price on this one is only about $400,000.

Eli still gets a lot of comments about his bright blue eyes and long eyelashes...

... and his smile is contagious.

Eli doesn't like being on his stomach, but we try it every once in a while when he's in a really good mood.

Eli isn't very excited about using a spoon. :) Just kidding - he's been doing great with rice cereal. This week we'll see how he likes vegetables.

Out for a Walk

2008-03-23T18:50:00.001-07:00

Dale had work off Friday so we took advantage of the warmer weather and went for a walk as a family. Dale is more likely to agree to participate in "exercise" type activities if we have a place to go so we stopped by King Soopers for some cupcakes, milk, and a few other grocery items.

Eli peeks out over his bundle of blanket every once in a while. He usually falls asleep once the stroller starts moving.

Stroller Rides and Rice Cereal

2008-03-16T17:57:00.001-07:00

Warmer weather means more time outside. Eli
loves going for a ride in the stroller.

We started feeding him rice cereal this week. It's
messy, but he seems to like it.

Seems like he's always trying to get a finger or two into his mouth.

Hangin' out on the couch.

RJ and Teila (Dale's little sister) stopped by to visit
us on Saturday. They are expecting a girl in June!!

Moab Half Marathon

2008-03-09T17:47:00.000-07:00

We went to Moab over the weekend so that Emily could
run in the Canyonlands Half Marathon. It was her first time,
and she did well.

Where's Waldo (aka Emily)?

Emily just about to cross the finish line.

Dale's parents met us in Moab so they could see how big
Eli is getting (and to cheer for Emily at the finish line).

It'll be a while before Eli can reach the gas pedal (phew!)

Arches National Park visitor center.

Eli has the cutest pouting face. It's usually his warning
that he'll start screaming soon if we don't figure out
what he wants. :)

There's the cute pouting face again...

...and a big grin seconds later - teenagers aren't the
only ones who are moody. :)

Eli doesn't ever seem to get tired or bored of looking
up at the mobile above his crib and studying the animals.

Emily takes Eli to the pool every once in a while.
He still doesn't think it's anything special.

He's always trying to get his fingers in his mouth, even
when he's sleeping. Emily prefers that he suck on the
pacifier, but the thumb sure is cute when he's sleeping.

Four Months Old

2008-03-02T19:53:00.000-08:00

With those big blue eyes, you almost don't even notice the drool. :)

Trying to figure out what Eli thinks is so entertaining
about the light on the ceiling.

Eli is quick to give a smile for the camera.

Splish Splash!

2008-02-24T19:26:00.001-08:00

Getting Eli ready for a bath.

Getting undressed is still his favorite part of bath time.
His laugh is so cute!!

Going Out With My Baby

2008-02-17T16:35:00.000-08:00

Getting ready to go to the movies for the first time.
Eli slept through most of the movie. During the loud
parts he kicked a lot, but he didn't cry at all. After
the movie, he got more than a few comments about
how cute he is and what a good movie-goer he is.

Eli still thinks it's funny when we tug on his shirt sleeve.

Emily's family knows she detests peas, so they find
every opportunity they can to tease her about it.
Auntie Kirsten thought this outfit was a funny
Christmas present. Emily thinks that it's appropriate
that Eli is sticking his tongue out. :)

Hangin' out with friends.

Eli sure has a cute laugh.

More Play, Less Sleep

2008-02-10T18:44:00.000-08:00

Eli used to just flail his arms randomly (often
hitting himself in the face). Apparently he can
control them well enough now to reach up and
play with dangling toys.

Feeling a soft blanket on his face helps him fall asleep.

Eli with a swim diaper on, ready to go swimming in
the pool at the rec center. He acted pretty indifferent
to being in the water, and eventually just fell asleep.

Playing peek-a-boo after a bath.

Innocent Looks and Laughs

2008-02-03T19:19:00.000-08:00

"Thank heaven for little boys." (That's what his outfit says.)

Look at that innocent face!

Eli thinks it's funny when we tug on his shirt to pull it off.
I wonder why babies think certain mundane things are
funny, and why they give blank stares for things I think
they should think are funny...

Notice the drool bridging his lip and my shirt. :)
This was shortly after Eli spit up on my shirt
(we got a graphic picture right when it happened,
but it turned out too blurry), so Emily wants to
make me some shirts that say "Dad's Burp Rag"
and "Real men have urp on their shirts."

Three Months Old

2008-01-31T19:54:00.001-08:00

Here are some family pictures that were taken over Christmas break.

Emily's brothers and sisters + mom and dad.

Emily's WHOLE family, including spouses and kids.

Emily's parents and their grandchildren.

Pictures from this week:

It used to be that Eli only took up half of the changing
table. Now he almost touches the front and the back
of the table at the same time when he's stretched out.

One little fist just isn't enough to suck on.

Cute when he's awake, even cuter when he's sleeping.

Eli seems to be happy with his first haircut. :)

New Acquaintances

2008-01-28T19:29:00.000-08:00

Twelve Weeks

2008-01-25T13:49:00.001-08:00

One of Eli's recent hobbies: making spit bubbles.

Eli is getting good at holding his head up,
although it still does wobble around a lot.

This picture makes it look like he's crawling. Good
thing we don't have to worry about that for a few
more months.

Emily trying out a rock-star hairdo? Maybe he
just needs a haircut.

Sunday Naps

2008-01-20T19:56:00.001-08:00

Eli isn't attached to a teddy bear yet.
Emily just likes making him pose. :)

Eli supervising Emily's cooking

This is Eli's favorite sleeping position

Eleven Weeks

2008-01-17T18:28:00.000-08:00

Eli peeks out every once in a while, as he's falling asleep, to make sure we're still there.... or something.

Getting Ready For Bed

2008-01-13T17:44:00.000-08:00

Giving Mommy loves.

Good night sweet Eli.

Eli's cooing and smiling.

Ten Weeks

2008-01-10T22:20:00.000-08:00

Eli being entertained by the stuffed-animal mobile
hanging above his crib.

A full tummy usually puts him in a good mood.

Drying off after a bath.

Most Popular Baby At Church

2008-01-06T18:20:00.000-08:00

Today was Eli's first day in our ward, so he got a
lot of attention, and a lot of comments about how
cute he is. Hope he doesn't get a big head. :)

Nine Weeks

2008-01-03T20:40:00.001-08:00

Little boy... big, big bed

Eli trying to help hold the bottle

Dale trying to get stuff done while Eli sleeps

Eli's First Christmas

2007-12-30T23:17:00.001-08:00

Eli's first airplane ride - he didn't cry at all (phew!!)

Taking a picture with the captain

Crashing at Grandma and Grandpa's house

Auntie Leah (Emily's youngest sister)

Grandma Wendy

Look! It really is Grandpa!

Auntie Beth (Emily's younger sister)

Uncle Dan (Emily's younger brother)

Auntie Kirsten (Dan's wife) and Eli making funny faces at each other

Getting ready for a bath - what a cutie

Eli often gives big smiles after he's done eating

Don't touch my binkie!!

Sis. McLeish coaxing more smiles out of Eli

Sunday outfit

Seven Weeks

2007-12-19T21:33:00.001-08:00

Out For a Walk

2007-12-16T20:21:00.000-08:00

Going out for a walk

Six Weeks Old

2007-12-13T19:50:00.001-08:00

Fell asleep praying

Emily thinks he looks like a little pink shrimp
when he's hunched over and being burped.

Kids are expected to read younger and younger these days...

Eli's pick of the week. :)

Eli isn't very photogenic sometimes.

Cute Little Eli

2007-12-09T21:07:00.000-08:00

Just after a bath...

Eli laying with Dale to help him fall asleep

Five Weeks Old

2007-12-06T07:26:00.001-08:00

Birthday presents from Grandma Wendy

Thank you Grandma

Out for a walk.

Late Nights For All

2007-12-02T21:40:00.001-08:00

We love snuggle-time.

No more newborn diapers for this growing boy.

Flex those muscles. :)

Four Weeks Old

2007-11-30T10:16:00.001-08:00

One month, 9 lbs., and growing into three-month outfits.

Sweetest Eli

Yes, it's true.........

.... I'm in my very own room! I'm just growing.

"L" is for LOVE.

(I'm watching you too.)