12+ Mos

Wow, last week was the hardest week of my young motherhood.  Eli was such a crank!  He was fussy, squirmy, hard to console, like I said before cranky and really just difficult!  Mealtime which usually goes okay was a royal battle and he cried for an hour at the gym and did not sleep well at all.  I cried two or three times  last week just because I didn't know what to do.  It was just hard....and then Jeff got sick and it got even harder.  I kept thinking maybe a tooth is coming in so I gave him Tylenol and Motrin but here we are a week later and no tooth.  Looking back I think he must have been sick with the cold that took his daddy out of commission for a few days but he still needs to listen and follow directions.  Thankfully, that week ended and a new week began and while we still struggle with some things for the most part my precious little Eli is back.  Actually, making it through this rough patch makes me  feel like an official mom and opened the door for some reflection.

Watching my child be his natural self really reminded me of human nature or sin nature.  It really makes me think about the love that God has for us His children and what an amazing love it is.  For example, Eli has been hitting lately and we wondered where he picked up this nasty little habit.  Well, I don't think he learned it from anyone it is just how we are as humans.  Naturally we are disobedient and want to push the limits and for some reason God loves us in spite of our humanity and in spite of our disobedience.  He wants a relationship with us so much He gave His perfect son to atone for our sinful nature.  He always wants more for us and longs for obedience from us.  He longs for obedience from us because he knows what's best.  This is exactly how I feel about Eli.  I want him to obey for his own benefit now and down the road.  I have been praying with him about choosing to obey and praying for Jeff and I as we teach and train Eli to love the Lord.  So after a week of pain I just feel renewed.  I know it is a long, hard road ahead but I am trusting the Lord for wisdom and joy as I parent Eli everyday.

These are a few of my favorite things....

Just wanted to let you all know what Eli's favorite things are...at least right now.  He is currently enjoying self-feeding and doing it well.  He loves Blitz and has learned out to pet not hit and often tries to share Blitzie's bed.  Eli is so proud that he can pull up and is doing it all over the house.  He has always loved to toss his toys wherever he goes and now he can do it on tables, bookshelves, chairs and whatever else he can pull up on.  He is now cruising around furniture and doing a great job.  It is so exciting to watch him learn and grow.  Eli also loves giving kisses, giving smiles, making messes and playing with his books and toys.  So these are a few of Eli's most favorite things and they manage to keep us pretty busy too! 

I think I also failed to mention that right before he turned one he finally got his first tooth and I think based on the drool and chew fascination that tooth number two may not be far behind.  Yea!!!  Hope you enjoy the cute pics of our little man.

Happy Birthday to You!

On May 24, 2008 we celebrated Eli's first birthday.  I am still is disbelief that a whole year has passed, it seems that just yesterday we were bringing our beautiful boy home from the hospital.  We had a great party!  Lots of food, family, fun and work.  I still can't believe how much work a goes into a birthday party.  We would like to say a special thanks to Mimi and Papa who let us borrow their house for the celebration.  We also want to tell everyone who came thank you for making Eli's party extra special and for all the wonderful gifts.  He has already enjoyed playing with all of his new things.  There are way too many thoughts about the party for me to jot them all down so I thought I would let pictures do the talking.  Thank you Shannon, Mandy and Jon for all the great shots!