half a year

I has been six months  since Elias has graced our family with his winsome baby self.  In half a year Eli has grown to be 23 lbs, and 30" long.  Major milestones this month are sitting unassisted, almost learning to crawl, and growing two toofers--which he decided to do the day we left for Hawaii (literally) which made for a fussy & very long flight for mom.  Eli's interests this month: splashing, yelling, growling and being involved--somehow--in whatever Sadie is doing.  He also likes to be in his Ergo carrier a lot.  Once at that height he  uses his lightening fast reflexes and long reach to grab and throw things off the counters and other reachable surfaces.  He loves anything loud and exciting (aka cousin Killian).  He does not love sitting still.  Eli has tasted a few solid foods this month, none of which have pleased his discerning palate except for caribou.  Good thing dad's going hunting for some more of those next week; I get the feeling that by the time this kid turns one he will be able to eat a whole one by himself. I can hardly believe that half a year has already gone by--it is an every-day kind of wonder to get to know this small human and to treasure these moments and milestones, each and every one because man, do they go by fast.

 We love you so Mr. Baby

a little bit of cousins

I've been sorely neglecting the blog lately, but can you blame me with this kind of adorability (can that be a word? It should in this case) to distract me:

seriously.... is that not the most baby cuteness that ever did grace a fish box?

And let's not fail to mention the sunshine and sandy shores of Oahu.  Thanks sister, for moving to a place that makes family reunions double as tropical vacations!  It was the most fun, and a real treat, to reunite--or just unite--these adorable, squishy cousins.  And the big(er) cousins, weeeellll.....they played hard, and drove each other a little nutso, but that's just how it goes, and at the end of the day, there was a lot of love to go around.

And that's what's best about family, right?  No matter how many awkward timeouts you get put in, you still love each other like crazy cakes.

wordless Wednesday

Sadie 2.5

I didn't take a ton of pictures over the holidays, mainly because I didn't want a camera stuck to my face the whole time. Sometimes it's nice to sit back and enjoy the moment without worrying about getting your lens adjusted just right.  And Christmas with a 2 1/2 year old is oh so magical and fun, even if it means singing Santa Clause is Coming to Town and Jingle Bells an infinite amount of times.  Thank you Sadie, for adding so much joy to our lives, and keeping us on our toes; you are such a delight.

Elias at four months

At four months old Eli is as jolly and Rubenesque of a baby as you could possibly wish for.  Get a load of those cheeks! No matter how much we nibble them they just keep getting bigger.  (Also, when we do this Sadie scolds us saying, Eli not food!) Big developments this month--Eli really, really wants to sit up and be a part of the upright world.  Still working on that, but at least he thinks the tipovers are good times.  Rolling over is now routine, and the super puking abilities of this kid have been downgraded to just moderate puking.  Other big news, Eli discovered his penis this week, and like 99.9% of all males in the world, he is pretty excited about it.  It sure makes diaper changes interesting, I'll give you that.  This kid has a good sense of humor, and his favorite comedian at the moment is his sister.  It doesn't matter what she does, it gets him to chuckling, which makes her laugh, which is a sweet sound to this mama's ears.  Happy four months of life little big guy, we sure do love you!

snow days

After a very dry and windy early winter here in Palmer we finally got our wish for a white Christmas.  A really white one if all this snow sticks around. It does my heart good to see snow falling straight down for a change, and landing on trees even! We have been out playing with the grommits.  Sadie got her first sled today, and after a couple runs down the pasture hill, Loren towed her all around the trails in our woods while she sang "Jingle Bells" at the top of her lungs.  Christmas with a two-point-five year old  is so awesome.  Eli only adds to the merriment by stealing my qiviut cowl and looking oh so cute and photogenic.

and just for fun...dug up these pictures of Sadie's first December. I am a lucky mama to have so many sweet memories with my little girl, and to be making new ones with this little man.

Wishing you all a beautiful holiday season.  Cherish this time with your loved ones--hold them close to you heart and say a prayer for all the grieving families in Connecticut- may they find some peace and comfort.

happy endings and beginnings

 

These pictures have nothing to do with this blog post, except that I have hardly any pictures of Eli and me together, and since this sort of doubles as his baby book, I needed to represent.  Now...onto the good, great and better news.

 Last week ended on a really sad note with my doggo Cash disappearing into thin air on Friday.  After 3 days of searching and posting flyers and haunting craigslist with no sign of him a kind lady called us on Monday and told us she had seen our flyer on the bulletin board at the grocery store, and then saw Cash running and terrified in her neighborhood on the way home.  Since he wouldn't go to her, she went back, got our number and called, and Loren was able to drive to the location she had seen him and find him.  We are so, so happy.  I had honestly written him off as a goner after days of hiking around the trails in the woods by our house, and driving all the neighborhood streets looking in the ditch for him. Since his return I have received a couple of calls from people saying they saw him here and there, and that poor pup--he was very lost, and pretty much ran an ultra-marathon trying to find his way home.

Our kind new neighbors who Loren met while looking for Cash dropped off a big stack of firewood, and our other neighbor who is a vet came over and checked Cash out to make sure he was whole and healthy after his journey.

To add to the great happiness of our prodigal pup's return, Eli and Sadie got a new cousin yesterday!  Loren's brother and his wife are now the proud parents to a beautiful baby girl (born on my Sister in Law's birthday no less!) And Dimitri gets to be a big brother:)

But that's not all...my mom and her husband who I haven't seen in 8 months get to come stay with us for two weeks.  Yay for Elias who gets to meet his other Grandma and Grandpa for the first time, Yay for Sadie who is already plotting out all the projects she wants grandma Jones to help her with (getting a Christmas tree and baking a gingerbread house and making more bird feeders is what she told me today, but the list is ongoing). And Loren is stoked to have Grandpa Ernie here to help him with his mission to fell the standing dead trees on our property and buck them up into firewood.  

So... in this season of thanksgiving, I am so so thankful, and excited for the warm and busy winter months we have ahead of us!