Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Don't try this at home

Litte Pea is crazy about The Backyardigans. The first thing he does when we get home at the end of the day is point to the TV and say "dung, dung, dung." Yep, that's what it sounds like! His foster family told us back in May that this was on of his favorite shows and, well, they were right! Now, I do not recommend you try some of these moves at home, especially going in circles!


BUSTED!!! Little Pea was actually CAUGHT sitting still! It was just for a brief moment, but it does happen from time to time. In fact, our babysitter told another parent that, in her 30 years of watching children, she has never had a child as active as Little Pea (hmmm...). So, now you can really appreciate the rarity of this photo. ;)


Friday, November 21, 2008

FFF - For Crying Out Loud

This week's theme is crying (see http://www.kissthefrog4me.blogspot.com/) ! We have seen some tantrums from Eli, but they are usually over within minutes (so far!). He likes to throw himself on the floor or throw other things on the floor when he is mad. Ignoring his little tantrums generally works very well! For the most part, however, he is a very laid back boy.

Not happy at dinner for some reason, but....
here he is a minute later! He can turn it on and off like a switch!

Sunday, November 16, 2008

Catch-up

Life has felt a little crazy the last few weeks! I have good intentions to post more often, but...Throughout the day I have these brief moments of inspiration for post ideas, but by the time I get home...POOF, it's gone!

I went back to work about 3 weeks ago and the transition has actually gone much smoother than I anticipated. I believe that having 6 months home with Little Pea made a world of difference. I can't imagine how much more difficult it would have been if I had returned to work after the typical 12 weeks! So, with that in mind, I feel very lucky!

Dropoffs at the babysitter's were pretty rough for about the first two weeks. She literally had to peel Eli off of me as he screamed and wailed holding his arms out to me. UGH. That was awful!When I would pick him up after work, he would run to me crying and just lay his head on my shoulder while I received the daily update. But, alas, for the past week, Eli is running to the toy room before I'm even out the door. Sigh...I suppose that is a good thing! But, I LOVE seeing him run to mama at the end of the day with a huge smile and open arms! He seems to really love being with the other kids, especially one older boy. Eli just adores him. He also seems to have a little arch rival. His first week, he scratched this little girl on the face with a toy and the next week she sought revenge. He looked like he had been attacked by a cat. Terrible scratches ALL over his face. It was quite shocking. Thank goodness it has healed quickly, though Eli has kept his distance from this little girl! Smart boy.

Overall, we're still settling in to our new routine. It makes our evenings and weekends feel even that much more precious. Eli is talking more and more. The other day he surprised us by saying "penguin" when looking at his animal book and today at the grocery store he asked for a "cracker." He also loves to introduce his "da" and "mama" to other people. It's very cute! In addition, he has figured out that his highchair can also be used as a ladder to access higher places. Yea, he pushed his ladder over to the counter, turned on the toaster oven and then opened it. This boy has no fear. Here are a few pics from the last week.

Eli decided one apple was not enough so he also took mine!


Enjoying one of our last nice days! We had our first snow on Saturday. YUCK! Not ready for cold!


Sunday, November 9, 2008

In Memory


We said goodbye to my grandmother this weekend. After several years struggling with Alzheimer's Disease, her suffering finally came to an end. As the minister at her funeral said, this time came with a conflict of emotion. I certainly felt a sense of relief knowing that my grandmother is no longer suffering, but the loss that comes with the finality of death is always difficult and she will be missed dearly.
My grandmother lived a very long and full life; her struggle with Alzheimer's was just a tiny blip in her lifespan and it is not how she will be remembered by all of us who loved her. She was born in 1919 and it is incredible to think that women did not even have the right to vote when she was born! She lived through the Great Depression, World War I & II, the Korean War, Vietnam, the Civil Rights Movement, etc, etc. It is amazing to reflect on how much our world has evolved and changed just in my grandmother's lifetime. She is survived by my grandfather, who is 92 years old. My grandparents would have celebrated their 69th wedding anniversary on 12/31. Isn't that absolutely incredible? What an inspiration.
My grandmother was an amazing, unforgettable, and feisty woman. She lived her life passionately and that passion spread to those around her. She worked very hard and she also played very hard! One of her many passions was playing games. She had a closet full of boardgames suitable for all ages. She especially loved to play cards and she was ruthless! She played to win and, well, I think she did always win! This was also a lesson she taught us in life: give it everything you've got and never, ever give up. Oh, and, make sure you are having fun along the way!
Another lesson my grandmother taught me through the way she lived her life was to never apologize for who I am and never compromise what is important to me. My grandmother had very strong convictions that guided her life and she stood strong by those convictions. She never wavered on what was important to her: her faith and her family. My grandmother was especially uncompromising when it came to family traditions, like Christmas Eve. Every year, we gathered at my grandparents house (along with all my aunts, uncles, and cousins) on Christmas Eve and we always had a family service before ANY gifts were opened. This involved gathering together to read the Christmas story, sing hymnals, and focus on the true meaning of the holiday. Of course, as kids we would grumble, but we all loved it and it brought us all closer together as a family, even if for just one night out of the year. These memories are so special to me and such an ingrained part of who I am.
My grandmother and I did not always see eye to eye on various things, but that was okay because through that she challenged me to be a stronger person, to think more critically about my values and beliefs, and to not apologize for them, even if they were not the same as hers. Unfortunately, it took me awhile to figure some of these things out and I did not get the opportunity to thank her for teaching me to push the boundaries of my own convictions. That, I suppose, is the struggle for those left behind after a death. But, my grandmother wouldn't care about that. My guess is she would not want any of us to dwell on regrets because that would just be a waste of time and energy! Get up and do something, she would say!
Thank you, grandma. I love you and will miss you dearly.

Wednesday, November 5, 2008

A New Beginning

While we breathe, we hope, and where we are met with cynicism and doubt and those who tell us we can't, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people: Yes We Can.
-Barack Obama
President-Elect of the United States of America

Sunday, November 2, 2008

Visit to the studio

We took Eli to get 18 month photos done. I am not a huge fan of portrait photos, but I think these turned out pretty good! I went into this with the intention of only buying 3 poses. Well, they took 46 shots and how do you choose? We managed to narrow it down to 6. Thankfully, they gave us a disk with all 46 photos so here are a few!