Is it Wrong?

Is it wrong when a Mom laughs at her three-year-old taking a hit to the groin? He was in a little bit of pain, but I...ahem...the Mom just couldn't help but chuckle a bit. Luckily Dad was there to console.

Nillup

Most days Elias makes up silly words, but every once in a while he tries really hard to get his point across...and it usually takes me a while to get it. A few days ago, it went like this:

Elias: I love chocolate and nillup.
Erica: Nellip? (I often can't tell what he is trying to pronounce)
Elias: No, nillup.
Erica: Nillep?
Elias: NO, NILLUP.
Matt: Vanilla?
Erica: Oh, vanilla!
Elias: Don't talk about it.

6:30...No Way

Both kids slept until about 6:30 this morning. BOTH. That makes for a good morning! You kid-free readers may be thinking that is early, but 6:30 is sleeping in when one or the other is usually up at 5:00. I'm not counting on it happening again tomorrow, but it sure would be nice. Maybe I'll sleep with my fingers crossed.

A ME Day

Back in June, my good friend Carissa planned a day that was just for me. It was a Friday where there was no music class, the kids were at school (a rare Friday), and I had finally found the time to be a bit carefree. We took Sumo for a walk, had a wonderous brunch, went to a movie, indulged in cupcakes and chatted the day away. I have only had a handful of days to myself since (really just by myself), but none of them have been quite as special. Great friends rock!

Show and Tell

Since Elias has moved up to primaries, it has been a very exciting summer at school. They went on four field trips (Matt went on some too!) taking the public bus to the botanic gardens, the zoo, the art museum, and the library. Every month, Elias has snack day where he gets to bring one book and one treasure for show and tell (and I have to bring in snacks for his class). With much persuasion from me, he has taken:

The Bear Snores On and his bag of instruments (I tried to get him to take his guitar)
Of Thee I Sing (Obama book) and his camera
The Three Little Javelinas and the quilt Great Grandma Ruth made for him
Bugs for Lunch and a cow eraser

As you can see, I started off strong, but am starting to lose my coercion skills. A cow eraser? What next month, his dirty socks?

Elias' True Best Friend

Julia is truly Elias' best friend from school. Sadly, she started at a new school just a few weeks ago. She has a new baby sister, Zoe, so she is going to school a little closer to home (and a bit cheaper too). Lucky for us she told her Mom she really missed Elias, so they came over for a play date a few weekends ago. I remember last year Mimi telling me that Julia was so mean to Elias, but he would wait for them to arrive at school every morning and run to open the door. He does love Jules. I guess Elias can claim he learned how to handle women at a very early age.

Conditional Best Friends

A few weeks ago, Elias started telling me I was his best friend (often along with Olo (Old Yellow) and Sumo). I've decided he must be hanging out with the girls at school. Recently he has become more demanding:

"You can be my best friend if you eat your ice cream." (I'm down with that)
"You can be my best friend if you play with me." (Not quite as good as ice cream)

Yesterday it was:

"You can be my best friend if you poop in your pants." (Uh, no thank you)

I guess he must be hanging out with the boys at school too.

Seven (Plus) Months

Thanks for the Duck, Duck, Moose outfit Posts (and cute little socks)!

A long overdue seven month Ezra update:

-Loves to be outside
-Would rather play than drink milk (Why do my kids hate eating?)
-Has the cutest giggle when he is tickled or attacked by Elias
-Has tried rice cereal, sweet potatoes (his favorite), avocado (really doesn't like it), bananas, peas
-Loves to chew on paper and cords (How do they know what they aren't supposed to get into?)
-Prefers food over milk any day
-Nods his head up and down over and over again (He is a yes man)
-Still says da, da, da
-Always crawls towards the doggie bowl (I thought they couldn't remember stuff at this age. How does he always know where it is?)
-Kicks when he drinks his milk
-Tries to roll over every time you change his diaper
-Was frustrated when he couldn't crawl. After he crawled (8/1/11) for a few days became frustrated that he couldn't walk (continues to be frustrated)
-Pulls himself up on everything he can (First time 7/14/11)
-Climbs the stairs at school (8/12/11)
-Will probably be walking by 9 months (God save us)
-Wants YOU to visit!

Dreadful Words

This morning as Elias is crouched down in the dinning room, he says, "Look Mom. I found an ant hill." While Elias isn't usually 100% accurate, there is almost always some truth to his statements. Sigh. Anyone know a good exterminator?

What Has Happened to Me?

Today I looked at my watch, saw 6:20 p.m. and thought, "Boy, it is getting late." Seriously? I never have been a late nighter (bed by 9:00), but kids are definitely making it worse. We went to hear Elias' Music Together teacher, Matthew, play music at a restaurant today. 7:00 is Elias' bedtime, so when I saw it was almost 6:30, it meant it was time to call it a night. Any bets on how soon until I start taking advantage of the Early Bird Special?

THE nap

While we were staying at Marjie and Paul's for the family reunion, Elias' room was Paul's office. Little did any of us know just how much trouble an unsupervised Elias would be in a new place. Right after we arrived, it was time for a nap. We read books, sang our song, tucked Elias in and headed downstairs while he "napped". About an hour later, Matt found Elias with the metal innards of the file cabinet around his head, the rock garden sand dumped out on the floor and just about every cabinet within reach emptied. Needless to say, when we came back in July, Paul's office was pretty much empty....BEFORE it was time for Elias' nap.