Nanny Drama...Once and For All!

If you have been following this blog at any point in the last year then you are well aware of some of the nanny drama that Keith and I have experienced. First, we had our first nanny get engaged and tell us she was moving to Alaska. Nanny #2 had to follow her husband to Corsicana for a teaching job. ....and Nanny #3 was alright, but just didn't work out (scheduling and overall dissatisfaction). So, we moved onto Nanny #4! Great girl, young, good head on her shoulders, ect...ect..(or so we thought). #4 was doing great for us, but I still mentioned to Keith that we might want to consider day care, because it would save us some money. He wasn't exactly a fan of the idea, but Eli is old enough to benefit from the interaction and extra education. So, that was the end of that conversation...in a nutshell.

Fast forward about 3-4 days. I get a text at 6:30am from #4 saying she has food poisoning. Keith calls in sick and spends the day with Eli. I ask that he use some of his spare time to stop by the daycare for a tour to get educated on the place...just in case (he does, and was pleased). Next day...#4 calls in sick AGAIN, ugh! Drama! She comes back to watch Eli on Thursday, and had already requested off for Friday (b/c it was her birthday). So, my mom watches Eli on Friday...when around 3pm I get a text from #4....YES, A TEXT!! Saying something to the extent of 'I have found another job with benefits and it starts on Monday, sorry for the inconvenience'. Yes...that short and sweet...and again, VIA TEXT! Argh!

I flip...immediately call the daycare ask if they can work miracles for us (as they weren't supposed to have an opening until May). Well, lucky for us the opening got pushed up until March 18th...but we still needed a miracle. After an hour of them figuring out how to move kids around, they came to our rescue and said that he could start Monday, hooray! So, after that problem was solved I made sure to get #4 on the phone. I stern fully, but politely told her how unprofessional and disrespectful she was. Also, how horrible it was that she left us in a lurch in such short notice, and she needed to know that as a future mother. I also learned that her 'food poison' was a cover for some interview days....yeah, awesome. Argh! Well...the conversation didn't go anywhere, but I did get my point across!

So...Monday arrives! We get Eli ready for school and both take him up there. When we arrive we meet his teacher to which he holds out his arms and asks to be held by her. He took to her and continued to be carried around the room like a little koala bear. No tears on our departure...but a ton after we left. Day #1: No sleep, hardly ate and cried all day. #2 : Little sleep, little food, little less crying. #3: More sleep, more food, less less crying. #4: SICK! Yes...little guy didn't even make it through the first week before getting sick. We got the call to pick him up and then had to find care for Friday. He has been recovering from a throat infection all weekend and is going to hang around the house with me tomorrow for extra precaution.

Needless to say, the last week has been drama filled. But, it was divine intervention and things will totally work out for the best. We are very excited about the potential that the daycare has for him and bought some vitamins today to help boost his immune system. :)

A Year of Eli!

Ok so, I have given myself the impossible task of picking pictures of my favorite person in the whole world, over an entire year! Yes...impossible. Not to mention, I think I collected thousands of pictures in just the first month. Between Keith's awesome camera and the invention of the Iphone, Eli's life is more documented than he could possibly ever imagine. However, if you are reading this post, then clearly I have succeeded. Part of me seemed to think it was only natural to pick pictures from all of the milestones and and 'big events' (Easter, Christmas, ect..). However, a majority of those events received posts of their own. So, I am going to go with 12 pictures (can't fathom) that show my cute baby boy and how much he has grown in a year.

February 12, 2010 at 6:24am, my sweet baby boy entered into the world!

Eli at 1 month old

Eli at 2 months old, playing on his tummy mat

3 month old Eli out on a walk one day and looking super cute.

Eli at 4 months old, and going for his first swim.

Sweet sweet baby at 5 months old. Personally? I think this picture show the biggest change from 'little baby Eli' to 'growing up Eli'.

Looking so dapper at 6 months old.

Definitely settling into his 'look' at 7 months old.

Striking a pose as a great looking 8 month old.

9 month old Eli starting to work his smile more.

One very happy baby at 10 months old flashing a great big tooth filled grin.

Eli at 11 months old, anticipating the big '1 year mark'...very serious. Who would guess?

February 12, 2011. Eli celebrating his 'FIRST' birthday. Man, this kid makes 1 look so good.

Happy Birthday Eli!

Wow! Well, it came and went way too fast....Eli turned 1!! We had the blessing of getting to celebrate his birthday, on his birthday! February 12th at 6:24am Eli turned 1! Thankfully, I can say that I was not up at 6:24am to celebrate with him, while it would have been sentimental.

It was one year ago on February 11th that we were in the hospital preparing for the arrival of our little man. After 24 hours of labor, Eli made his entrance! And, now...1 year later, here we are! Wow, man! An entire year...I wouldn't believe it if I didn't have a long blog and thousands of pictures to prove it.

I feel like I should do a 'year in review' post...and probably will. So, just wait in anticipation! In the mean time, I will show off some pictures from party. To every ones surprise, there was no theme! I know a lot of friends and family were anticipating a 'theme'. Heck, I had been mentally planning this party for a year, so it actually shocked me as much as it did them. So, the theme was '1'. Eli managed to get in a small nap before the party started and was a little overwhelmed when things got started. It was a little overwhelming with all of the people, but Eli saw enough wonderful, loving, and familiar faces that he was content going from arms to arms.

After mingling we did bday cake. Funny, cause I wondered what he was going to do with it, and should have known he would attack all of the 'details' on the cake. He started picking off all of the fondant decorations and using his middle finger to poke around on it. Finally, Keith and I shoved his hands into the cake and things got going. He really enjoyed snacking on all of the sweets and sugar. After the 'cake festivities' we moved onto presents. He actually had no problem being the center of attention as we opened cards, gift wrap, and toys. He climbed all over the boxes and enjoyed walking around for everyone.

The party wouldn't be complete without at least one breakdown. So, as things started to roll to an end with just a few presents left to open, he became inconsolable. He officially threw a fit and required some 'mommy/Eli private time' in the nursery while the guests departed.

All in all it was a great party! Not that I could really imagine what it was supposed to be like, but it met all expectations. Keith and I stayed up the night before the party until about 1 or 2am getting things prepped. I was decorating the cake while Keith decorated and picked up the house. We also realized this was going to just be one night of many to come of doing things for Eli. We look forward to all of the Christmas's and late night school projects in our future. More importantly....we look forward to many more amazing birthdays and parties to come!! :)

We love you Eli, Happy 1st Birthday!

We are walking!!

So, I believe I mentioned before all of the stuff that Eli was doing in just a short span of time. I swear I went out of town for a few nights and my son was showing off an artillery of new tricks and skills. Well, let's add one more to the list....WALKING!! After returning home, Keith and I noticed that he was a lot more comfortable standing on his own (unassisted). So, it was only a matter of time before he started walking....and he did. Friday night after Keith got home from work. Eli was playing and Keith reached out and called his name, and before we knew it...1, 2, ....2.5 steps, we have lift off! I was the anxious mom ready with the camera, so...yes..this is actually the video of Eli's first steps! YAY!

More progress in Eli's world? Well, I am starting to realize just how much he is comprehending and understanding, and it is awesome. I showed him some flash cards and one said 'nose' with a picture of a nose, and he pointed to my nose. He also did the same thing when he saw the word and picture of 'clap'. It is just so cool to see all of the information processing in his head!

So, I guess we should officially start a count down, huh? Eli's birthday is just a few weeks away! I can't wait to celebrate my lil' mans first and awesome year of life in my world!

Catching Up and Crazy Times!

OMG, 'Whirlwind' is the best description for the last week or so. Unfortunately this is an update on the world surrounding Eli which is crazy, in addition to an update on Eli himself. However, he has made SO MANY advancements in just the last few weeks, it is insane. He is such a big little boy now.

Ok, so world surrounding Eli? Well, I will just say that I was in New Orleans the first week of January and returned home on a Friday. I helped host a great baby shower for one of my best friends (Mary) at my house Saturday afternoon, and then was in the emergency room with my mom (who broke her wrist) Saturday night. I returned home Saturday night to pack my suitcase for a flight to Boston the next day, only to wake up and find out my flight had been canceled. I did manage to get on an earlier flight out, just before the storm hit. While in Boston, my mom couldn't watch Eli (with her wrist), the nanny called in sick, and well...of course I am in Boston and helpless! So, we had to recruit our other 'nanny' (Keith's step mom Susan), who watched him for three days and nights straight. Then, I get snowed in one extra day to Boston and arrive back home on Thursday and discover that mom needs surgery next week. So, now we get to play the shuffle with surgery, recovery, work, and Eli this week...going to be an interesting time. Oh, yeah...and we are also letting go of our current nanny and starting with a new nanny, this week, too...could we try and complicate things anymore?

Ok, deep breaths....deep breaths. Now you are all caught up. And onto Eli!! YAY!

Well, he had his first experience with snow, yay! Ok, actually it is his second, because he was born during a snow storm last year. But, this was the first snow he got to interact with. And as far as he was concerned there was way too much interaction between him and the actual snow. Unfortunately for me, I was not there (in Boston). But, Keith dressed him up and took him out. In a nutshell, Eli hated it...here are the pictures.

Growing up? In just the last few weeks Eli has grown so much. Both physically and developmentally. He was growing out of his 9 months clothes just a few ago and now growing out of his 12 month clothes. Other big things that he is doing? Well, he totally stands on his own now, but only until he realizes it and sits down. He is continuing to walk around a lot, but only if he is holding onto something. I can't wait for his first steps, I feel like they are so close. He is also copying us on so much that we do (sounds, motions, everything). He has also totally mastered his bottle and sippy cups. He isn't just holding them, but he now grabs them, throws his head back, and guzzles. Last big mention would be his new sounds too. He is slowly working himself through the alphabet now. He loves to whisper 'tuh, tuh, tuh'. Don't ask me why he doesn't go full vocal, but he prefers to whisper his 't' sound. It is so amazing to watch all of his advancements. He is just so amazing to watch and interact with, I couldn't be happier with what a wonderful little boy he is becoming.

Here are some new pictures. :)

Happy 2011!

I say this is going to be brief. However, my idea of brief is quite the understatement, so we will just see what happens.

Well, here we are...2011! Feels good. So much to come this year, including Eli's first birthday! Also to come this year? Eli's first steps, first words, and many other exciting changes and firsts to celebrate. I would love to tell you that we brought in the New Year with our little man overlooking fireworks, but he was where he needed to be, in bed. And, Keith and I were where we needed to be...out celebrating a great 2010 and looking forward to a great 2011.

Eli spent the night at Gammie's house...thank you mom for our night out! And, of course is my mom's true fashion, she made sure that we all had some black-eyed peas and cornbread, including Eli. Believe it or not, he was a fan! In addition to the peas and cornbread, he also partook in some chocolate chip cookies, which have quickly become his favorite food of choice.

What else is new in 2011? Well, it appears that Eli is in the process of interviewing some new and wonderful nannies. Due to some recent changes in our childcare, we are back in the nanny market. In addition to some nanny changes, I have a few trips kicking off the new year and one 5 night long trip in particular that is gonna keep me away from my lil' man. Oh, then Keith turns around and heads away for 4 nights....ugh. :( Sorry Eli! But, good news? We turn around in February and give our undivided attention!

So, on that note...plans for Eli's birthday are in full swing. No real updates, at this point, but plans are in the work and times are set.

Here are some recent pictures to enjoy! :)

Eli's 1st Christmas!

Well, Eli has experienced his first Christmas and it went wonderful! We woke up at 5:30...yes, ugh, way earlier than normal (I guess we have to get used to this for many more Christmases to come). Keith, Eli, and I all had a small family Christmas celebration first thing in the morning with a nice breakfast and presents. We opened gifts and played with toys, and then put Eli down for a nap. Eli got a nice wooden block toy (that he has already been playing with...way to go mom and dad!). He also got some other toys, clothes, and cars. Everything seemed to be quite the hit!

After our little celebration, the Granddads and Uncle Matt came over for more celebrating...and more breakfast! Yes, this time, I made an even BIGGER breakfast for all of the men. After that...more presents. Eli got a really cute Home Depot smock from my dad, which Keith can't wait to put him in. And from Keith's dad he got a totally awesome Radio Flyer wagon.

So, after that celebration...and yes, another nap, we set off to my moms, where we ate another breakfast! Gotcha...ok, finally the breakfasts came to a halt and we moved onto lunch (which was delish). We hung out with my mom and brother who got Eli some really cool stuff, and my mom even made Eli's stocking! She made my brothers and mine when we were little and we still have them/use them today. My mom also got Eli this precious chair with his name embroidered on it!?! Isn't it amazing? Believe it or not...Eli LOVES it. He will totally just sit in the chair and hang out. But, his favorite thing to do, is to treat it like a jungle gym and climb all over it.

After my mom's house we headed home, where Eli's first Christmas had come to an end. Eli logged two breakfasts, one lunch, three naps, three celebrations, lots of presents, and unconditional love from everyone one in the family that he encountered!