We love Lala!

At last, our long-awaited visit from my sister, Laurel, has arrived! Laurel flew in Monday night, and we're blessed to have her here until next Tuesday. It has been great to see her after such a long time, and so great for Eli to finally meet his Aunt Laurel. We realized very quickly that "Aunt Laurel" was going to be extremely difficult for Eli to say, so Laurel suggested the nickname "Lala." Well, her suggestion was a stroke of genius, because by the end of day 1, Eli was calling her by name! He even asked for her this morning when he woke up. :) Laurel, Eli, and I headed into Seattle yesterday to visit the Space Needle - a first for both of them. It was a great day for it; sunny and clear. We had a great time.

We want to wish everyone a very, very Happy Thanksgiving tomorrow! We are so grateful for all of our friends and family; you are truly some of God's greatest blessings to us! Happy Thanksgiving!

18 months!?

I don't know about you, but Ryan and I are having a hard time believing that our "baby" boy is one and a half! He has grown up so much, and we are so blessed! Every day we fall more in love with this happy, sweet, wonderful little boy, and we are constantly amazed by how smart and well-mannered he is. We thank God every day for the blessing of being Eli's parents.

We took Eli to Chuck E. Cheese last night to celebrate is half-birthday, and it was a blast! We knew there was a chance Eli would be too overwhelmed by the crazy environment, but he had a great time. He loved all of the lights, sounds, and action. They have an area specifically for toddlers with smaller rides and games, which is where we spent most of our time. Eli was in his element, and was totally comfortable exploring and climbing. As usual, Eli didn't like it when we put tokens in the rides to make them "go," but he still enjoyed "driving" the cars. Whoever designs these things definitely has children...they're full of working steering wheels and colorful buttons to push! Eli even got into some of the games, particularly the ones with buttons or balls. :) We accumulated enough tickets to win Eli a prize, and he left the restaurant with a tiny little baseball and basketball that he loves.

Happy year-and-a-half birthday Eli! Thanks for being so great!

Hair today, gone tomorrow!

Well, everyone...the day finally came! You know I've been holding out, avoiding Eli's first haircut for 18 months...until today. The final straw came when Ryan was dressing Eli this morning, and his shirt got caught in his mass of curls, causing him to cry. Ryan looked at me and said, we need to cut it today...causing me to break down in tears! I know, I know, I'm a sap! :) Anyway, by the time I got out of the shower, I had come to terms with what Ryan already knew...it was time. So, off we went to "It's a Kid Thing," a salon here in Redmond that specializes in cutting kids' hair. The place is great, from the jungle mural on the wall, to the boxes and boxes of toys available for kids to play with...not to mention the awesome, unconventional barber chairs. The chairs are cars, and they have several to choose from; Eli got to sit in and (more importantly) drive a tractor during his haircut. He was very excited! I'll admit I got a little misty, but Eli did absolutely awesome. He was completely cooperative with the stylist; he was so focused on his train and fire truck toys that he paid no attention to the woman messing with his hair! Actually, he was also pretty focused on the little girl getting her hair cut in the car next to his. Yet another older woman in his life! :) Anyway, the salon did a great job of making this a good experience for all of us, letting me take a ridiculous number of pictures, asking if the cut was what we wanted, saving a few curls in a little bag for us, and giving Eli a toy to take home. We definitely recommend this place...it was worth the slightly ridiculous price. So, despite my reluctance to cut Eli's hair it went well, and though he definitely looks different, he's at least as handsome as he was before!

Certified!

CONGRATULATIONS RYAN!! As of this morning, Ryan is officially a National Board Certified Teacher! Ryan worked very hard for months to earn this certification. He had to put together a portfolio that included lesson plans, videos of himself teaching, proof of extra-curricular work, and a ton of writing (I'm just guessing here, around 50 pages)...in addition to taking a test! Needless to say, this is a huge accomplishment. The three of us went out to dinner to celebrate, and had a great time. Eli surprised us by enjoying his lettuce more than his bread! He also did a great job of toasting Dada's big accomplishment! Way to go Ryan!

P.S. Look at those gorgeous curls!!

First day of school?

I had a meeting at Cedar Crest today (the school I worked for before having Eli, and for whom I still do occasional administrative work from home), and Eli got to come along! He did absolutely great playing with the preschoolers. He played outside for awhile first, then fell in love with the play kitchen in one of the classrooms. It was really exciting seeing him play comfortably in an unfamiliar environment with unfamiliar people. What a stud!

Go Wolves!

Ryan, Eli, and I spent this weekend in Pasco, WA for the State Cross-Country Championships. For any who aren't aware, Ryan coaches Cross-Country at Eastlake High School. It was a great weekend with great results...Eastlake's girls took second place! Eli had a good time hanging out at the hotel; he played with the cute boy in the mirror :), and was especially interested in the bellman's cart - he really wanted a ride! He also had a great time watching the kids run at the meet - and showing off his Wolves spirit with the paw prints on his cheeks. Whenever we attend a meet, Eli watches the group run past, then asks for and signs "more." We may have a future runner on our hands. :)

Fall(en) Leaves

While we were out of town this weekend, our maple tree decided it was time to shed its leaves. We came home to a back yard piled high with fall foliage. It made for a lot of raking for Ryan, and a lot of fun for Eli! Ryan created a huge pile of leaves for Eli to play in, and it was quite an adventure for our little man. He wasn't quite sure what to make of being buried in leaves, but he did enjoy exploring and playing with them. Zoe had a great time too; she seemed to be having the time of her life trying to pounce on and bark at the leaves that fell around her as we threw handfuls into the air. Enjoy the photos!