Happy Birthday Elliott

Whew, what a crazy week happening in the Nelson Household. It's just been go, go, go lately. We have been decorating for Christmas, looking at Christmas lights, craft show shopping, and playing in the newly fallen snow. Somehow, in the midst of all the activities, Elliott's first birthday snuck up on us.

Elliott turned one year old today! It is so very hard to believe that my little, chubby, boy is already a year old. The time sure did fly!

Since Elliott's birthday falls so close to Thanksgiving, we decided that we would just do a small get-together with some family for his birthday. So, we had Jim, Barb, Jeff, Jill and Peg (who were in town to celebrate Thanksgiving) over for some pizza and cake.

What a fun evening it turned into. Elliott was a little bit moody, and tired, but he ended up having a lot of fun and being very good entertainment. Both kids got extremely spoiled (yes, even Emma got some presents).

Elliott's gifts included: pajamas, a xylophone, toy cars with a ramp, a scooter toy, a stuffed lion, and a couple other outfits. Emma got a book, some clothes, and the game candy land.

Both kids enjoyed all the attention and were very well-behaved. And of course we had to have a smash cake for Elliott, which he really enjoyed and made quite a huge mess with. Elliott was up until about 9:30 (which is REALLY late for him) and Emma wasn't asleep until about 10:00pm. It was a very nice evening, and a very fun way to celebrate Elliott's birthday.

Elliott's 1 year old likes:
-His pacifier (really likes this at bedtime and anytime he is feeling crabby/stressed. We are trying to wean it a little bit and limit it to bedtime only)
-Eating (This kid can eat. And he gets really mad when he's hungry. He is not patient and can throw a fit when he is ready to eat and we aren't ready for him)
-Sleep (He also likes his sleep, and is a bear if he does not get enough of it. He is still super easy to put to bed, usually just a bottle, blanket, and then lay him in the crib, and he passes out on his own)
-Being tickled (This kid likes to giggle, likes raspberries on his belly, and just generally likes to be played with. He loves when we are on the floor with him, playing at his level)
-Baths (Still absolutely loves bath time. He likes to splash, likes to play with the toys, and occasionally drink the bath water)
-Crawling (He has learned how to get around, and to do it quickly. He loves to crawl into the kitchen, or bathroom, and empty drawers and cupboards. He really knows how to make a big mess)
-Chewing on everything (Still puts most things in his mouth, and drools all over them)
-Emma (He loves his big sister, and usually has smiles and giggles for her. He even puts up with her when she steals his toys from him constantly)
-His bottle (still loves it and goes crazy for it when he is hungry or tired. Might be a hard thing to wean away in the coming weeks)
-Whole milk (Not so sure about the cold temperature, but he doesn't mind the whole milk flavor)
-Shopping or getting out of the house (He loves to people watch, or just sit in the cart contently as we shop in the stores and he can look around at everything. He likes to be out and about.)

Elliott's 1 year old dislikes:
-Getting dressed/having a diaper changed (He does not like this one bit. He would rather be naked at all times)
-Not getting all of mom or dad's attention (Got forbid we need to do something like go to the bathroom, brush our teeth, or get ready for work, and we can't hold him or play with him at all times. He can really throw a fit trying to get our attention)
-His carseat (Doesn't like being strapped in. Usually does ok in the car as long as he can reach his toys, and it's light outside and he can see what's going on)
-Stocking caps (Will not leave these on at all. Should work well this winter)
-Sleeping through the night (It comes and it goes. Some nights he is fine, some nights he thinks he is starving at 4:00 am)
-Strangers (He is in full-on attachment phase and usually wants mom and dad if they are within sight over other people he doesn't know very well)
Daycare (He bawls when we drop him off. he does fine once we leave, but drop-off is a little traumatic.)

I have his one-year check up on Friday, so I will get his height and weight then, but he's still a big boy. It wont' be long and he will catch up to Emma with no problem. Elliott is eating table food like a champ, and we usually just do sippy cups of water and milk, and just give him a bottle before bed. He can pull himself up on furniture, and can walk behind a couple toys, so walking is not so far away.

He is generally a happy little kiddo, likes to snuggle and give kisses, and is just a sweetie. We love him so much, and can't wait to see what the next year will have in store for him.

Happy Birthday Eli!!

Present time, big sister standing by

Birthday Boy digging in

Yay tissue paper!!!

New toys!

Playing with Uncle Jeff

Candy Land

Elliott's cake

Mmmm, yummy

Emma serenading the guests  

Sick Elliott

Poor Elliott has been feeling pretty miserable for the past 4 days. On Friday, daycare called us with suspicion of pink eye, so we took him to the doctor, and turns out her has pink eye in both eyes, and an ear infection. Poor kiddo. So, we got him started on some antibiotics and eyes drops (which is really fun with a one year old).

This past weekend Elliott was pretty much clingy and whiny, and it made for a really long weekend. Overall, he is doing ok. His poor nose is like a snot fountain, his eyes are red and puffy, and he just generally feels miserable. Oh yeah, his poor butt is like on fire too, he has a super-duper terrible diaper rash going on. So, fun times.

Today, the kids stayed at home with Grandma Barb. Emma has been fine, she has a runny nose, but that's about it. But she wanted to stay home with Grandma and play. Elliott is ok, he was still pretty run-down, whiny, and crummy, so we gave him another day of resting at home, hoping that by tomorrow he will be okay to go to daycare.

So, here's hoping Elliott can kick this crud to the door, so we can all move on (and get some sleep).

No nap=Falling asleep while watching TV

Sick Elliott

Miserable, but smiling 

Here's November!

So, we are a week into November already. Once again, time is flying by. Last weekend, after all the Halloween festivities, we enjoyed some wonderful weather outside. I raked some leaves, and both kids had fun with them. Emma loved to jump in them of course, and Elliott was content to crunch them up with his fingers and roll around in them. 

Sunday was a pretty lazy day. We suffered through church with the kids, Elliott was a big handful. We enjoyed the leaves, and played in the backyard, but other than that we mainly just watched some football and relaxed. 

My sister was in town on Monday, and I happened to have the day off, so that worked out very well. She watched the kids for a couple hours in the morning so I could get my hair cut and run a couple other errands that work better kid-free. Once I was done, we all packed up and went to the mall to do some shopping. After trekking through the mall for a couple hours, we were all pooped and the kids took some much-needed naps. 

Rachel let late afternoon, as she was going to a concert with a friend, and I spent the rest of the day playing with the kiddos. 

The rest of the week flew by without too much excitement. On Friday, we got a call from daycare that Elliott wasn't feeling very well. John took him to the doctor, and it turned out the poor boy has pick eye, and an ear infection. Luckily, Barb was able to spend the afternoon with him so John could go back to work. 

So, this weekend has been a little bit of a struggle. Elliott has been very clingy and whiny and just not feeling well. We have antibiotic drops to give him (three times a day, which is REALLY fun with an 11 months old) and an oral antibiotic for the ear infection. And his nose has just been a snot fountain at all times, so it's been interesting. Emma also started complaining of her ear hurting today, so I am guessing she is also dealing with an ear infection. So far for her, we are just medicating with ibuprofen and that seems to be doing okay. Gotta love this time of the year, hope they are both feeling a little better by Monday morning. 

John and I totally rocked out some awesome cleaning today. We cleaned the kitchen top to bottom, including cleaning behind the fridge and stove. Not fun jobs, but it feels so good to have it done. I also washed bedding and blankets since the kids are sick and yucky, and John raked and bagged up our leaves in the yard. It was so nice to get some serious cleaning done while the kids took some awesome power naps this afternoon. 

But, that being said. I am pooped, and I am sure Elliott (and maybe Emma) will need some attention tonight. So, I am going to bed. Enjoy some adorable photos :)

Looking all innocent before the leave jumping 

Emma loves fall!!

Happy Little boy

They play so well together :)