Elijah after Gymnastics Camp

He loves this camp the best. He has always been a pretty skilled, and enthusiastic acrobat, so I am glad we finally got him enrolled in something. This week's theme is "magic", thus the hat.

Sunflower Farms

We *love* this place. It is like kiddie utopia. Such a great way to spend the 4th of July.

32 week belly at the farm

And here is my gorgeous henna belly from last week!

Marisa and Elijah

These two have the most wonderful relationship-I just love seeing them together. I can't believe we just had their first playdate this weekend! It was long overdue. They had a ton of fun and never stopped laughing. Aren't they so pretty looking? And we LOVE Marisa. She is the sweetest little girl-so smart and nice and fun. Elijah has good taste:)

Elijah rocks at photoshop

I honestly think in just a few years he will naturally know photoshop better than me. That is when I will put him to work editing my photo shoots:) He did all this himself at four years old.

Baby Shower

Gotta love Elijah mackn' on all the girls. They had so much fun at our baby shower today. I just can not wait to have my baby girl in my arms...

Some photos

I am just going through old photos and finding good ones to print-finally. You would think since I am a photographer I would have photos all over my house. We (Adam) finally started painting this weekend, so I am getting out a bunch of frames and printing up a bunch. I love it, the paint and photos make our home, which we have owned for two years now, feel more like a home. This first one was from our 4 yr wedding ann, and Adam made a scavenger hunt all around town for me. Very romantic.

I

Guess when the baby will come!

I thought this would be a fun app. Just click the box below and it will take you to a page where you can guess what day our baby will be coming.

Elijah's first day of summer camp

I was the mom that took photos and hugged my kid too much. My heart was breaking a little bit-it is a just another big boy thing that he does. He had been out of town for three days with Adam in Detroit and did not get back until 12am this morning. Adam thought it would be hard for Elijah to be away from me so long and then have to go to a new camp with people he did not know.

I knew he would be fine-and he was. He help onto my leg and smiled at the teachers when we first got there. Then Mck showed up and he started having fun. He is just the sweetest little boy ever and I am so glad he is mine.

27 weeks and counting!

fThank you Maggie for the truly beautiful photos of Elijah and I (above)!

I am getting there! Only 88 days to go. I know, I should not be counting down, but I just can't wait to meet this baby. Even though it is hard, I love being pregnant, love my child, love birth, love babies, and I am thinking it is cruel that we are made to have such a limited amount of childbearing years. I think I could have a baby every three years until I was a grandma and be happy. I think point, I would be happy with four:)

Elijah took this one of Adam and I.

Out playing by the Boulder creek with Julie and baby Elizabeth.

Elijah at school

We love his preschool sooo much, and are sad that he will not go there anymore in a few weeks. His teachers are just fabulous and really love him, and he has made good friends there too. He is just too old, and will soon be the oldest child there, so we are going to do some summer camps and then have him be home around the time the baby is due, then find a pre-kindergarden for him. Here he is with Bella and Benjamin:)

Just a walk.

It is getting so hard for me to walk at all, but somehow we managed to make it all the way to the park today-and I am exhausted. Elijah loves to ride his bike these days, and now that the weather is getting nice it is what we have been doing almost every day.

Storage Locker Day in Bouder

You can see the post on my photography blog.

Mommy and Elijah Day

So we have what we now call "Mommy and Elijah Day." Elijah asks every night before For this mommy and elijah day we had a picnic at North Boulder Park and then went down to Golden for a playdate with Julie and Elizabeth. Click here to see the photos of Elizabeth on my photo blog.

Blurry, but cute no less. Had to post it, a boy and his dog:)

And a racoon, or as Elijah said today, "We saw a Stink at school today!!!"

Easter and a playdate with Harper

Easter was fun. Elijah's friend Elias came over to play, and we took them to the North Boulder Park for some Easter Bunny fun. It is quite lame these days-for the last three years I have taken Elijah to someplace in Boulder where they dump a basket of eggs on the floor and the kids all run at the same time and try to scoop them up. What happened to taking the time to actually hide them? At least he got candy in his eggs this year. Last year they had the nerve to put coupons for store inside. All.of.them. Coupons. yeah. For kids.

The other photos are of him playing with the little girl across the street, Harper. She is such a sweetie. Elijah can't stop talking about having more playdates with her.

Cute Elijah phrase of the week: As he is stepping up on the scale "Mama, I need to see how much I pounds!" Elijah officially pounds 34.4.

Fetus

Sewing kick

My nesting instinct kicked in a week ago, and all I have been doing is sewing things for the baby. I made Elijah a pair of pajama pants-my first piece of clothing other than cloth diapers! I have made baby blankets, wipes, burp clothes, and am now making little dresses for the baby. I hope it really is a girl:)

Yes...

And here are some gorgeous photos that my friend Janett took. I really do feel much, MUCH bigger than I actually look. I have gained 20lbs already, though! Thank you, Janett, for the great photos!

Yes, I allowed my husband to give my child a haircut. Not again. As you can see why...

9 years old in Winter Park

How dorky are we? I bet most people who don't know would guess I am the blond, but I am not, I am the younger girl. It is from the trip my dad, sister Amy, and brother Matt took to Colorado from Chicago when I was in fourth grade. It was a great time. A whole layer of skin on my face peeled off, I kid you not, from being so close to the sun with no sunscreen. My dad came out a couple weeks ago and we took Elijah skiing, so he dug up this photo from so long ago. Love it!

It's a....

girl! I really did want a girl. I love Elijah more than life itself, but I can only play trains and planes obsessively for so many years... Everyone is so happy!
The sonographer was almost positive, but I did not get the impression that she was 100% sure that our baby is a girl. It does look a lot different than Elijah's 18 week photos, though.

And here she is with her chin tucked in.

And here are a few photos from this week.

Elijah and daddy in their matching coats.

We flew kites twice this week. He loves it. He can just run around and around for hous even though there is no wind. Gotta love his joy.

And finally, here is the Halloween custome that I made him. He was so sick over Halloween and never got to wear it. Last weekend we were cleaning out his playroom and decided it was time the custome got thrown out, and of course now he wants to wear it.

Elijah and I made some Easter plato the other day. Santa's elves gave us the recipe:)

17 1/2 week Belly

Can't wait until Thursday to find out if we are having a boy or a girl! I have been able to feel the baby a ton this week. She is moving so much, she may be a little boy:) Or, she could be like me in utero. We'll see. It is nice to feel it more now, makes it so much more real.

Granda and Grandpa'w visit!

Adam asked Elijah this year, "Guess who is coming on Christmas Eve?" And Elijah was so excited and said "Grandma!!!" But Adam meant that Santa was coming, and Elijah was little dissapointed.

We had a great visit with me-maw and Tawpa. My dad even went skiing at age 60! I love the shot that I caught where he feel down. Classic.

Just a fun photo

Adam just found this in his phone from just before Christmas at Target. I remember these when I was little, although the pins were always metal and not soft plastic.

Big eyes, big hair....

Happiness is...

Julie lives soooo far away now. So we met halfway in Golden, Colorado, which is a beautiful little mountain town. Elijah and Elizabeth have always played pretty well. That is Julie and Elizabeth in the background in the below photo. To see some beautiful pictures of Elizabeth today, go to Boulder Baby Photography, I put up a few there.

Happiness...is a day out with a boy who has love for everyone.

Spring Love

~
They have been loving each other since they were barely talking:) How cute are they now? I really think they look like twin brother and sister.
~

Happy Saint Patrick's Day (For Me-maw)

Because you always say how much he looks like the kid from Home Alone... Here you go:) Does anyone else notice how poorly blogger displays photos? PLEASE click on this photo so you can see how gorgeous Elijah's eyes really are.

And another one, just because. Again, please click on these photos, it makes a huge difference!
Again, with the really awful hair (like in this post). Sorry! It was not gel this time, he had just gotten out of the bath.

The boys

I know, I know. I don't update the blog anymore. I keep meaning to go back and post all the very cute photos of Elijah that I am taking, and yet am not yet so organized. Someday...

Today, I dragged Adam and Elijah out into the bad part of town (bc there are so many bad parts in Boulder), and made them do a mini photoshoot for me in the freezing weather. They are such good sports! I love this one. They are so sweet together.

Alright, there is nothing great about these as photos, but look at how tall my baby is! He has gotten so long. he's a kid now. The toddler phase is gone.

Adam, being the best model for me. How lucky am I?

Elijah's second day of skiing

Elijah is obsessed with skiing. He loves it. On his first day he would not stop, not give up. By his third time down the little bunny hill he was going all by himself-fast. He laughs the entire time and has this glow on his face. It is priceless. He has no idea how to stop, though, so this time I just let him crash. Hey, he has to learn sometime, right? I just love taking him.

Day at the Zoo

Well, this is my first post since this summer. I was keeping this blog up for Whoopsie, and we miss her so much that it has been hard to post. I will try to keep it updated more for now on and go and post the photos since summer. Here is our fun day at the zoo. We made signs for Aunt Amy since we love her sooo much!


l

Elijah and daddy making faces at each other.

Adam is always getting blurry photos of me. I gave him a quick lesson after this.

Of course, Elijah's favorite thing of all-the train. This kid loves trains and planes. And automobiles.

Mama and Elijah in TN

We had such a great time visiting me maw and Tapa. They had something planned for all 7 grandkids at all hours of the day. From surfboarding pools to t-shirt contests to making stepping stones with their handprints...then the boat, and tubing (Elijah LOVED tubing) and swimming and the fireworks... it was perfect. The only hard part was Elijah and I stuck in the Atlanta airport for a few days. Elijah is the sweetest kid, who could not love him? To see more photos of the cousins, check out the new and improved version of my photoblog.

Playdate with Nathan

Nathan is so full of personality and energy, I just love him. He is almost 5 but he and Elijah get a long so well and have a great time. I have some good ones of Nathan and baby Charlotte that I might get to editing and posting on the photoblog tonight. We'll see:) Sorry,, I had the camera on the wrong setting so these photos kind of suck, but the expressions are cute (this was right before my photo lesson).

Photo Lessons

I have been apprenticing for the greatest photographer-he is teaching me so much, I feel like every day I get so much better. So tonight Elijah and I went over to his house and he gave me some lessons, then we went to a nursery so he could buy plants and I could just mess around with my settings and get a feel for what I need to set and in what kind of light. These are all cute of Elijah, but not good enough to actually edit and post on the photoblog.

Seriously, is this kid that cute or is it just bc I am his mother?

This is one that Benjamin took to show me the difference in our lenses. Guess I need a better lens at some point:)

My lens

His lens (notice how the background is so much more blurred? It is hard to tell in these two photos, but it is a big difference).

This is the only one Iedited bc it was way overexposed. But I thought it was nice for some reason.

Elijah doing karate

It looks like that is what he is doing, but really he is just doing, "on your marks...get set..go!"

Our visit with Whoopsie

Bbq with the cousins-yep mama loves bbq's even though she is a vegetarian.

...was so wonderful. We had such a great time, even though it was short. We love to be there- it is always so relaxing and nice to spend time with her. We miss you already, Whoopsie! I am going to post more-just want to edit the others. We'll see-I spent all day editing for the photographer I am apprenticing for now. ALL day. After ALL night of traveling. So I might not have much editing-love inside of me at this point:) ...okay edited a few-will add more soon:)

Elijah was obsessed with his suitcase, and ran through all the airports dragging it behind him. So sweet.He FINALLY fell asleep, on my lap, at the end of the last flight that was the last in a never ending series of delayed-flights. Sigh. He was so good, though, the whole trip.

At the end of a long day...we were waiting for the bus for long term parking.

Another bbq..

Just another beautiful Sunday in Boulder. I put the good photos on my photoblog.

Lisa loving Elijah




Bath time..

Mahlia is two years younger than Elijah and is the same size as him!

Sunday's BBQ

What a beautiful, perfect day for a bbq with some good friends. I love my house, because it has this great deck with lots of trees and a big backyard for the kids to play in. It is funny though, it totally snowed a couple days later. Love Boulder!

Uncle Nick let this kid climb all over him forever. Thank you for the break, Nick!

My son is a true yogi.

Patrick playing with the boys

Tracy and Elijah-I love this pic!

This kid needs to go to Montessori school. He organizes EVERYTHING, and did not get that skill from his mama.

Micheal and E

Summer days

Well, Elijah loves to be naked. Since it is so warm here now, I am just letting him run around like that. Come on, you all know that I am truly a Boulder mama. How cute is he vaccuming with Patrick? We filled up the kiddie pool and he spent all day running in and out. He is sooooo happy when it is warm out! It could be that mama is very happy, too.

Some of my favorite things...

Just want to remember some of my favorite things about Elijah right now. I love the way he says "quickly" and "toilet." He says them "qwick-a-lay" and twoi-lait" as if he were french. Gotta get it on video. I also want to remember the way he backs up whenever he wants to run, pauses, pulls one arm back and points the other forward just like a superhero. Every time. Is is soooo cute. I have to borrow his dad's little video cam to get some of these things up here to share.


We had so much fun getting shots for our fliers. Are these kids not the cutest thing ever? They both had sooo much fun!

The studio is beautiful. It is the perfect space for the dance and yoga classes we will be giving, and in the perfect location. Can't wait to start getting fliers out there.

For Whoopsie

I have been too obsessed with photography lately and have ironically neglected my own son's photos. I am always taking photos of him, so am trying to upload a bunch of him for much-loved-Whoopsie (Grandma). It is just that I now spending hours a day looking at baby photographs, that I have been figuring I would get to Elijah's eventually. So here are a few cute ones:)

Elijah *loves* babies in the belly. He totally understands, and always gives the bellies kisses.
Blurry, but too cute not to post it:) Who can resist two cute naked babies?

Hoola hoopin with my friend's daughter

"I love you baby Liona, I love you so much I want to squeeze your cute face, It doesn't hurt, does it?"

Yes, we have had many-a pantless days as we turn the potty training curve.

Easter Egg Hunt!!!

Lookn' just like daddy.

One of Elijah's favorite books right now is about a wild horse that runs with the wind. Elijah loves the wind-until it knocks him over and then it is just "MAMA, MAMA!" But, in the book, even though the mommy and daddy horse want to keep the little horse and make sure he is safe, they allow him to follow the wind, and he discovers wonderous things. This is the kind of mama horse I want to be:)

"Yeah, I know what the earth is because mama watches too much Star Trek." And seriously, this kid LOVES Star Trek.

"Let me tell you, cute girl, about the earth, I am very knowledgeable." A true ladies man.

Ummm, still mackn' on the ladies. Elijah!

I literally turned around and saw him climbing this thing. He is fearless. He climbed all the way to the top. Go my little Boulder-man! He'll be a rock climber in no time.

Weekend in Vail

Wakin' up happy as you could be.

Crazy Stella, Max and Elijah. For the first time, Elijah is one of the big kids and can play with them. It made me so happy!

Yup, lucky us, we got free tickets and a free place to stay for the Ben Harper concert (thanks Denise and Josh!). I can not say it was like any other concert I have been to. Sean and I stayed in the back while Elijah and Max bounced into a big inflatable prop. Yep, that was our night. The music was secondary. But hey, that is what it is to be a parent, right? Then we hiked back two miles with the kids on our backs in carriers.

The next day we woke up and they all had a fabulous time, then we took E and M to Copper for the last day of snowboarding, which was great, and we got to hear great music. And I got to stand in line for two hours for the bungee jump. Yep. Life is good. (We WILL not talk abou how many times during this very trying ordeal I had to change Elijah's "accidents".) Talk about how hard it is to travel with a 3 yr old. Love him more than anything though, even with the undies I have to lug around.

Doggie Elijah

Wanted to blog about this before I forgot. Elijah is obsessed right now with pretending he is a dog. He will crawl over to me, pant, *try* to lick me, and then brings me things in his mouth to throw so he can fetch them. This has been going on for awhile, but now he does it when he needs some lovin'. Yesterday was one of the cutest moments ever: he tripped and hurt himself and was crying A LOT. I picked him up and cradled him in my arms, and all he could say in a very pitiful voice was 'woof....woof." Too cute. I wll try to get a pic for this post soon:)

Spring is here!

...or so we think, every other day, when we wear flip flops and tank tops and then the next day we wake up covered in a foot of snow. Boulder is great like that. I remember growing up, spring was always my favorite time of year. So many new possibilities could arise...and here in Boulder I get that feeling at least once a week. It is very inspiring. To me, at least. I tend to depend on the weather for my mood, so a spring day makes me think anything is possible, while a snowy day makes me feel cozy and safe. Yeah, Boulder is definitely my town. Check out the NY Times article on Boulder, it sums up my opinion in a nutshell.

Soccer!

Elijah picked these out:)

Because Max is obsessed with Penguins, Elijah is now too!

Frozen Dead Guy Days in Nedarland

We had a great time up in Nedarland for Frozen Dead Guy Days. Yeah, don't ask me what that is all about, I still don't know. Elijah had a great time, though.
Still so beautiful

Me and da boys.

Another face-off (really, they love each other, see below).

Max's mommy loving the boys

Nichole gettin' down with E

Joe swinging Elijah around

Jaker mimicing Elijah


Jake was so good with Elijah! He played with him all day, dancing, swinging, and just messing around with him.

Ashley! Elijah's godmother came to town:)

We had a nice dinner party with all the mamas and babies. Such great friends I have!

Cutest butt ever!

I found this old photo on Ashley's Myspace page. Look at that tush! Oh my. I thought it was the cutest thing ever. My mom made fun ofme for thinking it was cute, but look at it! Now he is a tall 3 year old. Miss the baby butt! Oh, and pls overlook the post-partum Stacey:0 Though I am wearing my size 2 jeans in that pic. Still, lets focus on the butt.

Great day at the park

Yeah, I am seriously posting too many photos. What are you going to do? This kid is too cute, can't help it.

Me-maw's Here!

Well, she does not let me get pictures of her. Sean, Max, and Elijah, do, however. Sweet, nonetheless. Sean and I got to do a retreat at Shambhala Mountain Center this weekend, and wonderful Me-maw came out to be with Elijah.

Let's go fly a kite

Elijah: Oh no, the kite fell. And Max: what the *#*@* , the kite fell.

Black and White Beautiful.

Still a superstar

Crazy hair!

We went to a 1 yr ld's birthday party today, Elijah had a great time, and was great with all the babies. He was so gentle and shared the toys. Still a sweetheart.

Freddie!

Freddie! I used to watch him when he was smaller than Elijah! He is so tall now. Smart, good with Elijah, and so nice. It was great to see Freddie and Lisa again.

Elijah-still too adorable for words even as a three yr old.

I took Elijah to the pool today. I think he learned his lesson about running around the pool-he took a nasty spill. But look! The kid recovered and had a great time.

Flashback: Elijah's 1st and 2nd birthdays

Elijah on his first birthday-love the ears!

His second birthday

Elijah is 3!!!

His third birthday deserves a lot of photos on the blog. I can not believe my little baby is a boy now. He even potty trained this week! No more diapers!

Per Elijah's request, we had a "Blue" birthday party. He specifically wanted a blue moon cake. We baked star cookies and decorated the house with stars and moons. He was so happy all day long. I am grateful we got to share it with everyone who loves him here, even though our families are all so far away and we wish they could have been here as well.

Lookn' like mama on his third birthday.

Max's mommy decorating the cake for us. Thanks Nicole! It looked great. At least Elijah thought it looked like a "blue full moon."

Uncle Nick, rockn'it out in his star glasses.

Monique! I will miss you so. Please don't leave us for too long.

Elijah, Mckenzie, and Satori

Daddy lookn' like a rockstar.

Ummm, whose birthday was it?

Patrick bringing out the cake.

Classic Nick and Adam photo. I think I have at least 20 pictures identical to this spanning six years. Beer in the hand, deep in conversation. Gotta love it.

While we were getting ready for the party we got a knock on our door-they were turning off the water for the day, some problem with the pipes. They kept digging deeper and deeper. The kids had a great time watching them work all day. Patrick took them out several times, too, to watch up close. Too bad they worked and shook our house until the wee hours of the morning!
Lincoln logs. Every grown man at the party had to play with them. I love having a boy.

Sean came over after the part and Elijah and Max stayed up late watching "Happy Feet" (note the Moon and Star stickers that "someone" stuck all over the back of my computer). An end to a good day. Even at 10pm Elijah was still bouncing off the walls from all the sugar. And then he still woke up when the sun came up. But hey! It is Superbowl Sunday.

Now he gets to have a second party with his dad today. Adam came over today and we watched Elijah's birth video with him. I can not believe it was three years ago, now, that we birthed this beautiful little being into the world.

Satori and Elijah...

LOVE how this photo reflects both children's personalities.

...the two cutest kids ever. I know. I say that about every child. But Satori is stunningly beautiful. Love the down dog. None of us have very good form, but hey, it was 12am. Thanks Angela!

Max rocking it out skiing!

Max is amazing on the slopes. I am serious. These pictures are from two different trips, only a month apart, and on the second trip Max was more fearless than I. This kid blows me away. I can't wait to get Elijah on skis, too. Hopefully Max can help teach him...

How cute can one kid be? Look at his little helmet. His dad pulls him around on all the flat snow. Lucky boy. Wish he did that for me.

Sean and Josh and Stella heading out. I was way too exhausted to go this day. It was Stella's very first time though. I took some great pic of her and her sister that I will post on the photoblog soon.

Totally pimpn' it.

Sit and Spin

Remember these?!! I loved mine when I was a little girl. I remember playing in the driveway when I was three standing on it and having my brother twirl me around. Elijah love this one:)

Playgrounds Cafe

Okay, I know the photoblog is getting out of hand...

But seriously, I am studying other photographer's websites, and I just NEED to learn how to take good photos. I set up another photo blog for the good ones. These are just the ones that tell the story of our life well. Some photos may not be good, but they show what we are doing. Today we just had a normal day around Boulder. A good Sunday.

Max. Incredibly beautiful.

you would know the color of my eyes.

Sleepover with Max!

Since Max's mom and dad were both on trips, Max got to sleepover. He and Elijah ran around for two hours chasing each other and playing hide and seek. They were too adorable.
I *love* this photo. Celia looks like a mother of three out of control kids, it is so funny.

Elijah copies Max on everything. Max did not like his dinner, so Elijah would not eat his, either. Max would run around, and Elijah would try to do the same. Every once and awhile Elijah would stop and fake cry bc max would not let him catch him. Max was good, he stopped then and would get caught.

Max looks JUST like his dad here. He cut his hair on is own. Again. Cute.

It was a jungle!

Girls night out...

Was actually kinda weird, since I am 28 and everyone else was 21. I only went out for 45 minutes, but hey! It was fun:) It was the first time Elijah has ever had a babysitter. I put him to bed, made sure he was asleep, and then Celia's mom and sister were there. Of course this kid never sleeps for more than a freaking hour, so she called me and I came home. Still a good time.

Julie's baby Elizabeth

Our newest Karma Baby Sling model

LOVE this pic. I am getting better...

Here is Kristie, Karma Baby office manager, with Elijah and Elizabeth

Oh, all the pictures!

I can't help it. This kid loves the camera. And he is so photogenic. Am I saying that bc I am his mother? Probably. Still, you gotta love him.

Our day in Breckenridge

Beautiful Elijah. Remind me not to give him red Gatorade if I want to take pictures of him that day. Oh, and while I am the one that some day hopes to actually learn how to take pictures and be good at it, Adam is the one who to took this pic. Go figure.

Getting ready for the big day with one of daddy's famous smoothies



Elijah's first go at ice skating! He was timid at first, but did really well after a bit. He LOVED it. He did not want to leave. I was totally worn out, but he insisted we stay. We had him use a chair to push, and held onto him. After 10 minutes or so he was gliding around the ice without our help! He is a natural.

Always a fun ride on daddy's shoulders

The view from downtown Breck. So beautiful!

Mckenzie's Birthday Party!

Mckenzie, one of Elijah's very best friends, turned three on Saturday. She had such a wonderful party. We painted masks and got to decorate our own cupcakes. Elijah was timid at first, as he is in all new situations, and then warmed up and had a blast.

Baby Mahlia

Elijah just LOVES baby Mahlia now (my roommate's daughter). He calls her "Baby La-le-a." He is so good with her lately, well, as good as an almost-three-year-old can be with a baby that is just about as big as him. She is adorable, though!

Prosperity

I love this photo, and really wanted to have it on the blog. Elijah never made my belly look like a round, baby bump. He was always moving around, kicking, sticking one foot out or the other. I could sometimes see his toes through my skin. He is still a wiggle-worm. I loved being pregnant with him. I sang him songs all the time, and told him stories. He now says that he remembers it...that he came out through a long tunnel towards a light! How amazing is that? When we asked him where he was before that, if he was in heaven, he said that he was with his "different mommy." I wish I had more pregnant pictures, I love this one :)

Sorry Everybody

Well, I have been thinking a lot about the upcoming election, and although I do think that America will vote for someone better than Bush (please, oh please), I am hoping that we will not have to create another book like this one:
http://www.sorryeverybody.com/


Although this blog is mostly for Elijah's Whoopsie, and of course I know that she is part of the other half (so a special "I'm sorry" to you, Whoopsie), it is also a sort of album for Elijah to look at when he is older, so I think these kinds of things are important too.

So Elijah, I am sorry that you spent the first few years of your life in this kind of energy. I hope when you grow up you will look back and see how our culture influenced our choices, and how much your father and I wanted to change the way the world worked, even when we got caught up it in sometimes. I hope you are able to grow up in a better world, and don't have to apologize for being American, but instead feel proud of what we do.

Oh Elijah, could you be any cuter?

Tell me this kid does not have the personality of his mama and the seriousness and charm of his father. Yes, I did get him that shirt. One of my favorites. AND, I love, that in the first pic, he is laughing so hard you can actually see his tonsils. And this is not a random happy day. This is what I get to live with every day of my life! How lucky am I?

His favorite toy right now-other than his new train set. The airplane. WHENEVER he gets a new airplane he carries it everywhere. He sleeps with it. He eats with it. He takes it in the bath with him. He actually MADE me take a picture of his airplane, that it how much he adores it.

Christmas with mommy and daddy!

We had a really great Christmas this year. Adam came over for Christmas eve, then came back over for Christmas morning. I am glad that ELijah got to spend it with his mom and dad. It snowed all day. Elijah was a little scared in the morning when I was so excited that "Santa had come." But he started digging into the presents. Next year I think he will understand the whole thing so much better. He had fun all day, though, playing with his new toys.

Sleigh Ride

Not sure what is up with me in the above picture, but Elijah sure looks cute.

The view from the sleigh. We live in the most beautiful place! I feel so lucky to be here.

Max's Nana and Papa took us all up to Estes Park for a beautiful sleigh ride through the woods. It was wonderful. I love Christmas. Other than the weather, it is my favorite time of year. It was so nice to do this with Elijah. We sang carols and Max and Elijah got to drive the horses. They then warmed up by the fire in the lodge, since it was soooo cold out there! Doesn't Elijah look like the little brother in "A Christmas Story" with his big puffy coat on? He could hardly move in it. Too cute.

Halloween (2 months late in posting)

Max is super-obsessed with Batman and Elijah is obsessed with being a tiger. Perfect costumes for them. I never wanted Elijah to get into all the commercial superhero stuff, but it seems inevitable for a boy in this culture, no? We'll see. He already loves Spiderman and Lightening McQueen. My brother-in-law was in the last Batman and is in the new one. Check him out, he is one of Joker's bad guys in the new film: 1min 29secs into it. That's him punching Batman.
http://thedarkknight.warnerbros.com




Was Elijah not the cutest little tiger around? Remind me next year not to wear something I don't want stained by that messy Halloween makeup. He looks so cute, even when it is all smudged up.

We went trick or treating downtown on Pearl Street. I had no idea what I was getting us into. There were literally thousands of people down there. But it was fun, and whenever I call Elijah my little bear he still says "no mama, I am a little tiger."

Could they be any cuter?

I was thinking today of all the things I said I would never do/use as a mother that I have actually done/used. EVERYONE, well, everyone that does not live in Boulder, that is, told me that I would regret saying that once I actually had a baby.

So, I said I would never allow my child to watch tv. Hmmm, when did I think I would have 30 minutes to myself without a tv? Seriously though, I have not owned cable for the past ten years, and only occasionally let Elijah watch movies. Okay, "occasionally" means many morning a week when he wants to wake up at the crack of dawn and I need another hour. OR when he is sick with one of the many viruses the kids are passing around these days.

I have stuck to having mostly wooden, imaginative toys. I have only allowed the random, really-loved electronic toy gifted to him.

I thought I would not allow commercial toys and clothes in my house, but, come on. He is obsessed with Lightening McQueen, and has recently fallen in love with Elmo and Cookie Monster. This is directly related to me breaking the no-tv rule. Ce la vie.

He is still a vegetarian who eats mostly organic food.

I did not get him immunized, although his father accidentally got him all his shots at once unknowingly when he was two.

I breastfed him until he was two.

I co-slept until he was 2 1/2.

I STILL wear him in the sling.

He never had a pacifier (although to be honest we tried to get him to take one so the kid would stay asleep without the breast, but he would not have it).

And I actually made it as a work-at-home-single-mom, being able to have him with me most of the time.

So, I have done fairly well. In a perfect world, I would ditch the tv, but alas, this is not a perfect world.

Sick AGAIN!

Elijah has croup. I swear, he gets sick every other week now. The cost of having him in preschool. AND then I tore a tendon in my shoulder. How the heck did I do that? I don't know. His dad is on a retreat for a week and half, and then he is going to visit Whoopsie for a week.

He is so sweet when he is sleeping

Baby Mahlia is also so sweet when sleeping. I put her to sleep on my sling and then laid her down. How sweet it is to have a baby to sling again!

Even though Elijah is sick, he made this impromptu sling out of a play silk. He *loves* his little baby doll. He says that he is the "mommy". I tell him 'no, you are the daddy', but he insists on being the mommy. It reminds me of when I was very little and someone asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I said "I want to be a daddy when I grow up because mommies do all the work."

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More...

The Snowy Day

We had such a great day. We carted Max and Elijah around town on the sled, they loved it. It snowed, and then snowed and snowed for days. We *loved* it! Yes, this is Sean.

Mahlia, the cutest baby ever! (other than Elijah, of course:) and Celia and Will

Sick, sick, sick

Just laying in bed today, sick AGAIN! Poor baby. He is happy in this picture, but is running a temperature now. Let's not even talk about how he spilled milk onmy keyboard and my spacebar does not work any longer. love him always:)

Superstition is the poetry of life. ~Goethe

Superstition is the religion of fools

My little (boss) Dj

He is loving Patrick's sound equipment. What will he be when he grows up? Can't wait to find out! (Well, I can wait. He is already growing up too fast!)

Thanksgiving

Elijah had such a great time at thanksgiving! Doesn't he look cute in his little sweater? He also had his second-ever haircut that morning.

So many great toys to play with. He was a very happy boy.

The boys making whipped cream

Happy diaper change:)

Playing with the big boys (or trying to)

Taking a nap with Max

Starting to get tired after HOURS of playing hard, but stil going strong!
Saying good-bye to Max. How sweet are they?

Patrick, Max and ELijah

How often do you meet a 21 year old guy that actually loves to play with kids? Patrick (our friend) is so great with Elijah and Max. He spent over an hour doing "computer coloring" with Elijah today and then did it all over again when Max got here. Gotta love him.

Just a couple older pics I found...

LOVE this yoga one with Elijah. Don't we have good form?Uncle Nick

Mckenzie and Elijah's sleepover

What a fun night! Elijah and Mckenzie are soooo cute together. They play really well with each other, laughing, sharing toys, running around and chasing each other. I really love having them both at the same time. They both looked so cute in their footsie jammies, that I had to take a picture. Once they realized they could see themselves moving in the camera, they began to dance, and any hope of a still picture of them went out the window.

Me and the boys

Lucky us, we got to go to the new Warren Miller film this weekend. Elijah and Max had so much fun together, Max is so good with Elijah. Got out my snowboard yesterday and am ready to hit the mts asap! Can't wait. I hope I remember how to do it...

Mckensie's party

Just a pic I got from Mck's party that I thought I would share:)

Tobiasz and Amy! LOVE them!

Yep, after not changing my clothes for three days and being grungy and driving around lost all day without a phone, we took some pics. Tobiasz is also a mac man. I do miss Elijah though. He is visiting his Whoopsie this weekend, I hope to post some great pics from that trip too!

In Chicago, with my brother matt.

Yep, that is the best pic Matt allowed me to get.

Rosa and I, Halloween, playing with the computer again

We seriously took pictures for a half hour. Maybe not that long...but it was fun. I feel at a serious disadvantage not having a camera. I think for awhile all of the pictures I take will look the same since we are posing for a computer:) La vie est dans ce moment, néanmoins.

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More computer pics

Since my camera is currently broken I will have to update everyone with my computer pictures. Technology has come a long way, eh?

Rosa slinging Julie's beautiful baby, Elizabeth.

My little superhero.

Playing with mommy's new computer camera

Elijah's first haircut

Oh, it was hard, believe me. I did not want to cut off those curls in any way. But, alas, babies grow up I have learned to my sorrow.

Julie's Sweet Baby

My best friend from high school just had a baby! Go Julie! Isn't Elizabeth beautiful? Julie would come over when she was pregnant and Elijah would kiss her belly. A lot. Now he is clearly in love with Elizabeth. Soul mates? Perhaps, only time will tell.

Elijah still loves the sling

Can you believe that at 2 1/2 years old he still fits in here perfectly and *loves* it?

More from Whoopsie's House

Well, we really had a great time at Whoopsie's house. On the plane, I thought Elijah would be happy to be going back home, but instead he kept saying "NO, we need to go to Whoopsie's house." That is how you can tell he had a really fabulous time. We spent our last day on the back porch, playing with water and going through the dog door (Elijah won't enter or exit Whoopsie's house without going through the dog door ). Mommy can fit through it too:)

Bye Whoopsie! We miss you already!

Labor Day at Whoopsies!

We have had such a fabulous time here. Labor day was wonderful. Elijah got to go four wheeling today with his favorite cousin, Madison. He loved being with the kids all day, I am so glad that he has so many cousins! And they are all so good with him, too. He is the youngest of them all (so far). I hope we get to come up and see them often.

Freckles!

Madison loving Elijah
Elijah with Candida's daughter, Alexis (4 years old)
Elijah with Candida's daughter, Taylor (9 months old)

Elijah look'n good by the pool

The kids in play heaven
Madison pushing E on the swing
All the cousins

Elijah with Malory (5 years old)

Candida and baby in a Karma Baby Sling
Elijah four wheeling with Madison (10years old)
Elijah and Madison

We're at Whoopsie's House!

We are having such a fabulous time with Whoopsie! Yesterday, she took us to her friend's farm where Elijah got to ride and feed some horses. He really loves it here.

Too cute!

Elijah-ball

I *love* to make things from scratch, with my own hands-thus Karma Baby. But, now that I do not sew any of the slings at all (and have not gone near a sewing machine for a year), I have taken up the new hobbie of making toys by hand for Elijah. So far, I have made him a really cute magnetic fishing game, a series of hand-sewn felt play food (like bannans, strawberries, pumpkins, etc...). Today I sewed him a felt square and "embroidered" the letters of his name on each side. He actually had a ton of fun with it. And we played "Elijah-ball" for quite awhile.

I took Elijah to his first movie today- Ratatouille, a Disney flim. He was very excited. In the beginning, the rat looses his family. I looked over at Elijah and he had tears in his eyes. He asked me "where'd his family go?" After awhile, I decided to leave. It was just too much for him to see a movie like that on the big screen. I thought he might be old enough now but he is not. I think the "scary" parts were amplified by the big screen. We'll try again maybe when he is four.

Oh-the good news is that just as we were leaving the rat found his family again, so Elijah was very happy.

Fort days

Elijah and Mckensie, best friends. This is a little fort we built out of pillows and blankets. Elijah's first fort! He loved it. I am sure there will be many forts to come in his childhood.

This is also a good-bye to a house we loved. We have only lived here six months, but have been so happy here! We are already packing up and getting ready to move. Only two short weeks away! Elijah is very excited about his new house. I thought he would be anxious about us packing everything up, but he understands now that it is going to his new home, a permanent home.

Happy

Water play is my favorite

Look at the boat mama and I made today! I *love* my water/sand tray. Very fun in the hot weather.

Man, it's hot here!

I can't wait to get into the new house where there is air conditioning. It has been one hot summer!

Our new house!

I finally bought a house in Boulder! I will post more photos after we get settled. It is really wonderful inside. 4 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms, and a beautiful back yard. We are moving in just a few weeks.

For Elijah

"Before you were conceived, I wanted you. Before you were born, I loved you. Before you were a minute old, I would have died for you. This is the miracle of life. "
~Maureen Hawkins

Shambhala Mt Center Family Camp

Well, last week we went to Shambhala Mountain Center for a week of family camp. It was so wonderful and Elijah had sooo much fun. He spent every day running around with the other children, meditating, and having a grand old time. We slept in a tent and he always had to play with his flashlight a few moments before totally passing out. I really want him to spend as much time there as possible in the future.

Here he is marching with his friend Elise.

I love all the deer up here. They are not afraid of people.

Elijah had much fun making his "shrine box" When he was finished he looked at it and gasped and said with such joy "I made that!"

His very best friend was Katie, all the way to the left. She played with him all day long and helped take care of him. He would wake up every morning and ask "where'd my best friend Katie go?"

My visit with Me-maw

The name "Me-maw" arose when Elijah was around 18 months and couldn't say Grandma properly. He is so in love with his me-maw, he couldn't stop talking about her visit. he had such a great time with her. She does not like to have her picture taken, though, so I had to keep sneaking them in. We went to Pearl Street Mall on the last day of her visit. Elijah loves running through the water fountains downtown. It is really one of his favorite things to do.

Our day at the water park

Elijah *loved* the water park. Me-maw was in town helping me out and we thought it would be a nice relaxing day laying around in beach chairs and reading books. Yeah right. What were we thinking? Elijah had so much fun, was all over the place, loved the kiddie area and the wave pool. Adam and I had taken him exactly a year ago when he was just a chubby little baby. I remember Adam and I taking turns going down the slides while one of us stayed with Elijah. This time was so different. Elijah loved going down the slides, loved splashing in the water and watching the older kids. it was a great day. Thanks Me-maw! I would have gotten better photos but it was very hot-over 100 degrees, and then my batteries ran out.

Ladies' Man

This kid is such a ladies' man. He is kiss'n on all the little girls. He is just like his daddy was when he was little.
Mckenzie is Elijah's very best friend. She is the daughter of Danit, our home seamstress. We love to have them over to play. Elijah gets very excited and hugs and kisses Mckenzie, although he is still having trouble sharing all his toys. He is getting better though.

Aunt Monky

She is so silly.

Looking like Uncle Matt

I have a picture of Matt when he was this age in a baseball t-shirt. I took this picture hoping to catch Elijah looking like his Uncle Matt, but really, he looks nothing like him other than the shirt and white hair.

Bye-bye Nikki

Dear Nikki,
I am so sad that you are leaving. You have been sucha good mom #2 to me. Who else is going to run and hide and scare me? Who is going to get me to eat by saying that they are going to eat all my food? I won't have anyone to sew with...why or why are you leaving me? I love you and can't wait to meet your baby and play with him!
Love always,
Elijah

Freddie!

Can you believe that Elijah is now exactly the age Freddie was when I started taking care of him? 2 years, 4 months. Freddie is so big now!

A beautiful day at Sunflower Farms

Yet another reason why I am totally in love with Boulder. It is the perfect place to raise your children. Sunflower farms (check it out at http://www.sunflowerfarminfo.com/ ) is so wonderful. Imagine hundreds of animals running around-hens, chics, ponys, a huge turtle, roosters, a huge big- you name it. There are swings and a big sandbox, a trampoline for toddlers, and a big treehouse. We went with Elijah's good friend Arianna.

Elijah is still obsessed with his binoculers-thanks Me-maw!

Elijah and Arianna were totally making out. I was not able to capture all the kisses on camera, but I tried:) Aren't they so cute?

Sweet boy...

The only time he falls asleep on me...

....is when he is getting sick. This was right before we realized he had an ear infection. Sweet baby. Oh yeah, and Peanut finally moved in with his papa. Bye Peanut, we love you!

How much more happy can a boy be?

He is just so joyful, it is amazing. Just pure joy. All the time. Except when he's sick. Or has gas. Or is tired. But hey, most of the time is pretty darn good.




Edited to say: I just realized that on this very day I bought him a new Lightening McQueen. This could possibly have to do with why he is so happy. He loves that thing like no other. You can see it in his little hand in the above photos.

Singing our daily songs...

We sing a lot in this little family.
Elijah's favorite, or one of them, goes:
"Good morning dear earth,
good morning dear sun,
good morning dear stones,
and the flowers, everyone.
Good morning dear bees,
and the birds in the trees.
Good morning to you
and good morning to me.
Good morning... good morning..."

What Elijah does at our photo shoots

He tries to get and hold and kiss the baby doll. He is a sweetie pie. Lately we have been bribing him, that is why he has been such a good model for us:)

Mei tai photo shoot (not our product, a friends)

Taken a month or two ago way up in the mountains. Really, on a mountain top.

What a great life we have...

I just had to post this picture big, I love the black and white of it and how good life feels in this picture.

Mama and Elijah loving each other

Ahh...remember the days?

When Elijah lived INSIDE me? To quote my mother "Isn't it amazing that we can make people?" I am so happy I am a woman.

Sleeping with daddy

Thanks for the car race, Grandma!

Elijha is obsessed. He lost his Lightening Mcqueen today, though, and has been very dissapointed. Hopefully we find it soon:)

My sweet boy, he is so happy. (looks just like Whoopsie in the first one!)

Lovin Me-maw and my hat

Elijah had somuch fun when Me maw came! We miss her so much now. Hey, I had another baby, btw! Oh, just kidding. That is a friend's little girl.

He also is totally in love with this hat-if he sees it he must wear it at all times.

Dad, you are not the only one...

...that has deer in your yard. These deer visit us often, they are so healthy looking and friendly. I am sure if I brought out food they would eat right out of my hand. I will have to try it sometime. Elijah loves them, of course.

More at the Pearl Street Mall

Don't you love his hair?

It is even longer now, this was about a month ago...

Mama loves Elijah so much!

My sleeping angel

Yes, he is an angel when he sleeps. He has been sick this week so sleeping has not been what he has been doing. A lot of these photos are a month ortwoold, I am just trying to update the blog for everyone!

The tree

Elijah just loved being set up into this tree. When I was little I could climb higher than any other kid around-to my mother's dismay (sorry mom!). He will clearly love trees as he grows.

A beautiful day in Boulder in our front yard

Hey, I would love to be a photographer some day. I am not saying that I am good enough-yet-but someday I will be. A lot of these photos were taken on my friend's VERY nice camera. It is like heaven to have a day with it. I end up just following Elijah around to take pictures of him all day. He is such a great model. I know I say that bc I am his mom, but its true! He is gorgeous!

So many pictures of this too cute boy