Wheels turning

I was reminded just now as I read another friends blog about watching his son trying to figure out how to catch a stream of water with his fingers. (That is a crazy sentence. Could you follow it?) Anyway, a few nights ago, I was showing Eli how a stream of water could turn the "water wheel". He was mesmerized by the stream of water coming out of the cup. I watched him look at the water, then at the wheel, then the water again. And then he did. He reached up his little pincher fingers and tried to pinch the water. "Hmmph. Try again. and again. Maybe if I grab it with my whole hand." Then he looked at me like "what's with this?" and then he moved on to the water drum.

Progress Report

Mac got his first progress report from his preschool today. He is a freakin' genious! For example, he received positive marks for "separates easily from parents," "shows concern for others," and "walks in class line quietly." He is great at playing with puzzles, blocks and Play-Doh, but we need to work on staying in the lines when coloring. He can't be perfect at everything. He would make the other kids feel bad if he were perfect at everything! So humble.

Speaking of perfect children...Eli now has 2 teeth on the bottom and 2 teeth on the top. He is trying to say "uh oh." ...so cute, he perses his little lips. He is also quite the musician. Definitely loves his drum and his xylophone (at tub time.)

I say it all the time, but how lucky am I!?

Oh...did I forget to mention that Eli had a diaper blow out this morning and Mac crapped his pants twice today? (in big boy underwear, no less.) Perfection!!!

Audition

Well, I had my first audition here in Jacksonville at the church we've been attending. It is called SUPERHEROES and was written and directed by a member of the church. My friend Amy, who teaches our fitness classes here in the neighborhood already has a part in the show as SuperGirl! Fitting for her. She has lost 80 pounds in 2 years and is ripped! I digress. I just read an email from the director saying I didn't get a part. I am pretty bummed about it even though they were only casting the remaining 4 parts, 3 of which were female parts. There were probably 10 females auditioning. I am disappointed mostly because I was looking forward to rehearsals and hanging out with Amy more. She says that there is a possibility that someone will start the show and then drop out, so who knows, maybe I can slip in later. If not, it was fun to get up and audition again.

Mac and Eli go to a carnival

Tonight, our neighbor's church, had a big carnival. It was not that much smaller than the Daviess County fair. It was pretty big for a church. Anyway, we decided to have dinner there, and I went with very low expectations. But I must say, I had the best chicken strips that I have EVER, and I mean EVER had! Tast-eee. Mac devoured his hot dog, which was a pretty big deal for me since he hasn't been eating all that well lately.
Clearly, the night was mainly for Mac, but I think Eli enjoyed the people watching. He fell asleep in the baby Bjorn as we were walking out at 8:30 and slept through the transition all the into his bed. I couldn't believe it.
Mac was amazing. He jumped right on the carousel, which didn't surprise me that much. But when he willingly got on a Nemo ride that was pretty fast and jerky, I thought for sure he would melt down and scream to get off, but he didn't . I need to have more faith in him and worry less! But the biggest shocker to me was when he and Nathan got on a roller coaster. HE LOVED IT! He immediately wanted to get on it again, so they did. My baby is getting so big.

Just Because it Makes Me Smile

At PaBob's

"I'm takin' over PaBob's chair, and there ain't nothin' you can do 'bout it!"

Let's shake on it.

Who me? I am innocent.

Ok...now that tickles!

OK. This isn't PaBob's house, but Mac put this helmet on Eli and said..."You look like PaBob."

Presenting...SUPERMAC

Costume courtesy of my friend Kate.

Kate's visit a few months ago...

Kate is Mac's friend from his pre-school in Indiana. They have a unique friendship and bond. They still do to this day, even though they live hundreds of miles apart. I am so grateful that Mac has such a special friend so early in life.

Playing one last game before Kate has to go.

...and this is my friend Kate. I love her...

...a lot!

Opening Mac's birthday gift.


A final kiss goodbye. BooHoo!!!

Eli's-a-growin'.......

Eli and Grandma Headley

Today I noticed how much more pronounced Eli's personality has become. He is really reacting to things more strongly and be proactive in "creating mischief." For example, tonight, I took Eli upstairs to check on Mac while he was in the playroom. The next thing I know, Eli is trying to "steal" Mac's Teefball NightNight. ...and doing it with a distinctly sly smile. It just seems like he is trying to communicate more with people. It is especially noticeable in his eyes.

...like right now, I swear he just looked at me and tried to blow me a kiss. Now he is doing "rasberries" to get my attention because I looked away to type. (Nathan is supposed to be feeding him before bedtime, but Eli gets distracted so easily. Nate just said, "let's go Eli. We're going to your room to finish this." Smart guy.)

He is also cruising around coffee tables and couches more quickly. I am also noticing that he trying to stand alone. It is very early in this "process", but Nathan and both said tonight that once he reaches that milestone, he is "outtahere". :)

Halloween '08

The "FireGator".

Mac and Evi

Where's the Fire?

Mmmmm...good 'nana.

I was pleasantly surprised that it was at least "chilly" for Halloween this year. I was afraid my kids would actually be hot in their costumes this year. But...there was a nice chill in the air. There were scads of kids all up and down our street! So fun. I took Mac with his friends Evi and Max, while the Dads and Uncle Brett stayed back and got the grill going. Mac went to about 5 houses and then started walking home. I asked him if he wanted to go to the next house, and he ignored me and kept walking home. Guess he was finished. So, the silver lining is we don't have TONS of candy in his bucket!!! I did, however, make the mistake of taking him into a haunted house that my neighbor made in her garage. She assured me that other little ones had gone through and been fine. Well, as soon as we got in there, amidst the fog made by the fog machine, we approached Dracula's coffin, and he SAT UP!!! Mac looked at me like, "Get me the hell out of here!!!!" So I did. As we were standing outside the garage, Dracula came walking out, b/c we were the only ones going through. Mac freaked again. "Let's go Mommy, let's go!!!"

Smooth move Mommy! Again...the silver lining...They gave out FULL sized candy bars!

BTW, I am now on Facebook as many of may already know. But if not, check it out.