Elliot says...

Tonight we were doing the usual bed time routine. Elliot chose a couple books to read and one of them was called "Bed Hogs" About half way through the book Elliot asked if he could hold the little baby pig. (any time he sees an animal on t.v. lately he asks if he can hold it - I'm thinking it's his way of knowing if it's a nice animal or not) About holding the pig I said, "yes, you can hold pigs, if you can catch them. They're fast." Elliot replied, "they're not fast. Pigs are slow." I ignored and kept reading, but he was not satisfied I guess. Elliot said, "mom, I'll be the pig and you be the human. Try to catch me." I was amused so I played along and got ready to "catch" him. He hardly moved as I reached out to grab him in my arms. I gave him a big kiss and he said, "see mom, pigs are slow."

Well, now you know. Pigs are slow. Especially if they are cute little 4 year old, blonde haired piggies.

What a character. Love me some Elliot!

Swim Lessons 2011

Finally decided to put him in swim lessons. He loves it! The only hard part is when it's a little chilly. Not fun to swim outdoors on a cool morning. (I guess that's my fault for putting him in a class that's at 9am in June. Oops!) He's doing great. Learning to scoop the ice cream out of the water to get his arms moving in the right direction. Gaining confidence, learning skills, having fun!!

What a cutie!

Feeding Frenzie

Time for solids!!!

We finally took the plunge and started solids. They were just not satisfied in the evening with their bottles and Jaxon would watch so intently as I would eat so I figured, "Hey, why not give it a try."

The boys couldn't be happier! They love it. It took a couple tries to get the hang of it, but now (2 weeks later) they are champs. They eat tons too! A full bowl of rice cereal and 1-2 containers of vegetables/fruit. 

It's a mess, especially with two, but it's a fun mess! And if it makes for happier boys,  I'm in!!

We've had so many great helpers too. Watching those 3 little girls try their best to get the boys to eat was the funniest thing ever! They were the cutest little mothers. Happy to jump out of the pool at the chance to take care of the babies and not afraid to just dive right in and get er' done. So cute! I'm pretty sure there was more food on their bibs and on the wiping towel then in their tummies, but it's okay. It was fun for the girls and the boys loved the extra attention!

 Miles

 Jaxon

Little mothers in training. (Cassie, Kaitlyn, Alexa)

Indianapolis Mayors Bike Ride

Taking advantage of a chance to ride bikes as a family. We did a 10 mile ride with the city. J.R. and I rarely get to ride together so this was a treat. Elliot really wanted to ride his Big Wheel on the course, but finally agreed to ride in the trailer after we let him cruise around the parking lot for a bit. Everyone really liked his sweet ride!

Resting up before the bike ride. 

Feeling like one of the big kids on his "motorcycle"

My hot honey and sweet son!

Glee in concert

Remember when J.R. won concert tickets for valentines day?? Well, this was it!

Before I go much further I want to put out a disclaimer: I don't watch Glee any more. Although it started out as a fun show with cool music, it very quickly turned into a show that seemed to promote everything that is ugly and inappropriate in this world. It came down to me thinking to myself, "Would I be okay if Elliot or even any of my Young Women girls were watching this?" The answer was a firm and loud NO! So, why would it be okay for me to watch it? There you go, my little soap box for the day. Just wanted to be clear that we are not supporters of this show anymore. Although, I can't deny that some of the music is pretty awesome!

On with the concert details.

I was excited to hear if they were as good live as they are recorded. I was excited to see what kind of fun concert a show like Glee - where they're are making TONS of money off the show, would put on. Looking for cool special effects, use of stage, set, costumes, etc.... Well, we were pretty disappointed in that regard. Their voices are great. Especially Mercedes, she ROCKS! And we also really liked the Warblers. But pretty much everything else was sorta lame. We left the concert trying not to be disappointed, but we both agreed we were glad we didn't pay for the tickets.

Thanks to the Rushtons for watching the kids. It's always fun getting out with the hubby, no matter what's on the agenda!

Birthday continued...

What a fun fun fun day!! We celebrated a day early because J.R. had the day off, but Elliot didn't know or care - he was just excited to be having a blast!

Our fun actually began the night before when we put up our tent in our backyard and Elliot and daddy had a little campout. The next morning Elliot woke up came inside to a big surprise. Everything was decorated and set up for his birthday. HE LOVED IT! Before even touching anything he ran to me and gave me a huge hug then did the same to dad. That was the icing on the cake for me. I have such a good boy!

After opening gifts we got on our suits and went to the YMCA to play in the pool for the first time this summer. Again...SO FUN! After the pool we came home and blew out candles and ate cake, THEN had dinner. We all slept VERY good that night. So fun to have a son old enough to really appreciate and be excited about special days. 

Here are some pics of our day....

A little bit about my big boy Elliot:
-He's such an actor. He loves to make us laugh and hams it up even more when we do.
-He has a keen ear for music. Picks up on melodies no matter where they come from and can repeat it back. Once we were at the store and there was music sort of playing in the background that I'd never heard before. Neither of us mentioned or even hardly noticed the music. Later that day after we were home I heard Elliot start humming a melody and sure enough it was exactly what we had heard earlier. He memorizes things according to how they sound. If you put a rhythm and distinct inflection on any information he will memorize it easily.
-He's big into super heros and bad guys right now. All imaginative play is fighting bad guys. His favorite is spiderman. He throws webs and runs "super super super super...(on for about 20 more supers) fast"
-He loves being with other kids. Even though he's really good at playing by himself he really loves when other kids can play. He makes friends everywhere he goes. Parks, YMCA, Chick-fil-a...instant best friends everywhere. I should really make friends with the moms and get their phone numbers.
-He's so brave. He sleeps in his bed all night "till the sun comes up" with out any problems now.
-He says prayers like a pro...a very entertaining pro.
-He likes to read scriptures and asks to read some of the verses himself. (of course I tell him what to say)
-He'll do anything for a reward. Whether is earning points, getting a treat, putting stickers on the board. All those things work great for him. Especially if it's something chocolate and sugary.
-He's addicted to sweets. I've tried to rid our house of unhealthy food lately but Elliot gets so desperate for sugar that one time I found him hiding in the pantry eating handfulls of brown sugar. Geez!
-He's still a very picky eater. He's at least been trying new foods....occasionally. But, chicken nuggets and spaghetti o's with meatballs are still a major staple in our house. Won't eat bread, rice or pasta - unless it's spaghetti of course. I seriously wonder where he gets his energy.
-He loves to watch "moomies" He watches the same movie over and over then switches to the next one. Thanks to two little brothers taking a lot of time he watches a lot of T.V. too. He likes Curious George, Clifford, Zoobomafoo, Phineas & Ferb, Looney Tunes and Tom & Jerry the best right now.
-He could play on pbskids.org all day if I'd let him.
-He's a big time hugger! He loves to hug and kiss and cuddle. I LOVE IT!
-He loves to entertain his brothers. He tries so hard to get them to laugh and even though they love his attention he feels like a failure if they don't actually giggle out loud.
-He's can't say his S's and sometimes switches the letter C for the letter P. He calls the swimming pool a cool. He calls his friend Corter who is actually Porter. He stutters by repeating himself over and over if he can't think of the word he wants to use, then finally stops, cocks his head to the side and says, "what is that thing called?"
-He loves the colors red and pink.
-He likes to wear his "easy" pants the best because they can be pulled up and down really easy. He always waits to pee till the very last second so easy pants are a must. He dresses himself when we have time and I don't care what he decides to wear. ;)
-He's thoughtful and observant and loves to make mommy and daddy happy!

WE LOVE YOU ELLIOT!
I can't believe it's been 4 years. I remember the day you were born like it was yesterday! You changed our lives forever and keep making it better and better every day! You're one AMAZING kid!
Happy Birthday!

Jaxon's first hair cut

I finally just chopped it off. No more rat tail. YEAH!