Happy Birthday United States Marine Corps!!!

This past Monday (November 10), the Marine Corps celebrated their 233rd birthday. As usual, this day is met with lots of celebration for the Marines. It's also filled with lots of tradition. Chris and I attended our first Ball at Camp Lejeune and I was pleasantly surprised! We had it at the gym on base and it was decorated very nicely. The food was very good, we even had a carving station!!! I lucked out on my dress, since I got in online and it was made in China, so I can't complain too much. I think I looked pretty good! And of course, Chris look fabulous in his dress blues! With the exception of Elijah getting cranky and a diaper rash from hell at our friend's house, the day was perfect!!

Halloween 2008!

The week of Halloween was a busy one for us. We had a little get together the week before Halloween to celebrate with some friends. It was a costume party, and we had a lot of great costumes! Chris was a whoopie cushion and I was a doctor. We decided that Elijah would be a pumpkin. And what a cute pumpkin he was!!! He even went trick-or-treating for the first time. He refused to walk, so Chris had to carry him, but he seemed to enjoy it. He racked up on the candy! Of course, me and Chris got to eat most of it :) Always a good thing.

We have a walker!!! Sort of...

It's official!! Elijah FINALLY took a few steps on his own today!!!!! Yeah!!!!! But of course, he'd rather crawl and I don't think he can figure it out on his own yet, but he did it!!! He took one step to me and four steps to Chris. Please. I'm the one that was working with him and he takes more steps to daddy?!?!?!? What's up with that!! Oh well. Begger's can't be choosers I guess!

Finally getting settled!

Well, it's been a while, but things are finally starting to settle down. A lot has happened since I posted last, so I'll try to give a little synopsis! The weekend of July 12, we had our much anticipated LeMieux/Hay family reunion. It was a long time coming and we had a blast! Elijah decided that he could pull himself up on furniture. He had only recently started crawling, so he was getting that hang of that fast!

On August 1 we celebrated Elijah's first birthday. I still can't believe he's one already! We actually celebrated with a few parties. We had one in Virginia with my family and some of our friends, then we drove up to Ohio to celebrate with Chris' family and to hit his family reunion up there.

Once we got back from Ohio, I had to pack everything up and head down to North Carolina for good. So that leads me to now. We picked up the keys to our house on my birthday (September 15--my 30th!!! Chris and our friends even through me a surprise party!) and we got all of our stuff on Tuesday. And in true Marine Corps fashion, Chris was gone. So needless-to-say, moving by yourself isn't fun! But thank God my mom came down to help out. Good thing, since Elijah decided to come down with a nice case of croup.

Elijah is doing really well. He's finally over his croup. He got his first haircut!!! How freakin' cute is that! He weighs 24 pounds 13 oz and is 30 1/2 inches long. He is still not walking, but he cruises along the furniture like a champ and when you hold both of his hand he'll walk. But as soon as you let go, he'll stand for about 15 seconds or so and then he's down and taking off. Yeah, he's lazy!

So now we're trying to get the house in order. Not looking forward to that. We've only been in here two weeks and I've already lost my motivation!!! That's pretty sad. Oh well. I've attached a slide show with some random pictures. It's a little long, so bear with it!

Craziness

Yes, that's what life has been like for the past few weeks! I'm still in Virginia staying with mom and dad for a while and Chris has officially checked in with his new unit in North Carolina. Our name is on the list for housing (we're number 7) and hopefully it will only take the 1 to 3 months that they've told us. We'll see. So far we've been lucky that Chris has been able to stay with friends while we're waiting for our house. Our house in Virginia still has not been rented, but we're hopefull that it'll go soon. Once we get settled, we'll let everyone know our new information.

Anyway, Elijah has since turned 11 months old. Wow! It's amazing how fast the past 11 months have gone. Hard to believe that he'll be turning one in just a few more weeks. All of my pictures are still on our laptop, so I haven't been able to download anything. But don't worry, I'll get pictures out as soon as I can!

Elijah's first 4th of July went great. Mom and Dad had a BBQ for their neighbors and we just hung out. Elijah was in bed in time for the fireworks, and he slept through them all. What a good boy! Especially considering that they were right outside his bedroom window!

We're looking forward to the coming weekend because it's my family reunion. We haven't had one in quite some time, so it'll be good to see everyone. I'll post pictures of that too. Once I have some more exciting news to post, I'll do that as well!

Moving

So much as happened since we got back to Vermont! We've tried to get some stuff packed up so the movers don't have to move anything that could be given away or even thrown away. We've been somewhat successful! The movers were scheduled to come on Monday, June 23. On Wednesday, June 18, we were told our move date wasn't confirmed and may have to reschedule!!! What?!?!?! After going through hoops to try to find out what was going on, we were finally able to get it confirmed on Friday afternoon. We never even had a walk-through before the movers got here. (this is important to note because when we filled out the paperwork, Chris had to estimate how many pounds we had. Not having a clue as to what to put, he put 4,000 pounds. Pretty average, right? Well, apparently he underestimated by 2,000 pounds and the movers got a little irritated. But since we didn't have a walk-through, what the heck do you want us to do about it?!?!?!).

Anyway, I've been actively looking for a job down in NC for a little bit, but finally found one that would suit me perfectly. The only problem is that they require a typing test and a spelling test, that must be done in person. Yeah for me. Since I really want this job, we decided that I would drive down there on Sunday night, and on Monday morning, complete the appropriate paperwork and come home. So this leaves Chris alone to deal with Elijah and the packers/movers. Thank God for parents! (I did good on the tests by the way, but don't know about the job yet!)

So now our house is full of boxes, which are being loaded into the moving van as I type (I'm with Elijah at mom and dad's while Chris is at the house with the movers). Now begins the process of cleaning and getting the house rented and finding housing in NC. We're hoping to live on base, but we'll see how that works. Wish us luck! Once we get settled, I'll let everyone know our new information!

Vermont

We had such a great time in Vermont! (check back later for pictures, I'm not sure when I can upload them!!) We headed up there Friday, June 6 and came back on Sunday, June 15. The whole purpose for us going up there was so that Chris could do his residency with Norwich University to do his Master's. While he did that, mom, dad, Elijah and I were tourists!

We left on Friday afternoon and drove to NJ to stay the night at my aunt Linda's house. We didn't get a chance to really visit with her because we had gotten there so late and wanted to get on the road at a decent hour, but we still had a good time. And this is where Elijah started crawling! Go figure, we have 2 cats, but the minute he sees a dog, he takes off! We checked into our hotel on Saturday afternoon and on Sunday we checked out Ben and Jerry's and the Trapp Family Lodge (yes, the von Trapp's from the Sound of Music!!!). We had to drop Chris off at school Sunday afternoon and on Monday we decided to hang around the resort for a while and go to the pool.

On Tuesday we went to Burlington and then took the ferry over to Plattsburgh, NY to visit some family. Of course, there was some severe weather and tornadoes, and they shut the ferry down! It took us 3 hours to get home that night, but we got to see the Canadian border, so I can't complain too much! On Wednesday we went to St. Johnsbury, where my dad lived for a few years growing up and we got to get some maple syrup, and we toured the Cabot cheese factory. Chris had Thursday off, so we spent the day by the pool and then we had to take him back to school because the graduates got their master's "hoods". It was a pretty neat ceremony.

On Friday morning we checked out of one resort, then into another, then we drove back to Norwich so we could see the graduation. It was very hot where they had the ceremony, but it didn't last as long as we thought it would. I'm so proud of him! He worked so hard to get this and it's finally over!

We left early Saturday morning and drove back to NJ to stay with my aunt again. This time we had time to spend with her! We had a great dinner and we got up early again on Sunday and made the drive home. Overall we had a great time and we can't wait to check Vermont out again some other time! Now we just have to wait for the movers!

We have a crawler!!!

Elijah has officially crawled!! What's so funny is that he looks like he's drunk! He'll go about a foot or so and then fall down, but he's getting the hang of it. But he'd rather just sit and scream! He started crawling on Saturday at my aunt's house in New Jersey. We stopped there on the way up to Vermont (another post on that later!) and I guess he just needed a new environment. He's crawled a little since we've been here in Smuggler's Notch, but not that much. So now I get to look forward to keeping a better eye on him!

Ten months old!!!

Wow! Elijah is now 10 months old. I can't believe how fast the past 10 months have gone. (Why can't Chris' deployments go this fast?!?!) I haven't weighed Elijah in a while, but he's about 23 pounds and in size 4 diapers. Yes, he's a chunk!!! But I love it!! He's doing great. He has two teeth (and working on a few more, which is making my life miserable!) and he's rolling all over the place. Notice I did not say crawling all over the place!! He's still not doing that, but he gets to where he wants to go by rolling. And sitting up. Chris and I have figured out that's one of the reasons he isn't crawling. He's fasinated by the fact that he can put himself in a sitting position from laying down, so that's his new favorite thing! So as you can imagine, it's not fun changing his diapers! Not that it ever really was, but at least the most he did was kick his legs. Now getting him to stay on his back is a major challenge! He's also very vocal, always saying something. The only thing we can really distinguish is 'da-da' and 'ba-ba'. And he loves to blow raspberries and try to bite. Not fun, since those teeth are pretty sharp!

Memorial Day

Memorial Day has special meaning to me now. I guess being a military wife, certain holidays tug at your heart strings more than they did before, and Memorial Day is one of them. Memorial Day is a time to reflect and remember the sacrifices that the military gave us. It's also a time to remember the sacrifices that military families give as well. There is no doubt that while the active duty member certainly sacrifices a lot, the families they leave behind have their fair share of trials as well! We have to live every day life without our husband, wife, father, mother, son or daughter. Bills must be paid. Taxes must be paid. Houses must be cleaned. Trash must be taken out. Cat litter boxes must be scooped. Lawns must be mowed. And the list goes on and on and on. Then you have to add it the extras when children have arrived. Diapers, school, tests, after-school activities. We become single parents until our spouse comes home. Not something we like to do! And of course, it never fails that whenever your spouse is gone, something major has to happen. The car breaks down. Your child breaks and arm. It's never ending. Like I said, life goes on.

This Memorial Day we decided to visit the Fredericksburg National Cemetary. In July 1865, three months after the restoration of peace between the states, Congress authorized the establishment of a National Cemetery in Fredericksburg to honor the Federal soldiers who died on the battlefields or from disease in camp. The site chosen was on Marye's Heights, the formidable Confederate position which had proven so impregnable to repeated Federal attacks on December 13, 1862. The cemetery contains the graves of over 15,000 United States soldiers. Most of them are Union soldiers who died in the battles and camps around Fredericksburg. About 100 soldiers are 20th century veterans including at least two spouses. Over 80% of the soldiers are unknown. (I'd like to tell you I came up with that on my own, but I didn't! I got that information from the Battlefield Information Center! I'd hate to be accused of plagerism on my blog!) Each Memorial Day Weekend, the Boy Scouts light 15,000 luminaries to represent the 15,000 soldiers buried there and place an American flag at each grave. It's a breathtaking scene and I highly reccommend that people check it out if your ever in the area.

Just an interesting side note: only United States soldiers are buried in this cemetary, since it's a 'National' Cemetary. Soldiers that fought for the Confederate States are buried in the Confederate Cemetaries in the area. Since they did not fight for the United States, they are not allowed to be buried in a National Cemetary.

North Carolina, here we come!!!

Well, it's official! We're heading to Jacksonville, North Carolina. Chris finally got his orders to be transferred to Camp LeJeune. Chris checks in on July 1 and I'll stay in Virginia with my parents until August when (hopefully!!!) we'll have housing. We're looking forward to the change, even more so since we have a lot of friends there right now. We'll only be minutes from the beach (big plus!) and 3 hours from my brother and only about 5 or so from mom and dad. So that's always good. We're sad though because we'll be even further away from Chris' family (a good 11 or 12 hours) and unless gas prices go down considerably, I'm honestly not sure how often we'll see any of our family! I guess that's life in the military for you. It could be worse though, so we're counting our blessings that we'll still be on the East coast.

Of course, this move means lots of things, like leaving behind friends, making new ones, deployments, getting a job, daycare and dealing with life on a Marine Corps Base. Some I look forward too, some I don't, but I welcome the change and the challenge!

Happy Mother's Day!

Today I celebrated my first 'official' Mother's Day. I say 'offical' because I'll admit that I did celebrate last year when I was pregnant. Why not??? I was mothering someone and taking care of them, he just wasn't here yet! I started off my celebration on Thursday. (I know, a four-day celebration, I have to take advantage while I can!!) Anyway, I was finally able to get a manicure and pedicure, then on Friday I got a massage. We didn't do anything yesterday, but we invited mom and dad over for dinner and today we went to Outback for lunch with mom and dad. Afterwards we got new cell phones! I finally got my pink razor!!! Wahoo!!!

Since it is Mother's Day, I thought I'd share a little bit about what my life as been like since Elijah was born:
Shower: While I love taking my loooooooooong showers, those are nearly impossible. I take a shower when Elijah goes down for his morning nap. Since I never know how long that is going to be (30 minutes to 2 1/2 hours) I have to hurry, because once I get out, I have to get dressed, do make-up and blow dry my hair!! More often than not, unless I'm going somewhere, I don't blow-dry. My hair is easier to manage when it's wet. And when Elijah doesn't cooperate and take a nap, I don't get a shower, or I have to wait until Chris gets home.
Make-up: Since I consider 'no make-up' to be foundation, mascara and lipstick, I do try to put it on every day. Could also be the Mary Kay lady coming out in me!!! I have to say that I have gone out in public without any make-up on (I know, shock of all shocks!!!) but I do feel naked without it and being a Stay at Home Mom, it makes me feel better!
Clothes: I have realized that I was wearing the same 3 or 4 t-shirts in rotation. Mainly because the huge amount of shirts in my closet don't fit me and some of those are for when I worked full-time. I also own about 10 pairs of jeans, but again, only about 2 fit!!! Stupid pregnancy weight!!!
Hair color/Manicures/Pedicures/Massages: I used to spend a lot of money and time in the salon getting primped. Now, not only do I not have the money, I don't have time!! Plus I have to find someone to watch Elijah while I can go. Yeah, doesn't happen. My mom will watch him occasionally, but I can't ask her to do it all the time!
Earrings and other accessories: I barely remember to put my wedding ring on sometimes!!!! Earrings are just another step in my routine that is a waste and a necklace Elijah will just grab and try to eat anyway. When we do go out, I do have all of my jewelry on, but again, they become play things for Elijah. While I do still carry a purse (I can't seem to let it go!!) it is a pain to lug a purse, diaper bag and Elijah when we go somewhere. So I do need to just use my diaper bag as my purse, but what if it's not fashionable?!?! Chris gets mad whenever I come home with a new diaper bag. I told him those are like purses to me, you can never have just one!!!
House cleaning: Yeah, right!! Like I had time to clean my house before Elijah came along!!! Although I have to admit that I do keep the house as clean as I can get it for having a 9 month old. I do know that once he starts crawling, that's all she wrote. I put his toys away every night after bed-time and I also clean up the dishes and the kitchen looks pretty good. The sad part is that we're renting our house out so I have to have a clean house all the time now!! Yikes!!!!

I know, it sounds like I'm doing a lot of complaining, but I'm really not. I wouldn't trade Elijah in for anything, but I don't think anyone is really prepared for a child until they come along. I know I wasn't! While I have been blessed with 5 neices and nephews and a lot of my friends have children, I knew that my life would change, but I didn't know by how much!

Nine months old!!!

On May 1, Elijah turned 9 months old!!! I can't believe how big he's getting!!! He is 22 pounds 14 1/2 ounces (90th percentile) and 29 1/2 inches long (85th percentile). He is not crawling yet, but he is getting up on his hand and knees and rocking. He still rolls all over the place and even pushed himself under our end table and got stuck. He's doing great eating all of his solids and is doing OK with feeding himself. In typical baby fashion, most of it ends up on the floor or in his lap. I'm trying to get him to eat more chunkier foods, but he doesn't seem to care one way or the other, as long as he's getting food. As you can see, he's not missing many meals!

A surprise party for Donna!

One of my oldest friends, Donna, turned 30 on April 29. Her husband gave her a surprise party to celebrate. Our friend, Sarah, from New York even came down to help celebrate. Since Donna is older than us (hee hee hee!!) we took full advantage and made sure she knew that she was 'Over the Hill'. Yeah, I know. Payback is a bitch! Donna's sister had a baby the day before Elijah was born and they seemed to get along very well. The girls certainly loved them! It was so cute to see them surrounded by all of these girls!!! Overall we had a great time and I can't wait until Sarah turns 30 next week!!!

A visit with Auntie Roo

My college roommate and I were finally able to get together for a visit last weekend. Rachel, aka, "Auntie Roo", came down on Saturday to spend some time with us. We had a great time, but we really didn't do anything! Sometimes those are the best visits!! We did go to Sonic (mmm...limeaide) for lunch since they don't have a Sonic in the DC area (I know, major crime) and we took Rachel to Carl's, a Fredericksburg institution, for ice cream! It was sooooooooo good! So if you're ever in the Fredericksburg area, you have to check out Carl's.

A weekend in Charleston

This past Saturday (April 5) was the 31st annual Cooper River Bridge Run in Charleston, SC. And since Chris is an avid runner, whenever he can, we head down to Charleston so he can participate in it. We decided since it's a 7 1/2 hour car ride (without Elijah!!) to leave on Thursday so we could enjoy the city. We didn't do to bad. We got there around 7:00 Thursday night after leaving at 11:00 and stopping about 3 times. Elijah did so good...until we got on I-26 to get to Charleston. He was done with the carseat! Not that I can blame him. We were able to stay at the Charleston Air Force base in their lodging and only paid $36.00 for a suite! It was great! Full kitchen and all!

Friday was a beautiful 80 degrees, with a little humidity worked in! So that made it nice and hot, but a welcome change from the 50 degree weather we've been having. Our first stop was downtown so Chris could pick up his race packet. After that we showed Elijah the College of Charleston where I went to school. Of course, we took some pictures of the Cistern! He loved it. I think it was his favorite stop on the trip, but Chris will probably say otherwise! Anyway, after that, we grabbed a quick bite for lunch and headed over to the Citadel to catch the parade and show Elijah around campus. Of course we took a picture of Elijah and Chris in front of the bulldog (actually a very cute picture!). After parade we ran into some old friends, including my friend Kenny! Since the race was the next day, we decided to spend a quite evening in the room. Since we had a full kitchen, we stopped at the store and picked up some spaghetti and rented a movie. We laugh that we can't experience the 'real' Charleston since we have to put Elijah to bed so early!

Since we were staying up in North Charleston, Chris got up early and ran the race and came back to pick up me and Elijah. He did so good (and I even saw him on TV a few times!!!) His official time was 37 minutes and 54 seconds! I think his overall placement was 124th place. Not to bad when there were over 15,000 people either running or walking! After the race, we showed Elijah the Battery, Waterfront Park and even took him on a carriage ride. He did such a good job and even fell asleep. Afterwards we ate lunch and walked around some more and then went to visit some more friends out in West Ashley. Sarah and Nate have a 1 1/2 year old named Ella. Elijah likes older women, that's all I can say! Once we got there, the sky opened up!!! I told Chris I had forgotten how bad Thunderstorms can get in Charleston! It was crazy! I was just glad we weren't walking around downtown when it happened.

Sadly, our trip came to an end on Sunday morning when we had to go home. We made decent time getting home, so that's always good. Elijah slept most of the way and slept really good last night, so I know he's happy to be back in his bed and not in the pack 'n play!

8 months old!

Yes, that's right! Elijah is now 8 months old! I can't believe how fast the past 8 months have gone! I wish Chris' deployments would go by this fast! Anyway, Elijah weighs in at a whopping 22 pounds and is about 29 1/2 inches long. Yes, he is HEAVY!!! He's doing great on the fruits and veggies. And he started yogurt today. He seems to like it, so we'll see how long it lasts! So far his favorite veggie is Sweet Potatoes. Not that I can blame him, they are pretty good! Here are some 8 month pictures of Elijah. He loves bath time. I'm going to have to wear my bathing suit for bath time because I end up soaked! He loves to splash around. The other two pictures I took for Chris, since he loves baseball so much. Elijah seems to like it too. But then, maybe it's just the taste of the ball that he likes!!

Friends, Food and Cherry Blossoms!

We had a very busy day on Sunday!!! A few weeks back, we heard that some very good friends of ours from California were going to be in DC for the weekend, so we decided to trek it on up there. And yes, it was a haul with Elijah and all of the goodies you must pack to be gone all day! Anyway, since we hadn't seen Mark and Indira for almost three years (yikes! Have we been here that long?!?!) we had no problem making the long haul up there. Our first stop was Springfield, VA where we took Elijah on his first Metro ride. About an hour later we were trying to find where their hotel was in regards to the Metro station. Mark made reservations for us at a really good restaurant for brunch. But for the life of me, I can't remember the name, but the French Toast was great! Shortly after lunch, Mark and Indira had to catch a plane back to California, and since Elijah was doing so good, we decided to check out the famous Cherry Blossoms (sorry Rach, that was a last minute decision or I would have called you!!). Since the crowds were astronomical, we didn't head around the Tidal Basin, we just stuck by the Washington Monument and checked out the World War II Memorial since Chris hadn't seen it. After walking around for a bit, we headed up the street, where I nearly sprained my ankle, to catch the Metro back home.

Now for the fun part!!! When we got back to Springfield, it was about 4:00, give or take. We finally get on the interstate and, shock of all shocks in Northern Virginia...TRAFFIC!!!! After about 5 miles, it started moving really good again. Then we get stuck in MORE TRAFFIC!!! All I have to say is that it's a good thing that signs were posted that the interstate was closed due to an accident (again, shocking!!!!) so we were able to get off and take the back roads home. By this time, poor Elijah is hungry and is screaming to get out of his carseat. After singing a few rounds of 'Wheels on the Bus', 'Take me out to the Ballgame', the Marine Corps Hymn and yes, '99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall', we finally made it home at 6:00. So we had a VERY long day and up until the very end, Elijah handled it wonderfully! But I don't think we'll be doing that again for a while!

Success!!

Just as I thought...Elijah did wonderfully this weekend! And so did Chris! Yes, they both missed me but they had a good time together. Chris did tell me that it was really strange for him not to get up this morning and go to the gym and run and do what he normally does on Saturday mornings. And since Elijah slept until about 6:30, Chris even got to sleep in! Chris was able to get to they gym and they only called him to the nursery once. Overall it was a great night for them and I had a blast at my conference! I really enjoyed the experience and loved having girlfriend time!!! So now it's back into the swing of things with dinner, bath and bedtime. Hopefully Elijah will sleep good tonight because I am exhausted!! Too much girlfriend time I guess!

A Day (and Night!) without mommy!

Ok. We've left Elijah overnight before with my parents a few times. The first time was in November so we could go to our Marine Corps Ball. The other time was so we could go to a wedding. Chris has been out of town a few times for work which has left me alone for more than a few days. Well, tonight and tomorrow, Elijah gets to spend some one-on-one time with just Daddy!! I am going to be in Richmond for Mary Kay's Career Conference. I'll be back sometime early tomorrow evening. I have complete confidence in Chris while I'm gone. It'll be interesting because Chris has never been alone with Elijah for more than a few hours, so I can't wait to hear about everything! It's going to be a lot of fun! I told him he couldn't cheat and call my mom! I can't wait!!!

I know, I'm horrible. But what can I say. I'm not wishing or hoping that Elijah's schedule gets way off, but it'll be nice for Chris to experience what I do on a normal day.

A visit with Grandma

Chris' mom came down to spend a few days with us while she is on her spring break. So far we've had a great time!! Elijah loves spending time with Grandma! Today we decided to go to the park. It was a beautiful 71 degrees outside, so we took full advantage! Elijah got to sit in his first 'big kid' swing and he loved it! He also liked going down the slide with Chris. Hopefully the weather will stay nice so we can get out more often!

Happy Easter!

Elijah celebrated his first Easter this year, and boy did we have fun! On Saturday, we went over to Nana and Granddaddys and had dinner with them and Elijah's Great-Grandmother. Then on Sunday, we went to church and up to Quantico to have an Easter Brunch at the Officer's Club. It was sooooooooooooooo good and we were majorly stuffed when we left. Thank God Elijah took a looooong nap so Chris and were able to sleep too! Once we were all awake and alert, Elijah got to discover his first Easter basket. Since he obviously can't eat any candy, the M & M's are for us! But the Easter Bunny did bring him a really cool cammo onesie and some Spiderman sippy cups. He really liked playing with the Easter grass, so we took that away very quickly! But he seemed to enjoy himself.

Elijah's first St. Patrick's Day

Elijah had a great first St. Patrick's Day!! Since he's a little young to be out late, we decided to celebrate on Sunday with lunch at the Irish Brigade, an Irish Restaurant in downtown Fredericksburg. Mom and Dad met us and it was sooooooo good. On Monday, I made Shepard's pie and mom made corn beef and cabbage for a traditional dinner. It was awesome. Overall, we had a good time and Elijah looked so good in his Irish outfit and his Notre Dame sleeper that Grandma gave him.






















Getting ready for bed!

Some pictures of Elijah

Just thought I'd add a few more pictures of Elijah. As you can see, he's getting soooo big!! Yes, he's standing on his own!! Of course, that's only next to the couch, he can't do that standing in the middle of the living room yet. He's such a happy baby!

We have a tooth!

So Elijah's tooth FINALLY decided to break through his gums this weekend. It's just the top of the tooth, but it's there. So hopefully his sleeping patterns will get back to normal and he won't be so fussy! At least until the next one pops up, and it looks like that one's not to far off.

Seven Months!!!

Elijah is seven months old, TODAY!!! We can't believe how fast the time has gone. He's getting so big so fast! We even took his weight and height today. Of course, I can't guarantee their accuracy, but according to our measurements, he's 29 inches long and 21 pounds. WOW!!! He's going to be a tall one. Anyway, here are some of our latest pictures.

Check out this toothless grin!!!!!

I had to take some toothless grin shots of Elijah. (No that tooth that I see still has not made it's way up!) He's such a ham! The Cleveland Browns outfit was given to him by Aunt Beth and soon-to-be Uncle Sean when Elijah was baptized. (It's Chris' favorite, so I had to take a picture of it!)

Is that a tooth I see!?!?!

Hmmm.....I really can't tell, but when I examine Elijah's gums very closely (not easy by the way!!) I see what looks to be the two corners of a tooth popping up! I'll keep you updated on that, but hopefully it'll be popped up by the time he's 7 months! WOW!! SEVEN MONTHS! That is so close. He'll be seven months on Saturday. Hard to believe.

This week has been an uneventful week. Elijah had his second swim class on Wednesday and he's doing great in the water! Doesn't really seem to mind if his face gets wet. Hopefully we can get him to keep his mouth closed when he goes under!

His girlfriend, Natalie, came over for dinner and Wednesday and he had a really good time trying to impress her. Yes, Elijah has TONS of girlfriends! Of course, he was impressed because she has two teeth already and she's two weeks younger than him! On Thursday we hung out with another friend of ours for lunch and on Friday we stayed inside all day because of the freezing rain and the roads. Yes, freezing rain, when just 4 days ago, it was 70 degrees!!!

Chris had duty yesterday, so Elijah and I drove down to Richmond for our goddaughters 4th birthday party. It was Hannah Montana themed. She and her older sister got in a fight over who would get to eat the Hannah Montana head off the cake! It was rather cute. We're going to go swimming later today, whenever Chris wakes up to play with Elijah in the pool. That's all from the peanut gallery!!!

"Airplane" can be hazardous to your face!

I've been waiting to see this happen for quite some time now! Chris was playing 'airplane' with Elijah and a nice loooooooooooooong string of slobber came out of Elijah's mouth and onto Chris' face!!!! I laughed so hard! I told him to be thankful that it wasn't spit-up and said that this tends to happen to most fathers! At least most of the ones I've talked to!

It's Swim Time!!!

A few months back, Chris and I decided to sign Elijah up for swimming lessons at the YMCA. Today started his 4-week session of "Parent/Tot". He did soooo good!!! I should have known since he seems to enjoy his bath time, but we're really glad he liked it so much. I only have the one picture of Chris, since it's kind of hard to be in the water and take pictures, so just take my word for it, he had fun! Even his teacher thought he did great!

Elijah's first President's Day!

Since today is President's Day (and 70 degrees!!!), we decided to take Elijah to George Washington's Boyhood home, Ferry Farm. They had lot of colonial games for the kids to play and we got to walk aroud the grounds where George 'chopped down the cherry tree', threw the stone across the Rappahannock and learned to be a surveyor. They even had cake and cherry tarts (which were really good!!!). We had a really good time and can't wait until Elijah is a little older so he can enjoy the games they had. But Chris enjoyed them!

Chris and George!