Shout Out to Raffi

You wake up in the morning,

It's a quarter to one.

You think you'll go

And have some fun.

You brush your teeth,

Ch, ch-ch-cha

Cha, ch-ch-cha.

You brush your teeth,

Ch, ch-ch-cha

Cha, ch-ch-cha.

You wake up in the morning,

It's a quarter to two.

You just don't know

What you should do.

You brush your teeth,

Ch, ch-ch-cha

Cha, ch-ch-cha.

You brush your teeth,

Ch, ch-ch-cha

Cha, ch-ch-cha.

Golden Rings

Elliot has baskets and baskets of wonderful toys... wooden rattles, plastic chewies and bells that jingle, soft blocks for stacking and knocking down and balls for rolling.  All of which we are so grateful for.  But sometimes it's the simplest things that bring the greatest joy.  Elliot and our little childcare-share friend seem to find endless enjoyment in these canning jar rings.  They are loud when the bowl gets smacked.  Hard for teething on.  Easy to grasp.  And there are lots of them.  They have become a daily staple in babytown.

Woodland Creatures

We went for Elliot's first hike today in Forest Park (isn't that a great name?!?).  It was such a fun day.  Here's a look at what we did.

Everyone started out with smiles.

Elliot was strapped onto his SG, Annika, which made for some great smooching.

And a great way to see all of the new things, like the river we walked along.

There was so much for a baby to see and hear and learn about that it wasn't too long before he was sound asleep.

While he slept, I played in the old stone house.

Then it was time for some lunch.  (Thanks for the sandwiches, Annika!)

Elliot woke up after lunch and was transferred to his Mama's back... which he clearly liked a whole lot!

We made our way back down the trail and finished a wonderful first hike.

As you can see, all of the woodland creatures had a great time!

(PS... Auntie Granny, isn't his fleece suit perfect???!?!)

Party O's

Okay, so the box actually said Purely O's, but I thought it said Party O's. I'm pretty sure they will forever more be called Party O's in this house. And look at what a party it was! Mind you, he doesn't yet understand that he can put them in his mouth, or even necessarily like them if we put one in for him, but O what fun he had (hee hee, couldn't resist)!

As Suggested

To avoid this, today I fed Elliot like this...

As you can imagine, clean-up was a whole lot easier!

I Can Do It

My previously oh-so-clean mealtime baby who wanted nothing more than to keep his hands out of the way as one of his mamas shoveled food into his mouth as fast as she could, has started demanding that he grab the spoon and feed himself with each bite. Needless to say, we now save bath time for after dinner.

Kitchen Fun

Sometimes sitting on the kitchen floor with some mixing spoons is all a baby needs.

His Forever Stocking

I was committed to making all of us our official family stockings this year and wanted a woodland creatures theme to them, but life with a baby moves at its own pace. I was able to at least make Elliot's and settled for smaller, stand-in stockings for the rest of us for now (the felt that I used for those ones is made out of recycled plastic!). I figure if I can make one of our stockings each year I'll be in good shape. Andrea has requested a scene of a mama and baby deer for hers... I guess I should start working on that one now!

Storytime with Nan

Nan is an excellent storybook reader. She and Elliot have had a great time making their way through Elliot's library. She's read all of his Hawaiian language books, and has especially enjoyed his new The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats and I Love You Stinky Face. It is so much fun having Nan here!

Brought to you by the Number 32

Happy birthday, Andrea!

Today you're:

I've known you since you were:

That means I've know you for this many years!:

And I've loved everyone one of them. I hope today is wonderful for you.

Zillows

I made Zillows for Elliot and his cousin, Jack, for Christmas. Zillows are from one of my favorite Dr. Seuss books, There's a Wocket in my Pocket. The last page in the book says:

But the ZILLOW

On my PILLOW

Always helps me fall asleep.

It was a fun, creative project for me to make up what a Zillow might look like. And god knows, Elliot needs all the help he can get sleeping!

Merry Christmas, Elliot and Jack. We had a wonderful day at Grandpa G and Amuma's house together. And I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas day, too!