Here are some pictures from Elias' 13th month!

This has been a quick whirlwind month. Trav and the boys made it safely to and from Josh's stag in Vegas where it sounds like they had a successful weekend. While the boys were playing, Eli and I took the opportunity to visit with Michael, Jill and Isabella. I didn't carry my camera with me cause I was so loaded with other gear so for a few photos hop over to Jill's Blog. Here is Post 1 and Post 2 of our visit. It was a super short visit but it was great to meet Baby Bella and see the new pad! Eli was fairly well behaved on the flights. I've realized that, when travelling alone, it doesn't matter how many toys, snacks and other diversions you bring, the only thing that matters in the end is who is sitting around you. Because once I got boring, Eli looked for other people to entertain him. On the way there, I was sitting beside friendly people who were comfortable around babies and the flight seemed so short. But on the way home I got stuck next to people with no interest in making baby faces or even holding a conversation so I had to hold on for a looooong flight. We had a few screams that turned heads three rows ahead. But, I'd do it again in a second.

Josh and Davannah's wedding and all of the festivities surrounding it were beautiful and a lot of fun. It was pouring rain for the ceremony but everyone was cool with that. After all, it is Victoria! Although, that was the first wedding I have attended here in the POURING rain. For the wedding weekend, we booked a hotel room at Bear Mountain and had fun playing tourist in our own town. Trav played a round of golf at one of the Bear Mountain courses and keeps talking about how much he enjoys golf. Uh oh. How can I stop that train? Hahaha, I like golf; When I am at the range and don't have to actually chase my horrible shots.

Other than being fairly busy, we have been sick. Or at least I have been. Eli and I were just getting over colds at our last month's post and then we both came home from Cupertino with colds. Travis managed to catch that one too. To top it all off, yesterday I got a touch of the 24hr flu that has been rampantly running through our family since the wedding. I was down and out for the whole day yesterday which is why this post is a day late. However, I am feeling a lot better today. Last night I made Travis promise to get me pizza when I was feeling better so tonight we went to the park then dropped by Prima Strada Pizzeria in Cook St. Village on the way home. Mmmmm, funghi!

Elias is doing really well. Still not walking but working on some serious cute every day! Travis walked at 14 months so Eli has one month left to beat his Dad! Go Eli! I'm honestly looking forward to the day when I don't have to bend over so far to pick him up.

Here are some pictures from Elias' 12th Month. Another milestone come and gone. Elias is officially one year old! He enjoyed a great weekend filled with wonderful people and parties. Thanks to everyone who was able to attend. Family and friends are what makes a celebration and we were so happy to get the chance to hang out with you all.

Eli is not walking yet but is starting to stand on his own for short periods of time. He has been working on his quick and sneaky abilities. Anytime the fridge, dishwasher or baby gate are opened, he is sure to drop his head and bolt towards his goal with great hopes of fun on the other side. He is loving books and occasionally will sit down with a book, turn the pages the best he can, and make noises just like he's reading to us. It sure is cute! He is also waving and most mornings will wave to Dad when he leaves for work. It completely melts my heart to see his little hand pumping away as Dad walks out the door.

Life has been pretty busy in the last month and it is not going to calm down for a while. We went for a visit to Powell River and attended a fundraiser dinner for a friend who is awaiting a liver transplant. Unfortunately my parents were not home because they were visiting family in New England but we had a good visit with friends. I am now back to working part time and am trying to squeeze in as many hours as possible until baby #2 comes in early November. In a little over a week, Travis heads to Las Vegas for a few days for Josh's stag and Eli and I get to go visit Jill, Michael and Isabella in Cupertino! I am really excited for the trip but nervous for the plane ride with just Eli and I. He is always on the go and holding him on my lap for two hours does not sound like a good time. The weekend after the Vegas/Cali trip is the big wedding. We have also been making some progress on our house renovations. We have a draft model from the designer and it really looks and feels good! But, the stress is starting to get to me already.

The pregnancy is going well but the last few weeks have been tough as both Eli and I got a nasty cold of some sort. Eli recovered quickly, but I really had issues getting back to normal. I was extremely exhausted, congested and suffering from some crazy headaches. In fact, I am still getting headaches daily but they are not nearly as bad as they were. I'm not sure what is going on with that, it might be time to hit up the chiropractor cause that cured me last time I had such bad headaches.

I think that's it for this family update. HAPPY BIRTHDAY ELIAS!

Here are the pictures from Elias' 11th Month. Eli's world is expanding and this month he is certainly figuring everything out.

We've figured out how to open cupboards and drawers. Even the magnetic cabinet under the TV has been no match for Eli this month. The toilet paper roll is a lot of fun to unravel and fishing around in the toilet bowl is a good idea. Eli is amazingly good at turning the pages of the little cardboard books when you read to him and he actually seems to understand the words "turn the page". He has also learned that closing doors can be fun. He shut the glass door to the kitchen on Oscar and I and then stood up and leaned on the door so I couldn't open it. It's great fun trying to coax a little boy who has no idea what you are saying. In desperation, I sat down on the floor with hopes he would copy me but I just got a sly little smile in return. Some days I think it would be hilarious to be a fly on the wall in this house.

Elias doesn't really have any repeatable words yet. Still a lot of babble and mama dada. Might be time to get some flash cards out! hehe... nah, I'm not that crazy. He is showing early signs of a potential preacher or politician though. He has started putting a hand in the air and just shouting out babble to his hand. He is very spirited about it. When he is in the mood, he'll do it for long periods of time. One day when we were shopping and we got to the checkout the clerk said to Eli "Oh, you were the one making all that noise". Let's say he likes to be noticed. But he's also extremely shy in groups which is an odd combination. I realized this week that I might have to work on some jealousy problems because as soon as I am holding another baby, Eli becomes the most clingy snuggly thing ever. However, I secretly loved it since he seems to be turning into more of a go-boy instead of a cuddle-boy.

I think that is about it from this house. I'm starting to feel a little more stable as I exit the first trimester and I have a lot more energy. We're loving the warmer weather (I think its here now) and looking forward to a fun summer with an awesome little boy.

Congrats to our friends Michael and Jill Maysmith who had a baby girl Isabella on April 12. Head over to Jill's Blog to see some adorable pictures!

Spring is here and it's not only the bunnies at UVic that are reproducing. Travis and I are expecting another baby! The due date is November 3rd-ish. To save you from doing the math, that will put Elias and his little bro or sis about 18 months apart. It is going to be a challenge for a few months to have two so close together but we have always wanted our kids to be close in age so here we are fulfilling our plan.

The picture shows Eli and I wearing the t-shirts we used to announce our good news to the family. Eli's shirt has Version 1.0 printed on it and my shirt has Version 2.0 over my soon-to-be-large-again belly. We thought the theme was cute but a few family members needed a little help to get the message.

I have been feeling a more ill than I remember with Eli. Maybe that's because of the selective memory I have of my first pregnancy. I've also been incredibly exhausted and generally uninspired. I think it is much harder that I have been off work because I am not hesitating to take advantage of afternoon naps. I also have more time to think about how unstable I am. I'm really looking forward to the second trimester.

Here are the pictures from Elias' 10th Month. I'm running a few days late this month because when I looked at our photo library last week, I realized that we had only taken 6 pictures! Instead of posting 6 pics I decided to hold off until the end of the weekend so we could get a few more pictures.

I don't know where this month has gone. It feels like just last week that we were waiting and waiting for Eli's first tooth. Well, now he has 6! 4 on the top and 2 on the bottom. He has been generally a little more grumpy but I think that is mostly due to the teeth arriving so quickly.

The biggest change this month has been the switch to standing. He learned to pull himself up into a standing position early in the month. Transitioning back down onto his bum was a harder feat learned almost two weeks later. We had a lot of fun times, picking up Eli and putting him back down only to have him stand up again because... well he could. Nap time was a complete nightmare. He would stand in his crib, get angry because he was stuck, but when I came in to put him back down he would get really angry at me because then he had to stand up again. Luckily, the novelty of standing at nap time has worn off and he is back to going to sleep sans big fuss.

We're looking forward to the venture of walking however there is a small part of me that really misses that little infant that remained in the exact position you left him when you ran into another room for a few minutes.