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 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.

Here are the pictures from Elias' 9th Month. We've put in a fair bit of time on the couch in the last week watching the Olympics. GO Canada! Eli usually doesn't get much time in front of the tube but this week he has had no other option. At times he's pretty captivated by what's on the TV but usually he is happier getting into trouble.

Lately, our living room feels like it has been transformed into a circus ring. Eli is the Seal because he still spends most of his time pulling himself along on his belly, clapping blocks together and yelping. He sure is moving fast now! Oscar is the lion who likes to sleep a lot but occasionally wants to play. When he is in a playful mood he eats everything in sight and bowls over the poor little seal. Trav and I are occasionally the ring leaders keeping things in order but most of the time we're the crazy clowns running around keeping the menagerie entertained and out of trouble. This is what our lives have become and every day is more fun than the last.

Every time we put Eli down in the living room, there are two places that he always gravitates towards. He either does a quick crawl to tug on the phone cord that is nicely dangling down the back of the table. Or, he sprints to the metal fireplace grate and tugs that around the room. During the Canada and Norway Hockey Game, Trav and I were discussing ways we could baby proof these two hot spots. When a great "a ha" moment came to us. Why baby proof the house when we can house proof the baby! This is the background story behind the laundry basket turned into turtle protective shell for babies. I think we could market this!

Here's a quick update on what's going on...