Happy 8 Months Eli

I can't believe my baby is 8 months old already

Such a Big Boy!!

Eli is getting so big. I can't believe that he is almost 8 months old. Where has the time gone. Eli has now graduated to the front of the cart when we go grocery shopping and last night Eli got to take a bath sitting up. (this was probably overdue) Eli did a great job riding in the front of the cart. He just sat there and looked around at everything. He was so smiley.

Eli loved his bath. This is the first time he was able to play in the water. He played with some toy trucks and a ducky in the water. He splashed and splashed and splashed and the entire time he had a huge smile on his face. He would have loved to play longer, but the water was getting cold. Now bath time is fun time :-)

The pictures are a little fuzzy because we are having camera problems, but I had to take pictures

Today was the first day I watched another little one. Kennedy is 10 months old. It was a fun day. Eli really enjoyed having her here. He kept looking at her and smiling. She also gave me a look into the future. She crawls everywhere. I had to use a chair to block off the kitchen because she found the water bowl. It was also a wrestling match to change her diaper. Eli just stays put when I change his diaper. I enjoy that :-)

Fun Day at the Zoo

Today was a great day! Eli and I went to the zoo with my best friend Sam and her 10 month old daughter Sienna. It was so much fun walking around and looking at the animals. I wasn't sure how much Eli would even see, but he loved it. He rode around in his stroller just taking it all in. I think he enjoyed the water animals the most. I could tell he was really watching them. I think they were the easiest to see since we were inside and they were under water. It was very bright and sunny today. I think the heat wore him out. He and Sienna both fell asleep as soon as we left. This was such an awesome day!

Sienna (almost 10 months) Sam, me, Eli (almost 8 months)

Looking at the little sharks :-)

I love my little boy!

Eli watching the big sharks in the tank, he was fascinated!

Of course we need a souvenir!

Fun at Home

Not too much has been going on here this week. We have just been having fun and hanging out at home. Which is good, because this is going to be my last full week to just me and Eli. Starting next week I am going to watching a 10 month girl named Kennedy 3 to 4 times a week. Her family came to visit last night and I think it will be fun. I also think it will be good for Eli to be around other kids. Right now he is pretty spoiled. I don't know how that happened. :-)

"I can't get any water mom!"

Yesterday Tracy came over with Lily and Luke. It was fun. Lily loves to play with Eli and she is so good with him. Eli and Lily played on the floor, Luke slept in his carseat and Tracy and I got to visit.

Luke (almost 2 months) Eli (almost 8 months)

Happy Birthday Dad!

Today is my dad's birthday! We celebrated it yesterday with a family party at Arni's in Lebanon. It was so great to see everyone. There was close to 30 people there. We have such a big family and it keeps gowing. :) Eli was awesome while we were there. He went to everyone. I think the only times I had him was when he needed his diaper changed and when it was time to eat. He also did great while we were eating. He sat in a restaurant high chair for the first time. He looked so small, it was adorable. We had to put Auntie Jackie's bag behind him because he wasn't quite big enough, but it worked and I was able to eat.

Eli and Papa

Eli in the high chair!

Maya and Lily leavng the party, are't they adorable!

Play Time

I love to play with Eli!

Eli really loves to play now. I can just sit him on the floor with some toys and he will play for a long time. It is so great. I love to watch him. He still doesn't care to be laying on the floor. He will roll from tummy to back, but then he is stuck. Now that he knows how to sit up he doesn't want anything to do with tummy time. He is just content to sit and not move.

I love when he makes this face!

Even more than Eli likes to sit, this boy loves to stand. He loves to stand on our laps, he loves to stand on the floor, and now he lovs to stand next to things. He even loves to hold onto my hands and walk around the room. He still has no balance but he loves to walk.

Today Eli learned a new trick. Lately he has been imitating our mouth movements. Mike was holding him on his lap one day while he was eating something and I could tell Eli was concentrating on it and then he started moving his mouth like he was chewing something. It was so cute. Today while Mike was holding him he stuck at out his tongue and then they just kept going back and forth. Eli sure has fun with his daddy.

Naps

It is amazing that how the day goes really depends on how Eli naps. If Eli gets 2 good naps I can get so much done. Not just while he is sleeping, but also while he is awake. If he doesn't nap well he can be a little cranky when he wakes up and I end up just holding him. I am trying to get him into a routine with napping the same time everyday. I feed Eli around 7:30 in the morning and then I try to get him down for a nap around 9:30. A good morning nap would be an hour. Then we can play for a little while til lunch. I feed Eli lunch around 11:30 and then nurse him at 12:30. I have been trying to get him to take an afternoon nap around 1:00. On the days that I have gotten him down for a nap at 1:00 he has slept for 2 hours. It is just hit or miss right now. I have also been having a lot of trouble getting him to go to sleep on his own. He was doing pretty well before the tummy troubles started but while he was having his tummy aches he needed me to rock him to sleep. Now I think he is just used to me rocking him to sleep. He does better a little better going to sleep at night. 3 out of he last 5 nights he has went to sleep on his own, but nap time is a different story. I am hoping that once I get him on a set nap schedule each day it will be easier to lay him down and let him fall asleep on his own. It is just too hard to sit there and let him scream in his crib. I love him way to much to do that.