Eli the Reader

IMG_0157, originally uploaded by dhoconno.

Eli and the Butterflies

IMG_0187, originally uploaded by dhoconno.

Eli 'Howard Hughes' - always washing his hands

IMG_0208, originally uploaded by dhoconno.

Sleeping Eli in Minneapolis

IMG_0215, originally uploaded by dhoconno.

With ann aunt, uncle neil, and Shelby's cousins

IMG_0230, originally uploaded by dhoconno.

Minneapolytics

A few hurried thoughts. With undergrad classes starting next week, Shelby and I are gearing up for our busiest semester yet. I'm sure we will persevere, but it will be a challenge. There just seems to be so much to do!

1) Last weekend we visited Shelby's Aunt Ann and Uncle Neil in Minneapolis. We had a terrific time. Not only did Eli behave in the car (we stacked the odds by having him take his midday nap on the way there and drove back late night on Sunday), but he was adorable all weekend long. On Saturday we walked around a lake (only 9,999 to go), visited the Mall of America (and took Eli into a butterfly exhibit - go figure), and played around the house. Sunday brought a long walk through the neighborhood, projects around the house, and a visit from Shelby's cousins and their three children. A really nice visit was had by all.

2) Google Analytics continues to surprise me. I'm not certain who the 15 people per day are that visit us to learn the latest in our uneventful lives, but I guess we should continue posting pictures and smarmy commentary.


3) I put Eli to bed unassisted for the second time tonight. Well, I was assisted by a medley of Queen classics that substituted for the traditional lullabies that I don't know.

4) More pictures will follow.

dave

Madison Children's museum

Last weekend we found a new Madison gem -- the Children's museum! There were a lot of fun things to do there. You can see Eli playing in the toddler barnyard. He also liked crawling after these wooden pull-toys that were dinosaurs and pigs. We got him to go into the tunnel to get the pig toy. And, he liked playing the bongos. Overall, it was a really good time, albeit very stimulating for Eli. We now have an annual pass so we can go whenever we want -- yay! I think we will be spending many days at the museum playing with all sorts of toys, but learning at the same time!

bear hug and the pool

I thought I would share with you a picture of Eli's new 'bear hug' around my neck. He has been using it somewhat regularly these days. Here is a picture before we went running last weekend. But, he also does it in the pool. When we are in the pool, he holds on so tightly that I can let go and he just floats while holding onto me!

Also, we took out the baby pool last weekend because it was warm and nice. We played for a bit, but then it got buggy. Eli really likes it, but we have to make sure he doesn't slip too much. He really likes the turtle head too....

Ahh....Triscuit....

For those of you who don't know, Triscuit likes to eat plastic toys. I try to put most of Eli's toys away that I think Triscuit will eat, but I am not perfect. I closed up Eli's toybox the other day, but I did not zip it shut. Needless to say, Triscuit got a fish teething ring. There used to be five fish on the ring. You can see that there are now only 4. And, the remaining 4 don't look so good....

Also, I put Eli's Cardinals gear on him today. I don't think I should take him to a Brewers game wearing those clothes, but they look great! And, you can see he got a little stuck in Triscuit's bed. This was the first time he really took a dive into Triscuit's bed. Maybe that was because Triscuit was somewhere else....hopefully not eating plastic....

more pics

I wanted to post a couple more pictures, but I needed to do it separately so they would upload.

enjoy!

pics

I thought I would post a few pics. Here is one from the visit by the grandparents last weekend. And, you can see Eli standing and throughly enjoying his yogurt....yum!

Babblin' E

The last few weeks have been eventful. Eli continues to crazily crawl around rooms, exploring the many wonders of the living room and preparing to walk (probably not too long now). Last weekend Shelby and I rearranged the house to deal with mobile Eli. We took all of our television gear out of the great room downstairs; moved our computer gear from the study to the guest room; moved our networking gear and printer to the basement; and put our TV and peripherals upstairs in a new Family Room over the Garage (aka, FROG). The new arrangement gives Eli much more safe space downstairs. It can be a little noisy at night, but on the balance it is a major improvement. Moving furniture and rewiring took the better part of last Sunday...

Last week's major event was a little more traumatic. Eli had an accident at day care and somehow lost his fingernail. He was not too happy about this, either, since it was a finger that he habitually sucks. The nail fell off completely when we went to the doctor, and he fortunately showed no long-term effects. Yet it is always a little frightening when you get a call from day care saying that Eli had an accident.

This weekend Grandma Linda and Grandpa Mike visited. They got to listen to Eli babble sounds that are increasingly articulated. I think he will be saying 'Dad!' (or at least dadadadada) very soon. The grandparents also got to watch Eli while Shelby and I went for a bike ride. Lastly, Grandma got to go to the park with Eli and watch him enjoy the swing. Everyone likes the park!