Halloween

It has been way too long since I've posted pictures. It is hard to believe that Elijah is almost 14 months old! Most of my friends have Elijah's birthday party on their blogs and I do not! Soon...

Elijah is walking beautifully and quickly these days! I am stunned by how rapidly he became proficient. He can stand up from a sitting position independently and doesn't need to pull up on anything. It is really strange for me to see him do that. He's not a baby any longer. He can change directions quite easily also and he has just started to do a bit of a "run" when he is excited. I have tons I'd like to share and at this point, I still hope to catch up on the blog, but it seems impossible so lets just take a quick look at Halloween!

A sweet woman from our church, Dorothy, found a clown costume at a garage sale that was just his size and thought of Elijah. He wore it when the youth had their Halloween party on Wednesday and he was adorable. A few of the girls who babysit Elijah helped me paint his face. Have I ever mentioned the incredible babysitters we have!? They love Elijah and he adores them! We feel very blessed. To finish off our costume theme, I was a lion and Aaron was a lion tamer. Cute, huh! That was Aaron's witty idea.

On Halloween night, Elijah was an octopus. My friend, Kim, who is really into making amazing costumes loaned us the octopus costume that her three boys have outgrown. On Halloween we went with our friends (Ian, Lisa and Aidan) to trick or treat in the downtown Ballard area on Market street and then to dinner. The local businesses had candy for the kids. I was pretty overwhelmed by the large crowd, but it was great fun. Elijah had a portion of his first sucker. He was NOT a happy camper when we decided he had had enough. I think it is safe to say he's definitely going to be like his mommy and have a sweet tooth.

After dinner, Aaron, Elijah and I went to a few houses to trick or treat and then went to a carnival at a church. There was a professional photographer taking pictures so we got a really nice shot of Elijah on a bale of hay. Enjoy the pictures of our sweet toddler!

Memorial Day

We went to a Bar-b-Que at Mike and Karen Tausher's house today. I cared for the two boys they adopted two years ago until the youngest started pre-school so I know their family well and love them. This first picture is Elijah with their oldest son, Franklin. Franklin and Levi both enjoy little ones so it is fun to watch them rush to play with him. Their parents, Mike and Karen, have really helped Aaron and me through some rough times and are people we go to for help when we need it. We had other friends from various aspects of our life join us also, which made it even more fun, if that is possible! So, we also celebrated Memorial Day with a couple from our apartment complex, Michael and Itzi; a family I nanny for currently, Ian, Lisa and Aidan; and a friend I met through the Tausher kids, Linda and her son, Russel. It was great to get to spend the day with people we love. Elijah enjoyed all the attention he got and must really be convinced that he is the center of the universe. The funniest part of the day was when all eyes were on me telling a story when Elijah leaned over to his daddy because Aaron was going to hold him. As soon as he leaned over Aaron, he spit up on Aaron, which is quite unusual these days. Everybody cracked up and we proceeded to tell more stories about similar "situations," as I call them! The Elijah highlight of the day though was when he waved at Ian, Lisa and Aidan when they were leaving. That was the first time I've seen him do that!

Memorial Day

As you can see, Elijah is starting to pull on his ear again, which he did for a week before his first two teeth showed up, so I assume another tooth is on its way. Fortunately, he did not seem to get grumpy.

Memorial Day

After Elijah was persistent in grabbing for his glasses, Mike actually let Elijah wear them for a bit. Pretty cute!