DONE!

I am so extremely happy to say that I am completely finished with this semester! I don't think I've EVER had such a crazy three months, but I am sooooo happy to be done. The classes that I took really stretched me and I learned a lot about people and about myself and the things that I am capable of. YAY for being done! The countdown begins until Christmas... until then I am going to enjoy:
1. Time with my two main men...

2. WARM Rexburg. :)
3. The ability to read/watch/do WHATEVER I want.
4. Exercise
5. Doing absolutely nothing. :)

My Little Buddy

This fall semester has been a busy one for Kimi.  She has a full load of classes plus she is managing the after school program at the elementary school for her internship.  I am very proud of her working so hard to finish her degree.  I have been working in the early morning and then spending all day with my little buddy Eli.  I'll probably never have this much time with any of our future children, so I am trying to take full advantage of the time Eli and I have together.  It has been so wonderful!  He is nearly 13 months old now and so full of life, eager to learn, and   so dang cute!  I love my Eli Paul.   Here are some pictures from our recent adventure in Kelly Canyon.

 I carried Eli in the backpack for the majority of our hike but he insisted on walking some of the not so steep sections.  The trail isn't quite as smooth as the floor at home or the sidewalks in town, so Eli had a fun time adjusting to the bumpy terrain.

 The trail was quite dusty.  Eli loved stomping his feet and watching the cloud of dust appear.  He even stopped a couple times, squatted and patted the ground with his hands.  Mix that with the drool that is almost always coming out of his mouth and you get one dirty little boy.

I loved being in the mountains with Eli and wish time could just stand still for a little while.

 The view we enjoyed from the top!

 Getting ready to make a sweet move to the basket.

Playing ball in his pj's.

Eli is all about cars, or anything with wheels.  He loves going on walks around town and pointing and shouting at all of the passing cars. 

Eli is possibly the pickiest kid around, but he loves to eat broccoli!
And we have some awesome pictures from the birthday party last month, but they're on our other computer that is getting fixed right now, so a late birthday post is coming soon.  

Who needs a Birthday BASH...

When you can have a BIRTHDAY BATH?! 

 The best thing about having a 1 year old? 

He's perfectly content doing whatever. 

But really, we do have a birthday party planned for this weekend.

Until then...

check out this happy birthday boy in his Birthday suit. :)

MINNESOTA!

 Before I get to our awesome trip to Minnesota here is a picture of our buff little Eli guy.  He just loves to watch us mow the lawn, and he kept begging for a turn to try it out.  He pushed the mower through the grass. He is a strong little fella, probably going to be a linebacker some day.

 We had a splendid time visiting Kreg, Anna, Cecily, and Oliver Wagner in Minnesota.  Here we are visiting Minnehaha Falls in Minneapolis. 

 Playing in the water

 Our awesome hosts Kreg and Anna.  They treated us well and we are grateful for their hospitality and sharing their cute kids with us for the week.

 Cecily and Eli got to meet the Blues Clue dog at the Mall of America!

Cecily jumped into this picture with some random kids, so I quickly snapped a picture too.  Ha ha!

Us at the Yankees/Twins game at Target Field. 

 Visiting the Scripture....no no Cecily it is the sculpture gardens.  She kept calling it the scripture gardens.  I like the big spoon and cherry.

 Best buddies playing doctor

Chillin' at the beach at one of the many many lakes in Minnesota.

We really had a great relaxing time hanging out in a new place.  Eli did get sick so we had to take him to the ER, but after a few days he was fine. Eli and Oli had a great time playing together.  I am excited to see them grow up together.  

Highlights from California

While Craig was finishing up finals last month, Eli and I flew out to California to spend time with my family and to earn a little extra money teaching swim lessons. Here are a few pictures from our trip. I stole the pictures from Anna's blog because I NEVER had my camera with me....so sorry if you've already seen them.

 Getting some sweet lovin from the puppy.

 Eli LOVES anything with wheels on it. He will push suitcases, strollers, shopping carts, or bikes. You name it, he'll use anything and everything around. It was a little frustrating for Cecily though...

It was so fun to see Eli and Oliver together! I sure hope this is some sign that they will be great friends to come! 

 Girl's night out to see YES company's HAIRSPRAY. soooo good!

My sweet Eli

I have been so bad about tracking Eli's progress/milestones over the past year. 

Lots of people told me to be careful about how many pictures I take, journal entries I write or blogposts I do because it will set a precedent for my other kids. 

If I do less documentating with the next kids than I do with Eli... uh oh. 

I don't want to forget some of the little things that he does that I LOVE... so here's a chuck-full post of some of my favorite pictures from the past couple of months. (California pictures will come tomorrow and Minnesota the day after that. promise. :))

 He'll sleep anywhere. Craig and I decided to hike R mountain one day and it wore us all out!

 He's allllll boy.

 I love his smile, but the face that he gets when he is concentrating melts my heart too.

 He loves hanging out with dad.

 ...and helping me with laundry.

 When he rides his rocking horse, he makes the cutest little tongue clicking sound.

He is our little helper!

and a picture from his one-year shoot taken in Minnesota. LOVE him!

Road Trip

Eli and I just got back from a short weekend trip to Utah. He slept the entire time down, but the trip back today wasn't as smooth. He cried off and on a lot. Finally, I decided we should stop at a gas station to fill up, change his bum, and let him burn some energy. 

I found him like this:

Oh Eli... wear your seatbelt.