Winter Storm 2008!

So we finally got my long awaited snow. I love it as long as I do not really have to go anywhere. So needless to say, Elliott and I have been at home for 2 days now just playing and cleaning. We did go out today and play. HE LOVED IT! Here are a few pictures.

So this year was our turn to go to Spokane for Thanksgiving to see Wes' Brother and Sister-in-law and their family. Before we had Elliott we never really minded the 5 hour drive, but now it seems to take us all day. We left Wednesday morning and got to Spokane around dinner time. Elliott did great. We stopped for an hour for lunch and then pushed on. We had a wonderful turkey day with Wes' Aunt and Uncle and their family and our family. There were about 25 people. The highlight of our trip was probably Friday when it SNOWED! Elliott has never been able to play in the snow because he was to little last year. I was not sure how he would do but he loved it. He did not however like to eat it. Here are a few pictures of the snowman building that Grandpa did with the kids.

Fall with the Neeley's

So I have to say that I love this time of year! I love the rainy and sunny days, the cold and most of all the Pumpkin patches. Every year since I can remember we have gone to the pumpkin patch as a family and now that we have Elliott, the tradition continues. As Wes will tell you, I am all about traditions. This year we went to 2 pumpkin patches. One up north with my brother, sister in law and our niece. It is so fun to see Elliott and Aubi growing up together. They are so different that it makes it so fun. We then went to Scholtz Pumpkin patch down here on Sunday the 26th so that we could get Elliott's picture taken in front of the "How tall this fall" sign. We just love being able to do things as a family. We ended the pumpkin time with Trick or Treating in Downtown Puyallup as well as at our friend Molly's neighborhood. At first Elliott and Aubi were not sure what to do but Elliott loves to watch the big kids and he just took off and started doing what they were doing and pretty soon Aubi was right along with us. We love every minute of spending time as a family that we can get. Here are some pictures of the fun trips.

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Disneyland!

So I am sure those few of you that actually check my blog are tired of seeing the pictures of this past summer well I finally have something exciting to post about. Last weekend was my 30Th Birthday and Wes decided in June that we needed to go see Mickey for my birthday. I told him last year that I would take him but we ended up having Elliott instead. I think that was a good trade. So anyways, we decided that we were going to take Elliott with us. I was really worried about this. he had never flown before and is 16 months old and does not want to sit still for anything. Well our great friend Molly decided that she wanted to go with us so it was 3 adults to one 16 month old. The odd were in our favor. He did great on both of the flights. He only really got tired the last 30 minutes but so did I. We left on Thursday the 18Th and returned home on 22ND. He loved all of the characters and we did take him on several rides. He loved the Jungle Cruise. the adults even go tot go on several adult rides. Wes and Molly had the whole day on Sunday planned which was my actual birthday. My parents had bought tickets for Wes, Molly and I to attend the character breakfast that is held in Disneyland. Elliott LOVED it! We discovered that he really likes Eeyore. Who knew? Then we headed back to the hotel for nap time and then back to Disneyland for a surprise birthday party that Disneyland puts on. We got to decorate our own cakes and it was just a lot of fun. We then ended the evening having dinner in the Blue Bayou which is the restaurant that you see from the Pirates ride. Molly then took Elliott back to the hotel for a shared ice cream sandwich and then bath. Wes and i were able to have some mommy and daddy time and it was great. As many of you know, I am a huge Mickey fan and I could not have asked for a better 30Th Birthday. Thank you Wes and Molly for making it a birthday I will never forget. I love you both! Here a a few pictures of our event
His favorite the Jungle Cruise



His First Mickey encounter and he loved him!

Mommy's very favorite ride

His new friend

Birthday Party


The last day which for mommy is always the saddest day as well

Our summer so far!

So this summer has been in full swing since June. It started out with Wes and I taking a trip to Tonasket with our former Praise band from our old church to put on a Worship service for our former Pastor. It was really hot and a lot of fun. That was the last weekend in June. Elliott stayed home with the Neeley grandparents and had a blast as well. We made it the whole weekend without even calling, granted it was only one night but a huge step for mom. The next weekend was the 4th of July and we did our annual trip to Port Townsend for some rest and fun in the sand with the extended family on my mom's side. It was a great weekend with only 1 little scare with Elliott. He hurt his foot and we thought that we might have to go to the Hospital but it all turned out fine. He just twisted his ankle. On Friday night we took a ferry ride over to Everett and spent the rest of the weekend with Keith, Sarah & Aubi hanging out and going to the Woodland Park Zoo. We then we able to have one weekend at home and then we packed up and headed to the ocean this past weekend for our Johnson Family reunion. Keith, Sarah, Aubi, mom, dad and the 3 of us shared a condo for 4 days. It was so much fun to see the 2 little ones playing so well together. We went to the ocean on Saturday and Aubi loved the ocean but not so much the sand and Elliott was the opposite. He loved crawling on the sand. We also made a little milestone this weekend. He started to take more steps on his own. He is up to about 15 steps now. So that is our summer so far. We have a few more outing planned for later this summer. Here are a few pictures.

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Recap of Elliott's Frist Birthday Weekend!

So it is still hard for me to believe that my baby is a big 1 year old. We had a great weekend celebrating his birthday with a lot of friends and family. We kicked off his birthday with a Spaghetti dinner that he pretty much cried through. He does not like to pick up messy foods. We then preceded to eat way to much in a short amount of time and had our first cupcake and frosting. He loved it. He really just liked to play with it. We then preceded to finish our bottle for bed and then threw up all over daddy. What a way to remember his first birthday. that was all Thursday night his actual birthday. On Friday, we went to the doctor for our 12 month check up and we weighed in at 23 pounds 15 ounces and are about 31 inches long. We are a big boy. We realized that at a year they finally realize that this whole shot thing sucks and we do not like it one bit! We then took a good nap to get ready for our party on Friday night with our frolic family. We got fun presents that make nose, swim stuff and cars that we can not play with until we are older. We ate bacon, french toast and had a little more cake. We love fruit! No throwing up this night. We finally came Saturday, the day of our party. We had lots of friends and family come by to wish you a very happy first birthday and we again got a lot of really fun toys that make noise. Right now our favorite toy is the Zoo train that we got from our friends the Snyder's. Thanks guys! We ate a little cake but really played more with it and than we took a bath. All in all it was a great first birthday. We want to thank everyone for all of your love a support over this first year of Elliott's life. It is true what they say about it takes a village and we feel truly blessed by God that he put each and every one of you in our lives. We love you all so much and again thank you for helping up celebrate our little man! I will do a slide show of his birthday weekend for you to see.

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Happy Birthday Elliott!

I can not believe that it is time for me to write this. Elliott can not be one yet. At least that is what I am telling myself. Everyone always told me that the first year goes by fast but I never believed it until now.

Well one year ago today, Wes and I headed to the hospital at 7:00 in the morning. We were checking in and given the potassium (if that is how you spell it) at 8:15. You were so content in my tummy that you would not come out. Here is a little bit of the process of trying to have you. We went to the doctor on the 24th which was your due date and the doctor checked me and said that it could happen any time. So the next few days, your daddy, auntie Molly and I did everything that we could to try to get you to come out. Nothing worked. So Tuesday morning the 29th we called the hospital to see if we could come in and be induced. So after the potassium, you just hung out. At about 11:15 the doctor came in and gave me my epidural which made everything better until about 3:00 pm. that is when I developed back labor and there was nothing that was making me comfortable. So, they did everything to make me comfortable and at 3:50 i told the nurse that I was going to push and she told me to wait and then she checked me and I was dilated to a 10 so I could start pushing. Well according to your Grandma Lynnie and Grandma Jan Dr. Edstrom came running in and I only had to push for 1/2 hour and you were born at 4:33 pm on May 29, 2007. Your Daddy was there for your birth as well as your Grammie and Auntie Molly. We did not know whether you were a boy or a girl until the day you were born and when you cam out your daddy announced to everyone in the room that you were a boy and then told everyone your name. Elliott Leroy. I can not begin to tell you how much your daddy and I love you and are so blessed that you are in our family and that God gave you to us to raise for Him. We love you and look forward to many more birthday celebrations with you.

Love,
Mommy

Make a photobook - it's easy!

Easter!

Aubi in her easter Dress

Elliott with his new outfit from Grammie




Check out Elliott's shoes. This is what happens when you leave your son alone with his Grampie and Uncle



So in our house it seems like the easter bunny thinks that it is Christmas all over again. We got a lot of books and no candy which is good. I have to say that the Holiday's are so much more fun now that the little ones are a little older. It is so fun to watch them react to each other. In every picture Elliott is all smiles and Aubi is not sure what is going on. It is going to be so fun to watch them grow up together. here are just a few of the pictures that were taken on Sunday.

Happy St. Patrick's Day1

Wishing you a very Happy St. Patrick's Day!



An Irish Prayer
May God give you...
For every storm, a rainbow,
For every tear, a smile,
For every care, a promise,
And a blessing in each trial.
For every problem life sends,
A faithful friend to share,
For every sigh, a sweet song,
And an answer for each prayer.

9 Months Old!

I know that I am late on posting these pictures but better late then never. So Elliott turned 9 months on the 29th of February. Daddy took some really cute pictures of him. We went to the Doctor on the 5th of March for his 9 month appointment and her weighed 22 lbs, was 29 inches long and his head is 18 inches round. He is healthy and happy except that second top tooth that will just not break through. So as of now we have 3 and one almost through. He is crawling all over the place and is really trying to pull himself up on things. I love to just sit back and watch him! Here are his 9 month pictures.

What happens whe Mommies leave for the weekend!

This past weekend I was gone working a Women's weekend and Elliott stayed with Aunt Molly and Daddy. They decided that it was time for Elliott to experience his first non baby food. They took him to Red Robin on Friday night and gave him a big French Fry. He ate about half of it and then they took it away from him because he was trying to eat the whole thing at once. I think he liked it but it will definitely be something tat is not given to him all the time. Here are some pictures of the experience.