When did he do that???

NOTICE TO THE READER: Herein is contained the lengthy ramblings of an 8 month pregnant lady who can carry on forever about not much. Continue reading at your own risk and make sure you have enough time to read a novel.

This past week, I have been noticing how much Eli has grown! He just seems so big to me now. His legs are getting so long and meaty (where did the little baby chub go?), his belly has slimmed down, and he just seems, well, BIG. He is talking in sentences pretty consistently now and he says some of the cutest things! I swear all this growing up must have occurred overnight. He is really looking like a little boy and all the baby boy is going away. Part of me is sad, but I am still loving watching him grow and learn and become his own little person. I think I am just mostly shocked at how he has grown so much so quickly.



As if I needed more emphasis as to how much Eli has grown in the last two years, I bought a pack of newborn size diapers for our new little addition. Well, you know you are pregnant and crazy when you get all choked up and gushing at how TINY newborn diapers are! I remembered how BIG they seemed on Eli when he was first born, too. I had to roll them so they would fit his little bum. I never thought I would find a little diaper to be such a beautiful thing. I get that gushy feeling again just thinking about it! Oh, these crazy hormones! To prove the point on the crazy, I had to take a picture of a newborn diaper next to a diaper that currently fits Eli. Yep, I'm losing it! Now, whenever Eli sees the baby's diapers he says "Awww, cute!" because I kept repeating that so much in my little emotional stupor.

So, I was doing a bit more calendar counting again yesterday and got myself all excited. If I deliver #2 when I delivered Eli, I might possibly have as little as 2-1/2 weeks left of this pregnancy!!! Oh, that sounds so good to me! Of course I want this little bun fully cooked and functional before comes out of the oven, but I can feel my body starting to gear up for the big event. Nothing crazy yet, but it just seems like things are moving right along. The baby is getting bigger and my contractions are starting to feel more like business than just irritation. A couple of weeks just sounds so much more do-able than another 4-5 weeks. I am feeling a second wind. Whew! Just think, in the not too distant future, we will have a little bum to swaddle in those adorable little diapers! Aww, cute!

In attempts to save my poor aching back, we have been venturing to new parks throughout our area in hopes that Eli will want to stay in one area instead of doing a Forrest Gump and trekking the whole world. I can't believe how far this kid can walk! However, he usually just goes down the slide once and then he is off exploring the world through his feet.

We did find a fun park that is a water park in the summer (we will have to revisit this one when it gets hot). There was a big excavator demolishing an old barn and Eli had a great time watching the destruction. He frequently looked up from his cruising around to watch and give some little comments of awe at the "cool digger!"

Check these sidewalks out! Don't they look FAR more entertaining than any park toys???

I finally convinced him to play on some of the toys.

This part of the toy kind of weirded him out a bit. He was very cautious when he reached out to tap on the plexiglass.

He has also taking quite a liking to my old teddy bear, Brownie, that I have had since the second grade. It is so cute to see him packing her around and snuggled with her at night. This 'ole bear has seen some action in her day!
Here is Brownie and Monkey ready to be changed. Eli still loves to have me "change" just about everything in the house (including the cat) prior to having his own diaper changed.
Eli is such a good helper around the house. He loves to be involved in whatever Brandon or I am doing. He loves to wear his hard hat while doing so. My friend, JaNae, gave us a swivel sweeper (this is so awesome - no more pregnant lady bending over to try and sweep the dust into the dust pan!) Eli also can sweep the floor now instead of just moving my dust pile around. He absolutely loves it!

Note the look of intense concentration.

Helping Daddy in the Garage.

Helping Daddy dry off the car after washing it. Eli thought this was so cool!Doesn't he make these sunglasses look better than I ever could? I am sure the upside down thing is going to be the hottest trend this summer!

I swear our house isn't THAT cold. But he really didn't want his hat or coat off. I finally convinced him to take the hat off before his nap, but the coat remained in place.