Top 10 Reasons

Some days Elijah drives me crazy. I'm sure every mom has those days. Whether he has too much energy or none at all, we can't get going at the same speed. So I've decided to compile a list of reasons why I love him to look at when I get overwhelmed. Or when I just want to smile.

Top 10 Reasons Why I Love Being Eli's Mom

1. He has the most infectious laugh. Even when I'm in a not-so-good mood, he can make me smile with that sweet giggle.

2. His unbridled enthusiasm for all things Muppets. If I need a few minutes to myself or a shower, I can always depend on Kermit, Fozzie, and Miss Piggy to keep him happy.

3. He makes me realize that I was meant to be a mother with all its ups and downs.

4. I can pretty much always get a hug when I ask for one. Or can take it by force if I need to.

5. His immense love for his daddy and Eric's love for him.

6. I never know what is going to come out of his mouth next. He's not even close to full sentences but says the silliest stuff.

7. Cuddles.

8. Those big blue eyes. He already knows how to work them.

9. His great (inherited) love of books.

10. How much he misses me when I'm gone.

Pictures & Update

We're still alive here, even though a stomach flu tried hard to take each of us out in the last 10 days. We had a wonderful Christmas and New Year's and 2012 is going great for us. We (i.e. Eric, Les, and Eli) are working on finishing the basement while I continue on my crocheting. We hosted our first big gathering of the year, having the Christmas party for a board Eric is on last night. We are looking forward to having more of these, including our 2nd Annual Nies Super Bowl Party. 2012 looks to be an amazing year in the Nies household!

Look Who's Talking

As a continuation of Elijah's most recent "issue" of not talking (although he's perfectly happy and all his needs are being met) I will be emailing the very nice woman from Birth to 3 with a list of all the words Eli is speaking and signing. I decided having them here on the blog would be a good idea as well for me to look back on and to keep everyone else informed. (These are all the words he's started signing/speaking since Nov. 18th.)

Oh and I have heard from others who have the same issue with their sons (apparently the line "boys walk first, girls talk first" is true). They feel like their boys are intelligent and can communicate just fine non-verbally. I'm so glad to hear I'm not the only one in this boat!

So here are the words Elijah signs (official ASL and his own):

more
please
milk
ball
baby
all done
shoes
hat
bear
cracker
spider
banana
sorry
book
brush
airplane
cold
elephant
here
brush teeth

The words Eli says:

cheese
teeth
ball
choo choo
moo
milk
all done
please
shoe
meow
pop (toaster)
toast
banana
mama (odd how I didn't think of that first... although he only says it when he wants my attention)
EDIT: uh-oh (...over and over again. How could I forget uh-oh?)
stool
this

These are all the words I can think of right now (pretty sure there's more), and a lot of them he both signs and says but I think this is a good demonstration that Eli can communicate verbally if he wants to. I'm sure one day I'll look back and long for the times when he didn't talk so much... So I'm trying to enjoy it now!

 Eli signing more during the "More More More" song on Baby Signing Time Vol. 1

Watching the "Diaper Dance" song on Baby Signing Time Vol. 1

Sci-fi, hair cuts, and birthday parties

It's been a busy couple weeks at our house. We've been enjoying the Christmas tree, trying to get some snow time in when the weather permits, and celebrating Timothy's birthday.

I've been keeping myself occupied with more crocheting. A couple projects I can't talk about (Christmas coming and all that) and one that I CAN talk about. You can read the story on Eric's website, but essentially I found a crochet pattern for an obscure science fiction character Eric loves. May I present:

 CTHULHU!

In other news, Elijah got his first hair cut last week. Not so much a hair cut really as an attempt to avoid the mullet. His hair was starting to grow long enough that it caught in his bib at mealtimes so we decided it was time. Eric took his trimmers to the back of Eli's head and did a nice job. I didn't think we would be having this first before his second birthday, but it came earlier than expected. 

We traveled to Gregory, SD this past weekend with Grandma and Grandpa Nies to celebrate cousin Timothy's first birthday. It was a quick trip, but fun was had by all!

 Timothy wasn't really sure about his first cupcake...

 But Eli made sure he ate a couple on his cousin's behalf

 Timothy got lots of good presents (hugging the bear from Eli)...

And both boys got in some good grandparents time!

What a Difference

It's such a cliche that time flies when you're having fun but it is so true. Elijah is 19 months old and it feels like he's been with us for years. Once in a while I like to look back at pictures of him and compare how he has changed. Since I was doing that for myself today I thought I would share on the blog as well.

 late November 2010

late November 2011