Five on Friday

Five on Friday is dedicated this week to my almost five year old, Elijah James. Here are five things he has taught or shown me over the past five years.....

1. Control, I am not in full control of time anymore. When I was pregnant and wait for him to be born my mother took this chance to tell me that this was the start of me not being in control any longer & of course as with most she was correct.

2. Love, I had never loved someone so instantly as I did the moment he was born. It amazes me that as time has continued on I have fallen in love with him more each day and with each sweet moment.

3. Perspective, Elijah makes me look at things often from a different perspective then I would not have always had. He always has a point of view he wants to share with me and everyone else and quiet often I really enjoy his point of view.

4. Education, Elijah has taught me tons more than I can even care to admit about dinosaurs. To be honest if someone needed a life line regarding a question about dinosaurs, call me I will know that answer which is so funny considering I don't even believe that they ever existed!

5. Time, Elijah has taught me that cleaning can wait and that sometime it is better to just go out and play.

The house that...

The house that Elijah & Daddy built is very cool according to Elijah. Cookie surprised the boys with a project on Sunday afternoon of a small wooden house to build. Elijah was super excited and could not wait to start after nap. Samuel did not want to wait and nor was he really interested once the project started. Elijah loved it and even got to journey to the basement to finish hammering in some nails which was a good idea since Elijah with a hammer makes me a little nervous. He was so proud to show me his finished project and just thinks it is the coolest house ever & I do too!

"New" Style

Today was school picture day and also the day the Elijah decided to bust out in his "new" style. As everyone knows I LOVE his hair super short, the shorter the better but we have been crazy busy so he is over due on getting him hair cut. This morning while combing his hair he informed me that he had a new style that he would be sporting for picture day. I resisted the fight and let him express himself & off we went to school after a few practice runs with smiles. Here is a peak at his "new" style.

Catholic Confession and Changes

Cookie and I have always talked a great game about raising the boys Catholic but have not really done too much about it other than baptizing them and the few Sundays we have gone to mass as a family. So, times are a changing and we are putting forth an effort now and are taking the boys to mass in shifts. This Sunday Elijah and I attended 10am mass. He was excited to go which was a good start. On the way over we talked a little bit about what was going to happen and what to expect. I explained to him that church was kind of like school and the priest was going to tell us stories, sing songs, and teach us about being Catholic like Mrs. Phillips teaches him at school.

We sat near the back of the church as to not bother anyone else incase Elijah was not well behaved but just the opposite he was great and wanted to sit closer so next week we will sit closer which is what I would rahter personally. Mass was going great he was following right along and paying close attention then a man entered the church about 20 minutes into mass and Elijah wanted to know if he was GOD, yup the fat bawled white guy is who Elijah thought was GOD. I answered no that it was not and then he wanted to know well where is GOD. Quickly I told him in his heart and above the clouds in heaven. Next question "have I been to heaven?" "No." "You sure?" "Yes, I am sure Elijah you have never been to heaven, sssshhh.". Elijah was clearly paying attention because during the reading of the Gossip the Jesus was mentioned and he got all excited and yelled out, "I know Jesus he told Noah to build the Ark, Mom!". The mass continued we sang, did sign of peace, received communion, prayed, and then Elijah that he has in fact been to heaven. You see when he goes on an airplane to "visit Grammie, Papa, and Shell I go about the clouds, heaven! Told Ya!" I softly reminded him no talking in chruch in hopes of not answering any more questions.

I really enjoyed my Sunday morning with Elijah and I was so thanful to have that time in church to sit and reflect on everything I am lucky and thankful to have. I am looking foward to next Sunday and what it has to offer.

Wordless Wednesday

Jumping on the band wagon of wordless Wednesday....enjoy!

1st Day of School

Elijah has been longing and dreaming about this day all summer long, the 1st day of school! As much as he was waiting I was hoping the days would go backwards and summer would last for a few weeks longer not just so I could keep working on my tan but so I could keep my baby boy home and safe just a little bit longer. Sadly for me but happily for him Labor Day passed and fall arrived and today was the 1st day of school.

He was in such a great mood this morning got ready like a pro as if he had done this a hundred times. Cookie, Elijah, and myself had breakfast together while the little boys were still sleeping because they both think they are rock stars and are up all night. Over breakfast Elijah comforted me and told me that he knew I would miss him but he would be fine and having fun so don't worry. On that note we finished getting ready and piled into the minivan my beautiful family of five to drop Elijah off.

On the ride over I got a bit emotional it was almost as if I could see that last 4 1/2 years flash by and how did it happen so quickly. It seems like only yesterday we brought home our first beautiful baby boy and now he was off to school? Elijah was overly excited on the ride over and just could not wait to get there and see friends and meet some new ones, he is such his parents son. Drop off at school perfect, no issues, I got out of there with only a few tears and he did not even care that I was leaving, after all he did have Lucy with him.

One person did have a hard time saying goodbye, Samuel. Poor misunderstood Sammy cried because we left his brother, cried because his best friend would be gone all morning, cried because it would be hours before we would go back to get him. For almost an hour Samuel cried, screamed, tried to run out the house because he missed Elijah. I never realized that he loved Elijah company so much since he is always trying to beat the crap out of him.

Pick up went fantastic and Samuel was over joyed to reunited with his brother and best friend. Elijah had a great day. When I asked him what he did he could not really reply when I asked what his favorite thing he did was he said "absolutely everything, school is awesome!" I asked who he sat next to in circle and he told me Lucy, "yeah and I couldn't help but kiss her she is just too pretty" God help me because thank goodness he has known Lucy his entire life otherwise I would have been wondering who this cheap preschool hussy was!

We ended a perfect 1st day of school with lunch at Friendly's and a long afternoon!

Feeding Time!

I was doing a quick clean up and asked the boys to play in their playroom, they listened but were much too quiet. I looked in to find them "feeding" their babies, now how do I explain this one to them?

Evening Ride

The boys wait all day long for Cookie to come from work & take them outside for their evening bike ride or whatever trouble they are going to get into. I take this time to get dinner together, use the bathroom, facebook, chat on the phone, or all of the above. I was happy I peaked my head out to tell them dinner was ready because they are so cute on their bikes!

Lies, Vandalism, & Stealing

Lies, Vandalism,& Stealing are all things that Elijah has done in the past few days.

Lies....all of the sudden he is not telling the truth when asked simple questions like "did you drink all your milk?" or "did you let the dog outside?" I hope this ends soon because it is driving me crazy!

Vandalism...Elijah so nicely scratched the side of the minivan up. I was shocked to find him scratching a picture into the rear passenger side panel. When I asked him why he did it he responded, "I wanted to draw you a picture, do you like it?" I responded loudly & without swearing, "NO I DO NOT!" The following day Cookie had him assist in washing the van in hopes it would come out but it did not so this coming weekend he will be helping Cookie buff it out.


Stealing....after a field trip out with Cookie to the grocery store and Lowes Elijah excitedly pulled out a pack of pumpkin seeds and expressed how he could not wait to plant them. Cookie looked strangely puzzled and I asked about the seeds to find out that Cookie in fact did not buy them for Elijah, Elijah simply pocketed them. We began explaining that to him that he could not just take things from a store. Elijah firmly informed us that he did ask he was saying over and over to Cookie "Excuse Me!" but Elijah said Cookie was too busy talking to the man at the store to answer him so he just took them. Well after explain again that you can not just take things we have informed Elijah that he will be going back to the store to pay for the seeds.


I am hoping these three events are a stage that he is going to get out of QUICKLY!

Caught!

Caught red handed with a cupcake while Noah was holding mommy hostage on the sofa nursing! They are already ganging up on me, Lord help us!!!

Spring

We had a touch of spring this week and it really put a pep in my step! The boys and I took the every chance we had to be outside and enjoy the weather because as we all know it is going to change soon!

Here are a few pics of my boys at the park please note their own personal styles, Elijah in rain boots on a 75 degree day & Samuel in a winter hat which he would not wear all winter long and now will not take it off......I choose to pick my battles & let them express themselves!

ROAR Elijah is 4!!!!!!

I can not explain where the last four years have gone but I can tell you who has made them simply amazing & that is my Elijah!!! We celebrated with his 2nd Annual & what will also be his last dinosaur bash, just as he requested! I think the day went pretty good and everyone seemed to have a good time. What I do know is Elijah had "the best birthday & most perfect party EVER" because this is what he told we while I tucked him into bed.

Thank you for everyone that came to celebrate and thank you to everyone who helped out especially Tanya who took the stress away from me and took all the pictures!

Five on Friday

My five on Friday this week is all about my Elijah and celebrating him this weekend as he turns FOUR!!!

1. Hard to believe that four years ago in the midst of a blizzard we were beckoned to South Shore Hospital to start the induction of Elijah's birth...and then it took two days for it to happen!

2. I struggle to think of what life was before Elijah in a wonderful sense he has taught me to be true to myself and what I believe in!

3. The past four years have been a learning and growing experience for both Cookie and I and even though we do not always agree on how to parent and raise the boys or know exactly what to do we always support each other and for that I am very thankful.

4. I still get emotional when I think about Elijah's birth and that amazing moment, there really is nothing in my life that compares to it...well a close second would be when he tells me I am his best friend and he loves me!

5. Finally, however sassy, fresh, talkative, stubborn, insane, persistent, or just simply crazy Elijah is I love him with all that I am and he makes me smile every single day!

Here are I am four years ago heading out to have my baby boy!!

Face....

This face use to be a sweet baby boy, when did he turn into a sassy preschooler?

Cooty Bug....

Tuesday morning when Elijah got up the first thing he asked was, "when will Auntie Ellen be here?" I made the mistake of telling him Monday night that she would be coming to visit the next day. His morning consisted of him coming up with ideas of fun things that they could do together....he was so excited!!! He really has taken a wonderful liking to Ellen over the past six months and now is often asking when she is coming over or if he can go to visit, I LOVE this because sadly we really don't have any aunts or anyone for that matter who come over to just hang out with the boys.

After a morning of waiting Elijah and Auntie Ellen got done to his first task, The Cooty Bug Game. Ellen was awesome and explained the entire game and may have even let him win or at least given him an advantage here or there. Elijah had an awesome day of games, coloring, dinner, and hanging out with Auntie Ellen he even asked at bedtime when she was coming back to hangout with just him and daddy and I can go out....I love his thinking!!!!!

An Afternoon Ride...

This year for Cookie's birthday the boys and I got him a bike seat that he has been wanting since we had Elijah and since baby #3 will be here before we know it I figured it was time to get it. The intention is for Samuel to ride in it and Elijah to ride along side on his own bike that I think Santa might be leaving under the tree but Elijah had to try it out first to make sure it was safe for his little brother. The first ride out was a blast, father and son had a fantastic time but Elijah is very concerned that Cookie did not wear his helmet and so am I. I keep telling my husband it is all in the examples that we show!

My Favorite Superhero!!!!

We knew at 33 I would fall in love with a superhero!

Fall Frolics....

In an effort to get the boys out and burn off some of their endless energy Uncle Jay was kind enough to build us a giant leaf pile! I was so excited to take them out and see what they did with it and how they liked it. Elijah loved it and could not get enough and did not want the fun to end when the rain started to fall. Samuel on the other hand kept a distance, ventured into the pile once & discovered he hated it and never returned. I wonder will he like the life pile more next year & how much bigger does the leaf pile need to be for three kids???