Railroad park

We took a little family outing to the railroad park in Scottsdale. It's got several old trains for kids to explore, a working replica of a narrow gauge railroad that goes around in a one mile loop plus a carousel. Why did we not go sooner? Eli was in heaven. 

Riding the rails with Daddy.

We capped off the outing with a visit to Sweet Republic.

Aaaagh! That sundae is bigger than my head! 

New England

Last fall my parents were kind enough to watch Eli for us for a week while we escaped to New England. 

We started things off in Boston with a sunset gondola ride on the Charles River--a surprise arranged in advance by Paul. Oh, romance. 

It was dreamy. 

We rented bikes that could be picked up in one place and then dropped off in another part of the city. We explored lots of different neighborhoods this way and looooved it. We even rode around into Cambridge and then back across the bridge. 

Of course, Beacon Hill and North Beach were faves. 

 

We also rented bikes in the White Mountains in New Hampshire and rode our legs off up parts of the  Appalachian trail.

We stayed at a very quintessentially New England bed and breakfast in sleepy, quaint New Hampshire town called Hancock.  Nothing is quite as relaxing as rocking on the front porch. 

The inn came with a charming dog that loved us, probably 'cause we shared our breakfast bacon. 

We headed into Vermont where we discovered Oreo cows, picked apples and ate cheese. 

On the final day we headed up the Maine coast where we took a ferry out to a little island full of charming vacation homes. We also managed to rent bikes there. It was the perfect way to see the gorgeous scenery. 

Yosemite 2011

Paul took his dad, sister and brother-in-law up to Yosemite last summer. Paul's dad is still hiking and camping at 82. Go Owen! They saw gorgeous scenery, wildflowers and marmots.

Newport Beach

Eli got his first taste of the beach (literally) when we rented a place in Newport Beach for a few days last summer. 

Balboa bar!

Bike rides on the boardwalk

Cousins!

Eli is blessed to have 48 cousins. Two of them, Alli and Mindi, came to visit us last summer and we all had a blast. They were the best (free) baby-sitters a mother could wish for. They entertained Eli like it was their job. We spent nearly all day every day in the pool and loved it. Paul and I tried to spoil them to entice them to come back again every summer. 

Eli's 1st Birthday

Bad News

I stumbled upon (via wordofwisdomliving.com) a video of a lecture given by a doctor at UCSF detailing the effects of sugar on the body. It's terrible news for dessert-lovers, like Paul and me. Turns out, sugar is even worse for you than you thought. The information he presents is REALLY fascinating, even if it means you'll never enjoy brownies or soda with the same naive, semi-guilt-free bliss as before.
FYI, the video is 1.5 hours long but I swear that it's worth the time investment to watch it.

Eleven months old

Eleven months old

-walks like a pro.
-brings me books to read to him over and over.
-is starting to imitate things he observes us doing: brings the brush up to his hair, puts play phones up to his ear and points the remote at the TV.
-is delighted with himself when he stacks the plastic rings.
-is still a kissing machine--sometimes on demand, sometimes out of the blue and sometimes to people who aren't expecting it. Besides Mom and Dad so far he's kissed two little girls at Gymboree, a babysitter, a family friend, and his cousins' cousin.
-is still very friendly and social and greets people with a loud "HA!"
-seems more like a toddler than a baby now--sniff, sniff.

This is Eli at three months. It's so bittersweet that he's not a little baby anymore.

Eli and Sydnie

Sharing toys

Puppy kisses

Playing nicely

Their friendship is still going strong, as you can see. These two have so much fun together.

Ten months old

The monkey is ten months old today. He started walking a couple of weeks ago but it's been tricky to capture on video. I use the term "walking" loosely. It's more like he falls forward while his legs are moving.

Citrus Season

One of the highlights of going to Grandma Patsy's house is being loaded up with fresh produce from her yard when you leave. I spent the morning juicing some of the lemons and oranges while Eli tore apart the rest of the kitchen.

Grandma Patsy's house

Eli paid a visit to his California grandparents this past weekend. We celebrated Paul's birthday while we were there with Argentine food and the Skousen family favorite, tiger tail cake. Paul and his 82 year-old father went skiing. I think both Paul and Owen got to ski free because they're now senior citizens.

While Daddy was busy skiing Eli worked on his climbing skills so that he can join Grandpa and Dad on the mountain someday. 

He's like, "Mom, don't bother me. I'm trying to scale the baby gate."

9 Months Old

He weighs in at 22 lbs 1 oz and is 30 1/2 inches tall. He crawls lightning fast, stands without holding onto anything, cruises around the furniture and climbs like a wild baby monkey. He is very social and friendly and gets so excited to be around new people, especially other kids. He smiles and laughs out loud all the time. We love him.

What happens in Vegas...ends up on the blog.

I got together in Vegas this last weekend with ten AMAZING friends from freshman year at BYU. I felt like I was eighteen again but without the anxiety over grades and guys. Basically, it was the best weekend of my life (with the notable exception of the weekend we got married/went on a honeymoon.) I got less sleep than I did when Eli was a newborn but didn't care because we were having such a great time.

We hit all the Vegas highlights--Cirque du Soleil show KA at MGM Grand, dancing at Studio 54, shopping, shopping, more shopping--and that was just Friday. On Saturday we died and went to heaven (AKA the Spa at the Cosmpolitan) where we were somehow managed to score a private spa suite. We're talking relaxation pools, whirlpools, saunas, steam rooms, cool mist rooms, fancy showers, fluffy robes all with a concierge attending to our every whim. And then there were the pedicures, facials and massages that made us forget that we'd ever wiped snotty noses and packed lunches.

On the Strip

At the Omni Studio 54

--Spa Day--

--Wicked Spoon Buffet at the Cosmpolitan--

All the crazy, exhausting, hilarious adventures were unforgettable but truly the best part was just getting together and talking. I know I speak for everyone when I say it's just good for the soul to get together with the girls and get our chat on. A special thanks to our husbands who took over in our absence.