A week in the life of Eli...

I find myself already counting down the days until Spring Break...I just cannot wait to spend an entire week off of work with my little guy. Picking him up at daycare--no matter what kind of day I've had--simply makes every day end on a great note.

I like to sit back and just watch Eli. He amazes me each and every day. He is now doing something new daily and I am constantly questioning myself, wondering where he learned his new "trick of the day." His most recent trick is he learned how to pull his pacifier out of his mouth. He thinks it's hysterical! He will laugh and laugh, until he realizes he hasn't figured out how to put the pacifier back into his mouth. Then he makes a pitiful face and fusses until Mommy fixes it for him. :)

Eli showing his new trick...



He is doing A LOT of "talking" now. We will have a conversation about his day when I pick him up from daycare. Charlie and I were sitting on the couch the other night and he was just talking up a storm! Charlie made a comment in regards to Eli taking after me talking so much--haha.

Charlie and I bought Eli a really cool exersaucer to play in!! He is still not quite stable enough to stand up in it and he can't quite reach the bottom, so we secure him in it with blankets. He LOVES all of the toys on it and the music it plays.

Eli is his exersaucer...







Eli now can use his Bumbo Chair!! He likes sitting like a "big boy." He no longer wants to lean back on Mommy, he will use his muscles and pull himself up to sit in an upright position.

Eli in his Bumbo Chair...





Eli has started to notice some of his toys. My friend Monica bought Eli this doggy blanky and all of a sudden he wants this toy all the time. He likes to snuggle with it in his bounce chair, when he is playing on the floor and when he goes to sleep. It is very cute to see him cuddle with his doggy.

Eli and his doggy...



We've had an extremely busy (but fun!) week this past week. Last Saturday, my best friend Alexis came to visit. It was so fun catching up with her! Eli just LOVES his "Auntie" Alexis and was so content to just sit and hang out with her. :)

Eli and Auntie Alexis...



Charlie had to work that day on a current project in Port Arthur. You may have heard on the news about the collision between two ships in the Sabine River, which resulted in an oil spill. Charlie was sent home and therefore, had to return to work on Sunday. Since my sweet hubby had to work Sunday, Eli and I decided to do some shopping for his wonderful teachers. Eli picked out some pretty smelling Bath & Body Works goodies for them to thank them for taking such good care of him.

On Monday, Library Night was held at my school. It was the Second Grade's turn to help out at this fun event. :) I went and picked up Eli from daycare and bought him up to the school with me. Anne bought Sara too. She and I were laughing because as much time as Eli and Sara have spent together, it was the first time they actually noticed each other.

The librarian, Ms. Croft took this photo of the 4 of us...




The rest of the week was incredibly busy with meetings and such, so I had been greatly looking forward to this weekend with my family. Friday night we just cozied up because of this cool weather and enjoyed our time together. Eli surprisingly stayed up to play for awhile. I was so happy about that! He is usually worn out after a day at school because he only takes mini naps during the day. I think he is overstimulated at daycare with everything going on and doesn't want to miss out on anything.

Daddy and Eli had a lot of fun playing airplane! No one can make Eli laugh like Daddy :)...









Saturday was a very productive day. I had a mile long "To-Do List" and am proud to say I was able to accomplish it all. One thing on my list was to go through all of Eli's clothes and pull out anything he can no longer wear to put in storage containers. Eli had a great time playing on the floor in his nursery while I went through all of his clothes. He is now wearing 6 month size clothing in pretty much everything. There are a few 3-6 month outfits he can still wear, but he has outgrown most of his clothing up through 6 months. He is just getting longer every day!! I think he is going to be tall like his Daddy.

Today was a wonderful, relaxing day. I hurried and did all my grocery shopping early today. As most of you know, I am a coupon fanatic. Today I saved $67.00 with my coupons, so all of the clipping and mapping out meals really saves! It has turned into a strange hobby of mine...to figure out which coupons can double and triple and where I can find the best deals. :)

Charlie was so sweet to watch Eli while I went to the grocery store. I couldn't wait to get home and spend time with him! I got home and we played and played. Then it was time for Eli's bath. This is still his favorite time of the day! He is now using his bathing chair instead of his bathing tub. I prefer the tub for him but he is too long and doesn't fit in the hammock part of the tub anymore. The hammock part comes out of the tub, but he is too little to sit up in that part, so we tried the bathing chair. I think Eli likes the tub better because he gets to lounge in the water more.

Eli in his bathing chair...



After Eli's bath, I bundled him up good in his special towel. Eli received several of these hooded towels for gifts and I think they are soooo adorable!



Of course I took lots of pictures of precious Eli over the weekend. I can't help it, I just can't get enough of this sweet little boy!

Baby boy with his puppy dog...



It is much more fun to EAT the puppy dog... haha



You know the photo shoot is over when you start getting this face...(but I sure do LOVE this adorable outfit! Thank you Mary Starke!)



Poor baby....



I am hoping with another busy work week, this week will fly by as well. I am already counting down the days until next weekend. I miss Eli like crazy during the week...it really makes me appreciate the time I do get to spend with him. On that note, I am off to go spend time with my family. Sounds like sweet baby boy just woke up and is hungry... Charlie is probably hungry too. I made Shrimp Etoufee for dinner and the entire house smells yummy!!

Hope you all have a wonderful week!!

Eli is 3 MONTHS OLD!!!! :)

It has been about 2 weeks since my last post. These past two weeks have been full of "firsts" for Eli--both good and bad. The past few months of staying home with sweet Eli just flew by. It is hard to believe he is already 3 months old! Sadly, my Maternity Leave is over and I had to return to work on January 4th. Dropping Eli off at daycare was hands down the hardest thing I have ever had to do in life. I held myself together pretty well, but definitely shed a few tears.

Eli really enjoys daycare! He has two teachers, Miss Veronica and Miss Katina. They tell me he loves to watch everything going on around him. They fill out a sheet each day telling how he ate, when he was changed and when he slept. He barely slept during the day his first week! I am sure it is because of all the excitement around him. Thankfully, daycare is a good "first" for Eli.

I received my first phone call from the daycare while I was at work this past week. They had tried to get a hold of me and since I didn't answer my phone, Charlie was next on the list to call. Charlie had called the school and I was in a blurred state of panic not knowing what was going on. Turns out sweet Eli had his first eye infection. Poor baby. :( I have a feeling he got the infection because he loves to rub his eyes and cover his eyes with his hands when he sleeps. The doctor prescribed some eye drops. I will tell you eye drops + a 3 month old = NO FUN. Eli is a pretty smart little baby. He figured out after the first eye drop that he did not want anymore and would squeeze his little eyes shut. It did get better as the week went on though.

His eyes are back to normal... (love those baby blues!)



While at the doctor, I asked her about feeding Eli cereal. Eli enjoys his feedings and I had noticed he was not satisfied after finishing a bottle. He would fuss a little after being fed as opposed to falling asleep after eating. The doctor suggested adding some rice cereal to his bottles. Turns out Eli LOVES the cereal! He actually makes, "mmmmmmmmmmm" noises while he is eating and kicks his feet. It is so cute!

Eli was not scheduled for a 3 month checkup. He now goes every 2 months. Since he had to go to the doctor for his eye, he ended up having a 3 month checkup. He is now 14 lbs. and 13 ounces! The doctor loves that he is growing and happy.

Our 3 month old boy...



I LOVE his funny expression in this one...




Eli is quite the happy boy! He just loves to check out everything going on around him. His new favorite thing is his playmat my friend Courtney gave him. He loves to lay on his back and try to reach for and kick the dangling rattles and animals. He will play on his mat for as long as you let him.

Our happy boy on his play mat...







Along with taking notice in his toys, Eli has taken notice in Lulu. He likes to stretch his legs out and push against her. He also has started reaching for her when she walks by. I am glad Lulu is such a sweet dog and let's Eli do whatever.

Here is Eli watching Lulu (and the super cute t-shirt he is wearing is from his girlfriend, Sara)...





So our monthly comparison photos are getting more difficult. Eli started turning his head to look right, then left, then right, then left...and he will keep doing it because he thinks it is hilarious (I have to admit, it is pretty funny!)! Before I show you the comparison pictures, here is Eli turning his head.





It always amazes me to see how much Eli has grown when I look at these comparison photos every month.

Here is Eli in his chair:

One month old...



Two months old...



Three months old...



Here is Eli with "Mr. Bear":

One month old...



Two months old...



Three months old...



Here are some of the things Eli is doing at 3 months old:

*He likes to pinch my arm with one hand and hold the bottle with the other when I am feeding him.
*His new favorite thing to do is turn his head repeatedly from left to right back and forth. He thinks it is soooo funny!
*He eats 9 ounces of cereal in the morning before daycare (at 5:00 am) and 9 ounces of cereal at night before bed (at 9:00 pm). He eats 5 ounces every 4 hours during the day. He is like clockwork with his feedings. Eli will let you know when it is time to be fed!
*He is now awake majority of the day. He will normally take at least one solid 2-3 hour nap. He sleeps straight through the night. I put him down after his 9:00 feeding and he will sleep until 5:00 am.
*He now LOVES to lay on his back on his playmat. He will just lay there and kick his feet and laugh for as long as you let him.
*He loves to “talk.” He sits in my lap and I ask him about his day and he just talks and talks. He must get that from his Mommy. :)
*He now does Mommy a favor when I go to change his diaper. He will lift his legs up for me to make changing easier. (I can’t help but laugh when he does this):)
*He has perfected the “pout lip” to use when he is upset about something.
*He is very alert and will reach for anything hanging (bears on his swing, rattles on his playmat, animals on his bounce chair). He has figured out how to grab a hold of things but does not have a sturdy grip just yet. He also hits his toys with his hand and laughs and laughs.
*He knows Mommy. I love that he smiles at me when I go to pick him up from daycare. It doesn’t matter what kind of day I’ve had, it is the perfect end to my day.

Charlie and I found out something pretty neat last week. Charlie has been working on his Family Tree as a side project. After doing some research, Charlie found out that his great-great-great grandfather's name was Eli Webb! How cool is that? We had no idea!!

The Webb household has turned into football central this past season. Charlie's team, the Cincinatti Bengals, had an awesome season! We were hoping they would make it into the Superbowl, but sadly were out after their first playoff game.

Our "Baby Bengal" showed his support...





Charlie had been looking forward to this past weekend because the annual "Boat and RV Show" was at Reliant Stadium. One of the things we look forward to in the future is camping as a family, so it is fun to go and check out the travel trailers.

Since we were going to the show and taking Eli, Charlie thought we may want to invest in a lighter stroller for occasions such as this. We have this amazing Graco carseat/stroller combo that is made really well. However, it is very large and is heavy. We decided on this lightweight stroller the other day and it is awesome! It is so easy to push! Eli loves that he can see what is going on (in the other stroller, he is in his carseat, inside the stroller--so he only gets to look at Mommy). Eli was all smiles watching all the people walking by.

Eli in his new stroller...





After a fun filled weekend, Eli and I are going to enjoy our Monday off in observance of Martin Luther King Day. He and I are going to catch up on some "Grey's Anatomy" and grade some papers. I now don't get to spend as much time with my little cuddlebug since I am back at work, so I truly cherish each and every moment I am with him. I sure do love this little guy. :)

My baby brother is MARRIED!!! :)

The past couple weeks have been so much fun!!! It was nonstop, built-up anticipation... between Christmas, seeing family and my brother's wedding, I was about to burst due to excitement overload!!

Monday I decided to take down the Christmas decorations (even though I wasn't ready). I thought I probably should get some stuff done around the house since I was going to be gone for the wedding the later half of the week.

Tuesday I packed for our trip to Cypress and ran all kinds of errands. I am really proud of myself for cutting back on the packing. The first time I took Eli to my parents, he was about 6 weeks old. I packed practically everything he owns. I don't know what I was thinking, but I remember Charlie looking in the back of my vehicle (which had baby stuff packed to the ceiling) and asking me if we truly needed to bring all that was packed.

Wednesday I had an appointment in the morning and the Winsman's were so sweet to babysit Eli for me!! Nancy teased me and said not to worry that they wouldn't be gone at the go-cart's too long with Eli. :)

Before we left for Nancy's I just HAD to dress Eli up in his new hoodie from Auntie Bonnie and cousin Heather. They sent him this Yankee's hoodie for Christmas and I LOVE it!! Charlie on the other hand, laughed when I opened it (he's an Astro's fan) and jokingly said, "He can't wear that!"...



After I picked Eli up from the Winsman's, we were headed to Cypress! Charlie had to work on New Year's Eve, so I took Eli and Lulu and we went a day earlier to visit with relatives in town for the wedding.

Eli got to meet his Great Nana and Great Grandpa Nuber! They just loved Eli and were amazed at what a content baby he is.



Eli also met Uncle Jim for the first time. He was very relaxed and calm when Uncle Jim held him.



My Aunt Karen Lee spent a lot of time watching Eli and talking with him and I cannot believe I did not get a single picture of her with him! How is that possible?!?

I did get a sweet picture of Aunt Karen Lee with Grandpa...



Also a good one of Aunt Karen Lee and Dad...



After a great evening and dinner, it was time for bed.

Eli had a long day...



The next morning we got up and had a few errands to run for my brother's big day. :)

Eli was bright-eyed and ready to go!



My brother and Samantha planned their wedding and reception in my parents backyard. Everything looked so pretty!! Their colors were black, white and silver. They also had a square shaped theme--the glasses, dishes and even the cake were square! I went outside and took some pictures of the wedding details prior to the wedding.

The centerpieces...



The place settings...





Bride & Groom glasses...



The bridal bouquet...



The delicious cake...



The pretty cake topper! (She's a "Nuber" now!)



Since their wedding was on New Year's Eve, they also had New Year's party favors. Brandon was pretty excited about the party horns!



While I was taking pictures, the bride was getting her hair done for her big day...





The bride was almost ready, so it was time to get Eli ready for his Uncle Chris and Aunt Samantha's wedding!

You know I dressed him in style :)



The bride was ready and she looked BEAUTIFUL!!

My *sister-in-law* and I...



We headed outside to take family pictures.

There was the most AMAZING sunset the evening of their wedding...



The bride, her "Maid-of-Honor" and sister Vicki, Chris and his "Best Man" Chad



My brudder the groom and I...



Mom, Dad, Chris, Eli and I...



Chris, Samantha, Aunt Karen Lee and Uncle Jim...



Family photo...



My sweet, wonderful, handsome hubby made it in time after a day at work!!



While we were waiting for the ceremony to begin, our close friends Courtney and her husband Todd arrived. :)

Courtney and Todd LOVE Eli to pieces...



The four of us...




The ceremony began. It was a lovely ceremony! The pastor did a wonderful job making their union special and personal.

Saying their vows...



Introducing "Mr. and Mrs. Nuber!"...



The bride & groom's first dance... ( I LOVE this picture!)



They surprised my Mom and Dad and had their wedding song played for them to dance to. "Annie's Song" by John Denver was my parents wedding song. Of course, my Dad had to be silly :) ...



Mom and her baby boy...



We all had such a wonderful time celebrating the marriage of Chris and Samantha and ringing in the New Year!!

To all of our friends and family, we would like to wish you all the best in 2010!! May your year be blessed with love and joy!