thank you a & a.

Who doesn't love to get special goodies in the mail?!? Eli received a "spook-tacular" package from his favorite twins, Anthony and Alex, sweet boys of my wonderful friend and sorority sister, Becky. Arriving from Murrysville, Pennsylvania, Eli received such a cute glow-in-the-dark Halloween shirt, orange and black socks, and a coupon for a sweet, frosty treat - yum! Thank you so much Sargo family for Eli's special package and for thinking so thoughtfully of our little guy! We hope to see you very, very soon!

Just look at these sweet little guys...don't they just make you smile...twice?!?
We love you Anthony and Alex!

best buddies.

It's so sweet to watch the ever-growing relationship of Eli and our little Carmen. He just adores our precious Carms and lights up when he sees her, thus crawling in a mad dash towards her, following her wherever she goes. I love to watch Carmen bring Eli her toys and assume the fetch position as she waits and waits for Eli to throw her favorite squirrel, lobster, or ball. Recently, amongst the sea of toys in our home at this fingertips, Eli has taken a considerable liking to Carmen's most favorite toy -- "the squirrel" -- playing with it for what seems like hours and yes, even trying to put this much loved, slobbery toy, in his mouth (gross). Carmen seems to look at Eli and say, "Really?!? You've taken over my entire home and now you want my squirrel?!?" Eli just shakes and shakes Carmen's squirrel right in front of her nose, playing with her in his own way. What fun it is to watch Eli and Carms love each other!

sweet, sweet home.

After 10 hours in the car on our return adventure from South Carolina, we were all excited - to say the least - to drive into our garage and stretch our legs, relax, and in Eli's case, take a warm bath and get ready for bed. During our car ride home, while Eli was a fantastic traveler, there were a few times that fussiness took over, and I was the ever-flexible acrobat, that crawled my way back and forth from the front to the back seat. Who doesn't need a little company during a long drive, someone to look at and talk to, and most importantly, someone to play with? When we reached hours 9 and 10, no book, no music, no toy would do; however, a three-fourths of the way empty water bottle and one episode of Secret Agent Oso on an iPhone was just what Eli needed to finish his long, long, long day in the car!

What a wonderful fall vacation we had with Andy's family. However, considering Eli has only slept in his own crib 3 days in the month of October, we are happy to be surrounded by our things, our carpet, our toys, our bed sheets, our bathtubs, and our home. I think we'll stay put for a while.

cruisn'.

While we were so excited for Eli to see the sand, the surf, and the pool again during our fall-time vacation, who would have thought that he would take such joy in something quite different -- riding on a golf cart! We by no means need a horn on our golf cart because our little boy, with wind whipping through his hair, squeals with happiness during the entire ride, letting everyone know that we are on the move! While I cautiously and tightly hold onto him for dear life, while we are cruising at our speedy 7 mph, he does everything short of jumping onto Andy's lap to get a hold of that steering wheel! Do we have a future golfer on our hands (let's hope) or just a little boy infatuated with all things that move?!?

pool shark.

Words simply cannot express how much Eli loves water...especially the swimming pool! His entire face lights up when he sees a pool, falling water, or a fountain of any kind that spurts water. Luckily for him, during this week of vacation in Myrtle Beach, our indoor and outdoor pool have not disappointed our happy little fish. Completely content to swim on his belly, float on his back, kick, splash, and dunk his whole face under the water without even thinking twice, Eli has certainly enjoyed his morning swims and we just love splashing right along with him!

fall in wv.

On our way to South Carolina, Andy, Eli, and I briefly stopped for a fun, few days in West Virginia! The weather in West Virginia is simply beautiful during this time of year, with crisp, cool mornings and evenings, while afternoons are mild and warm. It simply is the very best! During our two-day stay, we were able to relax, enjoy walks back and forth on the small road in front of my mother's home, enjoy play time with Nana and Papaw Freeman, visiting with Nana and Papaw Beymer, and squeezing in some mucn-loved time with Uncle Kent and Auntie Danielle.

Much to the dismay of the wooly worm crawling across my mother's back deck, Eli was an all-American, bug lovin' boy as he studied and attempted to "play with" this wooly fellow. Just look at those left-handed, pincher fingers! Try as I might to hand things to Eli in his right hand, we think our little guy may have inherited his father's, both of his grandfather's, and Auntie Julie's "left handedness".

Lounging on a comfy blanket, Eli watched as Uncle Kent and daddy passed football, while Carmen and Cousin Oden ran back and forth playing and hoping to catch the ever-flying football. We just love Fall and wish that this beautiful season lasted just a bit longer!

sink.

One less "Eli item" to pack during a trip always means a bit more rearview sight for Andy. Now, we forgo the toddler tub and use the good ol' fashioned

...kitchen sink...

What fun the little guy had last night during his warm bath in the middle of my mother's kitchen!

let go of my eggo.

In an effort to introduce more and more table food into Eli's diet, this morning, in addition to our iron-fortifed oatmeal with fruit, we began our day with a special treat - a multi-grain eggo waffle, sans the butter and syrup (that will come soon enough). Although our little guy is a lover of 99% of baby food, he has been less than thrilled with many of the "table food" items that I have tried feeding him. However, this morning, I was feeling confident about our "carb-a-licous," multi-grain, nonetheless, eggo waffle!

Sure enough, Eli gobbled down one plate full of waffle and then a second, until his small round waffle was nothing but a delicious memory! Success! Perhaps next we will try adding a few blueberries!

Afther his waffle had ben devoured, Eli checked his plate twice to make sure he had eaten ever bite!

...then he decided to eat his plate...

off to miami.

Last Wednesday, Andy, Eli, and I took to the friendly skies for a little family fun in Florida! While we were visiting Miami, we stayed at the Loews Hotel! What a positively beautiful hotel! While the Loews had much to pamper Andy and I, it also catered to our little guy. When we arrived, we were informed that the Loews has a partnership with Fisher Price. We were given a brochure of toys (including a toddler bathtub) that would be brought to our room for Eli - what a perk!

Andy has worked endlessly in the past year with research pertaining to breast cancer in regards to women in Appalachia (Eastern Kentucky) and the treatment (radiation vs. mastectomy) or lack there of that they chose to undergo and the circumstances that prompted them to do so (I think I put that correctly...maybe). Andy won an exciting award for his research from Susan G. Komen and presented his findings at a conference in Miami...thus leading our little family south!

...just look at that great research...

...take a peek at our fun family time in Miami...

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10 months for eli.

Eli is 10 months old! Oh, how those weeks just fly by! It seems that each and every month I think, "This is my favorite stage thus far," but the next month arrives and it always seems to replace the last by being "my favorite". Eli continues to be one busy, busy, BUSY little boy. He loves to explore and seems to just enjoy crawling from one destination to another. He pulls up on just about everything and shows interest in taking those first steps...oh, my. He loves to "let go" of things that he is holding onto, stand for a few seconds, and then flop onto his cute little bum...then repeat, then repeat, then repeat. We can hardly believe that we have a 10 month old and that his BIG birthday is just a pair of months away. Birthday goodies for his party have already started to arrive at the Freeman home! While we can't wait to celebrate his unbelievable first year (it will be here all too soon), we are just loving "this stage" with our precious, bubbly, boy!

...While Eli has learned a lot in the last 10 months, oh, oh, so have I...

I have learned that just like adults, no two days are the same in "the life of Eli". Just because he took two really great naps "yesterday", today could be much, much different.

I have learned that our little boy is quite flexible. He goes with the flow, although I try very hard to keep him to his "schedule". And while I worry about things a little bit too much, I need to give Eli more credit in being able to adapt. He can do this very well...it's me that needs more work. I'll get there...hopefully.

I have learned that ponytails are my best friend.

I finally understand why my mother and father were terrified of me riding and driving with my fellow teenage drivers. Oh, the thought of sending him out in a car...I think I'll pass for now. Oh, and the thought of a bully...just forget it.

I have learned that simply because our little Eli began sleeping through the night at 7 weeks old , tightly swaddled, he will not always sleep through the night as he demonstrated from months 4-9, still waking for an early morning feeding each and every day. We are back on the sleeping train...for now! There will always be a new tooth, perhaps an ear infection, and maybe even just the need to see mama or daddy.


We love you Eli B! From the tip of your thick head of hair right down to the tips of your crossed toes, we just enjoy you and love you more each day!