Another milestone: pooping in the tub

Eli pooped in the tub yesterday. It was quite a shocker for me. I didn't even realize it for a few minutes and then there is all this "stuff" in the water. Yuk! I had to hold slippery Eli with one arm while I dumped out the tub, wiped out the tub and refilled it with water. He was good-natured about the whole thing (blabbing away while he was hanging out, naked, under my arm), probably because he knew that he had stunk up his own bath water :) I am hoping that we don't repeat that performance again...

Oregon State Fair

Eli and I went to the State Fair today with Elliot and Sarah. Except for a few delays (my tire was flat when I got to Sarah's house), it was a great morning. They saw cows, horses and goats. They watched a rooster cock-a-doodle-doo -- Eli wasn't expecting it so he totally jumped!

Eli and Elliot loved the OMSI tent, which had a little box with air blowing up so you could watch a balloon float in the air. They also played in the toddler area, which had huge playmats and little ride-on giraffes. Of course, Eli passed out in the car seat as soon as I started driving home. The transfer to the crib doesn't work so he was awake for a few more hours before going back to sleep at 3 p.m. We played on the swing in our backyard -- I sat right in front of him so he kept swinging right up close to my face and then going away. He thought it was so funny and kept trying to reach for my face when he came up close. I would give him a quick kiss on his cheek when he swung close and he would giggle. So cute...

8-month update

Eli was in such an amazing mood today. He had these HUGE smiles on his face all day and he kept squealing and (I think) trying to hug me. He grabs my face, opens his mouth and tries to put my entire face in his mouth. I read somewhere that it means he is trying to hug or kiss me and doesn't know how. All I know is that I love it. It is totally adorable, even when he gets drool all over my face.

Needless to say, I love the 8-month stage. He is happy almost all of the time. He can stay awake for quite awhile now -- this morning he lasted for 3 hours. He is sleeping great so I have some time to myself at night (tonight I made these lemon scones that are to-die-for!). And he can play by himself for a little bit of time, even though he mostly wants to play with me (which is also quite alright!)

We've been doing cloth diapers now for a month and it is going great. It is super easy. We only use one disposable diaper a day -- at night. He has been sleeping from 7:30 p.m. to 6 a.m. and a cloth diaper just won't keep him dry that long. He took a two-hour nap this afternoon with two cloth diapers and a fleece liner and he was soaked when he woke up. So I just don't want to ruin his good nighttime sleeping.

He loves to look at books, play with this big metal coffee can and watch Wally and Zula. He also LOVES to swing so I usually put him in one of those baby swings at the park and he just smiles and giggles the entire time. I am a little worried about the fall and what we will do when it is raining :(

Officially crawling

On Friday, Eli turned 8 months. It was his last official day in the infant room, and he must have been feeling pressure to learn to crawl because ...

He crawled on Saturday! We were in Seattle visiting our friends Will and Daphne and their kids Perry and Noe and right before Eli went to bed we were playing with him on our bed. He put his forehead on the bed and pulled his knees up under him and then scooted forward. He did it over and over again. He was very proud of himself and had a huge smile on his face. Will recorded it so I am hoping to post a video soon ... stay tuned. I am now afraid that Eli's adventures will take on a new level as he gets into all the things he shouldn't :)

Highlights from Nanna & Poppy's visit

Eli had a blast at his first visit to the A.C. Gilbert's children's museum:



Temperatures hit 100 degrees so Eli spent a lot of time naked and in his pool:

Nanna bought Eli a swing after seeing how much he loved it at A.C. Gilbert's museum (see previous posts). Now he has one in his own backyard:

Eli is teething pretty badly so he got to eat his teething biscuits whenever he wanted. Needless to say, they are the most disgusting things you have ever seen. They cover Eli in a seal of slime:

And Eli learned how to sit on Poppy's shoulders:

Eli can't wait for them to come back!

A "crawler"

Today Eli spent some time in his new classroom at the YMCA. He will be in the "Crawlers" room. He can't crawl yet, but he will be 8-months-old and that is when they move the kids to that room. He was there for 4 hours and he liked it. There were lots of new toys for him to play with but many of his same friends were there. He will spend some more time there Friday and then that's it -- he will officially be a "crawler" next week.

Willow Creek Railroad

On Sunday, Eli, Nanna, Poppy and his friends rode the trains at Willow Creek Railroad. Eli had so much fun that he fell asleep on Poppy during his fifth ride on the train and then he even stayed asleep when I picked him up. That is the first time he has done that, and I loved it.

Dancing in the rain

Yesterday we got a thunderstorm. We could hear thunder but couldn't see any lightning. It started pouring when we brought Eli downstairs for breakfast. That is a pretty rare thing here in Salem.

I brought Eli outside to show him the rain and then Michael cranked the music and danced with him. He thought it was SO fun even though the rain was dripping all over his face.

Two busy days

Eli has had two very busy days with his Nanna and Poppy. Yesterday we went to the park in the morning and he tried out a rocking horse at the playground. He also had a good time on the swing. In the afternoon we went to the Riverfront Carousel and he rode it twice, although he seemed skeptical about the whole thing both times.

Today we went to the A.C. Gilbert's House children's museum, where Eli watched himself in the mirror and played with all sorts of new toys. He is going to love that place when he is a bit bigger! We also put him on the swing there and he absolutely loved it. He was making all kinds of faces and laughing and he wanted to be pushed harder and harder. At night he took a swim in his pool and remained in a great mood.

Betcha anything he sleeps well tonight.

Harvest Fest in McMinnville

Eli got to ride old farm equipment and old cars at an agricultural festival in McMinnville today. He also saw a huge turkey and some mules. He loved it!

Not crawling but rotating

While Eli was on his belly on the floor of his nursery this evening he started rotating around. He was pushing with his feet -- he wasn't going forward but he was making 180-degree turns. It was quite impressive. I think he was showing off for Nanna and Poppy, who are visiting for the next week.

Laughing

Eli and I laughed and laughed today. He was sitting on the floor in his nursery and I was holding one of his soft blocks. I threw it up in the air and said, "Where did it go?" and then it would fall back down between us. It must have seemed like the block came out of nowhere to Eli. We just played that game over and over again and we just laughed and laughed. I could have done that for 4 hours with him :)

He was pretty fussy in the afternoon -- I think his teeth were hurting. So I gave him a foot massage with some Burt's Bees apricot oil and he calmed down a bit. I kept telling him how much he needs a foot massage to release all of his tension and it struck me as very funny that a baby who can't walk yet gets a foot massage. We laughed about that also.

Eli loves the Statesman Journal

Eli loves paper. He loves to tear it and rub it on his face and try to bite it. While Michael and I were trying to get Eli to crawl this evening, he just kept reaching for today's Statesman Journal. He had so much fun once he got his hands on it.

A baby toothbrush

I bought Eli a toothbrush today. We haven't tried it yet, but it sure is cute. I read somewhere that we should be brushing his teeth and gums after every feeding. Yeah, like I have time for that! I am pretty psyched when I brush my teeth before noon (on days I don't go to work).

Mardell's good-bye BBQ

Our friend Mardell, who just moved to Helena, Mont., just e-mailed me these great photos from the good-bye BBQ that we threw for her. I basically posted all of them.... so just indulge me :)