Camping

We have been wanting to take Elijah camping ever since we knew he was going to be a boy! He is finally walking and at an age that would be fun to take camping. This was about a month ago and we had a blast. We drove about 3 hours north of Phx and picked our camping spot out in the woods. It was so beautiful and quiet... there wasn't anyone near us. It was great!! Elijah had a great time getting dirty, picking pine cones, off-roading in PaPa's truck, trying to get in the fire pit, drinking hot chocolate (because it was about 39 degrees in the am), and sleeping with mama in the sleeping bag.

Just waking up. I love that swollen little face.

Papa came up for lunch one day and stayed thru dinner. What a great grandpa Elijah has. He loves his PaPa!!

Getting in trouble...

Busy Little Boy

I am really enjoying this stage in life. Elijah is 16 months old and becoming more and more of a member-of-the-family. He has so much personality and energy. Everyday is an adventure and I really enjoy being apart of all his activity. He reminds me to be joyful because this world is so AWESOME to him!!!! Everything is thrilling.... trucks, books, balls, cheese sticks, doggies, you name it! Since we are in an apartment without a ton of space, we get out of the house everyday to explore. McDonald's play gyms, the park, the library, Tumbleweed Rec Center, and the zoo are some of our favorites.

He is saying DaDa, Mama, Up, Uh-Oh, boo (boots), NaNa (banana), Papa, Mmm (moon). He can show me his eyes, nose, tongue, lips, hair, and belly button. He just started shaking his head no... for no, and for yes he makes a gasp with his mouth open in pure excitement.

I am so tired once he goes to bed at 7pm, but my day is full of so much fun.



At the zoo. It's been a while since I've taken him because of summer. He enjoyed it so much more now that he's older.Trying to get in with the cows.

Peanut butter sandwich break





At the park with Gigi. He climbed this latter all by himself to the top. He definitely doesn't understand how hurt he can get. Or maybe he does but it's worth the risk....

Elijah's First Haircut

We are growing his hair out, but it needed a trim. My hair stylist and good friend Ashley cleaned him up and he looks so handsome! Just a little trim around the back and the ears made a huge difference. He did good sitting on my lap. I think he could tell something important was happening.

Before

After

BTW, I was next in line for a clean up if you couldn't already tell. AHHHHHHH!!!

Great website for moms!

This website shows you the restaurants where your kids can eat for free! Just type in your zip code and they will list all the free kids meals in your area for that day.

http://www.kidsmealdeals.com/

Happy Birthday to ME!

My birthday was last week and here are some pictures from our get together. We decided to do pizza at Peter Piper. With Elijah, it just seemed to be a good choice. And it totally was!! It was a great way to have a family party... very laid back and good place for kids to play! Elijah was the center of attention and loved playing on all the riding toys... so it was a great night for me!

Thanks to my sweet husband who planned it all and surprised me with such an awesome birthday gift!
Elijah with his Great Grandpa Gifford


Loving the play gym


My surprise birthday gift! I've been wanting a beach cruiser for a long time and Josh surprised me for my birthday! I couldn't help laughing at myself... here I was turning 27, at a pizza place, getting a bike. Such a grown up.






Tonight I went on my first bike ride with Elijah.

Music you can dance to...

If your looking for some great workout music but don't love listening to the lyrics in secular hip hop, then you've got to check out these two artists. I have been listening to Trip Lee and Lecrae for a few years now.
Love it. Can't get enough.
They are preaching the Gospel thru hip hop. What could be better?!

I was very skeptical of any type of "Christian Hip Hop", but these guys completely changed my opinion. This isn't DC Talk....

http://reachrecords.com/artists/show/Trip-Lee
http://reachrecords.com/artists/show/Lecrae

Let me know what you think!

Hats

And now he likes hats too. His own are fine, but he really likes his daddy's hats. Just got him a bike helmet... loves it.

(Here he's signing that he wants to eat)

Eat! Eat!