Recent happenings

Eli got a toddler bed. He's finally learning to sleep in it instead of climbing out of it to sleep in front of the door. He sure is growing up fast! This was our first experience in a dust storm. It was the craziest thing I think I've ever experienced. One minute it was a normal day and the next, we looked out the windows to see this. Then the next minute, it was clear again but winds going like 60 mph. It was nuts! Eli sure loves his spaghetti! For Halloween, Eli was... Superman! This is the cape that Devin cut out and I sewed. It was a fun little project and Eli loved running around with his cape flowing behind him. Our computer likes to put pictures in whatever order they want to, instead of doing what we tell it to. So sorry. This is Devin and Eli making cinnamon rolls for General Conference. Back to Halloween festivities. This picture was taken after we told Eli that we were going to the church instead of his friend Daylin's house. At the Trunk or Treat. Eli quickly learned the magic of the phrase "trick or treat". Here's Daylin, the princess, Eli as Superman, and Everett as the cutest little surfer dude. And Eli and his buddy James. Driving home with candy! Another big thing for us was that Eli turned 2!!! We spent the whole day together doing all of Eli's favorite things. Here he is playing with his new toys! These were the cakes that Devin and I made for Eli and James (James' birthday is 6 days before Eli's so we did a combined party.) They are true boys! We had their birthday party at the park. It was totally windy but the kids didn't seem to mind. Another recent happening... I'm getting huge! This is today, at 33 weeks and yes, I do feel really big. The baby has taken lodging up near my ribs today and it's pretty uncomfortable. But usually pregnancy is great! Random picture placement of Eli opening presents! Thanks to Grandmas and Grandpas and their great presents! Eli is the smartest kid in the world. He has been counting to 10 for about 3 months now. And the best part is that we didn't even teach him. We count to 10 before he gets out of the tub every night and then one day, I heard him in his room just counting over and over again. This is the first time that I've gotten it recorded because every time I ask him to do it, he just runs away. I need to learn how to teach him to perform his tricks on demand. But here it is... counting to 10!

The most exciting news of all!!!

We brought home a little souvenir from our trip to Holland. We just found out this past week that our souvenir is a GIRL!!! We are so excited and I am so surprised! I was sure that it was going to be a boy, because I thought pregnancy was pretty similar to being pregnant with Eli. But Devin was guessing all along that it was a girl; he's always right! I was so shocked that it was a girl that it took me a few days to get excited about it but I AM SO EXCITED ABOUT IT!!! We need to get girl clothes and figure out how to incorporate pink and ruffles into our house but we are thrilled! I'm ready for bows and pink and dolls... I think. And am grateful that Eli will take care of all of the manly things like cars and balls to keep our house balanced! I'm 21 weeks along which means that the baby is due Dec. 27th. Here's to a week early delivery (wishful thinking)!!! Now the only thing to do is convince Devin that though she comes from Holland, her name does not need to be Geertruida or Wilhelmia!

April, May, and June

We have had a busy summer. We have taken a trip every month since April. It started with our trip to Holland, but we already posted pictures of that. Here are some pictures of the rest of our summer. What better way to start than with some mean egg-hunting pictures. Eli had an Easter egg hunt with his friend, Daylin. He sure enjoyed what he found. Devin was excited about it too! In May we took a road trip up to Idaho and Utah. Eli learned how to plug his ears while we were singing. While in Idaho we visited Devin's family. Eli loved playing at the park with Grandpa. We took a day trip to Yellowstone. It was freezing cold and the hot pots smelled like a hot port-a-potty, but Old Faithful was really amazing. The buffalo got really close to the car. One day we were going to the zoo, but it was raining, so we went to the museum instead. Check it out, we ran into Eli Crockett! Here is Eli with his cousins Brooks and Bentley Crockett. We went to a park and found that the river had flooded it. Picnic anyone? Devin's going to have to jump it. The main reason for the road trip was to see this handsome guy and cute girl get married. They were married in the Salt Lake Temple and we were so happy that we were able to be there for their special day. We would have liked to have more pictures, but our camera ran out of batteries approximately 30 seconds after they walked out the doors. We loved being with our family and Eli loved playing with his cousins. We returned home for a few weeks before Melia left for a week of Girl's Camp in June. Sorry, no pictures from Girl's Camp, but just know she had an amazing time. While Melia was away, Eli loved getting to play with Daylin every afternoon while Devin was at school and watching "Cars" in the morning and evening while Devin worked from home. See our next post for the rest of our summer adventures and for further information about Eli's developing obsession.

July and August

Some of these pictures are out of order a little bit but you're just gonna have to deal with it... sorry. Here's Eli riding his new horse. Napoleon baby! In July, Eli and I traveled up to Portland to visit my family and so that I could go to my friend's wedding. This was our day trip to the waterfalls in the gorge. Here's the beautiful bride! Eli watching "Cars". He LOVES this movie! He can spot a Cars character from a mile away. This is a picture of Eli watching "Cars" while holding his Lightening McQueen and wearing his "Cars" t-shirt. He's in love! This is us at the Oregon Coast. More coast with the family. Eli loves sand and water. This was like paradise for him! Watching.... "Cars". In August, we went on a family vacation with Devin's family to Cancun. It was beautiful and HOT, HOT, HOT!!! Thank goodness for the water everywhere! We visited Tulum. There are lots of ruins from the Mayans. It was really amazing that these building were still standing. See, I told you the pictures are getting all out of order. We're back in Tulum. It was hot. It was REAL hot! We took family pictures while at the beach. These are all of Devin's siblings, not in birth order. Waiting at the airport with cousins. Back at the beach. Sorry about all the random pictures. I have no idea what's going on. I'm trying to upload them in order and then when I open it here, they are just in any random order. And when I try to move them, they get deleted. Believe me, I've tried to present this more fluidly. Anyway, that's about it for us. We are glad to be home for the rest of the month of August and are looking forward to our last trip of the summer to Dallas for the national MFT conference at the end of September.