Smiles... Curiosity... Sounds... Teeth

#41: I love Elijah's smile... all variations of it. He has the sweetest grin and loves to flash those pearly whites at every chance he gets. My favorite: the cheesy grin. Whenever he sees his daddy, his little cheeks plump up like a chipmunk and his top two teeth poke out... it the cutest thing I've ever seen. Then there's his smile when he thinks he's being chased by the dog; the smiles when he thinks he's being funny; the smiles when someone else is being funny; and his smile when he's a little nervous about something.

#40: He's not even a year old and he already has a sense of adventure. He loves to discover and explore everything he sees. Under, over, inside, outside, anything and everything. He especially loves to explore things outside. If we let him, he would spend all day picking through (and lets be honest, probably eating) leaves, sticks, grass, bushes, tree and so on.

#39: Elijah has been saying the "mama", "dada", "baba" sounds for a while, but now he's making new sounds. He's really trying to talk and I think he thinks he's doing it. Some of my not so favorite sounds: the high pitch screams when you take him away from something he's not suppose to be playing with. Those I could do with out. The rest are all wonderful. The babbling, tongue clicking, raspberries, it's all so sweet. We think that he associates the sound "dada" with talking on the phone. Not sure why, maybe because I always tell him when I'm talking to Adam, but now whenever you say "dada" he puts his hand to his ear like he's talking. And whenever he gets on the phone with anyone, all he says is "dada". He has also said "hi", "cat", and "oh".

#38: His big ole chompers. We're up to 6 now! Two on top, four on the bottom. Poor kid, I know it must be tough, but he's such a trooper. Besides the excessive drool and chewing on everything he gets his hands on, he teethes well. And he loves to use 'em! He doesn't quite understand that they're teeth and that it hurts when you bite people with them, but we're getting there. He looks like a dog... walking around the house all the time with a toy, sock or binky hanging out his mouth. And he definitely enjoys the perks of eating grown up food with them.

Disney and other pics

I don't have much time to write, but I need to keep my promise and post pictures from our trip to Disney today. We had a fantastic time! Best birthday yet :) I'll give more details later, but enjoy these pictures, as well as some pictures from the weekend.

A little unsure of the sand at Matern's company picnic

The guys let him play with their football... he was in heaven

My star

Elijah and Daddy in their Guy Harvey shirts

My handsome boy

In front of the park with the Mickey Pumpkin

Looking at the castle

Little E and Daddy at the Monsters Inc Laugh Factory

Sitting on Minnie's couch

Wearing a Goofy hat

Elijah Mouse and Mommy Mouse

Meeting Mickey and Minnie

#43: Elijah loves the outdoors. Every since we brought him home, he has loved to spend time outside. Whenever he gets upset, take him outside and he forgets all about it. When he can't get outdoors, looking outside can make him just as happy. My wonderful father-in-law got us a new door to replace our old screen one. It is all glass and both Elijah and Daisy love to sit and look out it. Watching Elijah at the door made me realize how big he's gotten (as if I needed any more reminders). We used to hold him up on the couch so he could look out the window. I remember the first time he was able to hold his head up to look out, the first time he could stand on my legs, then he got bigger and was able to stand on the couch to see out, then he could climb up the couch... now he's walking to the front door.

Elijah's First Walk

Looking out the window, dec '08

#42: He's so charismatic. Elijah gets along with nearly everyone. Family, friends, people in the grocery store... As long as we're around, he will talk to everyone. He's not allowed to go out alone with daddy anymore. He draws too much lady attention for my liking :0) But in reality, he especially loves kids. He is so excited when there's another child around. All he wants to do is play with them. He's such a loving, sweet child.

#44 Dandelion

#44: my child was born with coolness. Evidence: his awesome mohawk hair. I promise, we never styled it that way! It looks like a cool hair style; in actuality, the style came from the fact that his hair grows in all different directions. The right side grows to the left and the left to the right. They meet right on top. Elijah instantly became famous for his hair. There was not a person we met who didn't comment on it. As he's growing his hair is changing. It has turned white blond and the mohawk has grown out. It's still there, just much longer so we can actually get it to lay down a bit. Although last night he slept on funny and woke up with one side sticking straight up. I dropped him off at Shelbie's and as he walked through the living room, the sunlight shining bright through the windows behind him, Shelbie nailed exactly what he looked like... a dandelion. My sweet dandelion.

Elijah... Nov 2008

#46 & 45

#46 thing I love about Elijah: His phone talking. Little E has started to understand the concept of talking on the phone and it is the cutest thing. I've already posted about him babbling to the wrapping paper (photo was included). Here are some of his other cute phone stories over the past few days: yesterday we were watching Ellen and she called someone on the phone; the phone rang and Elijah walked up to the TV and put his hand to his ear. He looked over at me like, "Hey Mom! Am I doing it right?". So sweet. Later on he was taking a bath and Adam called from school. I put him on speakerphone so little E could hear him and Elijah picked up one of his fishy bath toys, put it to his ear and talked to his daddy. I melted. This week I dropped Elijah off at Shelbie's and little E was walking around the kitchen and looking at Pastor Rick when the phone rang. P. Rick (or Boppy to Elijah) went to answer and little E just stood in awe and watched. As if he was taking notes on how it worked. Genius.

$45: Sense of Humor. I already mentioned how much I love his laugh, but this is about how funny Elijah is. He laughs at things; not just when he's being tickled... or has gas... but when he finds something funny. Could be the dog running past him, could be someone making a funny face, could be Mommy wearing bunny ears. He sees the humor in a situation and enjoys it. It's hard to believe... just 10 months ago he couldn't even comprehend an emotion such as humor. Now he not only enjoys it but shares it with the rest of us. Thank you little one.

Mmmm.... Motherhood

Have I mentioned lately how much I adore my son and being his mother? If not, I absolutely love it. Tonight, Elijah's bath was cut short (due to him mixing up the potty with the tub and pooping in the bath) so we had some extra time before bed. We cleaned up the living room and I thought we would give story time a try. I love reading to little E, but now that's he mobile, he doesn't enjoy laying on the floor and looking at a book when he could be running around the house exploring. To my utter surprise, he cuddled on the couch and listened to me read "I Can Read with my Eyes Shut" by Dr. Seuss. I thought my heart was going to melt :)

#47: His Smell. Mmmm... that sweet baby scent. His hair, his skin, his breath... mmm. Especially right after a bath and his scent is mixed with the baby soap... if only I could bottle it. I would spray it on roses to make them smell better. I wonder what the age is when they lose it? I hope not for a looong while.

#49 and #48

#49: Elijah is so smart! I know that every parent thinks their child is a genius (which they should) and I am no different. Elijah is a problem solver. He can already assess a situation and work for solutions. Not that he always gets it right... or even comes close... it's the attempt that matters. Every day he is learning and discovering more and it is an incredible process to watch. As adults, we take advantage knowing how to do things; things such as eating, walking up stairs, understanding a conversation, these are all things he is learning to do. He now understands the word "dance". As soons as I tell him, "dance, dance, dance" he breaks down into his little dance-bounce.

"Boy Genius"

Elijah and Daddy

#48: His laugh. A child's laugh is by far the best sound on Earth. So pure, so sincere, never forced. Elijah's is, of course, the best of them all. If I didn't think it would have some sort of negative health effect, I think I would tickle Elijah forever just to hear his laugh. Nothing can be going wrong in the world when I hear it. The universe could be seconds away from exploding and I would still be at my most happiest hearing his giggle. Some of his favorite things to laugh at: being tickled (he is my child); Daisy (all she has to do is walk towards him); Destiny (his closest friend).

Here's a pic I hope he laughs at one day... I know for a while he'll just be mortified of it :)

Such a cute tushy! And FYI, those blue spots are not bruises. Although he does get bruised on a daily basis during this walking adventure, these spots are thanks to his love for drinks. He was having so much fun hanging out with Sage (Shelbie's brother), watching him play Wii, and thought he was one of the guys. So he decided Sage wouldn't mind if he shared his Gatorade and dumped it all over himself. The blue dye from his clothes stained his skin. Boys...

#50 and Marc's Birthday

Tonight we were blessed to celebrate a good friend's 30th birthday. Although we missed the actual surprise part, we were so happy to be at the party. I really enjoyed being there, although I did spend most of my time chasing around my child, making sure he wasn't destroying these nice peoples' home. My favorite moment: Elijah standing in the middle of a circle made up of my husband and three of his friends from work, Marc, Jason and Brad. All of the men were trying to get Elijah to dance by mimicking his dance moves. Elijah just stood there looking at them, then he started bouncing away. If he could have spoken the words, I think Elijah was telling them: "No guys, you're not doing it right... you've got to bend the knees like this!" Happy Birthday Marc!

Speaking of birthdays... Elijah's 1st birthday is 50 days from today. I've decided that in honor of that, I will post 50 ways he has brought joy to my life in the past year.

#50: Finger Dimples. I love Elijah's chubby little fingers and his finger dimples that will one day disappear and turn into knuckles. They are so sweet and tiny and lovable. They are, to me, a representation of his baby days. They are going by so quickly and I want to remember every tiny detail about them while they last. His dimples remind me that he still has so much growing to do (and I am glad for that). 10 kisses to my 10 favorite dimples.

Friends, Football and Bubble Baths

Another wonderful week for the Teston family. Elijah is learning how to climb out of everything. Today we went to Target and I learned why we use the straps in the cart... because kids, er scratch that, 10 month old babies, can climb out. Earlier this week we had to retire the baby bath tub because little E was starting to climb out of that as well. We also attempted the bubbles in the bath again. The first time was a couple months ago and he was scared to death of the bubbles. This time I only put in a little, just enough to have some bubbles on the surface, and he was so mad that he couldn't pick them up. The next night I put in a normal amount and it will be the last time. Like everything else Elijah gets his hands on the bubbles went straight in the mouth. Not once, not twice, but continually until I finally had to drown the bubbles out. It was so bad that is was going face first into the water just to eat the bubbles.

For Friday Family Fun night Elijah got to eat his first Tijuana Flats dinner. He thought it was delicious (of course he isn't hard to please, as noted by the bubbles above). Then we went to cheer on the Shearouse boys at the Boone football game. Oh boy did he love it. All those people and his favorite part, the band. He was in awe. Looks like we'll be supporting the Braves a lot this season :)

At TF with his balloon animal: a fish on a fishing pole.

With Desi at the football game.

Cheering on the Braves with Dad and Mom.

On Saturday Karlie and I got together for breakfast in the park. It was the play date I had been waiting for... the boys are finally able to walk around and play together. Although the concept of playing "together" is still a little lost, it was still one of the cutest things I've ever seen. Some highlights... Aiden sharing his muffin with Elijah by feeding some of it to him... the boys swapping the juice cups.... after Elijah getting in trouble for eating the mulch, Aiden generously gave him another piece.

Labor Day

Happy Labor Day SmilesbyElijah followers :)

We celebrated today by going to Sea World this morning (a million thanks to Robbie for these passes) and then went over to Adam's dad's for some yummy labor day food and swimming!

Elijah and Mommy's Sea World day :)

Elijah LOVED Sea World! Some highlights of the trip for him... Riding in the Sky Tower, just the two of us, so he could squeal in delight as loud as he wanted... seeing the big horses... playing the steel drums in the kiddy area... running around in the water area of the kiddy area, and then mommy having to buy a new shirt because he was soaked... walking around the penguins... and his most favorite, watching the Manta roller coaster. We missed Daddy (he had to stay home to do homework) so we'll have to go back in a couple weeks to enjoy it all again!

Sitting on the bench by the horse... he thought he was big stuff

Playing the steel drums

Clapping at the roller coaster going by. Notice the new shirt?

At the barbecue, trying to drink water from a bottle with the top still on.

As promised, here is the pic of litte E "talking on the phone"... aka... babbling at the wrapping paper :)

10 Months

Tomorrow will be Elijah's 10 month birthday! Yesterday Nana and I took him for his 10 month pictures. Now that he's walking it makes it much harder as he refuses to stay still. Here's the link to view his 10 month pics. Click on it, and then the customer name is ERIN TESTON. https://www.smilesbywire.com/home.asp?AC=LTPP0597103561JCP

Here's some cute little E pics from the past week.

Duh!

Sitting in his toy bin...

Playing the piano at the Rejoice Labor Day Brunch. So talented :)

Practicing to join the worship team.

Homemade muffins I made for the Brunch... chocolate chip (with sugar on top) and cream cheese banana nut. Yummy!

New things Elijah is doing:

Dancing... he's starting to do the bounce. So cute, especially when he's doing it and there's no music :)

Talking on the phone... well, not really talking... and not really on the phone. But he'll use his hand (or play phone, or the oddest of all: the huge wrapping paper roll) and hold it up to his ear (well, really behind his ear... more like the back of his head). It's pretty funny to see. I took some pics, post those next time.

Hope everyone has a fabulous Labor Day Monday (no work for us! hooray!).

Happy Birthday Dad

Today is my dad's birthday. Our little family of three went over to see him and Elijah just loved spending time with his granddaddy. He was all smiles the whole time. He especially loved Grandpa's glasses and pulled them off his face any chance he had.

Happy Birthday to my Dad, the first man I ever loved :) You bring so much love into our family. Neither distance or silence could ever break the bond that we share. Adam, Elijah and I are so blessed to have you in our lives. Hoping your birthday and the coming year bring you joy, peace and happiness. You deserve it all and more.

Cold

I took Elijah to the Dr today and all he has is a cold. No sore throat, no ear infections, no medication :) Just me, being my normal overreacting self. Praise God. I think my loving son has decided to share his cold with his mother which stinks, but I'm grateful it's just a cold. It was probably all those kisses he's been giving me. Yup, he's learning how to give kisses. It's really more like he's trying to eat my mouth, but still... kisses :)

"Look Mom! I have THREE hands!"

Yup... Elijah thinks that his mouth is another hand. I already posted the story of him picking up his binky with his mouth while he was crawling, last night he did another. He was in the hall crawling around and he found his whisk. He held it in his hand and then tried to use the wall to stand up, only the whisk in his hand was making this impossible. He put the whisk in his mouth and used his two hands (the ones attached to his arms) to climb up the wall. GENIUS!

In not-so-cute news... I've got to take Elijah to the Dr. tomorrow. He has had a runny nose for a few days and it's getting worse... and crusty :( Tonight he started sounded congested and he has a little cough. I'm sure it's nothing to worry about, maybe just a cold or teething but we'd rather be safe than sorry. I'll let you all know how it goes.