The First Sibling

Surprise (!) to those of you who have not heard the news yet! Elijah has a sibling on the way! We are very sorry that we have not gotten the news to many of you until now. The due date for the little bundle of joy is August 4th. We are excited to have the baby here, even with the knowledge of what it is like to have a newborn! We survived it once, I'm sure that we will survive again! During the ultrasound baby Croel 2 decided to have its legs crossed so we couldn't find out the gender at first. Luckily, the doctor was taking awhile so the ultrasound tech went ahead and checked again. This time she was able to determine the gender. It is a good thing that she did because by the time the doctor came in, b. Croel 2 already had its legs closed and they wouldn't have been able to tell. So what is the mystery gender? We are expecting a baby girl. Elijah will have a little sister to pick on and I guess probably protect too. It'll be fun, but I'm thinking it will be a little more expensive because some of those girl's clothes are so gosh darn cute! Then come the accessories! Hope that you are all doing well!

A new cousin is born!

We received a phone call with very exciting news this morning! Aunt Katy had her baby! Evangeline Lyra was born at 12:19 a.m. today (Feb. 20). She weighed 8lbs. 4 oz. Aunt Katy was a trooper and had the baby with no drugs and not much pushing! Actually, Evangeline had heard her mother comment many times about not wanting to have her baby in the hospital, so she decided to be born in an ambulance instead. This is not a first for the family though as Uncle Eric was also born in an ambulance at the side of the road. She is so precious and it is hard to believe that Elijah was ever that small! Congratulations Aunt Katy and Uncle Chad! Welcome to the world, Evangeline! We're excited to have you here. Can't wait to get a chance to hold you some more. God bless you!

More Pictures Of Evangeline!

Elijah didn't seem to mind when Dad or Mom were holding the baby.....but when Grandma did, he sure tugged at her leg to be picked up too!

The fight over the remote(s)

One of Elijah's favorite activities is to climb on the couch and crawl to the end table. He then will find, not one, but both the remotes and give Mom or Dad a look of accomplishment. After this, he will look at one of us and nod and verbalize that he is now ready to watch a video. The stool next to the couch was a fun idea at the beginning. But, it seems to have gotten a little out of hand.

Elijah is limited (for the most part) to some Sesame Street time and a Little People video a day, but he would absolutely love, love, love to watch more! (and sometimes he actually gets his way) He gets so excited when we finally give in! He loves T.V. Well, as long as it has something he wants to watch on...otherwise he may just turn it off!

Let it Snow!

There has been a lot of snow in Michigan this winter. Unfortunately, it's also been pretty cold. So, when we do have the snow Elijah hasn't been out in it too much. (Maybe because Mommy doesn't want to freeze!) But, one evening when Andy was shoveling our walk, Elijah was determined to go out with Daddy. Of course, I took the chance to snap some pictures. Here's the guys sitting in the snow pile that the snow plow left after plowing our driveway. Hope you all are keeping warm!

First Barber Shop Hair Cut

It was time for a haircut! Even though he's had his bangs cut 7 or 8 times at home, this was Elijah's first real haircut. He cried the entire time. He was absolutely miserable and tried to climb out of my arms throughout the whole thing. Andy and I took turns holding him. It was crazy! He was not fooled at all by the cookie we kept trying to give him. He didn't really want a thing to do with it. The stylist did a terrific job though. Then, she only charged us $5. Mine was $20 and I didn't do nearly as much screaming as Elijah. You would think it would be the other way around. Afterwards, Andy got his haircut and Elijah and I walked around the shop. He was just as happy as could be! We really like the cut. He looks so much more like a little boy. Not just a baby anymore.

Elijah's Christmas

By the time Christmas morning came, Elijah had received plenty of gifts from people, so he was getting the hang of unwrapping the paper from the gifts. It made it all the more fun for us. We bought him the fisher price little people barn. It was a hit. We got him a few other things, but this was his big gift. He got plenty more from grandparents and his aunts and uncles.

Elijah's Birthday

We neglected to post some pictures of Elijah's first birthday! It was October 12th. Just a little bit ago. We had a fun time. Elijah was the center of attention and didn't mind it in the least. We had aunts and uncles, grandmas and grandpas, and great grandmas and great grandpa. We couldn't believe he turned one already!

What does this Elijah kid look like?

Again, I apologize that it has taken so long to post. I finally had Andy show me exactly how to post on the blog. I was never quite sure. Many have inquired about what this little guy looks like and have wondered how we are doing in parent land.

Elijah is now 13 months old. It is so hard to believe. He took his time in the crawling dept. (which was fine by us, by the way!) At the present time, he is not walking but moving along furniture as well as walking behind a push toy. He has five teeth...the fifth one was a fun one to have come in. Elijah is into everything now. He loves to pull books off the bookcase...all of them...until it is empty. He also loves to crawl and climb into anything and anywhere he shouldn't be. He is on the small side..he was weighed and measured today...we found that he is in the 10th percentile for weight and the 25th for height. We're hoping for some growth spurts in the next year.

We are surviving as parents and we tend to think we're doing a pretty good job. I (Anne) am enjoying being home with him. The days are busy, busy, busy, as he is now mobile, but it is fun. He is now at the point where he is taking one nap for 2-3 hours in the afternoon. It's been a nice break and has helped to keep mom sane on some of those really busy days!

Elijah continues to go to both of Daddy's services on Sunday mornings. He loves to talk while we're there and interjects loudly whenever he feels the need. He is a very busy boy, but is very sweet...we love him. I'll try to post more...the afternoon nap will help to make that possible!

The long awaited post

Our apologies to all of you who have been faithfully checking Elijah's blogsite for new posts. As many of you know...life is busy. It has been even busier with this little guy around. We enjoyed a great Christmas season with Elijah. He made it through Christmas day quite well. He was quite a trooper as we traveled all over West Michigan to see all the relatives. As of today, Elijah is five months. We can't believe how fast the time has gone. He is growing and was 15 lbs. at his last checkup. We're hoping that the warmer weather keeps coming so Elijah can actually enjoy the outdoor world a little more. Will try to keep updated a little better. Thank you for your patience!
Andy got his haircut...10 inches of his hair were sent to Locks of Love. Elijah and I went with him to watch it being cut. It didn't seem to affect Elijah. He still knew who his daddy was.