Preschool Screening

Eli had his preschool screening today. Wow. Different than I expected. Tried to get a bunch of things done so we could get shopping and stuff done while we were out after the screening. Long story short, ended up there just in time, but on the wrong side of the building.

So, by the time we got in to the area we were to be in, we were a couple of minutes late. Worked out well, though. Eli went right in and was able to start playing right away while they took all the parents away to go through some of the aspects of the preschool and the move to a new building this year, etc.

We then waited for half an hour while the kids continued to play, until the next group came in. I kept looking at the kids coming in, realizing that these are the kids my son will most likely be spending the next 14 years with- going on field trips with, becoming friends with, having first crushes on, graduating with, etc. Kinda mind boggling to think these shy little kids all meeting for the first time in this setting will one day know each other so well.

Bed time photos

Tim and Eli had a conversation the other day. Tim said it went something like this...
Eli- Daddy, I like to put my feet under my pillow.
Daddy-Where do you put your head?
Eli- I don't know.....

So a few nights later, when Tim came down and told me to get my camera, we headed upstairs and discovered the answer.... lol

He has been doing pretty well at staying in bed. There have been a few times he has rolled onto the floor...

Here he made it half way back up in his sleep- but the blanket didn't quite make it...
Then the blanket made it, but the pillow was still on the bed...
And then, a few nights later, I went up to check and had to laugh- the blanket almost made it- but he was pretty comfy on the pillow....

So precious to watch him sleep

Fire Engine Cake and birthday

Friday morning arrived. Eli needed his hair cut very badly!! We called to see if Harry was in- but alas, no one answered the phone. We soon were opening the gift Mamaw had sent over the night before. What excitement!! It is such a cool experiment!! Eli has been helping me with the garden, and this shows how the plants grow by giving a view of the roots as they form. Soooo cool!! The radish had roots down by the 3rd day!! It is the coolest!



Here he is with our experiment sheets and the planter all set up on the right.

He said one of his favorite gifts was the Five Dollar bill from Grammalot. He really wanted a pic of that, too! He remembered seeing the huge statue of President Lincoln sitting on the big chair when we were in Washington DC visiting Aunt Charity.

I found a pattern on line for a birthday cake for Eli that I thought would be perfect.
You see, his "real" party is going to be today, at the fire department, with Daddy- and a complete surprise.So, two nights ago, I made the cake. I wrapped it up once cool and just left it on the counter- hoping that Eli wouldn't notice it in the morning since we'd be busy getting ready to go to COSI.

Last night, I was up late after we finally got him in bed, decorating the cake.



Here are the 3 cakes I made- used 3 bread pans and one cake mix.


I had the platform all ready, too!! The cardboard cut, the pieces in place...

Started by leveling the tops of the cakes, placing one whole one on the platform, cutting 2 inches off another and cutting the 3rd in half and putting back together, back to back.

Hold it together with a little frosting...

Then the "crumb-coat" to hold all the crumbs in... put in the fridge for 1/2 hour to set crumbs, then,.....

Finished the red and white icing and added the oreo wheels, black licorice hose and fruity lights.

Ahhh- the finished product- once the gray frosting was on- finis!!

Here is the top view- I can't believe he is 4!!

This morning, Tim and I realized that the slight bit of pressure the cake taker exerted on the top of the lights was a disastrous mix. It caused the cab to fall apart.

In addition, this is National EMS week, or something like that, so people have been bringing in food stuffs for the department. So, when one of Tim's coworkers saw this fire engine cake, with the cab already apart, he thought, "Yum!!" and ate half the cab.

Ever the resourceful one, Tim found another cake mix, made another cab and, lo and behold, he had taken the rest of the red frosting with him to work...instead of my throwing it away last night, so he worked in fixing the cake during the midst of his busy, busy day. Eli never knew the difference!!

Thanks, Dave, for the wonderful meal!! Eli loved your special meatloaf, mashed potatoes and green beans!!

We did a little search for the presents this year at the fire station. Eli seemed to really enjoy it. He started out with a card from us.
Inside was our hand print signature along with his first clue. These were his clues:
And he found a different part of his fishing equipment with each clue. He was pretty excited and there were several other fire fighters working with Tim that day that were more than happy to explain to Eli what each part was for.

Can't wait until Memorial Day weekend when we head out for Kentucky to visit with my family. We may be able to go fishing and try out Eli's new gear :)

We ended with cake with all the guys and Eli's last clue that led him down the firepole with Daddy and into the apparatus room for a 'run' with Daddy. There is something about all the guys standing around singing happy birthday that makes me almost want to tear up. Hopefully we'll be able to add video here soon.

When he got there, he discovered his very own turn out gear in his size hanging in Daddy's locker. And, as we began putting it on, Tim had a run. So, little dude fire fighter and Mommy got to watch Daddy jump in the truck with gear on and race down the road with all the bells and whistles flashing.

All in all, a great day that I am sure Eli will not soon forget:)

This is him a few days later playing in his fire engine at home....
When I asked him what he was doing, he told me he had a wet one out to clean the soot from his face since he was just coming back from a fire.He then explained to me he needed to clean his engine off after the run- so he could see out the window.

Birthday Bliss

Yesterday was Elisha's 4th birthday. Hard to believe. He seems like he has grown so much over the last year.

I felt quite creative this year, when I realized that, between Tim and I, we were working everyday straight for 2 weeks around his birthday. Hmmm, creative to make a special day that all of us could enjoy together.

So, yesterday, on Eli's actual birthday, we took off for COSI. We strolled first down next to the river park for a picnic lunch. He had fun and was so excited when he saw I packed his little knife and he got to spread peanut butter on his bread all by himself.

We headed into the building,and got our membership renewed. When the woman checking us in saw it was Eli's birthday, she upgraded us so he could go see the 3-D dolphins and whales movie.
He did a great job, and we had a blast. We toured all over each level, looking into many rooms we had never been in before. It was a little crazy with all the school groups there, so we finally headed up to the pre-K area. It was wonderful!! There were fewer than 10 kids there in the whole room, so Eli pretty much had the run of the place and was able to spend as much time playing with all the toys he wanted to!! He had soo much fun!

Then it was time for the movie, so we headed down, got our popcorn and waited for a few minutes. We got in, got our glasses on and munched on popcorn, sending Daddy some photos of us. They even had little glasses for Eli :)Some of the 3-D effects were a little much for him, I think. I thought for sure he would fall asleep during the movie- see how tired his eyes are here.....He did keep reaching out to touch the huge whales and dolphins, and at times told me to touch it- I think when he was scared. After a few minutes, he began telling me he didn't much care for this movie and wanted to leave. But, *grin* we made it through :)

We followed it by riding in the space shuttle. Kinda reminds me of one of the rides you put a quarter in- vibrates, angles upwards, then back down. He loved it- and said he wanted Daddy to ride in it with him. He got really brave and, after the 4th time, said he wanted to ride by himself- so here he is...
After that we found ourselves back in the preK play area, where Eli decided to make some food for us. He is a great chef :)
Our hope, well, my plan, was that Tim would be done testing his students at Grant (just around the corner) early in the afternoon and surprise Eli by showing up to play with us. But, alas, the testing went much longer than expected, and Tim wasn't able to join us until about 20 minutes before COSI closed.

As I ponder that now, though, it was probably a good thing. All the school groups had gone home and the place was very sparce with children. Eli was able to show him what he later told me was his most favorite parts-- the Space shuttle, which he and Daddy rode on a few times, and the space station, especially the toilet that he could move the lever and flush.

We left at 5, and decided to go to the spaghetti warehouse for dinner. Boy, oh boy, do they serve a lot of food!! We got the sampler- big enough for 2 was the advertisement!! It fed the 3 of us that night and provided lunch for Eli and I the next day!!Eli loved the big rail car that was in the middle of the warehouse, so we had to get a picture before we left :) Too bad we didn't get to sit in the car to eat :)He had been asking about his cake, remembering the back hoe/ loader and school bus I made last year. So, we got a piece of the 12 layer cake, and they all came over and sang, "Happy Birthday" to Eli. I thought he would love it- but I'm afraid he was a little overwhelmed. The look on his face- I was afraid he was about to burst into tears. I thought I was getting it all on my camera- but the beep I heard was my camera saying it was ready to hit record and not the actual recording..... sigh. the memory is there though.

We got home and he opened a small gift from us- some summer clothes I picked up for him. Mamaw and Papaw sent over his gift later that evening, which turned out great for us the next day!!

What a great day!!

"New" Bed

I took the side railing off the crib last night. Daytime is almost under control, but still having issues with potty training at night- he is such a deep sleeper, nothing wakes him up- as we could tell from our trip home in Feb when he slept through getting off the plane, in line in the cold, travel in the van, checking into hotel- all without ever waking up!

We went upstairs to pray and tuck him in. I wish I had a camera to take his picture and catch the excitement when he realized the side railing was missing! He ran over to it, excitement evident in his body, pantomiming where the railing used to be.

Then he ran and jumped onto the bed, jumped up and ran over to us.


"Can you believe it? Mommy Daddy look at this!!"


We checked on him a few hours later, and I had to get my camera.... This is what we saw....


He slept through putting him back to bed- and this morning, didn't remember this at all- wondered how we got this picture :) Yes, that is him, sound asleep on the floor next to his bed, curled up into the fetal position to stay warm.