Showing posts with label Birthday. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Birthday. Show all posts

Wednesday, November 7, 2012

Eli's Birthday



This was at their birthday party at the end of September.  It's still the only decent picture of him in his Elmo birthday shirt!

Just being silly as he wears Daddy's reflective INDOT hat!



I'm waaaayyyy overdue with this post.  On October 27th, Eli turned two years old. He's kind of a big deal to us :)  Since we'd already had his birthday party in conjunction with Zachary's at the end of September, it was actually a low-key event.  We went to Corydon for the day.  Our brother-in-law has a family member who is starting up a pizza place/brewery on the Square in Corydon.  He had the place open for the day by invitation only.  Okay, we weren't really invited, but my in-laws were and we tagged along.  I don't think Nathan {the owner} minded though!  Especially because we shared our cake.

Corydon was celebrating Halloween with pride!  There was a costume contest on the Square {Alyssa got 3rd in her age group!}  Later there was a parade which took a long time because this is an election year.  One thing I really liked about the parade was they didn't throw the candy and expect the kids to run into the street to gather it up.  If an entry wanted to distribute candy they had people walking along each side of the street who would hand candy to the children.  Much safer :)

The pizza was great.  It's a brick oven pizza joint and if you're in the Corydon area I highly recommend trying Point Blank Pizza & Brewery.  It's scheduled to open to the public the 15th of November.  Zachary was upset when we didn't take him to eat there for supper one night last week.  It's a really neat place.  Maybe me advertising here on the blog makes up for crashing his Investors Only event!

After the parade we went back into the restaurant and Eli opened his gifts.  I don't have a lot of pictures of this because a week before his birthday, the stinker broke our camera.  We used our old one, but it's kinda junky.  We have since gotten a replacement for the broken one, but sadly it was after Eli's birthday.

He & Zachary had a great time playing on the floor with the new truck we got him.  It's a large truck with some sound effects and it hauls four cars.  Zachary had picked out a musical top for him that they both love.  He got a couple other things, but the truck and toy top were his favorites.  We ate Elmo cake that was made and brought by Mamaw Linda and then headed out.  We got home about 10 and we were all hungry again {hadn't eaten since before the parade at 6!} so we went to Taco Bell because Zachary said that's what Eli wanted for his bedtime snack!  We ate our food and watched the end of the Notre Dame football game.  Definitely a fun and interesting day!

I didn't do the questionnaire for Eli like I did with Z.  We'll start that when he's a little older.  For now I'll just include some facts about Eli:

-he's very sweet.  He cuddles a lot, give wonderful hugs and kisses, and just likes to snuggle...if he's not busy playing!

-he loves to play with trucks more than he does dinosaurs.  He will play dinos with Z, and sometimes on his own, but he usually gravitates to a truck or tractor.  He's also starting to take an interest in puzzles.  Books are usually a big hit with him too.  Another fun activity for him lately is getting to "daw!"  He doesn't do it for very long, but he loves to color a picture or freehand/scribble.

-he helps with the laundry.  He likes to help sort the colors, the sheets & towels and the whites.  Often he will identify who the article of clothing belongs to if I hold it up.  He's also very good at helping load the washer {which is really cute because it's a lot taller than him, but he gets the job done!} and loading the dryer as I hand him the wet clothes.

-he's nuts.  He will walk around screaming at the top of his lungs while shaking his head back and forth as fast as he can.  Then as quickly as he started it, he'll stop.

-he loves to make people laugh.  I remember Zachary being a very happy child at this stage, but his laughter had to do with making himself laugh.  Eli looks for something to do to draw the laughter out of others.

-Eli is rather mean.  Some people may be upset with me for saying that, but it is true.  People would rather hear other words than mean, things like "spirited," "boisterous," and "feisty" but those aren't accurate.  He's mean.  Just as he's very sweet, he's mean.  He's constantly hitting his brother.  Eli will tackle Zachary and pin him down while he bounces on him because Zachary is too nice to knock Eli off.  He throws everything {with pretty good aim, just ask Albert!}  He actually looks for the dog so he can throw things directly at him.  He has started pulling hair and trying to bite.  We know he's going to grow out of this {please tell me he will!!!} but I also have fears that he's going to be a combination class clown/bully.  But for every hit, throw, or head butt he gives, he gives even more kisses and hugs.

-he's starting to get really long.  His last appointment he was 33 1/2 inches long and just shy of 25 lbs.  It's getting very hard to find pants for him.  He's been wearing 12 month pants because he has absolutely no butt.  Seriously.  Twelve month clothes barely stay on his non-existent hips but they're becoming highwaters on him.  I'm having better luck putting him into one-piece rompers that look like pajamas so if you see him out and about in one of those, it's my attempt at keeping his legs covered in the cold weather.

-he wears a size 5 toddler shoe, shirts and one-piece outfits are 18-24 month, and pants are 12 month.

Eli is a fun little guy who keeps us busy.  I don't know what we did before he came along.  It saddens me to think how lonely Zachary would be if we hadn't had Eli.  As time goes by I'm beginning to realize just how lucky we are that he made it through those first 10 weeks of life before he was diagnosed and got proper treatment.  Every single day is a gift with both our boys.

~ ~ HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ELI MARK!!!! ~ ~



If you choose to keep reading, I've ended with a list of Eli's vocabulary along with my lame attempt at his pronunciation.   It's much cuter to hear him though :)  I've included the list here because, if you remember from previous posts, this is our family record as well as a way for family & friends to keep up with us. 


Words He Says:
Mommy &/or Momma                                                
Daddy &/or Dada
Bubba   {Zachary}                                                         
Alba   {Albert}
bebe   {baby}                                                                
Mamaw
Papaw                                                                          
uh-huh
uh-uh                                                                           
baw   {ball}
foo-baw   {football}                                                 
Ah-mee   {Amy, for Dr. Amy}
hi                                                                                 
bye
up
nigh-nigh   {night night}
nana   {banana}
nak   {snack}
mok   {milk}
mor   {more}
b   {bear}
dooc   {duck}
mote   {remote}
teet   {treat}
aye   {eye}
bott   {bottle or pacifier}
ip   {dip or chip}
ett   {pet...as in he wants to pet Albert}
bubble
cheese
ack-pac   {backpack}
Mimi   {Mickey Mouse}
Momo   {Elmo}
too-tee   {Cookie}
me
ruck   {truck}
haw   {hot}
der-tee   {dirty}
Pabo   {Pablo, from the Backyardigans}
oot   {out}
cheer   {chair}
eeeees   {please, we don't hear this as often as we'd like!}
daw   {draw}

Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Boys' Birthday Party


As I mentioned in Zachary's birthday post we decided to have one party for the two of them this year.  We had a combo dinosaur/Elmo party and it was a blast.  We love showing off our fun little boys and they were so excited for their party.  Well, let me rephrase that...Zachary fully understood the party was approaching and was very wound up and Eli fed off of Zachary's excitement.

Of course by the age of five, Zachary's a pro at unwrapping gifts.  Eli's still learning but luckily Zachary is there to help "teach" him.  Zachary went first with some help from a cousin and a couple friends.  Eli strolled around the room seeking the attentions of various family and friends and would occasionally swipe one of Zachary's newly opened items to check out for himself.  When his turn came to open he helped for a little while, but then decided one of his new books was more interesting and he curled up on the couch with said book as Zachary & I finished the task at hand.  I think he may be more into it by Christmas, but we'll see!

It's said that a picture is worth a thousand words, so enjoy!


Each year we get the boys birthday t-shirts with a picture depicting the theme of their party, their name and age. 

It was hard to get this busy boy to hold still for a picture when he got his shirt.  This was the least blurry photo I had!

Stegosaurus cake made by Mamaw Linda.  We didn't want Zachary to be upset if anything was forgotten so I had given her a few pictures from some of his dino books so she could get all his important details.  Zachary was happy so we think she did a great job!

Eli's Elmo cake.  Another great creation by Mamaw Linda.

Zachary was VERY happy with his cake!

Eli loved his cake but he couldn't figure out why we kept trying to take his picture with it.

Alyssa's here, the party can start!!!!  Eli is infatuated with his baby cousin.  He was getting very upset while she was in her carrier because he wanted her out.

Great friends!  Zachary with Jillian and Joseph Hostetler.  I can't believe the three of them held still & smiled for this picture!  Jillian and Zachary are exactly two months apart and Joseph is a year younger.  Things get crazy when these kids get together!!!

Our attempt at a family picture.  Three out of four looking at the camera & smiling is pretty good with all the commotion going on around us.  If you look over Zachary's shoulder you can see the Elmo balloon photo-bombed our family photo!

Let the gift opening begin!  Zachary's helpers were friends Jillian and Joseph and second cousin Griffen.

The first gift Eli "borrowed" from his brother.  This boy loves cars and tractors.

Daddy gave Zachary some autographed items he's acquired.  This is a baseball and batting gloves signed by Danny Dorn, former Louisville Bats player currently with the Toledo Mudhens.

Our boys love balloons so we purchased a helium tank and filled the room with balloon bouquets.  One bunch slipped off its weight and was caught.  To keep it from getting into the ceiling fan Aunt Cara tied it into Aunt Kendra's ponytail.  It was really cute and Eli was fascinated by it.  If you've seen in other photos we got them each a large balloon too.  Of course they stayed with the theme and were a large dinosaur and Elmo.  They're each about 3 feet tall and will probably float in our living room until Christmas.  The boys were really happy with this surprise.

One of Zachary's favorite gifts was from Aunt Judy.  She gave each of the boys a Dream Lites Pillow Pet.  Both were puppies.  After the major parts of the party were over and we were all just visiting, he kept turning off the lights (without warning) so he could see the stars projecting onto the ceiling.  Just before falling asleep with it on the couch he named his puppy Glow.  It's so sweet to see my tough little boy whose main interest is something so mature be so enamored with a child's toy.  I love that he can still let himself be a little kid!

He loved his dinosaur umbrella.

Looking at signed photographs from Colts defensive tackle Ricardo Mathews.  Bryan had sent him the pictures and a letter asking him to autograph them.  Bryan told him the pictures were going to be for Zachary and bragged on how great a big brother he is to Eli throughout all of Eli's issues.  Mr. Mathews autographed all four photos and sent a pair of game used autographed gloves (that's what Z is looking at in this picture).  The gloves are HUGE!  My hands aren't little and they were really big on me.  He also sent a handwritten letter thanking us for being fans, saying he'd keep us in his prayers, and included some bible verses.  GO COLTS!!!  Even if you're not a Colts fan, please cheer for #91 Ricardo Mathews just for being a nice guy!

Eli LOVED the gloves and wore them for a long time. 

Another autographed item:  A signed shoe from Ryan LaMarre, a center fielder with the Pensacola Blue Wahoos.  The Wahoos are the double A team of the Reds organization and Zachary loves saying "Wahoos!"  In this photo I was showing Zachary the dirt and clay around the spikes.  He wrote "Happy Birthday Zachary" on the shoe above his signature.

Zachary checking out some signed baseball cards from Ryan LaMarre.

Eli's turn!  The first thing he opened was an autographed baseball from Aaron Brooks, a pitcher with the Kane County Cougars.  They're a minor league team of the Kansas City Royals organization.  Eli thought it was cool and promptly thew the ball to someone...he's got a good arm!

A new Sesame Street book!

Eli took a break from opening gifts.  I don't know what funny thing made me laugh, it's hard to tell with the group we had gathered in our house!

Hot shot stole his brother's sippy cup.

By this time Zachary was helping open Eli's gifts and Eli was wrapped up in a new book.

This is what got Eli away from his new book....a musical card.  It plays the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse theme song. 

Time for C~A~K~E!  Zachary took a while to blow out his candles but he got the job done.  Eli didn't understand and didn't blow his out.  In the end Zachary blew out Eli's too.

Now that the candles are gone Eli gets the concept of blowing through his lips.

There was never any question regarding what to do with the cake on his plate!


This might be my favorite photo of the day.  Hours after the party was over, the new toys played with, and birthday shirts spot treated, they resorted to one of their favorite activities....Pots and Wooden Spoon Concert.  The music lasted almost an hour and they both played their hearts out.  

We need to use this time as a thank you to some people.  Thanks to Mamaw Linda for the wonderful cakes.  Thanks to Mamaw Betty for bringing some food and the tedious task of cutting veggies for our veggie tray.  Thanks to Kendra for being our gift secretary and writing down what came from whom.  Another big thanks to Kendra for bringing the large dinosaur and Elmo balloons from Evansville in her small Sunfire.  I wish we'd gotten a picture of her with those two huge balloons in her little car!  Thanks to Andrea Hostetler for being our photographer while Bryan videoed and I helped open gifts.  And a big thank you to everyone who came or sent any type of birthday wish to our boys.  Eli's birthday isn't until late October so we'll do a small gathering with supper & cake for him like we did for Zachary's actual day.

I loved their party this year and am almost looking forward to next year.  Almost ;)




Monday, September 17, 2012

Zachary's Five!!!!

Our baby boy turned five years old on September 13.  I'm having trouble with this.  Yes, I can count and I knew that five was coming after four, but doesn't five sound soooo much older than four?!?  Yes, it sounds silly, but that's how I feel.  Anyway, this year we did something new and I hope it continues througout the years.  We made a list of 30 questions to ask Zachary.  We'll ask him the same questions every year and see how his interests, etc have changed year to year.  I videotaped part of his interview, but he wasn't into that so we took a break and didn't record the rest.  The list of questions and his answers are at the end of this post.

Some facts about Zachary:
- he is the sweetest boy, he loves to snuggle and I'm not sure he's ever turned me down when I ask for a hug

- he's an incredible big brother.  He loves playing with his baby brother and sometimes gets upset with me when I put Eli down for a nap.  He'll say "but I wanted to keep playing with him!"  I don't know if he realizes how much Eli adores him.  I ask him if he knows we all love him and he just smiles and tells us he does.  I think he does know, but I don't think there's any possible way he could understand the magnitude of that love.

- I think everyone knows he loves dinosaurs and knows A LOT about them, but he does have other interests.  He likes zoo animals, sea creatures, computer games, X-box Kinect games, sports, fishing, drawing, reading, and puzzle mazes too.

- he has a very good vocabulary, but still has some cute little kid speech.  For example, "th" is pronounced as an f or p ("three" is "free," "something" is "some-ping").  He also mixes up some words and it just makes it sooo funny.  The "instructions" that come with a new game or toy are called "constructions."  Vanilla is pronounced "vamilla" which is a change from last year's "ba-billa."

- to Zachary, a hamburger is a burger.  If it has cheese on it then it's a cheeseburger.  We got in trouble the other night for saying we were having hamburgers for supper and there was no ham on his burger. 

- he can be moody.  He takes things very seriously and can get his feelings hurt easily. However he's very much a young man and can be put into a better mood with food, tv, and/or some sleep. 

- he's a good size boy.  On his fifth birthday he measured 48 1/4 inches tall, 63 pounds, and has a 27 inch waist.  It's hard to find him clothes right now!  He's wearing a size two boys shoe. 

- he enjoys having his picture taken, but seems to have trouble smiling and looking at the camera at the same time.  Thank goodness for digital cameras so we can shoot pics and delete as necessary!

- he has the best smile that just melts my heart.  I love his blue eyes too.


Zachary's birthday was on a Thursday and we just had a small party with the four of us and his grandparents.  We ordered pizza and had dinosaur cake courtesy of Mamaw Linda.  The cake was a trial run for her since she's doing the cakes for the joint birthday party we have coming up.  Since the boys' birthdays are only 6 weeks apart we decided to do one big family & friends celebration this year.  That will be on Sept 29th and it will be a combination of dinosaur and Elmo.  Fortunately, both boys like both themes so it works all around!  I'll blog about that after we have the party, but for now I'll end this with pictures of Zachary's small celebration and his birthday interview:


Opening his "Switch & Go Dino" from Mamaw Betty.  She usually gives money for their bank accounts, but this year she found this and it's been the perfect gift for him.  He plays with it multiple times a day.

Happy boy with his new toy!


Proudly showing his stegosaurus cake.  He was excited about this.
Blowing out his FIVE candles!

When asked what flavor cake he wanted, he said "Chocolate & vamilla stripes" so that's just what Mamaw Linda did!

Happy with his gift from Mommy, Daddy & Eli.  Yes, it has a dinosaur in it!

Having fun with his cool card.

Birthday boy and his daddy

Mommy & her five year old


Zachary's Birthday Interview

  1. What is your name? "Zachary G-wen Veale" (Glen)
  2. How old are you? "Five!"
  3. What is your favorite animal? "Dinosaurs"
  4. If you could be any animal, what would it be? "Maybe, probably a zebra"
  5. What is your favorite thing to eat? "Nachos"
  6. Who is your best friend? "I don't know, I have so many"
  7. What is your favorite color? "Green"
  8. What is your favorite number? "5, 4, 1, 3, 12....ummmmm, I think I might pick 4"
  9. Where is your favorite place to visit? "There's a place we haven't been for a long time....it's Splashin' Safari! (sigh) I wanna go there sometime. And Chuck E. Cheese too!" --note: he's never been to Splashin' Safari
  10. What are you really good at? "drawing my dinosaurs"
  11. Waht do you want for your birthday? "golfing alligator game, Big Dino Adventure Squad/Big Boots, Switch & Go Dinos"
  12. What is your favorite book? "dino books about their features, food, teef (teeth), and legs"
  13. What is your favorite movie? "Team Geo Trax - All Aboard!"
  14. What is your favorite tv show? "Robot Rampage" (Backyardigans)
  15. What do you and Mommy do together? "play outside, read books, make cookies"
  16. What do you and Daddy do together? "he plays with me, plays outside, fishing, watch tv"
  17. What do you and Eli do together? "maybe go crazy and make messes"
  18. What makes you laugh? "jokes"
  19. What makes you happy? "my family"
  20. What makes you sad? "when I lost toys"
  21. What is your favorite sport? "Are you kidding me?!? I have lots of favorite sports: football, baseball, t-ball, basketball and that's all."
  22. What is your favorite holiday? "Christmas because it has lots of presents and it's Jesus' birthday"
  23. What is your favorite drink? "juice"
  24. What is your favorite toy? "Imaginext Dinosaurs"
  25. What is your favorite thing to wear? "dinosaur shirts....I"m just really into dinosaurs"
  26. Who is your teacher? "Ms. Angie"
  27. What do you sleep with at night? "my stuffed animals: Giggles (bear), Spiny (dinosaur), Buck (from Ice Age), another dinosaur, and my two pillow pets (Triceratops and Colts)"
  28. What do you think about before you go to sleep at night? "What I want to dream about, but I just dream what I dream about"
  29. What's something you hope you and your family do this year? "maybe, probably, hmmm, I fink it might be Chuck E. Cheese"
  30. What do you want to be when you grow up? "a paleontologist"

We love you, Zachary Glen! 
You are so precious to us.
 
xoxoxoxoxo