The Reluctant Blogger

Yes, it has been quite awhile since I've blogged. I keep wanting to post new pictures, but it's been more than a month since I've taken the time to connect my camera to my computer. But we do have new pics. Cute ones. Some day you will see them.

Eliot is over 16 months old now. And he's amazing. Yes, amazing. *sigh*. I love that little bugger. He's really fun, albeit a huge energy drain, too. But also an energy infuser. Anyway, he is constantly trying to say whatever we say now. He makes sounds for all kinds of animals. One of his new ones is owl, and he says it if you say "towel," too. He loves bird sounds; he has a white noise machine in his room, and as soon as we enter his room to put on PJs, he says, "birds? birds?" (but it sounds like, "buhds? buhds?") because he wants me or Dada to put the bird sounds on the white noise machine. They "tweet tweet" like you're high up in a forest canopy in a very serene little jungle or something. Usually I switch it to regular white noise after I put him in his crib, before I walk out the door. Two nights ago, when I did this, he sat right up and said, "buhds?" It was very cute. So he listens to bird tweets all night long now. I wonder what he dreams about! Flying?

He also enjoys walking in funny ways. Sometimes he walks on his toes. And sometimes he walks as if one leg is a big giant leg -- he takes a BIG step with one foot, and then a small step with the other. He also loves his rocking horse, and makes "clip clop clip clop" sounds when he's on it. Then he'll get off and walk over to a dog lying on our floor, sit on the dog, and say again, "clip clop clip clop." Ha ha. That cracks us up.

We went to Mt. Hood this past weekend, for one night, to stay at a cabin owned by a guy Brady coaches soccer with who sometimes lets us stay there when it's open. It's right near a rushing river, the Zigzag River, in Rhododendron, Oregon. So we did several short hikes behind the cabin with dogs and Eliot. Eliot was a good little hiker. On Sunday, we took him to a real trail, and walked along the river, and threw rocks in the river. That was really fun. He had pretty good stamina, and walked for awhile. We had a little snack by the river, and then he seemed tired and hitched a ride on mama's back in the Ergo carrier as we returned to the car.