Trains!

A big thank you to Aunt Linda and Uncle Joe for Elijah's birthday gift! They sent the big man a gift card to Toys R Us so we went yesterday to pick something out. He kept coming back to the trains, although he entertained the idea of Elmo, trucks, and balls fora while. Anyway, he loves his little train set...it kept him entertained for over an hour when we got home. Thanks Aunt Linda and Uncle Joe!!

The tunnel is his favorite part.

"Twain! Twain!" -Elijah

Tickle Time and Sitting Up.

This picture is just too cute not to share.

I was tickling the kids yesterday and had them both laughing. So happy we captured some of this on camera.

I love how much Elijah loves Leah now and playing with her.

He nuzzles himself right into Leah when being tickled and she thinks it's so funny.

Hug! Also, please notice E's leg...it's a full body hug.

It looks like he's strangling her, but he's actually being very gentle and she LOVES him.

Leah's been working on sitting up. I love this progression.

This is easy!

I'm having fun.

Ok, it's getting a little harder.

A little help here?

I'm going...

And I'm down. ps. Isn't this outfit the cutest??

And this little kid just innocently watches on and laughs.

Bath Time Fun.

Elijah got some new bath toys from Aunt Rachel and Uncle Shane for his birthday. Since bath time is already so much fun, we were excited to see how much more fun it would become with some new toys! He absolutely loves the bath crayons (or pens as he calls them). Here's a few pictures.

You may be thinking Elijah wrote his own name in the bottom left corner because it does look like a child's writing. It's actually mine. Leah loves being in the bath too!

All clean.

We had spaghetti that night for dinner, which explains why his face is stained red...and also explains why he's in the bath.

Look at that beautiful art work!

"I dwaw! I dwaw!" -Elijah.

Thank you, Aunt Rach and Uncle Shane!

Through the years.

Elijah is 2!!

I can not believe Elijah is 2 years old today. I remember everything about my pregnancy, labor, and delivery with him like it was yesterday. I could not accurately express in words how thankful I am for this little guy. He has taught me so much about myself, my God, and the world. He has a strong will but an equally soft heart. He can be running around like a crazy person one minute and snuggling up to read a book the next. His favorite person is daddy, followed closely by Baby Yeah (don't worry, I'm pretty sure I'm 3rd). He is fun-loving, curious, and determined. He is a fantastic big brother who shares toys, giggles, and hugs. He has forced me out of my comfort zone in a lot of ways (not the least of which is just simply entering the world of stay at home moms!). I love him (and his sister) more than I could have ever imagined loving a child! I am thankful and humbled that the Lord chose Kirk and me for the great task of raising him to be a man that loves and fears Him. I can not wait to see how he continues to grow! We love you, Elijah man!

We had a really fun day today celebrating him!

We started out at Panera for breakfast. Elijah loved his cheese danish.

Hanging with his favorite person.

Leah was such a champ. She missed her morning nap for this, but you would have never known it!

Then we went to the Children Museum of Indianapolis. We had never taken E there before and it turned out to be an awesome success. He had a blast...and so did we!

And so did she!

At first, Elijah was really intimidated by all the noise and crowds, so he wanted to be held through the train exhibit.

But then he got in his groove and wanted to explore all corners of the museum! This was the "miniature room" exhibit.

He invited Daddy to come check it out.

He loved riding in the Indy500 race car!

So fun!

Loving his life. When we asked him at the end of the day what he did today, "Dwive a caw" was his first response.

Probably the coolest part of the museum was the preschool playland, just for kids under 5. Elijah really enjoyed exploring.

He loved all the balls in the water table.

He looks mad, but he's really just intrigued.

Daddy and Leah enjoyed watching E.

Next, we hit up the sand table. Elijah slid right in between these 2 girls and took his place. Haha.

Very serious about his work.

The train table was also a hit.

He didn't stay in one place very long, however.

Sharing some of his finds with Mommy and Leah.

They had this exhibit where you could pick up the phone, hit a button, and hear the story of an actual Hoosier. Instead, Elijah just used it to talk to Daddy. It's a good thing because Kirk pressed one of the buttons and the guy told a story about how he went to a concert and gunshots starting flying everywhere. Yikes...maybe not age appropriate??

Leah was so good. She entertained herself with her own feet...

...and the little birdie on her carseat.

Running around!

This was a really cool contraption that sent pool balls up and down it...very hard to explain, very fun to watch!

Playing hopscotch with Daddy. Pretty sure he was fascinated with this only because it is on a Barney video :).

Reading his birthday book from Mommy and Daddy "A Day at the Farm" on the way home.

To top it all off tonight, we gave Elijah one is favorite things: a cupcake! He wasted no time digging in and got very angry if anyone tried to touch it!

"Mm, mm, mm" -Elijah

Good day for Elijah.