Eli The Acrobat

Eli continues to move as much as possible. Even in his sleep! On 2 separate nights, I've placed him on his back on one end of the bed to sleep. He has woken up on those 2 nights with his feet on the opposite end of the bed, flipped over on his stomach with an arm and his legs sticking through the bars. The boy must've needed to move badly.

He continues to try to push his legs underneath him, but hasn't succeeded yet. He scoots on his back when he's trying to get to something. He wants to move. He's in the exersaucer quite a bit and only gets mad when he knocks all the toys off and no one puts them back up for him. I tried putting him up in a crawling position after his bath last night, but he crumpled under his own weight. His sister kept jumping on the bed and laughed when he fell. I'm sure it won't be the last time. When Eli gets big enough, the laughter will turn to tears as a battle royal will break out. Much crying and blame will be had by all 3!

Better

Eli is much better now and is playing more. He was a booger to get to sleep last night, but went right back to sleep after a bottle at 2. He woke up at 5:30 and waited patiently while I got dressed. He grabbed greedily for his bottle and managed to finish it in spite of all of the distractions. He is a grabby little booger. He likes to throw toys around, hold his bottle and tug at clothes. Good thing I don't wear jewelry anymore!

The Non-Napper

Eli came home and got a cold. He then spent much of his time awake, fighting sleep. Huts had to take him with him to CVS for cold medicine to get him to fall asleep in his car seat, where he slept for three hours. Finally, he got some rest but still work up fussy. He seemed better this morning but got mad when Huts transferred him from the swing to his car seat. He fell asleep there fairly quickly. Poor little runny-nosed boy!

Sleepy Eli

Eli slept through Christmas morning and awoke just in time to play with his new rings and toys. He chomped on them all and fussed around much of the day. Too much activity for him. I have finally discovered the trick to getting him to sleep. He must be wrapped in a blanket and rocked on the edge of the lap. He generally talks himself to sleep. As for his naps, well, those are fairly short. He is good sleeper at night, though. This trip should throw him off, though. Hmm.

Not Gonna Sleep

That was Eli's attitude last night. No way was he going to sleep. I spent an hour rocking him, and after about 10 minutes in bed, he woke up again. Huts took him for an hour. He finally settled down at 11 and slept until I woke him up this morning. The trick is getting him warm and snugly in the Popeye blanket made for Christian. When wrapped in that, he seems cozy and content. He was tired; he slept on my shoulder the whole time Huts was dealing with a frozen pipe. Lucky for us, Huts opened the bathroom vent and the pipe unfroze on its own--no busting into the wall needed. The water came on at 2 a.m.; Huts said it was nice and icy.

Sweet Boy

I cannot get over how happy Eli is. He smiles constantly and rolls his way all over the floor. He is very strong, learning how to roll forward and back in about a week. He is also starting to work on sitting up, though he would rather stand. He likes to laugh--at what we aren't always sure. He is so different than his siblings, who were fussy. He is a dream baby!

Mr. Talkalot

Eli likes to coo and make noise. He lets people know that he is in the room and makes sure he does not get left out. He has been known to talk himself to sleep, like Christian and Tori do. Looks like we are going to have another chatterbox on our hands. It is hard enough to keep up when two are talking, much less when three are. Huts and I will have a hard time understanding the three of them.

Exzema

Eli has it, and we have all kinds of products to keep it under control. Believe, he looks good compared to a few weeks ago. THe nurse is considering changing his formula, but as for now, he is just a grease monkey. He talked himself to sleep last night and only got up once. Yahoo!

Almost Healed

For weeks now, Eli has been battling cradle cap. It got so bad that he looked burned on one side of his face. After some Neosporin, cortisone cream and cradle cap lotion, he looks 100% better. One side of his head and face, in fact, is nearly free of scales. He still rolls his head back and forth to deal with the itch, bit it is not as often. Eli is also on his second night back in his crib. He gets up at 1 or 2, but goes back to sleep after his bottle, which is fortunate for us. Now if only I could learn how to go back to sleep.

Bumper

Give Eli your thumbs, stand him up in your lap and watch him go. He loves to swing forward and back and bump all around. He goes as fast as he can and smiles the whole time. This is great fun for him.

Scaley

Eli has got a bad case of cradle cap. His head flakes constantly and he has scratched the area next to his ear so much that it is oozing. I called the nurse and he said we could apply Neosporin and Cortisone. We also bought some cradle cap stuff for his head. It seems to be working, but that patch by his ear has a ways to go before it looks better.

Nine Ounces

That's what Eli had this morning at 1. He could not get full, and after a couple of big burps, he fell right back asleep. I thought the oatmeal and rice cereal, plus a bottle, had filled his tummy, but I guess not. He was starving early this morning. My little chunkmunk has a plump belly, pinchable cheeks and chunky thighs. Christian says he is fat, but he is just plump and playful. He is our smiley boy who rarely fusses and loves to eat!

Too Big For My Britches

Grandma called and wanted to know what size of clothes to get me for Christmas. Mom thinks I might be wearing 9 months, but who knows. I''m growing like a weed. Nine months didn't fit me this morning, but it will soon. I love that cereal, and I hear Mom is going to send some to the sitter's for me. I'm also gonna get some fruit soon. Man, oh man, am I looking forward to that. Yummy!

Poopster

Eli had a little problem this morning and had to be changed because of it. He soiled his clothes big time, so tonight he will be getting yet another bath. Lucky Eli. I think we'll do this before pictures with Santa at the mall. Keep your fingers crossed that Eli is good and smiles with Santa and the other two get in there and get their picture taken. They say they will, but they have said that before.

Burp!

That's what Eli needed to do last night and couldn't. He got a tummy ache and kept his daddy up. He finally burped and slept until 5:30. Then he wanted a bottle and wasn't going to wait for anything. Christian had to get his own clothes out and dress while I supervised. He is pretty good at this; I just watch for outgrown clothes, which has happened often. I can't keep up with either of the boys. Christian is long and lanky, and Eli is squat. I barely got this six-month shirt on him this morning. He looks like a football player. I call him my chunkmunk, and he has taken quite a liking to oatmeal cereal, scarfing half a jar down last night before I stopped him. I'm going to have another big boy!