Baseball fever

It is not any surprise that Elem has shown love and skill I might add :) in every single sport we can think of! Of course, a parents view does tend to be a little biased, but whatever! I am sure I have a little miniature athlete on my hands here, and I LOVE spending time watching him learn and love the games with no sense of winning and losing attached just yet. So far, basketball, soccer, golf, football, swimming, kickball, and just running all over the place in general seem to have a special place in his heart. I mean these days when you ask him who his favorite golfer is, his response: "Tiguuur Wuuds". And when asked if I can play baseball with him, versus he and his daddy playing, I often get the response: "No mommy, you a girl, you can play kickball". (seriously! Can you believe that?!) And when watching football, we often hear the phrase: "I'm gonna get me a fut-ball he-met, cause I play fut-bal, and I'm gone knock him down". Wow the things these little boys learn without even pumping it into their heads! I have made a great effort to promote sports, as well as art, and music, and reading-all equal, into the daily life of our kid, but it is no lie that Elem is a sports fanatic. And the only way I can describe it: he was born that way. No other way around it. And so, with the love of sports, must come the all American sport...baseball.



No secret, Elem LOVEs him a good ole fashion bat and ball. He is serious when it comes to hitting the ball, and doesn't really have time for the tee anymore. He only uses that thing on occasion, but for the most part, just wants to PLAY BALL! He likes to stand with his favorite yellow bat waiting for you to toss a baseball his way. Only to hit just about every single one you throw at him, and you better watch out because he has been known to hit a few line drives right at your face or extremities. When he is "the pitcher" as he calls it he throws the ball, and will randomly yell out, "get it off your shoulder!" actually not randomly, just about every time. Haha. You really have to pay attention to your stance when he is around! He means business.

So in true baseball fashion, we have tried to take Elem tone of the only Little Rock big times games around! We are kind of limited here, so the Arkansas Travelers are big time for us. :) We headed to a game earlier in the season, and Elem really seemed to enjoy it. They have a great new stadium, with a huge area for kids to play with tons of bounce houses and slides, and a great grass area for families to watch the game behind the third base and along the outfield. It is a perfect place to relax in the sun, eat some good baseball game food, and just watch the game in the open. No worry about staying in your seat or worrying if your kid has to go to the bathroom, but you are still super close to the game. Like I said, it is really great!

A couple of weeks ago, we headed to the Dickey Steven's Stadium for a meet and greet with the players before the game, which turned out to be so much fun for Elem! We got to go right on the field and Elem got to meet all the players and get his very special baseball (that one of the Travs threw him at the last game) signed by a couple of good players. He was a little overwhelmed with the whole thing, but I think he got the idea. He loved being right on the field-even though he really wanted to "run the bases" and jumped right in when we told him the players were going to sign his baseball.




Looking up to the big guys-and longing to be JUST like em'


Uhm, sir-are you going to be really good in this game? Is your signature worth anything? Okay let me know ...my mommy told me to ask you haha- :)


Like I said, after just a couple of minutes, he totally got the idea, and was super proud of his baseball with all of the signatures on it. Here he is showing off his signed up baseball.


Mommy and her little baseball player before he is famous!


Mom, you said I can play baseball, right? why cant I go run the bases right now? I wanna run the bases!!!!!


What a fun day! Seriously, at one point, Seth had Elem over at the bounce houses, and I was sitting on the blanket by myself just feeling the breeze blow my hair, while I watched the game. It was so peaceful, the day, Elem, Seth, the players, everything! There is absolutely nothing about the baseball field that stresses me out, and I LOVE that! ha! Elem loved watching the batter-even from so far away, and seeing if he was going to "hit it far away". He pretty much gave us a play by play, and anytime anyone slid into base or got tackled or fell down, he was so on top of reporting it to us. What a great day! Baseball games are so much fun and I look forward to many many more with my little family.

Stamps are not stickers..or are they?

This morning I felt very positive about completing some bills: getting the checks written, envelopes sealed, stamps placed, etc. I was a little too late when Elem called my name to come get him out of his bed. So I simply placed the envelopes, my checkbook, and the book of stamps on the coffee table so I could finish them while Elem was still kind of waking up on the couch with me. Elem and I were all comfy and cozy just having a morning conversation, when I left to run to the potty for 2 quick seconds. I came back to find a lovely check covered in 42 cent stamps (is that what they are worth these days?) I had to catch myself before I yelled at Elem from behind the couch to stop! I immediately grabbed the checkbook and confused Elem, but explained to him that stamps are NOT stickers. However, in the middle of my sentence, I realized that in no way was I making sense to a 2 year old, who was clearly looking at the miniature square objects with the sticky back. I was fighting a losing battle, and giggling in my head, I just stopped while I was ahead. Stamps ARE stickers, just very expensive ones! I tried to save what I could, but oh well, serves me right for leaving some pretty new "bell stickers" out right at a toddlers hand level. I will not make that mistake again!

Smart little dude. Thank you for teaching me something new every single day!


*note to self-continue setting up online banking and bill pay. I think it is about that time.

"I do not wear diap-ees no more!"

So long. Farewell. Auf Wiedersehen. Good night......


I am happy to report that as of the beginning of August Elem has pretty much been diaper free-and clothes free, but we will get to that in a minute. (For all of you who think I have a "naked" child, you have no idea) hehe. So, throughout the day Elem has been accident free about 90% of the time. Here and there he has a random accident, but those are usually during nap time or when he is angry and throwing a fit, only to pee on purpose. Those are my least favorite accidents. . We will tackle the whole night time potty training hopefully by Christmas time. Honestly, it has been super easy to potty train Elem, considering his tend to be hard headed when it comes to things he doesn't really understand why he has to do them. So about 2 years and 3 months we were happy feet and diaper free!

Potty Training in a nutshell for us:
1. We started off about 15 or 16 months trying to potty train, if I remember correctly. I figured the earlier, the better.
2. We did not force him to go to the potty, but just kept trying and offering the potty each and every time possible, in case it sparked an interest.
3. Each time Elem would step into the bath tub, he would be about 5 seconds later, so every time I would pull him out of the tub, and place him in front of the potty, and it would just happen.
4. That is how he got the idea of what was expected and it pretty much blossomed from there.
5. Lots and lots of praise-along with some candy treats for pottying.
6. Lots of going potty together (with mommy every chance we got, and with daddy every chance he got)
7. And we pretty much only encouraged pottying standing up! Too hard to relearn after you have been taught another way.
8. Bought the underwear and made a HUGE deal about it. Tried it out, and the rest is history.
9. I offered Elem to go to the potty about every 30 minutes and took note of each time he drank something. Not long after I made him go to the potty.
10. In order to get another juice cup, he had to go potty.
11. Just kept telling him he was too big to wear diapees!

Now, if we even TRY to put a diaper on him, we get the response: "No! I do not wear diapees no more! I too big to wear diapees."

Wahoo! So long, farewell diapers, during the daytime anyways, we will not miss you one bit! Or how much money we spent on you.

"NO...its a football"

After a very disappointing loss by the Razorbacks on Saturday, Elem shared some of our leftover football cupcakes with Poppa, when he came over to play for a few minutes. I had picked out some football shaped candy to put on the top of the cupcakes because I thought Elem would enjoy them- Mostly just for fun and to get him excited about the game and all. But you know nobody ever really eats those things. Poppa was super excited to get a cupcake with a special football on top, and Elem was proud to pass it along to him.



Here is the conversation that took place:

Poppa: Hey Elem, can I have one of your cupcakes?

Elem: Here Poppa, I got a football cupcake for you.

Poppa: What is that right there on top of your cupcake, I've never seen one of those?

Poppa: Is that edible?

Elem: NOOOOO. Its a football.

Pics of the Day

With the summer coming to an end, and fall right around the corner, the days of swimming in the little pool and playing with the water hose in the backyard are few and far between. Not quite sure how we are going to keep this water baby out of the water.

I wanted to share a couple of pics that I just cant stop looking at, and make me smile each time I see them. Don't you just love how much fun your little ones can have with a water hose??? I mean could there BE anything more fun when you are 2? And endless supply of slow running water that you are completly in control of-you can fill and pour it wherever you want and it just keeps on coming.

Happy Elem.


Determined Elem.

Orange Beach Vacation

Vacation time is over and we are back at it here in good ole Arkansas. Orange Beach we miss you. We miss the sand on our feet and the sun on our faces. The waves hitting the shore, and we cant forget the rain. :)

It has taken me forever to get caught up with every aspect of my life after getting back from our late summer vacation. From laundry, to cleaning house, to work-everything is finally coming together and the flow is back to normal around the Shelby house. Wahoo. As I mentioned before we left, we decided to take a little late trip to Orange Beach for a few days. Seth and I hadn't been to Orange Beach so we did some research-well Seth did some research :) and we found the perfect little condo, that had everything we needed. After lots of time online and looking at way too many condos that all started to kind of look the same, we finally chose to stay at the Phoenix East, on the ground floor, in a one bedroom that seemed so awesome.

The Drive down: We headed out on Thursday night (well early early Friday morning) around 2am. We were a little hesitant, but had high hopes about the car ride with Elem, which is why we decided to leave in the middle of the night. I figured, the more time he would be sleeping, the better. So, with the jeep packed full, some snacks and goodies to keep Elem busy during the hours he was awake, and with Dora geared up in the DVD player, we were off. The ride was SUPER smooth, Elem and I cat napped in the back and played all morning long with puzzles, play-dough, markers, books, and a few other new toys he had never seen before, oh- and had way too much quality time with Dora. Oh Dora...I could go for the rest of my life without ever seeing another Dora episode. I should only be so lucky! :) A few bathroom stops later-an accident free 9 hours ride for the newly potty trained toddler I might add, we were there!!! Orange Beach.

Day 1: Friday: We arrived around 11 am and checked right into our condo. Everything was perfect, the place was huge for just the 3 of us, and the condo itself was very nice too. We didn't waste any time, and unloaded all of our stuff, and checked out the view from the patio. Ground floor was the best idea we ever had! We wanted to head right to the beach after the long ride, so we threw on our bathing suits and were at the beach within 30 minutes of arriving. Only thing-the weather was slightly less than perfect. It was VERY windy and cloudy, and sprinkling, but we were beach bound and the wind wasn't going to stop us! Elem was right at home, immediately, and wasted no time heading right for the sand and water. First thing he noticed: the sea gulls. Elem LOVED LOVED LOVED the sea gulls. And could not get enough of them.

We settled right in to the free time and the idea of having no where to be and nothing particular to do and just had fun-despite the weather. I love not having any kind of agenda, even though I am a super planner. I like to have a plan and know what the day has in store for me. But that is just what I love about the beach-no need for planning and no need for an agenda. Unless it rains and you cant just "be" on the beach as you had planned.
First steps in the sand. He likes it? But not quite sure what exactly to do first.

He quickly made himself right at home. Running and smiling, and just having fun!

And running, and running, and running, and more running. I don't think little boys ever get tired. He was having some major fun-even in his own little world. One that I could just not get enough of.



Next stop: groceries. We grabbed the essentials-food, drinks, and beach toys for Elem, and then right back to the condo. Around 5pm we started feeling the effects of our night of travel and lack of good sleep, but sucked it up and were right back to the beach to play in the sand and make good use of our sand toys. However, this visit was short lived, and before we knew it, the rain had sent us right back inside to find something else to do! That something else-the indoor pool. Which ended up being our life savor over the course of the week. Nothing like an indoor pool all to yourself, with a couple of hot tubs to relax in. Elem was a swimming machine in the pool and was ready for bed, along with Seth and I, by 8pm. Elem slept in our huge bed that night, while his pack-n-play remained untouched in the corner in the living room. Day one was relaxing and a great start to our family vacation.

Day 2: Saturday: We all slept in until 9am, which was nice, but quickly realized the hopes of a fun filled day at the beach was not meant to be. Rather, it was POURING down rain. And I mean high winds, dark clouds, and non stop raindrops. Not the kind of weather I had anticipated, or packed for! Right off, I was super disappointed. All I could think about was how far we had driven, and how we were not going to be able to find anything for Elem to do if we couldn't head out to the beach. All day in a condo with a 2 year old is not the best idea of relaxation. So we decided to make the best of it and headed out to Gulf Shores to find something fun to do. We checked out a few "beachy" stores, and ended up at the Oyster House for lunch. It was right on the water, the food was good, and turned out to be a great stop for the rainy day. As soon as we saw a break in the rain, we headed straight for Adventure Island to try out some miniature golf. This was Elem's first attempt at put put, and knowing his recent obsession with golf, we knew he would have a blast.

Despite a few drizzles and some wind, we had a great time. The course was fun and pretty and Elem would have thought this was the reason we drove so far if we would have told him that.



When the rain started back up again, we headed inside to the arcade and played as many games as we could. Elem loves putting money in games and getting to do whatever it is that the game has to offer, so again, the weather had no effect on his fun here! Adventure Island-check! Great stop. We even had a slight fit on the way out, because Elem did not want to leave, but we made it to the condo, and Elem grabbed a nap, During nap time, I was able to get in some good reading time on the patio (my final book of the Twilight saga) and catch a little sun. We were lucky to find a small break in the rain after Elem woke up, and snagged a little beach time just playing in the sand and watching the waves. Sand castles quickly became a huge favorite of Elem's, but they only lasted a few seconds before they were destroyed. By Elem. And his kicking and pushing, and attacking. Boys will be boys I guess.

Then came the rain, and to find some seafood we went. We stopped in at a place that sold fresh shrimp and crab legs. Seth was super excited about this find and couldn't wait to get back and cook it up. First thing before dinner-to the indoor pool we went. THANK GOODNESS for the indoor pool. It was such a life savor for us, and kept Elem happy and gave him a way to burn off some energy during the hours and hours of pouring down rain. After the pool, a nice bath while daddy cooked. And it was so worth the wait-we had shrimp and pasta, and it was soooooo good. :) Did I ever mention how lucky I am to have a chef for a hubby? Lots of good food, some quality family time, and off to bed we went.

Day 3: Sunday: We woke up to a beautiful SUNNY day! We were on the beach by 8am and didn't look back until noon. We played in the ocean, watched the waves, took long walks in the sand, played with the sea gulls and chased them up and down the beach, dug lots of wholes with the shovels, looked for sea shells, watched for boats and jet skis, ate lots of snacks, played some baseball

and football on the beach, raced in the sand, and soaked up a whole lot of sun-oh :) and relaxed. Finally. The perfect morning, we couldn't have asked for anything else. We are so happy Elem is a water baby and loves everything the beach has to offer.


After nap time, and some more reading, and a little Sunday football, the rain was back at it again. More time at the indoor pool, and then we got cleaned up and headed out for a nice dinner. Only, we couldn't decide where to go and ended up at this place called Live Bait. Which looked to be packed from the outside, but we quickly realized everyone was at the bar in the back and not at the restaurant. But that was after we ordered our food, and were hugely disappointed. Note to self-do not go to Live Bait when in Orange Beach-ever again. Unless going to the bar-which appeared to be quite the place to watch some Sunday night football. Food was so not good. Back to the condo after driving in what can only be referred to as a torrential down pour. More indoor swimming, bath time, Sunday night football, and off to bed.

Day 4: Monday: By this point I was not happy when we woke up to non stop rain. It was getting a little old after taking off work, spending all the money to book the trip, drive all the way down there, all just to search and search for things to do with a 2 year old indoors. Not my idea of the perfect relaxing vacation that I still had high hopes for. After lots and lots of arts and craft projects with mommy:

We piled in the car and made a 30 minute drive to the outlet mall in Gulf Shores. Which was pretty cool, we hit up about 3 stores, got a couple of things, played around on a little playground they had in the middle of the mall area, and then decided to head back when the rain started coming down a little harder. By the time we got back, Elem was super tired to say the least, and had an enormous meltdown at the condo, while Seth went to grab us some yummy lunch from a cafe right down the road. This was so not what I wanted to deal with somewhere else other than the privacy of our own home. Nothing like your child screaming at the top of his lungs for all the world to hear because you keep putting him in time out. I was only hoping no one would come to the door assuming some type of physical altercation was happening. Sheesh. I was seriously sweating by the time he stopped and drifted off to sleep. I shouldn't have tried to make him make it past his normal nap time, and I so paid the consequences of that decision. Happily, the sun came out in time for some more quiet reading time on the patio. I was in serious need of some alone time to get back in the right state of mind! Later that afternoon we swam a little more at the indoor pool and eventually got cleaned up to try for another nice meal out in Gulf Shores. This time we headed to the Crab Shack, which did not disappoint. This was the perfect spot to eat with kiddos. They had a huge covered deck, it was pretty close to the water, and a big gated sand area with a playground! Elem played and played while we relaxed and enjoyed some wonderful food. Crab Shack was a super choice! Highly recommended. When we got back to the condo we headed back down to the beach for some crab hunting!!! We had so much fun, and Elem loved hunting for crabs. Or was it me? hmm...hehe.

We actually all 3 loved hunting for crabs, and we all got really into it. Elem was very into locating the actual crab holes and trying to see if there were crabs inside each and every one. It didn't take us long at all to find lots of crabs with our flashlight, track them down to where we could catch em, scoop them up, and stick them in our bucket. Just long enough to look them over and talk about how cool it was, and then let them free.

I need to mention that I was really really good at finding them running along the sand. But I wont harp on that too much :) We spent the rest of the night relaxing, (I read), and watched a little more football.

Day 5: Tuesday: We had planned to go home, but of course we woke up bright and early to the most beautiful sunny day since we arrived. It only took a few minutes for us to decide we were not ready to go home, and this was the sunny day we had been longing for. So we booked the room for another night, packed up and headed to the beach for the day. It was the best day ever! We swam and played on the beach all morning long. Well for as long as we could at a time. The heat really seemed to get to Elem after about an hour or so, so we had to make a couple of mini trips back to the condo for a few minutes of cooling off or a dip in the pool. Luckily, we were able to spend the majority of the day on the beach and in the sun, relaxing and taking advantage of every single second on our extra day! It was so worth it too!!!! We could not have imagined a better day on the beach. We packed lunch for the beach and had sandwiches and lots of yummy treats while chilling in the sand, and by the time we headed back for nap, Elem could barely keep his eyes open. It was super hard for me to realize that this vacation was not just about me, or just about me and Seth, but that the schedule really did have to revolve around Elem in order for it to be a good day. Until this year, and a little bit last year, I would have staid on the beach all day, reading and laying out, listening to the waves, and enjoying a nice margarita. This year, more trips back and forth to the condo to get things I forgot, tons of time spent putting sunscreen on Elem, and lots of running up and down the beach to find all sorts of fun things-just to keep the day interesting. As if the beach itself is not interesting enough! Right?! Well for this 2 year old, the heat seemed to overtake the beauty. So nap time meant heading back to the condo, and letting the little guy get his much needed rest. During his nap, I just about finished my book, got lots of god sun, and spent some quality time with my hubby. Which was more needed than I even realized. I cant even remember the last time, other than after Elem has drifted off to sleep at home, that Seth and I even get to have a normal conversation about just us. Or just things that are going on.

We had so much fun relaxing and just talking on the patio and drinking wine during nap time. :) That is what I call a vacation! AFter nap time was over, we went back to the beach for just a little while and took a dip in the pool to rinse off.
My sweet boys. Just lovin nature and holdin on tight. So breathtaking-even more so than the waves and the view around me. :)

Then we cleaned up and headed out for a great meal to bring an end to our fabulous little family vacation. We ended up going to LuLu's which was our most favorite place to eat of the whole trip. It was sooo good.



The wait was about 45 minutes, but the place was so big, there was all kinds of sand areas for the kids to play, tons of buckets and shovels everywhere, baggos set up, a volleyball net, a fabu gift shop, all surrounded by the beach!!!!! And that was just the waiting area! Once we got our seats, there was some super chilled acoustic music going on, that was right up our alley. Seth and I had been seriously deprived of hearing some good music on this vacation, and we were in the perfect spot to catch some good tunes. After a great night of good music and good food, we headed back tired and ready to take on the ride home the following morning.



Day 6: Wednesday: We headed home around 9am or so. Not too excited about the ride itself, but excited to get on home to our bed and just to be in our own house. The ride was okay, but took a little longer than we expected. Riding at night was definitely the way to go. I believe we stopped about 7 or 8 times for potty breaks. hehe. And we stopped for a little play time at a park we saw on the side of the road and grabbed some ice cream. 8 hours in the car is a little much for Elem, and I believe he was about at his breaking point until we stopped at the park. He needed to get out, stretch his little legs, run and play! After that he was pretty much good to go and we FINALLY made it home about 7pm or so. And boy were we happy to be home!

Overall the trip was great! If you would have asked me how much fun we were having about 3 days in, I might not have given a positive response, but after the last day, I could not have been happier. It was seriously so much fun, and the final day was just worth the whole vacation. Seeing Elem on the beach, running around and just having fun in the sand. Chasing and talking to the sea gulls, knocking over the sand castles and finding crabs with his flashlight were all so sweet and amazing to watch. It is really cool to see your child loving the little things that are new to their world. I couldnt be more thankful for this vacation to Orange Beach and we are sure we want to go back next year. After Labor Day is the time to go, we got about 1/2 price on our room each night, and the area was not busy at all. It was very low key, no one was partying or being annoying, and overall it was very family friendly, and relaxing. Which is exactly what we were looking for. I am thankful for my family. SO so thankful for my family. Just watching Seth and Elem on the beach refreshed me and made me feel happy, and gave me an overwhelming sense of calmness. I am so looking forward to many more vacations and quality time filled with new experiences with my boys. Better weather yes-better company-never! Nothing like a week with your feet in the sand.
Perfection:

Back from the beach

Yes, although I am sad to say, we are back from the beach and already in full swing with our regular old schedule. We have actually been back for a few days now, and I can't wait to post on all the fun times and great memories we have from our trip. Hopefully I can get to that tonight after Elem heads to bed. He did pretty well on the trip, just a few temper tantrums, which is to be expected from a 2 year old toddler. But other wise -pretty smooth sailing. :)

Elem LOVED the beach and just about everything it had to offer-just like his mommy and daddy, and I am so happy that we decided to make this last minute trip to Orange Beach.



Elem's Favorites seemed to include:
*The sea gulls-he seemed to think they were talking to him. So sweet. hehe. And he loved watching them dive into the water to get a fish!
*The sand of course-and making sand castles. But more so knocking down (kicking down) the sand castles as soon as they were created.
*Running laps on the beach-or should I say sprints. He was a running fool!
*The indoor pool. :) I wish I was typing the waves, but to be honest, the indoor pool was his favorite.

Although the theme song for our vacation ended up being, "Rain Rain Go Away", we were lucky enough to have an AWESOME condo, find a few indoor activities, and catch some sunshine in between the storms! Not the best weather, but at least no hurricane is all I can say!

Just to give you the idea of our time on the beach:






Ahhhh. So happy to be able to spend some much needed quality time with my family. Away from all the drama and everyday craziness of work and household duties. Nothing like walking on the sand, soaking up some sun, and just listening to the waves as they hit the shore. It is my happy place.

Please shine down on me.

"oh Mr. sun, sun, Mr. golden sun, please shine down on me."




The time has finally come, and Seth, Elem, and I are officially taking a family vacation and I could not be more thrilled. It has been more than a little hectic of a summer for all of us and we are in desperate need of some quality uninterrupted family time. uhm on the beach I might add. :) So we are off-heading to Orang Beach, for 4 nights and 5 lovely days on the beach-just us, with no interruptions, and no plans, and we couldnt be more excited or ready to go. Seth is actually coming back in town tomorrow night, and I have to work all day tomorrow, so not the ideal conditions for needing to pack and leaving town with a toddler, but we will make it happen! Laundry is done, bills are paid, trash is rolled out, a few things are packed, dvd player is ready with several Dora DVDs already in stock in the backseat, DVR is preset for next weeks recordings, filling up the gas tank in the morning, and picking up a few last minute special car ride toys tomorrow afternoon for the long ride with the little one.. The goal- to head out around 3am tomorrow night, so Elem might stay asleep for the first part of the trip. That should totally work in our favor with the newly potty trained guy. After that, we travel at our own risk-possible potty breaks every 30 minutes-hour. hehe. Oh well, beggers can't be choosers, right? AT this point, I dont even care-just get me to the beach and in the sun, with the waves at my feet. I will think about complaining then! Many pics to come. I can only imagine how many I will take. ahhh, "Oh Mr. Sun, Sun, Mr. Golden Sun-"

Moments not worth forgetting

I love love love love...........those moments leading up to bedtime at my house.

No, not the ones of a tired and sometimes fussy little one, who desperately needs sleep, but wouldn't dare to admit it. But those during bath time, and putting on lotion, reading books, doing puzzles, saying prayers, cuddling up on the couch, getting just the right stuffed animal (or Dora), getting juice and blankey, and just talking with Elem about this and that right before he drifts off into never never land. Tonight especially was a sweet moment that I wouldn't want to forget.

I have mentioned it before, but even though I sing to Elem all the time, the songs that I seem to spit out are sometimes random. Lately, I have been singing "I love you with the love of the lord" when I have been patting his littler back and trying to get him to go to sleep. A very short and simple song, one that is easy to sing, and a soft catchy little tune. Tonight, I was holding Elem and he was just sweeter than ever-but one of those moments that seems to happen at least a few times every day. I was holding him in my lap-even though he is just about too long to fit on my body-although I do not even want to begin to think about that. !!!!! I have to hold and rock my little man-he just turned 2 for goodness sakes! But I was holding him in my lap, and we were chest to chest, his head rested sweetly on my left shoulder, all cuddled and comfy. I sang that song and was rocking him back and forth, just loving on him and enjoying a few minutes before bed time. :) As I rocked him, he was rocking with me-just kind of pushing me to the right every time my body was about to shift. Ahh, I love that-so minimal, but so sweet and effortless on his part. We were actually in the bathroom for some reason (I am sure I was trying to get him to use the potty before bed or something like that-hehe :) So I could see our reflexion in the mirror. Too too cute. My left hand was just holding his little body by right above his legs, and my right hand was patting him on the back-which he loves. I was looking at his little chubby legs just dangling and total dead weight. Funny how they just depend on us fr some things that we don't even realize! It was such a sweet picture-I did not want to forget it.

And as I was looking at him and holding him, and rocking him, and singing that song, he started to sing with me. :) Not every word, but something like this,

"I looooove ....loooord, I loooooove lorrrrrrrrd. Seeeeee, uuuuuuu, hmmmmmm, king, Love you , looooooooove, lorrrrrrrd".

OMG! Are you kidding me????? And to top it off, when I stop singing to think in awe of how adorable and smart he is, he says, "mommy, do Lord", which meant mommy, sing that song again. Geez. Heart melted. Love him.