Par-tay! 1st Birthday Celebration

Elliot turned 1 year of age last Wednesday.  I still can’t believe it.  I remember the week of his birth like it was just a month ago. Now my baby is 1? A toddler? And yes, he is beginning to toddle! We were fortunate to have my parents here to help us celebrate.  We started the day with a birthday breakfast…because Elliot can’t yet tell me what he wants to eat I made him something he had only had two other times…pancakes and eggs! It was then present time: Thank you everyone for the sweet cards and gifts! Elliot’s favorite part were the cards (they look like books, a current obsession).  With Jared off to work (we were lucky he didn’t have to go in until noon), Elliot, my parents, and I headed to the library were he listened to a book, sang songs, and attempted to see animals.  The library had a special guest who brought live animals, but Elliot chose to scream and talk loudly so we left.

party hats found here, banner here, and streamers here. Shirt made by me…”1” stencil and fabric paint.

Quilt made by me with binding help by my mom.  pattern found here.

Crocodile chair and clothes from Grandma and Grandpa B.

Polar bear puppet was first played with at the library.  I found it on amazon for cheap, so it is the newest member of our family!

Our friends Megan and George sent Elliot an animal sounds puzzle.  He loves it!

Watching t.v. and enjoying his chair.

After dinner we had cake! Not sure Elliot heard us singing happy birthday to him because he was fixated on the candle and wanting to touch it.  Elliot wasn’t sure about the cake at first.  When he doesn’t want something on his plate he takes it and drops it over the side of his high chair.  Well, he didn’t seem to want polka dots on his cake because he continuously kept trying to take them off.  It took cutting him his own piece before he decided to eat it.  Once he started though, he loved it!

 

Not liking the dots on the cake.  Trying to take them off.

He dropped something and is saying “Uh Ooo”.  I love this face!

We then went to the Rodeo.  It was a small event with a carnival.  We didn’t actually pay to go to the Rodeo, but went up there and rode the merry-go-round, and saw the cows. 

Hiking

So…. what was suppose to be an “easy hike” was more of a mountain climb…a very, very, long climb.  We were on a search for McCauley hot springs, but sadly walked to the car 3 hours later not having put our feet in the springs .  Not sure where we went wrong, but just never found it.  Elliot did wonderful.  He laughed every time Jared had to duck under a tree branch or slide down a hill (I was holding my breath in fear of a major fall). 

Valle Cauldera: This is an inactive volcano crater in the middle of Bandelier Nat’l Park. The most recent magma activity was many, many years ago.   Beautiful here.

Children’s Museum

Our First weekend and a little extra

The first weekend we were here, we made it to downtown Santa Fe, aka the Plaza.  The “square” is lined with the Palace of the Governor’s which was Spain’s seat of government when they possessed the land in the 17th century.  This is where the Native American Artisans sit and sell crafts (a lot of jewelry). The Cathedral Basilica of Saint Francis also lines the square, along with numerous shops.  Just down the street we saw the Loretto Chapel, and the oldest house in the US, and the oldest Church.  It’s a really neat area with a ton of history...Santa Fe is the oldest capital in the U.S.  As we have visitors there will be more and better pictures of the Plaza and all it contains!

While we were in downtown we walked past a restaurant window that displayed the name “Pico Mundo Grill”…if you recognize that name it’s because it’s from a Dean Koontz book called “Odd Thomas”!  They are filming the movie here in Santa Fe! If you haven’t read this book yet, you need too….it is the first in a series and one of my favorites by that author.

We also hit up the Farmer’s Market….always a favorite! This is becoming a Saturday morning routine.  In addition to the farmer’s stands which sell fresh produce there were a lot of fresh bread and cheese booths.  Our favorite find was a chipotle goat cheese, wasn’t sure I liked it at first, but by the second bite it was love.

We have also taken advantage of the trials around our house.  While Jared ran with Elsie, Elliot and I rode along on the bike. It’s a beautiful, quiet area.

In addition to all the activities we have also had some hang out time.

11 months

My ornery little man….where to begin.  I am a couple weeks late in posting this, but Elliot’s 11 month is worthy of posting! At 11 months, I have a very independent boy.  He likes to feed himself (and Elsie), play with his toys,and  pull things off the table only to drop them on the floor.  I don’t have a hugger, kisser, cuddler, but that’s ok because I do have a smiler and laugher.  Elliot is in the habit of, one by one, pulling his food off his tray and dropping it on the floor (this drives me crazy). Elliot is starting to crawl with his hands and knees more, but prefers his faster method of army crawling.  He is walking (holding on to things) around furniture all day long. We read many books and laugh at the silly pictures (I wonder what’s going on in his head).