Eli's 1-Year-Old Faces

Eli is in such a busy, wiggly phase that it's getting harder and harder to pin him down for a cute photo. So I snatched the opportunity while he was eating to get some fun shots (it's easier when he's pinned down in his booster seat).

Above: His face is messy as he was eating a delicious lunch of penne pasta with catalina salad dressing. He LOVED it (this was my makeshift tomato sauce since I didn't have time to whip up spaghetti sauce to go with his lunch - the pasta was leftover from another meal).

Above: Here he is after I got his face pretty clean, still sitting in the booster. This time Eli was eating a few pretzels and playing with the balloon that is still floating, now a week and a half later!

The Strong-Willed Child

This boy has a very strong will and can be quite stubborn. Here he is digging through the diaper bag and pulling everything out. If I pick him up and place him somewhere else, he usually will go right back to where he was getting into trouble in the first place.

Yesterday I went to feed Eli lunch and he was being really demanding (as is often the case). I usually stick him in his booster seat at the table (which is in our living room since the kitchen is tiny - not the most convenient thing) and give him a few cheerios or something to tide him over until I can bring more food. I did this and then walked into the kitchen to get some things, and Eli was not impressed.

He was objecting in a loud way, and I called to him from the other room, "Eli?" and he yelled back in a frustrated tone, "Aarah?" (translation: Sarah?) I think you had to be there to experience it, but it was pretty funny to have him respond like that.

Eli the Tipsy Toddler

Eli is going through a bumps and bruises stage - he toddles around everywhere, but still biffs it about one in five times. It makes for an interesting day - I watch him walk around and usually hold my breath, hoping he's not going to fall on a sharp corner or step on a block in his way. On Sunday he had a huge bump on his eyebrow from falling and hitting the side of the tub (not while taking a bath, but being in there while I was brushing my teeth). Today his teeth somehow cut his lip when he fell down at some point. I would like to get his 1-year picture taken soon, but he keeps banging up his face, so I wait another day.

Here he is early this morning, carrying the balloon around from his birthday that is still floating more than a week later:

And speaking of his birthday, here is a picture from last week when we had lunch at Walker Brother's Pancake House - pecan wafles and crispy hashbrowns are my favorite - yum yum yum! Eli loves his snack catcher as shown below - it makes him such an independent snacker, which I love.

Behind us are these old ladies who were very sweet to Eli while we were there - he was feeling social that day and walked over to say hi to them.

Ben's Crazy Story

Here are the details of the crazy start to this weekend. Ben and Steve drove up to the North Woods of Wisconsin on Friday, planning to camp that night and then fish all day Saturday. Well, Ben called me on Friday night and said they were way up there (4 1/2 hrs away) and the 1994 Nissan Altima had died.

We weren't really sure what the best plan would be. A policeman stopped to see what was wrong, and when they asked if there were any car repair shops that might be open, he said, "Not 'til Tuesday!" since it was Memorial Day weekend. That was not a good solution for us! Ben and Steve had planned on returning home on Saturday night.

Steve had AAA, so we hung up and they were going to call and arrange to have the car towed into town (the nearest town was Wausakee, WI). I went to our church's web site and looked up the nearest church building to where they were and called the hall phone at that church. The phone rang and rang and rang... and then a woman answered! I explained the situation and asked if she knew anyone who was a mechanic that they might possibly be able to get help from before the end of the weekend. She put a guy named Chris on the phone, who said he had a truck and trailer and would be happy to go pick up the guys and the car (they were an hour and a half away) and bring them back to his place. Chris sounded like he was pretty good with cars and had a car diagnostic computer. I couldn't believe he offered to do such a thing!

In the end, Ben and Steve stayed at a motel in Wausakee on Friday night, and in the morning tried to see if they could get a part from a nearby auto parts store on Saturday morning. The store didn't have what they thought they might need, so they called Chris and arranged to have him come pick them up.

That afternoon, Chris, who was maybe 30 years old, brought them back to the house, where he lived with his parents. He was divorced and had a cute 5-year-old girl who was anxious to show Ben and Steve her pony and horses. They lived very close to the Oneida Indian Reservation (they were Native American) and had a nice amount of land. They worked on the car for a few hours and even had their mechanic friend come over with the computer from the auto shop - this helped find the problem, which was a leak in the distributor. The family grilled up a big lunch and shared it with Ben and Steve, fixed the car, and sent them on their way. It was the nicest thing a stranger has ever done for them! (or me, for that matter)

There are so many things about this story that amaze me - apparently the church that I called housed a pretty small branch. That night there were 5 people at the church having game night - what are the odds that someone would be at the church on a Friday night?? And that they would be so willing to drive 3 hours round trip and spend their Saturday fixing a stranger's car. I was pretty touched with their kindness and care for Ben and Steve.

Ben arrived home on Saturday night around 9 p.m. - we are so thankful for Chris and his family! Ben was able to sneak in a little fishing early Saturday morning and managed to catch five fish in about an hour, which made him happy. :)