Eli got lots of toys from Santa Claus (who was assisted this year by his North Carolina grandparents). His favorite is this rattle, which he has already suceeded in grabbing and putting in his mouth multiple times. Hey, we've all got to be good at something!

Eli had a good time at Christmas with Grumpy and Grandmere. Grandmere bought Eli a cake pan shaped like a train. A strange gift for a baby, but a great gift for his mom who loves to bake. The little one will love train cakes soon enough.

Oh, my.

We spent a little tummy time in a sunbeam. Our friend Mary Kay gave us this blanket, perfect since we call Eli "Turtle". He was digging the sunshine. So much so that he decided it was time to prop up on his elbows! Way to go, little Turtle!

The Christmas holidays have provided us with both LOTS of things to do and lots of fun free time to hang out. MY friend Sharon came home to the ATL from the west coast and got to meet His Lordship for the first time. Sharon confirmed it: Eli is darn cute.

But then, so is Sharon.

It's that time of year! Merry Christmas, faithful readers!

In honor of the new Rocky movie, Eli has decided to start boxing. Here he is on his way to a workout. (sorry, I can't get this one upright.)

What's up, duck?

I know that bath pictures must be getting old, but I've got to share these. Here's Eli taking a bath at his grandparents' house in North Carolina-- in the sink!

We churchy types aren't really all that excited about the mall Santa Claus. We do, however, like old Saint Nicholas of Myra, the guy who started it all. Tonight at the church, we had the annual St. Nicholas Supper, a big party for the kids with an appearence by St. Nick, who tells his story to all the children and then leaves chocolate in their shoes.
Eli was so good during the whole shebang, he even slept for part of it. Unfortunatly, he slept through this picture. St. Nick was a good sport, though.

When I married him 3 and a half years ago, I had no idea that Kevin was such a great poet. Then today, in a fit of silliness inspired by the similarities between Eli's head and his own, Kevin penned this marvelous work. Enjoy!










Look! A melon, a globe, a ball!
No, no, no, It’s not that at all.
Must be one of those ostrich eggs.
But wait! A neck and arms, and legs.
A head, it is, I do declare!
Avert your eyes, please don’t stare.
It’s slick and smooth and full of shine,
His hair no longer has a line.
No there’s nothing where there should be hair,
Not a sprig or sprout of hair up there.

They say, “his head is prone to freeze,
He’ll catch a cold and cough and sneeze.”
But quick, a scarf, a hood, a hat
And we can cease to fret ‘bout that.
Now being balds not so bad
Even for such a youthful lad.
Cause with no hair to fluff and tease
There’s no room for lice or fleas.
No tick nor dander can make a home
If there’s nothing left to comb.

No perms, no curls, no stylish wave,
Not even stubble left to shave.
No bangs no tails, no rows of corn,
No GI cut that’s neatly shorn.
No dyes, no spikes no mullet threat,
There’s nothing there to hold the sweat.
No need to worry about banker’s cost
Since being bald means nothing’s lost.
No product, no spritz, no need for gel,
He need not worry how to style his shell.
So wear with pride that marvelous dome
And give thanks to God there’s nothing to comb.

To make up for the dearth of pictures in recent weeks, here are just a few random ones that I like.

I've been keeping a little secret from you, my faithful readers.
ELI HAS BEEN SLEEPING!!!
Yes, you heard it here first. For the last five nights, he has gone to bed at 9 p.m. and woken up at 7 a.m. with only two short breaks for nursing.
AND what's even better, he's been sleeping in his own little bed, the co-sleeper next to our big bed.
We are not calling this a habit, only celebrating each night, one at a time, so that we don't get disappointed, but holy moly it feels good to get a few hours of sleep in a row!
Here's a picture of Eli, swaddled and with the radio on in his co-sleeper, fast asleep.

Eli is a man of many hats. His favorite three, though, are the ones his friend Ingrid made. Now, Eli has never met Ingrid, but he knows for a fact she's a great knitter, as evidenced by these hats that he wears over his little bald head. His mother's favorite is the rainbow one. It gets lots of compliments when Eli is out on the town. Eli feels like hot stuff when he wears the grey one, so he has to look tough.

The other day, I put Eli down on the couch wide awake for just a second to change my shirt. The minute he hit the couch, he fell fast asleep. He sort of takes after his daddy in that way.

I'm not usually all that fond of pictures of myself, but I really love this one.

More pictures are coming soon, I promise.

In the mean time, I wanted to share a comment recently read. Our Saturday Morning Run/Walk group leader, Steve, writes a reflection every week after our morning adventure. This week, he said this:

"As we waited to get started this morning, I think the temperature dropped a full ten degrees! It was like we were experiencing a year's worth of seasons over a short, 24-hour period--from spring to summer to fall to winter. And by the appearance of Eli York-Simmons, the change of seasons was confirmed indeed: That boy has grown another inch and put on another coat of childhood--all in a week. Amazing. He's got this sweet, twinkling smile that infers a wisdom beyond his years. Watching Eli's "becoming" is a joy."

That's our little guy!

Thanksgiving is fun for many reasons, but one of the best is that good friends come home to visit.

Eli went out to brunch with Alison, whom he met when he was still little (!) and Elizabeth, whom he met for the first time ever. Truthfully, he doesn't look so happy in this picture, but he had a great time with the girls, nonetheless.

Now, if only we could get Sharon here, Eli would know the Great Triumverate affectionatly known as "The Girls". Sharon, Eli's dyin' to meet you!!

Thanksgiving is big fun, Chez York. Grumpy is a great cook so the meal is always a gourmet treat. This year's highlight, in my opinion, was the potatoes rosti-- YUM! 'Course the beets were pretty killer... and that dressing...WOW! Grumpy is king of the kitchen!



Eli was a hit and everyone wanted to get their hands on him. He especially enjoyed Uncle Arthur's sweetheart Anna. Okay, let's face it, we all love Anna.

We've been busy!

Eli's favorite meal is brunch. He is always asleep or happy in the mornings, so he's pretty easy to eat with. He even tolerates the carseat! Here's Eli perusing the menu at our favorite brunch spot, Radial. Whaddya have, little one? The salmon scramble? Huevos rancheros?

Oh, and I forgot to mention... Eli's Grampa Marty has a new sobriquet: Grumpy. Ha!

It is hard to believe, but Eli is two months old as of yesterday! So I have no new pictures to post. There are some out there somewhere, I'm just not organized enough to get them up here.

Some updates: Eli still won't sleep at night in any real sense. We've taken to sleeping together in the recliner. He sleeps more hours in a row like that (sometimes even hitting four at a time!) and doesn't wake as long to nurse. So it feels more like long stretches of sleep. But in a chair. I'm trying hard to believe that this will pass and he will one day be a good little independent sleeper, but in the mean time, sleeping is just weird.

In addition to outgrowing the #1 diapers, Eli also now fits into some of the 3-6 month clothes! Such a big boy! He still likes best being carried around so that he can see the world form on high. I can't say that I blame him. His Daddy and I are much more fun than a stupid crib.

Tomorrow, Eli will have his first Thanksgiving and meet many York-side relatives that he's never met before. It has been made clear that Kevin and I should be ready to be ignored since we are, having procreated, no longer of use to the family.

Maybe we'll go find a comfy place to nap...

We spent the weekend in beautiful Macon, GA. While Kevin studied hard in a local coffee shop with good muffins, Eli and I attended the Episcopal annual council meeting, where he was a big hit. He met all sorts of priests and other churchy types, including the man in the pointy hat, Bishop Alexander himself.


That was all fine and good, but the highlight of Eli's weekend in Macon was hanging out with his Uncle Arthur. Arthur was a little afraid of breaking Eli, but Eli's a pretty solid and tough little dude, so he showed his uncle how cool a baby can be.

In other news, Eli has grown into #2 size diapers. What a big monster he is!!

Eli LOVES his Atlanta grandparents! Grandpa Marty is a good cook, which Eli will appreciate later in life, and his Grandmaman is good at making him giggle when she speaks French.

Sleep, it seems, is a thing of the past. Eli has decided that it is simply not necessary to sleep at night, he'd rather eat. All night long. I'm beginning to go a little crazy from lack of sleep!

On Saturday, our friend Paul Frilingos turned one. He had a big birthday party and invited lots of friends. Here is Erin and her daugher Baikal, me and Eli and the birthday boy and his mom Beth.



Baikal and Paul are so much bigger than Eli, it is hard to believe that he will ever grow up!

(thanks to the Frilingos for letting me snag this picture from their blog!)

Eli made his big debut at Morning Run this weekend. He was very popular with this friendly walk/run group.

So popular, in fact, that his friend Vic made him a "Morning Stroll" onesie of his very own. Eli is very appreciative and can't wait to stroll about in it!




Eli is an exceptionally good lap-sitter. Here he is practicing with his new friend Eileen. He likes her lap a lot. Likewise, Eileen likes having Eli in her lap! A good match!

The big day has come and gone. I started back to work on Wednesday. That means that my maternity leave is over. That also means that Eli is SIX WEEKS OLD!

Back-To-Work-Day didn't go too smoothly. I couldn't access my work email account for the first half of the day, so I wasn't able to answer the 6 gazillion emails I knew were awaiting me. Frustrating. Eli didn't want to take a morning bottle from his dear patient daddy, even after we had practiced this a few times. So in the end, Eli came to work for a visit. After having some lunch, he hung out with all of the good people I work with and fun was had by all. In the afternoon, Eli did take a bottle from Dad, so all was not lost, but everyone was totally worn out by bedtime. There's a lot of learning in this baby stuff, both for us and for him. I'm sure we'll get the hang of all this eventually, but sometimes it seems along way off!

In other news, there is a new restaurant in the 'hood! Our friend Brian and friends-by-proxy sean and Eric have opened Solstice, a cafe and eatery on the Boulevard side of the park. We went to the fancy opening party and ate some great apps earlier in the week and then had lunch there today. Eli especially likes the art, since it is bright and stimulating. I, on the other hand, really dig the seared tuna sandwich--yum! Kevin likes the fact that they have good coffee and a quiet place to grade papers. The whole fam agrees that it is nice to have a family-friendly-yet-funky (no Chuck E Cheese here!) place to hang in the neighborhood.

This may just be the mama talking, but really, does it get any cuter than this? Holy mackerel, this kid is adorable!!

This thing is like baby crack! Kevin had the fantastic idea to hang a cool mobile over Eli's changing table. We had an extra, so up it went. We had no idea he would be so fascinated by the thing! He stares and talks to it long after the diapering business is done. I have been known to read a book next to the changing table while the stinker entertains himself wiht the mobile. Crazy!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, GRANDPA MARTY!!
Eli can't wait to see you soon and give you a big birthday slobber.

Eli is obviously a mover and a shaker. This weekend, he went with us to Mobile, Alabama to see our friends Paige and John get married. The wedding was beautiful, the bride simply gorgeous and the reception was scrumptious (candy apples-- yum!). Eli was a perfect gentleman and slept in his Bjorn the whole time. He even refrained from spitting up on his mama's nice outfit or his daddy's tux, which we found particularly winsome. Eli is a good little traveler!
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Bottle day! Eli took his first bottle of breastmilk a few days ago. We had tried before, but didn’t have the right nipple or atmosphere (he’s a sensitive little guy). This attempt was very successful and it means that dad can get in on the act of feeding, which is much more fun than diaper-changing. Does this make Mommy obsolete?

I’m a believer. I do not want to regularly make this blog an place for product endorsements, but I’ve finished reading a book that has changed my day and maybe even my month.

As previously mentioned, sweet little Eli really doesn’t like to be put down. Ever. Ever ever. This is mostly fine and his daddy and I are happy to accommodate since we live to hold the little guy. He’s so soft and warm, he is pretty much irresistible. But occasionally, one needs two hands, or a shower, and every so often, Kevin and I would like to eat a meal together. Like, at the same time. At the same table. And a couple of hours of sleep would be nice, too. Not that we’re picky.

So this book, “The Happiest Baby on the Block”, talks a little about how to get fussy babies to feel safe and comfortable enough to be put down for a little while, and it describes some gentle, comforting techniques for getting little babies to sleep a little longer. Nothing drastic, just a few different things layered on top of one another to make the little fussies a little less fussy.

Ladies and gentlemen, I must tell you, right now, Eli is swaddled like a burrito (which he previously hated), in his swing (ditto), with an untuned radio playing static in his little ear. And he has been ASLEEP for 2 hours. And I’m typing with two hands. Miracles never cease! I promise not to overuse this technique and abandon my son to the swing, but it really feels great to know that something works.

Thank you Dori for recommending this book and encouraging me to keep at it.

Now, I will go write all those thank you notes I’m behind on!

And now for the best news ever!

We're not pushing our luck, but it seems that Eli is beginning to get the concept of sleep. Between the good reflux medicine and his Mama and Daddy's gettign their act together, he is starting to sleep for a few hours at a stretch every night without any major screaming fits. It feels like a milestone and a miracle all wrapped up in a Christmas package.

Hooray!

Over the river and through the woods, to Grandma and Grandpa Simmons house we went. Eli was an angel in the car and slept most of the five hour drive.



Eli got to meet many of his Pilot Mountain family members. He had a great time with Uncle David and Aunt Jaime and got kisses from their Jack Russels, Abby and Ibis. Aunt Jaime is a champion shopper and now Eli has some spiffy new outfits.



On Sunday, Eli met his great aunt Sandra and great aunt Martha Rae and his cousin Judy. He really liked meeting his Great Grandmother Reeves, too. He is named after her daddy, so that was a special meeting.

A good weekend was had by all!