Turn Up The Volume

Today is G-ma's birthday and Eli wanted to sing her Happy Birthday, but she didn't want her Daddy to hear it, so she resolved her dilemma by whispering the song. It's the thought that counts, right?

Message to Aunt Amber

Aunt Amber bought Eli a princes robe for Christmas. Eli loves it and tried it out for the first time yesterday.

Around Labor Day 2009

Stephen taught Eli how to dive off the diving board. I think this was the last trip to the outdoor pool before the season ended. She's pretty fearless.

A Thanksgiving Goody

Eli loves to dance. No editorial from me will be as good as watching this video.

Mani/Pedi

So, Eli has had two mani/pedis so far in her nearly 4 years of life. I thought I'd send along a video of her after her first one. It's a message to her daddy, who was away for a college football game a couple of weeks before Thanksgiving.
Her last mani/pedi took place last weekend after Christmas. She was quite pleased. As she should be.

Thanksgiving 09

We spent Thanksgiving in Erie this year ... doctors gave a weary thumbs up to Mommy traveling at 28 weeks with twins. But, everything was fine. Though, we did end up at the ER, but only for another case of Nurse Maid Elbow for Eli. Fortunately, it wasn't Mommy's fault; unfortunately, it was Uncle Matt's turn to feel guilty about ripping Eli's poor elbow out of socket. However, since this was the second time, Stephen and I immediately diagnosed it and took her to the ER. And, again, we were in and out in a flash. I'll try to upload that photo. But, for now, here is a link to a few photos from the weekend, including seeing Grand Grand G-ma and an attempt at a self-timer family photo ...

Dutch Wonderland

One Saturday in August, we traveled to Lancaster, Pennsylvania, to take Eli to Dutch Wonderland -- an amusement park for 3- to 10-year-olds. We met G-ma and G-pa there. It was the perfect place to take her ... everyone had strollers and children (no apologies necessary ... only sympathetic looks). Below is a random sampling of photos of the day. Eli had a great time.

Fourth of July

Belated, but still relevant. We were in Erie for the Fourth of July festivities. Sorry, no narrative ... photos are below. That's the most important part, right? Enjoy.

The Sun Comes Out

After days and days of rain, we were finally graced with the presence of the sun this weekend. It came late Saturday afternoon. We took advantage.
On Saturday night, Stephen and Henry hosted a Massage Envy Staff Appreciation dinner at a local Italian restaurant ... where, oddly, no pasta was served. But, other than that, it turned out to be a lovely evening and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. The live music was a nice touch and I hear the grilled meat was pleasant. I can tell you that the grilled vegetables were awesome, especially the Portabellas. Stephen gave out several awards to a few of his exemplary Massage Envy folks, including Michelle, who received the Purple Cow award for service excellence. Henry got the 2008 Visionary Award. And, in turn, Henry gave Stephen the 2008 Focus Award. The “bromance” continues.

Today (Sunday), we decided to spend as much time in the sunshine as possible. We started at a local lake in Reston for swimming and ball fetching. Then, we headed to Great Falls Park (Maryland side) for a walk/hike. Stephen found a swimming hole for Lemon and she was able to get yet another swim in. Eli had the opportunity to see the massive waterfalls at Great Falls. She expressed her awe with one word: wow.
We bought an annual pass ... we plan to go back.
Drove back home to drop off Lemon and headed to the Kim's condo in Arlington for some pool time and then ended the day with an awesome dinner. Eli fell asleep on the way home. Exhausted, I'm sure. Aren't we all?

RIP Kegan Vereb

Kegan Vereb ... beloved dog and family member. May you chase (and not retrieve) tennis balls 'til your heart’s content in doggie heaven. Miss and love you.

May things

This weekend we hosted the 6th annual Vereb-b-q and we visited the Arlington National Cemetery on Memorial Day ... you know, the REAL reason we have a three-day weekend that just happens to coincide with the traditional start of summer. The visit to the Cemetery was awe-inspiring and certainly humbling. We hope to make it an annual tradition. And, another Vereb-b-q down ... an eternity to go. Sunday turned out to be a great day for a picnic, although it started a little shaky. At the moment the bbq was to begin, the rain started to fall. Luckily, my father-in-law is quite handy with setting up large tarps and that seemed ward off any bad weather vibes. The sun actually came out around 6, and sun or no sun; it didn't stop the little ones from slip 'n sliding. Food, of course, was fabulous. Hats off to Chef Stephen. Thanks to all for coming and spending a part of your weekend with us. Mothers' Day weekend was also earlier this month and we journeyed into Old Town Alexandria for an art show at the Torpedo Factory. Below are photos from some of the events, and not necessarily in the order of the narrative

Easter Pictures

All the pictures I wanted to post in the previous listing wouldn't fit, so I separated the Easter photos from the batch and have uploaded below. Enjoy!

Miscellaneous

It's been about 3 months. Yes, a lot of activity has occurred, which entails a busy, busy schedule. When you last saw Eli, she had just experienced her first dentist appointment. Since then she is mostly potty trained. She received a haircut to even out the mullet. Easter (along with loads of chocolate, G-ma, G-pa, and Aunt Amber) has come and gone (I will post those pictures separately). We got a Wii (Stephen is classified a tennis pro ... showoff). Uncle Timmy and Aunt Simoni have come and gone. Eli discovered margaritas (virgin). Aunt Jenine has come and gone. We took a mini-vacay to Phoenix. Eli's had the unfortunate opportunity to experience airplane delays. Stephen and Aunt Michelle won Massage Envy Franchise of the Year Award (in the country) and Million Dollar Club Award. Stephen dropped the Million Dollar Club Award (no pictures of that yet). Eli rode in a stretch limo after an airplane delay diverted us back to the Arizona Grand Resort. And, Eli got a tricycle. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, it has been a wild ride. Luckily, we have cell phones with cameras and a pretty awesome Canon camera and we were able to capture most of the Kodak moments ... Enjoy!

Say Ahhhhhhhh.

On March 6, Eli had her first dentist appointment. She was treated to chocolate toothpaste, borrowing a cool pair of sunglasses to shield her from the bright light, and the prize drawer. I think she had the opportunity to visit the prize drawer twice - all the proof that I need to validate that Eli is highly skilled at the art of manipulation.
She received a clean bill of health from Dr. Brian Clark and Dental Hygienist Ms. Linda Ayoub, and was amazingly cooperative when asked to sit on the big chair, keeping her mouth open, and closing her lips so the saliva sucker (Mr. Thirsty) could do its magic. Ms. Linda cautioned Eli about eating too much sugar and chocolate. Eli pretended to not understand. Ms. Linda also told Eli to let Mommy and Daddy help her brush her teeth at least once a day. Same blank stare.
Enjoy the pictures.

Guppy Guppy Guppy

We enrolled Eli at the Y for swimming lessons. Much to my dismay, she is fearless. I thought that she'd be at least slightly apprehensive about dunking her head under water. And she was. At first. She overcame that hurdle rather quickly and is now taking flying leaps off the side of the pool into her Daddy's arms (and sometimes not). She is also pushing off the wall and can swim a short distance -- using mostly momentum, but unassisted nonetheless. We call her Brave Princess Eli. She rather likes that title. For this fearless attitude and athletic prowess, I can take no credit. Stephen religiously takes her to the pool every Friday and Saturday and she is maybe a week or two away from swimming, he reports. Kudos to Daddy. Here's a little video clip of our little guppy jumping into the pool.

Ski Bunny Eli

During our weekend getaway at The Sider B&B, we ventured to Ski Roundtop with two goals: Eli gets on skis and Stephen and I try our hand at snowboarding. With a late start, we were only able to accomplish one ... Eli got on skis and she loved it! She had a few spills, but she got back up and wanted to keep going.
We're looking forward to the next ski trip. We figure a couple more times on the East Coast and then we'll be ready to join Aunt Betsy and Uncle Roger in Colorado to ski the Rockies. Breckenridge? Vail? Aspen? What fun we'll have! And until then, I'm not giving up on learning how to snowboard ...

Belated Birthday Wishes

Only a month behind ...

On January 17, Eli turned three. We celebrated by throwing a birthday party for her friends (and ours). We had a great turn out of friends and family and Eli's table of presents was simply outrageous. We appreciated everyone heeding the $10-we're-in-a-recession guideline (with the exception of her godparents, Jeff and Mitze, who apparently went on a Groovy Girl shopping spree). It was wonderful to see everyone, especially those we don't get to see too often, but most of all, Eli was just thrilled to be able to run around and play with all of her friends and "cousins." See below for a few photos (I only had time to take a few). I should've delegated that duty to someone else.