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.