Watercolors!

My little emerging artist had his first brush with the canvas on Sunday. In a previous trip to Walmart, I was lured into the craft world by all of the fun back to school supplies. I bought some crayons, watercolors, and drawing paper and began thinking of all sorts of fun "crafty" ideas for the future. We have colored with crayons a few times recently and let me say that those 24 crayons were definitely worth each of the 19 cents I paid for them! Eli and I both have fun coloring, although he does more banging on the paper with the crayon than drawing. I never really realized that coloring took a certain amount of finesse, but I'm sure that will come eventually...and in the mean time we will have fun anyway. :) Below you will see some pictures of our first painting experience with watercolors. It was a fun art project and not too messy when I confined him to his high chair. Behold, my little artist...

My very somber, serious artist hard at work.

"Let's see, what shall I paint today?"

"Let me just examine my palate for a moment and think..."

"Ah, I know just the thing!

"Let me just get a little of this purple..."

"And, hmmm..."

"Ah yes, a little black..."

"Now I'll swirl it around in the cup of water..."

"Yes, it looks like that is sufficient swirling..."

"And presto!"

"My materpiece is complete!  No more photographs please...I do not want them damaging my painting."

Like every great artist, Eli had a rinse down in the sink afterward. :)

Good thing this one is washable. :)  I'm pretty sure Elijah has just as much fun being washed down in the sink as he does making the mess in the first place!

Of all the dishes that I wash in that sink, this one is certainly my favorite. :)  Thanks for the painting fun, little man, you are a natural!

Teachable Moments

Here is a glimpse of last night’s teachable moment between Daddy and Eli. 

Setting:  Eli’s highchair during dinnertime.

Daddy: “No no, Eli.  Don’t throw your beans and corn.”

Eli: “No No!”

Daddy: “That’s right, no no.  No throwing beans and corn off of your high chair.”

Eli: “No no.  Beans.  Corn.  No no!”  (pronounced “beeee”  “koooor”)

Daddy:  “Good, beans and corn.  No no.  If you’re done just say “all done” but we don’t throw our beans and corn off of the high chair.”

Eli: “No no.  Corn.  Beans.  No no!  Beans.  Corn.”

Daddy: “That’s right, no throwing your corn and beans. 

Eli:  “Ball!  No no!”

Daddy: “You can throw your ball, just not your corn and beans.”

Eli:  “No, no, ball.  Beans.  Corn. No no!”

Daddy:  “You can throw your ball.  You just can’t throw your corn and beans.”

And on it goes while Mommy watches cheerfully from the sidelines.  Oh the joys of childrearing.  Enjoying each teachable moment with our little treasure!” 

Florida

We recently went on a family vacation to Florida.  We had the most wonderful time!  We loved getting to be together with grandparents, parents, aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces, nephews, and kids, not to mention the beautiful Florida white sand beaches!  Elijah had a great time too and was at a wonderful age for the beach.  He was able to run around and play and seemed to really enjoy the sand.  He especially enjoyed his cousins and jumped right in with "the pack." :)  We are so thankful for our families and love every moment we get to spend with them.  Thanks for all the wonderful memories...we are already looking forward to the next Florida beach trip!!

Eli with his cousins Asher, Emory, and Abram

Elijah loved walking down the beach (just like his mommy!)

The whole clan going for a walk

Eli is only 16 months old and already has a farmers tan :)

While Elijah loved to walk down the beach, he never wanted to turn around and walk back.  Here is Daddy carrying him back from their walk.

Eli longing to run back down the beach and explore new territory

Asher did a silly run that cracked Elijah up!  You can see Eli giggling at Asher who is just to the left of the shot.

Trying to run like his cousin Asher

Fun times at the beach down by the water!

Annual Boys Whiffle Ball Game

Watching the big boys play

"I want to play too!  Dad, can I be on your team?!"

"Watch out for that guy on 3rd!"

"I better get over there...looks like they could really use my help!"

Eli literally looking up to his bigger cousin Abram in matching outfits

Eli 16 months, Abram 2 1/2

Abram telling Elijah some little boy jokes... :)

"That's hilarious!"

"You are one funny guy, did you know that?"

"I like you!"

Partners in crime...busting into the cabinets to see what kind of trouble they can get into

At the airport saying bye-bye to Pops and Mamie in front of a very bright window.  Thanks for the fun times everyone!

Camp Cislaghi

To shake things up a bit, we recently did a little "redecorating" in our front playroom.  It has just been SO hot lately that we've been spending a lot of time playing indoors.  What better than a tent inside the house to add a little spice to the day?  Below you can see a few pictures of our indoor camping adventure.  Elijah had a great time playing in the tent and was none the wiser that camping trips usually take place outdoors. :) 

Daddy and Eli checking out the tent

"Daddy, do you really expect me to sit on your lap and pose for a picture when I have this awesome new tent to explore?!"

Not the most graceful exit, but it gets the job done.

"Welcome to our humble abode!"

Morning of day 2 and tent is just as exciting.  Boomerang joins in the camping fun.

"Reading" books inside the tent

Such a studious little guy already!

"Hi Mom!  Reading books in the tent is so much fun!"

While this picture is not exactly a framer, I love it because you can see Elijah running from Boomerang's bed over to the tent and he is just so excited.  Eli is definitely "toddler running" now and is getting really quick!

Made it!

Me and my silly boy...and Tad the frog :)

Thanks for visiting Camp Cislaghi!  Our playroom is now back to normal, but who knows when the tent will show up again for more indoor (air conditioned) fun. :)