Eli Orson Pratt, Big Boy, Now 3-Years-Old

The title is in reference to what Eli tells people when they ask what his name is or how old he is.  He always says, "I'm Eli Orson Pratt, big boy, only two, almost three."  After his birthday yesterday, I told him he's going to have to take out the "only two" part.  He's working on it. :-)

He asked for a strawberry Peter Pan cake, so I did the best I could considering that Peter Pan is one of Disney's vaulted movies and there isn't a lot of easily available (and affordable) stuff out there.  There's a lot of Tinkerbell, but Eli is more interested in Peter Pan, Wendy, and Captain Hook.  Fortunately, he doesn't care about professionalism, and he loved it!

Eli kept begging to open his presents all day, and considering his age, I'd say he did a pretty good job at being patient.  However, we did turn around as we were preparing to light the candles on the cake to see him unexpectedly ripping the paper off one of his gifts.  There's only so long a three-year-old can wait. 

Just as he tells everyone, he is definitely becoming a big boy.  He now uses the big potty by himself.  He identifies letters and sounds, and he can count at least ten objects.  His memory is very good (or maybe I just think that because mine is getting worse).  He remembers the minutest details of both movies and books, and he consistently reminds me of things that I tell him.  He figures out most anything that's supposed to be childproof (yes, I know, he's a walking accident waiting to happen).  If he really concentrates, he can dress himself.  He knows how to answer a telephone, and he will sustain a pretty good conversation with you if he's in the mood.  He knows how to get what he wants without crying, and he's very good with his manners.  He's doing much better at sharing and playing nicely with others.  Though he is still messy when he eats, he is doing much better.  He does a pretty good job throwing a ball overhand.  He can ride his tricycle all by himself.  And, of course, there is so much more that I'm not including.  He is my big boy, and I love him so much.  How grateful I am that the Lord let him become part of our family!

Another Year, Another Rodeo

The Houston Rodeo just left town again, but not before we had a chance to go this past Saturday.  I never thought when we first moved here that we'd look forward to going to the rodeo every year, but we do.  I don't know if you have to live here to appreciate it or just attend once, but it's a lot of fun, especially when you have a little kid. 

We began our Saturday morning by watching what is called "Coon Jumping."  After watching it, I can tell you it's a bit of a misnomer because the coons aren't really the ones jumping.  The mules jump.  I guess it started in the backwoods of Kentucky when they were hunting coons and needed to jump fences.  Apparently horses need a running start, but mules don't.  Since it was dark and there wasn't room for a running start, mules were the animal of choice.  One day a bunch of fellas were bragging about how high their mules could jump, and now you know why the competition began.  Don't worry, if you're like me, you didn't have a clue that any of this stuff goes on.  But now you know, and I'm sure you consider yourself that much smarter for it. :-) 

After the coon jumping, Eli was dying to try out some of the rides, so he rode on a flying pirate ship (if you know how much he loves pirates these days--particularly Captain Hook--you know how much he loved it) and a dragon kiddie roller coaster.  I tried to convince him to no avail that he probably wouldn't enjoy the roller coaster.  Why did I think that?  We were at the park the previous day, and some older kids were on the seesaw.  Eli wanted aboard, and so they obliged.  At first he started saying, "Woohoo!"  Then, as they began going faster and higher, he looked at me with fear in his eyes and said, "Mommy, I'm scared."  That was why I was pretty sure he wasn't going to like the roller coaster.  But he insisted.  "It's scary," I said.  "No, Mommy, it's good.  Please?"  Well, I relented.  Sure enough, he was quite scared.  The first couple of times around, he was crouched down low with a look of terror on his face.  On the second to last time around, he turned to me and said, "Mommy, I want to get off."  Of course, there was not much I could do until the ride ended, but I couldn't help laughing just a little bit.  After all, it was kind of funny.  In fact, one of the kids in his nursery class showed up right after, and he too begged his parents to ride.  His parents told us he wanted to ride the big roller coaster with his daddy and older sisters and was quite disappointed when he couldn't.  But his ride on the kiddie roller coaster did not meet his expectations.  He was screaming and crying through the whole ride.  His parents laughed too, so I don't feel so bad.

After the rides (which Eli did not want to leave), Eli got to play pretend farm and see some of the animals.  Included in those were a ride on a tractor, which he wouldn't miss for the world, and petting the animals in the petting zoo.  Everything wore him out because he was quickly asleep in the stroller when we were standing in line for some yummy pecan cobbler.  Some of his first words upon waking when we got home were, "I want to go back to the rodeo."  I think that pretty much sums it up.  We had a lot of fun!

This is Eli watching the coon jumping.

This Is the coon jumping.

 

 

Can you tell he loved the flying pirate ship ride?

This is when the roller coaster first began.  Can you see the look of fear on his face?

This is near the end of the ride.  Can you see him mouth that he wants off?

The rodeo would never be complete without Eli sitting on one of the tractors.

The petting zoo

Why?

Eli has now entered the questioning stage; "Why?" is becoming his favorite phrase.  He also likes "what?" questions (particularly "What did you say?" even though he knows exactly what I said), but "why?" is definitely his favorite.  I can't get through a story now without him asking a bazillion questions.  In fact, as cute as it was in the beginning, it is now quite annoying.  Here's a typical exchange:

Me:  (reading from a story) "The man went to find his animals."

Eli:  "Why, Mommy, why?"

Me:  "Because he needed to take them back to his circus."

Eli:  "But why, Mommy?"

Me:  "Because they were lost."

Eli:  "Why?"

Me:  "Because that's how the story goes."

And so on and so on.  Many times I just have to say, "Let's read the story and find out." 

Of course, it's not just with stories, it's with everything.  Gone are the days of simply telling him something and having him be content with it.  He wants to know why for everything.  I know it's good because it shows his development, but it reminds me of when I was a young girl and my brothers would ask why after everything I said just to tease and annoy me.  In fact, though it's usually sincere, sometimes even Eli does it to tease me.  He'll ask why, and I'll respond, "I told you why."  Then he smiles that mischievous little grin at me and says, "Why, Mommy, why?"  Sometimes I respond with, "Why not?"  Unfortunately, that has now backfired on me and he uses that when I genuinely ask HIM a why question.  I think he's trying to prove he can outsmart his mom, and it's working.  I'm not sure how much smarter and more creative I can get, and he's only three (well, in a month anyway)!

Visiting Grandpa and Grandma Grant

It's been two weeks since we came home from visiting family in St. George, but I haven't had energy to blog about it.  We had tons of fun, but unfortunately, we brought a bug home with us, and it was particularly nasty.  I'm just now beginning to feel better, though I still have headaches, dizziness, and feel very tired.  I haven't been in that much pain for a long time, and nothing the doctor gave me relieved any of it.  Josh managed to evade the illness, which is typical for him, but Eli got it too.  He's had several doctor's appointments canceled for weather-related reasons, so I have to call again on Monday and hope he can get an appointment.  Nobody knows what to do down here when there's snow and ice, so everything gets shut down.  Josh was supposed to fly to San Fransisco last night, but his flight was canceled, so he's leaving tonight instead.  I get four days and nights alone with Eli.  I can't wait.  He's been tired, sick, and cranky; I've been tired, sick, and cranky.  It's been a rough couple of weeks.

However, we did enjoy a fun-filled week with the Grant Family before we got "attack of the nasty."  Here's some of what we did:

*We were expecting cold weather while we were there but were blessed with warmer temperatures, so we spent some time outside.  We had an enjoyable picnic with the family at a local park. 

*We tried to go hiking in Zion National Park, but because of the previous cold temperatures, there was a lot of snow and ice on the trails.  I think it's the first time I've heard Eli complain about hiking.  It was just too cold for him.  It was still beautiful, though, and we did enjoy a nice picnic there. 

*We went bowling.  It was Eli's first time since he was a baby, and he helped me knock down nine pins! 

*Josh and I went to the St. George temple, which we always love visiting since that's where we got married.  

*We had lots of fun talking, playing games, and meeting the new babies in the family!  Eli especially enjoyed the company of his cousin Sophee, who is just 5 1/2 months younger than he.