SIX years old

Oh Eli, 

It’s happening. You’re turning into a little kid. No longer a toddler or a little boy, but a KID. Today you say in your chair reading books on Pokémon quietly to yourself while the girls played. And it dawned on me your interest in reading and learning is so strong. Far surpassing that if your sister who could care LESS about picking up a book just to learn out of curiousity. You received your first trimester kindergarten grades yesterday from school, not one minus or one 2/3, only all 3’s and positive things from your teacher. She speaks of how you are the leader in class, setting the example for all the other. This brings joy to my mommy heart because without even trying, you have became a boy of honor and integrity. You love so hard. You make good choices , you throw HUGE ass tantrums over doing your kumon, but you hold two silver medals in both reading and math at kumon, far surpassing many other kids in your age bracket. I am giddy to think of your future and where you will be in twenty years from today. What you will show a passion for in life .. for now you enjoy wrestling, bike riding, Pokémon, super Mario games, school, riding scooters and just being outdoors. You dressed up as MARIO on an inflatable yoshi for Halloween as well at thanks from Avengers. You still have not lost a tooth or gotten a cavity. You make many friends in school (mostly all the asians because you’re super smart I’m convinced) . Your favorite color is yellow and silver. You still sneak in mom and dads bed for cuddles a lot. You love roller coasters at Disneyland . You love donuts and sausage for breakfast, you can eat like no other. You weigh 60 pounds (the same as debs and she’s two years older than you). You know how to show love and affection in a way that just blows my mind. You still love playing with your nipples, an indicator for dad and I that it’s time for bed. You have had the same haircut since you were two and it suits you. Thank you for being born and being you Eli Donald alexander, you truly are one of my life’s biggest a joys . Xoxox 

The mighty mighty FIVE

holy smokes it’s been a long time. You JUST turned five a few weeks ago. You weigh FIFTY THREE  pounds (yes, you read that right, you are a TANK). You are 44” tall and you wear a size 6/7 in clothing. This year we threw you a giant #5 party at the house, with a photo booth, face painter and a bounce house. The theme was “HULK” . You LOVE all things hulk, all things green because of hulk, and the great Wolf lodge. Every time anyone asks you what to get for a gift you say Disneyland or great wolf. Papa took you to great wolf overnight as a present for your 5th birthday. You were y’all enough this time to go one all but two rides. You loved it (and Deb happened to have lost her 6th tooth in the lazy river ).
You are currently in TK at grapeland elementary, and let me tell you, you SOAR. There are times i think you have been in this world before, maybe even a few lifetimes. You are just so damn smart and so damn giving. I wonder How me and your father will teach you ANYTHING because it seems you are the one teaching us all about life and love. Your grandma Mimi has always said you have an “old soul” , she’s right, you just get it. Everything comes natural to you; school, friendships, snuggles, love. Man would your grandma Debbie love you. I often think about how much she would love to watch you all grow, especially around these days of her passing. If only she would have hung on a little longer, you and your sisters would have fulfilled her life’s dreams of granparenting. You and Deborah are currently in an after school program called KUMON, it focuses on math and reading; and MAN are you competitive. You just can’t stand being behind Deborah. You try and beat her at EVERYTHING. If she is reading a book and uncertain of a word you try to say it faster than she. Your teacher Mrs. Smith speaks so highly of you, mentioning you are top of the class and often the one most others follow and look up to. I just love yo hear it, to know that you are kicking ass and taking names .
You love a lot of things, but bike riding seems to be one of your favorites. You love to race at the bike track and also excel at that as well (surprise surprise). You win trophies and when it’s just a medal necklace you get disappointed. Dad has taken you to state races even to support your hobby (sometimes i think he loves it more than you do). You also love swimming, playing with your cousin Jacob and your best pal Tyler .
You are super independent, love to do things on your own (brush your teeth, get dressed, make your bed, clean your room. You hate other people making a mess of your room (especially your little sister and your little cousin Nathan). You have a short temper. You get MADDDDDD when you are mad. You are stubborn. It’s hard to talk you off a ledge once you are on it. I cannot Convince you of ANYTHING. You just believe what you believe and that’s it, no room for argument.
You have still never had a cavity (Deborah has). . You still have alll your baby teeth (tell one to come out already). Your hair is almost brown , your eyes are green. Your feet are HUGE.
You HATE the mornings, being woken up early , taking naps, being told no, eating broccoli or any veggie at that (your favorite is asparagus) , you don’t like shrimp (Deb and iris do). You can take down an 8 oz fillet faster than i can. You love hot dogs and Mac n cheese. Everything is a negotiation, “if i eat all my chicken can i have Desert?”. You are an awesome big brother , you often will even let iris or Deb smack you and you won’t smack back. You humble me, make me see how precious this life is. I  always thought a boy wasn’t my jam, you have proven that to be wrong. You were sent to me for a purpose, to remind me of the greatness of the unknown and unexpected (i always Wanted girls).  You come into my and daddy’s bed nearly EVERY NIGHT for love and snuggles and sleep and i dont Get mad one bit. One day you won’t want to and man does that already make me wanna year up. Thank you for another year of love, of life and joy. I love You Eli

Alexander

THREE sweet sweet really fast years

Eli,  holy smokes dude you are THREE!!! Right before my eyes you have become an absolute angel, like something I never knew I needed but received. I always wished for girl babies, thinking it would fill the void of my mothers loss, rekindle a relationship I longed for that was missing since your grandmother passed TEN years ago this Christmas Eve. But I couldn't be more wrong. I NEEDED a little man in my life, change, growth, love that I had never experienced. And I can tell you that you came and have me that. You have loved me HARD, made me feel whole when parts of me were missing. I thank you for being that rowdy, crazy, rambunctious little boy I never thought I would have. This last year you have gotten staples from Deborah pushing you off the block wall and dermabond to your right eyebrow ( I honestly can't remember from what). You CONSTANTLY having me questioning my nursing abilities, always thinking I need to RUSH you to the ER for head injuries. But I guess that's part of being a BOY, because your big sister has NEVER given me the worry you do. You LOVE monster trucks, motorcycles, any marvel character (particularly iron man Batman and spiderman) . Your favorite thing to say is, " you know that?" When you feel like you are not being heard you will grab my face and turn it to look you in the eyes while you speak. You love KISSES, Disneyland ( your favorite ride is star tours)  you are dressing up as darth vadar for Halloween and your 3rd birthday party will be CARS themed with a snow cone truck instead of cake and ice cream. You enjoy school, have started a sport all class after school on Wednesday with sister.  You love riding your bike, riding your jeep in the backyard, spraying the hose, going in the spa at night, watching cars DVD and turtles episodes. I have loved every minute of watching you grow and love this world you are living in!!! HAPPY 3 ELI Alexander  

 

  

1st day of pre-k

My sweet little man, you started pre-k. And at the young age of 2, you were begging. Every day we dropped Deborah off and picked her up you wanted to stay. You sat at her table and ate lunch with her, pretending to be one of the big kids. So your father and I decided to look into a montessori school, so you and Deborah could be in the same class and the same school. I dropped you off and had SO many doubts. I called the school and they said you were crying, asking for your mommy. I must have called daddy 10 times that day, asking if we had made the right decision putting you in school instead of letting you stay at home. But you are sooo wise beyond your years. You are too smart to sit at home and play baby with me and Iris. And you know what, we were right. Montessori says you ROCK!!! That you are so determined and focused on learning. That you don't even need direction, you just do it on your own. I see such great things in your future Eli. I just know you are destined for greatness. Sky is the limit little man . 

STAPLES

IOh sweet boy, your sister pushed you into the bed of rocks and you got yourself some staples this week. You got up and said "mommy, owie" blood all over, I panicked and called your dad. Put you in the shower with me to visualize how big the wound was and mom and dad decided you could just use some staples

from home instead of an ER visit. 

So two staples it was ( you could have used 3 and moms aim was kind of off on the second) . A Popsicle later and you forgot all about it. Every time someone asks to see your owie you say "DJ push me, I got owie" . You're the sweetest boy ever at 2.5 yrs old. You love talking, ask almost everyday to go to the park or Disneyland. You were tall enough yesterday to ride on soaring over California with daddy and sister while mom and iris stayed back. 

You love riding your bike, playing with turtles and Spider-Man, jumping on the trampoline, going in the spa at night, dressing yourself, riding keeps in the backyard and eating lots of Popsicles . You are an absolute joy and I love every minute of you. 

28 months

You are 28 months and the smartest toddler I know. You LOVE to learn. You can identify letters and count to 3 on your hand. You are in the process of potty training with very few potty accidents but quite a bit of poop accidents. You are OBSESSED with toy cars, monster trucks, ninja turtles, darth vadar & MILK. Any kind of milk, chocolate, vanilla, strawberry, regular, you LOVE it all. You and Deb play soooo good together, often in the backyard on your jeeps or in the trampoline. You guys love being outside, looking for Rollie pollies, watering the plants, painting, playing with rakes and brooms, picking up patches poop. You name it, if it's outdoors you are all over it. You also love swords, play guns, balls, anything that can be used as a weapon🤔🤔🤔. This last week you became a BIG brother to baby Iris and you are a little confused and taken aback by her presence. You love shoving the pacifier in her mouth and taking the swaddles off her while she's sleeping. You hate that she takes away your mommy time. These infant weeks are hard on you but I just know you will make the best brother ever . Can't wait to watch you grow more

My love xoxoxo

22 sweet sweet months

The You are am the cutest boy in the WHOLE world. BUT, you remain to be the worlds worst sleeper ever. We began to sleep train you after a few camping trips this summer. You starting crying it out for almost an hour and a half for two straight nights. Some nights you still cry for close to 30 minutes and it's gut wrenching for mommy, but boy you REALLY need to start sleeping through the night. I bring you in my room when I feel extra sad and emotional but then you think it's awake time at 0500 and you won't go back down to sleep. You don't show any signs for toilet training just yet. You pull your diaper off after you pee but when you are on the potty you just flush the toilet a thousand times and play with the toilet paper. You hate changing your clothes. You still hate getting into your car seat. You are beginning to string three words together. You can say "I want that" "this way" "no no DJ" "go patches" "milk" "outside" "pool" and many other words. You have the coolest haircut in all of the lbs. you weigh 33 pounds and are 36" tall. You absolutely adore your sister. We drop her off for school and you run back in her classroom to get her because you want her with you. You guys are always holding hands and playing together. You always steal her toys, she's not too happy about that. Your hair is blonde, eyes are hazel green, size 5 diapers and size 2-3T clothes.