February 28, 2010

Dear Owen and Eli,

You are the sweetest little boys that we could have ever hoped for. You bring us so much joy and happiness and you show us so much love every day. It has been such a joy watching you grow for the last 18 months into the best friends that you are, and we can't wait to spend many, many more years with you to come. We love you more every day!

Love,
Mommy & Daddy

(Owen, Eli)

(the next two are Eli)

(the next two are Owen)(Eli, Owen)

A snapshot of the boys at 18 Months:

• Words: mama, dada, uh-oh, Eli, cookie, cracker, baby, baba and nana (banana), shoes, juice, teeth, ni-ni, bu-bye, yeah, no, milk, ba (bath), bo (book), wa (water), bi (Bible), det-do (thank you), ball, more, hot, sna (snack), bii (bite (as in, of food))
• Animal Sounds: moo (cow), ba (sheep), e-ow (meow), eee-oo-oo-oo (monkey), kkk (like a pink's oink), lipsmack (fish), arrr (lion, tiger, bears, dino, cheetah...), howling like a wolf (also doubles as a siren noise)
• Actions: fold hands to pray, give kisses (saying 'mmma!'), motions for Itsy-Bitsy spider, identify their heads, teeth, toes, nose, ears, belly and my baby (pointing to my belly), dance with music, touchdown, high-five, clap, wave, blow kisses
• Activities: give each other rides in the red car, give each other kisses, bring each other their blankies, Owen 'kisses the baby' in the tub (his own reflection), running and hiding when chased (especially at bedtime), going down the steps facing forward (instead of on their bellies), walking up the stairs (instead of climbing on all fours), great with puzzles, shape sorter, hammer and nails and wind up cars, saying uh-oh prior to dropping something (even on purpose!), love bathtime - especially splashing, love to play on tunnels and slides in play areas
• Things That Cause Tantrums: turning off Little People, making them come inside after walking from the car to the front door, toy stealing, trying to feed Eli something with a spoon instead of letting him do it himself
• Our Favorite Things: holding both boys on our lap at one time to read to both of them, especially when they are so excited about the book that they end up sitting on each other's lap instead, getting big hugs after we've been away from them, (Charlie) seeing both boys watch him out the front door windows as he leaves for work , Eli getting Owen's monkey and giving it to him, when one puts the binky in for the other one, holding their hands and going for walks, when laying on the floor, Eli will always lay on top of us to give us a hug, Owen's goofy belly laugh when he's tickled
• Eli in a nutshell: He is our little lover. Gives unprompted kisses and hugs to us and Owen all the time, loves to laugh, loves to dance, is very vocal and talks all the time (even though we can't understand most of what he says). When we're in public, people are always saying "I'll bet he's your trouble maker, right?" He is, but only because he's so full of life and energy! He is so independent, especially when feeding himself but is never far from Owen and takes care of him by bringing him his monkey and binky at bedtime and pushing him in the red car.
• Owen in a nutshell: He is our giggly little man. Owen almost always has a smile on his face and his little bulldog cheeks just make you want to squeeze him all the time. Owen is our dare-devil, always figuring out the best way to climb on something or stack something up to balance on top of. Owen gets excited about baths, snacks, putting his shoes on and going bye-bye. Though he shows Eli the ropes on how to try new things, he watches Eli and waits for his leadership in public, especially around new people. People will usually say "I'll bet he's your quiet one, right?" No! He might be contemplative in public at first, but he'll be your best bud once he warms up to you.

We are so blessed for these last 18 months and can't wait to introduce the boys to a new brother or sister for them to love!