eli turned four

i'm too young to already have a four year old, right?!? four just seems so much bigger and older than three. and i can't believe my baby eli just keeps getting bigger and bigger. he has been extremely excited for his birthday. i reminded him that in primary they would sing happy birthday to him and he was soooo excited. he loves participating in whatever he can during sharing time, so the thought of him standing in front of everyone to have them sing to him was very exciting (eli and i are not so a like in this way...). i loved seeing him soak it all in and seeing how excited he was.

eli decided on donuts instead of cake for his birthday, and when i asked him if he wanted them for breakfast or for dessert after dinner, of course he wanted it with breakfast. so he was pretty psyched to start his day with his favorite treat and a smoothie.

right after breakfast eli opened his presents. you see the captain america and thor masks/weapons in the background? those were his original presents that the little sneaker found a couple weeks ago in our closet. so we put them out to remind him

isaac was a little confused on why he didn't get to open any of the presents.

 one of eli's favorite presents was his new clippers jersey that he immediately put on.

here is eli and isaac on the day e found his presents early. and they staying looking like this for pretty much the next few days straight.

 later that day we went swimming at aunt erin's pool. it was gorgeous weather and we had a great time together.

here are some examples on why you should be impressed when i actually get a picture with eli looking normal/smiling. he is quite the poser.

erin gave eli a blake griffin doll that eli is pretty obsessed with.

 that evening we had an early dinner at home and then went down to the pier for some fun. can you believe eli's lived about 3 miles away from the pier for his whole life and we've never taken him on the ferris wheel? well, thats what he wanted to do so we made an evening of it.

impromptu dance party

and eli kept it going

then we spent some time at the arcade for the boys to play some games.

after eli was done playing this game i turned around to find isaac with his head under the plastic trying to grab the hoop. whoops....

eli picked out a jet with all the tickets he got. and as you can see from his face, it was time to head home and go to bed. but not before we went back to our car to find we got a ticket cause we weren't supposed to be parked in that lot after sunset. super lame. 

instead of my listing off everything that is eli like i usually do, during dinner on his birthday i just asked him questions, and here's what he said-

best friends: westin, tyson, easton, brennen and isaac.
favorite thing to watch on tv: star wars (he's only seen this at his cousins house, but it has made quite the impact on him : ), avengers, and power rangers.
favorite toy: captain america shield and mask, and his storm troopers.
favorite things to do: play superheros, and ride his scooter and balance bike, and build things.
favorite places to go: the park, disneyland, mumsy's house, and utah.
favorite superhero: captain america.
what do he wants to be when he grows up: a vampire (no idea...).
favorite animal: alligator.
favorite color: red. but when he turns five his favorite color will be yellow.
favorite team: clippers.
favorite food: nachos with cheese and beans.
favorite words: poop and fart (i can't even tell you how often i hear these during the day...)
favorite song: we are young.
favorite church song: jesus wants me for a sunbeam.
what he is good at: playing everything, like soccer. and doing flips on the bed.


dear eli,
you are so full of life. you always have been. you wear your emotions on your sleeve, so everyone around you is affected by your big personality and thunderous energy. i love the stage of life you are at. you have always been curious (so curious that before you turned one your dad had already made up a song about you being "mr. curious"), but that curiosity about the world has turned you into quite the inquisitive little learner and you always want to learn about something new. usually those learning sessions take place in the car when you say, "hey mom, i want to talk about ....", and then when i think i've given a good explanation of what you wanted to talk about, you typically respond with, "tell me more about it". you are a smart little one, and am always impressed by what comes out of your mouth. you are strong willed and can be hard-headed, and give me plenty of glimpses into what raising you as a teenager is going to be. you are passionate and can be extremely sweet when the time is right. you are protective of your little brother, and even when he hurts you and i take him out of the room, you always run to him crying to give him a hug and make sure he's okay. that sweetness and protectiveness melts my heart. your "little buddy" adores you and looks up to you so much already. your dad and i are so incredibly in love with you. thanks for being our son, we are eternally grateful for you.

love,
mom