Elliot & Andrew have a symbiotic relationship where Elliot loves watching other kids and Andrew loves attention. He would always make sure Elliot was watching before doing something cool.
Highly entertaining activities for the both of them
I walked in on this. I hope my kids love reading as much as their cousins do!
Elliot got mildly jealous of Eli at one point.
sizing up the competition
"I can totally lie on a blanket like a newborn!"
After this it quickly deteriorated to the point where I had to rescue Eli from Elliot rolling on top of him
Rebekah made this in school a while back. I'm so glad that I married into a family where I get to be an aunt!
Now for the highlight of the trip: Benjamin's birthday party! It was Spiderman/Star Wars/Inside Out themed. A true recipe for success.
The new 3 year old steps up for the first swing at the pinata
I feel kind of bad about this one. I caught a big ol' grasshopper in the back yard and put it on Elliot's leg to see how he would react. The grasshopper must have been already injured or old or something, because Elliot managed to pick it up and proceeded to throw repeatedly on the ground.
Checking out his bug
His standard "look at this mom" pose
He was in his serious mode that he goes into when checking out something new
Let's just say that the grasshopper wasn't in great shape when I eventually took it away from Elliot. I don't think he realized it was alive.
When not playing in the gravel, Elliot likes to push around his lion thing that mysteriously stops and starts making sounds. We thought the battery was long dead, but it somehow started working again for one day, then died again. Weird.
Elliot with his lion walker
Cracking up because it was playing music when he pushed the nose
This one has been our favorite lately. We frequently watch it before going to bed at night.
He just says it so cute! I love how his lips purse out.
This is very typical of Elliot lately. His favorite thing has shifted from 'cords, especially ones plugged into outlets' to 'buttons of all varieties, but especially the power strip off button that makes mom reset the clock on her nightstand.' He frequents this room to turn the monitor off and on.
Here's some typical playing and chatting in his bedroom:
I found this curtain rod box when cleaning out a closet. It has become one of Elliot's favorite toys. It is usually propped up on the bookshelf so that he can drop cars and other small objects down the slide.
Our Stake Activity this weekend had a petting zoo! Honestly, Aaron and I were more excited about seeing Elliot interact with the animals than Elliot turned out to be. We were surprised because he really likes petting our friends' dogs.
He did not appreciate being shoved towards a goat
Hand curled to avoid contact
Checking out a nice sheep
Being intimidated by another goat
Elliot quickly decided that the hay was way more interesting and fun to play with than the animals
He made an exception for the tortoise that all but crawled into him. He gave the tortoise a few pats.
Facing down a pig
He got a bath after because his whole body smelled like hay
