Pure, Unadulterated Joy

How else can I explain what I'm feeling right now? Lehr left way before the sun came up this morning for a well-deserved ski vacation with some friends. The only less-than-desirable result is me on full time Eli duty for five days immediately following a regular five-day work week. Not such a big deal normally, but Lehr is so good about giving me Saturday (and sometimes Sunday) 'off', so I anticipated the weekend of being 'on' full-time might be a challenge for me. Thankfully today (the hardest day due to no scheduled activities) went wonderfully. Eli and I went to Piedmont Park and walked and played the day away. I was so excited to see how much fun Eli had because back in the days before Eli, Lehr and I used to enjoy that park on a weekly basis. It is a great place to go and walk or kick a ball or sit and people-watch.

When we first arrived, Eli was very taken by the masses of people playing Frisbee-football (is there a more technical name for that game?). He sat in his stroller and watched them for a good ten minutes before I wheeled him away. He enjoyed his snacks and water while I walked around a few big loops. At the end of the walk I let him out on the grass so he could run around. Eli was in hog heaven. He inspected all of the trees, all of the bark, all of the leaves... He kept trying to walk back out onto the paved trail though, so I eventually pushed him and his stroller up the large hill so we could run and roll down. BRILLIANT! Eli loved how hard it was for him to walk down the hill. Even more, he loved when his legs gave out and he fell. Even more, he loved when I came up behind him after a fall and rolled him down the hill. Of course, because the grass is dead and dry, he accumulated at least two bags worth on his back, in his hair, in his diaper, under his shirt(s)....it was almost as bad as sand! This was one of the most enjoyable afternoons we've had in a long time. Even though winter only just got here, I'm already ready for spring so we can spend more of these days outside.

To cap off a great afternoon, Eli and I came home to eat lunch and another surprise awaited me. I've been really struggling with Eli's fruit consumption ever since I stopped pureeing his food several months back. He's usually a fan of bananas, but that's it. No matter what other fruit I offer, the only success I have is when it is cut up and 'hidden' in yogurt or oatmeal. So today, as he turned up his nose at grapes and bananas (great!), and as I was walking through the conversation I would need to have with his pediatrician next month, I decided to try one more fruit. Honestly, I wanted the nectarine, but I thought I'd offer him some just in case (even though I tried this last week with failure). Eli picked up the piece I cut for him and inhaled it so I quickly offered him a bite from the actual fruit. He loved it so I handed it to him and he polished off a little more than half. HALLELUJAH!!!