Full of Surprises

Well, I've got one hand on the pacifier and one typing. Wish me luck.

This week brought with it some great memories and milestones for the three of us. Eliot's feeding has been stepped up and he has responded splendidly. Also, he has become quite fond of his pacifier (thus, the five-finger typing project). Ginny has noticed that he begins to pucker about five minutes prior to feeding time. What a kid. Another surprising development has been Eliot's playfulness with the toys attached to his seat. Most every time that he is put into his seat, he will stare long & hard at the objects in front of him; he will then reach out and tap them. At first, we thought we were being naive and there was no way he meant to. However, he has proved us wrong as he repeatedly performs. That may fall in to "the things only a parent can appreciate" department, but we were overjoyed.

Ginny and I are loving every moment. I have decided to not go back to law school for the semester and am considering a part-time job in the afternoon. Ginny is looking forward to possibly easing back into Virginiabead (www.virginiabead.com). However, truth be known, we have both cleared our plates in order to enjoy the life given to us.

Sorry, for only one picture posted. Eliot had a photo shoot this week. The picture above is a product of that time, and many more will follow when we receive the rest. Rumor is we'll post some more pictures earlier than next Wednesday, but no promises.

In the way of memories, many were made. We'll share two that stand out. First, the three of us walked (and rode) to the park a couple of blocks from our house. About a mile out from home, and without warning, it started to rain. Gradually, the drops progressed to what must have been the hardest rain, thus far, of the summer. At first, mom and dad were a little shell-shocked, feeling as if we had the "awful parents" award in the bag. But a funny thing happened- we pulled the handy cover completely over our son- and had the time of our lives. We laughed, found cover and then opted to get soaked and take it all in. Eliot has a knack for turning the potentially frightening into fantastic.

I must apologize in advance, for this next memory will not be done justice by my words. Eliot turned one month on Sunday! (Hands down, favorite sentence I have ever written.) Early in the day, Ginny and I talked of how we wished we had invited a lot of people over in order to celebrate. We wanted the full birthday experience for him- the whole nine yards. We decided to forgive ourselves since things had been a tadbit crazy, and resolved to make him a cake ourselves. About 4 O' clock in the afternoon, Ginny heard something outside our door. We were expecting a couple who had called to come visit. Ginny yelled back to me, "Oh my gosh, there's a lot of them".

Ginny grabbed Eliot and the three of us met at our front door. There before us, outside, in the sweltering heat, was 14 of our friends and 6 of their kids holding balloons and singing happy birthday. At the song's end, they all came in, bringing gifts and a birthday cake for Eliot. It was a real-deal, surprise party. They released 31 balloons to celebrate 31 days of life for Eliot. People were everywhere, Eliot's friends were crying, and all hands were grabbing for cake...it was beautiful chaos. When it was over, Ginny and I sit together crying, discussing how not a sole would ever know the significance of that event in our lives. Only the Father could have crafted such a gift. Thanks friends...you'll never know.

Updates on Wednesdays. Please continue to pray. Thanks to all those who posted last week. We wake up each morning and read them. If you don't post, we don't know.