Happy 4th of July!

Happy 4th everyone!
We had such a wonderful holiday! We went to Boulder City and had a barbeque at Adam's Aunt's house, and then watched fireworks at the park there. They were so beautiful! I made that cool whip American Flag dessert, which is the one in the picture of our little family. My sister Allie joined us, and it was so fun! I just love spending time with her, I miss her so much now that we live so far apart. She really is such a beautiful, thoughtful, loving little sister, and I am so grateful for her in my life.
The fireworks were beautiful! And if any of you know Adam very well, it won't surprise you that he lugged our camera, video camera and tripod down to the fireworks and took about a million pictures... gotta love him! Ellie did so great! She loved the fireworks, and she just watched the sky, mezmerized. She didn't even flinch at the big booms, and we were really close. The child never ceases to surprise me. It was such a wonderful evening, beautiful, warm, with a gorgeous sunset to make it a perfect setting. It was so fun to be together with so much family, and to watch Ellie enjoy the fireworks. It was my favorite fourth of July of my entire life, by far. I love it!

Eliana's First Poem

The other day I was holding Ellie in my arms while I was typing on the computer. She showed great interest in what I was doing and decided that she would like to give it a whirl. I decided that I would open up a word document and let her type her very first document. I then decided that it I would help her put her document in to a poem. Together we created an acrostic poem. Below you will find her original as well as the Daddy / Daughter Version. It is a poem that signifies the time that passes us all by so quickly and the bonds between a mother and daughter. Let us know what you think.

Original:

T U J J J J J J J M M N S M N M N J , K , 8 H N 7 H M M J M T R C Y Q 6
^ M 5 H [ } “ { [ [ [ , M , I / / G N A B B B B B B B B B V “
I I I I I I I I I I I I M (The “I”s were actually straight slashes… but Blogger could handle that.)

(Remember the "I"s at the beginnings are supposed to be straight lines)


To my mommy,
U are my special fwend
Just you
Just me
Just Daddy
Just us
Just loving each other
Just for a moment
Just forever
My family means the world to me

MY HEART GWOWS EVWY DAY
NUZZLE ME AGAIN MOMMY
Hold to the wod wif one had and hold my hand wif the other


Show me how to do that mom

Make my peanut butter sandwich into a heart shape pwease
Nummy nummy for my tummy
Mommy, can I have a glass of milk?
Now sit and play wif me
, Wait just one more minute pwease
Key to Mommy’s hear is my bottom wip
, Wait for just one very lastest minute Mommy
8 all my vegables
Happiness
Nub you too Mom
7 kisses just for you
Hold me close

My mom’s the bestest

Mom it’s okay. I’ll be home from kinder garden soon
Just relax
My teacher is really nice
Take me to the mall please mom
Ready!
Can I get this dress mom? It’s Perfect!
Y are you crying mom?
Quit worrying so much
6 o’clock is when the dance starts

^ Why did you wait up? I told you I’d be fine

Married! We’re getting married!
5 more days until the big day
Happy as can be
Hold to the rod with one had and hold my had with the other
[ The bride’s family is on the left
} The groom’s family is on the right
“I do”
{The groom’s guests left
[ My guests left
[ Daddy left
[ Mommy left


,Take a deep breath
My family is still my family

, Take another deep breath


I Hold to the rod
/ Oops!

I Hold to the rod again

G, I didn’t know life could be this tough

No, I can’t come home for Christmas Mom.
A BABY!

Boy
Blue eyes
Brown Hair
Beautiful
Best thing I ever did
Benjamin Adam
Beautiful
Bawled like a baby
Beautiful
Very painful!
“I will”
I (1)
I (2)
I (3)
I (4)
I (5)
I (6)
I (7)
I (8)
I (9)
I (10)
I (11)
I (12)
I’ve heard that families can grow apart like the 12 tribes of Israel

My mom always told me that families can be together forever….and I’ve always believed her.


Written by Eliana Virginia West with the help of Adam West
Summer 2008

This is a video that came by I.C.G. (Inspired Creative Genius)

I was watching my beautiful baby play in her crib and naturally I thought...Let's make a movie. So together we created our first installment of the Daddy and Baby Independent Films. This one is called Babyzilla. The inspiration for this film was sudden and yet, it's a timeless tale. A story that transcends racial, ethnic, and gender lines. The recurring theme throughout it is as ancient as time itself. Behold...the uncontested truth... Babies will eat anything!!!

Happy Father's Day!

I just wanted to take a second and wish Adam a happy first Father's Day! I know he has looked forward his whole life to becoming a father, and I know he is the perfect father for our little daughter. He loves her so much, and she adores him. I am so grateful for them both! I adore the way he gives her a bath every night and the way the play and laugh most of the time. I love being able to hand her to him and not having to worry for even a second that she will be unhappy or unsafe. I am ecstatic that he wants to be a big part in her life, and I secretly laugh at the way he mourns the end of each day as she grows bigger and bigger.

Father's are such an important part of a child's life, and they do so much for their families just by sticking by them and doing their absolute best each day. I wish all the dads out there, including my wonderful father and Adam, a Happy Father's Day!

Random June Thoughts

So this month Ellie was really ready for solids and she is enjoying her rice cereal very much :) We have a little chair for her that attaches to our table, and she is doing so well sitting up! Her and Daddy have sitting practice every day, and she just loves to look at the world from a new point of view.

These other pictures are my silly husband's attempt at Cinco De Mustache, which is apparently a festival in the summer somewhere in the midwest. He just cracks me up! It's like having my own personal entertainer 24/7!

Wisdom Teeth

This month has also been busy because the day Adam had his last day of work, he had his wisdom teeth removed! He had to have the procedure done in a hospital because of his heart condition, but everything went just fine. He got a little swollen, and he was out of it for a week, but he is back on his feet now with only a little tenderness!

Ellie and I took care of him while he was out, but he was a very good little patient :) This has been such an ordeal, and we have been trying to get his teeth out for 6 months now! I think we are all relieved it is finally done.

5 months!

Eliana is now 5 months old! Yay! It is so exciting to watch her grow and develop every day. I have not been keeping up on my pictures like I should have lately, and I now have several blogs to publish in a row, but it has been such a busy month so far! Ellie got her first tooth on the day she turned 5 months- yay! These are some of my favorite pictures of Ellie this month. She is such a cutie, and I love love love her little chubby cheeks! We could not have asked for a sweeter, cuter, easier baby- I am so in love!

Eliana Laughing!

Some Firsts for Ellie Belle

Ellie had her first solid food! She seemed to really enjoy it. She even tried "helping," which means grabbing the spoon and feeding herself! She was pretty good at it too, she actually made it in her mouth some of the time :)

It turns out she is not quite ready for solids yet, though. She liked the rice cereal, but she isn't hungry enough for it quite yet. We will try again in a few weeks :) It sure is fun to see her experience new things though! Watching her encounter the world for the first time with such wonder and awe, it is so sweet. This month was filled with a few other firsts, including the first time her toes touched the grass and the first time her toes were dipped in a pool! She just loves new experiences. She is so much more interactive with the world around her everyday. She smiles and coos at all the new faces she meets, and is such a happy baby. I just love her!

Texas!

This past week Ellie and I went to Texas to see my family. Adam was in Washington, D.C. with his fifth grade class, and I thought it was a great opportunity to go see my mom :) We had a great time! We flew into San Antonio and spent the day at the Riverwalk. Ellie went on her first boat ride, and she was such a good baby the whole day. Of course she has captured her grandparents' hearts, and they doted upon her the entire week.
This picture is of my mom and Ellie at Johnathan's baseball game- it was so cold! Ellie also did a little flirting with a certain toddler boy with blonde curly locks... tsk tsk tsk :)
We hung around my mom's restaurant and ate really good food during the week, and really enjoyed spending time with mom, John, Johnny, Grandma Kay, Athena the great dane, all ten of her puppies, Atlanta the border collie, Snow Balls the cat, Angelo the cat, and many many more animals all on the Mcdonald farm. My mom always loved a house full!
We are very glad to be home, in our own beds, and ready to take on the huge task of moving across the country. It sure was fun to have a little vacation though :)

Daddy is my homeboy

This is a onesie Adam picked out before Ellie was born, and he was so excited about it! When Ellie turned 3 months, we took this pic because she finally fit into it. I can hardly believe how fast she is growing, it is so amazing to watch! I am so blessed, I really do have a wonderful family. These two are so cute together, I just love it! Adam told me he would have a million children if he could, he was born to be a father- lol! I am definitely enjoying this one, but I think my maximum number is much closer to 4 than a million...

A day in the life of a teacher in Vegas...

Adam in his protective gear- Tooth Proof!

For Career day at Adam's school, the Airforce came and Adam volunteered to be attacked by a German Shepherd! (It was a famous dog - one who sniffed Saddam Hussein's prison cell and court room for bombs in Iraq.) His students loved it, and it was quite a rush for Adam. He normally deals with our little doggies, and used to be a little afraid of big dogs. He sure faced his fear :) It was pretty hilarious!

To see another video, visit our picasa site and look under Adam's Airforce Experience: picasaweb.google.com/adamwestfamily

Eliana's new quilt!

We received such a beautiful gift for Eliana this week- a handmade quilt! As a seamstress in training, I appreciate how difficult, time consuming, and how much love is put into each creation, and I think this is the most beautiful quilt I have ever seen. I am so grateful for this gift, and I am sure Ellie will treasure it for many years to come. I put Ellie in her big white bow her Daddy picked out- I know it's big, but it's oh so cute!!!