Elias' First Birthday

Eli's birthday party was a blast. We had a jungle theme. The turn out was great; and Eli LOVED his cupcake. He wore quite of bit of frosting. The presents were wonderful, and let's just say we are going to have a loud household with all of the interactive toys! Thank-you to all who were able to make the party. We are very blessed to have such wonderful friends and family.

The First Year

As I prepare for Elias' birthday party tomorrow, I just cannot believe how fast the first year has flown by! It feels like just yesterday, David was driving us home from the hospital as a family. I can only imagine how fast time will zoom by in the future. I truly have been blessed this past year, watching Elias grow, and our family changing. We have so many great memories. Here is a look back over Eli's first year! I'm sure the next years to come will be even better!

Hudsonville Fair '08

The Neale Family visited the Hudsonville Fair on Wednesday. Eli went fishing and won a toy turtle. We also played the ping pong game but didn't win anything fun. We told the workers to keep the goldfish they hand out for prizes. We shared cotton candy...which Eli didn't really like.

Eli loved seeing the animals. He thought touching the pigs snouts was hillarious. We also had to spend ample time climbing on the big tractors. Maybe next year we will try some of the rides!

Happy 50th Birthday Grandpa!

August 16, our family had a get together to celebrate Grandpa DeVree turning 50 years old. We grilled out and spent the evening catching up on everyone's busy lives. We took the opportunity together to snap some pictures. Here are just a few of the great ones.

Our Pear Tree

David was working on trimming the trees in the yard, and Eli and I spent the afternoon playing outside. We have a large pear tree in our yard. Augst 10, Eli found his first pear and decided to eat it! He nawed on it for quite a while, and of course shared the pear with Zeke. Now we have two pear lovers, Zeke and Eli.

Life Lessons

Parenthood is a process of learning as you go. Now that Elias is mobil, we have all learned many things. Here are some recent life lessons the Neale family has been taught.

1. Mommy has learned the amount of time it takes to put her hair in a pony tail, is the exact amount of time it takes Eli to scale a flight of stairs and get ready to come back down.

2. Eli has learned when he uses his toys to climb up higher, its that much farther he has to fall to get down.

3. Daddy has learned that third shift means lots of naps! Eli and Daddy get to take lots of naps together.

4. Zeke has figured out Elias loves to share his food. Eli even lets Zeke test lick his food before he eats it....gross we know...