I'm Famous!

I am the photographer for The Journal News, a small local newspaper.  On Saturday, September 18th, I was assigned to take pictures at Park Fest in Taylor Mill.  We decided to make it a family outing and go to the festival together.  We could have some fun and I could take some photos for the newpaper while we were there.  Of course, I also took some of Eli.  When I submitted the photos to the paper, I included one that I took of Eli.  In this picture, he was showing me how blue his tongue was from eating a blue snowcone.  As it turned out, the publisher selected Eli's photo for the article.  I had forgotten that I had even submitted that photo, and I hadn't picked up the paper until today (it comes out every Wednesday, so he was in the September 22nd edition).  I had another photo shoot this evening and got home about 7:30pm.  When I pulled into the garage, Eli ran out to meet me.  I handed him a paper and said, "Eli, your picture is in the paper."  He said, "It is?  Let me see!"  I showed him the picture and as soon as he saw it, he looked at me and said, "I'm famous!"  I told him that I thought he was famous, too, and that he should go in and tell his mommy that he was famous.  He ran upstairs to where Shelby was and told her that he was famous.  It was crazy to see how excited he was...it was like it was Christmas morning!

The photo that made Eli famous.

Eli Playing Goalie - Determination!

Eli had another soccer game this past Saturday.  He started the game as goalie and did an awesome job!  Did he have any great diving saves?  No.  Did he have to even touch the ball?  No.  Take a look at the determination on his face...if you were a soccer ball, would you come anywhere near him?  I didn't think so.



Anneken Reunion

This past Saturday, the Anneken family got together for their reunion. It was a lot of fun, and the food was great. That's how all family get-togethers should be judged...by the food.



Eli was so good, but was really shy...even more than normal.



 Check out all of the pictures here.

Soccer Double-header

Eli had two games today.  He did a great job.  He loves to play.  He sat out for a quarter during the 2nd game and he just stood on the sideline watching the game, saying, "I just want to go in there." 

 

Aunt Sara and grandpa came, too.

A Year Ago Today - September 14, 2009

A year ago today, the Jones' went to Ikea with my Mom and Dad.  We spent a lot of the time looking for some things for the house in Foster...a bathroom sink, a huge bunkbed for Eli, and some stools for the kitchen.  Man, I'm really glad we didn't commit to buying anything that day since we were out of the house a few months after that.  The rest of the time at Ikea was spent being entertained by, and entertaining Eli.  Pa and Eli disappeared to the toy section more than once. 

Pa smothering Eli with attention...not a bad thing.

Mom and Shelby chllin'.

Before you get all judgemental on me about holding a plastic bag over my 5 year old's face, you need to know that he started it.

Pa with Eli...again.

Homeschool Co-op

Shelby took Eli to the first homeschool co-op this morning.  The classes are Sports, Famous People, and Art.  She said that Eli liked it and had a good time with the other kids.  At one point, they asked each kid to stand and give their name and say something about themselves.  I'm sure Shelby was nervous for Eli because of his stuttering problem (I would have been).  Apparently, Eli wasn't worried about it because he just stood up and talked away.  He told them he likes things that are golden.  I'm not sure where that came from, but man, that's just cute.  He then told them that he had a big brother named Cody.  He said he loved Cody, but sometimes he was mean to him.  He said Cody wasn't mean to him the last time he saw him because he kept spinning Eli around and he loved that. (and of course I have a picture of that)

Shelby said that Eli had trouble getting his words out the whole time he was talking, but it never kept him from speaking up.  That is so good to hear. 

Eli goes to his first speech therapy class this week!  I really hope and pray that this will help him.  Eli watches a cartoon called "Martha Speaks".  In this cartoon, a dog eats a bowl of alphabet soup.  The letters, instead of going to the dog's stomach, go to her brain, which enables her to talk.  A few weeks ago when Shelby was putting Eli to bed, he said that he didn't want to stutter any more.  He said that he wanted to eat some alphabet soup so that he could talk normal.  If that doesn't break your heart, something is wrong with you.

Eli, we love you no matter what!

Eli's Soccer Game

Eli had a soccer game this morning.  I've been trying to get him to be a little more aggressive, and he was today.  He got hit with the ball in the chest at practice this week and it knocked the wind out of him, so today he was a little hesitant to jump in front of the ball.  He is getting better and Shelby and I are so proud of him.  More importantly, he loves playing and has fun.

He started out as goalie today...he did a great job!

He dove on the ball to stop the goal and then threw it back out to the field.

Focused.

Awesome play!

Tortured Monkey

Shelby found this under a blanket on the couch tonight after Eli went to bed.  The monkey has a pair of pliers clamped around his neck.  That's scary enough...but the fact that it was hidden under the covers and that Eli never said a word about it is even more scary. 
Should we be worried?

Labor Day - 2010

The family met at Donna and Rob's house for Labor Day this year.  It was a good time...especially the part where me and Cody whipped Doug, Jordon, and Alex at cornhole!  Maybe next year, Doug.  Between me, Mom, Shelby, and Tori, we took A LOT of pictures...over 200.  See below for a few highlights or click here to see about 40 of the best ones. 

The Wisdom of Eli

I picked up Eli today from Sara's house.  On the way, there were a couple of deer on the highway.  Believe it or not, I happened to have a camera on me.  And, the smartest thing to do was to grab my camera, turn it on, change a couple of settings, and start taking pictures while driving, right?  Ok, just checking.

When we got home, Eli's friend Austin came over and asked Eli if he was allowed to play outside.  He has had a little cold for the last couple of days, so I asked Eli if he felt well enough to play.  He turned to Austin and said that he couldn't play because he had a runny nose.  Here is our conversation as we were walking into the house:

Dad:  Eli, if you feel like it, you can go outside and play for a while.
Eli:  No.
Dad:  Are you too sick?
Eli:  Actually, I wish I could play outside.
Dad:  You can.
Eli:  Actually, I wish I wanted to play outside, but I don't.
Dad:  Ok.

Date Night - St. Cecilia Festival in Independence

Eli stayed with Memaw last night, so Shelby and I decided to go to the St. Cecilia Festival in Independence for a while.  I took some photos for the Journal News, we ate some really-bad-for-you food, just walked around for a little bit, and sat and watched the band.  We only stayed for a little over an hour.

Then we came home and watched The Book of Eli, which was really good.  It was graphic, but good.  Shelby and I try to have a date night once a week.  We don't always get to do it, but we try.  We miss Eli 30 minutes after we drop him off somewhere, but date night is important to us, so we try to make it a priority.

A Year Ago Today - September 5, 2009

This day in 2009, we went to Kincaid Lake with the Stavermans.  After the kids played in the park for a while, we rented a couple of boats and rode around in the lake.

Swimming

I love being off work...I think I'll do it more often.
I haven't been swimming in over seven or eight years.  Today, I broke the streak.  Shelby and Eli wouldn't give up trying to persuade me to go with them today, and it worked.  I had a great time, and I loved being in the pool with Eli for the first time in his life. 

A Year Ago Today - September 1, 2009

A year ago today, my Mom, Shelby, Eli, and I went to a Cincinnati Red's game.  At that point, the Reds were one of the worst teams in baseball with 59 wins.  They did manage to win this game against Pittsburgh though, 11 to 5.  We were there just to have something different to do.  I don't remember now, but I'm sure they were free tickets because I sure wouldn't pay to go to a Red's game.  Anyway, it was a good time and it was nice to hang out with the family.