Angry Birds Lesson

Magpie shows the Hulk how it's done. She's got a wild bird-flinging style that's all her own.

Nite Out

First night out since Eli was born!

Babysitter stayed with the kids while Julia and I headed to the art museum amphitheater to see Andrew Bird and Mavis Staples. Bringing an end to the hottest heatwave in NC history, it started pouring on us during Staples' set and continued through most of Bird's. It was still a great show, and halfway into Bird's set we abandoned our umbrellas and found a good spot to enjoy ourselves despite the rain.

Maggie's First Fireworks

We took Maggie and Eli to their first fireworks on July4. Eli was obviously too young to enjoy it, but Maggie had a great time after getting over the initial shock. Raleigh moved their fireworks downtown this year, and we snagged a front row spot, which meant it was super loud. Getting through the downtown traffic afterwards was a nightmare, but I'm just glad Maggie's first fireworks didn't disappoint.

Graduation from Nanny's

Even though she's on her way to preschool, rather than graduating to kindergarten, Maggie got to participate in this year's graduation ceremony with other older kids from the local family daycare centers.  Not only was she the only kid from her school, but she was the the youngest of the bunch by far.  Nevertheless, she was a superstar and surprised us all by keeping pace and even outshining (sorry kids) some of the others.  Go Mags!

A big shout out goes to Miss Nanny who has played a huge role in Maggie's life and helped her to become the amazing little lady she is.  Maggie may be moving on, but Eli will be moving in soon and we've told Miss Nanny that we expect similar results.

If you can't make it out in video, when she steps up to the mic she says, "Hi my name is Margaret. When I grow up I want to be a dancer."

Jazz Concert at the Park

Took Maggie and Eli to a jazz concert at a local park today. Weather was great, not too hot, and Maggie had a ball dancing, running around with the other kids there, and watching the geese on the pond. Eli was more of a slacker, he just laid around and drank. Typical.

Chill Boy

Friday afternoon... am I 21 yet? cus this hat requires a beverage : )

Super Boppy Nap Time

Yep, He's Breathing. He's in one serious milk coma

Eli meets Dr. Laura

Eli went to Duke today to meet Maggie's eye specialist, Dr. Laura. It was a suspenseful visit: his eyes were dilated and then we waited 30 minutes while the dilating drops worked their magic so the docs could give him a good check up. Finally both Dr. Laura and another doctor checked him and said his eyes look perfect, no signs of cataracts!

There's no guarantee that things will stay that way, but it's unlikely that a condition similar to Maggie's would develop now. We'll be keeping a close eye on him, but Julia and I are both breathing a big sigh of relief.

Eli's Arrival

Eli is here! Everything went smoothly at the hospital and our little man is doing great. We actually got to stay in the maternity wing of Rex Hospital this time: Big room, nice nurses who watched Eli for several hours each night so we could grab a snooze, good food (no kidding), and they sent us home with a fresh family dinner for first night at home.

Second night at home Eli kept up his good behavior and slept 4-5 hours between feelings. Hooray!

Pictures of the big event below, enjoy!

If you can't see the Flash slideshow below, click HERE.

Eli Comes Home

Eli made it home yesterday and is adjusting well to our chaos. He is a calm boy and only woke up once last night to eat, letting us all get some much needed rest. Maggie is also happy to have us all here again, and we're looking forward to the weekend.

Welcome Eli!

Elijah Jackson Findley was released into the world on May 7, 2012 at 1:36 pm.

The Stats:
Weight = 8.0 lbs
Length = 20 inches

Big Sister Waiting

2nd Annual East Coast Findley Easter Egg Hunt

The 2nd Annual East Coast Findley Easter Egg Hunt was a smash (that's fancy for a success). Last year we had three kids, this year we pulled in 9 shortees plus parents. The weather was amazing and even though it was in the 30's early on, by egg hunting time it was sunny and warm. All the kids filled their baskets and the rest of us relaxed and enjoyed ourselves too. We hope everyone comes back next year to keep this tradition going. Thanks to KK (grandma Karen) for helping us to pull it off!



Link to Photos

Pullen Park

Maggie and an old daycare pal (now graduated) had a great time hanging out at Pullen Park this weekend, riding the train and the carousel.