Woodbridge, Grading, and Cherry Blossoms

It's been a while!  This past weekend, we went to Woodbridge to visit Chris's parents.  His parents weren't able to come in last week due to the snow and it was his mom's birthday.  She still hadn't seen Eliot walk, so we knew we had to get up there.

Stoked for a road trip!

Chris's parents got him this football hat.  Then Eliot found some drumsticks.  He's so going to be in a band some day.

Eliot and Granddad Robinson watching some basketball.

Chris can still read music!

We came home ready to get to grading.  We obviously didn't grade too much over the weekend, but I did start grading early on in the week.  And I graded in the car.  Still, I graded from 7:00 am til 11:00 pm on Monday, only stopping for lunch (30 minutes) and dinner (an hour).  Chris watched Eliot so I could do my work.  They went to the park at one point!

I know that I mentioned that Eliot is climbing up everything now, but he is just everywhere in new ways now!  Up the chair, over to the coffee table (in the corner), throwing all the diapers on the floor, divebombing onto the couch...  I goes on and on, but he doesn't ever fall or get hurt.  So, whatever.  Go on, little dude.  Explore your heart out.

Tuesday (yesterday) was our "fun" day since I finished up my work.  We walked up to the park!  Spring is all over the place.  Good thing we went yesterday because it is raining today, which is nice in its own way.

It has hit me this month.  I always am amazed at how Eliot is turning from "baby" to "boy," but now that he is running and throwing things around and exploring, he doesn't seem like a baby at all--well, aside from his bald head and the fact that he doesn't talk in sentences.  I guess he's a toddler, so that makes sense.  And it is fun, but, man, he is simply not a baby anymore.

Playing with Cats, At the Park, and Downtown

I feel lost in the year.  At some moments for a brief second, I could swear that it is October.  I blame most of this on the warm weather throwing me off, but I certainly do appreciate the warmth!  It has helped Chris and I keep to our running schedule by warding of any "it's too cooold" excuses from me.

Eliot has always loved animals, but he seems to be going after our cat (Neko) more and more.  I forgot to mention that he spent much of Thanksgiving chasing Jordan's three cats around the house while saying, "Kitty!  Cat!  Cat!"  Cats of course are not the most friendly creatures, but our Neko lets Eliot play with her however he wants, including intended cuddles that turn into body slams.  Neko totally flirts with Eliot too and plays with him.  It's too adorable.  I hate to be such a downer, but I worry about how much time Neko-cat has left.  We adopted her from the shelter and she came to us with feline leukemia.  She will be three years old in a couple of months.  The survival rate after three years drastically drops off.  She seems to be absolutely fine and healthy, though, so I am hoping that our kitty will be around with us for much longer.

 

On a happier note, we took Eliot to Riverside Park yesterday for swings, slides, and a stroll around the park.  Then we picked up Stephanie and headed downtown for First Fridays.  The local artists open their studios to the public.  There was one exhibit in particular that we were looking forward to that had old photographs of Rivermont.  I'm always interested in learning more about the history of Lynchburg.  After some wandering, we had dinner at Magnolia.

And some photos from the park...

This photo makes my heart so happy