Meeting Elliott

There is something really special about meeting your siblings child. I'm not even sure I can put into words the feeling you get when you watch your brother turn into a father. This weekend I am so glad we made the uncomfortably long drive to Gurnee Illinois to both spend time with my husbands sister's family and my brother's family (and my father and mother in-law too).

Elliott gave us a bit of a scare- water breaking 7 weeks early, born six weeks early with a herniated diaphragm that needed surgery his first week of life, but he is a strong little guy and has thrived despite everything. He was still in the NICU this weekend which meant my boys couldn't meet their cousin in person, but Matt and Shar are tech savy and set up a Google hang out so the boys could see Elliott from the family waiting room (along with my parents and aunts back in Minnesota).

I was expecting a fragile feeling little baby, but Elliott weighs a little over five pounds and he felt really strong and sturdy when I held him. Dave got to hold him and he agreed with me. He has a ton of hair and huge feet and he's adorable!

And we love him despite his choice in hockey team.

After meeting Elliott we played in the Children's hospital while enjoying the views of downtown and then went out for Indian food with Matt and Shar. It was nice to have a nice dinner where we could talk about everything that has happened the last month with little Elliott.

The rest of the weekend was spent playing with James and Nathaniel - Adam and Eli's other cousins at a water park hotel in Gurnee. The boys had an awesome weekend- they love downtown Chicago and playing in the water!