Elliot Meets the Family

Over President's weekend we jumped on a plane to Chicago to meet Elliot who was just two weeks old. While it may seem like spring in Gilbert, Chicago is deep in winter. So we bundled up in our warmest clothes and flew to the Windy City.

Here we are outside our hotel in downtown Chicago waiting for Jamie to pick us up. Layers of clothes, scarves, gloves and hats kept us warm in the 20+ degree weather.

Our hotel was above the historic Majestic Theatre. Can you tell we had a few minutes and were ready to take lots of pictures? Get ready for LOTS of pictures of a cute little boy named Elliot.

Isn't he cute?? Here is Elliot held by Uncle Bryce.

Grandpa Dahl got his turn.

Can you tell how excited Adam is about Elliot?

Bryce was pretty excited about his nephew too.

Elliot is a cute little bundle. Even though he is only two weeks old, he keeps his eyes open quite a bit and loves to look around. He can even lift his head up. That must come from being over 10 pounds at birth.

Adam got his turn to hold Elliot with a little help from Grandma.

Bryce was anxious to introduce Elliot to all his stuffed toys.

Elliot is very content to be held. Grandpa is very content to do the holding.

Dan even tiptoed in while Elliot was sleeping and snapped a picture of Elliot as a baby burrito all wrapped up in his blanket. He slept right through the flash.

There was plenty of iTouch time with comparing apps.

Elliot's awake time.

We had a delicious dinner from a Mexican torta place called Xoco by Rick Bayless. Dan has a new favorite sandwich now. Yum!

Arizona is not the only place with beautiful sunsets.

Elliot getting a little Grandpa time - or Grandpa getting a little Elliot time.

It may look like Elliot is about to slide off Bryce's lap, but I promise he was being held securely!

Jamie showing off Elliot after his bath. What is it about hooded towels that look so cute on babies?

What a cute family!

We couldn't stop taking pictures!

Remember purple bird? Here is Bryce introducing Elliot to the purple bird that started the craze. Elliot tried eating the bird's nose, but couldn't figure out how to get any milk there and abandoned the effort.

On Sunday we walked from our hotel to Morgan and Jamie's apartment (a major milestone for Michelle since it was a little over a mile). Along the way in Grant Park were these amazing ice sculptures. The sun had changed the shape of some of the art work, but this eagle was in a shady spot and the detail was still visible. Here is our soon-to-be eagle posing by the eagle.

On Monday we checked out of our hotel.

We went for a walk around the block.....

.....to Garrett's popcorn shop. A famous tasty treat in Chicago.

Then off to see more of Elliot - here with his cuddly wombat.

Adam got pretty good at feeding his nephew, and was anxious to help out with him.

But soon it was time to leave. Bryce and Adam love looking at the city out the window. After a yummy dinner at the Parthenon in Greek Town, we made a mad dash for the airport and flew back to Arizona.

Bye, Elliot. We will see you in a few weeks. Oh, yeah, and bring your parents too.