Belated Valentine's Day pic

I didn't want to let this one slip through the cracks......

We realized that Chase and Griffin had the same outfit, so we coordinated a matching day. I'm glad it was the day before Valentine's Day, since Griffin developed a fever the afternoon of this picture (ear infection) and missed the big party at daycare the following afternoon.

19 Month Update

At Griffin's 18 month check up they found that his right ear tube was out of his ear drum and sitting in his ear. The ENT thought we should just see how he did and hope that we wouldn't have to put it back in. Last week, Griffin got his first ear infection since the tube surgery.....it had been less than a month since the right one came out. We were disappointed but hope that is his only ear infection this winter. 

Other fun facts to note:

• working on 2 upper molars---tooth #11 & #12
• first trip to a dealership to purchase daddy's new truck (will never take him again, hungry toddler and waiting to do paperwork does not work well)
• pretty good at drinking out of a cup with 2 hands
• took an overnight trip to Aunt Shiloh's house
• picks a pair of shoes and puts them on himself when he wants to go outside
• can open the screen door latch by himself and let himself outside (this is a game changer)
• putting words together "night night dada"
• follows most directions really well

are you ready yet?

I love peeling this sticker off

A little of everything....

There hasn't been a lot of excitement around our house lately. No major trips, events,  or news of any kind. We have stayed busy though, running here and there. Since it's been a while since I've posted I thought I would recap. 

love our buddy Zorro

Our local PAT (Parents as Teachers) coordinator has made a few visits to our house to check on Griffin's development as he grows up. She always gives us good ideas/tips for teaching him things, and we have learned a lot from her. We were happy to see him pass his 18 month screening with flying colors. Of course, his lowest scoring category was his speech but it was not low enough to be concerned, especially since he seems to understand everything we say. 

Last Saturday, we enjoyed the annual Groundhog breakfast in town, getting haircuts, and a trip to the pottery studio to make something special for someone special who doesn't know it yet. Sunday, we went to Eric & Jordan's for a fun superbowl party and good food.

getting good with forks/spoons, either hand!

This week we attended our first PAT play date. My elementary gymnasium looked like a shoe box compared to what I remembered. It was full of kids (baby to preschool age) running, laughing, and playing at all the fun stations/games. Griffin really enjoyed it and was amazed at all the commotion. If we continue to attend those periodically, I'm positive it will make him a lot more social and ready to go to school when he is older. 

the eye-gouge, take that!

right before the hair pull.... he's a sour patch kid, sour then sweet

And a video to show our little worker bee......and thankfully, Drew's laptop didn't suffer any major damage. 

18 Months Old

Officially 1 1/2 years old now! Griffin is doing so many cool things. We are always talking about how fun he is and how neat it is to see him become a little man. We are also realizing our sweet little boy is coming into the toddler era and thinks he is quite independent. Therefore, fit throwing has definitely started. How do you reason with a child that isn't old enough to reason with yet? 

Tricks/traits to note:

• carrying items (such as a wrench from his workbench) in his jeans pockets and very adorably checking often to make sure it's still there
• 2 new teeth coming in--#9 & #10
• enjoys brushing said teeth each night after bath time
• adding several words to his vocabulary (Bubba aka Duke, ball, yes with head nod, night night, banana)
• continues to clean up any mess he sees with paper towels or kleenex if that's all he can get to
• can open our doors that require pulling, but hasn't figured out the push yet
• "where is it? hands" when looking for an item, bent arms at the elbow with palms face up
• still LOVES his father....almost inseparable but I'm finally able to put him to sleep at night again
• running full speed
• sitting on the potty and associates the word with the actual chair but no business done in it yet
• eating just about anything in most forms, however, still having an issue with tomatoes=no pizza, spaghetti, sloppy joes, etc.
• recently learned all about laundry and helps me carry clothes from one hamper to the dirty basket in the laundry room
• beginning to refuse the sippy cup at times and prefers the straw top or just a regular cup instead

Weight: 25.5 lbs - 44th percentile

Height: 33 1/2 in - 81st percentile

Head: 49 1/4 cm - 85th percentile

Diaper size: Size 4

Clothing: 12 or 18 month

can't resist pulling the sticker off

here you go Mom.....

but if you come toward me I will smile and slap it back on

And since it's been a while since I've posted any videos, I'll dump a bunch here.....

Working on the jump shot

Daddy makes it easy

let's run laps.....

Year-to-Year Comparison

It's easy to see how Griffin has grown on a daily basis, but it is really crazy to actually see it year-to-year. I probably should have posted this sooner (like at Christmas time), but here are our 2 Christmas card photos since Griffin has been born. 

November 2011

December 2012

It's a brand new year!

Griffin had his first experience with "snow" this past weekend. Well, not really but it was cold and there was a very light dusting on the ground. We had quite a bit of snow during his first winter on Earth but I highly doubt he remembers seeing it. Grandpa Don got him some really nice bibs so we went out to get some good use out of them and feed the animals.

Howie Mandel enjoys a few pats from a mitten

"Hurry Mom and put Duke in the house, we have pond ice to chop"

Christmas 2012 - Part 2

We enjoyed our 3 separate Christmases with the Honeycutt family as well. Unfortunately, I only took pictures at two events. Griffin and Briley get along very well and are quite good friends. Briley is the best at helping me keep an eye on the wild little man. 

Christmas Day 

whatcha got over here?

Uncle Brent is always doing cool things

Dr. Boogsy the veterinarian

new wheels

99 years old!

Briley was pretending to be asleep

We finally had time to open gifts at home that evening. However, by that point Griffin was very much "over" opening gifts. Note to self, next year take everything out of its packaging and wrap once assembled. He should be more interested in ripping into things then too.

he spends an hour at a time in this truck

Friday night we opened gifts at Drew's parents. 

always wrestling

best buddies