Our First Family Christmas

This was the first time Griffin met his cousin (Tracy's nephew) Drew. When Griffin was not sleeping, Drew was always there to make Griffin laugh, but as soon as Griffin started to cry, Drew thought Griffin should go to bed.

There was no shortage of people to entertain Griffin. My cousin Michelle came from Scotland to spend Christmas with our family. She just had to buy this singing balloon, lucky there was a limit to how many times it would sing. Also here is Tracy's niece Rhiannon, who took care of Griffin when I was busy making dinners.

The whole family in the PJs. For the most part my sister (Sharon), her husband Mark, Drew and Rhiannon spent most of the day in their PJs - Rhiannon did not get out of her PJs most days.

Most of us did spend out days in PJs, it was a time to hang out and relax. With all the snow and cold weather we had, it was a good time to play board games and watch movies. This was the first white Christmas in Vancouver in 40 years! Of course I will never live it down, since I told everyone before they came to bring wet weather gear because it hardly ever snows or gets below zero degrees. Boy was I wrong!

After Mark made waffles for breakfast, we all sat down to open presents. As is true for most kids Griffin's age, the paper was the more exciting part of the presents.

We are expanding Griffin's food selections. He now enjoys carrots, squash, peas, avocado, yams, and apple sauce (Auntie Sharon's homemade apple sauce). So far Griffin will eat whatever is put in front of him, just like mum.

It will not be long before Griffin is crawling around the house. He is rocking on his hands and knees. At times he will push himself forward, but has not figured out how to get his hands moving at the same time as his feet.

Yep, Griffin still looks like his father.

6 Months (Corrected Age)

Well Griffin has reached the 6 month mark from his due date. So, I thought I would show some comparison photos to show everyone just how much he has grown. This monster has been with him from the beginning. It overlooked his incubator in Seattle and was in his crib in Vancouver. Now he keeps him company during diaper changes.

Trying to get Griffin to open his hand so I could take a picture proved to be more difficult than I thought. This was the best I could get. But as you can see, his hand has more than doubled it's size. My little man is getting so big.

It is always a battle to capture a smile on camera. After about 20 rapid shots, Jordan was able to capture these. If you squint and tilt your head, you can sort of see a smile.

Daddy's time with the boy! I am always told how much Griffin looks like Jordan, I am waiting for someone to find a part of me in him. One day.

First Taste of Solid Food

The Bumbo has come in handy once again - perfect for keeping Griffin still for feedings. We started off with small amounts, and on the first try he did not eat all of it, but was happy to open his mouth for more.

Sometimes I was slower than Griffin. He still has to figure out how to keep his tongue out of the way, but that will come.

Biting the spoon is another fun trick - I don't imagine that feels good on the gums?

"Oh mum do you have to?"

Looking "cool as a cucumber" - like he's got this all figured out!

Preparing for the Holidays

This will be the first Christmas in our house and the first one on the West Coast in some years. We have a bit more space to fill with decorations than we had in our apartment, so the Christmas decorations are arriving daily (Thanks to my mother-in-law). We thought we would take some pictures to remember it by.

Despite how innocent he looks, sitting here among Santa and his little helper, Griffin jumped the first chance he got to take down these strange beings. He still has a little time to learn about "naughty and nice". Jordan is underneath all of the carnage.

Toby looks on at it all, thinking "This guy is worse than I am!"

Happy Halloween

As much as I did not want to humiliate my son by dressing him up for Halloween, I have to admit he looks pretty darn cute. I don't think he felt the same way.

I think we were more amused than he was. Every time we laid him on his back he looked like a bug that gets stuck on its back. He could not roll over because of the very large puffy turtle shell on his back, all he could do was wave his arms in the air.

He hated the hat the most. Once that was off he enjoyed it a bit better. He still only lasted 20 minutes. After that he preferred to go to bed than stay up in his costume. I guess we should be thankful for this, since next year I am sure it will not be that easy to put him to bed.

I think this look is Griffin's way of saying "Thanks mum for putting me through this - I will get you back." I am sure he will too - he has many years to torture me, I will only have a very short time to get away with it.

Jordan and I carved a pumpkin each and Griffin and I decorated the front door. I am sure the 9 tricker-treaters we had did not really notice, but Griffin thought the scarecrow was funny.

Mastering Sitting

We borrowed a Bumbo from a friend to put Griffin in since he much prefers to sit up now, but still can not do it on his own. With his cloth diaper on, he is wedged into the seat..he is not going anywhere. Griffin will spend some time trying to sit on his own, with my help, and then I put him in the Bumbo. Hopefully it will not be long before he can do it on his own.

Just need a pair of glasses and he would look exactly like Jordan!

Gramma went and purchased a tray for the Bumbo to keep Griffin's toys on. This is so much easier for me and for Griffin. This is not to say that the toys stay on the tray all that long.

This photo was taken during a bouncy ride on my stomach. There is a longer video that is too funny. Griffin was killing himself laughing. This is proof that he is a happy kid, despite the long faces in the other photos.

Daddy Time

The boys have got into a bit of a routine now on Sundays. Jordan has done what any sport-loving father would do...introduced Griffin to TSN. Griffin likes football the best. However, I am trying to get him into CFL not NFL as my dad taught me.

Since Jordan starts work so early (6:30am) he is able to get home earlier so he can spend time playing with Griffin before bed. He does not really like to lay down much. He now rolls over everytime you put him on his back. He much prefers to sit or stand, I am talking about Griffin not Jordan.

Griffin looks so much like his dad. If I did not carry him for 7 months I may not even know that he was mine. Despite the picture, Griffin does smile when he is with his dad, but once the camera turns on him he is like a deer in headlights.

All the playing and all the sports you can watch is really tiring. Usually Jordan falls asleep before Griffin. This was a rare moment where it was the other way around.

Graduation & New Discoveries

Griffin has now outgrown the kitchen sink and has graduated to the big-boy bathtub! The first bath was not met with great excitement, but now he takes every opportunity to kick his feet and splash. He has not really taken to the little yellow duck that is in the water with him, but he does love the noises that we make up above.





Getting dressed after a bath, or any diaper change for that matter, has turned into an opportunity to wiggle around. It is often our favourite time of the day when we can giggle together.



Although Griffin has not yet figured out 'peak-a-boo', he does love to pull blankets and towels up to his face. Just one more obstacle for us to overcome when trying to get him into his pjs. He often has the last laugh.

The finished product - 10 minutes later and a whole lot wetter.

Griffin is now at the stage where everything goes in the mouth. I often come into his room in the morning and there he is with his hands in his mouth, trying to say good morning.

Books are no obstacle - they too can fit in the mouth. He looks like he just got caught doing something he was not supposed to.

Griffin is now keeping his head much better, so we have graduated to tummy time with a roll. He enjoys tummy time much more! He will now reach for things while on his tummy and has started pushing with his feet to move forward. Apparently, he is trying to skip learning how to sit up and going straight to crawling. Figures!

Griffin was given this sock monkey jack-in-the-box as a gift. He does not yet jump when the monkey comes out of the box, but he loves the hair on the monkey's head and the sound of my nails on the metal box.

We still get out for our walks in the morning, and most afternoons as well, but now in the morning we must bundle up. This sweater that my aunt in Scotland made is just what we need.

All of the squeals and cries of the day, the cat needs to find somewhere to hide and escape it all - too bad it is usually just where Griffin wants to be. Poor Toby!

Bath Times

Griffin is quickly out-growing the kitchen sink for baths. He finds them quite relaxing, thank goodness he has not figured out how to splash yet. Getting out and dried off is now when he gets most upset.

Yes ladies, Hugh Hefner is in the house! Or it could be a Buddha? Griffin likes to lounge in his house coat with his big belly hanging out before bed. I don't think he is having any trouble putting on weight.