A Busy Summer For the G Man

This train-loving 2 year old has had a busy summer.  Well, now that I say that I'm not sure that I'd call it busy since we stayed home most of the summer and were actually inside a lot (remember, we've got a new born in the house folks), but Griffin is a busy body and is always on the go...even if it's just to the island of Sodor - a very busy place in Griffin's vivid imagination. 

 Here are a few highlights of the summer:

 

Griffin is still VERY into his trains.  He could (and does) literally spend hours playing with his trains on the track.  It's really fun to watch him.  He has started telling little stories and giving his trains voices.  Most of the stories revolve around Thomas episodes in some way or another and they all start the same way, "One day...."  It is soooo cute listening to him.  I'm so impressed by his imagination and his story-telling abilities.  Pretty soon he will have his You Tube debut!  (He loves watching other kids play with their trains on the computer.  It makes me feel better to see that other kids are just as obsessed as my child.)

Griffin and Dada had their first "Big Boys Night" complete with a movie, pop corn and beverages!  Mama had a night out with some friends and G had a fun night with Chad.  He was excited about staying up late and watching a new movie.

All snuggled up and ready to watch!

My good friend Molly came to visit for a few days from Tampa.  We had fun showing her all of our trains (many of which she gave to Griffin....she is actually the one who got G started on Thomas with her visit last summer...thanks Molly!), going to the playground and the pool.  We also went to dinner at a fun "food truck park" where we got YUMMY cup cakes.  Griffin really enjoyed the icing and being able to run around like a wild child.

Me and my sweet boy!  I love this picture.

We have had MANY indoor picnic lunches this summer.  It usually means that Mama is too lazy busy to sit at the table with G while he eats...probably feeding little brother his lunch at the same time. 

 

A major HIGHLIGHT of the summer was going to see The Wiggles in concert with our friend Tate!  Griff really loves The Wiggles and I got lucky and won 4 tickets to the show.  It was their farewell tour, so it was extra special to be able to see the guys - Jeff, Murray, Greg and Anthony - together for the last time!  haha.

The show was at the fabulous Fox theater so we, of course, ate dinner at the Varsity and then walked (that's right - walked!) to the Fox for the show.  I'm not sure who was more excited about it, the boys or Chad and me.

 

As you can see, the boys LOVED the show. They couldn't even be bothered to turn away for one second for a picture.  It was so fun for Chad and I to see how much fun they were having.  It would have been totally worth it even if we had to pay for the tickets!

Griffin took a big step towards becoming a big boy this summer.  He gave up his paci!  We decided that we would offer him a deal - he could trade in his pacis for a new train.  He didn't pause one second before he said, "oh yeah!"  He and Dada went around to gather up all of his pacifiers in exchange for Emily.  It was a hard transition (the first night especially) and we are still dealing with the ramifications of no paci during nap time.  I'm afraid this is the beginning of the end of naps for my boy.  I will admit, it makes me a little sad that this paci stage is over...he looked so sweet with it in his mouth and it still kind of made him look like a baby, which I loved.  He's growing up so fast!

G has really taken an interest in saving his money and putting it in his piggy bank.  He has already purchased one train this summer (Edward) with his own "monies" and is saving up for another (Hiro).  When Papa Don and Boo came to visit Papa brought a whole bag full of change for G to add to his bank.  I know Papa and Dada take a lot of pride in seeing Griffin save his money! 

 

Speaking of Papa Don and Boo's visit - it got cut very short because of the arrival of our niece - sweet baby Leah!  Natalie called to say she was in labor and they packed up their bags and left in a flash.  A few hours later Leah made her way into the world.  We are so happy to finally have a little girl around.  Congrats to Nat Nat, Jake and big brother Blake!

Now, this was a first that I wasn't looking forward to at all - our first dentist appointment!  I was sure it was going to be terrible and that G would freak out.  Memories of our first hair cut kept flashing through my head and I would break out in a cold sweat just thinking about it.  Well - this kid sure is growing up because he did GREAT at the dentist!  She counted his teeth (he had twenty), cleaned them and let Griffin hold "Mr. Thirsty" to suck all of the spit, drool and tooth paste out of his mouth.  Afterwards he got a token to put in a machine and got this little orange bouncy ball.  I think he'll have no problems going back in 6 months!  (PS - the dentist was very pleased that he had given up the paci.  We're hoping this means less orthodontic bills in our future.)

Otherwise, we have pretty much been "chillin" this summer. Griffin has been a great big brother to the Carson man.  While he still doesn't show a ton of interest in him, I can tell that's changing quickly.  I often ask him to go talk to Carson if he's crying and G will usually oblige.  It's so funny and cute to hear Griffin talk to him because I can tell he's imitating me.  His voice gets really high and sing-songy and he'll say, "Haaay Carson.  It's okay Carson.  What's wrong Carson?  I know... I know..."  (as in like a soothing there, there kind of way).  It's adorable.  What's even more adorable is that Carson immediately stops crying and is absolutely enamored with his big brother.

And what better way to end the summer than with the first day of school?!  Mama Griffin has been looking forward to this all summer!  haha.  Really though, he was excited!  He's in the same class as his buddy Tate along with some of the other kiddos from his class last year. 

Unlike last year, Griffin walked right in his classroom with no tears and lots of excitement for the day.  When I picked him up he said he had a lot of fun.  I asked him what he did and he said, "I played with cars but they didn't have any tracks or trains."  (Thank goodness.)

 

So, I'd say Griffin's first summer as a big brother was a huge success.  There was a lot of change and a lot of growing up which is very bitter sweet for this Mama.  I'm so proud of the big boy he is becoming but a little emotional - okay very emotional (typing through tears now) - about the baby boy he is leaving behind.

 

Okay, enough mushy stuff.  I'll leave you with something to laugh about.  Chad and I are afraid G might get kicked out of school tomorrow because he has - all of a sudden - become super interested in his penis and wants to "take it out" and talk about it all the time.  Tonight in the bath tub he told a story that started like this..."One day, the penis...."  Thankfully it trailed off from there but he repeated that intro about 50 times.  I'm sure the fact that Chad and I were laughing our heads off didn't help the fact.  Oh well.  Boys will be boys and they sure are FUN!

 

July 4th Weekend: New Place, Same Great Fun!

The past few years we have made Daytona over the 4th a Knight family tradition.  This year, with the addition of TWO precious babies, we decided to forgo the 8 our drive and settle on a 2 hour drive to beautiful lake Hartwell!  While it wasn't a nice loooong vacation, we were able to make a long weekend out of it and it was great!  Griffin had been up there once before, and it had been forever since Chad and I spent any time up there.  Obviously it was Carson's first trip and I'll speak for him and say he loved it. 

As seems to be the norm these days, Griffin was very scared cautious about everything in the beginning...which is okay with me.  He likes to do things at his own pace, but always seems to come around, which I love!  He's a cautious adventurer!  So, after he spent a little time on the dock, we moved on to spending some time on the parked boat.  By the time we were ready to head out for a pontoon ride, Griffin was on board with the idea and loved it.

How cute is he?!

Carson did great on his first boat ride.  Had a bottle and then enjoyed the ride.

Griffin even got to drive the boat!

Sloppy eater.

The Herrings!

It's tradition to go under the bridge and signal at the trucks passing on top to honk their horns.  Griffin kind of got into it and liked saying "whoop whoop!"

Hey!  Thanks for the honk man.

Carson got a turn behind the wheel too.

Hello sweetness!

Swimming under the pontoon.  Griffin was actually brave enough to go because we told him it was the "Misty Island Tunnel."  (A Thomas reference for those who don't know.)

Griffin did great with his puddle jumper to help him swim.  Kick, kick, kick, kick!

Playing with is trucks.

Two cool dudes if you ask me! 

We, of course, had to have a family photo shoot.  Griffin did as well as we expected him to. 

We were bribing him with bites of brownie.  He's ready for more!

These two look like they are conspiring....could be trouble in the years ahead!

....and Griffin is done.

We were able to capture one good group shot!  The group has grown by 2 since last 4th of July!

Another evening boat ride.  There's nothing better!

The moms and their babies.

I love this picture...

...and this one.  That smile can melt some hearts!

It was a great weekend with family!  I just can't wait to see these boys grow up together and become great friends.  We look forward to many more family vacations like this!

The Start of Something Good

Last night was a milestone night in the Herring household!  Griffin and Carson spent the night in the same room for the first time!  For some reason I am just giddy over this.  I really think it's the start of something good; something awesome and fun!  For one, it means Carson is no longer sleeping in Mama and Dada's room...more restful for everyone!  (Okay, mostly just me since the other two people in the room can sleep through most anything.)  But most importantly, I feel like this is the beginning of such a special bond between brothers.  I picture them sharing a room for years to come, even when we have the space and it's not necessary for them to share...I'm picturing bunk beds, giggles, staying up late and getting into lots of trouble!

How cute are these two?!

 So, Mr. Carson has been sleeping through the night pretty regularly now for a couple weeks.  Woohoo!  He got to where he was only waking up once in the middle of the night (sometime between 2am and 4am) and once or twice he made it until 6am or so on his own.  We decided that we'd try to just stop feeding him when he woke up and let him cry it out (I know, I know...you're either for it or against it.  It worked with G so we decided to do the same with C.)  Once we committed to this, Carson would wake up between 4am and 4:30am, cry for 10 minutes or less, then fall back to sleep until it was time to wake up.  A few nights of this (3-4) and he as been sleeping through the night for almost 2 weeks now!

We have been talking about when we would put C in the boys room a lot lately and just decided that last night would be as good as any!  We asked Griffin if he wanted Carson to sleep in his room with him (we've been telling him since C was born that when he got a little bigger they would share a room) and he said, "Ohhh yeah!"  So after bottles, baths, jammies, stories and prayers, we tucked both boys in and shut the door...then immediately went to the video monitor to spy on them!

As usual Griffin did some talking and some singing to himself - well, I guess now to Carson.  I think he must have been excited because he seemed a little more amped up than usual.  G went on and on for about 45 minutes and we didn't hear a peep from Mr. C.  Once G finally calmed down a bit and was quiet, Carson piped up and started crying...loudly.  Chad and I think he was probably comforted by all of Griffin's chattering and was confused as to why it was so quiet all of the sudden!  Haha.  We were curious to see how G would react to C's crying...he was strangely quiet and stayed in bed, popping up every now and then saying, "What's wrong Carson?"  "It's okay Carson."  {So darn sweet!}

This is a picture of the screen on our video monitor.  If you can make it out, you can see G sitting up, looking over his bed rail.  {Note: NONE of the information on the video monitor screen is correct...do not call DFACS, it is not 82 degrees in that room!}

We let Carson cry on and off for about 15 minutes but when he didn't calm down I decided to go up there.  As soon as I walked in G said, "Carson is upset!"  I went to pick up Carson, (Griffin immediately jumped out of bed to help me) patted him on the back, a huge burp came out, I laid him back down and that was all we heard from the Carson man.  {I'm not sure if I've mentioned that he's a perfect baby yet, but he is...seriously.}    After that things were pretty quiet upstairs.  G still did some moving around but by about 9:15pm all was quiet.  Phew! 

I captured a few pictures of the boys when I went in to get Carson for his 10pm feeding.  I snapped the pictures, scooped up Carson in his swaddle, fed him in our room, then slipped him right back into bed.  Seamless!

I didn't hear a peep until 7:05am!!  I'm pretty sure Carson woke up first and woke up G.  Again, as soon as I walked in the room Griffin said, "Carson is upset!"  ...and then we started our day!

Tonight has gone well so far.  Things were much quieter upstairs...Griffin wasn't AS talkative (though I did hear him talking to Carson a few times) and there was no crying from C.  I think everyone was out by about 8:30 - very good considering they went down at 8.

All of my boys reading before bed.  Priceless!

So, here's to Griffin and Carson - BEST FRIENDS FOREVER!

The Carson Man

Just a few pictures of our 2 month old these days!  I swear he's getting bigger (and heavier) by the minute.  In an effort to give this child a nice, round head we've been spending time in the Bumbo seat lately.  He actually does pretty well in it!  I had forgotten about this little seat until I went back and looked at a post of Griffin right around this same age and he was in the Bumbo.  These pictures look pretty similar!  (Carson, I think you're actually doing a little better than your big brother was at the time.) 

Well hello there little stud muffin!  (Can I call my own son a stud muffin?)

That head is starting to get a little heavy to hold up, but he did a great job...and with a smile on his face too!

Again, working on that head...tummy time.  You're getting stronger and stronger!

Of course it helps motivate you when you've got fun train to look at.  That's Charlie and Molly...say hello!

And even though these pictures make it look like we're doing a good job on our homework of lots and lots of tummy time, we still spend a lot of time on our back.  Carson just loves his play mat and could stare at all of those bright colors all day long.  He's even getting to the point where he can reach over and/or up and grab the toys hanging down.  Go Carson...we are proud of you!