Look at the sarcasm in that face!
That's right...GO PATS!!
TOUCHDOWN! (We hope to say that a lot on Sunday!)
Our little quarterback in the making!
GRIFFIN! He's SO strong. Like he can pretty much hold onto my fingers and I can lift all 20 pounds of his body. He's trying to sit up, and does really well if a toy is in front of him. He's really gotten into more interactive toys, and is bored with his teethers. When we put him on the floor, he rolls and spins everywhere. Grumps went to get him one morning, and he couldn't find him...he'd rolled underneath their coffee table! He's been a super sleeper, as of late, and we can only hope and pray that continues. He's sleeping about 12 hours at night, and taking 2 naps lasting between 2-3 hours, and a third nap, maybe 30-45 mins. Finally!! He likes bananas, carrots, sweet potatoes, squash, peas, green beans, and peaches. He doesn't much care for the consistency of rice cereal. He's gotten much better at eating off a spoon now...I think he's getting the hang of it. Still just a wee bit of blonde peach fuzz on his head, and NO signs of teeth, other than the constant faucet of drool! Also, Griffin is quite vocal. We don't remember Payton ever "talking" this much, or as loudly as Griffin. We finally have gotten true "belly laughs" out of him. Griffin likes to grab his feet. Also, he constantly likes to stick his tongue out and roll it, a hereditary trait? The tongue-rolling, not sticking it out ;) He's becoming more and more fun every day, and he loves to watch Payton. They are the best of friends (so far) and we couldn't be more blessed to have such wonderful kids!!
Callie and Griffin...best buds!
Who's licking whom here?
There's that tongue!
That tongue again!
Pajama day at school!
A couple weeks ago we attended my first political event...it was given by my dear friends, Shiela Fletcher and Thomas Cloninger, out at their farm in Gastonia...a fundraiser for Pat McCrory, who is running for Governor. We brought the kids with us. Payton was shy, at first, but then was dancing around to the band that was playing. Everyone commented on what cute kids we had, and how well behaved...while Mr. McCrory was speaking, I took Payton outside to see the firepit, and "drive" the golf carts, just to make sure everyone kept their same opinions of our sweet, well behaved kids ;)
Former Mayor, Pat McCrory...running for Governor.
MOUNTAINS! Last week we headed back up the mountain in hopes for some better snow, and my first opportunity in 2 years to snowboard. The weather forecast wasn't looking promising. Amy Tisdale and her kids, Whitt (7) and Caroline (5), met us up there. It was my duty, and privilege, to teach Whitt how to snowboard. I was able to get 7, only seven, runs in by myself, the day Amy and the kids were driving up. I've still "got" it, which is nice. However, I couldn't see more than 10 feet in front of me due to fog. I managed to leave my gloves on the couch, so needless to say, they weren't very useful. Luckily it was warm enough that my hands were fine...I think there may have been 10-15 people on the ENTIRE mountain (at Beech), so that was nice. On my seventh run, the fog was becoming quite misty, nearly raining, I was getting wet, the slopes were getting muddy in spots, and the lift stopped (almost 30 minutes!) for no apparent reason on my way up...a sure sign it was time to go. The next day it was Whitt's turn...the weather had cleared up, but because of the warm temps and rain, the slopes were in worse shape. We went to Sugar in hopes of better conditions. We all started out on the bunny slope. I gave Whitt some instructions, and Amy helped Caroline down the slopes. Whitt quickly caught on and was ready to go up to the chairlift slope, "Easy Street." He was charging it, wanting to go faster and faster each time down. He did much better than I expected, and of course, is now hooked. Amy, Caroline, and Whitt went back out on Saturday, while I stayed back with Brian and helped with the kiddos (who were both getting bad colds). It turns out that Griffin had an ear infection in his right ear, and because he was wheezing when he breathed, he was put on a nebulizer (asthma treatment) to help open up his lungs. Thankfully he's doing MUCH better now!
The kids LOVE Granby and Grumps big "hot tub!" A special treat when we're up there!
Griffin, our little mannequin ;)
The girls got along so well, and loved playing with each other, pretending with their dolls, even trying to match outfits, hair, and hats!
Wearing Daddy's (Johnathan's) helmet
Monkey See, Monkey Do...wearing Mommy's helmet
She said she wanted to snowboard. We suited her up, drove up to the slopes, but she refused to step into the board. Hmmmm....I'm hoping this was just because she had a cold & was grumpy, and not because she doesn't want to snowboard anymore!!
My first braids!! It was funny because I walked out of the bathroom with braids in my hair, Caroline walked out of her room with the same, then Amy came out of her bathroom also with braids. We couldn't leave Sweet P out! She was so proud of them! She's getting to be such a big girl!
Helping Mommy make chocolate chip cookies...
Patiently waiting, and watching.
How I love my baby boy so!
Caroline was a big help with Griffin, always eager to entertain and initiate big smiles :)
Teething? Nah. I've been asking myself that for 3 months now!
You want a hug?
Well, OKAY! :)
Amy and Leigh...lifelong friends! I've known Amy ALL my life! Okay, all "her" life because I'm just slightly older ;)
Brother and sister...and best friends!
Caroline and Payton had a great time caring for their babies. What great mommies they are!
Caroline and Amy, ready to ski the bunny slope!
Whitt CHARGING the snow...he was speeding down the slopes here! His daddy would be proud!
The beautiful Tisdale family on a beautiful winter day in the mountains!
THE CHASE...Saturday evening, after we went to dinner at the "Mexican and Fish" restaurant as my dad calls it, the kids were full of themselves. We all went upstairs and had a "dance party." The dance party quickly turned into a full energy game of chase. Payton was the one being chased. It was hillarious to watch the kids play together. They all stayed up way past their bedtimes, but I have a feeling they all slept REALLY soundly that night. Payton awakened at 11:30am Sunday. That's our sleeping beauty!
Picking out music for the "dance party"
Whitt trying to scare, er, make Griffin smile ;) Seems to have worked!
...and the chase begins...(note the THREE remotes!)
BOO! I see you!
Gotcha!
PAYTON still LOVES her big girl bed, and hasn't once tried to get out of it unless we come into her room (then she hops out and giggles). Using a spoon for her cereal & oatmeal has gotten much less messy. She has become very efficient at using my iPhone, and can find her games on it, and knows how to take pictures. She LOVES reading books, and it's so neat that she'll try to read them back to us. There are a few she's read so many times that she basically repeats what's on the page...a step toward early reading! She can recognize and say pretty all of her ABC's now, and can sing the song, and knows the basic colors. We're still working on shapes. She loves stacking blocks (then knocking them down)...even better...when Daddy builds the tallest towers, she bulldozes them down and wants to do it again and again. Some funny ways she says (or did say) words (I have to get these down before we forget!!):
-Instead of saying "thank you," she'll hand you something and say "welcome me."
-Instead of "no," it's "no way" or "no ma'am." She hears me say that to the dogs a lot.
-For my lip stuff (that's what I call lip gloss) she'll say "lip-a-stuff."
-For upstairs, "up-a-stairs"
-"Mulk" for milk
-"Pease" for please
-"Gumps" and "Ganby" for Grumps and Granby, and "Giffin" for Griffin...she has a little "Bahston" in her ;)
-"Pizzi" for pizza
-"Eyes" for sunglasses or glasses
She is speaking in chopped sentences, ie, "I want TV on." "Emma lay down." "Griffin crying." "Grumps wake up." "Payton watch Elmo." It's super cute to hear her language continue to develop, and her personality come out. So far we haven't seen too many signs of the terrible two's, as long as she's well-rested (and let's face it, she's ALWAYS well-rested!), but we did get a touch of fussiness over the weekend...I'm attributing that to being sick, BUT she is definitely pushing her limits with getting her way.
Well, that about sums up our past two weeks...now my focus is on the Super Bowl. I don't think my Pats will do all that well, but anything can happen in the playoffs. I hope it's a good game, and I hope my Pats come out on TOP! So...Goooooo Patriots!!
Here's a little soundbite of "The Next American Idol!" LOL!
