Griffin Grapevine

Home Bound by Snow

2011-02-05T11:24:00.000-06:00

It has been quite a week in the DFW area. On Monday night of last week, we got a tremendous amount of rain followed by plummeting temperatures and snow. The streets have been a slick mess ever since. Day by day, school was cancelled. At this point we have been homebound for five days! I've learned some things in these five days:

1. I do not give my kids nearly enough credit for the wonderful people that they are. They have been so well behaved. They haven't complained about being bored. They've shared the computer. They've played well together.

2. We can survive without a television. We didn't even turn it on the first day. We've watched a little tv in the evenings as a family, but by and large none of us have vegged in front of the tv all day. We've played cards. We've played indoor hide-and-seek. We've played in the snow. We've cuddled by the fire.

3. It is possible to get sore from SITTING too long. After a few days on demand exercise TV and a snow shovel became welcome forms of movement.

4. I am capable of preparing every. single. meal. we eat for 2 solid weeks. We've only been home bound by snow for 1 week, but we haven't eaten out ONCE in two weeks. I don't think the Griffin family has ever , since it's establishment in 1997, gone this long without gracing a restaurant.

5. We can keep the house clean even when we don't leave for days on end. This is perhaps our biggest accomplishment this week. :)

This week has gone better than I ever would have dreamed, but I have said that we ARE GOING OUT TO DINNER tonight! I am DONE with this house.

Practically Bilingual

2011-02-03T12:33:00.001-06:00

I was doing laundry tonight when Brenna walks in and confidently announces, "I am practically bilingual!"

I said, "Do you even know what bilingual means?"

"Yes, it means I know two Spanishes."

"Don't you mean two languages?"

"Yes!"

"But, honey, you don't know Spanish."

"Yes I do. See.... somblelo angero!" (with a rolled r and everything!)

I just love her confidence in herself, even when she is speaking a nonsensical language that only sounds like Spanish. She makes me laugh every day.

A Girl and Her Dog

2010-11-08T09:59:00.000-06:00

Brenna is a HUGE animal lover. We got Polly about a year ago, and she is Brenna's playmate on many of the days that Brenna doesn't have school. Today, Polly played the role of baby.

It's a good thing she's a very patient dog.

Daddy, Daughter Dance

2010-11-06T22:04:00.000-05:00

Our church hosted a Daddy, Daughter Dance at the end of October. My parents were already planning on coming that weekend, so Ella called Papa to invite him to come to the dance with Scott and the girls. Everyone was so excited. The girls got to wear pretty dresses, and we curled their hair. Their dates dressed up in their nice ties and dressy clothes. The girls had a wonderful time. Ella spent the evening dancing with Daddy. Brenna spent the evening sitting at the table with Papa gorging herself on all the desserts the church provided. Both girls were happy as a pig in a poke. :)

Here's a picture of everyone dressed up in their finery:

Halloween

2010-11-05T16:10:00.001-05:00

I was so excited this Halloween to have a Princess-free costume buying experience. Brenna chose to be Jessie from Toy Story, and Ella chose to be Hannah Montana. Ella really just wanted a wig to wear. :) The girls had a blast Trick-or-Treating and have been gorging themselves on candy every afternoon for a week now.

I made Brenna's Jessie wig from instructions that I found at Family Fun magazine. It was incredibly easy for those of you who might want to do something like that in the future!

My little Hannah Montana even has some sass to those hips. Goodness!

Thank goodness all this candy is almost gone! I guess Brenna was just exhausted by this point. She looks furious to be surrounded by her yummy goodness.

Back Again

2010-11-05T15:51:00.001-05:00

I have a wonderful sister-in-law, who along with my brother has created the cutest nephew a girl could ask for. My sister-in-law, Casey, is fantastically creative! And what better for a fantastically creative new mom to do than start her own blog. Which led to an admonishment from a proud Papa! Said admonishment was given to yours truly for not keeping up with my own blogging.

Apparently, all the updated pictures of my adorable nephew have left the grandparents in need of more pictures of their adorable (if I do say so myself) granddaughters. If nothing else, I feel very loved by the fact that my dad specifically asked me to update my blog so he could see pictures of the girls. Thank you, Casey, for giving me a reason to put up a blog post. :) It also gives me a reason to upload the more than THREE HUNDRED (yes that is correct 300+) pictures that have been hanging out on my digital camera for over EIGHT MONTHS. YIKES! Apparently, I've fallen down on more than one computer task.

So, without further ado...the girls

Proud Moment

2010-01-13T22:23:00.002-06:00

Ella had a friend over today,and they were making chocolate milk. I told them to not use too much chocolate syrup. Ella's friend said, "My mom always says the same thing! But then, when she's not looking I'm like..." And she pantomimed squirting the bottle really hard and for a long time.

Ella responded, "Oh, we're not allowed to do that. If we get caught doing something my mom has already told us not to do, then we get in even bigger trouble because I already KNOW it is wrong." I think a little sun beam shone down on her head at that moment. She does listen and choose to obey...at least some of the time. I've always known she wasn't a kid who hides things, but to hear her articulate her understanding of how sneaky behavior gets you in bigger trouble made me really proud of her. It's good to know that at least one of the lessons we are trying to teach her is sticking.

Jingle Bells Brenna Style

2009-12-19T10:05:00.002-06:00

Jingle bells,
jingle bells,
jingle all the way.
Go muh fun it is to ride,
go yourself and play.
HEY!

Let it SNOW!

2009-12-02T09:27:00.003-06:00

WOW! It's been almost a year since I've posted. That's really quite sad, because Brenna has had a year of cuteness as she grows up and learns to express herself. Ella has had quite a year of accomplishment in her schooling.

We had snow today! The girls were so excited. I hate that it will be gone before Ella gets home from school. Ella wore her rain boots to school, and got to play in the snow for a bit while she was waiting for the bus.

Brenna also went outside to play. She wore her coat, hat, rain boots and "puppets" (mittens) so she wouldn't get too cold. She made a Christmas tree out of snow, and she was so pleased with herself. It's basically a big blob that is shaped something like a triangle--emphasis on the "something like." She told me she wanted to play with the snow "before it all winds away."

Su-MET-i-mus

2009-01-15T15:47:00.003-06:00

I have really enjoyed watching the process of Ella learning to read. Ella was reading to Scott before bed the other night, and she was trying to sound out a word she was unfamiliar with. Su-MET-i-mus known to the rest of us as sometimes. I just think it is precious!

I can't resist the mom brag here either. Ella had a reading assessment done today. We had a conference in October at the end of the first six weeks of school. At that time Ella's teacher wrote, "Goals for Ella: Reading at a level 8-10 by end of year." During her assessment today, Ella passed the level 10 reading assessment. The only reason her teacher didn't test her at an 11 is because she didn't read quite as quickly as she needed to because she takes time to sound out the words. She also doesn't show as much comprehension of details as her teacher would like to see before moving her up a level. She understands the story, but she doesn't remember all the small details because she's concentrating more on figuring out the words. I am SOOOOOO proud of her!

Pudding Face

2009-01-12T09:20:00.001-06:00

Couldn't you just eat her up?

SO Proud of Ella

2009-01-08T22:16:00.002-06:00

Today at school Ella and a friend were written up during art class for talking and not paying attention. During their evening chat Ella mentioned to Scott that when Mrs. Webster had turned her back the friend had thrown away the write up notice so that her mom wouldn't find out about their behaviour. In contrast to that, Ella walked through the front door, went straight into Scott's office and immediately handed him the note. While we are disappointed that she didn't obey her teacher, we are so proud that she didn't follow the actions of her friend. I told her tonight that I was proud of her for having the courage to make a good decision and for showing a good heart in telling us the truth. She can be a follower, so the fact that she decided to do what was right even when doing the wrong thing was easy really, really impressed me.

Here Baby

2009-01-05T19:22:00.005-06:00

I tackled Mt. Washmore today...well almost. I've been doing laundry all day long with only two loads to go. When Ella got home from school we decided to have some friends over to play. It's a great excuse to take a break from laundry! LOL

Brenna spent time with my friend's baby taking her paci in and out of her mouth. Thank goodness the baby was VERY easy going about the whole thing.

Mt. Washmore

2009-01-04T19:51:00.002-06:00

It never ceases to amaze me how much work it is to prepare for going on vacation. Can someone please explain to me how the laundry manages to breed while we are gone? Tonight is the beginning and tomorrow is the true excursion. Mt. Washmore will be conquered.

Pig Tails and Dog Ears

2009-01-03T20:53:00.006-06:00

Ella asked me to braid her hair before bed tonight. So of course, Brenna had to get in on the fun. You know that for every pretty picture that is taken that has to be at least one (or 10) bad ones taken. Tonight's little picture taking excursion included the beginnings of a fist fight...ahhhh kids.

Swing Sweet Nice 'n Gayle, Swing Sweet Nice 'n Gayle

2009-01-02T20:44:00.005-06:00

If you've watched the movie Cinderella, you've seen the scene where she is wearing a kerchief on her head and singing, "Sing sweet nightingale, Sing sweet nightingale." Brenna put this wash cloth one her head and told us it was her "Swing sweet nice 'n gayle" cloth. She proceeded to sing the song with those same lyrics.

Pajama Day

2009-01-01T20:36:00.002-06:00

There are some really cool blogs out there where people have made a New Year's Resolution to post a picture every single day and blog about it. So here goes my attempt.

[No, you are not allowed to yell at me, tut-tut at me, or even secretly roll your eyes when I fail to follow through with this!]

We spent New Year's at Wheezer and Popper's house. Wheezer declared New Year's Day as Pajama Day. We spent the day lazing around in our pajamas just hanging out together. I love days like that, but boy does it feel nice to get up and dressed and around the next day. Here are the girl's lounging together in Wheezer's bed. You can see that Ella gave up on Pajama Day and decided to get dressed anyway.

Toilet Water

2008-12-11T23:23:00.002-06:00

I ate with Ella at school today. She gets a treat every Thursday when I'm at school if she has gotten stickers for the week for her behavior. Today she chose Cheetos.

After lunch she and her friend went to the bathroom so Ella could wash her hands. Ella came up to me afterwards and in a very indignant tone declared, "MOM! My friend took toilet paper and dipped it in the toilet water and then WIPED MY MOUTH with it to get the Cheetos off my mouth!"

I think my eyes bugged straight out of my head! I said, "WHY didn't you run away? Ohmygosh! Come with me right now." I took her into the bathroom and lathered my hands up really good and scrubbed her face clean. Then we went and found her friend and had a chat about how gross it was to a) stick her hands in the toilet and b) clean someone's face with toilet water. I sent her to wash her hands.

It just bamboozles me why the perfectly good (and surely more sanitary) sink wouldn't have worked as a source of water. Kids are just gross! It took a lot of will power to kiss the poor kid on the mouth today.

Election Overload

2008-11-04T09:13:00.001-06:00

You know you have listened to too much election coverage when your two-year-old says, "That Obama on the radio. What that Obama do now?"

Puppets and Smashmallows

2008-10-28T19:54:00.003-05:00

I just love the creativity of a two-year-old. This morning it was in the 40's when we walked Ella to school, so I put mittens on Brenna's hands. She stuck her hands in and said, "Mommy, are these my puppets?" She then proceeded to have her hands "talk" to one another. When we got home she asked me to take her puppets off her hands.

Another Brennaism is to eat smashmallows--known to the rest of the world as marshmallows. She does, in fact, love to smash them before she eats them, so the name is fitting.

Ella the Little Mommy

2008-10-25T13:49:00.003-05:00

I was taking a shower this afternoon while the girls were outside playing. Ella came in while I was in the shower and got Brenna's 'ket out of my bed. A few minutes later she came back into the bathroom and said, "OK. Brenna is down for her nap."

Wha'aat?

Brenna was acting tired, so Ella got her out of her swing and brought her inside the house. Ella took Brenna to her bed, found Brenna a doll and her 'ket, and tucked her in for her nap. Brenna got out of bed once and Ella said to her, "Brenna, get back into bed. It's your naptime." Astonishingly, Brenna went back to bed. By the time I got out of the shower, Brenna was snoozing peacefully.

I don't know if I should be worried that Ella was so easily in charge or proud that she was sweet to Brenna and responsible towards her at the same time. Honestly, I am most astonished that Brenna did what Ella said. She must have been REALLY TIRED!

Brenna is a Big Girl!

2008-10-23T15:40:00.002-05:00

Brenna was in a diaper all day on Saturday while we were out and about, and she only had one accident all day long. She asked to go the bathroom every other time she needed to go. She has been in panties every day since then! It was such an easy transition for her. I am so proud! She's still in diapers at nap and nighttime, but when she's awake she is in panties full time. Big Girl!!!!

The Beginning of Potty Training?

2008-10-16T15:45:00.002-05:00

I tried to potty train Brenna few months ago, but she would not go in the potty. She could complete every step of the process with no assistance whatsoever, but she wouldn't actually GO. I put it on hold figuring we would try again at Christmas when she was out of school for several weeks.

She loves to wear this specific diaper that has Blue (from Blue's Clues) holding a toy airplane. Yesterday, Brenna's eyes suddenly got really big and she said, "UH-OH! I goin' in my airpane!" Then she proceeded to pull down her pants, rip of her diaper and declare, "See! It's all wet."

The closest thing was a pull-up, so I put her in a dry pull-up. There was absolutely no thought process to this action at all. It was most convenient.

About an hour later Brenna screamed, "I have to go tee-tee in the potty." She ran to the bathroom, climbed up on the stool, pulled down her pants and what do you know? She did it! WOO-HOO!!! Potty dance! I gave her a sucker for a reward. We sang the "You went tee-tee on the potty," celebration song.

About 45 minutes later, she did it all again. I put her in panties at that point just to see how she would do. Lo and behold, she stayed dry all morning. I put her in a pull-up for nap, but she did not want to sleep in it. When she woke up, I put her back in her panties. She didn't do quite so well. She had two accidents, but each time she stopped herself and finished in the potty.

This morning Scott tried to put her in panties for school, but she flat-out refused. She did however, go in the potty three times at school today. She had two accidents, and finished in the potty.

She's in panties at home again this afternoon. I'm cautiously optimistic. We might be saying good-bye, adios, ta-ta to diapers. That will mean that sippie cups are the last vestige of babyhood in my house. YEE HAW!

Every. Single. Saturday.

2008-10-11T08:39:00.002-05:00

Monday through Friday, Ella's alarm clock wakes the girls up at 6:30 AM. Monday through Friday, Brenna comes into my room and says in a mildly irritated tone, "That awarm cah-lock woke up dis morning." Every Friday night I go to sleep with the blissful notion that tomorrow is Saturday and the girls (and by default Scott and I) are going to be able to sleep late. But, every single Saturday Brenna wakes up at 5:30 or 6:00 in the morning! She came into my room this morning bawling at the top of her lungs. What is that? The one morning that nothing beeps to wake her up she wakes up earlier and crankier than any other morning of the week. It always takes several minutes to get her settled back into her bed with the notion of going back to sleep. The strangest part is, I go to be every Friday night with that same blissful notion of uninterrupted sleep.

Play Room Reorganization

2008-09-28T16:22:00.004-05:00

Our playroom has been a disaster pretty much since the day we had mobile children. Having moved to a neighborhood where there are regularly anywhere between two to five visiting children, it has gone from disaster to state of emergency! As you can see from the pictures, it was time for a drastic reorganization.

Thanks to a bunch of different sized storage bins and a new policy of playing with the contents of one bin at a time the toy room is much improved. Ella has gotten so good at cleaning up after herself, that it took me less than two minutes to clean up a few random items that missed a bin before taking the "after" pictures.

Consumer Debt? Already?

2008-09-27T19:38:00.002-05:00

Brenna just got a toy credit card out of a toy purse and said, "Wook, Mommy. Here's your money!"

I think we need to cut up her "cards" now! Think it's too early for a two-year-old to understand the Dave Ramsey "FREEDOM!!!!" scream?

A Splash in Reality

2008-09-27T17:47:00.002-05:00

I took a dip in a stream today. It was totally unplanned, and I was totally unprepared. Scott and I took the kids to Dinosaur Valley State Park today. I packed extra clothes for the kids. Ella insisted that she wanted to take her rain boots instead of her crocs. Then she begged and begged and begged to get in the stream. Being practical minded adults, we kept telling her no because the water would come over the top of her boots. Finally, I relented and said I would help her across a shallow part. Well, it got deeper than her boots. I picked her up to help her across the deep part and as you can imagine DOWN we went! I was very irritated. I was irritated with myself for not having clothes for me. I was irritated with Ella for insisting she needed to wear her boots. Then I was again irritated with myself for not insisting she bring her crocs. I was irritated at Scott that he had gone ahead with Brenna, and he wasn't there to help. We got to the car and reality came crashing down on my heart.

I was so busy being a practical minded adult, that I forgot to let my kids simply be kids. I forgot to laugh at the fact that we were soaking wet in a stream in front of an entire cub scout troop. I forgot that since we were already wet, it was the perfect chance to splash around and get even wetter.

I burst into tears when I got to the car at how badly I had handled such a simple situation. After a heartfelt talk, Scott and I have decided that we are going to take outings and focus on FUN. We started out our day with the wrong focus. The focus was simply to fill our day--not to have fun. We are going to try to do a better job of embracing the childhood that our children should have. We are going to join our children in their fun. We are going to be parents that they remember fondly because we have fun with them. Sometimes, I guess it takes a splash of reality to point out the weaknesses in your life.

Handwriting, Reading, Dinner and Dessert

2008-09-25T16:30:00.002-05:00

Ella has been complaining that she doesn't want to go to school because it is boring. The teacher and I met this afternoon to have a conference and try to figure out how to help Ella develop a positive attitude about school. By talking to Ella and talking with each other we've learned three things.

1. Ella loves to read, and she loves anything to do with reading.
2. Ella is a little overwhelmed by her choices with math stations.
3. Ella hates handwriting practice because it is "boring and too hard."

Handwriting usually occurs first thing in the morning, so Ella is reluctant to go to school because she knows she has to start her day with the task she finds least enjoyable. After school, I was talking to her about it and I said, "You know, the good thing about handwriting being in the morning is that you know that as soon as it's over, the rest of your day is filled with stuff that you like to do more."

Ella said, "Kind of like dinner and dessert. I don't always like to eat dinner, but I have to eat a good dinner to eat dessert. So handwriting is like dinner, and reading is like dessert."

I Fick It Myself

2008-09-18T22:44:00.003-05:00

This morning Brenna came into Scott, proudly held up her waffle and announced, "Look Daddy! I fick it myself." She ate some more of it and then said, "It's cold." Scott took it from her and sure enough, it was freezing cold.

S: Where did you get this from?
B: I fick it myself. Come on, Daddy, I show you.

She walked into the kitchen, pulled open the freezer drawer, pulled out the wrapper and said, "Wight here." She did, in fact, fix it herself. It was just completely frozen. I guess she didn't like the toasted version that was sitting on her plate ready to be eaten.

The Naked Swinger

2008-09-11T17:17:00.004-05:00

Earlier today I found the back door like this:

When I went into the backyard Brenna was swinging without her shirt on:

Or maybe with no clothes on at all!!!!

She's so proud of herself.

You know, they used to call Uncle Lane the Naked Avenger when he was in college (yes, it is a hilarious story). I think we can blame this one on him!

Swinging in the Rain

2008-09-11T17:09:00.003-05:00

Swinging in the rain,
Just swinging in the rain,
What a glorious feeling,
I'm happy again!

Brenna cuddling with Daddy after the rain:

Gotta love kiddo giggles:

Kindy Sickies Strike

2008-09-08T16:17:00.005-05:00

Apparently, Kindergarten sickies can strike anyone even if they have been in Mother's Day Out for the past four years. Poor little Ella is sick. She has croup. She has an ear infection. She has a throat infection. They didn't even bother to run a strep culture because she had to have an antibiotic for her ear infection anyway. She's on three different medications and can't return to school until Wednesday at the earliest.

At least she's been peaceful to deal with:

Riding the Bus

2008-09-05T09:03:00.004-05:00

Ella sprang it on me this morning that she wants to ride the bus home from school. YIKES! I'm so not ready for this independence. However, I found her bus number and sent her to school with a note to let the teacher know she'd be riding the bus.

Here comes the bus!

Here she is this afternoon getting off.

She loved riding the bus, but I really missed picking her up after school. She told me that she's going to ride the bus every day and the mornings too. I vetoed the morning idea. She has to be ready quite a bit earlier, and I wouldn't get to walk her to school. I'm going to let her ride in the afternoons if she wants, but I hope the novelty wears off soon. I really missed picking her up from school today.

Herding Cats

2008-09-05T08:54:00.004-05:00

I volunteered at school yesterday, and I was able to help Ella's teacher get some materials prepared for future lessons. I was in and out of the classroom all day. It is like herding cats to direct a classroom full of 19 kindergartners all day. Mrs. Webster has the patience of a saint and a song about every activity. They have songs about how to sit in circle time, songs about how to walk in the hall, songs about listening.

Even the simple act of walking down the hall is excruciating. Those little children can't walk a strait line to save their lives. They giggle and talk. They twirl in circles. They get out of line to run their hands along the wall. They simply stop, turn around and talk to the person behind them. And all the while, Mrs. Webster is as calm as can be trying to get them to walk down the hall in a simple line. I watched a group of first graders today. At some point the lessons do actually sink in because those kids actually understood the principle of walking quietly down the hall in a line.

Now for an Ella brag, Mrs. Webster told me that she is doing tremendously well with her reading. She said she could tell that I had obviously worked at teaching her to read. I'd love to take credit for that, but the things Ella knows about reading she has pretty much figured out on her own! I was very pleased to hear that she is doing well in that area though. Now, if we can just keep her talking under control. I told her that if she came home with good behaviour reports all week that she could pay for a special dessert treat in the cafeteria each Friday. Apparently, I can even put a restriction of no desserts except on Friday on her account.

Social Drama

2008-09-03T17:09:00.002-05:00

I already have a social butterfly on my hands. It's only the 6th day of school and the 2nd day of getting behavior reports, and Ella already has a sad face for talking too much. Ohmygoodness she is just like me. She talked so much that her teacher had to move her seating assignment. According to Ella, "It is SOO boring. Now I have to sit with all boys. I'm the ONLY GIRL!" She lost her friend priviledges at home today too because she wasn't listening when the teacher was speaking.

There's social drama too. One of the little girls in Ella's class said that Ella was being mean to her. Ella's side of the story is that this little girl is jealous because Ella is making other friends. The other little girl is telling Ella that she's not allowed to be friends with anyone else. I spoke to the teacher at length this afternoon after getting all the details (there were quite a few). Tomorrow they are going to have a lesson for the whole class on being a family and being nice to everyone. Who knew that there could be so much drama in the life of a kindergartener?

Sleeping In

2008-08-30T07:42:00.002-05:00

Morning after morning the girls have complained about how tired they were. They have complained about how dark it was outside. They have complained about having to get out of their warm beds at 6:30 in the morning.

YAY! It's Saturday. We can all sleep in late. We can all stay in our warm beds. We can sleep until the sun has risen. So how late did the girls sleep you ask? Until the beautiful hour of 5:30 in the morning. It's such a shame they have to get up so early for school (please note that the sarcastic tone).

We Have a P-R-O-B-L-E-M

2008-08-29T18:46:00.003-05:00

The learning has begun! I asked Scott, "What we were going to do about B-E-D?" Ella promptly said, "Bed. What do you mean what are we going to do about bed?"

My way of life is already changing drastically.

We Should Try These Rules at Home

2008-08-27T19:51:00.003-05:00

Ella and I had to review her classroom rules in class today. She thought they were absolutely brilliant. I swear it was like she had never heard them before in her life!

1. We obey instructions the first time.

E: Mom, we should really try this at home!
J: Yeah Ella, that would be a great idea.

(Thinking to myself, "How have you missed this lesson for the past FIVE AND A HALF YEARS? I've been trying to get you to obey the first time for years now.")

I guess the silver lining is that maybe the brilliance of these rules will actually work at home too.

2. We use the appropriate voice at the appropriate times.

E: Yeah, this is a good one too. You can be loud on the playground at recess, but you need to be really quiet inside the school.
J: Right, because people all around you are trying to learn and they need quiet.
E: Exactly. So we should be quiet at home too.
J: Yes, because Daddy is trying to work and he would love it if we could be a little quieter while he is working.
E: I have NEVER thought of that.

(Again. Really? Never thought of that? He's worked at home since before you were born! We tell you over and over and over, ad nauseam, that you need to be quieter.)

3. We control our bodies.

J: So no hitting or kicking or pushing.
E: Yes, that's another good one. Then I wouldn't be pushing Brenna any more. I'd just ask her nicely to move.

4. We are kind to others.

E: I really want to try this at home. Then I could be nice to you and Daddy and Brenna. Wouldn't that be nice, Mommy?

(Yes, that would be nice. I really wish I had thought of that myself. sigh)

A Successful First Day

2008-08-26T17:47:00.003-05:00

Ella had a wonderful first day at school. She got into the car and squealed, "It was GREAT! I LOVED IT! I made a new friend named Presley, and she is soooooooo nice."

I e-mailed her teacher to remind her that I was wanting to help out in the classroom, and to thank her for helping to ease Ella's anxiety this morning. Mrs. Webster had this to say about Ella:

Oh I am so happy to hear that...the first day is so hard...for everyone, but I do believe ours was very successful this year. Ella did wonderful! She is so sweet and really came alive after about an hour of being here.

I am so thrilled that she had such a good day. I'm going to start helping out in her classroom next week. YAY!

I Trust You'll Treat Her Well

2008-08-26T11:49:00.003-05:00

I think this expresses it pretty well.

World, I bequeath to you today one little girl in a crispy dress.. with two blue eyes...and a happy laugh that ripples all day long, and a batch of light brown hair that bounces in the sunlight when she runs. I Trust You'll Treat Her Well.

She's slipping out of the backyard of my heart this morning and skipping off down the street to her first day at school.

And never again will she be completely mine...

Prim and proud, she'll wave a young and independent hand this morning, and say goodbye and walk with little-lady steps to the nearby schoolhouse...

Gone will be the chattering little hoyden who lived only for play, and gone will be the delightful little gamin who roamed the yard like a proud princess with nary a care in her little world.

Now, she will learn to stand in lines...and wait by the alphabet for her name to be called...

She will learn to tune her little-girl ears for the sound of school bells, and for deadlines...

She will learn to giggle and gossip... and to look at the ceiling in a disinterested way when the little boy across the aisle sticks out his tongue.

Now she will learn to be jealous...and now she will learn how it is to feel hurt inside...and now she will learn how not to cry. No longer will she have time to sit on the front porch steps on a summer day and watch while an ant scurries across a crack in the sidewalk...

Nor will she have time to pop out of bed with the dawn to kiss lilac blossoms in the morning dew. Now she will worry about important things...like grades...and what dresses to wear...and whose best friend is whose. Now she will worry about the little boy who pulls her hair at recess time... and staying after school...and which little girls like which little boys...And the magic of books and knowledge will soon take the place of the magic of her blocks and dolls.

And she'll find her new heroes. For five full years I've been her sage and Santa Claus...her pal and playmate...her parent and friend. Now, alas, she'll learn to share her worship and adoration with her teachers (which is only right).

No longer will her parents be the smartest, and greatest in the world. Today, when the first school bell rings, she'll learn how it is to be a member of the group...with all its privileges, and, of course, its disadvantages, too.

She'll learn in time that proper young ladies don't laugh out loud...or keep frogs in pickle jars in bedrooms...or watch ants scurry across the cracks in a summer sidewalk...

Today, she'll begin to learn for the first time that all who smile at her are not her friends. That "the group" can be a demanding mistress... and I'll stand on the porch and watch her start out on the long, long journey to becoming a woman.

So WORLD, I BEQUEATH TO YOU TODAY ONE LITTLE GIRL in a crispy dress, with two blue eyes, a happy laugh that ripples all day long, and a batch of light brown hair that bounces in the sunlight when she runs.

I TRUST YOU'LL TREAT HER WELL.

The First Day of School

2008-08-26T11:22:00.006-05:00

It's here! The first day of Kindergarten is here! Ella has been so anxious about starting school that I was really worried about how this morning was going to go. Everything went so much more smoothly than I anticipated.

Ella and Brenna both hopped right out of bed when the alarm went off and came into our room. Ella was a bit upset because Scott had told her the sun would be up and it was still dark outside. Brenna said, "There's no sun in the 'ky! It still dark ou'side."

I gave Ella one of my necklaces before breakfast this morning. I told her it was mine and I was giving it to her so she could wear it all day and know that I was rooting for her and that I would see her this afternoon. Ella ate breakfast, got dressed, and brushed her hair all with no drama. She was even really happy to pose for pictures at home.

And excited enough to dance a little:

We even had 10 minutes to spare for her to play on the computer. Then we left to walk to school. Here's a picture of her walking away into her big-girl world:

She was happy all the way to school. We met one of her friends on the walk up there and they chattered the whole way. Once we got into her classroom she was a little upset. We tried to get a picture in the classroom, but she wasn't enthused at all.

However, we weren't in tears yet, so I was feeling pretty good. When I left she did start crying. It broke my heart to walk out of the room. She was screaming and crying, "MOMMY!!!!!!!!! MOMMY!!!!!!!" I cried a little bit once I was in the hall. Her teacher went to her immediately when she started crying though. Before we were around the corner she calmed down enough that I couldn't hear her any more.

All in all, the stress level was much lower than I anticipated. By the time I had walked home again I even felt lighter from having survived the drop off. It's only 10:00, but I can't wait to pick her up and hear how her first day went. LOL

Here's a bonus picture of Brenna on her first day of school:

Fashion Show

2008-08-26T11:03:00.004-05:00

Our friends from Boston are in town for a visit. Jo's oldest son James is graduating from Basic Training in Ft. Sill so they came for visit with us while they are here to see his graduation ceremony. In trying to get Ella excited for the first day of school, Jo suggested that we have a fashion show for her to show off her first day of school outfit. So without further ado, the fashion show!

Ella's first day of school outfit:

Katie's fashion attire:

Ella and Katie posing together:

Brenna gets in on the action:

Kenzie also got in on the action, but I never managed to get a picture of her. The fashion show did its job becuase Ella was very excited to lay out her clothes for the first day of school.

Meet the Teacher

2008-08-26T10:32:00.006-05:00

Ella is going to a brand new school next year. She is going to be a Longhorn--a green and gold Longhorn NOT a burnt orange Longhorn. LOL! Since this is the inaugural year for the school the principal rode into meet the teacher night on a longhorn. It was really neat! Brenna LOVED it.

Ella had her meet the teacher night last Friday. It was an unqualified disaster. Ella has been very anxious about starting school, so meet the teacher was not a fun, exciting event for our family. She was pretty good in her teacher's classroom. Her teacher this year is Mrs. Webster. I keep hearing from everyone that she is a wonderful teacher, so I am so excited that we have her. Her first impression was certainly positive! When we met her she hugged Ella and said, "I've been writing your name on so many things, and every time I write your name I wonder, 'What kind of person is Ella going to be?'"

I tried to get Ella's picture in her desk, but she would not sit down in her chair. She kept insisting, "I do NOT want my picture taken." She didn't really interact with anyone. I tried to introduce her to the girl that was going to share her desk space, but Ella played shy. There desks are arranged in fours with two boys and two girls in each configuration.

Mrs. Webster gave us a bunch of papers to take home. One was to write a letter to the kids on their first day.

Each classroom has a sister classroom. There is a big open space that they classrooms share, but that can also be closed off by big glass doors so that the noise of the other classroom doesn't disturb the kids.

Brenna was more than happy to pose for pictures.

Ella was just standing around at one point so I snapped her picture.

She screamed at me, "I DID NOT WANT MY PICTURE TAKEN!" The evening went down hill from there! She and I had a nice discussion about being rude, but it apparently didn't sink into her head. We went to the art room, the music room, the library and the gym. Ella had several loud versions of "This is boring," or, "I'm NOT going to school," or "I want to go HOME," that she continuously repeated to the various teachers she met throughout the night. It was humilating. We ended up leaving, and Ella spent the entire evening in her room coming out only to eat her dinner and then promptly being sent to bed at 7:00 PM.

Meet the teacher made our entire house very anxious about the first day of school. Scott and I really want her to feel excited about starting school. Her resistance makes for a high level of stress to say the least.

Brenna! Such Language!

2008-07-11T09:07:00.003-05:00

"Bastard, no-no!"
"Bastard, don't chew dat!"
"Don't wick me, Bastard!"
"Nigh-nigh, Bastard. I say, 'Nigh-nigh, Bastard.'"

Grandma and Granddad have a new dog named Baxter. "Bastard" and Brenna created lots of laughs all week as they played together. Oh the innocence of childhood.

Competitive Nature? Me? NO!!!

2008-05-28T21:47:00.002-05:00

Ella played t-ball this year for the first time. I have to say that she has not been that thrilled with the game. She has fun once she's playing, but it has been a struggle at times to get her to want to play.

We have had wonderful coaches. They are just the right balance between pushing them to do their best and still remembering that these are 5 and 6 year olds. It's now the end of the season and I am OVER IT! We finished our last game, and had play-offs left. I will (shamefully) admit that I was thrilled yesterday when our game was canceled due to rain. No argument from the Griffin camp. WOO HOO! A night of freedom. The game was rescheduled for tonight.

Grumble, grumble, complain under my breath. I told Ella she had to play her very best because this was the play-offs. So I put on my best cheerful face, but admitted to more than one person that I really hoped we would lose so the season would be over.

Cue the crack of the bat. Cue the competitive nature lying in wait inside of me. Next thing I know, I am the crazy mom cheering and whooping and hollering at every good play our team made. The beast inside me is screaming RIP EM! TEAR EM! BEAT EM BAD! :)

We had an amazing game tonight. You never would have guessed those were the small fries out there playing! Our third baseman, Annabelle, completely figured out her job tonight. She tagged out FIVE runners during the game. One inning she had all 3 outs to her individual credit.

As the final runner came up to bat the foe's coach said, "OK. Here is the situation. We already have two outs against us, and we HAVE to get a run to stay in this." The batter lined up the bat. He took a practice swing and then hit the ball for all he was worth. Our team caught the ball at third, threw it all the way across the field to first, where our first baseman caught the ball in a catch worthy of the pros, tagged the base and got the runner out! THREE OUTS! WE WIN!!!!!! The entire bleachers rose as one screaming with joy. The coach jumped at least three feet into the air, ran onto the field and picked up the kid who made the throw in celebration. The third baseman was awarded the game ball, and Ella was ecstatic...until she realized it meant the season wasn't over.

I am very proud of Ella. She has played every single game this season. She kept her committment to her team. She played with a good attitude almost all the time, and she improved tremendously this season. She's even a bit excited about the next game.

At the end of the week when I am once again completely over t-ball, please remind me that the competitive beast simply lies dormant for the time being but will break free as soon as she hears the crack of the bat.

Feeding the Ducks

2008-05-26T18:20:00.003-05:00

We went to feed the ducks this weekend. The girls loved it! Brenna kept screaming "HI DUCK!" and Ella kept trying to feed the mama ducks. Ella didn't like it that the drakes would steal all the bread from the hens.

Brenna's New Pasttime

2008-05-26T17:58:00.005-05:00

So much for doing a better job of posting on my blog. Well, here we go again...yet another commitment. Seriously, I will try.

Brenna has a favorite new activity.

She's very proud of herself. :)

I find myself wondering what on earth could be so fascinating about tearing the paper from a crayon? I have a friend who's toddler can remove the paper all in one piece. Now that is a fascinating habit. Brenna, on the other hand, simply rips the paper off in minute pieces that I have to rely on the incredible power of the Dyson to extract from the carpet. However, it keeps her quiet and busy for long stretches of time so I'm not complaining...much.

Older and Wiser?

2008-03-19T16:13:00.007-05:00

Not so much...

At the age of five, I thought there was no way she would do it. I thought for sure we had escaped this particular "rite of passage" at least with Ella. I thought she wanted long hair enough to NOT cut it herself. Oh how wrong a parent can be about things.

It doesn't look too bad from the front:

It is much more obvious from the sides:

Ella was down the street playing with our neighbors, and they all got into the scissors. I've been sick all week, and I was laying down for a nap while Ella was down there. She came home to wake me up and ask, "Does my hair look different?" I was quite irritated that she woke me up to ask about her hair that looked exactly the same. I was quite a bit more irritated when I realized that it did indeed look quite different! Scott has taken her to the hair salon to get it fixed. I'll post her new haircut as soon as I have the pictures.

The silver lining is that I've been wanting to get her hair cut for months. She wanted it long. I wanted it short. I was letting her grow it out since it is her hair. Natural consequences being what they are, I'm getting my way now.

Here's the new do:

And a side view of the side that was the worst:

Holy Snowflakes, Batman!

2008-03-06T19:19:00.003-06:00

Who would have thought that on March 6, we would have a blizzard in Texas, especially when yesterday we were outside playing in beautiful sunshine without jackets? We certainly were surprised to see the amount of snow we got today. We got around 6 inches of snow! Driving was rather treacherous even though we got home before it was too bad.

Here's some pictures of it all...

Here's the backyard about halfway through the snow.

Ella and Bailey after it had stopped snowing.

Brenna was thoroughly unimpressed with the snow...

...unless she was being held.

Ella making snow angels.

Baseball Ready

2008-02-22T21:52:00.006-06:00

Ella had her first t-ball practice this evening. She is the only girl on a team with 11 boys. That threw her for a loop in the beginning. She was pretty timid starting off. She has never played ball AT ALL before, but luckily several of the boys have never played either. The coaches asked if everyone knew where first base was, and all the boys scream YES! She just sat there like a deer in the headlights. I finally spoke up and said, "She isn't going to say it, but no she doesn't know." It turns out that about half the boys didn't know either they just screamed yes because the other boys screamed yes. They had a really good first practice. The dads tossed balls for them to try to catch and throw back. Only one little boy can do it--it's his third year. He is really good. Then they practiced stopping grounders. This was when Ella started showing a lot of insecurity. At one point she looked over at me and Scott and looked really upset. I started going out to her to see what was wrong, but the coach saw too. He also started out to her, so I stopped. I figure it's better to let the coach have a chance to work with her than for Mommy to come to her rescue. I have no idea what he said to her, but it worked. She perked right up and started really hustling. Then they all ran the bases. Ella volunteered to try first. By the end of practice, she had learned that she had to touch the bases with her foot before going to the next one. Several of the boys didn't catch on, so I was quite proud of her. I will admit that I am a bit worried how it is going to be for her to be the only girl on the team. Tonight I felt like the coaches did a really good job of treating her the same, so things are off to a good start. She also learned how to stand "baseball ready."

Tonight when we got home she gets into position. The conversation went like this:
Ella: What is this called?
Mom: Baseball ready.
Ella: Yeah, baseball ready, but sometimes it's just called bending over.

ohmygosh! I laughed so hard I cried...literally had to wipe the tears off my cheeks...cried. I love that kid!

Brenna Cute-isms

2008-02-21T22:38:00.003-06:00

Brenna has incorporated a few things into her vocabulary that are adorable! She has figured out that "beep" means you are in the way. If something is in her way, she immediately says, "Beep. Beep. Beep." If the thing that is in her way happens to be me she starts screaming fairly quickly. "BEEP! BEEP!" She particularly loves to play this game when I'm cooking, and she will pry herself between my legs and the cabinet and push against me with all her might screaming "beep" at the top of her lungs. This particular thing is either cute as can be or highly annoying depending on the circumstances--she mostly does it in a cute way, thank goodness.

The second thing she does is honk. Scott has a John Wayne figurine that Brenna can reach. She walks up to John, squeezes his nose and says, "honk." It is soooo funny because she thinks it is hilarious! I wish I could catch a picture of it.

Flower Girl Dress

2008-02-17T22:33:00.003-06:00

Ella is going to be the flower girl in Lane and Casey's wedding (my brother and his fiancee) in three weeks. We got her flower girl dress altered. She looks so cute. I'll have more pictures to post after the wedding of course, but here's what the dress looks like.

The Japanese Gardens

2008-02-16T10:14:00.006-06:00

We went to the Japanese Gardens with my good friend AnnaLisa and her daughter Megan. AnnaLisa and I have been friends since the first day of high school. Our daughters are now fast friends. Megan is 4 months older than Brenna, but all three girls get along incredibly well together. Just the other day Brenna was running around our house screaming, "Megan? Wha are ou Megan? MEGAN!" And Megan has been known to repeat "Ella-Brenna, Ella-Brenna" for minutes at a time. It is great fun watching our girls play together, but I digress. We took the girls to the Japanese Gardens, and I got some nice pictures of the girls.

Brenna watching a squirrel.

Ella trying to avoid having her picture taken by not looking at me. Funny that it turned out so well.

Megan had been playing with the bushes.

Not the most attractive picture of Brenna, but check out the size of those coi! They were very fun to feed. The kids loved it!

Our Little Consumer

2008-02-15T20:52:00.005-06:00

Wheezer gave the girls gift cards to Toys R Us for Valentines day this year. We went tonight so the girls could each pick out their gift. Brenna has the role of consumer down pat. She would run around the store, point and yell, "I wan dat!!! I wan dat! OHHHHHH! Wook at dat! Mommy, wook at dat." She carried a "purse" around for quite a while. It was actually a carrying case with bath tub blocks in it, but to her it was a purse, and she wore a pair of rabbit ears on her head almost the entire time. She would cry when we took them off her head. Eventually, Brenna decided on a doll that has a zip, snap, button, buckle and tie. She is really learning these skills lately, so it was the perfect find.

Ella found a stuffed unicorn as soon as we walked into the door. We showed her every other aisle in the joint trying to persuade her that a toy other than a stuffed animal would be a better choice. We have about 1,263,987 stuffed animals. The only other thing she wanted at all was a Hannah Montana wig. A stuffed animal was bad enough, but the wig? No. I do NOT think so. Those things get matted and gross within thirty minutes of coming out of the package.

Note to the grandparents: This is not a good gift idea. The wig will find its way to the trash rather quickly. I promise.

The New Playset

2008-02-14T16:23:00.003-06:00

The girls got a BIG birthday present this year. They also got it early. All the grandparent's helped us out a little bit so that we could get exactly what we wanted, so a BIG thank you to Granny, Papa, Wheezer, Poppers, Granddad and Grandma. It already has probably 40 man hours of play and it's only a week old with several cold, windy days where no one played on it. In mom's book it is a success because all the neighborhood kids are outside....ahhhhhh, bliss!

A view of the whole thing:

A view of the back which includes the bottom deck. There is a cool mailbox attached so it makes a great house:

An action shot:

It has been used so much by all the kids that the grass is already starting to wear away at the bottom of the slide and under the swings. Kids came out of the woodwork the day it was installed. We even met the kids that live in the house behind us (who we had never seen before). They were hanging over their wrought iron fence with hang-dog expressions gazing wistfully at all the kids playing. Finally one of them got up enough courage to yell, "Can we come over and play too?" So they've been over every day since then. Luckily, they are well behaved kids. The playset looks a bit like an ant hill when all the kids are going in 9 directions at once.

Really? Nothing since Thanksgiving....

2008-02-14T13:59:00.003-06:00

Obviously, I've got to get on the ball. I will seriously try to update more (we've all heard this before, right?) with both pictures and stories.

I guess the biggest story in our life right now is that Ella has now reached the age of lying. DRAT! It's been building for awhile--little stories here, a white lie there. Well, last night she got caught in her first ever boldface lie. I told her to put shoes on before she went outside. A few minutes later she comes running through the front door and proceeds into the living room with no shoes on her feet. I said, "I thought I told you to put shoes on before you went outside." She says "I took them off as soon as I came back inside." Fast-forward to us getting ready to leave for church. Her shoes are no where to be found because they were in the car where she left them after school. UGH! Sad moment for Mommy. I've been hoping to avoid the first actual lie for a bit longer. She was disciplined for disobeying and disiplined further for lying. To her credit she was heartbroken that she would have to earn our trust back. She bawled and said, "You don't believe me anymore!" I'm very proud of her for realizing the truly serious part of telling a lie.

To end on a good note, I will also say that I think five is going to be a good year. We went to the play structure at Chick-Fil-A the other day. I hollered to Ella that it was time to leave. Cue the whining, cue the crying, cue the arguing. Huh? There was NONE! In its place I heard, "I have to go now. It's time for me to go home. Just a second Mommy. I'm not at the slide yet." A few second later she appears at the bottom, grabs her shoes, puts them on her feet and says, "Come on Brenna. It's time to go home now." So that's what gaining maturity looks like. AWESOME!

Pictures from Thanksgiving

2008-01-08T19:57:00.001-06:00

We got some great pictures while we were visiting Craig up at the cabin over Thanksgiving. Here are a few of them.

Passing the Buck

2007-11-25T21:53:00.001-06:00

We spent Thanksgiving with Wheezer and Poppers this year. Brenna absolutely loves to feed their dog, Payne. It got to the point where poor Payne was going to get sick she was feeding her so much! Every single time she fed the dog she would say, "Here you go." (here a dough) I finally had enough. I looked at Brenna and said, "Brenna, if you feed that dog one more time I am going to give you a spanking." Brenna turned, looked Payne straight in the face, and said in a very stern voice, "Stop it tuppy!" like it was the dog's fault!

Happy Halloween

2007-11-02T22:33:00.001-05:00

Here's some pictures of our Halloween. We had a lot of fun!

Pretty Princess:

An unhappy pumpkin:

Ahhhh, now I'm good. Mommy is here!

Ella with our neighbor Bailey:

Ella's grossest piece of candy. A gummy EYEBALL!?!?!?

And here's an adorable video of Brenna saying Trick or Treat:

Tee-tee on the Potty

2007-10-22T07:01:00.000-05:00

Last night before her bath, Brenna started grabbing her diaper and said, "I need potty. I need potty." I undressed her and put her on the potty; she immediately went tee-tee on the potty. I can't believe we are already here. Interestingly, Ella also went on the potty for the first time at 19 months. I'm not sure I'm ready to potty train just yet, so for now I'll let Brenna lead the way. I'd say we can start anytime I feel up to the challenge though.

The Blue Angels

2007-10-18T12:29:00.001-05:00

What a walk we had today! I took the girls for a walk on the walking path through our neighborhood to a little park. As we were walking along the Blue Angel fighter jets suddenly let out a smoke trail as they were doing loops in the sky! The entire time we were out walking we watched them practice for the air show this weekend. They flew directly overhead several times. At one point they did a tight 360 with the wings perpendicular to the ground around the playground. Then they flew off and came back around and buzzed the playground. They were so low to the ground we could easily read the words U.S. Navy on the wings and see that there was a person in the cockpit. It was so exciting. We were already planning to go to the air show, but after seeing them practice Ella is really excited now.

Our Last Day at Church

2007-09-09T12:14:00.000-05:00

Today was such a hard day for me. It was the last Sunday we attended our church here in Knoxville. We pulled into the parking lot, and I started to cry. The people of Fellowship Bible Church are what made Knoxville our home. The scenery in this part of the country is gorgeous. The people of Knoxville in general are very friendly. But, it was the community of people at Fellowship Bible Church who made our lives here so wonderful.

Almost all of Ella's friends are from our church. These are the people that we shared our lives with on a weekly and sometimes daily basis. Knoxville would not mean to me what it does without having been a member of such an awesome church group.

The women that I became friends with were from all different age groups. From college girls to grandmothers, my life was touched so deeply by these relationships. I met women in this church that I strive to be like as I grow. My faith in God has been tested more and has grown more in the past three years than in any other period of my life. I am so thankful for the life we have led here. My prayer now as we move forward is that we will find another church home that affects us as deeply as this church has done.

Tonight, several of the families from our church attended a going away party for us. I am so touched by the number of people in this photo, and even more touched to know that there were other families that had conflicts but would have been there otherwise. We have been richly blessed. Thank you to each and every person who has touched our lives here. There are far too many to mention by name, but we love you all!

Brenna Loves School

2007-09-06T19:52:00.000-05:00

Her first day was on Tuesday. She didn't cry at all. She had a blast. She didn't even come running for me when I came to get her that afternoon. I honestly thought it might have been a fluke since the only time she's really been away from me has been at church or with someone we knew well watching her.

This morning I said, "Brenna, are you ready to go to school again today?" She smiled really big and said, "school!" It was a few minutes before they needed to leave, so I turned on the tv for Ella and sat down. Brenna looked at me, frowned, ran as fast as her little legs could carry her to the garage door, and proceeded to try to get it open herself. She can't even reach the knob, so she turns around and gives me a dirty look and starts yelling at me. Scott said she said, "school" over and over again in the car, and when he dropped her off, she ran into her classroom and didn't even look back.

Our New Home

2007-09-05T15:25:00.000-05:00

At this point it's as official as it's going to get until we actually close. We are moving to Haslet, TX, a small town 15 miles north of downtown Ft. Worth. We close on our home in Knoxville on September 14th and leave for Haslet that day. We close on our new home on September 17th or 18th. Here is the floor plan and pictures of the actual house.

The house:

As you walk in the front door you enter the rotunda. How posh! LOL The formal living room is straight ahead and looks out onto the covered back porch. The dining room is to the left, and the study and the hallway to the three front bedrooms is to the right.

The dining room is HUGE. We will probably put a table in the rotunda and move the chandelier from the dining room into the rotunda. The dining room will actually be our piano room.

The kitchen and family room are at the back of the house.
This is a view of the bar from the family room:

The kitchen looking into the dining room:

From the breakfast nook into the kitchen:

From the dining room into the kitchen:

The family room fire place:

There is a second fire place that looks just like this one in the formal living room. Have you ever heard of anything so silly in Ft. Worth, Texas as TWO fireplaces???
The window of the family room:

The master bedroom is also at the back of the house. It is off the formal living room. This is the wall our bed will go on:

The bay window out to the backyard:

And the bathroom:

At the front of the house, is a full guest bath:

A jack and jill bath from the hallway and the playroom:

And the girls room, which also has a bay window:

Ella's Four Year Pictures

2007-06-28T14:36:00.001-05:00

Brenna's 15 month Checkup

2007-06-22T11:58:00.001-05:00

Brenna is growing up so fast! Ella's babyhood went by fast, but Brenna's seems to be going by a warp speed. I can't believe she's already 15 months old. She is 30 1/2 inches tall, which is around the 60th percentile. She weighs 19 lbs 15.5 ounces. The nurse joked that she's as close to 20 pounds as you can possibly be and still be missing the mark. The good news is that she has finally gained the appropriate amount of weight between appointments. She had been dropping in percentiles every time we went for a check up, but this time she actually increased her growth curve up to the 5th percentile. She's very tall and skinny.

Her verbal skills are increasing almost every day. She will readily sign both milk and more, but she isn't all that interested in learning more signs. She is trying her hand at new words on an almost daily basis. She says, "Hi, Dada, Ella, tat (cat), no-no, nigh-nigh (night-night)." Every single animal that she sees is a tat. She can mimic the proper sounds for dog, duck and fish, but she insists on calling them tat when she sees them. Today she added diedah (diaper) to her vocabulary. She also talks very emphatically and with great facial expression in a language we have dubbed "Brennese." She obviously has something very important to say, unfortunately no one but Brenna understands her language.

She readily gives hugs and kisses complete with a mmm-wah and oooooo sound! She loves to dance and gives her shoulders a shimmy shake on command. Ella loves to egg her on which I'm sure helps Brenna learn her new tricks. We are all really enjoying the development of her personality.

Brenna Walking

2007-05-31T09:39:00.001-05:00

Brenna is a Toddler!

2007-05-31T09:26:00.000-05:00

We have officially entered toddlerhood and all the trouble that comes with it!

Plus, she can do some big girl things now too.

Bathtime Fun

2007-05-31T09:13:00.000-05:00

We got some bath crayons as a gift from Wheezer. The girls have had a great time plaing with them...and so has Mommy!

Ella's Prayer

2007-04-15T22:26:00.000-05:00

Last night we were up in the play room and out of the blue Ella told me that she needed to say a prayer. She walked over to our couch and knelt down in front of it, clasped her hands, closed her eyes, and prayed.

Dear Lord,
I know that Jesus is King. I want Him to live in my heart. I want to obey and be a good little girl. Please bless my mommy, daddy and my sister. Amen. Oh and Dear Lord, I love you so much Jesus. Amen.

I had tears streaming down my face at her heartfelt sincerity. As Jesus said, "Let the little children come unto me."

Christmas Pictures

2006-12-04T09:50:00.000-06:00

Fall Leaves

2006-12-03T21:18:00.000-06:00

It seems we have now made a tradition of taking pictures in the beautiful fall leaves. As you can tell, we had a wonderful time playing in our front yard in the beautiful autumn weather.

Apple Pickin'

2006-12-03T21:06:00.000-06:00

Earlier this fall we went apple pickin'. It was so much fun to see Ella get so excited over all the apples. Even though they were everywhere, she acted like each one was a priceless treasure.

Pictures from Canada

2006-09-20T16:05:00.000-05:00

Brenna's First Cereal

2006-09-01T14:06:00.000-05:00

I was planning on waiting until Brenna was six months old to start her on cereal, but she had a different plan in mind. The other day we were eating lunch and she would throw her hands above her head and lean over towards Ella's food trying to grab it. When Ella would take a bite, Brenna would whimper. We decided that it was time to feed the poor child.

She really liked her food. Once she got a taste of it, she started crying between every bite. The feeding went like this: WWWWAAAAAAHHHHHH....MMMMMmmmmmm, mmmmm, mmmmmm... WWWWAAAAAAHHHHHH....MMMMMmmmmmm, mmmmm, mmmmmm.... WWWWAAAAAAHHHHHH....MMMMMmmmmmm, mmmmm, mmmmmm! She is a very neat eater though. I guess she wants to make sure she gets every last drop of food into her mouth.

Brenna and Grandma

2006-09-01T14:05:00.000-05:00

My grandma sure does love her great grandchildren!

Graffiti Artist

2006-09-01T13:59:00.000-05:00

Several members of my family went out to the Cadillac Ranch to spray paint the cars. Ella really enjoyed herself.

And after 40 years my parents are still in love! It does a daughter's heart good. LOL

Sleeping Beauty

2006-09-01T13:56:00.000-05:00

I've decided I must really love sleeping baby pictures, because we have a ton of them. Here are a few of Brenna.

Papa makes such a good bed...

Is that a Daddy in love or what?

And my personal favorite. She really is asleep under there.

Bubble Fun

2006-09-01T13:52:00.000-05:00

On our recent trip to visit Granny and Papa, Ella was blowing some bubbles on the deck. I can't believe how fast she is growing up. Last summer she wasn't able to do this on her own!

Sweet Sisters

2006-09-01T13:31:00.000-05:00

These are the first professional pictures I had made of the girls. Brenna is 4 months old.

Brenna's Three Month Photos

2006-06-29T19:38:00.000-05:00

Who's Who?

2006-06-28T20:01:00.000-05:00

I don't think I'll be able to tell my own kids apart in 10 years when I look back at these pictures!!!!!!!

Brenna's Bumbo

2006-06-27T20:19:00.000-05:00

I am so excited about Brenna's new Bumbo seat. It arrived today. She can sit up so well in it, and she seems to really enjoy being able to see the world from an independent upright position. Here's a picture of her "bumboing."

Sweet Sisters

2006-06-27T20:15:00.000-05:00

Cute words!

2006-06-27T12:34:00.000-05:00

English according to Ella:

crunches = crutches
hoop-a-loop = hoola hoop
froopa loops = fruit loops

This morning she was asking me to swep her. She wanted me to sweep her off her feet and she'd yell, "Swep me again, Mommy!" over and over again.

Goofy Grins

2006-05-29T09:52:00.000-05:00

In an effort to capture a post with a cute smile, I got several very goofy grins. In this particular attempt, I wasn't able to capture a single "good" smile. The last picture is pretty sweet though.

Little Look-alikes?

2006-05-29T08:59:00.000-05:00

People keep telling us how much Brenna and Ella look alike, so I thought I'd do a side-by-side comparison. Ella is 3 months old in her picture and Brenna is 2 months old in hers.

Easter Pictures

2006-04-22T21:49:00.000-05:00

We had a wonderful Easter celebration this year. In addition to the Easter celebration at church it was also baby dedication. Brenna was a sweet little girl through the whole ceremony. She slept the whole time. She was a big hit with the congregation because she was so tiny. The girls wore matching dresses, and (in my humble and non-biased opion LOL) they looked precious! Ella really enjoyed showing off her baby sister in their matching outfits.

Brenna is a month old

2006-04-22T21:43:00.000-05:00

The first month has gone exceedingly well. Ella has been an angel! She adores her little sister, and for the most part is very good with her. We've had a few hairy moments--trying to hide Brenna under a pillow, falling onto Brenna's head in the midst of a fit to name a couple. However for the most part, Ella has been a very loving and caring big sister. I really couldn't ask for much better bahavior on her part.

Brenna is growing like a weed. She weighs around 8 lbs now. She is staying awake more and more, and she is also starting to give us a lot more eye contact. I think that social smiles are just days away. Right now we get a lot of reflexive smiles, and they are VERY cute. Brenna has started taking a bottle a few nights a week. It's nice to have a small break, and it's nice to know that we can leave her with a sitter when we have the need or desire. The best news of all is that she is sleeping great! At 3 weeks and 2 days of age she started sleeping for 5 hours a night consistently. We've only had 1 night of relapsing to her 3 hour schedule, and we've even had one night of 6 hours. I'm really looking forward to sleeping completely through the night, but at least we are only getting up once.

Here are some pictures of the girls!

Making Cookies with Granny

2006-04-22T21:39:00.000-05:00

While my mom was here to help out when Brenna was born, she and Ella made cookies together. Ella had a blast using the rolling pin and the cookie cutters. We also decorated the cookies with sprinkles. Granny was very patient with Ella. As the mom, I wanted them to be perfect. Granny just wanted Ella to have fun. Here are the pictures of the process.

Proud of the finished product.

Introducing Brenna Anne Griffin!!!

2006-03-21T20:53:00.000-06:00

Things went great this morning. We came in at 5:30 and she was delivered by 7:36 AM. She is a small little thing. They predicted she'd be between 8 to 8 1/2 lbs and she is only 6 lbs, 14 oz. Scott is going to have to buy her some dfferent clothes for her picture and going home outfit. LOL! She was 19 inches long. Her apgars were a 9 and 10, so she is doing great. She nursed within an hour after delivery, and has been feeding very well all day long. Thank goodness.

I had some temperature issues after surgery. My temp was only 94 degrees for several hours, but I was sweating like a pig. They ran all sorts of tests, did an x-ray, and had me consult with an internist. Nothing came up on any of it. They are doing a few more follow-up tests tomorrow just to be safe, but I'm maintaining my temp now, so I think everything is fine.

Brenna's Room!

2006-03-01T22:32:00.000-06:00

Ella had the most kind-hearted reaction to Brenna's room I could have imagined! I put up all the Raggedy Ann and Andy stuff while she was taking a nap. When she woke up she came running to the top of the stairs and yelled for me to come up. She said, "I have something to show you! Come upstairs with me."

I went up the stairs and she says, "Shhhh...it's a surprise. Come with me." So I follow her into Brenna's room and she says, "Ta-Da! Look at Brenna's room! Who do you think made this wonderful room for her?" So I told her that I had done it, and she said, "It's a beautiful room! You did a good job mommy."

She made me so proud! There wasn't a hint of jealousy. She was just thrilled for her sister that she got a great room. Makes my mommy heart swell with joy! Here's some pictures of the room. There are 2 small things that aren't done yet, but this gives you the idea.

The view from the door:

The dresser that Scott painted:

One of the things that isn't done is the diaper organizer that I still need to make to hang above the changing table.

The wall where the glider is going to go:

It's been ordered, it just hasn't arrived yet.

The fourth wall:

Pictures of Ella's New Haircut

2006-02-23T20:33:00.000-06:00

Ella's First Public Performance

2006-02-23T14:18:00.000-06:00

Last weekend, Ella, Scott and I went up to Craig and Terry's cabin in Virgina. Friday night, Craig and Terry took us to a local pizza joint where they have a live blue grass band play on the weekends. Ella made her first public performance while we were there!

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A Perfect Night!!!!

2006-02-14T19:48:00.000-06:00

We had the most perfect night tonight. Scott got home around 5:30--awesome! We had a really great dinner as a family. We even had chocolate covered strawberries that Scott had gotten me for Valentine's Day for dessert. YUMMY! After dinner, Scott gave Ella a bath while I cleaned the kitchen. Then all three of us played together in Ella's room for about 30 minutes. Ella was dancing and singing. Then we got into a tickle fest, and she was laughing and screaming. It was precious. We had such a good time. At 7:30 we all went downstairs and watched one of Ella's shows together so she could calm down a little bit before bedtime.

When we told her it was bedtime, she jumped right up and went up the stairs. Scott and I followed her. When we got to her room, she had turned off all the lights, gotten into bed and covered herself up!!!!! Not one single word of protest. We went through our nighttime ritual and she was tucked in, lights out, prayers said by 8:15. Scott and I left the room and haven't heard a peep from her since. We haven't had a nighttime go this smoothly in I don't know how long. I had to be memorialized.

Ella's Songs

2006-02-11T18:23:00.000-06:00

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Just some recent pictures...

2006-02-06T18:53:00.000-06:00

My little career woman

Coloring with daddy:

Queen "Tootin' Common"

2006-01-12T22:06:00.000-06:00

I don't know what it is about potty training, but Ella seems to be much more "gassy" over the past few weeks. We have been very sensitive to her toots, because she isn't doing a very good job of getting to the potty. We end up with dirty pants more days than not. So, everytime Scott or I hear her toot we are asking if she needs to go to the potty. All the questioning has led to an interesting new proclamation from Ella. Now, every single time she toots she follows it with a surprised look on her face and the statement, "Oh, I had a little toot, but I didn't poop."

Cookie Monster

2006-01-01T19:15:00.000-06:00

The other day I was "otherwise occupied," and I heard Ella moving around. A few minutes later I heard her feet scamper across the wood floor. Then I heard her set down a stool in the kitchen. I looked around and saw the two stools I expected to see so I was a bit confused as to what was going on. Here's the conversation:

Jana: Ella, what are you doing?
Ella: I'm just standing here.
J: What are you standing on?
E: A stool.
J: Where did you get the stool?
E: From upstairs.

Yes, she had gone all the way upstairs to her bedroom, retrieved the stool and brought it all the way downstairs. Now I KNEW she was up to something.

J: What are you doing on the stool?
E: I'm just getting a cookie!

A few minutes later, I went into the kitchen and moved the bag of cookies farther back on the counter. A few minutes after that, I heard the bag crinkling. When I went into the kitchen, Ella had soundlessly (I have no idea how she managed it) moved a chair across the floor so she could get another cookie! Can I just chalk that one up to good problem solving skills?

So, Ella has figured out how to be mischievous! She answered every question truthfully, but certainly without any extra detail. I found it quite amusing as well as a little bit scary!

Please Hang Up and Try Again

2005-12-09T16:44:00.000-06:00

Ella picked up the phone in the office today and asked who was on the phone. I told her no one and to hang up the phone. A few seconds later she starts having a conversation.

"Hello friendly operator. How are you? Oh, OK. Friendly operator, please hang up and try again. Just tell your friend to hang up, cause I'm just on the phones with our friends. Well, I just want to dial you. Are you coming home to see me? Well, just remember me if you want to come. Well, share your wagon with me. I'll just play with it when you come home.

Well, hello McKenzie. I don't want to dial you until Thursday. Well OK. Bye McKenzie"

By the way, I have no idea who she knows named McKenzie.

I was laughing so hard! Really, laughing isn't a good thing when I want to teach her to not play with the phone, but it was so funny!