Griffin woke early this morning, nearly an hour before he is normally allowed to leave his room. I helped him use the potty and tucked him back into bed. Before leaving, I reminded him that he should stay in his bedroom until his “orange sun” lights up (it’s a nightlight timer).
As I pulled the door shut, he asked, “Okay to sing songs?”
Snippet of conversation at the cabin this morning:
“Mama, what’s a poem?”
“Well, poems are a kind of writing; sometimes they are really cheesy, and sometimes they are nice.”
As a child, I remember brushing my mom’s hair and imagined someday that I would have a child of my own who would want to brush my hair, too. Today, out of the blue, Griffin decided he needed to give me a “haircut” with the scooper from a backhoe loader. He carefully combed my hair and made spritzing sounds as he said, “Givin’ you a haircut!” I think that’s as close as I’m going to get with him, and I’ll take it.
We put up our first family Christmas tree last night. It’s sparsely adorned with ornaments from Andrew’s past, a few we have collected together over the years, and ones I recently took from my grandmother’s collection. Today Griffin added his first handmade ornament, made from buttons my grandmother collected from her days working in a coat factory. It turned out super cute, and it was just the right level of coordination for his two and a half year old hands.
Griffin and I just returned from a nearly two week trip to California (which we’ll post more about soon). Andrew came, too, but only for about five days of it. We returned in the wee hours of Tuesday morning, and Andrew took off for a conference Wednesday afternoon. He’ll be returning Saturday. Needless to say, it’s been a major disruption to our normal routines, and in particular, our sense of togetherness as a family. Griffin is definitely missing his daddy.
This morning after our shower/bath, Griffin was all snuggled up in his towel on my lap, and he put his head on my shoulder and said, “I have a sad face.” I asked him why, and he said after a long pause, “I need Daddy,” and let out a big sigh. It nearly cracked me in half.
I think we’re all looking forward to some family time starting Saturday night. Come home to us safely and soon, love!
“Griffin, did you just pick your nose and put it in my ear???”
“Yeah, I did do that.”
Sarah found this amazing park shortly after we first moved here last year but it was too sophisticated for Griffin. This fall, with winter fast approaching, Griffin was able to give it a shot. He was slow and cautious at first, but quickly developed confidence and new climbing skills. It was amazing to watch him learning how to handle himself on the massive play structure. He quickly dubbed it the “super duper park.” The official name is the Hyland Play Area, but most people refer to it simply as “Chutes & Ladders.” The photos below are from our last trip on October 29, and the video is from an earlier trip on the 15th.
The first snow of the season arrived today. Unlike last year’s opening blizzard (which dumped 8 inches overnight), this is a mellow snowfall, which should max out at 3 inches. Sarah and Griffin are missing it while they galivant around the Bay Area, but I suspect there will be plenty more white stuff to play in when they return.
Text message from Sarah in California:
Sleeping with G is like sleeping with a freaking flying walinda. Made it til 5 or so but he just had a poop on the potty! He said, “My poop’s hard. I need fiber.”