Tag Archives: family

Heart Breaking Honesty

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!

Summertime!

We’ve had a wet, cool spring here in Minnesota, so the arrival of summer has come like a flash! All of a sudden, the trees are full with foliage, gardens are exploding with all the colors of the rainbow, the sun is shining, and the outdoor festival season has begun. One of the things I really love about the Twin Cities is the Season of Celebration, otherwise known as summer. There is no shortage of celebrating the warmth and extended daylight with music, art, theater of all kinds, restaurants spilling out onto the sidewalks, and plenty of places to play, play, play.

Griffin and I enjoyed our first festival today, the Flint Hills International Children’s Festival in downtown St. Paul, and it really felt like a true kickoff to summer! We started our visit with a theater performance at the Ordway called Corbian the Dinosaur (check out the link! It’s really cool!) It was billed as a “glow in the dark adventure,” and it seemed right up his alley. This was Griffin’s first professional theater experience, though, so I wasn’t sure how long he’d last. But to start off, he was fascinated by the theater with its gold railings, velvety seats, and lights along the aisles! I chose seats close to an exit just in case we needed to make a quick escape, but as soon as the lights dimmed, he settled into my lap and watched. the. show. for. an. HOUR! I couldn’t believe it. He was entranced by the glowing figures, loved to clap with the audience, and yelled out, “ALL DONE!” whenever a scene would end (we’ll work on theater etiquette at some point!). A smashing success!

Next we headed out across the street to Rice Park where there were vendors, free art projects, and shady spots to watch people dancing on the side of a building. Seriously. These acrobatic building dancers called Project Bandaloop were AMAZING. Actually, I thought they were incredible and mesmerizing while Griffin was all into the bronze Peanuts sculpture of Lucy reading a book that we were sitting next to. Ah, to each his own.

The icing on the cake was nearly an hour spent in a public fountain seemingly made for water loving kids (and Griffin is most definitely a water loving kid who sometimes asks for a bath 3 or 4 times a day). Hamm Plaza was transformed into Discovery Garden (check out this time lapse video of it being made), which really should have been called Joyful Garden. I wish I had brought our good camera, but here are some shots from my phone of Griffin in the midst of pure summer bliss:

Griffin plunks himself down in the fountain!
Kids were lining up to stand in front of the little waterfall.
Beautiful art that begs to be played in is the best!

All in all, a fabulous start to summer. Bring on the adventure!

 

 

Visit with Grummy!

We were lucky enough to be on the last stop of the Grummy 2011 Grandchild Tour a few weeks ago, when Andrew’s mom, Sandy, stayed with us for a week! Between all the moving that’s been going on in our lives in the past year and settling into our new home, we hadn’t seen her since last spring, so a visit was long overdue. She wanted to see our new digs and spend some quality time with Griffin, so we got to host her here in Minnesota! Griffin was quite excited that Grummy, who normally appears on our computer screen, would be staying with us. He was quick to tell her all his new words, sit on her lap for some reading, and show her around the house. Every morning he excitedly woke up saying, “Grummy? Grummy?” and would rush down the stairs saying, “Hi, Grummy! Hi, Grummy!”

One of our destinations while she visited was the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden. This is a favorite for us, as well as a great spot for taking photos. This time, once again, did not disappoint!

Spoon Bridge and Cherry & Springtime with Grummy
Spoon Bridge II
Hiding
Runnin'
So BIG.
Contemplative.
Griffin and Grummy deep in conversation.

We also took Grummy to the Children’s Museum, on a tour of Minneapolis lakes, to the Roseville Library, on a tour of Andrew’s school, and to the Mall of America! Overall, it was a great visit for everyone and we loved having a chance to hang out with Sandy. Griffin asked for Grummy in the morning for almost a week after she went home, and he’s still calling string cheese (which was a snack unique to Grummy in Griffin’s world) “Grummy cheese.”

All Aboard!

On a recent, chilly “spring” day, we headed to the Jackson Street Roundhouse with one of Griffin’s buddies from ECFE and his family. We knew there would be trains there, but holy cow! What a cool place! We got to explore real engines, old sleeper cars, and look at all kinds of train ephemera. A roundhouse, for those not in the know, is a circular or semi-circular structure built to service trains. This one used to service steam trains, but is no longer active and has been converted into a museum. Fortunately for us, they also give caboose rides on Saturdays, and this was probably the highlight of the trip for everyone. Having only seen “big choo-choo trains” from a distance, Griffin was in awe and had a blast.

 

Andrew and Griffin hang out the back of the caboose.
There goes the roundhouse!
A cold and rainy day, Griffin and Andrew decide to head inside.
What a cool ride!

Playing Catch-Up

Our lives have been full lately, which is why we’re averaging only about one blog post a month! Things certainly have been going on, but we just haven’t been writing or putting up the pictures. Today I did a little catch up on the photo site and put together some photos from various things that have been happening this fall (even though it seems like we forget the camera more often than we remember it!). Some were big, some were little. But all point to the fact that we’re settling into our new lives here in Minnesota.

Click on any photo to take you to the full gallery.

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Thanksgiving 2009

Our big Thanksgiving gathering took place in Santa Cruz again this year. The consensus is that Santa Cruz is the best of the various destinations that we’ve been to. It’s close. It’s beautiful. Rental houses are plentiful and relatively affordable. And there is no shortage of fun. (Plus, nutritionists always recommend riding roller coasters after a 10,000 calorie meal.) Thanks to Nancy for the massive job of organizing the event! Some favorite pictures are below. Click on them to see larger versions or click here to see the full album. (You may notice a slight parental bias in picture subjects…)

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Groovy Griffin
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Anthony and Gena on the Hurricane
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Maddie feeds Griffin
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Fiancée and Fiancé

Day Out With Family

Grummy is in town for a visit, so the whole Stocco-Palmer-Roy family (minus Andrew, who was working hard getting his classroom ready for students on Monday) went out to the Eat Real Festival at Jack London Square on Oakland’s waterfront.

First Canoe!

Captain Griffin!
Captain Griffin!

The wind and rain let up enough today for us to get out on the lake. Griffin wore his brand new life vest. (I thought I would get laughed at, or reported to CPS, when I asked the sports store people if they had infant life vests… but they totally did!) He was a trooper for the first part of the trip, but definitely got fussy while we explored the eastern end of the lake. We didn’t want to push it, so we headed back to the dock after 20–30 minutes and left him with Grandpa Jeff.

Griffin and his mother, ready for the water.
Griffin and his mother, ready for the water.

Alli starting a feeding to forestall any grumpiness.
Alli starting a feeding to forestall any grumpiness.

Sarah and Griffin getting comfortable in their berth.
Sarah and Griffin getting comfortable in their berth.