Had a great flight! Griffin was squirmy but generally polite. (And who isn’t squirmy when they have to sit in a tiny seat in a noisy tube packed with strangers?)
( I probably could have skipped these posts, but I am addicted to my new phone. Love the wordpress app!)
On our way to SFO. Griffin is incredibly curious about everything.
Griffin has been experimenting a lot with walking lately: letting go of the coffee table, taking one step and then falling to his knees in a crawl, cruising all around a chair, or holding on to a finger to barrel across the room. But TODAY he full-on walked for the first time!
I had just gotten home from work, my arms full of baby and bags. I put Griffin down on his feet next to an ottoman and threw my bags to the floor. Just as I was about to drop to the floor and join him, he turned around and walked seven or eight steps to a pile of boxes that have been waiting to be put in the storage shed. He did it all by himself!
I tried to get him to repeat his wondrous new abilities once Andrew got home from school, but the G-man still prefers crawling. It will only be a matter of time before he’s confident enough to try it again!
I’ve been meaning to post this series for a while… Griffin made the most of our first full-on warm, sunny weekend back in February.
Griffin will be 10 months old on Monday! Whew. We went to his pediatrician on Friday and have his latest stats. All in all, Dr. Junge is happy with his growth and progress and thinks Griffin is an all-around swell guy. Also of note is Griffin’s latest tooth count, which stands at an impressive 13.
Weight: 20lbs (31%)
Height: 2′ 3.5″ (13%)
Head Circumference: 18.27″ (72%)
By the way, Bert and Ernie: No fears. Griffin and his mommy and daddy have been vaccinated for H1N1.
Griffin cannot talk yet, but I imagine what he’d like to say to me today is, “Mom, you’re the idiot who woke me up not once, but twice today from my car seat naps, so why would you expect that even though I’m tired and cranky and seem like I want a nap, I would actually take one? It’s clearly not my fault, so don’t get all angsty on me because you screwed up. Geez. Amateur.”
But since the most effective way of communicating that kind of frustration so far in his short little life is screaming, that’s what he’s doing. In his crib. Alone.
I am hiding in my bedroom writing this post. I know that “crying it out” won’t really hurt him, but it’s a very difficult thing to endure, especially knowing what a sweet, loving, and flexible kid he really is. Sometimes, though, in order for me to be the best mom I can be, I need the time out. As I breathe and collect myself, I see the red lights on the monitor lighting up (the volume is turned down for my sanity) showing that his frustration is not dissipating. However, just this little bit of separation is what I needed to make my frustration dissolve and develop into sympathy and caring, and I’m ready to go back in and soothe my little boy to sleep.
Dear Griffin,
Bert and I went to college this week, and we had an admission interview for next year. Â Rich Aune evaluated our transcript. Â We were hoping to get transfer credit for our work on Sesame Street.
Did you know that your aunt Alli is a graduate of Gustavus? Â She walked up these stairs many times on her way to the “caf”, and down these stairs to the Diversity Center and mailboxes and Courtyard Cafe. Â Your Mom and Dad were married in the “Arb” on the south end of campus, and they had their reception and dance right behind us. Â We snuck into the banquet room and pretended we were at that dance – Tee Hee! Â And your grandpa Jeff works at Gustavus. Â Grandma Pam also worked at Gustavus for a short time as well. Your mom was 10 years old when they moved to St. Peter.
We love to see you on iChat but we are really excited to see you in person!
Love,
Ernie
Dear Griffin,
Happy New Year! Â Imagine, that in a few short months you will be one year old!
We wanted you to know that we visited with a judge yesterday. Â He told Ernie that he shouldn’t be feeding pigeons in the park, something he learned from his friend Big Bird. Â Or at least, he shouldn’t be feeding them pepperoni pizza!
The judge admonished us. Â (That’s quite a compliment, don’t you think?) Â Maybe I should look that word up in the dictionary.
Love,
Bert
Dear Mom,
Daddy’s new laptop is pretty cool. Please don’t tell him that I snuck out of my crib last night to borrow it. I only chewed on it a little bit, and I had to write you this message.
Happy birthday! I can’t really comprehend how old you are, but you’re probably at least 18 or 19 months.
You’ve been a pretty good mom during these first nine months. (I’m practicing my midwestern understatement… Dad would say you’ve been “dreamy” or “incredible” or “frickin awesome.”) Plus, I’m told you were taking good care of me for the previous nine months too. (I like my new, roomier crib better.)
In any event, before Dad catches me drooling on his precious keyboard, I wanted to mention a few specifics. Thank you for forgiving me when I smashed your beloved french press. (You have to admit it sounded pretty great when it exploded!) Thank you for taking me swimming every week at the Y. And storytime at the library… that’s the best! Thank you for taking me canoeing, camping, and hiking in my first four months. The other kids never believe me when I tell them that I’ve already hiked part of the Pacific Crest Trail (but I got pictures to prove it). Thank you for accepting my bizarre culinary tastes (pickles and oatmeal, yum!) and not getting too upset when I throw all the food on the floor. (Daddy told me that in high school he used to fling pudding onto the ceiling of the dining room… so I’m just honoring my heritage.) Thank you for having the most humongous library of kids’ books in the universe. I’ve tasted most of them and they are delicious. Thank you for comforting me when I’m hurt but reminding me that I can handle most bumps and bruises.
Thank you for reminding me to save my big moments for when Daddy’s around. I gotta remember to save my first steps for him. (Maybe we can fake it if I forget?) Speaking of Daddy, you can let him know that I think it’s pretty nifty that you both laugh so much and have so much fun. I am, occasionally, embarrassed by your juvenile senses of humor, but I cut you some slack because you’re both so old.
All in all, you’re a pretty cool mom.
Love,
Griffin
Kevin Moore took these stunning pictures of Griffin while we were eating breakfast with him and Liz at The Mixing Bowl on Telegraph, December 26.
