The Griswold's...errr...Groesbeck's Family Vacation

Daddy devised a trip to Omaha with us, Auntie Darcy, Uncle Scott, Evan and Ryan.  We were super excited to see the zoo and Children's Museum.  Things were going great until 30 minutes into the drive the Jeep's AC went out, which wouldn't have been such a problem had we not been traveling on a sunny, hot morning in a black car.  Mom did not feel like commemorating part of this trip with pictures of everything so you will have to take my word on some of it.

Three hours later we reached Omaha. Sweaty, lethargic and ready for lunch. We checked into the hotel then headed to a picnic lunch.  When the valet asked where we were picnicking, we told him the park nearby and he got a strange look in his eye.  We figured out why about 10 minutes later.  It's a park where the homeless people gather.  We were able to find a spot free of beer bottles and urine and ate...quickly...next to a pair of unclaimed pants.  Not the picnic we had imagined.  Evan and I were completely unphazed though.

Then we headed to the Children's Museum.  It was amazing.  Reagan and Ryan hung out in the baby area.  Reagan cooked up some pretend food and crawled up on the table and did a little dancing. Again, Dad is not a fan of this...

 I was fascinated by the grocery store and kept filling baskets and checking out.  I gave kids the stink eye if they came near my cart...still not so into sharing.

Evan and I played fireman.  Shortly after this picture I went to the water table and drank out of it like a dog as kids and their germy hands played in it.  Mommy and Daddy were fairly horrified.

I played doctor.  Blood pressure cuffs go on the head, right?

Dinnertime went about as you would expect with no naps, three toddlers and a baby.  I fell asleep before the main course was delivered but rallied.  Let me say that my parents always judged and said, "Our kids will never use technology when we go out to dinner!"

 Well, Ha! Looky Here! Not only using phones during dinner but also under the table and I have my shoes off.  Parenting fail all around.

 As if my parents weren't batting a homerun on the parenting fails this trip, they decided a chocolate muffin/brownie/cupcake was a wise breakfast choice for me before the zoo.  In Mommy's defense, she was still reeling from being barfed on by Reagan minutes earlier while both were wearing the only clean clothes that had been packed for our short trip.  Daddy tried to redeem this by getting Mommy her treasured Scooter's Coffee that was birthed in Omaha, only to drive there and realize it was only open weekdays.  But hey, that's how this vacation went.

 Given how things were going, we were pleasantly surprised when we got to the zoo and were able to get in and see the animals.  Reagan was not a fan of the animals which was no shock if you've ever had the pleasure of witnessing her meet any dog/cat/living, breathing animal other than her buddy Leland. But Evan and I loved them.

 Since it was Labor Day at the zoo, they had fun bounce houses and slides set up.  Since I am fairly sure I am a VIP everywhere, I jumped in front of all the lines at said bounce houses and slides and nearly trampled kids.  Mom and Dad, again, were mortified.  I blame the chocolate muffin.

 Here is Mommy peeling me off of the alligator slide because I had scaled the wall at the end, yet again, to jump to the front of the line and do the slide all over.

 After a fun morning and afternoon at the zoo it was time to go home.  Remember how bad that AC problem was on the sunny, hot morning in a black car??? Try it on a 100 degree afternoon in a black car after an entire day out in the sun at the hot zoo.  So. Much. Sweat.

 Reagan was thrilled when we finally took a break.

Ice cream for everyone! Obscenely huge ice creams with loads of chocolate chips that made the terrible car ride more bearable.  Not sure when Mommy and Daddy will have the courage to take us on another family vacation...it might be a while.

First Day of School

It has happened. I am officially a preschooler. And while I am nowhere near potty trained or sleeping through the night on my own, my parents thought it was time for this next step.  They are hoping the peer pressure of being in a classful of other students who do these things will rub off on me. Ha!

 Here's another one of me and Reagan. No she didn't start preschool but she had to be dragged into the pictures so she didn't get herself into trouble elsewhere. She's a sneaky little thing these days if we don't keep an eye on her.

My first homework assignment was an All About Me Banner. This was it before I attacked it with a pack of Cars stickers.  You will notice I put all of my favorite things on this--family, my dog, Thomas, M&M's, chocolate chips, dinosaurs.  I am really pretty cultured as you can see.

This was me at the end of my first full day.  Don't worry, it was a quick nap and I made sure to stay up til 10. 

Reagan and Mommy miss me lots but I love Miss Patty and am already learning lots of things.  I can't wait to see what this year teaches me!

August

 August has been busy. We had family in town for a big party to celebrate Mommy's cousin Courtney and her husband Ben getting Mau'id.  Unfortunately we were all so busy that the only picture anyone took was when Uncle Andy was coaxing Cooper, Claire and I to unlock the door after we locked all the adults outside who were setting up for the party.  Try locking three parents, a baby and a toddler outside in 100 degree heat without anything to drink. Watch the panic set in...

Great Uncle Bobo got me and my cousins this fun bubble tub for the party.  As you can see, I still haven't quite figured out how to blow bubbles.  This has led to many a stomach-ache but also some laughs.

The next week, Mommy took Reagan and I with Mimi and Pa to spend some time in Plano.  We had so much fun.

There was lots of swimming, shopping and ice cream.  I even taught Mimi how to use my Kindle.  

 I was exhausted on the ride home and had to fuel up on a meal that would make my Uncle Ra proud...a milkshake and french fries. I am told this was a staple of his childhood diet.

In other news...

I got glasses. It turns out that the cross-eyed, hold the iPad right next to my face move was not normal.  Mommy took me to the eye doctor and sure enough I needed glasses.  I was overwhelmed when I first tried them on but when I finally could open my eyes in them, it was like a whole new world.  I walked around the store and kept saying, "wow..wow...WOW!"  The optometrists said it was the best reaction they'd seen in a while.

Reagan and I have been spending a lot more time playing lately.  As her big brother, I feel it's my duty to teach her things.  My favorite thing is to teach her how to run...errr...walk by holding her hands. 

 She is pretty fun.  She has walker/shopping cart races with me, she "colors" with me (and by color I mean, she eats my crayons), and she thinks I am hilarious and laughs at all my jokes. 

On a more serious note, my Mimi is struggling a lot more these days so our family has started a team for the ALS Walk.  It's only a mile and a half so even Reagan will be doing it.  The money goes to help people with ALS and their families receive the support and services they need and funds research.  If you'd like to join us or donate here is the info.  ALS Walk Mindy's Darlings 

We have been blessed with lots of family and friends loving and supporting us and are super grateful to the ones that have donated or pledged to walk with us.  We also started a Caring Bridge site for Mimi since she is struggling with talking.  If you'd like to follow her journey and send her some encouragement or smiles, here is her site: Mindy's Caring Bridge.  We love you, Mimi! We are so blessed to have you in our lives.

Happy Belated Birthday to ME...

It's been a couple months. At the risk of being too verbose like my mom, here were the highlights.

We had a tornado scare. Leland was brave as always.

June 29...I turned the big 3.  We had an early celebration with Mimi, Pa, Auntie Kelly and Claire.  I had the perfect pink cupcake with a little Thomas engine. And I celebrated three more times, with the same cupcake, because I couldn't bear to eat a thing of such beauty.

I also celebrated with a trip to the zoo and got alarmingly close to a red kangaroo that my parents were surprised to see was not in a cage.  Luckily they caught me as I approached it to give it and its sharp claws a hug.

I was a lucky boy and got some great presents.  Sister particularly loved my chairs because she likes to climb on top of things and dance.  Daddy is less than thrilled about this habit.

Auntie Darcy, Uncle Scott, Evan and Ryan (or Ry-Ry as I like to call him) moved to town. They live right down the street and I LOVE it.  They seem to be handling my toy-stealing, in-your-face snuggling, rowdy ways relatively well so far.

Papa G and Gigi came in for the big move too and there was lots of snuggling, cookie making, and playing.

 We also watched Dumbo and were all a little confused by the drunk elephants dancing scene.

Mimi, Mommy and Reagan had their first girls' weekend.  I am told there was shopping, food, relaxing, and baby's first trip to the bar.

Reagan had her first birthday July 21.  I, ahem, she got lots of great presents--including her first doll, high chair and tea set.  They keep me, I mean her, entertained for HOURS.  Can you pick up on the pattern here? I *might* be having a hard time sharing these days...

At her 12-month check-up, she was tipping the scales at 16 pounds 3 ounces (5th percentile) and a staggering 28 1/2 inches tall (25th percentile).  She is fearless about climbing up on things, walks but pretty much only around Daddy, loves trains and cars, hates almost all food except for crackers, bites my face when she's annoyed with me, and loves to dance.  She has an ornery smile that makes Mommy and Daddy think she may actually be naughtier than me and I am pretty sure that they are right.

Happy Father's Day!

In celebration of Daddy's sabbatical, Reagan and I have decided to get up every morning between 5:30 and 6:00. Here we are getting geared up for the day.  I like to be the first to say "Good Morning, Sunshine" to her. And, most days, she loves it.

 Speaking of other things she loves. We have a new game where we push each other around on the walker. The arms raised are the giveaway--she loves it, except for when I pick up the pace and lose her around a turn. Then, not so much.

She also likes to snuggle with me during "rest" time...Mommy and Daddy have become realistic and stopped referring to it as "nap" time.

 We take walks together in the wagon. I usually snitch on her when she launches her hat or wub-a-nub overboard but a couple of times she has tricked me and we have had to retrace our steps to retrieve things. It can make for some long walks...Leland loves it.

As you can tell, Reagan is giving Mommy and Daddy a run for it. She is always moving, sticking things in her mouth and making messes.  Mommy found her covered from head to toe in Vaseline last week when she found the big tub of it on the Pack and Play.  That night, she ate one of my beloved books at bedtime when we were busy reading something else.  She is constantly trying to "read" parenting magazines on the nightstands and by read, I also mean eat.  She is busy.  ALWAYS busy.

 And this busy girl turned 11 months last week.  If you look at her thigh, you just might see a fat roll forming.  Alright, maybe that's wishful thinking.  Even though she's only 16 pounds and still has feeding therapy and now needs to see a nutritionist, she is as happy as can be.  Here's some other things we know about her:  Her laugh sounds like a pterodactyl.  She hates dresses. She loves music. She is fascinated by dolls and trucks.  She sleeps like a dream.  She hates surprises. She has 6 teeth. She loves splashing water.  She gives the best hugs.

 This past weekend was Father's Day and what better way to celebrate than by making Dad do some manual labor? We had a fun little trip to Suburban to pick out plants. Did I mention how much I love shopping there??? They have awesome carts for kids. I like to race the aisles with it.  When we got home, Daddy used his Daddy muscles to plant the first pieces to our backyard landscape. I, of course, "helped."

For all you who worried that Daddy worked too hard Father's Day weekend, fear not.  We played too. Here I am sitting in my office chair testing out the new Xbox we got him for Father's Day.  Oh, yes, that is a diaper. I'm still "working" on the potty training thing.

Happy belated Father's Day to all my favorite daddies in the world...Pa, Papa G...most of all to mine! Love you to the moon!  Thanks for all you do for us!  XOXO

Rocky Mountain High

We just got back from Estes Park for Reagan's baptism and it was pretty much the best trip ever.  I got to see almost all of my favorites--Mimi, Pa, Gigi, Papa G, Auntie Kelly and Uncle Andy, Cooper, Claire, Grayson and Gammy Sheryl. I made new friends with Mommy's cousin's wife Cindy and her two kids, "Big" Griffin and Abby. We had the BEST time.

The 10 hours of driving went much better than anticipated.  I only asked to get out of my seat a few dozen times and talked excitedly the entire way about every farm animal I saw. Newsflash--there are A LOT of farm animals along I70 so I didn't sleep until Denver. The video captures how most of the ride went.

 Our first hiking stop was always the first stop Mommy and her family made when she was growing up...Sprague Lake. Here are all of us with Mimi...you will notice I get a little territorial of my Mimi when other cousins are around so I will be sitting on or next to her in the majority of pictures.  Have to stake my territory! Oh and excuse Reagan's face...she didn't get the memo that we weren't scowling for the picture.

 Reagan and Abby had a mutual infatuation with each other.  Reagan even let Abby hold her! She's usually a little skittish around other kids because of me so this was fairly historic.  Here they are snuggling after dinner.

We spent a lot of time at Hitali, the cabin where I was baptized, Mommy and Daddy got engaged and Mimi's family has gone for 40+ years.  We have a lot of memories there, now including Reagan's baptism.

Reagan's baptism by Reverend Huth was wonderful. Our family was joined by our dear family friends Ginger and Reverend Bill and his wife Sara.

I tried to steal some of the holy water during the ceremony but no one skipped a beat.

Reagan was the belle of the ball even when she stuck her foot in the baptism cake.

All of the attention may have gone to her head.  Reagan mastered the princess wave and continued to do it the entire trip.

Mimi had the sense and forethought to put together restaurant bags for all of us kids full of all of our favorite things.  I received what I have now deemed the best gift of all...Thomas the Train book and set.  It provided hours of entertainment. Sidenote: I kept calling one of the trains "Craphill" and it wasn't until Mommy did a little Thomas research that she realized I meant "Clarabelle", Thomas' coach car.

We managed to FINALLY get professional pictures done of the family.  Reverend Huth's daughter, Kim, is a fantastic photographer. Here we are waiting for our turn.  Reagan's outfit is courtesy of Auntie Darcy.  She may have two boys but she knows great style for girls!

I got lots of good cousin time. Here we are post-picnic discussing the views of the park and where to sweep next with our pine branches.

We got in a good "hike" around Lily Lake with Gigi and Papa G.

I say "hike" because this is what it looked like the majority of the way.

I saw some animals. I rode a bear. Like I said, best trip EVER.

 I was sad to go at the end of the trip but I know it's not goodbye. I'll be back.