Zane's First Sponge Bath - July 24

Zane was not very happy about his first sponge bath. Maybe that will change when he's old enough to take a bath with his big brothers!

Clean, warm and happy!

The Bili Bed - July 22

Many of you will remember that we had to go back to the hospital with Colter after his bilirubin levels skyrocketed. We knew this would happen again with Zane (it has to do with my blood type and Zane's blood type - I won't go into the details!) so in the hope of avoiding going back to the hospital we prayed and planned ahead.

We had our medical supplies office in Dimmitt order a "bili-bed" from Lubbock which is a more effective light source than the traditional "bili-blanket". It was waiting for us when we got home and we put Zane on it Saturday night and almost all day Sunday. Colter didn't get put on bili lights until he was 48 hours old, so our hope was that by getting Zane on the lights earlier his bilirubin wouldn't get as high as quickly. We had his bilirubin level checked Monday morning. Zane was looking good (no yellow eyes!) and we were hoping it would be around a 10 or 12 and we could stop using the lights. We were so grateful when it came back at an 8 - what a gracious God we serve! A bili of 10 or 12 would have meant the medical interventions were working, but a bili of 8 said to me that God was also at work!

Wyatt and Colter inspecting Zane's "special bed!"

Coming Home - July 21

Danny doesn't do hospitals well as a patient, so we never seem to stay long after our babies are born. We were in the car headed home at 3:30 on Saturday afternoon, less than 24 hours after Zane was born!

Ready for his first car ride - he slept the entire way!

His big brothers were anxiously waiting for him at home!

More Hospital Pics - July 21

Here are just a few more pictures from our short stay at the hospital.

Look at those beautiful eyes!

My boys - I am blessed beyond words!

Our first family picture as a family of five!

Zane Christopher Griffis - July 20

Zane was born on Friday, June 20 at 5:37 pm in Plainview, Texas (about 40 miles from Dimmitt). He shares his birthday with my grandmother, who passed away almost 10 years ago. He weighed 7 pounds 3 ounces and was 18 1/2 inches long.

Zane showed everyone very quickly that he had healthy lungs and functioning kidneys (he almost soaked the nurse while she was cleaning him up!).

Our sweet, sweet boy - just a few minutes old.

Wyatt and Colter's first look at their little brother.

Gigi's Visit - July 8-16

Gigi drove down from Colorado for a visit with the boys before the baby was born. I enjoyed have the help and the boys enjoyed having someone new to play with them!

Danny's Bike Ride - July 14

There are lots of bike rides in our area during this time of year. Danny rode in a 60 mile ride earlier this summer, but decided to do the 40 mile ride this time (just in case I went into labor while he was gone!). The boys really enjoyed it because the bikers rode right in front of our house. They had their own "bike ride" in the driveway while we waited for everyone to come back!

Underwear and My Silly Little Boys - June 9

It has been wonderful that both Wyatt and Colter take care of getting themselves dressed in the mornings. One morning I heard lots of laughing in their room and went in to check on them. What I found was two little boys wearing their underwear like "hats" and laughing hysterically at each other. They really are silly boys!

"Do 'way, Mama!" (aka "Go away, Mama!") - July 7

Colter has become very independent over these past few weeks. He can get himself dressed and buckle himself in his car seat. The moment we try to help him he says, "No, do 'way!"

Wyatt and "Baby" - July 7

Wyatt is very excited about our baby's arrival. He talks to the baby often and always tells him where we are and what is happening. Wyatt loves feeling the baby kick and likes to "snuggle" with him during his rest time. The other day he said "When baby comes we will have one big brother, two grown-ups and two little brothers!".

Wyatt's Pictures - July 6

These are some of Wyatt's latest pictures he has taken with his digital camera. He took an entire series of pictures of the ceiling fan - this was his favorite.

He has also photographed every plant in our yard and most of my houseplants! This picture of our baby aspen was another favorite.

And the picture below is of Colter - Wyatt calls it his "silly picture!"

Hamburgers and Hot Dogs - July 4

Noni, Papa, Aunt Megan, Aunt Cathryn and Uncle Jerod all drove up from Lubbock to celebrate the 4th of July with us. We had hamburgers, hot dogs and watermelon - all big hits with our boys!

Our family of four - almost five!

Swimming - July 2

Keeping cool in the hot Texas sun - swimming pool, slip 'n slide and popsicles!

Cousins - June 23

My sister-in-law, Kim, is due with her first baby (a girl!) just one week after my due date. My family doesn't know what to do with all of the baby excitement going on right now!

Wyatt's Box House - June 20

I bought most of the items we needed for the baby online, so we quickly amassed a large collection of boxes. One day Wyatt decided to put them to good use and built a "box house" complete with a chimney!

Colter's New Skill - June 20

Colter has finally decided to start using the pedals on his tricycle! For the past nine months he would just use his feet to push himself around because that is how he could go "fast!" Finally one day he was outside with Danny and said "Dada, look!" as he started pedaling down the sidewalk.

Of course this new skill isn't without it's hazards. I guess it's not quite as easy to stop a fall when your feet are on the pedals! But, as you can see, he's still pretty happy about his newly acquired skill!

Colter and "Bear" - June 18

Colter and "Bear" have been inseparable for the past year. One day not long after we moved to Dimmitt, Colter was going through the stuffed animal basket when he discovered Bear who had been part of our stuffed animal collection since before Colter was born. Soon Bear was requested at both naptime and bedtime and Colter began carrying him around everywhere! He has traveled with us from Florida to California and always helped Colter feel better, whether it was an uncertain trip to the church nursery or feeling bad from a stomachache.

All was going well with their relationship until the boys returned from their backpacking trip to New Mexico. As Colter was climbing into bed their first night back he asked for Bear. Danny and I quickly discovered that Bear was missing and Danny decided Colter must have taken Bear out of his backpack when they got back to the truck and left him at the trailhead parking lot in New Mexico. We thought he might be OK without him, but quickly discovered that wasn't the case. We explained to Colter that Bear had so much fun on the backpacking trip that he decided to stay for a few more days. Then we found some "stand-in" bears to get us through the night and began to search the internet for another "Bear". Thankfully I found one rather quickly and in one week Bear (fresh and clean from a "shower") was "returned" to Colter through the mail.

Father's Day - June 17

Danny spent his Father's Day afternoon taking a nap with Colter and working in the yard with Wyatt. What could be better than that!

These two little boys are so blessed to have such a wonderful Daddy!

Big Boy Underwear - June 15

Much to my delight, Colter has decided that he likes wearing "big boy underwear" and basically potty trained himself this summer. Having a big brother to model (and a slightly more compliant personality!) made the process pretty easy. Now we'll just see if it lasts through the excitement of a new baby!

Ice Cream Cones - June 11

Ice cream cones - what better way to keep cool in the summer heat!