Our Garden - April 26

We worked on planting our vegetable garden today. It's not very big - just some pepper and tomato plants and a couple of broccoli plants that Wyatt wanted to try growing. I think I'm going to get some squash and strawberries to add to the mix and we'll call it done for this year. We'll keep you posted on how it's looking...

Puddle Jumping - April 26

The kids found this random puddle (leftover from Danny watering the flowers earlier in the morning) on the driveway. It didn't take long for the shoes to come off and the jumping to begin!

Nine Months Old - April 25

Here is a little glimpse into Zane's life at nine months old...

He loves to eat! Here he is with some of his favorites, crackers and grapes. He also loves bananas, avocados, mango, pears, carrots, peas and sweet potatoes. He still refuses to eat any food from a spoon, so I'm not quite sure what is going to happen when I introduce him to yogurt. It may be a little bit messy!

He has perfected the "army crawl", but I can tell he really wants to crawl on his hands and knees. He gets a little better at that everyday. He is also becoming pretty confident about pulling up to standing. I took this picture after he had crawled over to the fireplace to look at his reflection in the glass.

A Little Entertainment - April 23

Danny likes to "jog mow" the yard. He says it is a great workout and he gets the yard mowed in half the time.

The kids just think it is really funny to watch Daddy run around the yard with a lawn mower!

Camping or Noni's House? - April 18-20

Danny wanted to take Sabrina and Wyatt on a "big kid" backpacking trip this weekend (more about that on his blog), so I decided to take the other three down to Lubbock to visit Noni, Papa and all of the aunts and uncles.

Our first stop on Saturday was the Red vs. Black scrimmage at Tech. Monique didn't know what to make of the actual football game, but she really enjoyed the drums in the band!

After that we went to the Lubbock Art Show. In an attempt to keep them corralled I had them ride in the stroller, which they thought was a real treat!

Colter's favorite part of the art show was the model train room where there were several different trains set up for viewing. He would have stayed for hours!

Our last stop of the day was the park by Aunt Cathryn and Uncle Jerod's house so that Colter and Monique could feed the ducks. It was a fun day!

Little Miss Fireman - April 16

So, if you were wondering if our little girl is feeling better after her surgery, here is your answer! She was back playing with her regular energy today.

Dr. Colter - April 15

Monique spent today recovering from her day surgery yesterday (you can read more about it on my blog - www.jengriffis.blogspot.com). She was resting on the couch this afternoon when I witnessed this scene. Colter looked up at me and said, "Mo-ni-tee doing o-tay, Mama".

Pizza! - April 12

We eat pizza in some shape or form at least once a week. Whether it is English muffin pizzas for lunch, pepperoni pizza twist for dinner or "make-your-own" pizzas with Daddy, pizza is sure to bring a smile to our kids faces!

A Week of Fun - April 11

5 active kids + 7 days in a week = LOTS of fun

Here's a glimpse into some of our activities this week that kept these five little monkeys busy and happy!

We finger painted (Wyatt loved getting really messy!)

We used gumdrops and toothpicks to build (Colter made an airplane!) and then we ate the gumdrops.

We played dominoes (Monique won almost every game!).

We blew bubbles (Zane loved the bubble machine!).

We rode bikes (Sabrina likes to play "bumper bikes"!).

Curious Zane - April 10

Zane's curiosity it leading to all sorts of new accomplishments this week. He can now open the kitchen drawers (although sometimes he opens them on himself and then gets stuck!) and he pulled up for the first time on a tub of clothes I was sorting through. It's been an exciting week for this little boy!

Rainy Morning - April 9

It rained this morning (YEAH!) so it was the perfect opportunity for the kids to wear their rain jackets to school. Monique didn't want to be left out, so she put hers on and then stood at the door to wave good-bye.

My Little Helper - April 6

All of my kids like to help in the kitchen, Sabrina is the one who wants to help with the entire meal, start to finish. She grates cheese, washes fruit and vegetables, helps with the dishes and sweeps the floor. While she is working she will say "Mommy, I'm your helper!"

Our Backyard Cat - April 5

The kids looked out the window this morning and found a cat sitting in the backyard. Wyatt and Colter, being boys, decided to run outside and chase it away. Apparently this kitty just wanted to play, because as the boys ran closer he just sat there and watched them. It surprised the boys that the cat didn't run away (like the rabbits that they usually chase!) and they came to a screeching halt right in front of the cat. They all just looked at each other for a couple of minutes and then Colter walked up to the cat and started petting it. He has always been our animal lover (both stuffed and real!) and tends to be cautious, but not frightened of animals. The rest of the day the kids kept watching to see if the cat (who belongs to one of our neighbors) would come visit again.

Playdate Swap - April 2

Some of our good friends in town have a son in Wyatt's preschool class and a daughter in Sabrina's preschool class. They all get along really well together, and their friendships are such a blessing to my kids. We set up a "playdate swap" for a couple of hours after preschool one day. I brought all of the boys to our house to play and Sabrina went to their house so the girls could play together. All of the kids had fun on our "swap" and keep asking me when we are going to do it again!

Wyatt and Brooks enjoying their pizza.

An all boy playdate just isn't complete without some dirt!

Eight (and a half!) Months Old - April 1

Zane turned eight months old on March 20. If came so fast I almost forgot to take his eight month picture! Here are eight random facts about my sweet baby boy...

1. He LOVES Cheerios!
2. He still doesn't have any teeth (although he has been "teething" for months!).
3. His favorite activity is sitting on the floor with his basket of toys, picking up each toy, putting it in his mouth and then throwing it on the floor.
4. He's not crawling on his hands and knees yet, but he's pretty good at sliding across the floor on his belly.
5. He love to read (and chew!) on books!
6. I found him sitting up in his crib the other day - time to lower the mattress again!
7. He is really ticklish and has a great belly laugh.
8. He is a true "Mama's Boy" and will rarely let anyone else hold him if I am in the same room.

Baby Aerobics - March 30

This scene just made me laugh! Somehow Zane got his favorite teether stuck on his leg while he was playing. The funny part was that he didn't get upset about it. He just pulled it to his mouth and kept chewing on it anyway!

Spring Dirt - March 30

It's springtime and our family is enjoying the warmer weather. Of course it wouldn't be spring in our part of the country without dirt - both the kind that blows through the air (something that happens when there are lots of bare fields around and very few trees!) and the kind that you use for planting. Today the kids helped Danny plant some trees in our front yard. Maybe someday (many, many years from now!) those trees will help block some of that blowing dirt!

Happy Birthday, Daddy! - March 29

I'm sure if I'd asked Danny 10 years ago what he would be doing on his 32nd birthday he would never have guessed this would be the scene! But here he is surrounded by two of his favorite things - his kids and mountains. Life doesn't get much better than this!

So Much Like His Daddy - March 26

Over the past couple of weeks I have been keeping a mental list of all the ways Wyatt is like Danny. For example, he wants to keep wearing his old tennis shoes because they are more comfortable (despite the fact that there are holes in the toes), he LOVES being outside (no extra toys or playground needed, just being outside is enough) and he can spend long stretches of time by himself. I can describe Danny using those exact terms!

I love this picture because it shows another one of their similarities - their love for place. Whenever we are driving somewhere Wyatt always asks, "Where are we?" He doesn't want a vague answer, but a specific location, which can be difficult at times. It is also interesting to watch Wyatt while we are driving. He is usually looking intently out the window (not reading a book or sleeping like his siblings) and often points out different trees or mountains that he sees. He is so much like his daddy!

Ruidoso - March 26-29

Here we are - ready for our four-day backpacking adventure! Danny has lots of pictures and more details about our trip on his blog and I also have a couple of stories on my blog. Click on the links to the right to check them out...