A Very Webb City Christmas

Last weekend we visited Matt's family in Webb City. The drive down was gloomy and rainy and what normally is a 5 hour trip took 7 with stops for feeding and changing needs! Griffin, as expected, was wonderful! He slept almost the whole time and was content to play by himself with his teething ring and stuffed animals! 

When we arrived, Griffin was greeted and treated to lots of hugs and kisses all around! He was particularly excited to see Sissy Rachael! After a great dinner at Mazzio's Pizza (which used to be a "Ken's Pizza", remember that?) we headed back to the house to open gifts. Griffin received lots of much needed clothes for the winter and a new stuffed animal - a monkey! He loved helping to open his gifts and thought the wrapping paper was just delicious! :) Matt and I were treated to a new Slow Cooker!! I am very excited about that - it will really lessen the stress of preparing dinner each night! 

The hotel was just as fun! It had wireless, so Rachael, Matt and I played around on my iPod touch and Rachael was able to do some homework. Griffin was just exhausted but stayed up to play some more with Sissy before sacking out! 

The drive home was long but the trip was worth it. We hadn't been down that way in 2 years! We are thankful for family this Christmas!

Thanksgiving @ Nana's

We spent Thanksgiving morning and evening at my Mother's house. The food was delicious (each year you out do yourself, Mom!)! It was a relaxing day of preparing Thanksgiving dinner (save for my crying) and the evening was full of fun pictures, movies, music, and love! There were many "cheers" and much to be thankful for! This year was Griffin's first Thanksgiving and I am grateful that he got to spend it with his Sissy! Rachael's trips are always too short but we certainly make the MOST of each minute!

Thanksgiving 08 @ GG's

We spent some time at GG's house for Thanksgiving - AKA "Pass the Baby"! Some of my family had never met Griffin before but most havn't seen him or Rachael in a long time so it was fun getting caught up! Griffin was really taken with Uncle Bill (or GUB - Great Uncle Bill - oh, it will stick!). Wherever Bill was in the room, Griffin had eyes on him! Rachael had a lot of fun catching up with Jessica and Kaily, her cousins (Thanks for hurrying to see us! We really appreciate it!). Matt and I always enjoy discussing different wines with Aunt Nancy, Uncle Tom and my Father. My favorite that I tried this year was a Cab from Chile. Yum! We are grateful for family!

Sitting Proud!

Last night Griffin was lying in Matt's lap and suddenly just tightened those tummy muscles and sat up! He did it over and over and giggled and smiled the whole time! It was a great moment! I thank God for those moments...The kind where your whole world just shrinks so small and there's nothing but joy. 

"Everyday is the start of something beautiful."

Oops!

I meant to add this picture, not the duplicate! 

Happy 4 Months, Griffin!

I can't believe that it's been 4 months since since Griffin was born! He has grown beautifully and continues to amaze me everyday. He can now roll onto his belly and push himself up, he has changed to sleeping on his belly, he smiles and laughs all the time, is blowing raspberries and "talking" constantly! He is still a wonderful "work baby". He sleeps at all the right times which allows me to get so much work done at home. We can't have asked for a better baby than G. 

I'd like to think that he's a Mama's Boy but when Matt gets home from work, there's a smile on Griffin's face from ear to ear and when Matt picks him up, a normally very active child is suddenly calm in Daddy's arms...Griffin just melts into Matt. It's the best.

Happy 4 Months, Griffin! We love you!

Another First!!

Griffin rolled over and pushed himself up today! Go Baby!! We are so proud of you!

Happy Halloween!

We had a great Halloween! Griffin and I spent the afternoon youtubing great songs like "Purple People Eater", "Pumpkinhead Harvey", and "Monster Mash". At 4:00 Nana picked him up for his first overnight at her house! From 4 to 7, I was a mess. I haven't been alone like that in a long time and I was cleaning the house like crazy to take  my mind off of it! When Matt got home from work, we started our 4th annual Scary Movie Marathon (although we only made it through 2 movies, "Mothman Prophecies" and "Strangeland", because we started so late).

The next day we went to our annual Halloween Chili Party at the Pompe's and had lots of fun! Griffin was the life of the party, as that was his first appearance...Eva dressed in a princess dress, although she was really a spider for Halloween, Tom was pretty tame this year, Steve and Terry were upstairs the whole night (a first), and Griffin fell in love with Gavin's fiance, Beth. He was a huge flirt! We ate until we felt we could bust then we went home to bed. 

Today is the day before my 30th birthday. I am feeling so good about where I am in this life and what I've been able to accomplish these past few years...A few years ago I thought 30 was going to be very hard because I was not happy with where I was. I have never been happier than I am now. It's amazing what such a short time can do! I can't wait for the next 30 years!

On a Walk...

Griffin and I LOVE to take long walks from after my work day is done until the time Matt gets home...It's been so cold and windy lately that we haven't been able to get out very much, something that Griffin DOES NOT like! Well, yesterday it was in the 70's, so we went on a walk and he was so so so happy! I had to take these amazing pictures of him...I can't believe how much he's grown!

Too Cute!

Here are some recent pictures of Griffin...He's changing and growing so fast! 

All By Myself!

Look what Griffin just did today!! I was on the computer and noticed that he was unusually quiet, I looked over and he had rolled himself onto his side!! Just like a kitten chases his tail, Griffin chased his fist until he got it! Apparently it was delicious there was a pool of slobber as big as his head around him! Way to go, Griffin! We're so proud of you!

I Can't Believe It!

I still can't wrap my brain around the fact that I'm a Mom! I've waited my whole life for this and it's so much more than I could've ever ever imagined. I am in awe of my body and what it's been able to do this past year. I'm in awe of the well of strength that I drew from that I didn't know was there during my pregnancy and labor. I'm in awe when Griffin has firsts...First"ahgooo", first smile, first bath, first time holding his head up...I did this! I made this little man inside of me...His heart, bones, hair, nails, eyelashes (oh! they are so long!), lungs, I made it all!! When I hold him and he hugs me tight and buries his face in my neck, I know he's secure and he loves me. That is just amazing to me...I'm having the time of my life! Matt and I love to take walks with Griffin and when Rachael is with us, our family is complete. I love cooking for everybody and reading to Griffin. The last time I read to him, I was just reading away and I stopped and looked down at him. His eyes were just locked on to me and then he smiled so big, a laugh just burst out of me! 

Thank you, God, for giving me everything I've ever wanted and more. Thank you, Matt, for being the best man I've ever known...Griffin's already got a great head start having you for a father. Thank you, Mom, for being there for me every step of the way, calming my fears, and being so supportive of us! Griffin, Rachael, Drew, Braden, and Colton have the best Nana in the world! Thank you, Sissy, for caring so much and making the most important times in my life so special. Thank you, Rachael, for being the best sister and little boy could ever ask for. 

Thank you, Griffin...for changing my life.

All Hail King Griffin!

I took this picture the other night, when we were trying hats on him! I think this one is a keeper!! 

My Family

It's been a long, hard road for Matt and me! We met and fell in love very quickly (at first "shift", you might say!). There have been financial, emotional and spiritual hurdles for us to overcome. There have been people that have rooted for us to succeed and those that have rooted for us to fail. We've been through situations that would have sent most couples to divorce court and we only grew stronger because of it...Through it all, we became a family. Rachael and Griffin are the lights of our lives and we couldn't ask for any better. God granted us everything we could ever need and, as a bonus, everything we could ever want as well. What a journey, what a life!

Like Father Like Son

Need I say more?

Funnel Cakes!

Over Labor Day weekend, Rachael was in town and we went to Nana's house to make funnel cakes and watch a movie...The funnel cakes turned out great and were delicious! And of course, you guessed it, Griffin slept right through it! :) Well, since pictures don't lie, Matt and I slept too!

Forest Park Balloon Race

Each year Forest Park has a hot air balloon race that is just amazing!! When I was younger my Mom, Dad and I would go and chase the balloons and find where they landed. Dad was always crazy driving, weaving in and out of downtown St. Louis! This year, my Mom, Matt, Griffin and I went and it was as amazing as ever! We didn't do any chasings...We went into the park and watched the balloons launch and tether. The colors against the "is it going to rain or not?" sky was awesome! The energizer bunny, or the "hare" of the race each year, did not lift off this year, so we got to watch it tether for a long time. It's huge! We found out that it's taller than the Statue of Liberty, it's ears stick out of Busch Stadium when it was in there, and 15 MILLION AA energizer batteries can fit inside of it's body!! We had a great time and, of course, Griffin slept right through it!! 

What a Little Man!

Griffin is growing so fast! He smiles and "talks" all the time and HATES a wet diaper! He's sleeping through the night and when we wake him up in the morning, he greets us with a huge smile! Each day brings something new and I can't wait to see what this kiddo has in store for us!!

My Best Friend!

My crew at Innovations got this cute frog for Griffin as part of a presant for his birth and he can't get enough of it!! I decided that it would be his "Changing Friend" so he could focus on something while getting a diaper change (he doesn't like getting changed or wiped down - typical little boy!) and during changings he would chew on Mr. Frog's feet! Now we put it in the crib with him (except when he's asleep) and he just stares and stares at it! He chews on his nose and holds his hand and can now follow it with his eyes when I move it around (Nana taught him how to focus and follow objects!)! Mr. Frog is now part of the family, as he is Griffin's best friend!

Bath time

We love bath time! Although he kind of just sits in his tub with his hands in fists at his ears and his "froggy legs" up on his chest, he doesn't cry and he looks at Matt and me with wide eyes...I love putting him in his bath froggy bath robe afterwards - he looks so cute!! His eyes just melt my heart!

Growing up so fast!!

Griffin has already grown 1/2 an inch and is well above his birth weight!! He still sleeps a lot but has found his lungs! He loves being held tight and is the "Mayor of Snuggle Town" as Matt calls him! He can hold his head up and pushes almost to a standing position with his feet. He turns his head when you talk to him and loves to dance with Mommy and Daddy and loves it when Kara raps to him!! Sir-Mix-A-Lot is his favorite! :)

My Little Rockstar!

Honestly, I've been putting off posting this blog for some time now...How do you sum up the most amazing experience of your life in a few paragraphs? That's right! You can't!! :) But I'll try...

On July 11th Matt was driving me to work and I started crying. He asked how I felt and I told him that I felt in my gut how I used to feel in the wings right before I went on stage. I felt like IT was going to happen that day...Now, I felt silly saying that because what if it didn't? What if Ms. "I'm so in tune with my body" was WAY off the mark? Well, I wasn't...At 12:30am on July 12th, I started having my first true labor contractions...All the books told me to get rest during that first stage of labor because it could last hours...Yeah right! CONTRACTIONS HURT!! Rest schmest! Matt & I spent hours watching the one thing that makes me super calm...Food Network!! Mainly, old Rachael Ray's that I recorded...At 6:30am we went to the hospital. At 9:30am I got an epidural...Wow! Was that great or what!! Matt & I watched some DVDs that we brought & relaxed. With Matt at my side (and everywhere else because the nurses were short staffed that day) at 6:32pm, after pushing for 2 1/2 hours, Griffin Rockstar Allen was born to Bach's Bradenburg Concertos! He's the perfect blend of Matt & me. Words can't say what I felt inside of me when they handed him to me for the first time...I couldn't hardly see him because I was crying so hard!!!!

That was the best day of my life. I'm so happy that the man God chose for me is Matt. He's an amazing husband and father and friend. The look that he gave me the moment Griffin entered this world I will never forget...It was a look of pride and respect and love and awe. Thank you, Babe, for continuing to choose me everyday...

I'd also like to thank my sister. I was there for the birth of her three sons and at her third, I told her that she better be there for the birth of mine!! True to her word, she was, and not only that but she stayed in St. Charles for an entire month!! She is an endless wealth of knowledge! I could not have made it through that 9th month and the birth of my son without her...She was able to calm me down and talk me through some pretty rough times while I was at the hospital and I will never forget it! I treasured all the times that you visited me, not only in the hospital, but at home afterward. Thank you, Sissy, for being my confidante and sister and friend. (And thanks for cleaning my house!!) You are a true blessing to me and my family! 

So, here it is! The time that I've been waiting for my whole life!! And it's better than I could have ever imagined!! I feel truly blessed...

Shower of Love!!

My sister and mother threw me the best baby shower!! I was truly touched by how many people came and what great fun we all had!! My sister started off the evening with passing around a stuffed Pooh Bear and each person had to say how they know me and a funny thing about me. Then we played IbabyTunes, and baby Bingo! I opened my gifts and was blown away at all of the things that Matt and I don't have to worry about getting! All the gifts were a great blessing! My favorite part of the night was when Sara brought out an ice cream birthday cake for Griffin and gave each guest a candle. Each person put their candle into the cake and said aloud a wish that they wish for Griffin! I felt so loved and cared for, of course I started crying!! My sister and mother are just the best...My mom has seen me everyday of my pregnancy and has talked me through all my fears and my sister...she lives in TX! It's beyond me how she, with her busy life and 3 sons, can come home and have the time and energy to throw me the best party! It was an evening filled with great food, friends, stories, laughs, games, good wishes, and blessings. Matt and I are so grateful to all of our friends and family that came and shared this special time! Thank you Sissy and Mom! I love you both more than you can ever know!!