Tuesday, November 27, 2007

It's Christmas Time!!

There are a few things that officially mark the start of the Christmas holidays for me:

The first time we turn on the heater at the house, the family viewing of Trey's 2nd grade play, "The Christmas Carol", and Oprah's "Favorite Things" Show.

Well, this week contained all three!

So, here's a peek into how our little family celebrated the official kick-off of Christmas 2007!

Click here for a Greeting from the Griffins!

Sunday, November 25, 2007

"I can see all obstacles in my way..."

Well, Jeff got lasik surgery!

He has the most sensitive eyes and could hardly wear contacts long enough to play a softball game. I got to watch the surgery on a big screen, along-side several other viewers in the waiting area. It was crazy.

He came home after the surgery instructed to sleep in these snazzy goggles for the first couple nights to prevent rubbing his eyes in his sleep. Jeff drove himself to his follow-up appointment the very next morning at 10 am with no glasses. It's pretty unbelievable.

He has wanted it for years, but we finally bit the bullet and we are so glad we did. He loves it. Here's Jeff, Jack Everett, and Bunny Rabbit one week post-op. :)

"Baby, It's cold outside..."

Since birth, Jack has never gone to preschool or daycare during a winter. We have never felt comfortable risking it with his health situation and his being allergic to the flu vaccine. So, I have always quit work in November or December and kept him warm at home. However, this winter he is at his healthiest and we love his school, so we're giving it a shot...

Here he is, all bundled up on his first cold day.

He says, "I'm freezin' up!" He gets that from hearing his Mom say, "I'm burnin' up!"

Jack thinks it's funny to hear his legs rub together when he walks in his slick jogging pants. However, when that happens to me, I really don't thinks it's that funny.
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Oops - have to log off... I just heard Jack throw up on the baby monitor. Then he yelled, "Daddy! I throwed up because I tried to put all my fingers all in my mouth." I immediately hear Jeff say, "Jack, don't touch anything, and go see Mommy." He's coming down the hall right now... more to come...

Sunday, November 11, 2007

Scawy Dwagon, Halloween '07

Can't resist those sweet eyes...

Jack the Scawy Dwagon.

Sarah's mom hand made this adorable dragon costume. It started off a dinosaur costume, but William requested she add wings so he could be a dragon!

Jack and Meemaw

Jack and Nana

Trick-or-treating at Mamaw's house

Thirsty dragon holds the tail up to keep it clean!

Jack with his favorite cowgirl, Alli Jean

It was a great Halloween.

Visit with Aunt Sandra

Sandra and Trevor were in town this weekend, so we enjoyed having dinner with them.

It means a lot to me for Jack Everett to know and love Sandra.
They are two of my very favorite people!

I can't wait until she has little ones.
(No pressure, Trevor...)

Thursday, November 8, 2007

It's a Pajama Party!

Grace Point had a pajama party on Halloween morning, so Heather and I used the excuse to buy matching jammies for Jack Everett and his best friend Lawton to wear to school.

They looked SO cute in their monkey PJ's!

"Monkey SEE,

Monkey DO!"

Their little matching "crocs" are so cute.

They were so excited... almost as excited as we were.

Sunday, November 4, 2007

Random events from recent weeks.

It's fun to look back over the past few weeks and reflect on how much we are truly enjoying raising this child God has placed in our care. Since Jack Everett came into our lives, Jeff and I have begun to look at the world in a whole new way and appreciate the little things from his viewpoint. As his health has so dramatically improved, I also see us loosening the reigns and letting him explore the world around him. We are learning to put away the bibs and the hand sanitizer and are letting him try new things. Like they say, kids only have one childhood - we want Jack to look back and reflect not on the things we had, but the everyday memories that we made together as a family. Here are a few silly memories from the past couple weeks...

Mommy recorded Rascal Flatts singing "Life is a Highway," Jack's favorite song. Night after night, he dances to this song to get the rest of that energy out.

We enjoyed dinner with long-time friends, Duane and Elisa who came into town to see Shamu. Cason, Jack, and Jack Everett had fun too! That is one CUTE pair of Jacks.

Jack with his safari shirt and hand-made toilet paper roll binoculars from Sunday School. "God made everything you see!"

Germs, Schmerms... Jack helps Daddy take out the trash.

Jack ate corn spaghetti for the first time! He loved it!

Darlene, Mel, Hope, Lacey, Jack and I walked in the American Heart Association's Heart Walk this Saturday morning in tribute to Jarrell. We are coming up on the one-year anniversary of his home-going, so it was nice to walk in his honor. The weather was great and Jack especially enjoyed seeing all the puppy dogs. Well, while he was awake, that is. In this pic, Jack Everett is dreaming about how much he loves his Papa!

I babysat for Julie and Duane for their anniversary. Jack and Alli Jean had a blast as usual! For more pics from the evening: http://www.kodakgallery.com/ShareLandingSignin.jsp?Uc=s5k5l03.7jnwbgc7&Uy=-l5zkxk&Upost_signin=Slideshow.jsp%3Fmode%3Dfromshare&Ux=0

Jack marveled at a lizard on the outside of our bedroom window. He was mesmerized, waiting and waiting for the scared little guy to move. He finally just banged on the glass.

Jack staged his first strike on preschool. After pitching a formidable fit, he laid down in front of the bathroom door, put his head on his stuffed "lamby," and fell back to sleep in the hallway. Yes, I was late to work.

I hosted a Pampered Chef party. It's remarkable how flexible these kids are - that's his foot next to his elbow!

He loves (lining up) these nature flash cards, but as you can see, he does NOT love it when Sadie "messes up his pattern."
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More to come on October... the busiest month I've had since, well, September... It's been hard keeping up with blogging... and e-mail... and phone calls... and laundry...

Cute lifeguard on duty!

I love garage sale-ing. This night shirt was a great 25-cent find...


Here are a couple more cute pics in his funny new tee: http://www.kodakgallery.com/ShareLandingSignin.jsp?Uc=s5k5l03.4tmnehmv&Uy=4ptjyy&Upost_signin=Slideshow.jsp%3Fmode%3Dfromshare&Ux=0

"There is nothing to fear...

... but fear itself."

Well, that and lead paint from China.



Imagine my reaction when I see that the latest toy recall is this Diego Rescue boat bath toy...


...sheesh...