Griff goes to school

Hard to believe but our little 2 year old started school last week! (Sort of) It is a program called "mothers morning out" and a pre pre-school. It is only 2 hours and he is going twice a week but a big step towards real school in a couple years. It was a really rainy day so Griff had his rain jacket on and he wad to wear his new backpack. Griffin really seemed to like it and can't wait to go back. When we asked him what he did at school he told us:

-Played with the trains (Thomas obsession continues)

-Cooked something in the kitchen (They have a play kitchen)

-Ate goldfish

-Sang songs on the carpet

And he even brought home some coloring that we now hang proudly on the fridge. Hopefully he always likes school this much.

Addison's Arrival

It's been a busy week but we are proud to announce that our beautiful baby girl, Addison, was born on Sunday, September 18, 2011 at 8:18 PM. She is 20.5 inches long and weighed 7.8 lbs when she arrived. She is a wonderful and healthy little girl and we are all enjoying being home and settling in to our family of 4. Griffin, of course, absolutely adores his new baby sister.

Delivery couldn't have been easier and even though we just moved to PA and weren't sure what to expect the staff at the hospital here was terrific. We were really anxious to get home after 2 nights away and start our new life. Our world now has lots of pink in it but we are loving every minute of having a son and a daughter. So far so good with 2 kids but luckily Gary is able to be home this week.

Enjoy some pictures and we promise to try to stay updated as we try to get some sleep too...

* Technical note: I had some issues uploading pictures and then again when we got home. I didn't think the first picture of Addison originally posted and I can't believe this took me so long. This is more of how we intended to introduce her to the world several days ago. Either way, we are thrilled that she is here and can't wait for everyone to meet her.

Baby Sister is here!

Addison was born last night, September 18 at 8:18 pm. Weight 7.8 and 20.5 inches long. More pics and updates to come soon!

First Carnival September 2011

Just a few weeks before Addison arrived we enjoyed our first visit to a neighborhood carnival. Mom didn't get to go on any rides, since they discourage 9 month pregnant woman from riding them but Dad climbed on with Griffin. Griffin wasn't quite sure about the rides but after the spiderman motorcycle he really warmed up to them and we rode the firetruck 3 or 4 times. He even got a prize for picking ducks!

This one is on a real firetruck!

The Rides...

Big Big Boy Bed

When we moved into the new house we decided that the battle between Griffin and the toddler bed had gone on long enough. That, and if he was over the crib we could use it for baby sister. So, Griffin got a really big big boy bed and he is sleeping better than he has in months since he started climbing out. He has lots of friends in there to take up some room and when he isn't sleeping in it he loves to bounce on the new bed. Can't believe our 2 year old has a full size bed but so glad that he likes it.

Baby Watch is On!

Here is a picture of the belly at 37 1/2 weeks.

And we are officially on baby watch because last week at the 36 week dr's appointment I was 3 cm's dilated and 70% effaced already. This week at the 37 week appointment I am 5 cm's and
80%...could be any day now. Can't wait to meet little sister!

Circus!!!

We had our first visit to the circus last week.

We found some coupons for free kids and decided to give it a try. So glad that we did. It was a small circus which was actually great fun since we were so close to all the animals and the action. If you ask Griffin what we saw at the circus, he will tell you:

"Tigers..."

"Elephant and Camels..."

"A big ball, motorcycles went round and round..."

"And a front end loader that pushed the big ball!"

He seems to have forgotten about the man shooting out of the cannon, the clowns, and many other things...but I think he picked the best ones to remember.

So much fun with the Scherff's and company.

Tumultuous Weather in PA

We have had some interesting weather since we moved to PA: an earthquake and a hurricane, with tornado warnings. Here is a synopsis of how we survived the hurricane ;

which really wasn't that bad:

Grocery Store at 10 AM the Friday before the Saturday/Sunday storm. People were freaking out! I have never seen anything like this at a store.

On our way to the Grovers for a Hurricane Party

A little rain can't stop me! But Mommy reminded the boys that we do have a

rain jacket and boots.

Splashing! In the appropriate attire.

Cousin Fun

Before the movers arrived with all our stuff we stayed with Aunt Bekah and Uncle Ben. Marilyn and Griffin soon become best buddies and had a ball sharing toys, giving hugs and kisses and making a good old mess...

Birthday Fun Continues in PA

Griffin's real birthday in PA was just as much as his party in Chicago. He got some awesome presents and got to wear his special birthday shirt again!

We are still working on saying "I am 2" instead of "Almost 2"

Tool bench from Cousin Marilyn

Fireman outfit from Oma

Elephant that blows out butterflies to catch from Ms Carolyn

Griffin is 2 (Woo-Woo)

We celebrated a little early a few weeks ago before we left Chicago. Thank you so much to all our friends and family that came to help us wish Griffin a 2nd birthday and say good-bye to Chicago. It was a bit of crazy morning with a huge storm coming through but it ended 5 minutes before the party and the sun came out. We were lucky!

Adams Park was probably our favorite park in Chicago because of the huge sandbox and the splash park for the kiddies. And we had a firetruck theme since it is one of this 2 year old's favorite things in the world right now.

Happy Birthday Griffin! We love you so much. It's been an amazing 2 years and going so fast.