We Fitz Together

Jasper's Baby Dedication

2012-02-15T10:48:00.004-05:00

"Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD rises upon you." Isaiah 60:1

Last Sunday was a special day in the Fitzhugh household. We got to dedicate Jasper to the Lord that day during our church's baby dedication ceremony. It was a wonderful way to share our commitment to raise the son God has blessed us with to know and love the Lord.

I'm so thankful that many of our extended family members were able to share the special day with us. Training a child in the ways of God take a lot of love, patience and prayer. And we're happy to have all the help we can get. Ryan and I are blessed to have such supportive followers of Christ in our family to encourage us along the way.

Happy Valentine's Day

2012-02-14T20:52:00.002-05:00

We had a great time celebrating Jasper's first Valentine's Day this year. He was so anxious to show his love that he woke me up at 6:00 a.m. for some snuggle time :) Thankfully, he also went back to sleep until 8:00. Such a thoughtful boy.

Ryan and I exchanged our traditional $5 gifts - I got a cute tiny teddy bear in a coffee mug, and he got some trail mix and peanut M&Ms in a beer mug with a card that read "You're Ale Mine." Totally cheesy and totally awesome. But it wasn't all Velveeta around here. Ryan also surprised me with two dozen beautiful red roses, delivered to the house after he left for work. So sweet! After eleven Valentines together, he knows that caffeine and flowers are the quickest way to my heart.

In the afternoon, Griffin and Jasper went to a fun Valentine's party with lots of their friends. They got to do some crafts, sample cupcakes, and play with their buddies, while I got to visit with the other moms. It's always more than a little chaotic when our play groups get together these day, especially since many of us have two little one's now. But it's so much fun to catch up and watch the kiddos play together. It's amazing to watch their little friendships bud.

We wrapped things up with a family date night at Chic-Fil-A and some homemade chocolate strawberries. Delicious!

Who could ask for a better way to spend the day of love??

Is this winter???

2012-02-02T14:22:00.007-05:00

The weather has been so lovely this winter, that we've been spending lots of time outdoors. That means plenty of trips to the park - Griff is IN LOVE with the bridges we get to cross on our way. He has so much fun stomping across them, turning to see if I'm looking, then heading back to start the process again. All I have to say to keep him moving along is "Let's find another bridge, Griff." He'll say "Bridge! Bridge!" and we're off. Simple pleasures :)

Little brother likes strolling across the bridges too.

We've also been to the Grapevine Botanical Gardens to see the koi fish and play on the playground - these boys love to swing!

Notice below that G's trying to get IN the water with the fish :)

But my favorite so far has been our trip to the Dallas Zoo with some friends this week. In February adults get in for FIVE BUCKS and kids under 3 are FREE! We got to see the elephants eating breakfast, feed the giraffes some lettuce, and play at the amazing Children's Zoo, complete with a playground and water feature. What a fantastic outing!

I see you elephants!

All the boys in our group - surveying their domain

Look Mom - a penguin!

Lunch time - J looks pretty eager, huh?

Seven Months Old

2012-02-01T16:39:00.005-05:00

Guess who's seven months old today!! Jasper's still growing like a weed, eating everything in sight, and sleeping like a baby :) He's such a sweet little boy, even when suffering through his first cold of the year. He and Griffin have both been battling the sniffles/sneezes/coughs the last week or so, but I'm hopeful that we're on the tail end of that episode.

Jasper is rolling on to his tummy like a pro now and still LOVES to bounce in the bungee seat. He's not such a mama's boy any more - lighting up when Daddy's on the scene and trying to reach out and grab his big brother whenever he can.

He's also starting to clap his hands together and loves playing pat-a-cake and digging out all the animals from Griffin's Noah's ark toy. He's usually pretty happy to play on his own, but doesn't want to be left out if someone's having fun in another room :) Jasper's a big fan of books, but he gets a little frustrated since he hasn't quite figured out how to turn the pages on his own. He's usually much quieter than his brother, unless it's meal time. Once he's in his high chair, you'd better have food for him or be prepared for the screaming that's sure to follow. He recently started eating baby crackers and I think he's diggin' the independence.

Our littlest man is such a joy in our lives - can't wait to see what the next month brings!

Six Month Stats

2012-01-10T09:13:00.003-05:00

Jasper had his six month check-up today with Dr. Mac. I'm glad to report that he's one happy, healthy little boy! At least he was happy BEFORE all the shots.

He currently weighs 18 pounds, 4 ounces (65% and almost a whole pound heavier than Griff at this age!), and he is 27.5 inches long (80%). Looks like he's catching up to big brother pretty fast :)

Merry Christmas! (Part 3)

2012-01-07T13:36:00.007-05:00

I love that we're a week into January, and I'm just now getting up my final Christmas post. Oh well, here you go! We had a great time in Longview with Abby and Z, where Santa made his last stop of the year. The boys were given some awesome toys and adorable new clothes. Such lucky little guys!

Plus, the boys got to spend a few minutes with their second cousins (?) Grant, who just turned 3, and the newest addition, Miss EllaJane, who's just a couple of months old. So sweet! We didn't get to hang out with Auntie B and Uncle Stephen this year, but I'm hoping our schedules will work out next year, especially since they will be bringing a NEW COUSIN to Christmas by then!! We're thrilled about all the new babies that will be joining our families in 2012!

The boys also got to spend a few extra days at "Santa Camp" as Abby calls it - and I hear they spent a good portion of those days in the bounce house in their grandparents' backyard. Meanwhile Mama and Daddy enjoyed a few days kid-free. Win-win-win situation!

Merry Christmas! (Part 2)

2012-01-05T11:06:00.006-05:00

We spent Christmas Eve with my side of the family at the lake house. It was a wonderful day and night with Poppa & Gigi and all my sisters and their husbands/fiancees/boyfriends. Griff got some REALLY cool toys and Jasper got some SUPER cute clothes. We're so blessed with a loving, loud, generous and gracious family!

As if all that fun wasn't enough, we went back to the lake house to celebrate New Year's Eve with Aunt Toni, Uncle Doug and their boys Jackson and Colton. It's even more interesting when we get together with them these days since their kids are also close in age - gives me a glimpse at what we might be experiencing in about 15 years. I can only hope our boys turn out as great as theirs have!

Jasper in his New Year's duds

Griff's new best buddy Colton - taking a break from using the air mattress as a trampoline :)

Six Months Old

2012-01-03T08:31:00.011-05:00

My littlest man turned six months old on New Year's Day! He's growing up so fast - I just don't know where the time has gone. As his grandparents, aunts and uncles can tell you, Jasper is usually very quick to give you a big gummy smile these days. No teeth yet, but lots of drooling, so it may not be long. He's still a good sleeper, taking three naps a day, and I always know when he's tired because he'll start some serious sucking on his little fist. Mere pacifiers or thumbs are not enough for this guy, he needs an entire fist in his mouth to be happy at bedtime :) Lately, I think he's caught on to the fact that big brother is having lots of fun without him while he sleeps, so those naps have been getting shorter and shorter. Just when I had his schedule figured out!

I'm happy to report that J-Man is a WONDERFUL eater!! He's sampled several fruits, vegetables, and various kinds of cereal, and he hasn't met a food yet that he doesn't like. This is a far cry from my experience with Griffin, who protested lots of baby foods and can still be a picky eater at times. Jasper, on the other hand, only cries when the bowl of food is empty and I'm usually scrambling to get something else in his mouth because I'm not prepared for him to want to eat so much. I've been making most of his food myself, because it's pretty easy and somehow looks a lot tastier than the Gerber variety. But I'm no stranger to pre-made baby food, so we'll just see how long I can keep up with the growing boy's demand.

I've caught J rolling from back to tummy a few times the last several days and he's having more fun playing with all his toys now that he can sit up, reach around, and get a good hold on them. And now that he's rolling on to his tummy, he's ready to move! He seems to really like it when I press my hands against the backs of his feet, so that he can push off and get some mini-crawl action on the floor.

Jasper has also taken a new interest in our dog Dixie and gets the cutest look of surprise when she wanders close enough for him to feel her fluffy fur. He recently discovered how to bounce and he LOVES it! Whether he's jumping in his door jumpy thing, grooving in his exersaucer, or just bouncing in your lap, that boy loves to jiggle. His big brother was an avid bouncer too, if memory serves correct, so I'm guessing the two of them will have plenty in common as he gets bigger.

I've also learned that our little guy is pretty ticklish. He giggles when you tickle his ribs or his tummy, and sometimes when I'm dressing him, I'm surprised to hear him start laughing when I lift up his arms to pull off his sleeves. Guess I found a new tickle spot :) It's so fun to listen to him squeal and giggle.

Jasper, Daddy and I love you so much! You bring a new kind of joy to our little family, and we love watching you grow up. Big brother wants you to grow up a little faster, so he can really play with you, but we don't mind if you take your time. Happy Half-Birthday Bubba!

Merry Christmas! (Part 1)

2012-01-03T08:31:00.009-05:00

A belated but very merry Christmas to all! We had so much fun celebrating the birth of our Savior this year that I'm breaking up my Christmas posts to make sure I cover everything. Here's the first post - a recap of Christmas morning at our house with the boys.

Griff was all decked out in reindeer pajamas from Aunt Heather and Uncle Blake

And Jasper was super excited to see what Santa left under the tree for him

I was hoping Griff would love the play kitchen Santa brought him, and he DID! He has so much fun opening up all the cabinets, cooking his slice of pizza in the microwave, chatting on the phone, and brewing Mama a cup of coffee in the morning. Yay! Top Chef, here we come!

Daddy helping our big six-month-old try to stand up - just kidding! It will be a few more months before he gets to use the toy this way

Mama getting in on all the fun toy action

Griffin was pretty excited to see a new Mickey Mouse Clubhouse DVD too - he LOVES to do the "hot dog dance" along with all the characters at the end of each episode :)

Getting some cooking tips from Daddy

And my personal favorite - big brother showing little brother how to play with all his new stuff. Thankfully, Jasper's pretty laid back about "sharing" his toys - for now :)

I love waking up at home with our little family on Christmas morning. We usually have a late night on Christmas Eve at the lake house, and it's a bit hectic getting everyone to Longview in time for lunch on Christmas Day, but I wouldn't change a thing. We love seeing all our family on the holidays, and I love seeing my boys' sweet faces as they get to open up all of Santa's gifts on Christmas morning. What a great way to start the day!

Santa Visit

2011-12-21T09:35:00.007-05:00

Last week, the boys got to visit Santa when he made a stop at the Bass Pro Shop. They took a quick picture (so quick I'm not sure they are even looking at the camera!) and then had fun exploring all the Christmas activities with Poppa and Gigi. Race cars, trains, and even a reindeer carousel - so fun!

We had also planned to visit Santa at Northpark Mall with Aunt Heather, but that didn't really work out as planned. See, last year Heather and I showed up at the mall with Griff to see Santa without realizing how popular the jolly guy would be - you have to get a ticket and then come back for your "appointment" time to see him! So this year, we made a plan, determined not to be caught off guard again. We thought we'd get to the mall around 11:00am, get our ticket, eat lunch, let the boys nap and probably come back around 3-4 to see Santa. Boy were we wrong! Granted, I was running a little behind (as I usually am these days), but we got there by 11:30, and the earliest appointment we could get with St. Nick was for 7:00pm!! That's a little too late for Griff and Jasper (especially considering we would still be waiting in line for a while, then waiting to see proofs, and driving back to our house), but I guess there's always next year - plus they will have a fun little cousin to bring along by then!

"The Lord has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy!"

Psalm 126:3

5 Months Old

2011-12-02T17:45:00.006-05:00

Yesterday Jasper turned five months old. I just can't believe how quickly he's growing up! He's become quite the little talker these days, or rather a little squeaker :) He jabbers to his toys and anyone else who will listen, with the cutest squeals, coos, gurgles, and peeps. Sometimes, I almost think he's singing :)

He's sitting up pretty well and loves to grab on to people's noses, cheeks, eyes, hair....anything on your face that he can wrap his little fingers around! Jasper is still a wonderful sleeper and seems to be quite a good eater too. He's only tried rice cereal and oatmeal so far, but he gobbles both up like a champ.

He's rolling over all the time lately and likes playing with all the dangly toys around the house. He has a truly sweet smile and disposition...sometimes I really can't believe how blessed we are to have two such amazing boys to love.

Griffin was my assistant photographer for our little photo session....is it just me or does he look a little mischievous here?

Yes, I knew it - up to no good! Big Brother decided Jasper must be getting bored with all the picture taking, so he spiced things up by taking J for a "ride" in the glider. At least one of them seems to be having fun :)

Naturally, all that smiling must have made Jasper hungry, so Griff was kind enough to offer him a little extra from his bottle - so thoughtful!

Maybe it's all the Christmas music we've been listening to lately, but I find myself tearing up in the middle of the day (or even right now) when I think about all the gifts in our lives - I just can't get over how tremendously the Lord has blessed our little family. We have the unfailing love of our Savior that sustains us in all things, we have a solid, loving marriage and friendship, we have two heart-melting, healthy sons, a beautiful home, an incredibly supportive extended family, encouraging friends who love the Lord, and the list goes on and on. Does it get any better than this?

"Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you. So I will bless you as long as I live; I will lift up my hands and call on your name." Psalm 63:3-4

Giving Thanks!

2011-11-27T23:00:00.014-05:00

We had such a great time giving thanks for all the Lord's blessings in our lives this year. We spent Turkey Day at the lakehouse cooking, eating, chatting, watching football, and just enjoying ourselves. Ryan fried an AWESOME turkey, and I think the my mom, sisters and I made at least six different side dishes for eight people (side dishes are always my favorite part of the Thanksgiving feast). What a great day with the family - with Aunt Amy sending her love from Branson, MO.

Cuddling with Aunt Heather

Aunt Jen's beautiful Thankgiving centerpiece

Checking the mail with Poppa...a highlight of any trip to the lake house

Just chillin' on the couch, watching some football, preparing for a food-induced nap...not even 2 years old and already exhibiting typical male behavior on Thanksgiving!

Then we got to hang out with the Fitzhugh side of the family when they came in town for the Baylor v. Texas Tech game at Cowboys Stadium. All the "big kids" went to the game, while the boys and I stayed home and cheered our Bears on through the TV screen....to a major victory over the Red Raiders (sorry Uncle Stephen!).

Hanging out with Auntie B & Uncle Stephen's dog Raider - Griff loved him, but will only call him "Puppy" for some reason

In honor of the Thanksgiving feast everyone else got to enjoy,

Mr. Jasper got to try his first few bites of rice cereal...he seemed to like it

My sweet boys starting to play together...melts my heart!

This was such a wonderful holiday. The boys LOVED being with their family members and they were showered with love and attention. Griff has decided he's officially one of the guys now, and only wants to hang out with his granddads and uncles. But at least we still have little Jasper to flirt with the ladies, plus Baby Holman who will be here in May! Yay for a new cousin!

Sitting up and Rolling Over

2011-11-17T12:01:00.002-05:00

Oh the milestones are rolling in these days. Mr. Jasper has decided to sit up AND roll over this week - we're so proud :) I'm a big fan of the stage when babies can sit up on their own, since they seem so happy to be able to play and look around more. However, I had no idea that rolling over could wreak such havoc on a little one's sleeping schedule. Since JR is a tummy sleeper, he's woken himself up several times lately by rolling onto his back. Kind of funny to me, but not so enjoyable for him. Oh well, more motivation for him to learn to roll the other way soon.

4 Month Check-Up

2011-11-10T22:24:00.004-05:00

Jasper had his four month check-up today, and he's looking great! He weighed 15 pounds, 8 ounces (75%) and was 25.5 inches long (75%). He's growing like a champ and had fun with Dr. Mac, but was not happy about getting all his shots (who is, right?). Plus, the poor guy was very late for a nap, and he loves his naps! He started crying before the shots even started and stayed pretty cranky until bedtime. I think we were both glad to see the end of this day - and thankful we don't have to do that again for a few months!

Happy Birthday Ryan!

2011-11-08T10:02:00.001-05:00

Happy Birthday to an amazing hubby and daddy. We love you!!

5 Years of Wedded Bliss

2011-11-06T18:56:00.006-05:00

Last Friday, November 4th, marked my fifth wedding anniversary with Ryan. We've added two children to our family in those five years and learned quite a bit about loving each other and building a life together. Through job changes, financial challenges, everyday stresses, more extra pounds than either of us would like to admit, and redefining what it means to be a "family," the Lord has been hard at work teaching us how to appreciate each other and work together for His glory. I'm so looking forward to what the next year brings!

Here's a peek back at all our previous anniversary celebrations:

Homecoming

2011-11-06T18:34:00.007-05:00

This weekend we got to return to Waco to celebrate Homecoming at Baylor - an event Ryan and I look forward to every year. We had so much fun visiting with old friends, watching the parade, tailgating with family and watching our Bears beat the Missouri Tigers. Even though it was a little stressful running after a toddler who was determined to cover every square inch of campus with his little footprints, plus driving from event to event with a baby who HATES being in the car, all in all, I'd say we had a wonderful weekend.

We were a little worried about sharing a hotel room with both boys - we haven't mixed hotels and babies since Griff was about 6 months old and poor Ryan ended up driving him around the parking lot at 4am to get him to stop crying - but we were pleasantly surprised this time. Jasper may scream like a banshee in his carseat, but the little tyke didn't make a peep when he was in his pack 'n play, and Griff had lots of fun sharing Mama and Daddy's king size bed - even if he did end up sleeping at the foot of the bed, on top of the covers, just inches from rolling off the side :)

Can't wait till next year!

These guys love a parade!

Keeping warm with Mama

Hanging with Aunt Amy and Philip at the parade

Delta love :)

Fun with Gigi before kickoff

G with his "An Hevah"
The Parker/Fitzhugh/Holman/soon-to-be Booker family!

Griffin had a BLAST in our fellow tailgater's bounce house!

JR getting in some snuggle time with Auntie B

Four Months Old

2011-11-01T21:43:00.008-04:00

Our little guy is growing up fast! Jasper is four months old today and changing all the time. We've learned this month that he is much more ticklish than his older brother, and he laughs when you nuzzle his belly :) He loves bath time, trying hard to kick that rubber ducky who keeps popping up out of nowhere. J's still a great sleeper, taking 3 naps and sleeping 12 hours a night like a champ! He's not big on rolling over, but he's making up for that by sitting up on his own sometimes - such a big boy! He has great head and neck control, and I'm guessing he'll be crawling before we know it. He's also having fun with some of his toys now - the bouncer and mobile are favorites of the day.

On the list of things Jasper doesn't like so much....number one is definitely the car seat. We've tried mirrors, toys, hanging a picture of Mama in front of him, and finally a personal DVD player to try and soothe our four-month-old tyrant, but all to no avail. The little guy will cry and cry, unless someone is sitting back there with him (apparently Big Brother doesn't cut it). I think he's usually crying because he is ready for a nap in his crib, but when your baby wants to take a nap within an hour of waking up, you can't always guarantee that you'll be home for said nap. If we worked entirely on his schedule, we would never leave the house! The DVD player has helped with running short errands, but I'm crossing my fingers that our little man grows out of this phase soon :)

"Bubba" is starting to really enjoy watching his big brother too - when he's standing still that is :) And, just a side note, Griff's turning out to be a great big brother too. The other day, while I was putting laundry away, I asked Griffin to go play with his brother, who was chillin' on a blanket in the living room. I honestly had no expectations that Griff would even understand what I said, but he ran off and when I found him, he was trying (unsuccessfully) to pick Jasper up. I'm guessing that's how he sees Mama "play" with the baby. He kept saying, "sorry...sorry." Ha ha! At least he tried!

We adore both our boys and we're having a blast watching them grow up!

During a recent purge of summer clothes in Jasper's closet, I found this outfit I LOVED that Griff wore when he was Jasper's age. Below are pictures of the boys posing in their rockin' shuffleboard digs.....watch out red hat ladies...these two are dressed to impress :)

Fall at the Arboretum

2011-11-01T21:31:00.005-04:00

Last year, Gigi and I took Griff to see all the pumpkins on display at the Dallas Arboretum this time of year. We had so much fun that, of course, we had to return this year and let J in on the action. We spent most of our time running after the big boy, strolling with the little guy, and desperately trying to get some cute pictures - easier said than done :) We had a great time, though, and I think we'll have to make this a tradition.

Happy Halloween!

2011-11-01T21:28:00.003-04:00

Our little guys were still a little too young for trick-or-treating this year, but that didn't stop us from getting all dressed up to pass out candy to the neighborhood kids!

Costume Parade

2011-10-27T18:53:00.006-04:00

Griffin's preschool had their annual Costume Parade today, so I got to stay for a few minutes and watch all the kids walk around in their Halloween costumes. There were a few tears from some reluctant participants, and I'm guessing it's probably easier to herd cats than to get a group of 1, 2, and 3 year olds to walk in a straight line, but overall, it was quite an adorable production.

As you can see, Griff was less than enthusiastic about the whole thing. And I think he was mildly confused by the crowd of camera-wielding parents staring at him. Not even one smile for Mama!

I also got to stay and watch Griff's friend Grant show off his fireman costume - such a cutie!

Pumpkin Patch

2011-10-26T10:25:00.004-04:00

Last week, Ryan had some time off before starting his new job - so we took full advantage of our extra "Daddy time" and spent an afternoon at the local pumpkin patch. It was a little "challenging" to try to get an eighteen-month-old and a three-month-old to wear costumes, sit up straight, look at the camera, and maybe, just maybe smile on cue :) These are the best shots I could get. All I can say is God bless professional photographers - I don't know how you do it!

After our mini photo session, Griff shed the cow costume and had some fun driving an old truck, going down a giant slide and riding these adorable tiny tractors. Jasper seemed happy just watching his big brother this time, but I could tell he was already planning all the fun things he would be doing here next year!

Go Bears!

2011-10-11T16:37:00.004-04:00

We've been enjoying a great football season for our Baylor Bears this year! Plus, we're having even more fun at the tailgating spot we bought with Uncle Blake and Aunt Heather. Sic 'em Bears!

Birthdays Galore!

2011-10-02T18:54:00.008-04:00

This was a HUGE birthday weekend at our house! On Friday, Griff turned 18 months old, then on Saturday, Jasper turned 3 months old, Saturday night we had a birthday dinner at our house for Poppa and Gigi (who have September and October birthdays), and then we wrapped things up with a birthday lunch on Sunday for Z and Auntie B (who also had birthdays this weekend!) Whew! That's a lot of celebrating, so I have a lot of recapping to do :)

Griffin celebrated his 18 month birthday with his first big boy haircut. We went to this cute kids place in Southlake called Pigtails and Crewcuts, where he got to sit in a taxi chair, watch kids movies, smile at himself in the mirror, and pick out a prize from the treasure chest afterwards. Overall, he was a great client, and he is such a handsome little man with his new do!

What a cutie!

I have to say, this is my favorite age thus far with Mr. Griff. He's talking up a storm to anyone and everyone. I tried to write down all of the words he's saying, but the list is so long I can't keep track of them all! Some of my recent favorites are "See ya" "Awesome!", "Nunge" which means "orange" and "Unka Bake" which means "Uncle Blake". He can also tell you what noises a duck, cow, horse, dog, sheep, pig, bear, lion, monkey, and elephant make.

He loves saying hi to everyone he meets, playing outside, splashing in the bath, climbing on everything he can think of, making a fort out of our barstools, giving Bubba his bottle, being thrown in the air by Daddy, and eating popcorn, donut holes, and the newest favorite, chips and salsa - definitely Daddy's boy! We just love our Griff and can't wait to see what he does next :)

As I mentioned above, Jasper also turned 3 months old this weekend, and his personality is definitely developing. He's a fabulous sleeper, and started sleeping 10-11 hours a night at 10.5 weeks old!

He's definitely Mama's little lovey these days, saving most of his smiles and coos for me. Since Griff has always given his love to everyone he meets, I'm kind of enjoying this special Mama love from J. A girl could get used to this kind of adoration, but I have a feeling it won't last too long :)

He's rolled over a few times, but doesn't quite have the hang of it yet. And he seems to love having his face, cheeks and chin tickled. We've also had fun playing airplane by balancing Jasper on Mama's calves and zooming around - we even got a few tiny laughs that way!

Last but not least, a few pics from our Poppa & Gigi birthday dinner. The weather has been so great lately, that we got to eat out on our patio - love it!

Poppa and Gigi

The NEWLY ENGAGED Aunt Jen and Uncle Ben

Mama & Daddy

Aunt Heather and Uncle Blake

The family

What a fun weekend for the Fitzhughs! And we're just getting started....in November and December we also get to celebrate Ryan's birthday, my birthday, our 5th anniversary, Thanksgiving and Christmas! Hope my camera can handle all this excitement :)

Labor Day

2011-09-15T10:29:00.009-04:00

This Labor Day, we packed up the boys (and Dixie) and headed to the lakehouse for a day of relaxation and fun with the family. Here are a few pics from the weekend.

A little fun in the sun with Poppa and Gigi

Reading time and bath time are always favorites with my boys :)

Daddy and Mama may be Baylor Bears, but Poppa's blood will always be crimson and cream...guess he can't help rooting for a future Sooners fan :)

Hanging out with Uncle Ben...

...and Aunt Jen (thanks for the AWESOME Thomas the Train set!)

2 Months Old

2011-09-01T19:07:00.007-04:00

Jasper turned two months old today! Over the last week or so, he's settled down quite a bit, started smiling a lot more and "talking" to us. I'm so glad to be past the peak fussiness stage that it seems all babies go through, and I'm looking forward to seeing J show us more of his real personality over the next few months.

We had his check-up with Dr. Mac today, and Jasper is measuring almost exactly the same as his big brother at this age! He weighed 12 lbs, 5 oz (G was 12 lbs, 3 oz) and was 23.5 inches long (same as Griff). The shots were no fun at all, but Mama came prepared with a bottle to make everything better, and the tears were short lived. Other than the smiling and cooing, there aren't too many developmental milestones to report. Except the fact that the little guy has been sleeping a little better lately - going to bed at 10:00pm, waking up to eat around 1:30am, then sleeping till 6:30 or 7:00am. Praise the Lord for small blessings!

We came home and, while Jasper was napping, Griff and I spent some quality time playing outside - at least as much quality time as we could handle in this endless summer of record-breaking heat. Have I mentioned how much I despise Texas in the summer?? Today is the first day of September (whether the thermometer is willing to acknowledge that fact or not) and I'm clinging to the thought that fall is on its way!

First Day of Preschool

2011-08-30T16:18:00.002-04:00

Griffin officially started preschool today! It's a church program and he only goes one day a week (from 9:30am to 2:30pm), but, of course, we still had to get a "first day of school" picture!

I was a little worried that he would be upset when I left, but leave it to our social butterfly (or bumblebee, since butterflies are kind of girly) to walk right into his class with nary a glance back at me. Ha! Maybe he was really listening when I recited his life verse just before we went inside: "Be strong and courageous, Griffin. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you." Duet. 31:6

This kid really loves other people (big or small), so I think he will truly enjoy this new experience. Looking forward to seeing all the things he (and we) will learn this year!

Jasper's Newborn Pics & Hospital Visit

2011-08-22T10:28:00.007-04:00

I'm back! After an unexpected hiatus, due in part to a Macbook that went on the fritz, and in part to serious sleep deprivation, I'm finally sitting down to get in some long overdue blogging. I'll be filling in posts from earlier events in the next few days too.

Okay, let's get to the good stuff. First, I was thrilled with how Jasper's newborn photos turned out! Big thanks to Lindsey Murphy who took some beautiful shots of our newest addition. Little JR (we're trying out nicknames to see what fits the little guy, so don't be surprised if you see several different references to him in the next few posts) was 12 days old when we took these pics. So sweet!

He was a perfect model, sleeping through the entire session. Unfortunately we realized the next day that he might have been sleeping so much because he was getting sick :( The day after these were taken, JR woke up with a fever and was readmitted to the hospital with viral meningitis - no idea how he picked that up in less than 2 weeks of being in this world! He had a very high fever coupled with a severe headache, rapid breathing, and an elevated heart rate, so he was tested and monitored closely in the hospital for a few days. Poor thing! Since it was a virus, they basically just treated him with Tylenol and extra fluids and let it run its course, but our sweet, normally easy-going baby was not a happy camper while we were there.

Thank you to all the friends and family members who were praying, visiting, and checking in on us. We appreciate you so much! I'm just so thankful that we were already scheduled to visit the pediatrician the day Jasper's fever showed up (for his 2 week well baby visit). I knew a fever in newborns could be a big deal, but I also tend to be a wait it out, don't call the doctor unless you really need to kind of parent. I like to think I would have known to call the doctor this time, but our Lord wasn't leaving room for my inadequacies.

Isn't it amazing to see how He lays out the path of provision before we even know we need it? He has been so faithful to provide us with skilled doctors and well-timed appointments for both of our boys in their early weeks of life, when they've needed extra medical attention. Some of you might remember that Griff was also hospitalized when he was a few days old for significant weight loss and jaundice. That time we were scheduled a day early for a routine weight check when we found out he needed another stay at the hospital. Our loving Father knew that Griff would need to be seen and treated without waiting that extra day - He is so good!

We had a few more medical concerns for J, like possible heart and genetic issues that, praise the Lord, were cleared up by running some additional tests. I guess that's the way it goes with little ones, and thankfully, he seems to be the picture of health these days. Gaining weight like a champ and even starting to smile, coo and gurgle at us.

And at least we got some great newborn photos out of the whole ordeal....lemonade out of lemons right?

One Month Old

2011-08-02T19:29:00.005-04:00

It's hard to believe our little "Bubba" (Griff's sweet version of "brother") is one month old already. He spent the first two weeks of life pulling the wool over our eyes, and had us convinced that he was going to be the most relaxed, easy, content baby on the planet. But, no worries, the last two weeks he's been busy setting us straight :) Seriously, Jasper is a sweetheart, but he does not hesitate to lets us know when he is unhappy...which is pretty much any time he's not being held or working on that pacifier. Oh well, I guess there are worse things in the world than having to cuddle your bundle of joy all day long :)

And even though he's waking us up all hours of the night, he's great about going back to sleep after being fed. Plus, he's officially moved into his own room at night, so mom, dad and baby are ALL sleeping much better these days.

Pacifier = Happy Baby

No paci...still okay (for now)

Wait...where's my paci??

For real...who took my paci??

I'm not kidding people...bring back the paci NOW!!!!!

Not too much else to report at this point, since we're still in the eat, sleep, poop stage of life, but here are a few pics so everyone can see how much Jasper's grown (weighing 10 lbs now!) in only one month. They change so fast!

Jasper Ryan Fitzhugh

2011-07-19T16:12:00.005-04:00

Oh my! Being the mom of two boys is already taking its toll. I can't believe I'm just now sitting down to write about the arrival of our little peanut, Jasper.

Our newest addition arrived at 9:29 a.m. on Friday, July 1st, 2011. The little guy was 8 pounds, 2 ounces and 19 inches long (we think....more on that later). We had an easy, scheduled C-section this time and everything went smoothly.

If you ask me, Jasper looks alot like his older brother did at birth, but I can't wait to see how he develops over the next few months. He's already changing quite a bit. We're loving our two little guys, and Griff has been a sweet (if not all that interested) big brother. He's started to call his new brother "Bubba" and likes to gently pat him or play with his feet (I forgot how little and cute those feet could be!). Here's hoping they become fast friends before long. We're so thankful that the Lord has blessed us with two strong, healthy sons!

The picture below is Jasper right after delivery....the one following is Griffin (definitely brothers!)

Easter in Longview

2011-04-26T10:48:00.004-04:00

We had a great time celebrating Griffin's second Easter in Longview this year. His first Easter was just a few days after he was born, so this was his first real experience with all the fun this holiday has to offer.

We started things off by attending Abby and Z's church, where Griff was a very attentive listener (at least during all the beautiful music). He was a little too chatty for the sermon, so he spent some quality time with Daddy in the lobby during the rest of the service....and I hear he made lots of new friends out there too :)

Then we had an excellent meal prepared by the grandparents, including an awesome Easter Bunny cake made by Abby, and wrapped things up by enjoying a beautiful day just relaxing in their backyard. Griff had so much fun exploring all the goodies in his Easter basket and running around outside. These days, "go" and "outside" are his FAVORITE words. I think he may have had a little too much fun though, because he was waking up hours earlier than normal, refusing to nap in the car, and wanting to stay up way past his bedtime!

When we got back in town, Griff got to spend some fun time at the lake house with Poppa and Gigi, and was spoiled again with treats, Easter toys/books, and lovin' from his grandparents. What a blessed little boy!

Lots of great family time, a lovely church service, delicious food, and beautiful spring weather. What a fabulous way to celebrate the resurrection of our Lord and Savior!

Twelve Month Check-Up

2011-04-06T18:52:00.003-04:00

Griffin had his 12 month check-up with Dr. McElroy on Monday and did great. Our pediatrician is always saying how surprised he is that Griff doesn't mind being examined or cry around strangers. That's our social little man! He just LOVES people, and I'm pretty sure he would happily wander off with anyone who smiled at him.

He's weighing 21 lbs. now (25%) and is still in the 60% in height and brain size. Doc says everything looks good and we're always happy for a clean bill of health. Of course, Griff was less than pleased about the latest round of vaccinations, but after a few very sad tears (and a handful of fruit loops), he was feeling much better.

It's hard to believe the next time we'll be seeing Dr. Mac will be for little brother Jasper's first visits!

Griff's Birthday Party

2011-04-06T18:51:00.005-04:00

Blair & Stephen's Wedding

2011-04-06T10:59:00.004-04:00

Last weekend we celebrated the marriage of Ryan's sister, Auntie B, and Uncle Stephen! What a fabulous weekend, full of great family time, sweet moments, and of course, a beautiful bride.

Ryan and I were both in the wedding party, so we were a little concerned about wrangling the little guy and performing all our wedding duties :) Thankfully, my parents live close enough that they were able to take care of Griffin when we weren't available. He got to wear the cutest baby tuxedo to the wedding, and was a big hit with all the guests. It was just a beautiful day and we're excited to welcome another uncle into the family!

The stunning bride (who actually had to buy a new dress ONE WEEK before the wedding when the cleaners ruined her first one!)

Saying a quick hello to Abby and Auntie B before the wedding

Such a handsome guy!

My sisters came to the wedding, and we had a blast doing our "preggo" dance once the sun went down :) Thanks for humoring me girls.

Aunt Jen caught the bouquet....watch out Uncle Ben!

Aunt Heather and Uncle Blake reminding us what it feels like to be married without kids :)

Happy 1st Birthday Griffin!

2011-03-31T19:24:00.008-04:00

One year ago today, we welcomed Griffin Thomas Fitzhugh into our family! Ryan and I have been so blessed to be this little guy's parents, and I find myself thanking the Lord daily (well, maybe not EVERY day) for the privilege of being his mother. He's a joy to be around and has become such a fun playmate lately.

Daddy took the day off of work and we spent the entire day celebrating our little man. He's such a big boy, that he decided to sleep in (till 8:30!) and then we all went out for donuts at our favorite little donut shop. Griff tried his first chocolate donut holes (and LOVED them), polishing them off with real milk (no more formula!!!). After his morning nap, we headed to the Fort Worth Zoo to check out all the animals. I can't remember the last time I went to the zoo, but the weather was beautiful and Griff really seemed to enjoy being outside, hanging out with Mom and Dad, and seeing all the new animals. We waved at the elephants and giraffes and tried to make monkey sounds :) After we got home, Daddy took a nap while Mama and Griff took a stroll to the local park. We finished things off with a bath, a little naked baby time, and mac 'n cheese for dinner (with clothes on). Overall - a great day!

The last month has been so much fun as Griffin keeps developing at an amazing pace. His appetite has really taken off and he seems to like anything he puts in his mouth (which is usually much more than he can swallow). He has 7 teeth now (4 on top and 3 on bottom), so I think that's helping him eat all kinds of new things. He's not using bottles anymore, but we are cheating a bit by using bottle nipples in the sippy cups...it's the only way I can get him to use them!

He's starting to say a few words that we kind of recognize. For instance, he can say:

"light"

"ageh" means "again"

"ahhhhh da" means "all done"

"eck" means "milk"

and the latest is "ukka" which means something like "hungry"

My mom also swears he says "dog" and Aunt Heather is sure she's heard "Heather"....not too sure about those, but you never know :) I LOVE that he is starting to really communicate now!

Lately, Griff is into shutting all kinds of doors, and often "helps" me load the dishwasher by shutting the door when its full. More than once, he has shut himself in a room or closet and then complains that he can't get out :) He also likes to play peek-a-boo by holding a blanket over his head and waiting for you to say "Where's Griffin?" Last, but not least, he's walking full time now!!! I mentioned last month that he was trying it out, but Ryan declared it official when Griff was able to stand up and walk off without any support. He really enjoys practicing this new skill, but he was a "loud" crawler, so I'm still surprised to turn around and see him standing right behind me sometimes.

Last weekend we had an awesome party to celebrate Griffin's big day, so be on the lookout for a new blog post about those festivities. For now, I'm signing off to enjoy a few more minutes with the birthday boy before he goes to bed. Griffin, we love you more than words can say!!

Bun #2 Has a Name!

2011-03-29T17:35:00.003-04:00

That's right....we've decided on a name for our newest family member! Ryan and I have started a little tradition of going to Macaroni Grill, where they have those paper tablecloths, and using the crayons to try out different names, monograms, nicknames, etc. After much deliberation and coloring fun, we finally settled on a name for Bun #2.

So here's the big reveal.....we are planning to name him Jasper Ryan. "Jasper" is a great name we thought was kind of different, but hopefully not too different :) And, of course, "Ryan" is after his sweet daddy, a great role model and perfect namesake if there ever was one.

The meaning of names has always been fascinating to me, so I like to to look into that when we're picking out names for our kids. Jasper means "treasure keeper" and is also the name of a semi-precious stone (sometimes a reddish color, sometimes a blue-brown color). The stone reference is actually used in Revelation to describe how God appears on His throne...which I thought was pretty amazing!

Ryan loves the idea of calling him "JR" and my mom likes the nickname "Jazz" or "Jas"...still deciding on spelling for that one :)

Whatever we ultimately call him, we know that this little one will be a blessing to our family. He is already our precious treasure!

Belly Pic - 25 Weeks

Bun #2

2011-03-16T22:05:00.004-04:00

After spending the last few days putting a baby book together for Griffin (just in time for his first birthday, which is right around the corner!), I'm realizing that Baby Fitz #2 may already be missing out on all the prenatal photo ops that Griff was given.

To even things out a bit, here are a few of the latest ultrasound pics of our little peanut (taken at 20 weeks). He's very active these days, kicking and rolling around all the time. We can't wait to meet him! The first two are 3D and the last one is a 2D profile shot.

This is his sweet little face....I'm already trying to see if he looks like his big brother, but it's hard to say.

This little guy seems a bit camera shy...he kept crossing his arms over his face :)

Profile...again with the arms crossed over his head.

Spring is in the Air!

2011-03-03T15:12:00.004-05:00

Last month we got to enjoy some beautiful early spring weather (one of the great things about living in Texas is that winter doesn't last too long). It's been wonderful to get out of the house, and Griffin just loves to be outdoors. One weekend, we got to spend a lovely afternoon at the Dallas Arboretum with Ryan's family. Griff was not too sure about walking on the grass in bare feet (how can this be my child???), but he loved the fish pond, the waterfalls, and all the colorful flowers. We have an annual pass, so I'm hoping we get to do it again soon!

Eleven Months Old

2011-03-03T12:31:00.006-05:00

Well, I don't know about anyone else, but for us February just flew by. Since it was a short month anyway, I really can't believe I'm already posting that Griffin is eleven months old! We're now in full birthday party planning mode, and I just don't know where the time went!

Our little baby isn't such a baby any more....it's been wonderful to see him develop over the past months, but a little sad to see him growing up so fast already. The biggest news is that he's learning to walk! He takes a few steps at a time and is still pretty wobbly, but I'm pretty sure he'll be off an running by the time his first birthday rolls around.

Griffin is still quite the jabber jay - he's always "talking" to himself, his toys, us, his grandparents, the dog....pretty much anyone who will listen. No "real" words yet, but it won't be long. He's down to 3 bottles a day, and (life-changing for us) has been holding his own bottle for several weeks. I never realized how much time I spent just holding him while he took a bottle, and I think he's really liking the independence of doing it himself.

Griff is really starting to like table foods now - always angling for a bite of whatever the big people are eating. Any kind of bread is a hit, plus chicken tenders, some pasta, a few diced veggies, and the new favorites are goldfish crackers and Nilla wafers.

We haven't scheduled his first haircut yet, and he's developed these ADORABLE little curls at the nape of his neck. I just don't know how I'm going to be able to cut those off! He still LOVES to dance when he hears a good tune and is the friendliest little guy you'll ever meet. He reaches out for everyone he sees and likes to try to get passersby to smile back at him in the grocery store.

We just love this little man and are so excited to be adding another sweet boy to the family in a few months!

The out-takes:

Baby Dedication

2011-03-03T12:30:00.006-05:00

On February 20th we got to celebrate a wonderful milestone in Griffin's life - his Baby Dedication at our church! Which basically means that Ryan and I publicly acknowledged our commitment to raise Griffin in a Christian home, to teach him about God's love and His plan of salvation, and hopefully, to introduce him to a lifelong relationship with Jesus.

We were blessed by the presence of both our families, who will - no doubt - play important roles in the spiritual lives of our children.

The Lord has been so gracious to bless us with a beautiful, healthy, delightful child (with another one on the way), and we hope we can be faithful examples of His love and redemption in their lives.

Ten Months Old

2011-02-14T16:38:00.004-05:00

I'm a little late with this post, but Griffin turned ten months old on January 31st! He's getting so mobile and so inquisitive these days! He spends a lot of time crawling and cruising around. He LOVES to crawl through tunnels, clap his hands, and play pat-a-cake (even "rolling" his hands at the right part during the song). He's eating lots of finger foods....favorites at the moment are chicken nuggets and cheerios. We've also noticed how much Griff loves to touch and feel things. His little fingers are always trying to figure out how to open something, what it feels like, whether it makes fun noises when you shake it, can you pinch it, tear it, crumple it...he really enjoys exploring his world through touch.

And this guy just loves to be with people, especially other babies and kids. We have so much fun at the play areas in the local malls (all we can really do with the cold weather!) because he can just watch all the bigger kids play. I'm thinking he'll love having a little brother as a playmate soon :) He's such a doll, and we're really enjoying this time in his development!

Here are the "out takes" from our 10 month photo shoot...always my favorite :)

Happy Valentine's Day

2011-02-14T15:55:00.004-05:00

I'm getting to spend this day of love with my sweet mini valentine. We went to the park to enjoy the beautiful weather we're having this week. And yes, he IS #1 with the Ladies :)

We also got to spend some time celebrating Auntie B at her bridal shower in Longview last weekend. Sadly, no pics of Griff with the bride-elect, but here are a few from the weekend.

Still Queen of the Castle!

2011-02-13T22:00:00.003-05:00

We found out last week that Baby Fitz #2 is another BOY!!!! Which means this mama is still the queen of her castle :) We're thrilled that Griffin will have a little brother to pal around with (especially since they'll be so close in age), and we're already praying that they have a David and Jonathan relationship. I loved growing up with a built-in best friend in my sister Heather, but I think Ryan's most excited about the lawn care tasks he can pass on to his boys in a few years.

So far, everything looks good as far as development is concerned....this little guy is on pace to weigh as much or more than his older brother (who came in at 9.1 pounds!).

Now we're on to the fun task of coming up with another sweet boy name! We'll keep you posted.

Snow Day!

2011-02-06T15:52:00.004-05:00

When I was a kid, I love love LOVED snow days. Unexpected time off from school, an excuse to play with my sisters all day, and a warm cup of hot chocolate to top things off. Does it get any better than that?? Well, this week Griffin got to experience his first real snow day (lots of ice Monday through Thursday, but finally several inches of powdery snow on Friday). Seriously, the most snow I've ever seen in Texas....even Daddy got to stay home to play with us.

So, we bundled up and headed outside once it warmed up a little. Ryan showed Griff how to make a snow angel and even tried to build a snowman, but the snow just wasn't sticking together enough for that. Griff wasn't too impressed, although he seemed to enjoy tasting a bit of the fluffy cold stuff :) Even Dixie, who's a bit of a priss when it comes to inclement weather, had a good time.

Hey....what's all that white stuff out there?

Seriously Mom, have you seen this?

Attempt at a snowman...didn't turn out so great :)

P.S. Griffin is wearing Ryan's old Baylor stocking cap...so cute!

What we've been up to...

2011-01-28T21:00:00.004-05:00

January has been a little slow around our house. I really enjoy the colder weather, but I've been challenged to find fun ways to occupy our busy little guy. Here's a small glimpse into our winter days.

And a little peek at our bun in the oven (from a few weeks ago).....already a cutie :)

Nine Month Check-Up

2011-01-11T15:55:00.002-05:00

Griff's nine month check-up went so well. He was down a little percentage-wise in the weight category, coming in at 19 lbs. 13 oz (45%), but made up for it by moving up to 29.25 inches in height (85%), and holding steady at 18 cm in head circumference (70%). Ryan sweetly offered to start adding protein shakes to his bottles....I'm guessing that would get Griff's weight up pretty fast!

He was a perfect patient once again. Even the pediatrician remarked on how sociable he was, noting that most of the babies that come to see him at this age are terrified. What a welcome change to have a happy, smiling baby reaching his arms out to the good doctor.

It's hard to believe our next appointment will be after Griff's first birthday! How fast a year can go by when you're busy loving on and being loved by such a sweet little guy!

Big Brother!

2011-01-03T23:04:00.004-05:00

That's right....we can hardly believe it ourselves, but Griff is going to be a BIG BROTHER in just a few months! We are thrilled (and a little terrified) to be awaiting the arrival of our second child this summer....due July 14th, 2011.

It's going to be a little crazy around our house for a while, but at the rate Griff is growing up, I think we will really appreciate another baby in the mix. Can't wait to find out if we will have a little brother or a little sister for our little man :)

So far, this pregnancy has been very different from the first one. I've been nauseous, but not nearly as much as I was with Griff. With him, we actually designated one toilet in the house for puking and one for everything else (TMI, I know). Of course, that may be because my new doctor immediately prescribed Zofran for me...a girl's best friend when it comes to morning sickness. I've also been much more tired that I was the first time around....again, that maybe due to circumstances more than anything, specifically, chasing after a crawling youngster all day! The other big difference this time is that I've been craving all kinds of fried food (onion rings - yum!). With Griff, I couldn't stand the smell or even the thought of burgers, fries, chicken, pretty much anything that was greasy or fatty. Good thing I was able to lose the baby weight pretty fast with Griffin, because with these cravings, things aren't looking good for my girlish figure :)

Overall, I'd say I really enjoy being pregnant, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't super excited that the first trimester is officially over. Bring on the second trimester happy times!

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-31T16:55:00.006-05:00

The Fitzhughs had a great time celebrating our Saviour's birth this year! Having a little one in the house sure changes things....and makes them so much more fun and meaningful. We kicked things off at the Parker lake house for Christmas Eve, spent Christmas morning at our house, and then were off to Longview for the rest of Christmas day. Here are a few pics to sum up our holiday. Griff had the most fun with all the tissue paper - go figure!

Nine Months Old

2010-12-31T13:14:00.005-05:00

Happy New Year's Eve and Happy 9 Month B-Day to Griffin! Our year ends with a look at all the amazing things our little guy has accomplished this month.

When we left off last time, Griff was just starting to crawl, but within a few days, he was off and running. Crawling everywhere and faster that I could have imagined. If I left the room for even a second, I often had to go looking for him when I came back. The sweetest part was when he started following me from room to room. So cute! Of course, with little boys, mastering one skill usually means they're over it and ready to move on to the next thing. For us, that meant pulling up all the time, and even trying to stand alone sometimes. He even "helped" me load the dishwasher this morning by standing up next to it and grabbing spoons I had already loaded.

Griff is quite the daredevil these days. Laughing when Ryan throws him up in the air and playing his new favorite game...falling down on the couch. He loves to stand up on the couch and fall backwards and land on the soft cushions. He's also a big fan on banging on every surface he comes in contact with, including the light-up drum that Santa brought this year. Despite the bounty that St. Nick left at our house, favorite toys right now seem to include cardboard boxes, plastic, and tissue paper. Maybe next year we'll just wrap up all the trash and leftover wrapping paper for him :)

We're eating a little more finger foods these days, but have no love for the sippy cup yet. I've tried several different brands, shapes and spouts, but nothing seems to please the little prince yet. Isn't the definition of insanity doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result?? Oh well....we'll keep trying. I don't think he'll be headed to kindergarten with a bottle, so I'm not too worried. Griffin also has FOUR teeth (two on top, two on bottom), which Ryan is take as a sign to bring on the baby back ribs!

He's still taking a short nap in the morning, a longer one in the afternoon and sleeping 12 hours at night. It's such a gift to have a good sleeper. And lately, when he wakes up he'll just amuse himself for a while with a few toys/books we keep in the crib. We love to listen to him jabber with all his toys first thing in the morning.

We head to the pediatrician next week for our check-up. Can't wait to see how much Griff has grown these last months. We love you son!

Santa!

2010-12-17T08:39:00.002-05:00

8 Months Old

2010-12-01T08:53:00.007-05:00

Yesterday (or maybe technically today, since there's no 31st of November) Griffin turned 8 months old. And oh boy, has it been a fun month! Just in the last few weeks, he's started clapping, giving a version of high-fives, saying "Dada" all the time, trying hard to pull up on the furniture (or Mama's leg, Dixie's stairs, his crib, whatever's available), rolling from back to belly, sitting up from a hands-and-knees position, and....drumroll please....crawling! So much fun :) The crawling is mostly backwards right now, but he's definitely mobile.

Griff's also eating more finger foods and expressing his opinion more and more (like whining when I take a favorite toy or bottle away). I'm loving all these changes and can't wait to see what the next month holds. It's like he's becoming a real person now.

We also suffered through our first baby cold. Yuck! It was mostly just a runny nose, sneezing, extra sleepy/grumpy kind of cold, but Griff made it through and we're both glad it's over. I love the colder months, but I'm not really looking forward to all the little germs and bugs they seem to bring with them.

Last but not least, we had a wonderful first Thanksgiving with our little guy. We spent Turkey Day with Abby and Z in Longview, and Griff got to swing outside and enjoy his first taste of pumpkin pie :) Plus, we were thrilled that he finally decided to get a good night's sleep, since our other visits to L-Town have been marked by 4am-5am wake-up calls.

Then we spent a few days with GiGi and Poppa (and all the aunts and uncles that come with them) at the lake house. Ryan fried his first turkey for us and it was delicious! And Griff relished all the attention he got from his adoring fans...something tells me Christmas is going to be quite a show!

Happy Birthday Ryan!

2010-11-08T18:14:00.004-05:00

Today is Ryan's 31st birthday! Griffin was so excited that he woke up extra early (6am!) to wish Daddy a happy birthday. Personally, I think birthdays that fall on Mondays are the worst, but we're going to try hard to make it special for Daddy anyway :) Happy Birthday Honey! Looking forward to sharing many more with you.

Making a birthday card for Daddy

These two do everything together...

Happy Fourth Anniversary to Us!

2010-11-04T15:16:00.005-04:00

Four years ago today, Ryan and I walked down the aisle and began our life together as husband and wife. I can honestly say, I've never looked back. My life is richer, sweeter and much, much funnier because Ryan is a part of it. He's my best friend, and this year I've enjoyed the added pleasure of watching him become a caring, thoughtful father to our son. I can't imagine life without him. Love you honey!

Seven Months Old

2010-11-04T14:41:00.006-04:00

Griffin turned seven months old on October 31st, so we got to celebrate his monthly birthday and Halloween in one day! No trick-or-treating this year for the little guy, but we had fun greeting the cute kids that came to the door.

Grif's growing fast these days, babbling more and more, kind of scooting backwards instead of crawling, standing up while holding on to a chair or table, and learning to eat new foods. We recently gave him a cracker to munch on and he LOVED it...licking his fingers at the end :) I was personally relieved to see his reaction, since so far he's rejected any kind of lumpy baby food. If there's a lump in there, he's spitting it out. Maybe it makes a difference if he's feeding himself, like with the cracker? Not sure, but I'll take what I can get.

I also just got back from a fantastic mother-daughter trip to Scottsdale, Arizona with my mom and sisters (baby free!). We all had such a great time relaxing by the pool (yes, I know, poolside....in October!), enjoying yummy meals and, of course, cheering on the Texas Rangers in the World Series and our Baylor Bears, who celebrated their first victory over the Texas Longhorns in ages. I think we'll have to make this an annual tradition! (P.S. Heather was our designated photographer, so I don't have too many pics to post...maybe more to come). Ryan did a great job staying home with G-man all weekend, with some much appreciated help from Abby and Zayde. They walked to the park, rode the swings, and carved Grif's first pumpkin!

Homecoming!

2010-10-27T09:00:00.004-04:00

We had a great time (aka crazy busy, stressful, but awesome time) at Baylor Homecoming this year. Our first year with Griff was a little different...so much fun to introduce him to our traditions, but also a little hectic toting a 6 month old to all the activities. We had a blast catching up with old friends, family, and of course cheering on the Bears to their 6th win of the season. Time to go bowling!

The random cold front/rain storm meant Griffin ended up in his Halloween costume for a bit...at least it was still green and gold :)

Happy Birthday Gigi!

2010-10-19T08:47:00.006-04:00

Yesterday was my mom's birthday and we had a great time celebrating with her. We kicked things off on Sunday with a family dinner party hosted by my sister. Heather made a delicious meal, topped off with banana's foster for dessert. I tried to take a picture of this flaming treat, but I don't think you can really see the flames in the photo. We had a great time and a lot of fun telling Gigi about the surprise girls trip we're taking her on. We leave for Scottsdale, Arizona in a few weeks for a long weekend of relaxing, sunbathing, fine dining, and good company. I can't wait!

And yesterday Griff & I continued the celebration with a trip to the Dallas Arboretum. This is a beautiful time of year to visit the Arboretum...it's filled with hundreds of pumpkins, flowering gardens, and shaded picnic areas. We took some adorable pictures of Griffin in his new golfer's cap. He's was just too cute for words!

We love you Gigi! Thanks for spending the day with us....we're looking forward to lots more birthday celebrations with you :)

6 Months Old

2010-10-12T13:50:00.005-04:00

I know I say this every month, but I just can't believe how fast time is flying by. Our little guy has been six months old for two weeks now, and I for one, don't know where the time has gone. He was great at his check-up with Dr. McElroy, weighing in at 17 lbs., 8 oz. (60%) and measuring 27 inches (75%).

Griffin is getting more and more fun all the time. He's sitting up so well these days, which means we get to break out all kinds of new toys to play with. His favorite right now is a little monkey that rolls on top of a ball, giggling and playing music. G thinks it's hilarious every time :)

Our other big developmental milestone this month was the arrival of two teeth! They're so cute, and Griff didn't seem to mind the teething process too much. He was congested and tired for a few days before they came in, but was soon back to himself.

Still taking 3 naps a day, and sleeping well all night. His favorite activities include bouncing (non-stop), swinging in our new tree swing, upside down crawling (scooching around the room on his back), and trying to catch Dixie when she wanders too close. Ryan and I are truly blessed with such a happy baby...smiling all the time, laughing when you lay your head on his chest, glad to meet new people, and enjoying all this great fall weather.

Bouncin'

Swingin'

Adorable Halloween jammies from Abby

A day at the park with Daddy

I'm also including a few pictures from our recent visit to the local pumpkin patch. We had a great time with a few other Baylor Mama Bears and their little guys.

Ruthie (with Jack), Mary Kathryn (with Will), me (with Griff)

We had the boys in their Halloween costumes - Will's a lobster and G's a dragon

Super Post

2010-10-06T10:35:00.007-04:00

Whew! September was super busy at the Fitzhugh household, so I apologize for the lack of updates. Since I fell so far behind, this is going to be a quick rundown of everything we've been up to the last few weeks.

First, Griff enjoyed his FIRST Baylor football game with Daddy. My boys headed to Waco on their own, where they met up with Abby, Zayde, Auntie B and future-Uncle Stephen. Of course, Aunt Heather and Uncle Blake were also there, so G got some quality cuddle time with them too. Since then we've all been to one more home game, and decided that Griffin must be our little good luck charm. Every game he's attended has been a win for the Bears...good thing we have season tickets!

We've also celebrated the birthdays of both Griffin's grandfathers and one of his aunts.....Happy Belated Birthday to Poppa, Zayde and Auntie B!!

Griffin had a chance to meet one of his great-grandfathers, PaPa, who came in town for the OU-Texas game last weekend. I don't really have any OU gear for G, so I dressed him in the only crimson-colored outfit I had....looks more like a farmer than a Sooner, but oh well.

Last but not least, Griffin, Mama, and Gigi hopped on a plane bound for sunny Florida for a wonderful visit with my former college roommate Paige and her family. Paige's parents were amazing hosts, treating us to delicious home-cooked meals and sweet fellowship. Paige is such a dear friend, and I cherish the time we're able to spend together. I hate that she lives so far away, but it makes our visits that much more special.

I think Griffin's favorite part was watching Miss Finley (Paige's little girl) talk and run and twirl and just be the adorable, sweet, loving little girl she is. She was even willing to share all her toys with the Little Man. Too cute! Gigi was a HUGE help to me...even though Griff was great on the plane, it takes a lot of energy to entertain him (read let him jump constantly on your lap) in such a confined space, and I couldn't have done it without her. I think it also helped that we flew on Southwest, which made for a longer trip (stopping in San Antonio), but the flight attendants were helpful and since everyone gets to pick their own seat, we ended up with an empty seat next to us most of the time. Weird huh? I can't imagine why anyone wouldn't voluntarily sit next to a mom traveling with her six-month-old baby :)

5 Months Old

2010-09-02T09:59:00.008-04:00

I'm a little late with this post, but as I always say....better late than never. On Tuesday Griffin turned 5 months old - and he shared his special day with his Abby, whose birthday is also August 31st - Happy Belated Birthday Abby!

Hmmm....what does this taste like?

Yummmmm....

I really can't believe how fast the Little Man is growing...and how much he's changed this past month. He's starting to sit up now and loves playing with all kinds of toys. He's trying all kinds of new foods, with varying amounts of success...so far, we've experimented with apples, bananas, avocado, carrots, green beans, sweet potatoes, peas and yellow squash. The favorites right now are apples and sweet potatoes.

Griffin's laughing alot now, still sleeping like a champ, grabbing anything he can get his hands on (earrings, hair, noses, lips), and taking a big interest in our dog Dixie (she hasn't returned his sentiments yet). He loves to play airplane, kicking his rubber duckies in the bathtub, growling, and blowing raspberries. And we've nicknamed him "The Wingman" because of the way he throws his arms back behind him like wings all the time.

And I have to brag on him a little bit...the church nursery workers have already been telling us that he's one of their favorites. I'm sure we're the only parents hearing that, right? :) It's such a privilege to be a parent and witness his growth and development. God's handiwork is truly miraculous!

Visit with Aunt Amy and Philip....Griff looks sad because Aunt Amy is going all the way to Virginia for law school :(

We've had some fun visits with all the grandparents the past few weeks - including a trip to Poppa and Gigi's house for a dip in the pool, and we're looking forward to more family fun with the beginning of football season.

We also got to take some fun pictures at a local studio - G was a fantastic model...all smiles and patience :)

It's Been a While

2010-08-19T09:50:00.003-04:00

So I've been a bad blogger lately, but honestly, it's not my fault. We just haven't had that much going on this month. I think it's the extreme heat we're experiencing in Texas.....how many straight days over 100 degrees can one girl handle?? Blah...I'm ready for fall!

So this month we've been keeping cool by staying indoors...but that doesn't make for very exciting blog posts. So I'll just share some of the everyday humdrum things that have been going on in our lives, peppered with a few exciting celebrations.

First, we've decided to refinance our house. It's hard to resist the uber-low interest rates floating around out there, plus with my job switch from attorney to stay at home mom, our cash flow situation isn't quite what it used to be. And really, who couldn't use a few hundred extra dollars a month? So, Ryan and I were frantically taming the jungle that was threatening to take over the yard (who has time for yard work with a baby in the house??) so that the appraiser would not run screaming for the hills. Hopefully, we'll get everything finalized before too long. Bring on those lower house payments!

Second....Griff had his 4 month check-up and is doing great. He was 15 lbs 2 oz (60%) and 25 inches (60%). He's also started eating solids this month (I know....try to contain your excitement). So far, we've mastered baby oatmeal, and we're moving on to veggies. After 3 days of carrots (including one sneezing incident that sent me running for a shower), he's not really a fan, but we'll give it a few more tries and then move to something else. I'm trying the whole make-your-own-baby-food thing and it seems pretty easy so far (not to mention less expensive than buying it at the store). We'll see if I can keep it up.

And finally....big praise to the Lord...Ryan celebrated 3 years of being cancer free this month! He's still going in for regular check-ups, but everything is perfectly normal. Always good news in our house. It's hard to believe that it's already been 3 years since that frightening experience. So many have prayed for healing and continued good health....we're constantly reminded of the Lord's faithfulness and love.

So there's your peek into our lives this month. Like I said, not too exciting, but I feel better now that I've added a post to the August column...it was looking very lonely over there :)

Four Months Old

2010-07-31T19:31:00.005-04:00

Griffin is four months old today! He just gets cuter all the time...and more vocal about what he likes and doesn't like (hence the growling mentioned earlier). He's also started reaching out for things lately. In fact, we had a really sweet mother/son moment last night. I'm not sure what it is, but the last few nights Little Man has not wanted to go to bed easily. Normally, he just goes right to sleep, but the past three nights he's screamed and cried for at least 30 minutes when we put him to bed. Last night I'd had enough and went into his room to settle him down. While I was rocking him and trying to soothe him to sleep, he looked at me and reached up to touch my face....just melted my heart :) He got the sweetest little smile on his face as he touched my nose, cheek and lips. That little gesture made a difficult night so much better for both of us. After that, he was ready to sleep without further protest.

At four months, Griffin is rolling over quite a bit more, loves playing in his bouncer seat, and seems to spend more time just looking around and observing. He's discovered our dog Dixie and enjoys watching her walk around and play. He's started laughing a little and might be starting to teeth too. He gnaws on his thumb quite a bit and tries to put blankets and toys in his mouth all the time. No teeth peeking through yet, but I have a feeling they might be right around the corner. All in all, he's a happy boy and Ryan and I are really enjoying him these days.

Here are a few pictures from our recent visit at Poppa and Gigi's house. Aunt Amy will be leaving soon to start law school in Virginia, so we got together with the rest of the family for a bon voyage dinner. Unfortunately, Amy was sick, so she didn't really get to play with Griffin and I didn't get any pictures of them together that night. But Little Man had a good time showing off his new growling trick for the whole family. It was a fun night and I have a feeling we might be planning a road trip to Virginia before too long.

Waitress.....bring me another mai tai!!

Are you my hula dancer?

First Trip to Longview

2010-07-26T10:34:00.005-04:00

This weekend we took a little trip to visit Ryan's parents in Longview. It's only 2.5 hours from Dallas, and we departed just before prime nap time, which should have meant an easy drive, but the Little Man was anything but happy on the ride out there. Napping was apparently not on his itinerary. We stopped for a diaper change, I sat in the back with him, played with the slightly annoying carseat toy, played lots of peek-a-boo, and he finally fell asleep about 20 minutes before we arrived. I finally figured out that he wanted to look at me, but not have me look at him. If he could just stare at me without me staring back, he could drift off to sleep and I guess have pleasant dreams about the beauty of Momma's chin?? After all that, I was glad to have a relaxing weekend with Griffin's Abby and Zayde.

We got to eat food from some of our favorite Longview spots (Pizza King and Bodacious BBQ), Griffin showed off his new growling skill (adorable and slightly disturbing at the same time...see video below), and he got to play in the smallest, cutest baby pool I've ever seen. Plus Ryan and I got to have a date night while the grandparents babysat. We had a great visit and happily, the ride home was much easier. Griff must have been worn out from all the fun because he slept the entire way back.

Whew! Time for a break from all that fun :)

The amazing Growling Baby...

The Sweetest Sound

2010-07-20T12:30:00.002-04:00

So the Little Man has been making all kinds of new sounds lately....but my favorite by far was his first laugh. Until today, he'd been giving us big, big smiles and accidental laughs (probably more like hiccups that I wanted to think were little laughs), but this morning we were playing in his nursery and I was rewarded with real laughing! The sweetest sound a mom can hear :)

Of course, I didn't have my camera with me, but I tried to recreate the moment and capture it on video. Below is the result. Mostly you just hear me laughing and making a whooshing noise, but there's a brief moment where you can hear Griff laugh too. Hopefully, it's just the first of many :)

I've also included a video of him rolling over since he's doing it much more consistently these days. He's starting to really get mad in this video....he'd already rolled over three times and was a little tired of the game. But I continued the torture so we'd have it on camera....I know, I can practically hear you sending in your nominations for Mother-of-the-Year right now :)

Summer

2010-07-12T21:10:00.007-04:00

So far, this summer has been a fun season for us. I'm a little behind, so here's a catch-up post.

The last weekend in June, Ryan, Griffin and I packed up and took a mini road trip to South Texas for a family wedding. Ryan's cousin, Emily was getting married in Seguin and we thought it would be a great opportunity for Griffin to meet part of the Fitzhugh family. It was a beautiful outdoor wedding on the river, a little hot (read I was sweating like a pig and desperately trying to keep the baby cool), but very sweet.

Snuggle time with Zayde

Hangin' with Aunt B

Such a good little boy!

Griffin got to spend the night with his Abby and Zayde at the hotel...it was so nice to have a little time to ourselves!

The fun continued on the 4th of July, which we celebrated with the Parker clan at the lake house. I don't have too many pictures....the weather wasn't really cooperating on Saturday, so we stayed indoors most of the day. Then the boys put on their own fireworks show (unfortunately, it was past G's bedtime, so he stayed home with Aunt Jen). On Sunday, the big kids rode jet skis for a while, before we all packed up and headed home for some family time. It was a great, relaxing weekend!

Red, white and blue...all-American baby

Cute Mavs onesie Ben gave us...look how blonde that new hair is!!

Griffin did get to try his first few bites of rice cereal with GiGi...not really a fan yet, so we'll hold off a little longer. He just seems so hungry all the time, I was hoping something more substantial might tide him over. Oh well....all in good time. It was worth a shot.

Congratulations!

2010-07-10T17:33:00.004-04:00

My sister-in-law got engaged this week! Congratulations Blair and Stephen!! Looking forward to a beautiful wedding.