Happy Halloween!

For Griffin's fourth Halloween and Grayson's first, we went all out! For the first time, we attended the Anoka Halloween Parade, and we will for sure try and make it an annual tradition. Did you know that Anoka is considered the Halloween Capital of the World? The parade definitely lived up to its reputation. The floats and costumes were a riot, and Griffin had the time of his life dancing and collecting candy. Grayson slept for most of the parade, but while he was awake, he seemed to enjoy his surroundings.

After the parade and a short nap, we went to the Scalia's House for some play time and trick-or-treating. But, before we could do anything, Robbie and Brandon went to Chipotle for free burritos!!! The Scalia neighborhood is much more kid friendly, so this is the third year we have gotten the two families together on this sugar-filled Holiday. As the pictures show, fun was had by all!

The other fun news we have to share is that Grayson is officially mobile. Over the last two days he is getting more and more coordinated. Although he can only take a few crawling steps before he falls on his stomach, he can finish his journey by rolling to his destination. Hello Cleaning!

My boys are changing right before my eyes...

I can hardly believe how much Griffin and Grayson are changing and growing. Both boys are trying new things and keeping Brandon and me on our toes. Parenthood is seriously amazing, but it can also be difficult, sad, and at times, overwhelming. We have definitely experienced this spectrum over the last few weeks.

Griffin just finished his last session of swimming lessons tonight, and we will definitely be signing up for another one. Despite his dare-devilish behavior at our subdivision's pool, he was quite timid when it came time to swimming lessons. Believe it or not, prior to today's lesson, I had a hard time getting him to do much of anything besides standing by the stairs. Thankfully, today something just clicked for him, and he was back to being the little fish I know and love. Griffin has also started to really test our patience, most often at bed time, and he clearly favors listening to my directions over Brandon's. We are trying our best to stay calm, but firm. At times it is hard to discipline his cute little face, but I know that in the long run, the more consistently we enforce rules, the better. His active imagination is also something that brings us great entertainment. Currently, he is obsessed with telling us about his pretend dogs (Benji, Lafrica, and Gutka) and all that he gets to do with them. Just yesterday, he "played tennis" with Roger Federer using only a straw, and afterward they "played catch." In case your wondering, Griffin won:)

Grayson is still struggling with GI issues, but today was a GREAT day. For the first time in several weeks, our little man was back to being his happy-go-lucky self. Although he still doesn't eat close to the amount he should, we are definitely seeing a positive change in behavior. Gail, his day care mom, also commented that today was a much happier day for our little man. Hopefully the combination of Prevacid and a new concoction of concentrated formula with a lot of rice cereal will continue to help him improve and gain weight. We visit the pediatric GI specialist on Monday, and he will determine whether or not we need to carry out the scheduled Upper GI Endoscopy on November 6th. For now, it's waiting game, but we are thrilled to see more smiles on our youngest son's face. In addition to increased smiles, we are also noticing quite a few developmental changes. He is constantly "talking" and exploring the sounds his mouth can make. He is also starting to put himself into the crawling position, and we even caught him trying to pull himself into the standing position. He was able to go from the seated position to his knees by pulling on the edge of our coffee table. It won't be long before he is officially mobile!!!

I continue to take pictures and try to document as much of their lives as I can. I know time flies, so I am trying cherish the phases they are in...I know they won't be in them for long!

Until next time, feast your eyes on the little loves of my life:)

Sage Advice from a Three-Year Old

Me: Mom's just frustrated and tired.

Griffin: Here, read the Bible.

Grayson Update

Our littlest man is a bit too little...

Plagued by something, our precious boy isn't eating the way he should. We found out two weeks ago that someone his age should be eating a bare minimum of 23 ounces a day. This is to maintain weight. In order to grow, he should be eating around 30 ounces a day. Well, we are lucky when he eats 20 ounces, and most days he eats around 18 ounces. Although the current medicine they have him on is starting to make him happier in between feedings, there are still times throughout the day where he is clearly in pain, and he refuses to eat a normal amount of liquids. Our saving grace is that he is back to being a good sleeper. Now that he is able to roll both ways in his crib, (he kept getting stuck) he has the all clear to sleep on his stomach. He now rolls over onto his stomach the instant you put him down. Although it makes me a bit nervous having him sleep on his stomach, it clearly makes him more comfortable, and in return, he is sleeping like a champ. (Well, most nights!)

We go back to the pediatric GI specialist on Monday down at the U of M. If his previous test results come back inconclusive, he will be scheduled for an upper GI endoscopy. Although I don't want to watch him go through more tests, I am reassured that the doctor will get to the bottom of Grayson's troubles.

Please pray for wisdom on the doctor's behalf, our patience, and comfort for Grayson!

Friday Fun!

Today, the boys and I joined Keegan, Will, and Melissa at Gleason's Gym for some Open Gym fun. While Grayson was happily sitting on my hip with the help of Missy's Hotsling, Griffin ran around overjoyed. While I could barely get Griffin to do anything other than jump on the trampoline, he did enjoy the bars and rings too. The hardest part was waiting in line, of course. (note the sad face) By the end, Grayson was asleep, and Griffin was sad to go. I am pretty sure this will be a regular "no school" day outing!