Striking resemblance?

What? I didn't put the katsup there.

Fighting over TP

Me: Grant!! Did you do this?? Again? That takes Mommy a long time to roll up. You need to clean it up...

Grant: (wobbling over with a guilty expression, he begins to...)

Clean it up of course. Why didn't I think of that?

Grant's growing up

Here's some pics of our almost 18-month-old little boy. He's had some fun experiences with the holidays and learning to do things "all by himself." These are all kind of random, but hopefully those who don't get to see him much these days can get a sense of his developing personality.

This is our advent wreath/ nativity that we light each Sunday in preparation for Christmas. We sing a song and Grant gets to blow out the candles when we're done.

He's saying "hot..."

This is what he does when he's full of holiday treats... he shows us

Here's his bedtime routine...

Brush your teeth

What are you doing??



And say your prayers. (He does this arm-folding thing every time we pray, but it's totally un-prompted. He wants to pray over everything, even his water or his snack.)

Playtime at the park. Grant has made a few friends, most of them older. But, he doesn't know the difference. He loves going to girls' houses because they usually have cooler toys like tea sets and doll houses... and purses (wish I had a picture of that).

Grant likes to think he can do his own hair. I have to keep the gel out of his reach because he smears it in his hair, then runs a comb through it. Sometimes it actually looks decent.

His favorite thing to do is run out to the garage when he hears Will's motorcycle driving in. He gets so excited. Anytime he hears or sees another bike, he points and says "Dad, Dad!"

Stunt-devil

Grant's favorite flield trip... the puppy store

We love this guy so much!

Christmas tradition

Last year, we started the Christmas tradition of making homemade gingerbread houses from scratch. Though it wasn't the same without Annie and Phillip and the Kelly's, we really got into the art of creating something that was too pretty to eat.

It all started with very sticky and messy dough. The trick is to use lots of flour. Will made the mathmatically correct cut-outs and I rolled, cut and baked. We used egg whites and powdered sugar for "glue." If you want the gingerbread recipe, go to http://www.allrecipes.com/ and search for gingerbread house. Though, I would increase the amount of flour by at least a cup.

The parents, brother and sister-in-law and Will's mission buddy's family came. Keith and Alyssa got the award for "most cooperative," Dad got the award for "heaviest" (could he pile anything else on that thing?) and I gave Will and I the award for BEST OVERALL!

Posing with a half-finished masterpiece.

Of course, we stayed up for 2 more hours perfecting it. Grant waits for the day when we'll actually let him eat it.

Family Pictures... for Christmas

Last weekend, we took family pictures near Superstition Mountains. My friend was kind enough to do this last minute and bare with a cold, crying Grant. He lasted for about 30 minutes, but we managed to get some decent shots.

It got a little cold... and Grant wanted Daddy

Only Daddy!

Elfing around

I can't figure out how to just post our little dance, so go to this link:


http://elfyourself.jibjab.com/view/SbLicRqQ6d6RJwG1

And, huh, sorry about the lack of pics lately, for those who miss Grant. More will come soon!

You think you're gonna get your way with that attitude??

Well, you're right.

I'm a sucker for this kid... putty in his hands.