Texas Trip Feb. 21-Mar. 7

I had the opportunity again this year to venture to Texas, this time with 2 kiddos. It really was not as bad as I thought it would be. Folks were generally pretty helpful and Emily was a huge help. I ended up accidentally forgetting her car seat, but it actually worked out for the best and thanks to my Aunt Neva's friend, we were able to borrow one the entire time we were there.

The first day was pretty long waking around 5am, getting on 2 planes, arriving in San Antonio for lunch with the family and then driving about a 7 hour car ride to my Sister and Brother-in-Law's house. We had a blast visiting with the Clay's. It was a fun-filled week going to the park, gymnastics, a bounce place and watching a new tree be planted in front of their house. And of course watching the kids play together was a blast in itself.
More to come from the second week of our trip......

Benjamin at 4 months

Benjamin is definitely growing like a weed as I hear a lot these days.  At his most recent doctor's appointment he weighed 17 lbs. 2 oz. and 25 inches long.  He's 75% in weight and 51% in height.  His newest discovery is his feet.  His face lights up when he grabs both feet with both hands.  He's still not too fond of tummy time, but has realized the faster he rolls over, the faster he can grab onto his feet.

Although I don't feel any nubs in his mouth, I believe Ben has started teething.  He's a drooling machine and loves to chew on his hands. 

My little personable baby....Ben gets a huge smile on his face anytime someone talks to him and usually all you have to say is hi.

Emily 3 years, 6 mo. - Feb. 16

No you're not losing your mind, this rocking chair is not the same as in our regular monthly shots.  We had the opportunity again this year to visit my side of the family down in Texas and since I did not have time before leaving on our trip to take the picture, we opted for a different chair in a warmer state.

Emily is quite the entertainer these days-full of energy and always on the go.  She is enjoying her little brother more and more each day and can't wait until he is mobile.  She never ceases to amaze us with words that are used in context.  Just the other night while sitting around our dinner table she says "Daddy, you need to respond."  

"We now have 4"

Emily is always counting the number of people at any given place we go and often counts how many other kids there are in her classes at church. While at church this particular Sunday we got our updated directory picture taken, she is heard counting 1, 2, 3, 4 and proclaims we now have 4. You can tell Benjamin is still mesmerized by black and white....he's having a staring contest with Emily's dress.

Camo baby

We had the chance to have a very brief lunch visit with our friends the Gage's this week before the snow hit. Karter was quite entertaining.

Benjamin at 3 months

Wouldn't you like to be greeted with this face every morning? Ben is such a pleasant baby. His face especially lights up when people talk to him and he is really enjoying watching Emily jump on her mini trampoline these days. He's not too fond of tummy time, but is starting to grab onto toys on his play mat.

Ben weighed a healthy 13lbs. 5 oz. at his Jan. appointment.

Emily 3 years, 5 mo. - Jan. 16

Oh, having a three year old in the house just gets better every day. Along with the challenges, come some of the funniest things. I was able to tear Emily away from her mini trampoline that Charlie moved into the newly heated garage just long enough to take her monthly picture. Today she asked "Mommy may I have some white milk, you know the color of the potty and snow." Where's Bill Cosby when you need him? Speaking of the potty, (which we do a LOT around our house these days) Emily has decided she's ready to begin potty training. I had the idea of having "potty" day (Jan. 11) over at the Rolston's house since Sarah said Noah was in the midst of training as well. After a couple of 20 minute timer settings, I believe she saw how easy it was coupled with the competition of who could go faster, then it happened. I was tending to Benjamin in the doorway to the bathroom at the time and only caught a glimpse of her reaction, but Sarah said it was hilarious. Like the lightbulb went on and she's been doing well ever since. As of tonight, she's even ventured into the #2 side of potty training.

Testing out the bathtime gift from Aunt Holly.....tub crayons.Charlie captured this shot for me while I was away from the house last week. Wondering what the green stuff is??? Somehow the zipper of one of our new couch cushions opened just enough for Emily to begin pulling out the stuffing bit by bit until she had created her own little cushion. She was quite content.

Folks have heard Got Milk, but anyone tried carrots and milk?? Well Emily seems to like it. This came after dipping graham crackers in the milk. Guess she thought things just taste better in milk.

Groff/Byers Christmas 2009

The Groff family doesn't get the chance to get together over Christmas so we've made it our own little tradition to get everyone together in January. Everyone was gathered (except for Gommy, whom we all missed VERY MUCH!) in Columbus, Ohio.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Random shots

This past Saturday Emily and I had a Mommy and Me day and attempted to go to World of Bounce which is one of the places listed on our Fun Place Database. What their website fails to tell you is that if they are full when you arrive you can't bounce. They do have the option of being put on a waiting list and basically have to wait around for folks to leave before they will let you in to bounce. Emily was disappointed we had to leave since there were 6 families ahead of us on the waiting list and we didn't have time to wait. So we headed to the Polaris playground and were overjoyed to see some of our friends there as well.

"Soon I'll be big enough to sit up in the big boy rocking chair."

Thankful birds in our back yard.

Proud Grandparents.

Benjamin at 2 months

Ben is starting to fit better in the rocking chair. Sniff, sniff, because that means he's growing. He is my little snuggle bug and I know he won't stay that way for long. He started smiling and cooing recently and loves to watch his big sister. He is a great eater and burper which is such a blessing. Not sure exactly how much he weighs, but he is wearing size 3 months clothes already.

Thank you to the Snyder's who loaned us this Christmas outfit.

Marshall/Groff Christmas 2009

Make a Smilebox greeting

Ben's birth announcement

Thank you Shelli and Randa for helping with this announcement!!!!

Emily 3 years, 4 mo. - Dec. 16

Things are never dull around the Groff house. Every day is a new adventure. Emily grew accustom to going somewhere with our friends during the week in the Summer and now I think she's going through withdrawal. She is finding new things to play with around the house. Her 2 most favorite things are an empty wrapping paper roll and a fake fish that Charlie gave her from his tackle box which she named Fishy.

Emily is still quite the little Mommy for Benjamin. She loves "diagnosing" reasons why he might be fussy. Oddly enough, sometimes she's right.

Still no improvements with potty training. I just continue praying that it will click one of these days.

Creation Museum

Mom, Emily, Benjamin and I had the opportunity to visit the Creation Museum a couple of weeks ago. They were having a special presentation called Bethlehem's Blessings which was similar to a living nativity scene complete with live animals. It was really neat, but would have been more fun if it hadn't been so cold.

Inside the museum they had their regular display.....

.....and here was Emily's reaction to it. The dinosaur wasn't really loud, but Little Miss Sensitive Ears thought it was.

Emily's become quite the photographer since we let her use my broken camera. Here's a picture she took of Mom.

Random Shots

Emily, Benjamin, Mom and I had the opportunity to join our friends at the Columbus Metropolitan Library for their train exhibit.

Cowboy Ben





I had the opportunity to watch my Niece, Karley a few days this week.
She is such a good baby and we had fun spending time with her.

Ben's asleep in the cocoon - a.k.a. the sling.

Happy Thanksgiving

We had such a great time visiting with Randa, Mark, Jack and David over at my parents for Thanksgiving this year. We spent our days laughing as we heard Emily and Jack's interactions. They spent hours in my parents basement communicating like two teenagers. Benjamin and David didn't have much to chat about, but David shared his affections for his new cousin with kisses on the head and cheek.

Benjamin at 1 Month

You can definitely tell these two are siblings.

Benjamin is growing like a weed. He weighed 9lbs. 7.5oz at his 3 week appointment. He's soaking in his surroundings and has a new expression every day.


Emily at 1 Month