Monday, July 25, 2011

July 25 - An Absence

Thus begins a series of 9 days in which I took not a single picture.  I will fill in with photos taken prior to these 9 days as there are many extra "keepers" to post.  The reason for my negligence, you ask?  Long, long story short, I have been struggling on and off, in varying degrees, with an anxiety disorder for the past 4 years or so.  The past couple months have brought more intense anxiety and panic attacks than I have ever experienced, and our time in Michigan was the most intense yet, to the point of complete debilitation.  Upon returning home, I began the tough road of more doctor's appointments, trying various medications, and trying to figure out what was going on with me, what could be done to get better.  It was a very dark, confusing time in many ways, but the Lord met me in a new, beautiful way through the suffering.  It is difficult to explain exactly what I've been going through, as I still don't fully understand it myself; however, I plan to blog about it all soon as part of my recovery process. 

That being said, onto the picture for today!



Sunday, July 24, 2011

July 24 - Hotel


We're on the road again, heading back home from Michigan.  We stopped for the night in between Lexington, KY and Knoxville, TN.  Griffin loves hotel rooms, especially the phones, which I unplug. 

Saturday, July 23, 2011

July 23 - Summer Playtime



I'm breaking alllll the rules this week.  3 pictures in this post...Can't resist.  If there is one thing I miss about Michigan (other than family), it's the summertime.

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

July 20 - Green Hills and Funny Faces


Griffin has been doing a lot of running and making of crazy faces.  Hahah.  What a goon.

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

July 19 - Hager Park


A heat wave followed us up to Michigan, and I'm pretty sure it was a bajillion degrees the day we went to Hagar Park.  It was so hot that we were only able to stay a short time and definitely sweated enough for a lifetime.  I remember playing in this park when I was little, and it was so fun to watch my own little one play here so many years later.

Sunday, July 17, 2011

July 17 - Buzz and Woody



Today, we rode around and wound up over on the football field of my alma mater, Jenison High School.  Griffin ran up and down the field, tightly clutching his new favorite pals, Toy Story's Buzz and Woody.  It was so surreal to see my son running on the field where I watched my friends play football and where I graduated high school.  Surreal.  Sometimes, high school feels like another life ago, but other times it seems as though I cannot be old enough to have a child!  Back to Buzz and Woody...These are old toys of Jaxon's, and Griffin could not be more obsessed with them.  He doesn't ever want to part with them, which makes meals and bedtime pretty challenging.

Saturday, July 16, 2011

July 16 - Bikes and Rainbows


My dad was itching to get Griffin out on a bike ride once we arrived.  He has even went out and bought a bike trailer to put him in before we got there!  After the ride, Griffin played in the sprinklers in the beautiful green, northern grass (the only kind of real grass, in my opinion).  Oh, and about the two pictures on this post.  Harken back to spring break.  I decided back then that as long as there were two photographers in the house, there had to be two daily photos.  :)

Friday, July 15, 2011

July 15 - Favorite Shoes

Another day of travel, another day sans photo.  Forgive me.  But these are my favorite shoes.  Ever.  They last forever, they fit like a glove, they were the only shoes I could wear while pregnant, and they're basically the only shoes I want to wear now.  Psh on fashion.  I love my Birkenstocks, and I will wear them whether they're fashionable or not, whether they "go" with my outfit or not.  They're kind of like family...Comfortable and always there when you need them.

Thursday, July 14, 2011

July 14 - On the Road

This was our first day of travel up to Michigan for Oliver's interview with Trinity Christian Reformed Church.  No photos were taken of this very long day, but I realized I never used this cute shot of Griffin in his crib from a while ago. 

Monday, July 11, 2011

July 11 - Weatherman

We love our children's museum.  They have an exhibit where you can pretend to deliver the news and weather in a "studio," complete with cameras, a news desk, a weather map, and a teleprompter.  Very cool. 

Sunday, July 10, 2011

July 10 - Abstract Art

Griffin painted this the other day.  Today, I asked him what was in the painting.  He signed the words "sun," "boat," and "hurt."  Apparently, there is a sun with a boat that is hurt.  Can you see it?  My child is an artistic genius. 

Saturday, July 9, 2011

July 9 - Terrible Twos Early?

This has been the scene at meal times (and a large part of all other times) as of late.  I'm beginning to think that we're entering the "terrible twos" a bit early.  Ready or not, here we come!

Friday, July 8, 2011

July 8 - Evening Light

This photo is a good summary of the things Griffin is into lately:  trucks, tractors, Thomas the Tank Engine, blocks, and Cars

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

July 5 - Little Arteeest

After seeing how much Griffin enjoyed painting at the children's museum the other day, I just had to get him some finger paints to play with at home.  I had no idea how to go about preparing the kitchen for the mess of an 18 month old with finger paints, but I pretty much settled on spending my time cleaning up rather than attempting futile preventative measures :)  He absolutely loved the painting experience, although he definitely preferred using his "brush" instead of his hands.  Makes no sense to me, considering how much he loves smudging his food around with his hands.  When I squeezed the paint out, he kept saying "Oooooooooo!"  And when I asked him if he wanted some more color, he would say, "Color!"  Okay, it sounded a lot more like "coh-woh," but it was still adorable.  I can't wait to do this again with him!

Monday, July 4, 2011

July 4 - Family, Friends and Fireworks


For the 4th, we went to the zoo with Oliver's parents and had a great meal together, and we spent the afternoon/evening with friends over at John and Anna's house, eating and having fun with some little fireworks for the kiddos!