The Adventures of Little Griff: 10 Months! & US Tour 2010 Part 3

10 Months! & US Tour 2010 Part 3

Sunday, April 18, 2010 by Valentine and Darrell and Little Bug

It is Earth Day and Griff is 10 months old today! I can't believe I am the mom of a 10 month old child. He is well on his way to toddlerhood, and he took many steps toward that while on our trip. He was definitely on a growth spurt...I couldn't get enough food in me while we were traveling and I think I probably left quite a few people aghast at how much I could put away. That has tapered off since we came home and his spurt seems to have slowed down. He was teething during the trip, too, and cut his second bottom incisor. Griff is babbling away and is differentiating particular sounds for situations, for example, when he says "babababa" now, it is when he is frustrated and/or tired and "yayayaya" for when he is excited. And he seems to understand more words and gestures, like he usually will come to me when I invite him to "come here" and hold out my hands. He is working hard on cruising and he will take a few steps toward us when we hold his hands. His strawberry blond locks continue to fill in and are getting curlier. And he is soooo much quicker to smile and laugh! On the third leg of our adventure, Dan, my adviser, drove Griff and I back to Ft. Collins on Easter and we drove down to Boulder. Darrell caught a plane into Denver and a shuttle into Boulder. Griff and I were so excited to meet him at the metro center in Boulder, and Griff was all smiles to see his poppa. We headed up to Nederland, another 3000 feet above Boulder, where my father lives with his wife, Merle. My half-brother, Stewart, came down from Ft. Collins and they all got to meet Griff for the first time. It was a nice, casual dinner and there was loads of space for Griff to crawl around and pull up on, which made him happy. He really seemed to enjoy meeting his Uncle Stewart, Grandpa John, and Merle! And he really liked their funny dogs, two rescue greyhounds.

Meeting Uncle Stewart

Three generations of Hemingways.

Looking for glasses on Grandpa John's head...doesn't everyone wear them all the time?

Playing piano with poppa.

Griff's piano debut...

Out for a walk in beautiful Nederland with Grandpa John.

Helping to crack open his first Easter egg..the cracking on the table part was really fun!

Fast asleep after a long day!

The next day, Grandpa John came down to Boulder for a visit and we went on a few gorgeous hikes. Griff wasn't feeling very smiley due to teething, but enjoyed himself anyway.

Grandpa John wearing those irresistible glasses!

Griff cracking a winning smile at Chautauqua Park under the Flatirons...

Riding on the shoulders of a giant (for now) daddy!

Griff sporting his frog beanie and heirloom sweater made by Great-grandma Olga in Boulder. He won't let me dress him this way forever, so might as well get away with it for as long as I can.

We had a chance for a short visit with some friends before we left for Denver on Tuesday afternoon. We stopped by Valerie and Noah's house, who I stayed with last year when I was 7 months pregnant. This time Valerie was 2 weeks from her due date, and in fact, they had their big, beautiful baby last night--Welcome little Luna Pearl!

Griff inspecting Val's necklace.

I am not completely sure what Griff was thinking about Val's belly, but I am fairly sure he was giving little Luna some sage baby advice!

Then we has a short visit with friends Lisa, Mark, and Sam. They made us a yummy dinner and we had some great entertainment from the kids. Griff had a great time following the big kid around and exploring a whole new world of toys. It was a great visit!

Wanna be friends?