who needs oxygen anyway . . .

today was the first day in over two weeks that griffin has been able to be off of the oxygen for an extended period of time. he was detached for almost 3 hours this morning. that is impressive for his little lungs. he is getting better. slowly.

did i mention how much i love this kid.

always the charmer

Month of loooove - 9 month edition

Griffin is officially 9 months old - as of last week. Today he had a meeting with the doctor to make sure he is doing all of the things a boy his age is expected to. You know, like slobbering and jabbering and spitting and sleeping and pooping...all those super important things. He is fantastically perfect. If you don't count the yucky eczema, which I don't. He is round and chubby, happy and sweet, strong and fast. Here are some of his greatest accomplishments to date -

• shaking his head "no, no, no"
• giving high-fives
• giving his mom open mouth, slobbery kisses - my personal favorite
• claps and raises his arms victoriously when I say "yay griffy. yaaaaay!"
• standing up on everything
• climbing the stairs - not good
  

• laughing at pictures of his brothers...seriously adorable
• having deliciously chubby-eat me thighs
• 21.5 pounds
• 29 inches
  
  

• working on his sixth tooth
• crawling - old news
• pulling the vacuum on himself repeatedly
• chewing on his blanket while sleeping

I am completely, utterly in love with this boy. I know how ridiculous that sounds. In fact I have always h-a-t-e-d (that is a naughty word so it must be spelled) when people say they are "in love" with their kids. So irritating. But I am repenting, because I am truly IN LOVE with him. An all-consuming kind of love. He bring me so much joy. Oh man...I am so lucky to be his mama.

Griffin's Perfect Day

Each member of our family has their own temple.

Ben's is Seattle.

Mine is Idaho Falls.

Eli's is Mt. Timpanogos.

Blake's is Provo.

And now Griffin's is Draper.

On Nov. 27 we took our little family to the Draper Temple to be sealed to our baby Griffy for eternity. Ahhh. It was a truly wonderful day (aside from the freezing cold temps and ridiculous wind) and we were surrounded by people we love. Our families and some close friends came to help us celebrate the littlest man. We are so grateful to those that traveled to support us.

The big boys were so excited to go back to the temple. Eli told his teacher, friends and everyone else he knew that we were going to the temple so Griffy could be our baby forever. I have never been prouder of them. They were so reverent and happy.

As Ben and I waited in the Celestial Room I looked at him and said

"I love you and the day we were married was wonderful, but this is better"

He said

"I know, because our whole family is here."

Can I tell you how much I love him. He understood exactly. It was one of my favorite moments. Ever.

I am so blessed to have him and our three boys in my life. When Eli, Blake and Griffin walked into the sealing room, sporting their new matching white suits, my heart grew three sizes. It was perfect. I was so overwhelmed with love and gratitude. My testimony of the gospel and the temple was again confirmed. It is true.

I know Griffin was meant to be part of our eternal family and I cannot adequately express the love and thankfulness that we have for his birth parents. They are amazing and wonderful and selfless. They brought us our baby. We love you Nichole and Troy. Thank you.

My heart is full and my life complete.

our three marvelous, miracles

blake was winking at the photographers.

both of our families. we are so grateful to those who came.

did i mention the wind?

ben's entire family.

my family that came.

grandma jan and aunt hailey.

the wall women.

my parents and boys.

ben's parents and eli

grandma jan and eli

**thanks to lucy, valeri and my dad for the fantastic pictures

That Sunday Ben gave Griffin a wonderful blessing. It was the perfect end to our weekend.
We were especially happy that Nichole (griff's birth mom) and some of her family were able to come to the blessing! Love you!

both families

my entire family

aunt hailey and griffy

He sits

November 20th - I left Griffin on his tummy in my room and came back to find this:



He decided to teach himself to sit up in the two minutes I was gone. Exciting and irritating. I need him to stay little for a long time and he continues to disobey my orders to do so.

Final

November 19th.
Finalization
Judge Davis -"I declare Griffin Joshua Wall the legal child of Benjamin Gary Wall and Britney Daun Wall."
Aren't those fabulous words.

It was a freezing cold morning when we arrived at the court house to testify before the Judge that we have and will continue to love and care for Griffin. Finalization is always an emotional experience. It is the final stop in a long journey to creating our family. All that is left are the wonders of the temple - which is just pure goodness.
Judge Davis loves doing adoptions and is always so excited for the families. He did Eli's finalization 5 years ago and we were lucky enough to have him again for Griffin's. He was so happy to have us back again that he wanted Eli to sit in his chair and put on his robe again. What a wonderful man. It was so great.

A happy, happy day.

Griffin in the Judge's Robe

Blake was very cooperative

Everyone that came to support Griffy

Eli becoming a judge

Judge Eli B. Wall (a mom can dream)

He eats

he loves food. he takes after me.

5 months

I can't believe it. 5 months. I have loved every minute. All of the waiting was worth it (I know it wasn't that long, but it felt like it). He is a dream - and many prayers - come true.


Here is his newest toy. He loves it.

My little elf

Griffin is officially rolling all over the place. Front to back. Back to front. He loves to be on his tummy looking around. He has starting scooting forward and loves holding and chewing on toys.

I love everything about this kid. Every inch of his body - the ginormous hands and feet, the hilarious fat-man giggle, even the areas plagued with second-degree-burn-like-eczema. He is rolly and squishy and happy all the time. He makes my life full, happy and complete (at least for now).

He is sweet and wonderful and perfect.

Here's a little taste.

Four months already?

It has been a glorious four months around here. But hard to believe that my little man is growing up so fast. Today was his 4-month doc visit. His stats are as follows:

Weight - 16 pounds 70%tile
Length - 26.75 inches 96%tile

Happiest little guy ever. He didn't even cry for his shots. Which is more that I can say for his brothers and their flu shots - sheesh. You would've thought I was trying to rip their fingernails out. Then afterwards Eli kept saying "see it wasn't that bad, Blakey". Again, sheesh.

I love him. Gooey, fatness and all. I think his ears are my favorite. Or his chubby, eatable cheeks. Tough choice.

Blog-shmog

Who has time to blog when they could be snuggling this guy.

The Zoo

I do not love the zoo. We went anyway.

yes, that is a rhinoceros bum.

this was blake's attitude about pictures most of the day.

eli is at that stage where he tries to really smile for pictures.
this is what we end up with.

this was griffy's attitude all day. did i mention that i love this kid.

the train makes everybody happy.

Newborn

This uber-talented photographer friend of mine shot some newborn pictures of Griffin. He was 2 weeks-old when they were taken. Oh, how time flies. He has changed and grown so much since then. But he has continued to stay sweet, calm and happy. I love this little guy. He has changed my (and our family's) life. He is the calm in our daily storm. I struggled so often while waiting for him, but he is worth every miserable day of that waiting. He is perfect.

all photos are courtesy of Leisha Kelsey Photography
*she is the bomb

* more to come at a later date.