Pictures from Christmas week.....finally!

Wow, Christmas went by in a flash and I have had such little time to do things on the computer, even though Dean has been home for much of the time! Anyway, here are some pictures from the past couple of weeks.

Dean's first day off was Dec 19 (Weds), and we made a trip up into town to visit the Galleria (I always love to go there at Christmastime to see the giant Christmas tree and all the decorations). Grant was NOT a very good boy on this trip, and this picture somewhat indicates his frustration! He wasn't happy being pushed in his stroller, and wanted to walk everywhere, which is hard when you're in a crowded mall! So we ended up leaving earlier than we'd planned. We let him sleep in the car, then ate lunch at Niko Niko's, one of our favorite restaurants from our dating days. Grant enjoyed sitting and eating outside, so the entire trip wasn't a complete loss! But at the Galleria, there's an entire wing almost filled completely with expensive children's stores, one after another. I was in awe at some of the prices for baby clothes, and I felt completely out of touch with the people in there, who were actually really shopping for their own kids (and not just looking at the price tags in amazement!).

Mama and Grant next to our Christmas tree:
We bought a SwifferVac, and Thursday was the first day we tried it out. We have a lot of tile in our house (almost the entire downstairs), and I am horrible at finding time to take out the broom to sweep (and it's not very effective anyway). The SwifferVac is great! It's motorized but runs on a charge (so no batteries), and it's a perfect little vacuum for hard floors. Here's Grant trying it out. He loves to walk with us and talk to it when we're using it.
We went to the park that day too. Here's Grant on his favorite playground equipment (I still can't think of the name, darn it!):
He also loves to swing....here he is on the park swing:
Then he sat on Daddy's lap and they both swung together (he likes this too!):

Yikes! You're going too fast, Daddy!
On Friday, the 21st, Dean's family came to town. We went to lunch at Boudreaux's cajun restaurant (another favorite) after Corie and Steve flew in. Then we tried to drive down to Galveston, but we had a horrible time just trying to get to the interstate (people leaving early from work). So we ended up staying home and just playing outside for a while. Here's Grant riding down the slide in our backyard with Daddy:
Getting sugars from Nana!
Grant really likes Corie; he usually likes for her to hold him, and for more than just a few seconds!
Grant riding on his swing the next day. Nana was making faces at him and he loved it! He LOVES being on this swing....even when it's really cold outside (like the past couple of days), he points to go outside and could sit on that swing for an hour. Every time we bring him in, he cries and throws a little fit because he doesn't want to come in. Fun fun!
Drinking some water from Nana's glass:
Grant got some great gifts for Christmas; he got a little SpiderMan friend (basically, a doll for little boys!) from Steve and this Sesame Street couch/bed from Corie. He has great fun on this couch! While we were opening gifts (he still doesn't really get the point of that), he laid down on it, as if he was completely bored with this whole present-opening thing! The couch also folds open into a little bed, and Grant loves jumping and crashing into it.
Here he is sitting on his couch the next morning:
When my parents came to town on Christmas Eve, it was a beautiful (but cold) day. We took a walk to the park, and here's Grant flying through the air in our driveway (a little too high for my liking, but Grant enjoys it!):
With Grandma:
With Grandma and Grandpa. We had a good time that night, opening presents and eating seafood gumbo for dinner.
Christmas morning. This box was Grant's favorite toy; a few days before Christmas, he discovered it under the tree and loved to carry it around and chew on it whenever he saw it. It was a gift for me! There was also a present (for Grant) that was just wrapped in a colored box, with no paper covering it. Two or three times before Christmas, Grant went for the same box and took the top off, then tore the tissue paper out and left the present just sitting there!
Wearing a new big-boy froggy towel he got for Christmas!Grant and Daddy went out to play and swing that evening while I made dinner. Here he's coming back inside on Daddy's shoulder (and not throwing a fit.....yet!):

In front of our Christmas tree that night:
Oh yeah, Scooter really likes Grant's couch too!