JAB blab

On July 29th we welcomed Bennett Hughes Gwaltney to the clan. I got a rare solo visit to Alabama to meet him and hang with the rest of the family.

He’s a precious “little punchy guy” as his older brother likes to call him, though truth be told he was not very punchy while I was around. My sister has been blessed with another baby who actually sleeps. Go figure.

From Trip to Alabama

I also enjoyed unprecedented one-on-one time with the Grahamster. Even made him a little video montage on the plane ride home. Great way to kill time on a long plane ride…and pretty fun when your audience is three years old. You can slap on all the cheesy affects and know they will love it even more!

For Graham, From Aunt Tiffy from Tiffany Cothran on Vimeo.

This summer was a whirlwind with trips galore and just a lot of good quality family time…mostly out-of-doors. Having kids makes summer feel like, well summer, again.

I can’t possibly detail it all, but the pictures mostly do it justice. Unfortunately a good deal of photos from our vacation with family were lost when our camera was stolen, but I’ve managed to collect many highlights from the grandparents.

Enjoy!

June:

July:

August:

So, my sister and her lovely fam were out here the week before Jack started school. Graham and Jack had a ball getting to know one another. It was such a treat to watch them together.

Jack was a little possessive of Abby initially with a repeated “that’s MY sister.” Once we straightened out that Abby was indeed only his sister but that she was Graham’s cousin (as was he), all was well.

The boys got along so well and were already working together to thwart the adults. A favorite past-time was jumping on the air mattress. We literally caught them sneaking into the room together on tippy toe so as not to be caught! A sneak peek at the adventures the years will bring!

Highlights in photos…

We wish we could be there to celebrate!

BTW, not two minutes before, Jack was yuckin it up with a hearty rendition of Happy Birthday, but this was the best I could capture on film. (When he sees the camera, he just wants to watch himself, the little narcisist. He hasn’t quite figured out that filming comes first.)

The Liz’s left today…it was a whirlwind visit, but so nice to see them and have the opportunity for them to meet Abby.

Abigail’s namesakes are in town for their first visit. The Elizabeths– my sister (known to Jack as Aunt Liz) and my aunt (known to Jack as Nan). Quality photos from a day  with the Liz’s at the Oakland Zoo and play park below.

Jack’s Aunt Liz did the heavy lifting…

Snuggle time with Mama:

Jack’s second favorite ride (only trumped by the train):

Leap frogs:

Nan’s the official spotter:

And the official stroller pusher:

Little brother and sister (the laundry is actually clean!):

But the most classic moment thus far wasJack’s demonstration of “the baby needing Mama’s Milk.”

More later!

The fabulous pre-Christmas visit by my mom, aka “Granna.”

It was a great visit on many levels, but mostly because Jack was fully aware of her as a special and trusted part of the pack–no need to get to know her all over again. They got along swimmingly and spent some quality bonding time together. Kieran and I even got a movie night out of it–a rare treat!

I finally got some photos from the past two months up on muchado. It features photos from K’s mom’s recent trip. We went down to Santa Cruz for a few days of beachy fun. It was cold, but that didn’t keep Jack from running pell mell tumble bumble into the “wa wa.” The mini vacation culminated with a side trip to the Monterey Bay Aquarium (which if you have never visited is well worth the trip). Jack had a grand time hanging out with grandma, who he has dubbed “Gi Gi” both away and back home.

It really has been SO busy since we returned from the wedding. I am ashamed to say, I haven’t managed any posts or pictures on muchado. Thankfully Liz is more on top of things. Photos from the wedding week are up on her site here.And here’s a picture of the newlyweds! Aren’t they gorgeous?!?!?!

Cousin Graham turns 1 on Thursday, but celebrations were in order this past weekend.
We hate that we had to miss it (damn the distance!) but seeing his cute little frosting covered mug makes me even more excited to head out there in a couple of weeks.  I only wish we were staying longer!! I can tell by looking at the rest of the birthday photos that Graham scored some serious booty. Jack won’t want to return home.