I tried to post all day yesterday. Don't know why it wouldn't take it.
Griffith did great at the NICU grad clinic on Wednesday. He was almost not able to do the test because he kept looking at her and giggling. Goofy little flirt charmed the Very Nice Physical Therapist. That may account for the glowing report. He picked up blocks, moved them from one hand to the other, clapped spoons together (I didn't know he could do that), grabbed a string, pulled a napkin over so he could grab something on it, turned toward sounds. The only thing he didn't do was roll over and that was because he was too interested in what was going on above him. Can't fault him for that. He scored very high on his verbal which tickles me since he has yet to say anything. Apparently squealing and babbling are high-value activities. He is now 16.5 pounds and 26 inches tall. He is growing like a weed and is in the 25th percentile for his adjusted age.
The boys have been big fun this week. When I got home on Tuesday, they were playing on a blanket on the floor. Allan had hold of Griffith's right arm and was trying to bite him. Griffith kept swatting at him with his left hand and occasionally tried to roll over top of him. They both seemed to be enjoying it thoroughly. Allan is really starting to make a lot more baby noises and he is grinning a lot these days. He seems to enjoy rough-housing quite a bit and loves to be rolled back and forth (rock-a-baby, rock-a-baby). He folds his little hands across his chest so that you can get he really going.
All-in-all the big boys are doing great. Just have to keep on doing what we are doing and wait for spring.

The boys did well with their eye exams today.
Griffith has a slight astigmatism (courtesy of Papa), but it isn't anything that they need to do anything about right now. He may or may not have to have glasses some day. Come back in a year, thank you very much.
Allan's eye looks pretty good, but the pressure was up in it some. They are adjusting his eye drops and seeing how that works. Come back in a month. They are going to put him back under anaesthesia some time to look in the eye and see how and whether scar tissue is forming back there and if they can tell what is causing the pressure to build up and how that is or isn't affecting his optic nerve. But we aren't going to do any thing at all until RSV, flu and cold season are over with. April? May? We'll cross that bridge when we come to it.

Abject misery

Whose idea was it to put the baby down?

Well, there was no napping, cat or otherwise. Griffith just can not stand to miss out on anything and refuses to go down. He spent a lot time this afternoon trying to figure out how to crawl. The pictures don't do it justice, but our pride and joy can get up on his hands and knees, but he can't quite figure out how to get his big ol' head up at the same time. There was much grunting and groaning and general frustration but no forward progress. I know that a good parent would be actively encouraging her child to crawl and helping him figure the process out, but we really aren't quite up to a mobile Griffith and if it takes him an additional week or so to work it out on his own, so be it. That gives us a little more time to prepare. Jay put down a rug in the dining room this afternoon and we got one for the living room and the nursery, too. Throwing down blankets just isn't going to work for very long. And it is time to dig out the cabinet locks and electrical outlet plugs. Baby-proofing needs to begin in earnest.
Allan has had a good afternoon. Our child who acted like he didn't know he had hands has been batting at his fishes all afternoon. And shoving his hands in his mouth. And clasping them to his chest. And, while he isn't quite as vocal as his brother, he has been talking all afternoon. Sometimes in response to his brother talking which is pretty funny.
Both of the boys go for an eye exam tomorrow morning. Allan for a post-op follow-up and Griffith for his 6 month check up. Then, on Wednesday, Griffith goes for the NICU graduate clinic. I wonder if he will do better than Allan did or if he, too, will have performance anxiety?

Aunt Kim and Griffith

Allan, laughing (II)

Allan laughing

Grinning and clasping

Allan-clasping his hands

Call the VNPT right away!

Allan, smiling (II)

Allan, smiling

Allan's 2 teeth

Griffith -- crawling? (II)

Griffith -- crawling?

Allan - playing with the aquarium (II)

Allan (II)

Big Al and the crawl through aquarium

Dad and Allan (II)

Allan at his first dinner party.

Dad and Allan

Check out the sock. No doubt whose kid he is.

Griffith and Montell

At his first dinner party.

Tickled (IV)

Tickled (III)

tickled (II)

Allan being tickled

guess who dressed him ?

Flora and her big boys

Dinner for 6?

The boys attended their first dinner party last night and comported themselves with a great deal of dignity. We were afraid that it was going to be touch-and-go since neither of them took a nap of any significant length yesterday (all the excitement?). Griffith kept having melt-downs before we left and it wasn't looking good for a quiet dinner. They both fell asleep in the car on the way over. Allan slept for the first hour or so, but Griffith couldn't stand to miss any thing and so he rallied. He took in all the sights at Jim and Montell's new house and he has his eye on the guest room for future trips. We got to eat in the formal dining room off of the mother-in-law's china. (The boys, of course, they were eating from their own bottles. Griff brought his new Cubs one to show off.) The only faux pas belonged to Allan who decided to take a big poop at the dinner table, but every one took it in stride. It isn't as if he could excuse himself and head for the powder room. A good time was had by all and the boys slept well last night. Today is a gloomy, wet, icy day so we will be homebound. Maybe we can get them back on their usual napping routine and get a little nap in ourselves. Or maybe I should just lay down on the floor here at the office and get a catnap in before I go home.