The holidays are here!!!!

I keep promising to be better about blogging but between my editing job, which is crazy as ever, the holidays, and my little man who is getting so big & so fun - time just seems to run out on me.
OK, let me start from when I last blogged! Dan's birthday. The celebrations continued after his birthday as we had our parents over to celebrate. As I write this blog it is impossible for me to believe that a few weeks ago we were able to stand outside for pictures without coats! One of Dan's birthday wishes was to take a picture of the 3 generations of Greenfield men in their Notre Dame and Yankee gear. The Notre Dame was easy - the Yankee was a bit challenging. You see, our only Yankee outfit was a t-shirt my good friend Lisa sent us as a gift because she knows how much Dan loves the Yankees(She lives in PA so Yankee stuff is easier to get). The only problem was that Shane fit in that shirt over the summer - it was a 3-6 month. However, we squeezed him in and got the pictures. The shots are not great because patience is not a trait of the Greenfield men. I will work as hard as I need to to get the perfect shot, Dan is less patient & will have me just take the picture after a few minutes. His dad is way less patient than Dan so there was no time to get the perfect shot or even a smile. Here are the best two.


After we took the pictures, we had cake and hung out for a while. Here are a few more pictures. If Dan's birthday went on for a week, I can just imagine what Shane's will be! :-)



Thanksgiving! We are so thankful for so many things this year, but we are especially thankful for our Shane! He is just the best! There is not a day that goes by that one of us does not comment on just how perfect he is or say, "I can't believe he is ours!" He is just so happy and so full of excitement and joy that we can't help but be happy when we are around him. We are also so thankful for our families who love Shane and allow him to feel so special. Aunt Geri had a special Thanksgiving place setting for Shane and he had his own plate, bowl& silverware to eat with! She also gave him a pair of snuggly pjs and a Christmas & Hanukkah book. Yes, she spoils him rotten! He is going to want to live at Aunt Geri's house! When we got to my cousin Andrea's she surprised us with a baby food grinder and even ground up some of her delicious turkey for Shane to eat! Andrea, Brad, Eric, Alex (even though he is in Australia - we know he had a part in the family gift) and Aunt Joan also had Hanukkah presents for Shane - more on that later because we did not let him have any gifts for Hanukkah until yesterday (The first night of Hanukkah). Now you are probably ready for all of our great Thanksgiving pictures. Well, they will be here soon, but I have no idea what they will look like because we forgot the camera at home and bought a disposable one at Walgreens.We need to get it developed and once I get the pictures on a cd, I will add the pictures. I now know how much I rely on the ease of my digital camera!
The day after Thanksgiving Dan and I actually had a night out without Shane. We had a Cotillion for one of Dan's former students. It was a really nice event and it was the first time I ever attended one, so I am so glad we went! Dan was asked to MC the introductions! The students chose to do a Phantom of the Opera dance in honor of Dan who loves the play and helped the class perform it as an 8th grade show last year. His students love him! Shane was invited, but a 7 PM start is way too late for Shane who is in bed by then! Luckily for Shane & us, 'Aunt' Debbie came to babysit! She is the best!!!!!! Debbie came over around 4:30 and fed Shane so we could get ready. Of course, she came bearing gifts for Shane - Is he not the luckiest kid in the world? She brought him some blocks that he LOVES! Here is a photo I snapped as we were running out the door! THANKS AGAIN, DEBBIE!

The next day was Shane's first visit to Santa! We were so excited and dressed him up in a holiday outfit and his Santa hat! Unfortunately, Shane did not love old St. Nick! I was expecting him to be all smiles since he was flirting away with one of Santa's pretty elves right before the picture. However, Shane had other ideas! I started to shoot a little video on my camera and it became apparent that I better start snapping pictures before he loses it. He lost it before I got my picture in, but the store got a picture right before the crying started and I purchased the digital download of that one. Here is the video.

and now the pictures!


The next morning Dan, Shane and I attended our first "Under 5s" meeting. The group is made up of parents like us who are interfaith and who are choosing to raise their children in both faiths. It is run by a woman who is Irish Catholic and who married a Jewish man. They decided to raise their children in both faiths even though most clergy told them it could not be done without messing up the children. She has since studied the issue and discovered that it can be done. Her children are all grown now (and very well adjusted) and her husband has passed away, but she continues to run the group! She is terrific! She took this picture of us all at the meeting. Shane's baptism/Jewish naming ceremony will be held on February 7th at Old St. Pat's church downtown and will be co-officiated by a rabbi & a priest! Very cool! We are hoping to meet more families like us and will be attending their holiday party tomorrow morning.

We had to go to a meeting for his Baptism/Naming Ceremony and Grandma Carolyn & Grandpa Bob came by to babysit. I left them with the camera and asked them to take some pictures! We are so lucky to have grandparents for Shane that are so willing to come over and watch him! He sure is a lucky boy!


Shane is still not officially crawling, but he gets where he wants to go by performing a combination of scooting and rolling. He can go from sitting to rocking on all fours now, so I do not think crawling will be far behind! Shane loves the Christmas tree and has a great time grabbing at the branches.

He is also really reminding me of his daddy - especially in some of his mannerisms! Look at him chilling out on the couch after a diaper change!

Yesterday was a big day for us! It was the first night of Hanukkah and it was the first time Shane got to bake Christmas cookies with Grandma Carolyn! Dan's mom always baked her holiday cookies with her good friend Maureen. When Maureen died, she started having her granddaughters over to bake. Dan really wanted his son to bake cookies with Grandma every year as well. Though Shane was too little to help and too little to eat the cookies, he enjoyed hanging out with Grandma, playing with her measuring spoons & watching the cookies get made. Unfortunately Shane was in a bad mood - not sure exactly why - I thought he napped on the way to Grandma's house and he was happy when we got there, but as soon as we put him on the floor so we could bake he let us know he was not pleased! In fact, he was only happy if one of us held him. We tried to put him down for the nap, I even set up the pack & play for the first time by myself, but he would not sleep. He was fine on Grandmas lap so there he played. When she needed a break, I held him and she did the cookies. It was great to see her and to start a new tradition with Shane. Here are the two best pictures from the day. Unfortunately, you can't see the yummy cookies in the picture!


Last night we lit the Menorah for the first night of Hanukkah! Our Menorah is so beautiful! Dan gave it to me as a gift and it is made to look like tulips, my favorite flower. Here are some pictures of us by the Menorah!


Shane also got his first Hanukkah present. I can remember being a child and waiting anxiously for my dad to get home from work so we could light the Menorah and get our presents! Shane loved his present for Andrea & Brad so much that he did not open any others! This was the present they gave him on Thanksgiving, but Dan is a rule kind of a guy and he said that Hanukkah presents are for Hanukkah so we put the present under the tree ( a true sign of a blended family!) and waited to let Shane have it until yesterday. Dan and Shane loved to play with it! It is a jet that lights up and makes sounds! Shane will be able to ride it, push it, and play with it. There are even different shaped blocks that are stored under the seat and that fit into slots on the side of the plane. He loved it so much that we didn't give him any other presents (Aunt Joan, we are saving yours until next Thursday when we see you) ! By the time we looked at the clock it was 15 minutes past his bedtime! Thanks again, Andrea! Shane LOVES his first ever Hanukkah present! Here are the pictures!


Here is one last picture of Daddy and Shane cuddling before bed! Look how tired Shane was from his big day!

Finally, Shane wants to wish his cousin Joey a happy birthday! His birthday was the 6th! Other December birthdays include his cousin Bill, his 'Auntie' Lisa, his buddy Connor, his buddy Auggie and 'Uncle' Jason!

Happy Birthday, Dan & other November events

Dan's birthday was Tuesday so Shane and I spent the day wrapping his presents and baking him a cake and those AWFUL gum drop bars he loves so much! Shane made a hand print photo frame for his daddy and I got them matching outfits for later in the season! Shane is so lucky to have Dan! He is a great father and Shane adores him. Dan and Shane love to hang out together, play air guitar, and act silly! Shane has his Dad's silly personality! Here are some pictures from the night. I know it looks like Shane is about to grab the candle in one picture, but he was actually a good distance from any fire. I promise. :-)



Shane's Aunt Jeanne & cousin Danny also had birthdays this month. Happy birthday!!!
Shane is doing great! My future musician spends as much of the day as he can rocking and rolling across the floor. It won't be long before he crawls... He loves to roll his way over to Thunder and I though I do not know why (Thunder must be a glutton for punishment), Thunder does not seem to mind his new buddy at all. In fact, a few days ago I put Shane on the floor and got him dressed. When he was done, I sat him up and Thunder came over. Thunder laid down next to Shane and put his head in Shane's lap. I was in shock! My next thought was where is that camera? I quickly remembered that it was downstairs. UGGGGGHHH! I decided there was no way that Thunder would stay put while I went down to get it, especially since he had not been out yet. However, after 5 minutes of staying put through the torture - Shane grabs his nose, pulls the hair on his head, tries to open his mouth - you get the point. I ran down to get the camera and to my shock and amazement Thunder stayed put! Here is the bext picture I could get since Thunder does not like flashes, especially since our professional photo shoot... More on that later.

Before you get mad at me, I do not let Shane torture Thunder and we are already trying to work on make nice. It often just happens so fast that I can't stop it all. Having Thunder groomed before out photo shoot had the extra bonus of removing most of the hair that Shane likes to grab. Here are some photos of Thunder and Shane. Note, some are before Thunder was shaved so you will really see the difference.




On one of the nice November days, (where did those go?) we took Shane outside and raked a pile of leaves for him to sit and play in. OK, Dan raked the leaves, but I sat Shane in them. He loved it! He enjoyed splashing in the leaves, crumpling them up in his fist, and of course trying to eat them. Here is some video of him playing away.

And here are some pictures from the day! Dan was mowing the law while Shane and I were playing so Shane spent a lot of time with his head turned watching Dan. He was fascinated by the lawn mower, but mainly he is captivated by his Daddy! He even squeals now when Dan enters the room! As usual, I got sidetracked. Here are the pictures.





Here is Shane relaxing on our porch swing.

Oh and the little man can hold his own bottle. He will only do it when he is laying down, but he can do it.

Besides playing with Thunder and frolicking in the leaves, Shane has been reading! Yes, the little guy loves books. He gets so excited when I pull out his favorite book and all books hold his attention. One of Dan's good friends from work, Chris, bought Shane his first Springsteen book. Shane and I are slowly working our way through Bruce's life story. Here is Shane taking a crack at it himself.

I also finally got Shane some bubbles! They have them in our library class & he loves them! However, it is really hard to blow bubbles and take pictures at the same time so you really can't see the joy and the bubbles in the same picture. This was another nice November afternoon! I miss those!





Shane also loves to do lunch! We met Aunt Joan at Old Orchard last week. Unfortunately the restaurant is a little dark and my pictures are a little blurry. Shane is so lucky to have Aunt Joan. She is an amazing Aunt to me and to Shane! She brought him books which he loved to unwrap and then chew on! We are reading them at home and Shane loves the Lion finger puppet book and the nursery rhymes! He was the star of the restaurant and everyone loved how cute and well behaved he was! I am always amazed at just how great he is!


OK, we are almost updated. Now,the photo shoot. We decided to bring Thunder in for Shane's 8 month pictures so we could do some family shots for the Christmas/Hanukkah card. It was pretty laughable. Dan was really stressed, Thunder was even more stressed, the Christmas tree at the place was broke... It was quite the event. We had wanted to get a family shot with the Christmas tree and the dreidel. However, the tree was broke. The photographer had me hold the tree with my foot and then I had Thunder on the other side of me. Dan was on the other side of the tree with Shane. Well, Thunder was inching away and I was completely stretched out - legs apart, when she started shooting. I kept telling her that it must look awkward, but she reassured me it looked great. Great is not the word I would use. I look like I am posing for a football picture, legs wide apart, leaning over to hold the dog, one hand on the tree and one on Thunder... Not good. I was able to crop myself and Thunder out of the picture and give Dan a photo of him and Shane for his birthday so that was nice. However, you can be sure that you will not see that photo on any holiday card you will be receiving. We did wind up getting a nice family photo on the ground without any props. We also got a cute photo of Shane playing with the dreidel and wearing his Santa hat. Here are a few that did not make the card, but turned out great.


Finally, Shane wants to send get well wishes to his Grandma Carolyn who has been sick since she got home from her vacation! She is finally feeling better and we are so glad! Shane can't wait to see her this weekend!

Shane's First Halloween & more firsts!

Ok, let's start with the best part. Shane had another first holiday! His very first Halloween. I showed all of you his picture last time, but he was still adorable. Halloween was not raining, but it was cold. We were sure that we would have a million trick-or-treaters since Halloween fell on a Saturday. Last year we had over 200 and we almost ran out of candy. This year we bought tons of candy (12 bags) and had about 35 costumed and non-costumed trick-or-treaters. (By the way, that bugs me. If you are trick or treating you should need to wear a costume! I wanted to refuse candy but Dan suggested that would be a bad idea. I guess he was not in the mood to remove toilet paper from our trees.) Anyway, Shane spent trick-or-treating hours in his costume and the rest of the day in his 'My 1st Halloween' outfit. Dan's parents were out of town and my parents had dinner plans so driving out to Plainfield at 3 PM to see Shane in his costume was not feasible. Dan's parents saw him in costume before they left and my parents came over Monday and we put him in his costume again. Shane's 'Aunt' Debbie came over and spent some of Halloween day with Shane! She is an amazing friend who spent her whole day in the car in order to see Shane! She lives in Evanston and had to drive to McHenry to take her dog to acupuncture. Then she drove her pooch home and headed to Plainfield!
Here are some pictures of Shane on Halloween. Since Halloween was a Saturday, Shane and Dan spent some of the day watching college football, the only TV we have let him watch. Check out Shane's arms in the picture where he is on the floor. He is cheering so wildly that his arms are a blur!


Here is Shane looking adorable in his Halloween top!

Here he is with the pumpkin we picked out at the Pumpkin Patch. I know, we are so bad! We meant to carve it, but never got around to it... Oops!


Here is Shane passing out candy and hanging with Daddy! Dan dressed as a referee.


Here are the 3 of us!

Here are some pictures of Shane and Aunt Debbie!



Before Dan's parents left for their trip, Grandma Carolyn came to babysit for a day. I was able to get some much needed work done and Shane and grandma got a chance to play! We all had lunch together and Grandma Carolyn had Shane cracking up! Here is a video and a picture!

Since we are on the subject of grandparents, here is a great picture of my dad and Shane.

I know I promised more firsts, so here they are. Shane is pushing himself up on all fours and rocking. He will be crawling before we know it and before we are ready. We so need to baby proof!!!!! Here is a picture of him in his crib after a nap on all fours - he is sooo cute!

He has also been saying Ma Ma. However, he has been doing this for about 6 weeks. Why haven't I mentioned it? Well, I do not think he really knows what he is saying. I am including it today because every time I see someone and Shane says it, they make a huge deal out of it. We have it on our video camera, but we did not have any video of it on our regular camera (the only one I know how to use to upload to the blog) so I tried to get some the other day. What I got was not great, our son does not perform on command. Here it is though. He mainly does it when he is upset - Ma,ma,ma,ma,mamamamamamamama!!!!! - you get the point! He was not upset at the time so he did not put his heart and soul into it! When he is upset and calling for me, even though he probably has no idea what he is saying, it breaks my heart.

Shane and I met my good friend Jami and her adorable kids, Charlie and Lilli at Oak Brook on Tuesday. It was the first time Jami met Shane. It was so cool to see our kids together. I have very few childhood memories that don't include Jami since we grew up next door to each other and have known each other since I was born and Jami was one! I just need to convince her to move out to Plainfield! I forgot my camera, but Jami had hers! Phew!!!! Here are a few pictures from the day!



Augie came over to play again on Wednesday, here are some pictures of the boys!


Here are a few more cute pictures of my little man! I know the last one is a bit blurry, but look at how happy he is! That is how he is most of the day! We are so lucky to have Shane!!!!!


OK, last but not least - we have a favor - we need a babysitter at our house (Shane needs routine and goes to bed by 6:30) the Friday after Thanksgiving. One of Dan's students is celebrating her Cotillion and we were invited. We would need a sitter from about 4:30 to 8:30 or 9. Any takers?