Monday, September 19, 2011

What a difference a year makes!!

Last year at this time I was in the midst of my back problems.  In fact, I was actually bed-ridden for the week before my surgery on September 22nd.  We were also awaiting the arrival of our grandson, Garrett, who was due on September 20th.  Perhaps he felt sorry for his poor grandmother because he waited until September 23rd to make his appearance to the world.  We now have 3 birthdays (my son Stephen, Garrett, and Tom) within a two-week time period.

One of my daughter-in-law's good friends offered to host a first birthday party for Garrett here in Cincinnati.  Knowing that our daughter, Carolyn, and her family would also come into town for the party, I decided to take advantage of the situation by having some family photos made. I particularly wanted a professional photo of our two grandsons together. It sounded like a good idea at the time.

Things didn't go quite as planned.  I tried to work around nap times, lunch, and the party, so the only time we could go was 10:30am.  Unfortunately, little Garrett, who is normally very happy and a ham for the camera, got a little bit grumpy because he missed his morning nap.  Then, for a while, Haiden didn't want to cooperate.  He had also refused to wear the outfit our daughter had chosen for him.  (Carolyn and our daughter-in-law, Michelle, had tried hard to coordinate the boys' outfits by emailing photos back and forth.)

I made some collages of some of the photos to show you what we faced.

First is Haiden. What a bevy of faces he made!



Next, here he is with his parents, Carolyn and Greg.



Next is little Garrett, ready for nap time, but what a trooper he was.



And here he is with his parents, Stephen and Michelle.



We tried several times to get photos of just the two boys, but it was impossible to get a decent one of the two of them together as you can see.


We ended up buying individual photos of the boys instead of ones of them together! (I think you can see why.)   Perhaps we can try again next year when they are older.

Then after lunch and an attempted afternoon nap time for the boys, it was off to the birthday party.  The theme was little monsters.  I asked a friend to make the cake.  We were all blown away with the spectacular job she did with the "main" cake.  She also made a "smash" cake just for Garrett.  We were all so surprised that Garrett didn't make a big mess.  Perhaps he was too tired from all the other activities of the day.


11 comments:

Sherry :o) said...

What cuties your grandsons are! The cake was really cool - I love the individual monsters! The pictures are nice - and when has any picture with more than one person been perfect of both? LOL!!

CalamityJr said...

What a beautiful family! Even the photos of both boys will be full of memories - perfect pictures aren't nearly as much fun.

Barb said...

The pictures are just wonderful! The boys are both so cute! Our Grandson was not too happy on his 1st birthday and refused to wear the birthday hat.

diamondc said...

What a positively beautiful family, how lucky you all are4 to have such beautiful babies in your family.
Catherine
diamondc

Margaret said...

Oh my gosh, what fun! I remember what it was like trying to get good pics of my two together when they were little at the photographers so I understand what you went through. But still, you got some great pictures as a result of all the effort. I love it! And the birthday cake and party -- fantastic! Happy birthday to Garrett!

Robin at The Primitive Hutch said...

Such cuties they are and the great memories you have of the day!!!
Sounds like a fun filled day!
Happy Birthday Garrett!!!
Prim Blessings
Robin

John'aLee said...

What adorable pictures. By the way....I am curious to know if your surgery helped you out?

Marilyn said...

Cute pics!
Love the cake too.
I'm glad your back problem is solved.
Marilyn

Mouse said...

awwww they are soo nice and even if you didn't get a "good" one of them together you got some lovely memories :) love mouse xxxxx

Sherry said...

What beautiful photos! But where are you and Tom? I am so glad that your back problems have improved.

woolwoman said...

Ellen - your grand sons are so adorable - great photos of all - missed posting about your beautiful Elizabeth finish - just gorgeous - glad you made the corrections needed to keep you happy! Enjoy Mel