The Story of Us!

2012-02-20T14:41:00.001-06:00

Upgraded hiking gear!

Our busy Valentine!

2012-02-14T18:58:00.000-06:00

Happy Valentine to all! Our little man is trying to stand, walk and jumping all over the place. Here are some videos!

8 Months!!

2012-02-08T17:04:00.000-06:00

2012-01-30T14:42:00.001-06:00

2012-01-21T18:29:00.001-06:00

Hot date with Harer!!

Fun videos of My Gym and Gabby!

2012-01-14T10:25:00.000-06:00

2012-01-13T20:34:00.001-06:00

Bowling with Peter n Julie!

7 Months!

2012-01-11T20:22:00.002-06:00

12 Days in Mississippi! Happy 2012!

2012-01-11T20:20:00.000-06:00

Family fun to ring in the new year! We have been very lucky to spend our first week of 2012 with our family in Mississippi. Graham spent a lot of time with cousins and friends! Great trip!

Starting off with a saints game and cousin fun!!

Up to Jackson! Playing with Uncle Jerry and eating yummy food at Gran's!

Cousin Rikki!!

2nd cousin Gavin! We play so well together!

Taking a break to get clean for Finley and Judy!

Love time with Judy and Finley!

Dinner time with my 2nd cousin Gunnar! We even have matching hats but, Gunnar took his off!

Family!

USM friends!

First time on the beach!

Playing with cousins before the LSU game!

Come on Madison!!


Happy birthday Aunt Allison!

2012-01-05T17:15:00.001-06:00

Playing with Gran!

2012-01-02T12:45:00.001-06:00

Eating lunch with the cousins!

2011-12-29T19:03:00.001-06:00

Long day!

2011-12-29T07:30:00.001-06:00

Nap time! Looking forward to seeing everyone! We are getting all rested up :)

Baby's 1st Christmas!

2011-12-25T09:37:00.000-06:00

Graham's stocking from Santa!

Chestnuts roasting on an open fire!

Graham got the world!!

Rocking around the Christmas tree!

Stocking fun!

Merry Christmas to all!!

2011-12-21T19:13:00.001-06:00

We went for a hike today and we forgot Graham's hat. This is my hat! Love the expression on his face!

2011-12-21T09:44:00.001-06:00

More My Gym fun! The ball pit!

6 Months!!

2011-12-15T21:16:00.001-06:00

Had our 6 month shots and check up today! Graham is still a chunk but, doing really well! Meeting and exceeding developmental stages. A little cranky about the shots but all in all everything went well!
We are now sitting on our own and attempting to reach out in front to begin to crawl. Also, as you can kinda see in the pic below, we have our two bottom teeth and Doc says the top front should follow in the next month or so.

Happy 6 months!!

Weight: 20lbs. 10oz. - 90%
Height: 27 1/2 in. (nurse took the measurement wrong and it said he shrunk so I measured him myself, Doc forgot to redo it, Graham was crying a lot at the end so I figure he was distracted :)
Head Circumference: 18 1/4 in - 97%

1st Family Trip!!! To the Smoky's!!!!!

2011-12-09T07:59:00.000-06:00

Starting off as a big boy, his first highchair experience! He is thrilled, as you can see.


Next, off to Ripley's Aquarium!

On to our next adventure! The mountains!

Our hike to Laurel Falls! Just a little chilly but, Graham was really warm!

Laurel Falls! Great 1st trip!

Happy December! 1st teeth & Christmas ready!

2011-12-01T11:14:00.000-06:00

My Gym & fun pics!

2011-11-29T12:36:00.000-06:00

This month we joined My Gym. This is a place where Graham plays and learns new skills with other kids his age. Here is a video and a picture from our first class. The other pictures are fun pics from the Thanksgiving holiday (Graham's holiday hat and his best friends across the street). Love to all!

Early Thanksgiving celebration!

2011-11-21T13:44:00.000-06:00

5 Months!!

2011-11-10T11:34:00.000-06:00

First hike!

2011-11-06T19:21:00.002-06:00

Shaking his rattle video!

2011-11-06T19:19:00.000-06:00

Graham in Light

2011-11-01T19:49:00.000-05:00

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-30T20:07:00.001-05:00

Graham and book!

2011-10-22T18:44:00.000-05:00

First solid food! Bananas!!

2011-10-16T11:40:00.000-05:00

We have tried only 2 types of food, bananas and peas. Bananas were first and received very well, the peas might take a bit more convincing. Here are the shots of the first feeding.

Fall Fun!

2011-10-16T11:26:00.000-05:00

Here are several pictures over the past few weeks. We went to a Music and Molasses festival with our friend Will and his daughter Harper. Graham and Harper are 1 month apart so this was like their first date! LOL! Enjoy!

4 Month doctors visit!

2011-10-12T17:09:00.001-05:00

We had our 4 month doctors visit and our 4 month shots. Graham handled everything very well. Dr. Mukundan said Graham is healthy and doing well minus a small cold. He also said we can start introducing small bits of puree once a day. Exciting!! Overall, a good visit.

Measurements:
Height - 26 1/4 inches - 90th percentile
Weight - 18 lbs. 2 oz. - 95th percentile
Head Circumference - 17 1/2 inches - 95th percentile

4 months!

2011-10-09T15:32:00.000-05:00

Graham is 4 months now and we have been growing and growing! We go for our 4 month shots this Wednesday. Will update on the latest then. This past weekend Uncle Mike and Aunt Scottie came to visit and we went to the honky tonks, Graham didn't like that noise so much. But it was a great time! Thought this pumpkin outfit should be used before he grows out of it. Love to all!

Making more sauce!

Watching daddy plant 2 apple trees!

See his face! It was really loud but he was still a good baby!

First Mississippi trip!

2011-09-26T22:35:00.000-05:00

It was a week of firsts! We started our trip off with our first trip to the zoo. We went with Graham's cousins Gunnar and Braedon! It was so fun but so hot! We left with a few mosquito bites but it was all worth it!

Cousins, 6 weeks apart!

Meeting Aunt Jessie!

We got to visit Finley! She is Graham's future girlfriend! It was so much fun! You can see the size difference. We love Finley!

After a long few days, we now get ready for our bath! Thanks Daniella & Isabella for all your help, you made bath time lots of fun!

Special morning time with Gran!

We Love our Gran!

And now off to the coast to visit with Maw & Paw and the crew!

Cousins Aden & Madison!

Our first time to swim! This is a video of Graham in the water. He really liked it!

Time with Maw!

Watching the saints game with Madison & Aden!

A wonderful trip! It was really hard to leave! We love and miss you all!

3 MONTHS and ready for our firstSaints game!!

2011-09-08T18:31:00.000-05:00

Fun week 11 and 12

2011-08-30T14:50:00.002-05:00

Weeks 11 & 12! Here are some fun pics we have taken and a video of Graham during tummy time, sorry the video is tilted! Hope to see you all soon! Love you!

Our 2 month shots (at 11 weeks)

2011-08-24T13:09:00.000-05:00

We had our 2 month shots today. 3 injections and 1 by mouth. Graham cried a little but was easy to soothe. Momma didn't cry, surprisingly! We are a big boy! About the size of a 4 month old.

Weight - 15 lbs. 5 oz (in the 95th percentile)
Height - 24.5" (in the 85th percentile)
Head circumference - 16 3/4" (in the 90th percentile)

All in all, we are healthy and doing well! Maybe a little unhappy about the shots but we are growing strong!

Goofing around!

2011-08-18T21:01:00.002-05:00

Sunning on a beautiful day!

2011-08-18T20:51:00.000-05:00

Cute pics!

2011-08-16T09:50:00.001-05:00

Fun videos

2011-08-16T09:45:00.002-05:00

Month 2 with Graham!

2011-08-08T17:16:00.007-05:00

We have been growing up a storm this month! We measured him ourselves and got 22" long, 13lbs. and head was 16", this was a few weeks ago but we are going to the doctor on the 24th for our first shots. Mamma is not looking forward to that! Graham is starting to coo more and more. He is also smiling a lot now, especially when he sees Mom or dad. Sleeping is progressing, only getting up once at night. Graham is getting his tummy time and now lifting his head more and more. We have had a battle with baby acne and cradle cap but, other than that we are a happy baby! Here are a few pics we took throughout this month. Graham is helping make tomato sauce! Enjoy!

Graham is here!

2011-07-21T10:48:00.011-05:00

Graham is now 6 weeks! Can't believe it! Will try to keep up better with posting! Enjoy!

5 weeks and meeting his cousins Aden & Madison!

4 weeks = 1 month!!

3 weeks old

1 week old

Birth, June 8, 2011, 7lbs. 8 oz, 19 1/2 inches

38 weeks & 5 days!

2011-06-03T12:54:00.003-05:00

Last doctors visits this week!
Here is the status:
Mom & Graham are both doing good. Graham is measuring 7lbs. & 10 oz. however, it was kinda hard to get a great measurement due to him being all squished! His head is measuring 40 weeks still. So, everything is looking positive! We are being induced next week. We go in Tuesday evening at 11:30 p.m. and expecting Graham Wednesday some time! Getting a little nervous but we are ready! Keep us in your prayers! Next post should be with Graham!

2011-05-25T14:50:00.002-05:00

All around Nashville there are tons of cicadas! There seem to be more around our house than anywhere else! Very annoying! Jon has made fun of me for posting this but oh well!

36 weeks and counting!

2011-05-19T13:17:00.003-05:00

So, here we are! Not patiently waiting! I think the ultra sound techs are now bored with me, seeing that I go weekly now. We have not got great pics the past 2 visits. Oh, well!
The update is, as of Monday the 16th I am just under 2 cm dilated, as of today, Graham weighs in at 6 lbs. 9 oz., his head is still measuring big at about 40 weeks, the rest of him is right on track. His heart rate and breathing look good and he is sitting really low! I really want him here sooner than later and I have had a talk with him but not sure if he is listening. LOL! Will keep all posted!

35 week pic!

2011-05-19T13:16:00.002-05:00

34 weeks!

2011-05-05T12:38:00.008-05:00

34 weeks and doing well! Graham measures at 5 lb. 4 oz. His head has grown, measuring at 37 weeks and 4 days. While his arms and legs measure about 33 weeks and his belly at 34 weeks. These pics are great! He goes through this entire emotional episode, calm, mad, crying and finally he laughs, you can even see his tongue! So cute and we are so ready!

33 weeks!

2011-05-01T14:06:00.007-05:00

We are at 33 weeks here! We are now going to the doctor twice a week and getting ultra sounds once a week to monitor Graham because of my hypertension. Everything is looking great so far, blood pressure for me, heart rate for Graham! We are both doing well! Next week we will get a weight and more great pictures. Below are are 5 new pics, we have smiles, lips puckering and a foot flexing (this is the weird one). Will update next week!

32 Weeks!

2011-04-18T16:53:00.006-05:00

We are now at 32 weeks! Went to the doctor and our ultra sound showed Graham is in 86% big. Head measures about 34+ weeks, stomach measures 33+ weeks, arms and legs measure 32+ weeks and he weighs 4+ pounds. So, he is BIG! All else looks good, bp, weight all that other stuff. We are now monitoring weekly due to hypertension and the induction is going to be played by ear because my bp is doing so well now. We will keep you posted! No belly pics, got lazy! Will try to do more! Have a wonderful couple weeks!

Jackson Shower!

2011-04-11T11:24:00.007-05:00

April 9, my friends Judy, Shelley & Emily threw me a baby shower in Jackson. We had such a nice time and it was so good to see everyone. I have not put all the pictures up here because they are all on facebook. Also, I left my camera in Nashville so there are still some pictures I am waiting on. Enjoy!

Maw & Gran!

The Hostesses! Shelley, Judy and Emily!

Aunt Allison!

What Jon and Ronnie did all weekend!

Resting!

28 Weeks! Final Trimester!

2011-03-21T14:38:00.010-05:00

Marking the beginning of the third trimester! And this baby is BIG! Jon was 10 pounds at birth so I guess it is like father like son! He is measuring 2 weeks bigger, yes he has the Giffin head! Everything looked good from the ultrasound. Mom has a bit high blood pressure but doctor said she expected it. Her plan is to induce no later than 39 weeks. Everything else looks good and we are slowly waddling forward!

Today we had our 28 week ultrasound. The US tech did not get as good of pictures as the last one, not sure why. But here are the pics.

GJG's eyes, chin and mouth!

GJG's room!

GJG's room!

26 Weeks!

28 Weeks!

6 month check up!

2011-02-21T13:13:00.005-06:00

So, we had our check up today and all went well. Graham is growing good, measured normal. Besides a hurting back, we are trucking along! Next appointment will be the beginning of the third trimester and then the fun really begins! Have a wonderful month!

21 Weeks

22 Weeks

24 Weeks

Introducing baby G!

2011-01-28T12:32:00.027-06:00

Ok, so it has been a year since an update. I realized, I could update now with someone else's life.
So, without further ado, introducing Graham James Giffin! Here is his life so far. We are all three (Graham, Jon and I - no twins) doing well and very excited about the other half of our adventure through pregnancy. We are due June 14, 2011. We, I should say Jon, has painted the babies room and I have kinda decorated it. We will post pictures when we get it more organized. Enjoy!

20 Weeks!

20 weeks

19 Weeks (I think I had just had dinner, that is why this belly is bigger than the 20 weeks photo)

18 Weeks

17 Weeks

7 Weeks

5 Weeks! We had just found out a few days before this picture.

Cruise 2010

2010-02-27T17:19:00.076-06:00

February 14, 2010 - February 21, 2010
Cruising the Norwegian Spirit to Costa Maya, Guatemala, Belize & Cozumel! We left during Mardi Gras, so we had a lot of New Orleans folks on board. We loved this cruise. We have now fallen in love with cruising and can't wait to do more. This is a long blog. Some pics I couldn't resist putting in here. Hope you enjoy them.
First Day, on the boat!

Bye New Orleans!

Started the cruise by the pool

First day, AT SEA! We had a lot of fun this day. Met a lot of who dat's, everyone on our ship wore saints championship shirts and who dat could be heard everywhere! A lot of New Orleans people getting away from Mardi Gras! It was a lot of fun!

After the Saki tasting, we went to a pub crawl! There were so many who dat's on the boat that they said this was the most people they had ever had at the pub crawl, 170+ of us. We went around the ship in teams, played games, tasted different drinks and chanted WHO! DAT! throughout the ship! It was great!
First game, a dance competition. No I did not dance, I had a dress on!

Balloon pop relay! We got 2nd, almost!

Burping contest! We stood in a line while others burped, weird!

Go team 12!

Pub Crawl ends!

First towel animal, a pig! We had the best steward and stewardess, Jovito and Laulanie! I loved them. They were so nice and just wonderful!

First Port, Costa Maya! This was a nice relaxing, play with the camera enjoy the only sunny day! We just hung out today, no excursions. Took some pics and went venturing out to see the city. Small, still developing and reconstructing after a hurricane. Really nice people!

I HELD A MONKEY!! I was so excited, I turned like 4 years old when I saw this! Best $5 ever!

Mandy & Jon in front of our ship!!

Shelley & Shaun!

Camera Play!

Found a great wall with great colors and great lighting. Matched my dress and Jon had to take pictures! A little embarassing for me, not used to be in front of the camera.

After hanging out at the port, we got a taxi cab and went to a local beach. A little less Amercanized! This was so nice! We had a great guy hanging out with us. Had a few drinks and just enjoyed the moment! Very nice!

Great Day!

My Elephant towel animal! My second favorite! Jovito was AWESOME!

Second Port, Santo Tomaso, Guatemala! Day 4!

We went to a beach break. Not our favorite port but it was still fun to walk around and see some iguanas, turtles and read some books.

From ship to boat to our beach break! A little rainy and kinda cool!

Coco Loco! Yummy!

Norwegian Spirit!

Dancing at the WHITE PARTY! Everyone dressed in white and hey turned on their black lights! They also had ice sculptures, really cool!

My Penguin!

Third Port, BELIZE!! Day 5!
Aerial Trek and Cave tubing! Zip Lining through the jungle then hiking through the jungle to cave tubing! Had a BLAST!! It was cold though and at this point Jon and I had a fun cold. We pushed through it! Must have fun! And it was fun!!

Jon zip lining! FUN FUN FUN!!

Mandy Zip Lining! So much FUN!

Cave Tubing was next! We tubed through caves, feet under the person in front of you armpits and there were 8 of us! Get to know your neighbor time! Fun caves and jungle walk with our tubes!

Playing in "Galaxy of the Stars"! This night there was a comedy show from "Second City"! So funny!

My Monkey! My favorite towel animal! Jovito used the Mardi Gras beads for eyes!

Last Port, COZUMEL! Day 6!

In Cozumel, we arrived and went on a "Scoot Coupe" car drive around the island with Shelley and Shaun. This was probably the most dangerous thing we did. Everyones car broke down, we drove in crazy traffic and the cars were half the size of a real car. It was fun and adventurous.

Our Scoot Coupe! I know! Trust me, we had people everywhere point, smile, maybe laugh and take pictures. We were more popular than the island. Cute!

First little bit of adventure. Here is when we spun out in the middle of traffic! Jon got in trouble. You can see he is really worried about it! One person has the video, waiting on them to send it, will update when they do.

First stop! We stopped at the Pee Pee station!! No need to explain any more!

We stopped at a resteraunt/bar that was built on top of coral. Here is the sign they had next to their bird cages. Yes, this is going next to Seymore's cage!

Pic from the top of the coral!

We stopped at a beautiful piece of coral that you can walk out onto. Great picture stop!

Fun day in Cozumel! On the way back our scooter broke, the gas got stuck and we burned the brakes through the city. Loud, smelly and looking like tourist with a little bit of danger! FUN!!

My cool Rabbit!

Last Day, AT SEA! Day 7!

Having fun with the camera!

Cool shot from the balcony in our room!

Margarita Madness!

Walk about on the ship!

Mid Day Alligator!

Romantic Dinner for 2!

My last towel animal, Jovito said it is a special crab!

Last night in the hot tub, under the stars!

What a great trip!

Mardi Gras 2010

2010-02-24T10:20:00.017-06:00

Laissez Le Bon Rouleau De Temps! We started our vacation with Mardi Gras! Our friends Eric & Gina came to New Orleans to experience what is Mardi Gras. We watched a lot of parades and met up with family to celebrate the weekend! Enjoy our pics with friends and family! Let the good times roll!

Thanksgiving 2009!

2009-11-29T12:48:00.078-06:00

This year we celebrated family and friends in Nashville! Our sister Laurie and nieces Ashley and Claudia came to visit us from New Orleans. We started the holiday with a lot of cooking. Several of our friends in town came over to celebrate with us and we all contributed to the feast.

After all the food was eaten, we all had a rest and then went outside to throw the football!

Sibling love, or competition!

And of course we had to have some Thanksgiving Fireworks!

Ashley decided to practice her photography skills! I think Jon has some competition!

As the night continued, we all sat together and relaxed!

Even Mona and Seymour felt the love!

The next day, we had to tour Nashville! Here we are downtown at the Spaghetti Factory!

Next, we went to the Honky Tonks!

After that, we drove over to Centennial Park to feed the ducks and throw the frisbee.

Last, we finished the holiday weekend with the Rockettes!

Wonderful Thanksgiving!

Fall Creek Falls Camping!

2009-11-08T20:26:00.019-06:00

This past weekend, Jon and I went with a few friends of ours from the kickball league Jon joined and I am now a team member of. We all decided to go to Fall Creek Falls, about 2 and half hours from Nashville. It was beautiful! We all camped 2 nights, went hiking, fished and watched all sorts of wild life! We hope that you guys will join us one day in this great area! Love and miss you all!

Flat Stanley visits Nashville!

2009-11-04T16:39:00.016-06:00

Dear Isabella,

Your Flat Stanley came all the way to my city, Nashville, TN USA!

While he was here, these are some of the exciting things he saw and did:

Here he is in Downtown Nashville!

Once he arrived to Nashville, we introduced him to our pets. Here is Seymour our bird...

And here is Mona our cat!

After he visited with our pets, he wanted to take a look around. So, we went in our backyard and played some horseshoes!

Then, Stanley noticed all the beautiful fall colors here! In Clinton, MS you do not always get the bright yellows, reds and oranges that we get in Nashville during the fall. So, we decided to jump in the leaves and have some fun!

After we played, Stanley offered to help with our fall harvest. Here he is picking our eggplants! Yummm!

Next, we decided to go for a ride to downtown!

Our first stop was to see where the NFL Titans football team plays, LP field!

We then drove to Broadway to see the Honky Tonks and buy a cowboy hat and cowboy boots! Here is where many musicians come and play to become famous. Some famous musicians who have played here and are known for their "Honky Tonk" style are Fats Domino, Hank Williams, Waylon Jennings, Patsy Cline, Loretta Lynn and even Elvis Presley plus many many more!

After dancing on Broadway, we wanted to head to West Nashville and see Centennial Park. Here we fed the ducks and birds at the park's lake.

We also walked over to the Parthenon. This is an exact replica of the real Parthenon in Greece! This museum has been here since the World's Fair in 1897!

Wow! What a day! We have had so much fun and our cowboy hats and boots fit perfectly! I think Stanley loves Nashville, TN.

Flat Stanley has to go get some rest after a great visit! Night, Night!

Here is a little information about our city and yours.

The distance from Clinton, MS and my city Nashville is approximately 430 miles.

If Flat Stanley should come back to visit, remember Nashville, TN is known for its 4 seasons. So, he should wear a sweater in the fall because the average temperature is in the 50's, a heavy jacket in the winter because the average temperature is in the 30's - 40's, long sleeves in the spring because the average temperature is in the 50's and shorts and a t- shirt in the summer because like Mississippi, the average temperature is in the 90's. Cowboy boots, you can wear all year!

Some other interesting facts about Nashville is that it is the capitol of Tennessee and is the 2nd largest city in the state with over 600,000 people in the city and over 1 million with the surrounding areas. Our nickname is Music City, we were founded in 1779 and if you are from here you are called a Nashvillian. We have a lot of fun here in NAshville, please come visit any time!

We had a blast with Flat Stanley!

Sincerely,

Mandy & Jon Giffin

5417 San Marcos Dr.

Nashville, TN 37220

Pittsburgh Trip

2009-09-21T22:55:00.028-05:00

Hey Guys! This past weekend, Jon and I went to Pittsburgh to visit my older sister, Steph, and her family. It was a wonderful trip! We felt so relaxed!

Steph & Tom took Jon and

I to see their horses.

This is Steph pulling her horse!

Tom gave us our instructions on what to do!

Jon road a little!

Steph and I went on a trail ride after some practice!

Petey loves Jon!

After a day with the horses, we relaxed with a camp fire and some of the best hot dogs ever!!!!

The next day we went canoeing and had a picnic

That night we went out on the town to Pittsburgh!

We spent the last day with a game of basketball and all day football! GEAUX SAINTS! Who Dat!

Steph shooting the butt to the wall shot!

Watch our Garden Grow!

2009-06-17T21:05:00.021-05:00

Here is our garden! Some growing better than others. Jon made this walk way through the boxes. Enjoy our yummies!

Here are the Black Eyed Susan's that are now in the ground.
Our Squash, growing slowly because our soil is so much full of clay.

Our potatoes!

The cabbage!

Southern Peas neighboring our Mustard Greens!

The Marigolds helping keep bugs from our lettuce and other veggies!

Our first baby tomato! We actually have about 11 tomato plants and 3 that are from different countries. Will update as they grow.

Our stunted corn but great basil!

Chives!

Cantaloupe!

A little nook with peppers, melons and chives.

Cucumbers!

The start of our watermelon!

Bright Sunflowers!

Blueberry Bushes!

Raspberry's!

Our compost that we will use for next years garden!

Our strawberry's that the birds keep eating!

Citronella plant to help keep mosquito's away!

And finally introducing our outside cat Mona!