Monday, March 12, 2012

Quinn’s Week-long Adventures: Visit with Grandma



Quinn’s Weekend Week-long Adventures: Visit with Grandma

My mom came out to visit for the week and celebrate Quinn’s first birthday with us. It was wonderful having her here, and not just because it’s great to have an extra pair of hands around. (Although, I could really get used to that!)

My family lives in Michigan and I feel bad that they don’t get to see Quinn more often. My mom has only seen him three times, and my dad and brother have only met him once. It makes me sad to think Q won’t know his other set of grandparents or his uncle very well. So it felt good to have my mom here to celebrate Q’s birthday, and when we look back at the photos someday, he’ll know she was here.

Quinn grew close to his Grandma Lori in just a short time. He raised his arms for her to pick him up, gave her hugs, and played with her. Q even let her rock him to sleep one night while Hubs and I enjoyed a rare, baby-free date night. On Sunday, the day after my mom flew home, I mentioned Grandma, and Quinn looked around for her. It broke my heart.

Since we only had Grandma here for a week, we packed in a lot of fun in just a few short days. The day after my mom arrived, we had Quinn’s first birthday party, but that’s a whole set of photos I will wait and share with you on Not-So-Wordy Wednesday. Here are some photos from the rest of our week together.


Mom and I took Quinn to San Francisco for the first time. We had lunch on Pier 39, and then walked around and looked at the sea lions that make their pier their home. Quinn laughed when they barked loudly and slapped the platform.




Quinn got a bright yellow bouncy ball from his cousins, and he loves it!



Quinn showed Grandma how he likes to play with the throw pillows.



Even meal time made a nice photo opportunity for Grandma. Q hammed it up for the camera every time.



Thursday was Quinn’s birthday, and Mom and I took him to Happy Hollow. It’s mostly geared toward older kids, but there were a few things there that Quinn could enjoy, such as Danny the Dragon.




Quinn actually cried when we got off the ride, so we gave it another go.



He clung to my neck when we went through the dark tunnel.



After the ride was over, Q stood by the fence to watch Danny the Dragon go by a few times.



Happy Hollow also has a small zoo, which surprisingly housed an actual jaguar! She sat close to the glass and didn’t seemed bothered by the kids, so I let Q get a closer look.



Quinn liked looking at  the animals so much I think I’m going to take him to the San Francisco zoo soon.




That night, we let Quinn open all his birthday presents.



He was a bit overwhelmed at first, but he quickly got into it.




One of his favorite gifts was a Super Grover 2.0 toy remote control from Grandma. This thing is actually really funny.



Here’s Quinn looking awfully grown up on his big day.



Here’s Quinn’s attempt at blowing a raspberry. Ha!



On Friday, Quinn woke up with some awesome bed head that lasted all day. Not even a little good ol’ Mommy Spit could smooth it down. Hilarious!





Quinn threw his toy over the baby gate around the wood burning stove. When I went to get it for him, he decided it would be fun to give kisses through the bars. Sometimes those kisses turn into bites on the nose.



Grandma managed to capture an updated family photo of Hubs, Q and me. Look at those handsome boys!



It was a wonderful week with Grandma, and I was sad to see her leave. I’m planning a trip to Michigan with Q for later this summer. I’ve never traveled with Quinn alone before, and I’m sure he’ll be running all over the place by then. So if anyone has any tips for traveling with a toddler, I’m all ears!