Graas Family Blog

Emil has graduated to a real high chair. A few weeks back, Jon picked up a wood one and it debuted when we returned from South Texas. Emil seems to like being high off the ground but gone are the days of not strapping him in. Wednesday morning I was getting ready for work while Emil was sitting and watching. When I turned around he was standing up in the chair. Luckily he wasn’t too proud or daring and just smiled.

Unfortunately, I haven’t gotten a good picture yet of him using it, but I will. Here are two pictures worthy for blackmail because he is so sleepy and blinky, he doesn’t look too bright.

Two weeks ago, we went to south Texas to visit my mom and all the associated family and friends. We flew into Austin where my cousin Tommy picked us up. After sorting out a lost bag, luckily it was one bag and not little boy’s, we headed down to Lockhart for some bar-b-que. First stop, Smitty’s for pork ribs, pork loin, sausage, beans, and Shiner Bock. What a great place for Emil to try his first pork ribs. Second stop, Chisholm Trail for brisket to take to the party my mom was having that afternoon. I think there were over 50 people at the party, or at least it felt that way. It was so nice to see family and long-time family friends, especially since people had not met Emil. It was a long day, so before Emil started getting fussy we put him down. Highlights included Ms. Bea Copeland, lab friends, my dad, MiMi, Uncle Tom, and Terri Klein. Little did I realize that Emil would be a part of the gift exchange and he came home with a ton of cute toys!

Sunday we arranged to meet up with my Dad and family for lunch at Mi Tierra. Emil enjoyed his chicken quesadillas, sharing a meal with such a large table, and the year-round, ridiculously bright decorations in the dinning room. We took a long walk around downtown and the Riverwalk to work off a small portion of lunch. Of course, a milk shake at the old Olmos Pharmacy was in order before heading home.

Monday morning we went back into San Antonio for breakfast tacos, but since the weather cleared up, we went back to the house quickly to ride the horses. After I rode, Sir came up on Starla with me for some picture-taking and walking around the yard. Our camera is terrible, so you can’t see his face up close, but he had a really big smile! We cooked a yummy seafood dinner and did Christmas with my Mom. The early flight Tuesday came too soon!

The weekend after Christmas, Jon worked both Saturday and Sunday, so Emil and I were left to our own devices.  Emil really perfected official crawling this weekend as well. When it is cold and I am sleepy, this usually results in a lot of pictures being taken. So here are a ton of pictures.

Since this was our first Christmas home, it was pretty quiet and lovely. A few days before Christmas is snowed 8-12 inches here so the snow was still around the backyard. Jon even witnessed a woodpecker pecking away in the backyard – always neat to see nature in the middle of the city. I took Christmas Eve off from work and hung out with Emil and made apple strudel. It wasn’t my best ever, since I over-stuffed and under-cooked it. Luckily, the dough doesn’t have eggs so it wasn’t ruined. It still made the house smell amazing, like I remember PaPa’s, and, of course, it still tasted good. Jon arrived home late and we hung out.

unfortunately, Emil hasn’t been sleeping as late as he should since Thanksgiving, so no sleeping in for Christmas morning. We went to mass and came home in time for his breakfast and nap. Once he was awake around 1 pm we opened presents. Emil started to get the hang of tearing open paper towards the end but he mostly wanted to practice his new crawling skills by climbing over to the nativity set. He received books, toys, and other goodies so thank you to all! In less than a week he has managed to break the tambourine we gave him. I think he stepped on it or stepped on another toy that punctured the drum. Oh well! By far, the most fun he has had as been playing in the large boxes that contained presents.