Spencer has so many different facial expressions that he would put a mime to shame. Being that said, I'm doing something a little different this time to break up the one paragraph description prior to the photos - I'm adding funny captions to his photos. I'm sure some will expand on my editorial quips, but here goes:



I am getting so sick of Geico commercials.



That's funny. She was just here a minute ago.



Is this how Goldilocks got started?



Larry's sick and The Three Stooges need me.



You got my attention now. You say I get mashed potatoes when I get older?



You gotta be kidding! I have to take 3 naps a day?



Of course I'm innocent. I'm too cute to be guilty of anything!



It's not fair! That kid gets 8 oz.!



You'd be mad too if you had to wait this long for your bottle!

It's now 2009, and we went to visit our friends, Brandon & Deena, down in Centralia for a New Year's Dinner get-together. Both their parents were there, as well as other relatives and friends. Teri's mom, June, went along so she could partake in the festivities and delicious prime rib dinner that Brandon cooked outside in his barbeque. One of Deena's cats, Sammy, had a great interest in Spencer right after he arrived. Deena's aunt, Janice, had a chance to hold him for a while, and as usual, Spencer wasn't fussy at all when being held. On the other hand, Spencer was the only one not enjoying all the goodies and conversations. At the end of the day, Great Grandma June sang her Norwegian song, "Hunka Sosa Grandma's House" to Spencer. I have no idea how it's spelled, but it's effects were apparent as he drifted off into a blissful nap. Well done, June, but I will have to find out what the song is all about.

We arrived at Rachelle and Ryan's house about 1 pm, but Ryan was still with his folks visiting his grandparents, Bill & Pat. He came home about 2 pm, and then other people started to arrive. Everyone took turns holding Spencer, so he got somewhat acquainted with all the new faces. Rachelle had went out that morning and bought him a miniature Santa Suit, so she dressed him up and surprised everyone with his new outfit. That Mall Santa would have had a run for his money competing against Spencer, and as an unbiased grandpa, I can vouch for that!

On Christmas Eve morning, we met Rachelle and Ryan with his folks at the Federal Way Mall to have Spencer get his first picture taken with Santa Claus. He did quite well, except he kept looking at Santa, not the photographer, and Ryan had to jump in to get him to smile. Being that they printed out only photo prints, I decided to take my own shots of Spencer in his first, very own Christmas Suit. Even if Santa wasn't around, he still stands out as a cute Christmas Elf, don't you think!

We had the opportunity to have Spencer spend the weekend of Dec. 20th & 21st. Rachelle & Ryan were preparing for a family get-together on Christmas Eve at their house, as well as trying to catch up on their Christmas shopping. With all the snow and ice, we figured it would be better just to keep him over night, instead of running back and forth so late. Amazingly, he did sleep the whole night. But he was happy to see mom and dad pick him up, just as the snow was starting to pile up.

It's now Monday, Dec. 8th, and Rachelle found out Spencer has acid reflux, which is why he kept spitting up and trying to clear his throat after every feeding. So her and Ryan went to the pharmacy to get some special Zantac medicine for infants. I'm used to burping babies, and when they do, that's usually the end of it. But this little guy would just fidget and squirm right after all the initial burping. All he wanted to do was to be held upright, pat his back and walk around - constantly. Hopefully, this will help relieve him of his problem. When he isn't like a wiggle worm, he's a joy to have around.

Today is Dec. 6th, Teri's birthday, and looking after Spencer was an extra birthday treat. When Rachelle dropped him off, she said that he had hardly slept all day. After 6 hours, 2 bottles, 2 diaper changes, all kinds of smiles and cooing, and talking to Great Grandma June for about 20 minutes, it finally caught up with him. He finally fell fast sleep about 11 p.m., and when his mom picked him, I think he stayed awake long enough to get into the car. I heard he slept until 7 a.m., which by itself was probably some sort of record. Like I said before, the boy just wants to have fun and get involved. And at such an early stage in life, too!