"R" Ryyyyyyan!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY RYAN!!!!!  "R" is his favorite letter!  He asked for the letter to be on his cake.  So, for his school celebration, I made cupcakes with the letter "R" out of his favorite candy....b/c I have a KING sized bag of M&Ms.  They're not EXACTLY how I pictured them, but they'll do.  I apologize now to Ryan's teachers who have to wrestle the children after devouring these.

Can you even tell they are "R"s?

I tried. 

Here's my cupcake run-down:
1st birthday - a dear friend baked and made the cupcakes and icing from scratch, I decorated each cupcake creatively, and used multiple colors of icing on each cupcake.  Bought two cupcake stands to display my masterpiece.
2nd birthday - no urge to commit to 1st birthday project, so I spent too much money on professionally done cupcakes.  Note:  not cute, but tasted delicious.
3rd birthday - had some cake mix, white icing and a big bag of M&Ms.  Displayed on a cookie sheet.  Oh, and these are going to his school. 

Ryan, I apologize now for your 4th birthday cupcakes.

Ryan's First 3rd Birthday Celebration

Nama's heading to "Fornia" to see Malyn and Mattie Sue, and will be missing Ryan's birthday.  The nerve!  So, Nama, Poppy and Nama Dotty all head over to have Ryan blow out a candle and give him his presents.  Fun, last minute planning!!!  Loved it. 

Ryan's been beyond excited about his birthday.  When I asked him what he wants for his big day, it was a no-brainer!  "Birday cake and candles."  And, he'd like an "R" on his cake. 

So, to capture all his cuteness, and celebrate year THREE, we lit the candle three times, sang "Happy Birthday" three times, and took 300 pictures.  Enjoy a few shots!

My boy's THREE!  So, Ryan at three years old:
-Loves, loves, loves toys!
-He's very happy that Thomas and Tootle share the same first letter, T (in case you weren't sure).
-Part potty-trained, part not.  Pick a day, pick a mood.
-Still thinks he can't get out of his bed until we go into his room.
-Loves to read books.
-My favorite...he's still cuddling with me.  Favorite part of weekend...having Ryan crawl into our bed, and him snuggle under my arm and we watch cartoons (with a hot cup of coffee).  (Sammy's already down for his morning nap).
-He's a pro on the iPhone.
-Still has his night-night, but it has a new name, "Nankie". 
-I think he's still around the 28 lbs mark.  We may have hit 29 lbs. 
-Favorite article of clothing:  his "new shoes".  (Red crocs).  Please don't lose them.
-He feels that his trains need a bath as often as a three year old.  And, guess who gets to dry each of them...one by one?
-He'll go up to Sammy and say, "Hi Sammy.  It's me, Ryan." 
-He prays for his friends, then grandparents, then Sammy, and THEN Rod and I. 
-The grandparents' houses are his preferred places to visit.
-Implemented Pull-ups during the day. 
-Sometimes calls me "Jessica" and it's sooo darn cute the way he says it.
-Rod and I often say how fortunate we are to "get him" for our kid.  We think he's the coolest, most snuggly, most lovable, most adorable little Toot on the planet! 

SOLD!

Guess what sold in ten days.....our first home.  Bitter sweet for sure!  We had 18 showings, and an open house that brought in ten people.  Truly blessed to sell our home so quickly, but I had no idea that I would be so sad to leave it.  We close on May 27th.  Whoa! 

So, on May 28th, we'll be closing on our new home!  (If everything keeps moving along smoothly).  I am not kidding when I say that I took two steps into the home, and said "This is it."  I just knew it before even seeing the rest of the house.  I walked into the kitchen, CONFIRMATION!  I went through the rest of the house, and could easily visualize the kiddos running into the kitchen in their pj's.  It just feels so right. 

After walking through the home, I immediately called Rod to meet us there.  (Mom was with the realtor and I).  I was sooooo nervous.  I wanted to sell the home to him.  I just knew he'd find something wrong with it, and say that we needed to keep looking.  GET THIS...he did the SAME thing I did.  He walked in.  "Welcome home, Honey.  Come in.  Take your shoes off."  And, what I hoped for.... He said, "Ah, yeah.  I like this."  Phew!  Let me rewind.  Mom and Dale (realtor) were nervous too, and told me they were going to step aside and let the two of us go through the house.  We were all nervous about Rod seeing it b/c we all thought it was soooo perfect for us. 

We took TONS of pictures of the house because 1.  I wanted to be able to show family, and 2.  The current owner is an interior decorator and wanted to make sure we stole all her ideas.  :)  (on a different budget, no less).  Unfortunately, they're all on Shutterfly.  So, here's what I snapped with my phone.

My new kitchen!!!!!! 

Thomas the Train Play Date

Mimi and Pop Pop took Ryan to Toys R Us' Thomas the Train Play Date.  The flyer for it came through on my email.  I was so excited for Ryan to go, but the idea of going to a toy store with a demanding three-year-old sounded exhausting.  So, Mimi and PopPop to the rescue. 

I was so excited to hear how it went from Millie.  Two words, "A joke."  :(  I was sooooo bummed.  I need to stop here and say that the flyer that I got looked soooooooo cool!!!  The "Conductor" of the event, didn't look anything like Sir Topenhat to me.  BUT, after seeing these pictures...it was no joke to Ryan.  Listen, as long as my kid has a toy in his hand (hence the exhaustion of thinking of taking him to a toy store) he's fine.  Make it a train, and we're double-fine. 

The picture below just melts my heart.  Look how serious he is about playing with the trains, wearing his hat, and sitting there with the big kids. 

Can't take a kid to a toy store, without buying a toy!  Thank you Mimi and PopPop for the circus trains that Thomas pulls. And, how cute is this picture?!?!

Still sporting his hat.  It's serious bizz in Thomas land.  I laugh looking at this picture thinking that he's thinking "Now, when I get home, I'm going to first get my other Thomas' out.  Then, get my new Henry and #3 train.  Hook them up...."

Ryan, I love your love of toys!

EASTER TIME!

Ryan, meet Salty.  Salty, Ryan.

Mimi and PopPop made Easter so special for us!!! I LOVED the way she decorated the house, and the food was DELICIOUS.  (Maybe one day I'll tackle the four page recipe).  Thank you for making it a fun, and relaxing Easter morning! 

Cure Mito!

Over the past year, gosh maybe two years, I've been reading a random blog (no longer random) that I stumbled upon. You see, I'll often open up friends of friends' blogs to see what's going on in the world. Come on ladies...admit it. You do it too! Well, I really gravitated toward Amber's blog of her adorable, and lovable family! You want to talk about a pioneer woman....meet Amber Greenawalt! Amazing woman of God! Love her spirit and her never ending energy. I'm honored to say that she asked me to be her friend on Facebook. You can ask Rod. I got so excited when I saw that Amber Greenawalt asked me to be her friend.

Her youngest of three was diagnosed with Mitochondrial Disease. Amber used her creative gifts to put together a video to spread the message on Mito, and the hope that one day there will be a cure for it!

Since I'm unable to get her video to embed in this message, I ask that you PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE go to her blog, and check out her cutie pie kiddos, and the video she's created. I'll try again soon. Amber, I'm sorry I couldn't figure it out.

Sam's FOUR Months Old!

For real????

Again, I will be overly obnoxious in saying he is the sweetest, little toot around town! Need to feel loved???? Have a little time with Samuel....he'll snuggle with you, bat his eyes at you, and give you the dimpliest smile.

So, Samuel at four-months! We haven't gone to the doctor yet, so don't know all his stats, but here's what I do know:

-When at school, he drinks 5-6 oz bottles. When I breastfeed him, I have no idea how much he eats.

-He sleeps from 7:30pm, with a sneaky-sneak feed at 9:30pm (so I can keep my milk supply up), and wakes between 6:30 and 7:00am. It's wonderful!!!

-He loves to talk.

-He's got multiple dimples on his cheeks. (don't think they've found their place yet).

-Hands down the greatest smile.

-Not quite rolling over yet. He just sort of hangs out on his side.

-Loves to eat his hands, which wakes him up, so still have to swaddle Sam at night. Miracle blanket!

-Just took the Nap-nanny out of the crib. He's now sleeping flat on his back, and seems to do fine.

-He's started smiling at Ryan, which just melted my heart more than I ever knew it would. Can't wait for whats to come (yes, some things I can wait for).

-Doesn't have to be held all the time, but when he is held....he's one happy, happy boy.

-No longer does his projectile vomiting. Really hasn't for about a month now. yeehaw.

-He fits well in 3-6 mos clothes. Nama Dotty politely suggested I not put him in his 3 mos outfits anymore. Poor kids toes were all curled up last night b/c his PJs are too small now.

Love this happy, adorable boy!

Lazy Days

Here's what we do on our lazy weekends....

1. Stay in our PJs

2. Watch lots and lots of T.V.

3. Mom works on the world's HARDEST puzzle.

4. Ryan scatters his trains all over the house.

5. We let the sun hit our faces for 20.5 seconds to get the mail.

6. We think about cleaning, but decide to shower.

7. Change a diaper here and there.

8. Look at houses online.

9. Nap when the kids nap.

10. Snap pics of the kiddos to shove a hint of productiveness into our "busy-lazy" day.

Check whose turning four months old on Wednesday!!!!!

Valentine's, Tootle Movie Night & the Rodeo

Happy Valentine's Day!!! We've had a good, and VERY busy February. Enjoy the pics of my boys!!!!

I let Ryan go through his Valentine's bag from school. He must have gotten 30 lollipops. And, I let him open every one of them.

Here's our little Sam at the end of January. So, he was about 2.5 months here. Have I mentioned how sweet he is?!?

Samuel's first bath with Ryan. He loved soaking in the warm water. I've been giving him sink baths. Time for the upgrade.

After their first brotherly bath, we had our first movie night. I LOVED every minute of it!!!

Can't get over this! I LOVE these pig face pictures!

Tired?

Ryan's first FRIED ice cream!!!

Samuel - Three Months

Holy guacamole, the kid is three months old. (And, now I'm craving guacamole). Focus on your little nugget, Jessica. He really couldn't be a sweeter baby. Yes, all babies are sweet, but there is a sweet, little disposition he has about himself. A sensitive, sweet side. I LOVE IT! He may end up being my ultimate mama's boy.

On top of all his sweetness, he is such a good baby. He took to Babywise like a champ! He wins a gold in my eyes! Samuel started sleeping through the night at eight weeks. Now, he's sleeping a full nine hours a night, consistently!!! We're on week three of nine hour stretches. I'm a new woman!

He's eating 4.5 to 5.0 ounce bottles at school, but I truly doubt he's eating that much off of me. I'm still pumping at work which allows me to have enough food for a day at school, plus one extra bottle to store. That's really helped me store up for when I have to go out of town for work, or Rod and I decide to slip away for vacation. No worries, Ryan knows where to find Sam's food. We're good.

As far as nicknames, here's what we got: Samuelson (said like Mr. Miagi on Karate Kid), little Toot, little nugget, tootie-tooterton.

Now, on top of the toot being so sweet, he also can bat those eyes. Whoooo, girl! Makes Mama's day! Love you Sweet Samuel!

Wanna Play?

Guess who is who? (Ryan or Samuel)

If you guess Ryan for all of them, you are right! Samuel is looking more and more like Ryan did, but with his own features. I go back and forth thinking he does and then doesn't look like Ryan did as a baby. I need to get new pics of Samuel. The header picture above was taking almost two weeks ago. I swear....he's changed his look. Got some big ole cheeks.

Morning's Conversation with Ryan

Mom: Let's get dressed.
Ryan: We're going to Nama's house (always said with excitment, and a hint of "I've got a good idea").
Mom: No. No Nama's house.
Ryan: Mimi's house???
Mom: No Mimi's house. You're going to la escuela. ("school" in Spanish).
Ryan: Yeah, okay. Escuela's house. We're going to Escuela's house.

These are a few pics I took outside my friend Ashley's house. She has AMAZING landscaping to snap great shots. Family pics may be taken there!!!

Silly string in the pond.

Such a boy!

TWO MONTHS OLD!!!!

Go Samuel! We had our two month appointment today! Here are Samuel's stats:

Weight: 10 lbs 14 ozs
Height: 22 inches
Perfection Level: (on a scale of 1 to 10, based on Mom's opinion) 10+

Samuel is growing, cooing, smiling, sleeping and eating like a champ. We're still on the Zantac for his reflux, which truly seems to help. So, we'll keep going with it!

Get this...the little Toot is SLEEPING THROUGH THE NIGHT!!!! He's done this three nights in a row, with no "crying it out". So, just in time for me to head back to work. Thank you Samuel!!!

He had three shots today, requiring two bandaids. But, Samuel's sporting three, well actually four. I clipped the heck out of his skin on his thumb, requiring the other two bandaids. Blood every where, and right before his appointment. Good grief. I had everything timed out perfectly, then this. Oh well.

Tomorrow I head to the office. Please pray for my family and I. Needing smooth transition back to work, good work environment, home life adaptable to longer work hours, etc.

Been a wonderful and fun maternity leave!!! Thank you Mimi and Nama for all the help!!! We truly couldn't do this without you two!

Samuel is SEVEN Weeks Old

I THINK he's two-weeks old in this pic. Maybe three.

Samuel - Christmas Day

For real?!?! I cannot get over this. I cannot believe this child has been in our lives for seven weeks already. Quick note: Samuel's friend Samantha is here!!! She's five days old, and beautiful! Welcome Samantha Pierce!

Samuel's growing as babies typically grow. I weighed myself (no comment), and then weighed me again with Samuel in my arms. He's at 10.4 lbs. He's out of the newborn clothes, and fits well in the 0-3 mos clothing. I think he looks like Rod. But, as he's been putting weight on, he's looking like a Rod-Ryan. Which isn't a bad combination at all! :) Samuel has dark eyebrows, dark eyes and nice skin coloring. So, it's looking like Ryan and I will be slathered in 50+ spf, while Rod and Samuel enjoy their natural golden tans.

Samuel's been smiling more and more. And, the coo'ing. I can't get over it. I could hear a baby coo all day long. Hands down one of the sweetest sounds.

He's been on Zantac for the past three weeks, and sleeping in his nap nanny at night. I think both have helped his reflux. We're trying to figure out why he's so finicky (is that the word) while I'm feeding him. He just seems so agitated. I've got the goods, and he just seems agitated. I think this has something to do with his reflux, but I'll find out for sure on his TWO MONTH appointment on the 18th.

I head back to work on the 19th. I'm part ready, and part not ready at all to head back. I'm honored to say that I just got a promotion....which also means longer work days, and more responsibility. You're now reading the words of the new Director of Quality Services. Huge honor! The biggest anxiety that I have is getting all the kids gear together, out the door, into the car, out of the car, gear out of the car, in the daycare, and both kids in their appropriate classrooms in time to get myself to Starbucks for my coffee, and in my office by 8:30am. I've told my boss to go easy on me the first few weeks. My plan is to get up earlier (maybe 6:30am), get myself completely ready, and then get the kids up and ready. Fortunately, daycare feeds breakfast (if you get your kids there before 8:30am), so I won't have to stress about feeding them in the mornings.

Yes, life with two kids is a lot of work. But, I love having two kids, calling them "the boys", loving on two sweet faces, watching Ryan love on his brother....just a massive blessing beyond any words I could ever put together.

Christmas pics next. I promise. Just needed to give Samuel some blog-time. :)