Getting So Big...

Here is a video compilation showing how much Ryan is growing, changing and learning! He is such a smart little boy!!!

I had him do several words in a row that all sound like Mama. Right now Mama, Mickey Mouse, milk and more all sound very similar. Milk is just ma and more is mo.

Mommy's Little Helper

I got a recipe for chocolate chip cookie bars from one of my mommy friends a week or so ago. It sounded delicious and we had all of the ingredients on hand so I decided to go ahead and try making them with Ryan. Ryan was great in the kitchen. He stuck his fingers in the dough a couple times but didn't know that it was something he could/should eat so he never once tried to take a bite. I was quite shocked as he usually puts just about everything into his mouth. Ryan was not such a big fan of the mixer and kept saying/signing all done when I would use it. He did like stirring the chocolate chips and eating the finished product though!

"Dall Done!!"

This is fun!

Focused..

When do we get to eat these??

Mmmmm I'm a good cook!!!! (that is lunch on the chair and Ryan's face as well)...

Sour Face

Tonight when we were at dinner Jeff thought it would be funny to give Ryan a lime. Ryan's face tells the story. I do not think he was too fond of the lime at all.

Blackberry Bonanza

Last weekend we went out to a nearby farm to their annual Blackberry Bonanza. A couple of months ago we went there to pick strawberries. I had never picked any fruit at all until we moved to Virginia, but I really do enjoy it. We met up with a couple of our friends and we had a wonderful time.

Ryan loved picking blackberries. The berries were right on his eye level. He kept trying to eat the red berries, but we did our best to keep them out of his mouth. I have no idea how many delicious blackberries Ryan consumed that day. He was eating them just as fast as we were picking them.

After we picked our berries, we went and played around the farm. They have so many great activities for kids. Ryan and I shared some delicious blackberry ice cream, had a little family lunch and loaded up into the car.

I also made my first ever cobbler. It was SO very good. I have included the recipe below.

Mmmm Mama this are good...

Picking berries with Daddy..

We could not get Ryan to look up for a single picture. He was so distracted by all the fruit within his reach..

The jumping pillow..

Tire mountain...

Blackberry Cobbler - Courtesy of Allrecipes.com

• 1 cup butter or margarine, divided
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup water
• 1 1/2 cups self-rising flour*
• 1/3 cup milk, room temperature
• 2 cups fresh or frozen blackberries
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 tablespoons sugar

In a 10-in. round or oval baking dish, melt 1/2 cup butter; set aside. In a saucepan, heat sugar and water until sugar melts; set aside. Place flour in a mixing bowl; cut in remaining butter until fine crumbs form. Add milk, stirring with a fork until dough leaves sides of bowl. Turn out onto a floured surface; knead three or four times. Roll out to an 11-in. x 9-in. rectangle 1/4 in. thick. Spread berries over dough; sprinkle with cinnamon. Roll up, jelly-roll style. Cut into 1/4-in. thick slices. Carefully lay slices in baking dish over butter. Pour sugar syrup around slices (syrup will be absorbed). Bake at 350 degrees F for 45 minutes. Sprinkle sugar over top and bake 15 minutes more. Serve warm or cold. (*If self-rising flour is not available, use 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour plus 1/4 teaspoon salt and 2-1/4 teaspoons baking powder.)

Play Dough

A couple of weeks ago Ryan's Great-Aunt Sharon passed on a play dough recipe to us. While Ryan and I were stuck in the house during the painting I decided to give it a try. Ryan and I headed outside to play with the neon-colored play dough. Ryan played with it a little bit but was more interested in watching the kids ride their bikes up and down the street, telling everyone hi and running around.

The play dough keeps really well though in little ziploc baggies. It is SO easy to make and almost even smells like the real stuff. I am sure that we will make it again in the future. Here is Sharon's play dough recipe.

Sharon's Play Dough

1 cup flour

2 tsp cream of tartar

1/2 cup salt

1 tbsp vegetable oil

1 cup water

Combine all dry ingredients in a saucepan. Add in water and oil. Stir over low heat until it comes together like a dough. Remove from heat. Add food coloring if desired.

Jonathan Tyler & The Northern Lights

How cool is this?  The band that my brother plays with was just named the Best Group in the DFW area by the Dallas Observer.  If you live in Dallas, be sure to pick up your very own copy of the Dallas Observer as the boys are on the cover!!!  

To see the article, click here

Way to go boys!! We are so proud of you all.  Keep up the great work! :) 

Handsome Boy

I have been having lots of fun lately taking pictures of my most favorite subject, Ryan.  I have gotten some really great shots and just had to share them.  

My boys...

And just to prove that we are not always a happy camper, I took some pictures of Ryan in a full on fit.  We have officially reached the age of little tantrums when things don't go our way.  Hopefully this is just a stage that will pass quickly. 

Seriously, how many more pictures are you going to take??

Friends

Here are a few pictures of Ryan and his friends playing in the water fountains last week. I love watching all the kiddos interact. Now if only we could teach them all to share. LOL They are all starting to get into a "mine" stage which makes play dates lots of fun.

Ryan REALLY wanted to ride in her car...




Ryan, Adam, Zachary and Isabel

Dominoes

While Nana and Papa were here at the beginning of the month, Ryan discovered a fun new toy/game. "Noninoes" as he calls them are fun to clang together and even more fun when Daddy lines them up and lets Ryan knock them all down. Ryan was also Mommy's lucky charm for several rounds of Chicken Foot.

Ok Daddy, let's play this one...

Deep in thought..


This is fun!

Just Dance!

Ryan loves music and he loves to get down to the beat.  This morning I decided to look for something on demand for us to watch.  I came across Jack's Big Music Show and decided that looked like fun.  We watched and danced our way through the entire episode - thankfully no one is there to video tape me.   :)  Enjoy!

 

24 Weeks

I wanted to get this post up before tomorrow because as of tomorrow I will be 25 weeks. I can't believe how fast this pregnancy is going. It is incredible to us to think that we will meet our baby boy in 14 short weeks or less!

Last week we went for our monthly ultrasound to check on B2's growth and make sure that my placenta issues had corrected. B2 is going to be a good sized boy. He was measuring approximately a week ahead of schedule and was 1lb 8oz on July 8th. My placenta issues have corrected and everything looks great with both of us! YAY!!

As far as B2's name goes, well, we are 99% sure on his first name. We are still tossing around a couple of different ideas on the middle name. What is this name? We haven't decided if we are going to release it yet or not. We didn't reveal Ryan's name until he was born so we might do the same this time. Technically we did not actually name Ryan until after he was born. Ryan was in our top 5 names that we went to the hospital with but not the name we thought we would use.

Anyway, I am getting very excited to meet B2. I am still sleeping surprisingly well at night. I haven't gained too much weight --- yet. I feel great! I am exhausted by the time Ryan goes to bed but I think that I would feel that way regardless of whether or not I was pregnant.

B2's cute profile shot...

24 week belly shot...please excuse the fact that I look exhausted. It was a long day of chasing Ryan and fun in the sun --- and I was actually tired.

16 Months!

This month has been such a big month for Ryan.  Jeff and I have been amazed at the changes we have seen in Ryan in such a short period of time.  He is such a smart little boy!  This month Ryan has started running -- the fun has really begun now.  He has also started climbing onto pretty much anything.  He has gotten 4 more teeth, changed his schedule to where he only takes one nap per day and grown lots of new hair (he is still pretty bald though)!!  

Ryan's vocabulary is also picking up.  He is learning new words all of the time.  He will repeat pretty much anything that we say.  He knows lots of body parts including his teeth, eyes, ears, head, toes, nose and belly button.  He seems to learn words and animal sounds after hearing them just a couple of times.  I was keeping track of his words but not anymore as he seems to be adding something every other day or so.  He LOVES to say hi to just about anyone.  He is such a friendly and outgoing little boy.  He is a people person and is not scared of anything (except the vacuum cleaner) or anyone. 

I love watching his personality develop.  Ryan is independent and likes to do things on his own but at the same time he loves getting hugs from his Mommy and Daddy.  Ryan is very smart.  He loves to figure out how things operate.  He has successfully unbuckled his car seat twice in the past 2 weeks and he has also figured out our child-safety locks in the kitchen!  He is somewhat impatient and seems to get frustrated when he can't quite get a toy to do exactly what he wants it to do.  

Such a handsome boy..

Telling me that Santa says Ho, Ho, Ho! 

Giggles..

Pictures from the park...

Here are some pictures from a trip to the park this weekend.  Ryan had a great time, even though he looks totally serious in every shot.  He has become quite serious when in front of the camera as of late.

Not in the mood for pictures Mom..

Such a big boy playing all by himself...

Ryan & Daddy to the rescue...