A Year in Review

2008 has been a great year for me. I can't believe how much has changed in the course of only one year. I hope 2009 brings as much joy!
Here is a quick run down of the last year:

• I moved back from Chicago at the end of last December so I was adjusting to life back in NC at the beginning of the year
• January Don and I had our late honeymoon in the mountains which was romantic and wonderful and the last vacation we had before the baby
• February I had my baby shower in Chicago thrown by Rachel who is amazing and wonderful and I still can't believe how great it was (much like my bachelorette party which she also helped throw).
• In March my mom got married to a man who was wonderful and had acted as my father through a lot of stuff.
• April we finished Ryan's room
• May Ryan was born... biggest month of my life. Rachel and David came home from school for the birth.
• June Sarah Cate came to meet Ryan and we got settled in at home.
• July Ryan got to meet Grandma and Grandpa Mason for the first time.
• August we went to the beach and Ryan got to meet some of our college friends.
• September Ryan got to meet Ava (who is one day older then him) and I got to reconnect with my friend Nicki from middle school who I have grown super close to. I love the Internet, I can't imagine my life without having her to talk to now.
• October Sarah Cate came back to visit and Ryan had his first Halloween.
• November we traveled to the mountains for thanksgiving and Don got his new job which he loves.
• December Ryan had his first Christmas.

What a full year! It went by so fast. I can't believe how much time matters when you are watching a baby grown up. This year I have learned that I have amazingly great friends and family. I am so blessed, thank you all for reading the blog. I am printing out everything here to make into a book for Ryan so he can see what great people he has in his life.
I am excited for next year, I can't wait to see what sort of person Ryan develops into.

Adventures in Flour

Head to toe flour... Fun times, unfortunately I didn't realize until after that my dust-buster had not been charged... oh well.... I will be peeling caked flour off of Ryan until his bath but it was well worth it, so much fun. At one point he got down on his belly to "swim" in it. Ryan decided that he wasn't covered enough and needed to take just a little more out of the bag

I've Been Had

I have been played. I know it happens, but by a 7 month old? It is too early; Ryan is too smart for his own good.
So if Ryan is crying in his crib when I put him in for a nap, I usually let him cry for a while (unless he is really upset then I go in), I usually only go in if his pacifier falls out of the crib which I can hear on the monitor.
So Ryan was particularly fussy today so I put him in his crib so he could calm down and maybe nap. He didn’t realize it, but I was watching him from the doorway. So I see him staring up at the ceiling, when he gets bored he takes his pacifier out of his mouth and tries to shove it out of the crib! He totally did it on purpose! Then like 5 seconds later he starts to cry and looks at the door waiting for me to come in!
And so it begins…

Ever Changing Baby

Ryan has changed so much recently I thought I would have a blog focused just on some of his recent milestones.

• Today he went from laying on his belly to sitting up all on his own for the first time. This makes it way easier to play with toys (imagine laying on your tummy and trying to play games with both hands... not easy).
• He has also started eating everything... lasagna, yogurt, salmon, pickles etc.. His two teeth on the bottom just popped through but I think he needs a few more to get the chewing thing down pat until then he gets the pudding version of everything. I hope the teeth come in soon, I am not a huge fan of this teething business.
• Ryan is making lots of new noises, he sings to songs on the radio or rather talks over them. He says Dada and Mama, but not to Don and I... just babble.. but the real thing should come soon.
• His favorite thing is when people smile at him, even his reflection in the mirror.
• He gives hugs and reaches for people when he wants to be held. When he hugs he gets really aggressive.
• He has just discovered that when you hit two hard things together it makes a loud noise which he loves and does it with everything.
• I don't know how much he weighs, but it sure seems like a lot when I am carrying him around, he is in 9month clothes and seems to be getting bigger daily. He is 7 1/2 months old.
• He can go from one side of the room to the other in a sort of crawl slide, he doesn't like his knees on the floor so he either has straight legs with bottom straight up or is slithering.
• His favorite books are 5 little monkeys and the Hungry Caterpillar, I read them numerous times a day.

Life is good, Ryan is more amazing then I ever thought he could be. I'm sure after I post this I will think of a lot other things that he does but this is enough for now.

Quick Christmas Recap

I love Christmas. We had such a good one this year. My brother and mom came over Christmas Eve and we had lasagna and chocolate ice cream cake… not traditional but VERY good. We opened our gifts of Christmas PJ’s and watched Christmas movies until it was time for bed. We woke up to open gifts and eat breakfast together. Ryan was in heaven with so much attention.
Thank you everyone who sent gifts and cards it was great to hear from all of you. I Hope everyone had a great Holiday!
We don’t have any big plans for New Years Eve, just hanging out at home which sounds wonderful to me.

2nd Tooth

Ryan had another tooth pop through! My goodness, he is much happier now that they are out. Bottom front two down, a mouthful left :)

Pictures of Ryan's First Christmas!

Tree All Lit up
Ryan deciding which present to open first
This looked like a particularly tasty present

Grandma reading the Christmas book

Uncle David headbutt

Ryan convinced me to read the Christmas book again

The boys and their jammies

Ryan's new cheeseball smile

TOOTH!

Have you ever had the experience where a doctor looks at you like you are crazy when you say something is wrong? Well I went to the pediatricians for Ryan on Friday, Ryan was really cranky and was playing with his ears. I thought it was possible that he had an ear infection and I wanted to make sure before the weekend started that he didn’t. I mean he was just finishing up swimming lessons where his ears has been under water 2 times a week for 3 weeks… it was possible.

So we go into the doctor’s office and Ryan is in a great mood (thus disproving me before we even start the appointment). The doctor looks in his ears and tells me point blank he is fine. So I say “maybe his teeth are bothering him, he has really been teething” the doctor runs his fingers over his gums and says “IF he is teething it is JUST starting, you have a while before teeth, he is just cranky.” DISMISSED. Whatever… I this was the first time in over 7 months I had gone to the pediatrician for anything other then a scheduled checkup, I deserve one right?

Well less then a week later on Wednesday a tooth popped through! Yay first tooth! So to that particular doctor… who is the crazy one now?

Yay for teeth, teeth start opening up a whole new world of foods which Ryan is going to enjoy! Ryan just wanted his two front teeth for Christmas and he got one!

Flying Babyfood

Some feedings are cleaner then others.....

In this particular one, Ryan tried to help me put his tray on his chair by grabbing it off the table... which knocked the bowl of food on the floor... which hit just right so that all the food flew up and hit me in the face. Nice look huh? I actually got baby food in my eye. Ryan got one chunk right in the middle of his forehead in his hair, this was right after his bath.

Thankful for the Moment

I had a dream last night that I died in a school gym, the stands fell and I died. In the dream I went to what I suppose was heaven. It was this waiting area where there were probably 25 other people around me. We talked about our lives and had to figure out what was going on through this woman who was in charge (Not God, more of an administrative assistant type). The deal was, you could look down on the people you left one time and one time only.


When your time in this room was up you had to jump out this little door that looked like a baggage shoot opening and you would be reborn. All I could think of the whole time was how much I had loved my life, that Ryan and Don were the best things in the world. I was sad in heaven because I couldn’t imagine anything as great in the next life as the life I had left.


When I woke up I wasn't entirely sure if I was dead and using my one look down on the world or if I was alive. It made me realize how lucky I am. Nothing else mattered at that moment, all those things that seem so important (Money, weight, possessions etc) were irrelevant. Looking at them knowing this might be the last time I see the both of them I couldn't think of anything except how lucky I was to have that moment. If only I could remember to see with such clarity all the time.

Lunch Thief

So I had just finished feeding Ryan his lunch- pasta with meat/spinach/ tomato sauce and blackberry apple sauce oh and don't forget the 5 ounces of milk. I thought, there is no way he is still hungry. I had eaten half my lunch and put the rest near where I was going to sit and eat and went to go clean up the mess Ryan had left. When I came back.... this is what I found. Sorry all you vegetarians out there :)
I swear I am not going to post any more pictures this week... I just couldn't pass this one up.

Caught Red Handed

Swimming Lessons

Ryan loves his swimming lessons. Today dad and Grandma came to play at the pool!
He likes to paddle around both on his stomach and back and play with the rings, but his favorite part is climbing out of hte side, he is very strong and actually does most of it on his own.

This is our last week of these lessons. I think after February we will sign up for more. I want to make sure Ryan is comfortable in the water. Who knows maybe he has an olympic future. Thank you grandma Suzanne for getting us these lessons, such a good gift :)

Quick Update... Sleeping Through the Night!

Ryan has been sleeping through the night! This is one of those milestones that you look forward to from the time you find out you are pregnant. When I say through the night, last night he went to bed at 7:00pm and woke up at 7:50am. WOW.

What a difference a good night sleep makes.

It has messed with his napping schedule (he had a few days of napping for 30 minutes in the entire day) but I think he will start getting into a normal schedule soon. Ryan's mood is so different when he is tired as opposed to when he is well rested.

I have been a little overzealous with the camera lately so I have lots of pictures, I am trying not to overwhelm you with all of them but Ryan is so cute I'm having trouble not sharing them. Here are a few:

Crawling

Crawling :)
He still doesn't go as fast as he wants, but he can get where he wants to go.

Okay I know this doesn't have to do with crawling but a baby in a baby size lazy boy... I couldn't help but post it

Holiday Party

Don and I went to his new company’s office party last night sans baby. My brother babysat (Ryan slept the whole time). It was great, the party was a lot of fun and it was great to get dressed up and go out with Don. The theme was casino night and I learned to play blackjack, I broke even which considering the house always wins I feel pretty good about. I won a digital camera in the raffle! I only took one picture but I think there are more floating around from the night so if I get a hold of them I will post some.
I am aware that the flow/ wording of this entry is off somehow but for the life of me I can't fix it... so I am posting it anyway. Maybe tomorrow I will be more coherent :)

2 In a Million

I have been very blessed in my life. No joke, I don't know why I lucked out so much.

Yesterday I put in my facebook status that I needed someone to help with Ryan the week I am taking the bar. Two of my friends who are very busy, successful women bought plane tickets to come here from Chicago (One is an attorney at a very good firm in Chicago and the other one is in charge of a radiology department and is getting her MBA full time at a very good school). Literally 24 hours after I posted they had tickets... they are coming Saturday and leaving Wednesday night. I don't know how they are taking so much time off. I will never been able to express how appreciative I am... literally my eyes are misting just thinking about how great they are.

This is not the first time that they have been wonderful and helped me when I couldn't do something on my own.

I love you Rachel and Nicole!

30 Weeks Old! Pictures

Stare down

My little man

My little Cheeseball

This looks like he is snuggling with a blankie... he is actually eating a napkin

Very upset about having to go to bed.

Reading his Hungry Caterpillar book

Does it get any better?

Mom and baby snuggle, does it get any better then that?

Babysitter

I feel like I am a pretty good parent (so far at least). I make my own organic baby food, I hug and kiss Ryan about a million times a day. I read to him and talk to him and sing to him and dance with him. I make sure Ryan is fed, happy, clean(ish) etc.
So I am in a bind. I need to study for the bar, it isn't a normal test, it is the mother of all tests. You are supposed to designate about 8 weeks of your life to nothing but studying. If I didn't have a child that would be doable. But I am a stay at home mom of an almost 7 month old who is starting to crawl.
I can't study while he is awake. he sleeps maybe 3 hours sporadically through the day. This is simply not enough to get quality study time in. My mom tries to come over and help but she is an attorney and has to work around her clients schedule which isn't consistent. My brother comes on Fridays, but again it just isn't enough. I don't want to study less then what is required and fail and have to start again.
So I have been forced to do something I don't want to do. Don and I are starting to interview potential babysitters. Ugh. No one is going to be good enough. No one will be up to my standards, he is my baby, okay I take that back, no one who lives in North Carolina and who is available will be good enough (yes Rachel and Jess you would be good enough). So while I have given Ryan everything I can think of up to this point, I cannot give him myself for about 8 weeks starting in January. We will see how it goes. If I can't bear to do it after meeting the potential caretakers I am going to figure something else out. What I don't know but something (I could study all night, who needs sleep?).

Embarrassing Parent Conversation

Embarrassing Parent Conversation of the day.
background information needed: I call Ryan Bud Sometimes.

Me: Hey Bud
Don: He is a baby, so he is bud light, hahaha
Kathleen: Wow, you are embarrassing
Kathleen: Well you are older and wiser so you are Budweiser.

Christmas Time Is Here Again!

It is that time of year again, CHRISTMAS! I love Christmas, the tree, presents, music, smells, food etc. We went out and got our Christmas tree today. We were going to go to a farm and cut one down but David has exams and it was chilly outside so we decided to just go pick one up. Ryan helped us pick out a lovely tree and we made it home no problem.

We proceeded to break the stand (oops) and the tree is currently laying on the floor. But we have started the process and when Ryan wakes up from his nap we are going to go get another stand. I took a few pictures as we were opening the Christmas decorations box. I'm sure there will be a lot more Christmas pictures... a baby who is starting to crawl and a wobbly Christmas tree... the possibilities are endless!

The whole process wore him out

Protective Baby

I went to the dentist yesterday. I have to admit I am not as good as I used to be about going, I had put it off for 3 years! Health insurance doesn’t always work out the way it should…. But anyway, I went. My mom met me there so she could watch Ryan in the waiting room.

Let me begin by saying Ryan doesn’t like me leaving the room, he is fine if he can see me. So he was kind of upset that I left the waiting room. My mom brought him back (our family knows the dentist well so she can just walk back there). He could see me, but he didn’t like the woman sitting over me putting things in my mouth, he did not like her at all. Whenever she put the sucker thing in my mouth he would scream and yell like he was angry. It seemed like he thought she was hurting me, he was trying to protect me! He would only calm down when I would look him in the eye and tell him I was okay. He is already protective. The dental hygienist said that it probably looked to him like she was hurting the love of his life and he didn’t like it one bit.
I understand his pain; I feel the same way when we go to the pediatrician.

The good news is that I don’t have any cavities so I won’t be back for awhile.

Baby Munchies

This week Ryan has decided that all food is good food. The baby will eat anything. I was at lunch and I got a pickle with my sandwich, he kept grabbing for it. I thought to myself if he tries it, he will realize he doesn’t like it and back off… he loved it and was sucking on it for the next 10 minutes. He has in the last week also tried Kiwi, cheese, blackberries, tomato sauce, and salmon. He loved all of them; he was even willing to give peas a second chance!
Apparently this growing boy needs lotsa food and he isn’t very particular about what it is. I don’t mind though, I hope he continues to be adventurous! I read somewhere that babies develop most of their taste for foods in the second 6 months of their life, at this rate he is going to like everything!

Thanksgiving Highlights

So here is a quick rundown of our thanksgiving in the mountains:

- My mom, brother, Ryan and I headed to the mountains on Sunday, it was a super easy car ride we didn’t have to stop at all.
- Ryan was teething, so he didn’t sleep the first few nights... not good when Don isn’t there and Ryan was freaked of my mom.
- It took until Tuesday for Ryan to warm up to my mom, but when he did he became a big fan.
- Thanksgiving dinner was super good, my mom made the turkey and stuffing, Don made potatoes, I made sweet potatoes and veggies, my brother made dessert. It was so, so good.
- We sat by the fire, read books, watched movies, cooked, hung out etc. The house was beautiful, oh and did I mention the hot tub!

Overall it was great, who doesn’t love a vacation! Lots to be thankful for this year!

Vacation Pictures

Ryan and his daddy

The Boys watching some football

Ryan helping prepare the potatoes for Thanksgiving dinner.

Cold Weather!

Hanging out with Uncle David

Trucks !