18 already?!

For me the first 12 months R was here did not fly by, honestly some tireless days seemed endless. The last 6 months have been the opposite. It seems I blink and a new month is here and each day brings something new.

Each night I still creep into his room to watch him sleep & think how lucky I am to have this beautiful little boy as MY little boy.

He is an active little boy; as most little boys are. I have come to the conclusion when you become a mom you are instantly inducted into a club of mothers that stretches back millions of years. A club that will give you support, encouragement and is willing guide you when you have no clue what you are doing. I have also come to the conclusion their is a separate off-shoot of this club for the mama's of boys because we have our own separate guidelines & rules we need to learn.

Back to R. He loves to run, climb, jump & dance. Morning until night he keeps going and going and going. He still naps for everyone except me. Still loves his food because he needs a lot of fuel to be able to wear me out. When it is not raining he enjoys playing outdoors. His vocabulary continues to grow everyday as well as his frustration when he can't communicate what he is trying to tell us. He loves his baths and runs to the stairs when I tell him it is bath time. He is a worker bee & loves to have a job.

Favorite foods: Oatmeal, eggs, blueberries, strawberries, cheerios, cheese, pretzels, peas.

Favorite show: Elmo & Wiggles

Favorite bedtime book: Goodnight Moon & Night-night Pookie

-Still falls asleep quickly in the car when he is tired.

-Loves animals.

-Loves dancing to Adele.

-Signs he uses; more, milk, all done, eat, please, & thank you.

New statistics:

• Height: 32 1/4 inches (49%)
• Weight: 23 lbs (15 %)

Snowshoe adventuring.

B and I both got snowshoes for Christmas. One more reason to get us up onto the mountain. We decided to try out our new gear on New Year's Day. We got lucky and it was a beautiful blue bird day at Trillium Lake. R was decked out in his new Columbia gear we scored at the employee store and was instantly a snow lover. Although how could he not be with two snow loving parents?

Mama & R
When are we going to get this show on the road?
We're off!
I just realized all our pictures make it look like we were the only ones there but it was packed! I never knew so many people snow shoed!
B & N
Where am I going to run next?
Hey Dada! Wait up!!!
Come & get me!
3 of us.
Sledding fun before we left. This picture looks deceptive, no we did not send him down a hill by himself=). This is like a foot long ant hill but he loved it!
B & R ready to hit the road. Can't wait to do it again!

Christmas-a month of fun activities.

This is going to be a big picture dump for the month of December. It was a very busy month for many reasons; finishing up my long-term position teaching 7th grade Humanities (since last May), peak-season for B, and of course holiday festivities.

Working full time already makes me feel like I'm running at 100 percent 24/7 but add in tying up the loose ends on projects I've been having the kiddos work on in a certain time restraint had a new kind of pressure. We made it and I think I successfully transitioned them for when their teacher returned yesterday. It was also a bittersweet day for me yesterday. I am thankful for the ability to have a flexible job with substitute teaching while R is young but not to return with my students I've become so close with yesterday was hard. Having my own classes to be in charge of has further proven my love for my job. On most days I feel so lucky to be around such smart, fun & silly middle schoolers. They teach me so much and give me so much joy.

R is such a silly, active little man. He sure keeps me on my toes. We went to a couple gatherings while friends were in town. Both houses we went to were quite large houses with tons of amazing toys. All of the other kids are playing contained with the toys, but not my child. He rather run around to explore every nook & cranny. He would also rather play with expensive stereo systems or wall outlets than toys. I came home both of these nights so tired from running around constantly. Makes me appreciate my small R-proof house when I get home.

Here are many different photos from this month's activities.

B & R at downtown Couve's tree lighting

Picking out our tree at Joe's

Smelling the tree; R does this when he knows he is not supposed to touch something.
Where to run next???
Christmas party at Fay & Coop's new downtown pad. I felt like I was at a cool party on Sex & the City!
Zoo Lights at Washington Park zoo. If you haven't been; its a must. So much cooler than I would of imagined & if you are a zoo member it is free. Just get there early because it becomes a zoo=).


In front of the cool water scene
Boa on a tree branch

Looking at the big fishes

Fooling around with Grandma L
Presents! Love all the pretty wrapping papers.
Attempt at a family picture Xmas Eve
New trumpet from Uncle C

Uncle C & his girlfriend J
Mini mom & me
Opening his new tool chest, thanks Doleski's
New Strider from mama & dada- We forgot to give it to him until half-way through Xmas! He already had so many things to play with!
B's mom came down with the flu; so she had to cancel her huge, amazing X-mas party last minute. So we went Christmas Story-esk and had Chinese for Christmas dinner.
Playing with his new blocks
Hope you all had a great holiday season & cheers to 2012! Wowzer!

17 months

17 months is here. Working full time teaching has made time even fly by even quicker. Ryden shows us everyday that he is ALL boy. He still runs with all engines firing most of the day. He loves to dance, jump off things=(, and climb things ( then jump off).

His favorite shows are Sesame Street & Wiggles. We watch one show before bath time to wind down. I'm so thankful we have found something to help him sit for 20 minutes because it is HARD chasing this kid all day long!

He also likes to help you with tasks. One day Brian was cleaning up a hair ball Carl left on the carpet. Ryden grabbed a baby wipe and went to sit next to Brian. He started wiping the carpet too! Whenever I come home from the grocery store he loves to take the food out of the bags and carry it to the kitchen to be put away. He also loves to put his dirty clothes in the hamper.

He has also discovered light switches & wants to be the one to turn them on/off. He has also came up with creative ways to make stairs to reach the light switches himself!

Playing with pots & pans.
Afternoon ride in Cozy Coup

It's always nice to get out alone with this guy.
Making his stair to.....
the light switch!!!

Baby Trump

So I've decided to let Ryden's hair go rogue these days. I'm actually almost tempted to let it just grow long and flowing; I think the hippie chic look would fit him.

Well we have been battling yet another nasty virus for the past week so I decided to blow dry his golden locks. I didn't want him to get chilly. Well, whenever I apply the hair dryer to his hair it takes on a mind of its own. This is what it decided to do tonight.....

I call it the "Trump-do". What do you think??? It also kind of reminds me of the lollipop gang hairdo from The Wizard of Oz. What's your vote???