Ryan the Pianist (Special Edition)

Ry and his piano - we will make a musician out of you yet.

On the eve of our trip to Wisconsin for Christmas, I made a last minute decision to call Santa Claus at the North Pole for a Special Delivery.  He agreed to send an elf or two to bring some Christmas presents to GA, so we wouldn't have to take so many home for Wisconsin.  During Ryan's bathtime, Ho-Ho-Ho and friends snuck through the front door and left our Christmas gifts under the tree.  Here is some video of Ryan and his new piano and Daddy and his new hat/helmet, which Ryan correctly guesses is for a "bike."

Ryan - Conjunctivitis in the Caribbean

Ryan looking happy and healthy

Our vacation began with a drive to Florida for Thanksgiving with plans to take off for the Bahamas from Ft. Lauderdale the following Saturday.  Ryan seemed to take the trip well until the last hour when he was just miserable.  We thought he was being fussy from the car trip. He wasn't.  He was getting sick.

On Thanksgiving morning, he had a fever around 3am.  Gave him some Tylenol.  Then drove to Port St. Lucie.  His fever appeared again around 11am and stayed the entire day.  At first, I thought it was teething, but by the evening, I knew it was something worse. He hadn't slept well and would startle awake EVERY time he fell asleep. Seriously, the poor chap got in about 15 to 20 minutes of sleep and then his eyes would shoot open then he would scream and fail his arms out wide. Friday he was feverish again with a fever of 102.6.

He was still cheerful and quite the personality...entertaining his aunts, grandparents, cousins, Great-Nanny Ellie, and Uncle David.  He even tried to hold it together for Clai and Todd on Friday night.  Saturday morning he seemed okay,  but as we were having lunch, goo started coming out of both eyes. I had joked that he would have goo coming from both eyes due to lack of sleep, but I was joking! My reality came true and instead of heading to the airport in Ft. Lauderdale, we headed to Joe DiMaggio's Pediatric Emergency Room.  The diagnosis was viral conjuncitivitis and inflamation in both ears. 

The doctor prescribed Ryan medication to make him comfortable and because one quarter of the Bahamas came over to the USA for Black Friday, we were able to make our flight to the Bahamas. (Flights were backed up with Bahamians heading home with LOTS of baggage). Except for his nasty looking eyes, you wouldn't even have known he was sick.  He was actually HYPER and yelling HI to everyone.  So, yeah, we brought a virus-filled boy over to the Bahamas to recover, and believe me, the sun, sea, and sand did just that!

We had a lovely time.  The people of the Bahamas are very, very friendly.  We stayed at the Westwind II, Cable Beach, Nassau.  We had a two bedroom, two bath villa.  We overlooked the largest pool and were very close to the cafe and laundry room.  The resort is small.  We had such a nice time going to the beach every day followed by a dip in the saltwater pool then lunchtime then nap then more pool or sand.  We had to keep Ryan out of the pool the first day and kept his head out of water on the second day. 

It was very windy while we were there, and you will see that in the videos.  By Thursday or Friday, I swear the winds were blowing a steady 25 miles per hour give or take.  This prevented us from taking a "formal" family pic on the beach for our Christmas card.  Actually, three things prevented our family pic:  Ryan's eyes & Dave's cold the first time we tried.  Then Ryan had a MAJOR blowout due to drinking pool water just as we were leaving to try pic #2.  Then by Friday, the wind was blowing so hard it was ridiculous.  We would have looked like those crazy people standing outside during a hurricane (minus the rain).

While in the Bahamas, we visited Ardastra Zoo and the aquariums of Atlantis.  We took a quick trip to downtown Nassau as well.  Overall, a great trip for our family! So warm, so nice, great memories.  We flew back to Ft. Lauderdale on Saturday and made the LONG journey back to Atlanta with a quick breakfast break with Nanny and Pappy then an overnight in Valdosta before returing home.  Ryan was ready to get home too...he kept running to the door of the hotel saying "bye-bye, home, bye-bye, home."

Here are some shots & video of the trip - enjoyed by Ryan and his parents.

The view from our room (-:

The resort at sunrise

Ryan liked the hotel carts while on our trip

Ryan didn't get very far in the giant sandbox on his first day.

Ryan and Daddy...I love this pic

Whee!

Want some?

Loved how close we got to the birds at the zoo

A flamingo right in front of me...they even put on a marching show.

The marching flamingos

Bahamian airport

Windy, windy night!

Ry doing a jig for the fish of Atlantis

Bye, bye...home! He was so cute toting his bag.

VIDEOS:



Ryan - Cornucopia of Cuteness

Ryan running down our neighbor's driveway, where we got some cute pics last year
Not so easy this year  with an active toddler

Fall has been fun...with pumpkin patches, petting zoos, and playdates!  Ryan also got a BIG scrape on his nose that he proudly wore with his Halloween costume.  Poor guy, uggh.  The accident was innocent enough with Ryan only bending over to pick something up (while on an incline) then he just fell over.  Simple as that but painful and not very pretty.  See pics below.   You can't miss it. 

Mr. Train on the brain in his new Thomas hoodie

Other developments are a love for trains and Elmo.  I say that Ryan has "Train on the brain."  He frequently talks about toot-toots.  He will say, "toot-toot, ta, ta, ta, ta, ta."  We have two small toy train engines, and Ryan makes his cars trains by pushing them together.  We have also gotten into the habit of watching 5 Elmo videos on Dave's Ipad before bedtime. Ryan's current favorites are:  Adam Sandler's "Song about Elmo," Elmo and the Goo Goo dolls, "Time to Go Outside" with Jason Mraz, ABCs with Elmo, and "The Letter Y" with Norah Jones. I think he likes "The Letter Y" song best now because he always asks for it by saying, "Y,  Y."  I added the links below...

Fall has brought a new addition to the family.  The new addition is "Baby."  Baby is my old cabbage patch doll (Bronson Stevie), and Ryan's lovey.  Ryan is very concerned for Baby.  Baby is evidently colicky because he cries a lot.  Ryan brings me baby then says, "Wah, wah."  Then I have to rock Baby and pat Baby's bottom. Ryan likes to do this many times per day (or per hour) and has begun making everything cry then need a quick cuddle. No joking - we have now comforted spoons @ lunch time, legos, a distressing photo in a book, pictures of babies in books, bath toys, various stuffed animals, and of course, Baby.  Baby cries the most.  Baby also goes to bed with Ryan and must be brought out of the room with Ry in the morning.  Baby usually has to be where Ryan can see him.  Baby does get tossed out of bed most naps and nights though.  Ryan is caring...to a point. Funny though, you can see Ryan caring for Baby on the monitor before he gets tossed overboard. Last night was the first time Ryan fell asleep cuddling Baby.  It was precious.  FYI - Daddy has to cuddle and care for Baby too. 

Well, I hope to get our next blog in soon after returning from our Thanksgiving trip.  We are traveling to Florida then the Bahamas for one week! 

Mommy trying to get cute, fall pics.
No luck...too many sticks and other fun things on the ground

Ry eating with some of his playgroup buddies.

Watching TV with Baby

Not long after falling on the driveway and scraping his nose.  The scab came about 1 1/2 days later.

With buddy, Samuel, on a chilly Halloween evening.
Samuel is Bam-Bam, somewhere under his jacket and slacks.

The scraped up nose

Fall fun with bubbles



Evenings with Elmo - Daddy and Ryan watch Elmo on Daddy's Ipad every night.



Eating String beans...Ryan loves them...and peas & broccoli
(especially broccoli in ranch dressing)

VIDEOS - a couple of cute ones we've shot as of late! My favorite is the one with the ladies.

Our 3 favorite Youtube videos with Elmo!

Yes, even Mom and Dad get a kick out of them.

Elmo - you are furry, proud, and red!

Ryan's blog - 1 year later

The Star of Mommy's Blog...and Mommy

BLOG #40 - 1 YEAR CELEBRATION

Can you believe our blog started one year ago today? October 21, 2010 was our first one.  At that time Ryan was hanging out in his activity seat or jumping in his bouncer.  He was also on the brink of trying food.  Awwww! Little guy! Remember those times?!

Now, Ryan is a full-fledged toddler.  One year later, these are among Ryan's favorite activities & things/no particular order:

• Saying "WHAT'S THAT?"
• Looking for airplanes (airpaines/airpeas), bees, and caw-caws
• The Little Einsteins and Baby Einstein
• Socializing w/ and hugging his friends
• Going outside to play with "wocks" & bubbles
• Cars...and toot-toots (trains)
• Woo-woos (dogs)
• Happy (cake)
• Asking for cheese from the refrigerator
• Giving hugs to Mama and saying, "awww"
• Smiling & playing around with Dada at bedtime
• Saying "dither, dither, dither" with Grandparents on skype
• Dancing and singing, especially to made up songs-Thanks, Ma!

Ryan dislikes:

• Getting in his carseat
• Going to sleep
• Being told he can't do something

HERE ARE SOME PICS & VIDEO:

Big Brown Eyes

Fun at tubtime

Hugging my buddy, Lane



Mom was digging a hole for a plant.  I jumped in the hole and had a whole lot of fun.
Yes, Grandma Sandy, the dirt did come out of my sweatshirt.



VIDEOS:

This is Ryan after breakfast when we were out one morning and waiting for Daddy to return from paying our bill:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNzU2P_WE1c

Two videos of Ryan dancing on package bubbles - he had a blast and again, no pants!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-fjFjzxy_60

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMfrH75SJiI

Finally, in honor of the one year anniversary of RyRyelsuperguy, I have changed the blog design a bit. I did not go too wild, as I wanted to keep it simple and easy on the eyes.

Ryan - Words, Words, and More Words...

...How I Adore Words!

Had to put a picture of his cute little, mouth, since his words come from here!

A few postings back I said I would post Ryan's vocabulary list.  At first, I was diligent about writing his first words down and decided after I filled one whole page in his baby book then I would stop.  Here are the words that fill up this one page in his baby book and others he has said since I stopped writing them down. 

The page looks like this:
- Dada (Da - da)
- Ma-ma (he said mama later, but I have it towards the top)
- this (his first official word other than Dada)
- dog (Memorial Day Weekend)
- hey or hey, hey, hey (from the chorus in his favorite song)
- Hi on 6/12
- Uh-oh on 6/13
- Bye (week of 6/12)
- What's this? (week of 6/20)
- Want THIS
- What is this?
- Circle
- Water  (asking for a water bottle on 7/2)
- Mouth (or as he pronounces it...MAO)
- Bubbles on 7/5
- Ike-y (around 7/2) or he frequently says "I-tay"
- Head (the final "d" is difficult to hear)
- Ball (says well by 7/7)
- Bianca (well, he says...CAAN-KA for his buddy,  Bianca)
- Golf (he can say, but not a lot)
- Bird (sounds like birh)
- Grandpa (Bam-pa) on 7/10
- Car
- THANK YOU (sounds like "thankee" "or "tank tu" sometimes)
- All done on 7/27
By 8/8/11, he says:
- cracker
- quack-quack
- woof-woof (sounds like woo-woo)
- apple (all round fruits are apples: Pumpkins and Tomatoes are apples!)
- hat
- bowl (bow - no real final "l")
- tractor (he used to say more because he liked a tractor toy a lot)
- Bear (sounds like - "buh")
- No
- Cow
- Moo
- Cat
- Flower (early to mid August - sounds like "wow-wer")
- Pop-pop (as in pop the bubbles)
- Wag, Wag, Wag (he repeats part of a book he likes where the dog's tail wags)
- Chihuahua (well, he says..WA-WA)
- Boat (on 8/27) So funny, because we are driving to the mountains, and he sees a marina and yells, BOAT...the Kemp family was with us - I have no idea where he learned that from!

So...the list ends on 8/27

However, he has said or frequently uses the following because they come to mind easily:
- More (MO)
- Help (he says "hep")
  MORE, HEP, and THANKEE are interchangeable, and he uses them when he wants something - which is every 5 minutes I think!!
- BEE (as in Bumblebee...he tried saying "bumblebee" for a while but has recently shortened it to "bee") Ryan LOVES bumblebees and likes to look at them in our flower garden and our neighbor Susan's garden
- Meema (as in Mimmy, which is what we call my Mom)
- Pappy (My Dad's name)
- Grandma (as in Grandma Sandy)
- Caw-Caw (we have lots of crows around, and he loves to look for them when we go outside and say, "caw-caw" - many birds now are caw-caws just as most dogs are woo-woos)
- hand (han - again, no final "d" sound)
- eye
- Pat, pat, pat (from Little Einstiens show)
- Blast off (from Little Einsteins show)
- egg
- baby
- spoon (he pronounces it "poon")
- Ry-Ry (He started this last weekend...he likes when I say Ry-Ry then he repeats back Ry-Ry, as a game)
- rock (wock)
- happy (this actually means...CUPCAKE, ha, ha!) It is so cute when he sees a cupcake or picture of one he calls it a "Happy" - as in Happy Birthday! Awwww!
- airplane (we now look for bees, caw-caws and airplanes when we go outside)
- turkey
- rice
- bite (as in, "Do you want a bite of food?" He repeats, "bite" back to me)
- shoe
- Baaaaa (He likes sheep)
- nose
- ear (kind of sounds like "eye")
- ya (as in yes)
- cheese (He actually goes to the fridge and tries to open the door to get it!! Asking for cheese)
 - He also does "cheese" for picture taking now.
- Nigh-Nigh (as in Night-Night)
Oh and so cute...when you ask him:
What does a cuddly baby say? He says, "Mama"
What does a hungry baby say? He says, "Baba"
What does a sleepy baby say? He says, "Nigh-Nigh?"
What does a busy baby say? He says, "Uh-oh?"  - from his book: What Does Baby Say?

Anyway, we are on our road to communication, which is great! I think he is above average for number of words at his age. I am just thrilled we can communicate a bit, and I mostly understand him.

Even though this post is mainly about things Ryan can say, I am including recent pics:

CHARLOTTE VISIT  10/9/11

Finally meeting the lovely Miss Miranda and her beautiful mommy, Beatriz in Charlotte

Hanging out with the very adorable Ruby Park during my terrific stay in Mom and Dad's old neighborhood

Moms CLUB COSTUME PARTY 10/12/11

With my playgroup buddy, Phoebe!

Seriously, do I look like my Dad or WHAT?!

Evidently, this flower had chocolate pollen

 

Again, do I look my dad or what?!

 

Playing in the dog cage, why? Because I can!
Oh, I look like my mom here because you can only see my eyes!



Ah, if we could only get one with his showing the BIG - I mean - SUPERGIANT pouty lip!



Here is one pic of Ryan and THE SNEER or SR. SAD-FACE - no pouty lip though!

To end on a cute note, here is Ryan in a chicken suit, compliments of the Park Family!

 

Look how long my hair is getting!

THE CHICKEN PIC was supposed to be last, but I can't get the last two pics to flip! Oh well!

Good Night and LOVE YOU ALL!

Ryan - Activities Abound

Ryan biting into an apple @ Dunwoody Nature Center
...and yes, he is eating it like a big boy.  Too cute!

Just because I am a stay-at-home momma doesn't mean we actually stay home. I have had Ryan booked this week. We have gone on a morning activity everyday this week. 

On Monday, we visited Dunwoody Nature Center:  http://www.dunwoodynature.org/ BEAUTIFUL place. Why? I loved the small creek running out back, and the play equipment was perfect for Ryan. I couldn't believe such a little slice of heaven existed in the middle of suburban Atlanta.  It was a cool fall day to boot.  Enjoyed myself with the Moms Club Mommas that organized and attended this event. Ryan loved to look at the "wa-wa, wa-wa." Unfortunately, he wanted to swim in it too.

Tuesday, we went to our final Gymboree Play N Learn Class.  We will miss our friends, Ethan, Logan, Ava, and Kaylee.  We may attend a music class next Spring, but we have done all we could do with 3 months of Gymboree and with fall temps returning, we have much to do outside!  On Wednesday, we met up with our buddy, Lane, from playgroup.  Ryan and Lane were beyond adorable toddling like drunk sailors at Newtown Park on Wednesday morning.  Then Lane's mom, Ambre, and I took the kids to storytime at Spruill Oaks Library.  Ryan sat for about 10 minutes then like any good one-year old, did not sit much longer than that! Per usual, he was walking up to the facilitator (Ms. Terra) and going after an "illegal item."  (Illegal item = something he probably shouldn't touch).  Wednesday afternoon was another playdate with Leigha from playgroup.  It was a busy day!

Today, I was SOOO excited to take Ryan to The Art Barn in Canton, GA - about 30 minutes from our home.  I think 75% of all books we read involve farm animals in some way, shape or form - yet we never see them & The Art Barn is a mini-farm for kids outside the burbs.  I talked Monica (Bianca's mom) into going.  Got our reservations ready after several emails with "Farmer Sue."  Then Farmer Sue got sick! Unfortunately, we did not find that out until we got there.  The place was very cute, but we had a disappointed Bianca on our hands.  For me, not so much a problem, because Ryan didn't understand and was happy to stick his hands through the fence at some pigs and chickens.  Bianca was cool but disappointed she did not get to see a cow.  Here is the Art Barn link, so you can check it out:  http://www.theartbarn.com/

Below are pics and videos recapping the BUSY week.  Enjoy!

With Moms Club buddies, at Dunwoody Nature Center

Downtime ... playing in dirt in the backyard aka Gardener Practice

This moment killed me...I am in the kitchen preparing dinner when Ryan comes around the corner with a bucket on his head. I am cutting veggies when I hear "HI" then I look down, and he is smiling at me wearing a bucket. Too, too funny! Only got a pic of the end moment after grabbing camera.

Helping Momma clear the Cosmos before the FSU game. 

Ryan with our Gymboree Buddy, Ethan.

Playtime after Ms. Terra's storytime at the library

Here Piggy, piggy, piggy

Bring on the chickens, Mom!

Mom, seriously, I have chickens and pigs to visit - no more pics!

VIDEOS:

Chasing Chickens today in The Art Barn parking lot:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fqN2x9wS2M

BUBBLE TIME at Gymboree (2 videos): 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxWgEhXbBgk
http://www.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkN4tFIYbdw
Ryan lived for bubble time at Gymboree.  As time went on, it was the only activity he was interested in, and the minute he saw the parachute, he ran to it, so he could be the first to sit down. He followed the teacher & bubbles too.

Fancy Dancer Moves:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uszW64Pl5b4

Until next time, love you all.
Chantal, Dave and Ryan (and Ike)