Quick Trip

Granny & Pops made a quick trip up here to see us before Rudy had to go to a conference for work.  Ava was excited they came to visit even if it was only for a day.  Since we have gotten rid of the guest bed in Ryan's room, Ava was asked to give up her bed so they could sleep in her room.  Ava got to have a slumber party in our room and was very happy about that too.

Grandparents & the kiddos...Ry looks a little sleepy but at least I took a photo.

 I had gotten Ryan all dressed that day to go to church but then he was being a wee bit fussy so I ended up not taking him and just letting him get his nap in.  Much needed but kind of funny that he got all dressed up for a nap.

We used it as an excuse later to try to get some photos of the kids together but of course Ryan was more interested in the grass.  Can't say I blame him when I never take him out in the yard.  Guess we should do more of that whenever it's warm.

Ava, as usual, was enjoying the photo shoot and of course got a little too lovey on Ryan.  She has a tendency to over hug him...I don't think she knows her own strength!

You Turn Your Back For One Minute...

Seriously?!!! I did not know he can climb.  I do now.  Stinker!

End of an Era

Well we may have seen the last of "the worm."  For months, Ryan has crawled around looking like a break dancer doing the worm.  It has always been hilarious and amazing to watch all at once.  The little guy is really fast doing the worm.  He might even have great upper body strength as a result.

  Then about a week ago, Ryan started getting back up on his knees and rocking back and forth (like babies do when they are learning to crawl).  We wondered why he would do this again after so many months of getting around his own way.  And just when I had decided that he would never do the textbook crawl, he started to.  Now I don't know how much of the worm we will see and it makes me kind of sad.

Oh well.  Babies have to grow up right?

Here's a quick picture of the kiddos playing in Ava's pillow fort.  My two little cuties!

9 Months

Ryan is now 9 months old...I say it every month but I'll say it again.  Where does the time go?  He had his drs appt today and he is now 27 1/2 inches tall (20%) and 17 lbs 14.5 oz (15%).  And yes his head is still at 98%.

Ava at 9 months was half an inch shorter, a pound lighter and apparently her head was only 65%.  

Things Ryan has been doing:

1. Crawling (still doing the worm - don't think it will ever be a textbook crawl)

2. Pulling up on things and sitting back down (HUGE deal that he finally learned to sit back down, no more "trees falling")

3. Cruising from toy to toy

4. Says "Ma ma ma" and "Da da da" all the time though.  He tends to say "Ma" when he is upset and "Da" when he is happy.  Go figure.

5. Not teething.  Well he may be teething but still no teeth!  I swear they are coming!!

6. Sleeping well -  we are back on track after the holidays and he has been sleeping through the night again although he is waking up at 6am.  So trying to work on pushing that back a little since he is also waking Ava up then.

7. Waves - he loves to wave at you and loves when you wave at him.  He also enjoys clapping but can't figure out how to do it himself yet

He's still as happy as he can be and smiles at everyone we see.  I am hoping he will walk soon as that will be fun, but we'll see.  Ryan & Ava are enjoying his room a lot these days as we got rid of the guest bed and now his room is essentially a toy store, I mean playroom.  We got down all of Ava's old baby toys and the kids are having a great time playing with those as well as the new Christmas toys.  And it is great having one room in the house where I don't have to worry about what Ryan is putting in his mouth.

Mr. "I Can Pull Up on Anything"

Books

Well, I started last year off reading a book a week.  And then I decided to take a HUGE break at the end of January (so that I would not ignore my family and so that I could get some much needed house projects completed) and as a result I ended up reading only 6 books last year.  That is sad!  I plan on doing better this year but also need to learn to take my time reading so that I don't zone out into "Bookland."  Very hard for me to do since I tend to zip through books that are good..too hard to put down.  But one of my new year's resolutions will be to read only when everyone else is busy (napping, working, etc.) and not wanting me to hang out with them. We'll see how long I can stick to that.

So here are the 6 books I read.  I enjoyed all of them but definitely liked The Passage best.  Wishing Mr. Cronin would hurry up and write book 2 and 3 already.

Galore by Michael Crummey
Before I Go to Sleep by S.J. Watson

The Hangman's Daughter by Oliver Potzsch

Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger

False Memory by Dean Koontz

The Passage by Justin Cronin

I've already zoomed through a 1000+ page book by Stephen King this year (and in 3 days no less - not doing a good job of sticking to my resolution but will try harder next time).  It was a FANTASTIC book and was a different type of book than the usual Stephen King.  It is called 11/22/63 and I highly recommend it.  Any suggestions as to what to read next?  Was planning on reading the Game of Thrones  series but not sure I want to shell out the $40 or 2-3 months to read all of them on my Kindle just now. I've heard great things and the sample was good just not sure I am ready to dedicate the time to it.  I was thinking of rereading the Hunger Games trilogy before the movie comes out in March but not sure if that is a good idea based on my past experiences with Harry Potter.  I tend to not enjoy the movies as much after reading the book so close to seeing the movie.

Anyways, any book recommendations would be appreciated!!  I'll have an update about Ryan tomorrow (he's 9 months now - crazy!) after his doctor appointment.

Hop on over

to my project blog to see what I've been up to.  You won't be disappointed.  Well maybe you will.

http://www.mokru.blogspot.com/

Happy Birthday Darren!

Happy 34th birthday Darren/Daddy!

Ava & I decorated the house with balloons and streamers (as best as we could in the hour that Darren went to the gym).  Then Ava helped decorate the cupcakes, set the table, put 34 candles on 6 cupcakes and lay out the light up yo yo party favors.  Meanwhile, Ryan napped and missed the party.  Shhhh! Don't tell him.

Ava saying "Happy Birthday Daddy!!!"

 Daddy asking Ava to help blow out the huge fire on the table.

Happy birthday love.  Hope you had a wonderful day!