Time Flies By

I cannot believe how big she is getting.  I just packed up all the 3-6 mo. clothes and pulled out the next size up.  I remember opening this 9 mo. sleeper at my baby shower and thinking it was so big and wasn't going to fit her for a long time.  She is getting so big!!

Reading in the Dark

Jacks has to read for 20 minutes everyday and he thought it would be fun to read in the fort with a flashlight!

Twister

Open Up

She is still not really getting the hang of this solid food thing.  She won't open her mouth and I usually have to trick her to get any food in.  The only time she has ever opened up for another bite is when Tiff fed her ice cream and then she definitely wanted more!!

Not Camera Shy

I got the camera out to take a quick picture of her today and I ended up with 10 really cute ones.  It usually takes me a while to get a good smile in a photo because she is so distracted by the camera or I am too slow pushing the button and miss the smile.  Well today, as soon as I focused it and the light came on, she smiled for me and she did that about 10 more times.  She's learning early what to do when the camera's out!!

Patriotic Program

Jacks had a Patriotic Program tonight at his school.  Jacks said they have been working on learning the songs for a while now.  They did a great job, it was a very nice program!

This is Jacks' friend, Aidan.  He has been in his class for 2 years now and also lives in our neighborhood.  They get along really well.

 

(Tiff also came to see the program, but had to leave right after it was over.)  After the program Papa treated us to shakes at Arctic Circle! 

Ry's 1st tooth poked through today!  She was chewing on my finger and then all of a sudden I could feel it!  It's always exciting when babies have one of their firsts but it also makes me wish she took a bottle better!

Hangin' with Nana

Papa was out of town on a work trip and Bert had early mutual, so I called my mom and asked if she wanted to come out for dinner and to hang out with us.

6 Month Check-up

Rylee had her 6 month check-up today.  These are her stats:

Weight: 16 lbs. 12 oz. - 65%

Height: 26.5 in. - 75%

Head: 16.5 in. - 30%

I thought she was going to cry for a long time with the shots today because she has had a cough and hasn't been feeling well and she was tired, but she didn't cry very long at all.  I love that!

President's Day

"That flash is so bright, Mom!"

Ry and I went shopping today with Nana and TT.  We hit the Quilted Bear and bought this adorable hat!  Then we headed out to Tiff's and my dad met us there for dinner and a little home repair project for Tiff.  Then they left and Tiff and I, and Ry of course, watched Downton Abbey.  It was a fun day with the girls!!

Keele Birthday Dinner

We had the Feb. birthday dinner tonight.  It was quite the crowd: Brian & Holly and kids, Mike & Sara and kids, Grant & Ali and kids, us, and of course Peggy.  The ladies gave Peggy a break from cooking and made Hawaiian Haystacks for dinner.

What would a birthday party be without the Candy Bar Game?

Out of all the yummy choices, this is what Cooper picked!  He can't possibly be my kid!

Luke's Birthday Party

Luke turned 6 on the 16th and had an Angry Birds birthday party today.  They played hot potato with an angry bird stuffed animal, pin the tail on the angry bird, and then split into teams and raced to get the Angry Bird eggs across the room.  It was a very fun party!

 

Even Ry got in on the Angry Birds action!

Red Robin

We went out to dinner tonight with Pat and Casey and of course I forgot to take a picture until we were driving away.  We took all the kids with us and I was reminded of why I don't really like to go to restaurants with all of them.  Jacks ate so fast he got a stomach ache, Cooper had been coughing all day and so I gave him some medicine before we went and it made him really tired and drowsy, and Ry was sitting with Pat and Casey and out of nowhere she started crying really hard and I couldn't get her calmed down.  I had to leave early and take her out to the car so she could eat.

Peggy's Birthday

We went out to dinner tonight to Brick Oven for Peggy's birthday.  I wanted to take a picture of the group but didn't think about it until we were walking out of the restaurant and going our separate ways.  We had quite the group: Peggy, John & Lynette, Jessica, Mike & Terri, Mike & Sara, Grant & Ali, me & Bert, and Ry.  She was so tired and got fussy and cranky at the end and then fell asleep in the car on the way home.  I love when she falls asleep still holding and sucking on her toys!

Valentine's Day

My kitchen table is covered in Valentine's treats!

Making Valentines

Birthday Celebration

We celebrated Ben and Luke's birthday tonight.

Applesauce

I've been giving her applesauce and she seems to like it better than the cereal.  She's still trying to get the hang of this solid food thing, but she is getting there.

Ben's B-day

We went to the Fire Station tonight to have cake and ice cream for Ben's b-day.  After we were all done with our cake, Tiff brought out these balls and everyone had a good time throwing them around.  We started playing a game where the kids took turns running through the middle while everyone threw balls at them.  They loved it!

Make 'em Laugh

The boys are getting really good at making Rylee laugh.  She sometimes just has to hear them laughing and she will start to giggle too.  It's one of my very favorite things!

Lovesick

Coop is in love!  He has been talking about a girl named Avery from his preschool class.  So today when I picked him up I asked her which one she was.  He pointed her out and then said "I love her" in the sappiest voice you can imagine.  Then after we got home and I was changing the baby's diaper, he came over and told Ry he was going to marry Avery and he wouldn't be able to live with Ry anymore.  It's so funny how different the boys are.  Jacks thinks girls have cooties and talks about being 'girl-trapped' all the time and Coop is planning a wedding!

Going for a Ride

Tiff put Rylee in the doll stroller and Tate pushed her around the house.  As you can see, she wasn't that thrilled!

Lazy Sunday Afternoon

This is how Bert found all of us when he came home from his Sunday meetings.

Cereal

We gave Ry rice cereal for the first time today.  She made this face pretty much the whole time.

I was making some pretty funny faces too!  Bert took a few pics of me while I was feeding her and it reminded me of the movie "The Incredibles" when the mom is feeding the baby and her family tells her she makes weird faces when she is feeding the baby.  You don't even realize your doing it.

Cooper's 5 Year Check-up

I took Cooper to the doctor today for his 5 year check-up and to get his shots before Kindergarten registration.  I knew he was going to have a hard time with the shots so I had talked to him all about being brave and had even bribed him with a few different things.  I said we could get a chicken sandwich from Wendy's (they are his very favorite things), an ice cream cone, and he could have another turn on the PS3 (they usually just get to play once a day.)  So I naively thought that with all my bribing he would do ok.  I was way wrong.  He was good for the doctor while she checked him all out but as soon as she left and the nurses came in to give him the shots he started crying and burying his head into my arm.  It took 5 of us to get the shots done: one nurse holding Ry, me holding his arms and upper body, one nurse holding his legs and then 2 giving him the shots!

He kept sniffling on the way home and said to me, "Mom, I tried to be brave but i couldn't."  So, of course, I gave in and gave him all the things I promised him.  You can see how red and puffy his eyes are in this picture.  Poor guy!

His stats are:

Weight: 45 lbs. 2 oz. - 75%
Height:  43 in. - 60%

Pirate Day

Cooper's preschool teacher is always doing fun things.  This week they are studying the letter P so on Tuesday he got to wear his pajamas to school and on Thursday the boys dressed up as pirates and the girls as princesses. 

Finally

Rylee is getting so much better at riding in the car.  She used to just cry and cry.  She hated her carseat and would immediately start crying when I put her in it.  I dreaded going anywhere with her and avoided it if I could.  I absolutely hate when she's crying and there's nothing I can do for her.  It stresses me out a ton!  So I am so glad that she doesn't do that as much anymore.  Tonight she was in the car for an hour while we picked up Jacks from a friends house, picked up a Redbox and dinner, and then drove to Tiff's house to eat and watch it.  She was good the whole time and I am so happy about it!