Friday, June 28, 2013

Ryan at 13 months

 I may not continue the month-by-month tradition very much longer (especially as I'm getting later and later at posting them. Ha!). But, we DO love working as a family to make a list of all of the things that Ryan has learned and the ways he has grown within a given month ... and then marveling at how our God helps little ones learn and grow and change SO much within the first two years of life!

Here's what we noticed about Ryan at the 13-month mark ...

PHYSICAL:
*a walking expert!
*is tentative when approaching even a small step down and will usually wait at the edge of the step for Momma or Daddy's helping hand
*also tentative when walking on uneven surfaces like grass and prefers to have a hand
*can squat to stand
*can easily climb our stairs but doesn't know yet how to come down
*got his 6th & 7th teeth (now has four on top and three on bottom)





so you can see him "in action"



EATING:
*loves using open-topped cups (with just one swallow of milk/water in them)
*is starting to make progress with eating (eating more of a variety and a bigger quantity of food)
*macaroni and cheese as a new favorite this month
*other go-to choices include grapes, blueberries,  yogurt, peas, green beans, Cheerios, Rice Krispies, cheese, black beans, bread
*still doesn't like meat
*iron levels are now back to normal after being moderately anemic at his 1-year check and taking prescription iron supplements for a month
*loves to feed himself -- we've basically given up on trying to spoon feed him anything! (He still mainly just turns his head!)
*likes to "feed" us his food

after his first few bites of Oreo ... a BIG fan!




SLEEPING:
*FINALLY slept through the night (for the first time ever!) around his 13-month birthday after we tried some sleep training. (He learned very quickly!)
*has been consistently sleeping through the night from 7:30-6:00 most every night afterwards!
*is starting to resist falling asleep at nap time ... sometimes will only take one nap each day!

SOCIAL:
*loves giving "high fives" when we ask for them or he hears us talking about them
*can understand lots of words and follow directions (will often go to get his shoes if he hears us telling Ian that he needs to get his shoes on ... or will wait by the door if he hears us mention "outside")
*will stand by the fridge saying "mmm" and making the milk sign when he is thirsty
*loves saying "ha-igh" (think Texas pronunciation of "hi") and waving to EVERYONE in the grocery store/restaurant/church, etc.
*points out every ball "a-bah" (a ball)
*learned to say "uh" (short for uh-oh), "buh" (book), a-boo (peek-a-boo),"buh-buh" (bye bye), "ah si" (outside), "moh" (more)
*blows air when he hears us say "blow"
*when we ask what a sheep says, he says "bah!"
*loves when we ask him to find a monkey on his wall border. He'll point right to it, smile, and say "mmm!"
*consistently signs all done, more, bird, airplane, fish, milk
*still mainly points and grunts to communicate -- is determined to get us to understand, even if it takes us a while!
*copies words that he hears us say
*can identify his hair, head, and eyes

will often say "ah si" (outside) while watching cars, squirrels, or people out the window


DISLIKES:
*getting wiped up after a meal
*being held when he'd rather be moving around
*taking his iron drops
*being away from Daddy and Momma
*loud noises (One week he was scared by the loud noise of the recycling truck. The next week, when we went out to watch, Ryan buried his face in Momma's shoulder. Apparently, he remembered!)

FAVORITES:
*throwing balls, objects, food, sippy cups, you-name-it!
*the fake moss (even after Momma or Daddy say "no no"!)
*ANYTHING with Ian -- especially finding Ian if he's hiding and tackling Ian in his bed
*pillows
*brooms and "helping" with any task he sees Momma or Daddy doing
*spoons
*boxes
*swinging
*water of any kind
*push toys and corn popper toy
*pots & pans
*the book "Moo, Baa, La, La, La"
*dancing to music
*noticing Daddy coming home from work. (He'll say "DA!" really loud and point out the window.)
*ANY kind of ball!







Ryan's favorite thing to do in the cul-de-sac while Big Brother rides his bike!


noticing an airplane in the sky



always willing to help!


Ryan LOVES to put objects into boxes, drawers, and trash cans. Kim has been searching for her watch to no avail for the past three weeks. We think a little helper may have placed it in a perfect hiding spot, which was hopefully NOT the garbage can!






Monday, June 24, 2013

10 years and counting ...

 On June 14, we celebrated ten years of marriage! It's hard to believe it's been that long! What a blessing to walk hand in hand through life's joys and challenges! God really knew what He was doing when He created marriage!

We had a great time looking through our wedding pictures and watching our wedding video and reminiscing .... Thanks to all of you dear friends that were present to make our day so special. And thanks to our dear siblings, Amy and Jason, who shared their wedding day with us! We STILL love telling people the story of our double wedding. :)

Matt sent Kim flowers (including sunflowers ... her favorite!) the morning of our anniversary.
 Our good friends, Mike and Kati, watched our boys so we could have an evening together. What a treat! We both were excited about the prospect of trying a restaurant we've always wanted to try, The Melting Pot.

We decided to splurge and go for the 4-course dinner, including cheese fondue, salad, an entree, and a chocolate dessert fondue. Our waitress, Michele, taught us the ropes.

 What a treat to finish our conversations and to spend some time just the two of us! Everything tasted so yummy!
 Our favorite course was the dessert one. They even brought it out on a special "happy anniversary" plate.
We can't wait to see what the Lord has in store for our next ten years! :)