Ryan is 8 months old!

Time keeps marching on … our mellow fellow is now 8 months old! He’s still as happy as ever, smiling and giggling often. We’ve added “happy flapper” to his list of nicknames. Whenever he’s happy or excited, it looks like he’s ready to fly away. So cute! :)

 

It seems like Ryan is learning new things each day. Mobility has definitely been Ryan’s primary focus this month. He’s not crawling yet, but he certainly is working on it! We can almost see his mind working as he watches a toy roll away, and then he moves from his sitting position into a crawling stance, and then he rocks back and forth before falling onto his tummy. Then, he tries to wiggle and rotate while on his tummy to get what he wants. He often will start scooting himself backwards … sometimes even the whole length of a room! Ryan prefers being on his belly to being on his back and will roll over immediately if we lay him on his back. Ryan continues to pull himself up to his knees, but he still needs a little help to get all the way up. Once he’s standing and holding on to something, he can stay that way for a long time! 

scooting backwards across the kitchen floor

standing at an activity table

  (scooting backward)

It has been fun to hear Ryan’s “vocabulary” develop this month, too. He babbles constantly and seems to focus on a certain sound for a time before moving onto another one. His favorite babbles are dada, mama, mummum, and buhbuh. He’s definitely social! He loves hearing himself talk and still readily smiles at anyone who talks to him. Just in the past week or so, stranger anxiety has started to develop. Ryan will immediately cry if he can see Momma or Daddy but is being held by someone else. For the past couple of months, we’ve been doing some basic sign language with Ryan. A few times, it seems like he’s signed “all done” at an appropriate time (while eating) or waved good-bye when we were leaving, but most likely it’s purely coincidental. ;)

(video of Ryan vocalizing ... mainly his manly "grunting" and some arm flapping :))

Ryan is still not the biggest fan of ANY kind of pureed baby food, though he has made some progress in the past month. At times, he seems to at least kind of enjoy some of the sweeter foods (like pears, peaches, and mango) and will swallow 8-10 spoonfuls before stopping. Other times, he will keep his mouth tightly clamped shut, turn away, and/or gag on the food that we actually get into his mouth. Interestingly, Ryan seems to do better if we feed him coming from his right side. (Good suggestion, Grandpa! We never would have thought of this!) Ryan enjoys bringing small bits of food (especially yogurt melts) to his mouth, though he will generally spit them out and/or gag before swallowing them. His favorite part of being in his high chair is getting a sippy cup! He gets VERY excited at the sight of the cup and will try hard to get water out of it!

A highlight of this month was spending Christmas with Matt’s family in Michigan and Minnesota. Ryan was spoiled by all of the attention from Grandma, Grandpa, and lots of aunts, uncles, cousins, and extended family. He even got to meet his Great-Grandma Schleicher! Ryan enjoyed all of the gifts that he got for Christmas, but he seemed equally interested in chewing on the wrapping paper. He also attended his first wedding (for Matt’s cousin Sandra and Lonny). He also got to see snow for the first time. Apparently, he can take it or leave it; he had NO reaction when we let him touch it! :)

 

We had Ryan’s first ECI (Early Childhood Intervention) appointment with the occupational therapist. She’s a cheerful, laid-back Jamaican lady who has an amazing way of working with little ones. It was fun to see her evaluate Ryan’s motor skills and eating habits, watch her teach Ryan some things, and hear her suggestions. Overall, she didn’t seem to think Ryan was too behind. She said she thinks Ryan will be crawling in the next couple of weeks! She suggested that we have Ryan stand on the floor by the couch and use the couch as a “table” to play on so he can work on maintaining his balance. She didn’t seem too concerned about Ryan’s eating and confirmed that we should stop the eating session whenever he seems upset or not interested.  She will be a wonderful resource over the next few months.

"playing" at the couch

We finally transitioned Ryan from his pack ‘n’ play in our room to his crib upstairs. We were waiting for him to sleep through the night to move him …. oh, well! He actually is sleeping a bit better in his own surroundings but still gets up 1-2 times a night to nurse. He continues to be a good napper, taking two longer naps a day. He still prefers being swaddled while sleeping.

Some of Ryan’s favorites include cuddling, playing in the exersaucer, being outside, knocking over his stacking cups, reaching REALLY far distances, playing with the flaps on lift-the-flap books, chewing on books or toys, finding crumbs and fuzz on the floor, and holding onto strings and tags. Ryan also likes bubbles, bath time, maracas, and balls. Ian continues to be one of Ryan’s favorite people; Ryan seems to laugh most quickly when Ian is entertaining him. Thankfully, the feeling is mutual. Ian’s first question when awakening is usually, “Where’s Ry-baby?” 

Ryan loves cuddles and kisses

Bubbles in the bathtub are fun!

We feel amazingly blessed that God sent us Ryan (and Ian, too). What an honor it is to be a parent and get a front-row, up-close view of our Creator’s handiwork! And, what a privilege that we have our Savior’s guidance (through His Word and other Christian friends) and forgiveness (for those many times we stumble!) along this journey.

playing with Tupperware lids is fun ...

almost crawling

wanting to pull up while helping Momma put clothes in the dryer

Ryan loves the swing at the neighborhood playground, especially if big brother swings right beside him!

Thank you, God, for our sweet 8-month-old! :)

Random Fun in December

In no particular order, some fun December happenings ...

Ian continues to be fascinated with letters, sounds, and "writing." One day, Ian was drawing on his dry erase board while Momma folded laundry. He was proud to show Momma how he had copied the logo on the board (though Momma didn't see it at first ... oops!)

Ian was thrilled that we continued our tradition of advent boxes this year. Over half of the boxes were filled with an activity; the others were filled with (leftover Halloween) candy! Ha! Ian really enjoyed the "watch a Christmas movie" box. He got to watch the Grinch and the Charlie Brown Christmas movie after he had gotten all ready for bed. And, yes, many nights Ian requests his fireman PJs and also wants to wear his fireman boots. (Thanks, Grammy & Papa!)

One warm December day, we had just finished reading Curious George Flies a Kite (I think that's the one ... it's the one where he's supposed to deliver newspapers but instead folds them into boats). Ian wanted to fold OUR old newspapers into boats. We did that and then Ian wanted to float them in his turtle pool! They floated quite well until they got saturated with water and super floppy. :) On a side note, Curious George continues to be one of Ian's favorite characters. Almost daily, he'll watch Curious George on Netflix and/or request a Curious George book!

Our family headed to Austin, TX, so Kim could be trained as a student teaching supervisor for Concordia University-Texas. The family enjoyed the time in a hotel. Ian's favorites were jumping on the bed and having a pillow fight, of course! Our friends, Brad, Jenn, and girls, were also there, and the kids had a great time together. They ran all around the student union where Ian was thrilled to find a "goofball" (Foosball) table.

Jenn and I got our official purple bags as proof we completed the training! I'll observe my student teacher four times this semester. I'm looking forward to this fun opportunity!

Our small group went caroling at a local memory care/nursing home facility. Here, Ian's friend, Christopher, proudly shows off his caroling book he brought from home.

Our group sang carols for about 30 minutes. Many of the residents joined us in singing.

Then, the kids passed out ornaments they had made. Ian made dough ornaments with lots and lots of glitter. :)

It has been fun to see the boys interacting more and more. They can crack each other up better than anyone else can!

Our garage door spring broke one morning randomly. Thankfully, Matt's car was out so we had one car accessible while we waited for someone to come fix it. Ian was fascinated by the fixing process. Even though he was sick with the flu, Ian insisted on going into the garage with his play tools and sitting on a lawn chair by Matt so they could watch the whole repair process. The repair man was kind enough to explain some things to Ian (and Matt) throughout the repair.

Ryan went to his first baby-only playdate. Some friends from our small group moved to Missouri while Chris goes to Seminary there. Chris' wife, Lauren, and daughter, Lillie, came back to TX to visit for a few weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas. We were so excited to see them again and see how much Lillie has grown.

Ryan was very interested in the other babies -- Samuel (less than 1 month old), Lillie (9 months), and Cate (6 months).

What a fun December! :)

Finally ... success!

Well, we are proud to report that, as of December, Ian is officially, fully potty trained! Whew! We didn't realize that it was going to be a 1.5 year journey! Ha!

Right when he turned 2, Ian got the hang of peeing in the potty. He rarely had accidents during the day but we would let him wear Pull-ups at nap time and nighttime since he'd have a hard time waking up dry otherwise. As it turned out, this *may* have not been the best choice on our part ... he would also wait to poop until he had a Pull-up on. What control ... and what stubbornness!

We seemed to try everything ... reasoning, bargaining, encouraging, bribing, ignoring.... to get him to poop on the potty. Nothing seemed to work. We started praying that the Lord would give us wisdom to get our kiddo fully potty trained before he started preschool.

Thankfully, He answered our prayer. When we traveled over Thanksgiving break, Ian's schedule got a little bit off, and when we arrived back home that Monday after Thanksgiving break, he (accidentally!) just couldn't wait until nap time to do his business! Momma rushed him to the potty, where he surprised himself by pooping there! Our ongoing bribe was that we'd go to Chuck E. Cheese's if he pooped in the potty. So, Momma, Ian, and Ryan went immediately to Chuck E. Cheese's for lunch and games. Ian had a remarkable time!

He rushed around from ride to ride excitedly!

Skee ball turned out to be one of Ian's favorites, though he had to go clear up to the glass to be able to get the ball into the holes. Thankfully, the restaurant wasn't busy at all in the middle of the day on a Monday.

He used all of his tickets to buy a slinky!

As expected, it took another couple of weeks to get everything fully figured out for Ian. We put all of his Pull-ups away, letting him know that he was now big enough to go to the bathroom in the potty. After a few days of not pooping at all, a few accidents, lots of patience/encouragements/reminders, two sticker charts (a 3-day one for some new flashlights, and a 5-day one for seeing his first movie at a theater), we were set! Since then, he hasn't looked back! We're so proud of our little man!

Walk through Bethlehem

It has become sort of a family tradition to go to a local church's Walk-Through Bethlehem each year at the beginning of December. The church does a fantastic job, and it has been fun to watch how Ian has enjoyed it even more as the years go by!

Riding a camel was a highlight ...

Funny side-note ... for a few days after, whenever Ian would see a sign along the road for Camel cigarettes, he'd say proudly, "That's a sign for Walk-Through Bethlehem!"

... as was riding the donkey.

We saw family friends Mr. Eric & Melissa there, and Ian and Melissa "made olive oil" together.

Ian "shopped" at the market,

learned a game,

pet some animals,

and liked randomly picking up all of the hay he found on the ground. :)

Ian also got to make his own wax candle,

make a pine-needle "broom"

(which he promptly used),

and made some "coins" out of clay.
What a fun evening! :)

Ian loves yardwork!

We're doing a little catch-up blogging ... :)

This fall, our oak tree went CRAZY making acorns. We heard from a few different people that apparently, every certain number of years, there's an overabundance of acorns. That, coupled with just the "right" acorn-making weather, led to huge amounts of acorns in our front yard over a 3-month period. We have just NOW gotten to the end of it!

Throughout November and December especially, Ian would ASK to sweep acorns when we went outside to "play." He liked to use "daddy's big broom" best.

He liked to make paths with the acorns, too.

One day in late November, Matt decided our oak tree needed a trim. Ian was a VERY willing helper. He got his toy saw to help break the branches down ...

... and even helped Daddy load all of the branches into a van for disposal.

Daddy even gave Ian his own pair of work gloves. So cute!

Here's the finished result ...the tree's haircut looks good, doesn't it?? Way to go, Matt and Ian!

Decorating for Christmas

 It was so fun including Ian in every Christmas decorating step this year.  By far, Ian's most enjoyable decorating task was assembling and trimming the tree.  You should have seen how excited our three-and-a-half year old was when he and Momma were separating the branches based on size (above).

 "It goes right up there, Da!"        [Yes...Ian now generally refers to me by using                                                                           my two-letter name.]

 Ian quickly learned the technique for placing the individual branches.  We estimate that he placed about 90% of the branches on our tree this year.

 Ian thoroughly enjoyed being up high enough to place the tree topper.

 Ian was my light-checker-assistant.  Once we placed the white/clear lights on our tree, Ian and I decorated his bedroom with a few strands of colored lights.  Needless to say, he asks for these strands to be plugged in each night as he is falling asleep.

 Momma and Ian worked together to hang all of the ornaments.  We were impressed with Ian's attention to detail with this task, and he stuck with it until the very last ornament was in place.

Ian loved placing the pieces of the nativity scene on top of our piano.  You may also notice the Advent box that is on the piano just past Ian's left hand.  Our pre-schooler has absolutely loved opening the correct door on this box each day as we count down to Christ's birth.  Kim and I love decorating our home for Christmas, and we are thrilled that we will have little helpers assisting us for years to come. 

Ryan is 7 months old!

 Ryan loves "helping" with laundry and is happiest when he has a sock or washcloth in his hand (or mouth!).

 Despite his expression here, Ryan thinks swinging is awesome ... whether in our backyard or at the neighborhood playground.

 We love our sweet seven-month-old! :)

Our littlest man has reached the seven month mark! We forgot what a delightful stage this is. Ryan keeps getting more and more fun!

You can almost see the gears turning in Ryan’s head as he takes it all in. His favorite way to learn continues to be putting everything in his mouth. He also loves exploring gravity by dropping things off his high chair over and over and over! He doesn’t yet know to look over his high chair tray onto the floor; he just thinks things keep disappearing!

Our mellow fellow continues to be very social. The sight of other babies or kids makes Ryan flap his arms and kick his legs excitedly. He giggles heartily, especially at big brother Ian’s antics, animal noises, tickling, or games like peek-a-boo. He is very vocal and often makes his loudest noises right in the quiet spaces during church services. :) He will readily smile at anyone who talks to him. (Most people still comment on Ryan’s pretty, abundant hair, though many friends are now mentioning how much lighter – or redder – it seems.)

Ryan isn’t complaining as quickly during tummy time sessions, but he’d still much prefer sitting up. He’s a very stable sitter and can reach WAY out for toys (almost getting on his knees like he’s going to crawl) and still come back to the sitting position. He also seems interested in standing up and has seemed to TRY to pull himself to a standing position (though he’s not nearly strong enough and just “hangs” onto shelves or other higher objects as he tries to pull). A few days AFTER we had Early Childhood Intervention come out to evaluate Ryan, he started rolling over from his back to his belly. :) Interestingly, though, even without being able to roll over, the Early Childhood evaluators  weren’t at all concerned about his gross motor development! In fact, in all areas but one Ryan was between the 6-10 month developmental level … right on track. The area that they were most concerned about? His eating!

The evaluators were surprised to hear that Ryan isn’t interested much at all in baby food. No matter what we try (rice cereal, oatmeal, avocado, applesauce, sweet potatoes, peas, pears, bananas), Ryan will generally keep his mouth tightly clamped, turn his head to the side, and/or start crying. He will seem averse to food on a spoon before even trying it! The food that we do manage to squeeze into his mouth will usually come right back out, sometimes after he seems to gag on it! We’ve even tried finger foods (like puffs), but, though they end up in his mouth, he doesn’t know what to do with them from there and ends up just spitting them out. We’re guessing that our 20 lb., 3 oz. baby is getting plenty of breastmilk and that he’ll start eating other food in his sweet time (just like he rolled over when he was ready J). Since their services are free (or almost free), we’ve agreed to receive assistance from the Early Childhood Intervention system. An occupational therapist will come out twice a month to offer suggestions for helping us teach Ryan to eat. Someday, as Ryan is sitting down to a big steak & potatoes dinner, he’ll laugh about not wanting anything but milk as a 7-month old! 

Not much fazes our easygoing baby, though he hates getting his nose wiped and seems to be working on getting some teeth. He’s drooling like crazy and biting down hard on things! Ryan has gotten much more agreeable during evening tutoring sessions and rarely cries for Daddy anymore. (Yay!) He still is very aware of where Momma is and will crane his neck to find her if he hears her voice.  Ryan is still very pleasant no matter what the day brings – whether we’re at home or at church or running errands or going to activities for big brother!

A highlight of the month was spending Thanksgiving with Grammy, Papa, aunts, uncles, and three cousins in Albuquerque. Ryan (and Ian) traveled very well on the 14-hour drive there and back, especially since Momma or Daddy was stationed between the two carseats in the back seat. :) It was fun to see Ryan interact with his other baby cousins!

Some of Ryan’s favorites include his exersaucer (especially spinning around), lift-the-flap books, plastic rings, knocking over his stacking cups, his baby musical instruments (maracas are the best!), bead necklaces, and tags or strings of any kind. He loves being carried and will put his finger in Matt’s ear if Daddy’s carrying him or clutch Kim’s hair if Momma’s carrying him. He also likes to pull on any shiny earrings or necklaces Momma is wearing.

We thank our God for helping Ryan to learn and grow each day, and we can’t wait to see what the Lord has in store in the month to come!