Be There.

My friend Brandi posted this link to her friend's blog today and it is worth the read! I know that I have experienced sitting in a hospital room with a sick child and it is the worst thing I have ever had to go through. The Christmas season can be busy and hectic, but as the post talks about, there is no better way to celebrate than to show Christ's love to another family in need.
http://newkindofnormal.blogspot.com/2008/11/no-more-excuses-be-there.html

Busy!

The last two weeks have been so jam packed with events and things to do, that I have not had any time to blog!

We are trying to get ready for Christmas and the shopping is almost done! (1 gift left!) Ryan is very excited about Christmas. He keeps telling me that it is Christmas time, but not Christmas Day yet! I don't think he gets the whole idea quite yet. He asked if he was going to get presents the other day when we were shopping! I told him yes! We aren't really doing Santa at our house, and haven't quite figured out how to explain how Santa is just pretend and for fun--but other people believe in him?

The one thing Ryan is very into is the Gingerbread Man story! He decorated gingerbread men this week and is loving the story. I'm going to try to get some video of him "reading" it. It is too funny!
Well, enough rambling! I've got gifts to wrap!

What kids repeat...

I'm sure most of us have been there...your child says something and you realize that they are repeating something you have said word for word. Now, this is not the first time this has happened, but tonight, Jamie and I were putting Ryan's ear drops in and we had one of those moments.
Ryan said, "Jamie, that's not helping very much."
Oops! I'm sure that came from me--especially since Ryan called him Jamie!

The things they say!

Ryan and I were driving home from Mindi's this afternoon and the following conversation took place. We were just about to EZ Orchards, still a little far from home.

Ryan: I get out Mommy?
Mommy: No, Ryan. We aren't home yet. Where would we go if we got out?
Ryan: You drive home and I walk.
Mommy: No, I can't let you out. It wouldn't be safe. And you can't walk on the road!
Ryan: Okay, I walk on that grass over there. Not in the road. I get out now Mommy?

Seriously?? Then about half a mile later, Ryan tells me, "Mommy, there's a beer on my leg." I turned around and said, "WHAT???" He points, to a small BRUISE and says, "Right here!" I was laughing so hard and had to correct him and tell him that was a bruise, not a beer!!

Drumroll please.....

As you all know, Baby #2 is due to make an arrival in mid-April. We had our ultrasound on Wednesday and found out that we are having another boy!
Ryan is very excited and told me "there going to be two brothers!"
Everything looked good on the ultrasound and we cannot wait to meet this new little guy!!

Stuck...

Ryan and I drove up to Woodburn about a week ago. He needed boots and I needed new black shoes. So, we get up there, do our shopping and Ryan was so good! He got froggy boots, which he has scarcely taken off since we bought them!
Well, right as we started heading to the car to go home, it started to rain. Hard. It was absolutely freezing and I just went as fast as I could with the stroller. We got to the car and I just put Ryan in the backseat without strapping him in and put our bags in the trunk.
Ryan doesn't fit very well into his carseat with his big coat on, and it was so cold, that I opted to get in the other side of the backseat and strap him in from there. I get his coat off, buckle him in and try to open the door to get out.
Locked.
Yep...those child safety locks that we have on the back doors, so the kiddos can't open them, had locked me in!
Pretty much, my only option was too climb over the seat into the front. Can I just say how glad I was to only be 18 weeks pregnant? Imagine being in that predicament three months down the road!
I have learned my lesson though--no more backseat sitting for me, unless I leave the door open!

Complaining...

Anyone else ever feel like they are a huge whiner?? I have so much to be thankful for, but I see myself constantly focusing on the negatives. To be completely honest, my job is very frustrating to me right now. I am trusting that I am in the place where God wants me, even if it is not where I would like to be and just wonder how long I'm going to stay there?
Also, there are just some uncertainties in my life right now, and they will probably stay that way for quite awhile. I have a huge issue with loose ends and not knowing. I know that God will provide the answers and I need to get on my knees about these things, instead of trying to figure it out myself!

Okay--enough of the complaining! Baby started kicking this week! Not just moving, kicking! I didn't feel Ryan until WAY later than this, so it is exciting to feel those little kicks. (Ha, just got another one!)
Big ultrasound is in a week--I'm absolutely dying to know!! Ryan will tell you, "God already knows if our baby is a boy or girl." I know that God is going to give us whatever is right for our family--but I'm getting impatient!

The Doctor is In!

After a lot of discussions on the topic of dressing up, I finally got Ryan excited to wear his costume! (I did mention that if he wore it, he could knock on doors and get candy!) He loved wearing his costume and LOVED trick or treating! It was a fun night and I'm so glad he had such a good time!

Pumpkin Patch

Okay--we went to the pumpkin patch about a week ago and had a blast! Ryan even wanted to go on a horse! (It only lasted one trip around the ring, but that is a big deal for a VERY non-adventurous child!) Of course, he didn't stay on it long enough to get any good pictures! But, we had so much fun getting our pumpkins, going through the maze and Ryan LOVED the bluegrass band!

Touch...

Up or Down?

Ryan loves to watch football and he has always put his hands in the air and said touchdown with Jamie. Well, Ryan and I were watching a game the other day and he put his hands in the air and said touchdown, as usual. Then, he looked at me and said, "That not touch-"down" mommy. That touch "up"!" Then he touched his hands down to the couch and said, "This touch down!"
Absolutely floored me--how do you respond to that one??
He is coming up with some interesting sayings lately--I know the blog is probably going to be heavy on the Ryan quotes for awhile!

What is He doing in there?

We were on our way to church yesterday and Ryan asks me, "Mommy, what Jesus DO in your heart?" I had to clarify what he was asking, and he asked again, "What Jesus doing in there??"
That made me think and I told him that Jesus forgives us for all that we do wrong, that he loves us and helps us to make the right choices.
Ryan thought about this for awhile and then said, "But I not see Him!" I told him that Jesus lives up in Heaven and that when we love Him we can go see Him there after a long time. A few more seconds of thought and Ryan said, "But I not see Him!"
I love that seeds are being planted and that Ryan is asking these questions. I just pray that God is working in his heart and drawing Ryan to Him. And I can understand his frustration--sometimes it would be so much easier to be able to see God and know for sure what He wants us to do!

Coming Soon....

We are expecting a new addition to our family! Right now my due date is April 19. Ryan is very excited and I thought it might be fun to let him share the news!

I'm feeling pretty good right now--I'm just over 13 weeks along. The sickness is starting to go away, thank goodness! I'm hoping to get some energy back eventually also!

Falling...

So, Ryan took a short nap (AGAIN) and so I decided to take advantage, head to the outlets to get Ryan new shoes. We get the shoes, I found his Christmas Eve jammies at Carters and we went to one more store when Ryan told me he needed to pee. So, we rush to the bathroom--on the other side of the mall and then he doesn't even go.

What he does do is fall off the toilet! I told him to wait and I would help him get off--(I was putting my purse in the stroller). He didn't wait and fell. He was sitting backwards, so he sort of fell off sideways, bumped his face on the side of the bowl, bit his lip on the way down and his head crashed onto my feet as I reached to catch him. Thank goodness it didn't hit the ground! There was blood all over his face from his lip; he bit his lip pretty hard on the way down.
And of course, he is screaming and crying. And while I was very concerned, I was just sure that people outside the bathroom were thinking that I was in there beating my child! We cleaned him up, he calmed down and I just decided to head back to Salem.

He has a pretty fat lip right now, but is fine. But, is there a nastier place to have an accident than a public restroom?? At least we were in the family restroom, not just a stall, but still gross! And is it just my kid who gets injured falling off a toilet?? Seriously!

Exhausted!

And ready for a (another) weekend! It was a fun weekend, but jam packed with a birthday, a shower, meetings, church, errands.... I seriously need ANOTHER weekend, just to catch up on rest!
Not sure how we are going to keep up this pace, especially come spring--and I hope we are NOT! I just know that last week, either Jamie or I had something going on every single night. Tag-team parenting every night and I'm tired of it!
I'm hoping that when I finish up with my classes at Corban, that will relieve some of the busy-ness and give me some more time to relax, get things done around the house and spend more time with Jamie after Ryan is in bed.
No real point to this post--just tired ramblings, but I'm really hoping next weekend comes quickly!

Why I did NOT become a lawyer.

Okay, there are probably a billion reasons, but I am trying to do this stupid case analysis for my Education and the Law class and trying to decipher the legal-ese is driving my up the wall! Seriously, I'm looking at the case and then the case was appealed and overturned, then the appeal was reversed, so that means the original ruling stands?
UGH! Last class, last class, last class (just keep telling myself this!)

Not hearing?

Ryan woke up from his nap the other day, and I didn't hear him right away, since I was typing something up on the computer in the den. (Really, I was doing work, not just playing on Facebook!) So, I did hear him and went into his room and he was very indignant and asked, "Your not hear me Mommy?" I told him that I didn't hear him right away because I was typing something on the computer.
So, later on we were playing and Ryan told me that I needed to take a "nap." So, I laid down and pretended to sleep. Then he told me to wake up and "cry." So, I did and he tells me, "I not hear you, I typing on the puter."
Oh, boy....

The things they say!

Ryan has been saying some very funny things lately. I thought I should record them, since there is no way I will ever remember all of his little Ryan-isms.
--Last night, he told me his "throw up" hurt him. I start frantically looking around for the vomit, and then realized that he means his stomach. He was calling his stomach his throw up!
--Today, I picked up Ryan and we pulled out of the drive through at Dutch Brothers and the curb is a pretty big one. Ryan said, "Bump" and then said, "That bump remind me of the choo choo tracks." It reminded him??? How old is he again??

A tad inappropriate but really funny!

Ryan is very intent right now on telling me that only boys have pee-pees, not girls. The other day, we were having lunch and Ryan told me that when he gets big, he is going to get married to a girl. Then, he said that he would wear a ring when he gets married. And then, he apparently felt it was important to add that the girl he married would NOT have a pee pee.
Yes, very accurate....and glad my 2 year old has a grasp on all this!
I try SO hard not to laugh, because if you laugh, Ryan will just repeat it 15 more times hoping to get you to laugh again and I really don't want him telling this stuff to strangers on the street! (or his teachers at church!)

Puggles!

Last night was our first night of AWANA for the year! Always a crazy night and of course, I came home exhausted! It was also Ryan's first night of Puggles! I was really nervous about him going, just because I wasn't sure how he would do. He does not adjust well to new situations, especially those right around bedtime!
I went in with him, and stayed for about half an hour. He was a little clingy for awhile, and didn't want me to leave, but then I was able to leave with no tears or tantrums!
Seriously, didn't know what to do with myself after that! I was able to help Jamie a little and check in with the clubs and the kids and even chat for a bit!
I'm so glad he did so well and he had a blast! (Thank you Margo and Christopher!) It does make me a little sad to see how big he is getting! I have never really felt that before--I really love how as Ryan gets bigger, we can do more things with him and we have way more fun! I just was thinking how next year he will be a Cubbie, and how this is just the beginning of AWANA for us!

Lifeguard Reunion!

Now, I know I just posted about my high school reunion, but this one was even more fun! Jamie and I both worked for the City of Yakima pools during the summers (and part time during the school year). That is actually how we met. Anyway, some good friends organized a lifeguard reunion this summer and we had a blast! We spent 40 hours a week with our friends from the pools, and then hung out with them all the time too! We had Blueberry Pancake Tuesdays, trips to the drive in, mini-golf and just hanging out playing Mafia and ping pong. Seriously, the best times ever!

High School Reunion

10 years! Wow! In some ways it doesn't feel like it was that long ago, and in other ways it feels like it has been forever. Anyway, I did go to my high school reunion this summer and it was fun. It was good to catch up--even briefly, with people and see what everyone was up to. I had more fun than I thought I would, which is always good! I have really only seen one friend from high school on a regular basis since graduating, and she wasn't even there, so it was really catching up with friends who I definitely miss being in contact with and haven't seen in a while!

We all go off to college with the best of intentions of keeping up, but reality hits and there just isn't time to maintain those relationships. Plus, it seems like you don't have as much in common anymore and everyone moves on. But it is nice to catch up with people that you have a shared history with. To see people who remember you from kindergarten.

I love living in Salem, but that is one thing I miss. I have been here for almost 9 years (counting college) and full time for 7 years, and while we have great friends here--our oldest friends have known us maybe 9 years? I miss having friends who you can remember with, who know your history and you know their stories too.

Anyway, I hope that the reunion will maybe re-new some of those friendships (more than just being facebook friends) and maybe we can find time to get together every now and then when we are home over holidays!

Visit to the Fire Station!

A few weeks ago, we were up in Yakima and our good friend Michael took us to the fire station so Ryan could visit. Ryan loved it and still talks about Michael the fireman!

Summer in a nutshell!

Okay--this was a great summer all in all, but it was insanely busy. I completed five credits at Corban, we made about five trips to Yakima, went to the beach, Tacoma and it all just went so fast!

So, here are some of our summer pictures to catch up and get ready to start the new school year!

At the children's museum in Yakima!

Ice cream at the soda fountain!





Ryan in his big boy bed!!!

Playing in the pool with Madison on one of those 107 degree days!

Shhh....

Ryan has been getting more independent in what he prays for lately. He has been thanking God for every individual item on our plates at dinner "thank you for my bread, thank you for my pot pie, thank you for mommy's bread, etc." He has also started this when we pray before bed. Tonight, he thanked God for his closet, mommy's closet, daddy's arms, daddy's jammies and just kept going on. He kind of got lost and Jamie tried to prompt him. Ryan said, "Quiet, I'm praying!" We just about died laughing while Ryan continued to pray!
We have had to talk about how it is polite to be quiet when Mommy and Daddy are praying and apparently he got it--even if he is a little sassy!

Married

Ryan has been very interested in my wedding ring lately, and I told him that Daddy gave it to me when we got married. He was asking about it today and then said that he wanted a ring when he got married. I asked him who he was going to marry. He told me that he wanted to marry Mommy. I had to explain to him that I was already married to daddy, but it was so sweet!

Behind...

I know that I am very behind on blogging--but life, school and traveling almost every weekend for the last month has caught up with me! I will try to get caught up this week and give you all a look at what we've been up to!

Knocking...

I'm in a frustrating place. Without going into specifics, I am wanting to make some changes, and doors keep getting closed. I know that God will work and put me where he wants me, but I have no idea where that is. I do not want to continue on the same track, but have not yet been given an open door to try something else.
I guess I keep on knocking on different doors and trust that God will open one in His time? I just wish I had a clue!

Fun at the Beach

We joined my mom and sister's family at the beach last week and had a blast! Ryan loved the sand and splashing in the pools caused by low tide. We went on a train ride along the coast and had a great time! While we were there, Jamie and I also got out of the house and celebrated our 7th anniversary! (Thanks for babysitting Mom!!!) It was a great time and we wished we could have stayed longer. (Especially since it was 107 degrees when we came home!)

Jesus loves Tacos!

Yes, you read that right. We were eating tacos for dinner and Ryan decided to change the words to Jesus loves me, tonight and now the song goes, Jesus loves tacos! I now know why my parents did not let us sing at the table--even though it is hilarious.

So, after this song, Ryan is eating and he holds his bite up in the air and says, "Here you go Jesus!"
And that's when I choked on my milk.

Camping!

Well, we just got back from our annual camping trip with our Sunday school class. We had so much fun! Ryan loved it; I think he just rode his trike non-stop the entire trip! He did much better sleeping this year, even though he was up until 11 p.m. every night. (And no, that's not when we put him to bed!) Saturday night, Ryan was put to bed and I stayed with him for a long time. He was doing fine, so I went out to the campfire and a little while later I hear him screaming for Mommy and Daddy. I run to the tent, Jamie is running to the tent and inside, I find Ryan sitting on his bed. He has put the air mattress pump on his bed and turned it on. He couldn't turn it off and the loud noise was scaring him! Funny, but he really was scared! What a turkey!
Ryan and I went out on the boat and had a fun time just riding around on the lake. All in all it was a great trip and we can't wait until next year!

A Child Like Faith

I was chatting with a friend today and she mentioned that her daughter was sick. I promised that I would pray for her and we got off the phone. Ryan was just getting up from his nap and he loves their little girl, so I asked him if he wanted to pray with me. We talked about how God can help people get better when they are sick and we prayed for them.
After we were done, Ryan asked me, "Baby Ella better now?"

Adenoids and Ear tubes

Ryan had his ear tubes and adenoids out this morning. I was so nervous going into the surgery, but it went much better than I anticipated. The recovery in the doctor's office was rough. Ryan was upset about the IV, the band-aid and he just wanted out of there! He did really well and drank all his juice, so they let us go home a little earlier than they had originally said. (Probably because he could not stop crying, and he was disturbing all the other patients!) Once we got him to the car, he was calming down. We stopped and got him some chocolate milk at Starbucks on the way home and he really liked that. He sat in my lap for quite awhile once we got home, but then he wanted to get down and play! He ate an okay lunch, took a nap and then wanted to go outside and ride his bike! We made sure that he had Tylenol all day, just to stay ahead of any pain that he might have. Seriously, I could see that people were praying for him--his recovery today was amazing and beyond anything we or the doctors expected.

Last Day!

Tonight was my last night of class! Now, I still have two online classes and a project and a big paper to turn in from this class, but no more going to class!! I really just need to breathe and relax a little!
I'm actually skipping out on the last night of class because we are going to see Brian Regan tomorrow!! So thankful for a gracious and understanding professor! I'm so excited!

Day 3 of Underwear

Ryan is doing great going on the potty! He had one accident today and we became very familiar with the bathrooms at Costco, Winco and EZ Orchards! I'm so proud of him!
His shining moment today was when I was in the shower and Ryan was playing in his room. Ryan runs into the living room and says, "I go potty Daddy." Ryan had run into the bathroom, pulled down his pants and peed in his potty all by himself!

Happy Birthday Jamie!

Today is Jamie's birthday and Ryan and I sneaked out of the house early so that we could wake Jamie up with a mocha from Starbucks! Ryan thought it was so funny that we were leaving the house in our jammies!
Jamie was very excited to have that when we woke him up! I got him tickets to Brian Regan up in Portland for his birthday and he was VERY excited about that too! I've had the tickets for months and have been hiding them! I've been dying to tell other people that we are going, but didn't want it to accidentally leak out!
Anyway, we are keeping the day low-key! Jamie told me that he felt that it was more important to give me a day to de-stress rather than add to my stress level just to do something for his birthday!
Happy Birthday Jamie! I love you!

Going a LITTLE crazy!

Well, summer has begun and I am finally off of work. Summer session at Corban has also begun and so right now I am taking 3 classes. I'm truthfully going a little nuts trying to keep up with it all! All I have done is homework the last few days and my class is from 6-9pm, so I've been up late getting homework done too.
Oh, did I mention that Ryan is now wearing underwear full time? He's been going in the potty like a champ for awhile and would sometimes tell us he needed to go, and we knew he was ready. So, we went cold turkey on the diapers during the day and he had NO accidents on day 2 of potty training! (He did pee in his diaper during naptime, since he couldn't/wouldn't go before nap. This is the crazy thing--this kid is going two to four hours between peeing! I've been trying to fill him full of liquid but he hasn't been that interested. So, here I am trying to put him on the potty every 30 minutes and he thinks I'm nuts. Not sure if its a control thing or not, but if he doesn't want to sit on the potty he is NOT going to do it. Timers didn't work either. Yesterday, I told him it was time to sit on the potty and he threw a total fit. While he is throwing the fit he peed on the floor! But if he is waiting so long between potty trips, he must think I'm ridiculous trying to make him pee so often!
We maybe should have done this earlier??? So, anyway, we haven't left the house in 2 days since Ryan refuses to pee on the potty before we leave the house. (Another reason why I'm going crazy!) But, I think we'll venture out tomorrow since he is showing that he can go long stretches and not have accidents.

Bon Voyage!

Char and Elisabeth as college freshmen! And now--almost 10 years later!

This weekend, we traveled up to Tacoma to spend some time with our wonderful friends Elisabeth and Jacob! Elisabeth and I were roommates at PLU our freshman year and she and Jacob and I were inseparable. Elisabeth graduated this weekend with her master's in social work and in two weeks, they are MOVING to WISCONSIN! Jacob is going to architecture school in Milwaukee, so they are off in two weeks! Anyway, we drove up to be there for their going away party and to spend some quality time before they go.

Ryan had a blast playing with Ivan and Lydia, Elisabeth's niece and nephew as well as the other kids at the party! He especially loved Danelle, our friends Shane and Dayna's little girl!

Can I just say that it is a little strange to see all your college friends with kids? I remember hanging out in the dorms and suddenly (okay, 6 years isn't so sudden) we are all parents!

We wish them the best of luck and hope those nasty Wisconsin winters send them back to the Pacific Northwest after Jacob finishes school!

Ryan and Jacob became best buds!

Elise and Doug--two friends from PLU


Dayna and I

Ryan playing in the grass.

Ready for Pancakes!

This morning, we were getting ready for breakfast and I handed Ryan his plate with pancakes on it. I told him, "Ryan, the pancake is very hot. So, what do we need to do before we eat it?"

Ryan says, "Pray!"

Have I mentioned I love this little guy?

God makes things grow!

I mentioned yesterday that we planted seeds in Ryan's class on Sunday. The lesson was about how God makes everything grow--the plants, animals and us! Ryan seemed to get it on Sunday and today I noticed his seed had sprouted. I called him over to come see his plant and he runs over and yells, "God did it!!!" Then, he told me that God lived at his house. We talked about how God lives in heaven but He also lives in our hearts when we love Him and believe in Him. He asked me, "God live in your heart Mommy?" We talked about how God lives in mommy and daddy's heart and how one day when Ryan is a little bigger, He can live in Ryan's heart too. The whole thing just warmed my heart and made me so thankful for this little boy God has given us!

Warning...shameless parental bragging ahead!

Ryan has been so fun lately! It seems like every day he is doing and saying new things! I have been so bad at blogging lately, so, I thought I'd post a list of his latest and greatest. (I know this is totally bragging, but I figure a blog is a good place to document this!)

--Ryan has been wearing underwear in the afternoons after nap time for a few hours!! He stayed dry from about 4:45 to 7:15 tonight and went potty at EZ Orchards. He has only had one accident so far!!! Wednesday (our first day at home) is when we will try wearing underwear full time.

--Ryan counted to 9 by himself last night! After 9 he went back to 3, but I was impressed!

--We were driving down a big hill yesterday and he said, "Go down the mountain mommy?" :)

--He has been using the word "your" instead of the person's name. Yesterday, he said, "Is your hair wet Mommy?" Not "mommy's hair wet?" anymore!

--I got to teach Ryan's class on Sunday and we planted seeds, since the lesson was about God making things grow. Jamie had his plant after church and asked Ryan about it. Ryan said, "God." Jamie asked him about it again and Ryan told him, "God make it grow!"

--We were at Learning Palace yesterday and Ryan was playing with the trains. They have a car wash for the train cars and Ryan was enamored with it! I asked him if he was putting the trains through the car wash. He tells me, "No, Mommy. The choo choo wash!"

Okay--that is enough of an update for now! 3 more days of school!!!

2 more...

Two more of the fish now have names. Ryan named the other two red minnows, Mommy and Daddy. Mommy is the big one, Daddy is the little one. (not sure how I feel about that!) He named them after we got back yesterday, and he was saying hi to Ruth!

Sleep? Who needs sleep?

Not Ryan! We are visiting my parents and last night it was 10:30 p.m. before Ryan finally conked out. 2 hours of crying and it really just seemed like he was playing us, because once we went in there, he would start happily chatting to us about the dogs, or the birds outside. And, true to his nature, he was up at 5:45 this morning, ready to go!
We went on a trolley ride, and Ryan fell asleep on the way home. We get him out of the car and of course, he wakes up! So, we feed him lunch, play for a bit and put him back down at noon. I laid in the room and rested until 1. Still not asleep! But, we did get a messy diaper and he grabbed my mascara off the dresser and covered his face and hands with it! (I dozed off!) I had enough at that point, and my mom and I went shopping.
After we left, Ryan was crying HARD and just screaming until Jamie laid down with him. It was after 2 by the time he finally fell asleep! Seriously???
So, we are going to have to wake him up at some point (4?), so we can go to Jamie's mom's house and so Ryan will hopefully fall asleep tonight. Not really looking forward to another night of this!

Ruth

Meet Ruth......

(I tried to get a real pic, but that fish is fast and the glare from the tank made it blurry!)

Ruth is one of Ryan's fish that we got him at Christmas. Until two days ago, all five fish were simply nameless fishies. Ryan loves his fish, loves to watch them, feed them and play trucks near their tank. Well, a few days ago, Ryan started pointing at this fish and calling it Ruth! Now, don't get me wrong, Ruth is a very nice name, but where in the world did he pick that name up? We don't know anyone named Ruth and I don't think he's been reading his Bible lately. Wherever he got it, Ruth is the name of the fish now! Wonder what he will name the other fish?

Where have all the bloggers gone?

Seriously, not much new to report around here and it seems like that is the theme on many of the other blogs that I follow. It has been weeks since some of my very faithful bloggers have updated! I think it is simply the season--we have just had so much going on that there hasn't been time! I kept thinking that once AWANA was over, I would have more time and it just hasn't seemed that way!
Today was a great day--I got to get out for a bit, which was much needed! Jamie is back to working normal hours--thank goodness! So, he was home, which meant I got out to get a haircut, I hit the Nordstrom sale armed with birthday money and stopped at Starbucks!
Ryan and I had a fun morning playing some pretending game. You know the kind of game where you really aren't sure what you are doing, but you just follow along with whatever they tell you to do? That's what we did. We were pretending to drive, then we hid, then we had to take a nap, etc. It was especially fun because we had no agenda for the morning. We didn't have to be anywhere or get ready or do anything in particular. We just hung out and played in our jammies! Being a working mom doesn't allow us to do this every day, and it makes me really look forward to this summer!
Oh, and Ryan has discovered baseball--which probably needs to be its own post, so I promise to blog with pictures this week!

Interesting...(at least to me!)

It is an interesting place to be when you realize God is changing your heart. I have been struggling with a situation for awhile now and it is still not resolved. I had a PLAN--and boy, it was going to be my way or the highway! I was riled up about it and was determined to do something about it. And being completely honest, I would probably be justified to respond this way.
But, there are two little words: grace and compassion. Not my strong points, I will admit. I haven't had much of these in this situation. But, when I was talking with Jamie yesterday, I realized that my attitude has completely changed. I no longer want to storm in and take over the situation, instead, I thought about how that would affect the situation and those involved. My heart has softened towards those who are involved and now I have no idea what to do!!! Pray for me as I seek God's wisdom in this situation and that it will be resolved in a way that is glorifying to Him.

A Birthday and Mother's Day!

We had such a great weekend! We started off on Friday by celebrating my birthday. Ryan and I had a fun afternoon together and then went out to Willamette Noodle Company for dinner. YUM! On Saturday, Ryan and I went out ran errands and did some shopping. After we got home, we raced around a bit and left for Portland. We went to a beautiful wedding--(Congratulations Cheree and D'Arcy!) and then hit 5 Guys Burgers for a late lunch! Seriously--BEST burgers anywhere! Check them out in West Linn!
After we got home, I raced over to Debbie's for her annual Naked Lady Party. I was late, but still made it! For those of you imagining something scandalous--get your mind out of the gutter! It is a great clothing swap where we all bring clothes we don't wear anymore and trade. All the leftovers go to the local women's shelter, so everyone benefits!
I am not into a huge hoopla for Mother's Day, so sleeping in and some flowers were great for me! We went to church and really just had a low-key day at home! I made a yummy dinner and Ryan and I made cupcakes.
It has been a great weekend and I'm going to have a hard time going back to work tomorrow!

Balloons...

Have you ever found yourself doing something and wonder how in the world you got into this situation?
I had a plan of attack today--pick up Ryan, go and get balloons for Cubbies tonight and drop them off at the church. So, I got Ryan, went to the party store and got a dozen helium balloons. Then, the problem arose.
How in the world am I getting these in the car? (This is the ONE and only time I have ever longed for a minivan!!!)
So, I jam them in the car and try to pull out. Problem: I can't see out of any windows!
I re-park, maneuver all the balloons in the backseat with Ryan and continue on my way. We go maybe 20 yards and I hear, "Ow, balloons!" One of the balloons keeps bouncing off Ryan's head and he is not happy about it. So, I park again.
I get out, and move the stroller and umbrella and anything that looks poky out of the trunk. Open the car door and it literally takes me 5 minutes just to get all the balloons out of the car! I get them out and untangled from the seats and start the process of trying to shove the balloons in the trunk.
Oh, and did I mention that it is rainy and very windy?

Not kidding, this is maybe one of the hardest things I have ever tried to do! I get a few in, and the others try to fly out, I get a few more in and realize that I have to shift them and a few more fly out. Balloons are blowing every where and they would not stay in the trunk!
Seriously--this probably took a good 10-15 minutes! And I'm just hoping that someone walking to their car will take pity on my and offer to help! Nope! And this is when I start to wonder why I'm doing this in the first place.....Cubbies, AWANA, serving Jesus.

So, if I'm trying to put these balloons in the trunk for Jesus, maybe I should stop saying bad words in my head?
Sometimes, I get so involved in the busy work of a task that I forget why I'm doing it! It is easy to remember that you are serving God when you are teaching Sunday school. Not so easy when you are trying to shove a dozen helium balloons in a trunk. Anyway, it is all for Jesus and I did get the balloons to church--all intact! (and I stopped thinking the bad words!)

This makes sense to me!

I know that many of you follow Teresa's blog, and read about her new system for keeping her house clean. Well, I am on the bandwagon and am trying my best to use the system and keep my house clean too! I have done Fly Lady and am so overwhelmed by the whole system and it never really worked for me. I would spend time cleaning the outside of my fridge, but the rest of the house would be a pit!

Anyway, the system Teresa is using, asks you to list everything that needs to be done in your house (daily, weekly, etc) and put chores into days of the week. So, it is Tuesday, which means I am changing the sheets and vacuuming today. (Of course, I still have to clean the kitchen and pick up the living room every day!) Really, this makes sense to me! Before, I used to simply wander around and clean random things. Or, the "I have to clean my house" thing? What part of it do I clean? And lately, it has been just crisis cleaning, so none of the non-visible areas were getting touched!

Now, is my house immaculate? No. But is it okay enough that I would let someone in the door? Yes! Doing just a few things every day eliminates the frantic house cleaning and I have organized the chores in a way that works for me! For example, it seems like people are always over on the weekend, so I plan to clean the main bathroom on Friday, so it is guest ready on Saturdays.

This is an area where I really do struggle, but this is making my life a LOT easier and less stressful! I have tried to do similar things over the years and they have never worked--or I didn't stick to them, but this is working!

"Easter" Weekend

Finally--here are the posts from our Easter! We celebrated a week late due to the sickness at
our house, but had fun anyway!

!

At the Easter Egg Hunt--he was feeling a little better so we thought we would try it!

Dying Eggs!

Opening his Easter Basket!

Ready for Church!!

Discouraged

We went into the doctor for Ryan's 2 year checkup yesterday, only to find that one of his ear tubes has fallen out. And of course that ear is infected. So, back on medicine. We go back to the ENT next week for his checkup, so I'm going to guess that we are going to have to schedule another appointment to put tubes back in.
Poor kid--I'm at the point of bribing him to take medicine with vanilla wafers. He drank his antibiotic tonight and told me it was tasty. :)
He also asks if it is yummy or yucky medicine before he takes it!

Another funny Ryan-ism--we were at the doctor yesterday and he was sitting on the doctor's stool.
Mommy: Are you sitting in the doctor's chair?
Ryan: No, tool (stool).
Mommy: Oh, yes, the stool. Is Ryan going to be a doctor when you get big?
Ryan: No.
Mommy: What are you going to be when you get big?
Ryan: Ry Ry!
Mommy: Oh, yes, you are still going to be Ry Ry when you get big!
Ryan: (standing up with his hands in the air) Doctor Ry Ry!!!

A Week Late

Since Jamie and Ryan were so sick last week, we decided to do Easter a week late! So, today we had our Easter lunch with Jamie's mom and stepdad. We had a yummy carrot cheesecake for dessert (thank you Martha Stewart for the recipe!) and we are going to dye eggs tonight! Tomorrow, Ryan will get to wear his Easter outfit and get his basket!
Jesus is still risen--that doesn't change and we probably should remember to celebrate that all year!

On the mend!

Well....we are on the road to recovery! Jamie and Ryan are both on antibiotics and getting better! I am still hoping for an uninterrupted night of sleep though!
Seriously, Ryan hasn't eaten well since he got sick (over a week ago!) and it has been a huge struggle getting him to eat, even now that he is feeling better. He has seriously lost weight and you can tell in his face and when you pick him up. So, when he wakes up at 3 and wants crackers, what do you do???? He is seriously hungry because he only ate 4 bites of dinner (after an hour and a half struggle to get those 4 bites down!) We gave him the crackers, but we don't want to create bad habits either.
We are offering food whenever he wants it, but he won't eat it! Tonight was better. He maybe ate 2 or 3 ravioli, 2/3 of a nutrigrain bar and half a sippy cup of Carnation Instant Breakfast before bed. I'm hoping the extra calories of the instant breakfast will get him through the night.
It's especially hard, since Ryan has always been on the low end of the weight scale, even though he's been a good eater. We are trying to get the ice cream, cheese, peanut butter, etc. into him, but what can you do if he won't eat it??? Pizza is his FAVORITE food and he took 4 bites last night--even with the promise of ice cream.
Any tips on how to get a child who won't eat to gain weight?

Antibiotics!

After a sleepless night for Jamie (he let me sleep!), we decided to take Ryan back to the doctor today. We got a prescription for some antibiotics to kick this bug! Poor kid--he is really gross right now--oozing out of his ears, eyes and nose. Seriously, it is gross stuff, but hopefully this will clear it up!

Two Weeks?

Is two weeks the maximum amount of time Ryan can stay healthy? I picked him up Monday at the babysitters, and he had a 101 degree fever. By Tuesday afternoon, he added a goopy draining ear to that. Since he has tubes, we just started his ear drops. But, last night his left eye started getting goopy and nasty. After his nap today, I noticed that his other ear is now draining and now his right eye is gunky too. He is coughing a little and is just snotty and gross. We stayed home from church tonight--didn't think anyone would appreciate us being there, and I'm hoping Ryan starts feeling better! Oh, and can we add some molars trying to come in too? Seriously??? When your kid comes in and asks for medicine is it a sign he is sick too much? Or if he asks if it is yummy medicine or not?

We went to the doctor and the poor little guy is such a pro. He lifts his shirt without being asked so the doctor can listen to his breathing, and takes deep breaths. He tells me, "Ry Ry doctor." and he looks in my ears and mouth. He will tell you everything the doctor does, because he has been there so much! I'm just waiting for all these immunities to kick in--he gets everything that comes around, should he be immune to something by now???

Praying for dinner

Ryan loves to pray before dinner and he will tell us who he wants to pray with him. Or he will say, "No, Ry Ry pray!" We finally got it on video. You might need to turn your sound up to hear him, but it is really cute! (if I do say so myself!)

Terrible Two's, Already?

Ryan has been two for less than a week, and we have seen a HUGE change in his behavior. Where did my sweet, obedient boy go? He has been replaced by a tantrum throwing, disobedient little guy with "mine-itis" (I heard that on Sesame Street). Seriously, it has been a challenging day, filled with time outs. I'm not optimistic, I've heard it gets worse!

Happy Birthday Ryan!

Happy 2nd Birthday Ryan!
It is so hard to believe that you are two! You have grown so much in the last year and you are not my little baby anymore. You are a big boy who uses the potty sometimes and who runs all over the house telling us, "I'm running!" You are very interested in sports and will watch any sport we let you on TV. Your favorites are basketball and hockey. You love your fishies and it is important that we turn the light off before you go to bed or nap and that we say night night to the fishies.

We have had a rough road the past few months with your asthma, but we're getting through it! During those long breathing treatments, mommy finally let you watch TV and you fell in love with Elmo! We gave you an Elmo for your birthday and you were so excited! You ran to show Elmo to the fishies and I have a feeling Elmo is going to be by your side a lot.

You are starting to talk so much and you make us laugh with the funny things you say and do. You are full of energy and I love to watch your face light up when you get excited. You have gotten so brave in the last year, even though you still don't like new situations or people. Now, you are doing so well in your class at church and you don't cry when I leave you with Mindi.

You love to play with Madison, even though you don't always share, and you love your friends Abbi, Esther and Grant at Mindi's house. You are a typical boy who loves to play cars, blocks and throw balls. One of my favorite things is listening to you pray at dinner. You have just started to repeat after me when we pray and it is the most precious thing ever.

Ryan, you are such a joy and I thank God every day that I get to be your mommy. I love the hugs and kisses you give me and all the time we get to play together and be silly. I love you very much and can't wait to see what God has in store for you!
I love you Ryan!
Happy Birthday!

Mommy is in Charge!

Today, Ryan was saying no when I tried to wash his face and I told him Mommy is in charge and it wasn't a choice. He kept repeating it and I got it on video! Of course, he was much more interested in his shoes for most of it!

Ready for Spring Break!!

I'm so excited to have a week off! We really just need this week to get healthy in our house! Hopefully, we can relax and all continue to get better!

Not good news...

Well, I do have a sinus infection. After an hour in urgent care, I finally saw the doctor who told me what I already knew. At least I can get on some meds and start feeling better.

The bad news is really that Ryan has pneumonia. Jamie took him in to the doctor this morning and he is pretty miserable right now. Please pray that he will respond to the antibiotics and that this will clear up quickly. We do not want to end up in the hospital like last year. I'm so tired of him being sick!

Sick of being sick!

I started getting sick late on Wednesday night and still am totally knocked down by this. I'm contemplating going to urgent care to see if I have a sinus infection. I just don't seem to be getting better and after missing 3 days of work last week, I kind of feel like I need to work next week.

Jamie is getting better, thank goodness! He has had to pick up the slack for me, while I am sick.

Ryan also has a nasty cough, which seems to be getting worse rather than better, so Jamie is taking him in this morning.

I really would like us all to be healthy for the next few weeks, and Ryan's birthday!

Why, oh why?

Why am I such a last minute person?? Seriously, you might not guess that about me, but I am a huge procrastinator. I am a planner and plan everything out, but then wait until the last minute to do it! I'm kind of frustrated with myself and that I have put myself in this position, but I need to bite the bullet and get it all done! Of course, what am I doing? Blogging, instead of working on my project!
The real issue is that I wait until crunch time and then NOTHING else gets done (housework, laundry, etc.) SO, I am resolving to get my portfolio DONE, so I can enjoy the rest of my week and get my house clean!

Blankets

Last night, we were putting Ryan to bed and he kept fussing with his blanket. He always wants it just so when we put him down. Finally, Jamie just threw the blanket over Ryan's head so he would stop messing with it, and we could pray. Well, my little goofy one just kept the blanket over his head--and laughed and laughed from underneath the blanket. Jamie was trying to pray, but we could not stop laughing! Ryan kept the blanket over his head, and we gave the blanket goodnight kisses and Eskimo kisses, which he thought was even more hilarious! He finally pulled it off right before we left and yelled, Boo!
What a goofy kid!

What a week!

This week just went by in a blur! We were gearing up for Dr. Seuss week at work, and I pretended to be an artist for a few days. It just seemed busy all around! So, sorry for the lack of blogging! Here are just some random updates!

We are still trying to figure out the asthma thing. So far, he has been on a daily inhaled steroid and he seems to be doing okay. We go back to the doctor next week to re-evaluate and see what meds he NEEDS to be on. I think that a daily controller medicine is probably going to be needed, but we want him on the lowest possible amounts that will keep him doing well.

Here's a Ryan quote from today--we were making cookies and he says, "Mommy, I happy now!" It made me smile! I think he was practicing the word, "now" because he used it a few different times. We pulled out the next size in shoes this week and Ryan loves his big shoes! He can even put them on himself, which he is so proud of!

His new favorite place is Pet-Co and he has asked to go there every day this week. He and Jamie went last night, and brought home another fish! This is an algae eater, so hopefully it will help keep the tank clean! Ryan loves his fish, but lately doesn't want to feed them and doesn't want Mommy to do it either!

I'm wiped out, but had a great evening at a "study group" with girls from my research class. I put that in quotes because we didn't do a lot of studying, but the moral support is nice! It is really relaxing to simply sit and chat with a cup of coffee and not have anyone demanding your time! I'm looking forward to a weekend with no guests (we love when family visits, don't get me wrong, but it is nice to have time alone too) and time to get things done around the house! Like a new fan for the bathroom--ours is dying and makes a terrible noise that scares Ryan! (Hint, Hint--Jamie are you reading this?)

Happy!

Another Ryan story!
Ryan kept trying to stand up in the chair, which he is not allowed to do, and after telling him to sit, I had to sit him down in the chair. He was not happy with that and started crying. I ignore thethe crying and walk away. He gets down from the chair, runs over to me and wants to get up. I pick him up, he wipes his tears and shouts, "Happy!" After that, he was totally done crying and over it!

Hurry up Mommy!

Yesterday, Ryan woke up early from his nap and wanted to go outside right away. (Usually he wants a snack first!) He kept saying that he wanted to go for a walk, and I told him we could go, but that mommy needed to change her pants first. He asked, "Jeans?" I told him that I did need to get jeans on. He followed me to my room and I guess I wasn't moving fast enough for him--he pointed to my pants and said, "get the jeans on!" He is just starting to use longer sentences and this one just made me laugh!

God is good!

Ryan caught ANOTHER cold and we were up for the better part of last night/early this morning with him. From what I understand, the asthma is going to make every cold way worse and harder to get over. It is so hard for me to listen to him cough and know that I can't do anything. I was so tired and grouchy this morning and I didn't really want to go to church. I did, and am so glad that I went. I needed some perspective. Ryan being sick and having asthma does not change who God is. It doesn't mean that God isn't loving and faithful and good. It does not mean that He loves us any less. It doesn't change the fact that I have a wonderful, amazing child who blesses my life every moment.


It simply means that God is going to have to help teach me how to handle this with Jamie and Ryan. I know that I am not equipped to handle this on my own, and thankfully we have a God who is always with us!