Regan is 13 Months old!

I told myself I probably could not keep up with the monthly birthday posts, and I was right. Although it keeps me accountable each month, it is hard to do. Part of the reason I would post Regan's monthly birthday pictures and stories is because I didn't want to have a second child with only a handful of pictures to look at when she was older and a baby book that was never updated. I'm trying to keep up with it, but each month just passes so quickly.

Regan is now 13 months old. She is not walking on her own yet, but she will hold my hand and walk or walk pushing one of her walking toys. She will stand on her own for a few seconds, then realizes no one is holding onto her and drops to the ground. Just in the last month I have noticed huge changes in her vocabulary. She baby babbles constantly, but in addition to that has picked up new words and some words have become more clear. Last month she would drop things and say "Uh." This month she drops things and says, "Uh oh!" Last month she said,"Ee I ee I," this month she says,"Ee I, ee I oh!" There are times when it sounds like she is singing part of the ABC's when babbling, but I think it is too early to tell. She says,"All done," very clearly as well as,"More" while doing the sign. She says,"Milk," and points to everything and says what sounds like,"What's that?" When I tell her what the object is, she laughs and points to something else and says again, "What's that?" She continues to say,"Hi Daddy!" very clearly and has started to say Ryan which sounds like Ry-Ry.


Some of Regan's favorite foods right now are cheese sandwiches, hummus on tortillas, yogurt, broccoli, peas, applesauce, waffles and pumpkin pancakes. She is a good eater and will, for the most part, eat what I put in front of her. She really likes to feed herself and would prefer that over someone feeding her.

Regan has become pretty independent. She enjoys playing alone and does not need anyone to play with her. She also enjoys playing with her brother, but is perfectly content on her own. Something new for Regan is she has become clingy. When I leave the room, she cries. Even if Sanjay or Ryan are still in the room with her, she cries. Her little personality is finally starting to come through. She has been scrunching up her nose when she laughs and making really cute, silly faces.

Ryan Can Read, Workbooks, and Candyland

A few months back I decided to start doing flashcards with Ryan. He is always eager to learn, and I enjoy challenging him. I looked up a website on sight words. I wrote the words on flashcards and introduced 4- 6 words to him each day during lunch and dinner. By bedtime he knew all of the words on the flashcards for that particular day. Let me remind you that this is a boy who would memorize books at age 2. He has this crazy ability to memorize things so I figured, why not take advantage of it. As of today he knows all of the preschool sight words and more than half of the kindergarten words.

Since we go to the library weekly and check out books, I started to choose books that had the sight words in them and are designed to help kids recognize the words and essentially begin to read. Although he does struggle with a few words, he can read the books that I bring home each week. I am absolutely amazed that he has taken to reading and flashcards so easily. Today he was in time out and when I went to get him I find him in his chair going through his flashcards. He just really enjoys reviewing flashcards and reading books. To him, it is another "game" that we play. He has also recently got a few preschool workbooks and cannot get enough of them. If I tell him there is no time to do a workbook page, it upsets him. I love the fact that he loves to learn and looks forward to it everyday. He really impresses me and I am so proud of him.

As an early Christmas gift, Ryan received Candyland. He loves playing the game, but with it comes the concept of winning and losing. I'm sure this may upset some people, but I really believe children need to understand that in games and in life people win and lose. I feel like these days schools and parents are trying to get away from saying that there are "winners" and "losers." "Everybody wins," is a line I often hear from others and it drives me insane. At some point, maybe not at 3 years old, kids need to learn that they may fail at something. They need to learn how to cope with it and how to move on.

Ryan and I played Candyland a few times the first night we opened it. As I won the first game he began to get upset, which I expected. I told him when you lose you don't pout or complain, at the same time, if you win, you don't brag about it or celebrate excessively. I said, when the game is over, win or lose you shake the other person's hand and say,"Good game." He is only three and a half, but he needs to learn that things are not always going to go his way. I understand this is a big concept for him, so we are easing into it. Needless to say, we probably play between 3- 5 games every other day. I can tell he gets upset when he loses, but tries not to let it show and is super excited when he wins. This is a learning experience for him, but also a life skill that he should be aware of at this age. Regardless of winning or losing, Ryan really enjoys spending that quality time playing games with his dad or me.

Regan is 1 year old!!

Regan turned a year old on November 5th! We had a small party with family and a couple close friends. When Regan woke up on her birthday, Ryan insisted that she wear the "birthday hat." Like the agreeable little girl that she is, she wore it with a smile.










I tried to get some pictures of Ryan and Regan together before the party. It didn't go well.













The Birthday cake









Time for Regan to eat her first cupcake!





Hanging out at the end of the party.








Happy First Birthday Baby Girl!!

A Year Ago Today

A year ago today, I was 39 weeks pregnant. I went to my weekly doctor's appointment. In the two weeks prior to this appointment I was 1 centimeter, then 2 centimeters dilated, respectively. I was sure my doctor would tell me, "This is it, get ready your baby is coming." But that is not what she said. Instead she told me I was 3 centimeters dilated. I was a bit disappointed because I was ready. She then asked me how I felt about being induced. I was happy and nervous all at the same time. I was at the appointment alone, so it was up to me to decide what I wanted. I told her that I thought it was a great idea, that I was ready. I liked the idea of knowing if I was induced I would know when to go to the hospital. I was so nervous about going into labor while Ryan was at school. What if Sanjay couldn't make it home in time? Where do I take Ryan? Who would pick him up from school? Would he be scared? With the induction, I was able to have a plan. My in laws would come to spend the night with Ryan, my mom would come to the hospital with Sanjay and me, my sister would come relieve my in laws so they could come to the hospital. After the baby was born my sister would bring Ryan to meet the baby. It was a great plan.

My mom came over that afternoon. My in laws came over shortly after. My bags were packed. I had to call the hospital at 10:00 p.m. to make sure there was room for me. We let Ryan stay up late that night. I had Sanjay take pictures of Ryan and me with my very big belly. I remember feeling overwhelmed with emotions; happy that it was finally time, nervous about the labor and delivery, a bit sad about how Ryan would react to not being an only child anymore. I said goodnight to him and tucked him in bed. I reassured him that he would see me in the morning and he would be able to meet his new brother or sister. I think he was more excited about his cousins coming to play with him the next day.

We headed off to the hospital; my mom, Sanjay and me. I was finally able to not worry about Ryan, knowing that there were bigger things to worry about. We, of course, arrived about 10 minutes too early and had to wait in the waiting room for 10 minutes. That was a short 10 minutes. At midnight they admitted me and set me up in a room. I, then had to change from my comfy sweats to the hideous birthing gown. The nurse came to put in my IV, the worst part by far. She put the IV in my arm and it hurt really badly. She had missed the vein and put it in a valve. Of course, they had to try again. I can't remember if this happened 2 or 3 times, but 2 nurses later I was on the brink of tears and they finally had it in. Of course I was trying to keep a brave face because I knew this was nothing compared to the pain I was about to experience.

The nurse started pitocin at 1:00 a.m. From then on, we just waited. My mom and Sanjay were able to get a little rest. I just felt nervous. It is hard to rest being hooked up to IVs and a fetal monitor. The nurse came to check on me several times throughout the night. She kept asking about my contractions. I could see them on the screen, but could not feel them. I had not had an epidural yet. It just felt like the baby was moving in stomach, but I never felt the pain of contractions.

At about 6:00a.m., my doctor called to check on me. The nurse told her I was having contractions, but was feeling nothing. I was progressing slowly, but just not in any pain, thank God! The doctor decided that the midwife on duty would come break my water to get things moving. As the midwife prepared, my water broke on it's own. At that point my doctor advised me (over the phone) that I might want to get an epidural and that she would be at the hospital soon to check on me. I got the epidural and my doctor arrived about an hour or so later. I kept telling her that I could feel the baby moving, but I was never in any pain, even prior to the epidural. I was not quite progressing, so she had me lay on my other side and said she would be back in a few hours to check on me. About 15 minutes later, I felt like it was time. I told Sanjay or my mom, (I can't remember which one) that I felt pressure. I remember them both looking at me like,'Really, now?' The nurse came back in checked me and agreed, it was time. My poor doctor probably made it out to the parking lot and had to come right back up. She came back in smiling. This was how it happened for me the first time around with Ryan. As soon as she left, he was ready to come. I will spare you the details, but she was out in 3 pushes. I remember the doctor saying,"Here's the head," my mom said,"Oh, it's a boy," then Regan was born and she said,"No, it's a girl!" I, and I think my mom and Sanjay, were in utter disbelief. I think we were all thinking it was going to be another boy.

And, now, 364 days later I cannot believe we are on the eve of Regan's first birthday. It went by so fast! Regan has been the best eater, the best sleeper, really good natured and just a sweet baby. She has fit perfectly into our family. Tomorrow we will celebrate her, and I know that everyone is always so happy to celebrate birthdays. I am happy too, but for some reason there is always a part of me that feels so emotional on my kids' birthdays. I think it is the miracle of it all, pregnancy, becoming a mom, feeling so much love for another human being that it is indescribable. Happy First Birthday to my dear sweet Regan! I am so happy that I am your Mommy, and I have the privilege of watching you grow up. I love you so very much!

Better Late Than Never

Ryan started his new preschool in September. He is so happy there, and we are very happy with this program. This preschool has the community feel that we were looking for. Parents at this school are involved in everything. Sanjay is the 2nd VP on the parent board. I am the room mom as well as involved in several committees. We love his teacher and Ryan has many nice kids in his class. His teacher is pretty impressed with how smart Ryan is. He can count to 140, then he will usually say, "I am done doing this." We recently have started doing flash card sight words. I am happy to report that Ryan knows 15- 20 sight words and will pick them out when we are reading together. I'm sure it is only a matter of time before he is reading to us.

Although Ryan is very smart, I am reminded daily that he is only 3 and does not know everything. We go over his letter of the week at home. Last week the letter was "C."

He will say, "Mommy, let's do 'C' words." To which I respond, "Sure." He will usually list a few of his favorites; cook, cat, clown, then says,"OK, Mommy, your turn." I will add things like; cloud, crackers, cup. Then my very smart 3 year old says,"Mommy, my turn (while looking out the window or around his room, depending on where we are) how about dresser?" "No, Ryan, dresser starts with the letter D." Then he will say," Book, teeth, paper, blanket, tree." I usually respond with, "Ryan you can't just look around and name everything you see it has to have the "C" sound at the beginning of the word, like CCCcomputer."
"Mommy, I am done doing this." Without fail we will have this conversation at least once a day, sometimes twice. It makes me laugh. He is happy to do it when he is confident with the words he knows. Once he starts to get them wrong, he is done. I'm sure he will catch on at some point. After all he is only 3.

Regan is 11 Months old!!

Each month it is more difficult to take Regan's picture. This month we tried a standing picture as well as a sitting one. Regan loves to pull up into a standing position these days. She stands everywhere, in her crib, in the pack n play, wherever she is playing, she is standing. She has let go only once and fell down and has not tried again. She has no interest in trying to walk which is fine with me. I'm not ready for her to be that mobile. This month she has been signing "more" and is babbling a lot. She loves to sit in her room and flip through books, she also likes when we sing to her. She especially likes it when we sing her the A,B,C's.

Regan has four teeth, 2 bottom, 2 top with a third top one coming in. Her second top tooth came through right around her 11 month birthday. She kicks her legs like crazy when we lay her down for diaper changes and will try to flip over immediately. When we try to stop her from flipping over, she gets very upset and yells. She is determined to get what she wants, and is quite strong too. She is still a good eater and a good sleeper. Although she has always been a one nap girl, I am happy to report that her one, one hour nap has now turned into one, 2- 3 hour nap. I think all of the moving around makes her extra sleepy.

Regan gets very excited when she sees people she recognizes. Each morning when I bring her in to see Ryan and Sanjay, she squeals with delight and waves to them. When people she doesn't recognize talk to her, she smiles at them and lays her head on my shoulder. She is a sweet baby. I cannot believe she will be one in a month. TIme has really gone by so quickly!

A Sweet Moment

I snapped this sweet picture of the kids, Ryan reading books to Regan. I think he loves being a big brother.

Regan the Bruiser

Look closely at this face.













Sweet baby, right?


Can you believe she is actually capable of this?













Maybe this angle is better.













Sweet Regan gave her brother a shiner. Unfortunately for Ryan, I have a feeling this may not be the last. He has one tough sister!

Regan is 10 Months Old!!

Regan finally said it!! Just days before she turned 10 months old she said, "Mama!" Of course it sounds more like, "MMMA, MMMA." She has also started standing while holding onto things. She can't quite pull herself up, but with some assistance, she can stand and play for quite some time.

Regan's tooth count now stands at 3, with a top one just breaking through. She is so smiley, mellow, and good natured. I cannot even count how many times people tell me what a happy and content baby she is. She will sit in the stroller during walks or when I workout and will not make a peep. She likes to play on the floor with her toys and loves to crawl all over. She is very independent. I really enjoy the times that she wants me to hold her because she would rather be playing than be held. I cannot believe in 2 short months my baby girl will be 1!!

Summer 2011

The summer has, yet again, flown by. It is hard to believe September is fast approaching. Ryan has been in school all summer, and has had many activities so we have stayed close to home. One big accomplishment this summer was Ryan has been consistently going to swim lessons. I am proud to say that now he can jump in the pool and swim underwater to his swim teacher. It is amazing to watch because this was the same boy who at the beginning of summer had to hold onto the teacher's hands just to jump into the pool.

Another recent change is that Ryan will no longer be attending his full day preschool. He was going to school 3 full days and it seemed to be too much for him. It was hard for me to justify full day preschool because as a stay at home mom I want him home with me. We are leaving with some sadness because we have had some nice teachers, the director has been fabulous, and he has made some good friends. However, we are really looking forward to his new school, 3 half days, because it seems to have a great community feel. I, personally, am looking forward to helping out in his class and being a part of this new experience. It will be an adjustment for all of us, but it will be good.

Aside from school, Ryan also has a sports class, Ryan and Regan both attend music class, and Regan and I go to music and sign language class. The kids are completely overscheduled and it is starting to wear on them. I really have to pull back this fall and decide what is really important for them and what they enjoy doing the most. Regan has started signing "all done," when she is finished eating. She now understands when to use the sign. We have started signing more with her at home since she seems to be catching on at this point. Other than that she loves to wave and say,"Hi," and clap her hands. Each morning when I wake her up as soon as she sees herself in her mirror she will wave then start clapping. It happens every single day. It is the cutest thing.

Here are some pictures to share some of the fun things we have been doing this summer:











Skyping with our good friend, Tyler




Learning to write/trace letters











Hanging with cousins














A professional photo shoot with the cousins, where I was scolded for taking this picture. OOPS!




Regan's rice ceremony








Uncle Bunty feeding Regan her "first solid food"


Regan's first airplane flight up North to visit family











This cute guy came up North with us too!


We had a slumber party.










We visited an amusement park.













Whew!!! What a fun an exhausting summer we had. We are now gearing up for the start of school and a full fall schedule.

Something New!

Our family went to visit my sister and her family last weekend. While we were there, Sanjay and I decided to get Regan's ears pierced. My sister, her youngest daughter, Regan and I went to the mall and had it done. She cried for a couple minutes and was not at all traumatized by it. Our girl is such a tough cookie! Her Daddy can't wait until the studs can be removed because he has a nice present for his baby girl.

R & R

Ryan just turned three and a half, and Regan is now 9 months old! I cannot believe how quickly my babies are growing! They sure do love one another!

Regan is 9 Months Old!!

This has been a big month for Regan. I feel like she is moving around so much more. She is still not crawling on her knees yet. She prefers the army crawl. She will get up on her knees and rock, but goes back down to her tummy when it is time to move. She has tried to pull herself up to a standing position as of last week. Regan has also started clapping and is now saying, "na, na, na." I think she think she is trying to say mama. She continues to get very excited when it is time to eat. When she sees her bowls, she knows what time it is. She will then scream and grunt until she is fed. She is such a sweet girl who is just fun to be around. She is happy most of the time and has an infectious laugh. She loves to mimic any noise that her brother is making. They are quite a pair! Regan has two bottom teeth. If you look closely in the picture above, you will see them. I think there may be a third tooth on the way. This looks like it will be the first top tooth. We'll see what the next month will bring.

Fourth of July

Finally, a decent family picture!

Regan is 8 months old!

This month I took Regan's pictures in the afternoon as opposed to morning. She smiles more in the morning. I'll have to remember that for her 9 month pictures.

In the past month Regan has been army crawling. She is so fast and usually ends up going after Ryan's Matchbox cars. Needless to say, big brother is not very happy about her messing up his "traffic." Regan has started waving and she signs 'all done'. I think she is just amazed to see her hands moving. She makes lots of noises and still only says da da and buba. I'm sure there is a mama coming soon. She has said it a couple of times, but always goes back to saying da da.

She has been eating solid foods for 2 months now and gets very excited when it is time to eat. She will kick her legs and start to whine until she is seated in her high chair eating. She has liked everything we have fed her so far and continues to be a healthy eater. That's our girl!

7 Month Photo Shoot

On the fifth of each month I take pictures and video of Regan to see how much she has grown. This month's session proved to be especially difficult.



















This was one of the best ones I could get. Please notice my hand at the bottom of the picture trying to keep her in one place.

Regan is 7 Months Old!

Regan turned 7 months old a few days ago. We decided to go to the zoo that day. It was the first time we put her in the stroller without her carseat. She stayed awake for most of our time there. Being able to face forward in the stroller and see everything that was going on around her kept her happy.

Regan cut her first tooth this weekend too. She has been a champ, although I am sure it is painful for her. She is chewing on everything and drooling like crazy. She is still sleeping through the night, but had a couple rough nights a few days ago. She is babbling up a storm and said, "Ma," yesterday. She still says, "Da da," all the time and will try to imitate the noises that we make. Other things she likes to say are, "ba ba and va va." We are trying to teach her to wave and occasionally it looks like she is actually waving. I'm sure she is not doing it on purpose yet, but it looks as if she is trying to do so.

This week she started eating sweet potatoes. Ryan loved them when he was her age, so I thought she would too. Boy, did I have another thing coming. She gagged and choked and made faces during the feeding. I kept trying to feed it to her each day, and it has gotten better. I have to remind myself that they are different kids and just because Ryan liked it doesn't mean that Regan will. Happy seven months, baby girl!

What's New

The months seem to be flying by. Regan is quickly approaching 7 months. Where did all of those months go? She is now enjoying solid foods. She has cereal daily, last week she had peas for the first time, and this week she is eating green beans. She can sit up pretty well on her own for short periods of time. She is also scooting all over the place. She loves when Ryan sings to her. We have a great video of him singing and her laughing hysterically.

Regan has been in music and sign language class for about 5 weeks now. She loves to watch the teacher sing and dance, it makes her smile. She bangs on the drum and tries to strum the guitar at the end of class.

Regan has made her own schedule which consist of one, possibly two naps for a total of two hours of sleep during the day. At night she is sleeping ten to twelve hours.

Ryan is doing well. He is still in school three days a week and seems to be enjoying it. He is Mr. Independent and wants to do everything by himself. He has been pretty lovable lately and the things he says are so sweet. He will hug and kiss Sanjay and me just because. We don't have to ask, it doesn't have to be bedtime, he just gives us love all the time. I see glimpses of our sweet boy returning from the 3's that have turned him into a boy that is unrecognizable to us. I know he is trying to test boundaries and be independent, but it has been a challenge.

Ryan is enjoying swim class now and loves to go underwater. His teacher informed me yesterday that he will be moving up to the next class. I didn't think he was ready, but she said he is doing everything that is required of him in his current class.

Ryan has a pretty active imagination these days. There have been lions in his room at night, and Spiderman was downstairs last week. We have never watched Spiderman so I am assuming one of the kids at school must have shown him what he looks like. I assured Ryan that lions belong outside and that Spiderman is not allowed in our house. This has seemed to make them go away for now.

Surprisingly enough, Ryan is afraid of bugs, all bugs. He dislikes spiders, ants, bees and anything that looks like it may be an insect. I hope it was not my fear of spiders that has found it's way to him. I am trying to explain how bugs do good for plants and flowers, but they belong outside. I think it will take awhile before he sees it that way. I can't believe how quickly both kids are growing. I wish I could slow down time, but it is fun watching all the new things that they are doing.

Regan is Six Months Old!

It is hard to believe that half of a year has gone by so quickly! Regan had a few firsts yesterday; her first rice cereal and her first music and sign language class. She really enjoyed the rice cereal and ate it like she has been eating solids forever. When the small amount of cereal was gone, she wanted more. I think she is going to continue being a good eater as we introduce her to more solid foods. We also started a music and sign language class. It was nice to have something for just the two of us. She was very interested in the teacher and loved watching her sing and dance. Regan was able to bang on the drum and play the guitar at the end of class. My favorite part of the class was when the teacher blew bubbles for the kids and Regan reached up to grab them. Of course I forgot to bring my camera to class. Oh well, maybe next week.

Easter Celebration Part Two

Ryan and his basket filled with goodies from the Easter Bunny. He is thrilled, can you tell?

Regan's first Easter!









Brother and sister!


Ready to hunt for eggs with cousins.








Here's a good one!


Pretty baby with Grandma.








Some of the grandkids.

Easter Celebration Part One

Getting ready for the Easter egg hunt at school.








A bag filled with eggs makes Ryan very happy!

Headed back to school with his treasures!









The Easter egg hunt that our city puts on. Ryan came away from this egg hunt with NO eggs. He was very timid.


We snuck into the older kids' egg hunt so Ryan could get a few eggs.








A picture with the Easter Bunny.