Since You've Been Gone...

Since our friends Krista and Tyler have left the west coast I have tried very hard to keep Ryan busy. It must be tough for him to go from having a buddy to play with everyday to playing with mommy everyday. I know it has been tough for me to get used to not having our friends to share our days with, so I cannot imagine how Ryan feels. Because of this I have taken Ryan on playdates and trips with some of our other friends. Some of the places we have gone are Disneyland;












Ryan found a bench to read a book on while at Disneyland.









He started a new class, here is Ryan's picture on the first day of class.












We went to the fair in town, here is Ryan and Daddy on the train.









We watched airplanes take off and land.









The boys hang out and watch Bruin football games.








But most of all we try to dance, laugh, and smile as much as possible!

End of Summer

Summer came to an end quickly, but the weather lately suggests quite the opposite. Ryan had an eventful end to his summer. Aunt Kari came down with cousins Madi and Gavin. We went to the beach for about an hour. Ryan was traumatized (due to a previous beach experience that I do not care to mention) and hated the water. Madi was also unimpressed with the water and pretty much the entire beach scene. Gavin seemed to like the beach the most and ran towards the water constantly and played well in the sand. (He only ate a little bit of sand.) Needless to say I think the walk to the beach was longer then our actual time on the sand near the water. That made for two grumpy mommies, with all that work to get there you would think we would have stayed a bit longer.










Daddy also took some time off to spend with Ryan. We took Ryan to the Zimmer Children's Museum. It is an interactive museum where kids can touch and play with everything. They have a large ambulance, dress up clothes, a pretend cafe, an airplane, a water table, a bounce room, and much, much more!










Ryan loved the water table!









The bounce room was a big hit!










There were large plastic bugs that would go around in circles, of course Ryan thought this was great! Not to mention the fact that Daddy showed him how to stomp on the light to turn it on. Fun for hours!












But this large magnetic board filled with letters was Ryan's favorite. He kept taking the letter C off the board and putting it around his neck like a necklace. It was pretty funny!














Ah yes, now this is a look!

We also went to the beach, just the three of us. We had to get Ryan (S and I too) over this fear of Ryan in the water. So, we were off to the beach! I do not want Ryan to have a fear of water, but as soon as we got there and tried to get him in the water. This is Ryan's reaction.












My poor baby!! We over exaggerated how exciting it was to be in the water. Until finally...










He couldn't get enough! We tried taking him out of the water after about 30 minutes of the waves crashing at his feet and he threw a major temper tantrum (not on camera, obviously!) We succeeded in getting him (and us) over our fear of the ocean.

Anniversary

Sanjay and I celebrated our 4th anniversary last week. We spent a couple days together, just the two of us. We revisited the same winery where we got married and stayed two nights in wine country. We relaxed, wine tasted, got massages, went to the pool, ate yummy food, and...slept in!! I forgot what that felt like! It is so strange that even when we are without Ryan all we find ourselves doing is talking about him. It was nice to get away, but it always feels great getting back to our little guy! Happy Anniversary to my wonderful husband!!

Ryan Shows Off His Dance Moves

Dancing With Cousin Madi from tracy roy on Vimeo.

Brushing Teeth is Fun!

Brushing Teeth is Fun! from tracy roy on Vimeo.

Bye, Bye Tyler

About a year ago I had a 6 month old and was a stay at home mom. Since I no longer worked I did not have daily interactions with adults. I really missed adult conversation combined with the fact that I had lots of baby weight to lose. I found a local group of fitness moms who met at a park, exercised for an hour on the beach, then let their kids run around with other kids after class. I tried a free class and fell in love immediately, and was thoroughly exhausted afterward. This group was everything I was looking for. People to workout with, talk about our babies with and kids for Ryan to socialize with. Upon going to class I met lots of mommies right away but didn't click with them completely. They were great to talk to, but we had too many differences for it to blossom into a long lasting friendship. Then one day I met Krista. We both had boys that were born a day apart, we both lived in the same city (and eventually we became neighbors), our husbands both worked in finance type jobs, we were both teachers, and the list goes on. I knew I liked her right away. Around this time I was looking to put Ryan in some classes and she wanted to do the same. Krista and I decided to put our boys in classes together. We started with a music and sign language class. This was one of their first class sessions.


We also decided to put them in swim class together and another class that focuses on large motor skills, coordination, and learning to walk when they were still unable to walk. Over the course of the last year we took the boys to various places; the park,




Disneyland,


the beach,

Hollywood Bowl,

Pinkberry fountain,

the mall,

the zoo,

fun outside time with water and finger paints,

and hanging out at home in pjs.

We have had so many fun adventures together. Ryan found a great friend, Tyler, and I also found a great friend in Krista. A few weeks ago we found out that Tyler's family would be moving back to the East Coast, where they were from. We were saddened by the news as we have spent almost everyday of the last year with them. Their family left last Tuesday on a road trip to their new home. We are happy that they will be back home near their family, but we miss them terribly. Ryan walks out of our house, looks and points towards Tyler's old house and says his name. It is heartbreaking because he doesn't understand that his friend does not live there anymore. I will miss my friend and Ryan will miss his friend too. We will miss our weekly dinners, our 8:00 phone call to schedule our day, sharing a babysitter and happily leaving Ryan with his buddy, Burke Williams Sundays, but most of all just the day to day conversation and watching the boys laugh, play, and steal sips from each other's water and snacks from their snack cups. Best of luck to you, E, K and T! Thank goodness for Skype, we will see you soon, friends!

A Year and a Half

Yesterday was Ryan's 18 month birthday. I cannot believe we are fast approaching two! I've been writing a lot (or maybe just thinking) about some challenging moments that I have had with Ryan, so in his post I really want to focus on the sweet side of his personality. Ryan is such a sweet boy! He gives the best hugs. Sometimes I have to ask for hugs, but many times he will just come up and hug me. He not only loves to hug me, or his daddy, but Ryan REALLY loves hugging Lucy, our dog. Most of the time she will let him hug her. Sometimes the hugs are a little rough so she gets her revenge by licking his face, which he thinks is hysterical! Getting kisses from Ryan is a little different. I always have to ask for kisses, and now that Ryan has learned to close his mouth when giving kisses, they are a lot less slobbery.

Most of the time when Ryan wakes up in the morning, he wakes up happy. We often hear talking, but many times he can be heard singing as soon as he wakes up. We taught him a silly little song when he was a baby that he now sings when he wakes up. It goes like this: Ryan, Ryan, I love Ryan! (I know I am a lyrical genius! :)He likes to change the Ryan part to Daddy, Mama, Lucy, Tyler and recently Krista (Tyler's mommy). He also likes to sing ABCs, Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star and just the other day he was humming The Farmer in the Dell. (He got that from one of his music books, as I do not know that song well enough to teach it to him). Since he loves music so much we downloaded his favorite CD onto itunes and we listen to it several times a day. It is The Laurie Berkner Band and the CD is titled "Whaddaya Think of That." Many of her great songs are played in his music and sign language class and he can't get enough of it! He marches, jumps, dances, makes sneezing noises and animal sounds right along with the music.

Lastly, I am proud to say that I have a very polite son. He now says,"Thank you," any time you give him something. For example, each morning I will give him his cup of milk and immediately he says, "Thank you, Mama!" Even when I go to my favorite coffee spot every day, as soon as they hand me my coffee, he signs and says,"Thank you!" Of course the staff thinks it is the cutest thing, and the more you make over Ryan, the more he hams it up for people. He will then break out into song or dance when he notices people paying attention to him. I know two is fast approaching, terrible twos, trying twos, or maybe terrific twos, but most of all I am enjoying watching Ryan grow, discover and become a sweet and loving little boy! Happy year and a half birthday, Ryan! We love you so much!