1st B-day Boy

Cuddle bugs!

Sydney brought some girly toys

into our boy home.

Big Guy

quickly donned

the purple slippers

and started swinging around the magic wand.

But

he said

"What is this Mommy?"

I said

"Its a wand, a magic wand."

"Wanda!!!  I have Wanda!

A Magic Wanda!"

All weekend he would ask

where "Wanda" went.

Hehe....I couldn't wait to tell

my friend Wanda

about this. (she loved it!)

The big kiddos

got to decorate

baby's "ball" smash cake!

They did awesome!

Birthday table!

"Ball" theme!

For the "ball"

obsessed boy

we planned lots of fun

ball games!

My boys don't like getting

smash cake

dirty!

My big birthday boy

most loved

the balloons

and the dirt!

Happy Birthday Seanie-boy!!

This year

has been fantastic!

We love you!

love, the rockinryans

Our First

Trip to the

ER

with an

injured

child.

We have many

falls, trips, hits and rolls

in our home,

but for some reason

on this day

his head hit

just right wrong.

Luckily it stopped bleeding enough

for them to "glue" it shut.

And he thought it was pretty

cool to have stickers

on his head.

He did great.

Only crying at the very end,

mainly because

he was tired of

laying still.

We told him he got a dinosaur

painted on his head.

So brave,

he pointed and said

"Look at my dinosaur!"

I wanted to cry,

my baby hurt....

but how could I,

when he was smiling?!

Big Guy

has been

taking care of his baby

a lot lately.

He even named her "Cara".

(I like to think he named her after his mommy!)

So when the doctor

gave him his left-over

"stickers",

he said,

"Can I fix Cara's head too?"

So, he and daddy

went home and provided

minor emergency care to Cara.

I know it won't be our last visit,

we feel lucky that

this is our worst injury thus far,

but it is hard to see your child hurt.

So glad they

rebound faster than me!

love, the rockinryans

A day at the beach

This day

was one of

those days.

Where

nothing

you had planned

goes

as

planned.

The baby

who has cried maybe

an hour in his entire life

screamed

the entire hour

of his first birthday

photo shoot......

Afterwards

I had wanted to go to a certain

place for lunch.

They were packed,

no seating.

Then we wanted

to get our boat out.

The wind was fierce.

But today was one of those days

where nothing

went

the way it was planned.

Big Guy hammed it up

for the camera.

He has never been so cooperative!

He was adorable.

I was soooooo proud.

We went to a different

restaurant.

It was quiet and calm.

And we could watch the basketball game!

We are so lucky

to be able to plan

a day at the lake in

March!

We took the boys

down to the beach

and they had a blast!

Probably more fun

digging and splashing

than on a boat anyway!

The water was

freezing

and the wind was blowing,

but our family

had a

wonderful day together.

Big Guy

wasn't afraid to

go almost knee deep into the freezing water.

I was surprised by his bravery

(and craziness!)

Baby was a bit overwhelmed

by it all,

but nothing beats

sticks, digging

and

sunshine!

Last week

my super hero

hopped right on his

trike and took off

for the first time....

like it was no big deal at all!

We are already

getting to the point of

less/no leftovers.....

especially after

a busy day outside.

I think double recipes

are in my near future!

I am glad our day

was

NOT

how I planned!

love, the rockinryans

Da' boys

Big guy was super excited

to help plan

and prepare for

Baby's b-day!

Speaking of babies.....

I had my first question of~

"Where do babies come from Mommy?"

ummm......

"God sent the baby to grow in her belly

until it was big enough

to come out.

Just like when Sean was in Mommy's belly

do you remember that?"

"Yes."

"You were in my belly too.

Do you remember that?"

"Yes."

...........(holding my breath)...........

"Where my backhoe?"

Phew, good enough for now!

As Bubba iced,

Baby was pointing and yelling

"Ball, Ball!"

Baby ~finally~

started clapping last week!

When we would practice

singing "Happy Birthday" to him ,

he loved it so much

he clapped! Yippee!

Big Guy has been very

loving lately.

He loves to give presents,

playing Santa daily.

But even better he is always

complementing us

"I like your hair Mommy.

I love you Daddy.

You are my best friend Sean".

I love how natural

and uninhibited he is with

his feelings.

With this,

he is a good role model for me.

He is teaching me on other subjects too.

One evening

while driving in the car

I hear a ~loud~ "noise"

escape the backseat.

Followed by two

giggling boys....

"Who tooted?" I asked, trying to suppress my smile.

"That wasn't a toot Mom,

that was a Fart!"

"What is the difference?"

"That was just a Fart."

Ok, glad you can teach me

all about that too!

He is still

all about his trucks and tractors.

He was never one to be a

climber or daredevil.

I am realizing

how lucky I was with him.

Because now....

This guy is giving us a run

for our money.

He is fearless.

He is a climber

and not the best listener....

oh boy.....

It is pretty impossible to get a pic

of them smiling and looking

at the same time.

So,

I have given up on trying

and just snap away

trying to capture

"real life".

I don't know where Big Guy

learned about mountains,

but he has been asking to go see them.

We practiced "hiking"

and have a very special trip planned!

Almost every word Baby says

starts with "B".

His new fav

is "Boo"!

I thought he would walk before turning one,

but last week were his first and only 2 steps

so far....

and they were in the bathtub of all places!

Ok, so they do smile at the same time.....

when Daddy gets home!!!!

love,

the rockinryans