Happy 1st Thanksgiving Ryan!

We went to Tom's parents for dinner. As we sat down for dinner I realized Bailey was no where to be found which didn't make sense with all the amazing smells coming from the kitchen. We started looking around the house calling his name and there was no response. I then started panicking thinking someone left a door open and he was wandering the streets looking for his way home - I called his name over and over and still no response. Now full panic set in... the only place I didn't look was in the storage room so off I ran downstairs flung the door open and there he was - he was sooooo happy to have finally been rescued. I'm thinking one of the kids went down to find a game or maybe even play hide and seek and Bailey followed them in - he was probably sniffing through all the boxes and then realized he was left behind :( poor pup!

Ryan shown here with Aunt Bonnie, Bri, Brad and Katie and he loved spending time with them all. It's funny how he already recognizes people he knows and the people he doesn't. Ryan also met his cousins Alex and Corey for the first time - their mom Lori saw him when he was born but the boys hadn't met him yet.

Ryan loves his cousin Katie - she not only makes him smile but she gets him to giggle as well. We ventured out with Katie and Bonnie for some "stress free" black Friday shopping but I actually think the day after Christmas offers better discounts. My goal was to get Ryan his 6 to 9 month clothes since his wardrobe is really thinning out. I think we have most everything we need but a few extra pair of pants until he turns 9 months. I can't believe how fast they grow out of everything.

Ryan loved snuggling with his cousin Bri as she sang him fast asleep with her beautiful voice.

Happy Boy

I am sooooo bummed - my camera wasn't working last night so I totally missed documenting our girls night :( Last year a group of girls got together and went to Door County for the weekend. We stayed on the water in an adjoining suite with a full kitchen, cooked a spaghetti dinner the first night, painted pottery the second day, out to dinner the second night and went swimming and picked up our pottery the morning before we headed home. We had so much fun. This year with little Ryan joining our weekend plans everyone came here for the evening and to keep the tradition we made a yummy spaghetti dinner. Deborah, Arlene, Robin and I enjoyed dinner a roaring fire and a couple of total chick flicks. Deborah stayed the night and we had a delicious pancake breakfast. The rest of the day included a nice relaxing nap and a brisk walk. Tom should be home any minute - and we can't wait :)

Snow Bunny

This weekend was opening of Deer hunting weekend. Tom left Thursday afternoon to head up North to get the cottage ready for his fellow hunters which included his brother Jeff and his friend Greg and Greg's brother. Because Thursday was Tom's day to watch Ryan while I was at work we were lucky to have Bonnie pick up our little rascal and take him for the afternoon. Bonnie took him to run her errands and to parent teacher conference and she said he was a perfect angel. Once she was home the kids, Ryan's cousins, had a blast playing with him and by the time I came to pick him up I could tell he was a very happy camper. I stayed for dinner and enjoyed catching up with them all. Oh I forgot to mention that night after work I popped the trunk to put a box in the back but because it was soooo cold the trunk wouldn't close. This meant I had to drive 45 minutes home with my trunk open. I think more then 10 people notified me that my trunk was open - they should really make flags that you could fasten to you car that says I KNOW... just so you don't look like a total moron.

The cold has set in... This week we woke a few mornings to temperatures in the teens so it seems winter is here. Tom had to adjust the thermostat to avoid icicles from appearing on our nose. Ryan is getting so strong and just the fact that he sits in his highchair by himself is a true sign that he is getting to be a big boy. Although I am sad to be away from him when I'm at work it is an amazing feeling to see his beaming smile the minute I walk in the door and he realizes I am home.

Olivia has outgrown this toy that hangs down with flashing lights and fun music. We really appreciate her letting us borrow it for a few months. Ryan was so excited the minute he saw it - he started wildly kicking his legs and whipping his arms around and had the funniest expressions on his face. The picture below almost seemed like he saw some sort of UFO for the first time. Isn't it amazing that the simplest things bring us so much happiness - what a great reminder for us all.

Last weekend was Fall clean up as you can see Tom on his "Forrest Gump" mower in the back yard. I think he put in over 8 hours working in the yard - what a stud :) I know this sounds funny but I think it is very attractive when my husband works hard around the house...

This week I found myself on a hormonal roller coaster and thank goodness the ride has come to a stop - lets hope it isn't temporary... Anyway I really started to question our priorities in life, why do we have all this stuff, it means we have to spend more time working instead of enjoying each other - why is my hair so long, it takes so much time to style when I could be enjoying it with my son - why do we live in an area where the economy is in the gutter and the seasons are soooo extreme??? I have found myself missing my family to a point where my sole aches. I miss getting together for no reason, I miss taking the dogs for a walk along the beach, I miss Ryan not growing up with his cousins, I miss that Nana Lynn hasn't seen our little man smile yet and I miss that not one of my brothers has met Ryan. Ok, so now that I have shared the depressing facts I need to remember what Lynn told me when I first moved here. Especially at this time of the year I need to start the day with identifying something beautiful or positive around me. This should help lift my spirits :) Life isn't completely horrible, I have a loving husband, a darling little boy, some awesome friends and we're enjoying time with Tom's brothers family. I guess I was spoiled growing up - we had it all - a loving family, great friends and beautiful weather - what more could a person wish for... Ryan is reminding me to add milk to that list - gotta run the boy is calling for breakfast :)

This week we had our pictures taken for our passports to travel to Canada for the holidays. I don't understand why they want us to look like we've been arrested but they do. I think the alien man on Ryan's shirt is hilarious. They had to take his picture about 50 times to make sure you could see both ears. What???

Yesterday was Tom's first day watching Ryan for more then 30 minutes, - try the whole day. I had to return to Hell again, oh I mean work, and daycare wasn't available so Tom was up for the challange. I was up at 5 am to feed and change Ryan and get him ready for the day. Once he was back to sleep I quickly showered and before leaving for work I left a detailed note. The first item on the note said "call me as soon as you get up so I know you are awake". He was working the night before until 2:30 am so I was worried he wouldn't hear Ryan get up. Well by 9 am I was starting to worry since Ryan is usually up between 7 am and 8 am so I called and there was no answer - now I was really worried. Shortly after Tom called me back - he was giving Ryan a bath and putting on a fresh change of clothes. I guess Ryan messed himself (up the back) and when Tom was cleaning him up #2 ended up everywhere including the door knob. Since Tom has never even watched me give Ryan a bath I'm sure that was an interesting event. I called several times during the day for an update and could hear Ryan squawking in the background. Everyone says this daddy and me day was good for them both but I couldn't help but worry. By the time I arrived home both boys were calm and playing in the family room. The house looked like a tornado hit it but both boys were safe and sound so it didn't matter. Once Ryan was laying in my arms he quickly fell asleep and his world was back to normal. I am soooo thankful it's the weekend!

The Worst Day Ever

Wednesday was my first day back to work - which was absolute hell. I dropped Ryan off at daycare (aka Jail) and started on my 40 minute drive to work. Not until I looked in my review mirror and saw Ryan's empty carrier base did it hit me...30 minutes of hysterical crying and an enormous amount of guilt for abandoning my son :( Throughout the day I felt similar to the way a person feels after a car crash - dazed and confused - and all I could do was count the minutes until I could get home to my sweet baby boy. Thank goodness I didn't see any police on my way home since I think I averaged 80 mph. Once I arrived home I made it in the house with only three steps and immediately snuggled little Ryan in my arms. He was sooooo happy and giggling and after suddenly realizing his food source was home, started rooting like a puppy. We were inseparable for the rest of the night and both fell asleep early from pure exhaustion.

Now who wouldn't want to kiss those juicy lips? The past few weeks have been very stressful with the thought of having to go back to work. Daycare is only available on a part time basis which I guess is a blessing in that I won't have to leave Ryan cold turkey. I won't have to worry about full time until January19th :)This weekend I was able to spend time with friends. Friday night Lois came over for dinner, a nice roaring fire in the fireplace and some good old fashion girl talk. It's been far too long... Saturday Deborah and I went for lunch at Panera (just opened here in town - yum) and walked through the mall. We didn't do any damage, which was good, but being that the weather has dropped to the 30s walking outside just isn't an option. Deborah and I could sit in a cardboard box and still have fun and find something to talk about - I think that is a sign of a true friend.

We have been taking Ryan with us everywhere since his was born which hasn't really limited us from our normal schedule. I'm not sure if he is just naturaly a great baby or if it has to do with the fact that we've had him on the road since he was only a few days old. Either way, going out is still enjoyable.

Who's your daddy???

Spooktacular

This house displayed 40 carved pumpkins and lots of Halloween lights in their yard. It seems their family all gets together the day before Halloween and spends 48 hours carving pumpkins to display for the trick-or-treaters. The detail in the pumpkins was amazing.

Poor Rhonda, use to the Florida weather, froze her pumpkins off walking around looking at the yard. What a trooper!

Laura's little Olivia, three months older then Ryan, is a very happy and active baby. Watching her gives me a great idea of what Ryan will be like in just a few months :)

My girlfriend Rhonda came to visit us for Halloween on her way home from an adventurious trip to Oregon. It meant the world to us that she made a special trip here just to meet Ryan and was able to spend a few days getting to know him. Thanks Rhonda - we already miss you!

I had to post these costumes, they were hilarious. This brother and sister dressed like a washer and dryer. The washer had a plastic insert with blue water that swished around when she walked.

My sweet little monkey...

Juicy!