ONE!

Today, our little man is ONE! I cannot believe it's been a year, but what an awesome time we've had with Ryan added to our family. The joys and the giggles that come with each day are such absolute blessings from God and we are so thankful for all that the last year has brought to our lives! Please enjoy the following sequence of pictures that I took with his bday boy bib on...

So big!
I'm ONE!
See the 1 finger pointing!?!
Showing you my 4 teeth!
This is the face he makes when he "says" that he's ONE!
Sounds more like "oh!"
Coming to get you!
So happy!
Love that belly laugh!


There is a post to come from his party this past Saturday, but most of those pictures are on my mother's camera. Here's one to hold you over!

This kid is awesome! He loves to be where the action is (unfortunately sometimes thinking the action should start at 6am, or sooner!) and is so thrilled to now be walking. You can just see the happiness on his face when he is walking towards you and screaming with joy. Yes, he does a lot of screaming lately, and it's not usually because he's mad or sad. He is definitely finding his voice and realizing that screaming gets everyone's attention. It's gotten a bit better, but for a few weeks there, the volume level in my home was madness. Between myself and Logan, and then you add Ryan, it's a wonder how Jeff still has his hearing. Haha!

Things about Ryan at 1:

-wears 24 month and 2T clothing
-walks and is getting pretty fast
-loves to be outside, preferably swinging
-still thinks his brother hung the moon!
-says mama, "oh" for one, and dada
-signs "more" and sometimes does "all done"
-understands and reacts to simple commands like:
"sit down"
"spit out your paci"
"come here"
"stand up"
"where's your puppy/brother?"
-has learned to love the water,
thanks to more frequent visits to the Y pools
-is taking at least 2 naps a day and sleeping about 11 hours at night
-has become an early riser (which I wouldn't mind changing!)
-LOVES bathtime
-Claps his hands to "If you're happy and you know it"
-LOVES Praise Baby videos
(and will even calm down in the car to the songs on cd)
-Will continue to ride backwards in the carseat, facing big brother
-Would probably tell you that balls were the best toy ever invented!

Has now experienced ice cream from the ice cream man!
How nice of everyone to share!

Stats to follow after doctor appt this Thursday!

Thank you God for sharing this sweet boy with us!

Ryan, we love you so much! Everyone who knows you can't help but smile when you enter a room and just loves those cheeks, thighs and oh that smile! Sometimes it takes a little effort to get you to smile for others, but that belly laugh you have when you are tickled is something we wish we could bottle up and store for a lifetime. Your personality is really starting to shine and we just can't wait to see what kind of little boy you're going to be! We can't believe you're now a one-year-old, but in your brother's words, "It's so exciting that you're turning one!" He says it's because now you're going to walk faster, but we'll have to wait and see on that! :-) I love how easy going you tend to be, how much you light up when daddy gets home from work or brother comes down the stairs from his nap. You love people and that makes life so grand! You're a survivor... let's recap: You've had Swine flu, RSV, Chicken Pox, 1 ear infection and an 11 day viral stint, most likely Rotavirus, in your short life! Only during one of those sicknesses were you really even what we would consider "unhappy" and that has been such a blessing. May this next year be a healthy one for you, filled with joys and memories for all of us together. Looks like it'll be exciting for sure! We love you sweet boy!