Edu.macation

One day Riley surprised me with this little gem so I had to get it on video!  Kids are so stinkin cute!!

Silhouettes and Sun Flares

What a beautiful time of year- FINALLY.  It's starting to cool off here in the desert and I am taking advantage of the earlier sunsets and just messing around with back lighting.  It's kinda a scary thing and I have far from mastered it but a few turned out ok.  The look I'm going for is just as my post title suggests...  Silhouettes (and trying to get that warm glow around my subject- Riley, and his adorable bed head)

 And Sun Flares.  I kinda like the look of the hazy pictures with the lens flare.  I can almost smell the summer air.  So here's what I have to show for those.

And this next shot is technically far from perfect, but I love it.  It shows how active and playful my little man is and I caught him in the midst of a tickle tackle!   It warms my heart, even with the blurring.

Ima BIG kid now

Just got Riley's Big Boy Bed!  It's the second night that he's slept in it and even though my paranoia causes me to sprint to his room with any peep that he makes, it's been a success.  Every time I check on him, he's in his bed. . I haven't heard any big thumps yet so he must not have fallen out yet.  Yay for big boy beds.  Now little sister can finally get out of the pack n play and have a crib of her own! 

The BIG 2

Happy Birthday to my sweet and lovable (most of the time) little boy!!!


I was actually sick last weekend when we did the b-day party and I did NOTHING. I almost didn't even go. But a big thanks to my hubby for taking the brunt of the work and Tiff for making the delicious desert and Karl (I guess Malia too) for letting us use his house.

The other kiddos with the look of desire in their eyes, waiting patiently as Riley's eats his birthday cake.
This is what it resorted to. I guess the spoon and the hands just weren't getting the job done fast enough.
He has been dragging this thing with him EVERYWHERE!! Thanks Unky Bunch!

Pure Glee!!!

It's HOT here. We're talkin' above 110s on a semi-regular basis. So outdoor activites are few and far between and the only thing we can really do outside is get wet. So for that reason, and because I just purchased a NEW LENS for my camera (Cannon L-Series Lens, 70-200mm f4) I had to snap away as Ri guy played. Me Likee. Hope you do too.






Whew... I need to rest.

You know it's HOT...

...when playing by the water table just isn't good enough.

Reunited!!

Ahhh.. It's over. All that stress for nothing!

Ya see, back in January when I returned from my Ohio trip and John from the mission trip to Ghana, Riley did not take too kindly to being away from daddy for those 1o days. Not too kindly at all!! It took almost two weeks for Riley to stop running away crying from daddy. He was extremely needy on me and it was rough for everyone. That was only 10 days... this time it was 2 months- and I was worried!! I imagined a repeat of that little boy attached to my hip, only this time I'd have a brand new, totally dependent baby when daddy arrived home. It might have kept me up on some nights, worrying about how that reunion would go.

Well- no more worries! It went AWESOME!!! Of course I was thrilled to see my loving husband's face as our eyes met and he strutted toward us through the airport. And turns out I wasn't the only one bursting with excitement!!! Riley didn't skip a beat! We got him out of the stroller and he ran, not walked, but ran over to daddy to get a great big hug!!!

The anticipation...

Two happy boys!Daddy meeting his daughter for the first time!

Looks like the daddy story time and skyping helped out a lot! Daddy was always in Riley's conversations and on his mind! Phhhhew!


Once home, the play began and they picked up right where they left off!

After the exhausting play (not to mention the jet lag that John had), it was time for a much needed nap. John swooped Ri up in his blanket and laid down with him on the couch. Let me tell you that our son does NOT sit still. The only time that he has really spent time cuddling with me (or anyone) for more than minute increments was when he broke his collar bone. It doesn't happen. However, my little busy body must have made an exception for daddy. He laid on daddy for 20 minutes, eyes open and just enjoying the moment then finally even nodded off.

Pure Bliss!Needless to say, we are so happy that daddy's home! We are now a complete family again and boy does it feel good!!!

Patiently Awaiting

No news here (or at least the news I do have may not be appropriate to share quite so publicly).. We're just here. My body is further than many woman are after hours of labor so I fully anticipate that this time will be just as fast and furious as last time.. Don't worry. I intend on leaving for the hospital the moment I am sure I'm in labor. I'd be lying if I said it hasn't crossed my mind to set up a tent on hospital grounds. This time, going overdue has not been as stressful as it was when Riley was past due. I've mentally prepared for it this time.. makes a BIG difference. So sometime in the next week or so, I should have a new little gal but until then life has been happening.I've actually got quite a bit to post about. Boy have I been busy this past month. My brother and family were here for almost a month since Easter and everyday was full of trips to target, splash pads, zoo, and just toddler play(/fight) time. I don't have my camera card up here so that post will have to be reserved for another time and so I'll reserve the commentary too.

Here's just something that keeps me busy and keeps my heart happy.. Pictures- of course.

And here I am... 40 weeks and 5 days pregnant.

Follow up

Just a quick update.. Riley's shoulder is healing amazingly fast and well. He really acts like nothing ever happened and has no visible restrictions in his activity. The follow up x ray revealed that everything is happening just as the ER doc said it would... There is a calcium "scab" forming around the two ends of the broken bone and eventually that "scab" will become stronger and absorb the bones into each other until they are once again straight and there will be no evidence of this fracture!!!
Can I get an "Amen?!"

Lessons Learned

I've learned that you can only (very) temporarily take the wind out of the sails of a toddler! Even with the broken clavicle, Riley was down for 4 days but now he's very much back up and running!! Here's my proof!

Busy toddler is back to his full time job of getting into EVERYTHING! In this case, my baker's cupboard.

In case you were wondering, this is powdered sugar!! He found out rather quickly.
Look at those busy lil hands spreading the stickiness all over my floor.
Another lesson I've picked up... a busy toddler makes for a very busy mommy.

Fractured!

Well Riley's football days are over.. at least for a little bit.

My little boy is BROKEN! And subsequently so is this mommy's heart!!


I swear that "Murphy's Law" applies to us military spouses because when the guys are gone, anything that can go wrong, does. I've been in the dead of winter in Utah without heat while the hubby's away, but this one takes the cake!

Last Thursday I took him and some of my friend's kids over to the park to play. A good time was being had by all and wouldn't you know it, I decided to stay the extra 15 minutes. Riley took advantage of the extra time and jumped right in... or off. He fell off about a 3 foot drop from a playground set and landed pretty square on his trunk. He cried, which I would expect. Any mother of a toddler I am sure has had many spills and bonks of their own. Of course I rushed over and swept him up but when I picked him up to comfort him, he didn't calm down (which normally happens within 30 seconds)! Even in the time it took to walk home (15 minutes), he was still whimpering and dinner was out of the question since he just wouldn't calm down. Luckily sleep didn't seem to be a problem. I took him in to the base pediatrics on Friday and got him X-rayed but a combination of maybe an unclear xray and other tests that seemed pretty conclusive against a broken bone sent me home without knowing what was wrong. All I knew is that it hurt him tremendously when I picked him up under his arms, and he didn't want to play or be far from me. Anyway, we dealt with this since Thursday but Sunday at church as I was telling the ladies in the nursery of his injury, we noticed that there was some swelling (that wasn't apparent before) around his collar bone. Later as I was shopping at the commissary, I saw a "step deformity" under the swelling and when I felt his collar bone- sure enough! There was a palpable bump! I suddenly overflowed with emotion, just knowing that my little guy had a broken bone and knowing that his pain and fussing was justified but there was nothing I could do. I felt helpless. After his much needed nap, I took him to Children's Hospital ER and got the official diagnosis along with the cool pictures. Ahhh. At least now I know what to expect and I have a time line in mind for his healing. Sometimes it just feels good to have an answer, even if it's not the answer you want.

So what now? Ya know, there are certain times when it just hits me how great God is and all I can do is marvel at His creation. The miracle of a child growing from two microscopic cells to a human being within 9 months is one of them. The instructions I got for Riley's healing was another of these moments. The instructions: NOTHING. That's it. Do nothing. Those tiny little bones that look miles apart to me (maybe it's my dramatic motherly eye) will find their way back together and within 6 months will look 100% normal! Wow! Our bodies were uniquely and awesomely made!!!

Today

Today is kinda a big deal for both Riley and I. My lil monster is 18months today!! These last 6 months have certainly flown by in comparison to last year at this time (although that time seemed pretty quick too).


Here is my one man team (although not for too much longer since lil sis will be joining him soon).

"I've got a great idea!!! Nice, open field.. nice day- I'm going to play football!!"

"Blue-42.. Hut Hut Hike!"

"Go long!!"

"Running the slant route-- ooh ooh.. I'm open!! I'm open!!"

"...perfecting my best Heisman-- CBS Sports: check me out!!!"

Today I am 30 weeks pregnant.. Only 10 to go (pending the lil girl cooperates)! This time around has gone so much faster- perhaps something to do with the business of chasing an active toddler around! None-the-less, time is flying and I can't wait to see her! There are tons of changes to come but I'll reserve that for another blog in the near future.

Without further adieu, here I am at 30 weeks along.

Inspiration turned to reality!!!

With the new year HERE(!!!), I don't think I'm alone as I reflect on the past year and ponder how to make the next one even better. For my resolution (I don't formally do the whole yearly resolution, but more I have ongoing desires/goals) I have been particularly inspired by this blog I stumbled across. I've always wanted to be the kind of mom that takes the kids out to learn from experiences and have fun doing things together. Until now I have felt like Riley was too young to benefit from the activities that I had in mind, and although he still might be on the early end of understanding I am ready to get going!!!! We started our adventures with pudding painting, which come to think of it, I remember seeing this on Jon and Kate +8 too. Anywho- here was the result...


1 box vanilla pudding: $2
Food coloring: $3
1 Clean Tub: Elbow Grease
One happy toddler: Priceless!!