Ryan's First Birthday Party



Party's over!  A few weeks ago Ryan celebrated turning one at a big zoo animals (or safari animals, whichever you prefer) birthday party.  Jon and I hosted a party for Ryan at Nonni and Papa's house (and, hopefully, most of you reading this were there to celebrate with us).

Though it was a cold, and snowy day (as I'm sure many of his birthday parties will be), we had a great turnout for Ryan's #1.  All of Ryan's family and friends gathered in the basement for great food and fun.  It was so nice to catch up with everyone and to see all the little ones running around and playing together.  I wish I would have been a better photographer (the faster Ryan can get away from me, the less and less pictures get taken). 

By far, Ryan's favorite part had to be his birthday cake.  We got him his own little cake and he dug right in.  Now, Jon and I never gave Ryan a sweet of any kind, at all, and even yelled at those trying to give him a little taste before his birthday.  We gave him a sample on his birthday with a small cupcake, but it was nothing compared to his cake.  Nana was getting so nervous about how much cake he was eating that I had to take it away - and when I did he looked like half the Incredible Hulk (from the green icing on the cake). 

By the time we opened presents, I believe that Ryan could hardly keep his eyes open - but I know that he's going to enjoy each and every one of his new gifts.  Perfect for his new play room! 

Please enjoy the pictures...  Ryan's First Birthday

Ryan Months 9 - 12

Well, I guess things got a little crazy, I haven't updated our little family blog for way too long!  Please catch up below - lots of pictures to look at if you have the time!

link to... Month 10 Pictures

Month 10...hmmm, you're really asking me to have a good memory.  It was a beautiful October that's for sure.  We celebrated Annie's 1st and Jack's 3rd birthday and Ryan's first Halloween.  He was not too into his costume, but he let us leave it on him all day long!

link to... Month 11 Pictures

During his 11th month, Ryan celebrated his first Thanksgiving!  We had a great breakfast at Gram and Gramps house and then celebrated at Nonni and Papa's house (we had three little Indians - but couldn't capture them in the same shot).  Over the course of the month, Ryan continued to make progress toward walking.  Cruising along the furniture was no problem for him.  He's such a smart little guy, you could watch him making a decision about whether or not to take a step on his own.  He really seems to weigh all the options, and often decided crawling was either faster or safer.  Ryan also made a lot of progress on eating big people food.  He is already sick of baby food - and being fed with a spoon.  Now that he knows he can do it himself, he's all for it.  He's getting very vocal and has quite a vocabulary that only he can understand.  I can't wait to find out what he's saying!

link to... Month 12 Pictures

Ryan had a very busy 12th month.  It was his first Christmas season, and I'm so glad that he was old enough to appreciate all it has to offer - especially Santa.  He loved Santa so much, he even learned to say "Santa" before he "Mama."  He had a Santa statue that watched him eat breakfast every morning, and he was such a good boy when he met the real Santa.  I was surprised how long he ignored the Christmas tree and then, one day, he just started ripping ornaments off, one after the other - like an octopus, you couldn't keep up.  He enjoyed celebrating Christmas with all of his family. (I guess I already talked about Christmas in a previous post - who knew?

Most importantly, Ryan started walking!  Right at the beginning of December - he gave up on the cruising he had been doing for so long, and walked on his own.  Now, of course, he's running, but it has been fun to watch him get the hang of it.  In addition, during his twelfth month, he had his first haircut.  I have to admit, I had no idea where to take him - but thanks to a post on Facebook, I got a great tip and took him to a place called Snippets.  I couldn't take his little mullet anymore, so just a day before the Christmas holiday I took a chance that it wouldn't get totally messed up and took him in.  Not a tear was shed (by Ryan) and he had a great time.  I told everyone it took about thirty minutes for the haircut - later, when I watched the DVD I had made (part of a first haircut package - of course!) it turned out to be about 6 minutes and 30 seconds.  So I was a little off.  I'm happy with the results and so is Ryan - his colics don't seem to care and continue to do whatever they feel like.  We also celebrated Grandpa's 70th birthday and Nana's 89th birthday before Ryan's big day.  On his first birthday, we made an imprint of his paw and celebrated with a music set and a cupcake.

Did I miss anything - oh yes!  Ryan also made the announcement that he is going to be a big brother in June!  Mom is feeling good (about 80% of the time - the other 20% is filled with nasty headaches and extreme exhaustion, but totally worth it).  We won't know if he's going to have a little brother or sis until Baby June makes his or her arrival!  We'll keep you up to date!

Ryan is One!

It's official Ryan is turning in his belly stickers...he turned one today!  (Well, he has about two hours -which I'm clinging onto for dear life.)  I can hardly believe that a year has passed since our little bundle of joy arrived.  It seems like just yesterday we were cautiously bringing him home from the hospital, wondering if we were going to be able to figure out what to do with him.  Not knowing how on earth we would figure out what he needed, or how we would teach him to smile, laugh, play, roll over, crawl and walk.  Funny thing is - over the past year, he has done all of those things on his own (we must have had some hand in it).  Ryan is such an independent little guy and I love watching him explore the world.  He's already a little boy and this first year has gone by too fast - I can't imagine what the next year will bring.   I vow to update you all with pictures from months 9 -12.  But one thing at a time.  Today, I must say happy birthday to our "little king" (look up "Ryan," that's what it means!). 

He celebrated by laughing in his mother and father's face with their out of tune rendition of "Happy Birthday," which most of you know we torture everyone with on their birthdays and had his first taste of a cupcake.  Now he is sleeping soundly - blissfully unaware of making this milestone.

Love to all,
Goodnight!

Ryan's First Christmas

Ryan had such a wonderful Christmas season!  I'm so glad that he was old enough to (sort of) appreciate our favorite holiday.  He kicked off the celebration with a visit to Santa (with his cousin Knox).  He did so good with Santa, and was more amazed by his beard than anything else.  But Santa must of listened to what Ryan whispered in his ear because our living room looks like Toys R Us.  My guess is Ryan asked if he could get some big boy toys.  It's possible there was an issue with him still playing with toys I tried putting in his hands when he first got home from the hospital.  We had celebrations with the Wojciaczyk, Kot and Rimkus families, and we enjoyed each and every party.  Thanks for giving Ryan the best first Christmas!

Below, find links to pictures from all of our Christmas fun!

    



Santa
Christmas Eve
Christmas Morning
Kot Chirstmas
Rimkus Christmas