June Pictures
Sam - weeks 3 & 4
The Rimkus family certainly had a busy June, lots of celebrations...and boy did it fly by! We started out the month by celebrating birthdays and a big birth day. Grandma's birthday was on June 2 and we celebrated by having a few beers - well, not me and Sam - in her yard and getting a pizza from the original Sanfratellos in Homewood (made in one of the old ovens). We enjoyed ourselves, and little did we know that would be our last outing as a family of three. We also had Joni's birthday and Father's Day and capped off the month with a surprise engagement party.
Ryan is growing by leaps and bounds everyday. I think he's ready for the big time, but I'm not sure what the big time is yet. Ryan started taking classes at the local gym and is really enjoying his somersaults and backwards rolls. He's very good at the balance beam and climbing, but thinks that hanging on to the bars is for the birds. The main point is, he likes to have fun. And he enjoys the fact that there are nothing but windows lining the class and lots of moms watching their (much bigger kids) flip and flop around him. Truth be told, I think he thinks everyone is there to watch him - every so often he'll run to the window and say HIIIIIIIIIII!!!!! - beaming from ear to ear as if to say, "thanks for coming to see me today!" Speaking of speaking...Ryan has added so many words to his vocabulary. I enjoy figuring out what exactly he's saying and am surprised at some of the words he's chosen to pick up on - "eat" "help" "water" "pool" "bubbles" "fork" "bath" "band-aid" "pee" "poop"- all very useful "bra" not so much at this point in his life. Ryan loves being outside, and is happy with his bubbles, little kid pool and water table - although, every time mommy assembles the water table, Ryan dismantles it to figure out how everything works (this is a recurring theme inside AND outside the house, he wants the know the inner workings of everything). Inside, he continues to love working with his tools (that slowly are being taken away and filed in a drawer for later use...like the hammer that has made some lovely marks on his playroom walls) and he also loves his blocks. The look of accomplishment on his face when he makes stacks is amazing. He's a cute kid who loves his new brother. Ryan gives Sam toys to play with in his cradle - and not just his undesirables - he gives him his good stuff, like the morning we found his Louie Apparcio card next to sleeping Sam. As a mom, I don't think I'll ever forget the pride on Ryan's face when he was presented with a "I Have A Baby Brother" button. He wanted it on his shirt right away, and I really think he knew what it meant. Sam is the first thing Ryan asks about in the morning (after he announces if he's pooped) and he'll stop playing at random times during the day to run over and give Sam a kiss. We have to work on the word "gentle" and Ryan doesn't quite know that Sam doesn't want his eyes pressed or nose honked - I'll take that for the love Ryan has for being a big brother.
On June 4, Sam came along and that's when time really started to fly. I can't believe he's a month old already. After spending the first few weeks sleeping...and sleeping...and sleeping so much that mom was worried, he woke up! Now, Sam is up for a few hours at a time, and usually likes to be most active when his brother is sleeping, so, naturally that's easy on mom. I can honestly say I truly thought there would be at least one point during the day that I would be able to close my eyes for 15 minutes - not so. But who can complain with two cute kiddos like we have? Sam is very alert and can track mommy and daddy's voice. He shared his first smiles as his one month "birthday" approached (the kind where you are certain its not just gas - although those are cute ones too) and he is actually a fan of tummy time if you do it at the right time. So far his favorite toys are a porcupine that has black and white spots on its belly and a monkey that hangs from his new play mat. Ryan has tried to force a hot wheels into Sam's hands on more than one occasion, but I just don't think he's ready.
Oh...and I mentioned an engagement party? Congratulations Kevin and Melek! I had a great time celebrating with you on Lake Como in Wisconsin. Can't wait for the big day.
