ebony and ivory

i celebrated my 30th birthday this past weekend and the two biggest gifts i received are captured in the photo above: the piano (you know you're getting older when you love the things you once hated) and a new flash for the camera (now i can take great photos at really small aperture settings). graham made this a very special birthday, full of surprises! now, armed with great new piano music, i am beginning a new dedication (and appreciation) to practicing piano and photography.

our family is taking advantage of the warm summer evenings by doing something every night. from swinging with grandma and grandpa robertson, to going to the park with grandma weddick, to watching grandpa weddick’s favorite disney movie – jungle book, to playing with the neighborhood kids (including ryker taking off with his friend, izzy, out of the cul-de-sac, and around the corner, despite the older kids telling them to go home and the parents chasing them), to wheeler farm visits, we have effectively exhausted ryker – and us.

pause for a moment

birthday celebrations (ryker and max), anniversary (seven years!), doctor appointments (ryker and kate), house guests (mike, laurie, and max), wedding (chris and kami), return to work (me), and more.

it has been a busy two weeks! ryks celebrated his second birthday with a fun party, complete with a bounce house. at his two-year check up, ryker was in the 99th percentile for height (38 inches) and 94th for weight. he says the funniest things like "i just farted" or "i did it!" after he took his new asthma medication through the inhaler. he seems to be constantly on the move. in his world, everything is something he can kick like a soccer ball or hit like a baseball. he is a superstar at dribbling a soccer ball and shooting a goal. kate had her two-month check up and is doing great. she is finally smiling, laughing, and making those wonderful baby noises. and, lucky for this mom who went back to work last week, kate is starting to sleep through the night. as for my return to work, it was difficult to leave my kids. however, they go to a great daycare located down the hall from graham's office. the teachers are smart and caring and the facility is beautiful. plus, it helps that i love my job and enjoy the people i work with.

we had mike, laurie, and max stay with us for the last couple of weeks. they came to town for chris' wedding, max's first birthday, and to visit family. ryker loved having his cousin around but struggled with the concept of sharing his toys. while max was in town, we decided it was time to take pictures of the cousins. regardless of how many adults were behind the camera shouting, making silly noises, and clapping their hands, it was impossible to get these kids to look at the camera. this was the best shot we had (although the others are still pretty cute).

we also managed to get a few pictures of the kids while they were dressed up for chris' wedding. the theme was a vintage carnival so ryker wore awesome suspenders and an oversized bow tie. and, because kate is so tiny, i figured this was the only time i could get away with dressing her in something with this much tulle. she looked beautiful!

beautiful girl

while i work on uploading photos from ryker's super amazing, wonderful birthday party, i decided to post a photo of this beautiful girl.

best friends

i first met tonee in our junior year of high school. she was the beautiful new girl at school who had the best laugh and most engaging personality. her "no drama" approach to high school theatrics was refreshing. we clicked instantly and became great friends. i remember the days we would spend driving around town in her 4-runner listening and dancing to music (e.g., notorious big, ghetto superstar), laughing at our high school history teacher's clothing choices, and talking about boys.

we have managed to keep in touch during these past 14 years and yesterday, we decided to get our kids together. her son geddy is six mons older than ryker and her daughter jennsen is three days older than kate. ryker and geddy hit it off just like tonee and i did so long ago. the kids ran on the playground, played soccer, chased each other on the trails, ate lunch, and more. i think geddy summed up the day best when he told ryker "you're my best friend." and i think ryker, being a man of little words, agreed as he shared his lunch and wanted to keep playing games with geddy.

of course the battery in my camera died so i managed to only get a few pictures. but i’m sure i’ll get more pictures of these adorable kids and their sisters during a future play date .

choo choo weekend

we had a busy memorial day weekend. from lagoon, the zoo, and three barbeques, we exhausted our kids and ourselves. but we had a blast doing it! ryker wasn't a big fan of lagoon (see the heart breaking photos below) until he got to ride the train. then he was a huge fan.










ryker also loved the zoo. during the bird show, we sat under the fly zone so ryker had six large birds fly about a foot over his head. he was laughing so hard. it was hard to get photos of him looking at the camera because he was so busy taking in all the sights. he liked the train at the zoo but it wasn't nearly as cool as the train at lagoon




we celebrated my brother's birthday on sunday. ryker helped himself to the frosting on the cake, while great grandma and grandpa vincent played with kate. what a perfect weekend!

one month old

look at this little girl holding up her head! she is so strong. i'm am amazed that she is already a month old. the past month has been wonderful. there are so many things i want to remember from the past four weeks:

• ryker shouting "bug" when he first saw kate. he now calls her "baby kate"


• all four of us spending saturday and sunday mornings cuddling in our bed, watching cartoons. the cuddle part only lasts 30 minutes, at which time, ryker begins his “butt bombs,” which are when ryker stands on the bed, jumps as high as he can, and lands on top of graham. the more graham groans, the more ryker laughs


• ryker, who refuses to say "i love you" anymore, increasing the number of times each day he randomly says "hi mama" or "hi papa" (we think this is his way of saying "i love you")


• kate's head fitting perfectly in the crook of my neck when we snuggle on the couch


• ryker shouting "kate cry" when she starts to cry. he will then run to kate and say "don't cry" while trying to shove her binky in her mouth.


• the sweet way ryker kisses kate and gives her gentle hugs


• watching graham hold and talk to kate. there is something so beautiful when they have these bonding moments


• when ryker says "baby swing," indicating he wants me to put kate in her swing so i can hold him


• watching graham balance work, healing from his surgery, helping around the house and yard, finding time to play with ryker and cuddle with kate, and still have enough time to give me massages. what an amazing man!


• and my favorite - the morning graham and i were getting ready for the day and kate and ryker were in our bed. when i checked on them, ryker had moved over to be next to kate. their faces were only a few inches apart and they were both looking at each other.

energies

our wonderful friends and family visited us this weekend and ryker was in heaven. he spent saturday and sunday running at full speed, and laughing and shouting at full volume. i'm glad the weather was cooperative so he had a chance to get all of 'energies' out. after playing and eating ice cream sandwiches with braxen on sunday, ryker came over to me at 8:00 pm and asked to go to bed. the kid was exhausted from his busy weekend! when i was putting ryker to bed, i told him we could read two books. as i finished the second book, ryker jumped out of bed, grabbed more books off the shelf, held up four fingers (his version of two), and said "two more books." i couldn't resist those negotiation skills!


(i promise graham and i try to do ryker's hair but whenever it gets even a little long, it becomes impossible to manage. it grows in so many directions and takes on a life of its own! after several attempts throughout the day, i usually give up.)

kate is doing great! she spends most of her time in people's arms. i love my cuddle time with her and am often surprised when a couple hours pass by as i sit on the couch cuddling her and doing brain teaser puzzle. this is such a wonderful time!

my favorite little girl

kate's first few weeks

little kate is three weeks old! she is doing so well and i am enjoying my time at home with her. when i was on maternity leave with ryker, i considered it a success if i was ready for the day before 2:00 pm. i am not sure if i am now used to working my schedule around kids, or if kate is such an easy going baby, but i am usually ready for the day by 7:30 am. i have kept busy by finally organizing rooms that were unceremoniously thrown together when we quickly moved in a few months ago. and i still get plenty of cuddle time with kate.

kate is doing so great! she is eating well and sleeps for most of the night. two days a week, ryker stays home from preschool with kate and me. those days are exhausting but i love being able to spend more time with ryker. plus, with the weather finally warming up, there are a lot more things we can do to keep ryker busy. here are some pictures from kate's first two weeks at home and from easter.


















here are some of ryker's dance moves. the kid has some great rhythm and energy!






ellie and ryker jumping like frogs. these kids are so funny when they are together!