Baseball Fun

So these pictures loaded a little out of order, but I am just going to go with it. Ryan played baseball for the first time this season. I have to admit, I was not overly excited about him playing because I knew that it would be a major time commitment on my part. However, I have to say that once I got into the swing of things I came to really enjoy it. Ryan had never played baseball before this season and I was worried it would be very obvious since he would be up against other boys who had been playing since they were 4, but I have to say he did really well. He grew and learned so much this season.

One of the most memorable parts of the season was the way that Tyler and Kathryn would pass their time. The diamond that Ryan played all of his games at was right next to a track. Tyler would push Kathryn around that track for close to an hour every game. Sometimes I would look over and he would be pushing her through the long jump sand pit, and other times they would be stopped picking weeds. I love that he was such a good sport and kept her entertained so that I could watch Ryan and cheer him on.
Doug wasn't Ryan's coach for baseball, in fact he wasn't even technically his assistant coach, but he stepped right in and helped so much that they had a hat made for him. Here he is giving the boys a little pep talk after the game. Did I mention that Ryan's team was the Yankees this season(Doug hates the Yankees). He was a good sport though and wore his Yankees hat even though it was painful for him. :)
Here is an action shot of Ryan. He was a great batter and only struck out a few times the entire season.
A shot of the bench. Great Job, Ryan! We are so excited to see your love of baseball grow.

Ryan's 7th Birthday

Ryan had a good birthday this year. He started the day with a happy face pancake breakfast.

Then, his Mama brought doughnuts and milk to his class for snack.
After school was done he walked down to his Grandpa's house with a few of his friends for a Mario Wii party.
He made pizza with his friends.

Then blew out his toad stool cupcakes.
He finished the party playing Wii on a big screen. He loves playing Wii, but we don't often let him do it, so he was in heaven.
I still can't believe he is seven. Where has the time gone? We love you so much Ry and we are so grateful to have you in our life.

Straight From the Mouth of Babes...

Ryan gave tithing for the first time just recently. After counting out how much he would need to give he got a serious look on his face and asked, "Mom, does the Prophet give cash back?" This presented an opportunity to explain why we give tithing and he seemed to be okay with it, but did ask one more time if you get your money back at some point.

Just today I was talking with Tyler about how we always need to protect our sister because we would be so sad if something happened to her. To which he replied, "We can just go pick another one." If only it was that easy son. :)

Too Tired for Pants!!!

Ryan has given up naps recently, but every once in a while he will still feel the need to take one. The other day I was downstairs doing the dishes and I heard him get up to use the bathroom. I was waiting for him to come down the stairs assuming his nap was done, but all was quiet again upstairs. I decided to go check on him and half way up the stairs this is what I encountered. I guess he couldn't decide if he wanted to come downstairs or just go back to sleep and found a happy medium...minus his pants.

Ryan's Preschool Open House

Ryan's preschool just had their open house the other night. We got the opportunity to come and tour his room and see all of the neat things he has been up to. He tells me about most of the things they learn, but there were a few things I had not seen before.
Ryan sitting next to his giraffe. They have been learning about Noah's Ark this month so there were a lot of animal oriented things around the room.

Doug and I got a good laugh about this one. Most of the kids talked about how penguins are black and white, but Ryan had to make sure we knew they lived in South America. I also like the commentary on what the penguin is saying..."ahhhh".

Ryan's section of the Noah's Ark board.

Reading his letter journal with Daddy. He practices writing his letters in this journal, but there were a lot of pages that he threw in some extra information. One of the pages was about Mommy being 31...really funny.

Ryan and his teacher, Mrs. Melissa. He really loves her and has been happy to have her as a teacher again this year.

We Now Have a Five Year Old...

Ryan turned five this week...where has the time gone? I have thought about him a lot this week and remember that special day when I had him and knew my life had changed. I am grateful for the joy he has brought into our lives. He is one of the most inquisitive kids that I have ever met, and while that can be exhausting at times, I wouldn't have him be any other way. Just yesterday he asked why the driver sits on the left side of the car instead of the right. I was not thinking about these kind of things at 4 years old. :) I love his sweet kisses and hugs and try not to think about the time when he won't want to give me one so readily. We love you Ry Ry! Happy 5th Birthday!
Opening presents in the morning.Letting his little brother help him.

Sharing his Valentine party food with his brother at preschool.

Enjoying a day at Disneyland. He got to pick out some things at the gift shop because Disneyland gave him $60 to spend.

Blowing out the candles at his big family party.

Car Washing Fun

I decided to wash the car the other day and the boys were very excited about helping me.

However, we never seemed to make it past the bucket. They stood for 30 minutes throwing their rags into the bucket and making the bubbles fly everywhere as Mommy washed the car by herself.
Thanks for the help you two. At the end of the car washing experience they were both soaked from head to toe. They had a good time though and I guess that's all that counts.

Train Ride with Grandma and Grandpa

This last weekend my parents came into town and we decided to take a little train ride to San Juan Capistrano. It was a short twenty minute train ride, but the boys thought it was wonderful. Tyler was mesmerized the entire ride.

We went down to a little petting zoo that is right by the train depot. I have made this little trek once before with a few girls from my ward, and thought it was a darling idea. The petting zoo is nothing fancy, but just enough for two little boys.
Tyler was very into feeding the animals this time around. He was younger the last time and not all that interested. The only problem was that the little animals had been fed quite a bit already and so they weren't very interested in eating. He kept chasing one around trying to get it to eat his carrot, and calling"Bunny".

Grandpa holding one of the animals for the boys to pet and feed.

Riding the hay pony.
The most exciting part of the whole petting zoo was the little train they had. The boys LOVED that!
After visiting the petting zoo we walked down to the Mission in San Juan Capistrano.
It was hands down the most beautiful mission I have ever been to. The grounds had tons of gorgeous flowers.
Mommy and Ryan taking a picture with some of the cacti.

Tyler and Grandma Karen
There was a beautiful fountain in the center of the courtyard. You can't see the top, but there is water streaming down.
The boys discovered that there were Koi(sp?) fish in the fountain. They were having a lot of fun looking at the fish and touching them, until Ryan dropped his car in the water. He began to cry and my mom and I both agreed we were not going to stick our hands in the water. Finally, this young teenage boy came a long and put his arm in and pulled it out. He just laughed at my mom and I and walked away. I didn't need to feel slimy fish so I was going to just leave the car in the water and make Ryan deal with it. He was luckily some stranger was willing to stick his hands in the murky water...no thank you.
Posing with the Father Serra...well, a man that was dressed as Father Serra.
I thought this courtyard was so beautiful. I loved the old bells.

Grandma and Grandpa posing with the boys.


The train ride home. It was a very fun day. Thanks Grandma and Grandpa for coming and making memories with us!

Summer Camp

I didn't have a chance to post these photos from a few weeks ago. Ryan went to a summer camp in the mornings for the whole week. He had a blast, and it gave Tyler and I a little down time in the morning. He felt like such a big kid.

"Your Majesty"

Ryan has found a much more suitable name for me this week...no more mama. It is "Your Majesty". I think what this indicates to me is either someone in my household is finally acknowledging that I am the queen of our home(heavens knows I do enough work around here for the title), or more likely, he has watched one too many Backyardigans episodes. Either way, it has given me a lot of laughs this week and a few odd looks from others when I am out and about and he refers to me in this manner. Now if only I can get Doug on board with with the name change. :)

Big Boy Bed

We tried pulling Ryan out of his crib about a 10 months ago, but I couldn't handle it. Between a new baby and a toddler that was getting up at all hours of the night to run through the house, I was on the verge of a breakdown. We decided it was time to give it another go...so far so good. He is extremely proud of his big boy bed.