Today's Play Date

Ben and Ryan checking each other out


Yea for play dates!

Today's play date was definitely more interesting than previous play dates. Ryan was very interested in Ben. He was talking to him and trying to touch his nose. He missed a few times on the nose bit with not such great results for poor Ben:-( Sorry, Ben and Ben's Mommy. I was actually very proud of how well Ryan shared. I was expecting him to grab all the toys away from Ben, but he didn't. He even handed a few to Ben and offered a bite of some to him. Ben had fun with Ryan's walkers. They did a great job for two babies on a play date.
Erin knows me well; She gave Ryan this great Leap Frog toy for his birthday. I love Leap Frog! They have great learning toys that are so much fun. Ryan's new toy is called the Fridge Farm Magnet Animal Set. I had never seen it before, but it's very fun. You put the front and back of an animal into the barn and it names and makes the sound of the animal(s) you selected. It's very cool. Ryan and Ben had some fun with it today.

Play Date

Ryan and Ben are having a play date tomorrow. This is the first time they will both be mobile, so it may be more interesting than previous play dates. I'll keep you posted. I'm sure pictures will be imminent given the fact that we will have two of the cutest babies in the world in the same room and two shutter happy mommies;-)

Arts and Crafts Time

Today Ryan and I made a crayon drawing. It was so fun. First I gave him a crayon and he held it in his pudgy little fist right on the paper. I thought, 'Wow, he's a natural.' After a moment it was apparent that I would have to show him how to draw as I had planned. His little fist still held that crayon right on the paper, but it didn't move. So I took my purple crayon and made a face. He seemed to like that, but he was not inspired. I fixed the crayon in his hand and guided it a little bit toward the paper. He made a few marks. Then I drew a line and a circle. He planted his pudgy little finger right on the circle and said "da". I said, "Oh, you want to draw a circle like Mommy's." I took his little hand and helped him draw a circle. Again his little finger landed right on that circle, "Da." This happened a few times and we drew a few circles and then I pointed to the line and said "Can you draw a line like Mommy's?" I drew another line on the right side of the paper(which he seemed to favor) and he drew two lines right next to it all by himself. That was a very cool moment for me as a mom because I knew he understood me. I was so proud of those two lines. I can't really put into words how it made me feel, but it was very special. He also made few other marks and lines you might be able to see in the picture.
Zach also had a first today. He did his first wax resist painting. He colored the stars in white crayon and painted blue water color paint over top. The wax from the crayon resists the paint(hence the name) and they stay white while the paper all around is the color you paint. It's pretty cool to do and kids love it. He free handed the stripes. The American Flag is his favorite things, so he had lots of fun doing this painting:-)

**Apparently it's not clear what lines Ryan drew. If I tell you that I had the purple crayon and Ryan had the blue one does that help?**
Ryan and Mommy's first crayon drawing

Zach's first wax resist

Who takes after Daddy?

Here is your answer...

My little clown

2 little clowns

Ryan put that lid of a cup on his face last night. After discovering that it sent his daddy and me into hysterics he spent a good part of the evening walking around with it on his face. He is a little ham just like his big brother and his daddy! Another funny thing he's been doing lately is putting his head on the floor and looking upside down through his legs. I have not been able to get a good picture of this, but if I do I will definitely post it. It's quite humorous. I got a picture that might give you the idea, but not the full affect the other day. If I don't get a good picture soon I'll post that one so you can get a visual.

Ryan's 1 Year Appointment

One problem with having a late August baby is that the doctor's are booked up with kids needing physicals and paperwork for school. Ryan just had his one year appointment today...I feel kinda bad about that. Well, He's hovering around the 50th percentile in height and weight. 30'' tall and 21lbs 12oz. I think average height is about all our little monkey can hope for;-) It's okay though he's above average in so many ways:-) He had 2 shots:-( I hope these things are over soon I don't know if I can handle it many more times. Poor kid. He did calm down pretty quickly and without his pacifier, this is progress. He was so cute in the exam room. Since the doctor took like 25 minutes to some into the room he had a lot of time to play. He actually did really well. He ran back and forth over the paper on the "bed" it made lots of noise and he loved it. He and Zach played a little peek-a-boo and chase. It got pretty loud in that little room!

Yellow Ribbons

I've seen these magnetic yellow ribbons on cars lately and wondered where to get them. In the process of looking for them I found that there are window clings as well. There are many places online to get them. I like one in particular-Military Wives. They have much more than the Support our Troops and Pray for Our Troops(my personal favorite) ribbons. This is the reason I like this site the best. They offer all kinds of things to help children get through the deployment of people who are special to them. I know from being a military child that this can be a very hard time for children. The proceeds from the ribbons bought on the Military Wives site go to expand the store and their support network. It's important to support our troops and their families always. This is a particularly hard time for them. Especially when people go around spouting off against the war and the soldiers who are fighting for their very right to say the things they say. Please remember the people behind the uniform the next time you say or do something against the war in public. These people have enough stress in their lives, they don't need to think their sacrifice is unappreciated or un-noticed. Even if you don't like the reasoning for the war don't denounce your country and your fighting men and women. They need all the support they can get from home to boost moral. They are fighting for YOUR freedom and mine and I for one appreciate every one of them. Especially my dad and my little brother-Love you guys! Keep up the good work and be safe:)

Lunch Bunch

I went to my first "Lunch Bunch" today. It was cool. I had to drop Zach off at school so I missed the lunch part:-( Ben Cachiaras, our lead pastor, spoke today on forgiveness. How is it that every time that man speaks I feel like he's talking right to me?! He had some good pointers...whats, whens and hows. I feel very inspired and way more equipped to forgive some people in my life. I'll be posting some of the highlights on the Lunch Bunch site soon. Not now because I'm tired and I have lots of things to do(even if I don't want to do them). This post is a little thing I like to call procrastination in disguise;)

Zach Starts Soccer

Zach starts soccer today after school. He was very upset this morning. I had told him he won't be riding the bus home, but going straight to soccer. He came downstairs in only shorts very upset. When I asked him what's wrong he struggled to get out "I-can't[snif-snif] find my[deep breath, deep breath]my soccer shirt." Of course he doesn't have one yet, so I tell him he doesn't need to wear it for practice. A tee shirt will be fine. Then he tells me he's a little bit nervous about soccer. So I ask him what he's nervous about and he says "What if it's big?"(I'm sure this is something he got from TV, the Bernstein Bears got to School-I think.) I asked what he meant by big and he couldn't explain. I'm thinking it's been suggested that he should be nervous when doing new things(indirectly of course.) Like his teacher was saying it's okay to be nervous about starting school and the Bernstein Bears episode about the same thing. Never-the-less I took him seriously because an idea that is planted in your mind can create feelings just as real as any others. I explained to him that he would be playing with kids his own age and they would just be learning too. I also told him they would just learn how to play at first, not play real games. They would learn how to dribble, aim and score goals. To which he replied,"I know how to dribble." That seemed to give him some confidence. I told him I'd come watch him practice after Ryan gets up from his nap. I think he was okay when he left for school. He told everyone we saw, "I'm playing soccer today!" I'm going to take my camera to his practice. I'll post pictures if I can get any good ones.
Zach headed for the ball; He's wearing the white shirt and dark blue shorts. 

This would have been a great shot if it wasn't blurry:( 

Love-fest with Giraffe

Ryan is holding giraffe right now, as a matter of fact he has not put it down since dinner(over an hour now). He didn't put it down to pick up other toys which is standard practice when he sees something new or exciting. He didn't even put it down to pick up and throw his ball. He keeps picking things up with his left hand and throwing them down on the ground(including the other animals from the ark), but giraffe is firmly planted in his right hand. I'm so glad we got him another one!

Ryan and his beloved giraffe 

He doesn't even put giraffe down to throw his ball! 

Giraffe

Ryan lost his treasured giraffe on vacation. He would take giraffe everywhere. He'd hold him up in the air as if he was showing him the world. He would also let him look in cabinets, over fences and anywhere else. We think he was showing giraffe the inside of the trash can when he lost him:( We looked everywhere. In cabinets, under beds and couches...he was not to be found:( He loved giraffe so much. We briefly debated about replacing him thinking that he might just find a replacement. We decided to replace him. After we ordered the replacement ark(the one giraffe came in) we wondered if it was a waste of money. The package came today and it was most definitely worth every penny. He's been carrying new giraffe around ever since. I couldn't get him to sit still for a picture, so these are the best I have. He also does a new thing with giraffe. He sits it down very carefully making sure it's standing up. It's very cute.

Yea, Giraffe!!! 

Standing giraffe up 

Shopping Bust

I've had to go to the grocery store for a while. Since I was sick at the end of last week I didn't feel like leaving the house. I absolutely hate weekend grocery shopping because of the crowds and long lines. I would have gone Monday morning except that I had to wait around the house for the guys who were supposed to haul our tree away. They never showed up...grrr. Not even a phone call! Around noon Jay finally tracked them down and found out they wouldn't be coming. By that time it was too late because I had to go to the bus stop with Zach and then Ryan would need a nap soon after that. So, I decided to go at night when the boys went to bed. Then I started getting excited about the idea. No crowds, good parking space, no kids to keep happy, etc. Well, my enthusiasm was dashed when I got to the store and realized the shelves were bare! Forget about getting ANYTHING that has been on sale. I guess those Sunday crowd-shoppers got all the good stuff. I have to find out when they restock and go back to get the rest of the stuff I need...how annoying is that?! It's not enough to make me want to shop with the crowds on Sunday though. I can't stand trying to get to the next aisle through those people who jam themselves up tight against the person in front of them for fear of losing their spot in line. Then waiting in those same lines for what seems like forever after weaving my way through the aisles, finding my missing husband and keeping track of the kids who have been taxed to the limit because it's taking so long. I think I'll stick to weekday mornings.

Ring Toss

We went to Jay's parents' house today. Mrs. Dunning and Zach set up a ring toss. Zach is quite good...you'll see his double ringer below. He asked Jay to play with him. Jay was not as good;) He started further back than Zach, but after not making a single shot decided to try from the "Zachary line." Still no luck. So he started leaning over and over and over(see below). After a couple tries like this...Success. See my September album for more pictures:-)

Double Ringer

I CAN make it from here!

What kind of weekend is this?!

It's rainy, chilly and I still don't feel good...this is not how weekends are supposed to be! I want something to do!!!!!!!!!! (that's not housework)

He's so cute!

Ryan just did the cutest thing. He was watching Baby Shakespeare doing his normal giggling and bouncing, but this time he added something new. When the spinning "s" shaped thing(it's called a kinetic sculpture) was on he started turning in circles...it was just about the cutest thing!

Julie Aigner-Clark is a Genius

Baby Einstein is the best invention ever. Ryan has loved the videos since he was a teeny tiny baby. Sometimes it was the only thing that would calm him down. If he wasn't eating and I turned on the video he would eat a whole jar of food. He still to this day will stop in his tracks when he hears the theme music come on. He laughs, smiles an jumps up and down at his favorite parts. He watches so intently...it's great. I would recommend having them ready when you get home from the hospital! Don't get me wrong... I don't want to raise my kids watching T.V. all the time. I think the value of these videos is educational as well as entertaining. The fact that every time we put it in the DVD player when adults are over the whole room watches(despite my attempts to keep conversation going) is a testament to the entertainment value. I also found the classical music soothing during my sleep deprived-I don't know what to do with this crying baby in the middle of the night- days. This probably sounds like a commercial...next week I'll be promoting Leap Frog-also AWESOME;)

Weekend

Ryan and Jay on the Promenade 


Zach feeding the massive amount of ducks 

We had an interesting weekend. Saturday Elizabee came over and we all went to the Duck Fair at the Decoy Museum in Havre de Grace. We had never been to Havre de Grace before. We had a fun time. It's amazing how much people will pay for a carved duck!(thousands of dollars-BTW) Especially since they don't use the expensive ones. The ones they use are not very detailed at all. Just enough to make a duck think it's real from a distance so it will come over. By the time the duck realizes that it's not a new friend it's too late. Sad. They had a retriever competition. It was interesting for a while, but as Jay put it, you can only watch dogs play fetch for so long;) They had some cool booths and Zach got to do some of the kids activities. I actually got my mom's Christmas gift(bet you can't wait to see what I got at a decoy fair for you, eh Mom!) We walked the promenade. It was very nice. They are still rebuilding part of it from Hurricane Isabel, but it looks like it's coming along quite nicely. Apparently Americorps came in and did a lot of work on it. We saw a ground hog or gopher(not sure which), tons of ducks(real ones and wooden ones) and lots of boats.
Sunday we went to the very last service in the "new sanctuary" at our church. Next week we start worshiping in the New Life Center. After service we came home to have lunch and let Ryan nap. Then we went to our Bible study leaders' house and Zach and I visited while Jay fixed their computer. When we got home Zach went out and played some more with the neighborhood kids. Last night he created(and acted out) a "movie" or, as we would have called it when I was a kid, a play with his stuffed animals. Ryan LOVED it. He was captivated. It was very funny when the animals' scene was over Ryan looked under the table for them. Then he got down and went around to Zach's side of the table to see what was going on. He's making new discoveries about how things work every day;) It's so fun to watch him figure things out:)

Hooray for Broadband!!!

It's my first day with broadband...how glorious is this?! I LOVE it! I'm going to update all my snapfish albums so they will have full res versions of my photos(I had to shrink them before because it took too long to upload them to the site in full resolution). I will update my links accordingly. I may create one link that will allow access to all the albums so far so you won't have to click on them individually to add them to your account:) This will be a process though-there are lots of pictures to update. I will also include pictures never seen before. I used to pick my favorites, but now I will probably include more of the okay, but not my favorite ones:) This is so exciting! Anyone who has had broadband for a long time probably does not understand my joy...just imagine having to wait 2-3 minutes for each page to load and longer if it has lots of pictures, etc.

Wall Update

It's coming along...slowly, but surely. I have not finished Nemo, but I think about 85% of a character is in it's face and at least that's almost done. It definitely needs touching up when it's dry, but I thought I'd share:)
update 

close up 

Ryan's First Pair of Shoes

We bought Ryan's first pair of shoes this weekend(thanks Grandma and Grandpa!) I bought them for outside, but since he seems pretty unstable in them we are practicing inside. Falling is much easier for Mommy to take when it happens inside! It's like he's walking in scuba flippers, poor kid. I feel bad for all those kids whose mothers make them wear shoes before they start walking! I have to go get Zach at the bus stop now and it's pouring, so I don't want to be late!
Ryan's new shoes 

Father-Son Moments

Changing oil 

I just posted and got offline, but then I saw this and I had to post again. Zach is helping Jay change the oil in the car. How cute is that. It's moments like these that I hope our boys will remember for the rest of their lives and memories I know Jay will cherish. Jay loves to work with his hands and fix things. I know he loves it when he is able to pass some of that on to his boys.

The 21st Century Comes to the Dunning House

[Doing the happy dance]We're getting a cable modem!!! I'm so excited! My deal finding husband found a way for us to get it for only $3 more than we are paying now. It's got something to do with having the phone routed through the cable...I think it's called vonage. Of course it also has to do with rebates and special deals. My husband is a deal master. Yea for Jay...we get to get a cable connection now:):):)

My Kids Page

I updated my webpage about the boys. Check it out and leave a comment in my guest book. It's always fun to see who is reading:)

What a Good Dog!

Poor Daisy! Ryan was poking at her so she moved, but he followed her. She gave up I guess. Ryan then sat next to her(as seen here) and leaned back on her. It was very cute to look at. When I went to take a picture Ryan sat up, but it was still cute:) It made me very glad that Daisy is such a good and patient dog!
Ryan chillin' on Daisy 

My little one year old

On Ryan's actual birthday I didn't get any great pictures. He was looking mighty cute today, so I thought I'd give it another try.
Here is a sample...I call it Gilligan returns to the mainland because his little hat and outfit remind me of Gilligan and he's just so entranced by the phone I thought it was adorable.
"Gilligan returns to the main land" 

Rude People Suck

I'm taking a cue from Erin here and vent about rude shoppers. Most people I ran into today were lovely, some even went out of their way to open doors. The last two people I experienced were so rude though. I got to my car and was putting Ryan in his seat and I hear one of them remark "Oh great, look at this". I think 'They can't be talking about me I'm just putting my baby in his car seat'. Then the one lady starts huffing and puffing about having to wait to get into their car. I just ignored it and got Ryan into his seat as fast as I could. I guess I wasn't fast enough because when I closed his door the lady was walking around the front of the car giving me a look. I was about to open my door, but I waited because she was obviously irritated about having to wait 30 extra seconds. Then she bent over and started putting things on the floor and getting her drink situated in the cup holder, then she stood up and started to walk toward the back of the car LEAVING THE DOOR OPEN so I couldn't get in my car. Meanwhile her friend had gone to the back of the car to get the cart someone had left there(apparently the purpose of the passenger going to the back) Passenger stops, "Oh, you've got it"
Driver, to me "Is this your cart?"
Me, "Nope" secretly thinking 'Didn't you see me take my baby out of the cart at the door and carry him and the two shopping bags I had (including a gallon of milk) all the way to my car so I wouldn't have to leave him alone in the car while I returned the cart?!'
Driver seeming annoyed, "Someone left it behind my car."
I'm standing there with the back door open now comforting Ryan(and trying to let a breeze into the car) because he got scared when I didn't get in the car in a timely fashion and starting crying. Big fat oblivious passenger stands outside the car with her door open while driver puts cart somewhere. Apparently it's too hot for her to wait in the car, but it's fine for my one year old baby to sit in the car while she takes her sweet time getting her big butt in her little Neon! Grrrr!