Incredible Weekend

We saw the Incredibles: Disney on Ice show this weekend. It was great. I thought it would be more a Zach thing and Ryan would just be along for the ride. I was wrong. Ryan LOVED it! He was interested the whole time. He even used his bracelet to help save Mickey and Minnie. The show was much better than I expected it to be. I thought the show would be a sort of recap of the movie, but it had it's own plot and it was entertaining. The acting- not so good, but the show over all was really fun. Basically the Parrs(aka- the Incredibles) take a vacation to Disney World and try to blend in, but it doesn't work out quite that way. They were able to incorporate some of the Disney attractions including the parade(that was my favorite part). It was a good time for all. Jay thought it was a good plug for Disney World-maybe I'll be able to get him to go sooner now;-)
The show was great fun, but the best part of the day for me was getting the memory box for Sweet Pea. I went to the Discovery Store where Jay got Ryan's box for me. I looked everywhere and couldn't find another one. I was so disappointed. I asked a guy that worked there if he knew anything about them. He said they had been marked down. He pointed to a sign that said 50% off. He told me he would look around and see what he could find. He started looking around the store. This did not make me hopeful. Then he went to the back and come out with a box! The last one in the whole store. It was the new design. Apparently the Discovery Store(which is awesome, by the way) bought the company that makes the boxes, so the ones with the old packaging were being discounted to get rid of them. I was just happy to have the box, I didn't care if it wasn't the discounted old model. When he rang it up it did come up on sale though. I got it for $15!!! Have you ever felt like God lined everything up for you? The last box, being in the back where it would be bought until I asked about it because I wanted one so much and to top it all off on sale 50% off! I can't find a link for the box, but it's similar to this frame if you imagine no hinge and a box part behind it. It is by far my favorite keepsake keeper. I've never seen one anywhere else.
Yesterday was nice. We had a good sermon at church and got to talk to some friends while we were there. The rest of the day was just pretty relaxed. That was nice having come off a busy week. My uncle Tommy came by to bring a boat he made over and he set it up for the kids to play on. He also brought his girlfriend, Alice. This was the first time I met her. She seems nice. They are pretty cute together. All lovey dovey :-) They remind me of Jay and me(except without the fighting ;-) ).
The SS Minnow 

Uncle Yoyo/ Tommy

What's Up

- OB appointment yesterday- Everything looks fine. I still get excited to hear her little heartbeat even though there is no doubt she is in there practicing her soccer moves and doing her best impression of a ball. [On a side note- I couldn't believe how much I weighed. I was really worried until I read my pregnancy calendar today and it said I should have gained at least 15 pounds by now. That seems like a lot to me at this point, but I'm right on schedule.]

-Ryan's speech amazes me every day. He comes up with the funniest things. Jay and I were hugging one day and Ryan wanted in on the action. I picked him up and he pointed to Jay then me saying, " Daddy and mommy...are friends." This of course caused much laughter and now he does it all the time. Most times he will point to everyone in the room, "Mommy, daddy, Zachary and Ryan are friends."

-Ryan's gymnastics teacher asked me how old he was exactly. When I told her she told me how well he was doing and that he is really keeping up with the older kids. Apparently he is doing the same things that kids 6 months older than him are doing. It really feels good when other people realize what you've known all along- Your child is the greatest ;-) Don't tell me you people don't think that about your own kid(s).

-Zach had a field trip this week on a boat. He got to do one of his favorite things- read maps.

-Zach is doing really well in school. We will get to know how well next week after his parent teacher conference.

-Jay is busier than ever with work, leading a middle school small group, his other small group and buying/selling computers.

-I am trying to keep my head above water. I'm finally going to have a chance to get to the grocery store today(we have not had milk or bread for 2 days!). I even get to go alone! Jay's mom is coming to watch Ryan and Zach this afternoon.

So, everyone is growing up and/or out. And I am just trying to take it one day at a time.

hm

Will I ever get to do all the things on my to do list? Why is everything about being a mother and cleaning a house something that you'll just have to do again the next week, the next day or the next hour? I feel like I'm walking on a treadmill...I'm moving, but not going anywhere.

Quote

Ryan quote of the day:

"SWEET! It's a truck."

That's daddy's boy.

Blogworthy

Ryan, Jay and I were riding in the car yesterday. Jay and I were having a conversation about something that happened at his job. From the back seat we hear, "What are you talkin' about?" So I explained to Ryan that we were talking about a lady where daddy works. Jay and I go back to talking and we hear again, "What are you talkin' about?" I explain again that we are talking about someone daddy sees at work. The question comes again, I answer. Then it comes again and again in rapid succession. I turn around to see a huge grin on the face of my son who has his fingers in his ears. When I turned to see him he burst into giggles. I have to say that I'm quite impressed with his toddler humor. Laughing myself, I told Jay what he was doing. Jay laughed and said, "Now that's blogworthy."
I don't know what's funnier, Ryan's clowning or Jay immediately thinking of my blog :-)

Just for Kicks

Daddy finally felt the Sweet Pea kick last night. Usually she stops when he puts his hand on my tummy to feel. Not this time! There were a couple small kicks and one couldn't-miss-it kick.

I should be ashamed of myself

But I'm actually kind of proud. We went to the mall today to pick up the pictures from Thursday. I wanted to get a little, dare I say it, Christmas shopping(okay I admit I have fallen victim to the Christmas machine) done while we were there. I know it's not even Halloween, but I figure I should get an early start. Especially this year with the baby due in February. Who knows how much I will want to go shopping with people bumping into my wide load and my back hurting from all the weight of the bags, the boy, the winter coats and the belly. The more I write about it the more I just want to order everything from the internet and have it come to me! We did pretty well. We got a huge bag full of toys for the boys and only spent about $75. That's decent in my book. I thought sure it would be over $100. I was dreading the total. That's a decent start to the holiday shopping season. The boys are easy though. Now I have to really start looking for extended family. Then there are Kris Kringles for the extended-extended families, but we don't even know those yet, so I can't start thinking about those. I also have to update our wish lists and add one for Sweet Pea. There is this really sweet bear snuggly outfit that mommy saw at Old Navy that Sweet Pea(read-mommy) really wants. It's so cute!

First Pictures...well sort of

Did I ever post pictures of our ultrasound? Well, here are some profile shots.
baby girl

A Good Idea After All

I wasn't sure how I felt about that Laps for Learning thing. Now I think that it is definitely a good idea for the school. It was hard for us to ask people to support Zach's run/walk, but people were very receptive. Given that Jay and I were both hesitant to put people on the spot we only asked Zach's family. People were so generous and didn't seem to think it was imposing. The total pledged for Zach's walk was $200! We have never sold that much worth of stuff when the school does those fundraisers. The best part is that this way 100% of the money goes directly to the school. A little bit goes toward prizes for the kids who participated, but there were also some great donations for prizes. I think the prizes motivate the kids(or parents) to raise money too. The people coordinating it are all volunteers and they are using the school track, so they don't need to rent a space. I don't know how other kids did with their fundraising, but from our standpoint this fundraiser was a huge success.
Thanks mom, dad, Mr. and Mrs. Dunning, TJ, Elizabee, John and Ben for supporting Zach and his school! You guys ROCK!

It's a Jammie Day

It's raining and cold...blah. I plan on making the best of things by spending the day in my warm jammies. We were going to play with Erin and Ben today, but Erin is spending the day in her jammies too.
I'm a little disappointed that we don't get to play, but it's almost a relief after the day I had yesterday. We were home in the morning long enough to get dressed. Then we went to gymnastics and the store afterwards. Came home for lunch and Ryan napped. I spent nap time cleaning up so Jay could have his meeting in the evening- I didn't finish. Woke Ryan up early from his nap to get his new clothes on and ran out the door with both boys(Zach had a half day). We zipped through the mall to Picture People so I could get my last free sheet out of them before my membership expires. We were a little late, but it didn't seem to matter. It went fairly well. No fussing, but no huge smiles from Ryan either. I have not seen the pictures yet, Jay and I are going to look at them together this weekend. After that we decided to get dinner out because it just seemed easier. I let Zach choose-we went to Pizza Hut. We got there just before 5 and didn't get out until 6 and there was only one other family when we got there. [Note to self- No Pizza hut when time is short.] We rushed home to change for the bonfire pack meeting. I finished cleaning up as best I could before Jay's group showed up. Then we were off to the bon fire. Lots of fun for the boy scouts, not so much fun for me and Ryan. Ryan was saying "All done" after about 15 minutes. He did manage to entertain himself for the rest of the time with a little help from mommy, but he was not very quiet. We left before it was over(8:30) because Ryan was getting tired and so was mommy. Zach didn't like that, but he had fun while he was there. So the result of yesterday is one tired mommy with a sore back and legs(mostly from carrying Ryan so much) and two happy kids. Not too bad...I'll recover.

My [Current] Favorite Ryan Things

Ryan will say something and just crack up laughing, so much that everyone in the room starts laughing too. He must think he is a great comedian.

"Daddy's home!" said when he hears the door open around dinner time or when he sees daddy
"Mommy's home!" followed by a big hug, said randomly throughout the day or when I come home.

Giving hugs while saying "awwww" or "I'n glad a see you" [I'm glad to see you]

"I wub you"

"Wuhoo!"

"I got it" followed by him getting or doing something he wants(getting a stool and turning on the light for example)

full body hugs

asking for hugs/kisses

saying letters that appear on an object followed by "spells [insert object here]"

jumping up and down and/or clapping while giggling when he gets excited

"A clue, a clue on the [object]" whenever he sees a pawprint- the pet aisle at Target is fun:-)

"inNASTICS"- forward rolls, hanging on the bar and laughing himself silly because he's so proud of himself for staying up

"Was that fun?" and/or "That was fun" after we do something special

"Aaaaaahhhhh, pkkkkk" as he crashes two cars(or other vehicles) together

This list is abridged- I didn't realize it would get so long so fast!

We are so Blessed

There has been a lot of stuff going on around Jay and around me lately. Sometimes hearing what other people go through makes me feel so blessed. It's easy to get caught up in our lives and our problems, but it's good to really look outside yourself and realize that there are lots of people who have much worse problems than yours. God has blessed this family.

Laps for Learning

Zach's school has an interesting new fund raising idea. It's along the lines of the MS Walk. Zach gets pledges to jog/walk around the track at his school as many times as he can in 45 minutes. Other parents seem to be excited about the idea because they don't have to sell anything. The school is excited because the get 100% of the profits. I'm not sure what I think. I've never been very good at asking people for money, especially when they don't get anything for the money. I walked the MS Walk in high school and I put up the entry fee myself. I didn't ask a soul to sponsor me. Lame, I know. I did want to contribute, but I just didn't know how to ask people for money. I guess I am a horrible fund raiser. It's funny because I was in charge of fundraising at my old job. I was good at finding things for other people to sell/do to raise money. It's just the selling I have a problem with I guess.
So what do you think? Good or bad idea for a fund raiser?

Family is Nice

My parents came to visit this weekend. They came up for my dad's high school reunion. My 10 year is this November. I can't decide if I want to go or not. I'm leaning toward not. It's so complicated to do things out of town when kids are not invited. But, I digress. I was speaking of my parents' visit. It was nice to have them. The kids love it when they stay(and not just because they bring really cool toys;-) ) Even the dog loves it when they stay with us! Everyone gets lots of extra attention. I'm hoping my mom will want to come stay and spoil the boys when their little sister comes...hint, hint;-) It would be cool if dad could come too, but I know how hard it is for him to get away from work.
We had lots of fun spending time with them. We all went to the YMCA's family fun day. I love these little free events! I was planning on paying for stuff, but it was cool to find out it was all free when we got there(except food, of course). We stuffed a scarecrow and played some games. Jay chased the kids around this cute little hay maze that they had set up. Jay and my dad climbed this awesome tower thing. I was quite impressed with how well they did. It's one thing to climb a stationary object, but to climb up something that is swinging from two ropes above...whew. They both made it to the top and neither one of them took the easy way that everyone else was taking. It was a fun day.
I have pictures, but I'll have to post them later when I get downstairs to use the desktop. You can find them in the October Album if you want to go look.

Pumpkin Pictures

Here are the pictures of Ryan's latest adventure with friend Ben.

little pumpkins


Ryan insisted on pulling the wagon. It was a bit frustrating, but very cute:-)
pulling the wagon


This is what he did with his pumpkins when he got home.
Pumpkin Express

Picture Catch Up

It occurs to me that I have not posted pictures in a while. I've been using the laptop in the living room mostly and it's hard to get downstairs to use the desktop(where I have all the pictures) for any length of time. So I sat here picking some favorite moments out of the things we've done recently to share with you. Of course I had a toddler climbing all over me most of the time, but that's how it goes. I was determined to get these pictures up! Enjoy:-)
For more pictures you can check out the albums to the side. I'm going to upload the pictures now.
Open House at the Fire Department
Fire Truck

on the fire truck with daddy


Open House at the Police Department
first time on a horse

Ryan just loved the big trucks

driving the "big truck"


Corn Maize
corn maze


Zoo
The goat was nuzzling Ryan right before this picture.
the goat likes Ryan

At the zoo

Pumpkin Patch

Ryan is running around in circles because we are going to see Erin and Ben. I think he is more excited about seeing "friend Ben" than Erin, sorry chica ;-) We are going to the pumpkin farm. Hopefully we will get some cute pictures.

Results

The poll has been pretty stagnant for about a day, so I'm thinking these are the final results.

Lily 25%
Hannah 15%
Abigail, Diana 12%
Grace 10%
Taylor, Lillian 5%
Amber, Ashley, Danielle, Hailey, Marie, Morgan 2%
Isabel, Jasmine, Samantha 0%

It's interesting how the poll has helped me figure out my own feelings a little more. When Hannah was in the lead I felt a little disappointed. When Lily pulled up and took the lead I was pleased. I've known from the beginning that Lily was probably my favorite. When I talked to my mom right after the ultrasound I told her we were leaning toward Lily for a girl. Now I wonder since Lily has the most votes does that mean it will be too popular? Ack, it's so hard to choose a name! When I was pregnant with Ryan we had a girl's name picked out. He would have been Hailey Marie. It just didn't feel right this time. I still love the name, so I'm not sure why I don't feel right about it. I think right now we are thinking Lily(or something that has the nickname Lily, but more options) Marie or Lily Grace. We might totally change our minds though. We'll see.

Why a Lovey?

Christina asked why I want a lovey for Ryan after my last post. I started to explain it in my comments, but the answer got pretty long and I thought it deserved it's own post.

At first I did a little bit of encouraging with different animals because I'm pregnant. I read an article that said children who interact with dolls relate better to a baby sibling. I figured if he developed an attachment to an animal it would have similar benefits. Plus that means I don't have to have the "I want to buy a doll for our little boy" talk with Jay. I wasn't really worried about it at first. I thought 'what could it hurt' and 'if it doesn't happen...oh, well' all at the same time. Before Ryan didn't pay any attention to his stuffed animals except on rare occasion he would bring one of the ones that sings to an adult for them to squeeze. When he started showing a bit of interest in his animals right after I read that article I thought it was a great opportunity to try it out. So I encouraged him by noticing and asking him about his animals when he picked them up. I think once I asked him if he wanted to take Huggy Bear to bed. He said no and I dropped it. At some point during the talking about his animals he was hugging the bear and I said, 'That bear is very huggable. Do you think we should call him Huggy Bear?' Ryan said yes and gave him a big hug. It wasn't until the attachment with Doggy that I really stepped up the mission. I started asking him if he wanted Huggy Bear at story time, then he would take HB to bed. Pretty soon he was asking for Huggy Bear. Now he gives Huggy Bear some of his drinks, feeds him snack sometimes and shows him airplanes and other interesting things.


I guess the short answer is I really wanted him to have it so he wouldn't have the problems with Doggy, but I had thought it might be nice if he had one to "practice" loving a little sibling.

Lovey Update

So, remember when Ryan fell in love with Zach's dog? I mentioned an interest in a soft teddy bear that Ryan got for Valentine's Day. I have managed to foster that relationship into a more significant one. The bear is now affectionately known as "Huggy Bear." Ryan takes huggy bear to bed and holds him for stories. He asks for Huggy Bear, he hugs and loves on him. Today he heard and airplane so he went to get Huggy Bear, brought him to the window, held him up and said, "See the airplane, Huggy Bear?" All together now..."Awwww." I'm so glad he has his own special stuffed animal now.

Half Way!

I realized when I was Google chatting with Erin today that I am half way done! I've been thinking all week that I was more than half way done at this point with Ryan:-) I'm actually hoping this one goes a little past the due date into March, but don't quote me on that in 4 months;-)

Name Poll Results(so far)

It has been brought to my attention that you can not view the results of this poll if you are not the poll taker. So to satisfy your curiosity here are the results so far.

Sweet Pea Name Poll
So many pretty girl names! How do we choose?
Which name would you pick for our Sweet Pea?

Lily 20%
Hannah 20%
Abigail 13%
Grace 13%
Diana 10%
Amber 3%
Ashley 3%
Danielle 3%
Lillian 3%
Marie 3%
Morgan 3%
Taylor 3%
Hailey 0%
Isabel 0%
Jasmine 0%
Samantha 0%

Katie asked if you can vote more than once. I say yes, if you like more than one name vote more than once. Obviously I had a hard time choosing. Apparently you can not vote more than once in a day from any given computer, so it might be annoying. I do ask that you not vote for the same name more than once because that would just be unfair. I think the comments I've gotten are far more helpful than the poll though. I've seen that people like several of the names, but choose one favorite to vote on. Plus polls are a little impersonal. I like to see what people have to say. Feel free to keep voting and keep commenting:-)

Name Poll

For a long time now I've known that if I was having a girl her nickname would be Sweet Pea. That was easy for me. Coming up with a real name that I know I will want to stick with...not so much. We have a huge list of names we like. There are so many sweet girl names! So I made a poll of some of our favorites to see how they strike other people. Feel free to comment here after you see the names we like. There is one name on the list that I love, but Jay doesn't like and one that I'm not real crazy about, but Jay loves. I think seeing how other people react to the names will maybe give us something to think about. The list might seem a little bit long, but it doesn't even have all the names we have considered!

Compliments for Crayola

I have some high praises for Crayola. Some people may remember how much we loved our visit to the Crayola Factory in PA. It was great fun. We learned some cool things about what they do. Like they deigned their marker lids with holes(if you look from the top you will see what I mean) to prevent choking and if your markers get left out without the lids all you have to do is put the tip in water for 30 seconds(I think that was the amount of time) and they will work again. All cool stuff.

Of course Crayola has all sorts of cool products I love like glass markers, Color Wonder markers and all the standard crayons, sidewalk chalk, markers, paints etc.

A huge disaster in our house lead to me finding out about the most impressive and wonderful thing about Crayola. Thanks to Jay's coworker, Kady, who heard about our disaster and found this for us. They have compiled a wealth of information about getting their products out of (or off of) things. You see, Zach left a crayon in his pocket and it melted in the dryer. It got on two loads of laundry before I realized what happened. The second load was delicates and about 90% of my brand new maternity clothes. I thought all the clothes were ruined. I was afraid to do all the things it said to do to my delicates, so I tried stain stick on one shirt to test it and it didn't budge the stains. Seeing as they were definitely ruined if I didn't try Crayola's method I decided it couldn't get any worse. I tried it and it worked! I was AMAZED. Now I wish I had taken before and after pictures. They have solutions for all different surfaces, not just fabric. So if you ever have a problem with Crayola type products on anything look for a solution on the Crayola website before you try anything else. It's under Helpful Informtion/Stain Removal. Thanks again to Kady- our budget and clothes thank you too!

I'm going to find out how to get the marker off my coffee table right now.

Boycotting Vicki's Secret

I went to the one of the local malls a couple weeks ago and I was disgusted by what I saw in the VS window. It's shameful the way they exploit human sexuality right in the front of the store where any kid/teen can see it. I realize they are in the business of selling sexy things, but they are over the line when they are being so overt. Maybe you have no problem with our over sexualized society and the teens who are paying the price with pregnancy, STDs and all the emotional consequences of having sex when you are not ready, but I do. The final straw for me was a news story about the new store in Tyson's Corner. VS is calling that store "the sexiest store in the country." They couldn't even show some of the pictures from that store on TV. And they showed pictures that I was uncomfortable with anyway! They have a bed in the store and it was reported that there was a display of two live female models on the bed simulating things together that should not be seen in public. That my friends is WAY over the line and I will not buy any more VS merchandise until they stop these practices- even if they are my favorite underwear.
So does anyone have any suggestions on good underwear? I have not bought anything that's not VS (or nursing oriented) in years!

The Results are In

The ultrasound went well. The baby is measuring at just the right "age." It was great to see Acorn. There was lots of squirming and even a few flips. We weren't sure if those legs were going to open and give us a shot at finding out the gender. After much convincing the bean finally did let us see that...IT'S A GIRL!

Exciting Day

Today is a big day in our house. We have gymnastics and an ultrasound. Then tonight Jay starts his very first middle school small group! It's going to be at our house-ack! I need to clean!!! I also need to figure out what I'm going to do with the boys for an hour and a half to keep them out of the living room.

He is at SCHOOL, DUH!

11:50 I hear a knock on the door. I opened it to one of Zach's friends asking if he can come out and play. For a brief moment I panicked thinking I lost track of time(in a major way) and I needed to leave right then to pick Zach up from gymnastics. I only talked to one friend on the phone; it can't be after 4 already! So I tell his friend he is not home. Run to look at the clock and realize it's not even lunch time yet. PHEW! I'm not crazy. Now what the heck is this kid doing knocking on my door in the middle of the day. I see him going across the street to knock on the neighbor's door-the one who works nights and sleeps during the day. So, I called out to tell him everyone is in school and asked why he wasn't. Apparently he had an appointment. I ask again...Why is he not in school!!! And do he and his parents not realize that everyone else IS in school? His kindergarten brother comes over and asks for Zach to play during the school day too. DUH!

Foiled Again

Ryan finally developed an attachment for a stuffed animal. Unfortunately it's Zachary's 'Doggy', the one he has slept with for years with a place in his top few favorites. When I think of all the times I've tried to get Ryan to love on an animal; there's the monkey my mom sent, the dog HE picked at one of those build-your-own-bear places, the really soft bear my mom's friend made, a cute puppy he got as a newborn gift and recently I tried to foster an interest he started to show in a cute little bear he got for Valentine's Day. There have been a couple stuffed things he liked along the way for chewing or the noise they made, but he has never loved on an animal until he found Zach's dog in the basement(it was down there because it needs to be cleaned). He carried it around snuggling it and 'awww'ing over it. Then Zachary saw him. You can imagine the problems this caused yesterday afternoon. The chasing, the crying, the fussing, the "MINE!"s and that's just Zach. Don't get me started on the two year old's reaction.

Seeing how attached Ryan has gotten and knowing how attached Zachary already is I am in a pickle. Either way someone is going to be REALLY upset. Now I never thought I would be one of those parents that give into their child's whining and give them what they want, but how else would I keep this from happening over and over?! So I tell Ryan that he has some birthday money and we can go to the toy store tomorrow and get any animal he wants. I say he can get a bear, a monkey, a dog or a lion. To which he responds with excitement, "Lion!" I give the dog back to Zach congratulation myself on the quick thinking and problem solving skills.

Fast forward to today-
We are at the giant toy conglomerate that charges too much money for things, but has the best selection. We head over to the stuffed animal section. Ryan gets on a horse, hmm, okay. "Let's look at all the other animals." We look at lions, tigers, bears and Ryan shows little interest. We find a dog that he seems to like. We keep looking. He finds a horse and says, "This is really cute." I kid you not, he said it just like that. He has a big smile on his face and I think we have found a winner. Then Zachary calls from across the way, "Hey, Ryan look at this froggy." The horse moment is lost and Ryan goes to check out Zach's find. Zach continues to parade lots of animals in front of Ryan's face(mostly frogs) until I tell him to let Ryan decide for himself. by this time we've seen about everything and I tell Ryan to pick his favorite. He walks down the aisle and sees a book. He plops himself on the floor and says he wants to read. Oh man, this is not going well. So he 'reads' a bit and when he is done we go back to looking at animals. He then comes up, climbs in my arms and says, "All done animals."

We ended up coming home with a big fire engine.

The Beginning of the End

I found my first gray hair Saturday. I tried to deny it telling myself it was just a blond hair. I put it up against a dark background to make sure. I finally admitted defeat when I compared it to a regular hair. It was courser and thicker. Definitely gray:-( I guess this along with the teenage girl at the fabric store calling me ma'am at least 5 times in one transaction make me official old. I'm not sure I'm ready to be old.

Bee-By-Boe

Another Ryan game for the Baby Book:

Ryan says in his biggest, gruffest voice, "Bee-By-Boe" and tilts his head forward and looks out the top of his eyes and you. He is a giant. Then he runs at you and jumps on you. This comes from Grandpa's Fe-Fi-Foe-Fum giant game. It's just much cuter when Ryan does it(sorry dad, but it's true). He likes to do it over and over especially if mommy screams and frets over the giant coming to get her and gives the giant tickles when he gets there.

Finger Printed

We went to the police department Fall Festival Saturday. It was actually quite fun. I didn't really expect it to be. We mostly went downtown because the fire department was supposed to be having an open house too. Unfortunately they had a funeral instead. When we got to the firehouse the engines were all out, but one was draped in black with a limo beside it. We did get to look at the fire trucks, but we didn't get to climb on them like I'd hoped. Ryan was definitely in awe when we saw all the trucks. His eyes got big and his jaw dropped, "Wow, fire trucks!" Luckily my aunt is a paramedic and Ryan will get a chance to climb on the engines at her firehouse soon.

So, back to the police open house. I guess the whole point was to get parents to bring their kids to get finger printed and pictured for these identification kits. It appeared to be a huge success. I know they had way more people come out than the anticipated. Ryan got to ride his first pony:-) When I told the lady walking him around she was surprised. She said he was doing so well for his first time. Most kids are afraid at first. I told her it was in his blood. Mommy rode horses when she was young. After he was done he kept asking to go back and ride the horse again. It's all I can do to restrain myself from going out and getting him all the riding paraphanalia he needs and signing him up for lessons! Maybe in a couple years.

Ryan's other greatest hit of the festival was climbing in 3 "big trucks" and pretending to drive them. Oh boy did he love that!

Zach also liked riding the horse, but his favorite thing was a blow up obsticle course. He also liked seeing the police helicopter land 10 feet in front of us. Ryan did not like that so much. It caused a big gust of wind that blew his hat off. He spent the better part of the rest of the afternoon holding his hat with both hands and burying his head in my shoulder. It really scared him. He didn't even want to go over and see it when it landed. Zach had to go over by himself, but he didn't seem to mind. When it took off we were way accross the field so there wasn't any wind and Ryan was able to let go of his fear a little bit. He has been talking about the helicopter "blasting off" ever since. He has even said, "I like helcoter."

It was a beautiful day to spend outside together. The best part is that everything was free except my hot dog($1)!!! The kids even got free lunches for getting their fingerprints and pictures. I'm glad we went. We all had a fun time.