Family Time at the Beach

Random Ryan

Random Megan

My Big Boy

I'm not sure how I should be feeling right now. It's so hard to describe. But I'll explain what's been happening the past few days and maybe sort through it.

We live in a great neighborhood. There are a good number of kids, but ours are the youngest. Just a few houses down from us and across the street are two kids, Mason and Brody. Ryan has decided that Brody is his best friend. Apparently, Brody has also decided the same thing. The thing is that Brody is about 4 years older than Ryan is - and watching them play together is pretty funny.

Ryan now watches out the window and if he sees the neighbors garage door opened, he knows that Brody is out playing. It's been up a lot this week because it's Spring Break around here. As soon as he sees that the door is up, he grabs his shoes and wants to go outside to play. He's completely obsessed with playing with the big boys.

Two days ago, while Megan was taking her nap, I went outside with Ryan - of course he saw the the other boys playing and wanted to play too. So I let him. We talked about how to cross the street safely (not that he gets that yet) and to make sure that Brody says it's OK play. While I sit in a chair on our lawn, Ryan goes across the street to see the boys.

He stood on the street for 15 minutes in front of the house before he got the courage to go on the lawn and get closer to the boys. I could almost see his thought process. He wasn't sure he wanted to ask, but he really wanted to play too. (I was still sitting in my chair, just praying that he would be brave and say something.) Mason, Brody's older brother, had noticed that Ryan was there, but didn't do or say anything.

Finally, Brody came out from the back yard and saw Ryan. He instantly put his arm around him and brought him into the group. I cried. It was the sweetest gesture that Brody could have made. Ryan played for about an hour with the boys and had a blast!

He still doesn't understand that if Brody has to go inside or can't play that he'll get to play with him later. In fact, the next day I let him go over again, and when Brody had to leave for an appointment, Ryan came home crying. He thought that it was all over. He said, "But Brody is my best friend ever!" I'm not sure that he completely understands yet how it all works, but right now, he LOVES being with the big boys. Brody and his mom both know that Ryan is still learning about crossing the street and all that stuff, so they watch out for him - thankfully!

So how am I supposed to feel about this? I love seeing Ryan having so much fun and learning to be social with the other kids. But at the same time, I don't want to see him go there. Maybe it's just that I don't want him to grow up. First we sign up for pre-school in the Fall and now he's playing with the neighbors. What next, driver's license and mission call? eeeeek!

It started like this...

...and pretty much went down hill from there. Ryan was a royal "PITA" all day - you figure it out. :)

We didn't plan anything with Ric's family. Mainly because we're tired of being the only ones who make the plans. So we stayed home, napped in the afternoon, cooked our own ham and funeral potatoes, and that was it.

The Easter Bunny did visit - but it wasn't a big whoop-de-doo. We tried to enjoy Church, but the aforementioned 3 year old...

Anyway, I've told myself over and over that my expectations for a nearly "perfect" holiday just isn't going to happen. Maybe next time I'll lower my expectations and will be pleasantly surprised. Maybe not!

The above picture? The ONLY one I got.

A Trip to the Children's Mesuem

A few weeks ago, we all went to the Providence Children's Museum. The kids had a blast running around and checking things out. So many of the pictures turned out great, so I've put them into a slideshow. But here are a few of my favorites.

Sunday Best?

Just a couple of pictures taken a few weeks ago. Notice the FABULOUS choice of footwear! :)

Crash!

I guess the "I Can Go Potty" DVD was a little too much for Megan. She laid herself right down and fell asleep. Ryan was the one who got the blanket to cover her up before he came to tell me that she was asleep. (Isn't he a sweet brother?)

Notice the potty chair, just in case *someone* is inspired to try it. The soda and pillows, which is currently the makings of a train.

And last, notice the mess of "strawberry" curls peeking out from under the blanket. So cute!

Overheard in the kitchen...

Dad: Hey Ryan, there's a Red Sox game tomorrow at 2:00 in the afternoon.

Ryan: Woo Hoo! (He gets that from me I think.)

Dad: Are you going to watch it with Annmarie (our sitter) since I'll be at work?

Ryan: Maybe they will cancel work and you'll get to watch it with me.

Randomness

Since Ric scooped up the kids and took them with him to Lowes to pick up some stuff for our garden, I thought I'd take a minute to leave some random thoughts and updates.

~~It's been a while since I've posted. Mainly because I'm just not "right" - meaning my meds aren't "right". I have an appointment on Tuesday to get it straightened out (I hope) and maybe soon I'll be back to my normal bloggy self. That means that things have happened, pictures have been taken, we've overheard a lot from the kids, but I just haven't felt like posting it. So look for updates soon!

~~Do you use Twitter? I do, you can follow me using @StampMonkeys. Something interesting is happening this weekend. Twitter keeps track of the trends, basically all the things that are being "tweeted". This weekend, the NUMBER ONE trend is #ldsconf. Yep - Mormon tweeters are filling up the "airwaves" with their thoughts about the Gospel. And even chatting with people who aren't members! It's fantastic! What a "modern" way to share the Gospel!

~~I'm glad that General Conference is here - I've been looking forward to it. Though, it's been frustrating because my Internet Streaming has acted up - so I could only listen to it. I didn't hear it all, but a favorite quote is: "You cannot do a Google search to gain a testimony. You cannot text message faith." -M. Russell Ballard

~~I spent my morning today putting a swingset together. Yes, Mommy Rocks! Ric was at work, it took only 2 hours, and that was with the kids "helping." Pictures to come soon! (It was windy, cold, and worth it to get Ryan off my back this morning! From 7:00 am he was asking to go put it together!)

~~I had the opportunity to go to a Senior Voice Recital at URI today. My friend Helen was phenominal! I knew that she was talented, but I had no idea! (Where have I been?)

~~Megan has become quite the conversationalist. Her cute thing now is walking into a room, "matter of factly," and saying "Hi Mom". She also puts her arms around Ryan and says "I lud you Wyan." *sigh* (Oh, and she also told me that she was going to "bribe the car" the other day as she climbed into the drivers seat of the van. We're in SO MUCH TROUBLE! heh)

~~For the first time EVER, I'm growing out my bangs. When I had my gall bladder out, I had to cancel my hair appointment, and so my bangs didn't get their usual trim. Well...I kind of liked it. So now we're trying LONG bangs. Wish me luck! It's new territory for me!

~~Did you know that if you color your arms with red permanent marker that Goo Gone will take it right off? Who knew?!

That's it for now - I have some dishes to finish before Ric gets back with the kids!