New Years Eve 2008

So- mommy and daddy decided to have a mellow New Years Eve celebration- no rip roarin' Ryan's this year. We all were so exhausted from our week long Christmas celebration that we decided to stay home and just have a nice time together this year. No major parties for us...just some light lifting and assembly of furniture. Daddy got a brand new HUGE TV the day before, with the stipulation from mommy that if he got a new TV, then she got to get a new console stand to house it. Well...mommy and daddy did their research and finally agreed upon a nice wooden black corner cabinet from Crate & Barrel. Daddy and I had the pleasure of putting it together. I just do not think that he would have been able to do it alone!! My expert carpentry skills came in very handy and I do believe that I was a huge help in putting it together AND having it be done correctly!!!The evening was follow by good food and drinks for mommy and daddy- and my scheduled bedtime of 7pm. I tried to get them to let me stay up until midnight so I could kiss mommy and high five daddy as we rung in 2009 together- but they were not having any part of that!! The only thing missing from the celebration was the cute tuxedo onesie that mommy ordered off the internet for me to wear. It did not come in time- but that's OK!! I didn't need the cute clothes to have a great New Years...just my mommy and daddy!! HAPPY 2009!!!

I Just Made It...

So I made it in just under the wire...Now I have two of my bottom teeth. Nothing like waiting until the last minute & the last day of 2008, huh??? Last night when mommy tucked me in to bed, I just had one pearly white- but this morning when I woke up...you guessed it- there were two dazzling toofers!! Mommy should have known that something was up because had a bit of diaper rash even though I NEVER get diaper rash. What a great treat for the last day of the year. It is also good because now I will not have the first day of 2009 riddled with teething pains, I hope!!! I wish for all of you just as great a start to the New Year...Happy 2009!!!!!!!!

Christmas Part 3

I honestly don't know if any other kid gets to have as many Christmas celebrations as me. I am one lucky guy!! On Sunday- we continued our Christmas trek and met up with Uncle Sammy, CiCi and Bud in Avalon. Daddy had a headache, so he did not drive with us- but he came down later when he was feeling better. Again- the presents were bountiful and I made out like a champ!! I got a talking birdie stuffed animal, xylophone nesting boxes, a real (yet kiddie sized) table and chair, and a hand knit (by CiCi, of course) red sweater. Uncle Sammy & Jenna got me a neat basketball toy- but I could not use the balls because Sam's dog Princess kept trying to steal them. Once I get back to my house I will learn how to slam dunk, though!!!! After a home cooked meal by Bud of Chicken Tetrazzini, we were all supposed to go see the Cirque de Soleil Christmas show in Atlantic City along with Mr. & Mrs. Keyser. I was being a bit of a fuss (for lack of sleep and way too much stimulation over the last few days) so I was allowed to stay home with daddy & Uncle Sam and watch some football!!! I totally felt macho and cool hanging out with the men and I brushed up on my football lingo as well! I know I would have liked the show, with all the lights, flying acrobats, and Christmas costumes- but secretly I was happy to just have some mellow guy time. Today I got to meet a real live puppy named Flyer! She belongs to the Keyser's and is a sweetie pie! I liked her a lot- but she is still a little exuberant- so mommy had to hold me when I tried to pet her. every time I got close enough to pet her, she licked my face!! What a fun end to a great week of Christmas celebrations! Stay tuned for Christmas part 4 when we go to Cape May to see Nana Carol and Papa in 2 weeks...

Christmas Part 2

On Christmas day, after begrudgingly leaving Nana & Grandpa's house, we headed down to Maryland to continue spreading the holiday cheer with Mommom & Poppy. Mommy dressed me in the holiday outfit that Mommom bought for me, and I must admit that I felt quite jolly- just like good 'ole Saint Nick!! Once there we jumped right into the opening of more presents!! I got some clothes, jammies, french books, toys and other odds & ends. My favorite gifts were my Radio Flyer wagon and large activity cube. Much to my dismay, I had to leave the wagon down in Maryland because we just did not even have enough room in the car to get it home due to all of the presents that I had already received from daddy's family earlier in the day. Poppy is gonna bring it up to me one day this week- so the good news is that I will get an extra visit with him!! Around dinner time, Bud joined the party since CiCi was still in California with Elknu Paul, who was luckily released from the hospital for Christmas, as well as Aunt Susan, Miles & Annie.
Mommom made some great food. I had already eaten- but got to sit at the table in my booster seat and be part of the dinner, eating my puffs and acting like an adult!! After dinner I spent some time with everyone, showing off my new toys. Just like last night- I tried to stay up as late as possible so as to not miss one darn thing- but eventually crashed out on daddy!

The next day we had a fun time going for a walk with me in my wagon! It was a little cold- but I got all dressed up in my bunting that Nana had given me the day before and had a nice, albeit bumpy, time with daddy pulling me along!

That night we went over to Mommom's brothers house so I could meet all of my Williams relatives. Mommom has lots of brothers and sisters, and they all have lots of kids (mommy has 20+ cousins) so there were definitely a lot of new faces for me to meet. I was a little overwhelmed, but still think that I was my charming and goofy self and I think everyone is in agreement that I am a nice little addition to the family!

My time with Mommom and Poppy was nice, fun, and relaxing and I was sorry to leave them- but we had to move on to our next state and family holiday celebration!!

Christmas Part 1

So this was a crazy first Christmas for me. I have a huge family- but I guess I did not realize just how big until all of my holiday travels. I traveled through many states, visiting family in PA, MD, and NJ. My festivities were so numerous, that I am going to have to discuss them in parts, so here today is part1!!

It all started on Christmas Eve. Mommy, daddy, and I headed up to Nana & Grandpa George's house. I got to see my new cuz, Owen there. He is still a little guy and I could not rough house with him quite yet. I definitely tried- but mommy had to use a lot of her strength just to hold me back. He is so cute that I just wanted to eat him up!!! There were so many people there and I even got to stay up past my normal 7pm bedtime!! In fact- I stayed up to almost 11pm. I just did not want the party to stop- and I finally passed out in mommys arms as she was watching old family movies of daddy, Aunt Court & Uncle Jeff. Everyone said that I look like daddy when he was a little tyke- and I do believe that, after seeing him in action, dancing and flexing for the camera, that I do agree with them. He was goofy- but I enjoyed seeing him in action as a little boy with his brother & sister. I was so excited for presents the next morning that I did not let mommy sleep in. Even though I went to bed hours later than I should have- I still woke up at 7am, raring to go. Presents were aplenty and I got some great loot!! Books from Auntie Nina & Uncle Jeff, an activity table and some cool clothes from Nana, a Yo Gabba Gabba Brobee doll, cool shirt from Aunt Court, a toy bus with little people from Aunt Ashley & Uncle Chris and LOTS of other awesome stuff. I think that the highlight of my day at Nana's was seeing my great grandma Nan. It was a super Christmas Eve and morning and Nana sure did throw a good party!! Thank goodness I am still a little guy and did not have to help clean up!

HO HO HO

This will probably be the last time that I get to blog until after Santa's visit. I am gonna be very busy over the next few days spreading lots of baby holiday cheer!!! Mommy has already made it perfectly clear that I am not allowed to partake in the egg nog- but I know that this holiday season will be so much fun that I will not need to spike my bottle! Family and friends is all I need and I cannot wait to visit with everyone!

So, from me to you..MERRY CHRISTMAS and HAPPY HOLIDAYS to all!!!!

The Crab Walk

I have been taking a few steps and then lunging for a few weeks now- but just this past Friday I really started to get the hang of this walking thing!! In the past I pretty much only walked towards "living" targets, such as mommy and daddy. I have been so scared of falling either on my bum or on my face- which has indeed happened...but I am slowly acquiring the art of control- not to mention confidence, and I am getting a bit more brave. Since I am feeling less fearful, I have decided that I can indeed walk to pieces of furniture now. I don't need people to catch me- because I am in much more control over my actions. Now I can actually take my time, focus on my steps, as well as plan how I am gonna stop and fall. For some reason, unbenownst even to me- I am kinda walking sideways. Mommy has been calling me her little crabby. Not only because of my side stepping- but also because of the whole teething thing. (Teething Update*** I have cut my first tooth!! Not only is it visible, but you can even feel the actual tooth in my mouth!!) The best way for mommy to get me to walk is to entice me with my favorite thing in the whole wide world- my paci!! I will walk over hot coals for that thing!! Now that I have said that- I think I should take it back. Please don't make me do that, mommy & daddy. Let's just stick to carpet and maybe some hard wood flooring until I REALLY get the hang of this walkin' stuff!

My First Haircut

For some reason, smack in the middle of a teething bout- Mommy decides that she is going to torture me just a bit more than the pain I am already going through. I say mommy and not mommy & daddy, because daddy was an innocent bystander (OK, he was a participant, but an unwilling one.) I do admit that my hair has been a big crazy as of late- but I kinda thought it gave me a wiry, disheveled, bed head look that only added to my attractiveness! Guess not since those scraggly ends are no longer attached!! Mommy initially wanted to take me to "Kids Kutz", but daddy thought that we could accomplish this task at home- so my wonderful parents decided to give it a shot without the professionals. Boy are they sorry they made this decision! Mommy and daddy set me up with a comb that they hoped would keep me occupied and unknowing, and at first it did. Initially I did not know what was going on when mommy came at me with the child proof scissors. I clued in quite quickly, though- and wiggled and moved around so much that mommy had to recruit daddy to hold me and keep my head still. Well- I did not like that one bit and decided that if I just squirmed around every time mommy got close- that she would just give up! Well- she is persistent and even thought I started to cry and look quite pitiful, she continued on her mission to cut my locks. A couple times I even cried really hard and daddy would look at her like she had cut me- but in reality she hadn't!! I was just pulling out every trick I had to get her to QUIT!!! She kept saying that the sooner I stood still and let her finish the sooner it would be over- but I was not buyin' that! In the end- I did indeed get a very nice haircut and I know that once the mental scars have healed- I will appreciate my new 'do!!

All I Want For Christmas...

Is my two front teeth!!!!! See this nice gummy toothless grin from a few months ago?? Well- store it in the old memory bank because my gums might not be that free & clear for too much longer. Yesterday I was beyond fussy and mommy knew something was up- but was afraid to blame it on teething yet again, so she just sucked it up and catered to my foul mood. She decided that maybe I just needed some fresh air, so she loaded me into the car to go run some errands. Fresh air was NOT what I needed, though- and I started to howl unlike any other cry she had ever heard. I was crying so hard that my mouth was completely open (which is very unusual- typically I hide my gums like my life depends on it) and she was able to get a glimpse of what was affecting me so monumentally. Along my bottom gum- where it is normally just a soft pinkish shade- she caught sight of a beautiful white spec peaking through!! One of my little toofers has actually cut through skin...What a glorious thing!! I am not too sure how long it will take for that spec to peek out enough to be picture ready- but it is indeed trying to make an appearance for Santa. I guess I should not be too greedy, though- so I suppose asking for just one front tooth for Christmas will be enough for me!!

Get Better Soon!!

I am so upset! I just found out today that my Uncle Paul, my mommy's brother, is sick and in the hospital! He has been having a fever of 105 degrees and has been having REALLY really bad shivers. Well- it turns out that he has the Strep virus and it has lodged itself in his heart and also his arm. He has to be in the hospital for a few days, getting Penicillin and another medicine through a needle (YUCKY) and then he has to get these same meds at home for about 6 weeks!!! It sounds like it is going to be a long haul before he is feeling like himself again. My CiCi flew out to California today to help take care of Miles & Annie and just to be there as a support to all of the family! Miles, Annie, Aunt Susan & Uncle Paul were supposed to come here for Christmas- but now they have to stay home so Paul can get better- so boy will I miss them! Thank goodness CiCi will be there to make their Christmas a fun one for them at this hard time. I love you guys and I am so bummed (so is my mommy) that we will not get to see you- but as my mamma keeps reminding me- it is all about Uncle Paul getting better!!!!!!!!! I am sending you hugs & kisses, Elknu Paul. I hope your "owie" is not too bad and that you get all better real soon!

62 Degrees In December???

OK- I know that I am just a little guy and not too learned as of yet...but what is up with the weather?? Snow and 92 degrees on Saturday and Sunny and 62 degrees on Monday???? Hey- I guess I should not complain. Sine it was so glorious outside, Mommy and I decided to go to a playground and we were lucky to have Miss Kathy and Madison come with us!! The playground closest to our house is actually located at an Elementary School and we went at recess time- so I was in awe of all the kids. There was one boy who took a liking to me and wanted to push me on the swing- but since it was my first time, mommy was not too keen on that!! Jeez- she is so overprotective!!! I also got to go down the slide (with mommy's help.) Madison went on the swings and slide too and we had fun! The best part was when we went back to my house and got to have a nice rumpus in the leaves in the front yard. Mommy has not been too happy with daddy that it is December and the leaves are STILL not raked & bagged- but it sure did make my day more fun that they were still there!! I got to inspect numerous different leaves and twigs and did not even stick any in my mouth!! Keep your fingers crossed that this unseasonably warm weather continues for a bit longer before we have to hunker down for the winter!

Uncle Boog's Babe(s)

CiCi, Bud, Uncle Sammy, and his girlfriend Jenna came over to our house last night for dinner. CiCi came a little early and we had some quality bonding time. She bought me some more new toys that she every so expertly found at a flea market! (Shown in pics above) Such talent- I want her to show me how to "flea" when I am older!!! As cool as I thought the toys were- there was another neat surprise that I was clued into last night. I found out that I am gonna have a new cousin- Uncle Sammy can now add Daddy to his resume!!! It turns out that mommy has known about this for some time now- but kept me in the dark until last night! How could you keep such exciting info from me mommy?? I thought I was your go-to-guy!!!! Regardless of when I found out- I am excited to have another l'il cuz so close in age to me. Avalon in the summer will be so much fun- running & jumping & swimming at the beach- I can't wait! It was very nice to see Uncle Sam- but I was being a bit of a fussy pants. Mommy thought it was teething- but really I was just trying to break Uncle Boog and Jenna into the wonderful life of parenting! Jenna does not even look like she has a baby in her belly yet (not that you would know that since mommy forgot to take pics during the visit)...but hopefully soon we will start to see her "bump." I am super excited because in about another 2 months I will know if it is gonna be a girl cousin or a boy. I have a couple boy cousins my age...so I am secretly hoping for a girl! Boy or girl- I will love my new little cousin and will definitely show him/her all the cool things I have learned so far!!!

What A Way To Finish The Day!!

Auntie Courtney stopped by to see me last night!! She was supposed to babysit for my cousins Robbie and Owen, but there were sicky germs that had the Reynolds-Ryan clan a bit under the weather- so guess who got to reap the benefits of their unfortunate maladies...ME!!! What a great day...First a visit with my God family- and then the bestest Aunt ever came to spend the night at my house...So much fun!! I was a bit exhausted- but I don't think I let Aunt Court see it. We played and played and I showed her & daddy my new tickle trick. Well- I guess it is not so much a trick as it is just me laughing when mommy tickles me with her feet. She can tickle me with her fingers and I am not phased buy it- but if she uses her toes, I just scream and fall to the floor laughing. I LOVE it!! Aunt Court was still here and got to hang out with me this morning too so it was a double good visit. I am so sorry that Aunt Nina and Uncle Jeff did not get to go out due to their sickness and they had to cancel Aunt Court as the babysitter- but boy was I glad that their loss was my gain.

My Giggleberry Girls

Mommy and Auntie KK set up a wonderful day for our two families to spend together! The area where my Nana & Grandpa George lives is actually half way in between where they live and where we live- so we got to met at Peddler's Village and have a really fun day! It was sooooo chilly out, so so e of our activities were limited. It actually snowed while we were in the car on the way there- but just like last time I saw those white things falling from the sky, it did not stick enough for me to frolic outside and play in it. First thing we did when we got there was to go get something to eat!! That would be just like our mommies to plan a day around food! It was my first time in a REAL restaurant. I have eaten out with CiCi, Bud, daddy and mommy before...but never in a place that had waitresses, alcohol for the dads, and dessert for the moms! Greta (my number one girl) and I got to sit next to each other in high chairs so we could bond & flirt. I saw that she picked up her big metal spoon from the table- and since she is older and wiser- I followed her lead! That was fun since mommy never allows me to play with the utensils at home! I even got to eat some non-healthy food for the first time ever too! Greta and I got to share spinach pinwheels- made of spinach, cheese and filo dough! YUMMY!!! Next we took a little walk, then headed down to Giggleberry Farm where they had a lot of fun stuff to do. Greta got to ride the big carousel with Auntie K while Greta and I just watched in envy. Soon enough we will be there too...but for the time being- we got to sit on the small one. I also got to play in a toy car. It is supposed to move around, make noise and light up. Mommy did not think that I knew about these features- but I did!! Next time, mom & dad, bring the quarters so I can fully enjoy it! Lastly we got to get our picture with Santa!! I did this a while ago at the Mall- but it was WAY more fun to get to share Santa with two lovely girls! Boy- I had so much fun that in the car on the ride home I sacked out. Let's meet up in another neat place soon...but give me some time to recuperate from all the fun for a while first!

Retro Chic

OK, so this is by far my coolest outfit ever!! My mommy insists on living in the past...Not only does she STILL listen to music from her youth, like ALL 80's music, Beastie Boys, Counting Crows, Trashy Euro Dance, The Pixies, The Cure, Beck, The Smiths, Rage Against the Machine, Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Police, and Widespread Panic just to name a few- but she also enjoys the old, retro clothing styles of her youth as well...so I am getting to be her little guinea pig and she is dressing me in the styles that she no longer feels that she can pull off. She is a huge fan of Puma's, reminding her of those days of the past!! She has claimed that until I am old enough to choose my own style of sneaker- that she will keep me continually outfitted in "her" brand. Many people prefer the Adidas/Run DMC style- but my mamma is a die hard Puma addict...so- it looks like until I have an opinion, I am too!!!

Not only does she want to dress me in clothes like she wore in college, but she would prefer that I take part in some of those activities as well. (And no...she is not thinking keggers and tequila shots, people...get your minds out of the gutter!! Obviously it is more G-Rated...) So, as soon as I have better hand & foot coordination- she is going to introduce me to the Hacky Sack!! Who knows, Birkenstocks and Ultimate Frisbee might be next!

Agua Man

Sippy cup?? I scoff at sippy cups!!! Why should I waste my time with a mere sippy cup when I can drink from this HUGE bottle of water?? Mommy bought this at the store the other day and had it sitting in the kitchen on the floor next to my high chair. Of course I could not let this new addition to the kitchen go unnoticed- so explorin' I went! It was pretty heavy and tough to lift, but I did manage to manhandle the 6.5 lbs/3 Quart beast and had a lot of fun doing it! It was quite a workout, though- and I was a bit winded...so I needed that water at the end of my workout. Ironically, though- mommy did indeed put it in a sippy cup for me!!

Nana To The Rescue!!

My Nana came to see me today!!! She told mommy that she wanted to come help her out so she could go run some errands, but I know she just wanted to get me alone so she could just soak me in and hug & kiss all over me!! Well- mission accomplished on both accounts!! Mommy got to go get her hair cut and also get some Christmas errands run and I got to have a really fun day with Nana! I have missed her! Auntie Ashley got married this past weekend and Nana had been helping Ashley to throw together a really wonderful wedding- which I heard was indeed a big success! I am so glad that she made the effort to drive down to see me today- I needed my Nana fix! I showed her my new tricks that she had not seen yet- like taking some steps and clapping! I also impressed her with how well behaved I was with the Christmas tree. I do go over to it and play a little- but for the most part I just kinda ignore it. No broken ornaments yet!! Mommy was a goofball and forgot to charge her camera batteries- so no pics of me & my Nana today...but I will make sure to remind mommy to get a pic of us this weekend when we see you at your house! Until then...Love ya, Nana!! Thanks for helping mommy out & most importantly- thanks for hanging out with me!

SO BIG!!!

You might remember (from my post yesterday) that I mentioned that I did the "So Big" hand raising for my CiCi this weekend. Well- Mommy caught it on tape today! Not only did she see me doing it here, but she also caught me admiring myself while doing it in my singing stage mirror too. Mommy was reading a book while I was playing nicely on the floor- and I did not think that she was paying particularly close attention to what I was doing- so I decided to be a bit vain and amuse myself in the mirror...but mommy caught me red handed!! She told me she thought it was cute that I was so proud of myself that I enjoyed watching my image in the mirror! I was kinda embarrassed that she caught me checking out my new skill, though. I am really not that self involved...I just wanted to make sure I was doing it right!! Ok, ok...maybe I wanted to see if it looked cool since I am seeing my God sisters Evie and Greta this weekend and need to pull out all the stops to impress them! So..what's the verdict?? Cool or not??

Slumber Party

Can you believe that mommy and daddy left me for the night????? I know it was their anniversary and all...but I jut cannot believe that they really spent the night away from me!! Actually- I was OK with it...because them being away meant that I got to hang out with my CiCi and we had a fun sleepover!! I was so excited to be with CiCi that I did not even cry when mommy and daddy left for Aunt Ashley's wedding in Philadelphia. I did cry a bit around bed time, though- but CiCi stuck up & defended me, explaining that it was because of my sore gums...which are still awaiting some teeth! I decided that I wanted to make it up to CiCi for crying last night, so when she was playing with me, singing "How big is Jack??" I actually raised my hands into the air and mimicked her actions!! I have never even done this for mommy and daddy- so CiCi was he first to see me do this I think I made her feel really special! We played and played and I was so exhausted at the end of the day today. How are you doing CiCi?? Are you as worn out as I am? Get some good sleep tonight and then we can put put heads together and come up with another reason for mommy and daddy to go away again so we can have another slumber party!!

Grandma Grace & Aunt Liz

Poppy, mommy and I went to New Jersey today to visit family!! Grandma grace is actually Poppy's mom and Aunt Liz is his sister. I have not seen them in SO LONG...so mommy decided it was time that we take a trip so that they could see how much I have grown! Well- what a great time I had!! Grandma Grace is a very sweet and softspoken woman who I can tell is a wonderful matriarch to her very large family! Aunt Lizzy has a very special relationship with my mamma and I just know that I will get to have a great one with her too! We had a ton of fun playing on the floor! I showed everyone my tricks- clapping and high five...but I also tried something new while at their house! I climbed into my car seat- all by myself! I am turning out to be quite a little monkey. They all thought it was pretty cute- so that just added to me being more of a ham!!

Since I will not be able to be at their house for Christmas Eve this year, Aunt Lizzy gave me my present early...a WAY COOL truck! You can ride it , push it or pull it, and it makes lots of fun noises!! Mommy put it together when I went to bed last night and I had a fun surprise upon waking up this morning! I have been playing with it, giggling, and just having a ball! What a great present! More importantly, what a GREAT visit!! Let's do it again soon, mommy!!