Mckinnon: 15 months

Almost 2 months late... better late than never, right?! ugh!

My little Mack Man is 15 months old! (well, WAS)

I'd just like to say that the up-side to me posting this really late is that I now have some perspective about him :-) There you go, seeing the positive!

STATS:

Height- 33.25inches (94%)

Weight- 25lbs 1.1oz (56%) 

Head- 17.75inches (25%)

Moral of the stats? He's tall, average weight and has a tiny head :-) HA! He's scrumptious, y'all!!

Mack, you are learning and growing and changing so much! And we are soaking up every minute of you!

At 15 months you are:

-saying "uh oh" A LOT!

-also saying Mama, Dada, Rhy Rhy, WOW!, ohhhhhhh!, shoes, sock, "side" (outside), and "shish" (fish)

-shaking your head "no" and saying "uh uh" to pretty much everything we ask. i swear, you seem to carry on a conversation. 

-continuing to LOVE spud. 

-running around and climbing on EVERYTHING! coffee tables, couches, chairs, etc... on the up side, you teach yourself really well how to get down and rarely fall! (quite agile!)

-in a size 4 diaper in the day, size 5 at night

-eating anything and everything but you could eat grapes specifically till you puke! haha

-wearing size 18 months clothes in everything now, although some pants are a little long

-finally, you quit picking your nose all the time! hooray!

-taking ONE nap a day, from 12:30-about 3-3:30 each day! (LOVE one nap a day!)

-pointing at everything, wanting to know what it is

-FINALLY letting us brush your teeth without starting WWIII :-) I love you, buddy, but you are ridiculous when you dont want to do something. You fight like someone is trying to kill you! So, this is huge!

We had to bite the bullet around 13 months and just go down to one nap a day. We did so after our summer vacation so he was actually about 13.5 months old (the beach wears him out too much to try to go down while we were there, although the first nap not being critical was AWESOME b/c we could just let him nap on the beach for 30 min or so). When we got home and dropped to one nap, it took a good week or so to get to where he would take one LONG nap. We also were dealing w/ needing to go back to consistency with night time routine/bedtime... all things get off whack when you're vacationing. Or is that just me?! :-)

Rough Schedule:

7amish up for the day

8am breakfast

we arent doing much independent play this summer, but he's playing GREAT on his own!

11:30 lunch

12:30 nap

3-3:40 up from nap, small snack

5:30-6 dinner

bath/ bed at 7pm.

And just like that, "TA DA", you were 15 months old!

Mckinnon: ONE YEAR!

Oh, little Mack..... you're a BIG boy now!!! (well, you were a month and 4 days ago... your mama's a little slacker lately!) You are the cutest, sweetest little boy i've ever met!

 And you are into EVERYTHING :-) So its a very good thing that you're so cute!

 And your big sister is showing you the ropes on just HOW to get into everything!

 You are standing up all by yourself and loving being outdoors and playing in the water!

And on this day, we saw you take your first step! (June 4th, i think?)

This month was a BIG month; you weaned from the bottle!

I was worried that you'd miss it since its such a wonderful cuddly time, but you were the easiest kid to wean! We started by cutting out your morning bottle at 11.5 months old. You were a little hungry for breakfast a little sooner so we bumped it up about 30 minutes. You also weaned to ALL finger/big boy foods at the same time. That transition was the easiest because you love ALL foods. If only you chewed a little better before swallowing.... one thing at a time, though. :-) So we'd get up and eat some oatmeal or a pancake and eggs or whatever at 7:30 and I offered you a cup of milk.

We were giving you a cup with a straw, but i started hating on them because they all started leaking. So one day, i decided to see how you'd do with a cup like Rhyan uses that you have to tilt back. I had to help you a little at first, but within 2 days, you were a pro! You catch on to things SO quickly! Especially when it involves getting food or drink :-)

We gave you 3 days to adjust to each bottle being dropped. And with each new phase of the transition, we were excited to see how great you did! I think its just another benefit of not letting our kids fall asleep with a bottle... you've never associated the bottle with anything other than food so as long as something replaced it, you were happy!

With Rhyan, i was always concerned with how much milk she took in. It was only about 8-10oz when she first weaned. However, you seem to think that milk is liquid gold. We have to actually limit you! Overall, you were so easy to wean. I kept you on the night time bottle until a week after you turned one.... but only because i loved holding you and seeing you get all drowsy as you ate that last bottle (it was the only bottle you ate before going down for a nap/sleep.... all other bottles came after waking from the night or nap). But eventually, your Mama decided it was time to let you be the big boy that you are. So one night i just got you ready for bed, read you a book and you went to bed like nothing had changed. Man, you're so big!

Another big change: your naps!

You started taking a REALLY long time to go to sleep in the afternoon so we had to shorten your morning nap to NO MORE than 30 minutes. You arent really ready to drop it yet, but we have to really limit it!

Here are some other hilights of this months milestones:

-moved up to 18 month clothes (fatty!)

-2 new teeth (lower laterals)

-standing alone

-taking one step on occasion

-still in size 4 diapers in the day, size 5 at night

-loving all foods. Except tomatos. Who can blame you, kid?

-you know that a cow says "moooo"

-your favorite game is to drop something and say "uh oh!" Its cute Until you start throwing food :-/

Schedule is pretty loose, but is as follows:

Wake between 7-7:30

breakfast around 8am

Independent play time around 9am

nap from 10:30-11

lunch around 12

nap around 1-1:30

wake around 3:30-4

dinner around 6

bed somewhere between 7:30-8 most nights.

 My sweet boy, you challenge me. You scream. A lot. And you cry if you get told "no". And you randomly lay in the floor and suck your thumb as if you never get to sleep. And you're cuddly and vibrant and you LOVE to be engaged and playing with your mommy, daddy or sister. You are absolutely a precious gift from God, just like your sister, and while there are days that i want to go far, far away to get a break.... every day, i am overwhelmingly grateful to be yours and Rhyans Mommy. The two of you bring me the most pure joy i've ever known, and i'm thrilled to have got

Mckinnon: 11 Months

MACK! You are 11 months old! (at least you were 2.5 weeks ago :-) ). 

Oh, my little boy... you bring so much joy to our home! You are happy and loving and cuddly! You make yourself and all of us laugh all the time and we LOVE you!

Your hair is a little out of control, here lately! Look at those CURLS!

You have lots of fun new tricks and this one is a favorite. You will do this little head stand and then sit down and laugh and laugh at yourself. You are TOO cute!

But sometimes, even you bonk your head while doing your own cool tricks. HA!

Hey, look! Rhyan can do it, too! :-)

Unlike your little sister who had almost no sweets until she was well over a year old, you enjoy a treat every now and again. Your Grammy makes sure of it.

Just fyi, right after I give you a bath, I can tame your hair and you're super cute :-)

Onto your monthly pics. These are so hard to do these days because you are ON THE MOVE!

Your big sis helped me again this month...

Again with the crazy hair :-)

Rhyan is such a good big sister and loves to feed you each morning! You dont seem to mind who is holding you as long as someone feeds you!

Mack, at 11 months (to the best of my memory) you are:

-sleeping from 7pm(ish)-7am(ish)

-napping from 9:45am-11am and 1:15(ish)-3pm(ish)

-wearing size 4 diapers

-in 12 month clothes (although some onesies are getting snug)

-cruising furniture like crazy

-trying to let go and stand alone but only for a second or so

-anticipating me dressing you. you offer me your foot for your sock and arm for your shirt, etc...

-eating 4 bottles at 7am, 11am, 3pm and 7pm

-eating solids around 8am, 12pm and 6pm

-loving your sippy cup and water

-getting bored with cherios but you'll eat them because you're a piggy :-)

-saying "mama", "dada", "rhyrhy" and "nahnahnah" (no no)

-HOWLING at Spud. Its our favorite thing that you do!

no new teeth this month that we found. You love EVERY food we've offered you and you have a special love for strawberries and really any fruit :-)

We love you sweet boy! STOP GROWING! :-P

Mckinnon: 8 months

What you talking about willis?!

My little guy is EIGHT months old! How are we so close to a year already?!

This month has brought its own set of challenges and milestones!

Little Mack is growing up! At 8 months old he is:

• down to two naps a day. 9-11 and 1-3/3:30. We HAD to drop the last catnap of the day because even a very short 15 minute nap affected bedtime pretty badly. However, he is a BOOGER in the evenings :-( Sometimes. Not every night. Like this night: great!
• eating pretty much every baby food and taking tastes of lots of big people food. He has enjoyed mashed potato's, several fruits and even a bite or two of really soft chicken. He's an eater!
• has upped his dosage of prilosec to 5mL twice a day. Its helped tremendously with sitting
• is a complete independent sitter! he will sit for 45 minutes at a time but still doesnt know how to get INTO or OUT OF a sitting position. When he's ready to be done he just tips over. You'll hear a "thud" and know he's laying down. He never cries about it, though! (unless he falls backwards which is rare and totally unintentional)
• doesnt "get" how you use the jumper in the doorway. He just hangs there and wont jump. Hmmm. He can be a bit of a dud sometimes about stuff :-) lol.
• still loving to play peek a boo! he'll put a bib over his face and kick and kick and kick until you realize he's playing and as soon as you say "where's mack" he'll take the bib off, you'll do the "peek a boo!" and he just laughs and laughs. So cute.
• is doing awesome with getting finger foods into his mouth. He was using a pincer grasp pretty well (b/c he didnt know how to get food out of the palm of his hand) but now that he's learned to get food out of his palm and learned that he can get WAY more in his mouth that way, he's abandoned the pincer grasp :-)
• Is practicing getting on hands and knees in the bed but wont initiate it on the floor yet. If i get him up on his knees he'll stay there several seconds but he wont try it on his own.
• rolls everywhere and turns around and rolls some more. he can go room to room to room!
• has TWO teeth! And i can see the edges of the top FOUR but it'll be a little while before they break through, i think. A few more weeks anyways.
• is REACHING FOR ME! (well, for whoever offers to pick him up, but i care that he does it to me because its scrumptious!)
• is CLAPPING! he reaches his arms waaaay out like he's gonna hug something and then claps. its pretty funny.
• is DANCING!
• is getting CURLS!

In general, I'd say that he's going through a rough phase right now. Theres supposed to be a big wonder week leap (read more about that by clicking HERE) and i can tell. He's cranky and just not all that fun right now. I mean, there are really good days. But there are really bad days, too. I think that some of the crankiness is the difficulty of the transition of dropping that last nap. But some of it is more than that. So, we're soaking up the good times and praying through the bad :-)

In the words of Tracy, "God knew what He was doing when He made Mack cute"... cause he can be a BOOGER! HA!

Rhyan: 23 months old!

Theres a new post below about our trip to the library tha thas pics. This post doesnt have any pics. Disclaimer done.

I dont even know how to express the pure joy that Rhyan brings to my life. I am so grateful for her fun personality! She really is so sweet, very teachable and loving.

And i cannot believe that in just (less than) a month, our baby will be TWO years old! And at the same time, i'll be glad to move to 6 month updates :-)

I cant even think of all the things that have changed this month with Rhyan.

• Napping is still going well. She goes down around 1pm and sleeps until 3:30, give or take.

• Nighttime sleep is from around 7:30pm-7am. Some nights she stays up a little later (if we're out and about) and some she's in bed by 7:15. With the time change, I find it difficult to get her in bed on time. Its still so bright out (Thank you lord!)!!!
• Eating is still great. She has a good appetite most days. There are some days that she doesnt eat as well, but on those days, I dont worry. Over the course of 2-3 days, she gets plenty.
• Rhyan adds words DAILY. She will try saying ANYTHING! My very most favorite thing that she started saying this month is "Shelby" (one of her friends who stays at Tracy's). Its super cute and she was super proud of herself for saying it!
• No fits/2year tantrums yet. She does try whining to get her way if we tell her "no" about something, but we quickly tell her "no maam" that she can use her words and that while its ok to be upset, its not ok to be ugly about it. She seems to understand? For now... :-)
• Bottom molars are bugging her from time to time. Its causing some off and on fevers (i think thats what its from... no way to know for sure) and her gums are pretty swollen back there. On the upside, she's not drooling nearly as much and doesnt require a bib (odd, since they seem to be moving on in). No official appearance, yet, but they're coming.
• She told me once this month that she "go poopoo". She had not yet gone so i asked if she wanted to go in the potty. She said yes (she say's yes "see" like she's speaking spanish?! how odd! but funny.) so I took her in there. 1st problem is that I dont think she likes to poopie sitting down. I think this is an odd concept/feeling for her. So as the poopie came out, she stood up and it fell on the floor, to which she exclaimed "MAMA! UHOH!!! GUCK!". Yes, indeed it was guck. And we will not be trying the potty anytime soon again :-)
• Nightmares continue on occasion :-( I'll chat w/ the Dr about it at her 2 year checkup, although from all of my research, we're doing all we can.
  
• She vomited in her bed again once this month. This makes 4 times in 5 months. I'm looking forward to discussing this with the Dr as well and looking into the possibility of going back on reflux meds if needed.
  

She's getting a little bossy :-) If she wants Jeff or I to do something (like take her "outside"), she'll pull us by the hand or push our legs and say "GO!GO!GO!". And if we dont go she says "nooooooowwwwww". haha. Pretty sure she got the "now" from me telling her to either clean up or come to me or put that in the trash or whatever command i give followed with a "now". :-) Kids pick up on stuff FAST!

Soaking up this last month before she turns Two! And having a blast planning her party!

PS- NEW POST BELOW!

Rhyan: 21 Months Old!

Every time i turn around, Rhyan is another month old and that much closer to being TWO! Ahhh.
I swear, this past month has been so much fun with her. Trying, at times, but overall we've really seen a lot of personality from her this month. Her vocab has really grown this month. Everyone told me that around 20ish months or so she would start to pick up more words and not to worry if she wasnt talking much before then, but as any 1st time parent knows, its so hard to believe what others tell you until you see it for yourself. So, i'm just going to try to list some things i can remember about her....

• Theres no way i can remember exactly which words are new, but she now says "NO NO", "baby", "mommy", "cuse me", "MINE", "baahh-neee" (barney), "tay-tuuu" (thank you), "dink" (drink), "nana" (banana), "juice", "papa" (i show her pics of Daddy), "giiin" (again), "i pussssh", "i eat", "sish" (fish), "bosh" (bath), "bella" (mamas dog), "Tracy" very clearly now!, "wowers" (flowers), "ower" (shower), and can do noises for LOTS of animals including a chicken, rooster, lion, sheep, pig, cow, dog, duck, horse, cat, and i'm sure i'm leaving some out!
• She has gotten her lower canines this past month. The lower right one came in the day after Christmas and the lower right on Jan 13th. The canines seem to have bothered her a good bit. She's drooling like a faucet and whining a good bit with them...
• Naps are going fine. The afternoon nap has moved to 1pm most days (because one of the little girls that stays with her at Tracy's house has gone to one nap a day and it starts at 1 so its easier to just put all the girls down at once... because Rhyan started noticing that she was getting laid down sooner than Shelby and Taylor and wasnt happy with that! lol). She sleeps from 1-3:30 most days. Some days she wakes up a few minutes before that, and there are lots of days we have to wake her up at that time. Otherwise she has a hard time going to bed at night.
• Over the Christmas crazyness we moved her bedtime to 7:30. On the days that I work, in particular, this is very helpful. I get to see her 30 extra minutes which is huge, considering i'm gone from her from 7:30-6:15ish those days...
• Her eczema is a little worse in the cold winter months, so we're trying to keep it under control with every other day baths, cortisone cream on flare ups, lotion daily and a humidifier in her room to keep moisture in the air.
• She's eating well, although she goes through spurts of liking/not liking stuff. For example, after months of not even tasting chili or veggie soup, she now loves it. And after months of loving PB&J's for lunch (not daily, of course), she wont touch them. She's picked up yogurt again, but that is really more of a day to day questionable food :-) Point being, she shares her opinions about food quite effectively, these days.
• She is in her "big girl" room now and LOVES it! The transition was un-remarkable. She didnt mind at all. She seemed to know it was her new room and has treated it as such from day one. It's slightly larger so we put some toys in there, which she loves.
• She loves the t.v. and knows how to turn it on with the remote. We limit t.v. to one 30 minute show a day (unless she's sick or we're sick or all just tired or something) which she sometimes takes better than others.
• Rhyan is very into climbing right now.
  
• She is testing boundaries. She has had a few days of balling her head off if we told her "no" about anything. We completely ignore any tantrums and do NOT give in (or even give her any attention for it) which keeps them to a minimum. She goes through spurts with these like anything else... i guess she wants to see if they start working :-)
• Rhyan is very, very playful lately. She loves to be chased!
• We re-instituted "room time" this month. All was going well and she was up to 25 minutes at a time... and then sickness came. And we're kinda back at square one. We do it at 10am each morning.

Schedule is flexible, but generally it is:
7:15ish wake up, brush teeth
8am breakfast
8:30 help mommy clean up
8:45-10am free play or run errands/ clean the house. I am "with" her but not necessarily playing with her the entire time. We play, i do a chore, we play, i clean...
10am t.v. time
10:30 independent play time in her room
11am craft time with mommy (playdough, coloring, puzzles, etc...)
11:30 free play (so i can fix lunch)
12 lunch
12:30 help mommy clean up, reading time and ready for nap
1pm nap
3:30 up from nap, snack
4-6 play time as a family/free play/ play with daddy (outside time if its pretty enough)
6pm dinner (This comes later if i'm working)
6:30 bath (this is switched w/ dinner if i'm working...)
7pm family time
7:30 bed

I'll reiterate that i live on a very flexible schedule. When we have no where to go, this is pretty much the way the day goes. But generally, we have an errand to run either in the morning or afternoon. And there are lots of times that we spend part of the late morning visiting a family member and in this case, we do more structured stuff earlier in the day and use the late morning as free play. I'm not overly concerned with making sure every minute of the day has a purpose, but i do want to make sure that she is 1. capable of playing independently of others and 2. increasing her attention span so that she doesnt flit from one activity to another every 2-3 minutes.

She seriously is a doll. Some of my very favorite things about rhyan right now are 1. her "singing" 2. her dancing 3. the way she hides in our closet and jumps out and says "boo!" 4. the way she says please (she basically says "p" and follows it with her tongue spitting on you... hard to explain, but imagine blowing a raspberry with a "p" in front) and 5. the way she calles "daaahhdeee" and "puhhhhh" at night before she goes to bed so she can love on them and tell them "nigh nigh".

Gosh, this age is precious :-)

Ahhhhh... welcome back, computer!

So, as i mentioned a week or so ago, our computer has been on the fritz. Jeff was trying to get AT&T to help him figure out if it was a computer problem or an internet problem (the internet kept shutting down) but he mentioned the word "virus" while he was on the phone w/ them and they refused to help anymore. Really?! Thanks for the great customer service.

BUT, I ended up downloading all of the "updates" available for our computer and guess what?! That seemed to fix the issue. Praise the Lord! So now, I can get back to updating!

I'll start with what has been going on most recently: Rhyan's 18 month checkup.

Her stats were as follows:
Height: 33.5 inches (92%)
Weight: 26lbs 9.1oz (79%)
Head Circumference: 18.5 inches (62%)

Dr Messick (the best pediatrician EVER) said she looks great. He said that her tummy looked like a toddler tummy should (aka: huge) and that he felt certain she wasnt being deprived of food. lol. On a side note, while I fix her breakfast, lunch or dinner, she whines incessantly as if she will absolutely STARVE if she doesnt eat immediately. Somehow, she survives till its done.

As far as milestones to report, there arent many. She continues to eat well, sleep well and learn. She is enjoying playing with playdough recently and is learning new words all the time. She shakes her head "yes" and "no" to answer and seems to understand truly everything we tell her. She has added several words but my favorites are "Ashes, Ashes" (as in ring around the rosies...), "pud" (for spud) and "off" when she wants her socks off or wants to turn a light off, etc.
She is very playful, especially during times of getting dressed. She basically wants you to chase her down, catch her and then try to dress her while she wiggles and giggles the whole time. Fun if you have the time, not so funny when you're rushed. She doesnt seem to grasp the concept of "we're running late" yet, so its a little difficult for her to understand why I sometimes play along and other times tell her she has to sit still. :-(

She still absolutely loves to read/be read to. She is also becoming quite fond of her stuffed monkey that angela gave her. We started putting it in her bed for her to sleep with (more for it to be there when she woke up to play with) around 14 months old, i think. I cant remember. But she now rubs it against her face, wants to give it hugs and kisses before getting out of bed in the a.m. and if we take it out of the bed to change sheets, she wants to put him back quickly.
Just this past week, she started pointing to her eye ("I"), then crossing her arms ("love") and pointing to me or Jeff ("you!"). My mom taught her that. Its precious!

She still loves water and really likes to take showers with me. She does seem to be pointing out our "differences" more and more lately, so idk how much longer that will be appropriate. I thought she was young to notice stuff like that?

She is also loving playing outside now that its cooler. Rhyan is super hot natured and it was hard in the summer to let her play outside too long, especially with the HOT summer we've had. Her little face would get beet red and she'd sweat like a man. So this cooler weather has been a nice reprieve for her! (although i freeze when i take her out!)

Lastly, we've noticed that she's doing something that Mommie said i was obsessed with as a child: checking her toes for "toe jam" (as we all it around here). She wants to inspect her toes at least a couple of times a day, or every time we take her socks off (which she asks us to do so she can check!). It's pretty hilarous.

In regards to babywise, i've kind of fallen off the wagon. When Rhyan became discontent in her playpen for independent playtime (around 13 months old), I never moved to room time. This is a huge regret of mine. I am anticipating going back and working on this in the next few weeks. I've noticed her becoming more and more whiney and clingy and i KNOW this has something to do with it. It may not be the entire reason, but its part of it. Especially now that outside time is becoming limited due to cold weather, its so crucial that she learn to be content playing inside and using her imagination.

Well, thats about it! I'll work on getting pics up and getting back onto updating this thing! As a side note, I FINALLY got finished w/ my 2009 blog book (i turned my blog into a book!) and its fantastic. It really makes me want to make sure to not forget to keep this updated!

Looking forward to all of the holidays coming.... and BOY are they coming FAST!

Rhyan: 17 months

Alert the presses: Rhyan is 17 months old! Its weird, because clearly I am not aging... funny how she keeps getting older while i stay young :-)
I feel like my monthly updates are Random, so i'll try to be more concise? For whoever cares...

TEETHING: Rhyan's two top canines came on in this past month. She drools like a faucet and is on occasion more cranky than normal, but i guess that's to be expected. All in all, she teethes quite well.

NAPPING: Rhyan continues to adjust to her one nap a day schedule. She typically eats lunch around 12, although if she shows a good bit of tiredness prior to then, we'll go ahead and feed her a little early. She goes down for her nap right after lunch, typically around 12:15-12:30 and sleeps anywhere from 3pm-4pm, depending on how tired she is, i guess :-) Regardless of when she wakes up, we dont get her up until 3:30 to allow her some "rest time" after waking.

EATING: Rhyan eats like a lumberjack. Seriously! But this month, with teething, she has not eaten quite as well. She also got an ear infection at the end of the month which affected her eating. She will eat most anything. She, this month, would not eat chili or spaghetti. On a typical day, she might eat:

• Breakfast: 3/4 of a grands biscuit, a piece of link sausage, an egg and some fruit
• Lunch: a whole PB&J, yogurt and a fruit
• Snack: raisins and cherio's
• Dinner: 1/2 chicken breast, 2 veggies, a fruit and a bread

MILESTONES: Rhyan can now correctly place 6 of her 9 shapes in the shape sorter (w/o help)
She is using a fork and can on occasion actually poke something with it. She tries to use a spoon but only does well with this if it is a sticky food (oatmeal) and if you load it for her. She signs "please" when she wants something, without being prompted (i do still prompt her sometimes if she's not asking w/ a "please", but my point is she uses it correctly most times on her own). She also correctly asks to be "done", "down", "up", and "nigh-nigh". She can point to and say "bird" and thinks every animal is a cow and says "mmmmmm". She "nay"'s at the horses in her books and snorts at pig pics. She can correctly point to in a book a: balloon, ball, hat, horse, pig, cow, kitty cat, sun, green cucumber, red tomato, bear, a kids toes, eyes, hair, etc... The list goes on and on. The child is obsessed with books and brings them to us any chance she gets for us to read to her. She will NOT let me put her to bed w/o reading "goodnight moon" first :-) She can now point to her own ears in addition to her toes, eyes, hair, teeth, tongue, nose, eye.
Rhyan now fake burps, fake coughs, fake yawns and tries to fake sneezing. She finds herself to be quite funny. She has figured out how to stomp her foot and walk on her tippy toes.

FOLLOWING DIRECTION: Rhyan "helps" clean up more and more each week. Just today i asked her to help clean up and she pushed her "walker" back to its correct spot and her vacuum as well. She does not always, but usually comes to me when i ask, as long as i get her to look me in the eye first. Typically, she is very obedient.

OTHER: Rhyan loves to shower with mommy, play outside (She's venturing out on the grass, now!!!), dance, tries to sing along with her toys and LOVES being chased!
What a doll.

Rhyan: 16 months

I tell my patients daily, "I absolutely love being a mom". I think its because Rhyan makes it easy! She has the sweetest personality and is so. much. fun. Although, we are starting to see her frustrated side as she now at times attempts things she cant do (like fit into the bookcase... she wants to sit in it) and gets mad and yells. Its kind of funny for now, but i can totally see the tantrums coming. So we're enjoying every tantrum free moment until then :-)

At 16 months some of the fun things rhyan is doing:

• rubs her belly in a circular motion if you ask her if her food is "yummy to her tummy"
• blows kisses and waves when she's ready to leave or go night night. even if its not time.
• pinches her nose and says (in a very low tone) "bum bum"
• continues to point to her belly button, toes, foot and hair
• now also shows her teeth, tongue and again, points to her nose. we're almost there w/ eyes
• puts her hands together to "pray" at each meal (doesnt close her eyes, though)
• is still a dancing maniac and has dance parties w/ Daddy regularly
• can sit on a riding toy and finally go forwards as well as backwards
• has the two top canines coming in. no official appearance, yet.
• still loves the water
• is down to ONE NAP a day! It starts just after lunch (12:15ish) and lasts till 3ish. Sometimes she wakes up around 2:30 but stays in bed till 3, at least.
• signs "more" and "all done"
• still gasps at everything exciting or new
• can turn on the dishwasher and the gas stove (and has gotten popped for this, alot!)
• sticks her finger up her nose now that she's found it. we try to ignore it. :-(
• loves to get a book and have us read to her
• tries to do the motions to "itsy bitsy spider"
• shakes her finger when i sing the 5 little monkey's song ("no more monkey's jumping..."
• still does "bad face". idk if we will ever get tired of that!
• still eats alot. lately, she's loving fried okra. and black eyed peas. pretty much any bean/pea she will eat. and the girl can eat her weight in fruit of any kind. apples, oranges, pears, watermelon, cantaloupe, peaches, bananas, etc... she is also liking chicken more.
• likes to fake cough or fake yawn
• thinks us faking falling down is hilarious, and likes to do it herself (on a pillow... its so cute)
• thinks spud is the greatest thing ever and tries to hand feed him his food. if he doesnt eat it, she will. *sigh* i dug 6 pieces out of her mouth last week. at one time!
• still sucks her fingers when very tired or upset and still wants to cover it w/ a bib or shirt.
• says "baaa" (ball), "up", "bubbnnnn" (button... for her belly button), "boo boo", "daddy", "puh" (spud), "ahh duh" (all done) and possibly a couple of others we cant understand.
• loves her shape box and can correctly get the circle and occasionally the square but mostly she gets frustrated w/ it and throws the shapes. but returns to it moments later.
• tries to put on her shoes, my shoes, any shoes!
• gags herself w/ her fingers from time to time? the dr says its a teething thing...
• occasionally makes a high pitched noise when we ask her what a kitty cat says
  
• is not really a momma's or daddy's girl, but definitely wants me for comforting. she loves us both, and we both adore her.

So, as you can tell, our days are full of "free" entertainment via Rhyan! We love every minute!

Following is her approximate schedule at 16 months with one nap a day:
7:15ish- get her up, get dressed, brush teeth
7:30-8 free play time
8am- breakfast (still something and fruit. eggs/toast/fruit or oatmeal/fruit or pancakes/fruit)
8:30- play time with mommy (i pick the activity... blocks or shape box or little people, etc)
9am-outside play
10am-come in and get washed up and have reading time
10:30- 30 min of independent play (not officially, really... i havent implemented room time)
11am-tv time
11:30ish-lunch
12:15ish- nap
3:30-4 get up from nap and eat a snack
afternoon is free play and play with daddy/family time
5:30-6 dinner
bath, get ready for bed
7pm bed

Rhyan: 15 Months

WOW! 15 months! We are loving every minute with her. She really is such a great baby. We're blessed, and we know it! At 15 months, here are some things i'll want to remember. She is:

-sleeping 7pm-7am each day
-naps in the morning from about 10:15-11am
-naps in the afternoon from about 1:15/1:30-4ish
-occasionally skips her a.m. nap (like, on sundays)
-LOVES to dance! to anything!
-is taking TONS of steps. not a full time walker just yet, but is well on her way!
-loves Spud like crazy. gives him kisses and pets him gently, much to his dismay
-says mama, dada, bye bye, bah (ball), bud-un (button.. in reference to her belly button), puh-kin (pumpkin), puh (spud), nigh nigh (night night), up, open (um, but i'm pretty sure she doesnt mean open, its just a noise she says constantly) and done.
-does "bad face"
-lets you "smell her foot"
-still does the little indian
-shakes her finger when i sing 5 little monkeys jumping on the bed when i get to the part where the doctor said "no more monkeys jumping on the bed"!
-tries to do the motions to itsy bitsy spider
-loves the outside
-LOVES water! pool, beach, water table, bath time... she just loves water!
-can point to her toes, foot, hair, belly button and OUR hair, ears, eyes, nose and teeth.
-talks a ton. we have no clue what shes saying and most of it sounds Chinese :-)
-helps get herself dressed by putting each arm in her clothes, putting each foot in her pants, etc.
-says "ohhhhhh" when she drops something or falls while walking. its cuter in person.
-blows raspberries. yuck.
-has weathered since her 1st bday roseola and strep throat.
-is doing great w/ her torticollis and is holding her head up well. we still do daily stretches.
-gives the best hugs and kisses. she even does it when i sing "i love you, you love me..." (the barney song...).

We are very excited and feel very blessed to get to be Rhyan's parents and are so glad that God entrusted her to us!

6 months! (summary and pics)

Rhyan turned 6 months old last week. and already, i cant remember my life without her. nor do i want to!! she is the sweetest, cutest thing i've ever seen. i love that she has some of both of us in her. some people claim she looks just like one or the other of us, but i love it when people say she looks like both :-). but even when someone says she looks like jeff, i grin. hey, he's a hottie! its certainly not the worst outcome...

Ok, so at 6 months she is:
-still sucking her fingers CONSTANTLY!
-diagnosed w/ reflux
-not sitting very well, because of the reflux :-(
-taking medicine to make that all better... and its working
-waking at 7am
-taking 2 two hour naps and one 1hour
-in bed by 7:45 each night
-eating cereal 2x's a day (um, this will change... tomorrow)
-eating 24 ounces of similac a day
-starting sweet potatos (homemade by me!) tomorrow
-eating prunes occasionally to help her "output"
-laughing at spud and jeff playing! love this!
-loves when you say "mamamamama" or "dadadadada" or "spud, spud, spud" over and over!
-touches my face when i'm feeding her bottle
-plays with my hair (gently!)
-sucks her bottom lip into her mouth and then pops it out to make a weird sound
-still loves her bath!
-grabs at anything she wants to hold :-)
-"tastes" everything
-loves, and i do mean LOVES her daddy (boo! jk)
-loves for me to sing to her
-favorite songs: the wheels on the bus, itsy bitsy spider, head shoulders knees and toes, you are my sunshine, twinkle twinkle little star
-laughs if i say "oh little fly, why do you cry, stuck in a web, soon you will be EATEN!!!" (from the lord of the rings)
-snorts sometimes (yes, its a trait from me...)
-learning to blow raspberrys (occasionally)
-talks so loudly you cant hear the tv or people on the phone (no, shes not deaf)
-almost NEVER cries
-VERY stubborn and strong-willed
-fights physical therapy (she's very strong now!)
-is trying out a sippy cup each day and is doing pretty well!

Thats about it. i'm sure theres more, but i dont want to bore any of you (any more than you already are! haha). On to the good stuff. Her 6 month pics :-)