"I dont care WHO started it!!!"

So only after 11 or so weeks together they are so over it! Is this a sign of whats to come?! As long as they are quiet-AND injury free, they can fight (ignore)each other all they want!
Honestly though, I wasnt expecting this so soon! Can you say, "Attitude?"

Deja Vu!

I just so happened to have gone back to look at old Ryan's older posts and low and behold I found a post talking about how one weekend in February it was 18 degrees, and the next was 82. And just like that, the exact same pattern emerged-last weekend it was snowing, this weekend it was 72 degrees! Weird southern weather! Anyway, I have been complaining, and begging for a weekend like this one-anything to get these poor kids (and myself) out of the house! It was lovely, however, Leah, living like a bat for the past 11 weeks, wasn't sure of this whole "sunshine" thing! But Ryan remembers, and had a great time blowing bubbles, playing on the playground and riding her bike! Hopefully this was simply a glimpse of whats to come!

Just put something on Ryan!

As an experiment, as we were getting ready to head to the store, Ryan followed me upstairs and so I proposed she pick out an outfit. She reached into her t-shirt drawer and pulled out this green t-shirt. This was fine, it went well with her white sweatpants and sneakers...good job Ryan! I head into the bathroom to finish getting ready, when I come out Ryan has found a red hat and a brown & white scarf to complete her ensemble! I didnt even know I owned that scarf. But ok..just when I thought she has decent fashion sense, she tries to pull this look off! NOT HAPPENING!
I suppose I should applaud a decent effort. :)

Snow in the Boro?!

It wasn't long ago that I posted about Savannah trucking in snow and us taking Ryan to see it...well this time-it was for real. I am always skeptical of snow in the forecast, in particular when it is in the deep south, so I didn't get my hopes up. Plus, Jamey was in Jacksonville with my mom buying a mini van and I had other priorities. But the weatherman was consistent and persistent, so I thought at the very least I could "see" snow. But now I had to worry about Jamey and my mom getting home in this weather(I mean really? It doesn't snow for like a decade and it snows when my beloveds have to travel? AND with our new car?-really?). I was hoping it would start in time for Ryan to see it before she went to bed and that wish was granted-but she was NOT impressed. She ran to the back door, looked out, got excited, ran to get her coat & shoes, and I happily took her out back. That child, so excited, took two steps outside and proclaimed, "COLD!" and ran to my arms. 2 seconds in the snow and we are back inside! Wuss! Maybe tomorrow will be a better snow adventure. Thankfully, mom and Jamey made it home safe (not without issues-but for another time, another place) and I went to bed anxious to take Ryan out in our newly fallen 4 inches! Poor thing-I literally drug her out of bed and threw some clothes on her (not even close to appropriate clothes) she was wearing a pj top, a hooded sweatshirt, a spring lightweight raincoat, a pair of socks, jeans and boots (refusing to wear her mittens). After dragging dad out of bed as well, we were outside maybe 15 minutes, running around, Ryan spending most of that time trying to figure this stuff out. She eventually jumped in daddy's arms (who was more than ready to get back into bed) and our fun in the snow was over! Let me tell you, if all snow days are like this one-snow overnight, wake up to a beautifully covered town, melted by noon when the sun comes out-I will definitely want to move north!!! This was certainly my kind of snow!!! I find it very cute that Ryan's first experience with snow wasn't in Ohio for Christmas, or a trip to Aunt Judy's in South Bend, but here in the deep south! Good times!

My Funny Valentines!

Oh my sweetness-my teeth hurt just from looking at my sugary Valentine girls! I swore once I found out I was having another girl that wouldn't be the mom who dresses them alike or be too cutesy with them-but-shucks-it is just soooooo sweet, it is hard NOT to!
Both girls had a party at daycare and we had to bring cards for all the kids. I could be like the normal moms and go to Walmart for the little cartoon cards, but noooo, that would be too easy. I often find myself wondering why I am so self-destructive, why do I tend to make things more difficult on myself? Anyway, not to get too reflective and introspective on here-the point was, I did it again! I chose to make my Valentines cards for Ryans class (a group of 1-2 year olds-just to remind you who my audience is). I started out thinking it would take an hour of my time (an hour I really didnt have btw) 2 1/2 hours later I'm done and they are GIGANTIC! I'm feeling pretty proud, I drop them off at school along with some cookies and didnt really think much more about them. Well, that was until I pick Ryan up and she has her goodie bags full of candy and Valentines-all of them were the cute little cartoon cards that had either candy, or a sticker or something much more appropriate than my boring lame handmade card that wasn't a hologram, or a bookmark, or a sucker...it didn't have the Incredibles, or Snoopy or Elmo on it....it didn't play music or pop up...and now that I am thinking of it, it really wasn't even that cute or creative at all...RATS!!! Lesson learned....I say that, but Ryans birthday is right around the corner, and I see handmade invitations in my future! My mistakes are just history repeating itself over over again-now....

Wha?! Soccer?! Behind my back!!

Let me be clear, first and foremost-I like the sport of soccer, I really do. However, I have been watching my husband be involved in one form or another of this game for the last 18 years (either playing, coaching, directing, etc...) So when discussing sports (we all know Ryan will be an athlete-no question-do you see her above catching a ball at 22 months???!!!) I was kind of hoping to avoid soccer for a while. Lets start with gymnastics, or dance, even alpine skiing was mentioned, anything but soccer. So when I caught them outside "practicing" when Jamey thought I was sleeping, I was...well...Grrrrrr!!!! It's fine, really, and I would like to not come across as the bitter wife of a coach who's life is dictated by a sport-but I am a bitter wife of a coach who's life is dictated by a sport-so is it any wonder I prefer alpine skiing?! :)
But she was enjoying herself and looked so cute I had to take some pics!
Now, where are my tennis racquet's-STAT!

What's up dude-whats the score?

What 22 month old stands like this to watch tv?! We were in the kitchen making dinner when my husband whispers to me, "get the camera!". Whispering to me like he wanted me to take a picture of a skittish tiger in the jungle (no sudden movements)-of coarse not being in the jungle but rather in the middle of cooking dinner my reaction was, "WHAT?!". Then he nodded with his head in Ryans general direction, so I felt obliged to look because of the effort Jamey was putting in, so I reluctantly took a peek, and I was so thankful I did-this is what I saw!!! Hilarious! She looked as if she had been walking by and noticed the game on tv and stopped for a gander. You can imagine another toddler walking by and saying, "Whats up dude-whats the score?". This picture cracks me up every time I see it! Not sure if was Ryans stance (which is very funny) or Jamey's gestures trying to get me to look....he is too cute!

Oh for the Love of all that is CUTE!!

Are you kidding me with this amount of cuteness...cant you see the scene-little toddler wakes up, rubs eyes. And without so much as a comb through her hair she waddles to the window and points. "Outside?" she asks. Slipped on my shoes, put on her boots (a good look with pjs) and we wandered out into the yard. As if scripted she grabbed a dandelion and started blowing it. My first question, "How did she know to blow those?" and my second question, "Where the hell is my camera?!"
I hope she made some good wishes and I hope they come true!

Are we really out of the house-is this for real?!

We bought Ryanbug a shiny new bike for Christmas and can you guess how many times in between then and now (Feb 15th) she has gotten to ride her new bike-10 times? 5 times? Try ONCE!!!!!!!!! I know this may sound like an exaggeration, but since Christmas (that is 8 weekends) in a row it has rained on a Saturday. Well, right after Christmas the highs were in the teens and it was just too cold to go out, but since then it has rained every Saturday!!! It would be to the point of being comical, if it wasnt making me so freakin crazy!
Finally, we had a Sat where it wasnt supposed to rain (the weatherman promised me)and we could get these poor children out of the house. *BTW-God bless you families up north who are stuck inside for months!!! I dont know how you do it!* But back to me and my misery. We packed up the bike and the girls and headed to the park. It was sunny and warm at our house and along the way we must have drove into some kind of bad luck weather time warp or something cause as soon as we got out of the car the clouds rolled in, and it dropped 30 degrees!! Is it really possible to have an actual black cloud follow you around? I thought that was only in cartoons. We walked around for maybe 10 minutes, took the few pictures you see above and then it started to rain. Listen, if for some reason someone hits you over the head and you forget what day it is-you would know it was Sat because it was raining here! It is that predictable and obnoxious!

The Many (cute) Faces of Leah!

So as I recall (and my memory should be good I JUST had Ryan) but as memory serves, not much happens in the first 2 months! Subtle changes that should be mentioned-she smiles, like all the time...which reminds me (and whoever answers this question correctly wins a million dollars) I'm baffled as to why gas can make babies smile in their sleep, but scream bloody murder when they are awake-WHY?! Anyway, back to my baby....smiling more, (that isnt gas), she has gained 4+ pounds and 4+ inches since birth (thank goodness cause she was scraaaaaawny!). She is eating great, sleeping great and is generally a great baby-did I mention she is great?! Any excuse to put her picture up! :)

RYAN! You can do Anything!!!!

So in Ryan's 22 months, she has received so many wonderful gifts, too many to even mention, but this gift turned out to not just be fun for Ryan, but our saving grace as well!!! My mother bought her a DVD that sings 8 songs and during the songs it says her name. They have these kids that do dances and Ryan almost immediately began to follow along. They sing songs about dreams coming true (Ryan, you can live on the sea), doing chores (Ryan, just too much to do!), the zoo (Ryan, would you turn the giraffe into a slide?), and they even play "Ryan Says". She has watched it so many times that now she anticipates the moves and had begun to sing along too (Come on-Let's go!) We put this on almost nightly and her reaction is always the same (see above)! If that isnt a glowing endorcement I dont know what is! We enjoy that it can keep her occupied for about 30 minutes, but mainly it is a blast watching her learn, and follow, and enjoy this dvd!

Here is the link to the video of her following along (just copy & paste)

www.facebook.com/v/292262488766

Can I hold Lela mom?! Please?!

We had a weekend with daddy away and I made up my mind that ready or not Ryan was going to help me with Lela (actually its Leah...but Ryan cant say that, so it comes out Lela). This may have been a mistake. I put Leah in her swing, Ryan wants to push the swing, which is adorable till she tries to push it to the ceiling. I put Leah in her bouncer and Ryan, in her attempt to "rock" her, bounces it so hard that she nearly ends up launching poor Leah face first on the living room floor. During lunch, Ryan thought it would be helpful to give Leah a full slice of bologna (Leah particularly hated that one). In hindsight, she may have caused more work for me by trying to help (she is more and more like her daddy after all) but after lunch, for a treat, I let Ryan lay down in our bed for her nap. Since Leah was tired as well, I laid her down beside her. Now this was the only helpful moment the entire day and it only lasted a mere 3 seconds. But Ryan gave Leah her bottle...well, when I say gave, she basically just kind of held it in place...well, when I say held it in place, I mean she had her hand on it, but most of the milk ended up on Leah's face and down her "formula catcher" (her neck). It was mainly my fault, I put on The Incredibles and Ryan cant take her eyes off it even for a second to be bothered checking if the bottle was even in Leahs mouth and I was too busy snapping pictures to be bothered to help her help me!
Good Day!

Rachael!!! Photo time!

Poor sweet Rach. She happened to get some great shots of my girls-but the circumstances did NOT make that easy. First of all it was freezing cold-too cold to take the girls outside (bummer for lighting purposes-plus my house isnt the best backdrop). Then Leah had an upset belly-had to change her numerous times, she was not a happy camper, and Ryan got into shy, cranky mode-this spelled disaster! But Rachael being the professional she is, was determined to get a good shot and she did-probably not what she wanted, but they looked cute as hell to me! But I am biased-they are MY girls!:) It was so lovely to see my best friend-I needed her!

A Very Busy Christmas!

Woah-4 whole Christmas' to celebrate and for the first time in the Newsome household-we got to stay in our own home (Thanks Leah)! It started with Christmas Eve-we let Ryan and Leah (who had no clue where she was, let alone what presents were-she was only 3 weeks old for crying out loud)open a few presents from the immediate family. This was lots of fun! I'm not sure at Ryan's age what she enjoyed more-unwrapping the gifts or the gifts themselves. However, she loved her new American Girl doll great Aunt Judy sent, Ryan named Abby. Abby came with a several pieces, brilliantly individually gift wrapped-in Ryans case, this offered more bang for your buck!
We put her to bed threatening Santa wont come until she does-but this was really more of an empty threat since she doesnt understand who Santa really is (do any of us really?)except how to pronounce his name. Once asleep, we broke out Santa's presents! This was the most fun for us! Her new bike next to the tree all shiny-fun fun fun-Santa has a great gig! The next morning, we woke her up, let her play upstairs till she was good and awake, then let her walk down-now the tree has been up since the week of Thanksgiving so I wouldnt have to worry about it once Leah was born so every morning since Ryan would say, "Christmas tree!" as she got down the stairs...but not Christmas morning...eyes half closed, she got out, "Christma.." then saw the bike...stunned silent! She ran to the bike, patted it like a dog, then moved on to the other stuff under the tree! :)
That afternoon Jamey's parents came and she got to open even more presents...I did start to feel that twinge of, "My goodness what is this teaching her?" but whatever, it's Christmas! And it wasn't over yet-My mom had to come the next day to give her even more presents!!!! You are probably asking what Leah did while Ryan celebrated 4 Christmas'...well, she sat perfectly quiet in her bouncer, patiently waiting for her turn and smiling when it was appropriate-far cry from my Ryanbug! :) Sweet Leah-I hope this is a lasting trend-she is too sweet!
What a wonderful Christmas with my two girls and the best part-NO TRAVEL! :)