Parks

My sister-in-law called me on Friday asking if I knew of any parks in her neighborhood that are equipped with baby swings. It was hard not to reminisce on those times when Ryan was still crawling and the huge draw for him were the swings. Not so much the case anymore -- he prefers to hang, jump, crawl, climb and run now!

Here are some pictures taken at various parks in the Allen and Frisco area. We sure had a good time being outside and enjoying the nice weather!!



Check out that spotter in the background!

Hey guys, follow me!

There is a cute "mini town" located in the middle of Allen Town Village at Stacey Road and I-75. They have a train caboose, mini stores and a fun maze for the kids to play in.

This is a stick-up! Give me all your money!

Yum! Yum!

Ryan's first bite of an Eskimo Pie at Nanny and Pops house. I'll leave it up to you to determine if he liked it or not.

Gymboree Class

This cold weather really puts a damper on Ryan's extracurricular activities that involve the outdoors (ie: playing at the park & backyard, feeding the ducks, etc). For the Winter months, I thought Ryan would enjoy attending a Gymboree class once a week. And I was right!!

We've only taken 3-4 classes so far but it's been a total hit with Ryan. It's a good opportunity for mommy to do some bonding with Ryan on the weekends. Plus, he gets to interact with other kids his age.

He clearly is the most active one in the group - surprised? He loves the group play but also has the occasional urge to show his Independence and go off and play by himself. I love that about him!

Here are some recent pictures of us . . .

Feeding The Ducks!

Ryan loves to go to the pond behind Davis Library in Plano to feed the ducks. We had some warmer weather on Saturday so we jumped on the opportunity to get outside and enjoy it.

I was quickly reminded how big Ryan is getting as I watched him interact with the ducks. He still insists that he sits/stands an inch away from the water's edge just like he did 6 months ago. But now, he is wanting to "talk" to the ducks. He hasn't mastered the word "Quack" yet so he kept barking loud at the ducks. At least he knows what sound a dog makes!!!

Bobby and I got a kick out of watching the ducks act a little standoff-ish because of Ryan.

Eventually, the ducks got smart and came a little closer to eat but you could tell they were thinking "Dang, this kid is a loose cannon. . . be careful guys. . don't get too close!"

The above picture was taken about 6 months ago

Don't you love the death grip I have on his arm?!?

Just Hangin'

I've learned over the last year just to keep my camera on me at all times because no telling when Ryan will give me a good shot. Here are a few good ones taken over the last couple of days. It's hard not to notice a pattern here. . . "Just Hangin!"

Friday Night Fun!

It's hard to admit that the highlight of our Friday evening was going to McDonald's after we ate dinner to play in their indoor maze. Have I mentioned how much I dislike this cold weather! Looking on the bright side of things - Mommy scored a hot fudge sundae!

Leaning Tower of Pisa!

How many 18-month old kids can build their own Leaning Tower of Pisa!?! It was built with brilliance and a steady hand by using cans of soup, baked beans and green beans.

I ask - If this isn't true talent then what is?!?

Let It Snow!

We got several inches of snow over the weekend! It really started coming down after we came home from church and it kept snowing through most of the afternoon on Sunday. We were so excited to get Ryan bundled up to play in the snow. Well, our dreams of doing snow angels and building snowmen quickly dissolved as soon as Ryan decided to SIT on the snow. Of course, his pants got drenched immediately, he started to get cold and the fun literally last seconds. Oh well, we always have next year. . . (maybe!). . .

No worries, our "other" baby had a blast though!

After we got Ryan out of his wet clothes and into some comfy pj's, he started watching Oliver have fun trampling through the snow and wanted to be a part of it. Check out this picture. . . sad but soooooo funny!

The Novelty Has Not Worn Off

I figured out this morning that the novelty of standing in the windowsill has not worn off with Ryan yet. As you can see from the pictures below, this is still a fun game he likes to play.

At 19 months. . .

At 15 months. . .

At 7 months. . . (I think!)

Playin' At the Mall

There are times when we go to the play area at the mall and the majority of the kids playing are much older than Ryan. I can't seem to calmly sit on the bench and watch Ryan get trampled by the older kids. Today was much different -- all the kids playing were around Ryan's age. What fun for him. . . . AND FOR ME!



After playing awhile, we started walking around the mall and Ryan immediately stopped in front of the Brookstone store. They were demonstrating this cool UFO flying toy that is controlled by a remote. What's too funny is that Ryan was in this trance state watching it fly around. We stood there for at least 8 minutes or so before he lost interest. Good babysitter!

Monkey!

Check out this little monkey in action. . . .

Peek-A-Boo!

Future Player?

Not sure if we have a future basketball player in our family or . . .













. . . . a future football player?