"I'm a BIG boy now!"

Ryan went pee-pee & poopey on the potty ALL day today! It is 8:13pm and he is still dry! WOOHOO! Now we just have to get him to stay dry while sleeping...

I could embarress my son even more by taking a picture of him on the potty but I will be nice and give you a picture of him in his "dry" clothes from today. He is so proud of himself and we couldn't be happier for him! GO BUDDY!

Could this be the end of diapers for Ryan Christian High? Stay tuned...

Pictures of the Day

Enjoy the following pictures....

Ryan is a HAM!

I want to be an engineer just like my daddy when I grow up!

Kara is a sweet angel (when she sleeps!).

Swing time is fun and sleepy!

Playtime is the best part of the day!

Ryan seems to like the activity gym just as much as Kara does!

Playtime and Crazy Hair!

Now that Kara is more alert and becoming more and more aware of her surroundings, I've decided to try tummy time and play time on her new activity gym. We purchased the Baby Einstein Deluxe Activity Gym the other week and after a few tries, Kara decided that she really likes it! It was probably one our best baby purchases yet! Definitely worth the price and then some...

My poor little girl has a "bad hair day" everyday! I can't seem to tame that crazy head of hair!

Do you know why I have a blanket under Kara's head?

Did you guess- for added head comfort? Good guess but the main reason is to catch any SPIT-UP that might suddenly come shooting out my darling daughter's mouth! :)

My favorite is the Mirror- I can't stop looking at myself! I'm a cutie!

Mommy says I am a "diva" in training!

That musical star is mesmerizing!

Kara really loves her play gym! Here she is just lounging enjoying the music and seeing all the pretty colors! ** Please excuse my mommy's baby talk- she is sooo silly!**

Exeter Summer Picnic ~ 2008

Friday evening we attended the Madison at Exeter Apartment Summer Picnic. This apartment complex is special to Chris and I because it was our first home together. We watched our apartment being built in early 2001 and moved in April 2001. Our cute 2 bedroom/1.5 bath apartment was home for 4 1/2 years before we moved into this house. I also got into leasing apartments because of this complex. I worked at a sister property in 2004 before staying home a year after Ryan's birth and when I went back to work in 2007, I was sent to this property! It was great working there for the past year and a half. I love the residents (ok...there are some crazy ones that I won't miss!) and my co-workers were great to work with.

It was so nice to see the residents and introduce them to Kara. They were all very excited to see who that little one was in my tummy for 9 months! A huge thank you to Chad and Brandi for inviting me and my family back to share in this special event! We had a great time- just wish it wasn't sooo hot and to have spent more time with you guys! Good Luck with everything in the future! :)

Chad had a great idea with the dunking tank to help raise money for a Kidney Walk. They actually raised over $1,000 by the end of the night! We all had fun trying to dunk Chad- I hit the target twice but it never triggered him to fall?! Finally they allowed me to just push it....well I pushed it a little too hard and not only made the partition move but I also got wet in the process! Here are few shots of Chad in the dunking tank. He wore his business attire to add some comedy for the residents.


Our little man is quite the entertainer. Ryan LOVES to sing and dance. While we were eating, he kept looking at the dance floor just itching to get out there and bust a move. He was so excited when Chris finally gave him permission to go dance. He was sooo cute and the residents loved watching him.

My little ones!

Enjoy this video of Ryan dancing up a storm! There was a little girl who wanted to dance with him but he was having no part of that...he is a "one man show!"

Exercise, Spit-Up & Bath time!

Well the time has come to finally get rid of the "jelly belly" and "thunder thighs!" Though I am not completely healed (3rd degree tears are no fun-- ahhh the pains of having children!), I've decided a little walking will not hurt me. No more excuses! To help me with this journey, my good pal (former co-worker) Lauren has generously offered to be my exercise buddy. She is getting married in Sept. '09 and wanted to get a jump start on getting in shape for the wedding. So we are in this together...it's always easier when you have someone pushing you forward. Thanks for taking on the challenge Lauren...I'm gonna need all the help I can get! ;)

Tonight Lauren stopped by after work for our first walk together. We put Kara in the stroller and off we went around my neighborhood. It was nice because we held a great conversation the entire hour we were gone and it went fast. It was hot and I was dripping in sweat when we got back but it felt good to get some exercise. I am sure I will be feeling the pains tomorrow but as the old saying goes, "No Pain...No Gain." Bring on the pain if it gets rid of the weight and I gain a new self confidence!

Lauren & her fiance Shawn (it was his 1st time holding a baby...too cute!)

WARNING- the following post contains spit up dialogue. If you have a weak stomach, do not continue!

This is not a picture of my child (Kara actually has hair!) but this is Kara's claim to fame shall we say! She is spit up queen! (can you believe I found a picture of a child spitting up on Google image? that's impressive photography!!)

Today was a marathon of spit ups. We had a lunch date with Daddy and as I was about to put her in the car seat she decided spit up all over my shoulder. This is after she had spit up twice during her diaper/clothing change! Now, I must blame myself for not learning to put a burp cloth over my shoulder already! I mean it's been 4 weeks of this! I was in a hurry so I just cleaned myself up with a baby wipes (they can get anything out of clothing!). When we returned home, she ate and once again I tried to get a good burp out of her. Instead of a good burp, I got a nice big pile of spit up on my other shoulder!! After changing my shirt, getting her in a new outfit and doing laundry again!- I think her tummy did calm down a bit. Ryan never spit up (well maybe like twice in his entire infancy!) so this is a whole new ballgame with Kara. She is just full of surprises!

Bath Time Update:

Kara had her second bath tonight and did rather well. She did cry during shampooing her hair but that was it. She actually made some cooing noises...it is so cute to hear her little coos and ahhhs. It is also nice that she is starting to interact with us- these are the moments that make the crying and no sleeping worth it!

Happy One Month

Exactly one month ago today- our little girl came into the world!
Happy one month sweetie...

So how does a 1 month old spend her day? There is eating, napping, pooping and....

Hanging out on my boppy


Hey brother, get off!


Tummytime on my new activity gym!


Wow...look at all the pretty colors!


Getting my first "real" bath!


I didn't like it too much....


Ahhh....finally out of that tub!


Cozy in my ducky towel!


Boy am I pooped!... Nighty Night!

Thank Goodness....

...for bed rails!!

We finally made the transition into the "big boy bed" this past week. Ryan did great (other than the first few nights...Daddy stayed with him until he was asleep) and he has been in his bed for 5 days now! Ryan was always a "roller" in the crib so we weren't surprised when we found him in the funniest positions in his bed!

The following picture is how we find Ryan several times throughout the night! I have to literally scoop him out from between the bed and railing!! Hopefully when the weather gets cooler, the blankets will keep him in one place!

Kara- 4 weeks old

Wow- where did the last 4 weeks go? Our little girl is growing so fast! The good news from this past week is that Kara isn't as cranky anymore!! It is so nice to see happy Kara again.

Do you think I look like my daddy?

Kara 2008 (bath time)

Chris 1974

Grandma & Pop-Pop High came to visit on Saturday. Grandma brought gifts and some yummy food...thank you grandma! Ryan loved having the extra attention and Kara loved being held the entire afternoon! :)Snoozing with Pop-Pop

Grandma & Pop-Pop love having a girl in the family!

Sibling Love

Our little angels...

She never cries when her brother holds her.

They share the same hairstyle!

Shhh- baby is sleeping!

Hugs

Kisses

She is so precious!

July 4th Weekend

Friday: HAPPY 4th of JULY!

We had two picnics to attend this year. Jen and Brent Clouser always hold an annual 4th of July picnic and they were excited to throw their 1st picnic at the new house! Too bad the weather wasn't cooperative so we could all be out on the new deck. It was nice to hang out with friends we hadn't seen in a long time. Ryan really enjoyed playing with Lily and her cool new Thomas the Train set! Our little Kara was in one of her "moods" and was pretty miserable the entire day. :(

My parents also hosted a picnic this year. It was nice to finally introduce Kara to more family...especially her great-grandparents, Nanie & Pop-Pop Delp (my Dad's parents). As stated above, Kara was not a happy girly on Friday and wasn't in the mood to be passed around. We were lucky to get a picture with Nanie Delp! Ryan always enjoys playing at my parents' house...they have a huge swing set that he could spend hours on! My youngest sister, Bambi and her husband, Drew made an announcement that they have decided to pack up their family and move to North Carolina by the end of July!! What a surprise! While we are sad that the kids (Ian, Autumn, Ethan & Owen) will be states away from us, we hope this new adventure brings great opportunities their way.

Kara's 4th of July shirt (size 3 months = too BIG!) :(
(not sure why this photo is sideways?!!)

Nanie Delp & Kara


Family Photo (Great shot of Kara's mood these days & poor Ryan is tired of hearing her cry!)


Saturday: Cranky Kara strikes again!

We are starting to worry that our sweet little girl either has colic or has a dairy allergy. The crankiness started last week with her not napping well during the day. It starts about 1pm and sometimes lasts until 2am!! Needless to say, I am exhausted mentally (no sleep!) and physically (no sleep & nursing!). She is happy and content while feeding but crying hysterical while awake. I finally called the Reading Peds. today and the nurse said to cut back my dairy intake (if you know me well...you know that this is going to be the hardest thing for me to do- I love MILK!) and to also soothe her with "white noise". This can be anything from the vacuum to the hum of the car. We did notice that she is calm while driving in the car....so after a few hours of cranky Kara on Saturday, we decided to do some shopping! Off to Target we went to pick up storage containers for Ryan's new book/storage shelf that Chris made! (He did an awesome job too- we got the blocks from Just Cabinets and Chris stained them to match Ryan's new bedroom set.) It was a success with getting some relief from a crying baby.

Ryan has been such a good boy since Kara's birth. He took the transition to big brother with such ease. I was worried for most of the pregnancy about how he would react and if he would turn into a jealous, angry boy. Luckily we have not seen either one from him. He truly loves his little sister and gets concerned when she cries. It is so sweet to see him go up to her and say, "It's ok Kara- don't cry" in his little voice.

a little Daddy & Ryan fun at the local Target




Ryan's Big Boy Room Book/Storage Shelves!


Sunday: A Day of Rest

After another sleepless night with Kara, we just prayed Sunday would be a day of calmness. Our prayers were answered and we spent a lazy day catching up on some much needed rest!

Cat Napping (Daddy & Kara)

PS ~ Happy belated Father's Day

I realized after I posted the Father's Day post that Chris got two sets of foot prints that Father's Day weekend. One set from his son and the other from his daughter. Too cute!





Wow- they grow so fast! This post reminds me to enjoy each and every moment of their childhood...