All Day Long

I would love to just kick back and take pictures all day... especially of ryan. can't imagine how i am going to fit it all in when the second one arrives...

Just a bit outdated

This collection is actually from the 4th of July...oops. For those of you that skip right to Smugmug these days (mom and dad) these are yesterday's news - but for the non-cheaters :) out there, enjoy!!

Free Ice cream sandwiches from a local radio station were a great treat...




Fredericksburg has a ton of great old building with lots of nooks for Ryan to play in...this alley was perfect for running...






After that we checked out the horses getting ready to set off on their next carriage trip. We pet them for a bit, then found a comfy place on the sidewalk to watch...

Self Portraits

Getting good pictures of Ryan and me together has always been a challenge. The other day, Ryan took a big interest in seeing my side of the camera, checking out the screen and such. So i figured I'd take the opportunity to try to grab a few pics. The results were mixed, the lighting was bad (hence the graininess) - but that's "art" right? Here are a few that I salvaged...

Backlog

Funny, backlogs are one of the popular issues in my professional world, and now i've come upon a bit of one here with the blog. I've got a few sets of pictures out there that i haven't had a chance to share yet. So here we go...

When we go on family walks these days, one of Ryan's favorite things to do is help walk Iggy. Keeping the pokey little puppy up to pace with us is enough of a challenge as it is, now he tries to escape both the walk and the boy.

23 Months

Well, I have a feeling that this is the last monthly age post that I'll be doing. Once kids turn two, you stop counting by months, right? It's been fun doing these, though. I missed a couple because of work travel but all in all i think i did pretty well for a first time dad. Besides, i get to start all over again in a few months anyway :)

So as we approach two, Ryan is everything a happy toddler should be - he amazes us, frustrates us and makes us laugh each and every day.

Even at this age, he's still Mommy's baby....



Ryan isn't exactly the neatest eater in the world, but, hey, we can't master it all by 2 right?

Backyard Fun

On Sunday, my brother brought his girls over for some grilling and cousin quality time. The kids spent a little bit of time in the pool before turning blue and shivering...






When the pool got to be too much, the three of them crowded around the sand and water table to push trucks, shovel sand and splash...

Family Weekend

My parents were in town from NJ for the weekend. We took advantage of the nice weather spent some time outside. I love watching Ryan interact with people he doesn't see all the time because they marvel over the things that he does that Lisa and I have almost come to take for granted. His vocab is rapidly growing. The words may not be perfect (sneeze becomes "neese") but he is a much better communicator these days. Among the other highlights: Lightning McQueen is "Neen", all 3 wonder pets are discernible, we've added table, apple, grass, ouchie, blue, green and pink. Those are just some of the more recent ones.

In a way, that is why this blog doesn't really do justice to Ryan's ever developing personality, independence and persistence. He is an amazing child - willful but caring. I am so grateful for our ever tolerant pets - especially our cat who endures more leg pulling, fur grabbing and "hugs" than most would tolerate. He loves to run and jump. Given the choice he'd live outside. I can't believe that age two is right around the corner.

Back to the pictures....



Taking a break on the sidewalk...



Pointing out the van or "nan" to Grandma...


Grandpa took a break painting the shutters to push Ryan around in his swing...