Ryan Turns 1 Year Old!

Ryan Turns 1!

On Tuesday (2/23/10) Ryan turned 1 year old! Billy made her a special birthday crown.

We had some friends and family over for cake and ice cream to celebrate Ryan's birthday. I made the cake; Billy added his own touches by doing the letters.

Ryan was getting over being sick so she didn't really have an appetite. She didn't want to eat any of it. All she wanted to do was play with her toys and cousins. Oh well....we enjoyed it for her. I did give her some on Wednesday and she ate a little bit of it.

I can't believe Ryan is 1 year old. On Tuesday I was thinking about her special day and how 1 year ago I was in the hospital in labor with her. Billy and I were so excited to have her as our daughter. She has brought us so much joy and happiness. We were married a few years before Ryan joined us. We enjoyed our marriage and had lots of fun together, but wanted to expand our family and have children. When I graduated from college we were excited to start the next phase of our lives. I had gotten over some health issues and we were feeling very blessed. When I first got pregnant we were elated. We rushed to tell everyone the news. Our hearts ached when a few weeks later I miscarried. Of course miscarriage is common, but we felt discouraged. I remember feeling comforted from the Lord and knew he understood what I was feeling. I became pregnant again shortly after. We were so excited, but still had a little anxiety. I was nervous to tell anyone in fear that I would miscarry again. I remember going through morning sickness and being really sick and not telling anyone because I was still really nervous. It wasn't until I was into my 2nd trimester and had heard the heartbeat that we began to tell people. I couldn't wait to hold her in my arms. Ryan was born on Monday, February 23, 2009. I am so grateful we are an eternal family and that Ryan is doing well. We love her so much. She is always smiling and happy. Lately she's been walking everywhere and learning new things. I feel such a great responsibility as her mother. I hope I can do a good job of raising her in righteousness. We love you Ryan!

Oh, How I Love Turbo Tax

I love Turbo Tax....probably the greatest, easiest, and fastest way to do your taxes, even with an error check included. As soon as we got all the tax information in the mail I did our taxes. It took a couple of nights, but the rewards and refund made me smile. I chose the e-file method and our federal was deposited last Thursday and our state return came in the mail on Saturday...great weekend! Too bad the money is already used up going towards paying off Billy's student loans. But hey, it was nice to have in my bank account for a few days. To anyone who isn't sure if they want to attempt it, it really is easy....it does also help having a dad who is an accountant who can answer any questions you have. :)

Valentine's Day 2010

For Valentine's Day we had a visit from Grandpa and Grandma Blair. Billy's parents came out from Lancaster to visit over the weekend. They arrived on Thursday and were here until Monday morning. We had a lot of fun with them. It was a much needed vacation for Billy's parents. They spent Friday observing Billy's class and going to the Temple (it was their 34th wedding anniversary). Friday night we went to Blue Adobe Grill for dinner (Mexican food that was really good); Saturday Billy and his dad went on a hike and Martha, me and Ryan went shopping. We took Ryan to the park to feed the ducks and ate Stromboli for dinner (per Billy's request).

Billy and I don't really give each other gifts on Valentine's Day, but I still wanted it to be special and for him to know how much I love him. I made breakfast for everyone in the morning, went to church, and made Orange Chicken and Strawberry Shortcake for dinner and dessert. It was a great day. We love when family and friends come to visit. Thanks for coming Grandma and Grandpa!

I can't believe this was Billy and my 5th Valentine's Day together! Time has really flown by. I am so grateful for such a great guy in my life who loves me and supports me in all I do. He's a great husband and father. Billy started a tradition where every year he makes me a Valentine CD. This year it was no different. I walked in the door on Thursday to the CD he made me playing. He's such a sweet guy. I haven't quite attempted to add a playlist to my blog, but if I figure it out, maybe I'll include the songs from the CD. We'll see how it goes.

A Sure Way to a Happy Baby...

A sure way to a Happy Baby is swinging her in a blanket. Simple and keeps her smiling. Ryan is such a happy baby. So when she starts running a fever, has a runny nose, doesn't want to eat, and is really sad Mommy and Daddy know something is going on...that something is now apparent in her mouth. Ryan got her 2 top front teeth over the weekend and is working on 1 more. It's so sad when your baby isn't feeling well and there isn't much you can do. We are glad her teeth popped through and she's feeling a lot better.

Fun with Grandpa

My dad came to visit this past weekend and help out with the newest grandbaby. My sister Natalie had a baby girl last Thursday (2/4/10). They named her Tess Elizabeth Lambourne. She is super cute. We keep teasing my dad that he is destined to be surrounded by girls because my mom keeps sending them down. My dad has 4 daughters and 1 son. With the new additions of Tess and Presley (one of my other sister's had a baby girl the end of December) he now has 1 grandson and 6 granddaughters! They love grandpa! To help my sister out we tried to keep Ryan and my niece and nephew entertained during the day. One of the days we went to the Children's Museum. They had a lot of fun.

The museum had a play area just for babies 2 and under. Ryan had fun playing in it.

Thanks for coming Dad. We appreciate all you do and had a lot of fun! We love you! (L-R: Dylan, Grandpa, Ryan, Cali).

My Favorite Thing

Ryan loves to play in Billy's sock drawers. We have drawers underneath our bed; 2 of them are full of Billy's socks. 1 drawer has white everyday socks and the other has church socks. Ryan loves to open the drawers, pull out the socks, and put them back in...over and over again. Ryan also loves to help fold laundry. As I was putting it away Ryan followed me into my bedroom. She was holding 2 pairs of socks. She immediately went over to Billy's sock drawer, opened it, and put the socks in (and then pulled them all out). It's so much fun to see how much she is learning everyday.