Nursing School...HERE I COME!!!

Well, this is kinda old news for me, but two weeks ago I got my acceptance letter into the Nursing Program. I will start in January and I am just soooooo excited!!! When I recieved the letter I was nervous, scared, overwhelmed, stressed, but amazingly all those "bad" emotions have siezed and I am nothing less than excited!!! I can't wait. My only worry, and it's a slight worry, is my 2 girls. I'm going to have to figure out what to do with them while I'm in school. Eddie has told me he'll do whatever HE needs to do with his work schedule to make it work, and my parents have offered to watch the girls whenever I need them, so I know it'll work out, but I just hate the stress of figuring out what to do with them :P

Anyhow, I look forward to beginning in about 3 months! I had NO idea I would be so excited. The program is a four semester program (2 years) and at the conclusion of the last block/semester I will be an RN (Registered Nurse)!!!! OH HOW EXCITING. Nothing's set in stone yet, duh, but at this point I hope to work in the labor/delivery or post-partum floors at a hospital. That has been my goal since the start of puruit of nursing. I am getting sooooo close; I see the light!! Did I say that I am excited?!?!?!

Birthdays, Birthdays, and more Birthdays....

OK. Once again I am way behind on updating my blog. No surprise. Life is busy and it tends to be the last thing on my mind anymore.

Anyhow, we've had Kaylee's 3rd Birthday, Alyssa's 1st Birthday, and Jacob's 9th Birthday since

my last update...I thought I'd mention those 3 "major" events in my blog

.Jacob's first day of KINDERGARTEN (gosh he's so much smaller than Ryan is)....

.

Kaylee is One day old............

And Alyssa, also one day old.............

Kaylee's 3rd Birthday fell was on August 6th. She INSISTED on having a Jeepers party. We kept it simple, and invited family and her best friend from church. The kids really enjoyed themselves.

Alyssa turned 1 on August 31st. I still have a hard time believing that my "baby" is already 1!!! She has come a long way in just the past few months. She was a very lazy baby--she would just sit or lay where ever she was placed, until she was about 10 months old. It was then she finally decided to take on the skill of crawling. I thought for sure that it would be a long while before she picked up on walking--NO, I was way wrong. She started walking only 2 months after she started to crawl. Now she's loving her freedom and into EVERYTHING.

We just celebrated Jacob's birthday yesterday. He will turn 9 on the 13th (Tuesday). He had his 1st "real" friends party. We've had parties for him in the past, but usually limited the guests to kids in his Sunday School Class. He enjoyed being able to invited all his really close buddies from school and they really had a great time. He wanted a "Bakugan" themed party, and we started in that direction (bought the invitations) but soon figured out that NO ONE had a Bakugan Pinata. Oh well. I found "Pirate" themed supplies at Target marked down to 75% off--so, yes, I went with that. It really worked out well though, and I think the boys would all agree. We started the party with a scavenger hunt where they were individaully given three different clues which lead to hidden "treasures". I learned real quick that the hiding spots were a bit too easy for the boys to locate :(

After that we went to the bottom of the hill (at the park) and had a three-legged race. I was really surprised to find out that most of the kids had NO clue what that was. Non-the-less they picked up on it quickly and had a blast. Some of the boys dragged their partners accross the field--that was the funnest part to watch :) Jacob and His buddy made it across the finish line first and loved the "honor" lol!

From there we had a Tug-a-War. Again, LOT's of fun for these boys. It didn't last long, and even one kids ended up with rope-burns on his hands, but I guess that's just part of being a boy, right?!?!?!

To finish up the party they were given a "treasure map" and had to work together, as a group, to find the 3 clues using the map as their guide. They really had a much more difficult time with this task, and I LOVED it. But in the end they did piece it all together and found all three clues which pointed them in the direction of the hidden treasure box. The Treasure Box was the pinata--and No, I did not bury it, I did however take a picture of it and I burried the picture. It was Great!!!!

They all had a blast and I think it turned out well.

Having said all that, I am greatful that I dont have another child's birthday to celebrate until next April. I have 6 months to regather myself and prepare to do it all again.

It's official--we're moving.

The lease between us and our renter is signed. Our renters move in on July 11th, which means we are out by July 10th. No pressure. Hmmmm. So we move into Eddie's sisters house which is just outside the Tolleson ward boundries (Lower Buckeye & West of 87th Ave). Being that this is just a temporary move, I'm gona talk to the bishop to see if we can remain in the ward until we make our final move out to the east valley within the next 6-12 months. I'm nervous, excited, scared, anxious---well, just about any and all emotions...that's what I am right about now. It'll be good for us though....
The story shall be continued in time!

Ryan's Officially 5!!!

Such a big guy---literally!

Well, plans changed a bit and we had his birthday at Peter Piper Pizza (much closer). It turned out well, and he had a blast. He was soooo excited that it was his birthday. Everywhere we went today he told people how it was his birthday and that he is now FIVE!! He feels so big. It's so cute to see his excitement. Anyhow--it's late. Just wanna keep this post short n simple.Daddy just loves these funny teeth....

Am I the only one?

The only one who feels guilty for NOT throwing their child a "real" birthday party. It started last year with Kaylee. We decided that since money is tight we were only going to give her a family party. We figured that we needed to keep it "fair" and told all the kids they would only get a family party for their next birthdays. It didn't bother me giving Kaylee a family birthday--she was only turning 2; I think it's normal at that age. It also didn't bother me only giving Jacob a family party...probably because he's had more than his share...he was an only child for 3.5 years and was pretty spoiled over the years. But it's different with Ryan, for some reason. He turns 5 this thursday and we are gonna have a little family party at Jeepers in Mesa. Actually, I've broken the rules a tad and invited Jalen and Ewa Quibilian, because our families are close...so they are kind of like family. But still, I feel so overcome with guilt. Ryan is beyond excited and hasn't once complained, but I think that is why I feel so rotten. He is one kid who will think one's the greatest for something so small. I just feel like I'm robbing him of this opportunity. He went to Sareny's party last month and has been looking forward to HIS party since. I know HE won't feel disappointed--but for whatever reason I do.
Hmmm. I guess I need to just get over it. Obviously I am allowing something small to be something it's not.

Potty Troubles

What is it with my daughter? She is just determined to find new ways to tick me off. She does not ever stop. The latest power-struggle is the potty. She is 100% potty trained--that is, when we are NOT at home. When we are at home, she pee's (or poops) on herself almost 100% of the time. I just don't get it; I am seriously at a loss.

I decided to potty train her 2.5 weeks ago after she "dirtied" her diaper right after I changed her and was loading her in the van. I was frusterated and told her we were DONE with diapers...and that night was the beginning. She's done really well. I can take her out, all day long, to the park, church, a friends house, McDonalds, ANYWHERE and she will stop, whatever it is that she's doing, and tell me she needs to go potty. She wear's her underwear without a problem...but at home it's a whole 'nother story. I can remind her to go potty all day long, but she just pee's in her pants. To tell you the truth, I am tired of cleaning up pee!!!

It just seems backwards to put her in undies when we go out and then when we get home to place her into a pull-up. I have yet to do that...but I am getting tempted. :(

Lyssi finnally got some teeth....

It might be time to consider giving up breastfeeding....

Where's Kaylee?

Okay...so, I'm sure my lovely daughter Kaylee looks cute and innocent to most. And in very short instances I, too, get fooled of that. It's obvious that this "precious" little girl was sent down to me, hidden within a mask...perhaps that I might spare her into adulthood.

Honestly, when I see this little "princess", most often all I see is.....

(Keep scrolling)

You think I'm kidding, don't you? I am sooooo not kidding. Infact, I wish I were. She is a nut!!!!

This girl has no fear within her. She is refered to, in our home, as "the monster". The tension builds around our home from the moment we hear her wake in the morning. I swear, her mission, in life, is to figure out what next she can do to tick me off. I know it. I am absoluetly positive that it is what she lives for.

Last night she gave Eddie and I our first heart-attacks (many more to come from her, I'm sure). We had just finished our FHE where we read a story about Emergency preparedness. The boys were excited about creating an "Emergency Bag" of their own. So, due to the fact that I had some returns to take back to Target, we thought it'd be a good idea to take the family along for the ride, and allow the kids to pick out a few item to start their own Emergency kits.

We walked through the enterence and I went straight to cutomer service, and Eddie followed; The boys and Kaylee went over to the dollar section (right across from customer service) as they always do...or so we thought. As I was doing the returns Eddie said he was going to check on the kids. Kaylee was GONE! I wasn't in a huge panic yet, I mean, this was Kaylee we are talking about, she does this kind of thing ALL THE TIME. Well, after the calling of her name got NO response my heart began to race. I called into all the bathrooms, and searched all surrounding areas. NOTHING. I rushed back to customer service; the panic had set in. I told the employee that my daughter was missing. She asked what she was wearing and how old she was. When I said she was 2, she responded, "oh, she can't be too far then", but immediatly phoned in a "code yellow". EVERY SINGLE EMPLOYEE was in a frantic search for her. Eddie, Jacob and I all split up to find her as well. I get half way through the store and had just about convinced myself that she was NOT in the store when an employee chased me to tell me Kaylee was found in the seasonal department and they were bringing her to me. For those of you who dont know how the store is set up, seasonal is on the complete opposite end of the store, the furtherest possible point, in the store, that Kaylee could have gone to. It took her all of 2 minute to get there. And what was she doing? Casually setting down some kids' chairs she found on some selves and was trying them each out. NOPE...she couldn't care less that we were not there with her. Well, I guess if we were trying to pick something good out of this, this boys got a glimpse of what an "emergency" was.

Yeah...so needless to say, she is no longer allowed outside the shopping cart in ANY store.

But this is so typical of her. This is anything BUT an isolated insident. The other battle I have with her is feeding Lyssi. She knows she is not allowed to feed the baby, and last week I found her sticking a WHOLE slice of pizza in Alyssas' mouth. Before this I have found her feeding Alyssa fruit snacks, pretzel, etc. It totally freaks me out! I am so scared that we will end up in the ER due to her chocking.

And the mind games...those are the WORST. Anyone who knows me well, knows I can't STAND mind games. My brother, Michael, is the "mind game" master, and drove me crazy growing up!!!! I'm starting to believe he's been holding secret classes with Kaylee, and teaching her all the "tricks". If there's anything that'll put me in the coo-coo house, this is it! She refuses to potty train, because it's what WE want. She throws temper-tantrums, every Sunday, on her way to nursery, but LOVES class. Everything I say, she does the opposite. She calls daddy "Eddie" just because she's not supposed to. UGGGGGG!!!!! What was I thinking? I thought girls were supposed to be mellow. She is by far my hardest child. I sooo need a break.

Anyone looking for an "Angelic Princess"? For Sale: FREE!!!

Jacob's teeth- Part TWO

Well, after Jacob's failed attempt to move his top tooth forward we took him back to get re-evaluated by his pediatric dentist. First, I must say that this dental office is awesome (West Valley Pediatric Dentistry)!!! Anyhow, the dentist took another look and told us that not only is the tooth not going to move on it's own, but it'll actually get worse, because he has much crowding in his mouth. We were referred over to the pediatric Orthodontist, which happens to be 3 doors down from the dentist.
We walked over to the ortho to make an appointment for a consult, turns out they had openings all morning, so we were seen right then and there (nice!!! saved us a trip). Well, Jacob's tooth is what they call a "cross-bite", meaning it is BEHIND his lower teeth. The problem with this is, that (cross-bit) tooth constantly hits against his lower teeth, which will mess them up. Actually, the ortho pointed out a chip that was already in one of Jacobs permanent teeth, caused by this issue. So anyhow, to make a long story short, he needs a retainer, like NOW. That tooth needs to be pulled forward to prevent further damage to his other teeth. The retainer will not make his teeth "straight", but it will pull the tooth, in question, forward. Later on, when he has most/all of his adult teeth braces will be the topic of discussion.
Well, at this point insurance covers SQUAT. CRAP!!!! I did call them, and they said to have the ortho-office send in a pre-auth stating this is a "medically necessary" procedure and they will consider covering the costs. Ugh, not getting my hopes up, but it's worth a try, right?!
Perhaps I should start a Jacob-Dental-Fund or something, lol! Looks like this kids is about to get real expensive.

Thinking Out Loud....

I'm not sure who all knows about my niece Emily. She is everything to me. I think about her all the time, but for some reason I was thinking about her more than usual tonight (probably because I was at Fry's, all by myself, with NO kids--I actually had a moment to hear myself think). Anyhow, Emily is my sister's first born. She was born only 7 weeks after Kaylee. Unfortunatly her life on this earth was very short-lived. My sister (Leah) had gone to wake her from a nap and she was purple. Leah started CPR right away, but it was too late, Emily was already in heaven at only 4 days old.

Kaylee & Emily

There are a lot of things that make this situation difficult--the obvious, not being able to watch my niece grow up and my only sister raise her fisrt-born. But then all the "whys & whats": Why was she only given 4 days on this earth? What was her purpose? What caused her to die?

We were told that she basically died of SIDS (meaning they had NO answers to give us). No one in my family buys the SIDS theory. Without going into too much detail, we have our own reason to believe she perhaps died from Meningitis. I, personally, pleaded with the ME (Medical Examiner) to test her blood samples for Meningitis, but they had there own agenda (which was to make sure they could find no evidence suggesting my sister did anything harmful to the baby). Honestly, unless one has $$$ to take those suckers to court, then it's totally just a huge joke. So, we have no closure, and I don't think we ever will...very difficult to grasp.

Anyway, there were 4 grandchildren born to my parents that year (2006). My nephew Shea (May), Kaylee (Aug), Emily (Sept) and lastly came Brian (Nov). I can only imagine what gatherings would be like if Kaylee had Miss Emmy (Emily) to run around with and be "partners in crime" with. It SUCKS. They were only SEVEN weeks apart. They were supposed to be playmates and buddies. They were supposed to grow up together.

Shea, Kaylee & Brian Last summer (2008)

My sister and I have grown super close to one another. We weren't always close, infact, we struggled to even look at one-another growing up. But now I look at her as a friend, a best friend. We go out to lunch at least once a week and talk as we let our kids play. But it seems so unfair that Emily isn't there.

This is the strangest thing. Really kind of a blessing in my eyes. Alyssa was born almost 5 months ago. For about the first 3 weeks of her life I'd just stare at her face wondering why it looked sooooo familiar. She really didn't look much like my other babies, her nose was very different. I just couldn't figure it out though. Then one day as I was sitting with her in the living room, it hit me...she TOTALLY resembled Emily. It was awesome!!!

Alyssa

Emily





I often look at her and wonder if Emily would have looked like her at the various ages. My sister believes she would have, I'd have to agree.

I know I am just rambling on. My thoughts aren't always very clear, but...I am honestly okay. I am just missing my little angel tonight. I love that girl so much! Unfortunately alot of the time it just seems so surreal...like it never even happened. You know, I'm one who likes to think "that will never happen to me." And though I have never lost my own child, I lost a very special family member and it just doesn't seem like something that horrific could happen to my sister, nor the rest of our family who are deeply devestated by this tragedy.

But, I guess it'd be good for me to end this post on a good note...AMBER!!! My sister gave birth to her second daughter last December. She's our little monkey...so cute and smart.

Here's a pic of little Ambee:

Saturday was a: Terrible, Horrible, No-Good, Very Bad Day!!! (or something like that).

Both Eddie and I had plans for this past Saturday. My plan was to go to school to start my MicroBiology class, and Eddie had plans on taking our family van to vehicle emissions to get it smoged as well as various other errands.

We'll, I got to class at about 7:45am and struggled to keep my eyes opened as I sat there waiting for class to start. Finnally our instructor came in and it was shortly there-after my mind was made up...I was soooo gonna drop that class. She had such a thick accent I could hardly understand anything that came out of her mouth. That which I was to understand made no sense...she had NO idea what she was talking about.

So, as we were excused from class for a 10 minute brake, I called Eddie as I walked over to A&R (to drop my class) to inform him I was coming home. Hmmmm....I could tell by the sound of his voice that something just wasn't good. Turns out that our van, in which we had already put close to $2,000 into repairs, failed emissions. We have 4 kids, there is no way we can get by without a van.

Anyway, we were both fed up with the van and the trouble it kept causing us. So, eventhough we can't afford it, we knew we had no choice but to find something better....On to the car dealership we went.

We found a slightly used van, with only 11,000 miles on it, for an amazingly great deal. A Dodge Grand Caravan--it was exactly what we wanted! It has stow-and-go, 2 carseats built into the middle bench seat, is has MUCH more trunk space, and many other odds and ends which we really like. Our kids are quite proud of it...Ryan even named it "Bionic-Car".

Kaylee sitting in the built-in car seat (boy does this picture suck!!!!)

The stow-in-go storage space beneath the middle bench seat.

The boys are proud to show off the roomy-trunk.

And jacob demonstrates how the seat folds FLAT into the floor of the van...it's a good thing he knows how to do it, 'cause I sure don't know how. (and geez does this pic of him remind me a lot of my oldest brother, Paul)

Now we just need to figure out how to pay for this dang thing...but on a positive note, I was surprised when I went online to make the vehicle change on our car insurance, and this van actually DECREASED our premium...must be a pretty safe van.

Boy am I gonna miss her...

Tommorrow will be my first day back to school since having Alyssa. I didn't realize how hard it was going to be to leave her. She is much different than any of my other kids...she loves to cuddle, and is such a mama's girl. I LOVE IT!!! I used to think it'd be a "drag" to have a baby who loved cuddling, but it is actually really nice, and I look forward to it all the time. I'm not sure who it'll be harder on tommorrow? Me: because I'll be missing my baby. or Eddie: because he won't know what to do with the mama's girl.
Anyhow, it is my last class requirement. I have finished all my pre-reqs and this class is my last co-req. I'll be taking MicroBiology 205 and it's a Saturday class that starts at 8am (boy do I hate that hour) and ends at 1:15. It's a 16 week course and I really look forward to getting it over with. My guess is that I have about 1.5 years left on the waiting list until I can enter the RN program (which is a 2 year program). Unless, of course, I can earn my way into the Banners' RN program. I need to complete MicroBiology before I can apply for Banners, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed as I have a GPA of somewhere around 3.9 (all A's and one lousy B, uggg). If, by some chance I get accepted into Banners program, they pay for it ALL, 100%, plus guarentee you a job at the conclusion of their 16-month program. Hmmmm, I guess I'd need to find a babysitter at some point; any offers? (Hey, why is everyone one running away so quickly?!?!?)

Look what just arrived at my door....

A brand new pot and pan set...and a very nice one at that! The pots & pans that I was using are horrible. They are so used and worn that everything sticks to them. I was desperately wanting a new set, but you know how rediculously expensive a desent set can cost; we just do not have the money to go buy new pans. Well, my mother-in-law surprised me with this really nice set (a link to the pans I got: http://www4.jcpenney.com/jcp/X6.aspx?DeptID=57089&CatID=59593&GrpTyp=PRD&ItemID=0cc9792&attrtype=&attrvalue=&CMID=57089%7c59578&Fltr=&Srt=&QL=F&IND=1&CmCatId=570895957859593) . I LOVE it! I don't think I have ever been so excited about a gift....wait, perhaps when I got my air-bake cookie sheets at Christmas I was just as enthusiastic (before getting the air-bake sheets I would place a smaller cookie sheet beneath the one I was using to get the "air-bake effect...or at least I tried to).
What am I...a nut? I don't even know how to cook and my favorite gifts just happen to be cooking items. How ironic...but it is what it is and I definently LOVE both my new pots and pans and my air-bake cookie sheets!!!

Orthodontics already...$$$!!!

Well, we just got one of Jacob's baby teeth pulled this afternoon. The permanent tooth was growing in behind it, and there was no sign of the baby tooth falling out on it's own. His adult tooth is growing in extremely crooked, partly because the other tooth hadn't fallen out, and partly because there's a lot of crowding in his mouth. He said the procedure wasn't bad at all, he didn't even know that he got a shot in his gums. When I told him was was surprised. Anyhow, here are the pictures of him after having his baby tooth removed.

The dental hygentist sent Jacob home with a couple tongue depressors (you know, the big popcicle stick looking things). Jacob has homework to do for her...everyday he had to bite down on the stick and try to get his top tooth to pull forward. I guess right now it sits behind his lower teeth and that is NOT good. If within 2-3 weeks it is still behind his lower teeth, we must take him back and get it "taken care of". I forgot what the actual procedure they'd be doing is called, but something to the matter of placing some rings on his back molars and forcing his tooth forward. (Sounds kinda like mini-braces to me). Anyhow, this is just the start of a LOT of ortho-appoinments for Jacob...his dentist thinks he'll need a LOT of work in the coming years (ie: braces). Uggggg.....

Thanks for the idea Krystal!

So, I guess there'll be NO shaving of Alyssa's head...instead Krystal pointed out that her hair would make a good mohawk. So, that's exactly what we did tonight...yep, she had plenty of hair for a mohawk (or shall we say "faux-hawk"?).

"Hair" one day, gone the next :(

All my babies were born with tons of black hair and never lost any of it...All except Alyssa that is. Her hair is falling out like crazy! It is seriously EVERYWHERE! It's always on her pacifiers, I always seem to get some in my mouth (just from kissing her) and it covers her head padding in her carseat.



She has completly gone bald on one side of her head:



And though she seems to have hair on the other side of her head, it is slowly balding as well:



Eddie, today, mentioned how we might need to shave her head sometime....the thought of that drives me wild, but I think he's right :(

How Does Everyone Do It?

I am amazed how well everyone else seems to keep their blogs updated...I guess I'm not very good with balancing all my kids with everything else as the rest of you appear to be. Someday I hope, let it be sooner than later!

Lyssi (Alyssa) is a completely different baby than in her first couple months of life. Her colicy behavior has gone away and she's become quite a pleasant, fun baby to have around. I have grown quite the bond with her, stronger than I remember having with my other babies at her age...I think it has to do with the very long hours I would struggle to comfort her as she continually cried in pain (due to her excessive gas). I mentioned this to my visiting teacher and she responded with something that makes very good sense, "you love those you serve." How true that is, and I never realized how true it was until I learned it through Lyssi. What an amazing lesson!!!

Alyssa is now 4 months old and is quite the chunker. I just took her in for her 4 month well check yesterday and she weighs 17lbs. 7 oz and that places her in the 97%...my goodness, I must have some hearty breast milk!!! Her height is only 23 3/4" (60%). Ryan was 16lbs 7oz and Kaylee was 15lbs 7oz at this same age...and both Ryan AND Kaylee started out a whole pound heavier than Alyssa (Ryan was 8lbs 6oz, Kaylee was 8lbs 8oz, and Lyssi was only 7lbs 6oz).

Here's a picture of my "Tubee-Lubee":


Eddie and I have quite a laugh because was recently noticed that Lyssi was born with 2 completely different ears...one is like mine, and the other resembles Eddie. It is too adorable!!!




She loves to laugh and smile...she is such a joy!!! She still wakes up about 2 times a night to eat, more like snacks, but hey, how else will she keep her figure?!?!?



A couple weeks before Christmas we noticed that Jacob has some "shark teeth". It freaked me out when I first noticed it, but at this point it sounds like he'll have to get the baby tooth pulled by his dentist. Unfortunatly, I think he'll end up needing braces in a few years ($$$).


Aside from his lovely shark teeth, Jacob is thrilled to have started cub scouts. He loves it, and is beyound enthusiastic about earning belt loops and pins. It seems like all he talks about is working on his scouting (now if only I could get as enthusiastic about scouting as he is we would be rolling right along...for me it's just another thing on my "to do" list).

Other than that, life is just plain crazy around here. Miss Kaylee (or Sprocket, as Eddie likes to call her) is nothing but trouble. She's always into mischief...I can't believe I needed a girl sooooo badly. She loves to climb, and the other day she was on top of her dresser (which sits pretty high off the ground). She was calling for me to help her down. After several minutes I went and "saved" her and told her not to climb up there again. Well, lo and behold, that same night she did it again (no surprise!). She started to call for me, at which time I told her I wasn't gonna help. Eddie had just come through the door and she repeatedly called, "Eddie, come get me. Eddie, help me. " This went on for a while, until "Eddie" gave in to his princess.

She also has a new love for "fashion". She drives me crazy as she changes her clothes several times a day, and sneaks into my make-up. She's come out of the bathroom with lipstick all over her face only for me to find that broken lipstick in the garbage (grrrrr....).



Though she is one brave girl, we have found one thing she is terrified of....Mr. "Ho HoHo" Himself. If she only knew (LOL).....



Ryan is another trouble maker. He is the stubborn one of our pack. He is very intellegent in some aspects, and in other area's he just can't give one the satisfaction of pleasing them. He can be very trying at times, and loves to be Mr. "Funny guy". He always has some sort of joke, his favorite which revolve around the 'Knock-knock' jokes...typically when one asks "who's there" his response is "pineapple". He thinks he's funny, at at times we see his humor too. He does have quite the temper though.

He got a very "fitting" gift this Christmas. He loves his new Big Wheel. I had one as a child, as did Eddie. It was the perfect thing for Ryan...anyone who knows him well would agree. He is still pretty nervous about riding a regular Tricycle (because of the slight wobble) but he will kick up some dust on his Big Wheel....He LOVES it!!!!



We love them all, and can not believe how big they are all getting. Time is just moving too quickly for us. (Hopefully it'll be sooner than 3 months before I post again :)