Jonah at 8 months

I'm a few days late because things have been super busy at our house with the school year winding down. Jonah is growing and changing so much these days. While much of his eating and sleeping habits remain the same, he's definitely moving into a new stage of babyhood. He's really wanting to stand a lot in our laps these days and this morning, I let him stand up at his little play table. He enjoyed the lights and music for quite a while before he lost his balance and fell over. He's also really trying to pull up when I hold my hands out to him. It won't be long before he masters that skill and start cruising along the furniture. Jonah is also starting to babble a lot and I can tell he's trying to communicate his wants and needs in ways other than crying. The other big accomplishment in the last month is that he's definitely mastered rolling from back to front. Unfortunately, he doesn't like being on his tummy and seems to have forgotten how to roll back the other way. I guess the upside is that he'll eventually figure out how to get up onto his knees and hopefully start crawling. These last four months of his first year are going to be a whirlwind of activity for our last little one. I can't wait for all of the coming "firsts".

Happy Easter!!

Our Easter weekend was egg-stremely busy this year. We took advantage of the long weekend to go back up to the land to do some more clearing. We hadn't been since February and even though it hasn't rained even a bit, the weeds were waist high!! Thankfully our wonderful neighbor brought his tractor and brush hog and mowed quite a bit of the weeds for us Friday morning. Brian and I did some more clearing back behind the trailer and started rebuilding the burn pile from our last trip. We cleaned up and then headed into College Station for a while. We visited our favorite jeweler - David Gardner's - to get Brian's Aggie Ring re-sized, ate lunch with my sister, had dessert at Fro Yo Yo - a frozen yogurt shop - and then hit the mall for some new A&M shirts. We spent the rest of the afternoon fishing at Gibbon's Creek Reservoir. It was crazy windy and we didn't catch anything which was disappointing but there's always next time.

Saturday was another busy day of work clearing a section of brush to the right of the driveway between the front corner and the "garden". It took Brian and I until early in the afternoon to get it all cleared out and we created three very large burn piles with all the trees and vines we removed. MaMaw and Poppa Steve came up for the day and brought a charcoal grill with them so we had burgers and hot dogs for lunch on Saturday. They also showed us how to set up the awning so we enjoyed nice breaks in the shade with a nice cool breeze. Later that afternoon, I took the boys into town to see the new movie Rio while Brian relaxed at the trailer. We picked up dinner on the way back and enjoyed a nice quite dinner and a movie before bed.

Sunday morning we got up early, packed up the trailer and headed home for a fun filled Easter Sunday. We got to my parents house and the boys dug into their Easter baskets. There was lots of toys and candy. My mom found these awesome tote bags and matching towels for the boys. It will definitely be nice to have them carry their own swim stuff this summer. After everything was opened, the boys all enjoyed an egg hunt in both the back and front yards. Once Jonah woke up from his nap, we headed to the County Line for some super yummy BBQ lunch. We relaxed for a while and then headed home for Sunday dinner and another egg hunt at Kristen's house. The boys came home with even more candy but hey, it's Easter! I definitely know why we had the Monday after Easter off growing up. The teachers did not want to deal with all the kids after a day full of candy.

Pictures to come soon. I forgot my camera at my parents house and haven't had time to go get it yet.

Bovay Scout Ranch

This past weekend was our Cub Scout Pack's camping trip at Bovay Scout Ranch. In a lot of ways it reminded me of Camp Texlake growing up but it was also very different. Let's be honest. Girl Scout camp does not have pellet guns, archery, golf, or BMX biking. James had a wonderful time and enjoyed all of the various activities regardless of his skill level. I'm sure as he gets older, he'll get much better at his aim. The camp itself was really nice. The bathrooms were clean (well after our service project) and the water was hot (after the guy in charge turned it on). The major downside was that the water park was closed so we had to improvise with water balloons and a sprinkler. We had heard that the food was gross but every thing they served tasted yummy to me. We definitely learned a few things about camping at Bovay that we won't forget next time - mainly to bring your bike and helmet, fishing gear and cleaning supplies to clean the bathrooms before you start using them. We have another camping trip scheduled for the end of May that we're looking forward to.

First Grade Field Trip to the Oil Ranch

Last Friday I was able to attend the first grade field trip to the Oil Ranch. It was a very full day and we were blessed with wonderful weather. It was a bit windy but the breeze kept it from getting too hot. The kids had an absolute blast. They got to see lots of animals in the barn and ride the ponies twice since there was no one behind our class in line. They also got to ride the train and search for stones in these little sifters in a stream of water. I think the only thing his class wasn't able to do was the hay ride and I'm not complaining about that (they make my legs itch). Here are some photos I took that day.

James' First Concert

Last Thursday night James attended his very first concert. Brian's cousins were in town with their band so we took James to go see them perform at the House of Blue's. He seemed to enjoy the music even though he said it was very loud. We were able to go back stage to see the whole band later on in the evening. The drummer was awesome and gave him a set of her drumsticks. He also got a couple of guitar picks from Brian's cousin John. After that, we all headed down to the restaurant to eat a nice meal together before heading home. Here are a couple of pictures we took at the show.

From April 2011 Blog Photos

From April 2011 Blog Photos

From April 2011 Blog Photos

Jonah at 7 Months

One word to describe Jonah at 7 months - Sitting!!! Jonah is massively improved on his sitting abilities over the past month. He now sits in high chairs, shopping carts and in the bath tub. He sits on the floor and plays with toys. He wants to be sitting up in the stroller as well. Jonah is still growing well and is now eating two solid meals a day (when I can remember it). He's eating pears, apples and sweet potatoes. I've also made butternut squash which Jonah will start eating very soon. Jonah moved up to the convertible car seat and seems to like riding in it. It gives him more space and sits up more upright. Jonah is really enjoying his brothers these days. He loves being held and getting attention from them. It's also really great to hear him laugh at James' funny voices and faces. Jonah has had an exciting month with our trip to Granbury and going to the Houston Rodeo for the first time. I imagine the next month will be just as eventful for him with his very first Easter as well as working towards crawling, pulling up, and table foods.

From Photos for Blog

From Photos for Blog

John's 5th Birthday

The past week has been a super busy one for John. Since his birthday fell on a Monday this year, we decided to celebrate the weekend before he actually turned 5. Saturday morning we got up and headed to my parents house. After a bit of playtime outside in the back yard, we made our way to Chuck E Cheese for some fun and games. We definitely made the right decision by getting their first thing in the morning. There were no birthday parties and we practically had the place to ourselves. All the boys had a wonderful time playing the games and riding the few kiddie rides they had. The best part of being some of the only ones there was that we could let them wander and not have to worry about them getting lost in the crowd. After Chuck E Cheese we visited Academy to get some new tennis shoes. Both boys were in need of a new pair. I was surprised at how much their feet had grown. John picked some super cool red and black sketchers. Lunch took place at Steak N Shake and was super yummy. We even let John get a kids shake which of course was chocolate. After lunch we headed back to Gammie and Poppa's house for cookie cake and presents. John received the book from the musical Wicked from my sister, these super cool foam building tiles from my parents and some games for his new DS (thanks Poppa Mike and Mimi) from us. All were super huge hits. We spent the rest of the day relaxing and playing with the new toys.

Monday was John's actual birthday and was a busy day for him. He got to make a body collage for school, bring special treats and have the class stuffed animal. I was a bit worried about how he would handle all the attention but his teachers said he had a wonderful day at school. That night we ate a super yummy dinner at Texas Roadhouse for the Rylander Spirit Night.

The week ended yesterday with John's 5 year photos at the Picture People and his 5 year check up with Dr. Clarke. The photographer was running super late but John handled it like a champ. He took direction really well and get got some really great shots in about 15 minutes. The boys scarfed down some McDonald's for lunch and then we were off to the pediatrician's office. Thankfully the office is right across the street from the mall AND they are connected by a skywalk!! We managed to get over to the office in about 15 minutes which is way faster than me loading the boys in the van, driving across the street, finding a parking spot, unloading the boys and getting up to the office. John's check up went really well. He passed his vision and hearing tests. He's 41 lbs and 3'6" both about average. After the check-up, we walked back to the mall, got our pictures and then headed home. The day was capped off with Kindergarten orientation at the elementary school. Brian took John and he said it went well. John separated with no issues and had a great time playing with the other kids. He and Brian visited Mrs. Moore's (James' kindergarten teacher) classroom and then headed home. John is super excited about starting Kindergarten at the big school in August. He actually wishes he could go now.

Here are some photos of John's birthday celebrations last weekend.