Ryan Playing T-Ball

Let's give this a whirl, shall we? Here's a quick video of Ryan at bat last Saturday and of Tanner doing his best to escape our family while we were distracted. Enjoy!

Bad Blogger

I'm back. Sorry for the lack of posts. If anyone still checks this, I promise to do better. Without going into details, let's just sum up the last couple of weeks with this--depression sucks! That's all I have to say about that!

On to some happier topics, the boys are great. Tanner is a full time walker and can crawl up onto anything. He is a busy little dude. Ryan had a fun time at his Trike a Thon at school, he and Nolan had a great time together, and he's gotten more Easter candy than the law allows. John is on the mend and feeling much better but his cough is lingering. Here are a few of my favorite pics that I've made lately.

Happy Easter!!!

Bedtime Wildness

Am I alone here? Are anyone else's kids so wild before bed that you swear you will go crazy? Either way, I could sell tickets for the show that occurs between 7:00 and 8:00pm EVERY NIGHT around here! After dinner, we head upstairs. Some nights they take a bath or shower and some nights it's straight into jammies. Then the real action starts. Mostly, Tanner finds one car and pushes it around until time for bed. Oh, he does pause to scream bloody murder if Ryan tries to take it away or if it gets stuck somewhere. Most likely, he has pushed it under something on purpose only to create a bit of drama. Ryan runs wildly through the house usually making some awful, high pitched sound that probably drives the neighborhood dogs crazy. It drives me crazy, too. He only pauses to ask for some more food, because he never eats enough at the dinner table. Depending upon my strength left at that point in the day, sometimes he gets more and others I'm able to fight the good fight and explain the difference in meal time and bedtime. We go round and round on food. We always have. I'll post more on this later. For the last 30 minutes or so, they both get so silly that it is impossible to not laugh at them. These pictures are proof of that. I hope you enjoy a small taste of our life. It's not fair that I keep it all to myself!!! :)

Cute Kid Alert!

Well, I'm finally on the mend. I still have a pretty ferocious cough and am really congested, but the fever and aches seem to have passed. Now I'm just so sore across my abs! It's like I've done sit ups every second for the last 5 days. I'm just trying to drink lots of water and get good sleep at night. What else can you do? So, on that note, I'm only posting some cute pics from the last few days. Ryan's Valentine's dance was fun. We got a TON of rain yesterday which is always worth mentioning. I'm not sure it's worth the picture I made of it, but whatever. This afternoon we went to the park with some friends and Tanner decided to give the big kid slide a whirl...so in true "crazy Tanner-man" fashion, he went head first and loved it. Enjoy the pics. I'll try to write something a bit more entertaining or thought provoking later this week. Wish me luck!

What Did You Do This Weekend?

Well, hello! Wow...Monday again already. Not my favorite (read here for more on that) but we had a nice weekend. Beautiful sunshine and lots of it! Our big news...Tanner really walked some! He's still a crawler 95% of the time, but this is a start. We are so proud of him. Ryan is pretty excited at the prospect of having someone besides Mommy to run and play with. Good times.



We went to Stone Mountain yesterday for the first time and were very impressed. It really isn't that far from Atlanta. It took under an hour from door to door. It's huge! Lots of hiking trails, fishing, great playgrounds for the kids, and lots of other stuff. We barely scratched the surface. Ryan got to use his Spiderman fishing pole (thanks, Granddad!) but didn't have any luck. His choice of cowboy boots made standing on the banks and casting a bit tricky, so better luck (and shoes) next time. Tanner loved being outside and watching Ryan. Of course, he ended up mad because he wanted in the lake. Not quite summer time yet, but it won't be long, Tanner!







Today starts the year end audit for John's client, so he'll probably have to check this blog for the next couple of weeks for an update on us. He'll be swamped but we have plenty to keep us busy. Ryan's school has their Sweetheart Dance this Wednesday (I'll be sure and put up pics!), Thursday is his class party, Friday is John's birthday and we're going to the circus, Saturday we're going out to celebrate, and next week is a bunch of other stuff that I'll save to tell you about. Enjoy the pics from our weekend. Please feel free to leave any comments! I just love it when there are comments for me to read!!! Yes, I do this for selfish reasons! :) JK!

Backyardigans vs. Fergalicious

I couldn't resist posting this...it's way too funny. Ryan is begging me to watch it again, but the language is a little too trashy for a four year old. He's currently preoccupied watching a professional fishing show that John had on earlier. Oh well, at least he's not screaming "I'm The Emperor" and running wildly through the house while his brother tries to sleep. Yes, it's nearly 9:00am and Tanner is still out. :)

I will be posting something fun later today or tomorrow. I have several things I want to tell/talk about. I'll leave you hanging for a little longer as we're off to Alabama today to pick up our newest toy. What could it be...?!?

Happy Saturday!

Another Year Wiser

I can hardly believe that it's 2008! Time has always seemed to escape me and it's getting worse as I get older. My mother was such a worrier that I think it was difficult for her to enjoy "the moment". Unfortunately, I think I acquired some of that and I force myself, almost daily, so slow down and think about what is going on, in the now, and be happy about it.


Seems like 2007 went by so quickly. It was a very busy year full of change. We started it off with our final 6 months of life in NYC. Originally, we were moving back to Dallas when the firm presented John with something that was just too good to pass up. After a weekend visit with the boys, we decided to change our relocation plans from Big D to Hotlanta so John could become the newest partner on The Home Depot. Huge deal as THD is one of the firm's largest clients. We found a great house in Buckhead and managed to get all of our stuff, from all over the country here, unpacked, arranged, and started a new life here. Ryan's school is close to home and just wonderful. We had a great summer full of pool/backyard fun. This fall was so much fun with the kids. We went to some pumpkin patches and had some big Halloween fun. We had a great Thanksgiving and Christmas with the boys. They made it all so much fun. Our 2007 had a sad, unexpected twist between the last two holidays as I had a miscarriage. It was one of the hardest things I've ever lived through, but I have such wonderful friends and family, I survived. All in all, it was a good year. Better than good, really. Despite the heartbreaking loss, I have so much to smile about. Like a dear, dear friend told me once, there comes a time when you have to be thankful for what you have and not worry about what you don't. (thanks DK! love ya!) I have so much and am excited about 2008!

Ryan's birthday was last week...the big 4! We had a little party with Granny Lin and Granddad. Ryan got a new Spiderman fishing pole and he is ready for some Georgia fishing. On his actual birthday, we had some cake and John and I gave him his gifts from us...some Lincoln Logs and a big-boy bike. He was so excited. He rides it every day but not for very long. He gets too cold! Last Saturday we had a party for him with a few of his friends here at the house. They played in a huge Spiderman bounce house, played with some of Ryan's new toys, John grilled burgers, and we ate Star Wars cake. Ryan is completely obsessed with Star Wars. He walks around with the hood of his coat pulled up telling people "I'm Darth Vader"...like they care. He had his checkup today and it went well until the end. Five immunizations, three in one leg and two in the other. I'd been telling him for the last few days that he would be getting them and that it felt like a big ant bite. So as I was trying to casually pin him down on the exam table I was asking him about the ants. Were the red or black? Were they going to a picnic? Then the nurse started. He immediately started screaming so loudly that I thought for sure the paint would start to peel off of the walls. Some of it was even that super high pitched sound that only dogs can hear. It sorta made my teeth ache. Anyway, after we gathered ourselves and walked (very slowly and with great drama) to the car, Ryan looked up at me and said "Mama, those were some MEAN ants back there!". Gotta love it! :)

In other Lambert boys news, Tanner decided life was too dull last week and that he would spice it up for me. Ryan was complaining of a headache (and he did have a fever) so I got out the Tylenol. Naturally, he decided for some crazy reason that he didn't want it. I was coaxing him, bribing him to take it but nothing was working. I decided to upgrade my approach to a physical one and hold his arms down while I shot it in his mouth. Hmmm...this takes two hands, so what do I do next? I set the open bottle of liquid infant's Tylenol on the coffee table and turn my back. Skip forward about 20 seconds. What do you think I see when I turn back around? Yep. There's Tanner with the bottle firmly gripped with both hands and turned completely upside down in his mouth. I screamed and he dropped it...but it was totally empty. I had no idea how much he drank and how much he just spilled as his shirt did have a good bit on it. So off we went to Children's Healthcare of Atlanta for the second time since we moved here. (A few months back he ate a battery...good times.) He's fine now. Crazy boy. I think these events are just dry runs as he's gearing up for breaking his femur or a massive laceration somewhere in his cute little head. He is a climber and he's pretty fearless. Great combo. Lucky me.


So what does 2008 have up it's sleeve? Well, let's hope for lots of happy, healthy times. Maybe even another little Lambert! John and I will have our 10 year wedding anniversary this summer. March will be three years since my mother passed away. Tanner will hopefully get up off of the floor and walk sometime before he turns two in October. Ryan starts t-ball pretty soon and will be in Pre-K this fall. It'll be a year of awful political commercials (I'm already dreading it). Can we please have an end to this miserable drought here in Georgia? I don't think I can sit around and watch my beautifully landscaped lawn dry up and die before my eyes. Torture! Trips away and visitors here. Sounds like enough to keep me busy and blogging away. I really enjoy this blog. It is an easy way to communicate with everyone and it also serves as an acceptable way to talk to myself. You know, so I don't get sent to the funny farm.

Stay tuned for more adventures, rantings, and whatever else this new year decides to throw our way!

The Imperfect Snack

Well, you learn something new everyday. The lesson for this particular day is that chocolate covered graham crackers do not make a good snack for the car. Seems obvious, but it certainly didn't occur to me until they were both covered in the mess, along with their coats, faces, and car seats. Stay tuned for other fabulous parenting tips from yours truly! :)

Birthday boy

I can hardly believe that this Wednesday, my sweet little Ryan will be four years old. How did this happen? The only thing scarier than him being four is that I'm four years older myself. Really scary!

Anyway, we had the first of three parties this past Saturday evening with Granny Lin and Granddad, since they were in town. It had been a long, busy day and Ryan was pretty fried. We were at the table eating dinner before cake and presents when I looked over and saw Ryan laying sideways across his chair, eating only the bun without any meat in it. I asked him to please sit up and use his manners. He told me he liked sitting the way he was. I told him "you are almost four now and you will have to use your big kid manners all of the time, not just sometimes".

What do you think he told me?

"I'm not four yet. I'm still three for the next four days, so I'll just sit like this".

Somebody please send me a book on sassy kids for his birthday!!! :)

Beavis

In my efforts to get things together, washed, and arranged before my in-laws arrive tomorrow, I have caved into a very whiney Ryan and agreed to let him watch a show. Of course, nothing we have recorded is acceptable and God forbid he just watch whatever Noggin happens to be showing..."I want something brand new" he proudly announces. My solution...On Demand. A mommy somewhere had to have thought of this. So as we perused the choices I happened upon a brand new Wonder Pets. Great! The Wonder Pets Save the Camel!

So you might be wondering why this post is called Beavis if he's watching The Wonder Pets. Well, the second of the two stories in this particular episode is "The Wonder Pets Save the Ants". In case you haven't already seen it, The Wonder Pets have the challenge of helping two different colonies of ants work out an argument over which group will be raiding a picnic. SO, they say they have to stop "the fight". Ryan immediately sits up on the couch. Now they have his attention...a FIGHT. He starts talking nonstop..."Mommy, they are gonna fight. I want them to fight. Do you want to watch the fight? It's gonna be a big fight!" and so on and so on. As the colonies get closer to each other and several failed attempts by the mediating Wonder Pets occur, the heads of each colony begin to sing "We're going to fight!" By now Ryan is standing on the couch with me repeatedly telling him to SIT DOWN, actually I was only talking to myself b/c he was NOT listening to me! As the ants close in on each other, Ryan starts pumping his arms up and down as fast as he can chanting "FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT!"

My mind shot back about 15 years and all I could picture was Beavis doing the EXACT same thing that my son was doing before me. It was about the funniest thing I've ever seen.

Sadly, the Wonder Pets convince the ants at the last moment to share. Ryan was so disappointed. He finally noticed me freaking out about his standing on the furniture and sat down. He folded his arms across his chest and announced in a very serious tone "Mommy, I don't want to watch the Wonder Pets EVER again". In fact, he's so PO'd that he got up and turned the TV off and is sitting on the couch reading his Star Wars book.

Damn those Wonder Pets!!! :)

A nut where?

Don't you just love it when you step back and look at yourself in "one of those" moments with your kids? I'm standing in the kitchen cleaning up after our fabulous, nutritious dinner, courtesy of Papa John's, when all of a sudden Ryan erupts from the other side of the room..."MOMMY, MOMMY, MOMMY, MOMMY, GET IT OUT, GET IT OUT QUICK!". Okay, you would think that I might have gone to him a bit quicker than a regular-old-stroll-through-the-park pace, but I've had kids long enough to know better. I didn't smell smoke and the dog was in plain sight so how bad could it be? When he comes in my view, I see his contorted little body in the floor, one-piece pj's unzipped, and both hands firmly dug down as deeply as he could have possibly gotten them, moving about wildly. "What the heck is wrong?" I ask. "Get the nut out of here" he exclaims. Nut? He's thrashing around like he's plugged into an outlet and being shocked repeatedly.

So I pull his hands out and promptly stick mine in. That's when I saw myself from the other side of the front windows of our house. Oh, please don't let the CPS people drive by right now. How weird does this look? Anyway, I search to no avail...no nut. I asked him why he put a nut in his pj's...he replied "I didn't. It just got in there all by itself". Well naturally. Nuts have a tendency to do that sort of thing. He seems to buy my explanation that "it just got OUT all by itself", so back to the kitchen.

Five minutes later, here we go again. So now I'm done with this chapter of the day and I pull him out of the pj's entirely. Going on a nut hunt. At the very tippy toe of the pj's I finally find it. I have absolutely no idea what it is...sorta looks like some clear, shiny bead that fell off one of the 25,000 Christmas decorations I recently sent back to the basement. Ryan gets his face about 1/2 inch away from it and says "OOOOHHHHH, it's a jewel. Do you love it?".

Oh yes. I love the nut/jewel/choking hazard for your brother to eat that I just retrieved from your pj's.

:)

From the mouths of babes....

If you've ever spent any significant amount of time with Ryan, then you'll know that he likes to talk. A lot. More like a ton. Some days I swear the only time his isn't talking is when he's eating, and if you know Ryan, then you'll also know that he doesn't eat a lot. SO, today has been one of those days where since the first "good morning, Mommy" there has been a continuous conversation with little pause. What does he talk about and inquire about all day long you might wonder? Here is a small sampling of topics covered thus far, at 4:30 today:

"Why can't I fly?"

"Does Tanner have to go with us?"

"Where do ants sleep at night?"

"Do they use blankets if they get cold?"

"Why do they get cold?"

"Do you remember when Granny Lin had a frog in her bathroom?"

"Is it Christmas Eve again?"

"Does Nolan live in Atlanta or Texas?"

"Why does Nolan live in Texas?"

"Why does Nolan's mommy and daddy work in Texas?"

"Can I just have some gum for dinner?"

"Why do I need socks?"

"Do we take the sea monkeys to the vet if they get sick?"

"Do you remember when Granddad fell in the lake?"

"Why don't you pants fit?"

"Why isn't Diet Coke for kiddos?"

Are you getting the picture? SSSSSHHHHHHEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSSHHHHHHHHHH! I'm pretty sure if at the end of the day, if my head had a convenient screw top, you could look inside and see a bowl of pudding. After a few hours of a day like today, I feel like my mind melts a bit.

The truth is I wouldn't have it any other way. I love his interest and need for knowledge. John and I do our best to answer all of his questions. Sometimes this is easier than others. Sometimes we all go to the computer and look up an answer. Like this past Saturday, after the dog drug a snake out of some monkey grass and John threw it over the fence and into a tree (oops!), Ryan needed to know about garden snakes...specifically what they eat. So, in case you don't already know, they eat frogs, slugs, earthworms, and mice.

So now you know. If you ever have a question, please let Ryan know...he has probably already asked it!!! :)