Topic: This and That
I talked to Larry on the phone today. He sounded good. It was nice to hear his voice. He hadn't gone to his orientation yet, so there wasn't much to report. It's kind of nice that I've been to Goodfellow before, so I have a mental visual to go with where he is.
Today Ryan and I didn't do much besides look for a table cloth. Oh, I forgot to mention in the Ryan section that I took Ryan to the Darley Mill Center in his backpack. That place is not stroller friendly, and I didn't want to carry him (he's a bit squirly to try to let him walk). We got a few comments from other shoppers. One person said, "That's the way to go!" and their companion replied, "It sure is, but I'm not giving you a piggyback ride!"
Not too much exciting is going on at the moment. I think I will have some hot chocolate, watch an episode of Lost on DVD, then go to bed.

Ryan Report
Now Playing: Washing machine, Blue purring, ER muted on tv
Topic: Ryan
Things went more smoothly tonight at bath and bedtime. Now hopefully Ryan won't wake up at some weird hour again..
Today we went back to the highchair. I'm a big believer in gradual transitions when possible. No reason to yank Ryan from his chair cold turkey. The main reason we went back to the chair was because Ryan seemed a little uncomfortable sitting on the wooden chair (we don't have any cushions yet), and he was getting up before he'd eaten much of anything.
Today Ryan and I went to the Darley Mill Center to look for a table cloth. No luck. Larry suggested Woolworth's, which is walking distance from our house. I think I'll try that.

Tired
Topic: Ryan
Ugh. I am tired.
Last night Ryan really missed his daddy. The closer it got to bed and bath time, the more Ryan was out of sorts. Daddy is always a part of bath and bedtime, and Ryan was NOT happy that daddy wasn't there.
For some reason, Ryan woke up at 2:45am and was awake for an hour. I kept hoping he would just go back to sleep. I kept falling back asleep before I could will myself to go check on him. (Ryan wasn't crying or anything, so I didn't feel the need to jump up.) Finally after about an hour, I got up and put his stuff back in his crib, put his pacifier back in his mouth, gave him a cuddle, and put him back down. That seemed to do the trick.
I don't know why I feel so tired today. Could be the weather. Could be the return to single parenting. Could be my sleep's been messed up lately. (I'm thinking all of the above.) Also, Ryan seems out of sorts. I can't tell if he's coming down with something, or if it's just what's referred to around here as, "the Harrogate Crud." Basically when the weather turned, Ryan's nose started running non-stop. It cleared up almost instantly after our arrival in California. A week or so after we got back to the UK, it started to come back. Now it's really going. So it's hard to tell if it's a slight cold, allergies, or what. He seems ok otherwise. No fever or anything. He seems a bit out of sorts, but that could be for all kinds of reasons (teething, daddy gone, etc.).
Anyhow, I know this blog has been very Ryan-centric. He's my focus right now.

Larry Left
Mood:  down
Topic: This and That
This morning at 4:45am, Larry left for BNCOC (basic NCO course). He'll be gone until April 2. I am a little down and lonely. There's plenty to do though and there are social things going on with the URG. Of course Ryan keeps me very busy!
Today we went for a jog together (me and Ryan) and later ran some errands on post and went to the bx and commissary. I hadn't been on post in a long time. With one car and living away from post, Larry would just take a list from me and do the shopping. That's nice that he shops, but it's also nice to actually get to look around myself now and then.
I need to go get Ryan up from his nap and figure out something for dinner. There's plenty to eat, since I just went to the store!

Table and Chairs
Topic: Ryan
For a while now it's been occurring to me that Ryan will soon grow out of his highchair. I also know that around his age now you're supposed to transition your kid out of the highchair. There's just one little problem: We don't have a dining room table. Larry and I follow the grand tradition of both my parents and his dad of just having a coffee table. I was at my next door neighbor's house last week, and noticed her two year old daughter had a really nice little table and chairs. I thought that might be the solution for Ryan. Yesterday Larry and Ryan and I went to IKEA and got a cute little table and two chairs. At dinner we sat Ryan down at his table and it worked out really well. The only problem was, the table and chairs aren't finished. After only one use they were sporting spaghetti sauce stains. *sigh* So I guess we will have to sand and finish the table. No biggie I suppose. I am just NOT a DIY kind of gal. Today I went to the bx in search of table cloths. No dice. The girl working there suggested Darley Mill, so I guess I have an excuse to go there now.
I have to say that Ryan rolls with things so well. I'm the one who has a hard time with his transitions. I just can't bring myself to put the highchair away just yet. Whenever Ryan reaches a new milestone or level of development, I'm always excited and proud. However, part of me is always a little wistful for the stage now past. So far Ryan has been great at letting me know when he's ready for what. I do believe he's the child development expert here!
(That picture was taken towards the end of September.)

Party Photos
Topic: Ryan
Party Pics Here are some more pictures from Winston's birthday party. Enjoy!
PS - I did something rude to Ryan today. I boiled his funky pacifier (upon suggestion from my friend, Theresa). I put that one next to the new one he's been rejecting. He put the boiled one in his mouth, took it out, put in the other one, gave me a look like, "What the heck?" then put the boiled one back in, and in it's stayed.

Part II
Topic: Ryan
I forgot to mention another thing Ryan says a lot, which is, "ha," the first part of the word, "hot." If we say "hot," he'll say, "ha." He also says it if he sees us drinking something out of a mug. And how can I forget one of Ryan's favorite things to say? "No." He mostly makes the sound of the word, rather than meaning it. Although, sometimes it would seem that "no" means "no."
So I suppose Ryan says a lot more than I gave him credit for.
On the crib-climb front, Larry arranged it so we can have a baby gate at the foot of the stairs (the stairs in old Victorian style homes just weren't made for accommodating baby gates), and one in Ryan's door. We would have liked to have had the one upstairs set up so that Ryan could come into our room if he wanted, but the way the house is, that just isn't possible. It may be that Ryan won't climb out of his crib for a while or ever, but we did need baby gates anyway. It's nice to not have to worry about him getting halfway up the stairs before I can catch him. I do plan on letting Ryan get plenty of practice going up and (especially) down the stairs, but now I get to pick and choose when! Let me add that the cats are not at all happy about the gates. Our cats are lazy even for cats, and although they are perfectly capable of jumping the gate, they prefer to meow plaintively on whatever side of the gate they're on at the time.

Ryan Report
Topic: Ryan
Lately Ryan's started walking in our shoes. I thought it was cute so I took a picture.
The following was inspired by Kate's recent blog entry about her daughter's expanding vocabulary:
Ryan does "talk" up a storm. It's just not in any language I understand. However, for several months now, things have been creeping in that sound like parts of words, or maybe even almost whole words. (This is not including the "dada" and "mama" sounds made early on.) The first one I remember is "gah" as in the first part of the word, "gone." After feeding him, I would say, "All gone," and Ryan would say, "gah." Before we came to the States for Christmas, Ryan said, "Yay!" (I think I wrote about that.) Last night I was talking to Ryan/myself saying that I needed to organize Ryan's clothes. Then Ryan said, "cwo," which sounded like he was trying to say the first syllable of "clothes." Today he actually said the word, "toe." On the changing table I name body parts (legs, feet, toes) and I grabbed his toe and he said, "toe." Yay! It's so cute to hear his voice say actual words. It's different than his babbling. It's as if he's trying out a foreign language, which I suppose is what he's doing. He's fluent in his own language, but he's slow and deliberate when trying out English. As excited as I am about his starting to almost talk in our language, I will miss hearing him speak in his own.
PS - I have to say that Ryan is taking the mother of all naps right now. He's been down almost three hours! He was up at 7:30 this morning, and just would not nap until around 1:45pm. Sometimes he gets all over the place with naps, but it usually evens out eventually.

5 of 10
Now Playing: Blue purring, "Friends" muted on tv.
Topic: Ryan
This picture is from Dec. 10. I've decided to put up some random pictures of Ryan now and then, just for the heck of it. They are just snapshots from daily life.
Last night Ryan woke up in the middle of the night for the first time since he adapted to this time zone. Actually "awake" isn't what I'd call him. He was sitting up in his crib fussing, kind of half asleep. All it took was a quick cuddle and he was back out.
Lately Ryan's current pacifier has been getting pretty grungy. Washing it doesn't help. It's developed its own distinctive odor (and probably its own eco system). I got out a new one in the same color, the exact same model. He's having none of it. You can't fool him, either. He knows which one is the seasoned one. I guess it takes time and effort to get it just how he likes it. I've thought about throwing away his current one (which I will do eventually), but I'm not sure I'm ready to deal with the fallout.
As for the crawling-out-of-the-crib fears I've been having, my friend Kate pointed out that perhaps Ryan just won't (her daughter can, but doesn't). That was an option I hadn't thought of. Hope we're that lucky!
Next week I'm going to have to leave Ryan with someone he doesn't know. It won't be for very long and I don't really have much of a choice. Most of me is pretty sure it'll be fine, but there's that first-time mom part that has to worry.
On a different topic, apparently sometime in the last decade, Timex started making their "stop" and "start" buttons separate. Since I've only had one new running watch in about that long, this came as a revelation to me. At least now I can finally use my new watch!
It was nice to get out and run by myself today. I enjoy taking Ryan with me, but since Larry will be gone, tomorrow will be my last shot at running solo for the next two months. It was a beautiful day. There was lots of sun and not too much wind. There were a lot of people out running.
Before Larry, Ryan, and I left the States, we mailed ten packages back to the UK. We sent them in two batches a few days apart. So far, five of them have arrived. Oddly, they are the ones we sent later.
Hope everyone is having a good weekend.

Lasagne
Topic: This and That

First of all, a big HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Larry's mom, Joyce!
The weather has been wacky today. It's gone back and forth between rain and sun, with sometimes both at the same time! The one constant has been really bad wind throughout the day. Yuck.
Last night I went to a meeting for a babysitting co-op that my friend Sarah is forming. All the ladies involved are nice and have their own kids. It seems like it's going to be a good thing. I realized though, that I'm not sure I'm up for babysitting other people's kids. I'm an only child who never babysat. I don't know jack all about kids past whatever Ryan's current age is (I parent by the seat of my pants). And honestly, the thought of changing some other kid's poopy diaper kind of grosses me out. I don't know how the millions of other people do it, but my hat is off to them! I figure that being a part of this co-op will broaden my horizons, and after all, it's free childcare! With doctor's appointments on the horizon and Larry gone, it will be nice to know there are people that can watch Ryan. I just hope that watching other people's kids won't be as bad as I'm fearing.
Not much is on tap for the weekend so far. It's Larry's last weekend here for a while, but he's been sick all week with a cold. Also, if the weather stays like this, it'll be hard to want to go out in it.
Oh, I almost forgot! I've been meaning to share this. This is funny. For some reason, Ryan finds the word, "lasagne" hysterical! Say that word and he starts laughing like crazy! I have no idea why.
Also, Larry watched Ryan last night while I went to the meeting. When I came home, I found that Larry had taught Ryan how to "slam dunk" his nerf type ball into the seat of his jumperoo. Ryan was loving it! This is exactly why little boys need daddies. I never would have thought that up.
And finally... the photo to the right is a random one I took with my cell phone. No special reason.