Apr 26, 2012
Sleeping on a Cot
One of the development milestones PJ needs to accomplish to move up to the toddler room at daycare is sleep on a cot. This week was the first week he moved to a cot from a crib and he is doing great. I even got see for myself today. Sleeping babe pictures will never get old for me.
Apr 25, 2012
Crazy Hair Day
This week at daycare is like little kid spirit week. Today is crazy hair day. Ry did PJ's hair by applying gel an just pointing the hair in all different directions. PJ's hair is definitely crazy!
Apr 22, 2012
Sunday Park Day
Its been great weather and we are doing our best to get out and enjoy it. This afternoon we took a little walk over to the park near our house and PJ explored the play area. He is getting much braver with the grass and the wood chips. He went from barely wanting to touch them to now trying to eat 'em...silly boy! He is also big into climbing; he tried to climb up the slide and even liked going down the slide.
The video is brief, but shows our little man clapping and smiling which melts our hearts. Hopefully you find it just as sweet.
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| Cool Dude! PJ hanging out on the top of the slide, ready to go down. |
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| PJ taking a break from trying to climb the slide to check out the other kids at the park. |
Apr 21, 2012
Moving Furniture
As I have mentioned a few times, PJ is so close to walking. One of the skills he has been fine tuning to be better prepared for walking is squats. He likes to stand up and then squat down and stand again. He is getting quite smooth with his movements, rarely falling. He also loves to push things around, so tonight he had the best of both worlds. He got under one of the kitchen stools and pushed it around the kitchen while in a low squat, since he is too tall to stand straight up under the stool. Can you believe he is too tall to fit under the stool?!
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| Sorry for the blurriness. The boy is on the move and not willing to stop for pictures! |
Apr 19, 2012
PJ Videos
Here are two fun videos of PJ. The first video is of PJ cruising with his little blue cart and then cruising along the wall following his momma's voice. The second video is of PJ throwing a ball, his newest skill. He likes to crawl to the ball, throw it and then chase it. Its the best game ever...well at least for now.
-K
Apr 18, 2012
Pushing the Cart
Today as we left Target, PJ preferred to be carried luggage style under momma's arm, while helping push the cart. He was thrilled to be helping.
Apr 17, 2012
Cuddly PJ
As PJ gets bigger you don't get to see this often but we were actually able to capture PJ cuddling.
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| Napping in Momma's lap |
Apr 16, 2012
11 Months
Last week PJ hit the 11 month mark of being part of the Younk-O-Fun family, he is getting big and showing new skills nearly everyday making it easy to believe this little man is going to be 1 year old soon. Time to start planning a birthday party!
This last month PJ went from kinda crawling and pulling himself up on everything to practically walking. He is not walking yet but he is doing everything else to prepare himself for some independent steps. PJ uses the wall, out legs, Cheyenne, toys, cabinets, vacuum, and anything else at/or near his level that will allow him to get from point A to point B. This past weekend he tried to take a step or two but he then lunges into your arms all smiles, very cute.
PJ is also spending a lot of time exploring beyond whats in front of him. He discovered that there is stuff behind the cabinet doors, that the doors to rooms can open and close seeing us and then not seeing us. He likes to put stuff in a cabinet, box, or small container and then take them back out, over and over again. His favorite spot in the kitchen is under the sink where we store all our water bottles and thermoses. He spends a lot of time taking them all out, putting on the lids, taking off the lids, and making the lids fit into each other. PJ is very calculating; he likes it when its a good fit and will keep trying until the fit is just right.
PJ has gotten 4 teeth since last month and we are pretty sure more are on their way. He eats really well when all is calm in his mouth, but when he is teething he eats less than a rabbit. He nibbles on everything so we know he likes what we are serving, but when he is teething only takes a few bites before being done. Daycare has also noticed that one week he is eating everything in sight and he is napping well. Then he will have rougher naps, need a bit more cuddles, and not be interested in eating much more than a bite or two of solid foods. We have decided this is what teething is all about, and will endure knowing the phase is here now but nothing lasts forever.
In this last month we have also noticed PJ become more vocal. He is saying all sorts of sounds with all sorts of volume ranges. He is giving us some great smiles and belly laughs. He will try different tones to see what gets our attention and what makes us smile. Other times he is playing with his toys, chatting away like he is telling himself the best story. Sometimes his stories are so good he will laugh and then chat some more. PJ has also noticed that when he says things to strangers they will look at him and maybe even talk to him. He loves trying to get the attention of the neighboring table at a restaurant or the people standing in the grocery line.
Clapping has also been added to PJ's repertoire of development skills. He started clapping at the same time as he started standing unassisted. He takes his hands in the air and then starts clapping so pleased with himself that he is standing all by himself. Unfortunately if you clap with him out of excitement of his new standing skills he loses his balances from all the happiness and plops back down on his bum. He has gotten a few "owies" this way, which are bound to happen but make the ladies at daycare feel quite bad. I have to sign an "owie" report every time it happens. Needless to say we are going to have a nice stack of reports before he turns 1.
Just as you think he that he is growing up too fast, we are reminded that PJ is still our little baby. He stills needs us in the middle of the night, several times a night. He even needed me to cuddle him for an hour because he needed to sleep and just couldn't do it alone. In fact it seems that the busier he gets and the more we let him explore; the more he comes back to us to cuddle and take it all in for a few moments before exploring some more. We are enjoying him discovering his independence, but we are trying to not rush anything.
This last month PJ went from kinda crawling and pulling himself up on everything to practically walking. He is not walking yet but he is doing everything else to prepare himself for some independent steps. PJ uses the wall, out legs, Cheyenne, toys, cabinets, vacuum, and anything else at/or near his level that will allow him to get from point A to point B. This past weekend he tried to take a step or two but he then lunges into your arms all smiles, very cute.
PJ is also spending a lot of time exploring beyond whats in front of him. He discovered that there is stuff behind the cabinet doors, that the doors to rooms can open and close seeing us and then not seeing us. He likes to put stuff in a cabinet, box, or small container and then take them back out, over and over again. His favorite spot in the kitchen is under the sink where we store all our water bottles and thermoses. He spends a lot of time taking them all out, putting on the lids, taking off the lids, and making the lids fit into each other. PJ is very calculating; he likes it when its a good fit and will keep trying until the fit is just right.
PJ has gotten 4 teeth since last month and we are pretty sure more are on their way. He eats really well when all is calm in his mouth, but when he is teething he eats less than a rabbit. He nibbles on everything so we know he likes what we are serving, but when he is teething only takes a few bites before being done. Daycare has also noticed that one week he is eating everything in sight and he is napping well. Then he will have rougher naps, need a bit more cuddles, and not be interested in eating much more than a bite or two of solid foods. We have decided this is what teething is all about, and will endure knowing the phase is here now but nothing lasts forever.
In this last month we have also noticed PJ become more vocal. He is saying all sorts of sounds with all sorts of volume ranges. He is giving us some great smiles and belly laughs. He will try different tones to see what gets our attention and what makes us smile. Other times he is playing with his toys, chatting away like he is telling himself the best story. Sometimes his stories are so good he will laugh and then chat some more. PJ has also noticed that when he says things to strangers they will look at him and maybe even talk to him. He loves trying to get the attention of the neighboring table at a restaurant or the people standing in the grocery line.
Clapping has also been added to PJ's repertoire of development skills. He started clapping at the same time as he started standing unassisted. He takes his hands in the air and then starts clapping so pleased with himself that he is standing all by himself. Unfortunately if you clap with him out of excitement of his new standing skills he loses his balances from all the happiness and plops back down on his bum. He has gotten a few "owies" this way, which are bound to happen but make the ladies at daycare feel quite bad. I have to sign an "owie" report every time it happens. Needless to say we are going to have a nice stack of reports before he turns 1.
Just as you think he that he is growing up too fast, we are reminded that PJ is still our little baby. He stills needs us in the middle of the night, several times a night. He even needed me to cuddle him for an hour because he needed to sleep and just couldn't do it alone. In fact it seems that the busier he gets and the more we let him explore; the more he comes back to us to cuddle and take it all in for a few moments before exploring some more. We are enjoying him discovering his independence, but we are trying to not rush anything.
Apr 15, 2012
Sunshine Hiatus
Sorry for the pause in blog service; we had to take a little break from the blog to enjoy the sunshine. At the beginning of the month the rain lightened and a few days where it actually stopped, but most recently its been clear skies and a whole lotta sun! Its April in Seattle which means most likely the sun is only on limited loan from California, so you have to go soak up all rays while it shows its beautiful self briefly. Turns out we may actually have nice weather for awhile so we are back to regular life which of course includes blogging.
We had a great week going for walks in the evening, planting flowers and vegetables, throwing the ball for the dog, yard work and hanging with friends outside. We took advantage of that bright orb and we are feeling momentarily Vitamin D saturated.
We had so much fun enjoying the sun we did not take any photos! Seriously the sun showing itself after 3 months of rain is truly the best thing ever!
-K
We had a great week going for walks in the evening, planting flowers and vegetables, throwing the ball for the dog, yard work and hanging with friends outside. We took advantage of that bright orb and we are feeling momentarily Vitamin D saturated.
We had so much fun enjoying the sun we did not take any photos! Seriously the sun showing itself after 3 months of rain is truly the best thing ever!
-K
Apr 12, 2012
R+K=LOVE
Today is our 4th wedding anniversary. Marriage is not always easy but celebrating an anniversary reminds me that we not only survived another year together but we enjoyed it! This last year was better than the year before, which was better than the year before that. I know I am more in love with my hubby today than yesterday and its been that way (with a few dips, if we are being honest) since the day we said our "I Dos". If I take the time, I can daily, if not hourly, be reminded of how much I love Ry. I am not wearing rose colored glasses; we do have our times of frustration and dispute, but happiness is truly abundant at the Younk-O-Fun house.
Thinking back to our perfect wedding day and the time leading up to that day made us also think about how we met and how the proposal went. I found our wedding website randomly while cleaning up bookmarks on the computer and the site was still live. Since the site will probably not be live forever, we thought it would be fun to copy over how we met and the proposal to this site. What better day to do it than on our anniversary.
The last 4 years have been an adventure! We have tackled big debt, hiked many trails, bought a real house, paddled some awesome NW waters, scrambled many mountains, said goodbye to our first pet, got baptized together, climbed and summitted Mt. Rainier, got our first puppy, improved our beautiful home inside and out and the grandest adventure of all is the new world of parenthood. PJ, your parents love each other!
Thanks for 4 great years Ry! I am enjoying nearly every step on this journey.
Thinking back to our perfect wedding day and the time leading up to that day made us also think about how we met and how the proposal went. I found our wedding website randomly while cleaning up bookmarks on the computer and the site was still live. Since the site will probably not be live forever, we thought it would be fun to copy over how we met and the proposal to this site. What better day to do it than on our anniversary.
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| Redhook patio in Woodinville, Wa |
How We Met - 4/27/2006
Ry and K met through a mutual friend, Doug*, at Redhook Brewery in Woodinville, WA.
K and Doug had planned for an after work get together with some friends. Ry was planning to tag along with Doug after the two went mountain biking at a trail near the brewery. When they arrived to the pub, K was sitting on the ground outside playing backgammon with a friend and didn't take much notice after brief introductions. With the whole group assembled they found a table inside, ordered food & drinks, and just hung out chatting. Several times K and Ry exchanged some looks but still nothing was said. She was on one side of the table and he was clear on the other side staying close to Doug. As some of the group departed, K and Ry finally got to chat a little. They learned they had similar interest in the outdoors and music, like The Refreshments. They swapped phone numbers at the end of that Thursday evening with tentative plans to see Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers in concert on Sunday...which is where the sparks flew!
*Ry knew Doug through mutual Boeing friends, they both like mountain biking, quoting movies like Anchorman and Dumb & Dumber, and being silly. K met Doug through Curt, a friend and classmate from Virginia Tech. K and Doug were friends because of their same interest in hiking and joking around.
K and Doug had planned for an after work get together with some friends. Ry was planning to tag along with Doug after the two went mountain biking at a trail near the brewery. When they arrived to the pub, K was sitting on the ground outside playing backgammon with a friend and didn't take much notice after brief introductions. With the whole group assembled they found a table inside, ordered food & drinks, and just hung out chatting. Several times K and Ry exchanged some looks but still nothing was said. She was on one side of the table and he was clear on the other side staying close to Doug. As some of the group departed, K and Ry finally got to chat a little. They learned they had similar interest in the outdoors and music, like The Refreshments. They swapped phone numbers at the end of that Thursday evening with tentative plans to see Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers in concert on Sunday...which is where the sparks flew!
*Ry knew Doug through mutual Boeing friends, they both like mountain biking, quoting movies like Anchorman and Dumb & Dumber, and being silly. K met Doug through Curt, a friend and classmate from Virginia Tech. K and Doug were friends because of their same interest in hiking and joking around.
Our First Date - 4/30/2006
K impatiently called Ry Saturday night because the
concert was on Sunday and Ry still hadn't called K. K
suggested the two do something outdoors during the day before going to
the concert. Ry suggested mountain biking at St. Edwards State Park
Sunday afternoon. Ry picked her up at her house in Redmond where they
loaded Ry's sexy 4Runner up with bikes and headed out.
At the park, the two hit the trails, but not for long. After about only ten minutes of riding they discovered that an earlier rainstorm had flooded out the trail he wanted to take her on. Since they didn't want the outing to end, they ditched the bikes back at the car and headed for Lake Washington on foot. It was a blessing in disguise because had they ridden all afternoon, they wouldn't have realized the potential the two had together. Instead, while hiking during the gorgeous spring afternoon, they shared their love of dogs, airplanes, hiking, etc. Once at the lake shore, they sat, chatting in the setting sunlight, neither wanting it to end. Before heading back uphill to the car Ry's mom made her regular Sunday phone call. She discovered the two were on the date Ry had told his mom he was excited about earlier that week. Things had gone so well, they decided to have dinner with one another before the concert so as not to leave the others company.
The concert at the Tractor Tavern in Ballard was stellar; Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers became the soundtrack for their new lives together. Although unspoken for a few months to follow, both ended the evening thinking "I have found the one."
At the park, the two hit the trails, but not for long. After about only ten minutes of riding they discovered that an earlier rainstorm had flooded out the trail he wanted to take her on. Since they didn't want the outing to end, they ditched the bikes back at the car and headed for Lake Washington on foot. It was a blessing in disguise because had they ridden all afternoon, they wouldn't have realized the potential the two had together. Instead, while hiking during the gorgeous spring afternoon, they shared their love of dogs, airplanes, hiking, etc. Once at the lake shore, they sat, chatting in the setting sunlight, neither wanting it to end. Before heading back uphill to the car Ry's mom made her regular Sunday phone call. She discovered the two were on the date Ry had told his mom he was excited about earlier that week. Things had gone so well, they decided to have dinner with one another before the concert so as not to leave the others company.
The concert at the Tractor Tavern in Ballard was stellar; Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers became the soundtrack for their new lives together. Although unspoken for a few months to follow, both ended the evening thinking "I have found the one."
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| Moments after the "big" question |
Our Engagement -12/26/2007
R&K: We were at K's parents' house in Lake Owassa, NJ
for our Christmas vacation. K's mom Celeste made a wonderful
Christmas dinner of lasagna, homemade meatballs, salad, and bread.
Dinner guests included Celeste, Ry's mom (Beryl), Ry's Sister Tania,
her husband Andrew, their two girls Camryn and Elsie, and longtime
Hammell family friends Edgar and Susan. We had wonderful food, amazing
company and a beautiful setting (the dining room looks out to the lake).
K: After dinner Ry wanted to go for a walk. We had been busy with family all day and hadn't been alone so a walk sounded nice. He wanted to go see the ice on the lake. We grabbed a flashlight and headed down to the gazebo. While I was watching my footing because the steps were icy,
R: Andrew turned the lights on so that the gazebo lit up just as K got down to the last step. We had found the lights in the house earlier that day and put them up around the gazebo while K and Celeste were out running errands.
K: I said "Wow, Mom decorated the gazebo, that's weird, she said she wasn't going to decorate for Christmas, I wonder why she did that." It looked beautiful. It was really cold down by the water so Ryan was holding me close. We walked into the gazebo.
R: I was planning to have Andrew light all the candles around the gazebo, but when we got to the gazebo none of them were lit and there was a box with candles in it. It was breezy and the best Andrew could do in the few minutes he had was to find a cardboard box and put some the candles in it - that way we'd at least have a few candles!
K: I looked into the box and saw all the candles and I said "That is not safe, what is going on?"...2 seconds later I saw the ring in the box with the candles and was shocked, Ryan took over the talking.
R: K started crying, so she couldn't say much, I asked her "would you be my wife" I got on one knee and proposed.
K: With Ry on one knee and my Mom cheering from the deck up at the house I said "Yes!" Although Ry will tell you later he never heard me say yes.
R&K: We opened the bottle of champagne Andrew had prepared and toasted Ry's proposal. We sat enjoying the champagne, shivering in the cold, tears running down Katie's face, both wearing huge smiles. We talked about how much we loved each other. Shortly after, excited about our good news, we went up to the house to share hugs with the family.
K: After dinner Ry wanted to go for a walk. We had been busy with family all day and hadn't been alone so a walk sounded nice. He wanted to go see the ice on the lake. We grabbed a flashlight and headed down to the gazebo. While I was watching my footing because the steps were icy,
R: Andrew turned the lights on so that the gazebo lit up just as K got down to the last step. We had found the lights in the house earlier that day and put them up around the gazebo while K and Celeste were out running errands.
K: I said "Wow, Mom decorated the gazebo, that's weird, she said she wasn't going to decorate for Christmas, I wonder why she did that." It looked beautiful. It was really cold down by the water so Ryan was holding me close. We walked into the gazebo.
R: I was planning to have Andrew light all the candles around the gazebo, but when we got to the gazebo none of them were lit and there was a box with candles in it. It was breezy and the best Andrew could do in the few minutes he had was to find a cardboard box and put some the candles in it - that way we'd at least have a few candles!
K: I looked into the box and saw all the candles and I said "That is not safe, what is going on?"...2 seconds later I saw the ring in the box with the candles and was shocked, Ryan took over the talking.
R: K started crying, so she couldn't say much, I asked her "would you be my wife" I got on one knee and proposed.
K: With Ry on one knee and my Mom cheering from the deck up at the house I said "Yes!" Although Ry will tell you later he never heard me say yes.
R&K: We opened the bottle of champagne Andrew had prepared and toasted Ry's proposal. We sat enjoying the champagne, shivering in the cold, tears running down Katie's face, both wearing huge smiles. We talked about how much we loved each other. Shortly after, excited about our good news, we went up to the house to share hugs with the family.
The last 4 years have been an adventure! We have tackled big debt, hiked many trails, bought a real house, paddled some awesome NW waters, scrambled many mountains, said goodbye to our first pet, got baptized together, climbed and summitted Mt. Rainier, got our first puppy, improved our beautiful home inside and out and the grandest adventure of all is the new world of parenthood. PJ, your parents love each other!
Thanks for 4 great years Ry! I am enjoying nearly every step on this journey.
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