Happy Thanksgiving

The feast is over and the leftovers have been eaten... overall it was a wonderful Thanksgiving with both sets of grandparents to shower attention on Tyler. I bet both Grandma's slept well last night after their dose. I wish I had a quarter of his energy.

As we finished dinner I asked Tyler what he was thankful for and his response was "pie, family, airplanes and jets" in that order. I'm glad he's got his priorities straight!

I think Ryan is a bit shell-shocked after the last couple of days. He had a rough day yesterday, but I'm crediting that with the chili I ate the night before. I think I'll stay away from chili for a while!

I think this picture is funny!

Tyler is still doing ok with Ryan although he made sure that Grandma knew there was always someone else to hold Ryan while she played with him. Poor Grandma hasn't had a minute to herself since she arrived on Wednesday.

Another Tyler Funny

On Wednesday the boys and I went out to lunch at Moe's Southwest Grill and it reminded me of something that one of Tyler's teachers shared with us about 6 months ago. Tyler attends a Christian Learning Center and they regularly read bible stories. On this particular day the teacher was reading a story about Moses. Mid-story Tyler raised his hand and informed the class that he liked cheese quesadillas at Moses! Oops!

First Bottle

We had a photo shoot today hoping for a good shot for the announcement. Here are a few of the best pictures. I can't believe how much he's changed already.

He's still a beautiful boy.

I can see Tyler in this picture.

Of course we had to take some pictures with big brother Tyler. This is the best one. Ty is a great big brother.

And finally, we had another first this week... the bottle. Daddy got to feed Ryan his first bottle, but Tyler had his chance today. Tyler was really careful and made sure that he held the bottle up so Ryan didn't get air. Great job Ty!

Ryan took really well to the bottle. I wanted to start him early so that I wouldn't have that worry when returning to work gets a little closer.

Ryan update & Tyler funny

Ryan had his two week check-up this morning. He weighed in at 8 pounds 14 ounces so he's gained 9 ounces since we left the hospital. So far so good! He's still a wonderful baby. He slept 4 hours straight and then a quick feed before another 3 hour stretch last night so I'm a happy mom today. I hope it wasn't a fluke.

I just took these pictures.

Here's a good hair shot.

Ok Mom, enough!

I hesitate to put this on the blog because it is somewhat X rated, but it still cracks me up so I've got to share. Two days ago I was changing Ryan's diaper with big brother Tyler watching. Mid-change Tyler points and says "Momma, he's got a turkey gobble"!! Now, what are you supposed to say to that!

Missing Reindeer!

Santa, we've got Rudolph!

Tyler and I were eating breakfast in the kitchen this morning when we spotted a deer in the side yard. Tyler was so excited. We don't get deer very often because our yard is contained with the stream on one side, the fence in the back and the busy road out front. This was an event!

The deer had antlers so Tyler decided it must be one of Santa's reindeer and was convinced he saw a red nose so it must have been Rudolph! Now we've got to go find Santa and tell him that Rudolph is lost. Hopefully he'll be found in time for Christmas!

Here are the boys! Aren't I lucky??

I couldn't decide which of these to put up, so here they all are!

Brothers

Here are some pictures from the last 24 hours. We're still doing well and keeping our fingers crossed that this continues!

Ryan loves his bouncy chair. Here he is just hanging out. Waiting for the next set of arms to take him away.

Tyler has had a great week. He's had a stream of visitors who have showered him with attention. This picture was taken just after our most recent visitors left.

Tyler is loving his big brother role.


And he's humoring his mommy better than Ryan.

These poor children... what they have to put up with!

Such good sports!

Ryan had his first real bath last night and it went well. The jury is still out on the hair.

So maybe I'm just avoiding admitting that Ryan has crazy hair like his brother. He's got quite the widows peak in the front and it sticks up in the back... it might be crazier than Tyler's. But, he's adorable!

Ryan Update

Ryan has been home for a three days now and so far all is well. He's such a peaceful, cuddly baby. I had heard of babies like this, but I didn't really believe that they existed. I hope this isn't just a honeymoon period.

Ryan has very basic needs. As long as he's fed, clothed and warm, he's a happy guy. I'd estimate he sleeps 20 to 22 hours each day. He woke up 4 times each of the first two nights and only twice last night. Woo Hoo! He eats quickly and goes right back down without a fuss. And, I don't have to wait until he falls asleep in my arms, sneak to the crib and lay him down ever so gently. I plunk him down with eyes wide open and leave. I can't complain.

Here he is hanging out on the super pillow, cozy in the blanket made by Aunt Sara.

This is what he looks like most of the time although he's usually in someone's arms. How did I get so lucky!


Tyler loves holding Ryan and giving him kisses on the forehead. So far Ty is doing well, but he's had lots of attention over the last coupe of days. We'll see what happens last week when things slow down. I think it is going to be really interesting watching these two together. Tyler is very active and dramatic while Ryan is very laid back. Ryan already looks at Ty with this expression that says "he's nuts." I think I've got the best of both worlds.

Welcome Baby Ryan!

Ryan Nelson DeKruger joined our family at 10:28am on Friday, November 7, 2008. He's 21 inches long and weighed in at 8 pounds, 11 ounces... maybe... I was advised yesterday that the birth weight scale was off the previous day by as much as a pound. 24 hours after he was born he weighed 8 pounds 10.5 ounces so we don't think his weight was off by too much, but we'll never know. He's a healthy, beautiful baby boy and that's all that matters.

Here's Daddy introducing Tyler and Ryan. We're still not sure what Tyler thinks. Ryan just came home a couple of hours ago and Tyler is very curious.

Here is the obligatory (horrible) hospital picture!

We're not sure yet whose hair Ryan has. So far my vote is Dan's because I think it is wavy on the sides, but we'll report back on that after his first real bath.


Here he is in the hat that Tyler made (with Daddy's help) during his sibling tour at the hospital.

This one was taken last night at the hospital. So far he's a content baby. Lets hope he stays that way!

This might be our announcement picture. Isn't he gorgeous??

All About Tyler

I thought I'd share some random pics from the last few months.

Here's one of Tyler and Dad on the hay ride at Pumpkinville. Tyler loves rides behind a tractor. It wasn't a John Deere, but he got over that.

This one cracks me up. Tyler was told to stay in the kitchen until he finished the sandwich he requested. Here's the result! He was asleep for about an hour. Too funny!

This is adorable! Here's Ty and his cousin at the NAS Oceana Air Show in September. They had a ball together as you can tell from this pic. Glow sticks and cousins... what could be better!

Here's our little mechanic. I love it when he tells me one of his trucks, cars, bikes, etc. is "Spittin' Oil"! He's definitely his father's son.

Here's Ty riding a pony at the day care open house. It took him about an hour to decide he'd go for it, but only on the small pony.

This picture is especially important. Most of you probably know that we spent a fortune on a swing set last summer and Tyler refused to play on it, especially the slide. This summer he's finally going down slides. This one was at Letchworth Park over Columbus Day weekend. It was a huge slide, but he wanted to do it anyway. Go Tyler!

Here's Ty and Dad getting a ride in the pace car at the Speedway over Labor Day weekend. It is amazing what a cute kid can get. I was talking to a couple of people when I saw Dan running full speed with Tyler in his arms. I thought there was a potty incident! Luckily someone filled me in on what was happening.

Whoops! These pictures sure are out of order. Here's Tyler back in Pumpkinville getting a ride on the cow train. How neat is this!