Twilight Series

Hey, just finished reading the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyers. It's totally aimed at young adults but I really enjoyed the series as it featured vampires, werewolves, romance, action, and thrills. Now, I can't wait for the movie to come out in November. I will be going to see this one even though we haven't done a movie since having little ones. (Anchor Man was the last flick we saw in the theater.)

Anyway, If you haven't had a good read...check out this series. I am also a big fan of the Stephanie Plum novels by Janet Evanovich. The books crack me up. I'm finding some similar parallels between the protaganists too and would be interested in discussing them with anyone who has read them.

That's all...See you soon.

Play Date and Birthday Celebrations!

We celebrated my moms birthday on Friday at the Hunt Club. A fun time was had by all. Food was good, games were fun, and visiting with family is my favorite pasttime.

On Saturday, it was hot! A good thing for the kids at the playdate that we went to at my friend Lisa's house. (Thanks Lisa!) She set up a really cool waterslide and the kids couldn't get enough even though it was powered by freezing cold hose water. Ryan was hesitant at first--shy, and wanting mom to show him the way. After just a few minutes of viewing the fun and he gave it a whirl. The boy never stopped running back for more. Hours of fun!

We celebrated with Ryan's friend Kahlen on Sunday. Nice party. Nice company. Ryan can't wait to go back down as he has no experience with My Pretty Pony and/or Care Bears. He wants to check out all the hype!

Notice Life Today: Tyler did alot of standing in place this weekend. He is getting in practice to take his first step. He also practiced coming down the stairs yesterday and is getting pretty good. (Not enough to remove gates, however.) He ate a whole container of peaches too! The little gagger is getting a taste for solids.

P.S. I know you're getting tired of hearing about poopy stories. If so, stop reading now. I just have to document this experience. Ryan had some success again on the potty last night. yeah. He says he will try again after school. Even Jim is about fed up with Ryan's lack of cooperation. We had a family meeting yesterday and described to Ryan that there will be no more fun and games until he is trained. This is a really scarry threat as it takes away fun for the whole family, but it is time. (Friday just about did me in...there are only so many diapers you can change.)Cross your fingers.

Wednesday Warning!

It's Wednesday morning and I am already feeling anxious about how little Ryan will react to Daddy's first Wednesday back to bowling. First off, we all know how Ryan adores bowling and he will be begging to go. However, we are scheduled to wake up at 4:00 a.m. and I don't know how a trip to a smokey alley will fit into the schedule. He is so used to playing with daddy right up until bedtime (when mommy is already asleep), I'm sure he will be bored to death tonight. I need to come up with a plan b/c if I don't keep 'em occupied, the evening is sure to be filled with screaming and yelling by the 3 Ladd's left at home.

Here's a happy thought and a picture of Ryan at a picnic we attended recently for the UAW. It was fun.

Notice Life Today: Tyler is refusing to drink milk. He turned 1-year which is the recommended time to stop formula and transition to milk. He has been giving Miss Char a hard time and refuses to drink. She says he even gets tears in his eyes when she offers it to him. He is doing a little better with solid foods and seems to enjoy pasta the best!

Fan Day!

We spent the day in Ann Arbor yesterday for Fan Day. The cousins had a lot of fun running around the field and playing football with my brother Rick. It was a near perfect day. Even Tyler enjoyed the atmosphere and he crawled for miles and has black knees and rash to show for it. I'm sure he would say it was worth it as he seemed to have a good time. Ryan didn't want to leave. He still wanted to run around and find someone to tackle. Jim stood in line for 45 minutes and never got an autograph. The lines were packed with fans.

Notice Life Today: We're still having struggles with Ryan and his poopy pants. He had some success before the UofM visit in Aunt Amanda's cool toilet. Last night he was given two choices...to get some poopy in the toilet or to go straight to bed with no stories. He made the choice to go to bed. Surprisingly, there was no fanfare. No screaming, no yelling and a surprised mom and dad who expected a tantrum. The real significance of this is the fact that he never goes to bed alone. One of us always lays down with him. About an hour later, he came downstairs and had some success in the potty and was sent back to bed. I don't know if the evening was harder on Ryan or his parents but it is time for some tough love.

Boating Fun!

We had some fun last week on the boat with some friends. Ryan was all geeked up about jumping off the boat and trying his hand at skiing. His friend has been going on water adventures all summer and Ryan thought he would like to try. Wrong! Once we were on the water, he made an attempt to the back of the boat and even listened to instructions while holding the rope...but he got scared. Then, he didn't even want to get into the water. Oh well, I can hardly blame him but I was really hoping he would give it a shot. We'll try again soon. Meanwhile, check out our brave neighbors going full speed:)

Notice Life Today: Tyler is balancing on his own while he stands but he's still not walking.

Tyler turns one!

We celebrated Tyler's first birthday on Sunday. Jim transferrred 2 truckloads of supplies and Ryan helped me decorate our park's pavilion and set up for the event. Soon after, nearly 30 family members and friends helped us celebrate in the chill. We made the most of the day by eating hotdogs, decorating cupcakes, eating frosting, playing on the playground, and throwing horseshoes. Fun. The concert of Happy Birthday to Tyler was a bit overwhelming and baby boy cried:( It was pretty cold though and the babies at the event had enough!! Tyler refused to eat cake which was no surprise because he didn't start eating anything solid until July 1st and we're just getting the hang of textures. He liked the ice cream though.

Both boys missed their naps and night night time came early. Ryan had a little meltdown because he was so tired and he begged for a nap after mommy read him a coupld of stories. He was down for the entire night. (Thank goodness b/c 4:00 a.m. comes awfully early on Monday mornings.)

Notice Life Today: While holding Tyler at the party, I noticed that he has two more bottom teeth poking through. That makes 6. Four on bottom, two on top. It makes his crooked smile even cuter.

One year comparison

Here are my guys, both at 12 months. We're looking forward to a first birthday party this weekend. Ryan is geeked.

Silly Sunglasses

Here's a picture of the boys having fun with some silly glasses they got at their cousins birthday party...

It's good to see them smiling together because all too often one is poking at the other and somebody is upset. We all have a stubborn streak.

Notice Life Today: On the way to school today, Ryan had a sheet of stickers that he wanted to share with friends. He was quietly counting in the back seat and made a real attempt at counting to 100. There were some missing numbers, but a valiant effort. Last night, he wanted to sit with Daddy (whom he refers to as Jimmy) and watch the Weather Channel. He was fascinated with the idea of rain and thunderstorms yesterday.