Our lives…captured one picture at a time.
Single-handedly, I might add. So this is what the pioneers must have felt like…crossing the planes :)
In the play, Tom Sawyer’s aunt sings him this song and I couldn’t help but cuddle Tanner in my lap. Afterwards, he told me, “You know hen I tell you, ‘I hate you’ when I’m mad. Well…I don’t really mean it. I’ll ALWAYS love you mom!”
I used to think I would a good parent. I mean, come on, just have a conversation with Tanner and Brooke. As as my brother Lance put it, “We’re pooping out GOLD out here” in terms of the cuteness!
And then I had Rylee. So I just want to go on the record for saying that I LOVE LOVE LOVE Rylee to death.
But…if I don’t have any more kids…she may or may not be the reason why!
Playing at the water table one second, and then another she’s eating the dirt from my tomato plant. The aftermath… 
Set her down on the beach (or as close to a beach as you’re going to find in Kansas) and then, almost instinctively, grabs fistfuls of sand headed straight for her mouth.
Inside, she’s constantly making a mad dash for the stairs. And when you chase after her, it only makes her go faster, or try to stand up.
I’ve been successful at keeping Brooke and Tanner from falling down stairs without gates…we can only hope Rylee will have the same fate. Because there’s no way to build a gate on my stairs that my other small children can operate…
And let’s not mention her obsession with bathrooms…in all the nastiness of ways. It all started one day when she discovered the water in the toilet bowl for starters, and not longer after, the plunger and toilet bowl brush. And even better, toilet paper dunked in the toilet bowl water, and tasting it, all for good measure!
She’s also a horrible nurser for many painful reasons, none of which I’ll mention here. She’d be long gone nursing if I could only get her to take a bottle. But of course, that would be too easy. She wants nothing to do with a bottle…or formula…just her mama!
Thankfully, still no teeth, but that doesn’t keep her from eating all the foods she’d like, thanks to her super aggressive iron-fisted jaw that makes chomping down a breeze.
Small obsession with grapes and blueberries. It’s kind of obvious when you go to change her diaper ;)
And she goes crazy for spaghetti…in more ways than one! 
And if her looks don’t already give it away, here’s more proof that she’s definitely Anthony’s daughter!
Seriously, she looks just like her daddy, even when they’re not both covered with spaghetti!
Okay, back to the sorry, and all of Rylee’s craziness.
She’s also a noisy one. She’ll babble and makes sounds like ba-ba, da-da, and ma-ma all the time, as well as just a random scream here and there for good measure. And there’s lots of interpreters around here that turn those sounds into words for her.
This girls loves to be heard! I’ll always remember the time she was “signing” in relief society at church. And all eyes turned around to see as she was the loudest one in the bunch. She loves to “sing”!
And she’s also been known to blubber and blow strawberries for entire length of car trips…30+ minutes plus…I kid you not!
And sleeping, that’s another joke! I’m pretty sure we’ve spent more time rocking and cuddling Rylee to sleep more than Tanner and Brooke combined. She MAYBE sleeps for 30 min nap in the morning, and maybe an hour in the afternoon. Pretty sure she thinks she’s an only child.
And now that she can climb up and stand in her Pack N Play, she NEVER falls asleep on her own. Like I said. Spoiled!
In the morning, she wakes up in our bed, without fail. She’s WIDE awake and ready to go. She’s super playful and I’d use the word cute if it wasn’t so early each morning. She also seems to think my belly button is my ON button…and pushes is ALL the time!
I keep trying to tell myself that one day I’m going to miss this. And it’s true, one day I’m sure I’ll miss having a little baby to hold and rock and cuddle to sleep. But it’s not today :)
But do not be mistaken, I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE her.
Just when I think she’s done nursing…done sleeping in my bed…FOR GOOD…I cave. Every single time. Her dad does too. Cause there’s just so much cuteness contained in 21 pounds.
Maybe it’s the way she always stares at my face and waits for my reaction
Or the way she gently caresses my skin as she’s falling asleep in my arms
Or how she’d rather be in my arms than any other place in the world.
Or how she’s always ready to laugh and smile. It’s addictive…I LIVE FOR THESE LAUGHS!!!
And come on, who else can have this much fun eating PEAS!?!
Cause has more energy and determination than any kid I’ve ever seen…and as she gets older…I hope that never changes!
Just after she turned 8 months, she SUCCESSFULLY pulled herself up on the couch! - June 8th
And then she just took off walking around furniture and everything else she could. And less than 10 days later, she got herself up and let go! She stood up FOREVER – long enough for me to even take a pic :) – June 17th
And just a few weeks later, crawling up the stairs! With Brooke as her cheerleader, she made it all the way to the top! - June 27th
And we caught the very tail end on camera…
There’s been far too many close encounters, but so far, all attempts have been successful. Let’s just keep it that way.
And then there’s the time she fell off our bed…which seems to be the unfortunate fate of the poor third child.
She keeps me busy, pretty much 24/7! She’s super cute and super fun, always laughing and up for a good time.
She also likes to splash in water, just enough to reek havoc wherever she may go. Toilets – see above. Showers – she finds totally exhilarating and even sticks her head in for good measure. Pools – it depends. If she’s totally submersed in a pool, she’s not happy. She really loves the stairs and looks for ways to bolt out of the pool and splash in the water puddles. But take a zero entry pool or beach and she’ll never want to leave.
Her squeaks, her love of food, yes, even broccoli!
Beep! Beep! Who wants to go for a ride?!?
“And YES, I would like some more!”
And she’s the happiest with Brooke by her side…even if Brooke is trying to dress her up or do other crazy things. That’s what sisters are for…right!
And Brooke can get her laughing hysterically and she knows it. In the car, Brooke will start singing “Mr. Froggy” and after one RIBBIT, Rylee has about peed her pants laughing so hard.
She’s still a bit obsessed with swings.
And thinks these door stoppers are the coolest!
And she never sits still…
And greets people by trying to EAT them.
Yep, that’s our Rylee. And there ain’t no mountain (or stairs!) high enough that will keep my from loving her!!!
