Niagara Falls

Yesterday we spent the day at Niagara Falls. It was so much fun. We decided to see the falls from the Canadian side. I felt like I was being interrogated going into Canada. They asked us where we rented the car and why we were in New York. I thought it was difficult getting into Canada, talk about difficult getting back into the United States. They wondered if we bought any souvenirs at the falls. We just said we bought cookies and they let us on our merry way back to Rochester. Ryan was so funny, all he wanted to do was stand on the ledge and look at the falls. Literally, that is all he wanted to do. We went on the Maid of the Mist, which is a boat tour that takes you close to the falls. We got so wet, and had a ball. Ryan didn't love it when the water was misting at us, but he didn't mind the boat ride too much. We also got some great pictures of him with his cute little poncho on. We went to Hard Rock Cafe for dinner yesterday. Wow, it is so much more expensive than here. But, Ryan was head banging to all of the music. It was hysterical. All of the people just wanted to watch him. A new song would come on and Ryan would start dancing. I'll try to upload a video, but I don't know if it will work. The drive back was lovely, Ryan screamed pretty much the whole way. Thank goodness it is only just over an hour of a drive, or I think we would have all gone mad!

Tonight is date night for me & Eric. I'm so excited!!!!!

Funny Story!

Yes we are still on vacation, and loving it! We went to Niagara Falls yesterday and had lots of fun. I'll post more on that later. I just wanted to tell a quick story.

Today we were in Haley's van, while she was showing us some sights, and all 3 boys were in the back. Jacob was inbetween Ryan and Trevor. We went to Panera and got some bagels and Eric was giving Ryan some chunks that he would eat. Well, Ryan decided he was done, so he threw his bagel piece (half eaten) on the floor of the van. A little while later Jacob was saying "Mom, Ryan's making me sick." We looked at each other and Jacob was saying that the piece of bread Ryan threw on the floor was making him sick. I didn't think anything of it, until Jacob started heaving. What?!? It really was making him sick. He threw up a little. Apparently little Jacob has a huge gag reflex. We were just laughing and laughing (not at Jacob, but to ourselves). It was hysterically funny! Especially to see the look on Ryans face, he had no idea what was going on.

Washington DC

We took this picture of Nate & Rachels kids and just died laughing. Especially Isaac...what???


So, the next stop on our trip was Washington DC. Eric had never been there before, and we had a great time. We tried, initially, to get to DC by following the GPS we have in the car. Well, it was going to take us forever to get there. We figured out that it was going to have us take the back roads, instead of the freeway. After a 30 minute detour we found the freeway and it was smooth sailing into DC. We only had 4 1/2 hours in the city, so we spent it at the mall. We walked so much and the humidity was killer, but we had lots of fun. We brought Ryans ball from Sesame Place and every hour or so we would stop and pull him out of the stroller and let him play with the ball.

We left Philadelphia yesterday to come back to Rochester. Ryan did alright in the car. He slept for a couple hours but screamed for the last 30 minutes. I can't blame him. He has been in the car so much, and has been such a trooper. Haley and I went to Wal Mart last night and Ryan just sat and chatted with us in the car. He has been so good. The bad part is Eric woke up not feeling well yesterday, and as the day went on he got worse and worse. Eric is feeling better today, but still has a sore throat. Hopefully this will all pass before we go home on Saturday.

Today the plan is to go to Niagara Falls. I'm so excited!!!

Sesame Place

Yesterday we drove from Rochester into Philadelphia to visit with Eric's brother Nate and his family. It was a long drive in the car, but Ryan did tremendously. We are having so much fun here. Yesterday we had a great time just resting. We spent yesterday evening in Valley Forge. It was fun to spend some time walking around there. Its amazing how much history there is here. I loved this picture. Its a monument in Valley Forge, and Ryan is standing in front of it. Just a tiny little man in front of a huge monument.

Today we got up early and drove to Sesame Place. Ryan killed me. He had a great time. It was so hot and sunny but we kept the sunscreen on and tried to cool off. We ended up going into a souvenir shop to find a cup for Ryan and ended up with a ball. That is all he wanted. He won't let it go. He held it like a stuffed animal and we love it. It's a Cookie Monster ball and seriously just loves loves loves it. They had a parade and Ryan sat on my lap the whole time and watched the characters walk down the street. We were also able to take him on a bunch of rides. I don't know exactly how he felt about it, but we took him on them anyway.

Yeah, Eric & I are having fun too!!

New York

We made it! After waking up at 2:45 am, having 2 connecting flights and over 8 hours later we made it to Rochester. We are having so much fun here. It is so much fun to see Haley & Wayne and Ryan LOVES playing with his cousins. Jacob was pushing him in this car so fast we thought it was going to fall over, but Ryan just laughed and laughed.

We love having him so entertained and not having to be the entertainee! Today, we went to Palmyra and had a great day.

We drove to the Hill Cumorah and walked up to the monument (yes, I carried the Kelty). We then got some yummy yummy pizza for lunch and then headed to the Smith Farm where we walked through the home of Joseph Smith and also through the Sacred Grove. What a great experience that was. It was a very serene feeling and it was great sharing it with Eric. Last time I came, I was by myself and I love having Eric with me. Here are some fun pics of the trip so far. Tomorrow we will be driving into Philadelphia to see Nate & Rachel. We can't wait.

Ryan loved the moving walkway in the airport. He just wanted to walk up & down it. At least it kept him occupied for a little while.

This is Ryan throwing a fit in the airport. We had to take a picture!

Walking through the Sacred Grove.

We've had so much fun today!!!

All about Ryan!

I was tagged by my friend Leigh to share 5 things about my little boy, Ryan.

1. He has a mature pallet for a 1 year old. He prefers a full blown meal (i.e. chicken with veggies and a starch) over mac & cheese or spaghettios. He will eat anything, and pretty much likes everything. But he does prefer the meals that a lot of TLC goes into.



2. He loves his cousin Nikki. She really does love him, but shows it by pushing or stealing toys. But, when her mother, Kara, punishes her Ryan gets really mad. He does not want to see Nikki upset.



3. He loves food. I know this kind of goes with #1, but I continue. If he is playing and sees a little child with food, he will go over to them and try to take it. He doesn't need to know them, all he needs to know is they have food. If he sees and adult with a plate of food, he goes over to them like a seagull and waits for them to feed him.



4. Ryan was born 4 1/2 weeks early and was in the NICU for 3 days before we could bring him home. He weighed 6 lbs 6 oz and was early. He would have been a big kid if he went full term. And when Ryan was only 4 weeks old we ended up at Primary Childrens Hospital via ambulance because Ryan had RSV. We were there for 3 days also, and were released on his actual due date.


5. It sounds like he speaks German. He is in the babbling phase right now and you would swear sometimes he was speaking in German. When my niece was babbling it sounded like she spoke Chinese. Ryan is certainly manly with his strong German accent!



There are probably so many other things, but I really can't think of them right now. All in all I think I have one heck of a kid!

What a week!!

Oh, how I miss that happy smiling face!

I know that I have not posted for a while. Sorry! I have not been in the blogging mood. This past week, especially. Ryan has been sick this week. I think he has the Rotavirus. Yuck Yuck Yuck. I have been thrown up on so many times I can't even tell you. I have been woken up in the middle of the night many many times and have cleaned up poopy diapers like there is no tomorrow. I am hoping we will be done soon, but I don't want to hold out for anything. On top of the virus, he is also teething. So, we are just killing 2 birds with 1 stone this week and we are sorely paying for it. I want my happy smily baby back. Sorry to vent, but I am so done with him being sick.

So, what's been going on? I found out my sister, Kara, is expecting her second baby. Eric got selected to run in the St. George Marathon in October. We are going to go to Sesame Place in Philadelphia when we visit Erics brother in a couple weeks...vacation!!! Kara, her friend Ashley, and I went walking at the park and let the kids play.
I think Ryan liked the bark more than the toys at the playground. He also loved Ashleys little boy, Hunter. I am sure lots of things are happening, but I just can't even think at the moment. Hopefully the next post will be all fun and games like usual.