Life with the Ryans

what a ham!

2010-08-03T14:25:00.000-04:00

on a hot day...

2010-07-09T16:29:00.000-04:00

we like to eat watermelon. more recently, it has also been on rainy days because I am pretty sure it just rained for 11 days straight. And to top it all off, hurricane season JUST started.

these boots are Kennedy's newest obsession. she sleeps in these boots and takes naps in them. she has also been known to wear only her pull up and her boots.

baby colton

2010-06-03T14:25:00.000-04:00

meet colton thomas ranew. he is my cousin Michelle's (where Amber Michelle came from) grandson, which makes my mom his great aunt, or as she prefers, GG. ;-) Isn't he a little cutie?

this is ashley, colton's momma. her and her husband, asa, recently moved to Melbourne,FL,so we were taking advantage of seeing them. kennedy loved ashley (and colton)

here is GG, colton and Michelle (new grandma) ;-)

can you tell Kennedy was smitten with colton?

until he had a poopie diaper, that is!

being the rare occasion that it was, everyone came over to visit with the jones/ranew clan before they headed back over to the coast. marci's mom, arlene, has been here visiting so she also got to meet little mr colton. (and yes, rebekah loved colton too) ;-)

Wordless Wednesday...

2010-06-02T22:16:00.000-04:00

and the search continues...

2010-04-30T13:14:00.000-04:00

i am sad to report that we are once again looking for a preschool for Kennedy. this past tuesday when i picked her up i witnessed her teacher jerking two little girls around by the arm. when i asked the other staff members if that was a usual occurrence, they asked which kids she was rough handling. needless to say, i didn't like their answer. i kept her out of school yesterday because i was still mulling it all over in my head. i came to the conclusion that i cannot in good conscious send her back knowing there is a possibility of her being jerked around. i do not handle her that way and i will be damned if someone else is going to. so until we find something else, it is The Ryan House of Learning... ;-)

st patty's and spring training...

2010-04-16T14:06:00.001-04:00

we headed down to ft myers this year to watch the red sox play the mets. it happened to be st. patrick's day, so that just sweetened the deal! the morning started off rainy and cold, but turned around really quickly in true Florida fashion. ;-)

kennedy did not go to the game with us this time. instead, she stayed home with aunt marci. we took advantage of a family photo opportunity before we left the house.

pap-pap-papelbon... jonathan papelbon that is.

mom and dad overlooking the right field wall. i think next year we will go for the left field wall so we can watch the red sox pitchers warm up. don't get me wrong, it was cool to see the mets players getting ready, but not near as exciting as it would have been if were matsusaka or papelbon.

i had to take a picture of this guy warming up! LOL

i am currently on the search for an outfit like this for thomas to wear next st. patrick's day. he swears he will wear it so we shall see. (i am also going to get him some john daly look alike clothes from loudmouth... pics to follow. ;-) )

just a trim.

2010-04-16T13:36:00.000-04:00

kennedy went for her first hair cut back in march. we went to the best of the best: my mom. she sat there like a little lady and didn't make a peep. when they were done, kennedy told my mom "it is buuutiful, gaga".

"you go home now"

2010-04-13T09:39:00.000-04:00

Kennedy started preschool today...

to say she was excited would be an understatement. She has been practicing taking her Dora backpack on and off for about a week, and when this morning came and it was time to put all her hard work to use, she did great. When we got her in the classroom and settled, she said "bye momma, bye daddy, you go home now".

Walking into preschool with Daddy. (I was busy taking pictures!!!) ;-)

back at it again...

2010-04-06T23:15:00.000-04:00

i have been gone for far too long and it is time to update everyone on our lives. things have been hectic with school and thomas is starting a wind program this month so that is going to keep all of us on our toes.

this is tristan and kennedy. they had been running around for about an hour straight and we finally got them settled enough to take a picture...

this is thomas walking in the door on his birthday and his brother tim had flown in to surprise him... his face was priceless!

thomas, kennedy and tim

we went down to chalo nitka this year and stayed on the river with judy and vern. judy bought all the grandkids planters and let them plant all sorts of herbs and spices... needless to say, it was a hit.

we all went to englewood to visit thomas' parents while tim was back down visiting again and I got a great shot of the three of them.

this is kennedy in her easter dress which she all but refused to smile in. it was understandable given the fact that she had a double ear infection and the beginnings of the stomach bug.

we waited until the sun went down a bit to do our easter egg hunt... k and rebekah had a blast.

still no smile, but the best face shot i got!

ma'am and sir

2010-01-28T11:31:00.001-05:00

kennedy is very busy learning when to say ma'am and sir. for right now, she uses both. for example:

K: momma, i need juice please ma'am.

Me: o.k., kennedy... here is your juice.

K: thank you ma'am sir.

or

Me: Kennedy, are you hungry?

K: Yes please ma'am sir.

it is hilarious watching and listening to her try and figure out which one to use. as i write this she is sticking her head into the bowl of dog food taking in mouthfuls. i know some say that this is appropriate behavior and just laugh... i could not disagree more! it is disgusting and should not be tolerated! (no matter how much you pay for dog food).

k is also now able to sing her ABC's in english and spanish, count to 13 in english and 8 in spanish. ;-)

catching up on christmas...

2010-01-24T23:55:00.000-05:00

my ONLY excuse for not blogging is that statistics is taking up too much of my time. there is a RIDICULOUS amount of work that has to be done, but whatever it takes, right? we had a good christmas here in good 'ole south florida. kennedy was a blast to watch open and enjoy everything from santa.

this is the inside of a HUGE dora house that connects to another tent through a tunnel. this now accommodates the ENTIRE back porch, but k loves it. ;-)

this is kennedy's first potty. she calls it her froggy potty and is really getting the hang of this whole potty business.

might as well try it out! ;-)

opening the nativity from nana and papa. (no, she didn't pee in the froggy potty that is still in the living room!)

sitting at her new table playing on the computer. now she can work right along side me!

trying to decide which present to open next

all worn out and cuddled up with bruce and elizabeth ready for a nap

ready for round two!

i'm confused...

2010-01-09T21:21:00.000-05:00

we are under a:

wind chill warning
freeze watch
hard freeze warning
wind chill advisory
fire weather warning.

i am confused at what mother nature is thinking. does she think we floridians are equipped to handle such utter nonsense? i mean all you can buy in the stores right now is bathing suits and flip flops b/c as far as we are concerned, summer is just around the corner. we broke down and went to the storage sheds in order to retrieve some hats and jackets and sweats in order to better facilitate the new england-like january we are experiencing.

dear god,

please bring back mr sun.

your friend,

amber

the fashion police...

2010-01-05T20:17:00.000-05:00

kennedy has turned into my little fashion statement! not only is her style cracking me up on a regular basis, but now she has decided that her pull-ups are better for her head than her bottom.

the funny thing about this is that i used to be in a church group and we called ourselves the "diaperheads"

reading with grammie and sporting an elegant winter hat. (you will notice it is custom made for humid florida nights) ;-)

watching the train go around and around and around. i hate to admit it, but i was REAL happy when the presents starting going under the tree because then the train "broke". ;-) kennedy kept telling me "i get batteries, i get batteries" - thank god she finally gave up!

k was walking teddy, which is grammie and grampie's dog. he is really little but still managed to pull kennedy down. never fear, though, daddy was right there to brush her off and start all over again. ;-)

after all that running, k let the kids pull her around in the wagon.

bekah, kalei and kennedy chillin' in the wagon.

chase knocked his head and we wrapped it in thomas' knee sling. it was too funny not to take a picture!

and here is the queen, all by herself. ;-)

catching up...

2010-01-03T14:42:00.000-05:00

two weeks before christmas, thomas' parents came down visit. we ate and shopped and ate and went a parade and ate and watched football and ate. did i mention we ate? ;-) linda brought some homemade lasagna and let me tell you it was GOOD! we had a good visit to say the least.

here is kennedy feeding teddy from the table. needless to say, they were immediate bff's.

this is most of us lined up in our seats waiting on the parade to start. mom said we needed to be there really early, but i think next year we will wait it out a bit.

kennedy had one of the best seats in the house on top of uncle robbie's shoulders

patiently waiting for the parade to start. you will notice she is clutching her mickey mouse puzzle that she got from santa... or should i say stole from santa because she refused to have anything to do with him. ;-)

the dishwasher remains one of her favorite places to sit in the kitchen ;-)

family traditions...

2009-12-05T13:30:00.000-05:00

last year when we were in ohio we talked about doing a gingerbread house every year with kennedy. of course last year she was too young, but this year was a whole new story. ;-)

nana and the girls trying to put the chimney back on.

the finished product!

here is to many more years of house making!

Turkey day!

2009-12-01T11:44:00.000-05:00

we had our annual photo shoot on thanksgiving. this year we all wore white shirts with denim. i have decided this is a great tradition, seeing as though any other time of year, family pictures don't seem too important.

buck and robbie

marci, rebekah and robbie

thomas, me and kennedy

this picture was one of the best ones of just us. kennedy was not exactly cooperative so we had to settle.

thomas' mom came and stayed with us for thanksgiving. this was her first time meeting my family and i think it all went down without a hitch.

robbie and bekah

mom and dad with lily bean and sport

buck and earlene with mitchell, gavin, kalei, kenzie and chase

me with robbie and buck. i had already changed out of the HOT white shirt I was in. ;-(

and alas, the family photo. ;-)

a little bit of this and a little bit of that

2009-11-21T14:37:00.001-05:00

in what started as an attempt at getting 2 year pictures, i have come to conclusion that i need to accept the fact that i am never going to "always get a good shot". Uncooperative is not even the word when it comes to trying to get kennedy to stand still for five seconds, let alone smile. as a result, i am going with the excuse that even though she may not be smiling (mother) it is still a good picture. ;-)

things around the house are about the same. next week is my last week of classes for this quarter so to say i am looking forward to the break would be an understatement. i added a specialization to my master's degree; forensic counseling. it was really a no-brainer... two extra classes and i add a specialization... needless to say, i signed the forms pretty quickly! ;-)

and alas, a smile-- even if she was not looking at the camera. ;-)

trying to get a good picture for christmas...

2009-11-11T16:04:00.000-05:00

Happy Birthday Kennedy!

2009-11-05T13:22:00.000-05:00

we celebrated and partied it up on kennedy's birthday. we had a slew of family and friends come to town to help us get down. somehow, i managed to not get a very good shot of K on her big day. i am blaming the stress of leaving for minnesota! ;-)

this is ethan rockin' away and a great shot of ada and megan

this is megan and kennedy dancing and playing with the bubbles. i think of all the miscellaneous

stuff i bought, the bubble machine was by-far the best!

kennedy and megan sharing some yummy bacon early in the morning. these two were like peas and carrots!

aunt marci and uncle robbie giving k lots of sugar...

this shot turned out really good. megan is turning two on the 15th of this month and i am going

to blow this up and give it to ada.

wordless wednesday...

2009-11-04T21:12:00.002-05:00

all from scratch...

2009-11-04T11:41:00.003-05:00

thomas decided he would make a pinata for kennedy's birthday. i will be the first to admit that I really didn't help all that much. to be totally honest, i put about 15 minutes into it, and made sure to capture it on camera!

when he first mentioned making a pinata, i wasn't sure how it would turn out. i googled "pinata and paper mache" and instantly had 20+ websites telling me how to do it.

see, here is where I helped for a few minutes and then made sure to document it so when thomas said i didn't help, i could prove him wrong! ;-)

i think the finishing touches took the longest to complete. it took three layers of paper mache and then two additional days to dry. it held $40 bucks worth of candy-- which reminded me that every year candy will be super cheap b/c of halloween. lucky for us!

the birthday girl got the first whack at it... then we let the kids hit it in order of their age. it worked out really well b/c the oldest boy, Daniel, got the last whack and then the candy came falling down. it is something that we will do for all of kennedy's birthdays in the future. ;-)

2009-10-28T19:45:00.000-04:00

This was taken about a month and a half ago when Kennedy had a little cold. As you can see from this picture, we kept her rubbed down in baby vicks. ;-)

ballerinas and dirt...

2009-10-02T16:50:00.004-04:00

isn't this a great picture? she looks so sweet and clean and pretty...

and here she is sitting all nice and quiet...

and here she is happy as a pig in you know what... because she was outside rolling in the dirt!!! poor outfit!

workin' the broom...

2009-10-02T16:43:00.002-04:00

thomas taught Kennedy how to work a broom recently. While he was putting the gloves on the her hands, he told her she had to do a good job so that she would make her uncle dean proud. ;-)

an early bloomer...

2009-09-22T21:06:00.002-04:00

kennedy has always been independent. i am beginning to wonder, however, if this newfound independence is about to smack us in the bum say, ummm, around the age of two. which, just in case you don't already know, happens in less than a month. so here we are trying to figure out which "challenges" to address and which ones to let go. momma always said you have to choose your battles carefully because you can't win everyone... here is an example from this morning...

Me- kennedy, you want some juice?

K- juice? surah! (sure)

Me- picking cup out of fridge and handing it to her

K-no! my juice! oh no.

Me- you don't want juice?

K- (whine, whine, cry.... me juice...)

Me- do you want a box of juice or your cup?

K- boc juice momma.... whine.

Me- ok, Kennedy, here is your box of juice.

K- nooooo..... whine and cry some more

Me- do you want to get it yourself

K- SURAH!

five minutes later she was sitting in her chair at the kitchen table drinking her morning juice while i made her cereal. we had a similar situation at lunch b/c she HAD to put the straw in the "boc juice" herself. lord help us...

Labor Day 2009

2009-09-09T09:24:00.003-04:00

we all loaded up and went down to lehigh to stay with buck and his family for the labor day weekend. we grilled out, had a dance off, and went to the beach. this was kennedy's first trip to the beach and she had a blast!

earlene and mom sitting ocean side watching everyone swim

checking out the waves with thomas

swimming with most of the cousins

awww. giving each other kisses -- how sweet

we went to visit sam and donnie while we were in lehigh. kennedy found this captain jack sparrow wig that donnie wore last year for halloween and she could not be separated from it. i had to chase her around the house for 20 minutes to get a picture!

heyah mama...

2009-09-02T19:55:00.004-04:00

heyah dada, i do it, i got it, all gone, all done, and liiiiyiii (Lily)are a few of kennedy's new words. she will also repeat just about anything you tell her to as long as it isn't longer than 3 words. she can now take her shoes on and off all by herself, and thinks that anytime we walk out the back door that we are all going to "swin" in the "puuul". i never thought i would be able to speak toddler, but have found myself catching on rather quickly! it is pretty funny to listen to her talk because she talks like a miniature thomas -- accent and all. ;-) dooah (door) - suuah (sure) - for some strange reason anything she says that has an "r" in it sounds just like someone from new england... i guess she is holding dear to her "chowdahead" roots! ;-)

moose nuts...

2009-08-26T13:04:00.006-04:00

we had a wonderful trip to new hampshire. while we were there colleen took us up to her camp in the white mountains... talk about beautiful country! we swam in little squam lake and thoroughly enjoyed each others company.

thomas, kennedy and christina

meeting and getting to know grammy and grampy

having a tea party with uncle tim

snuggling with uncle dean at the camp

swimming in the FREEZING water of squam lake

thomas, kennedy and auntie colleen at the science trail in holderness, nh.

a resting black bear-- all of the animals on the nature walk are injured and are not capable of living in the wild on their own.

did you know a mountain lion can leap 30 feet with a deer in it's mouth!

when we were leaving the skunks, there was this HORRIBLE smell and thomas thought it was a great opportunity for a photo...

riding the slide

the kangamangus highway (which i am sure i spelled wrong!)

car shot out of the sunroof -- yeah, i'm that good! ;-)

ahhhh, back to my roots -- Woodstock!

beautiful little squam lake in holderness, nh

thomas and anthony

kennedy was like, "hmmm. now what do i do with it?"

no no no...

2009-08-11T17:26:00.002-04:00

kennedy's vocabulary is growing by the day it seems. she repeats EVERYTHING you say and then goes off in untranslatable mumbo jumbo. it is actually pretty cute. ;-) she has officially mastered the word no. she used to tell us uh uh, and shake her head. now it comes out as no no no every time. she doesn't just say it once, it has to three times. no no no.

we are leaving for new hamphire tomorrow for a much needed visit to dean and colleen's. we will have tons of pics to share when we return. tata for now...

reunited...

2009-08-03T13:26:00.004-04:00

this past weekend we headed down to clewiston for the 3rd annual chs alumni softball tournament. this was the first time i have gotten to play, and needless to say, i was stoked. the first year, three of us were pregnant, and this year all of our kids got to meet.

this is kennedy meeting megan. ada and i have known each other since preschool,

and our girls will be friends as they grow up as well...

kennedy sitting in the tent with papa waiting on the games to start...

group shot before the first pitch was thrown

kennedy meeting ezekie, lauren's son-- i am trying to find the video of them stomping in the mud. it was precious... dirty, but precious.

it has been over 10- years since ozzie and the posse was reunited... this year marks the first of many, and personally, i can't wait!

long and windy roads...

2009-07-23T21:33:00.004-04:00

for those of you that don't know, we have moved back to florida. the work pretty much came to a screaching halt in ohio, and miami is going to have an abundance of work ranging from nuclear energy to a new stadium for the florida marlins. my parents are thrilled to have kennedy so close, and i think they are also happy to see us! here are some pics from my mom's camera... i will get around to uploading pics from our camera sometime in the near future...

this is chase, kennedy and rebekah cheesing for the camera during chase's

birthday weekend here in lake placid.

this is kennedy TORTURING my mom's new kitty kat... we are trying to teach her to be "soft"with the kitty, but she likes to carry her around the house like a rag doll... poor cat.

swinging with aunt marcy and chowing on some watermelon

spending the fourth of july with most of the cousins...

chase, gavin, mckenzie, bekah, kalei and kennedy

just a random picture of ms. kennedy's blue eyes

the whole fam-damily...

2009-06-08T21:38:00.012-04:00

we have had a really busy past couple of weeks... my mom and dad are still here (they fly back to FL friday), and colleen, tim & christina left yesterday to head back to NH. needless to say, we had a blast getting to know each other and enjoying little ms kennedy.

thomas and tim comparing pajamas. stewie versus boston redsox... hmmmm that one is tough!

kennedy loving on christina

kennedy helping auntie blow out the candles for her birthday cake...

posing for a picture after another round of golf... all 6's, right tim? ;-)

ooh lala... kenny chesney... mom, colleen, christina and i headed to pittsburgh on saturday to catch the kenny chesney and sugarland concert. they rocked the freakin house!

kenny entered the stadium on some kind of chair lift and sugarland climbed into ginormous beach balls and got thrown around the sandpit--- it was pretty cool!

i can only imagine how cool it feels being thrown around a stadium by thousands of screaming fans!

a view from our seats... that STUPID speaker was right in our line of sight, but it was still fun

a view from riding the water taxi from station square to heinz field

we somehow failed to get a group picture... I am blaming the tequila, captain and corona...

isn't this a great armpit shot of jennifer nettles? i am really glad she shaved!

kennedy loves to tickle... feet and stomach are her favorite and as you can see she has christina pinned down and she is loving every minute of it!

with all of the company, we have not had to mow once! kennedy enjoys riding on the mower even though she clings for dear life all the while!

rockin christina's pink RedSox hat

thomas telling tim he missed a spot!

kennedy giving nana some suggies

cheese...

2009-05-27T20:02:00.002-04:00

it has been nearly a month since i have posted any pics of ms kennedy. she is 19 months old now and it seems like she gets bigger by the minute. thomas is still laid off, but we heard some promising news today with regards to upcoming projects... ;-) we are preparing for a visit from a slew of family so stay posted for upcoming pics!

one of her favorite things to do is unstack these rings and make bracelets...

munching on some cantaloupe...

snuggling with thomas while watching dora...

stealing popcorn!

painting...

2009-05-03T18:15:00.003-04:00

i found some super-cheap blank canvases the other day while i was thrift shopping. my idea was to let kennedy create wonderful one of a kind paintings... of course, the pictures are loaded in the wrong order... google blogger should really fix this!

she insisted on painting every color on herself... we went straight to the bathtub after painting!

let's go red sox...

2009-04-28T20:31:00.005-04:00

we went to cleveland last night to watch game 1 of the redsox/indian series, and needless to say, we had a blast. it was a real nail-biter, but in the end, we (the REDSOX) came away with the big V. there were more boston fans there than cleveland fans... so sad. but incredibly CHEAP compared to fenway, and we got to see our boys play some ball...

wakefield in the stretch...

kennedy flirting with frankie jr. she kept trying to love all over

him and he was having none of it!

our little golf pro...

2009-04-24T19:21:00.003-04:00

we finally got to go golfing the other day, and though we thought we were going without kennedy, our sitter flaked out so we took her along for the ride. now, if we were in florida, this would have been no problem. but because we live in the ohio valley, we were literally climbing hills to play 9 holes. needless to say, it didn't last long and were off to the gazette for some dinner and drinks. we got kennedy her own set of jr. clubs and she is getting the hang of this whole golf thing pretty quickly!

splish splash...

2009-04-24T19:13:00.002-04:00

spring has finally sprung on our end of the world. yesterday we mowed the lawn and today we set up kennedy's little pool for her to enjoy. thomas and i were stoked to take the slide out of our living room and put it outside. kennedy wasn't sure what to do, but the first time she slid into the water, she was hooked!

mowing with daddy

her first "official" ponytail

yes we can!

2009-04-20T09:14:00.005-04:00

As someone who has spent 3 days in jail for marijuana, I am a strong supporter of decriminalization. It makes sense to do it, and makes no sense not to.

Easter Sunday...

2009-04-12T21:45:00.004-04:00

we got kennedy all gussied up today in honor of easter... she was a trooper! other than the fact that i cannot get a good picture of her because she doesnt stand still long enough, it was a great day! (thanks to auntie for the dress!)

snackin' on some cheese

2009-04-11T16:36:00.000-04:00

checking out her FULL basket

2009-04-11T16:35:00.000-04:00

2009-04-11T16:34:00.000-04:00

eyeballin' the elmo basket...

2009-04-11T16:33:00.000-04:00

2009-04-11T16:32:00.000-04:00

2009-04-11T16:31:00.002-04:00

2009-04-11T16:31:00.001-04:00

2009-04-11T16:31:00.000-04:00

2009-04-11T16:30:00.001-04:00

2009-04-11T16:30:00.000-04:00

she thinks she needs a hat...

2009-04-11T16:26:00.001-04:00

2009-04-11T16:18:00.000-04:00

three little birds...

2009-04-07T09:03:00.004-04:00

i looked outside yesterday, and to my surprise, there were birds all over out back yard. it was snowing, but you couldn't see it in the picture. i bet those birds were thinking, "what the heck! it is april! why is it so freakin' cold?!?"

this morning's view from the front door--- and yes, it is still snowing... IN APRIL!

kennedy stacking her rings...

this and that...

2009-03-28T16:17:00.003-04:00

we have been really busy on this end of southeast ohio. thomas is back at work and i am back in school. kennedy is growing like a weed... no pun intended! here are a bunch of photos from the past couple of weeks.

i love this picture. thomas had just finished changing her ca-ca's and they were having a moment... so sweet!

she loves standing inside things... anything and everything!

these are her new bunny ears from brandi and troy... we have been practicing finding eggs for Easter!

showing some IRISH spirit on st patty's day!

being defiant...

2009-03-10T16:01:00.003-04:00

just being silly. ;-)

eating lemons... when she puckers up it is hilarious!

oh geez...

2009-03-04T15:54:00.002-05:00

kennedy's new phrase is "oh geez." she has been saying it probably 20 times a day and every time it comes out of her mouth, she holds her head and acts like she bumped into something. she then proceeds to walk over to you and want you to kiss her head (the one that she did NOT hit). it is hilarious! all day, over and over, oh geez, oh geez, oh geez!

this was her first attempt at eating corn on the cob. at first, she tried to eat the holders on the end... she soon discovered the middle had all the yellow, yummy goodness!

this shirt is self-explanatory! GO RED SOX!

wearing her shades...

2009-02-22T16:22:00.002-05:00

she almost went to sleep under there!

teeny tiny ponytail...

2009-02-21T11:42:00.002-05:00

the other night kennedy was playing with one of my hair ties she swiped from the bathroom. i decided to try and put her hair in a ponytail and it worked! the added bonus was that she left it alone!

happy birthday thomas!!!

2009-02-17T14:26:00.003-05:00

today is thomas' 40th birthday! we love you!

he said to post this picture b/c it shows him actually looking 40 years old! all beat up!

gaga was here...

2009-02-17T14:01:00.004-05:00

my mom was here this past weekend. she flew in on thursday and left last night. it was so good to see her! kennedy calls her ga-ga. she says papa just fine, and used to say nana, but now she calls her gaga. it is so precious! we had a good time during her visit. today is thomas' 40th birthday, and we threw him a little surprise party on saturday. he had NO idea anything was going on. we put oysters on the grill, shrimp and ribs. it was a feast!

this is her new serious face...

just outta the bathtub... she loved her bath!

sporting the new hat from papa

happy birthday, thomas!

we all wore name tags... thomas didn't like them very much!

my mom bought kennedy these drums that are for the bath. she wore them as a hat all night! thomas said she looked just like divo!

posing with gaga

running errands...

she has a pair of pink sunglasses that she wears when it is really bright outside. with the snow on the ground, there is a blinding glare no matter where you look. i will have to post a picture of her in her shades. she even leaves them on!

dink and dye dye

2009-02-06T13:28:00.002-05:00

kennedy has new words... dink (bink) and dye dye (bye bye). she is so funny... not only is her vocab growing bigger by the day, she has become quite stingy with her kisses. she will kiss elmo, elizabeth and the rest of her toys all day long, but reserves one for mommy and daddy about once a week!

snow, snow and more snow

2009-02-02T13:20:00.003-05:00

kennedy's first snowman!

helping daddy roll out another piece

falling off the sled!

yummmm. fresh snow!

posing with daddy

wild woman...

2009-02-01T14:27:00.004-05:00

kennedy has a new found fascination in destroying her bedroom. she is insistent on pulling everything out of the baskets, along with stringing her diapers all over the house. and as soon as you pick everything up and put it back in it's place, she is right behind you pulling it all back out. gotta love it!

i remember reading laura's blog when she gave wes an apple to appease him while they ate dinner. i was cooking the other night and kennedy grabbed an apple out of the bottom of the fridge. i thought, what the heck, and let her go at it. boy let me tell you she did some damage. and apparently, she did not like the skin, because thomas and i found bite-sized apple skins scattered throughout the entire house!

being a sweet little girl and reading her book... these QUIET moments are few and far between, but much loved all the same!

no red eyes...

2009-01-19T15:52:00.000-05:00

i have been trying to grab pics from picasa because i can play with them and get rid of imperfections. i guess you all are going to have to deal with it until i figure it out!!! ;-)

and she is growing...

2009-01-19T15:43:00.002-05:00

we took kennedy to her 15 month old well child check up today. she measured in at 32 inches long and 24.4 pounds. Dr. Wilson said she is doing great and if she keeps up at this pace, she is going to be very tall! the picture below is from a few days ago. she ran off into the living room after her bath. and look at that smile... so sweet!

2009-01-16T15:20:00.002-05:00

yesterday, thomas and i were in the living room and i noticed kennedy had been quiet. really quiet. so i walked into her room to find this...

she managed to get the swiss miss chocolate powder out of the pantry and sneak it into her room. she was going to town! it was everywhere. in her carpet, on her clothes, hands, feet, you name it, it was covered. and she was like, "what did i do?" the whole time.

her first chocolate milk mustache!

2009-01-16T14:58:00.003-05:00

last winter was my first time actually living somewhere "in the snow." thomas said i got away pretty easy because we never really got more than a few inches on the ground at any given time.

this year has been a little different!

all bundled up and waiting at the door! she is so funny! when i get her gloves and tell her to come on because we are going outside, she runs over and puts her little hands out one at a time for me. it is so precious. she is also saying new words. duck (dut) is her new one. I LOVE IT!

"randomness"

2009-01-16T14:45:00.003-05:00

in an attempt to get kennedy to sleep in HER own bed, i turned her crib into a toddler bed. she was so happy to climb in and play with elizabeth (her doll).

guess you could say it didn't work!

training her young... gotta teach 'em to swing the bat early! ;-)

2009-01-04T13:41:00.001-05:00

the family

2009-01-04T13:40:00.001-05:00

all of us with our spouses.... and mom and dad, of course!

2009-01-04T13:39:00.003-05:00

mom and dad with me, buck and robbie

2009-01-04T13:39:00.002-05:00

The Burke's

2009-01-04T13:38:00.001-05:00

The Burke's

family pic...

2009-01-04T13:37:00.002-05:00

my mom insisted while we were in florida that everyone wear a different color for family pictures. they all turned out really good!

The Ryan's

busy little bee...

2009-01-01T14:03:00.004-05:00

whew... i can honestly say that i am a little sad that the holidays are over. kennedy was awesome this year. i have taken probably a hundred photos trying to get some good shots, but she NEVER stands still long enough! she is so busy doing this and that, that i couldn't even get a good Christmas picture! below are the results...

dancing in her new slippers and jammies from aunt jojo

love that bed head!!!

love that smile...

2008-12-20T12:20:00.002-05:00

santa came early

2008-12-19T20:19:00.003-05:00

my mom and dad sent a somewhat LARGE gift for kennedy's christmas. i thought they had lost their minds... but they explained that she is inside all winter and needed more outlets for her never-ending energy. needless to say, she loves it!!! though i am not too keen on the idea that it went where my couch was!

accomplishing getting in and out of the swing all by herself!

climbing up the wrong way... IMMEDIATELY!

helping put together the castle!

getting ready to go see santa!!!

poor thing!!! her nose was really runny while she was sick!

THANKS, Mandy!!!

2008-12-19T20:02:00.001-05:00

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

2008-12-13T21:10:00.003-05:00

while we were in NH visiting colleen and dean, ted drove up to see us. we have not seen each other since kennedy has been born and it was great to catch up with a great old friend.

colleen took us to the new england sea aquarium while we were there. it was awesome! thomas' favorite animal is the penguin, and man did they have a bunch of penguins. this one reminded me of happy feet...

this little boy came outta nowhere and started kissing on kennedy. it was so funny. his name was max. (then we all got sick and i am sure it was from max!!!)

looking at the jellies with daddy

so much love...

2008-12-07T22:50:00.003-05:00

we generally stay home all of the time. so to be traveling for two weeks straight, and meeting new people every day, i must say that ms kennedy did great. while the other kids were screaming on the airplanes, she fell asleep on every takeoff and never fussed for even a minute.

posing with aunt marci

getting lots of luvin from uncle robbie, chase and kalei

thomas stepping on his tippy-toes so that he would be taller than

his brother tim and sister colleen.

colleen and thomas posing before the big party

we brought 12 lobsters down the FL from NH. it was a surprise for my mom and i only wish i would have had a camera in my hand when she saw them. it was priceless. all of the kids enjoyed them and i think the adults did too!

planes, cold weather and the flu...

2008-12-07T22:36:00.004-05:00

we spent the past two weeks traveling all over the place. we went to nashua, nh for a week to visit with thomas' sister colleen. it was FREEZING!!!! to say the least... but we had a blast and it was great to finally meet tom's family.

uncle dean throwing kennedy in the air. she LOVED this! he also fed her Italian ice EVERY night we were there!

being a ham for the camera!

loving auntie before we went into the new England aquarium.

getting ready to feast on some real Italian spaghetti and meatballs!!! YUM

just being cute. towards the end of our trip, Kennedy and I got really sick. we ended up in the er once we got to Florida. she has never been sick... and we were sure we would face hours waiting and waiting for a doctor. shockingly, we were in and out of there in 40 minutes. can you believe it!? I was in total shock. we left with a script for amoxicillan and motrin for the fever. she is doing much better now... she has become a pro at blowing bubbles out of her nose! HA!

our little pumpkin

2008-11-03T19:25:00.004-05:00

kennedy's second halloween proved to be much more fun this year. by house number three, she knew she was getting SOMETHING from each neighbor. it was hilarious. and she kept her hat on the whole time!

never underestimate her sneakyness...

2008-10-30T20:21:00.005-04:00

the other day, i was in the kitchen doing dishes and getting ready for dinner, when i heard a sound. it was a crinkling sound, and i immediately knew kennedy ashton ryan was into something because she was being way too quiet.

there was a hump-and-a-half of cake left from the caterpillar, and it was on the table covered in aluminum foil. i know she has had a growth spurt. she was 30.5 inches long last week at the dr.'s (and 23.4 pounds).

as i rounded to corner, i could not help but laugh. i didn't want her to stop eating the icing... so i walked slowly to the buffet, and pretended to watch dora. she was none-the-wiser, and i managed to get a few precious shots. needless to say... as you can see....she THOROUGHLY enjoyed herself.

oh what a day!!!

2008-10-29T22:15:00.004-04:00

when my mom and dad were here for kennedy's birthday, we all loaded up and went to the springhouse market & farms. i found a small pumpkin patch, which looked better than any church parking lot full of pumpkins, but thomas insisted i search for something better. little did i know that there was way more out there. the springhouse was loaded! i mean we hit the jackpot of pumpkin patches! there was a petting zoo, hay rides, hay slides, trails lined with pumpkins that were carved and painted into themes such as M&M's and the Flintstones, and so much more. the market was full of fresh breads, cheese, any kind of homemade "something-salad" you could imagine. ohhhh, it was wonderful! if you are ever in southwest pennsylvania, make sure to stop at eighty four, pa... exit 25 off interstate 70.

kennedy letting this calf eat her pants!

dad, mom, thomas peter and kennedy

riding a dairy cow with daddy

checking to see if it will melt in my hand...

no matter what the sign says in the top left corner...

kennedy was determined to try and eat the corn!

she would NOT stand there!!!

binkies..... dont leave home without 'em!

and the mess began...

2008-10-22T16:37:00.001-04:00

Happy Birthday Kennedy!!!

2008-10-22T16:31:00.003-04:00

kennedy loves baby einstein so i decided to make her a caterpillar cake for her birthday. i was not really sure i could do it, but after three days of baking, it turned out pretty cute!

aunt marcy and uncle robbie sent a chair that kennedy LOVES! it took her about a day to figure out how to sit down and get back up herself, but now she has it mastered.

nana and papa flew up from florida to help celebrate!

aunt colleen sent this precious ballerina outfit!

take it all out

2008-10-09T16:27:00.003-04:00

kennedy's newest game is taking every single toy out of the hamper and distributing them around the house. this game drives her daddy crazy, and he picks them all up probably three to four times a day. and i thought i was the one with ocd tendencies!!!

mama's little chef...

2008-10-07T21:15:00.002-04:00

i like to cook, and i mean everyday. kennedy has become quite the little helper. every since she was tiny, i would put her in the kitchen with me in her bouncy-chair. for about a month now, because she is into everything, i have not let her into the kitchen when i was cooking... which proved to be quite a hassle, not to mention a

rough hour and a half. so i have started letting her "help" me. now, i use that term very loosely... really all she does is grab whatever i happen to be chopping and then nibbles on each piece. she eats it all... onions, green pepper, zucchini, etc.... it has become a highlight of my day!

such a ham...

2008-10-07T21:09:00.002-04:00

i have actually had loads of fun dressing kennedy up in cute little outfits... though i never figured myself for the "put my little girl in pink" type of person.

thomas calls the clothes 'hippy-ish', and i just laugh. i think she looks adorable in her bel-bottom jeans!

this and that

2008-10-05T12:30:00.002-04:00

i have been trying to get a good picture of her teeth, and finally succeeded! she is so happy, all of the time! now if i can just get her to sleep in her own bed!!!

F-L-O-R-I-D-A--S-T-A-T-E...

2008-10-05T12:24:00.005-04:00

that's right... it came down to the last few minutes, but our noles pulled it out! even in the monsoon in Miami! aunt stana bought this outfit for kennedy when she was in the hospital, and alhtough a little snug, she wears it proudly!

kennedy quickly learned where the beer comes from... she could not keep her little hands out of uncle russ' cooler!

what a sad day...

2008-10-05T12:17:00.003-04:00

so what started as a much anticipated day, the opening game of the nfl season quickly turned into a sad one. our star quarterback, tom brady, went out early with an acl injury, and our house could not have been any sadder. thomas taught kennedy how to do the bruschi tackle (see below).

she is such a ham! every sunday, she puts on her patriots jersey and roots for the team that lost to the DOLPHINS! her papa was happy with that win, but i can assure you her daddy was not!

a visit from nana

2008-08-27T18:11:00.004-04:00

my mom flew in this past weekend to pay us a visit. approximately every two months we try to plan some sort of reunion. although she was only here for four days, we had a blast and made the most of the time.

now that kennedy is walking, she is into EVERYTHING!!!

there is no doubt that she is going to be a water-bug! shortly after this photo was taken, kennedy decided to give us a present. she worked really hard at it and we had to take her diaper off. we got to the "present" as quickly as possible, but she ended up swimming with carrots after all!

this is her new face. she scrunches her nose when she is eating and when she is watching you eat. i think she picked up begging from lilybean and sport!

2008-08-19T18:14:00.000-04:00

we have to enjoy the summer while it lasts!!!

in john deere green....

2008-08-17T14:34:00.006-04:00

thomas peter ryan got a brand new john deere riding tractor. i swear he was on top of the world when they delivered it.

it never even dawned on me that he had never been on a riding lawn mower. i mean, i am from rural south florida, where there is plenty of grass and everyone has yards. so it was kinda funny that i had to teach him how to crank it, engage the blade, lift and lower the blade, and so on. i must say that he is a fast learner, and he was off cutting our 6 inch tall grass in no time.

it was so cute... after we finished mowing (yes he "allowed" me to help cut the grass), he quickly hooked the water hose up to the deck of the mower so he could clean off the blades. he then proceeded to armor-all the steering wheel and bright yellow seat.

i think he likes it!

Kennedy Walking

2008-08-17T14:33:00.001-04:00

The Orange State...

2008-08-13T16:57:00.001-04:00

More Fun the in Sun

2008-08-13T16:56:00.001-04:00

it's been a long time...

2008-08-11T20:39:00.006-04:00

kennedy got to swim with tia gina, aunt lacy and her future boyfriend. (shhhh... dont say it too loud or thomas will start cleaning his guns) ;-)

my mom had a blast with kennedy and rebekah grace. rebekah kept saying "she loves me, she loves me because i am her cousin." it was so precious. everytime kennedy had a binky in her mouth rebekah insisted that she didn't need it anymore. (i think she was jealous of the binky)

when we got to my parent's house, the mirror was one of the first things she went for. she kept kissing that baby over and over again. it was so sweet!

this is kennedy and aunt joanie. little ms. ryan couldn't keep her hands off aunt joanie's michelob ultra! jenna taught her how it is done!!!

sears portraits

2008-05-28T14:52:00.004-04:00

i took pee-pie to sears to get some pictures taken. the idea was that maybe someone else could capture her in a way i have not yet. call me cocky, but i think i take great pictures, and the thought of paying someone else to do what i can do, pretty much disgusts me! i went... and here are the results...

not too bad, though i am thinking of starting a photography business. ;-)

crawling everywhere...

2008-05-28T14:44:00.004-04:00

well, the time has come and our little kennedy has become quite mobile. she went from rocking back and forth on all fours to crawling in about two days. she is also pulling up on everything within her line of sight. here is a video of her crawling debut: