Elvis Costello and Elmo...

A Monster Went and Ate My Red 2

My brother and sister-in-law introduced me to this awesome video.  I seriously think it is one of the best videos ever...so adorably cute.  I will admit that I am not a huge fan of Elvis Costello...not that I don't like him...I just haven't listened to whole lot of his music.  Granted I think it is more my loss than anything.  But I love how Elmo is dressed like Elvis.  Plus this song is extremely catchy and I find myself singing it randomly in the grocery store or whenever I am out with Ryan.  I am hoping to find more songs like this for me to sing to Ryan.   

I was with Diane in Kohl's yesterday and she got Andy some little red shoes...so she sang this song for him only replaced "2" with "shoes"...a monster went and ate my red shoes!!!  I found this to be a great moment and told her she had to sing this to Andy every time he wore his red shoes.  We shall see if she does.

I realize this doesn't have a whole lot to do with Ryan other than it involves Sesame Street and some awesome music...which I am hoping to expose him to more awesome music.  If anyone knows of other great videos like this one please share!!! 

Zombie Baby Attack

Zombie Baby Attack!!!

So here he is...this sweet faced, cute, little adorable baby boy.  He crawls around all innocent.  He finally looks up and sees you.  He grins really big and starts making happy squealy sounds as he crawls right for you.  You think to yourself, "Awwww, he is coming over to give me a hug, what a sweetie" and you pick him and up and wrap your arms around this precious little guy and all of a sudden he makes a zombie like noise, opens up his mouth and is going for your eye or your shoulder.  Then he takes his little hand and tries to rip your nose or cheek off, then giggles when you scream in terror.  Yep.  This is what Ryan has become.  My cute little zombie baby boy.   

Cookie Monster

These pictures were too cute not to add to the blog.  They were taken after Ryan got a bath and is all wrapped up in his cookie monster towel.  He's a big fan of baths now...he likes to splash. 

Luckily there have been no more "floods". 





Ol' Cheese Foot...

Okay, I am finally adding this story.  I hope Heidi, Andrea, and Allison enjoy this.  This is not the first time that Ol' Cheese Foot has made an appearance.  It is just the first time it could be documented.  Here goes.

I met up with Allison, Heidi, and Andrea at La Hacienda, our old stomping ground back when I worked at High Point University.  This was the first time they were getting to meet Ryan.  After dinner we were passing Ryan back and forth so they could all hold him.  At one point we passed him over the table and his foot came dangerously close to the cheese dip.  I jokingly said "wow, what if he had his foot dipped in cheese?"  They all laughed.  So I thought maybe it would be a good idea.  So Allison called my bluff and held up the cheese dip bowl.  I called her bluff by actually dipping his toe in cheese foot.  It was hilarious!!!  Ryan was asleep and didn't know what was going on.  The cheese dip was cold too...so it didn't burn him or anything.  What kind of mother do you think I am?  Oh yeah, the kind that would dip her kid's foot in cheese.  Anyway, we quickly cleaned off his toe and had a good laugh and I hope Ryan doesn't hate me for this one day. 

Side note: La Hacienda is also where we saw another kid who kept looking over at Ryan and finally his mom brought him over and they were chatting.  We asked the boy how old he was and he said 1.  I must have looked horrified because this kid was like 4 feet tall and running around and talking and everything.  There was no way Ryan was going to grow this much in the next 8 or 9 months.  His mom then quietly whispered he is almost 2.  A little better but GEEZ.  He was quadruple the size of Ryan.  

Anyway, on to the story regarding this actual picture.  I met up with Heidi and Andrea for dinner at Moe's.  Love Moe's.  This is where we usually meet these days.  We were chatting about all the stuff going on with everyone and the Cheese Foot incident was mentioned.  So I thought maybe we should make it a tradition!  I once again got cheese dip on Ryan's foot.  Only this time he was awake.  But he didn't care.  And we got a picture.  YAY. 

I know...it's ridiculous.  Ridiculous but harmless. 

And now I refer to myself as "Mom of Cheese Foot".

Perhaps Heidi could have written this story better.  Sometimes I am not as creative these days...I blame lack of sleep.  That or I am trying to quickly get it done before Cheese Foot wakes up.  Hahaha.

Here is a better picture where you can actually see the cheese on the foot:



Dangerous Music...

Who knew the simple and sweet act of playing music for his sweet baby boy would turn into a traumatic experience???  Ben got home from work early (and by early I mean 4:55 pm during busy season!) and decided to play with Ryan.  He scooped him up and put him on the bed, grabbed his guitar, and started playing.  I was in the other room and I hear them being silly and then all of a sudden I hear Ben say "Oh no, oh no, you're not supposed to do that, oh no, don't get blood everywhere, don't tell mom!"  That's when I rushed in there to find that Ben had scooped him up and was putting water on Ryan's foot.  It turns out Ryan had kicked the guitar while Ben was playing and the guitar string poked him.  He wasn't bleeding much...but still...traumatic experience for the poor boy.  Now he is going to associate the guitar with pain! 

Mom put a small, square bandaid on Ryan's foot.  It may actually be more painful taking that off than getting his foot poked in the first place.  Oh well. 

Spider Attack...

The other morning I had put Ryan down for a nap.  Finally some peace and quiet.  I was watching the wedding happen on Live with Kelly when I felt something tickle me under my chin.  I went to swipe the loose strand of hair away and I noticed a black spider fall to the floor.  I froze in horror and then SCREAMED at the top of my lungs.  Ewwww....a spider was on me...a creepy little creature was on me....Ewwww....then I heard another scream.  I had woken up Ryan.  Poor little boy.  He woke up to his mommy screaming.  No fun.  I think he thought I was being tortured or something...not that he knows what torture is.  Torture to him is not getting a bottle every 3 hours...or having his foot dipped in cheese..that post will come later.  Back to the creepy spider.  So I called my dad....no answer.  I called my mom.  Poor mom.  She answered the phone all happy and had to listen to her daughter have a complete breakdown on the phone as well as hear her grandson scream in the background.  I was shaking and my breathing was unsteady as I stared at this spider on the floor.  I am so terrified I have trouble even killing them.  My mom had to walk me through this process.  She told me to find a shoe.  I found a phone book instead.  I told her I was going to sit the phone down while I killed it.  So I sat the phone down.  Then I proceeded with a battle cry of DIE as I  threw the phone book on top of it and took Ben's shoe and beat the phone book like ten times at least.  All while shouting die, die.  I can only imagine the look on my mom's face as she tried to hold back laughter at hearing all of this.  After that, I left the phone book in the middle of the floor with both shoes on top.  Then I picked up the phone and told her it was over. 
I think I was shaking for the next few hours.  Horrific experience.
Then I picked up The Rippler and tried to comfort him the rest of the day.  Poor boy....he was very clingy to me the remainder of the day.  He really held on to me when I picked him up.  I must remember in the future to try not to traumatize him like that ever again. 
But ewww...I was attacked by a spider....ew ew ew!!!

Don't touch the hair...

I have gotten into the habit of rubbing Ryan's head trying to mess up his hair.  Just a cute little gesture I do to say hello kiddo.  The other day we walked Ben to the door so he could leave for work.  He kissed me bye and without even thinking I reached up and rubbed Ben's head to say "bye kiddo".  I blame it on being sleep deprived.  But the look on Ben's face was priceless!!!  He said "Why would you do that?"  He had taken the time (about 1 minute) to actually fix his hair that morning (and by fix I mean he made sure it wasn't sticking straight up or anything like that).  It was hilarious...I didn't have an explanation for him as to why I did such a thing.  I just stood there and laughed.  He called me a doofus...but I know that I am.  Hahaha.

Mac Mac has Arrived!!!

The other half of the crime fighting duo known as Mac Mac and The Rippler has arrived. 

Mac Mac (aka Chad Eric McManus Jr.) arrived on Valentine's Day.  The Rippler got to see him when Mac Mac was only a few hours old. 

I told Mac Mac's parents that The Rippler has been waiting his whole life for Mac Mac to get here...which is true! 

So now...the crime fighting duo's saga has begun!

Welcome to the world Mac Mac.

The Great Flood of 2011...

The Great Flood of 2011, though not of this year, has to be shared with the world.  It is by far one of the best moments ever.  Quite memorable. 

Ben and I, being the new parents that we are, decided to give Ryan a bath in his little tub we received as a gift.  We debated on where to put the thing.  I suggested the bathtub since it is a tub after all, but Ben suggested the kitchen counter.  Me being the worrier (not warrior) that I am suggested the kitchen floor because I could turn into a total clutz and the tub could come plummet to the ground.  So Ben put it on the floor to appease me being crazy.  We gave a tiny little fella a bath and had him all wrapped up in a towel when Ben decided to dump the water out of the tub.  I was holding Ryan so I didn't help him pick it up, but he thought he could do it.  I had an overwhelming feeling of dread as he got ready to do this but decided I was worrying over nothing and just let him handle it.  Next thing I know he is holding this tub and walking to the sink and it starts to tilt forward...OH NO...he overcompensates and tilts it back and all the water rushes to the back of the tub and over the side!  SPLASH. Water goes everywhere.  It quickly covers a majority of the kitchen floor as well as there seems to now be a waterfall running down our cabinets.  The look on his face was priceless.  At that moment I was completely paralyzed...I just stood there...watching it...taking it all in.  And I was laughing so hard I literally couldn't move.  It was one of the funniest things I have ever seen in my life.  After maybe 15 seconds of hysterical laughter I realize I should probably help, so I put Ryan down in the nearest, safest area possible...I think it was his bassinet, and ran to the linen closet and proceeded to grab every towel I could find.  I figured we would have enough to mop up all the water now flowing in our kitchen. 

Needless to say all baths following this incident take place in the actual bathtub.  Lesson learned.  But honestly, it was worth it...to have that moment.  So freaking awesome!!! 

A Makeshift Hat...

I went for a walk with Amy in a nearby neighborhood last Friday...it was cool outside so I made sure Ryan had his jacket on as well as some socks.  I was carrying him in my Baby Bjorn thing and wanted to make sure he was dressed appropriately.  I have no idea how I missed his head....now I realize that sounded funny...what I mean is when I carry him in that thing his head is right under my chin almost.  You think I would have noticed that I did not have a hat on him.  But I wasn't thinking and we headed out for our walk.  It was much colder than I realized.  I started feeling really guilty that he didn't have a hat on...but we were too far from the house to go back and get it...so I pulled out the spit up cloth (which was a washcloth...and clean, he had not yet spit up) and placed it gently over his head.  That was quite a sight!!!  I so wish I could have gotten a picture of that but I didn't.  It will just have to live in my memory...and on this blog forever.  It did keep his head warm...so that was a plus.  I am definitely not going for the "Mother of the Year" award!!!  One day Ryan might read this and all I can say is I love you son and I am sorry I put a washcloth on your head but it was all I had.  Thanks for putting up with me.  You're an awesome kid.

Another awesome quote...

Seriously...how true is this quote???

Whitman's Sampler...lovely box of candy

Not really a story about The Rippler...just a fun story regarding The Rippler's mom:

Valentine's Day is coming up...and Ben already got me some candy in a heart shaped box.  Ben is not one to wait on giving me gifts...I believe I opened my Christmas gifts the first week of December and last year for my birthday I opened it up in March (birthday is in May).  Oh well...I love it.  Anyway, so I have this nice box of chocolate and they do not have descriptions on them which makes it interesting...I guess I will just have to try them and find out what is inside.  Alas, there is always one I can count on...one true pure joy of chocolate.  That would be the Whitman Sampler Messenger Boy.  Just a solid piece of milk chocolate.  My favorite ever since I was a kid.  Now...this is where the funny story starts.  It's not that it is the best piece of chocolate in the world.  It is just that it is the only solid milk chocolate in the box.  If you know me at all then you know I am/was a picky eater...I am getting better...but as a kid I would not try anything new.  So that is the only piece I ever ate.  My twin brother never got to eat the Whitman Sampler Messenger Boy chocolate.  I mean NEVER.  So he had it built up in his head that it was the most glorious, fantastic, delicious piece of candy the world has ever seen!  A few years ago he finally got to try it and was highly disappointed and so confused.  How could I like something so much that was so....average tasting???  I then shared my secret...it was the only solid milk chocolate in the box...that is why I liked it.  The look on his face was priceless.

Da da da da da da da da da da da da da da da da Batman...

Ryan had to go get his 4 month shots yesterday and ended up running a fever all night and today.  Poor little guy...it's so pitiful to see him not feeling well.  So I thought putting him in Batman pajamas would cheer him up...it did!  Well...also a visit from his Poppaw cheered him up too...the pajamas were just a bonus!!!  So, the lesson he learned from all of this...if I want to be spoiled by my Poppaw and wear awesome crime fighting pajamas all I have to do is start running a fever and I can get anything I want! 
No...he isn't spoiled at all.  Haha.
But just look at that adorable face.

I like the quote...

New Recruit for ASU...

Ben bought this shirt for the little guy before he was even born.  This shirt looked gigantic...it was size 6 months.  Of course it looked gigantic when Ryan first came home...he was, after all just a little guy.  I grabbed it the other day to throw on him thinking it might fit now since he is now 4 months old and wearing 6 month clothing...I barely got it on him in the nick of time.  As you can see it is a little snug.  I waited too long to put him in this adorable little App State shirt.  At least I got 1 picture out of it.  

I thought it was hilarious when Ben first brought it home.  I knew it would look super cute once Ryan could wear it but when it was just hanging in the closet it looked like a decapitated ASU football player.  A little disturbing!!! 

The Rippler stuck in a bridal shop...

I feel kind of bad.  Ryan did so well by sleeping in this morning and better yet he let me sleep in this morning and then how do I reward him for his awesomeness?  I take him to David's Bridal so we can help Amy try on wedding gowns.  Poor boy was stuck in a bridal shop for way too long.  I think I need to play manly movies all weekend to help rid him of images of bridal gowns and tiaras and veils.  So I need to find copies of the following movies:

Rocky

Rocky II

Rocky III

Rocky IV (my favorite with Ivan Drago)

Rambo: First Blood

Rambo: First Blood Part Two (seriously the dumbest name for a movie)

maybe the Airplane movies (Surely you can't be serious, I am serious and don't call me Shirley) or (No hijacking allowed, then a man waves and says "Hi Jack" and he is tackled...awesome part of the movie)

Where the nickname "The Rippler" came from...

We have some dear friends who are expecting their little boy on February 9th.  Ben and I have both worked with April and Chad in the past and after they were married and talking about kids I suggested they name their first child Mac Mac (regardless if its a boy or a girl).  Their last name is McManus so I thought Mac Mac McManus was awesome!!!  Since I suggested that name their suggestion for our kid was The Rippler.  That's the brief story on how Mac Mac and The Rippler "who would take over the world" came to be.  I need to make this onesie sometime soon...that way Ryan (The Rippler's real name) and Erik (Mac Mac's real name) could have matching onesies!

2 Days Before The Rippler Made His Debut...

Here I am...standing in my husband's grandmother's backyard on September 18, 2011.  It is the usual Sunday night dinner where his whole family usually gathers while Dooder, his grandmother cooks a meal that could feed a small army.  I am due to have our little boy the following Tuesday.  I thought it would be a good idea to take a few pictures so we could remember what I looked like right before Ryan got here.