TWO!

Note from Mommy:
This week has been a week of mini celebrations, leading up to today...Ryker's 2nd birthday! It is so hard to believe it has been two years. But, I'm getting ahead of myself. Here's a recap of the last week and a half:
 We had lunch with Aunt Michelle and Uncle Tim at Olive Garden. We don't get to see them nearly as often as we'd like to. We did lots of catching up, while Ryker did lots of playing. He is so into real cell phones...particularly touch screens, like Mimi's blackberry. He was slightly distracted though, as he got all kinds of great Toy Story themed Lego Duplo sets from them! How fun!
We got to see Great Grandma...or should I say "Grapes Grandma," as that is what Ryker calls her. It is so cute to hear him say it. So, Grapes Grandma was down to go to the doctor and see Ryker and Deklan. She brought him some outifts-one with a football on it which he loved, and some snickers and apples (two of his favorites).
 
We had a great day spending time with Grammy and Papaw, too! Their unplanned retirement was a blessing in a lot of ways. We got to see a lot of them, usually once a week, and Ryker has loved every bit of it. I've been so spoiled with all the extra help, especially with cleaning and picking up around the house. Ryker and Grammy are quite a pair, running with seemingly endless energy. Our visits with them will no longer be as frequent, as Grammy got a great new job last week. So, we said so long to her retirement, at least for now, by spending a great day together at the Orchard. Kristina and Brayden joined us, as Ryker plucked dozens of juicy apples off the trees, picked out his own pumpkin, and sipped down another delicious apple cider slush. This kid was made for fall! He loves the weather, the football, the leaves, and the fruits of the season. It was nice for Mommy to get some time with Kristina, too, which wouldn't have been as easy to do without the grandparents to help out. I am so appreciative of all their help as I've adjusted to two little boys. They have been so good to us. I can't wait til Grammy retires for good, and I know Ryker can't either!
 
Thursday we had a pre-party with the Kernodles. Several members of the fam were traveling out of town for fall break, so they came over to see Ryker and give him some awesome Toy Story goodies before they left. We liked the Woody/Buzz shirt so much that we had him wear it on the big day. Here he is with his Hayley or "Hay-ye"as he says. We love our neighbors! They are so sweet to our boys and so helpful to us.

So that brings us to today. We started the morning when I heard Ryker's feet hit the floor. That sounds silly, but he usually jumps out of bed with such force that the thud can easily be heard from our room (without the monitor). So, the thud happened around 9 this morning. I rushed out of bed and opened the door to our room just in time to see him bound out of his door. He crouched down and looked at me and I said, "Happy Birthday!" to which he replied "Yeah!" It's amazing how exciting birthdays are when you're little. I sang him happy birthday and then we said our prayers for the morning and we went downstairs for some "happy birthday cinnamon rolls" shaped like the letter R for Ryker. After that, the day was a blur for me. Ryker played outside with Grandma while Daddy studied and I decorated the cake. The cake was such a huge undertaking. Jevon and I tag teamed it (after I tried to do it myself on Thursday, only to have all of the cakes end up in the trash, for my lack of planning on the stacking of the cakes and their inevitable collapse) and it turned out better than I expected. For our Toy Story themed party we had alien head cookies, sheriff badge cookies, slinky dog appetizers, and a Buzz cake. The Buzz cake was a rocket ship, covered in fondant, with a Buzz candle. Jevon went all Ace of Cakes style and built a base with a supporting dowel rod, helped me stack them by using his math skills, and then aided in the fondant process. What a great husband! The cake finished, Ryker had lunch and the grandparents all joined us. Then it was party time. We wish we could fit all of our family and friends in our house for a party every year, but it's just not possible, so we had a small get together with his closest buddies, and he had a great time. He blew out the candle on his own, he told everyone he was two, and he ran around the house playing with toys and laughing most of the afternoon. It doesn't get much better than seeing that giant smile on his face!

 
So another year has come and gone. This is where Mommy gets emotional. Looking back I cannot believe how quickly it has gone by. Of course one of the highlights (and lows) of the year was Ryker's blood disorder. Having a complete recovery was a huge blessing. That journey began in April, yet it seems like only yesterday. People tell you how quickly time flies with kids and you listen and agree, but it passes infinitely quicker than I ever anticipated. My baby is a little boy now, and sooner than I can fathom he'll be going to school, driving a car, and packing his bags to move out on his own. For me, it was pretty fitting that he had a Toy Story birthday, as the most recent installation of that film was centered on this very thing. Ryker is growing up and as much as I'd like to keep him a little boy, sweet and innocent, running around with those beaming dimples and cute little broken phrases that he speaks in, it just isn't possible. No one tells you how tough this aspect of parenting is and that's probably because you just can't grasp it until you are a parent. I recognize the good in this, though. That's the rewarding part: to see your children grow and learn and to prepare them for life on their own. My boy is two...it's not like this is a reality yet, but the swiftness with which the last 2 years have gone makes me all too aware of the time approaching. Birthday number two was fantastic! The past year has seen Ryker move from using single small words to putting sentences together; from crawling to running and climbing; he's now memorizing colors, numbers, and even sings Jesus Love Me. These are all great things, but the bittersweet part is that it marks his movement away from being my little boy and toward being his own man. It's really a good thing, and I know that, but as a Mommy I am inclined to try and hold on to this toddler and keep him there. As I type this though, I know that the year ahead will be even better and I look forward to all that God has in store for Ryker and our family. He is such an amazing little boy and I thank God everyday for letting me be his Mom.
Thank you for following along with his adventures over the last year. We hope you'll join us for all that lies ahead as he barrels toward 3!