Little Christian

Christian turned 3 on Monday!! He is officially a 'big boy'! His dino dig party is Sunday afternoon. We are filling up a small pool with sand and another with quick sand, a.k.a. brown cornstarch goo (remember that stuff from elementary school?), then hiding dinosaurs in them for the kids to find. We will also have a slip n' slide and dirt cake.

This year, we have decided that Christian doesn't need toys for his birthday. We would just like everyone to come and enjoy the day with us. We, however, did buy him a few things. Even though we said we would never own a video game system, we broke down and got a Wii. Its interactive, though! He has already mastered the baseball game. We also got him a PSP to watch videos when we travel, though I haven't quite figured the whole thing out. Ryan bought him a few DVD's (He forgot that Christian can't sit still long enough to watch a movie. Got that from me!), a firetruck, and a skateboarding dog. His sweet nanny and her girls gave him a gift card to Target. Her oldest daughter, Chathali, made him the cutest picture frame out of cardboard and drew a picture of the two of them. Probably my favorite gift ever! His Grandma Chel gave him an automatic baseball pitcher that he LOVES! His Aunt Kelli and Grandma Penny gave him a book, monkey board game, and an alphabet puzzle. We already have read that book 10+ times. His Grandma Patty got him some much needed knee and elbow pads. So... for not getting any gifts this year, he is making out pretty like a bandit!

As I mentioned before, Christian has become an avid skateboarder. I don't mean he sits down on the board and has someone push him around. He actually uses the board like a big kid. His favorite thing to do is find a steep driveway to go fast down. Of course, he has a helmet on. He has also mastered flipping off of the side of the pool into the water, thanks to his Uncle Shane - a talent I am not sure I like. I worry too much about him hitting his head on the side. I will have to post pics of him doing front and back flips in the water off of the steps. I don't freak out about that trick quite as much. Its amazing how well that guy can swim. I guess that tip about not using floaties really does enable the child to learn on his own.

I can't believe it was a whole three years ago that I had this fearless boy as a tiny newborn in my arms for the first time. Now I know what my parents meant when they always said "you kids grow up so fast!".

Here are some of my favorite pics of Christian over the past three years:

Catch up

Christian is turning 3 on the 10th! I can't believe that my baby isn't a baby anymore. He still seems to tiny to me. I look at other moms carrying around their toddlers and think "Boy, that is a big kid to be lugging around!", but I am sure those moms with infants think the same about me. Maybe he will always be my baby.
We have been soooo busy this summer. We first went to Roatan, a small island in the Caribbean near Belize. It is a scuba/snorkeling hot spot. The water was crystal clear and the sand looked like sugar. We really enjoyed relaxing on the beach, usually just the three of us. We stayed in a bungalow in the mix with all the locals and really got to experience island life. Our neighbors made us dinner one night and it was wonderful!! I don't think we ever got used to having all those roosters wake us up at 5:00 am.
A few weeks after Roatan, we went to Lake Murray with a large group of friends. We had such a great time and the weather was perfect! FYI, don't pre-make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for the whole trip. The bread turns to mush after the first day! Ryan and I learned how to wake surf and Christian rode on the tube for the first time. Christian also had his first encounter with hungry geese - too funny!!!
Just a few weeks ago we all went to San Diego. Ryan had a mapping conference going on downtown, so Christian and I tagged along. We went to the zoo, wildlife park, Padres game, and Sea World. Christian fell in love with the walruses. La Jolla beach is beautiful! Most of the sand has turned to stone and it is so amazing to see all the shapes the water has cut into the sandstone. We were not impressed with how they drive out there. Crazies! I ended up with the swine flu, which developed into pneumonia, and spent most of my last days in the hotel. The plane ride back was not fun at all.
And then, of course, our biggest news - Christian will be a big brother! He says he wants a boy. Ryan and I are hoping for a boy, too... but we will be happy with whatever God has chosen for us. I am having a such a hard time believing that I will love this baby as much as I love Christian. He is my perfect world! But, I have heard that feeling is completely normal and moms just somehow find enough love for all of their kids. I am pushing the second trimester mark and having fun with this name game. I think boys names are ridiculously hard! For a boy, I am considering Rally and Keegan, though Ryan really likes Dash. For a girl, we like Isla (the "s" is silent like Island) and Taylor. I have always loved the name Taylor for either a boy or girl.
A big congrats to Ryan! He researched and wrote an article explaining the correlation between the recent earthquake activity in North Texas and local oil and gas drilling, An Interpolation of Natural Gas Well Depth in Proximity to Earthquake Epicenters. Today he was contacted by The Fort Worth Petroleum Accountants Society, representing 45 oil and gas companies in the area, and they want him to do a presentation on his article! Way to go, Ryan!!!!
Another congrats to my youngest brother, Kyle... he graduated from Martin HS this year! To finish the school year off, he is vacationing in Albany, NY and New York City with a friend.
This means the youngest of the five of us, Kelli, is going to be a senior. Where does the time go?! I sent her college programs the other day - how weird is that?!
AND!!!! My longtime friend, Amber (Shaw) Main, had her baby boy last week. They named him Jackson "Jack" Ryan. This seems to be the name of the season! Both she and the baby are doing great. She claims they are done having kids - they have a precious girl, Katy, and now a baby boy. Two kids seems like a good number to me.

Roatan

Lake Murray, OK

San Diego