Aching Back? Ryan Will Fix It!

Microsoft Class Action Settlement

Don't forget to file a claim against Microsoft. It is really easy. Just go to http://www.iowamicrosoftcase.com and fill it out online.

Every computer you buy has Windows preloaded, so you can file a claim for Windows which is worth$16. All you need to know for the first $100 in claims is the year you bought your computer and where you bought it.

July Photos

Great Vacation

We had a great week of vacation even though we didn't really go anywhere. We got a lot of family time in, which is rare for us. It was nice for Momma, Daddy, and Ryan to all hang out. Ryan was over the moon to have Daddy home all week. Of course now he isn't too happy.... and won't take his pajamas off or get out of the car in the morning at daycare... but that is a small price to pay for a good week.

We saw the Harry Potter movie, went to the Science Center, Hall of Pride, Trainland USA, the wading pool, ate out a few times, and mostly just played. Todd and I also watched movies every night.

Speaking of Trainland USA, it is in Colfax, and is really cool. (I can't believe I spent my vacation in Colfax.) It is a house that has a basement full of model trains. They are set up so you travel from the East Coast to the West Coast. Ryan looooooved it. We bought him some trains and he plays with them all the time. He calls them Doo-Doo's instead of Choo-Choo's. It is very cute. He is absolutely obsessed with doo-doo's now!

The Essence of Ryan

These two pictures perfectly describe my son: wild, crazy, fearless, determined, tempermental!

Weekend Update

I'd like to send a shout out to Aunt Kathy and Uncle Denny. Ryan and I had a marvelous time Friday night hanging out with them in their motel room downtown Friday night. Supper with Ryan was a little stressful, but he was all wound up and entertaining the rest of the night. He enjoyed standing on the air conditioner and looking at the cars on I-235 and also enjoyed climbing up on the king-size bed and jumping off the other side while Denny chased him. It was a nice visit. I had not been looking forward to a quiet, boring weekend at home without Todd, so it was a nice diversion. We didn't get home until 10 pm, so Ryan slept until 9:30 Saturday morning and then took a five hour nap in the afternoon! We spent the rest of the day outside getting wet. We were outside until 9:30 last night watering flowers. We also had another first for Ryan. We got fireflies and put them in a jar. He loved it! He kept saying, 'Bug! Bug! Bug!'

Today Ryan and I baked, played farm, visited the neighbors across the street, and basically hung out. He is just up from a 3-hour nap (I can hear him downstairs with Todd). I am going to go to Wal-Mart tonight to lay in supplies, because we are now officially on vacation! We are going to do stuff in Des Moines every day before nap time, and then hang out in the evenings. I can't wait!

HARRY POTTER MANIA!!

I am ready. I have pre-ordered my book from Amazon.com. It is guaranteed to be delivered on the release date of July 21. Monday Todd and I are going to see the movie. I can't wait. Ryan may be going to be early so I can read!

Oooh...I have so much to catch up on my blog...but no time. Since the last time I blogged I have read several books, survived a nasty stomach virus, hosted my sis overnight, had my parents down for a weekend, painted my living room green, gone wedding shopping with Diane, made signs for the raised bed at the Discovery Garden, put in lots of hours on the #$%ing Plant Book for the Discovery Garden, gardened and of course did my work-at-the DNR/be-a-mom gig. I'm tired.

Ryan is doing well. He is still busy, busy, busy, but is better behaved. He has started talking in sentences - It's stuck, I'm stuck, It's broke, and every 30 seconds points and says What's That? He gets to go to the preschool room at daycare for a little each day, so he is bringing home lots of crafts. He also pretends to play the flute and clarinet (they have music time every day) and knows a little sign language. I am very happy with my daycare provider. He is smart. His new obsession (besides electrical cords and hoses) is trains, or as he says, Doo-doos (aka choo-choos). He also puts his hands on top of his head every time an airplane goes overhead.

Next week we are on vacation here in Des Moines. We are doing the local attractions. Maybe boring, but we get to sleep in our own beds or cribs.

Groceries

Can I pay some one to buy my groceries for me? I despise grocery shopping. Especially since I have to do it at Wal-Mart because it is so cheap. Especially since I have to drag Ryan with me. Especially since I spend hundreds of dollars and then feel like there is nothing to eat. Did you know that you can buy groceries on Amazon.com? They have like a hundred flavors of jello.

Now that I have ranted, here is some good news. I have managed to lose 6 of the 8 pounds I regained in May, and I haven't eaten any chocolate today.

Ryan and the Winthrop Warrior at the All School Reunion

Playing Hard at Backbone State Park

Celebrating Daddy's Birthday at Happy Joe's

Sunday Night Lament

I wish I didn't have to go to work tomorrow and leave my baby-boo with someone else. Sigh.

What a Week

What a week so far. Sunday afternoon Ryan did not want to take his nap, so he jumped out of his crib. I heard a thump! and found him face down on the carpet crying. We then went outside to play, and he started jumping off his Little Tykes climber. Head first. (Bad, very bad). He spend two nights in the pack n' play and tonight is zipped under his new crib tent.

Monday was a weird day. We found out Todd's car needs almost $3500 in repairs (Bad, very bad). I took the afternoon off so Todd and I could go out to eat at Shane's Rib Shack (very good) and see Oceans 13 (very good). Later that night I had a nightmare, woke up, went to the bathroom, puked, then went back to bed, and was fine the next morning (bad, very bad).

I guess that is it for news this week. I am very tired (gee I wonder why) and overwhelmed at work. We are going to the farm this weekend, tomorrow is Todd's birthday, and Sunday is Father's Day, so I have been trying to get gifts and cards together along with getting stuff ready for this weekend. Traveling with a toddler takes a lot of preparation. Usually what happens is we get to the farm and then I drag my butt around all day Saturday because I'm worn out. It should be fun though - my grandpa and great-uncle are riding in the Winthrop 15o Anniversary parade as two of the oldest living graduates!

Decked out for the Farmers Market

Uncle Kurt! Uncle Kurt!

Blissful Day

Two Saturdays ago, we had an awesome day. Heather and Kurt were here for the weekend, and my friend Angie was running the Dam to Dam. First we went to the Farmers Market and to find Angie at the race, then we came home and H&K babysat so I could go out to lunch with Angie and Jennifer Bos. Then we went to Glendale Cemetary to feed the ducks. That was quite the experience. There was bread everywhere and some of the ducks had eggs. We took oyster crackers, which the ducks liked, but Ryan would throw the cracker and then pick it up off the ground and eat it before the duck could. The area the ducks were at was very steep, so I had visions of Ryan running downhill straight into the lake, or being attacked by a momma duck. It was fun, but we weren't there long.

Then we went to the cupcake bakery in Valley Junction for cupcakes, to the Garden Barn, then to the Summerset Winery, then home. We had an hour before we were going out to supper and Ryan was going next door. It was the first time I had been out to supper without Ryan since October! We went to Dish and it was heavenly. I will have to post more on that lately. I set a goal for myself to eat everything on their menu by the end of the year. This contradicted the goal I set for myself earlier in the morning, which was to start running and run the Dam to Dam 5K next year.

Look Ma! I have no hair!

A week ago Monday, Todd gave Ryan his fourth haircut. The first three were all done at salons and were too expensive and not that great. Well this one was good, but it was way too short! Ryan now looks like he is about 4 years old. I almost bawled and Terri Ann at daycare almost bawled too. It is growing on me though...

Todd left the clippers on the dining room table, and of course Ryan found them and was over the moon that they had a cord. He loves cords.

Hold it Right There!

Stop! Or I will spray you down with Shout!

Profile

My mom has always said that Todd and Ryan have the same profile, and now I have photographic proof! But, since they finally changed color, he still has my eyes!

Ryan's First Trip to the Zoo

Ryan's first trip to the zoo wasn't as magical as we both expected, but it went fairly well. (I must point out that while Blank Park is ok, it is hard to have a magical anything there if you have been to any other zoo in the US!) His biggest thrill was watching the crows that hang around the snack bar. He is really into birds. He also enjoyed feeding the fish (I wouldn't let him anywhere near the open area - we stayed by the fence) and the aquariums. He liked watching the train, but was sleepy during the ride. Other than that, he couldn't have cared less about any of the animals. My daycare lady suggested next time we skip the zoo and just go feed the ducks in Glendale Cemetery. Not a bad idea since the cemetery is across the street from our house. Ryan only had one teeny tantrum and did a good job riding in the stroller. We also went to Applebee's and he actually sat and behaved the entire time.

The rest of Memorial Day Weekend was up and down. Ryan and I spent Friday night, Sunday afternoon/evening, and Monday evening outside, which was good (with all this time outside - my flower beds are really looking good!). Saturday we were trapped inside because of the rain, which was bad, so he helped me clean the house and we played with his John Deere barn. Actually, we play with his barn every single night and usually for several hours on the weekend - he looooooves it. Anyway, the other big entertainment was that he spent over 2 hours on Saturday morning playing with a bottle of Shout stain remover. Sunday we went to Church and shopping at Target, which was good, but other than that Ryan and I just hung out since Daddy was working & sleeping.

Funny thing - Saturday Ryan started high-stepping it around the kitchen, then looked at me and said "March! March!".

Car Man

Mother's Day 2007

The Little Gardener

Bad Day/Glorious Day

Thursday was not so good. I got home about 1 am from Raleigh, then Ryan had us up at 6 am. Sandy and I attempted to garage sale, but the "huge" sales they advertised were pretty puny. Ryan was out of control all day. He became hysterical ever time Sandy tried to leave and had lots of tantrums. She finally just left him screaming. He also bit me, leaving a big bruise. I guess he was punishing me for leaving him for four days. It worked. I ended up bawling. After his nap, he forgave me and has been nice ever since.

On the flip side, today was a great day. First I went out to the Discovery Garden this morning for planting day (Todd was in charge at home). Luckily Jean had gone out yesterday and planted the 100+ begonias, so all I had to do was plant the tri-color sage and becopa. The theme of our bed is cotton candy, so everything is pink and white. It only took me an hour to plant about 75 plants.

Then Ryan and I did a WalMart run. First I bought an entire cart of plants (whoops!) so we had to put them in the car before we could get the groceries. Then we got a cart of groceries and got them loaded into the car. Ryan fell asleep before we left the parking lot (with a donut hole in each hand) and slept for over 2 hours when we got home. When he woke up, he looked at me and said "Outside!". So, out we went.

We spent a glorious afternoon in the backyard. I worked on planting my flowers. He would watch me until he got bored, and then would go sit in his Fred Flinstone car that I got yesterday at a garage sale. I tried to teach him to plant flowers, but the only concept he caught on to was the watering part. I was so impressed though - he took the hose and sprayer and spent about 25 minutes carefully watering the plants. He even moved the sprayer back and forth! Unfortunately, he also watered himself quite a bit, so I finally made him come in and take a warm bath. I was not popular with him. After much screaming that woke up his father, I finally got him cleaned up.

The bad news of the day is #1) Ryan can open the gate in the backyard and escape #2) I'm pretty sure his ears are infected again. That means we are going to a specialist.

Greetings from North Carolina

Hi from Raleigh. One of our speakers didn't show up, so I am killing time for a few minutes. I miss Ryan, but it has been nice to get out of the house, go out to eat, and socialize. Unfortunately few of the questions from the list we brought with us have been answered :(
The weather has been nice and so is the hotel. I am leaving for the airport today at 4:30 pm and will be in Des Moines at 11:38 pm. Ugh.

Mahnie

Ryan keeps saying, Mahnie, Mahnie, Manhie, Manhie, Mahnie. As far as I can tell, he is either saying Marnie, Marnie, Marnie or money, money, money. I think it's Marnie, Marnie, Marnie! At least I'm not Ma any more.

We have been going for our nightly 2 mile constitutional. I am good for the first 1.75 miles, then I wonder how the hell I am going to get home. It's not too bad, but my back is starting to ache from hunching over the stroller. Ryan enjoys it, particulary if there are snacks involved. He has started kicking back and putting his feet up on the tray while I push. There are two carved bears about at an apartment complex about a block from our house, and he always points and laughs at them.

The other night we stopped by the library on the way home. I picked up some paperbacks to read on the plane, and paid my latest fines. You'd think with the library across the street from my house I would remember to take my books back!

Preschool

Some days Ryan gets out of the toddler room and does the preschool activities with the older kids. Yesterday they were studying ovals and the color yellow, and Ryan got to attend. He brought home a yellow bumble-bee (oval shaped) that he had colored. Amazing.

Also, when I went to pick him up, the remaining little kids were sitting quietly in their chairs watching the Grinch. I looked in the toddler room and in the highchair for Ryan, because it never occurred to me that he was one of the quiet kids in the chairs! The other kids were excited and kept saying 'Ryan is in the chair!'. I was shocked!

New word of the evening: elbow or as Ryan says, eb-oh.

Obsessed with the Sump Pump Hose

Getting Sprayed by the Sump Pump

Croppin' and Gardenin'

H missed one heck of a great crop yesterday in Ankeny. Jan generously went up Friday night and paid the $5 donation each for us so we could all sit together. I shared a table with Jen and her boss Ashley, who is very nice and just starting to crop, and was next to Roni and Steph. We always have a good time. The food was excellent, we won lots of door prizes, and we even did some shopping. I got a Pizza for 2 Basket in the silent auction (basket, classes, pop, candy, and 2 Dominos pizzas) for $23, and made some good pages. The most fun was that I made an alphabet book for Ryan. I cut 7 sheets of 12x12 paper into fourths, punched holes in them, and put them together with metal rings. Then I put a letter of the alphabet on each page and then put other stickers on the page that began with that letter. It went together fast and was so relaxing because I didn't have to make it fancy. It was also a good way to use up a lot of old stickers. I still have a few letters to fill in, but it was mostly done after an hour! I pooped out at 7 and went home. My back was locking up, but mostly I missed Ryan :)

Today Ryan and I have been gardening. Which really means I garden and Ryan plays with the sump pump hose. We have it hooked up to two sprinklers, and he got caught next to one of them when it went off. He just played in the water and laughed! Then things took a turn for the worse. He knocked the bird bath over on himself. It was full of icky water and leaves, which dumped all over him and went in his mouth. He screamed and screamed. I rushed him in and put him straight into the tub. Other than a red swollen eye where the bird bath whacke him, he cleaned right up.

Then Todd came home and we attempted to put Ryan's playground equipment together. We were having problems figureing it out, Ryan wouldn't get out of the way, and it was super hot (the trees have no leaves - so no shade) so we finally gave up at 2 and went in for a late lunch and a naps. Ryan dumped a bottle of water all over himself, so we got into outfit #3 before his nap.

While the Todd and Ryan napped, I went back out and worked at cleaning off my perennial bed and smoothing out my dirt pile. I also mudded in three plants that Ryan and I bought this morning at WalMart (you can never have enough plants - it's a sickness). I finally came in at 4 pm and showered again. I kind of feel like croppin', but I should probably get Ryan up since it is 5:15 and he goes to bed at 8:15!

Pardon the Pun

Pardon the pun, but Brokeback Mountain blew. Boring, boring, boring. I did get my pictures sorted though.

I'm feeling much better - but still icky. I am sure that by Saturday I will be raring to go.

Ryan's New Haircut Looks Great!

Chillin' in the Thomas Chair

Bronchitis - Day 12

It is now day 12 of my bronchitis extravaganza. There may be light at the end of the tunnel. I can actually breathe a little and I'm only coughing every 15 minutes as opposed to every 5. Maybe this new antibiotic will do the trick. All I know, is come hell or high water I am cropping on Saturday with the girls!

I'm going to pop Brokeback Mountain in the computer/dvd and sort pictures for Saturday. I have my own little oasis upstairs now. Sweet.

Freaked Out

Anybody else having nightmares about this Virginia Tech thing? I think my problem is two fold - 1) I watched too much news coverage when I was sick 2) it bothered me when I saw Laura Bush interviewed and she said she had met two families that had lost their only child - this freaked me out because Ryan might be an only child. It is not helping that MSNBC is now playing a constant loop of the pictures of himself with the guns that Cho sent to NBC. You would think that that we be very traumatic for all the families/students to see those pictures all over the place.

Uck. Poor Mommy. Poor Baby

Well, the uck got worse than Pink Eye. Sunday morning I had the sniffles which seemed typical since Ryan had snot pouring out of him. I got his eye prescription and things seemed ok. By Sunday night I was sick as a dog. Ryan and I both stayed home on Monday, and it was Todd's day off, and he wasn't feeling well. I went to the doctor in the morning and found out I had bronchitis. I kept getting sicker all day (but still took Ryan outside to play) and finally decided that if Ryan had the same symptoms as me and only felt half as bad, he must be miserable. So, I called the doctor's office at 2:55 and managed to get a 3:20 appointment! Turns out the little guy had pink eye, strep throat, and a double ear infection. Then we headed to HyVee and got his prescription. We finally got to the car, and I was beat. I had been to two doctor's appointments and two pharmacies that day, and I felt like crap. I just wanted to go home. I put the car in reverse, and backed into another car backing out! $%^! It was the old couple that was next to me in line at the pharmacy. There car had about a 6 inch scratch and a tiny, tiny quarter-sized dent. They acted like it was totally my fault. The corner of my bumper is caved in, but hey, my car is 13 years old, so I might not even fix it. What a day! Ryan had a horrible night and was up every 90 minutes. Luckily Todd took care of him, so I could sleep. Last night was the same way, and I swear he got me up every hour, coughing, poor baby.

We went back to work and daycare today. My ears still hurt and I still can't breathe, but Ryan is a new kid. I can tell he is better because he's got his attitude back. Apparently they spent the entire day outside at day care today, and even took shorter naps than usual. He had a complete melt down at Dahl's (my first grocery store tantrum) because I put milk in the cart and he wanted milk! He screamed all the way through the check out line and all the way home. But he was happy as soon as he got his milk.

Uck. Poor Baby.

I was looking forward to seeing if Rachel wanted to get together and take the boys to the park tomorrow, but Ryan has pink eye so he shouldn't be around other kids. I hope I don't get it.

Last night his nose was running and this morning his eyes were a little yucky, but by 7 pm they were red and oozing. I will have to call the doctor's office in the morning for a prescription. Pink eye is the one illness that you don't actually have to take the kid in for. Poor baby. I don't think that he feels that well. I know this because he hasn't been naughty for a few days and he didn't bolt out of the bathroom stark naked and run around like a crazy man after his bath tonight.

We have spent most of the weekend playing with his John Deere barn, and we went to WalMart this morning. I have been organizing my scrapping area (the end is almost near) while he has been napping or sleeping. Boring.

I Think I'm Insulted

After much media coverage that the Assesor raised the average price of a home in Des Moines 9.6%, we received notice that they raised our property value a whopping $100. I think I'm insulted. The house next door to us sold for more than that, and it's only a 2 bedroom! I guess I should be happy though, I'm not planning on moving anytime soon and this means our property taxes will still be ok.

The Mighty Hunter

Dyeing Eggs

Easter

Easter weekend was pretty good, but I was exhausted before we even got to Oskaloosa, and I had a headache (I have had it for almost a week despite a chiropractor visit).

It's a long story, but Todd brought home 9 dozen eggs that were left over from St. Patty's at the bar. So on Saturday I boiled eggs, made egg casserole, made an angel food cake, made homemade noodles, made chicken and noodles, and I still had 2 dozen left! Ryan was pretty good and played while I worked. I let him beat the eggs with the whisk (very messy) and he enjoyed watching the pasta roller and the mixer.

Sunday morning we awoke to see the Easter bunny had visited. Our neighbors have an annual egg hunt, so they expanded it to our front yard and put out all sorts of eggs for Ryan. We about froze to death while he played with the first two eggs he found and wouldn't hunt for them. We gave up on him and headed for their yard. They have 3 kids - one in high school and two in college - and they have an extreme Easter egg hunt. After they find them up, they all attack each other and try to rip their sacks open and steal each other's eggs. While all this chaos was going on Ryan found a golf ball, so he was in 7th heaven.

After that, we came in and dyed eggs. It was a risk, but he did very well. He used his hands and didn't make too much of a mess. His hands were all stained and he kept licking them and the eggs, but PAAS is non-toxic, so what the heck. Then we went to Todd's parents. We left at 12:45 and got back at 8:30 pm. The whole time I was driving back I was lamenting that I was missing the Sopranos. I stayed up and watched them at 11 pm on HBO West Coast. It was worth the wait. The show was very foreboding, and I kept waiting for something bad to happen.

Back to Easter, we had a lovely day which mostly involved Ryan being spoiled rotten and eating a lot of sugar. Todd's parents gave me a beautiful pink begonia plant which hopefully I won't kill. The flower bed that I am working on at the State Fair is going to be all pink begonias, so hopefully I won't kill this one. It would be an omen for the Fair.

I Can Finally Sleep At Night

Now that I know who is the father of Anna Nicole's baby, I can finally sleep at night! I just haven't been able to get any rest while THE WHOLE WORLD waited for the DNA results! Not.
Why is the media obsessed with that tramp? I am sooooooo sick of it.

Speaking of sleep, I finally did it. I quit rocking Ryan to sleep at night. After just 4 nights of crying, he goes down without a peep. I can't believe it! I can actually do stuff. I know, I know, I should have done it sooner, but I wasn't ready. He's too sweet :)

Motherhood Frustrations

Aaah! My sweet little boy has turned into a Holy Terror - or as my mom aptly put it - a One Toddler Demolition Derby. He has always had a little bit of a temper, but now if you tell him no he either throws something at you or throws a roaring fit on the floor for 10 - 20 minutes. He is also fearless and is climbing many more things and then jumping off.

Two weeks ago he knocked over our Tiffany floor lamp. It was quite spectacular. It hit the edge of the toy box at the base of the shade and sheared off the socket. The shade and the light bulb didn't shatter, but there were sparks and it blew the circuit so all the lights went out.

Last weekend I took him to Aurora for the weekend. It was icky weather all weekend, so we couldn't go outside. In the course of 48 hours he put cereal down H's humidifier, flipped the rocking chair and put two big black marks on Mom's wall, opened Mom's china cabinet - took out a candle holder and ran away, jumped from the footstool to the rocking chair, jumped from the couch into the chair, etc, etc. I was exhausted by the time I got home and starting to question my motherhood abilities. He also had several hellacious tantrums while we were there and was a real pain when we went out to eat.

Monday night Todd, Ryan, and I went to the Machine Shed. We had to take him out twice while we waited for the food, and he whipped a spoon across the table, narrowly missing my nose. It made for a miserable meal. Of course he cooed, and smiled and charmed the server whenever she paid attention to him.

Today at school he whacked Chance upside the head with a truck for absolutely no reason. He spent quite a bit of time in timeout for that one. It seems he is either a good, good, charming little boy or naughty, naughty, with no in between. He definitely has the Stein temper.

He has also been refusing to go to bed - rocking him just doesn't work that well anymore unless you wait until 10:30. So, Sunday night we started the tough love and put him in his crib and let him cry. Night 1 - 10 min of screaming, Night 2 - 45 min of screaming/wailing/hysteria, Night 3 - no screaming (fell asleep on my lap), Night 4 - 15 min of screaming. It has been hard, but not as hard as it would have been to do several months (or a year) ago. It still sucks. I miss rocking him.

Well, I should head downstairs, it's 12 am. I have been simultaneously downloading music to my iPod, doing email, and putting together my new paper shelves. Maybe that explains why two sides of the shelves were put together wrong!

Waving to Mommy

Striking a Pose

Sleezewad

A few weeks ago, a total sleezewad tried to pick me up. It scared the crap out of me. It was one of those really nice days in February, so I came home at lunch and decided to go for a walk. I was bundled up in my big winter coat, ear muffs, and gloves, and was walking a block from home by the library. A car went by, and the guy kind of turned and looked at me. I thought it was someone I knew, so I gave a little wave. The car went down the block and turned left. As I approached the end of the next block, the car came back and stopped at the end of the sidewalk. The guy rolled down the window and ....

Mr. Sleazewad: Where ya headed?
Me: I'm just walking.
Mr. Sleazewad: Do you need a ride?
Me (getting freaked out): No thanks.
Mr. Sleazewad: Are you sure? Because you sure are cute!

I turned on my heel and took off for home. Those are the fastest 2 blocks I have ever walked in my entire life!

Finally The !@#$%^ Works!

Errrrr! to the new version of Blogger!!!! Errr!!!! Finally, after days of searching the help groups, I finally figured out that the reason I couldn't log in to my blog is because for some users, when you see 'Click Here to Continue' you have to right-click and open it in a new window. Errr!! Also, when I converted to the new version and set up my Google log-in, you can't change your google email address, even if your regular email address has changed, or you can't get into your blog. Errr!!!!

Well, I see it has been almost 7 weeks since I have blogged. I won't even try to catch you up on what all has happened. Pretty much I am just working, being a mom, trying to stick to my meal and exercise plans, and basically trying to keep my head above water. Todd in the past two weeks, has increased, (yes - I said increased- his work hours) so that has added extra joy to my life. Errr!!! Errr!!! We did have one nice family evening last Tuesday, we took stroller and walked over to Marino's on Franklin for pizza then walked the long way home. It was very nice, but nights like that are few and far between.

Since the last blog, Mr. Ryan has started eating people food, has made the transition (finally) to a sippy cup, and has quit using the inflatible bathtub in the big bathtub. I am still rocking him to sleep and he still has his paci, but we are making progress. He has also turned into quite the little climber (dining room table, top rung of rocking chair, into the crib, etc) which gives me quite the workout and scares me to death because he has no fear of anything. I have finally caved a little, and let him watch PBS just so I can catch a breath now and then. He is still obsessed with the vacuum cleaner and is obsessed with books. We read, and read, and read, which is good. I also let Aunt Kathy give him m&m's which he LOVED!

Yesterday we went to Humboldt with Todd's parents to visit Todd's Grandpa and Aunt and Uncle. It was a fun day, but very long. Ryan was non-stop from 8 am to 8 pm with no nap and without eating much. Todd's aunt and I splurged at supper and had the Ultimate Humboldt Burger, which is a hamburger with cheese, pickles, bbq sauce, and homemade onion rings on it and we split an order of the onion rings & ranch dressing with Sandy. The bowl the onion rings came in was just glistening with grease, but it was I almost cried it was so good. And, I had a taco salad at lunch. I really don't eat like that anymore (except the to-die-for giant lasagna at the last crop) and really paid the price. I had horrible nightmares last night and indigestion all day, which wasn't helped by the burger and chips I had at Tami and Preston's today! I guess my body has really adjusted to my new eating habits and doesn't like the junk any more. The first 40 pounds was easy to lose, but this next 40 has been hell. I was hoping to get if off by my birthday, but I may just have to settle for another 20 by then.

Last weekend we went to Osky and surprised Todd's dad for his birthday which was very nice too. I guess that was another nice family day. Todd had to leave after a few hours to go to work, but Ryan and I stayed until 8 pm. Next weekend Ryan and I have no plans, and then the 31st we are going to the Farm for my dad's birthday, and the week after that is Todd's mom's birthday and Easter. Whew!

That's all I can think of for now, I was going to clean up my scrapping area, but I am ordering some paper shelves (a bonus for me from me) so I might as well wait until they come in to clean up.

New Philosophy

I haven't caught up on the laundry in weeks. I don't watch much tv anymore from 6-9 pm. My house isn't as clean as it used to be. I don't use my elliptical machine as much as I should. I haven't cropped in weeks or months. I need to go shopping for new clothes and haven't done it. I didn't make any homemade valentines. I eat frozen dinners for lunch and supper. My blog rarely gets updated, and I have had the same music on my iPOD for the past month. But from 5 - 9:15 every night and all day every weekend, a sticky, noisy, loud little soul has my full attention. He is happy and thriving. And so am I. Everything else can wait. He won't be a little boy forever.

Show Us Your Bellies!

Ryan & Tony - 2 Happy Boys

CREEPY!!!!

Last night Todd was home and had been in bed since 4 pm. I turned out all the lights in the living room and got into bed at 11 pm. I specifically remember that I turned them all out because I couldn't see a darn thing when I tried to get into bed. I woke up 15 minutes later and the 3-light lamp in the living room was on and Todd was still sound asleep. All 3 bulbs. CREEPY!!!!!!!!

Today Todd took the laptop upstairs to hook up to the internet. When he got up there, the internet cable was already unhooked from the main computer and was just lying on the floor waiting for him. I never unhooked it, and I am the only one that uses that computer. CREEPY!!!!

Tidbits

It's been a long time since I blogged. Here are some random thoughts/updates.

- Sometimes I can be a genius. I spilled a pop and it filled up both cup holders in the Jeep. I stuffed a diaper in them, and it sucked up the pop in minutes.

- You know it's cold when a jar of (spaghetti of course) baby food explodes in your diaper during the 15 minute drive to Rachel's house.

- A 15-month-old boy and a 18-month-old boy can not be expected to share their toys.

- Poker last Friday night was fun, but I only won one hand. I was having a hard time concentrating since it took me until 11:30 to get Ryan to sleep! He was up bright and shiny at 7:30 am Saturday morning.

- I continue to be addicted to the prison shows on MSNBC on Friday nights. I am also now addicted to Crime and Punishment and The Real Housewives of Orange County. Now there's a lot of silicone on that show. I am also addicted to Flip this House. I prefer the San Antonio version. That Armando is a real ass. I guess I am really into watching bad tv after Ryan goes to bed!

-Mediacom is a bunch of morons (like I didn't know). I haven't been able to get my new DVR box to work since they installed it. I finally called, and it turns out they didn't install a DVR box, they installed an HDTV box. Why???????????????

- I am a wuss. I can only do about 7 minutes on my new elliptical machine before I collapse.

- Why do I crop? Is it so I can be perfect or so I can keep a record of the important things in my life? I need to just start slappin' it down.

- I thought Todd and his parents were crazy, but the Macaroni and Cheese Pizza at Cici's is AWESOME!

- Don't cheat and eat all the bread pieces out of a giant bag of Gardetto's before you go to bed. You will dream that a toadstool grows out of your left eye, and when you pull it out your eye totally rots out and you have to take chemotherapy pills while you walk around with a brown mushy hole where your eye was.

OMG!

Ryan is actually taking a nap!! On a Saturday!!! Time to crop! The blog will have to wait.

Poker

For all you poker ladies - I'm still waiting to hear back from a few people, but it looks like it will either have to be Feb 2 (Super Bowl weekend), or we will have to wait until March.

Toddlers!

This toddler business is not for the weak. Ryan is CRAAAZY. We had wedding receptions to go to both Friday night and Saturday, and of course Todd was at work Friday and in the wedding on Saturday, so I was on Ryan patrol. That boy can move fast. Saturday Ryan could not comprehend why he couldn't go be with Daddy on the altar (Todd was best man), so he and I spent the ceremony in the Sunday School Room. Then we were at the reception (at Stein's) before he fell off a barstool head-first and wen Splat! facedown. I looked at him and then I looked up, and it was like everyone in the room had frozen and all had these horrid looks of shock on their faces. I was more worried about someone turning me into DHS than I was about him I think. How did he manage to fall when I was less than 6 inches away? He ended up not being hurt, but he was already feverish and sleepy, so we went straight home. Some wedding. Sunday we went to Walmart and he kept trying to get out of the cart, and Monday we went out for supper and he wanted out of the high chair the whole time. He has also been in timeout again (he's only 15 months!) and knocked his head 3 times in the past 2 days and keeps climbing out of the bathtub.

He isn't that bad though. He does funny stuff too. Last night he poured and entire container of fruit puffs onto the carpet, then laid right in the middle of them, shoving them in his face as fast as he could. He kind of rolled in them too. Very funny!

He has also started breaking my heart. He now cries and tries to escape from the high chair every time I leave him at daycare, and Terri says he cries when the other kids' mommies pick their kids up. I wish I didn't have to send him to daycare...I just keep reminding myself that everyday I go to work I am getting free health insurance for my family, and that alone is worth something.

Ryan Says Happy New Year!

Ryan Update

It is fun watching Ryan develop into a little person. He has a new word this week - dog, and he now says very clearly 'Wake Up Daddy! Wake Up!'. He has been getting new teeth like crazy. Tonight I counted and he has 15. 8 on top and 7 on the bottom. He still won't touch much meat or any noodles, but he feeds himself peaches, bananas, and green beans. He is still obsessed with lights and light switches. Last night was the first time I ever put bubbles in his bath, and he was terrified! He kept trying to scrape them off his legs - crying the whole time.

Today he was put in timeout for hitting. Apparently all the other kids were being naughty and whacking each other, and he copied them. Terri Anne said she had so many kids in timeout today that it was more like a prison yard than a playground! I guess the time out worked and he actually sat there for the whole time. Terri Anne has a rule - You Hit, You Sit, That's It!

He still wants to be rocked to sleep, but is getting too big to get comfortable. Tonight he wriggled around and finally slid off my lap walked over to the middle of the living room, laid down, and was asleep in 5 seconds.

Some Good News

Well, some finally some good news regarding my purse. Our homeowner's insurance is going to pay to replace the contents of my purse and purse (wow, a whopping $15 for the purse) and up to $200 in cash. So, I will be able to get another cell phone and iPOD. My health insurance is going to pay 80% of the blood sugar machine. It is just irritating to replace all this stuff. I still have no driver's license because I need a copy of my birth certificate with an official raised seal, but I can't order one over the phone from the courthouse in Audubon because I have no credit card or checks, and I have to go to the doctor to get a prescription for the blood sugar machine even though I already had one. Ugh. Also, I went to pick up Todd's prescriptions today and I had to leave one there because I didn't have enough cash on me!

Also, between the time my purse was stolen and I called Wells Fargo, the thief made one charge using my debit card. It was for $2.25 for Auntie Anne's Pretzels at the mall. What the heck?

Happy !@#$ing New Year

New Year's Eve was not a good day. I was grumpy because my newspaper was wet, my vacuum cleaner won't suck, my email wasn't working, and my husband was gone. Little did I know it was going to get worse.

About 3:30 Ryan and I went to K-Mart to buy an elliptical machine. First I returned three pairs of pajama pants for which they gave me a gift card. Then we shopped. A lady in the curtain section asked me a really weird question and asked me to help her, then disappeared. I thought it was strange, but nothingelse. So, we finally get up to the counter and I unload my stuff, and I HAVE NO PURSE!!! That lady distracted me with the question, and then must have stolen it. It was between Ryan and the back of the seat!!! The store manager looked all over, to no avail. In the meantime, Ryan had pooped and I was crying, so I took him home and changed him, called Wells Fargo and Verizon Wireless, then went to the police department and filled out a report. I finally got home at 6:30. I lost my license, insurance card, debit card, checkbook, new iPOD that I got for Christmas, my cell phone, my blood sugar meter, the Kmart gift card, the Starbucks gift card I won in the Halloween cooking contest, and A LOT of cash. I never carry that much cash, but I was going to spend it in the store and then take the rest to the bank.

There is no good side to this story, but at least they didn't hurt Ryan and I had my keys in my pocket so I was able to drive home. I have been doing laundry today and just trying to enjoy being home with Ryan. I don't have to worry about finding time to pay bills (they closed our account and it will be 10 days before I get checks) or dowload music onto my iPOD, so I have lots of time on my hands!

His Favorite Gifts - Tent and Vacuum

Tooting My Own Horn

I am going to toot my own horn a little. I was the only person in my Optifast group not to gain weight over Christmas. In fact, I lost 0.5 pounds, which is amazing considering all the goodies I snitched!

I will have to update you on Christmas later. Back to the cleaning.

Missing My Baby Boo

I didn't know what to do with myself tonight. My Baby Boo is not here. He is in Osky with Grandma and Grandpa. Daycare was closed today, so they agreed (leapt at the chance) to babysit today. They came and picked him up last night and are bringing him back in the morning. I really have no idea what to do with my time. I am taking down the Christmas stuff and cleaning - all those things that are much easier to do without a toddler around. I am hoping that he wasn't looking around for me to pick him up tonight and that they figured out that he has to hold his pacifier in his left hand while he drinks his last bottle of the day, or else he won't go to sleep. I am never going to make it when I have to go to North Carolina for a week in May!

Tomorrow we have a playdate at the indoor playground with Caleb, Sy, Chaelinn, Caelin, and Cashlin. It should be fun. I haven't seen the Barbours since May!

Hooray!!

Monday we took Ryan to the cardiologist for his 6-month checkup. I am happy to report that both holes in his heart have grown shut! He doesn't ever have to go back to the heart doctor. We are thrilled :)

Poo on the Carpet!!!

A sick cat got into our dining room and pooped green diarreha all over our carpet!
Not exactly. I dropped a jar of broccoli & chicken baby food on the carpet, and it sprayed all over the wall. What a mess! It did look like cat crap though.

Much Better Today

Ryan was naughty, naughty, and cranky, cranky, cranky yesterday, even with a nap. He also has diarehha from the antibiotics. I am feeding him Yo Baby! yogurt (which he loves) twice a day to help with the diarehha.

Two molars more molars have finally poked through, but not all the way, so his gums are still really swollen. I guess I would be crabby too! Last night he fell asleep at 6 pm and slept until 7:30 this morning. It was the miracle cure. He is not crabby today! Hallelujah.

Yesterday I paid the bills, wrapped some gifts, and did a tiny bit of scrapbooking. Today, I have been tidying up and doing laundry. We have let the laundry pile up too long. Ryan has 3 loads just himself! I believe I am on load #5 with atleast 4 more to go. Ugh.

This Pretty Much Explains How Saturday Morning Went at Our House

Like Stealing Candy From A Baby

This is kind of funny. Tuesday Ryan still had a high fever, so I came home at noon from my computer class and assumed my parental duties from Todd. I called the pediatrician and got an appointment within 30 minutes, so I had to hustle to get Ryan ready as the stern nurse insists that you be 15 minutes early for all appointments. Anyway, we got there and waited and saw the doctor and all that. Then I had to get him dressed to come home. I suddenly took ill. I realized that in all the commotion I hadn't drunk my shake, and I was having low blood sugar. I was afraid I was going to pass out, but there was no one outside the door and Ryan was still naked and crying. What was I going to do?


Solution: I stole Ryan's bottle from him and chugged the whole milk. I was better in minutes, but felt more than a little guilty! Ryan just looked confused.

Trying to Escape

Fever Boy No More

Ryan had a high fever for no reason for a whole week earlier in November, so when he came down with a 103 fever on Saturday I figured there was nothing I could do. By Sunday it was 104, so I hauled him back to the doctor. This time I got lucky. He had an ear infection! You have never seen a mom so happy to hear her kid had an ear infection! This meant antibiotics. Todd stayed home with him all day Monday, and I left my computer class on noon at Tuesday. He still had 104 fever and had to be held all the time. He was limp as a dishrag. So, I took him back in and they increased his antibiotic. Within 3 hours, the fever broke! He was back at daycare yesterday and is sleeping in his crib some. When he is sick we always have to hold him 24/7 and sleep with him in the recliner, so when he gets better then we have to break him from being held. Ugh. I also managed to clean up the house a little and finally put the ornaments on my tree (it took me until 12:30 am). Every thing always seems to go to hell when you have a sick kid!

Update

Wow! I can't believe I haven't blogged since Thanksgiving! Well, let's see…
Ryan ended up sleeping on Thanksgiving afternoon for four hours so I got all my Christmas decorations hauled down from upstairs. Todd ended up sleeping for fifteen hours, so he missed Thanksgiving all together. He didn't wake up until 3 am Friday morning! Friday we went to the Target sale but got there too late to get the camera we wanted. Then we went out for lunch. Todd had a turkey dinner and Ryan ate his first cottage cheese, which he loved. Then we went home and put up our new Christmas lights – an animated penguin.

Saturday afternoon I drove Ryan to the farm so we could go to my great-uncle's 90th birthday party on Sunday. It was a lot of fun. I got to see all my Arnold cousins, but we mostly all stayed in packs of our immediate family. Ryan enjoyed running in and out of the men's restroom, climbing on Uncle Kurt, being fawned over, and pushing around my great-aunt Donna's super-cool walker called "The Cadillac". Apparently it is nicer than any of the other assisted-living people's walkers, so they named it "The Cadillac". We left for home about 2:45, hit Wal-Mart in Ankeny for baby food and diapers and arrived home about 6:30 pm. Then I unloaded the car, gave Ryan his supper, gave Ryan his bath, chased him around, and rocked him to sleep. I was exhausted.

Last Thursday we went to Stephanie's for a Pampered Chef party. We made omelets in Ziploc bags, which was fun. Ryan screamed hysterically all the way over and was really fussy after we went into the house. I finally took off his shoes, and he perked right up. He loved going up their stairs and running into Rylan's room. He also discovered that they had a Christmas tree. Luckily he only pulled off a few ornaments. I was exhausted by the time we left.

Saturday Tami and Preston and the boys joined Ryan and me at the Cookie Festival at the WDM Methodist Church. It started at 9 am and was freezing cold. We got there at 9:15 and it was packed. We hustled the kids in and then stood in line for over 30 minutes. I was roasted and groaning holding my almost 27 pound munchkin, but every time I put him down he would sprint down the hall. Caleb had a good time twirling his cookie bucket, which T & P did not appreciate. An hour later, we left with buckets full of awesome cookies. Go figure – there were only 5 people in line when we left! Then Ryan and I drug H's first wedding dress to the Ebay store, only to be told that they don't sell clothing, then we hit the St. Theresa's bazaar which was pretty small.

Sunday I went to the Nine Lessons and Carols program at church. Rachel was supposed to go with me, but she came down with strep throat. It was beautiful with a men's quartet doing all the songs. They also had a two guest sopranos, bells, and mambo drums. It really put me in the Christmas spirit, even though I had only a Christmas tree up with no ornaments!

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone! It has been a quiet but good day at the Stein house. Todd got home from work early this morning and then stayed up until noon. It was fun for the three of us to hang out and play. We don't get much time together. I fed Ryan turkey/rice and carrots for his lunch in honor of the holiday. At 1:30 I took Ryan out for walk in the stroller. He fell asleep, so when we got home I just rolled him into the backyard. Then I spent the next 45 minutes cleaning off the last of my garden debris. Stupidly, I wore short sleeves. I now have a rash up to my elbows! I covered my arms with diaper rash cream and put on a long sleeve shirt.

Ryan was still asleep, so I actually read the paper in quiet! Then I came upstairs to get the Christmas decorations out, but ended up reorganizing all my tubs of baby clothes and supplies. All that stuff adds up! I have no idea where I am going to store the exersaucer. I have 3 tubs of clothes that are still too big for him. I got them from one of the mom's at daycare. How lucky am I? I have clothes all the way up to 4T just waiting for us.

That's all the news from here. No thanksgiving dinner for me - I am sticking to the liquid diet. But, I am not too disappointed since I need to dig out a tub of smaller clothes from the attic! Well, off to do some Christmas decorating before my boys wake up (Ryan is still in the stroller in the dining room - in his coat! It's now been 2.5 hours!)

Wild Child

Tonight was an interesting night with Ryan, aka "The Tornado". When we got home we chatted with the neighbor in our driveway, and he took off. He made it all the way across their front yard and almost into their driveway before we caught him. The boy can walk fast.

Then we went inside. When I closed the baby gate he had a fit. He stomped over to the recliner, beat his head a few times, then laid down on his back and kicked and screamed, then rolled over to his stomach and kicked and screamed. Yowzer.

Later we were playing in his room, and I turned my back for a few seconds to put something in the closet. I heard a little cry and turned around to find that he was hanging by his hands from the side of the changing table with one leg dangling in mid-air and the other leg on the arm of his rocking chair! This child is going to make my hair turn white fast!

First Haircut

Last night we took Ryan to Great Clips for his first hair cut. It was looking pretty raggedy in the front, and the back was getting really long.

The hair cut went great. He sat on Todd's lap and ate a biter biscuit. He didn't cry or anything. I took lots of pictures and the stylist gave us a certificate and some of his hair.

I hate the hair cut. I wish I hadn't done it. He doesn't look like my baby anymore. It makes me sad.

Before the Haircut

After the Haircut

How to Catch Up?

It's been so long since I blogged that I don't even know how to catch up. Here is the short version.

Ryan's second 1st birthday party on Oct 29 was a success. We had it at Westchester Park on the last gorgeous Sunday of the year. It was very casual and all the kids had a great time playing on the cool playground equipment. All of my good friends (except Alisa who was in Nebraska) were there, so that meant a lot to me. I had tons of cupcakes left, but the little smokies wrapped in bacon (aka Heart Attack on a Stick) got eaten lickety-split. Ryan got tons more of cool toys. Thanks everybody!

Ryan had his 12-month checkup on the day before Halloween. Ryan was 25 lb 6 oz (75%) and 30.25 inches (50%). At 9 months he was 23 lb 10 oz and 28.25 inches. His head is still 97%. He only cried for a minute after his shots and then I got irritated with Todd because he was being a wuss and then he got mad at me for saying he was a wuss. The Dr. wants Ryan to have 8 oz of formula with DHA per day until he is 2. So, we still aren't off formula!

We went to Walmart for a few things and Ryan took his bandaid off his finger (they poked his finger to test for lead) and bled all over the cart. We got him cleaned up and took him home and he took the new bandaid off and bled allover his pants, the kitchen floor, my arms, my face, and my neck. Who knew a little finger could bleed so much!

Then I carved his pumpkin and put it on the floor for him. He rolled it all over and then tried to put his head in it! It was hilarious. I should have some very funny pictures. We had less trick or treaters than usual but Ryan was excited by it all and kept trying to climb out the door. On Halloween I sent him to school in green pants, an orange shirt, and his pumpkin bib. He looked pretty good!

The first weekend in November, Todd's parents came up to visit and took Ryan out for a few hours. I got a lot done while they were gone. I got my bulbs planted and my birdbaths and flower pots brought in. They took him to McDonald's and he had his first french fries. I can't believe I let him eat them.

Ryan started walking last Thursday. We went to the farm on Friday for my mom's birthday and Ryan cruised all over her house all weekend. I think he was thrilled to be in more spacious surroundings. My dad threw my mom a good party and we all had a good time, except Lewie (H's dog) was acting weird. By Saturday night he was vomiting, and on Monday the vet discovered he had liver cancer, so it was our last weekend with him. I feel bad because I didn't even pet him that weekend.

Ryan has been sick with a high fever since Monday night. Tuesday I had to give a presentation to the Air and Waste Management group in the Amanas, so Todd stayed home with him. I have been home with him yesterday and today. He has been so feverish and listless. All he wants to do is sleep while being held. I took him to the doctor (which involved a blood test, a catheter, a urine collection bag, and two trips to the office) but they couldn't find anything wrong with him. I started freaking out last night because he had bright 4-H green diarreha, which is a sign of rotavirus. However, I went online and discovered that it was most likely a side effect of all the purple pedialyte he has been drinking. Today he was playing some and being naughty (he kept trying to stand on the lamp), so I take that as a sign he is on the mend.

Aaah...Nothing's Better Than a Grape Popsicle

What's In This Thing?

Lil' Pumpkin

Smiling Birthday Boy

Tony Wishes Ryan a Happy Birthday

Happy Birthday to My Baby Boy

At 1:51 pm today it will be Ryan's first birthday! I can't believe it has been a year already. Just about this time last year, I was just deciding to get the epidural, not knowing that Ryan and I would have a horrible reaction to it and end up in emergency surgery and then the NICU. Aaahh..not good memories.

BUT - that doesn't matter anymore. I have a happy, healthy baby boy who was jumping up and down in his crib this morning, happy to see me. I sent him to daycare wearing a "Birthday Boy" button, and he also took cookies for everyone for snack time. Only 4 hours til I get to pick him up!

PS - Party guests for Sunday - looks like it should be fairly warm on Sunday. I am still planning on the park, and will call you all if we switch the party to the house.

On A Happier Note .... Mmmm Birthday Cake!

We Are All So Lucky

My mom is coming tomorrow night so she can watch Ryan on Wednesday. Daycare is closed for a funeral, and I have a big meeting at work that I can't miss and Todd has two trainees starting. The funeral is for one of the daycare children. The youngest daycare baby passed away this weekend at home. He was only 6 months old. He had just gotten out of the hospital for pneumonia and aspirated his vomit into his lungs while he was sleeping. It is so sad. He was so cute. My daycare provider is a wreck, and I can't even imagine how his parents are doing. I am giving Ryan lots of extra love. Give your kids extra hugs and kisses. We are all very lucky to have them.

He Loves His Puffs

Darn It!

Ryan finally took more than one step! He took five steps today, and walked to Jordan at daycare :( I thought I would be crushed that I missed it, but I am actually doing ok with it. I think.

He was really tired tonight so he didn't even try to walk at home. His bath was scary. He now likes to stand up and hang onto the washcloth rack in the wall. Then he does his victory dance. I was terrified he was going to crack his head open, so he may not have gotten as clean as usual.

Not Much New

Not much is going on this weekend. Yesterday Ryan and I ran a few errands and he fell asleep in the car between each one. I felt so bad getting him out of the car each time and waking him up. He finally took a real nap at 5:30 pm!

I have been doing a little cleaning for the party on Saturday and trying not to get to obsessed about it. Yesterday I sorted through Todd's crap in the dining room, oiled my cabinet doors, windexed the stove, and cleaned the glass on the front door. Ok - so maybe I am obsessed. Otherwise, I am good to go for the big family party on Saturday. I have the cake ordered, all the food and paper goods purchased except for the buns, and my to-do lists are ready to go for Friday night and Saturday morning.

Today I have been trying to get Ryan's calendar and photo album up-to-date, but I ran out of pages in the album again. I might work on his fleece blanket a little too.

All Bundled Up

The Last Roses of the Season From My Garden