River Photo Shoot

Photo shoots have taken on a whole new meaning since Ryder was born. He is proving to need a little more coaching than Chelsea did. I for sure need a better camera that takes pictures faster. I have a very short window of time to take a picture of him before he is off and running. I seem to get a lot of the back of his head these days.

Ryder doesn't really say any words yet but here he is saying "cheese". I don't know where he picked that up but it is kinda cute and I get a cheesy smile out of him. Once again, I have to be quick.

I can count on my hands how many decent pictures I have of the two of them together. Usually he is arching his back and trying to get away. This was one of the better ones of the day. Did I mention we were down by the river? This was a job for more than one person. I had the choice to take pictures and let him jump in the river or hold on to him and avoid me having to go get him out. He was in heaven and I was exhausted when we were done. Next time Papa has to come along to help me out.

So, the next day Chelsea wanted to go back to the river with just us so we could get some more pictures. I have trained her well. She will pose wherever I want her too and she comes up with her own ideas for how I should take her picture. This one reclining in the tree was my favorite. She melts my heart for sure.

It didn't take long before she thought the shoes needed to come off and away she went in the water. Yes, I was nervous and had to caution her several times to not get out too deep in the water. She listens much better than Ryder who makes Dennis the Menace look like an angel.
It was fun to watch her romp around in the water and play.

Teach Me Grandpa...

Children are so eager to learn and they want to do everything that we do, as you can see here. Mark and I try very hard to include Chelsea and Ryder on whatever it is we are doing, whether it is washing dishes, cleaning the house, building furniture in the garage and now....playing the violin. It was a bit embarrassing how much dust was on the violin case when Mark dug it out though.

I am always amazed and a bit jealous when Mark gets his violin out. He picks it up and begins playing as if he had played everyday of his life. Of course the kids got the biggest kick out of "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" because they knew that song.

Immediately they jumped right up by him and wanted to help him out. Now let me tell you, that was a beautiful noise. Both kids got to take a turn holding the bow and playing while Papa did his best to hold the violin and control the strings.


I love the expression on Ryders face as he is taking his turn. Probably the stillest he has ever sat. (I am thinking Mark should work on that farmers tan he has going though.)

No matter what talents they choose to pursue, we will always stand ready to encourage them and do what we can to be all they can be.

Making Cookies with Grandma

From the time Chelsea was old enough to sit up we have had her in the kitchen helping out, from playing in the sink, washing dishes to cooking and baking. Ryder has also got to join in the fun. I might mention that keeping an eye on two of them is a challenge at times as you will see.
I don't really have any memories of baking cookies with my Grandma's. I have other memories that I hold dear however. I know I can't do it all with them but it is so important to me to create as many memories as I can with my Grandchildren. I can't always be in the pictures with them but I think they will remember that I was there.
It is important that you have the proper attire when working in Grandma's kitchen. Here Chelsea is decked out in her cupcake apron. She also has matching "hotpots" as she calls them and I don't have the heart to correct her. She was sure to tell me that I needed a picture of her in her apron though...check out the pose!


On this occasion she was able to make the cookies from start to finish. I just helped measure but she knows how to run the mixer all by herself, add ingredients, crack eggs, scoop them on to the cookie sheets and put them in the oven all by herself. She even knows to get ice if she gets a little burn in the process.

So, I am guessing Ryder was feeling a little left out and I swear I turned my back for a few seconds and this is what I saw when I turned around. Yep! Up on the table to help out. He moves the chair out, climbs up on the chair and then it is just one more step up to get where he wants to be. Heck, I guess I could get him off the table, but I choose to get my camera instead. Look at him squatting there like he belongs right where he is at.

Notice how close he has moved to the bowl. Yes, he even knows how to pick the chocolate chips out of the dough and sample them. I am guessing his little pointer finger is telling me a story or two.

I just want to kiss those cheeks all day long. I want to keep them in my arms forever. These are the moments that take my breath away, the moments I etch on my heart. These are the memories I cherish..the everyday moments that I am so gratefull to get to be a part of.

1st Grade

How can it be a year since I last posted? Shame on me. It certainly isn't because I didn't have pictures to post or things to share. I am guessing if you are reading this you have seen all those pictures on Facebook so I don't feel like a totally worthless blogger ;-)


Chelsea started 1st grade this year and I think she really is liking it. She has Mr. May for a teacher and from what I hear he is an awesome teacher. I wonder if he knows he has royalty in his classroom? I bet he has a classroom full of princesses.


Six years old....where has the time gone? With all of Chelsea's firsts I find myself reflecting back to when my kids were in the same place. I love to watch her grow and learn. She loves to read and is working hard on her math. Her eyes light up when she gets her answers right. She doesn't give up easily.

I didn't get to follow her to her first day of school this year but thank God Grandma Ronda was there to capture the moment. I had these pictures in my mailbox within an hour. Ryder got to take his sissy to school though and aren't they just the cutest kids you have ever seen? I am in love....they light up my life.
There are days..believe me...when I just want quiet, and then they walk in the door, their eyes light up and they run to me with open arms and I MELT. Energy restored.
Here's to a wonderful school year and possibly a few more posts.

First Days of Kindergarten

I remember so well lining my children up on the front porch on the first day of school to take pictures. I never imagined the day I would have my Grand daughter do the same thing. I am so blessed to get to be a part of these special moments.
Chelsea had a parade escorting her to her first day of school. She had her mommy and brother, her Aunt Christen and of course Grandma. None of us wanted to miss it so we all went.

Look at Miss Independent walking down the big hallway all by herself, well, we were right behind her but she was taking the lead. Such a wave of emotions fill this heart of mine. Her mom walked down this same hallway for her first day of Kindergarten. I am sure she was just as independent and just as cute.

After about a week of school Chelsea has got her teachers name down. Instead of just saying "teacher" she now says "Mrs. Moran" It was nice of her teacher to color coordinate her outfit with Chelsea's for the first day of school.



She gets to ride the bus to school and as you can see she is totally okay with this fact. When I tucked her in to bed that night and said her prayers with her we thanked God that she had a safe bus ride and she sat up in bed and matter of fact told me, "Well, I had to hold on to the seat real tight when we went around a corner" I guess she wanted God to know that. So we asked God to send his angels to protect her, like we always do.....and she pipes in again...are you ready for this one...."are those angels God's wives?" I just never know what she will say next, but she is so sincere and so eager to learn.

I pray she will always love school, always be eager to learn and never be afraid to ask questions. Her angels have a full time job ahead of them, but who better to entrust her with but her Guardian Angels.

My "Little" Man

I know, it has been forever since I posted. Here is what I have been busy with, and isn't he the most adorable chunk of love you have ever seen? His smile melts my heart. He is four months old now and 20 pounds of cute.
If he isn't being held, which is his preference, this is his next favorite spot. He wants to be UP and facing the world, not laying down.

He has entered the drooling stage as you can see and with summer here, clothes are optional but the bib isn't.

There is nothing cuter than a baby or toddler in overalls. It was hard to get a pose where I could get a picture but we tried.

Keep checking back, I am hoping to get more pictures posted soon since I am so far behind.

My Little CowGirl

So, we are back to the point where she loves me to take her picture again. She is also getting very good at posing for me. She comes up with her own poses and tells me when to take the picture. Once again she is on our bed playing. It is so funny to me that she will run in and say to me, "Can I go play on your bed Grandma?"

Today was pink camo day and she decided that my pink hat topped the outfit off perfectly. Well, alright then. Who am I to argue. Can you believe she is only 5? She just looks more and more grown up all the time. I know I can never compare the two kids but if Ryder has even half the personality that Chelsea has I am going to have my hands full, not to mention a million pictures of them before they are even in school.

Does it get any cuter than this?

There was such an angelic look on her face on the photo below I couldn't resist posting it. We had a lot of fun playing around and taking silly pictures. You know I am going to post more so don't be thinking you are missing out.

One Month Old

I don't know how it happens but one minute I am in the hospital watching Ryder be born and the next he is one month old. How in the world does that happen? I will admit, I wasn't sure how it would be having two grandchildren, especially after Chelsea. She has been more to me than I ever would of imagined. But you know what, my heart is big enough for all the grandchildren you can throw at me. Ryder has his own special place in my heart that no one else can fill.
I think he is trying to smile at Grandma in this photo. When Chelsea was one month old she got to have her first sleep over at Grandma's house, and guess what? When Ryder was one month old he got to sleep over too. Do you think it will become a tradition with my Grandchildren? I think I would enjoy it. Both sleepovers involved very fussy babies, more like screaming babies. Screaming babies for long bouts of time. But you know, it didn't bother me too much. I had been very sick the week before and had not totally recovered but it didn't stop me.

Having two babies at the same time (okay, Chelsea is 5 but will always be my baby girl) was also a challenge. Papa had to sleep in one room with Chels and I had to sleep in another with Ryder but I got more sleep than I had thought I would. I think Ryder likes my bed (we know Chelsea does, she will only sleep with us when she is here). I do believe Mark and I will be getting a king size bed to accomodate the grandkids though.

Chelsea was nice enough to take this picture of us. She is becoming quite the photographer. This was a good moment, notice he is sleeping. If he was awake he was crying so most of the photos I got were of him sleeping.

I think he was just very hungry, so I let him have as much bottle as he wanted. Of course the first time I did this he threw it all back up all over me. That was a special moment I will always cherish. I had an entire bra full of formula. We came to an understanding of just how much enough formula his tummy could hold at any given time.

Grandmahood is agreeing with me.

3 Weeks Old

Three weeks old...and cuter every day. Grandma got to have the kids over for the day while the big kids went to Tri Cities to celebrate Sarah's birthday. Lets just say it was a good day. I am guessing that Chelsea does not quite trust my parenting skills as she was by my side all day instructing me on how to take care of her brother. She was even willing to help me out when I so much as blinked in the other direction.

I wouldn't say she is jealous, I am watchful for that, but she must be included on everything.
Can you see it? I go to change his diaper and she already had all the snaps undone on his outfit for me. I give him a bottle and she is sitting down on the couch telling me she can hold him. I turn my back while he is safely laying on the couch and she is giving him a bottle that he doesn't need or want, or she is picking him up. She just didn't understand Grandma's frustration with her and I didn't want to over react either.

So far, Ryder is a good sport about all of our transitioning. Lets hope he will always be that easy going.


I am so lucky to have two such beautiful grandchildren. I want to always be a huge part of their life. I want them to have memories to last a life time of wonderful moments they shared with their Papa and Grandma.