Spirited Little Guy

Just pushing myself around on my four-wheeler.

Getting my first real haircut.

Todd refers to Ryan as "spirited" which is a perfect description. This last weekend he was around kids a couple years older and he gets so giddy with excitement it's hilarious. He'll smile, giggle then flaps his arms as if he were going to take off or something. We've been busier than we'd like but have tried to make the most of our time in the evenings and on the weekend with Ryan.

Last weekend we went to the lake where he got his first official haircut by a real stylist. He did surprisingly well and looks much older (and better) with his shorter hair now. We enjoyed a family hike at HaHa Tonka state park and since it had been dry Callie got to go and was in dog heaven. This weekend we stayed in KC and, although we didn't get to squeeze in everything we'd hoped to, we still got to see lots of friends and family. Ryan, my sister Michelle, and I went to Wichita for my cousin Mandy's baby shower and had a nice day getting to see everyone. We were able to meet her new son Graham and also my cousin Ryan's new baby Parker. The baby boys were adorable and are such wonderful additions to the Woodman family. Ryan followed around Carter, Tyler and Isabel, and I'm glad because they're great kids and hopefully some of their good behavior rubbed off on him. Sunday we saw the Seymours and Gingriches and Ryan had a good time trying to keep up Jasper and Emerson as well and, again, hopefully Ryan took note of how well they listened.

Ryan continues to adore Callie and will open up her kennel to let her out in the mornings. He is very interested in putting lids on and off things and has started to put blocks together. However, he also continues to put everything in his mouth from mulch to rocks to leaves. His latest trick is making his riding toys move and it's so darn cute to watch him motor around the house on his train or fire engine. Or, courtesy of Grandpa Steve, his four-wheeler or jet ski.

It's Clicking

"What's clicking?" you ask. Everything! This past week, Ryan has started to understand so many things and each day does something new. It's really exciting to watch his comprehension grow, and we love that we can start to communicate with one another. After months of going over the names of everyday items, it's thrilling that all of a sudden he understands what familiar objects are called and will pick them out of a group if you ask him to get it for you. As I was getting dressed this morning and was putting on my first shoe, he went to my closet, got out my boot, brought it over and tried to put it on my other foot. Then tonight, when we were going through our evening bedding-down routine, he got his acid reflux medicine and the dropper, then sat down on the floor and went through the motions we do each morning and evening to take it. Since he's a bottomless pit, he's really taken to saying, "more" when he's out of food and is still hungry. Strangers could understand his "more" and "dada" but his other words require interpretation. We just love that he's eager to try to say new words. We've been enjoying as much time outside as possible and he's a champ on the jungle gym. Just tonight, he climbed up the stairs on his own then sat down at the top of the slide, turned around on his tummy and went feet-first down the slide all by himself. We've got a little monkey on our hands!

Grandpa Steve picks Ryan up the days I work in Topeka,
so when I went to get him at their house, they were outside
in the front yard playing with their old wagon.

Ryan playing on the jungle gym at the lake last weekend.
Callie loves to be right in on the action - even if it means
following Ryan up on the jungle gym.



Doing a mini Easter egg hunt in the back yard. This particular
activity is not one of the things that "clicked" for him. Callie
however was keenly aware that there were Cheerios and Nutter
Butters inside the eggs and was did a great job hunting them:)