Larsen Family

These girls love books!

2012-02-04T17:57:00.000-08:00

Ryleigh loves to get the box of books and share them with Bailey. She will sit and read the whole box of books before moving on to another activity.

Sleepy Baby

2012-02-04T17:53:00.000-08:00

Oops, forgot

2012-02-04T17:50:00.000-08:00

With all of us getting sick around Christmas, the girls didn't get to wear their Christmas dresses for a few weeks after Christmas. I just realized I never put those pictures on here.

Silly 2 Year Old

2012-01-07T20:03:00.000-08:00

Ryleigh loves to play with my tape measure while I am being crafty. This time she wanted to use it to measure Bailey.

She soon got bored with that and decided to chase Lizzie around the house trying to measure her. Bailey liked that a whole lot more than Ryleigh measuring her.

And for some reason, Ryleigh was calling her a bad dog. Not sure where that came from. After I took the video, Lizzie had had enough and went downstairs. Ryleigh got mad and I told her she didn't want to play any more because she kept calling her a bad dog. Then Ryleigh stood at the top of the stairs and yelled down to Lizzie numerous times, "I just kidding Liz, you not a bad dog!"

Cartoons

2012-01-07T19:51:00.000-08:00

Ryleigh wakes up every morning, comes into our room and asks to watch "Mouse." The other morning she wanted to hold Bailey while they both watched "Mouse."

Jumping Fun!

2012-01-07T19:41:00.000-08:00

Over Christmas break my sister-in-law and I took the kids to Jumpin' Jungle, and indoor play place with 5 or 6 different blow up jump toys. They had so much fun we stayed for a long time!

Devin took Ryleigh here about a year ago and all she was interested in doing was riding in these little cars the whole time. Thankfully this time she only rode them every once in awhile.

Ryleigh was having fun running around in the arena with Madison and Zach

until...

she got whacked in the head by one of the rods!

Look at the height of that jump!

Hitting the floating baseball

Devin reminded me that Ryleigh did go down this slide by herself numerous times last time. We all went down with her a few times until she was brave enough to do it on her own. After she discovered she could climb the ladder and go down by herself there was no stopping her. I am pretty sure I stood at the bottom of this slide for a good 45 minutes straight while she went down over and over and over again. It ended when some bigger kids decided to go down at the same time and another right behind her and smacked into the back of her head. Stinkin' kids!

We can't wait to take Blake and Ashlyn here this Spring Break!

Christmas

2011-12-29T20:02:00.000-08:00

We opted to stay in town this Christmas and start our family traditions. We went to my brother's house for Christmas Eve and played The Night Before Christmas game.

Then the kids got to open their Christmas Eve gift. If you know Ryleigh, you know how much she loves jammies! Hence the look on her face.

Bailey didn't care what they were, as long as they could go in her mouth.

Oldest to youngest sporting their new pjs.

After we left, Devin and I both got sick and were up all night. He blamed it on the "dog barf" cookies but he didn't eat any of them. However, it didn't stop Christmas from coming. The girls were both up by 6:15. Ryleigh was so excited and was ready to head down the stairs to see what Santa brought. I asked her to wait so I could get the camera ready. No such luck. She was headed down the stairs before me because she saw her kitchen!

Bailey was awake long enough to see what Santa brought her (and apparently I didn't get a picture of it) and then went back to bed. So we opened gifts in shifts this year. Devin and I laid on the couch and watched Ryleigh take her time opening the gifts. After she opened each one she wanted to sit a play with it before moving onto the next one.

When we would pass this kitchen in the store, she would stop and pretend to wash her hands in the sink. When she came downstairs to see it she asked where the soap was so we showed her the pretend soap on the wall. I guess that wasn't good enough because with each gift she opened she would say, "Maybe there's soap in here!" Then she would see that no there wasn't and would say, "Nope, no soap!" It was pretty funny.

When Bailey started opening her gifts, Ryleigh was ready for round two. She wanted to open them for Bailey.

The girls got big sister and little sister babies. Ryleigh was so excited to show Bailey how to play dolls.

Ryleigh entertained herself very well the rest of the morning making us wonderful meals with her kitchen, playing with her new doll and golf set. Later, Devin felt well enough to get out the moon dough popcorn, ice cream and pretzel maker with her.

My brother and sister-in-law were thoughtful and postponed our Christmas tamale dinner to Monday night so we could enjoy it. Thanks guys! But we sure did miss being able to go to church on Christmas and hear the wonderful program about the birth of our Savior.

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-24T14:39:00.000-08:00

Cookies!

2011-12-24T14:38:00.000-08:00

I decided at 7:30 this morning to go ahead and make my great grandmother's ginger cookies that we made every year growing up even though my husband doesn't like them. Ryleigh helped out with every part of them.

Her favorite part was adding the sprinkles to her cookies. I had to teach her to sprinkle from above, that she didn't need to put the bottle of sprinkles on the cookie.

All ten of her masterpieces.! There wasn't even any sprinkle mishaps. Her favorite ones were the trees.

After all that hard work she thought she deserved to eat one. She loved every bite of it! That's my girl!

Go Aggies!

2011-12-22T15:43:00.000-08:00

Last weekend Devin's parents, brother and one of his friends came to visit to go cheer on Utah State in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl on the blue turf. Grandma was kind enough to stay home with the girls so I could go too. We had a fun time even though the Aggies lost in the final seconds of the game and it got a little cold in the last quarter.

Ryleigh had a good time playing a game over and over with Grandma that she brought.

Ta Da!

2011-12-15T20:09:00.000-08:00

Bailey can sit up now! Right before she turns 8 months.

Ryleigh got a little jealous of me praising Bailey and taking pictures. She sat next to her and said "Look, I can sit up too!" Then she tried to be sneaky and push her down.

And look, she finally is getting some hair!

I Love These Girls

2011-12-15T19:42:00.000-08:00

I have tried for a long time to get one of these moments on video. They happen often but as soon as I find the camera Bailey is done. Ryleigh loves to make her sister laugh. She thinks it is pretty funny. Bailey likes to pull Ryleigh's hair all the time and Ryleigh thinks it is funny as well.

Tree Decorating

2011-12-11T22:04:00.000-08:00

After the light parade we went to a tree lot to buy our Christmas tree. Ryleigh had fallen asleep in the car so we just took her up to bed when we got home. When she woke up in the morning and saw the tree in the living room she was so excited and told me right away that the tree needed bows like Grandma has on her tree. When she got closer to the tree and noticed that the tree leaves a mess, she wasn't too sure about that. After church we came home and decorated it. Ryleigh loved every minute of it.

Bailey was content sitting in her chair watching.

Light Parade

2011-12-11T21:55:00.000-08:00

Ryleigh and I braved the cold and went to the light parade with my sister-in-law and her kids. It was very long but they did a great job. Ryleigh waved to every float that passed by.

She was complaining while we were waiting for the parade to start that she was cold. I wrapped her up in the blanket but it didn't last long.

Ryleigh and her buddy Zach waiting for the parade to start.

Santa Try #2

2011-12-11T21:50:00.000-08:00

Again, no luck! Bailey loved him though.

We were in UT for Thanksgiving and Santa came to the courthouse in Brigham City so we thought we would let Ryleigh try again. She told us the whole time we were in line that she wasn't going to sit on his lap but that she would stand by him so I could take a picture. Nope, that didn't happen either. As soon as we got up there, "Mommy, I need you, I need you!"

Tree Lighting

2011-11-20T14:30:00.000-08:00

On Friday night we went to the Tree Lighting in Caldwell. It was very cold and there were tons of people but we had a great time. Bailey stayed nice and warm all bundled up in the stroller.

While we were standing in line for Santa we saw a reindeer. Ryleigh wouldn't get close enough to it to get her picture taken so here is the butt of the reindeer.

Ryleigh was so excited to see Santa and was telling us all of the things she was going to ask Santa for for Christmas. When we got up to Santa and the Mrs., she wanted nothing to do with them. Santa even tried bribing her with a candy cane while her cousins Madison and Zachary were sitting on their laps. She had no problem taking the candy but refused to get any closer to them. That little stinker. Thank goodness we still have a month to convince her to sit on Santa's lap.

After we left Santa I told Ryleigh she didn't tell Santa what she wanted for Christmas so he wasn't going to bring her any presents. She didn't seem too concerned and said we will find another Santa. She cracks me up.

She did however, ride the little train with Zachary. He is so cute with her. Before the train started to go he told her to put her arms inside.

I didn't end up getting any pictures of the lights because of all the people. But we will for sure be back multiple times to see the 400,000 lights. Ryleigh kept pointing out all of the purple lights.

Cheeseball

2011-11-15T19:59:00.000-08:00

I took the girls to get pictures taken Saturday morning. Ryleigh kept talking about getting her pictures taken all day and posing around the house. She wanted more pictures taken so I took her outside for another photo shoot.

Trick or Treat

2011-10-28T19:23:00.000-07:00

Tonight was our ward Trunk or Treat party.

Bailey went as a cow

Ryleigh went as her favorite character of all time, Mickey Mouse even though several people thought she was a lady bug...

and she won cutest costume!

Ryleigh crashed on the way home while eating her candy.

Pumpkin Carving

2011-10-28T19:11:00.000-07:00

Ryleigh wanted to paint her little pumpkin and loved every minute of it.

Then Devin asked if she wanted to help him clean out his pumpkin with her hands. No way, she was going to use a spoon to help us clean out ours. She was very proud of herself for touching a seed though.

The finished products.

Ryleigh with her pumpkin...

and then she wanted her picture with Mom's Mickey Mouse and Daddy's scary face.

Who stole the cookies from the counter top?

2011-10-22T20:02:00.000-07:00

Ryleigh stole the cookies from the counter top!

6 months

2011-10-22T19:59:00.000-07:00

Bailey turned 6 months on Thursday! What has she been up to? As seen in an earlier post, she got her first tooth. We had no idea it was coming. She was her normal self. This little girl still loves to smile lots and lots. She loves to laugh, especially with her sister. She is always kicking her legs and can't keep them in her pants or pjs. She is finally sleeping through the night again! She is still trying to figure out the eating solid foods. That darn tongue still gets in the way sometimes. Bailey is so fun to have around. Ryleigh loves her to death and always gives us a play by play as to what Bailey is doing. Her favorite time is from the backseat of the car when we can't see Bailey.

Silly Girls

2011-10-22T19:48:00.000-07:00

Ryleigh frequently does this when Bailey rolls over.

Ryleigh likes to put everyone to bed all over the house. Stuffed animals, dolls, Bailey, Lizzie...Lizzie wanted to be the star in this film!

First Tooth

2011-10-18T21:36:00.001-07:00

Pumpkin Patch

2011-10-16T08:52:00.000-07:00

We took the girls to the pumpkin patch on Friday night. Ryleigh was so excited the whole way there to get herself a little pumpkin. As soon as she got out of the car she started running toward to row of pumpkins.

We took a hay ride through the pumpkin patch to find the perfect pumpkins.

Ryleigh took a long time to find her perfect pumpkin.

"I see poo poo!"

2011-10-08T20:13:00.000-07:00

We have a potty training book that shows that all animals eat so all animals have to poop. So when we asked Ryleigh if she wanted to go to the zoo yesterday she said, "I see poo poo!" Yep, we saw lots of that.

Our first stop was the prairie dog domes. They have tunnels kids can walk through and pop their heads up through a dome to get a closer look at the prairie dogs. Ryleigh loved that they were so close.

It was a little cold so we bundled Bailey up tight. She was nice and toasty warm the whole time.

We always have to get a picture of Ryleigh on the baby tiger.

This tortoise was trying to climb up the fence and escape. He wasn't being very successful.

This was by far Ryleigh's favorite part, feeding the goats. After she finished her handful of food she picked up pieces of food off the ground so she could continue to feed them. We spent a long time at this stop.

This giraffe was so cute to watch. He was trying to pick something up off the ground so he had to spread his front legs out to the side pretty far so he could get low enough to pick it up. I was too slow on getting the picture so I didn't capture that moment.

The lions were also fun to watch. They were having fun sneaking up and pouncing on each other. Ryleigh kept calling them kitty cats and pointing out when another one was coming close to the window.

Purple...Candy

2011-10-01T15:48:00.000-07:00

Ryleigh loves to play Candy Land. Devin has played it with her a few times but she doesn't like to play the right way. She likes to find all of the candy cards and match them to the picture on the game board. Then she finds all of the purple cards, her favorite color. I sat down to play with her the other night and had her play the right way. She wasn't very happy but I did manage to get her to play a whole game. Then she proceeded to play the game her way. At least she is practicing her matching skills!

Who Needs Toys?

2011-10-01T15:41:00.000-07:00

I had a few diaper boxes I needed to throw away but wanted to cut the box tops off first. They were sitting in the family room and Ryleigh asked what I was doing with them. She took it upon herself to go up to their closet and empty out multiple diaper boxes. She brought them all down to me and tole me she needed to throw them away. Some were holding unused clothes and others still had diapers in them. She found it entertaining to ride in them before I had her put them back.

The Small Window of Opportunity

2011-10-01T15:35:00.000-07:00

If Ryleigh isn't asleep by 9:00 there is little hope of getting her to sleep before we are ready for bed. I don't understand it! Last night was a late night getting home after parent teacher conferences so it was one of those nights. We heard her playing in her room and just let her be. Devin went in at about 9:30 because he heard Lizzie in there.

He had me come in to look. Ryleigh wasn't in her bed, on the floor, I didn't know where she was and my immediate thought was, oh no, she climbed in the crib with Bailey. Nope, she had crawled under the crib and was hiding from us. Never before has she crawled under the crib. She was trying to be very quiet but Lizzie kept getting her and then she would giggle. It was hilarious! I had to get the camera. Ryleigh had no idea we were watching. Lizzie would walk away for a second and Ryleigh would whisper her name to come back. They were at their little game for a good 10 minutes before we finally decided to "get after" Ryleigh for not being in bed. Hide and Seek is no fun when Lizzie is around.

5 Months

2011-10-01T15:32:00.000-07:00

Our little baby is 5 months now. It is so hard to believe. She has started rolling over, she has become an inch worm and we have started her on cereal. It is always entertaining to watch them learn to eat. She is also a very smiley little girl. One second she can be crying, and the next, she gives you the biggest smile. We love her to pieces!

"I do it by myself"

2011-09-10T11:03:00.000-07:00

The other night Ryleigh wanted Lizzie to have peanut butter in her Kong. Ry is at the stage of wanting to do everything herself.

Lizzie waited very patiently while Ryleigh did it.

"I need my bed"

2011-09-10T10:58:00.000-07:00

Ryleigh loves to take her blankets and pillows off her bed and make a bed on the floor around the house. This time she made her bed next to Bailey on the floor. She was so excited to share her bed with Bailey.

"No picture, no picture"

2011-08-27T19:31:00.000-07:00

Ryleigh got some jammies out for Bailey tonight but I had already grabbed some and put them on her. Ryleigh decided since Bailey wasn't going to wear them she was.

However, she didn't want me to take her picture. She kept saying, "No picture, no picture!"

She has been little miss independent lately so she tried snapping them herself and was not successful.

They fit width wise but obviously not length wise.

Our Girls

2011-08-23T20:10:00.000-07:00

Ryleigh has recently started asking to hold Bailey quite often. It is super cute so I had to get a picture of them this afternoon!

Ryleigh loves to look and touch all of her sister's tiny features.

Ryleigh Messy??

2011-08-21T20:16:00.000-07:00

We took Ryleigh for ice cream the other day after we went swimming. I think this is the messiest she has ever been while eating.

Saturday Afternoon Nap

2011-08-21T19:47:00.000-07:00

Cute pictures of the girls

2011-08-09T18:13:00.000-07:00

Bailey trying out her new play mat

Sleeping oh so cute

Ryleigh finding eggs under our bed

If you come to our house in the afternoon...

2011-08-04T20:41:00.000-07:00

you will most likely find Ryleigh in her jammies. For about a month now, Ryleigh has been all about wearing her jammies as much as we will let her. She is not a fan of getting dressed in the mornings until she sees that Bailey is dressed. She will often ask to wear her jammies when she takes a nap. If she doesn't ask before her nap, when she wakes up she asks if we are going bye bye. If not, she continues to ask to put her jammies on. I guess she likes to be comfortable.

A little older than 3 months

2011-08-04T20:33:00.000-07:00

I fogot to post a 3 month picture of Bailey. Here she is at about 3 1/2 months.

She has been very alert the last couple of weeks and smiles all the time. I tried to get her to smile for the picture but no such luck. She has been sleeping through the night the last couple of weeks so we moved her into her crib and she is now sharing a room with Ryleigh. It is working out very well. Ryleigh loves having her baby sister in the same room. We enjoy having our little Bailey in our family and love her to pieces!

Fun Times in Montana

2011-07-31T19:19:00.000-07:00

In July my dad hosted his family reunion. We were able to head to Montana to attend along with all of my siblings. We haven't all been together in over 5 years. My oldest sister's husband was the only member we were missing. We had a wonderful time! Thanks McDowells for letting us join in on the fun!

Create your own free picture slideshow

Fun in the Sun!

2011-07-14T11:52:00.000-07:00

My sister-in-law and I took the kids to the kiddie spray park yesterday.

I couldn't get Ryleigh to look at the camera

Ryleigh loves to copy her Buddy!

She enjoyed playing leap frog with these

"Look Mommy!"

I think this was her favorite, climbing up onto this over and over again.

She tried to "open" this like it was a curtain to get it out of her way.

Camping

2011-07-11T11:10:00.000-07:00

We took advantage of the one free weekend we have this summer and went camping. Ryleigh had fun collecting lots of rocks,

trying to catch up to Lizzie and Dad who were up the hill,

and carrying around her lantern.

Devin was so excited to finally be able to use his new tent he got for his birthday. He loved every minute of it.

Lizzie enjoyed running all over

and then relaxing after her big run.

I even think Bailey enjoyed herself.

Not so fast after all!

2011-07-11T10:54:00.000-07:00

This year we went down to Devin's parents house in Brigham City, UT for the 4th of July. Devin was so excited to take Ryleigh to the races they do in Willard every 4th of July for all ages. At home she runs all over saying how fast she is. When we are at a store she likes to do ready, set, go as we are walking through the store. He was hopeful that she was going to win her race. I stood with her at the beginning and Devin was at the finish line.

And there she continued to stand after they said go. She wanted nothing to do with running in the race and all of the people cheering loudly. She just wanted to be picked up.

She had much more fun playing the carnival games

and riding the airplanes as if she were in a parade!

Daren finally talked Devin into running in their race. Devin didn't care about winning, he just wanted to beat his brother at which he was successful.

After the festivities in Willard, we went back to Grandma and Grandpa's and Ryleigh had fun playing with all of her cousins. She even got the boys to have a tea party with her.

That evening we went to the Larsen annual BBQ and then watched fireworks from Grandma and Grandpa's front yard.

Our Adorable Girls!

2011-06-27T13:04:00.000-07:00

2 Months and Growing

2011-06-21T17:57:00.000-07:00

Bailey is 2 months old now. We had her 2 month check up today and she is growing like she should. She weighs 9 lbs. 8 oz. and is 22 inches long. It is crazy to think that she has doubled her weight in two months. We love this little girl to pieces! She is awake a lot more these days and sometimes you can even catch her smiling.

Twins!

2011-06-14T21:27:00.000-07:00

Last night we had some friends over for a BBQ and their daughter walked in wearing the same shirt as Ryleigh. The girls were pretty cute when we pointed it out to them. I guess they called each other up and planned it. I didn't think that started until elementary school.

I couldn't get Ryleigh to look at the camera. She kept looking at Addy saying "cheese" every time I took a picture.

Daddy's Girls

2011-06-14T21:22:00.000-07:00

My child is weird!

2011-06-14T21:21:00.000-07:00

Ryleigh was running around the house tonight with her blanket between her legs pretending she had a tail. I got out the camera and took a picture and she kept saying "again, again" so she could continue running with a tail. She thought she was pretty funny. Ok, we did too!

Oops, Forgot

2011-06-10T12:47:00.000-07:00

My sister reminded me today that I never posted a picture of Ryleigh in her Easter dress. Since she didn't get to wear it on Easter I forgot. Here she is!

"Mess"

2011-06-06T21:47:00.000-07:00

I had to go into work today for interviewing so Devin stayed home with the girls. When I came home I was greeted by a little Ryleigh saying, "Mess mama, mess!" This is a girl who doesn't like messes and lets you know right away when one is made. I followed her and saw a little popcorn on the kitchen floor. I said, "Yep, there is a mess. Let's clean it up," and I continued on my way. As I turned the corner to go upstairs this is what I saw...

popcorn on every stair. Don't ask me how she managed to get it on EVERY stair. I called for Devin to come look as she pointed out her "pocorn" as if I didn't see it. He was on the computer doing credits to renew his license. He had no clue what Ryleigh was doing. He thought she was still eating the popcorn in the office with him. I am sure she tried telling him about the mess because she always does but I guess he ignored her.

I asked her to help clean it up and this was how she helped.

Weekend Excursion

2011-06-06T21:23:00.000-07:00

We took a trip up to Idaho City on Saturday. As Devin put it, "It was an interesting trip." On the way up, the road was pretty curvy and we heard a sound from the back seat that you don't want to hear...Ryleigh got car sick. Not fun at all! Thank goodness we were only a few miles from town because there was nowhere to pull off before then. Who thinks to bring an extra set of clothes for your two year old? Not us. Once we got her and the car cleaned as best we could not being at home, I took her over in her diaper to the visitor's center in hopes to find a t-shirt she could wear for the day. Luckily they had some. So she walked around for the afternoon in a big t-shirt. I then went and bought dramamine for the ride home. After that drama, we had a good time walking around the old mining town.

Story Time

2011-06-06T21:06:00.000-07:00

Ryleigh was laying down with Bailey the other night and decided to go get her Mickey Mouse book to "read" to her baby sister. It was pretty cute.

Nanny Lizzie

2011-06-06T21:03:00.000-07:00

Lizzie loves Bailey just as much as she loved Ryleigh when she was a baby. She has to be right next to Bailey when she is laying on the floor. We are so lucky to have a dog that is so good with our girls. Especially with all that she puts up with from Ryleigh.

Sister Love

2011-06-03T21:09:00.000-07:00

Ryleigh doesn't share her blanket with anyone! On occasion she will share it with her sister. I caught her in the act tonight.

Blessing Day

2011-06-02T21:09:00.000-07:00

My parents were coming for Memorial Day Weekend so we decided to bless Bailey while they were here. Devin's whole family was able to come up for it as well. We blessed her at our house since it wasn't Fast Sunday. It was different but Devin gave her a very nice blessing.

Grandpa grabbed the camera real quick while Grandma was holding her since she had her eyes open.

Grandpa got a few snap shots of Ryleigh while he was here that I thought were pretty cute.

We sure had a house full, but we had fun and it was good to see everyone.

1 Month

2011-05-20T15:18:00.000-07:00

Bailey is 1 month old today! We took her to the doctor for a weight check and she is already 7lbs 8oz.

Slip 'n Slide Fun

2011-05-13T16:48:00.000-07:00

It was in the 80's today so we busted out Ryleigh's pool and slide she got for her birthday. She loved it! The neighbor boy came over and joined in on the fun in his clothes. He was a little more brave than Ryleigh was with the spraying water.

Bailey enjoyed being outside too!

Happy Birthday Ryleigh!

2011-05-10T12:56:00.000-07:00

Ryleigh turned 2 yesterday and I can't believe it.

Singing Happy Birthday

Blowing out the candles

Opening gifts

New Crocs from Aunt Nicole.

Sitting in her new Mickey Mouse chair we got her

Baby Sister Bailey

2011-05-02T11:25:00.000-07:00

Ryleigh has done very well with her new baby sister. She loves to give her kisses and calls her baby sister. Any little noise Bailey makes Ryleigh gets a concerned look on her face, says baby, and runs to find the pc (pacifier), eventhough Bailey doesn't use the pacifier. Ryleigh also likes to bring bows for us to put in Bailey's hair but she doesn't have enough hair yet to put one in.

Easter

2011-05-02T11:18:00.000-07:00

Since Bailey and I were in the hospital on Easter, the Easter Bunny came to visit this weekend.

We colored Easter Eggs

Ryleigh loved putting the stickers on the eggs

She was real worried that this egg didn't have a place in the box. She tried her hardest to make a spot for it but there was no room.

Ryleigh thought she was an egg and needed to be decorated

The Easter Bunny hid our eggs...

and brought Ry a basket full of goodies.

She didn't waste any time opening a piece of candy.

All that hard work was a waste because she dropped it and Lizzie got to enjoy it.

We haven't been to church since the Sunday before Easter because of our new little one so Ryleigh hasn't had a chance to wear her new dress. Next week I will take pictures of her in it and post them.

We're HOME!

2011-04-28T22:58:00.000-07:00

Bailey and I were able to come home today. She was quite the early and fast surprise last Wednesday evening. I was in labor a total of 3 hours. She wasn't due until the 21st of May. Bailey Dakota was born April 20th at 6:54 pm. weighing 4lbs 13oz. She had to spend a week in the NICU first because of low blood sugar and then they found an infection. While that was being treated with antibiotics, she was also being treated for jaundice. But all is well now and we are home.

She had to be kept under a warmer for a few days off and on to keep her body temperature where it should be.

All snuggled up in her NICU crib

Home at last

Her sister is a BIG fan of her for now. Ryleigh kept telling us about her the whole way home and wanted her out of her car seat the second we walked in the house. Ryleigh couldn't see her in the NICU so today was the first meeting of this sister we kept talking about.

Spring Break

2011-04-01T16:02:00.000-07:00

Today is my last day of spring break:( We didn't do a whole lot this week but I had a great time spending the week home with Ryleigh. It makes me even more excited for summer vacation that is just right around the corner.

Last weekend we started to attempt to potty train Ryleigh. It wasn't very successful so I gave up on Tuesday. But we did get some cute pictures.

Books kept her attention on the potty for only the first few days. After that, she hollered everytime we put her on the potty.

This one was her favorite to look at.

Yesterday we went over to my sister-in-laws house and we made adorable carseat covers for our new little ones.

Then we came home and played ball outside since it was a beautiful day.

Being cautious to not step in a doggie mess.

Walking in Lizzie's path

Today was another beautiful day so after we ran a few errands and got Ryleigh her first pair of flip flops, we headed to the park.

Discovery Center

2011-03-09T20:29:00.000-08:00

Devin's parents came into town last week. We took Ryleigh to the Discovery Center in Boise. Here were some of her favorite exhibits.

Magnetic table

Echo tunnel that she enjoyed hollering into

They had this peg game that she was obviously too young to play but she stayed here for a long time putting the pegs in the hole and then back in the box over and over again.

She loved the giant bubble maker

This one was by far her favorite. Air would shoot out of the tube and hold the ball in the air. When it would shut off she would go get the ball and come back to push the button to start the air flow again. We stayed at this exhibit for awhile also.

In the last room they had a little grocery store for the kids to play in. She didn't take the groceries off the shelves. Instead, she put the groceries that someone had left in a cart, one by one into another cart. She was done playing here when a little girl tried to steal her groceries out of her cart.

Big Girl Bed

2011-02-20T17:37:00.000-08:00

When we were in Georgia, Ryleigh didn't want to sleep in the pack n play my aunt had borrowed for her. She wanted to sleep in the twin bed that I was sleeping in. I let her go to bed in it and then moved her to the crib when I was ready for bed. I even braved letting her take naps in the twin bed. She didn't get out of it once. Even when she woke up from her naps, she hollered for mom like she does from the crib. We called Dad on the way home and told him he'd better get her big girl bed ready for her.

She was so excited to sleep in it that night we got home. The next day Dad was home with her and she kept getting out of it at nap time so she had to go to the crib. One other night she got out a few times but I told her one more time she would have to go back to the crib. She has done very well. She is so little and she always crawled to the corner of her crib we were afraid she would fall out easily. She stays in the same position the whole night and hasn't fallen out yet, knock on wood. Most of the time she still hollers for us to come get her out of bed. I think it is laziness. She is very capable of getting out on her own.

Now hopefully, she won't get jealous when the new baby starts using the crib.

I am still looking for a comforter set for her though. I am looking for a pink and brown one to match the room. However, I can't find ANY cute little girl ones, let alone a pink and brown one.

Georgia

2011-02-20T17:23:00.000-08:00

Last week Ryleigh and I flew to Georgia for my grandma's funeral. Although it wasn't the best of circumatances for going, it was fun to hang out and see family that we don't get to see too often.

One afternoon we went to a park for a picnic lunch and to feed the ducks. This time Ryleigh actually fed the ducks instead of herself.

I tried to get Ryleigh and her cousing Mariah to stand infront of this carving but everytime, Mariah would face the other direction. Rumor has it, it wasn't just me. She does that everytime someone is trying to take her picture. Little stinker!

Ashlyn was so excited that Ryleigh wanted to sit on her lap to watch the ducks.

The cousins. Look at all of that pink, girls!

Copy Cat

2011-01-24T18:37:00.000-08:00

Devin was sitting on the landing of the stairs tonight coloring with Ryleigh. He layed down and Ryleigh decided to do the same. He was kicking his legs up and she decided to do the same. After laying there for a few minutes she deicded they needed some pillows. She went into our room and grabbed all of the pillows for her and Dad. Devin tried to get up and she insisted he lay back down by her.

This weekend when Devin was giving her a bath, he played peek-a-boo with the shower curtain. Today when he was giving her a bath, she called him into the bathroom and was hiding behind the shower curtain and started playing peek-a-boo. She has become our little shadow.

Video Games

2011-01-16T18:44:00.000-08:00

When Devin plays his video games, Ryleigh has to get her controller out and play along with him. Tonight, she pulled up her little rocking chair to the tv, pulled out a controller, asked me to plug it in, and then hopped up in her chair to "play video games". It was pretty funny. It did take her awhile to get situated because the rocking chair kept turning away from the tv while she was trying to get in it. So she would have to get down, turn it back around and try again. Eventually, she asked for help.

New Cousin

2011-01-16T18:40:00.000-08:00

Last week when we took Ryleigh to see her new cousin, she was so excited to see and hold the baby. When she was done and wanted down, she wanted to take Brynley with her. When we told her this wasn't a doll she got really upset.

We are having...

2011-01-15T19:59:00.000-08:00

A GIRL! During the ultrasound, when the dr. told us we were having a girl the first thing out of Devin's mouth was, "Hey, at least I don't have to paint another nursery." It was quite the chore for him to paint Ryleigh's nursery. We are excited because we love our little girl we have already been blessed with.

No More Mullet

2011-01-09T17:56:00.000-08:00

Ryleigh's curls were getting longer in the back than the rest of her hair so it was time for her first hair cut. I was brave and figured if I messed it up, curls are pretty forgiving. I only trimmed the back and a little on the sides.

Christmas At Grandma and Grandpa Larsen's

2010-12-29T19:17:00.000-08:00

When headed down to Utah Friday morning and hung out with Grandma, Grandpa and Uncle Daren. Ryleigh got to open her pjs Christmas Eve and Dad tried reading her the picture book version of the Christmas story. She only sat through one page of it.

Devin woke up every hour that night asking if Ryleigh was awake yet. It was a LONG night. She finally woke up at 7:30. We walked out to the living room and it took her a minute to realize what Santa had brought.

When she saw it she said, "Baby, my baby!" Of course she wanted Dad to open it right away.

Here she sits with all of her stocking goods.

We had to use the new nail polish Santa brought before we could open any more gifts.

We got her some dress up shoes and jewlery. She new exactly how to wear it all when the package was opened.

Grandma and Grandpa McDowell sent her some bottles and dishes for her new baby.

Christmas afternoon the rest of the family came over and we exchanged gifts, played games and had homemade soup. Ryleigh was not a big fan of her 1 year old cousin Amaryah and for sure wasn't a fan when Mom or Dad held her. She wanted nothing to do with her. She finally warmed up to her and decided she wasn't so bad Sunday afternoon. They sat on Grandma's bed for a long time with Ryleigh giving Amaryah hugs and kisses. Grandma got them their matching dresses.

Cookie Making and Decorating

2010-12-23T10:46:00.000-08:00

Brainwashed

2010-11-29T19:57:00.000-08:00

Dad has this child brainwashed already. She loves to sit and "read" his Sports Illustrated magazines. She will sit with it for quite sometime.

Christmas Tree

2010-11-29T19:54:00.000-08:00

Ryleigh is at a fun age where she gets excited to see Christmas decorations. Every time we go to the store she is quick to point them all out. I put up decorations Friday afternoon while she was taking a nap. It was so fun to see her recognize something new that I had put up every few minutes.

We put up our tree last night. She was excited to put on the first ornament but after that she was more interested in playing with the ornament hangers than helping put on the actual ornaments.

Grandma Larsen helping Ryleigh put on the first ornament

Lights

2010-11-29T19:47:00.000-08:00

We went this weekend to Winter Wonderland to check out the town's Christmas lights. It was pretty cold but enjoyable. They had a pretty good display and Ryleigh loved them.

New Shoes?

2010-11-18T16:48:00.000-08:00

You would think Ryleigh had a new pair of shoes on. Nope, just stomping around like she has never worn them before even though she wears them everyday.

"Baaa"

2010-10-28T18:09:00.000-07:00

Our ward Trunk or Treat was tonight so I took Ryleigh. She really got into it. She wanted to eat the first piece that was put in her bucket right away. I put it back in her bucket and we continued on. At every trunk, she would reach her hand out, they would give her the candy and she would put it right into her bucket. She carried her bucket the whole time. Everyone thought she was so cute in her lamb costume.

She didn't keep the hood on for very long.

On the way home she had her bucket in her lap. I turned around and she had a little tootsie roll opended just a little, taking tiny bites. I pulled over to take the wrapper off so she wouldn't eat it. Oops, I was too late. Tootsie roll was gone and no wrapper in sight.

Miss Independent

2010-10-25T17:38:00.000-07:00

Ryleigh decided this weekend she was not a big fan of wearing clothes. Numerous times she was caught taking her clothes off and then would freak out when we tried to put them back on her. Luckily the diaper never came off, although she tried several times. And as I am typing this, Devin is yelling from downstairs that she is trying again:)

While I was at work today, Devin found her trying to put her clothes back on and put Mom's shoes on. She had pulled several clothes out of her drawer and had one arm in a shirt. He didn't get a picture of that, but did get a picture of her trying to put Mom's shoes on.

Please excuse her with no clothes. I just had to share this picture. She just fell out of the shoes.

Pumpkin Carving

2010-10-25T16:44:00.001-07:00

Then we carved pumpkins on Sunday evening. Devin got his all cleaned out and said, "Ok, I am done." So I had to carve both pumpkins. Ryleigh had fun playing inside the pumpkin and watched the whole time I was carving it.

The finished products-

Cookie Decorating

2010-10-25T16:41:00.000-07:00

Saturday evening we decorated Halloween cookies. Ryleigh was not too into it.

(click on collage to make bigger)

"It's A Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown"

2010-10-19T18:13:00.000-07:00

We took Ryleigh to a pumpkin patch yesterday. She loved the hundreds of pumpkins that she saw on our hay ride and didn't want to get in the car to go home when it was time. Even though Dad's huge pumpking was sitting right next to her. I forgot to get a picture of it. You will have to see it when it gets carved.

Relaxing Long Weekend in Florida

2010-10-11T13:28:00.000-07:00

This summer when we flew home from Florida we got bumped on our flight and ended up with two free tickets. Devin found a NICE and CHEAP resort in Orlando on-line. We decided to use our tickets to head to Orlando for a long weekend. We didn't do any of the big parks because Ryleigh isn't old enough and it wouldn't have been worth it. We did a lot of swimming and relaxing. Nicole, my sister, and her kids came down from Georgia to join us. We had a lot of fun and it was nice to get away.

Ryleigh loved to be able to walk into the pool.

One of the pools at the resort had a 2 story water slide that Devin and Blake had fun going down.

Blake playing volleyball with Uncle Devin

Blake and Ashlyn

This was how Ryleigh played mini golf. She would pick up the ball, Dad would tell her to put it in the hole, she would run and drop it right in the hole.

One of the days we headed over to our favorite, Daytona Beach. We didn't end up staying as long as we would have liked though. An airshow was going on and the two girls did NOT like the loud fighter jets. Even after those ones were gone, Ryleigh would not calm down. She kept pointing to the direction of the car and waving so that we would take her bye bye. It was cool though to see all of the planes doing there tricks.

One night Nicole watched Ryleigh while Devin and I went to a Pirate's Dinner and Show. It was really neat.

Alphabet Soup Anyone?

2010-10-11T13:27:00.000-07:00

No Ryleigh, she is not a horse!

2010-09-22T18:03:00.001-07:00

Amazingly, Lizzie lets her sit there for a little while before she slowly bucks her off.

Go Ducks!

2010-09-22T18:00:00.000-07:00

I took this picture on opening day for Duck football and realized I never posted it. Here she is all decked out in her Duck apparel.

The Love of Shoes

2010-09-01T20:06:00.000-07:00

I have mentioned Ryleigh obsession with shoes. She loves playing with our shoes in the closet or with our sandals that are left downstairs. Every time we are getting ready to go somewhere or when she wants to go outside, she brings Devin and me our sandals. She has tried a few times to put her feet in our shoes but has never been successful. Today she put my sandals on and was walking all over the house. She thought she was pretty funny.

She IS Growing

2010-09-01T20:03:00.000-07:00

Ryleigh is now tall enough to reach the floor when she is on her bike. She just learned how to get on it herself. It does take her awhile and she doesn't go about it the easiest way, but she can get on.

First Quarter Ride

2010-09-01T19:59:00.000-07:00

Ryleigh got to ride on the horse at the mall. We have been by it a few times and she likes to watch the other kids ride. Saturday we were there and Dad let her ride one this time. She loved it even though she looks scared to death!

The Fruits of our Labor

2010-08-22T14:38:00.001-07:00

This is the first ripe tomato from our topsy turvy. Devin has been enjoying a tomato a day. I am sad to say the strawberry one did not work.

Sneaky

2010-08-22T14:26:00.000-07:00

Ryleigh took Devin's Sonic drink off the coffee table and tried to take it upstairs to him. She only made it to the bottom of the stairs before she started sipping away at it.

But as soon as he came down the stairs she sure was quick to give it to him.

Is She Too Young to Already Have a Chore?

2010-08-09T21:22:00.000-07:00

Ryleigh gets very upset if she sees you feeding Lizzie without her. If we tell her it is time to feed Lizzie she walks right over, picks up her dish, and heads for the garage.

Part 2. She can't scoop the dog food out of the bin yet. She just holds the dish for us. So you didn't miss anything in the garage.

She has to set it down so perfectly and on the right side of the water which is where we put it. If the water is in it's place, she pushes it over. One thing she didn't do this time was point to the dish to tell Lizzie to get it, which again is what we do. It is amazing how kids learn so quick by example.

Happy Birthday Grandpa Larsen!

2010-08-02T09:35:00.001-07:00

For Devin's Dad's 70th Birthday the whole family spent a few days in southern Colorado in Pagosa Springs at some condos. We had a wonderful time and were able to do lots of things.

Ryleigh had fun playing on the toys at a park on the way there.

On the way down, we stopped at Arches National Park.

Devin, Daren, Ryleigh and I hiked to Delicate Arch.

Devin and I in front of Fiery Furnace.

Grandpa, Grandma, Daren, Me, Ryleigh and Devin at Sand Dune Arch

Ryleigh didn't like standing in the sand but loved sitting on the rock.

The resort had a mini golf tournament. Our family made up probably 3/4 of the tourney but some how, Donovon was the only one to win his age group.

We went to a wildlife park.

Ryleigh wanted to eat the animal food instead of feeding the animals so we put her back in the stroller and gave her some cheerios.

We hiked up to Treasure Falls.

Part of the gang

Grandma stayed down with the 2 babies and this is how we found Ryleigh when we came back. Grandma didn't want them to get bit by mosquitoes.

Grandma showed us that Ryleigh liked to give her cousin real kisses.

Grandpa, Donovon, Devin and I went to Chimney Rock. This is were the Ancestral Pueblo people built pit houses on a mesa facing Chimney Rock.

On the way back we stopped at Mesa Verde National Park. Here we were able to view and take tours of cliff dwellings where the Ancestral Pueblo people lived from 550 to 1300. It was very neat and interesting to see.

Ryleigh hiking to one of the viewpoints

The only three granddaughters

When we got back to Kristi's house in Lehi we took Ryleigh to a "farm" at Thanksgiving Point. She loved seeing the animals, going on a wagon ride and riding a pony.

We also hit a Real Salt Lake soccer game before we headed home.

Donovon, Devin and Daren

Our first goal. You can see the ball right on the goal line as it is going in.

Best Buds

2010-07-22T12:40:00.000-07:00

When Ryleigh started walking Lizzie was not a big fan. She would move clear across the room when Ryleigh came by her. Now she enjoys Ryleigh coming around most of the time. I think she purposefully blocks Ryleigh's path sometimes to watch her try to get around. Lizzie lets her pet her, tug on her ears, poke her eyes, etc.

This afternoon was the first time I witnessed this though, and it was so stinking adorable. When we are on the floor Lizzie thinks it is time to play and roll around with us because we are at her level. Ryleigh was laying on the floor and Lizzie came over and started rolling around, playing and giving kisses. This went on for a good 10 minutes, all the while, Ryleigh was giggling and having a good old time.

It is amazing to me that one crazy, hyper dog can be so gentle around Ryleigh.

You know Ryleigh is sleepy when...

2010-07-16T16:03:00.000-07:00

she is found laying on the floor somewhere with a blanket.

This is what I woke up to this morning

2010-07-16T16:01:00.001-07:00

Ryleigh lounged back on Dad's pillow eating her breakfast. Priceless!

We came home from vacation and found...

2010-07-15T18:35:00.000-07:00

tomatoes on our topsy turvy! It really does work.

Family Reunion

2010-07-14T18:53:00.000-07:00

We, along with my parents and one of my younger sisters, went to my oldest sister's house in Southern Georgia for the McDowell Family Reunion for a week. My youngest sister and her family and my brother and his family weren't able to make it and they were missed.

We started the fun out with a photo op at Driftwood Beach.

Sunday my nephew was baptized.

Then we celebrated the 4th with some fireworks and glow sticks

Monday we headed down to Florida for a few days. We went to Daytona Beach first. There were awesome boogie boarding waves that we all had a blast trying out.

Ryleigh wasn't too sure about the moving water under her feet

but had fun playing in the sand with her cousin Ashlyn.

Next was an air boat ride at Camp Holly to see some gators.

Kids had to wear a life jacket and this was the smallest size they had. Ryleigh hated it and the loud boat until she was on her dad's lap. Yep, she's a daddy's girl.

Then we spent 2 days at Kennedy Space Center. Devin wished we could have spent 3. My sister was rushing him because she doesn't like to look at things under glass and he has to read everything that is under glass:)

We had some tasty southern food, had fun playing games, swimming in the pool and just enjoyed hanging out with everyone. Thanks Harrisons for letting us crash your house for the week. We had a blast!

Duck Feeding Not a Success

2010-06-27T12:35:00.000-07:00

We took Ryleigh to feed the ducks yesterday. She got a kick out of seeing them but we couldn't get her to feed them. Every time we would give her a piece of bread she quickly put it in her mouth. I guess we need to work on sharing.

Broadway Look Out!

2010-06-25T20:03:00.000-07:00

I have been trying to get a video of Ryleigh singing and dancing but have failed every time; until tonight that is. Whenever she hears music she stops what she is doing to sing and dance along. This first video is the better of the two, but really dark.

In this video you can also see her new skill she just learned today, walking backwards. Once she figured it out, she kept doing it over and over.

Playing Outside

2010-06-22T19:14:00.000-07:00

Since I have been on summer break, Ryleigh has loved every chance she gets to go play outside. Usually after her nap she goes to the back door asking to go out and play. This afternoon I took the camera out with us.

Topsy Turvy Update

2010-06-22T14:27:00.000-07:00

It hasn't been very nice weather here this month so our tomato plant hasn't done much. I was so excited when I went out to water it this afternoon to find this...

the first blossoms!