Ryan is 1 Month!

Happy One Month Buddy!

Ryan the Lion is huge at one month! My mom and I weighed him on Labor Day weekend, and he was 13.5 pounds.  Both Clay and Ryan were large babies!  Ryan is doing a good job of establishing himself as the fourth member of our family.  He cries a lot to make sure either Luke or I (or Clay, if Clay had his way) are holding, or rocking/bouncing him in some way.  Once we pick him up, he stops crying, so we really can't complain too much!  

I've been giving Ryan a bath each night to try to establish some sort of bedtime routine (as in: get the hint Ryan, it's bedtime!!).  He LOVES the warm water and always settles down as soon as he gets into the bathtub.  Also, believe it or not, Ryan is actually smiling at us!  My sister, Maile, swears she got Ryan to smile at her at 2 weeks.  Whether or not I believed her then, I certainly believe it now.  He is such a monkey with a grin!

Speaking of monkeys, Clay had his three year check up this week.  He is 35 pounds and 40.5 inches tall.  According to Luke, this means Clay is going to grow to be 6 foot 7 inches tall. Clay has been such a good older brother.  From answering, "Are you a good older brother?" a trillion times, to bringing me things from the other room, and wanting to hold Ryan; we've been really impressed by Clay's willingness to welcome Ryan into his life.  

Clay trying to play with his little brother.  Ryan, on the other hand, trying to defend himself. 

Luke and I couldn't remember what it was like to have Clay as a newborn.  I think it's on purpose that we forget what the early months of parenthood are like, since no one would have a second child if you had to go through the sleepless nights again with a crystal clear recollection of the last time.  Instead, Luke and I continue to vaguely recall taking on similar actions to survive with Clay, like using the bouncy ball for months, etc.  Today, Ryan is 5 weeks old and he is just now allowing me to sleep for one 4 hour stretch in the beginning of the night. Yay! I'll take it happily! 

Grandpa Leo meets Ryan Leo for the first time. 

The Kessi's came by to visit and meet Ryan and our new pool!

If you're interested in hanging out with a crying baby, please come by our house tonight between the hours of 5 - 7pm.  

Grandma Cindy meets Ryan for the first time. 

I love his hair here!

Brothers!

Melissa meets Ryan. 

Stacy, Melissa and Sarah came up to Colusa to visit me and Ryan.  They brought up a gourmet lunch and spoiled me rotten with treats.  Stacy is an amazing photographer, and she took some adorable newborn shots with both Clay and Ryan.  Stay tuned!

Karen!

Ryan's First Bath.  Clay can't believe Ryan is taking a bath in the SINK! That's hilarious!

Ryan looks like he's at the spa here. 

Luke and Ryan look like twins here!

Kyrstin and Cal also brought us dinner, and then played baseball with Clay. 

Luke and his boys.  

Ryan smiling on camera for the first time. 

Uncle Eric!

August Birthdays x 3

Even more than ever, I am surrounded by August birthdays.  According to the internet, these Leo boys of my life are, "Fun, adventurous, genuine, generous and highly charismatic.  They like to be larger than life and enjoy showing off, being admired, praised and appreciated."  Ahh!  And now I have three of them in my life.  

Everyone in my family loves their birthday, and so I try to make it something fun with a special cake and some enticing wrapped presents.  

This year, with Ryan being born on Clay's birthday, we did his 3rd birthday on Sunday, August 7th.  Clay was such a good sport and didn't know the difference.  

For Luke, he "enjoyed" a long day of working in our backyard with my dad and brother.  They finished a portion of our redwood fence, which looks amazing.  Although Luke said that was enough of a fun day for him, Clay and I brought him to Cool Hand Luke's Steakhouse in Yuba City.  It has been a topic of conversation for the last 2.5 years since we've lived here how it would be so funny to take Luke to Cool Hand Luke's Steakhouse Restaurant for dinner, since, well, Luke's name is also Luke.... Being that I had a newborn and wasn't up for cooking, Luke's birthday seemed like the perfect time to make that joke into a reality.  It was a nice dinner, and we survived an outing with a newborn!  

Then, that weekend, we went to the Sierra Nevada Brewery since we both love the beer and it was a fun excuse to have a birthday lunch there.  

Clay has been bananas for cranes this year, and so I tried to decorate his cake with a yellow crane.  

I can't believe how much Clay and Luke look alike!

Clay has really enjoyed playing this game with Luke and I. 

This picture is from Luke's birthday.  Clay is just as excited as Luke to open this gift. 

This is the first time we go out as a family as four in public! I was nervous to breastfeed Ryan in a restaurant, because I didn't want him to cry and upset any of the other people dining out.  However, he did a great job and I think we snuck out of there without offending or annoying anyone. 

Clay LOVED the tractors on Luke's cake. 

This is what Ryan was doing as we were all eating cake.  I guess he also wanted some cake!

In Chico, at the Sierra Nevada Brewery Restaurant.  Yum! Here, Clay is unhappy that I made him share my veggie burger with me. 

Fence Party on Luke's birthday!

Luke, my dad, brother, and my sister-in-law Christina's brother, Kenny