news, news & more news!

I'm pretty sure no one really reads this thing or cares what I have to say, but its a good place for me to keep track of memories...

Ryder News:
Our little boy is getting bigger and bigger everyday. He loves baths and is learning to like tummy time. As soon as his little neck can support his big head I bet he'll love it even more. He hasn't spent much time in his crib, so I'm trying to put him in it more. Eventually he's going to outgrow his bassinet. Actually, it'll probably happen in the next couple of weeks. My baby is getting so stinkin' big! I'm trying to get him on a schedule, which is hard by the way. He likes to lay and flail (?) around until he falls asleep. This process can take anywhere from 20 minutes to over an hour. I figured if I fed him and put him in his crib around 9, he'd be asleep by 10, which is our bedtime. We'll see how well this works out for me. He's probably still too young to be trying. Every night seems to be different when it comes to sleep. Some days its 3-4 hours, others its every 2.

New Toy:
My camera has been pretty poopy lately. One picture shows a red face, the next is a bright white face. It snaps slow & the wheel thing has gotten lose. Sometimes the images are blurry. Inconsistency is my enemy when it comes to capturing memories. I've been wanting to explore my photographer side (if i even have one), but its just not happening for me with this camera. So, Landon bought me a new pretty silver Nikon S4000. I'm still debating about this purchase, so I left it in the box. Not sure how that will help me decide, but nonetheless it will remain untouched until I'm ready. HA! That logic just sounds ridiculous now that I think about it.

Future Fun:
We are taking a family vacation in JUNE to OREGON! I've never been to Oregon and of course neither has Ryder. Jackie rented a condo there from June 4-11. Right now we are trying to decide between driving or flying. Driving will take us a solid 2 days to get there, but will be so pretty driving along the Cali (haven't been there either) coast. OR flying, which is the same price. Either way will be a new adventure for us with Ryder.

Good News:
Landon received his acceptance letter from USU today. He was SO excited and I'm so excited for him. I know that was a big relief for him.
Also, Josh is staying with us until Wednesday. He just flew got off of his plane! I know Landon is really excited to have his brother here. I volunteered to stay at home tonight with Ryder so they could go have some fun on the strip. At first I was a little bummed about my decision, but a little me time is great. I'm able to finish the laundry, do some homework, catch up on my blogging, and watch a movie! Ryder is sleeping in his crib. At least I hope he's sleeping! I haven't heard him flailing around and cooing in a little while. It's getting easier on me to let him lay there and do that. We rented 2012 and Brothers for the weekend. 2012 was not my fav. I get too freaked out by end of the world talk. I haven't seen Brothers yet, so I'm looking forward to it.
OHH more good news... The couple that we hung out with England finally got here! I spent ALL day Friday hanging out with Sara and shopping. It was so nice to actually "hang out" with someone again. We haven't hung out with anyone since we moved here in October. There's another family here that PCS'd before us. We hadn't hung out with them until the Decker's got here. So far we've had dinner a couple of times with them. It's been wonderful!

Well, I hear Ryder "talking" from his crib.

Sleeless Nights

I dread Sundays. That just means my weekend help with the baby is gone. I figure since Landon has to work long hours during the week, I won't ask him for help with the baby during the night. It takes a HUGE toll on a person to care for a newborn 24/7. I admire my good friend Callie for being a single mom. Sometimes I feel bad for even complaining because I should feel blessed that I'm able to stay at home with my baby. Maybe I'm just a terrible mom for even thinking that I feel trapped and miserable. It's only been 4.5 weeks, but I feel like I've been doing this for years already. Ryder used to be on a do-able schedule until we took him to Idaho. He'd eat about every 3-4 hours. Now he can't seem to get enough. He eats every 2 hours during the night. By the time he's done eating he's eaten anywhere from 1-4 oz. Then in the day time its at least 2 oz every hour. He can't figure the binky out yet. We put it in his mouth & it flies out. One of us usually ends up holding it until we give up. He's started this annoying swimming on his back type of move. Around 2 weeks he refused to be swaddled. If blankets are touching his feet, he screams and kicks until they are taken off of them. It's crazy! I've finally started putting a light afghan on him & "tucking him in" to his bassinet. That way he feels a little more free with his feet, but he can't move as much. Trapping his arms is impossible, so I don't even try. It works okay, but not long enough to get any sleep! I'm trying to hold it together because I have A LOT on my plate right now. We're still planning on moving in november, but I may come sooner. All depends on the job situation. I'm basically going to school for 2. All while trying to keep a part of "me" alive and still working on how to be a good wife.
I had good intentions of going to church this morning. I was actually REALLY excited about it. But we ended up watching a movie and finally getting Ryder to sleep around 3. But I was back up at 530 to feed him, then again at 730 (Landon took that one). By that time I was worn out and in a fight with Landon. Crappy morning if you ask me. My goal this week is to work really hard at getting Ryder on a better schedule. Right now I have a hard time of keeping him awake in the daytime because I'm so worn out from the night.
On a better note, Friday night we had dinner with some friends that PCS'd here from Lakenheath. It was SO nice to have other companionship for the night. We haven't done that since we moved here in October. Pretty sad, but we just don't know anyone. With Landon's job, he doesn't get the opportunity too either. Yes, I know church would help. Saturday night we spent the day with Decker and Sarah shopping & eating. It was great getting out with others for once. Minus the sleepless nights, it was a great weekend with family and friends.

One Month Old

Today, my sweet little boy is one month old. Wow, time flew! I was pretty excited about yesterday being Saint Patrick's Day. I've never been one for getting into this holiday, but it was the first holiday I got to put a special outfit on Ryder.
don't let him fool ya, he was thrilled to be dressed up and have endless amounts of pictures taken of him (: I swear he gets cuter everyday. He's finally started smiling a lot. Oh, I made him shed his first tear this morning. I'm a mean mommy. His nose has been stopped up, so I got the booger sucker out and went to work on his nose. Needless to say, he despises it.

How could you not love this little guy?? He's getting so big!

P.S.

Ryder has his 2 week check up today. He's getting to be a BIG boy! At his last check up, he weighed in at 7.4 1/2 lbs, a few ounces under his birth weight of 7.99 lbs. Today he weighed in at 8.4 lbs. YIIIKES! Not to mention he's grown almost an inch! I can't believe my little boy will be 3 weeks old on Thursday! Holy cow!

change is on the horizon...

Okay, so it's been a while since my last post... & there has been a lot going on...

First off, we went to Idaho for the weekend. It was awesome to get away from Vegas. The first day there it snowed about 6 inches. Ryder had a good time meeting the family & hanging out with Grandma Jackie again. We noticed when he's around her, he doesn't scream. As soon as we get him home, he screams. I wish I had that Grandma touch. haha.

Landon took me to Logan, UT & showed me around Utah State University. It was a beautiful campus. We went to the ROTC building & talked to one of the recruiters for the program. He kind of put my mind to ease... somewhat. I still have my concerns, but who wouldn't when you make that drastic of a change in your life. However, we think it's the best decision for our little family.

It's going to be a huge change for me. I've never lived where it's that cold & snows that much. I'm pretty nervous about things. It'll be nice for Ryder to grow up in the mountains & around family. Vegas is nice for vacations, but it sure does suck to live here. Unfortunately we bought a house when we moved here. We never thought we wouldn't be re-enlisting & moving so soon. The house is going up for rent. Hopefully we can find renters... & good ones at that. Seems like our whole neighborhood is up for sale or rent. I'm glad to be leaving before it goes down any further. I'm not looking forward to repacking our house. It literally just got unpacked. This time I'm starting early & making things organized. Most of our stuff will be in storage for a while since we'll be living in a smaller space.

I wish I had more time to do laundry, pick up the house, cook, do crafty things, enjoy myself. Being a mommy has definitely put a damper on all of those things. The only time I can get anything done is while Ryder sleeps, which gets shorter & shorter everyday it seems. I definitely have a full plate right now. Sometimes it gets pretty overwhelming. I've been getting major headaches since he was born, which has only made the job that much harder.