Cookies with Santa {2014}

Santa, Santa, Santa.  How can you be so insanely jolly, yet at the same time elicit so much fear when children confront you face to face?  Someday I'm sure that we'll have a successful "sit on Santa's lap" experience...but this sure as heck wasn't the year. 

It was pretty obvious from the get go that Santa wasn't going to be able to handle both Ritchie boys at the same time, so we decided to start with Max.  I'll let his face in the pictures below tell the story.

 I am SO in love with this picture.  Best. Santa. Ever.

 Potentially scarred for life...

 Next up was Harrison.  Equally terrified. Equally anti-Santa.

 In the end, however, he was able to spit out that he wanted cars for Christmas...and even snuck in a high-five.  I'm pretty sure there was candy cane bribery involved.

We love you, Santa!  HoHoHo!

{A HUGE thank you to our friends at Heart Heroes for yet another wonderful Cookies with Santa event.  Every detail was perfect...the quaint coffee shop location, the sweet snacks, the presents for our kiddos.  What you do for our local heart community...and for our family...is nothing short of amazing.}

Just a Trim

Maxo, much like his big sister and brother, was born with a head full of hair. 

He went through a bit of an awkward "transitional" phase where it seemed like his head was growing too quickly for his hair to keep up....

but by mid summer his bald patches were gone, and in their place was a much lighter (and a little more "ginger") head of hair.

And while he lost most of that early baby hair...there were a few strands right up on top that stuck around for the long haul, growing longer and longer with each passing day.  They had a mind of their own...flopping here and there and acting like a little baby comb-over.  It was a little ridiculous.  

 One day in October I decided that enough was enough and set out to give our littlest guy his very first haircut.  There wasn't much to it...just a few snips up top...but it made a pretty huge difference.  

He looks thrilled, yes?

 This is probably one of my favorite pictures ever.  Pouty Max.  Eek I think I got to short mom.  

 They always say not to run with scissors.  I think running with them is probably a better idea than using them to give a haircut to a newly mobile baby who isn't restrained in any way shape or form.  I thought it would be quick and easy but Mr. Max had other things (namely escaping) on his mind!

Farewell flop.  Hello handsome.

LRSH Christmas Program {2014}

Tonight we had the opportunity to attend a Christmas program at Max and Harrison's school.  We love Little Red School House and were so excited to see Harrison and his adorable little classmates all dolled up for the big event.  In my mind I figured it would go one of two ways.  1) Harrison would be a total clown, showing off for all to see or 2) MELTDOWN.  The pictures below tell the story.

 If you guessed meltdown...you would be correct.  This little guy has never been happier to be back in his daddy's arms.  

Despite all of the tears, it was a fun night.  There was singing, dancing, kiddos doing everything except what they were supposed to be doing.  It was everything a Christmas program is supposed to be!  We love all of our friends/teachers at Little Red and are so grateful for all of the love and patience they show our boys.  It was obvious that a lot of hard work and preparation went into tonight and they should all be applauded!  

And just an FYI - On our way home tonight Harrison told me "Mommy, I do good at my pwogwam" and proceeded to give me an encore performance of  the "Reindeer-Pokey."  Better late than never, baby boy.  Better late than never.

Here's to the start of a fun-filled holiday season!

Halloween in December

Every year around this time you start hearing more and more talk about New Year's resolutions.  I've never been very good at making (and sticking to) resolutions for the new year, so this year I've decided to do something a little bit different.  Today I'm declaring my OLD Year's resolution.  Yup, you heard me right.  Old Year.  There are 10 days left in 2014, but I don't quite feel like I'm in the right place to say goodbye.  This blog has forever been my journal...its a baby book for my kiddos, a therapist for my heart, a chronicle of the day to day happenings of the Ritchie family.  In 2014 I feel like I really lost my footing when it came to this space.  I have a list of moments that I hold near and dear to my heart...but most of the items never made the transition from list to blog.  

And I'm not ok with that.

So hear you have it, my Old Year's resolution for the last 10 days of 2014...

Drumroll please....

To catch up.

Some posts might have extensive narratives.  Some might just be big ol' photo dumps.  Either way, I'm bound and determined to get our family's special moments from 2014 onto Little Miss Ritchie!

First up, Halloween.  Matt and I were drinking cocktails on the beach in the Dominican Republic over Halloween this year, so our boys got to spend some quality time with all of their grandparents.  They were at NamNam and PopPop's house for Trick or Treating, and from the looks of these pictures, they had a great time!

Baby Clark Kent

 PopPop and the boys

Looks like our little construction worker stole Clark's glasses.

 Eyeballing cousin Benson's M&Ms

 Rumor has it Harrison was NOT a big fan of this cat.  

Harrison perfected his trick or treating process (I knock knock knock on da door, den I say Twick o tweat and dey give me CANDY!) and still talks about when we was a "construction guy."  While I'm sad that we missed it all, I'm kind of glad that someone else got to deal with the sugar high that I'm sure occurred that night!  Happy INSANELY LATE Halloween from the Ritchie boys!  

1 post closer...

EKG Update

On November 20th Matt and I took Harrison to Omaha Childen's Hospital for an EKG to get some insight into the workings of his little heart.  Even though our hearts were telling us that everything was perfectly perfect, there were a few "hmmmm" moments that had been keeping my already paranoid mind on edge.  We operate on a "better safe than sorry" moto here these days, and figured since we would probably have an EKG done later anyway (before getting involved in sports, etc), we decided that it made sense to do it now and to put our minds at ease.

We wanted to make sure that Harrison was well prepared (as well as you can prepare a 2 year old) for what was to come the day of his appointment.  We told him that we were going to go see a doctor and that he was going to listen to his heart.  We told him that they were going to put stickers on his belly so that they could see how healthy his heart was.  We even covered his chest with fun stickers at home so that he wouldn't freak out when it was time for the real deal. 

All of our preparation paid of and Harrison did AMAZING.  You can tell by the look on his face that he definitely wasn't thrilled about the whole process...but he didn't shed a single tear during the test.  Anyone who has been through an EKG with a kiddo knows that staying calm helps things move along much more quickly than if there's kicking and screaming involved.

 Robo Harry

 So BRAVE!

 Harrison decided (on his own) that his Charley Bear should come to the appointment with him.  I thought that this was the sweetest thing.

Bear is always near when he needs her the most.

I'm thrilled to report, for those who don't already know, that Harrison's EKG was absolutely perfect.  We expected nothing different, yet at the same time it felt like a huge weight had been lifted off of our shoulders to have confirmation.  

His heart is strong.

  

Our hearts are full.

{Thank you for all of the thoughts, prayers and kind words that you sent our way leading up to Harrison's EKG and in celebration of our good news.  I hope that as he gets older Harrison realizes the insane amount of love that surrounds him.}  

In the Kitchen

Harrison is becoming such a good "helper" in the kitchen these days.  Yes, when he plays sous chef things get a little more messy, take a little bit longer, and require a lot more patience...but having him by my side makes my time in the kitchen feel so much more meaningful.  His favorite parts of baking include dumping ingredients into the bowl (and onto the counter) and spreading "dirt" aka any crumbly topping.  

"I help you, mommy."

 Like mother like son - look at his little tongue peeking out of his mouth as he concentrates on applying his "dirt" to our pumpkin bread!

Full hearts.  Full bellies.  So thankful for my little helper! 

{Side note - The pictures above were taken shortly before Thanksgiving.  I'm not a fan of pumpkin, but Matt is and "tis the season."  The first time I ever tried making pumpkin bread it came out of the oven looking amazing.  I even took a loaf over to our new neighbors.  Then I came home, cut into the loaf I kept behind, and much to my dismay the inside was a sloppy mess.  AHH!  Nothing like welcoming people to the neighborhood with undercooked bread!  Soo...above is attempt #2.  I tried a new recipe and baked it for almost 30 minutes longer than what the recipe called for.  It looked/smelled amazing and the old toothpick test told me that it was ready to come out of the oven.  WRONG.  The stupid thing still wasn't cooked!  Anyone have pumpkin bread advice for me?  I've made plenty of different quick breads before and never had issues.  Am I just not meant to make this kind??  I hate to admit defeat, but I also hate throwing our hard work in the trash!}  

Another Double Digit Celebration

Three kiddos.  Three double digit posts.  Three slap-me-in-the-face moments as I sit at my computer and realize that my baby is running full speed toward toddlerhood.  Its bittersweet.  I look back at pictures of Maxo as a squishy newborn and I hardly recognize him.  These days he's a whole lot less "baby" and a whole lot more curious big boy.   Each day holds new adventures, and we are having so much fun in this new, constantly changing phase of life....but a part of my heart is still screaming SLOW DOWN!

Here's the skinny on Sir Maximo at 10 months old. 

{Melt my Heart}  There is something about you, sweet Maxwell, that can melt my heart with a single glance.  You have the happiest little personality and the best grin ever.  You love to snuggle (on your own terms) and give the sloppiest open mouth kisses.  

{A Man on the Move}  Holy moly are you keeping us on our toes these days!  You've finally abandoned (for the most part) your army crawl and are a little speed demon on your hands and knees.  You are busy busy busy and always exploring.  You love to stand and are a pro at walking along furniture.  Very few things are safe from your reach at this point!

{Couch Crazy}  You turn into somewhat of a maniac when we put you on the couch, crawling at top speed from one end to the other, scaling pillows along the way and attempting to launch yourself over the side.  I have a feeling that you are going to be more of a daredevil than your brother!

{This Little Piggy}  You made the official transition to table food and are loving it!  Just like big brother Harrison, you are a big fan of beans, peas and corn...and you can never go wrong with a tray full of fruit.  All of that eating means that you are still growing like a weed.  You can still fit into some 9 month clothes, but 12 month seems to give a little more breathing room for that big belly of yours.  Last weekend I weighed you and the scaled showed 21.5 lbs.  

{Brotherly Love}  We're starting to see a very playful relationship form between you are your big brother.  Yes, we still hear a lot of "no, no Maxo!" but its been balanced out a little with toy sharing, impromptu hugs, crawling races and blanket parties in the kitchens.  I know that we are going to have our fair share of disagreements between our 2 strong-willed boys, but in my heart of hearts I know that you are going to be best friends.

{Just a Little More...}  You love to play "catch" and will occasionally say "BaBaBa" when you pick up a ball!  You take 2 awesome naps at home, but most days refuse to sleep longer than an hour at school.  There are WAY too many fun things happening in your big boy wobbler room to waste time sleeping!  You love bath time.  You still don't have any teeth, but I'm guessing that there will be FOUR of them popping through sometime soon.  You are a drool monster these days and constantly want to chew on things.  

Maxwell Thane {10 months}

This month proved to be a challenge when it came to taking pictures.  Matt was down entertaining big brother, Maxo was tired and covered with food/drool, and there were random toys thrown everywhere.  Pardon the quality - just focus on the cute behind the chaos!

Hmmmm what's over here...

 Ooooo and over here, too....

See what I mean when I say that nothing is safe anymore?

 Drool covered, food covered, chew on everything because I'm getting teeth, Maxo.

Welcome to the double digit club Mr. Max!  We love you so very, very much!