Kaitlyn Ryan

July 4th is definitely Kaitlyn’s holiday! She is so independent! Her new thing to say if you ask her if she needs help is, “No, I got this.” Thanks to her Daddy. July 4th was a nice day. We spent the day with Papito, Mimi, Aunt Veronica, Uncle T, & Aunt Valerie. She had a pedicure by her Aunt Valerie & mommy. Aunt Valerie got some bubbles for her feet that ended up turning them pink! Most of it came off. Now she is sporting pink toenails with white polka dots. We also went to a local festival where Uncle T played his trumpet, and she enjpyed it. After the festival we bought some fireworks and Uncle T & Daddy put on a show for everyone.
As for other things going on, Kaitlyn’s vocabulary has exploded! She talks so much now! She tells stories, and carries on pretty good conversations. It’s still hard to believe she’s getting so big! Bottles are finally a thing of the past. We weren’t sure we were going to survive that one, but we did! Kaitlyn loves summertime. She is a total water baby. She loves the beach & the pool. Tomorrow she is going to try a dance class. The class is only a month long and includes tap & ballet. The tricky part is that she is going in the class all by herself… for an hour! I hope she enjoys it!
Other than that we are all the same. Enjoying all of the fun times she brings to us and looking forward to many more. If you are on Facebook, make sure you become friends with me (Mommy), so you can see more pictures of Kaitlyn! We hope everyone had a wonderful weekend!

So I am not the best at keeping Kaitlyn’s site updated, so I am trying something new. I downloaded an application for my phone in hopes I will do a better job. I feel like I hardly have any time to sit behind my computer, so here’s to hoping this helps share my little Princess’ stories with everyone.
Since our last post, Kaitlyn has had her 1st ear infection… and it was in both ears. She was a champ though. She is getting much better at going to the doctor’s too! The last of her molars are also coming in (her top ones), & she hasn’t complaned about them at all.
In the past couple of months a lot has happened. Kaitlyn had her 4th trip to Disney World, Veronica had her Quince (15th Birthday), Easter, and we went to the MUSC NICU Reunion.
Disney was a blast as always and Kaitlyn has not stopped talking about it since. She asks at. Least once a day to go back. We are planning a trip back this fall.
Veronica’s birthday was a success. Mimi has been planning this party since Veronica was born & I think it was everything she hoped for. Kaitlyn had a great time dancing on the dance floor!
Easter was nice. I think she enjoyed the Easter bunny part more this year. She dyed eggs, and her fingers in the process, and hunted for eggs too. She also said Happy Easter!
The NICU Reunion was fun. MUSC holds this reunion every other year, so this was our 2nd reunion so far. They had a petting zoo, train, jump castle, cotten candy, balloon animals & much more. Kaitlyn went on the train, rode a little pony, and tried some cotton candy. We are already looking forward to the next one in 2012!
Besides the above mentioned events, things are going pretty well. Kaitlyn is growing up way too fast, but is so much fun to watch! We hope everyone else is having a good year so far! Talk to you soon!

So I always say I’ll do better about posting, but I know that isn’t going to happen, so here is another update. Since my last post we took our trip to New York City and Anthony & Katie got married!

Our trip to New York City was amazing! The plane ride there was great. Kaitlyn loved being on a plane. Getting off however was another story. We had to make a connection in Atlanta, and she cried all the way off the plane to the next terminal. She eventually calmed down, but wasn’t happy about getting off when we landed in NY either. Our hotel was great too. We stayed right in Time Square! Our first day there we visited Toys R Us and rode the ferris wheel inside the store, went to FAO Schwartz, went to Whole Foods, and ate at Roxy’s. The next day Sean had to attend a conference for work so Kaitlyn, Papito and I explored NYC. We walked to Central Park, went to the Central Park Zoo, visited St. Patrick’s Cathedral, Rockefeller Center, and just took in everything around us. That night, while on our way to dinner, we passed a theater where “In The Heights” was playing. There was a lady that worked for them that asked if we were interested in entering the lottery. My cousin Sandy told me about this. Different shows offer a lottery, where you can discounted front row tickets, a few hours before a show. We entered and won 2 seats for a great price. So for dinner, we grabbed a pizza and headed back to the hotel to eat then Sean and I went to the show. The show was fantastic! While Sean and I were at the broadway show, Papito and Kaitlyn ate some NY Cheesecake and lounged in the hotel. Kaitlyn had cheesecake each night we were there! The next day (Tuesday) Papito, Kaitlyn and I walked to the American Museum of Natural History. It was a long walk! The museum was very nice. Kaitlyn had fun looking at all of the animals, hanging on the railings, and posing for pictures. After walking around the museum for a couple of hours, we met Sean in Central Park then headed to the Apple store where he picked himself up an early Christmas present. Sean had to head back to his conference, so the three of us walked down 5th Avenue. We walked through Macy’s and saw the Christmas windows at Lord  Taylor. We then headed back to the hotel, waited for Sean, and ate at an Irish pub right around the corner from our hotel. It was great by the way! Now onto Wednesday… the three of us ventured onto the Subway this time! We took the subway to the Staten Island Ferry. We rode the ferry both ways and saw the Statue of Liberty, Brooklyn Bridge, and the city skyline. Kaitlyn enjoyed the ferry. We then took the subway to Little Italy. I must say Little Italy was definitely Little! Chinatown is taking over! Papito enjoyed it though! He was able to get some Italian cookies he’s been longing for. We ate lunch at a little Italian restaurant, which was delicious, then heading back to the hotel. Thursday was our last day there. We ate breakfast, bought some last minute gifts, participated in the Duracell’s Power the Decade (see a photo of us http://powerlab.duracell.com/?p=80), then checked out of the hotel and waited to head to the airport. Our flight was a little delayed due to a power outage earlier that morning, but we eventually made it home! So all in all, we had an amazing trip! Definitely something we will do again.

Now on to the Wedding!!! December 12th, Uncle Anthony and Aunt Katie were married! It was an amazing day! Family and friends started arriving the Tuesday before and helped with flowers, favors, and any other last minute details that popped up. I spent the morning of the wedding with the beautiful bride. She was so happy and calm the whole morning. We got our hair done, make up done, then once the photographer arrived, she got dressed. Se was beautiful! Sean spent the morning with Kaitlyn then met up with Anthony to fulfill his duties as Best Man. I have to say, being in the bridal party was definitely more stressful than being the bride! We ran into a few bumps that day, but made sure the bride and groom knew nothing of them and just enjoyed their day! The ceremony was beautiful, the reception was a blast, and the next day was filled with much needed rest! Anthony and Katie headed off to their honeymoon the day after the wedding. They stopped in Savannah, Daytona Beach then Disney World! Needless to say, we couldn’t wait for them to come home. As soon as their photographer posts pictures, we will be sure to share the link so those of you who could not make it can have a glimpse of their special day.

Well tomorrow is Christmas Eve, and I definitely cannot believe Christmas came so quickly! The tree is up, presents are wrapped, and family plans are made. We wish everyone a Very Merry Christmas! Love you all! – The Ryan Family

Thanks to Ms. Jessica for putting up with my temper in the beginning. Once I settled down, I realized it wasn’t that big of a deal at all, and now my hair is very pretty!

Just a quick update. We are all doing great. Kaitlyn definitely looks more like a toddler now… what happened to our baby? I don’t like this growing up thing. We took our 1st Family trip (just the 3 of us) to Atlanta over July 4th. We had a great time and went to the zoo, botanical gardens, aquarium and to visit family.

Kaitlyn can now do a forward roll all by herself. She had gym class Wednesday evening and while at Papito and Mimi’s house that night, she decided to perform for us to Michael Jackson’s Thriller and do her roll all by herself! I have a couple of videos that I would like to upload, but I’ll have to try to get Sean to help with it.

Leave us a comment!

So the last month has been a lot of fun. Kaitlyn has been growing and learning. She is talking a lot more now, while most is still baby talk, it’s cute that she is trying to carry on conversations with us. She calls all of her Aunts & Uncles “NeNe.” She can also say Apple, Juice, Shoes, Bow, Banana, Down, Stars, Bubbles, Ashes (for Ring Around the Rosie), Mickey Mouse… and I know there are more that I am missing.

Kaitlyn is also pretty bossy. Just recently she has started pushing us around, physically. She pushes your legs to get you to move and push you in the direction she wants you to go. She also pulls your hands if you are sitting down to get you to stand up. Kaitlyn also LOVES to dance, so when she’s dancing and you are not, she usually yells at you to tell you to dance too.  It is pretty funny to watch. She definitely has all of us wrapped around her little finger.

The only area of her life that is unexciting is her appetite. She doesn’t seem to really care for any food, or I guess meals. She likes cantelope, honeydo melon, strawberries on occasion, watermelon, grapes (peeled of course), cookies, tomatoes, cucumbers, cheese, green beans, peas, bread, spaghetti, and rice. And like I said for her vocabulary, I’m sure I’m missing some things. Kaitlyn just doesn’t seem to be a fan of what we eat. She drives me and Papito crazy with not eating, but I guess she’ll eat when she’s hungry.

The beginning of this month we went to Orlando for one of Veronica’s cheerleading competitions. We drove down on a Friday, a six hour drive turned into eight, and met Marty and Kimberly at the house we rented for the weekend. Saturday we watched Veronica compete on her dance and cheer team. She did a fantastic job which I guess is why her team won the National title. Sunday we had breakfast with the characters at Ohana’s at the Polynesian resort. She was excited to see the characters and waved hello and blew them kisses, but wasn’t a big fan of them getting too close. The only character she let come close to her was Pluto, she gave him a kiss on his nose. From there we went to the Magic Kingdom. This year was more fun than last year since she is more aware of what is going on. We went on the People Mover, The Carousel of Progress, It’s A Small World, the Carousel, the Haunted House, and Pirates of the Caribbean. She also enjoyed one of the parades they did when we first got there.

Well I think that is a pretty good update for now. I’ll post again soon with more pictures. Don’t forget to visit my Flickr page (http://www.flickr.com/photos/tori_ryan/) for more photos of our little Princess. Oh, and Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

We had a great Saturday! Kaitlyn spent the morning with Papito while I was photographing cheerleaders and Sean was taking a cooking class. After we were all done, we enjoyed meatball subs (courtesy of Papito) and went to the park. The weather was perfect for playing outside, and Kaitlyn seemed to really enjoy herself. She did a fantastic job of walking around the park in the sand. She went down slides, swung on the swings, hung on the monkey bars, and a whole bunch more. I’m looking forward to more warm weather so we can continue to have more outings. Last night Sean cooked us all cheeseburgers with a new recipe he learned at his cooking class. They were yummy! I can’t wait to try a few of his other recipes.

Yesterday, Kaitlyn also decided to say a couple of 2 word phrases. Yesterday morning she said “Dada Bye Bye” to Sean when he went into the other room. Then while we were at the park she said “Hello Dada” (of course her Hello sounds more like Hewwo, but it’s adorable)!

We also discovered last week that Kaitlyn is still teething! When we took her to her 14 month check up, her Dr. said she was getting her 18 month molars in and that she should be done until she is 2. Well, the past couple of weeks Kaitlyn has not been sleeping the best and has been a little fussy, which is not like her. Kaitlyn and I were having lunch with Papito last week when I just happened to look in her mouth and saw a tooth starting to come through. I am not a dentist, so I do not know the fancy names for our teeth, but I think it is one of the K9 teeth. Needless to say we were happy we learned why she had been a little grumpy. She has also been fighting a stuffy/runny nose the past few days. Hopefully it will clear up soon. I hate when she sounds congested.

Other than that, all is well here. Sean is still participating in Beards for Babies. His facial hair is not that long yet, but I cannot say I’m looking forward to seeing how long it gets. We hope you all are well, and please leave us a note if you are still following our wonderful baby girl!

Day 1

Sean is participating in a fundraiser for MUSC Children’s Hospital. All he has to do is grow his beard from February 1 thru March 1 and collect donations to benefit this wonderful hospital. As you all know MUSC is important to us since that is where Kaitlyn was born and they did such an amazing job taking care of her. If you are interested in making a donation for this wonderful hospital, please visit http://www.musckids.com/beards_babies/. Click on Sponsor. Put in all the appropriate info, with Sean Ryan as the beard grower. On the next page, when you are putting in your CC info, make sure you change the drop down at the top of the page to Beards for Babies. There is also a place for comments near the top of that same form. You don’t have to do this, but I put “for beard grower Sean Ryan” just to make sure they put it to the right person. We will take pictures and let you know how the growing is coming along. Thank you for your support for this amazing cause!

We started off the month pretty well, but a couple weeks ago Kaitlyn woke up with a cough. It was a Friday, so we decided to take her to the Pediatrician to be safe before the weekend. Turns out Kaitlyn had her first Upper Respiratory Infection. The Dr. said she looked fine, she would just be congested and it could take about a week for it to run it’s course. She was pretty pleasant considering she had an ugly cough. That same week (last week), Papito cooked Kaitlyn fish cakes for lunch. Turns out she likes Cod. She’s becoming more and more interested in what we are eating, so we just let her try everything (within reason of course). Sean had to go to San Jose, CA last week and we missed him a bunch while he was gone, but he’s home now. She is mostly 100% now. She still coughs a little in the morning, but the URI is just about gone.

Saturday evening we went to Disney on Ice. I wasn’t sure how Kaitlyn would act during the show, but I think she really enjoyed it. She danced to the music, clapped when the crowd clapped, and just enjoyed being out and about. I forgot my camera, so no pictures, but she brought home a couple of souveniers.

Yesterday I had to go to Columbia for a training workshop for work. Kaitlyn, Sean, Uncle Anthony, and Aunt Katie joined me for the ride which was nice. While I was learning, so were they. They went to the Children’s Museum and had lots of fun! Kaitlyn composed her first song, told the weather, played virtual vollyball, played with gears, played the drums, and explored a whole bunch more. They had a lot of fun!

Today we had another follow up appointment at the High Risk Clinic at MUSC. Kaitlyn weighed in at 21.9 lbs, and cried the whole time she was on the scale. We then met with a Dr. who asked us some questions then had Kaitlyn perform a few things. The Dr. had Kaitlyn pick up a square, put it in a cup, shake a bell, color with a crayon, and a couple of other things. Kaitlyn is right on track with other children her age.

Yesterday we went the West Farm Corn Maze. We had a lot of fun. Aunt Katie organized the outing, and there were a lot of us there. Mimi, Papito, Aunt Veronica, Grandma, Grandpa, Uncle Anthony, Aunt Katie, and the Baxley Family (Aunt Katie’s family). We visited the “Petting Zoo” where Kaitlyn got to see cows, pigs, sheep, goats, and a horse for the first time. I think she enjoyed seeing some new animals. We then looked at their pumpkins followed by a Hay ride. Kaitlyn was tickling her face with a piece of hay and also sword fighting, or hay fighting rather, with Mr. Jerry (Aunt Katie’s dad). After the fun hay ride, we all made sub sandwiches and ate dinner. After our bellies were nice and full, we bundled up a little because it was getting chilly with the sun going down, and went through the corn maze. It was fun, and Sean was able to get us through most of it. We didn’t make it through the whole thing… maybe next year.