Down by the Bay

Ry & I took a quick trip to Galveston late yesterday afternoon with Auntie (Yvonne). Road the ferry, then headed to East Beach about an hour before sunset.

We fed the gulls, then Ry headed for the water. He cautiously walked parallel to the water line, before pulling off his crocs and stepping in. In no time, he was splashing about and running at lightening speed all over the place.

He made a great effort at climbing a huge pile of sand, trying to copy what the older boys were doing.

The sunset was spectacular. And the bumper-to-bumper traffic that we'd passed on our way south had cleared out by the time we headed home.

Wrapping Up Ry's Birthday

Yes, I know. I kind of left you hanging. Let me catch you up on the birthday weekend festivities.

To start with, I got sick. (adenovirus) Luckily, mom flew in on Thursday and (frankly) pulled off a birthday miracle.

We kept Ry home with us on the actual day (Friday, 8/10), which began with his current favorite meal, pancakes. We then kept our annual tradition of a birthday portrait @ the Picture People in the Galleria, before running a slew of b-day party errands.

At some point that afternoon, Aunt Yvonne caught up with us, and later Anthony joined us all back home for a birthday dinner of fajitas and pie.



In case this slideshow doesn't clearly demonstrate the point, Ry LOVES blowing out candles. We did three rounds of flames and singing and blowing before he was satisfied. He opened a handful of gifts (a great indoor sandbox from Jackie that he promptly climbed in, and a bunch of balls from Anthony that made for a rowdy time) before Ant & I broke out the paint to stamp hand and foot prints into the book he gave him for his first birthday.

Saturday brought the party. Our guests included:
- Grandma & Grandpa Silhan
- Nana (my mom) & Aunt Yvonne
- Brian, Lori & Aunt Cindy
- Vincent & Monica (who kindly made us cupcakes!)
- Hernan, Alicia & Medai
- Tina & Adria
- Tia (Cynthia)
- Trish
- Jackson, Beckett, Shannon & Kevin
- Riley, Shannon & Matthew
- Halie, Luke, Jaycie & Aunt Julie
- Elena & Natalie
- Hannah, Colby & Deputy David

To be honest, I was in a bit of a fever-induced fog. I have no idea what memories Ry (or others) will have of the event, but mine include:
- Ryan's sheer panic and extended crying episode over the balloons
- The arrival of friends, friends, and more friends
- My mom in an apron teaching kids to paint with marbles, string, and bubbles
- Paint on fingers, hands, arms and an occasional leg
- Paint on faces and in hair
- Some impressive works of art (yes, some paint actually hit paper)
- On-time pizza delivery
- Kids running inside
- Kids running outside
- Lots of balloons popping
- The graciousness of my friends & family who helped us clean up

Here are some pics from the event for your enjoy/amusement:



Whether you were there or not, consider leaving us a comment to this post to commemorate the event.

xo -

me (& the ry-guy)

Party Pics

While we're on the subject of parties, here's a pic of Ryan chillin' in the ball pit at Vincent's second birthday party on May 5, 2007. He had a ball.

Paint & Pizza Party Planning

Ryan will soon be three. It seems so cliche to say, "I can't believe it," and, "I don't know where the time went." But I can't. And I don't. Cliche or not.

So I gotta plan another party. I stumbled my way through the last two - planning (at the 11th hour) quick, weeknight dinner parties with a handful of folks. Pizza's been a bit of a tradition - from Buca di Beppo the first year, and from Collina's the second.

This year, I'm aiming higher. Sort of. We'll have pizza again for sure. But it's the location is where I've focused energy this week. My house is so small that it's hardly indoor-party-appropriate. And with an August birthday, the Houston heat and rain and mosquitos make a backdoor party a bit of a gamble (and potential health risk). And then there's that darn train.

So I stumbled around some websites last weekend and saw a reference to renting city parks for events. Monday, I booked Proctor Plaza Park's indoor, air-conditioned community center for a whopping $95 for three hours. WOO HOO! [Incidentally, I can remember taking karate and tennis classes at this park when I was little - and maybe piano, too.]

With the location secured, the paint-party theme has quickly evolved. I must give due credit to the lovely AND talented Shannon Bishop, who did the same for her twins, Jackson and Beckett. Imitation makes for the best flattery, right?

Monica's baking skills will ensure stellar cupcakes, and Mom will be here - courtesy of frequent flier miles - to help ensure the kids are happy and engaged in fun painting projects, just like the ones she kept us busy with as scouts.

Make a mess for 90 minutes or so, get their grub on, and then send them home to nap. That's a recipe for a good toddler party, right?

Stay tuned.

Austin x 2

Flew to Austin and back yesterday for my once-a-month meeting with my counterparts from the other large urban areas in Texas and the state folks who oversee the money. It was a big day, with the feds making their annual announcement on grant funding levels.

Flew back to Austin today for another meeting (a very good one, I might add). During the meeting, I received a text message that my flight home was been cancelled, and that I should call Continental. Funny thing is, they followed that with instructions about carrying liquids on the plane. So I can't fly home, but you think you need to remind me that if I could, I wouldn't be allowed through security with a coke in hand? Funny.

The problem was weather in Houston. Imagine that, after the rains we've had the last two months.

Though there was insanity all around when I arrived at the airport, I managed to get through on an 800 number and got confirmed on the next flight out, which was only delayed a couple of hours. And I managed to get a window seat, to the total dismay of the people around me who were scrambling just to get to Houston, since most of them had connecting flights to exotic destinations. I have no idea how 40 or so kids headed to Amsterdam faired...the adults insisted that they all had to be on one flight, but I'm just not convinced that was workable in a weather emergency.

I must say, two consecutive days in Austin has me convinced I could live there. Not only were there actual changes in elevation (hills are lovely), but there was no haze to hamper your view of the landscape. And it's probably safe to say that a deep breath there won't take 15 minutes off of your life.

one last thing...

Wanted to make sure to add a shot of Ryan, since he's why most of you will even take the time to stop by.

This is from earlier today. He's lounging, as always, with a couple of cars in hand.

More pics soon.

See ya.

the week in review (our first)

This one was rough.

mon: After he ran a fever of 103 all last weekend, I knew I had to get Ry to the doc. Again. Third time in the one month since he started daycare. Paid another $30 to learn he had (drumroll...) a virus and croup, which apparently explained the constant coughing. Grandma kept him for the afternoon, and I headed to city hall to make an appearance.

tue: Back to grandma's for Ry and work for me...with every spare moment in between and after spent reviewing grants for the dept. of education. Somehow these peer review extra-jobs always seems like a good idea when I sign up for them.

wed: Seeming much better (no fever, but still the constant cough), Ry went back to daycare. In the BIG NEWS development of the week, they sent him home with a letter stating that he'd be moving on to Pre-K (3-K?) in the fall. Seems the center is preparing to open a new facility (right across the street) in the next two months, and Ry will be among their first students. Ryan's friends Jackson & Beckett (adorable twins of Shannon Bishop & Kevin Jefferies) will be there too,. His current teacher, Ms. Anna (who he continues to call Ms. Nana), tells me she'll be moving over with them all.

thurs: After a busy but un-noteworthy day at work, I picked my not-coughing-quite-as-much Ry up from daycare. We went for a Jamba Juice and picked up some nuggets that I hoped would tempt him back to the world of the eating. (No, it didn't work.)

fri: Ry seemed significantly better, and I soon learned he was charged back to full power. When I picked him up, I immediately saw on the apple-wall that he'd been in trouble today (noted with a yellow apple, compared to everyone else's nice, shiny red ones). Ms. Ana explained that he'd resumed his hitting ways AND scratched Aiden. Time outs and exclusion from show-and-tell were the punishments. Nearly 24-hours later, I was amused when he said out-of-the-blue, "Not nice to scratch Aiden." Hopefully that message will stick.

indulgence of the week: The World Series of Pop Culture, of course.

accomplishment of the week: I finished up a round of peer review fairly painlessly.

But the laundry has piled up and the dishes are dirty, so I've gotta go.

just getting started

Greetings, all. And welcome. I thought it was as good a time as any to give blogging a go. I'll try to post regularly, at least with weekly updates on what's up in our world and a picture or two for your amusement here and there. I'll also try to link in some videos of Ry for your amusement.

ciao for now.