An Aunt, an Uncle, and a Lot of Beer

Aunt Erin and Uncle Jeff came to visit us this past weekend; they arrived on Friday night and stayed until mid-day on Sunday. It was so nice having them here; they are two pretty great people. We like them lots.

The main reason they came over was for the Top of the Hops Beer Festival, held in town on Saturday afternoon. Aunt Erin agreed to babysit her nephew (she doesn’t like beer and was ecstatic she would have Riley-bean all to herself for a few hours) while Jeff, Kenny, and I attended the festival. I was a little worried that Riley would be a pill for her while we were gone (he had been unusually fussy most of the week), but he apparently behaved like an angel for her.

Kenny told her she was hired anytime she wanted to watch him.

  

The beer festival was fun, although a little on the pricey side, so Jeff and I thought. All three of us enjoyed it, but Kenny did especially. He remarked that he got to taste a lot of beers he had never had before, which is always a good thing for him whether he ends up liking them or not. Too many fruit-infused ones for my taste, though. There seemed to be a pomegranate/orange/raspberry/peach/blackberry/cherry/strawberry-infused beer at every table!

I wonder if vegetables are next on the brewmasters’ lists……edamame beer, anyone?

And since we had purchased the VIP tickets (which allowed us admission an hour before everyone else), we got home early enough to join Erin and Riley outside for a little while before getting him settled for the night and then sitting down to our own dinner (thanks for the daube recipe, Karen; it was delish). All in all, a good day!

 

It was so great sitting around our dining room table (which we hardly use when it’s just the two of us) and chatting with Jeff and Erin two nights in a row. We really enjoyed catching up with them and wish we could get together more often.

Thanks so much for coming over to visit us, you two….Riley says to come back whenever you want!

Caution: Baby Underfoot

I used to be able to leave Riley in the living room, contentedly playing with his toys, while I went into the kitchen to rinse a bottle out, get lunch for myself, throw something away, etc.

Not anymore!

Now it’s never long before I hear his little grunts of effort as he scoots his way from the living room into the kitchen. (No, he is still not crawling yet.)

He eventually makes his way over to where I am, which is usually all the way over by the sink.

So I am having to be very cautious about looking before I take a step, to make sure I don’t accidentally trample him.

I certainly wouldn’t want to do anything to this adorable face!

Video Monday: Bean and Nopsi

Nopsi had so much fun hanging with Riley while we were in Houston, and I was glad I caught a couple of moments between them on video.

Two for the price of one today, people….enjoy!

Happy Monday!

The Shed

On our way back from Houston the three of us stopped at a BBQ restaurant Kenny and I had been wanting to try: The Shed. The timing worked out great with Riley, so we decided it was the perfect opportunity.

Riley got his lunch first, sitting up like a big boy in one of those wooden restaurant highchairs.

And although he seemed to be looking longingly at our sampler of all of the delicious BBQ options, Riley was very well-behaved while Kenny and I ate our lunch.

I’d have to say our first dining out experience since he was less than two months old went very well. I thought we would have to rush through our meal to prevent any loud, protest crying from erupting, but instead he charmed our waitress and the family at the table next to us. Believe me when I say, though, that I am under no delusions that every time in a restaurant with him will go this well.

Especially considering his behavior during meals at home lately, I’ll be sure to stash a couple of drop cloths in the back of my car for when we eat out.

Just in case.

Oh Dear

Riley’s behavior during mealtimes is not improving.

It has, in fact, reached a whole new level.

One I did not see coming at all.

He has now started to cry vegetables instead of tears.

If this keeps up, I may have to complain to management.

Then I realized that I am management and there’s not really much I can do.

Then I cried.

Real tears, though, not veggies.

That would just be weird.

Chubby Legs

After I fed Riley his breakfast one morning last week, he started playing with his feet while he was still in his highchair.

Then I realized that since he didn’t have any pants on his legs were exposed in all of their chubby glory.

I know he will lose the irresistibly cute chubbiness. One day.

But I sincerely hope it isn’t one day too soon.

Because I’m really going to miss those chubby little legs.

Return to Houston

It was a little hard to believe, but we hadn’t been to Houston since Riley was 5 weeks old. This is mostly because Nola has been in New Orleans since before Thanksgiving.

We’re not sure she’s ever moving back.

Just kidding, Nopsi!

(I think.)

We went back to Houston this past weekend. Our main reason was to get together with our friends Adam and Erin and meet their new baby, Henry, who was born in January.

We also got to hang with my parents, who both happened to be there. (Nola has since returned to New Orleans.) Nopsi hadn’t seen Riley for two months, so he was really glad this weekend get-together worked out.

The last time we drove to Houston Riley slept the whole way there. These days he doesn’t sleep great in the car; we’re lucky if we get 45 minutes out of him when we’re on the road. So before we left I loaded him up with toys and hoped for the best.

He stayed true to form and only napped for about 40 minutes, but he was content the whole time he was awake. Note the empty toothpaste box in his lap in the pictures above; that kept him entertained longer than I thought it would.

We arrived mid-afternoon on Friday, and it was just the five of us until Adam and Erin came over the next afternoon for a BBQ lunch. Nopsi was so glad to see Riley when he got home from work, even though it wasn’t for very long. (Gotta stick to the routine!) But they had plenty of quality time together, spending a good amount of the weekend out on the balcony. That son of mine truly loves being outside, and Nopsi was only too happy to oblige.

 

Adam and Erin showed up around noon on Saturday with Ashton and Henry. We had such a great afternoon with them. Both of their boys are too cute, and Erin couldn’t believe how big Riley had gotten. Ashton had fun running up and down the stairs, while I got lots of cuddles in with Henry. You really do forget how small they once were.

Riley was fussier than usual while we were in Houston since he was out of his element, but once he was finished eating his dinner and upstairs getting ready to have his bath, he did just fine. (Outside and water: he loves them both!) He splashed away in the tub and then squirmed and giggled as he was getting into his pj’s. One last bonding moment with Nopsi on Sunday and then we were back in the car again. Why do these visits always go by so fast???

Riley must have really tired himself out playing with Nopsi because he went against his norm and slept for TWO HOURS in the car on the way back. Kenny and I could not believe it. (And the timing worked out for us to stop for lunch at a place we’ve been wanting to try, where Riley sat in his own restaurant highchair for the first time. More on that later!)

Thank you so much, Nola and Nopsi, for letting us come visit and for hosting a fabulous lunch for all of us on Saturday. We had so much fun!

Video Monday: Nesting Cups

I received a set of 8 plastic nesting cups as a gift when I was pregnant, and they are a permanent fixture in Riley’s play area every day. (I also discovered another set hiding in one of his baskets under his changing table a couple of weekends ago, so now the cups have doubled. Yay!)

I stack them, he knocks them down. Of course he drools and gnaws on them. And he swats and kicks them around the living room.

Most recently, he inadvertently scooted with one onto the hardwood floor and then dropped it, which evoked quite the reaction.

I’ll warn you now: there is an unfortunate face planting incident at the end of this one. His body just wants to move faster than his arms can keep up with sometimes, which often results in him kissing the floor. Hard.

Don’t worry, though; he was good to go 30 seconds later! 

The next day when he moved onto the hardwood (which is very often these days….he seems almost to prefer it!) I intervened to see if I would get the same reaction, hopefully minus the face planting.

Happy Monday!

Meeting Monkey

When I was little I had a lot of stuffed animals, but I did have a favorite: a little stuffed raccoon named Rocky. He went everywhere with me. I even thought I had lost him once and was devastated, until my parents bought me another one. (Then we found the original Rocky so I ended up with two.)

This makes me wonder if Riley will develop an attachment to a particular stuffed toy. He has received so many wonderful plush gifts from lots of different people, and now that he’s old enough I’m starting to introduce him to his new friends.

The other day I pulled out a cute stuffed monkey that his cousin Zac picked out when Riley was just a few weeks old and plopped it on the floor in front of him. I’d say the first meeting went quite well.

Monkey, along with a very soft little black bear my parents got for Riley last summer in Alaska, now resides permanently in his crib. He also has a bunny, a leopard, a cat, and a dog perched on the back rail of his crib, as well as a teddy bear, a tiger, and another monkey on his dresser, all keeping watch over him as he sleeps.

I wonder if any of those will become his Rocky. I hope so!

I found him like this on Monday during one of his naps, using Monkey as a pillow, with the black bear not far away. I’m so glad I peeked in and saw this. So sweet.