Easter and a visit from Nana and Papa...

This is the fashionably late Easter post. Though this was Riley's second Easter, it was obviously the first one she was aware of. It was also the first time she had seen Nana and Papa since last July. Normally that would not be the case with such a long stretch between visits, but due to some unexpected circumstances which are almost completely behind us, that was unfortunately the case.

The visit started off much better than the last visit where the tears were flowing quickly since she was not familiar with them. This time that did not happen, thanks in part to her warming up a little more easily now, and also thanks in no small part to her Foofa doll from Nana. That definitely broke the ice and brought out a slight smile to start things off. Another sure-fire way for them to cozy up to her was watching Yo Gabba Gabba with her...often. She also picked up one new word that was certainly music to at least one set of ears: "Papa".

We had a rather stressful, but still fun, dinner out to Texas Roadhouse, whose rolls Riley absolutely loves. In fact we could probably put her on an all-Texas-Roadhouse-rolls diet and she'd be A-OK with that (come to think of it, I think I would be too if that were my diet). The stressfulness was not due to her fussing or screaming, but rather we were up against the clock with her bedtime routine, and she was just so wound up with wanting to stand up to see the people behind us, and just enjoying herself. Hard to blame a girl for enjoying a night out. :) On our way out, she promptly said "bye bye!" to any and everyone in her sight.


We also took a quick trip over to the big-cat sanctuary located nearby. Not a big hit. Almost all of the tigers and lions were asleep, and the one lion who roared loudly seemed to stop just before we could ever get over to him. However she did say "hi kitty!" when the lion looked directly at the two of us once (always a nice feeling to be stared down by a lion). What most interested her though was not the lions or tigers or cougars...but a dog, of course. After the big cats she ran around for a bit with the other kids, and as usual tried to make a new friend.


Easter itself went over great. Though a little cloudy and misting rain for a bit, it was still a nice day. She loved picking up all of the eggs and putting them in her basket that Mommy was holding for her. Later she realized there were Reese's Pieces in the eggs and proceeded to have each egg opened for her so that she could enjoy the chocolate and peanut butter goodness. She also had fun blowing bubbles with Mommy and Papa.


Unfortunately the next day she spiked a 104 degree temperature out of the blue, so we had to take a trip to the acute care clinic for kids to get her checked. After checking everything, including a very uncomfortable (and in hindsight very unnecessary) UTI test, we left the office with a lower temperature and no real cause of the problem. The next day brought a trip to her doctor just to be on the safe side since she was practically inconsolable for hours, but again he could find nothing wrong. So it was a mystery illness which went away as quickly as it came.

After a great week and Easter weekend we said goodbye to Nana and Papa until their next visit hopefully this summer. After leaving to take them to the airport, I received a call from Melissa to say that after we left Riley went to the door to say "Bye dada...Bye Nana...Bye Papa". :) Next up: Memorial Day with Nana and Granddaddy, where Riley will get to meet her new little cousin and our niece, Madelaine, the recent addition to Uncle Greg and Aunt Jenny's household.

Spring time!

Melissa here. I'm taking over the blog tonight to deliver what everyone really wants...tons and tons of pictures! There hasn't been a whole lot going on lately. Riley continues to grow, learn, and amaze us every day. She makes me laugh every day, and makes me see things in a whole new way. She adds new words to her vocabulary pretty consistently now. Some of her new words: Foofa (a character from Yo Gabba Gabba), noodle, strawberry, okay, up, Lily, leaf, yeah (she says this for outside...we're not quite sure why), and she's combined a few words like "Bye momma" and "more noodle". The word bottle used to be "baba" for her, but now it's turned into "bobble". She also can point to her belly, hands, feet, eyes, mouth, nose, and ears when asked. She loves her baby dolls, especially the one given to her by Aunt Jenny and Uncle Greg. She carries her up close to her shoulder, pats her back, gives her kisses, and tries to feed her and give her a bottle. She is also turning into quite the girly-girl. She likes to dress up, put necklaces and bracelets on, put things around her neck, put on hats, etc. It's so fun watching her grow from a baby to a little girl.

So enough bragging and onto the pictures. The weather has been gorgeous here, so we've been spending a lot of time outside. Just like her Daddy, Riley LOVES being outside. She'd stay outside all day long if given the choice. She runs and squeals, chasing all the animals. She loves to tease the dogs with their ball. She also picks weeds and brings them to me saying "fwower!".

We've also made a couple of trips to the Dallas Arboretum. Riley's not too fond of sitting in the stroller while we wander around looking at flowers (who can blame her?). But luckily we've found one particular field that seems to be the baby/toddler playground. Riley is in heaven here, seriously. She loves it! She can run around, visit the other little ones, she just has a blast.



Each time we go she makes a new little friend. This little girl was 21mos. old and knocked Riley down with a big ol' hug.

This little girl was 17mos. old and she & Riley quickly became best friends. They chased each other around, shared snacks, and before long were trading kisses.

We're looking forward to what I'm sure will be an eventful spring. Several visits with family are coming up soon, and a new addition to the Brown family is expected to arrive in just a few short weeks!!! Lots of exciting things to come.

Love to all!

A Winter Wonderland...

A foot of snow in Dallas, Texas?! Unheard of. But that's what some areas have experienced over the past 24 hours. The National Weather Service said a record 12.5 inches of snow fell within 24 hours in Dallas. Our little plot received 8 inches...which to us is more or less a blizzard. Even though she doesn't know it, Riley will be lucky if she sees this kind of snow again in these parts for many, many years to come (if ever). It has been a truly beautiful sight to behold, and the snow has been pure powder...unlike the icy mix we normally get in the South whenever it snows (or sleets).

Her reaction to the snow was a bit mixed. She really liked to see it, and seemed to like standing out in it while it was coming down. But touching it or standing in it? Not so much. But like any kid, young or old, she was not happy when it was time to come in out of the snow.
I built her first snow man, but she wasn't all that into him. At that point in the day she was pretty much over the whole deal.

Today was also her 15 month check-up with her pediatrician. After our last update the plan was to have tubes put in to her ears in just three days. Today was music to our (and Riley's) ears when Dr. Kaplan checked her ears and said they were "perfect". So for now at least, the tubes are down the tube. We may end up doing it later, but no need to jump to that extreme just yet if the ears are clear.


She weighed in at 24 lbs (70th percentile), and measured 32 and 3/4 inches (above 95th percentile). Her length/height continues to be literally "off the charts" according to the Doc. It was also shot day again today. Never a good thing, but surprisingly she calmed down much more quickly after these two than in the past. No more shots until November...so that's a relief for all at least. All in all, it has been a very good day.

(C0smo in the snow)

(Tony Snowmo)