Zoo and Stripping Down

All the animals were out...including mine :) We had a great time and soon had to strip our sweaters off in the November heat (go Texas).


Ryan has really enjoyed taking her clothes off everywhere we go lately. Today I finished chatting to a friend and then followed her into the bathroom stall. I remembered hearing her say she had to go to the bathroom after which I told her to go in her diaper. I found her completely naked in that 10 seconds I gave her.

"Then I won't be beautiful!"

Ryan wears a princess dress on a regular basis these days. Usually it is a size 6 Cinderella dress that she has to pull up to her forehead to walk in. On her Joy School party day I convinced her Sleeping Beauty was the way to go. As she admired herself in the mirror she said "Now all my friends will look at me." Oh the vanity. But when I finally force her out of the dress (rules for no dress: Going places, eating, and sleeping) she says "Then I won't be beautiful anymore." I'd like to say that I then remind her of her inner-beauty, but no I remind her that she's still got pretty blue eyes and beautiful blond hair even without the dress.



She particularly liked her pink legs and said "I think pink is my favorite color."

All I had to say was "show me your pretty makeup..."

Texas Baby!

Ryan is loving Texas! She tries hard to stay cool as you can see :) When we got here I moved her out of the crib and into her very first big girl bed in a pink room with Izzy. Though she now has the liberty to get out of bed 495 times a night, she has done a pretty good job with the transition.Now this is the face that when (FUNNY STORY coming on) she looked at me after eating everybody's dished-up mandarine oranges (unbeknownst to the rest of us working on the spaghetti) and said "It's ok, I'm on steroids!" I just laughed and gave her a big hug. Cory would say I spoil her, hmmm.

Goes and goes and keeps up with Lorin and Izzy all day. Every once in a while....

3 Months of Idaho and Utah

Ryan's Grandpa Kofoed passed away on July 10, 2008. I wish so badly that she could have spent more time in this life with my hero, my daddy.
Ryan soaks life up--drinks it all in. I adore this cutie pie.
Bunsies is what we call these :)

Bear Lake Baby loved to play in the "pee ponds" and dig in the sand.

The Dreaded Schoolbus

Ryan has decided she's afraid of school buses and if Lorin tells her the bus is going to get her she screams "no, I don't want to." Well today she faced her fears!

Ryan graduated from Ross Kids today (Dean Dolan shaking her hand). We got some cute shots of her on the grounds of the Michigan Union Building. Then we went to Lorin's school to celebrate her last day there...hence the school bus shot :)

2 Year Check Up

Ryan weighed in at 23.6 lbs today and is in the 12th percentile. Her height is 37%. And her head is 85% which is funny--all that hair must cover it up good ;) Then she got a shot in her leg and really didn't like it much. We were also chastised for not making her drink more milk. So, tonight for dinner I made chocolate-chip pancakes and would only allow milk as the beverage. When Ryan got ticked and spilled it on her tray Cory told her she'd have to get more shots if she didn't drink the milk. Not kidding...we filled that glass up again and she guzzled it like a champ!! HILLARIOUS!

These are shots from Myra Klarman at Izzy's Make-A-Wish photo shoot. Can't help but grab a couple of this adorable one too :)

EASTER

Ryan absolutely loved the Easter festivities! I guess it's only Santa that she's afraid of (hillarious!).
The dipping was actually less frequent then the cracking and eating :)
The girl didn't need any help at all getting in with the big kids finding the hidden eggs. Notice the snow at the end of March...thank you Michigan!

Friday Night / Saturday Morning the Easter Bunny came and hid our shoes (a long-time Kofoed tradition) and each girl's treasure hunt notes and dropped off some candy.

Happy Birthday Ryan!

We continue to try and party as much as possible with Ann Arbor friends and used Ryan's HAPPY 2ND BIRTHDAY as an excuse this time. We spent Thursday night in a 3-room suite at an indoor waterpark in Ohio with the Maynors and the Ingmires. We had such a fun time!
Ryan is such a happy-go-lucky kid that she brings a constant smile to the on-lookers. She loved walking around the hotel room playing make-believe with Willa's new penguin. She also continues to tell people about the bug show at Disney World..."Hey, member dat bug show?!" Then she talks about the water (acid from the bug) dripping on her. When she gets tired she just wants to put her face right in to my neck and lay her head on my shoulder--I absolutely adore the snuggling from her.

I never want to forget Ryan as a brand new 2 year old.

Disney World: Wishes Do Came True

We had an amazing trip to Disney World this last week. Thanks to everybody who helped us get excited about and ready for the trip--UM Stars, Disney bucks, Disney toys, Make-a-wish, Give Kids the World and the amusement parks. Ryan has been stuck inside all winter and she is an out-doorsy type chick, so this was perfect for her.

Warning: Slew of pictures to follow.

Monday
We knew that we were in for a fantastic vacation when the limo showed up to pick us up in the morning and take us to the airport.


We spent the rest of the day at the Give Kids the World Village (GKTW) that was a mini Magic Kingdom where we stayed for the whole week.




(They had free ice cream at GKTW, and the shop was open from 7 AM to 9 PM. You can guess how many trips we made there.)

Tuesday
Tuesday we took the Magic Kingdom down to china town. They gave us a permanent fast pass to use on all of the attractions which was incredible, but it also made for a day of little breaks as we went from ride to ride to ride.




(Ryan rode around in our makeshift bed when she was tired--one day taking a 2 hour nap.)

(We had a sweet Florida rain storm hit us as we were heading to our car for the night--Yes, I was excited)

Wednesday
We spent another fun filled day at Disney World, specifically Animal Kingdom in the morning and then Magic Kingdom in the afternoon when the girls had their dinner with the Princesses.




Thursday
Thursday morning we spent some quality time with Mickie and Minnie and then headed to Sea World to hang with the dolphins and friends. Ryan wouldn't try feeding the sting rays and the dolphins, but she was intrigued. That night GKTW had a Christmas parade during which Santa and Mrs. Claus showed up.


(Dang I look good in this one. The girls were wearing me out.)

(Ryan absolutely loved the dressed up characters and wanted to keep touching them and giving them hugs constantly. She WOULD NOT sit on Santa's lap however--hmmm :)

Friday
We decided to take a day trip to the East Coast and let the girls get their first taste of the ocean and a little sunburn. That night the girls had a Princess party at GKTW.



Saturday
Our plane didn't leave until 7 PM so naturally we decided to spend some more quality time at Disney World after one last ride on the GKTW carousel. We rode on this carousel literally 5 times a day, every day of the week. I got close to puking a few times.


(Ryan did an amazing job keeping up with us all, but there were times when she just crashed out of the blue--this one was right after a hot-tub bubble bath.)
An Amazing Trip
After 24 carousel rides, 10 rounds of Buzz Lightyear's Coaster, 2 rides on It's a Small World, 1 ride on every spin in a circle and go up and down attraction, an African safari, Pirates of the Caribbean, Shamu, sting-rays, dolphins, a trip to the beach, 3 days at Disney World and one day at Sea-World our little Izzy's wish was fulfilled and our family has more strength to keep fighting.

Thanks again to everyone who made the trip a reality.