Happy birthday to us!

Yesterday and today, Riley and I got to celebrate our double birthday!  Riley's party was at the park on Sunday and we had a party with Mommy, Daddy, Bibi, Zee, GeeGee, Aunt Stacey, Uncle Brad and Uncle Gabe.  With pizza, presents, swings and cake, we had everything you could ask for in a birthday party.

We had a "smash cake" for Riley and I thought for sure this kid would go head first into it and know exactly what to do.  I think he was more interested in trying to pick off the sprinkles than trying to eat the cake.  Maybe that's cause he's been eating cake and sweets since he was 4 months old.  Here is the video of cake time.

Today, we celebrated my birthday at the Cheesecake Factory with everyone and had such a great celebration.  The best part was that we all got to celebrate together!  Riley gave this cake a squeeze and now thinks that every cake is to play in.  Hopefully he'll grow out of that habit before high school.

I've put together a slideshow that I hoped to share at our party but since we didn't have the chance, I'd like to share it here.  My how Riley has grown in a year!  Happy birthday slideshow

Bye bye Sheffield

Sadly, we lost Sheffield yesterday.  He passed away quickly and suddenly and the house just doesn't feel the same without his funny face or his unconditional love.

We had so many wonderful memories with him but one of the things that makes this even more difficult is the fact that Riley isn't old enough to even remember Sheffield.  In lieu of Riley's memories, I'd like to take the opportunity to share some of the Sheffield/Riley interactions that left an impression.

Even before he was born, Sheffield was a fan of Riley.  He would check out my belly and let Riley know that he already had a brother waiting to meet him.  On Riley's first day home, we were afraid that the dogs would think he was a chew toy but they both came over, sniffed him to say hi but then were just so excited to see Chris that they didn't even realize that we had a new family member.

It wasn't until a few days later that Sheffield really understood what was happening.  I remember him looking at Riley and I saw him think "wait a minute, what's he still doing here?"  You could tell it was all starting to come together for him that this kid wasn't just a visitor.

But after a while, Sheffield learned how to share his Daddy time with Riley and they got along well.  Sheffield loved meal time because he would sit right in the 'drop zone' and help clean up.  Riley even made a game out of sharing his food.

Recently, Sheffield made it a habit of visiting during bath time.  Riley would hold up a cup and spill water.  Sheffield would try to catch the water in mid air and Riley would giggle and squeal, having so much fun watching Sheff!  I thought I would have the chance to get a video of this but I guess I'll just have to remember it.

Sheffield was such a good dog.  He was goofy and crazy and a handful, but he was sweet and funny and loving.  He will truly be missed but we know that he is in doggie heaven having a blast with all his new friends.

Teaching responsibility

Riley has requested more responsibility when it comes to taking care of the dogs.  He said that it's only fair that since we take such good care of him, he can steep up and help out with some of the chores around the house.  He is too short to wash the dishes, can't walk around and push the vacuum and is afraid of falling in the washing machine so walking the dogs is now up to him.  I think he's doing a pretty good job!

Riley's pizza party

Last night, we went out for dinner and enjoyed our own little pizza party.  We had mozzarella stick appetizers and all took part in devouring a family pizza.  Riley did his part in helping us to polish off all the food - he even ate parmesan cheese right off his plate while we were waiting for the pizza to be delivered.  Oh the things you will let your children eat just to keep them happy!

Feeling better

This past 10 days, Riley has been fighting an ear infection.  It started out as sniffles, turned into a fever and eventually was diagnosed as an ear infection.  He has been a trooper and even though we can tell that he is feeling miserable on and off, when the medicine kicks in or he doesn't have a fever, he is right back to the happy Riley that we all know and love.

It turns out that the medicine that he had started on wasn't doing all it needed to, so now we are on a new medicine plus ear drops, and hopefully those will kick in quickly.  Riley has been home again from school this week but hopefully tonight goes better than last night and he is fever free in the morning and ready to go back and see his friends!

Slumber party

Last night, we had an Italian feast at Mommy and Daddy's.  The party was to celebrate Mommy being home, Stacey and Brad living in Pittsburgh, Chris being back from Israel and Riley's 11 month birthday.  We have a lot to celebrate!

We had a delicious and authentic Italian smorgasbord and enjoyed each others company.  Riley hasn't yet learned to appreciate the art of a leisurely and late dinner so as the salads were being passed around, he decided it was time for bed.

Since Mommy and Daddy have house guests and every room was filled, we set up Riley's bed in the master bedroom and let him sleep while we finished our dinner.  When it was time to go, he was sleeping so soundly that we just decided to let him have a sleep over party at BiBi and Zee's!

Aside from a quick outfit change and pacifier search in the middle of the night, the party was a success.  Riley slept until 8:30 this morning - over an hour later than he usually sleeps.   We are going to have to figure out the secret!

Chris and I came over in the morning so we could take a family walk and Riley told us what a good time he had with BiBi and Zee and how he wants to stay over more often.  Fine by me!

Techno Riley

It seems like every day, Riley has a new trick to show off.  Yesterday at Costco, Riley and Zee decided to walk around and look at "manly things".  When we reconvened, Zee showed us what Riley can do.

As a true 21st century baby, he has learned how to flip through pictures on the cell phone before his 11 month mark!  Now, we'll see if he walks up to every screen and tries to flip it - or if he expects his books to change pages with a finger swipe.  Thanks touch screens!