Christmas Vid

Here's Ryan's Christmas greeting. He's listening to the Canadian classic Tears are Not Enough.

Lots of Li Love

Ryan's been enjoying lots of love from the Li family this Christmas. Here are a few examples:



I'll post some more pictures on Kodak Gallery soon as well as a few vids of the little fella talking away. I hope everyone had a fantastic Christmas.

Merry Christmas!

I suspect that this will be my last Christmas morning blog post. I'm sitting beside a now sleeping Ryan, who has been busy entertaining his grandparents and keeping us all smiling with his constant smiles and chatter. I'll post some pictures of Gong Gong, Poi Poi, and Uncle Alex showering him with attention next time.

We'll have Aunt Helen and Eric here for our very traditional (and now annual) prime rib and crab legs dinner. I hope you all have a fantastic Christmas day.

I uploaded a short vid, but am having trouble with Youtube this morning due to the HD format. In the meantime, here is the month by month RyLi picture. At this rate, he'll be busting out of this onesie well before the end of the year.

1 Month:









2 Months:









3 Months:

Ryan at 3 Months

Quiet weekend in Menlo Park. Relatively speaking, the weather is cool but the sun is shining. Carol was just listening to the song, "You're Gonna Miss This" by Trace Adkins and it's now official - she doesn't want the little man to grow up! If you haven't heard the song, here are the lyrics.

Ryan is now going about 5 hours between feeds. Last night he was only up once. We're getting close! Here are a couple of my favorite new pictures:

And here are some more shots of the happy little guy on Kodak Gallery. (The bear suit wasn't my idea...the beer bottle pose was!)

Merry Christmas to all of our family and friends. My family is split between Northern Ontario and Florida this year and Carol's family will be with us here in California.

Talking About Change

Ryan always seems to want to talk on the changing table. By popular demand (yesterday's vid was clearly a hit with the family!), here he is chatting with his Mom.

Rolling into Christmas

We put up the tree tonight and hung the stockings. I'm sure it'll be the last time that Ryan's not overly excited about the whole thing.

Speaking of excitement, he's really been talking (or cooing) to us in the last couple of days. It's really amazing to see and hear. Carol's been taking more and more videos and occasionally watching them when he's asleep. Now that's a devoted Mom!

Here's a video of Ryan managing to roll while listening to the Band rock.

Quick Update

It's been a few days since the last post, but I did recently post a few pictures from the weekend on Kodak Gallery. Here's a great picture of Ryan and Mom at a Christmas party in San Francisco on Sunday hosted by Kathy and James Steele.

You can check out all of the pictures here.

Ryan's doing great. He's now over 13lbs and smiling and talking more and more. He actually makes most of his noises while on the changing table. Here are a few gratuitous pictures of the little guy. I'm pretty sure my Mom has ordered all of them at this point. My favorite is this one:

Gong Gong and Poi Poi arrive on the 21st. We're looking forward to it!

Baby Please Don't Go!

AC/DC is playing in the Bay Area tonight. Here's a video of Ryan enjoying an old classic from the band.

I recorded this video using the new camcorder. Clearly my video skills need work...

Carol Gets Lots of Smiles

Here's a video of Carol getting lots of smiles from Ryan.

A Great Long Weekend

Monday was a foggy day here in the Bay Area. I was also a little foggy heading back to work after a four day break. The 5:30 am morning feed didn't help much...

After a great Thanksgiving dinner in San Francisco at Aunt Helen and Uncle Eric's house (actually we ate upstairs at Doug's), we went for a few long walks in Menlo Park and generally enjoyed this weekend's great weather. We also got to spend some quality time with Uncle Alex, who passed his crash course in baby management with high marks. As you can see from these pictures, he's a natural with the little guy!






















I've posted more photos from the weekend on Kodak Gallery here. Ryan's becoming more and more expressive every day so stay tuned for more videos...

Spit Up Happens

They say that you can always identify a new parent by the spit up on their shoulder. I just watched this helpful video called Spit-Up Happens, Dads Deal , but as you'll see from the picture and video below, it was a little too late.

A week or so ago I had the bright idea that I would gently put Ryan on my shoulders (with great care given to his young neck of course). This led to the inevitable "get the camera" cry. Just as Carol was snapping the photo, spit up happened. Great timing!

Today I was playing with Ryan after what I thought was enough time post feed for spit up not to happen. Clearly I was mistaken!



We had a great Thanksgiving dinner last night in San Francisco. I'll post some pictures this weekend.

Mom and Baby Dancing

Here's a video of Carol and Ryan dancing in the kitchen last week.

Two Year Anniversary

Two years ago Carol and I got married in Isla Mujeres, Mexico. Tonight we celebrated our two year wedding anniversary with lamb chops on the barbecue. It's nice to be in California!

Actually, it was quite an early night for us. I'm now up with Ryan while Carol gets some much needed rest. He's asleep on my chest after a little soothing in the Baby Hawk so I figured I'd write a quick post. It seems that the little man had a bit of a Don Rickles day today. (See side-by-side comparison below.)

We're pretty sure that his fussiness was caused by the mocha hot chocloate beverage I brought Carol this morning, but who really knows. The good news is that both baby and Mom are sleeping soundly now.

Here's the "best time ever" group shot from November 2006. Good memories!

Sarah and Jeremy Get Engaged

A couple of weeks late, but Ryan wanted to be sure to congratulate his Aunt Sarah on her recent engagement. Here's a great picture of Sarah and Jeremy from the big night in Toronto. We're all looking forward to the wedding next summer in Algonquin Park.

Sarah left Menlo Park on Thursday with Nanna Jane and is now in New Liskeard, Ontario visiting Jeremy's family and experiencing some very different weather conditions. Click here to see some of the pictures from their trip on Kodak Gallery.

Here are a few pictures of Ryan and my sister:































This is the first weekend since Ryan was born that Carol and I have spent without family visiting. We're not complaining though. It's been fantastic to have so much support. Uncle Alex is up next for Thanksgiving. We're looking forward to seeing him.

Smiley Ryli

Had to post this shot. We're getting more and more smiles every day.

Parent Job Description

Aunt Sarah and Nanna Jane left yesterday. It was a bit quiet last night and this morning at our house. This will take some getting use to...

I'll write more about their trip and share some pictures this weekend, but I received this email from a friend today and thought it was worth sharing here. (Sorry Ryan, you'll be back in the spotlight next time!)

Care to Apply for This Job?

POSITION:

• Mom, Mommy, Mama, Ma
• Dad, Daddy, Dada, Pa, Pop

JOB DESCRIPTION:
Long term, team players needed, for challenging permanent work in an often chaotic environment. Candidates must possess excellent communication and organizational skills and be willing to work variable hours, which will include evenings and weekends and frequent 24 hour shifts on call. Some overnight travel required, including trips to primitive camping sites on rainy weekends and endless sports tournaments in far away cities! Travel expenses not reimbursed. Extensive courier duties also required.

RESPONSIBILITIES:
The rest of your life.
Must be willing to be hated, at least temporarily, until someone needs $5.
Must be willing to bite tongue repeatedly.
Also, must possess the physical stamina of a pack mule and be able to go from zero to 60 mph in three seconds flat in case, this time, the screams from the backyard are not someone just crying wolf.
Must be willing to face stimulating technical challenges, such as small gadget repair, mysteriously sluggish toilets and stuck zippers.
Must screen phone calls, maintain calendars and coordinate production of multiple homework projects.
Must have ability to plan and organize social gatherings for clients of all ages and mental outlooks.
Must be willing to be indispensable one minute, an embarrassment the next.
Must handle assembly and product safety testing of a half million cheap, plastic toys, and battery operated devices.
Must always hope for the best but be prepared for the worst.
Must assume final, complete accountability for the quality of the end product.
Responsibilities also include floor maintenance and janitorial work throughout the facility.

POSSIBILITY FOR ADVANCEMENT & PROMOTION:
None.
Your job is to remain in the same position for years, without complaining, constantly retraining and updating your skills, so that those in your charge can ultimately surpass yo.u

PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE:
None required unfortunately.
On-the-job training offered on a continually exhausting basis.

WAGES AND COMPENSATION:
Get this! You pay them!
Offering frequent raises and bonuses.
A balloon payment is due when they turn 18 because of the assumption that college will help them become financially independent.
When you die, you give them whatever is left.
The oddest thing about this reverse-salary scheme is that you actually enjoy it and wish you could only do more.

BENEFITS:
While no health or dental insurance, no pension, no tuition reimbursement, no paid holidays and
no stock options are offered; this job supplies limitless opportunities for personal growth, unconditional love, and free hugs and kisses for life if you play your cards right.

Chicks Dig Me!

Here's Ryan and Aunt Sarah with his new favorite bib. I have to say that it's quite true right now. He's getting lots of love from the ladies these days...

A Natural

We've been enjoying having my Mom here over the past week. She and Carol have been spending lots of quality time together and she's been able to see a lot of positive change in Ryan in a short time. There have been long walks, excercise classes, and yesterday she bought us a "Pee Pee TeePee" to protect us during diaper changes. Ryan is now 10.5 lbs. He's a ferocious eater. He still struggles at times with gas, but Nanna Jane recommended "Gripe Water" and it seems to be helping. We're getting more and more alert time and his sleep window is up to about 4-5 hours. He's more fun every day!

I'm off to pick up Aunt Sarah at the airport. We'll have a barbecue engagement celebration for her this evening. It's 80 degrees in Menlo Park!

I've posted lots of pictures on Kodak Gallery here, but here are a few good ones of Nanna Jane and Ryan:

Enough Attention?

There are lots of oohs and aahs around here these days as Ryan continues to get more than his fair share of attention from all of us. He also seems to be getting enough milk from Mom. At 7 weeks (on Wednesday) it looks like he's cracked the 10lb barrier.

Another milestone - this morning we think he smiled for the first time. Carol wasn't awake yet, so we'll need to put an asterix beside it.

Here are a few pictures of Mom and Nanna Jane (the name still needs some getting used to) with the little guy:

Nanna Jane Arrives

My Mom arrived last night. After a fairly brutal travel day (Ottawa -> Denver -> Chicago -> San Jose), there were no signs of fatigue by the time she ran in to meet her grandson. Here's a quick video with a very focused Ryan (dealing with gas as usual) as Carol watches closely.

Thank You Guma!

On Wednesday Carol's aunt returned to Phoenix. Over the past 6 weeks she has been a tremendous help to us and we're really going to miss her.

Thanks for all of your support, words of wisdom, and great cooking Guma!

Fortunately she cooked quite a few dishes for us before she left. I'm actually enjoying a bowl of her chicken soup as I write this post!

Here are few highlights from her visit...

Cooking up another great dinner:


















Taking care of Mom and baby:


















Making dumplings for guests:









Our first night out for dinner with Ryan in Palo Alto:

A Busy Week

Sorry for not posting in almost a week. We had some Internet issues at home and I've been busy preparing for a conference. Ryan and Carol are doing great. As of this morning he's a little over 9.5 lbs and eating and sleeping well. Actually, he seems to sleep better during the day right now so we need to keep working on switching that up. Here are a few pictures of the two of us hanging out over the past week or so...

One Month Celebration

It was a big day yesterday as Ryan celebrated the end of month #1. It also means that, according to Chinese tradition, Carol's recovery period is complete. We're heading up to San Francisco this afternoon to take Carol's aunt to China Town and Carol will join the girls to celebrate Dea's bachelorette party for a few hours this evening. Let the good times roll...

Happy Birthday Grandpa!

Ryan's Grandpa (what he calls him is still tbd) Douglas had a birthday today. Sounds like there was a little get together at Sarah's house to celebrate. Big Happy Birthday Gramps from Ryan, Carol and me.

Quick update on the little guy: today Carol and her aunt took him in to see the Doctor. He got a clean bill of health. The gas, the occasional heavy breathing, the dirty diapers...it's all normal!

Here's a gratuitous picture of Ryan in a sweatsuit hanging out on the couch. The socks over the pants were Carol's idea. Very handsome.

Guest Feeder

Carol's friend Kathy (now Mrs. Steele) dropped by for dinner last night. It was great to catch up and hear about life in San Francisco.

Boys and Bears

Did you know that the term "Teddy Bear" was based on a cartoon depiction of Theodore Roosevelt refusing to shoot a leashed bear? My brother Mike always had a bear. His name was Ted. He used to take him everywhere. I remember having a Winnie the Pooh bear when I was younger, but the attachment wasn't as strong. Our friend Fion used to have an old, ratty comfort blanket that he affectionately, if not creatively, called "Blankety." That one's a little harder to explain...
It's too soon to say what Ryan will become attached to (I'm still hoping Smurfs make a comeback!), but so far he's received a lot of stuffed bears and other animals from friends and family. Here are a few pictures of him wearing his "I Love DC" outfit hanging with his pals.