Forklifts!

During 100+ heat we must find creative ways to have fun without suffering from heat stroke. One of our favorite midday activities is visiting Lowe's and going on a forklift hunt. Most of the time the forklifts are "sleeping" (i.e. the Lowe's forklift driver is on break, or no one needs wood slabs delivered to their car).

Leavin' on a jet plane

Heading home after many wonderful and bittersweet reunions in Chicago and Wisconsin for the 4th of July.

Good morning sunshine

Lunch at Kiki's House

Giving my flowers a drink

Please don't look at the house in the background, or the grassless lawn, or the adults. Just enjoy precious Bren watering the few flowers we had. Since then, we've painted the house, laid down sod (thanks Kiki!) and planted many flowers. This is a "before" pic. And Bren is a terrific distraction.

Bath Time!

A sign...

PEACE

Bad Haircut

After putting it off for weeks, I finally braced myself and bundled up Bren to get another haircut. We went to a walk-in place and didn't see the woman who had done a fairly decent job the last time I got up the nerve to try, so I put our trust in someone else. Mistake. Here is one cute kid with one bad haircut. Ah, time heals all wounds...

Bren "reads" a book!

Bren "reads" a book - January 2010 from Alli Ryan on Vimeo.

Bren loves "How Does a Dinosaur Say Goodnight?" and "read" it to me one day when he and I were home sick.

The Saddest Christmas...Life Goes On

Oklahoma had a record-breaking snow fall and blizzard in 2009. All of us in Oklahoma lovingly joked about how Dad would have called everyone he knew to announce the numbers and proclaim that he had never, in his entire life, seen anything like it, and neither had you: 14 feet in 24 hours! Skyscrapers buried in snow drifts! Families living in snow holes!

We were of course still in shock that Dad was not with us to enjoy the snow, the cabin-fever, the warmth of the fire, and the love of Christmas. We celebrated anyway...snowed in Bren, Mike, Kiki and I spent Christmas with Gracie. We missed Brian, Amy and Gav who were in Peoria, and who, like us, were missing Dad. Here are Bren and Gracie experiencing snow...Gracie's first and Bren's first to remember.

My mentor, my dear friend, my heart, my dad

To Dad,

You will be missed by so many as you have been loved by more than I can count. What a mark you made on this world! You touched lives, you warmed hearts, you brought smiles, and you created laughter from coast to coast, north to south. Dynamic you were - ups, downs, highs, lows, but always energy personified. Okay, well not during your daily naps, but even then you had a strong presence.

My days have darkened since you left. But my heart is light at the thought of you in Heaven, and comforted by wonderful memories of you.

Thank you for being such a great dad to me, and a better grandfather than I could imagine. You were perfect as Baka - Bren and Gav will be better men for knowing you, sitting on your lap, laughing at your silly faces, listening to your funny stories, and feeling your endless love. Future grandchildren will cherish you as a superhero they hear about.

One day I will love a hug from you when we meet again, but until then, know that we miss you and thank you for being you.

Love,

Allibeans

Meerkats, Planes and Buses, Oh My

Bren loves all things with wheels. And he loves this meercat. The best time to catch Brendan on video is when he is sequestered in his highchair.

Cute mispronunciations by Bren (18 mos - 24 mos...):

Ikaka helicopter

Go-Go yogurt

Ben Bren

Ticken kitchen

Built spilled  ("Mommy, I built" with milk drenching his shirt)

Dosie Josie (the cat)

Deevie Stevie (the cat)

Doan phone

Dicker sticker

Cute phrases spoken by Bren:

"Nigh Nigh Mike" Saying goodnight to his daddy (26 mos.)

"Car Wa Wa" First phrase; May 2009 (20 mos.) after throwing his toy car into the pool.

"Not Daddy juice, Bendan juice" Said after his dad pretended to drink his juice (26 mos.)

"Mommy dinkin wa wa" Bren said this at dinner and I couldn't stop laughing (26 mos.)

"Ben" Brendan's response to "what is your name?" (25 mos.)

Halloween 2009

Bren, in true 2-year old fashion, refused to wear his costume. In fact, he cried and pulled at it and spent 30-minutes naked rather than wear it. So, once I could get a shirt on him, we took Gracie the dog outside to spend Halloween on Kiki and Baka's front porch waiting for trick-or-treaters.  And of course, we had a great time. 

Here are 3 mini-videos capturing the evening. Note: carrying a tiny handheld camera while chasing a 2-year old and holding onto a 5-month old puppy's leash makes for VERY bumpy, jumpy, queasy-inducing video. Enjoy.

Hopefully the costume will fit next year. Costume or no costume, Bren loved saying "trick or treat" and then eating a piece of chocolate. Yes, the dog had chocolate too.  Hey, I'm new to the dog-sitting thing.

Gramma J Visits Oklahoma!

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Mmm, Chocolate Ice Cream

Bren and Mommy had visited the children's fair downtown and got caught in the rain. We grabbed a sticker from the library for Bren's shirt while Mommy picked up forms to get a library card, and within minutes we were soaked. Nothing a little chocolate ice cream couldn't fix. Here is Bren showing just how fun ice cream can be.

Best Water Table Ever

Gramma J bought Bren a water table for his second birthday. This little video is of Bren on his first day playing with, scratch that, LOVING it. The ticking in the background is the crummy camera. The slipping and falling by Bren is due to Mom's not-quite-smart decision to put the water table on the concrete patio. The cute kid of course is Bren, happy as a kid at a water table.

Bren turns 2!

Bren turned 2 in August - what a great age! He received wonderful gifts from family, his Godparents and friends. Here are some of the pictures from his birthday.

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Long Day - Sleepy Boy

FLASHBACK: Gav and Bren - January 2008

Watching the storm come in...

Some of Brendan's Words (April 2009 - 19 months)

Perfect!
ball
apple
kitty
daddy
mommy
cheese
me
baby
cah (car - close enough!)


The less perfect, the more darling.
beeyoo (balloon)
omee (oatmeal)
tee queue (thank you)
pease (please)
ye wehkom (you're welcome)
mee mee (milk)
nana (banana)
ray (rain)
bah bah (bottle - yes, he still loves his bottle - no clue how to end that)
ba (bath)
bubba (bubble)
dah-ug (dog)

GO IRISH!

Breakfast is Bren's favorite meal - Mmmmm oatmeal!

HI!'

Bren is 18 months old.