Zippidy Doo Da! Zippidy Ay! I am walking, every day!

Walking, the best thing ever. I like to practice while at home but still love to go to the play area to show off to the other little kids. I like to inspire them like others did for me. I really like it when dad chases me around now after he gets home from work. We like to play peakaboo and when I peak around the corner he jumps out. I then run away cause its just that funny.

Speaking of peakaboo, I have mastered that as well. For one, I like to catch my dad before he gets a chance to peakaboo me. It's really funny. Second, I have learned how to play peakaboo with a blanket. I will hold it up and then drop it down while mommy and daddy get scared. They are so much fun to play with.

The buzz around the home lately is that my grandma may be moving back to town. I really like to see her but she lives out of state so it is not as often as I would like to. I like to look at her picture though and just the other day, I called her mah mah. I guess I will be calling her that for now. She seemed to get a kick out of it when mommy told her.

Only 15 days until my birthday party. Yippy! I have not seen my great aunt since Easter so it will be exciting. I am really glad that she is going to be able to come. Mommy and daddy ordered my cake. Its going to be Mickey themed (of course) to go along with the Mickey decorations. It's gonna be a blast.

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I was introduced recently to a website that can help make some fun out of your boring pictures. The website is Zingfu.com. They have a collection of photos that you can drop your own picture into as well. The outcome can certainly be pure comedy. Here are a couple that I quickly threw together.

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In just a short while, it is amazing to see things change so quickly. Rylan has made huge steps forward(no pun intended) in his quest towards world domination. He has really begun to walk. Walking all over the place in fact.

We really believe that a good reason why Rylan has done so well walking lately is because we have been frequenting the toddler area at our local malls. He is amazed at all of the little kids running by or even just walking like him. There is no doubt that he seems to be motivated because when he is home, he does not do it as often. His walking skills have improved 100 fold in the past week and he now runs/walks around the play area looking for a new toy to climb onto.

One of the most interesting things that my wife and I have observed is that it appears that he is extremely cautious when it comes to moving around the area. He will wait patiently as the bigger kids so zooming by and then make his steps.

Working all day, I unfortunately had to miss Rylan's first real walking/running a while back but now that we are taking him to the play area, I get to enjoy in his success. It is definitely apparent that it makes him happy and certainly makes us happy too.

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Up until now, Rylan's morning schedule has been partially up to him. My wife tells me that he would wake up sometime between 8:00 and 10:00 but sometimes even sleep in longer than that. His bed time was around 10pm since he was sleeping in so late. This has always worked pretty well for us.

Due to changes at work, I am now having to be in at 6:30am(rough) and with that, we have decided to put Rylan on a new schedule as well. We began yesterday waking Rylan up at 8:00 which we are hoping will result in him going to bed a bit earlier in the evening. Due to common television show schedule changes, some of his favorites are starting earlier in the morning so this new schedule will also give him the opportunity to continue watching.

As predicted, Rylan woke up a bit sluggish and 2 hours later, he was napping. This is common for him regardless of what time he wakes up. After I got home from work, I played with Rylan like normal while my wife cooked us a delicious dinner(+2 brownie points). Soon after dinner, Rylan passed out for a few hours. This is where the change was. Rylan does not normally nap this late into the evening and with his new bedtime around 9:00, we figured it would blow the schedule away. This really wasn't the case as he woke up and then went to bed for the night just an hour or so later.

We are curious to see how he takes to his new schedule but first account looks promising. We have always been amazed on how well Rylan has done with sleeping. Everyday we consider ourselves lucky.

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So wow, I got my haircut. Even though I was a bit stubborn at first, I sat down calmly and let the lady cut my hair. Of course, dad distracted me alot with bubbles. Gosh those are fun. I think my picture is pretty funny that they took. I look really serious because I didn't want anyone to know how much fun I really was having.

While we were out getting my haircut, we went to a mall that I had never gone to. I really like checking out new malls or any new places really. I like to be pushed around in my little stroller and just check out the scenery. I always turn my head when I see another baby. I like to see what they are up to.

I had my first chicken nugget the other day. That was pretty exciting. Daddy says it won't be happening very often so I savored the flavor. It was yummy. Mom was breaking it into pieces for me but then I stole a whole nugget and began munching on that. I am a big boy, I can handle a whole nugget. I wish that I could try all of the food that mom and dad eat, it looks so yummy.

Daddy has been trying to get me onto a new sleeping habit. I am not sure if I like it though. I have so much playing to do. Why would I want to go to sleep? Mommy is going to need to wake me up earlier if i am going to go to bed earlier. I don't know how this is gonna work out.

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As a parent, I am always looking for a good deal on toys for Rylan. It was months before Rylan was first born that I stopped at a McDonald's after stepping back in the US from Mexico. Something went through my head and I thought it would be nice to pickup a children's toy for Rylan. I had no idea what to pickout but it turned out to be a Fisher Price Little People tiger. Now, months later, Rylan is beginning to build a collection of Little People figures and sets.

Fisher Price sells these character figures in 3 piece sets at many toy stores around town here. They range from about $6 to $10. Special individual characters are about $10 on the Fisher Price website. These include characters that are holiday specific like the upcoming Halloween.

Last night, we stopped by McDonald's and after asking for a toddler toy, I was given another Little People character. This time he was a jester(I think) that stood on some see-saw type thing. For a $1.85, it only makes sense to buy them from McDonald's. They are cheaper than buying them from a toy store. Furthermore, it appears that they have different characters than you can normally find in a store.

If you are looking for cheap Little People characters, I would certainly suggest trying to hunt down a McDonald's that still has these.

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The DoodleBops, Rylan's favorite show it seems. Is it bearable? Yes but it sure can be difficult at time to watch it. Rylan enjoys it so we make a point to watch it with him and sing the songs. I'm a bit disturbed though that I know the lyrics. For the parent's who don't know the theme song lyrics, here they are...

We're the Doodlebops
We're the Doodlebops
We're the Doodlebops
Oh yeah
Come and join the fun because we're laughing and we're singing all day
Hey
We're the Doodlebops
We're the Doodlebops
We're the Doodlebops
No place better and I know your gonna want to stay
Hey
Here we are together
DeeDee, Rooney, Moe
Doing everything we love to do
Oh yes, its very very clear
We are happy that you are here
Together we're the Doodlebops we'll sing and dance with you
We're the Doodlebops
Go Doodlebops

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"The only day that you can talk like a pirate and not look entirely insane."

Arrr, one thin' that we quickly learned when Rylan began t' get older was that he seemed t' be thrilled about pirate talk. Sometimes gettin' him int' a happy mood or atleast gettin' out o' bad mood only took a couple o' "Shi'er me timbers!" in my most authentic pirate 'oice.

Today will be fun for me as Me can talk t' Rylan in my pirate 'oice throughout the day and if anyone gi'es me any wierd looks Me can tell them that it is 'Talk like a Pirate day'. I began practicin' some new words last eve with Rylan as Me kept him distracted from my wife who was cookin' dinner. He just can't get enough o' it.

Thar is a reason why we be plannin' on decoratin' Rylan's room in the future with a pirate theme. While thin's certainly change, we figure Rylan would enjoy a pirate room when the time comes. Heck, if he doesn't like it I will make the office o' ours pirate themed.

Ahoy, call me crazy but talkin' like a pirate is one o' those thin's that makes fatherin' verily fun. Aye.

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This weekend was a big one in which we took Rylan to get his first haircut. His curls had reached a point where it began making him look a bit girly so we decided to take the plunge and cut those little guys.

We drove out to a haircut place that was designed especially for kids. We felt that they would understand children the best and since they deal with them daily, they would best be able to handle a moving child. This place was great. You walk in and are hit with enjoyment for a kid. There are televisions all around and toys to play with. Televisions are at each cutting station so that the kids can be distracted while their hair is being cut.

For small children like Rylan, they have bubbles and other small toys. Rylan was distracted the entire time by my bubble blowing skills. He kept generally still for the entire cut and did not cry one tear. We were extremely proud of him.

The cut is finished when they give you a ticket which you put into a machine. The machine then pops out a small toy. Rylan was given some Play-Doh but I will be using it for now as it's obviously not safe for him just yet. Besides, I need some entertainment at work sometimes.

The haircut cost a bit more than I would have normally gone for but seeing as this was Rylan's first, we went all out. We even purchased a package so that we could remember the day with a picture and certificate. My wife got a few nick nacks that she can use to scrapbook the memory. We couldn't have been happier with his first cut.

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I had a whole bunch of fun this last weekend by going to my Grandpa Paul and Grandma Debra's house. They live next to a humongous water fountain and they even have a park near by. In fact, they have 3 parks right by each other. One park for little guys like me and another one for the older kids. They also have a water park. I can't wait until I am a bit bigger so that I can check that out. It looks super fun. What was fun though was sitting on a toy with my grandma and grandpa. Daddy took a bunch of pictures and we just had a good time.

Clapping and waving are my new favorite things. I like to wave at everyone and everything. I don't care what it is. Mommy and daddy like to help me with it and encourage me. I like to show my skills off to them. When I go to the play area, I wave at the kids. One boy even patted me on my head. Daddy thought that was pretty funny.

Mommy sent out birthday invitations. I am really excited about seeing the family. I know that my grandma will be coming from Nevada and then we are gonna rush off to California and Disneyland. Even my Great Aunt and Uncle will be showing up. They always get a kick out of me when they see me. I haven't seen them since Easter I think so it's really going to be a shock for them to see me all grown up. I don't know about mommy but I sure am excited about planning my first birthday.

Kitty cats. My new best friends. Mommy and daddy recently started introducing the cats to me and boy am I having fun. They get to be chased around while I attempt to beat them up. The older kitty just comes and lays next to me. I really like to play with them a whole bunch.

Have a good weekend.

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What does a little boy need for his first birthday? The options are endless with the ever growing list of possible toys. My wife took some time last night to create a small birthday wish list for Rylan (with his help of course). While his birthday is still a month away, we thought this would be best for any family members that may need some ideas.

The full list can be found here, but below are some of my personal favorites.

Fisher Price - The Farmer Says - This is one of those classic style toys that just about all kids come in contact with at one point in their childhood. A toy that last this long must be a good one.

Little People Lil' Movers Motorized Train - The Little People sets may be Rylan's favorite toys right now. It seems that every time we walk down a toy isle and Rylan spots the Little People, he grabs for them. Is it too soon for him to be grabbing at things?

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It is always amazing to see your child do something for the first time and we have been lucky to see some great advancements in Rylan just recently.

I can't seem to talk about it enough but Rylan continues to get better and better at walking. While he still prefers to crawl, you can tell that he is excited about walking. He continues to watch the other kids at the play area while they walk or run by. He just stares at them in amazement. He can't get enough of that play area.

Clapping is something that we never really emphasized on with Rylan. We however started just recently and Rylan has taken to it quite well. Rylan, like other children, now seems to love to clap. While he is encouraged to do it repeating one of us, he does do it on his own as well. The smiles that follow are great.

A couple of months ago, I was able to excite Rylan by rubbing my finger over my lips to make a noise. I followed by trying to do it on Rylan and he immediately took to it. He knows that when I put my finger up to his mouth that we are going to play and that if he makes a tone, it will sound goofy. This has been a great way to calm him down at times and it works great to entertain people when we meet up with them. What soon followed was Rylan's attempt to do it himself. It's amazing how fast he caught on and how well he does it.

Mama, a word that Rylan has been saying for quite some time now is becoming more frequent. My wife tells me that he likes to say it first thing in the morning after they both wake up. When will he say daddy? I have no idea.

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Have you ever seen the movie West World? Sometimes I feel like I am in that movie. For those who have never seen it; there is an amusement park of robots that you are able to shoot and kill or otherwise interact with. Each night, the park technicians pick them up and repair them making them ready for the next day of battle. The movie turns evil when one of the robots attempts to kill some of the park people and all hell breaks loose.

While cleaning up Rylan's mess in the kitchen last night, this movie came to mind and I began to think about the fact that I am one of the technicians. Each night, I clean up Rylan's mess so that the next day, all is ready for him to do it over again. This is just one of the job duties that parent's have to go through. Like it or not, this is what we signed up for.

On a side note, for those who haven't seen the movie, check it out. It's a classic in my book and certainly great torture material against my wife. I grew up watching this movie despite it coming out nearly 10 years before I was born. I wonder how Rylan would respond to such an old movie when he gets older.

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This week has been pretty fun. Daddy has been taking me and mom to the mall lately. I really enjoy playing in their kids area. I like to watch the bigger kids run around but not so much when they run right by me. They are super fast! I really like to just watch everyone. It has really boosted my confidence and while I'm there I feel like Superman. I do alot of walking because I feel so inspired.

Daddy hasn't been in that great of shape lately. We had to take him to the emergency room over the weekend. He has a new issue where his left arm and leg will basically fall asleep. The doctor refered us to the ER and then the ER sent us back to the doctor. Atleast they did a brainscan and found no issues. He has the problem very often but luckily it only last a minute or so. I don't care if my dad is damaged goods though, I still love him a whole bunch.

My grandpa's dog had puppies. They are so tiny and cute. Mom told me that I was once that tiny. It's hard to believe though. I hope I wasn't as hairy as they are.

This weekend is Grandparent's Day so I will be celebrating with my Grandpa Paul and Grandma Debra. I like crawling around their place and I am really looking forward to showing other people my new walking skills. No one has seen them but the people at the play area. Its exciting. Heck, not even a video camera can catch me. I'm just that good.

I guess thats all for now. Have a good weekend.

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Rylan has always shown extra strength in his legs so we were thinking he may be walking at a very young age. While he wasn't walking at 8 months like I had possibly though, he is making huge steps forward now. Literally.

I had to make a run into the office on Sunday to take care of some business and soon after my wife instant messages me. She mentions that Rylan took a few steps from the couch to her. I was thrilled. I had seen him take a half step or even a couple half steps but nothing like she had seen. She then goes on to tell me that he began running against the couch and just let go and took 6 steps. He let out the biggest smile from what I understand but unfortunately I missed out.

Later that night, I was taking care of some business in the room over and my wife tells me that Rylan is walking again. I go to look over and nothing. He is done so I go back to my work. Next thing I know, he is at it again. Walking. I look over just in time for him to be finishing. Talk about bitter sweet.

We know that Rylan has the strength to walk across the room but it seems he does not have the confidence just yet. He will stand there aching to walk but he can't get the foot to move. He enjoys being walked around the room by one of us though and we know this will help him out.

I want to see Rylan walk but it seems that it's a joke to him and he won't show me. Maybe one of these days I will setup the video camera and let it record until it gets some walking footage. I guess my time will come. Maybe he wants me to see him walk when he gets really good.

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- You have your wife carrying the baby at all times.

- Drive your children around without being buckled up.

These ideas came to me when I got caught sitting down in a chair at Babies'R'Us. I had thought about it in the past but now that I had sat in that chair and people were staring at me, it was much different. I was waiting for my wife to finish feeding and changing Rylan but the other people didn't know that and likely thought I was a bum of a father. I take pride in wanting to be part of my Rylan's world. Appearance truly is everything.

Are there any other quick ways to make you look like a bad parent?

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We took a trip up north last weekend and it was fun. I got to have fun with some duckies. They were scared of me though. I remember going to the park a long time ago and seeing the ducks. They sure are fun.

We walked around a bit up in Sedona. Well of course I didn't. We stopped into a baby store that had some pretty interesting toys. As much as I wanted to buy out the store, daddy put a stop to that quickly. Rats! Mom found a funny shirt that said "Product of a successful merger" and it was for little babies younger than I was. There are alot of funny shirts out there but that one was different. They didn't have my size so we had to skip on that.

This week I have put on my Indiana Jones hat and gone exploring. I have been finding all types of ways to get in trouble throughout the day. Despite dad having an issue opening some of our entertainment center drawers, my fingers are tiny and open it with ease. Now I get to pull out all of the DVDs. I found a box with an old Atari, I wonder what that is. I guess its my dad's he bought from another dad. He tells me that I can play with that later. I can't wait.

Mom and dad expanded my play area so now I'm living in luxury. I have so much room to play in, I don't know what to do. Speaking of play areas, we went to the mall last night and I got to play in their area. They had a bunch of kids there. One girl almost kissed me! What was she thinking! I did find a girl that I liked but I didn't know any better way to tell her besides bonking her on the head. Silly me. I had alot of fun though and I can't wait until I can walk.

I guess that's it for now. Labor day is coming up and luckily my daddy has it off. I like to wake up and see him there. It makes for a good day normally. Of course, I love giving mommy a big smile when she wakes up too.

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