Truth in Advertising

Ridley tells it like it is.

Crib Recall.

As many of you know, there was a recall issued on our crib. (There had been reports of the slats breaking... very few, but they don't take risks with these things). So we sent in the information on our crib and received instructions to take our crib apart and send in the hardware from it, along with the labels identifying the model number, and we'd receive a voucher for a new crib. 

Today was "take the crib apart day."

Tweak supervised.

Josh did the manual labor.

Ridley read a book on child development and parenting.

And then he played with some toys in his temporary crib (his playard). He loves his blocks!!

Zoom zoom!

They say a picture is worth 1000 words.

This one says too much.

They Do Exist!

For those of you whose fingers have not yet had a painful meeting with
them...here is photographic proof of Ridley's teeth.

The Music of the Night

Last week Josh and I got to go out together twice, which is a record since Ridley's birth. So, we made it count.

On Monday, May 11, we dropped Ridley off at Leann and Lara's and headed down to the Excel Energy Center to see Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band. I am not a big concert goer - most of the time I would rather just listen to a CD because it has the following benefits:

1. I can skip the songs I don't like

2. I can get other things done while listening to it. 

3. There's no drunk lady in her 40's spilling beer on me while someone else does one of those obnoxious loud whistles in my ear. 

That being said, for the right bands, I'll go, and I usually enjoy it (drunk beer-spilling lady aside). Of course, my favorite concert was Madonna in 2004.

At least, it was until last Monday. Now, I'm not saying Bruce was better, she is the Queen of Pop, after all. 

But he's the Boss, and he sure gave her a run for her money.

 

Two and a half hours straight they played. And he puts on a SHOW. If he ever comes back to the Twin Cities (and we're hopeful he will - he's been here eight times in as many years), you can bet that we'll be there. 

Then after spending a couple days recuperating, we left Ridley with my mom for the afternoon (more on that later) while we headed to the Orpheum Theatre to see Phantom of the Opera. We both grew up listening to the soundtrack and loved it, but neither of us had seen the show. Theatre shows for me are kind of the opposite of concerts - I have seen many and loved many. (And no drunk beer-spilling lady*). 

Phantom was amazing. Breath-taking music and stage effects... completely worth the price of the tickets and worth the wait as well. 

What's Up, Tweakie Cat?

Ridley LOVES the kitties. This is a video of him watching Tweak walk by while he's in his exersaucer. If you listen carefully you can hear Tweak meow near the beginning.

Yo Mama (Day)

My first real Mother's Day was this past Sunday, and I am the luckiest mother in the world, because Ridley Dexter is my little boy. 

Ridley and I spent the early morning together snuggling and watching Bones and 24. Well, I watched Bones and 24 while he slept. After that, we got dressed, picked up "Auntie" Lara and headed out to Stillwater for a Mother's Day lunch!

My dad (aka Grandpa Jeff) grilled brats and turkey burgers, and we enjoyed lunch with the Cutler family. Ridley had so much fun playing with Nana and Auntie Char! He also got to see his Great-Grandpa and his Great-Uncle Bill!

I tried to give Ridley a faux-hawk, but his hair is still a bit thin and wispy, so it's hard to tell. It was pretty cute though.

That evening, we headed out to Josh's parent's so he could see his mom too. Ridley brought along his portable "high chair" that clamps on the table so he got to sit at the table with us in his own chair during dinner. That did not stop him from trying to steal my plate though!

We've even been able to see my mom for belated mother's day! She is in town for a couple days, and last night we joined her and some of ther other Reid/Seeberger/Pignatello clan for Izzy's ice cream!

Sweet Potato Baby

Ridley likes to play with his sweet potatoes. This is today's end
result.

Not bad considering yesterday's mealtime ended with him smashing a
spoonful of sweet potatoes in his eye.

Katie Getting Married

Last weekend, my friend Katie got married, and I was one of her personal attendants. Katie and I have been friends since she was in first grade and I was in second and her family moved in across the street from our house in Stillwater. When we were in high school we thought it was so cool that we'd been friends for 10 years... now its been nearly 20!

Thursday night we had a pre-wedding girl's night with Katie's mom, sister, sister-in-law, and sister-in-law-to-be. We all went and got our nails done together and then went out to dinner at The Good Earth, which was delicious! It was wonderful to see Katie's sister-in-law, who I have also known for many years. She now lives in Michigan. She has two adorable little girls - one is just over two, and the other is about seven weeks older than Ridley. It was also wonderful to spend time with Katie's mom and sister, and to meet Drew's sister as well. 

It was also the first time since Ridley was born that I've hung out with any of my friends without bringing him along. He and daddy had a good night while I was out, so maybe I'll get to do this again sometime!

On Friday, I left work early to pick Ridley up and head to the rehearsal... which we never made it to thanks to a series of minor unfortunate events that together formed an hour-long delay. Bu no matter, it wasn't necessary for us to be there anyway, so we just continued on our merry way straight to the groom's dinner, which was held at the Arboretum. I've always been curious about seeing the Arboretum, but it's a pretty decent drive from St. Paul, so I was excited to go there. We didn't end up seeing much of the Arboretum, but what we did see looked amazing and we are hoping to go back sometime to explore. 

We had a great tim at the rehearsal dinner - Ridley behaved beautifully! He had a lot of fun playing with the McMullens (and their spouses!). And since Ridley was having so much fun with other people, I actually got to eat a decent meal!

The next morning I was up really early to go pick up Katie and bring her to the church. I managed to be up, awake, and at Katie's place by 7:30, which is especially impressive since she lives in Mineapolis and I usually get lost the moment I step foot (or tire) into the city limits. But we got to the church right on schedule, I did a swift, but lovely makeup job for the bride, then we got her all zipped up in her dress, veil on her head and sent her off to take pictures! She was absolutely beautiful and glowing :)

Then I spen the next couple hours running around makingsure everything was ready to go for Katie, touching up her lipstick, which she kept shamelessly kissing off in pictures ;), and getting dressed myself. My dad and Diane picked up Ridley on their way to the church, so once he got there I fed him and got him dressed in his super cute cords, polo shirt and vest. We got done just in time for the ceremony. 

Ridley was very well behaved and made it through the whole ceremony! I was so proud of my little guy! He sat on Grandpa Jeff's lap most of the time, although I think Nana held him some too. The reception was fun, and the food was delicious, as was the cake :D

As soon as the reception was done,  Katie and Drew changed into their travel clothes and then ran out to their "getaway" car outside the church while everyone blew bubbles as they passed by. It was one of my favorite things I've seen done at a wedding. I don't have a lot of pictures because I was so busy, but I am excited to see more from the photographer, and I think Diane has some too.

Congratulations Katie and Drew! I coudn't be happier for you guys!

Six Months!

It's hard to believe, but Ridley Dexter Holland is already six months old! We went to the doctor today for his six month check up, and he's now 27.5 inches tall and weighs 17 pounds, 10 ounces. What a big boy! 

So how does the world's cutest baby spend his time these days?

Well, he's working hard at learning to crawl. He pushes himself up on his hands very well, and occasionally on both his hands and his knees. But the he gets really excited and flops down on his belly and wiggles his arms and lefs like he's trying to swim. 

Ridley has also gotten quite good at sitting up. He doesn't usually do it for very long though before going back to playing on his belly. 

And Ridley has also been introduced to the delicious world of vegetables! He now gets to eat carrots and will soon be trying sweet potatoes. 

Carrots are not only delcious, but they are super fun to play with as well!

Kitty!!

Ridley has recently discovered that kitties are soft and fun.