More Brotherly Love

I know I've mentioned it before, but Myles and Ryker have a great brotherly bond. There are little sweet moments between them (and Sydney) on a daily basis, but one today was too precious not to document for my future memory.

Ryker (not yet 2.5-years-old) to Myles as we're walking into church - out of the blue and completely unprompted -

"I love you, Myles. You're my buddy."

Heart melted.

Warrior Week

Last week was Warrior Week (Spirit Week) at Arapahoe High School. Each year the school votes on a nonprofit organization to raise money for throughout the week. This year they chose Rocky Mountain Down Syndrome Association, and Myles was able to participate in a few of the Warrior Week events to help raise funds through this partnership. I was a bit worried about Myles doing three activities at night during the week as he sometimes struggles with stamina and has a hard time when he's tired. But he did amazing at each activity, was really well behaved and had so much fun!

Monday at the vocal concert::

Wednesday at the seniors vs. teachers basketball game::

 Myles helping the high school girls collect money.

 Mallory and Sydney, the supportive sisters.

Playing at halftime of the game.

Thursday at the ping pong tournament::

(p.s. Gilby's mustache - something you don't see everyday on him - it was for a different fundraiser and has since been shaved. Yay!)

Ryker's Antics

Oh, Ryker. As the littlest of three, I feel like he hasn't gotten as much attention on the blog, but he makes us laugh everyday and is still super cute, even when he is being a troublemaker. At nearly two and a half, he has strong opinions on a lot of things, pushes his limits, and is not fun to be running morning errands with anytime after 11AM (meltdown city), but so far he's still easier than both his brother and sister were at his age!

Some cute Ryker episodes lately...

Chips for Breakfast

One day last week Ryker decided he wanted to have chips for breakfast. Of course I said no, but he was pretty set on finding a way...

Jump Hop Bounce
The other day Ryker was jumping on one of our living room chairs. Our exchange went something like this:
Me: Ryker, please stop jumping.
R: I not jumping, I hopping.
Me: Ryker, please stop hopping.
R: I not hopping, I bouncing.
Me: Ryker, please stop bouncing.
R: I just pretending. (As he's still jumping/hopping/bouncing.)

Which, immediately reminded me of a similar situation I had with Sydney 2 years ago and wrote this blog post about -

February 23, 2013
Me: Sydney, please don't jump on the couch.
Syd: I'm not jumping, Mama, I'm just bouncing a little.
The next day.
Me: Sydney, please don't jump or bounce on the couch.
Syd: I'm not jumping or bouncing, I'm just hopping a little.
She got me there...I give up.

Can't stop pooping.
A few weeks ago Sydney was eating a yummy snack and said, "Mom, I just can't stop eating this." Ryker immediately followed this up by saying, "Mom, I just can't stop pooping."

It struck me as so funny in the moment, 1. because he didn't even think about it before saying it, and 2. because Ryker has always been a frequent pooper. The kid loves, loves, loves fruit, and still poops multiple times a day. It's turned into a little joke about him - the boy's got some healthy bowels.

Hock-A-Doctor
For the most part, we can understand everything Ryker says. But for a couple of weeks, he kept saying the same word that none of us could make out. Sydney and I thought it was so funny every time he would say it. Hock-A-Doctor. This is exactly what it sounded like. Then one night, my sister and Raum were in town and having dinner with us. Ryker again said hock-a-doctor and my sister goes, "Oh, a helicopter?" Of course! Helicopter. 

Sweet Boy
Even with his two-year-old attitude, Ryker is a sweet, sweet boy. I had a chance to be home with just him for about and hour and a half last week, which is a very rare thing, and here is how he spent most of the time while I got a few things done.

Little Leprachauns

Happy Belated St. Patty's Day!!

Preschool Photos

Ryker ~ Junior Preschool

Sydney ~ Pre-K

Brotherly Love

This weekend Myles had the stomach flu and still wasn't feeling 100% on Monday morning. He was sitting lethargically on our bathroom floor while I was getting ready for the day. Ryker had just gotten up and came in to see us. He all but ignored my good morning greetings and sat next to Myles saying over and over, "Hi Myles, hi Myles..." (Ryker is really loving Myles lately.) Myles didn't respond, so Ryker turned to me and said, "Myles isn't saying hi." I explained to Ryker that Myles' tummy was hurting, so he didn't feel like talking.

Ryker: "You need a bandaid, Myles?"
Me: "His owie is inside his tummy, so you can't put a bandaid on it."
Ryker: "I see it, Myles?"

So Myles promptly lifted his shirt and Ryker looked at his tummy with great concern. I grabbed my phone to catch their sweet exchange. I've probably said it before, but one of my favorite parts of being a parent is watching the relationships develop between our kids. They all have such genuine love and care for each other, and truly enjoy being together.  It (sometimes) makes all the moments of sibling fighting more bearable!

Happy Days

Warm sun and the park... we are ready for spring!

Little Gymnast

Our little gymnast! Sydney has been taking a weekly gymnastics class since the fall, and I've been pleasantly surprised with how much she's enjoyed it and all that she has learned! We're taking a break now to pursue some new activities, but I'm sure she'll be ready to start again next fall. Sydney has made so much progress in group settings over the last few years, and in gymnastics she never showed any hesitation to participate with the group and try new things. Good job, Sydney Belle!