Gav and Bren - Christmas in Oklahoma (2008)

Aunt Amy with Gav and Bren...and new toys!

Mom and Bren - headin' to the pool (October 2008 - Bren 14 months)

Pumkin Fest 2008

Whatcha doin'?

Go Bears! Bren and Daddy watching football, reading a book and chewing on car keys.

Brendan at 1
Bright as a penny - he loves to imitate us and coax us into imitating him. He loves to start up an engaging game of peekaboo while in the car or the highchair. He loves to find little toys under the couch (there are many). He chatters up a storm.

Words (at least we think they are words): "Da Da", "Wow", "Moo", "Khee" ("kitty"), "Mum", and we're pretty sure he says "No way" but that could just be our imagination. Most of these "words" probably are.

Bren dances by bouncing up and down accompanied by a tiny nod of the head. Mainly to The Alphabet Song or his little nursery rhyme radio. We gotta broaden this kid's horizons, I know.

He has 6 teeth and enjoys "brushing" his teeth...actually chewing on the brush.

More to come!

Grampa and Grammie swing with Bren on a chilly morning at Aunt Mary Kay and Uncle Mike's gorgeous home in Silverthorne.

Brendan celebrates the Big One!

Mommy and Bren at his birthday party

Bath Time!

Happy first 4th of July !

No one expected him to sleep through the fireworks...

It was a long day. We celebrated Mike's birthday and Bren said his 1st word: DADDY!

While having lunch outside and talking up a storm, he looked across the table at Mike and said "Da Dee" - hey, we'll take it. It was Mike's best birthday ever.

Happy Birthday Daddy!

Gramma Jay and Bren right before she cuddled him to sleep...and right before the fireworks.

Brendan at 10 months (June 26, 2008):

Teeth! His two bottom teeth popped up on June 14th - we've been waiting for them...

Crawling? Hmmm, kinda. He has mastered the "army crawl", "inch worm" and "stretch and roll" moves, but crawling in the traditional sense seems to be sporadic. Today, June 29th, when Mommy got on her hands and knees to show him, he crawled across the floor on his knee perfectly! But, he seems to love his "inch worm" technique - hands and toes with a little "hop" maneuver. Very cute.

Bren still loves to stand and bounce. He is not pulling himself up yet, but if you put him in position, he loves to stand.

We found a food he doesn't like - yogurt. We tried all sorts of homemade fruit mixes, but nope, he doesn't want it at all. We'll try again another week.

Sounds he loves to make: DA DA DA (while looking at the cat or the ceiling fan), MA MA MA (while looking at the cat, the mirror or the bathtub, and once at Mommy), GAH! (at any ceiling fan), and plenty of words that sound like English, but who knows? We've heard sounds that resemble the following: "hi guys", "yep", "for sure" and "oh boy" but we're just having fun.

He loves the mirror. Loves it. He loves to see himself in different mirrors so he can talk to that cute baby that lives in the mirror.

Bren also loves seeing pictures and videos of himself. They look just like the Mirror Baby, his best friend.

He sits up great and has strengthened his torso, so now, when he wants to see something behind him he doesn't tip over.

His favorite toys have stayed the same - a loyal child, Brendan is - but he has added the remote control (sans batteries, of course), plastic measuring cups, and anything that he shouldn't have in his mouth.

His favorite books are those with texture and he pats all pages of non-textured books. At the bookstore the other day, I had to keep a "popper" (aka pacifer) in his mouth to keep him from trying to eat every book we had not bought.

Bren is full of life and laughter and is a happy, happy baby...

We should all be this happy when we wake up in the morning - this was Brendan (10 months) on the morning of his mommy's birthday:

Bathtime Baby!

Bren, almost 10 months, with his dad after a bath.

Allison and Brendan in Baja California Sur - June 2008.

Brendan loved spending time with Grammie and Grampa in Mexico. These pictures were taken instead of encouraging him to learn to crawl...he was much happier sitting on the couch playing!

Allison has no problem making a fool of herself here just to get Bren to laugh. Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm Good!

Brendan with his cousins Drew, Alex, Brett and Nick Ryan. Say "squeeze!"

Bren is wearing the boxing robe that Grampa bought him in Vegas. It says "Champ" on it. This is the closest this little guy is getting to Vegas. Mom and Dad need some space to call their own...

Brendan at 8 months:

• On hands and knees rocking back and forth - then collapses and laughs
• Smiling and laughing often
• Also staring strangely at his parents despite their shameless efforts to get him to smile
• No teeth but man, teething is tough - sweet relief soon?
• Chewing on everything...drooling too!
• Wakes up smiling every morning. Mike and Allison listen to him playing in the morning before we go get him - heavenly sounds.
• Loves to hear us sing - his favorite toy is the nursery rhyme singing toy of which he never seems to tire, but Mike and Allison suffer through the songs repeating in our brains throughout the night.
• Bangs on everything he can and laughs when you bang on something too.

Favorite Friends:

• Little black puppy (Daddy bought it for him when he was a few weeks old)
• Baby brown bear (The "daddy" bear remains in the crib. They are from Grammie before Bren was born)
• Changing Bear - always a favorite

Favorite Books:

• Violet's House (from Aunt Carole, Uncle Zach, Anna and Jake)
• Peek-A-Boo Book (from Grammie's friend)
• Good Morning Book (with lots of things to pat)

Favorite Foods: So far he loves everything he's tried: peas, green beans, sweet potatoes, avocado, bananas, applesauce, pears, peaches, rice, oatmeal, chicken, corn, squash, turkey, strawberries, carrots. To be continued!

Gramma J and Bren at lunch - who needs to eat when you can hold a grandbaby!?!

Grammie and Grampa LOVE Brendan!

"Playing "patty cake" with Grammie in Oklahoma might be one of the best times I've ever had." Brendan Ryan, 7 months

Brendan after a visit to the Oklahoma City Zoo. We saw monkeys, rhinos, mountain lions, giraffes, and elephants. But Bren only had eyes for the ceiling fans.

Bed! Now why would I wanna go there!?!