Maestro Ryker, 9 Months Old!

Hi everybody! I have so many things to share with you about my week. First, I turned 9 months old! I'm getting to be such a big boy. I talk quite a bit, climb on anything and everything, and Daddy thinks I'll be walking in a month. We'll see if I can prove him right.
My week was pretty fun. I took in my very first symphony. I loved listening to the music of Billy Joel! I spent the bulk of the concert on Mimi's lap conducting with my plastic spoon. I was dancing and singing and having a great time; my favorite song was "Just The Way You Are"...I was boogie-ing to that saxophone, big time! Mommy and Daddy were so proud of me for being such a good boy. I didn't fuss the whole night and I managed to stay up with a smile on my face until almost 11 pm! This just confirms that I am, indeed, 100% night owl. Here's a picture of me after the concert, still clutching my spoon baton. Look at that grin!I also got to visit this week with my Uncle Evan and Aunt Beth and Grandma & Grandpa Luttrell. They came down to celebrate my Uncle's birthday. We had a good dinner with them. I am looking forward to seeing Grandma & Grandpa this coming week when I make a visit to Peru with Mommy.
Sunday we went to church and after we got home I got to try a popsicle. The firecracker pop looked so tasty, but it was a little sour. I kept going back for more though.I'll have lots to tell you about next week. Hope to see you then!

Mr. Ryker's Neighborhood

Hello friends!
This past week was a relaxing one. Mom and I were still battling the sniffles for most of it, so we stayed around the house mostly, catching up on our rest. She got to see just how quickly I can get around. I like to climb and pull up to a stand on everything, including Bilbo. He doesn't like that very much. I get around pretty well on all fours, and yes I am still bear crawling. I like it so much, and every time I do it I get a giggle from the spectators. I can climb up on Daddy's lap with ease now. When I do it seems Mommy can't help but snap a picture.Saturday we had dinner with our neighbors.
We grilled out and had some delicious salads, compliments of Kim. They also brought us some pretty flowers that Mr. Robert grew in his garden. Very nice! I got to hear all about Brendan's trip to camp and he even let me wear his hat. Well, I kind of insisted upon it but he was okay with it.Miss Kim taught me how to drink out of a straw for the first time. Mr. Robert was very good at picking up my car, after I chucked it, of course. He kept picking it up and giving it to me. (Mommy and Daddy only fall for that trick once or twice and then stop giving it back.) We had such a good time with them. God has blessed us with some wonderful neighbors! After dinner we made ice cream. Once again, I had to watch everyone eat the frozen treat without getting any, myself. The good news is I got some of my favorite yogurt instead. I am eating all kinds of new foods. My new favorite is vanilla yogurt! It's cold, creamy, and I can eat it by the cup full.
I had a good time blogging for you today. As Mr. Rogers says:
"It's such a good feeling, a very good feeling, the feeling you know that I'll be back when the week is new and I'll have more ideas for you, and you'll have things you'll want to talk about; I will too!" See you next week...

Baby Bear, Baby Bear What Do You See?

I see a blog reader reading 'bout me!
Can I tell you what I've learned to do? I've taken to walking like a bear, lately. This crawling thing got to be pretty easy, so I thought I'd try getting up on all fours. I have been bumbling around the house like this and Mommy thinks I look just like a bear when I do it. What do you think?

This past week was pretty low key. I came down with the sniffles on Wednesday. I was kind enough to pass it along to Mom, too. That, coupled with the rain all day Saturday, resulted in a family movie day. I was a little glum. My new pool was sitting, ever so mockingly, out on the deck and all I could do was look at it from the confines of the house. So sad. We had a good time playing indoors, though. Daddy buried me in toys. I practiced cruising along the couch. I also helped Mom with the dishes. I found the Double Stufs!It was only fitting...we watched the pros on television in the homerun derby on Monday evening, then we headed to the diamond that night and I watched Dad do the same. I'd seen him hit some in the park ones before, but this time he smacked a genuine shot over the left center fence. I can say "yea" now, too, so I told him how proud I was of him. I also got some time with Uncle Evan and Aunt Beth. Aunt B had me laughing and dancing all evening.That's all I have for now. See you next week!

My First 4th!

My 4th of July was a whole weekend long celebration. Friday and Sunday were beautiful with lots of sun and warm temps. If you were in the Indianapolis area on July 4th, then you know that it was plagued with grey skies and lots of rain. That couldn't keep us from celebrating our freedom, though! Here is a recap of my weekend...
Friday we took in the great American past-time of softball (well, technically that's baseball, but softball is like baseball's cousin, I suppose). The O'Dells, our friends from Goshen, had a tournament nearby. We watched their team blow away the competition in back to back games and then headed out for some BBQ ribs. Here are some pictures of me "hamming" it up with them at dinner:
Shana and Braedyn had me grinning!

The whole family watched me play with the wet wipes. I like to be clean.Mr. Bo cracks me up!Saturday was the 4th, so we drove out to Cloverdale to visit Jake and Erin at their cabin. This is me in my Independence Day outfit (compliments of my Great Aunt Trish):
We had a great time visiting with Jake and Erin and we got to see Jared and Gabby, too. What a fun surprise! Mr. Jared's belly is nice and comfy. I snuggled up and relaxed for a bit.They introduced me to Jake and Jared's parents and sister Jonie. She kept me smiling all afternoon. Jake and Erin tried to introduce me to their niece, Leyla, but I was more interested in all the food!Later, we headed back home to get ready for our next party at the McLarren's. My buddies, Emerson and Allison, were there, too. We showed off our mobility.
We played games together.
Here I am doing a little chatting with my lady's parents, Clay and Mary.
Mr. Vance sang me a song about a noble duke from York...I just liked the part about climbing up and down the hills. Miss Chandler thought I was funny!
I spent a lot of time with Katie and Anthony.
I couldn't help but be drawn to Mr. Anthony's funny hat.
I tried to take it, so he let me wear it for a bit. I'm doing my best Uncle Sam impression here.
After lots of playing it was time to head home for bed.
Sunday we went to church and then came home and took a family nap. We needed it, since we had been up late the last two nights and I was running on little nap time for the whole weekend. When we woke up, Daddy went to hit softballs with Mr. Vance. Mommy, Mimi, and I went to watch. I took a wagon ride with their dog, Parker.
Amidst all this weekend's excitement, I started pulling up to a stand. Here's a video of me going after the laptop:

Mom rewarded me with a blue jello jiggler. Here's my blue tongue:
Guess I will do my blogging standing up from now on!
See you next week!