On the road again...

As I was packing for a weekend in San Francisco with Andrew, Ryker decided to play "night night" in my suitcase. He got his blankie, curled up, pulled the top over and said "night night." He had a great time with Marilu and I didn't have a single worry about him. In fact, I only spoke with him once. It seemed to be a bit confusing because it made him aware that I wasn't there when he really hadn't noticed..

Ryker's Baptism

Ryker was baptised on Easter Sunday at Epiphany Catholic Church in Georgetown. Over 50 family members and friends came to celebrate with us. Marilu is his Godmother and Marvin his Godfather. Thank God for Marvin because he was the only one who could answer Father Lee's questions! I was too busy trying to keep him out of the baptism pool... Steve and Joanne Lamm hosted a brunch complete with Easter Egg Hunt and pinata. Fortunately, the weather was great because everyone would not have fit in the house!

Keelin comes to DC!

Keelin was finally allowed to travel with Andrew after 18 months in court and 30,000 Euros in legal fees. We had a great weekend celebrating Ryker's baptism. On Friday we went to a Bunny Party at the Smithsonian, followed by the carousel, butterfly and Hope Diamond exhibits at Natural History. She saw the White House, Washington Monument and the Capitol. On Saturday she went to see the Hannah Montana movie and then the fireworks downtown (Cherry Blossom Festival) and the Lincoln, Korean and Vietnam Memorials. Sunday was the baptism and Easter Egg Hunt. We then went to the zoo in the afternoon. On Monday we went to the Baltimore Aquarium and Keelin and Andrew went out on the dragon boats. THEN, Keelin and Andrew flew back to Belfast. Whew. It was an exhausting weekend but we had a great time. Keelin said she loved the weekend and wished she could live with Ryker. He's been looking for her ever since she left. He goes from room to room "Kee? Kee?" It's very sweet, but also sad...

St. Patrick's Day - Ireland

Ryker and I went to Ireland for the national holiday. We went to a farm and a big street fair in Dublin. We marched in the St. Patrick's Day parade in Omagh with Keelin. We also went to the beautiful Lough Erne resort wear Andrew and I had an engagement ceremony. We read poetry, exchanged promises and rings. It was romantic and beautiful and we had both kids by our side. With the exception of Keelin coming down with chicken pox (because they don't believe in vaccinating against this in Ireland), it was a great trip!

100th Anniversary of Engine 21 - Adams Morgan

Our local firestation celebrated its 100th anniversary and threw a massive block party. We brought cupcakes to share. They closed the block, had firetrucks for everyone to climb on (!!!!), had a big barbecue/potluck and opened the firehouse for everyone to wander through. Ryker was in heaven. He climbed all over the trucks. Twice the firemen needed to leave for a call and kicked everyone off their trucks and turned on the lights and sirens. Oh my, he was so happy. He even got a tattoo of a firetruck on his arm. He woke up this morning, surprised it was still there and said "uh oh" (which means he likes/wants something), followed by "nee naw, nee naw." To top it all off, one of my best friends was there with her husband and two kids. They just moved back from Bogota and it was my first time seeing them. It was a great day.

Shenandoah with River Poppa

River Poppa (my father) wasn't feeling too well, but he still read Ryker a story and walked with us down to the river. Ryker loved the "agua" and threw sticks into the water. Shenandoah is such a part of my childhood and I feel so lucky to be able to share that with my son. I hope that he grows up learning to hike, camp, canoe and enjoy nature as my father taught me.

Snow Day!

We woke up to a beautiful, snowy day with about 6 inches of fluffy, white snow covering the city. Ryker was so excited to go out "No! No!" (he can't quite say snow yet). We tried to go sledding in the Zoo, but it was locked so we went to the park instead.