Starting a New Decade

Today marks the beginning of a new era for me...an era of no longer being in my twenties.

While it may feel strange that my age now starts with a 3 instead of a 2, I really don't think I'll notice that much difference between the 2 decades.

For every single year of my twenties, I was a wife to my awesome husband. I became a mother at age 20, so I've been wearing that hat for the past decade as well. I also started working at my current place of employment at age 20.

Barring any major upheavals/catastrophes, these three things will remain true for my next decade on earth as well.

I'll still be completely head over heels in love with my wonderful husband.

I'll still be mom to my three great sons (even though by the end of my 30's I'll have one in *GULP* COLLEGE! How freakin' crazy does that sound???).

And I will still work for the same hospital, though I am hoping that I will continue to move up to new positions as the years go by.

The Bucket List of my 30's

-------------------------------

* Run at least 1 half-marathon

* Run at least 1 full-marathon

* Complete at least 1 triathlon

* Get my Master's degree in healthcare administration

* Reach and maintain my goal weight (140 lbs...50 lbs to go)

* Do not get admitted to a mental facility for incurable incessant worrying when my 3 sons get their driver's licenses (You might just want to avoid me in 2018, 2020, and 2021...)

* Get baptized...I know I did this when I was 8, but I feel very strongly that I want to make that public commitment again because I don't believe I fully grasped at the time what I was committing my life to and, more importantly, I don't feel I fully grasped the unmatchable sacrifice that Jesus made for me. I want to make this declaration again, knowing what I know now.

I can't say I will feel this comfortable with turning 40 in 10 years, but for now, my 30's sound pretty darn awesome.

Now I'm going to spend my birthday evening eating pork fried rice and tempura vegetables that my husband cooked for me, followed by a couple of rounds of Uno with the boys.

End of the School Year

Today marked the last day of the school year for our children. I know they have learned so much this year, and they've grown so much, physically and emotionally. We are very blessed to have three awesome sons. I love watching them experience life and I'm looking forward to a summer of fun with them!

Our Cutie Pie... Here he is on the first day of school.

And here he is today, leaving the building for the last time as a third grader. (Ignore the holey towel...it was water day...)

And here he is with his student of the month award that he was awarded with yesterday for trying his personal best and being most improved! We are so proud of him!

Here is our Pot Pie at the beginning of the school year...

And here he is leaving the building for the last time as a first grader!

Here is our Pumpkin Pie at the beginning of the school year!

And here he is, leaving the building for the last time as a kindergartener!

Hello Again

Wow. Its been a long time. Since the beginning of the year, things have been extremely busy. I feel like we've been in survival mode for the past 8 months, due to a really super strenuous time for me at work. But, I have started a new position at the hospital, and things are definitely starting to feel normal around here again. :)


Speaking of back to normal, SCHOOL STARTED TODAY! WHOO-HOO! And the moms and dads rejoice. HALLELUJAH!


Here is my biggest boy, CUTIE PIE! He started 3rd grade today. He's looking forward to a year of standardized testing, multiplication tables, and maybe some long division.

Here's POT PIE! He started 1st Grade today! He was so excited to start school today, and he is definitely ready for some homework.

And last, but certainly not least, is PUMPKIN PIE! He's a great big KINDERGARTENER! He had a super fun day!

Here's all of our big boys together, ready to start another great year at school!

IN OTHER NEWS, my sweet hubby has taken up the hobby of photography. Coincidentally, I have taken up the hobby of editing photos in Photoshop. Here's a photo he took of me last week.

And here's a photo I took of him. ISN'T HE HOT!

All in all, things are going pretty well around these here parts. I hope to get back to more active blogging soon. Take care, ya'll!

Cutie Pie's Christmas Dance

I should have done this last month, but January has FLOWN by. Here's Cutie Pie with his Hip Hop dance class, doing a Christmas show.

Wuv, Twue Wuv...Wevisited

I posted this a year ago, and I just had to repost it one more time because its my most favorite blog post ever. Enjoy!


October 30 is an anniversary of sorts…

First, let me preface this with a brief history.

It was October 29, 2000…I was sitting in my dorm room at Northeastern State University in Tahlequah, chatting with some friends on CollegeClub.com. (It was a rudimentary version of what would become the likes of Myspace and Facebook.) A chat request came from someone named Hatchet69.

Hmmm….sounds like a perverted serial killer, I thought to myself…but basking in the anonymity of the Internet, I accepted the request anyway.

I don’t remember exactly what we talked about, but I do remember enjoying our conversation…I don’t know why, but I felt drawn to this faceless individual. We hadn’t even exchanged pictures, but by the end of the conversation I had agreed to meet him for dinner.

Fast forward 23 hours…there I was, pulling into the parking lot of Del Rancho, thinking to myself, “WHAT AM I DOING? No one even knows what I’m doing or where I am. This is the stuff that Lifetime movies are made of. I’m going to be just another dumb girl statistic! STUPID! STUPID! STUPID!”

I took a deep breath, got out of my car, and out of this huge black pickup truck hopped a cute guy in black Wranglers and with a shy smile. There was an awkward moment where I was trying to figure out if he was Hatchet69 and he was trying to figure out if I was NSUTheaterGrl. We laughed nervously and went inside. Over dinner, the awkwardness subsided, and we were soon having a good time. After dinner, we went looking for a movie, but couldn’t find one, and I mentioned the Haunted Castle. The 20 minute car ride to Muskogee was nice. We sat on opposite sides of his truck with the middle console down…I rested my arm on it for a moment. I wanted him to hold my hand, and was engrossed in thinking about moving mine closer to his when he grabbed mine. It caught me off guard and I yanked my hand back to my lap in reaction. He sheepishly shrunk back over to his own side, and for the second time that night, found myself saying in my head “STUPID! STUPID! STUPID!”

I have always been a fan of scary attractions, and he wasn’t about to tell me that he didn’t like them one bit. When we entered The Castle, he wrapped his arms around me and held on tight the entire time. He was unbelievably scared, but didn’t want me to know, and there was no way I was going to let on to him how obvious it was.

After The Castle, we weren’t ready for our date to end. He shyly asked if I wanted to meet his grandma and grandpa. I thought his request was absolutely adorable, and so we drove out to Ma and Pop’s house. We visited with them for awhile, watched some bull riding, and then headed back to my car, neither of us ready for the night to end.

When we got back to Del Rancho, it was close to midnight. I had class the next day, and he had to be at work in Broken Arrow. Still, the impending fatigue we were going to feel the next day couldn’t get either one of us to leave any faster. We sat and talked for a long time that night, and then one of us would remark on how late it was, only to end up talking about something else, until we realized it was 7AM.

The rest, as they say, is history. Four months later, we were engaged, and three months after that, we were married. Now, eight years and three kids later, we are still going strong.

I feel so blessed to have found such a wonderful person to spend my life with. He’s my rock, my best friend. He can make me laugh, even when I’m frustrated with him. He works hard to provide for his family, going in before everyone else to get off in time to pick up the kids from school so that they don’t have to go to after-school care. He has a handsome smile, a kind heart, and beautiful blue eyes that still make me melt. When he sends me an email during the day, or text messages my phone just to check in, I can still get butterflies in my stomach because I am so happy to hear from him! I love him more today than I ever could have imagined that night back in the parking lot eight years ago…

Best. Toy. Ever.

For me, anyway. I could sit and watch the kids on this thing for hours!!!

Wuv...Twue Wuv

Yesterday was an anniversary of sorts…

First, let me preface this with a brief history.

It was October 29, 2000…I was sitting in my dorm room at Northeastern State University in Tahlequah, chatting with some friends on CollegeClub.com. (It was a rudimentary version of what would become the likes of Myspace and Facebook.) A chat request came from someone named Hatchet69.

Hmmm….sounds like a perverted serial killer, I thought to myself…but basking in the anonymity of the Internet, I accepted the request anyway.

I don’t remember exactly what we talked about, but I do remember enjoying our conversation…I don’t know why, but I felt drawn to this faceless individual. We hadn’t even exchanged pictures, but by the end of the conversation I had agreed to meet him for dinner.

Fast forward 23 hours…there I was, pulling into the parking lot of Del Rancho, thinking to myself, “WHAT AM I DOING? No one even knows what I’m doing or where I am. This is the stuff that Lifetime movies are made of. I’m going to be just another dumb girl statistic! STUPID! STUPID! STUPID!”

I took a deep breath, got out of my car, and out of this huge black pickup truck hopped a cute guy in black Wranglers and with a shy smile. There was an awkward moment where I was trying to figure out if he was Hatchet69 and he was trying to figure out if I was NSUTheaterGrl. We laughed nervously and went inside. Over dinner, the awkwardness subsided, and we were soon having a good time. After dinner, we went looking for a movie, but couldn’t find one, and I mentioned the Haunted Castle. The 20 minute car ride to Muskogee was nice. We sat on opposite sides of his truck with the middle console down…I rested my arm on it for a moment. I wanted him to hold my hand, and was engrossed in thinking about moving mine closer to his when he grabbed mine. It caught me off guard and I yanked my hand back to my lap in reaction. He sheepishly shrunk back over to his own side, and for the second time that night, found myself saying in my head “STUPID! STUPID! STUPID!”

I have always been a fan of scary attractions, and he wasn’t about to tell me that he didn’t like them one bit. When we entered The Castle, he wrapped his arms around me and held on tight the entire time. He was unbelievably scared, but didn’t want me to know, and there was no way I was going to let on to him how obvious it was.

After The Castle, we weren’t ready for our date to end. He shyly asked if I wanted to meet his grandma and grandpa. I thought his request was absolutely adorable, and so we drove out to Ma and Pop’s house. We visited with them for awhile, watched some bull riding, and then headed back to my car, neither of us ready for the night to end.

When we got back to Del Rancho, it was close to midnight. I had class the next day, and he had to be at work in Broken Arrow. Still, the impending fatigue we were going to feel the next day couldn’t get either one of us to leave any faster. We sat and talked for a long time that night, and then one of us would remark on how late it was, only to end up talking about something else, until we realized it was 7AM.

The rest, as they say, is history. Four months later, we were engaged, and three months after that, we were married. Now, eight years and three kids later, we are still going strong.

I feel so blessed to have found such a wonderful person to spend my life with. He’s my rock, my best friend. He can make me laugh, even when I’m frustrated with him. He works hard to provide for his family, going in before everyone else to get off in time to pick up the kids from school so that they don’t have to go to after-school care. He has a handsome smile, a kind heart, and beautiful blue eyes that still make me melt. When he sends me an email during the day, or text messages my phone just to check in, I can still get butterflies in my stomach because I am so happy to hear from him! I love him more today than I ever could have imagined that night back in the parking lot eight years ago…

Family Portraits

Here is a preview of our family portraits. We went to a photographer in Inola who is fantastic!!! If you want to use her, her blog is in my "Best Blogs Ever" section.

Halloween 2006

We had such a blast decorating for Halloween this year. Here are a few pictures of our spooky house...

Happy Halloween!

Check out our Halloween Costumes!

Happy Halloween from the Ryan Family!