The Ribeira Family

Three Holidays

2011-12-10T16:39:00.000-08:00

HALLOWEEN
We went the easiest possible route for Halloween this year. We used a hand-me-down costume from some friends in the ward for Jonah. He was the big, bad wolf and Brooke would have been Little Red, but I just didn't have it in me to finish it, especially since we weren't taking her to our ward party. So here's our lone wolf. He and Daddy had fun at the ward party, and we all went trick-or-treating with some friends on Halloween.

11-11-11

Ryan turned 30 on the coolest date EVER! And he was in New Orleans! He got to have a birthday dinner with a bunch of his buddies from school and the AMA. Here is a picture of a few of them and their memorable waiter.

Here was Jonah's birthday tribute to Daddy while he was away:

Ryan's folks and Becky and Janna came up the weekend after Ryan got home to celebrate his birthday. Janna made another excellent cake and we enjoyed the time to visit.

And on the Monday after his birthday we had some friend's over to play games and to eat triple bypass pie. I am so grateful for my husband and can't wait to see what we can accomplish together over the next 30 years.

THANKSGIVING

We were able to spend Wednesday night-Sunday night in the bay area with family for Thanksgiving which was such a nice break! We celebrated with the Ribeira's on Thursday and with the Millers on Friday.

Did you notice the hair bow Aunt Kim made for her daughter, ahem, doggie, Becka? And Brooke really took to her Great Grandma Ardie. Before she fell asleep she was smiling and talking up a storm with her! We are so thankful for both sides of our families and that we get to spend the holidays together. Of course we miss our siblings who are far away but Christmas is right around the corner and we will ALL be together then!

Brooke Up Close

2011-10-24T14:58:00.000-07:00

I hate posting pictures without editing them in Photoshop first but to save time I'm just going to put these up. You should be proud of me.

Brooke Elsie Ribeira

2011-10-24T08:54:00.001-07:00

Brooke Elsie Ribeira was born at the UC Davis hospital on Friday, September 30, 2011, weighing 6 lbs. 15.5 oz, and 19.5 inches long. Here are some pictures of Brooke and our family during her first three weeks, beginning with her arrival home:

Jonah's first time seeing her at home:

Joey and Elise were the first non-family friends to hold her. They drove up Sunday afternoon when we were released from the hospital.

First night in the cradle at home:

Probably my favorite picture of our kids so far:

Giving Daddy a kiss:

Brooke trying to tell me to put down the camera and feed her!

Merilee and Ashilene meeting Brooke for the first time:

My Dad holding Brooke for the first time:

Our Super Baby:

Our Super Stretcher:

My Mom holding Brooke:

First bath:

So much love for our newest addition:

Liz meeting Brooke for the first time:

Kathy holding Brooke for the first time:

Maren and Kaili were so excited to hold their cousin!

And to lay beside her:

We just love her and can't imagine our family without her!

Jonah at the Easel

2011-08-03T06:41:00.000-07:00

I honestly don't think art is Jonah's passion. When he is given things to color at nursery, he uses one crayon, makes a quick scratch mark or two, and is done. Painting, however, seems to be an activity he really enjoys so we do a lot of it. What kid doesn't like smearing paint around? I hang up his abstract paintings in his room because I love them, but he seems to find great pleasure in tearing them down. I may need to make a collage of my favorites and frame it so he can't destroy all of them! Anyway, here's a short video of some of his moments at the easel, starting with his very first time using the paintbrush.

Father's Day Videos

2011-08-02T14:23:00.000-07:00

I had hoped to link these three short videos into one seamless video, but I ran into sound issues and couldn't figure out how to keep the music that I wanted for each clip using only the You Tube video editor. I will have to pick the brains of all my talented family members who know so much more about video editing soon! But in the meantime, here are three fun, short videos starring my favorite boys. Father's Day 1 highlights fun moments from our first year with Jonah while Father's Day 2 & 3 are more recent videos. Enjoy!

Palm Springs

2011-07-12T12:41:00.000-07:00

I am so late posting this but better late than never, right? In May I headed to Palm Springs for a reunion with my freshman college roommates! Jonah stayed with the Ribeiras and did fine without Mommy and Daddy. Ryan had mandatory meetings and classes and such so it was very nice of the Ribeiras to help out. I hadn't seen one of my roommates in ten years and others for five or six years, so it was a true blast from the past! Liz I see regularly since she's pretty close to us but it was crazy how we were all able to pick up right where we left off. I love these girls!

Most of the weekend was spent eating...

relaxing at the villa...

and chilling by the pool.

We did get a spa day too which was very rejuvenating, but I'm not allowed to post pictures of it. :) Here's some more fun shots of our time together:

It was a wonderful and much needed vacation! This is a tradition that we plan to continue. And we don't want to wait ten years until the next!

Family Photos

2011-05-26T13:47:00.000-07:00

Moments before these pictures were taken, Jonah had a little incident. I had gone out to the car to grab a coupon so Ryan took Jonah on the escalator to keep him occupied for a few minutes. Jonah tried to climb up the descending escalator and tripped and got a nasty gash under his chin. I'm glad I missed the minute of intense crying that followed his accident. Jonah was very calm when I saw him and he was a trooper through the photo shoot. And fortunately you really can't see his chin in most of the pictures, though there is a minor discoloration on his vest. I'm counting these as Jonah's two-year-old photos, even though his birthday was three months ago.

Ryan needed some professional head shots so this was a good excuse for us to get family photos too. Here's my favorite of Ryan's shoot:

I never enjoy the thought of going and taking family pictures but I'm always glad when it's done and we have the pictures.

Easter!

2011-04-27T21:51:00.001-07:00

Here's some pictures from our Playgroup's Easter egg hunt last Friday:

Here is Jonah on Easter discovering his new sand toys. Thank you Merilee for giving us that great gift idea!

Here is our family easter egg hunt in the front yard.

And finally, pictures from dying easter eggs.

This is what happened when Mommy and Daddy were engrossed in their own egg creations:

I still think it was worth it! :)

It was a fun Easter. But the highlights of Easter for me happened the weekend before when I got to see "Savior of the World," a musical production put on by my Stake, and "Lamb of God," a multi-stake choral and orchestral production in Oakland that my mom, sister, and brother-in-law were involved with. Both were powerful in different ways and I'm grateful that I got to see them back to back because one focused more on the events leading up to the crucifixion while the other begins at the tomb where Christ is buried and reenacted Christ's appearances to his disciples following his resurrection. I felt the love our Savior has for us. I felt the love our Savior has for women. Isn't it interesting that Christ appeared first to women? (Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome.) It was their testimonies that gave the apostles and other disciples hope that Christ had indeed risen. I hope you all had a wonderful Easter!

Help

2011-04-15T00:18:00.000-07:00

I try not to whine on my blog but Jonah has been testing my patience to the max lately and I need some advice. It's amazing how quickly kids change. Things that worked like a charm for weeks are no longer working! He was responding so well for awhile when I would give him choices. For example, when walking outside I would ask him, "do you want me to carry you or do you want to hold Mommy's hand?" He would always choose to hold my hand and it was wonderful! We could walk places and I didn't have to hold him. But lately when I ask him the same thing and he says, "hold hands," and then tries to run away two seconds later. I understand that he is two and this may be normal behavior but it still stresses me out! Today when leaving the library, I had one arm full of books and one hand grasping Jonah's hand and we needed to cross the street to get to the car. Jonah of course wriggles free of my grasp and dashes off down the sidewalk. I hurry after him and scoop him up and of course he starts screaming for me to "hold hands." We make it across the street and he is climbing up my body until his head is way higher than mine and I'm terrified he's going to fall. But we are almost to the car so I carry on. And of course there are people around but I pretend I don't see them. I drop my books near the car and then set Jonah down firmly and hold him tight (honestly probably too tight in my anger) and start lecturing him about safety and why he needs to listen to Mommy and he bites my arm. I was so not happy. But I can see why he was unhappy too. I know that when I have a big reaction, he gets more riled up but it's SO hard not to react in anger! How do you Mom's keep your cool when your toddler just won't listen?! I won't even tell you about our other excursions to Target and the dollar store.

He is also very much into the word "no" right now. When it's time to brush teeth, he just won't open his mouth. And I find myself threatening him with time-outs, or withholding his beloved blankie and binkie, but I know that this is not good parenting. What has worked for you? How do you reach a child that says no without threats and anger? Timeouts haven't really been working either. He doesn't put up a fight about going to his "time-out corner" but he will not stay in the corner. If I remind him to stand in the corner he just yells "NO!" Hopefully today was just an extra bad day and that I will be blessed tomorrow with an increase of love and patience. But man, the thought of two kids today was a bit overwhelming!

Baby #2

2011-04-10T15:57:00.000-07:00

Ryan and I wait a long time to announce our babies-to-be. After our initial ultrasounds with both pregnancies we were told that our babies showed signs of chromosomal disorders. The first time we were told this they said there was a very good chance our baby wouldn't make it. You can imagine our devastation. The second time we were much more prepared for this type of news and decided not to worry until after our second ultrasound. Gratefully this baby is following the same pattern as Jonah did. The neck thickness has shrunk considerably and all other organs and body parts are in the right places and appear proportional. The doctors will still keep a watchful eye on our little one but they are very optimistic that things will go smoothly as before. We are so happy to be pregnant again and look forward to the end of Sept. when they expect our little one to arrive!

We didn't remember to take "pre-belly" shots so I sucked in really hard for the first picture. And then for fun I pushed out for the last just so we could have a cool sequential shot. :)

Basketball Nerd

2011-04-02T23:33:00.000-07:00

I know I said that my next post would be of Jonah's birthday but we don't have the video montage ready. In the meantime, let me share with you Jonah's newest obsession: basketball. We considered getting him a hoop for his birthday but they were pretty expensive. Fortunately we live in Sacramento where you can find all sorts of junk sitting on curbs. That's where we found our hoop. It's old and broken, but it was free, and what matters most is that Jonah LOVES it! It's the first thing he sees when we get out of the car at home and he always wants to play. Now that the weather is nice we've been playing basketball daily. Sometimes more than once. I really try to get him excited about soccer again but it just isn't happening. So I just need to be patient until he goes through a soccer phase again. I guess my son is allowed to like things that I'm really bad at. :) Here is also a slideshow from our photo shoot today. There was such great light when we went out to play basketball that I had to run back in for my camera.

The other day Jonah noticed that the seat of one of our chairs was loose so he turned the chair into a hoop and the seat into a backboard. He's a creative little guy. Here's a four minute video of Jonah playing indoor ball. He cracks us up. It's a little long but hopefully some of you and your kids will like it.

Ooops, that wasn't the video I meant to upload but it shows his shooting skills. Here's the longer video:

The Big 3-0

2011-03-27T15:06:00.000-07:00

Things were too hectic at the beginning of the month to really celebrate my birthday. And to be honest, I wasn't very eager to celebrate the big 3-0. I liked my twenties. I liked being a young, edgy, emerging artist. Now to be 30, I feel that I should be established or something. And shouldn't I have three or four kids by now? Hahaha. Anyway, I told Ryan that what I really wanted for my birthday was to see the new Jane Eyre movie. It wasn't released in Sacramento until March 25th so we postponed our celebration until this weekend and it was worth the wait. Joey and Elise came up from Oakland Saturday morning and we went with them to the new Crocker Art Museum. I was anxious to see an exhibit by Gottfried Helnwein: Inferno of the Innocents. Check out this enormous painting that we got to see from life.

After we got our fill of art, we met up with Jen and Wes from our ward at Queen Sheebas, an Ethiopian restaurant close to our apartment, and enjoyed a delicious meal. We used a restaurant.com coupon and were able to feed six people for $44 plus tip. I forgot my camera so I found this picture online that looks a lot like our meal:

They had baskets of very thin, slightly sour, spongy bread, and a huge platter of entrees. You tear off pieces of the bread to scoop up the meat and vegetables. It was a fun way to eat, and a little more sanitary than the communal fufu soup bowls in Ghana. Jonah didn't care much for the food but he really liked their music.

After lunch everyone came back to our house and we played Ticket to Ride while Jonah napped. It was a crazy, high scoring game! And finally, we got to see Jane Eyre at Sacramento's historic Tower Theater. Thank you to the Andre's who worked it out to watch Jonah for us while we went to the movie! Derek and Rachel from the ward also got to join up with us Jane Eyre so it was quite a party.

The movie was great. I could nit-pick a thing here or there but overall I was pleased. It was simply a wonderful day! Ryan also surprised me with a gift that he had been working on for over a month. He transferred and organized all of our photos online and cleared up 54 GB of space on my computer so it functions again! I feel optimistic that I can get back to my blog now. Thank you, Ryan!!! My next post...Jonah's birthday!

Christmas 2010

2010-12-27T11:11:00.000-08:00

Each Christmas break we have a tradition of visiting our friend, "Aunt Bea," who I used to work for. She has two cats and Jonah thought all of her cat beds and toys were there for him. I just got my camera out and tried not to think about all the hair he was collecting.

Jonah loves going on walks with my Dad. And I actually got a shot of them with matching hats!

The tire swing in our neighbors front yard is probably his favorite part of their walks so they often begin and end there.

And here are some more pictures from Christmas Eve and Christmas morning. I think Jonah's favorite gift was the ball pit from Santa. :)

Bedtime

2010-11-30T17:58:00.000-08:00

This picture is almost a year old but I love it! Our bedtime routine begins by reading 5 verses from the Book of Mormon and then having family prayer. Jonah doesn't always stay on the couch the entire time we read but he's getting better. Last night during our prayer he wanted to hold our hands for the first time. (Daddy and I always hold hands.) Jonah then gives Daddy a goodnight kiss and we go to his room to read stories. I let him choose a few books (usually 4-5) and then we sit on the couch and read. After that we turn out the light and I rock him with his head on my shoulder for a minute or two and then lay him in his crib. And even though it's not ideal, I will often give him his sippy cup with milk if he wants it. Then I say goodnight and slip out. Last night after we turned out the light and I had just started rocking him he pointed to his crib and said, "bed." So I put him in his bed. Then he said, "milk" so I gave him his milk. And then he said, "bye bye." It made me laugh. Maybe it's me who just loves to cuddle before I lay him down. :) He is becoming quite the independent toddler! Here is a more recent photo taken before church two weeks ago. He konked out on the floor about 15 minutes before we needed to leave so I dressed him and did his hair while he was asleep and just had to take a picture:

Halloween!

2010-11-03T22:41:00.000-07:00

We had been told before that Jonah looked like a hobbit so that inspired our decision for this year's costume. Ryan actually wanted Jonah to be Gandolf the Great and for us to be hobbits but we knew Jonah would not tolerate the beard and hair necessary to pull it off. So Jonah went as Frodo. We used the fabric from an old vest that Grandma Jill had lying around to make Jonah's cape and lined it with green felt. It felt good to be behind a sewing machine and it made me wonder if I could actually get into sewing! We also took a denim vest and painted it with fabric pens to look more hobbitesque. Jill found a leaf shaped clip-on earing that we used as his vest clasp and then we bought a small chain to hold the ring, tights, and some fuzzy yarn for his hairy feet. We weren't hard core enough to die and curl his hair to really make him Frodo (I hope you know we would never do that) but we were still pleased with our adorable little hobbit. I thought of him more as Sam. Sam held the ring for a short time, right?

Here is our very happy hobbit:

We had to sew the cape and the necklace directly to the vest. He just wouldn't wear it otherwise. Here are some pictures from our trunk or treat in Castro Valley:

The cousins didn't seem that excited to see each other but I was very happy to see Merilee and Ashilene!

Look at Ashilene, the cutest Raiders cheerleader!

They did have fun in the ball pit.

There were a lot of fun games.

But Jonah just kept pointing to the ball pit.

He had a huge cup of jello.

And went back to the ball pit.

He took a short candy break.

And where did he go? Back to the ball pit!

We may have to get him a ball pit. It was a very successful event. Jonah couldn't have had more fun. But I must end with this picture. There's just something about it that cracks me up!

Friends

2010-09-06T12:30:00.000-07:00

Jonah has made some great friends in the ward and so have I. My friend Bethany and I have been doing babysitting trades for a couple months now and it has worked out really well. I watch her daughter, Nevaeh (heaven spelled backwards), while she works a couple nights a week and she watches Jonah so I can attend art classes or work on the building for my studio trade. Nevaeh is almost one and is heavier than Jonah and almost as tall! It's been fun to see her progress from a crawler to a toddler. She has helped Jonah learn how to share better, though he still has his moments of weakness...like stealing her sippy cup.

We are very sad that they will be moving to Ohio in October but it definitely seems like the right place for their family. They will be missed!!!

The Andre's recently moved into our ward to start medical school at UC Davis and they have a daughter named Emree who is just a week apart in age from Jonah. When I ask Jonah if he wants to go see Emree he immediately grabs my hand and drags me to the door to take him at once. It's really adorable. They live just two minutes away from us so it's convenient to carpool to activities together. We have a great time with them!

Jonah's weakness with Emree is stealing her binki.

Fortunately Emree takes it pretty well.

Thank goodness for friends! We have seen Jonah improve socially through his interactions with his new friends. He is doing a lot better in nursery and we think by next week we may be able to leave him in there! (Fingers crossed) I enjoy the time with other moms too. I have learned a lot from them and appreciate their willingness to share rides, advice and time with me.

Utah trip

2010-08-20T15:20:00.000-07:00

In April we had many good excuses to go to Utah: My sister, Christi, was graduating, as was Ryan's brother, Jeff, and Jeff and his wife Lili were having Penny's baby blessing the same weekend! So we caravanned with Ryan's family to Utah and had a splendid trip.

On our way back to California we stopped at the Salt flats and got some memorable pictures:

Yes, my husband walks on water.

WARNING!

2010-07-26T00:11:00.000-07:00

The following photos may increase Jonah withdrawal:

I apologize for my long absence from the blog. There were many contributing factors but the three most significant were:

1) Jonah broke my computer

2) My camera charger disappeared

3) Our Flip video camera broke

While we have not fixed my computer (it is beyond repair) the Ribeiras have graciously given us one of there old desktops so I have access to internet again during the day when Ryan has the laptop. Woohoo!!! I also bought a new camera charger so I am taking and downloading pictures again. We can't replace our Flip yet so don't expect videos any time soon.

Sharing with George

2010-04-01T12:02:00.000-07:00

Since we don't have kids around for Jonah to play with, George is the next best thing.

Samuel Brannan

2010-03-31T23:26:00.000-07:00

My painting of Samuel Brannan won third place in the California Pioneer Heritage Art Competition. Jeffery R. Holland attended the opening reception with his brother, Dennis Holland, who is president of the Society. I didn't get to shake his hand or anything but it was surreal standing less than 10 feet away from him!

One of the greatest challenges of this competition was deciding who to paint. There were many influential California Pioneers that I was drawn to, but I finally decided on Samuel Brannan. If you are interested in learning more about him I've included a brief history of this controversial pioneer:

Samuel Brannan was a young printer in New York when he was selected by Orson Pratt in 1845 to lead a large group of Saints on one of the longest religious voyages in history. The Ship Brooklyn sailed from the Brooklyn Harbor to San Francisco, a voyage that took nearly six months! He played a key role in starting the Gold Rush of 1849 by his waving a vial of gold around the streets of San Francisco and announcing the discovery of gold at Coloma, on the American River, and announcing it in his California Star that he hired riders to carry east to the states. He became one of the state’s first millionaires, was instrumental in developing the Napa grape and wine area, helped finance the railroad over the Sierras, and owned considerable real estate.

Unfortunately he was later excommunicated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. After abandoning his beliefs and the principals of his religion, his life style changed to the degree that his wife divorced him and his life continued to spiral downward until he died penniless in San Diego. His body lay unclaimed in the county morgue for two years until his nephew came forward and buried him.

His story is a tragic reminder that worldly wealth is fleeting and that we must keep our eyes fixed on eternity. He could have done so much to build the kingdom of God with the opportunities he was blessed with. I hope that we will all use our talents and opportunities to further the work of the Lord, and that we will acknowledge the Lord's hand in all things.

I took some photos of my painting along the way. I wanted the painting to look period appropriate so I painted it all with clean, hard edges, kept the colors muted, and went as realistic as my three-week time limit allowed. I'd say that everything about the process, except drawing the map, was pretty fun.

Big Time Baby Model

2010-03-12T22:09:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago I saw an intriguing ad on Craiglist entitled, "FREE Family or Kids Portrait" so I checked out the photographer's website and was VERY impressed with his work. He (joSon) wanted to photograph 2-3 families while he was in Sacramento for one day so I responded with photos of Jonah and our family. I was so excited when he called to set up an appointment. Apparently he got around 50 responses and we ended up being one of the two lucky families!! He just sent us the pictures. Doesn't Jonah look older? And insanely cute?

JoSon is primarily a commercial photographer but is working on this artistic family project on the side. He was so great with Jonah and was laughing the whole time. The most embarrassing part was when he insisted on taking some photos in our bedroom, despite the serious clutter. But overall it was a great experience. For ALL the photos go here.

Jonah was standing on the kitchen island for some of these photos which made me pretty nervous but I was right there to catch him.

I carefully removed his favorite blanket from this photo and replaced it with the bear.

Jonah loves brushing his teeth!

Not your traditional family portrait but we like it.

He's ONE today!!!

2010-02-28T19:30:00.000-08:00

Happy birthday, Jonah! This year has gone really fast and we have enjoyed watching Jonah develop into an active and intelligent little toddler. He practically runs everywhere now! For pictures of his b-day, please see my sister, Merilee's post here. Ryan has our video camera with him in DC so I can't upload the new videos. And I left my camera charger in Ryan's backpack! So thank you Merilee for your wonderful post and I will add more pics and videos soon. We had a wonderful time "monkeying around" with our families! And no, we didn't do his hair like that for the party. But I think it's great that we can do his hair like that! He's got so much hair! WE LOVE YOU, JONAH!!!

New studio and recent works

2010-02-10T14:03:00.000-08:00

Now that Jonah is a big, strong boy it has been increasingly difficult to paint in the kitchen (as he can knock over my easel and get into paints, etc.) After researching studio rental costs I was discouraged until I found one studio owner who was willing to let someone work for the space. Here's my new downtown studio. Yes, it's dirty, but it's spacious and full of light!

It isn't a perfect solution but it's meeting the immediate need to allow me to work. We have a wonderful woman named Lidia watching Jonah on Tues, Thurs, and Fridays. She picks us up at 11am, drops me off at the studio, returns to our apartment to take care of Jonah, and then picks me up at 3:45pm. If Ryan doesn't have class he just studies in the library during that time. Jonah always seems to be content and happy when they pick me up which makes it easier for me. The biggest downside is the extra time I have to work on Saturdays to "pay" for the space. I've been gaining valuable experience but I hate being away from my family. I am power-washing, power-sanding, priming and painting one side of an apartment complex for the studio owner in exchange for my studio. It's hard work but I figure those skills will come in handy when we are eventually home owners! Here are some of my recent paintings:

OSCAR THE CAT--my very first animal portrait

JOHN AND ANGIE DAY--they were so pleased that they commissioned 5 more paintings!

MICHELE--this is a drawing/painting for an upcoming show.

I am so thankful that Ryan has encouraged me to continue with my art. We all make sacrifices for it but we feel it is worth it. I am now working on a portrait of Samuel Brannan for a special art competition sponsored by the California Pioneer Heritage Foundation. The painting must be finished in two weeks but I think I'm on track.

Free Cleaning

2010-02-08T16:10:00.000-08:00

2010-02-03T19:19:00.001-08:00

Miller X-mas Eve

2010-02-01T10:51:00.001-08:00

Christmas Elf

2010-01-11T01:04:00.000-08:00

I'm sorry but isn't this the cutest little elf you've ever seen?!

Notice something different?

2009-12-07T00:31:00.000-08:00

Finally after all these months of teething, Jonah has the tip of a tooth!

Ryan's Frugalicious Birthday

2009-12-06T22:55:00.000-08:00

What do you do when you're low on the dough?
But you hope to celebrate as much as bfoe. (Ebonics for before)
Take the steps devised by a frugal pro:

Step #1- Sleep in. Miss breakfast entirely so you only have to worry about lunch and dinner. And then make a brunch.

Step #2- Make a homemade gift. Or in my case, a mostly finished homemade gift.

Step #3- Get a free video rental from Hollywood Video. We recommend Primer to those who like indie films that make you go, "Wait, what's going on?" Seriously, if you understand it the first time you watch it you are either a genius or lying.

Step #4- Get a free burger and shake from Fudruckers

Step #5- Get a free burger and bottomless fries from Red Robin

Step #6- Get a free yogurt from Yogurtagogo (For a pic see here.)

We can't have birthdays without good food. Good food this year meant free food. And Ryan is to thank for that as he got us those free coupons. Thanks, honey! It was so much fun celebrating the day together as a family, especially when it didn't break the bank! By the way, please be aware that we will be having a huge party on 11/11/11 for Ryan's 30th and you are all invited. (We're saving up for that one!)

October

2009-12-06T22:19:00.000-08:00

Sorry, these pictures are just a little late...
For Halloween this year we decided to make our own costumes. Well, 2 out of 3. I had designed a pattern for Jonah's jacket but we ran out of time to sew it. That's why he's wearing an enormous jacket intended for a four year old. Thank you Francesca for letting us use your sewing machine, dr's jacket, and crutch! Sorry, Jonah, next year we'll start with YOUR costume. What kind of parents are we?!

We also got pumpkins from Dave's pumpkin patch, and carved them with our friend, Stan. We bought a $3 carving kit from Walmart and MAN, what a difference good tools and guides make!

Here, in case you can't tell, I'm imitating the carved witch:

And here are all three of our rad pumpkins being admired by our little punkin:

First taste of applesauce

2009-11-24T11:59:00.000-08:00

This video needs no explanation...

Solid foods and awesome bibs

2009-11-24T11:42:00.000-08:00

This is Jonah's first solid food feeding when he was six months old.

Teething and Hangers

2009-11-24T11:36:00.000-08:00

For those who haven't already seen this on facebook, this is when Jonah discovered hangers as an effective teething tool.

Daddy's Tantrum

2009-11-24T11:29:00.000-08:00

So I am way behind on posting videos. This is a fun one of Jonah laughing at Daddy.

Look at this boy go!

2009-11-21T15:56:00.000-08:00

These videos show how much Jonah has progressed the past few months!

Haircut(s)

2009-10-17T20:32:00.000-07:00

Jonah was only three months old when he received his first haircut. I just couldn't stand those interminable wisps another day. And I had to act quickly while Ryan was away in Chicago as I was unofficially forbidden to trim his mane. I didn't do anything too drastic; just a little snip here and there. It took Ryan two days to even notice! He just kept saying, "Jonah, you look older!"

When Jonah started looking shaggy again at six months, Daddy resisted the idea of a haircut. And I think I know why now. According to Ryan's calculations Jonah has a 75% chance of inheriting male pattern baldness!

What do you think? Did we do the right thing?

P.S. Notice how blond he is now? His hair is growing in much lighter!

Happy times in the swing

2009-10-05T14:27:00.000-07:00

Ryan got me a terabyte hard drive for our anniversary so I now have space to download and upload our HD videos! YAY! Unfortunately my computer doesn't have a fast video card so it's very difficult to edit videos. (Impossible at the moment but I am going to look into some free software to see if I can get something to work.) But in the meantime, here's a cute video of Jonah enjoying his swing. I think the first 45 seconds are worth watching.

August Rush

2009-09-01T19:31:00.001-07:00

No, not the movie; August was simply the busiest month of the summer for us. I'll break it down by weekends. I didn't have my camera for weekends one and two so you'll just have to use your imagination...

Weekend One: a visit from Joey and Elise Crane where we got to show them the great city of Sacramento including a tour of the capital, a gallery stroll, amazing sushi, and the movie Food Inc.

Weekend Two: a quick road trip with Mom and Dad Pettersen to Oregon for Jesse and Amanda Carlisle's wedding. We stayed with the Harris' who lived in our Stake before they moved and they really spoiled us.

Weekend Three: a jam-packed trip to the Bay Area including Julie Nelson's wedding reception, Pettersen family pictures at the Picture People, Grandma Ardie's 80th birthday celebration, and Ashilene Rieta's baby blessing.

Weekend Four: the first Ribeira Reunion at a cabin in Twain Harte including a hike at Pinecrest, rootbeer tasting (I guess A&W is my favorite, Henry Weinhart is Ryan's, and Stuarts is our runner up), lots and lots of games (I was introduced to the Bean game...love it!), and a surprise for Randy and Jill: we made them a scrapbook highlighting events from their 30 years of marriage and wrote them letters.

We are so grateful for our families and that in one month we got to spend time with our entire immediate family on both sides, as well as aunts, uncles, cousins, great-grandparents, and great- aunts and uncles on the Miller side. At Grandma Ardie's 80th celebration I saw very clearly that life is really all about family. Grandma Ardie is such a great example to all of us. She has lived a life of service to her family, to her church, and to her community. Rather than judging people she looks for the good in everyone and loves them with a heart wide open. It was wonderful to be able to honor her for the impact she has made on all of us. We are all better people for knowing Ardath Miller. Here's a slide show of pictures from that wonderful day.

The Ribeira Reunion also reminded us of the importance of family. Randy and Jill have been married 30 years and have six amazing children (plus two new daughters and a grandson.) I have learned so much from them. No matter what trials are before them, they trust in the Lord and they don't complain. Enjoy some photos of our time with the Ribeira clan in Twain Harte.

Yes, we have been very blessed. It's been a great month! It's been a great life, really. Many thanks to all of you who have shaped our lives for the better.

The power of the blog

2009-08-21T00:28:00.000-07:00

I was surprised to get a call from Dana Howard, a local reporter for Channel 10 News, who stumbled across my post, "Sacramento Staycation" and wanted to interview us about our experience! So Ryan and I were interviewed this week and here is the short clip on Staycations that aired tonight: http://www.news10.net/video/default.aspx?aid=80597&storyid=65486 Be sure to watch for Jonah. We are still laughing about the whole thing! Who knew that blogging could land you a spot on the 11:00 news?!

Fans

2009-07-19T23:45:00.000-07:00

This is a slideshow of some of Jonah's fans. I mean, how can we possibly document all of them? Remembering to bring our camera to the Ribeira's would be a good start! ;) Thanks to everyone for your amazing love and support!

Day at the Zoo

2009-07-19T20:43:00.000-07:00

Stacy requested pictures so here are a few from our day at the Sacramento Zoo. The zoo is small...we got through the whole thing in less than two hours, but honestly that was more than enough for us! And we only got a little sunburned.

I've been busy...

2009-07-16T22:53:00.000-07:00

So busy in fact that I have not had a chance to blog about it! On Saturday I had a show opening at a local gallery and I'm busy getting ready for another one in Park City the end of September. Not to mention two new commissions! Yay! But I do want to record what happened today because I could use more days like this. Normally I sleep until my Jonah alarm goes off (his hunger cry) but for some reason I wasn't tired and got up before he did. (Even though I stayed up until 2:30am last night working out a composition for a new painting.) I was able to eat, run a load of dishes, and put a final coat of gesso on my 30"x40" board before he got up. I fed him at 8:30am and then we played for an hour and a half and then he wanted to sleep again! So I wrapped him up (in hopes that he would sleep longer), put him in his bouncer, and immediately got to work.
I downloaded several weeks worth of pictures from my camera and quickly changed my profile picture on facebook. I then started my 30 min. workout but stopped after 20 to answer a call from Emmalee from my Ghana group and we chatted for a bit. I then showered and studied chapter six of Isaiah. (Are you amazed at how much I got done during Jonah's nap?!) So then at 12:30 I got Jonah up, fed him, and took Ryan to class at 1:00pm.
My plan had been to go straight to the art store to buy a ruler, but I decided to go home and check thoroughly one more time to see if I could find one. Sorry, no miraculous prayer experience, so we got back in the car, picked up a new ruler, and came back home. Over the next several hours I was able to play with Jonah and grid my painting. How I did that is another story for another day.
I picked Ryan up at 4:30pm and Jonah took another short nap so I started on my under drawing for my painting. I also made some yummy chicken and brie sandwiches with honey mustard sauce and a large green salad for dinner. Probably would have made a better lunch than dinner. Oh well. While we ate we caught up on "So You Think You Can Dance." (We don't have a TV so we watch shows online.) Jonah fell asleep halfway through so we took a break so I could work some more on my drawing and Ryan could study. When Jonah woke up we watched the rest of the show.
Now Jonah is down for the night and instead of painting I am actually taking a moment to blog! There. Probably not too exciting to you but I think it's been a great day! Lots of Jonah time and lots of painting time. Okay, time to check blogs and then back to my painting...

Sacramento "Staycation"

2009-06-01T00:55:00.000-07:00

Ryan finished his first year of medical school at UC Davis three weeks ago (loud applause) and we are now enjoying a six week break! We decided that instead of spending lots of money to travel somewhere far away, we are going to have a fabulous vacation at home! There are so many beautiful parks, museums, and restaurants all around us that we don't normally visit due to time or money. So we are spending our vacation money here and are gaining a whole new appreciation for Sacramento!

Last Friday was quite eventful. We had an early lunch at La Bonne, a renowned French soup cafe in downtown Sacramento. One man runs the whole shop so there is always a long line, but his sandwiches are true artistry so it's worth the wait. Plus we met a lot of nice people in line and Jonah was a hit with the older ladies (as always!)

After lunch we went to the Sacramento Public Library to see the current Traditional African Art exhibit. We were on the lookout for Ghanaian art and they did have one stool to represent Ghana. (If I had been thinking I would have snapped a picture of it.) While we were there we also decided to look for a good baby sign language book. We found one but had to put it on hold until we bring back proof of residence!

Next we went headed to Discovery Park which is one of many beautiful Sacramento parks within five or ten minutes of our home. This park is where the American River flows into the Sacramento River and is a favorite of local fishermen. It has 275 acres of mature trees and grassland with paved running/biking trails, dirt hiking trails, and plenty of great picnic spots. We went "off-roading" with our City Mini stroller and Jonah seemed to enjoy the scenery (whenever he was awake.) The only time he got upset was when Daddy took him down to the river and let him feel the water with his bare feet! In the future we will bring swimsuits and towels and spend some time at the beach. We'd also love to explore the river by boat!

And finally we ended the day at our new favorite dessert shop, "Yogurtagogo." This place is great because it's a delicious, healthy alternative to icecream. You choose your own frozen yogurt and toppings and pay by the ounce. The fresh fruit was amazing! They have chocolate and candy toppings too but we preferred the fresh fruit. It's a little pricey but it's QUALITY! We will definitely be going back!

Painting again

2009-05-23T00:35:00.000-07:00

After a four month hiatus, I'm back at the easel and it feels so good. I've had to make adjustments to the way I paint since Jonah needs to be fed every few hours, but I'm learning to be more productive with the limited time that I have. This most recent commission needed to be finished by Mother's Day which fell during Ryan's finals week.
As you can imagine, Ryan didn't have much time to help with Jonah, so my father-in-law, Randy, graciously offered to watch Jonah for a day so that I could get a good start on my painting and so that Ryan could study. Jonah received his two-month shots the day that Randy came up but you wouldn't know it from all the laughs and smiles that Randy (AKA Papa) got out of him! They had fun and were pretty wiped out by the end of the day! =)
This was probably my most challenging portrait to date. My client only had a 2"x3" photo of his deceased grandma (Nana) which presented some challenges as he wanted a 16"x20" painting. Her lazy eye was also problematic but I managed to fix it in photoshop and then in the final painting. I wouldn't say that this is my favorite painting but I certainly grew a lot through the process!

Ashilene is here!

2009-05-22T00:12:00.000-07:00

My sister Merilee called Saturday afternoon and told me she was having serious cramps and was thinking it might be the real thing! This was not at all part of her plan for the day (Ashilene was not due for several more days) but Ashilene couldn't wait any longer! Ashilene Maria Rieta was born May 16th at 9:15pm, 7 lbs 8 oz. and 20 1/2 inches long. Merilee and Rojohn have waited a long time for this angel to join their family and I know they will be fantastic parents. I am so happy that we don't live too far away so that Jonah will get to know his precious cousin! Congratulations Merilee and Rojohn! We are so happy for you and will see you very soon!

Jonah and his Pacifier

2009-05-22T00:04:00.000-07:00

Jonah really finds his pacifier comforting, especially when going to sleep. Often if he's really tired and getting fussy we put him in his bouncer, pop in the pacifier, and his whole body seems to relax. This can be helpful if he falls right to sleep. But if he isn't quite tired enough, the pacifier can actually keep him awake longer. Just when he's on the verge of sleep, his pacifier will fall out and he gets really upset! I've often thought, "If only he could figure out how to pop it back in!" In this clip he's napping on the couch and you'll see that he gets pretty close to figuring it out! (And you can see the love he has for his pacifier!)

Pay it Forward

2009-05-07T23:31:00.000-07:00

I know I've been a complete blog slacker! This game will help me find out if anyone is still checking my blog! I copied this from my friend Jessica's blog and I already have a fun gift idea so you should play! Pay it FORWARD--How it works: The FIRST THREE people to leave a comment on this post will receive at some point during this year a handmade gift from me. What it will be and when it will arrive will be a total surprise--to both of us. The CATCH is that YOU MUST PLAY TOO! Before you leave your comment here, write a pay it forward post on your blog to keep the fun going (you can cut and paste these instructions). Then come back and let me know that you are going to play, and sit back and anticipate the arrival of your gift. It's THAT easy! Remember, only the FIRST THREE comments will qualify. Good luck!

Fun Times

2009-04-16T11:22:00.000-07:00

I just love my little angel...especially during quiet moments like this when I can hear and feel him breathing on my chest and can enjoy his warmth, his smell, and his occasional sighs of contentment.

My new favorite game to play with him is the "hokie pokie." We don't have a video of it yet but I love to sing and dance with him. Many mornings after he is fed I just put on some music and we dance together in the living room. I know he won't remember dancing with momma but I will always treasure these times.

Ryan also loves his little angel...especially when Jonah is in what we like to call, "Jonah Party Time" mode. Ryan takes him all around the house checking out every painting, picture, and mirror in the house, helps him fly like a super hero (one of my personal favorites), and tries to read him stories.

The key word here is tries!

When Jonah gets fussy we have discovered a fail proof, insta-happy Jonah maker: The Bouncy Ball, a.k.a. Jonah's happy place. No matter how unhappy he is, the bouncy ball works like magic to bring back our calm, happy baby...every time!

(Thank you, Julie, for mentioning how much Henry likes to be bounced on the birthing ball...it's wonderful!)

New Toy

2009-04-16T11:01:00.000-07:00

Here's a video with Jonah's eyes wide open! He is trying out the "Pooh Garden Spin" for the first time (thanks, Bea!) and can't seem to decide if he likes it or not.

Waking Up

2009-04-02T14:53:00.000-07:00

Jonah is becoming a much better sleeper. He still doesn't like to sleep on his back but he sleeps in his car seat just fine. (The angle seems to be easier on his tummy.) Here's our current nightly routine:

I feed Jonah around 9:30pm and then let Ryan burp/change/ and put him down while I go to bed. (Jonah sleeps in his car seat in the living room with daddy while he studies.) Then when Jonah needs to eat (usually between 1-2am) Ryan brings him to me. After I feed him, Ryan burps and changes him and puts him back down to sleep. Then Ryan goes to bed and I'm on Jonah duty the rest of the night. Lately he only needs to be fed again between 6-7am so I get plenty of sleep.

Jonah used to have his party hour between 3-5am so my shift used to be pretty tough. But now that he eats and then goes right back to sleep, I've got it easy! We've decided that Ryan can now go to bed earlier if he needs to, and I can handle the 1-2am shift. We know it sounds crazy to the average person but you must understand that Ryan's internal clock doesn't get tired until after midnight, and he only needs around 6 hours of sleep! So this has been working well for us.

Here are two cute videos of Jonah waking up. (Or of us trying to wake him up!) I took him out of his car seat and laid him in the crib to help him wake up.

Our little model

2009-03-17T20:43:00.000-07:00

Here's a link for photos from Week 1:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=225401&id=782935653&l=c2018d09cb

Check out this link for photos from Week 2:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=229219&id=782935653&l=2cc7289179

Videos will soon follow...

Whew...survived the first week!

2009-03-11T00:57:00.000-07:00

We were released from the hospital Monday, March 2nd around 6pm and finally got to bring our beautiful baby home. We can't stop staring at him. Like most parents we are convinced that he is the cutest baby we've ever seen! And he is such a good baby! He's not much of a crier yet which we appreciate...he just grunts to let us know he needs help.

The first night went pretty well...Jonah ate every two hours and went right back to sleep! I was so excited! But then for a few nights he didn't want to sleep after his 4pm feeding...his eyes were wide open and he just wanted to play! This wasn't too surprising because he was always kicking around 3-4am when he was in the womb. But it was a little rough. For the last few days it seems like his sleep/wake cycle is on track, but the poor little guy has been having a lot of digestive problems. He's been groaning and straining whenever we lay him on his back. And we don't want to lay him on his stomach, so last night Ryan ended up holding him while he studied until 4am and then I took him until 8am. We had an appointment with our pediatrician today and she gave us some good suggestions. I'm going to try eliminating some gas-causing foods from my diet and we got a little tummy medicine for him. We've also had him nap in his car seat today and that position seems to work a lot better for him. I'll let you know how it works out!

The next two weeks are going to be crazy for us because Ryan has several quizzes and finals. It's just so hard for Ryan to focus because all he wants to do is play with Jonah! (And respond to all the recent comments on his blog.)

We feel so lucky to live close to both of our families. Ryan's parents came up Tuesday and Wednesday to help, and help they did! They cooked, cleaned, did laundry, and in their "spare time" they held and played with Jonah. =) Thank you Jill and Randy! And my Mom was here for almost a week (just left today) and she spoiled us with amazing meals, a clean kitchen, clean clothes, and open arms to take Jonah in the wee morning hours when we are just too exhausted to rock him back to sleep.

All in all, we are loving our new role as parents. We are tired but we know that these first few weeks are always hard. Jonah brings us many more smiles than tears! And he's just so darn cute that it's impossible to be mad at him (for long. =0)

Jonah's Epic Adventure!

2009-03-01T21:31:00.000-08:00

This is a video we put together today. It covers the time leading up to Jonah's birth and it has some clips from the rest of the day. Its about 10 minutes long so it might take a little while to load. This is another one that looks great fullscreen. Hope you enjoy it!

Jonah Ribeira, born 9:59am on Feb 28th!!

2009-02-28T18:20:00.000-08:00

Our son came this morning, after a very quick labor. He is healthy and happy. He's eating well and has been sleeping most of the day. We are so happy to finally get to meet him and we're excited to get to know his personality over the coming days. We thought we'd provide some videos for those who won't get to see him for a while. They're small but be sure to click the "full screen" button in the bottom right corner of each video. They look great! And there's a photo album after the videos.

And then check out our Facebook Photo Album!

The Fact of My Ignorance

2009-02-24T13:43:00.000-08:00

My husband, Ryan, has started a blog! Not the public diary kind mind you, but the kind where he can discuss politics, philosophy, religion and other of life’s more weighty matters. Ryan spends a great deal of his free time researching these topics and I think you will find his posts both informative and thought provoking. Here's a link to his introduction: The Fact of My Ignorance. I hope that you will read his blog often and that you will feel comfortable commenting. It's a great place to discuss themes that we don't normally dig into on our "mommy blogs."

Photo Tag!

2009-02-18T23:25:00.000-08:00

Stacy tagged me over a week ago but better late than never, right? Here's how it works:

1) Go to your picture folder, or wherever you store your photos on your computer
2) Go to the sixth folder and pick the sixth picture
3) Post it on your blog and tell the story that goes along with the picture
4) Tag three friends to do the same thing

Stacy tagged me and I'm tagging Julie Ogden, Christina Bess, and Sarah Chilton.

I'm glad that this was lucky photo #6 in album #6 so that Ryan finally gets some face time! Ryan was posing in the kitchen of our first Wymount apartment on my birthday in 2006. He took me that afternoon to see an exhibit at the Springville Art Museum. =) I love my husband!

Watch My Belly Grow

2009-01-22T00:12:00.000-08:00

So here's my first attempt at a slide show!

Artistic Ventures

2009-01-05T00:41:00.000-08:00

For those of you who don't know, I absolutely love art and am trying to make it as a full-time artist. A couple of months ago I was contacted by a former BYU professor who is also the artistic director for Covenant Communications about doing a painting for a Mother's Day Book. Above is the painting that will be published later this year.

When Ryan and I first moved to Sacramento in July for him to begin Medical School at UC Davis, I went around to different galleries hoping to find a staff position. I talked to the owner of Smith Gallery Midtown and showed him my website www.gaylynnart.com. He wasn't looking for an employee but offered me gallery space to display my work and free studio space to paint. It was a great opportunity that lasted two months and I made some great connections. In August I did this painting of Sister Johnson and put it up in the gallery which led to two portrait commissions.

Here is a picture of my current studio space. It is conveniently located in my kitchen so I am close to everything I need for sustenance. =)

Below are the two portrait commissions that I finished in time for Christmas. For some reason the first image is really desaturated. The real painting is more vibrant.

A couple of months ago I was also invited to participate in a mural wall project to help beautify midtown. A wall was divided into several shapes and over 50 artists were invited to donate some time to paint a section of the wall. I decided to paint a little girl in green.

Baby Belly

2008-11-29T14:39:00.001-08:00

Now there can be no doubt that I am pregnant! I will be sure to post more pictures of the baby belly during the final trimester when it really expands!

Our first post!

2008-11-09T19:42:00.000-08:00

After much encouragement from family and friends, we have finally started a blog! We know that our blog will generate more interest in about four months when a little boy (name still in question) joins our family, but we'll use this time to figure out how to post pictures and videos and all that good stuff!