CandyLand: 2010

I am a bad, BAD blogger! Truth is, I don't have much time to do it these days. And any worthwhile pictures of my growing family ends up in Facebook. It takes too much time to upload them somewhere then put them here. So words is all you will get today!
Let's see, I think the last time I blogged it was about Christmas. So I will break us each down and give you the scoop!

Ryan:
Ryan is going through major growth spurts. His language is incredible now, as is his vocabulary. He will end his days at First Years next week and be a 5 days a week student at an elementary school in the Fall. This Summer we are hoping to do some VBS's and swim lessons with him. I need to keep him working because he has boundless amounts of energy. He makes me tired just by watching him! He is doing the typical brother things. He does like to play with Erin but he also says, "She's touching me. NO, Erin!" I see jealousy come out some days. And his favorite person is Daddy. And he likes his back scratched a lot. His favorite character these days is Spiderman. More importantly, it is Venom. Somehow Ryan thinks he can make him a nice boy. haha So gone are the drawings on his wall of the UP house with balloons, GeoTrax, Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs and Hot Wheels. It has been replaced by the webbed friend and villain.

Erin:
First off, she's crazy. When we went through Ryan's first 4 years, we thought, "Wow, he is giving us a run for our money." Erin is making us run for our lives. Not only is she super active like him, she does all the bad things he never did. She eats EVERYTHING and I mean that. She eats trash, dirt, whatever she can get her little hands on. I call her part billy goat. She also sticks her hands in light sockets, dives off beds and couches and plays in the toilet. I can't take my eyes off of her. I am fairly certain our insurance company will grow to dislike her. I am just waiting for the putting stuff in the nose thing to start. She is talking already, shaking her head No. Running. Doing lots of crazy dances. She is such a joy to watch grow up, minus the billy goat part. That part is just gross.

Allen:
Hmmm, what to say here. He's working a lot. Playing softball. He is still part of the finance team at church. As soon as he comes home, Erin runs and screams into his arms. Ryan runs and hides from him, just so he can find him. He's such a great dad. And he is in charge of my personal marketing. More on that with me. We are finally doing a Bible Study together. So, we are excited about that.

Me:
In January, I was let go of one of my part time jobs, which was a blessing. I constantly felt like I was letting everyone down, whether it was my family, my home or my jobs. SO, I wanted to cry because of the loss of income but just couldn't. A load had been lifted off of my shoulders. I kicked it in high gear with Candyland Bowtique. We are (me via the net and Allen in person)marketing like crazy in the surrounding areas. I am still in 2 stores in the Central Florida area, which seem to do well. And I just picked up my 3rd store in NYC. So exciting! It's a children's boutique, so I am in the market I need to be in. Now if only a celebrity would pick one of my bows up, I'd be happy! We have hopes for the company. Allen wants it to grow so he can be Mr. Mom/retire, I tell him he is dreaming. Baby steps. The awesome thing is that I have met some wonderful ladies through all of this. Some that are going through the same things as me, growing businesses. Allen has been tremendously helpful through the marketing and late nights. I am still trying to learn how to balance all of this out but I am getting there, I think!
I also got to spend the weekend in March with some of the best girls I know up in North Carolina. We spent a lot of time laughing, crying and playing. And we all went zip-lining in the forest. It was awesome. I love them so much and cannot imagine my life without them!

And what's on tap for our family this Summer? Playing for sure. And working. We are going to my family reunion this summer up in Kentucky. We hope to stop on the way up and visit some new places and see some old faces (not physically old, well some may be but...well you know).

If you have gotten this far, without my pictures, I applaud you. I will try to update more often!

Here is the update in picture form...

It was a very busy bowmaking time. We did 3 craft festivals. Became a part of 2 stores. Working on more. I like being in the stores and finding new ones.
Erin helps me organize ribbon

And tries out new products for me

Ryan is growing up too fast. He wants to be the boss. That is challenging. We could swear he will end up in the movie industry with his loves for movies. He acts out whole movie sequences. He quotes lines. He dresses the part. It's crazy.
When it comes to Erin, he constantly says, "Erin is doing _____!" "She's touching me!" There isn't much play there yet. BUT I think there will be because they are both fast-paced. She watches him run and wants to join him.

Since I blogged last, Erin has already mastered crawling.

Pulling herself up on stuff.

We have had to lower her crib because of this

Mostly, she is a ball of smilesand has a great personality. Goes with the flow. So nice for the second child.

I will post an update from Christmas next.