life of riley (and JD)

Riley and JD

2011-03-03T21:20:00.001-05:00

JD riding his "motorcycle"

2011-03-03T21:18:00.000-05:00

Monti

2011-03-03T21:16:00.001-05:00

Here is a good picture of JD's favorite blanket, whom he has named "Monti." I don't know why. He made it up himself: "Monti Blankie."

Chinese New Year

2011-03-03T21:07:00.002-05:00

This is JD, dressed as a Chinese lion, for the Lion Dance for Chinese New Year. We brought this mask to Riley's classroom with a bunch of other Chinese New Year treats to celebrate the Year of the Lion. It was a lot of fun!

Swimming!

2011-01-23T22:30:00.001-05:00

JD pretends to swim in the tub every night

Budding Ballerina

2011-01-12T18:59:00.002-05:00

As much as Nana Plante does not like ballet, she still brings Riley almost every Saturday to her class at the Providence Ballet Company . . .

Look at how big the kids are!

2011-01-12T18:51:00.002-05:00

Kid update: they now play together. Not always but a lot. And it's fantastic.

Riley is 4 now. She is 41 inches tall (80th percentile) and a mere 36 lbs (not even 20th percentile). JD is also a tall peanut, weighing about 26lbs. I can't remember how tall he is, but he has the same percentiles as his big sister.

Riley goes to preschool at Happy Hearts 3 days a week for 2.5 sweet hours. She tells me her favorite activities are singing and art projects, but I wonder if bossing other kids around is in her top 10 favorites, too. She also continues with ballet, sports gym, and swimming. Her amazing accomplishment this year is learning to read. She spends hours reading and practicing her printing. She's very determined.

JD, now 18 months, also loves books, but he is more excited about trucks, tractors, cherry pickers, drills, hammers, screwdrivers, etc. His other favorites include anything that Riley has or wants or does. His big milestone has been word explosion. His vocabulary astounds me: motorcycle, caterpillar, helicopter . . . but he is also now putting together short sentences and using pronouns! "I do it," "I want Riley juice," and "I poop, change me bum." His choice of conversation isn't always the most sophisticated. His activities now are library story hour, gym class, and Music Together.

More snowy day pics

2011-01-12T18:50:00.000-05:00

The New House (in the snow)

2011-01-12T18:48:00.002-05:00

It's good to know that even with a foot plus of snow, the new house stayed warm and cozy. Riley tells us that she loves the brick house because "the big bad wolf can't blow it down!" Now that's security . . .

Anyway, we had a great day being snowed in! It was the first time in a long time that both Matt and me were not "essential" staff at a hospital, and we got to play with our kids the whole day.

The Big Move

2010-12-02T21:02:00.001-05:00

We left our wonderful house of 8 years in October and moved to East Greenwich, RI.

Uncle Denis' 50th Birthday!

2010-12-02T21:01:00.000-05:00

Halloween 2010

2010-12-02T20:59:00.001-05:00

Two bumblebees . . .

Halloween 2010

2010-12-02T20:58:00.000-05:00

Pilgrim Hat

2010-12-02T20:55:00.003-05:00

Riley made this hat at her school. She is very proud to be big enough to go to preschool! She is in the 3-year-old class, and she goes for 3 half days per week. Her favorite activities are art projects and reading. She is learning to sight read very well, too!

Thanksgiving 2010

2010-12-02T20:51:00.002-05:00

This may be my favorite picture of the year. We had a fantastic Thanksgiving in our NEW HOUSE! My mother helped me cook, and we have 15 hungry guests. No one seemed to mind the fact that we have no furniture in our beautiful new home . . .

Cameron, JD, and Riley

2010-12-02T20:48:00.002-05:00

November 2010

Where have we been?

2010-12-02T20:42:00.002-05:00

Well, it's been a long year. It's hard to come up with excuses why we've abandoned the blog . . . but I'll try.
First, we got the new Mac, and it took me about 6 months to understand the simplest things on the new computer (I don't pretend to be computer-literate).
Second, two kids keep you busy. JD is an active little boy, to say the least.
Oh, and we bought a new house, Matt got a new job (finally), and I still work full time . . . Anyway, I apologize! But I will post some pictures NOW!

Riley and JD, May 2010

2010-05-26T21:38:00.002-04:00

So many milestones . . .
JD is walking, says a few mumbled words ("mama," "dada," "cat," "car"), eats EVERYTHING, gets into EVERYTHING

Riley is such a big girl now. She can right her name and can read a few words. Her vocabulary is huge, and she asks such profound questions: "Mommy, what is electricity? How does it work?" She is the best big sister.

Summer days . . . in May

2010-05-26T21:36:00.000-04:00

T-Ball

2010-05-26T21:35:00.001-04:00

Riley plans on being ready for T-ball next year . . . she'll be too young this year, but that isn't stopping her from practicing.

Mother's Day

2010-05-26T21:33:00.000-04:00

Matt's Spring Training with the Red Sox

2010-05-26T21:28:00.001-04:00

JD's first shoes

2010-05-26T21:15:00.001-04:00

JD started walking in April--at 10 months! Here are his first big-boy shoes . . .

Swim Lessons

2010-05-26T21:13:00.000-04:00

Riley is taking swim lessons at the YMCA. She is a Pike!

Standing!

2010-04-15T22:16:00.003-04:00

JD started standing independently in March 2010 (not even 9 months old!)

Easter Brunch at Pawtucket Country Club

2010-04-15T22:14:00.002-04:00

Easter 2010

2010-04-15T22:11:00.001-04:00

We had many Easter egg hunts this year. Riley is an egg-finding expert now. JD isn't so bad, either, with a little help from his sister.

Trying out the new mac

2010-04-01T22:49:00.004-04:00

I'm trying out my new Mac and I'm having a hard time uploading (or is it downloading?) pictures . . .

Crawling

2010-02-15T19:38:00.000-05:00

JD has learned lots of new tricks in January. He also has mastered crawling and pulling himself to standing. Ugh. It's time to baby-proof the house again!

Teeth

2010-02-15T19:36:00.000-05:00

Sometime in January, JD sprouted two teeth (bottom left came first, and then right appeared a day later). He barely fussed!

JD at Riley's Party

2010-02-15T19:34:00.000-05:00

JD jumped right into Riley's party. His favorite activities were crawling and rolling around.

The Birthday Cake

2010-02-15T19:33:00.000-05:00

Riley is 3 (again)!

2010-02-15T19:32:00.000-05:00

Riley had her toddler birthday party in January. Better late than never! It was a sports' gym party with a Dora the Explorer birthday party.

Fancy Riley

2010-02-15T19:31:00.000-05:00

Riley went to a Fancy Nancy birthday party for her friend, Reese. Riley fit right in!

Christmas Eve 2009

2010-01-10T21:19:00.000-05:00

Christmas Morning

2010-01-10T21:17:00.000-05:00

Christmas 2009

2010-01-10T21:15:00.000-05:00

Let It Snow

2010-01-10T21:14:00.000-05:00

Daddy and JD December 09

2010-01-10T21:13:00.000-05:00

Here's Matt and JD. What the picture doesn't show you: Matt has just finished wrestling with the Christmas tree (JD's first Christmas tree) with Riley "helping" the whole time. There are pine needles everywhere. Riley is eating the candy canes. The cats are petrified and hiding. It was a great start to the holiday season.

Christmas 2009

2010-01-10T21:06:00.000-05:00

Our yearly tradition is to see Santa Claus at the nursing home where 95-year-old (or is 96 now?) great-nanny Reidy lives. Riley isn't a big fan of jolly ole' St. Nick, but she handled a family picture OK.

January 10, 2010

2010-01-10T21:00:00.000-05:00

Here's the update on the kiddos:
-Riley is 3. She is the happiest, most willful, sweetest Big Girl. She knows her letters and numbers, and we're working on reading now. She is remarkably protective and caring to JD.
-JD is 7 months old. He is creeping and (sadly) will be crawling soon, despite my best efforts to stop this progress. He has one lone tooth on the bottom left. He eats mashed everything that isn't green, but his favorite thing in the world is still milk from the source (mom). He still is very laid back and rarely cries. He smiles and laughs all day, Riley being his greatest entertainment. He now is very curious, getting himself into quiet trouble.

The update on Matt and me:
-Matt is halfway done with his final fellowship, Sports and Arthroscopy at UMass Medical. He is planning to present a paper in New Orleans in March, and he also has a trip planned to do entrance physical exams on the Red Sox at spring training in Florida.
-My life is not that glamorous. I'm still working at Rhode Island Hospital, supervising the internal medicine residents. I have also started working at Home and Hospice Care of RI part time. I'm anxious for a time when I can spend some more time with Riley and JD . . .

Hope you all are having a wonderful 2010!

Dartmouth Reunion

2010-01-10T20:48:00.000-05:00

We got together over the holidays with Matt's best friends from medical school: Jay & Michelle and Terry & Christie. We realized that in 6 years, the 3 couples managed to produce 7 children . . . Oh, and everyone has started their careers, too, all in different fields of medicine. Yikes.

RILEY IS THREE!

2010-01-10T20:44:00.000-05:00

Riley turned 3 on December 28, 2009. We celebrated at Karyl and Brian's house with a Candy Land cake and lots of yummy treats. Riley had a great time, and JD got to meet even more of the family. Thanks to the Wongs for letting us crash their house (again)!

RILEY IS THREE!

2010-01-10T20:39:00.000-05:00

Happiest Baby on the Block

2009-12-10T20:45:00.000-05:00

JD is still the happiest baby I've ever seen (OK, I'm biased). He is now 6 months old. He weighs 16 lbs 11 oz (25th percentile) but is 28 inches long (100th percentile)!

December is COLD

2009-12-10T20:44:00.000-05:00

2009-12-10T20:43:00.000-05:00

Riley's Future Career

2009-12-10T20:42:00.000-05:00

Riley was so proud to visit a fire station in November. She loved playing on the trucks.

2009-12-10T20:41:00.001-05:00

Polar Express

2009-12-10T20:41:00.000-05:00

I took Riley and JD on the Polar Express train this year with their grandparents. Everyone had a great time.

JD is almost 5 months old

2009-11-03T22:02:00.000-05:00

Pre-Halloween

2009-11-03T22:01:00.001-05:00

Practicing for Halloween

2009-11-03T22:01:00.000-05:00

Here is the cow costume (it has a tail, in case you were worried)

Practicing for Halloween

2009-11-03T22:00:00.000-05:00

I have a bunch of outfits for JD that Matt thinks are ridiculous (and are sure to embarrass JD later in life). Included in this are the leg warmers (Baby Legs). This is JD's hedgehog hat.

Red Egg & Ginger Party

2009-11-03T21:58:00.000-05:00

Red Egg & Ginger Party

2009-11-03T21:57:00.003-05:00

Red Egg & Ginger Party

2009-11-03T21:57:00.002-05:00

Red Egg & Ginger Party

2009-11-03T21:57:00.001-05:00

Red Egg & Ginger Party

2009-11-03T21:57:00.000-05:00

Red Egg & Ginger Party

2009-11-03T21:56:00.002-05:00

Red Egg & Ginger Party

2009-11-03T21:56:00.001-05:00

Red Egg & Ginger Party

2009-11-03T21:56:00.000-05:00

JD's Red Egg & Ginger Party

2009-11-03T21:55:00.000-05:00

JD's Red Egg & Ginger Party was a great success! It was on October 25, 2009, at Pawtucket Country Club.
We were so lucky to have so many family and friends present, including 24 toddlers!

The food was a delicious brunch and omelet bar.
Activities included pumpkin decorating, a penny candy bar, and a magician (who made balloon animals)!

JD did not make a peep for the entire party. Riley was a social butterfly and played with her cousin and friends for hours.

JD's BFF EJ

2009-11-03T21:53:00.000-05:00

JD and EJ are already best friends forever.
(EJ is Elizabeth and Jason's son, who is 6 weeks older than JD)

Fall 2009

2009-11-03T21:50:00.001-05:00

Pumkin Pickin'

2009-11-03T21:50:00.000-05:00

Riley picked her own pumpkin at Jaswell's Farm this year.

Pumkin Pickin'

2009-11-03T21:49:00.000-05:00

Pumpkin Picking

2009-11-03T21:48:00.000-05:00

The Family

2009-11-03T21:47:00.000-05:00

October 2009
(right to left)
Riley, JD, and Bitty Baby

Solids!

2009-11-03T21:42:00.000-05:00

Yup, our solid JD is eating solids like a champ. Sweet potatoes so far seem to be the favorite, but he's willing to try anything.

Ready for a Big Boy Bed?

2009-11-03T21:41:00.000-05:00

JD loves Riley's bed. Actually, he loves anything to do with Riley . . .

The Alter Ego, "Bitty"

2009-11-03T21:40:00.000-05:00

Riley's Bitty Baby (creatively called, "Bitty") has become her alter ego. Riley will tell us, "Bitty no want to go to bed. She not tired" or "Bitty no like spinach. Sorry."

On this day, Riley explained to us, "I think we should take the double stroller because Bitty wants to ride next to JD." We thought that meant that Riley wanted to ride next to JD. We were wrong. It was really Bitty who wanted to ride. And so Matt was stuck pushing JD and the baby dolls while Riley clucked at him the whole time: "Be careful! Don't bump Bitty! Bitty's cold! Cover Bitty!"

From whom does Riley get that personality???!

Halloween 3

2009-11-03T21:36:00.000-05:00

Riley was awake until 10:30! She had a little too much sugar . . .

Halloween 2

2009-11-03T21:34:00.001-05:00

JD was the happiest monkey we saw that night . . .

Halloween

2009-11-03T21:34:00.000-05:00

The Plante kids were 2 little monkeys this Halloween. Riley collected quite the loot. JD didn't get candy this year, but he had a great time touring the neighborhood with his big sister!

Big Sister Riley

2009-10-05T22:46:00.000-04:00

Riley is a big helper these days. She insisted on feeding JD here.

JD's First Carousel Ride

2009-10-05T22:42:00.000-04:00

JD's had to watch Riley ride this carousel too many times . . . He finally got to ride himself!

Whatever JD does . . .

2009-10-05T22:41:00.000-04:00

. . . Bitty does.

If JD eats, Bitty eats. If JD needs a diaper change, Bitty gets her diaper changed. If JD sleeps, Bitty sleeps. Riley is a very good mommy to her doll!

October Update

2009-10-05T22:39:00.000-04:00

We are a very busy family these days. Matt has an hour commute this year to his sports medicine and arthroscopy fellowship. I am back to work full time plus. Riley has so many activities: gym, library storyhour and crafts, music class, playdates. JD can barely keep up! It's a good thing he's a laid-back, happy baby.

First Haircut #3

2009-10-05T22:30:00.001-04:00

Haircut #2

2009-10-05T22:30:00.000-04:00

Note the lollipops in Riley's shoes

First Haircut

2009-10-05T22:29:00.000-04:00

Riley, almost age 3, had her first haircut in September. She was a star! She didn't move an inch, and she got a lollipop for her troubles.

Potty Training

2009-10-05T22:27:00.000-04:00

OK, here is another picture that will humiliate Riley in 10 years . . .

But right now Riley is very proud of the fact that she is POTTY TRAINED!

(Bitty Baby is also potty training, but she wears diapers most days still)

Apple Pickin' #3

2009-10-05T22:26:00.000-04:00

Of course, I dragged Nana and Papa with us . . .

Apple Pickin' #2

2009-10-05T22:25:00.000-04:00

Apple Pickin' 2009

2009-10-05T22:24:00.000-04:00

This is Riley's annual apple picking trip at Jaswell's farm. She now eats more than she brings home.

First Foods

2009-10-05T22:23:00.000-04:00

JD is about 4 months old!
He weighs 15 lbs, 8 oz
27 inches long . . .

and so we started some cereal. Surprise, surprise: he eats like a champ!

Labor Day BBQ

2009-09-08T20:26:00.000-04:00

We celebrated the end of summer with our family. Riley spent the whole day with her cousin Kelly.

Strong Legs

2009-09-08T20:25:00.001-04:00

Here's a good shot of JD's Plante legs. There is a lot of muscle under that cellulite!

Guess Who's Rollin'!

2009-09-08T20:25:00.000-04:00

JD rolls! He started on September 4th, front to back. We think he can't hold up his huge legs and gravity pulls him over.

Activity Every Day

2009-09-08T20:23:00.000-04:00

Riley and I have been doing a "special" activity every day. This day was shaving cream artwork day . . . I do NOT recommend this activity unless you have a lot of time to clean up.

3-months-old!

2009-09-08T20:21:00.000-04:00

JD turned 3-months-old today. Today was also my first full day back at work. Everyone is doing OK . . . it's a big adjustment!

Where did the summer go?

2009-08-26T20:35:00.000-04:00

I'll be back to work on Labor Day (appropriate end to a maternity leave, LABOR day). Riley has started her fall activities and is back with Karen during the day--although we've been still squeezing in some pool time in the afternoons. JD will be starting with Karen next week . . .

I was so lucky to have the summer with the kiddos. I think my last summer off--no school or work--was the summer after 8th grade . . . I've really enjoyed this time!

JD is HUGE

2009-08-26T20:31:00.000-04:00

I never thought I'd have such a big baby! JD is about 14 lbs now!!

Philadelphia Weekend

2009-08-26T20:30:00.000-04:00

JD and I flew to Philadelphia (!) last weekend. We visited with my two college friends, Elizabeth and Tammie. We all have sons born in 2009. Left to right is Elizabeth, Tammie, Donnah; EJ, Jan, and JD.

JD and I flew alone, and he was wonderful. We'll be doing more trips together soon.

JD at Storyland

2009-08-25T09:42:00.000-04:00

JD's first carousel ride!

Storyland

2009-08-25T09:38:00.000-04:00

Tractors at Storyland

2009-08-25T09:37:00.001-04:00

Roller coaster at Storyland

2009-08-25T09:37:00.000-04:00

Storyland

2009-08-25T09:36:00.000-04:00

You can't see Riley in this photo because she's so tiny, but she is in the front seat of the roller coaster!