Ryan and Lizeth

Some new pictures of the kids!!

2011-08-14T20:09:00.000-07:00

Happy August!! It is now about 2 and a half months since Eli "Rocky" was born and he is sure growing. He is now up to right around 10 lbs and is starting to fill out a little bit. He is a well behaved little guy. Gets a little fussy when he is hungry but who doesn't. Leilani is a doll with him. She is always hugging and kissing him telling him how much she loves him. It's really cute most of the time. Just not when he is almost asleep and she startles him by hugging and kissing him.

Here are a few pictures of him from the past few months. It's been fun watching him grow.

He looks like a Rocky to me in this picture. My wife is still convinced his name should be Eli.

I don't think I have ever slept as comfortably as this kid looks in this picture.

Leilani turned 3 in July. I hope to be able to put up pictures from her birthday party later this month. We had a great time with friends and family. She got the princess bike that she has wanted. It is really cute to watch her ride it around. It is also a reminder that she is growing up :o(

We did a bowling night a couple of nights ago just for fun. She was not the best bowler in the world but she was the best cheerleader. Hugs and high fives all around as long as you did not get a gutter ball.

Took the kids to see Ringling Bros circus. Leilani loved it. Eli enjoyed looking around at everything. Beleive it or not he lasted the whole 2 1/2 hours and did not cry at all. She loved the elephants and the lions. She liked the clowns as well. Here are a few shots of the animals. Pretty awesome.

Eli Edward Peterson

2011-06-28T22:11:00.000-07:00

May 31, 2011 Eli Edward Peterson decided to join our family. He was two weeks earlier than expected. We went the the hospital in the morning and they checked Lizeth and sent us home. I headed back to work and Lizeth went home to suffer for the day. We returned to the hospital that night and the little guy was ready. It seemed like no time and he was out. We all were shocked to see his size. He was a little 4 pound 6 oz baby. For some reason he was not developing correctly. He was born 2 weeks early but doctors said it was as if he was 8 weeks early. The good news was he was well developed. Just little. He had a few issues that kept him in the hospital for a few weeks but we are very happy to have him home now. He is pretty awesome. He is a great sleeper and really mellow. Leilani has been absolutely incredible with him. She is always talking about how she loves him and how cute his toes are. He will be well taken care of by his big sister as the years go by.

Here are a few pics of him. I will get back on this blogging thing and put much more up in the weeks to come. Most of these pics are from his time in the hospital. We did a good job of getting out to spend time with him a couple times everyday while he was out there. The nurses and doctors were amazing and made it a good experience for us.

This is the foot that Leilani is so in love with.

Leilani was not allowed in to see him. We got an awesome nurse one day that bent the rules and made this special moment happen. She was in love!!

The little guy all loaded up and ready to come home.

Leilani and Eli!!!

Disneyland

2011-03-20T15:10:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I know it has been a very long time since I have posted anything on here. I have so may pictures that I really am not 100% sure where to began. I noticed that the majority of my pictures from the past few months involve Disneyland. I figured I would just grab a few of those and toss them on here. The pictures are in no real order and are from a few different trips over the last few months. She has fallen in love with the place and now asks to go on a daily basis.

We had a great time there with family. Leilani really enjoyed playing with many of her cousins while there. She also loves to get to meet the princess's.

Oh and as a side note our second child is due on June the 14th and it is going to be a boy!! :o)

Leilani is really excited about getting a baby brother.

Alright... Let's see if I can get back to doing this blogging thing on a regular basis.

Good times!!

2010-10-27T20:32:00.000-07:00

To Kristin, Veronica, Grandma, and everyone I have told I was going to blog I'm sorry it took so long but better late than never. I've got some pics from some fun times we have recently had.

LA Zoo trip. Monty and Kristin got Leilani some zoo tickets for her birthday so we took a trip there and had a great time.

I took a million pictures of animals here but none of them ended up cuter than Leilani.

Leiani loved the hippipotanis...It was actually a pretty awesome animal.

The monkeys were her favorite.

We took a camping trip to Silverwood Lake and had a great time with the family.

I love how she looks when she first wakes up.

She loved the tent. This trip was her first night time sleeping in a tent.

She does the cutest wink. It actually reminds me a lot of one of her other cousins.

Leilani and momma chillin' that night.

We played around in the lake the next day. She loved the water.

Here she is dancing with her cousin. These two little girls are awesome.

I'll get the halloween shots up before Christmas I promise..

Happy birthday!! (A month ago)

2010-08-03T21:11:00.001-07:00

Ok... I have been slacking. Leilani turned 2 on the 5th of July. Almost a month later I am finally posting pictures. All I can really say about it is we had a really great time with friends and family. It was a lot of fun to chat with everyone and celebrate Leilani's special day. A big thank you to everyone that came an helped make it so much fun.

Leilani loved the gifts from everyone.

Momma did a good job on Leilani's Hello Kitty Cake.

Normally she is a pretty clean eater but she went to town on this cupcake.

Leilani's BFF Elliot enjoyed the cupcakes too. She's too cute.

Leilani trying to get a laugh out of Grandma.

We went to Grandma and Grandpa's house afterwards and Leilani practiced playing momma. Thanks Chloe.

Some Summer Fun

2010-08-03T21:00:00.000-07:00

Leilani has been keeping cool in the pool this summer with us. She has finally warmed up to the floaties and does a pretty good job getting around with them. She is is the cutest little thing. I love it when she floats on her back with them on. She loves kicking her feet up in the air.

Family Reunions in Utah and Texas

2010-06-29T21:23:00.000-07:00

So the past two weeks have been pretty busy. We went up to The Peterson Family Reunion in Fillmore Utah one weekend. It was a lot of fun to spend the time with everyone that went. Leilani had the time of her life. She ran and ran and ran all day at the park. She wore Papa out.

I was pushing her in the swing and she was having a blast. I wanted to be the cool dad and push her higher like she asked. She went up and flew out from underneath the chain. Luckily Momma was there taking pictures and caught her.

I don't know where she got the energy to play so hard but she loved it.

Nikki was great with Leilani the whole trip. Leilani is lucky to have her as an Aunt.

All the first cousins. Oh, and Grandmother Peterson.

After all that running around she needed a bath. She loves this Elmo towel.

I have been to Fillmore a million times and have never been to the Avalon Theater. We always talk about going to it and never have. It was really cute and fun. My Grandparents saw gone with the wind at it back in the good old day. Shrek 4 may not be such a classic but it was fun.

So this past week we drove to El Paso for the Pina~Armendariz family reunion. It was a lot of fun. We got to meet family we had not met before and see family we had not seen in a long time. Leilani again had the time of her life. She made some new little great friends. She also played for 5 days straight.

The first night the family had a luau. Our tio here has lost a ton of weight. We hardly recognised him when we saw him. He looked great.

Leilani liked her little second cousin Alexis. This girl was a lot of fun.

Leilani enjoyed riding this little horse at Great Grandpa's house.

We swung by and visited with an old coworker and friend of mine. He son is adorable. Thanks for the visit Elvira.

These past weeks have been fun. I'm sad that they are over. Now it is back to reality and the office. Thank you to everyone that helped make these events memorable.

I'm loving my cake class!!

2010-05-16T15:02:00.000-07:00

So the being of this month my mom and I started taking cake decorating classes. The first day they gave us some meterial that we will be using and gave us a list of thing that we need to get. When the class ended I wanted to go and get everthing that was on that list. I am having so much fun with it and enjoying the time with my mom. I have always wanted to do something like this. I am glad that I'm finally getting the opportunity. Thanks Ryan for letting me do this and for watching Leilnai on saturday mornings.

Week #1 - The Clown Cake

Week #2 - Learned to make Flowers

Week #3 - Tres Leches Cake

Happy Birthday!!

2010-05-06T19:17:00.000-07:00

So when I got home from work on wednesday this is what I came home to.

Leilani and Lizeth made a cake for me and did some cute decorating. Leilani was super excited to show me my presents and the cake. She was very helpful to help me blow out the candles.

She loved the cake but not even close to as much as we love her. Lizeth and I went out and had a really nice dinner together too. Thank you girls for a fun & memorable birthday. I love you.

A fun weekend!!

2010-04-28T21:06:00.000-07:00

This weekend was Lizeth's birthday so I decided make it a three day weekend and have some fun. Leilani actually got it off to a good start when she decided it was time for her to be potty trained. She just started to tell us when she had to go and made it the whole long weekend only having one accident. Of corse the only time that she had an accident was the time that she was alone with Papa. We went to disneyland on monday and she did even told us every time she had to go there. It was pretty awesome. It was an awesome birthday present to momma. We love you princess. Keep up the good work!!!

So here are some shots of a fun day at Disneyland. She really had a good time.

We played for a while in the Tarzan tree house together.

This girl loves her ice cream!!

Chillin' with Abuelita

Leilani stomped around with Grandma and Grandpa.

Leilani and Momma sharing a hug!!

She was a little nervous about seeing Mickey.

She got in a silly mood in the Tiki Room. Believe it or not she fell asleep like 2 minutes after this. I think she is saying Papa is number 1.

So I put Leilani on the perfect horse, stapped her down, and she freaked out. She wanted nothing to do with riding on it. Lizeth was on the other side of the marry-go-round not knowing what was going on. So when she went to take a picture it ended up being Grandpa and not Leilani. It was pretty funny. I was sitting on the bench next to granma with Leilani behind him.

Happy Birthday Lizeth!! Thank you Leilani. I love you girls!!

Happy Easter!!

2010-04-06T21:50:00.000-07:00

Easter 2010 was a fun one for us. We spent it with the Hernandez side of the family. Leilani got to look for eggs and got spoiled by her Abuelita and Tias. We barbecued up some carne-asada and enjoyed each-others company. It really was a great day.

She looked too cute in her little easter dress.

This is her unwrapping the easter basket grandma got her.

She started the hunt in her little dress. Then we decided to changed her into something a little warmer and more comfy.

An Elmo basket and Sponge Bob shaped eggs. I imagine that is what a 1 year old would think heaven is like.

She fell and reached up to me saying, "Hand....Hand" and being the great dad that I am I took a picture. Then I did give her a had eventually.

When there is only one grandkid on that side of the family a kid can end up with a lot of eggs.

We took our eyes off her for two seconds and she found a way to get her basket down from where it was safely stored and make this awesome mess. Love you baby!!

The other day she tried to hide from her mom. This was her great vanishing act.

We made some oatmeal cookies on saturday and I had to snap some pictures. She got so messy. I was proud of her. It was a ton of fun. She loved eating the dough but was not a huge fan of the cookies when they were finished.

Some new pics!!

2010-03-23T19:33:00.000-07:00

So with a long time between postings comes more opportunities to take pictures. So my laziness has given me the chance to have plenty of cute new pictures to post now. Enjoy!!

Leilani Smiling with Mammy!!

Leilani Chillaxin with Abuelita Hernandez

Leilani's Great Grandmother Peterson is down visiting for the first time in over ten years. It was a lot of fun to get to spend some time with her.

She still likes her tub time.

With the curls hidden you can tell her hair is actually getting longer.

I asked her to brush her hair before we went to church the other morning. The brush stayed in there for quite a while. It was pretty funny.

Hygiene is very important to our little princess. She walked up to me like this the other day. I had to take a picture.

The faces are getting funnier with age.

She did manage to get a few little bubbles out.

I really have a hard time saying no to that face.

This was her first milkshake. She did pretty well with it.

Leilani's New Trick

2010-03-18T21:34:00.000-07:00

Well...... it has been a long time since we have posted. After getting a fun picture from my Sister Kristin and getting some encouragment from my Sister Michelle to post something new I knew it was time to put something on here. So here goes.

Thanks Kristin for the picture. Leilani loves to do this. She actually balances really well can last longer than Daddy can. I'll work on adding some more pictures this weekend. Leilani is really growing and getting to be even more fun every day. We love you Princess.

Long Weekend

2010-02-14T21:21:00.000-08:00

So I have been working a lot of hours and even weekends for over a month now. I have been looking forward to this long weekend for a long time. We spent the week deciding what we were going to with a free day as a family. We finally decided that we would spend the day at the Los Angeles Zoo. It has been a while since any of us have been there. I know Leilani would get a kick out of the animals. But it was not meant to be. Leilani started feeling sick on Friday and is still congested and not doing very well tonight. It has been a relaxing weekend. We have spent the weekend snuggled up with our sick little princess watching the winter games. She has shown little glimpses of returning to be herself again but it has been sad to see her so down.

Leilani's little play pal Elliot had been sick last week too. Her parents surprised us with this cake saturday night. It was so cool. Thanks Pat and Rachel. You two are too funny.

Here are a few shots of Leilani for Chase and Savy. We love and miss you guys. She always points at your pictures on the fridge and says Chase....Savy.... It is so cute.

Happy 2010!!!!!

2010-01-11T21:06:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year!! So here are a few shots from the past few weeks. I have a lot of catching up to do so lets get started.

Leilani's third favorite thing in the world is Elmo. (First and second are Poppa and Momma.) She loves Elmo's movies, Elmo's books, and Elmo dolls. She is in love with this little red monster and it makes for cute pictures.

We recently had some friends from Canada (Ryan, Joanne, their adorable daughters, and macho boys) swing by and visit while they were down here checking out disneyland and enjoying 70 degree weather. It was a blast to see you guys.

There daughter Mya was so sweet with Leilani. They have an awesome family.

We took some family photos recently. It was fun getting everyone together. Here are a few shots I took for fun.

What could possibly be cute enough to get everyones attention like this???

Yeah that is pretty cute!! Welcome to the family Makai!! Congrats Monty and Kristin.

Leilani loves to watch the other kids play.

These are two of my favorite people in the world.

It was a fun day. I will post the family pictures another time. Thank you Michelle for your patience with the kids.

My nephew Kyle had a really fun birthday party last saturday. There was tons of food and fun. there was a jumper for the kids and a Wii tournament for everyone. It was really a great day. Here are a few of my favorite shots of Leilani from the day.

Ok I am a bad dad. She falls and my first thought is take a pic cuz I think she looks cute!! I knew she was not hurt that bad.

A few seconds later she was in the jumper and super happy.

Here is a shot off all the Peterson girls in the jumper together. Cute girls.

For new years we went to a party out on San Bernardino with my in-laws. Here is Leilani dancing at about 11:45 at night with her grandma. She can groove even when she is being held.

We got to meet Lizeth's cousin Jocelyn's new baby Alexis. She is adorable. Leilani loved watching her.

Fun stuff!!

2009-12-28T22:01:00.000-08:00

If there is any one thing in this world that is going to drive me to drinking it is a show called Yo Gabba Gabba. These very odd characters sing songs that remain stuck in your head for days and days. Hit tunes like "don't bite your friends" and "I like bugs." My daughter has fallen in love with these monsters and as my bid for the national father of the year award continues I will sit and endure it along with her. It helped me capture this precious moment as they sang a song about wiggling and holding still.

Christmas 09

2009-12-28T20:01:00.001-08:00

What an awesome time of year. I have been enjoying two weeks off of work and getting to spend time with my ladies. It has been a wonderful vacation and Christmas was wonderful this year. We got to spend some good quality time with family. It really has been nice.

Christmas was a lot more fun this year for Leilani than it was last year. She loved seeing Christmas lights, trying to peek in the bags around the tree at grandmas house, and seeing the christmas cartoons that would come on tv. Her excitement made it fun for Lizeth and me.

Christmas eve we went to my my parents house and had the traditional pizza and rootbeer floats.

Leilani struck a few posses for us in her cute little outfit.

The kids all dressed and did the nativity story. They were cute and really good sports about it.

Leilani was that angry shepherd that you read about in the bible somewhere. She played the part well.

Leilani and Savy in their pj's before we headed home.

She slept well that night. I love it when she sleeps like this. She's got a biggo ghetto monkey booty going on there.

She enjoyed her kitchen set. She picked up the phone right away and begain saying lollo. I'm guessing it is Leilanesse for hello. She actually made me some plastic spaghetti and hot-dogs tonight. Yum!!

She did a good job unwrapping her gifts.

After we had our own little christmas that morning we went to Lizeth's parents place to spend christmas day. They had made tamales so we pigged out on those all day. Leilani was the center of attention there and everyone was super sweet to her. Here she is getting spoiled by grandma.

My mom gave this scarf to Lizeth. She brought it back as a gift from her recent trip to Israel. I thought Leilani looked adorable it in. Thank you mom.

Leilani's dirty little secret....

So we know she is cute..... but did you know that she wakes up in the mornings with an afro??? From the front you can see that it is out of control but it is not until you look at it from behind....

....that you can really tell how wild it is. We love you baby.

Thank you everyone that helped make this such and awesome christmas for our family. We feel blessed to have the wonderful family that we do.

Our little cook!!!!

2009-12-16T22:06:00.000-08:00

So Leilani loves to help out in the Kitchen. Every Saturday morning I like to make a big breakfast and she is always right there with me pouring, mixing, measuring, ....... you know all that fun stuff. She turns a 15 minute job into a 2 hour project but it is a ton of fun. She loves it. It testsn my patience some times but it really makes for precious memories.

A couple nights ago Lizeth and I were spending time with my inlaws and we got home about 9:30. Leilani was wide awake when we got home and wanted it to be kitchen time. She pointed to the kitchen and then started to point at things. I put a little of it all in her bowl and let her stir it for a while. Then I sat her at the table and let her eat her self created meal. It was a lot of fun.

Here is Leilani mixing her creation.

Gold fish, raisins, and half a cookie. YUM!!

She did eat about half of it. The rest ended up somewhere. I'm not really sure exactly where.

She will fold her arms and close her eyes for pray before meals as long as there is nothing on the table in front of her.

She had a cupcake for dessert tonight. I thought it would a lot messier. As soon as she got any frosting on her hand she would hold it up to me and not rest until I had cleaned it off of her. She will be my little OCD Princess.

Second Try With Santa

2009-12-13T22:21:00.000-08:00

So last year was Leilani's first time meeting Santa and it did not go very well. It involved a lot of crying. This year we had higher expectations. She got to meet him at a church activity on friday and it did not go well. It was sad to see her cry but honestly my only regret was not having the batteries in my camera charged. My cell phone bailed me out but it was not as good of a picture as it could have been. We love you Leilani.

Time for some new pics!!!!

2009-11-30T22:27:00.000-08:00

It has been a little while since I have really posted some pictures of this little girl so I figured tonight I better do it. I have misplaced the charger for my camera but I saw tonight there was just enough juice in it to snap a few shots and put them on my computer. I had the last week off work and really got to spend a lot of time with Leilani and really loved it. Every morning we would get up and make breakfast together. This morning I had to work and Lizeth said that Leilani kept asking for me. She was really bummed not to find me in the kitchen. When I got home she ran and gave me the biggest hug. I feel so lucky to be blessed with such a special little girl. OK here are a few shots from the last few weeks.

Bath time is fun. She likes to dip her head underwater and come up with bubbles on her face.

She loves to help in the kitchen. My goal is to turn all cooking over to her by the time she is 2.

Her hair is so curly. I love it.

She loves bouncing on this little ball. It is crack up to watch. She will fall off and laugh.

She now says "please" and can pretty much get whatever she wants.

This is her way of making sure the TV stays tuned to Yo Gabba Gabba!!

Cheese!!

Mammy bought this Laker gear for Leilani when she turned 6 months old. It was a little big at the time but perfect now. She loves to put it on and run around. She likes the noise the pant legs make when they brush up against each other. I had to post these before and after shots. Thanks Mammy!!

6 Months

Now

6 Months and nearly bald!!

Now and Cute and Curly!!

Go Lakers!!!!

"Cheese!!!!"

2009-11-12T22:50:00.000-08:00

So our little Princess has got a cute little vocabulary now. She can say all of the super important words in life like..... Apple, Thank you, Please, Agua, Papa, Momma, Grandpa, Chase, Sanana, Mammy, Ball, Wow Wow (dog), and a few others. This picture is her saying Cheese. She is a little chatter box. Only about 1% of it is understandable but 100% of it is cute. We love you Baby!!

Happy Halloween!!

2009-10-29T19:05:00.000-07:00

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A week to remember!!

2009-09-14T20:44:00.000-07:00

I got a week off work and we decided it was time to do something fun. Leilani had never been to Grandma's house in La Selva Beach in the Monterey Bay. We headed on up there and had a wonderful time. It was a lot of fun getting to spend time with Grandma and seeing some other family as well. We got to have lunch and visit a bit with my cousin Tana and her cute little boys. It was fun to see how sweet her son Woody was to Leilani. Both boys are wonderful. We also got a chance to visit with My uncles Ted and Mike and my Aunt Diane. Grandpa Ferd came by on friday and took us out to dinner. He is always fun to be around. Leilani gave him kisses and would point to him when asked "where is Grandpa." He really got a kick out of it.

So I have a ton of pictures from the week. These are in no particular order but they are all shots of some of the memories I will always have from this trip. Thank you Grandma for being such a wonderful hostess. It was wonderful to visit with you. Leilani seemed to love you just as much as we do. We love you!!

Leilani walking around on La Selva Beach

I used to play here Dennis the Menace park in Monterey as a kid. It was fun to see her having fun.

The shaky bridge was cool until a grown man decided it would be fun to run across. She lost interest really fast after that.

Her favorite part of the park was the maze. She walked in and out of it for a while and loved it.

Every kid has to get there picture in this shell at the Monterey Bay Aquarium.

FYI- You are not supposed to take the starfish out of the water. FYI again- daddy took it out and handed it to her. It was not momma's fault.

I love her in these PJ's.

Grandma and Leilani got along really well. Leilani warmed up to her really fast.

She was really good on the road. I love her feet in this shot!!

There was a tea set at Grandma's house that Leilani fell in love with. It was always fun to see where the cups would end up.

She loved looking at all the "aqua"

Momma and Leilani near where we took our engagement pictures.

She did a lot of sleeping in the car. This shot cracked me up.

Cute!!!

Enjoying the forest in Grandma's backyard.

The girls.

It was fun spending a whole week with Leilani and Lizeth.

Enjoying La Selva!!

Thanks again Grandma. You are Wonderful!!

1 going on 21.

2009-08-31T18:55:00.000-07:00

So this little girl has passed a year and now is getting interested in all the important things in life like purses, shoes, and make up. She stares with intrigue whenever she watches her momma or tias put on their make up. Lizeth has given her one of her old purses and Leilani loves it. She loads it full of anything she can get her hands on. I love watching her walk with it. She is all girl. She also loves these little pink shoes. She really likes wearing them. She also brings me my shoes to put on if I am walking around in the apartment shoeless. We love you Leilani!! Stop growing!!

She is not even 14 months but she has the pose down.

She got her hands on Momma's makeup and knew exactly what to do with it.

Last friday we welcomed a new tooth into this world. Thursday night was the worst night of sleep we have had since she was born. She rewarded us with 3 great nights after that.

She is still putting on the duck face.

Long time no post!!

2009-08-17T22:28:00.000-07:00

A lot has happened in the past month. Leilani has done a lot of growing and I have done a poor job of posting and keeping up with her. So what is new? She is a walker now. She is not longer content sitting and watching other kids play. Now that she can walk she wants to be right in the middle of it all. I had a hard time convincing her she was not ready to be playing soccer with some 5 and 6 year old boys the other night at a little get together we went to. I'm sure she could have held her own against them but I think that it was best if we did not find out.

So here are a few pictures of her from the past month.

Tonight we gave in and got Leilani a new "bigger kid" car seat. She loves it.

Lizeth is a very optimistic person. She figured that at 13 months Leilani is ready to start potty training so we got her the necessary equipment tonight. I don't know how ready she is but she sure looks cute when she swings her legs back and forth on it.

She falls asleep in some cute positions. The first one is my favorite.

Proper hygiene is very important to her. Her two little bottom teeth have to remain perfectly white at all times.

We have been swimming quite a but this summer. Leilani is a big fan of the agua.

These last few shots are just her being cute.

Weebles, Wabbles, but she don't fall down.

One Year Old Now!!!!!! Happy Birthday!!!

2009-07-06T18:01:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was Leilani's offical birthday. It was a long weekend because of the 4th so we just kinda partied all weekend. For the past few years it has been a tradition for us to watch the fireworks that take place at Upland High School. Last year during the firework show Lizeth started to feel the labor pains. They lasted all night and the next evening we had a baby. It was fun this year to sit in the same place and have Leilani with us. She was not a huge fan of the fireworks but she was a lot of fun to play with that entire afternoon.

Happy birthday Leilani. You are wonderful and have made our lives very happy. We consider you a blessing and never a burden. We love you baby!!

Here are some shots from this memorable weekend.

This was the cake at Lizeth's parents place. She loves it when you sing Happy Birthday to her.

This was the cake at my parents place later that day. This girl is treated to good by so many people. Thank you!!

Tia BeeBee's got her this toy. I took the picture because she sat down on the box like it was a chair and played with the toy. I thought it was super cute.

Lizeth and Leilani together waiting for the fireworks.

She is not walking yet but she is getting there.

She was super playful all day long.

Leilani and her Ducky getting ready to get scared by the fireworks.

We went and played at the part a little this weekend. Like her cousins before her Leilani is a big fan of the swings. Thanks Abuelo.

This was the fun cake. We let Leilani go to town on it. She was a little slow to start but really got into it and had a lot of fun.

1st Birthday Party!!

2009-06-28T23:47:00.000-07:00

Leilani tunrs 1 on July the 5th but due to other events we decided that we would do her party a week early. It was an awesome afternoon. We had a great turn out of friends and family and we are so grateful to everyone that came and helped make it such a memorable day. We got everything started at about 3:30 and many of us hung around until about 8:30. It was a warm day but really cooled off and was an awesome evening. The kids all played great together all day. We played some wiffle ball, a bit of football, and some extreme jump roping. It was a ton of fun to hang out with everyone and to play around. We were all burnt out at the end of the night.

Leilani is so special and has brought so much happiness to us. We feel extremely blessed to have her in our lives. Everyday she seems to get more and more wonderful. Thank you to everyone that came to celebrate this event with her. We love you all very much and really appreciate your love and support.

A princess that is ready to party!!!

1st Cake!!

She loved it when everyone sang to her. She got her foot in the cake while we were trying to get her to blow out the candle. If you look close you can see the foot full of frosting.

Thank you everyone. She got some very cute clothes, really fun toys, and great DVD. It was the perfect mixture of gifts. You guys rock!!

She was a happy girl all day.

She's been sticking her tongue out a lot recently. I love it.

Some of the kids cooling off with water balloons. Ya spend a hour filling em all up and watch them go in about 5 seconds.

Abuelo helping Leilani love tap the pinata.

This was the chaotic scene that followed the beating of the pinata.

This is how she ended her night.

Thanks again everybody!!!

Leilani's First Beach Trip

2009-06-07T23:11:00.000-07:00

Savannah turns two this month and so what better way to celebrate than to have a birthday party at the beach. What an awesome day this was. The whole family was able to make it out the beach for the first time in who knows how long. We could not remember the last time we all made it there. With Greg and Veronica moving to Hawaii it may be the last for a while.

We really wanted to see how Leilani would like it. She did not like it. She loved it. She loved the sand. She loved the water. She was just in heaven. Her mom thought the water was too cold to go in but Leilani loved it. I soaked her feet in it and she wanted more. That is my little girl!!! She played in the sand for a long time. She tasted a lot of it too. She has had 5 baths since she has got home and we are still finding sand in different crevices . We got there about 1 and stayed until about 9:30. She was a good sport the whole time. The day had swimming, football, fish tacos, hot dogs, watermelon, cupcakes, and top it all off smores and great fire that burned nice and warm. Thank you everyone that went. It was a ton of fun.

Mommy and Leilani chillin' in the sun.

Christian was showing us how to make sand castles.

Leilani was a little iffy about it all when we first got there.

Makin' smores by the fire.

This is how to eat a smore.

This was Leilani's first time touching the ocean.

Happy Birthday Savy!!

She just tuned 11 months. I love the hair.

I like watching the boys play together.

Two cute little California Girls.

She could not get enough of the sand.

I loved this picture. It really was an awesome day.

Leilani helped burry Chase. He loves the sand more than any person that I have ever seen in my life.

Sneak Peak - New Moon Trailer

2009-05-31T22:23:00.000-07:00

So tonight they released the trailer to New Moon. I am so excited about it. For some reason Ryan just isn't as pumped as I am about it. I wish it was November already. Enjoy it girls. I can't stop watching it.

The Blogs music can be turned off at the bottom of the page.

California Adventure

2009-05-24T04:12:00.000-07:00

Early this month we spent a day at Disneyland. We had twofer tickets so we decided to go to California Adventure the other day. It was a really fun day. Once again Leilani was very well behaved. I think she just enjoys being outside and people watching. She loves looking at everything and listening to the sounds. She made us a ton of new friends. Every-time we stood in a line she would make us new friends by getting friendly with the people around us. It realy was a great day.

She's getting pretty good at standing. No steps yet.

She looks like she was having fun.

Leilani loved the carousel. She got to do it a couple of times.

This is Leilani planning the day out for us.

This is how she knocked out at nap time. Too cute. Notice the missing shoe. We found it.

Lunch time. She loves fries.

Princess Leilani.

Dancing while getting pushed around.

She looked so little in this chair.

She was a good sport all day.

Nerd alert!! The new toy story ride is pretty cool.

Another great moment with Mr. Potato Head.

First swim!!

2009-05-20T23:00:00.000-07:00

I have been working a ton of overtime lately. Today was my first chance to get home at a nomal hour in quite some time. As soon as I got home I decided I wanted to go swimming with Leilani. She loves baths and has never been in the pool. We put her in one of her super cute bathing suits and headed out. She was so much fun in the water. She took it very serious. She really loved it but also seemed very curious and interested about it. We played for about 45 minutes and just had a blast. She would smile when we moved fast and then seem very relaxed when we would move slow. Afterwards we came inside, changed, and read a book. She knocked out on me after reading the timeless classic "That is not my Mermaid." Thanks for a fun evening Leilani. I love you!!!

Testing the waters!!

I love the feet. She almost fell asleep like this.

Fun daddy daughter time.

I love you baby!!

Michelle Peterson Photography - WOW!!!

2009-05-18T23:35:00.000-07:00

So this past weekend Leilani had the chance to get photographed by her Auntie Michelle. I thought it was a rough day. Leilani was not in the best of moods. She hated the grass and was just very cranky. Michelle kept assuring me that everything would be ok. I loved her optimism but had my doubts. Well Michelle has posted some shots and I am impressed. Please visit Michelle's Photograhy Blog to see more of these amazing pictures. Thank you Michelle. We could not be happier. You really did an amazing job!!

Ten Months Now!!

2009-05-07T22:13:00.000-07:00

Cinco De Mayo--My birthday and Leilani's 10 month mark. What better way to celebrate those two great occasions then to visit the happiest place on earth. This day was perfect. Lizeth and I took Leilani. Greg and Veronica brought Chase and Savannah and Dustin and Michelle brought Christian and Chloe. The weather was awesome and the park was not too crowded. All of the kids were great. I cannot remember any of them crying at all the whole day. Leilani was a little Angel. She sat on all the rides and just looked around with eyes wide open. She survived the haunted mansion and pirates. It was cute she would sit on my lap on the rides. Then if the ride turned dark she would jump up and put her head on my shoulder. When the lights came back on she would flip back around again.

So here are a ton of pics from the day. It was really a fun day that I will remember until I get old and senile. Thank you to those that went with us and thank you to everyone that texted and called throughout the day to wish a happy b-day.

When this is what you are looking at to start your day you know it is going to be a fun one!!

Leilani and Chase waiting in line for the Jungle Cruise.

The 3 Amigas!

Leilani grabbing Mickey's nose!

She was a happy camper all day!!

Stroller races are always fun.

Savannah did a good just of keeping Leilani entertained.

She took a break half way through It's a Small World. I wanted to do the same.

Chillin' like a villain!!

Mommy and Leilani made this a great birthday for me!!

Chloe being cute.

Not sure what Chase is looking at but I bet it is amazing!!

Thug life!!

Christian took a break at McDonald's at lunch time.

At the end of the night Savannah was a super adorable, sleepy, sticky mess.

This is how Leilani ended the day. All smiles in the morning and a sleeping princess at night. Thank you baby for making my birthday very memorable.

An eventful weekend!!

2009-05-04T22:19:00.000-07:00

This past weekend was a lot of fun. Friday night we had the chance to go out to eat with our friends Gordon and Abby. They were down from sacramento and had a bit of time for us. It was the first time that we have taken Leilani to a restaurant and she was awesome. She really surprised me a lot. She sat and ate while we ate and just enjoyed looking around and being out. She was a little sweetheart for us that night. We really enjoyed being able to spend the time with them and showing off our little princess. She really took to them well. They even were able to put her to sleep before we left. Thanks for the visit guys!!

Leilani had a ton of fun with Uncle GoGo and Tia Abby.

Leilani completely emptied out Abby's purse while we were sitting around chatting after dinner.

Saturday we had the chance to go to a couple of birthday parties. It was a lot of fun too. Valerie turned 1 and Jared turned 9. Thank you to both families for the invite. The early morning party had Mickey and Minnie and the afternoon party had a jumper. Thanks to Tim for getting Leilani and I a little bit of daddy daughter time alone in the jumper. She did a little bouncing and even humored me as I took her down the slide.

So all that fun wore this little girl out. Yes that is actually Leilani sleeping!! We dropped her off at Lizeth's moms place and went out and did a little shopping. This little girl was out at about 6. The bad news is she was up at about 3 in the morning not wanting to go back to sleep. She was in a silly mood and wanting to play. It was actually a lot of fun to play with her at the time. It was not fun though having to wake up early on sunday. We love you Baby!!

My Mother's Day Wish List!

2009-04-30T21:28:00.000-07:00

So I like Veronica's idea to make a top 5 list of thing that we would like for Mother's day. So here it goes.

1. Breakfast in bed

2. Some beautiful flowers

3. A day at the spa again

4. Some new running shoes

5. A new Purse

Happy Birthday to Me!!

2009-04-27T17:18:00.000-07:00

So Ryan did very well for my birthday this year. I woke up to Strawberry crepes that he made for me. Every Saturday he wakes up and makes me breakfast but this one was my favorite to date. Then we went and dropped Leilani off at my moms house and Ryan took me to a spa for an hour long massage. It was a couples massage so we both got one in the same room at the same time. It was an amazing experience. I have never felt so relaxed in my life. I could really get used to that feeling. It was the perfect birthday gift. Thank you so much Ryan. You are a wonderful husband.

After that we went home and took a little nap. It felt soooo nice. I slept for an hour but it felt like I had been out for 8. Then we went back to my parents house for some carne asada and some cake. I got a ton of Twilight stuff from my sister Yvette and date to get manicures with Lily. It was really the perfect birthday. I will never forget the day I turned 26. Thank you everyone that made it special for me.

Ryan just told me no post is complete without a picture of Leilani so here is a recent shot of her at my moms house.

Teeth and a New Game

2009-04-22T20:52:00.000-07:00

Leilani officially has a pair of teeth now. The two lower middle teeth have officially broken through. They look so cute. It really has been a ton of fun watching her grow. Every stage gets more and more fun. I'm really looking forward to the sleep though the night stage. Congrats on the teeth princess. We love you!!

Pretty Brown Eyes!!

So here is the new game. With crawling comes opening cupboards and scattering DVDS all over he floor. We knew this was coming but we were hoping it would be another month or so before it started. Notice all the chick flicks on the floor. Not a lot of macho movies. I guess we know who runs this house.

Crawling!!

2009-04-15T23:11:00.000-07:00

She has figured it out. We now have a crawler on our hands. She's not going to break any land speed records but it is sure cute to watch.

Happy Easter!!

2009-04-13T22:50:00.000-07:00

This has been a really fun easter weekend for us. Friday Lizeth and her mom went out easter dress shopping for Leilani. It turned out to be Easter Dress, a ton of toys, and other outfits shopping. She looks adorable it all of it so I thought I would post a few pictures.

This is the result of only being able to crawl backwards.

She actually started crawling forwards tonight. She pushes her body with one leg and drags the other. She will have it totally down soon but it is really cute to watch her crawl this way.

So here is the Easter Dress. Good choice Mom.

Saturday morning the family met up at a park in Loma Linda and had a really great time. We had a little easter egg hunt for the kids. We had a great lunch in the park. Chase and Veronica made a easter egg pinata. It really was an awesome day for everyone. It's always nice to get together with everyone and chat.

Chase tried to get his dad to eat this worm.

The kids tried to take off with the mustang.

Mi familia!

This kid has been waking pinatas since he was a new born. He's a pro!!

Leilani's first swing at a pinata. She needed a little help but she seemed to like it.

Chloe and Savannah going after the candy.

Trey is too cute!

Leilani!!! Stop growing!!!

Monty and Trey sharing a moment.

Kyle on the prowl for eggs.

Mia and Emma prior to the hunt. I think they were wanting to get started already.

After the pinata was destroyed this was the chaotic scene that followed.

It took Leilani about 2 seconds to fall asleep once she hit the car on the drive home. Thanks for the balloon Veronica.

Tyler was baptized saturday night. It is hard to believe that he is already 8 years old. Congratulations Tyler. You are a great kid and a great example to your cousins and siblings. Keep it up.

Nine months now!!!

2009-04-08T21:16:00.000-07:00

Teething is no fun. No fun for the parents or the children. Leilani has two teeth that are flirting with breaking through her lower gums. They are really making her uncomfortable. It's sad to see. She has been a little more fussy than usual but it is understandable. I do have to admit that she actually slept through the night a couple days ago. Thank you Leilani!!

So what has this girl been up to? She is now say "dada dada" a lot. I love it. She somehow can get to any place in a room without the ability to crawl. I have not quite figured out how she does it yet. She may crawl when I am not looking. I don't think she can but she will move all the way across a room quickly and I do not know how it's done. She is like some stealthy ninja baby. I have seen her crawl backwards. Maybe that is the secret.

Here are a few pictures from a fun night at Mammy's place. She played with Chase and Savy and had a good time. She is lucky to have such sweet cousins.

Here is Savy giving her some advice about life.

She loved riding on this thing.

Savy made faces while Chase let Leilani play with a walky-talky.

Cute kids!! Thanks for a fun night!!

The Easter Bunny vs. Santa

2009-03-31T19:15:00.000-07:00

This past christmas Leilani had the chance to meet Santa. I was not the happiest experience of her life. I don't know if it was the pressure of actually meeting St Nick or what but she was not a happy camper. Today we had the chance to introduce her to another annual visiter "The Easter Bunny" She actually had a really good time with her. She sat on the lap and took some cute pictures. We were happy and proud. She has matured a lot. The easter bunny was a lot cuter than Santa was.

Leilani got to find her first easter egg. It was a few weeks early but what the heck it was fun. She loved it and will not let us take it from her. She would make a wonderful Mother Hen.

This little princess fell asleep against me while we were reading a book. This has to be one of the greatest moments in my life. This was the first time that she did that. I'm sure that there will be many more to come but this one will always have a special place in my heart. Thank you Leilani!!

We make the face together and then laugh. She really loves to make me laugh and I love it.

I love this little girl!!

Funny Girl!!!

2009-03-15T22:33:00.000-07:00

I am so in love with this little girl. To go along with the duck theme of the blog Leilani learned to make a new duck face. It cracks me up. She did it constantly for a couple of days but now only does it a couple times a day. Thank heavens for cameras. I will always be able to remember it and tease her about it when she gets older.

Leilani's cute little duck face!!

I love it!!

The smiley face is pretty awesome too!!

Leilani took a little tumble this week. She got a little bruised up on her precious little face. I tried to get a shot of the bruises. If you look close you can see them on her forehead and cheek. they did not show up too good in the picture but once again she looked cute so I'll post it.

Andy and Nikki's Wedding Date

2009-03-08T21:38:00.000-07:00

It's official. Andy and Nikki are now husband and wife. Welcome to the Familia Nikki. It was a wonderful day. The wedding took place at the Redlands Temple and the ring ceremony and reception took place at the East Valley Golf Club. Nikki looked great and both of them looked very happy. Leilani was a great sport the whole day. She looked super cute in her dress.

8 Months Today

2009-03-05T23:18:00.000-08:00

So today is Leilani's eighth month mark. She is now 3/4 of a year old and we love her to death. Today we took her out and got her a new dress to wear for Andy and Nikki's wedding. We will post some pictures of her this weekend. She made some big accomplishments this month. She now will give sloppy wet kisses. She also now says her first word "Momma" Daddy is very jealous of this. Her legs are getting very strong and she will stand pretty well as long as she is leaning against something. She is also getting better about going to other people. We left her with Lizeth's mom wednesday night while we went out and she was great for her.

We love you Leilani. Happy number 8!!!!!

A fun trip to Grandma and Grandpa's House

2009-02-23T22:53:00.000-08:00

This past Wednesday Lizeth was talking with Dustin and Michelle and found out they were heading up to Utah to see Grandpa and Grandma Peterson. We decided that we might just do the same and worked it out. Work was nice enough to give me friday off and so we headed up early friday morning. Early like 3:00am early. The drive was about 8 hours and Leilani was an absolute doll the whole time. She slept most of the way. She woke up and just kind of enjoyed looking around. We were really grateful. We had a great visit with Grandmother. She is very sweet. Leilani put on a great show for her. I was really happy to get them together. We also got to visit with Grandpa in the hospital. Leilani was a little scared of him at first but warmed up to him quickly. They smiled and held hands for a little while. It was a pretty touching moment.

My cousin Alicia came down from Salt Lake with her little angel Brooklyn. I have to say that she is as cute as all of the pictures I have seen of her. Leilani was fascinated by watching Brooklyn, Christian, and Chloe play. The kids were just too cute for words. It was a really fun trip. Like always it went too fast but it was nice. Leilani gets to meet her awesome Grandma Carol at my brother Andy's wedding in a couple of weeks. I feel so lucky to have the grandparents that I have and for the chance for them to be in my daughters life. I really have been blessed.

So this was taken the first night. We had driven 8 hours and then spent all day up. When it was finally time for us to sleep this was our obstacle. She wanted nothing to do with sleep. It was happy time.

This is Leilani's first time meeting her Great Grandpa Peterson.

Great Grandmother Peterson and Leilani sharing a moment. ---Notice the finger. She is saying "Daddy is number one."

It was great to see Brooklyn and Alicia. Both are cute and as sweet as can be. Thanks for coming down and seeing us.

Leilani did a few new things to show off for Great Grandmother. This is her standing on her own for the first time. She is leaning against the table but it is a first. Good job girl.

All of the kids loved these little frog toys that they had at the house. Leilani loved eating them. They must have been really good. I don't know. I did not try one.

My brother Dustin's kid Christian had a good time beating the heck out of this tree with a stick. He loves that backpack. It is loaded with toy trains that he takes everywhere with him. He really is an awesome kid. We got to throw a little bit of snow at each other while we were up there.

This is a shot for my brothers to remind them it is always fun for everyone at Grandpa's house.

Silent Night!!!!!!

2009-02-16T19:06:00.001-08:00

Stop the Presses!!! Believe it or not. Leilani went to sleep last night at about 9:00 and did not wake up until 5:00 this morning. This has never happened before. We both got a great nights sleep. Thank you princess!!! Lets do it again some time really soon!!!!

The following pics don't relate to this post but I wanted to put the pics on here. We love you Baby!!!

Happy B-Day to Chase

2009-02-16T17:56:00.000-08:00

Sunday the 15th was Leilani's cousin's 4th birthday. His name is Chase and he is a super cool kid. He, just like all of his cousins, is super nice to Leilani. His parents had an awesome party for him on Saturday. It was at a park in Loma Linda. It it had been raining for the past few days so we were all worried about what the weather would be like. It turned out to be a beautiful day. The sun was out and everything worked out great. The food was great. The weather was great. The company was the greatest. I really love being around the family. I really feel blessed to be part of such an awesome family.

Happy Birthday Chase.

Chased got a ton of great presents. He really loved this Power Ranger Mask.

They all take checking out the gifts very seriously.

Mammy had a good weekend with Leilani. They spent some good quality time together with minimal tearage.

Savy gave Leilani a nice pile of Pinata Candy. So Sweet.

I never saw this candy again. Either Leilani ate it or there is a candy thief somewhere. The hunt for it continues.

Chase- I apologize for the following picture but it was too cute not to post. You may have lost the sack race but you won in the battle for the most presents that day.

Kyle and Tyler playing with the ball and paddle. They are getting too big.

Savannah looked so cute.

This was Savy screaming at a puppy. It would come close to her and she would run away but if it left she would yell for it to come back.

Dustin and Michelle's little girl Chloe is insanely cute as well.

Kristin got to spend some time with Leilani as well. They looked really happy together.

I loved this shot of Emma. It looks so, "No Autographs Please" to me.

7 Months Now

2009-02-05T23:54:00.000-08:00

So she keeps on getting bigger. This has really been a great month for Leilani. She is now an expert at sitting up. She has learned the art of clapping. She has also started eating foods other than her momma's milk. She is really a huge fan of In N Out hamburgers. Ok maybe not yet but she likes mushed apples, pears,bananas, rice cereal and all those other things we feed to our kids that we would never eat ourselves. She keepsgrowing cuter everday and her personality is really comming out. The only flaw she has right now is her sleep pattern. Any advice anyone has about how to get a kid to sleep for more than 3 hours without waking up would really be appreciated.

When she gives me these eyes she gets whatever she wants!!

She looked so cute after we got her ready for church I had to grab the camera and snap a couple of shots.

"Twilight"

2009-01-20T17:13:00.000-08:00

So many people have been blogging about how great the Twilight series was so I got very curious. Ryan went out and got me a copy of the book and it was not long before I was hooked. I started book one on Monday the 12th and by Monday the 19th I was done with book four. I felt so bad because I really neglected Ryan during this time. I am now excited about seeing the movie. I'll have to get to it before it leaves the theaters.
Thanks Veronica and Michelle for getting me hooked. I'm always up for a good vampire story.

Feeling better!!

2009-01-12T21:23:00.000-08:00

So Leilani has been feeling a lot better. We are really happy to have her back to normal.

Looking super cute in her new dress. Thanks Tia Lily!!!

Last Saturday we got together with the family to celebrate Leilani's half birthday and her cousin Kyle's Birthday. Mammy hooked Leilani up with this Laker gear. She has the chance to do a little growing into it. It should fit perfect right around finals time. Thank you Mammy!! We love it. She actually cried when I took it off of her. Leilani also got a great book from Mia and Emma. Thanks girls!!

She's been grabbing at the feet for a while but she is now eating them.

6 Months Today

2009-01-05T21:26:00.000-08:00

So today is Leilani's 6 month mark. Yesterday she seemed to be doing better but last night was a little rough on her. I took the day off of work to stay home with her and Lizeth. Lizeth is still feeling a little under the weather as well. This morning started a little sad but she really seemed to be doing better in the evening.

Leilani had a rough night. This is the sad face that have too too much of lately.

I know the shot is a little blurry but I thought it was cute. This is her looking at her medication with big eyes. She is not a fan of taking it.

We made her half a cake to celebrate her half birthday. She was in really good spirits tonight. We are hoping for a good night tonight. She really looks happy in the picture. She is amazing.

Leilani we love you very much and are super grateful to have you in our lives. Thank you for your smile and love.

Update

2009-01-04T21:36:00.000-08:00

It has been a rough couple of days for Leilani. About 3 o'clock saturday morning she started coughing and would not stop. This had happened a couple times so we decided it was time to take her in. We took her to emergency and she was diagnosed with Broncialitis. It was not a fun 4 hours in the hospital. They took xrays and did a breathing treatment on her that helped but made her miserable. After the breathing treatment she threw up a ton of phlegm. Then she sat there with tears in her eyes on the hospital bed. She had big red bags under her eyes and she was just whimpering. One time she made eye conact with me and then the whimpers turned into a full cry. I have never looked at anything that made me feel that sad in my life. I thought about taking a picture of her with my phone at that time but thought it might cost me the father of the year award so I didn't.

We got the diagnosis and the prescription and came home. She slept well that day. Saturday night she slept well too. Lizeth also caught a cold so now I have two lovely ladies I am trying to care for. Saturday night was stressful for me. I sat and watched Leilani sleep for a lot of the night stressing over her breathing. I finally got the the courage to go to bed but had to keep getting up and checking on her. I told Lizeth that Leilani would be our only kid because my heart cannot take worrying for another one.

Leilani is now getting back to herself. She giggled with me during a stellar game of peek a boo today and is back to smiling. Tomorrow our little princess turns 6 months old. I will post some pics of the resurrected smile then. She is asleep now and I fear snapping a pic would wake her up and further diminish my chances of the award. I love you all and thank you for all the prayers and support.

Here is a shot of a sad little girl on New Years. Tomorrows will be much happier I promise!!

Happy 2009 - Well.... not too happy so far

2009-01-02T21:36:00.001-08:00

2009 has not gotten off to a great start. Lizeth and I both have colds and Leilani is sick too. It's heartbreaking to see our little princess so sad. She is congested and really down. It's a helpless feeling to not really be able to do much to help her out. Thanks to Dustin for coming out and assisting with a blessing today. If you could all keep her in your prayers it would be appreciated. Any advice from some of you longer term parents would really be appreciated. Thanks a lot and Happy New Year!!!!!

One last post for 2008

2008-12-29T22:16:00.000-08:00

As this year draws to an end I think there is one last milestone that Leilani has reached that should be mentioned. She is now sitting up and loving it. Of course with the sitting up comes a lot of falling over. It is cute to watch. We took a few pictures tonight. This really has been a wonderful year for our family. We really have a lot to be grateful for. Thank you to everyone that helped make this year the greatest year of my life to date.

Christmas was great!!

2008-12-26T23:39:00.000-08:00

This has been a great Christmas.

Christmas Eve

On Christmas eve we got together with the Peterson side of the family and really had a fun evening. Each family did a little thing to help us get a little more festive. The kids sang and danced and really put on a great show for all of us. Here are a few highlights from the night.

All the kids were lined up joyfully to hear Grandpop tell them the poem "Twas the Night Before Christmas."

Chase and Savannah did an amazing rendition of Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. Thanks guys. It was awesome!!

Tyler, Kyle, Kory, and Trey did a great job with Popcorn Popping. Too cute. Thanks guys!!

Once there was a snowman was performed my Chloe and Christian. Super cute. Thanks. Chloe is one heck of a booty shaker.

In the sun they melted small-small-small!!

Mia and Emma did a little dance that they have been learning in there hip hop dance class. Good job girls. Keep on hiphoppin'.

These are possibly the two scariest pirates that I have ever seen in my life. These kids are too much fun.

Savannah stopped for a moment to wipe the drool from Leilani's chin with her bib. I think that Savannah is ready to babysit.

Christmas

Christmas was great. Leilani did not sleep well the night before. I like to think she was too excited about Santa coming but my guess is it was something else. At about 7 we woke up and started opening presents. Leilani was a great sport. She helped unwrap her gifts.

Leilani and I hanging out Christmas morning. Lizeth gave me this great Lakers blanket. I got to cover up with it while I watched the Lakers beat up on the celtics for Christmas. What a great day!!

We spent the rest of the day with the Hernandez half of the family. We had a great time playing games, hanging out, and having a great turkey dinner with them. I really have some great inlaws.

Leilani looked too cute in her little Christmas outfit.

This was how Leilani's first Christmas ended. It will be a Christmas that I will never forget. I have been blessed with a great wife and child. I really could not ask for anything else this Christmas.

Still Growing!!

2008-12-16T23:02:00.000-08:00

Our little girl is getting a lot bigger and funny. She is getting a really fun personality.

We are trying to teach her while she is young that the Lakers Rock!!

This will be Leilani's first Christmas. She loves to look at the decorations.

Savy is awesome with Leilani. I love to watch them play together.

Leilani can now make the noises she hears dad make all the time.

Leilani Meets Santa!!

2008-12-09T18:21:00.001-08:00

Leilani got to meet Santa tonight. He visited here at the apartment complex that we are in. Lizeth and I had a bet on how she would like him. Lizeth won. Leilani burst into tears even before making contact with Santa's knee. She would not stop crying. We had rush home to try to calm her down. We are hoping that this will not put her on the naughty list this year. Santa was a great sport about it and we are really greatful for it.
Thanks Santa!! Hopefully next year will work out a little better.

5 Months Old

2008-12-05T20:09:00.000-08:00

It is official tonight at 8:08 Leilani is 5 months old. She is at a very cute stage in her life. She is a little chatter box. We are super excited about spending our first Christmas with our little princess.
Thank you Leilani for your womderful little personality. You keep life fun and exciting.

A little Christmas fun

2008-12-05T17:23:00.000-08:00

You may want to turn off the music on the bottom of the page.

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Fun long weekend

2008-12-01T19:54:00.000-08:00

So Leilani can roll over now. Well she can on her left side. It was so exciting to see her do that. Now I can't leave her alone. I can't believe she is growing so fast. We were so excited to have a fun long weekend. Our weekend stared on Wednesday. Wednesday we just stayed home. We enjoyed having daddy home home with us. Thanksgiving was so much fun. We spent time with Ryan's family and my family. We came home that night and Ryan stared feeling sick. He got that 24 hour bug. Ryan was planing to go shopping on black Friday but he had to stay home. I felt so bad for him. He was feeling a lot better on Saturday. We decided to go on a date. We dropped off Leilani with my mom and went to the movies. We saw Four Christmases. I liked it. It was pretty funny. After the movie we went to go eat at Subway. After dinner we went and picked up Leilani and went home. Ryan surprised me with some pretty red roses. What a way to end our date night. Thanks Ry for being a good hubby. It was sad to see our long weekend end but we enjoyed having Ryan home with us. Thanks Ry for a fun weekend.

Here is Leilani rolling over.

Funny faces from our princess.

She loves sitting in the Bumbo Chair.

Roses From Ryan.

Movin' on up!!

2008-11-14T22:25:00.000-08:00

Well our baby has graduated from a bassinet to a crib. She had not been sleeping well and we noticed one day that she now likes to sleep with her arms out. Her reach had outgrown the bassinet that she has called her bed. We decided to put up the crib. Then a funny thing happened. As soon as we took the bassinet out of the room she got in a super good mood. While I put together the crib she was laughing and smiling like I have never seen her laugh before. We laid her in it and she just kept laughing. It was like she knew what was going on. I think it was just gas but it was super cute. You can see in the picture below that she can now spread out when she sleeps. She loves it. The girls is just awesome. Thanks to Mia and Emma for the crib :o)

Before-in the bassinet.

Now this is a happy kid.

Hogging the bed like her momma.

And here are just a few cute pics from bath time.

October has been fun.

2008-11-10T21:51:00.000-08:00

It has been a while. So where do I begin. October was an eventful month for us. Leilani and Lizeth took a trip to Juarez, Mexico to show off Leilani's cuteness to the falimia. It was a wonderful trip for everyone. Leilani got to meet her mommy's side of the family and got to take pictures with 4 generations of ladies. A lot of the pics below are from the trip that they took.

I am glad that they enjoyed the trip but I am also glad that they are home. They were missed like crazy.

This month we also moved into our new place in Ontario. It has been great so far.

This month Leilani got to meet her Aunt Abby. Gordon, she can't wait to meet you too.

4 Generations

Shots from Mexico!!

It was cold the day they left so Leilani got to sport her Jordan beanie.

Here are some random shots of cuteness for your viewing pleasure.

Ryan, Leilani, and the cousins at Halloween!!

It was a really fun night. The kids looked super cool. Leilani got a little hot in her costume so she did not make it to picture time as a pumpkin.

3 months old today

2008-10-05T17:33:00.000-07:00

At 8:08 tonight Leilani will be 3 months old. It has been a wonderful three months. Here are some shots from the day. She really is lucky to have such awesome cousins to hang out with. The girls are all really good with her. Thank you Mia, Emma, and Savannah for playing with her. She really enjoys all of you.

New pics of our little princess!!

2008-10-03T18:00:00.000-07:00

It is official. She is still cute. Here are a few new pictures of Leilani. She will soon be 3 months old. I cannot believe how fast she is growing. Lizeth gets to pic out most of her clothes. I found the Michael Jordan outfit and had to get it. Leilani has been a real blessing to us. We are so grateful that we have her in our lives.

Why we are excited about October

2008-10-02T19:34:00.000-07:00

We have decided to take up Veronicas challenge and write why we are excited about October and Halloween. I am so excited about this month for many reasons. This month is the month that we are moving out to Ontario. We have a place that is a lot closer to Ryan's work. It will save him about an hour in the car a day. He is really excited about that. I am also taking a trip to Mexico this month with my family. We are going to take generation pictures with my grandma, my mom, myself, and Leilani. Four generations. I will post the pictures once I have them. Ryan will not be going with us. He is going to be getting a new position at work. He will be training at that time.

I am also excited about halloween. I cannot wait to see Leilani in a costume. We don't know what we are going to dress her up as yet. We have seen a million cute costumes but have not made a choice yet on one. We will post pics of her in her new costume as soon as we pick one out.

I will have Ryan put some new pictures of Leilani on the blog this weekend. She is getting so big. Last of all after four years of working through general conference I will get to stay home and watch it. I am excited about that and the cinnamon rolls that go along with it.

Fun in the bath.

2008-08-21T22:03:00.000-07:00

So here is a comparison of Leilani's first bath and her most recent one. She really has learned to love bath time. She looked so cute we had to snap a few shots.

First Bath!!

Now!!

Too cute for words!!

More shots of Leilani!!

2008-08-10T19:37:00.001-07:00

So Leilani is now more than a month old. She is growing way too fast for our liking. I just wanted to add a few more shots of her.

Surprise birthday party for Lizeth's Tia

2008-08-10T19:27:00.000-07:00

So Lizeth's Tia Mago had a surprise birthday party this weekend. It was fun. Here a few shots from it. Leilani liked it until the music got loud. Then we had to slip out the door.

Surprise!!!

Lizeth with her Mom and Sisters

Me and Lizeth

Rocked to sleep by the earthquake:)

2008-07-29T19:05:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to add another couple of pictures of out little princess. Leilani is really being a sweetheart for us. I've had a few crazy experiences changing diapers but what does not kill me makes me stronger.
I hope that all of you enjoyed the earthquake. I feel blessed that nobody got seriously hurt. I called Lizeth from work right after it happened. She seemed a little shaken up about it. Luckily the baby was able to keep her cool and help calm Lizeth down.
So baby had an appointment the other day and they say that she is now 21 inches and 7 lbs 4 oz. She eats like a beast I am sure she will be doing a lot more growing here soon. Everyday she looks a little bit different.

Tagged by Marci

2008-07-24T17:26:00.000-07:00

i am: a mom now.
i think: my daughter is wonderful.
i know: Ryan will be a good dad.
i want: to give Leilani a good life.
i have: a great husband.
i wish: gas prices would go down.
i hate: seafood.
i fear: UFO's and aliens.
i smell: dirty diapers a lot.
i crave: cheesecake and milkshakes.
i search: for advice on raising children.
i wonder: what Leilani will look like when she gets older.
i regret: not taking more pictures while I was pregnant.
i care: about the well-being of my new family.
i always: tell Ryan I love him.
i believe: in using the epidural.
i dance: to any kind of music.
i sing: to Leilani
i don't always: read the scriptures like I should.
i fight: to stay awake at feeding time.
i write: Little notes to Ryan.
i lose: my patience with people that don't know what they are doing.
i win: when Leilani and Ryan are happy.
i never: have been able to swallow a pill.
i listen: to good advice.
i can usually be found: feeding Leilani or changing diapers.
i am scared: of failing as a mom.
i need: to read more.
i am happy about: my marriage and the new addition to the family.

Nikki Tag you are it!!!

Tagged by Dustin

2008-07-23T19:27:00.000-07:00

i am: Ryan Edward Peterson
i think: my kid is cuter than yours.
i know: my kid is cuter than yours.
i want: to be a good husband and dad.
i have: an awesome family.
i wish: upon a star.
i hate: negative people.
i fear: snakes.
i smell: with my nose.
i crave: Chocodiles.
i search: for free time to play on the computer.
i wonder: where I'll be in five years.
i regret: not finishing school sooner.
i care: a lot about my family and friends.
i always: get pooped on when I try to change diapers.
i believe: in being honest.
i dance: to make my wife laugh.
i sing: in the car.
i don't always: wash my car as often as I should.
i fight: for my right to party.
i write: more than I wrong.
i lose: on purpose to make others feel better about themselves.
i win: when luck is on my side.
i never: talk back to people.
i listen: to a lot of different types of music. I love old school hip hop.
i can usually be found: at work or with my wife.
i am scared: gas prices will never go down.
i need: to exercise more.
i am happy about: being a dad. I love Leilani so much.

Andy- tag you are it!!

More Pictures of Leilani

2008-07-18T18:28:00.000-07:00

Just thought that I would add a few more pictures of our little princess. She is a really good little girl. We are still with Lizeth's family. They have really been a big help and very supportive. I went back to work this week and Lizeth's mom and sisters have continued to help out. They are all really good with Leilani. This girl will be treated well.
I have officially become a diaper changer. I haven't had to do a whole lot of them but I have done some.

Welcoming a princess!!

2008-07-10T15:56:00.000-07:00

Everything really started on the 4th of july. It was a fun day. We started with some fun with the kids in the little backyard pool to start the day off. Greg barbecued up some food and we all hung out and had some fun. After that we headed out to the Hernandez half of the family for some Carneasada. It really was a fun day being with everyone. That night we went out to upland with Lizeths family to watch the fireworks. We found a nice patch of grass to watch the fireworks from and relaxed. It was not long after the fireworks started that Lizeth started feeling contractions. We watched the rest of the show and then went home. We started timing the contractions to see when if it was time to go in. About 2:30 in the morning we decided it was time. The baby was finally born at 8:08pm. It was a long and hard day but the outcome was really awesome.

Here are a few shots from the days:

Greg is the king of the grill.

Cute kids having some fun.

Kristin and Monty's kids were down as well.

Sitting waiting for the sun to go down.

Swollen feet!! She won't miss these!!

Yeah I am a proud poppa!!

Leilani Mariah Peterson- lots of hair!!

Sweet Leilani

2008-07-07T23:34:00.000-07:00

So here are a few pics of our little princess. Big time bummer though. She did not come home with Lizeth and I today. She will have to stay another day or two because of jaundice. Lizeth is doing great. She is strong and now getting a little bit of very well deserved rest. I guess I will now have to change the header on the blog. I'll do it soon. although I guess she is not home yet so she is still on the way. :)

She is here!!!!!!!

2008-07-07T08:16:00.000-07:00

Leilani Mariah Peterson was born July 5th at 8:08pm in Loma Linda. She was 7 lbs 1oz and 19 3/4 inches long. Both Lizeth and Leilani are doing great. There will be much more to come on here about it soon. We should be leaving the hospital today. Thank you to everyone that has been by to visit.

Another Doctors Visit

2008-06-26T20:55:00.000-07:00

So today Lizeth had another doctors appointment. The doctor said that everything is going really great. She said that it looks like it is going to be a big baby. That was the perfect news for a soon to be mom that is nervous about childbirth. Somethings the doc should not bring up unless asked. The good news is that Lizeth lost a pound this week. She is happy that she is not gaining. The due date is a week and a few days away and we cannot wait to see what the baby will look like. The other good news today was that the doctor did all of those special new tests that they have that you all have probably never heard of before because your kids are all old now and stuff and she said that our kid will be like super smart and good looking and stuff. The tests are like way too scientific for me type here. It would just confuse you all.

Baby Shower at the office

2008-06-26T20:28:00.000-07:00

So I work with a really cool group of ladies. I have learned a lot being the only man in an office full of women. They really keep me on my toes but I think that they are great. So they decided to throw a baby shower for Lizeth and the baby. Every one pitched in and made it a really wonderful party. They had great food, games, company, gifts, cake, and had the office decorated really cute. It was a lot of fun. Everyone had a great time and I am super grateful to everyone that helped out and made it a ton of fun.

Jr's Graduation

2008-06-14T09:38:00.000-07:00

This past Wednesday was my little brothers graduation. I'm very happy for you Jr and all the hard work that you put in. I am happy that he is done with high school but it reminds us that he is very close to going on his mission. We are all excited about him going on a mission but sad at the thought of him being gone for 2 years.

A fun weekend

2008-06-08T22:13:00.000-07:00

I had a great weekend. First of all I have now finished work. I am now on maternity leave and getting ready for Leilani. Saturday was the Peterson girls baby shower for Leilani and me. I really just want to thank everyone that worked so hard to make this a very special day for me. I really have some wonderful sister in laws and a great mother in law. I would not have changed anything. I loved the way that it was decorated. All of the sisters were in charge of different parts of the shower and they all did a wonderful job.
I also want to thank everyone that attended. The company was great and the gifts are really appreciated. It is all starting to seem very real to Ryan and I now. We are getting really excited about Leilani's arrival.
Thanks again everyone. This weekend really was very special to me. I love you all very much and can't thank you enough.

Hernandez Family Baby Shower

2008-06-03T21:21:00.000-07:00

So this past Saturday Lizeth's Family put together a fun baby shower for her. The whole Hernandez clan showed up to help celebrate the future arrival of our little princess. There was a jumper for the kids and games and carneasada for everyone. We had a really great time. We got some great gifts for our little princess too. We even got a promise from an uncle that he will buy us diapers every month if his wife gets to hold her. We told him he had a deal. We really have to thank everyone that participated in the fun event. My wife really has a fun family full of great people. I really feel glad to be part of their family.

Go Lakers

2008-06-02T22:03:00.000-07:00

Well we are excited about the Lakers going to the NBA finals again this year. Lizeth and I like many of you are pretty big fans and are very happy to see them there. I do have to tell the Rich family that I am very sorry about happened to Utah this year. It has been requested that we place a picture of our first child on the website. For our first valentines day as a married couple I took Lizeth to Downtown Disney to the build a bear workshop. She picked out the coolest outfit that she could find. We will post a picture of Chachi to honor the Lakers Western Conference win.

Lizeth had a great doctors appointment this week. The doctor said that the baby is now starting to move into position. She is also now meeting with the doctor weekly so I guess that means that it is getting closer. All news is good right now and we are still looking at a July 7th due date. Oh and this thursday is Lizeth's last day of work. She starts maternity leave on friday. She is just a little bit excited about that. Ok she is super excited about that.

An exciting night for Lizeth

2008-05-19T23:30:00.000-07:00

Well tonight was an eventful night for Lizeth. On her way home from work she had a tire blow out on her. She was able to get to the shoulder of the freeway and give me a call. Dad and I rushed to her and were able to get the new tire on and on the way home in no time. The experience was a little scary for her but she handled it well. She was a little shook up when we got there but we all feel blessed that it did not turn out worse than it did. Here is a pick of the tire. We tried to pump it up but it was not happening. We could not figure out what was wrong with it. We thought maybe a nail was in it or something. Then we took another look at it. If you look really close you can see that 98 percent of the tire is missing. I think That is why it was not pumping up. All is well now and she has two days off of work to relax.

A fun weekend

2008-05-18T22:13:00.000-07:00

Well first off Congratulations Greg Greg is now done with law school and gets to start preparing for the bar. My Grandma Carol and Grandpa Ferd came down for it. Kristin and Monty brought their family down as well. We had a great time visiting with one another. We had the whole family together on Saturday and rally had a fun time. the kids all played great together and the company was a blast. That night we went out to Orange county for the graduation and really had a great time. Sunday we got together again. It really was a fun weekend. Not a very relaxing weekend but a fun weekend.
Good job Greg. now you can make the big bucks. :)

Getting closer to my due date

2008-05-18T22:02:00.000-07:00

This weeks doctors appointment went really well. I had this great fear going into my appointment that the doctor was going to change my date for going on maternity leave. She told me last time that I would be starting on June 9th and I was super excited. I was really hoping she would not change it. I was thrilled to find out that she had changed it to the 6th of June. I did not think she would move it forward at all. Now I am just counting down the days. Ryan and I are getting very excited that the date is coming so close. We have less than two months now. Time seems to be flying. I cannot wait to see what she is going to look like.

Ryan's B-day

2008-05-05T22:26:00.000-07:00

Well it has been a great day. Today Ryan turned 31 years old. Ryan worked and I had the day off. I stopped by and picked him up for lunch and we went out for Chinese food. After work we went to the DMV so Ryan could renew his drivers license. Then we stopped by my parents house for a little while. When we left my parents house the car would not start. Luckily my macho husband and my dad were able to get it going again. We made it home and had a great night.
Thank you to everyone that helped make last night a ton of fun for Ryan and I. the food was great and the cakes were amazing.

These are a few gifts that Ryan got for his big day. Thank you to everyone that helped out with it. He also got an emergency preparedness kit for us to keep in the car. It really was a great day.
I love you Ryan and thank you for everything that you do for me. You are going to be a great dad.

Happy Birthday Lizeth

2008-04-25T19:44:00.000-07:00

Well Today is Lizeth's birthday so I thought I would tell you all a little bit about why I love her. Lizeth is awesome. She has been a wonderful wife to me a great support. She did a wonderful job supporting me and helping me get through school. She encourages me constantly and always helps me to be a better person. She is wonderful with children and I am very happy to say that she will be the mother of mine. I love her very much and am very excited to be able to spend eternity with her. I cannot imagine being without her. I feel so blessed that she is in my life. I love you Lizeth. Happy Birthday!!!!

Very early day!!

2008-04-24T20:42:00.000-07:00

Well had I had a early day. I was up at 4:00 in the morning to go to work so I could be there at 5:00 and be out for my doctors appointment. I got out of work in plenty of time but when I got the hospital I could not find a parking spot. I went from being on time to being 15 minutes late. 5 more minutes and she said that she would have cancelled my appointment. She took me in as soon as I got there.

The doctor told me that all was going well. I had good blood pressure and a good blood sugar level. I got to hear the heartbeat again. Also she told me that I would begin my maternity leave on June 9th. I told Ryan and he said he was going to make me a christmas chain to count the days down. I am now going to start seeing the doctor every two weeks. Soon it will be every week. It's scary that it is getting so close.

Go Lakers

2008-04-21T22:17:00.000-07:00

Well like many of you Lizeth and I are die hard Laker fans. We are pumped and excited about the playoffs this year. Now that Kristin and Monty have cable the real games can start. Lizeth has another doctors appointment this week on Thursday. We think that this is the week that the doctor will let us know if it is going to be cute or not. I hear that cuteness can be determined around your seventh month. We'll see. So I watched Savannah take a few steps tonight and got very excited. The more I play with her the more excited I am about having a daughter. I got all excited and scared her. I have enjoyed practicing fatherhood with all of my nieces and nephews for years now. I am very excited that the real thing is not too far away. I'm ready to move from unclehood to parenthood. I really love all of my nieces and nephews a lot. They are all very unique and lovable. Every one of them is special in their own way. I am happy that my daughter is going to have the chance to be raised in their company with their friendship and love.

Oh I got a little off topic. LAKERS ROCK!!!! KOBE FOR MVP!!!!

Things are going great!!

2008-04-13T23:03:00.000-07:00

Well this week Lizeth got her hours at work cut. She is now feeling great and enjoying not having to work a full 40 with a little human growing in her belly. I (Ryan) have now been working in my new job for about a month and I am really enjoying it a lot. the people are very nice and I am having a lot of fun with it.

We are now less than 3 months from the babies due date and cannot wait for her to be born. the closer that we get the more excited we become.

I wanted to add a picture also and I was thinking long and hard for a super cool pic to add. I decided to add this super cool photo of chase and I on the Buzzlightyear ride at Disneyland. Chase is the cute little one. I am the one with the amazingly high score that none of you will ever match in your lifetimes. This was a from quite a while ago but it still shows just how cool I am. Lizeth begged me not to put this picture on here but I could not

resist.

Went to the doctor

2008-04-03T21:02:00.000-07:00

So I saw the doctor today. Everything looks good. The baby is doing great. I went on my own for the first time. I had the chance to hear the heartbeat again. It was stronger than ever and really exciting to hear. They tested my blood as well. I got to wait in a chair for an hour board to death. Next time I will defiantly bring a book or a magazine along to keep me company.

Ryan and I are both very excited about the baby. We are enjoying are last few months of getting a full night sleep. We can tell by looking at our nieces and nephews that our baby will be wonderful.

No baby yet!!

2008-03-29T21:16:00.000-07:00

Well I just wanted to let you all know that no we have not had the baby yet. She is not due until July 7th. We are anticipating a daddy's girl because Lizeth says that she always moves when she hears me talk. I am sad to say that she already loves me better than she loves her mom. I can understand it but it is still sad that she has picked a favorite this early.

This weekend was a ton of fun. Friday Lizeth got a Root canal at the dentists office. Today she got to call off work because her mouth was swollen and hurting. I got to spend the weekend as the Beast of her burden. I am guessing that that will be my role for the rest of eternity.

We have a doctor appointment coming up this week.

Lizeth is showing

2008-03-26T22:47:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to show off the little baby bump that the wife has now. We are starting to believe that maybe she really is pregnant. :)

First blog

2008-03-06T10:02:00.000-08:00

This blog will track the pregnancy of Lizeth. I'm sure that I will add a lot more posts after the baby is born than before it. Things right now are very good. We know now that the baby is going to be girl. Lizeth is very healthy and strong right now. We cannot wait for the baby now.