The life of Riley...

Thanksgiving Weekend

2007-01-16T18:00:00.000-08:00

All the Sissons were nice enough to make the trip to Austin for the Thanksgiving weekend. It was nice to finally have a place for people to visit and stay as opposed to our 1.5 bedroom shoe box. Which I do miss at times...until I remember that I now have room for a kitchen table. The weekend started off dreadful with Texas losing to A&M, but we bounced back into the party mode soon. Although, that was the only game of the whole season I had made it to...;-(

Here we have Riley and Kylie riding the fire truck at Zilker park, then Papa and the grandkids in the train. The weekend was beautiful.

Party Time!

2007-01-16T17:40:00.000-08:00

Just having fun with some Mardi Gras beads and her huge stuffed dog from Papa Sisson. RK loves music and dancing. She will turn in circles till so dizzy she falls. We still don't have any furniture in the living room so there is plenty of room for her to play.

AZ in November

2007-01-16T17:22:00.000-08:00

A carosel ride later that day! Another funny thing that happened on this trip...RK decided that the only person that could change her diapers were her Daddy! I did not start this or encourage it, but I am going to enjoy it while it lasts. She argues with me and says "Daddy change diaper. No, Mommy!" I love it!

Camelback Mountain, AZ-Early November

2007-01-16T17:20:00.000-08:00

Taylor had a conference in Scottsdale, so RK and I went along for the trip. It was a nice change from Texas. Here RK and I are hiking up Camelback Mt. She is a good traveler! Hopefully, someday she will drag me up mountains.

Snacks at the summit.

October Sunshine

2007-01-16T16:27:00.000-08:00

OK- well, I am skipping all the way to October. Hopefully, I can back track and find some pictures from the summer a bit later. This was just a beautiful fall day and we were playing outside. Halloween was coming soon, but it was still warm enough for popsicles! RK was a cowgirl for Halloween. (still looking for those pictures) We moved in August out towards Dripping Springs (just outside Austin for all of our readers not familiar with Texas) Maybe that is why I can't find pictures...life has been a bit crazy. We miss the ease of urban living, but the stars at night make up for it.

Happy New Year!

2007-01-16T15:53:00.000-08:00

We have really been bad about posting this PAST YEAR! I have a new commitment to keep it up now that I have taken over the job AND I have a new, fun camera. I am going to post a quick summary of the past year-which has been crazy, but all good in the end. I'll hit the highlights:

First Birthday: Some family and friends joined us out at the farm for a sunny, COLD, and windy day. I am an awful mom...I cannot find the obligatory picture of cake on the face (still looking) but here are a few of RK's friends, Zolia and Henry. All of these kids are different people a year later. It is amazing how quickly they change!

The rest of the pictures may not be in such great order and I have a big hole from Feb-Sept which I _think_ we took pictures???

2006-11-16T12:12:00.000-08:00

We headed to the San Diego Zoo to play with the animals!

Then we played on the beach for a bit! RK loved to eat the sand!

2006-11-15T19:59:00.000-08:00

Stella came to her senses quickly and came over from the dark side, much to her father's dismay. This is Grandma Lissak (Chad's mom), Stella, and RK celebrating.

2006-11-15T19:34:00.000-08:00

Well, it has been almost a year since our last post. I have taken over this project from Taylor. I will try and catch you up over the last year. It has been busy!

After Christmas we headed out west for the Rose Bowl. We stayd with Aunt Cayce, Uncle Chad, and cousin Stella who is 6 months older than Riley. We also went to San Diego to visit our friend Meredith, the beach, and the zoo.

Vince Young just won the National Championship! Stella is a USC fan...

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!!

2005-12-18T18:59:00.000-08:00

Ok, so it's been 4 months since we updated the blog. What a shame!!! So what have we missed? Riley's up to 8 teeth now, she's been crawling like mad over the last few months, and has begun to take her first steps...pretty crazy!!! She loves to say "Dada and Dad-e", no "mama" yet, which is a very telling sign of who her favorite is! Or more likely, she's just figured out who's the easiest to manipulate! So here are a few pictures of what's occured over the past few months...

The obligatory photo shot with Santa.

In November, we actually took the time to get some "official" family photos taken. Here are a few snapshots...

La Familia

She's already figured out how to work those eyebrows!!

So the dad has brown eyes, and the mom has green eyes....Where did the blue eyes come from??? hmmmmmmmmmmmm, I thought the milkman deliveries were a thing of the past???? hehe

Riley posing for the camera...

And finally, dad having fun again with this whole black/white feature in photoshop..ha

Last but not least, we have a few pictures from halloween. In case you can't tell, Riley was a ladybug.

Happy 6-Month B-day!!!

2005-08-15T15:45:00.000-07:00

For Riley's 6-month "birthday", we spent a vacation in Yosemite National Park and surrounding areas in California. It was a great getaway! We went with the Cage Clan. We hiked, camped, and fought off bears. Not a bad birthday party! Here are a couple pictures of our experiences...

Riley saying "Hi" on top of Glacier Point with Half Dome in the background...Disclaimer to grandmas: Don't worry, dad was actually holding Riley, you just can't see him. :)

Taylor, Kodi, and Riley on their hike up to the top of Vernal Falls. Mom and Dad (along with Grandpa Bob, Uncle Shea, and Great Uncle Ray) were struggling a bit to get to the top, but Riley figured she could do it in her sleep....

Here is a really cool picture Grandpa Bob took on the hike up Vernal Falls

and another great picture showing half dome in the evening..just set this picture as your computer wallpaper and you can kill 30 minutes easily...hehe

The crew overlooking Half Dome and in front of Yosemite Falls (the largest waterfall in North America)

Mom and kiddo taking a break, enjoying the PERFECT weather. Nobody can argue that the munchkin doesn't get enough food. Look at that belly!!!

Riley goofing off with Grandpa Gary while in San Jose, CA. Now we know where those eyebrows come from!!!!

Over the past month and a half, it's AMAZING how much has changed in our world. Three of our good couple friends all had their babies. Congrats to Kevin and Stephanie Tap for their beautiful baby girl, Sarah Grace. Check out their blog at http://babytap.blogspot.com/. Congrats to Jeremy and Heather Merz for their new baby boy, Luke. Also, congrats to Philip Twardowski and Meg Youngblood for their new addition, Henry Taylor. NOTE: Have no fear, Baby Henry was NOT named after me. Philip and Meg are muuuuuch too smart to do something that silly!

OK, back to the kiddo, Riley's somehow figured out how to pull herself up to sitting from laying down. She's now quasi-crawling (one knee and one foot), but she manages to scoot all over the place. The dogs are loving it, let me tell ya... She's now talking non-stop in her own little language. Here's a final picture of Riley opening a present in a t-shirt that her momma wore as a kid....

ok, ok, ok, 1 more...i couldn't resist

4 1/2 month update

2005-06-27T22:11:00.000-07:00

Apparently, we're not the best about getting the actual monthly updates down, but we sure are good at the half months!?! In the past month, the munchkin has figured out how to roll over, sit up (still a little shaky), and she's actually had two teeth come in. My baby's all grown up! ha

Let's start the monthly update off with the most important. Riley in action going through her pre-game routine before the Longhorns big finals matchup in the College World Series. Does she look focused or what?

"get out of the way dad, this is for all the marbles!"

Summer is officially here, and Riley has been taking full advantage. Here she is decked out ready to hit grandma's pool...

Hanging out with mom, enjoying the sunshine...

Then crashing after a hard day's work! This picture is significant as it may be the only time in her 4 1/2 months on earth that her hair has been combed. (Thanks Grandma!)

3 1/2 month update

2005-05-26T19:31:00.000-07:00

So we kinda missed the 3-month update, so let's celebrate the 3 1/2 month update! haha What's happened since we last talked? Well, she survived her first camping outing with mama to Big Bend (look kids big bend! ok, that was lame), went to the hot springs in Marfa, and went on her first excursion to the beach (Port Aransas). What else you ask? See below!!!

Before we show anything notworthy, let's first start with a couple pictures of dad and the munchkin goofing off!

Enjoying the outdoors with Great Grandpa Moon and Mom in Helotes.

TUMMY TIME!
Riley's gradually figuring out she can actually use those awkward limbs attached to her body. Here she is on her stomach getting an arms workout...

BABY YOGA!
Those expensive yoga lessons are finally paying off for the kiddo...haha...Riley's figured out that her toes,fingers,hands, whatever! are great sucking mechanisms!

Here are a couple pictures of her all decked out ready to help Grandma water the garden....

Then of course, it just wouldn't be a quality post on the blog without a picture of Riley Kay yet again sporting her Uncle Gentry hair.

2 month update!!!

2005-04-17T17:12:00.000-07:00

As of April 10th, Riley was officially two months old. It's truly amazing how time flies, and even more amazing how much she has changed in only two months. Now, she's into smiling and slobbering! The picture below gives you a glimpse of both at the same time!

She had her two month doctor appt. She weighed in at 11 lbs. 12 oz., a gain of 3 pounds since birth. She was 22 3/4 inches long (21 at birth)....so the kiddo is growing, which is not suprising b/c the sisson buffet is in full effect! Here's Riley sporting her uncle Gentry hair....

Riley's first 10-K

2005-04-10T16:48:00.000-07:00

Over the weekend, we ventured out and participated in the Capital 10-k. It was Riley's (and probably Taylor's!) first 10-k. Throughout the entire race, we tried to keep up, but in the end, she had just enough to barely beat us...
>

Easter Weekend...

2005-03-30T19:34:00.000-08:00

For Riley's first easter, we went out to "el rancho" in Blanco to hang out both the Sisson and Cage clan. The weekend went really well, up until the point when the wind started blowing and the rain invaded our tent. If one more person mentions that it took Gentry and Taylor 3 hours to cook hamburgers, somebody will get hurt, but i digress......here are a few pictures from the weekend. It's hard to believe she's already 7 weeks old!!!

riley with grandma..one of the first times that she's smiled so far (riley, that is..haha)

riley obviously at work attempting to solve one of the great mysteries in life (or just busy giving mom and dad one of her patented "looks")

Hanging out with EARLY on saturday morning with Grandpa Bob

Trying to stay warm!!!!

Enjoying a much needed nap with the help of Aunt Sunny!!!

Then finally, after a looooong weekend of visiting and hunting easter eggs, it's crash and burn time!

All Riley, all the time....

2005-03-14T19:45:00.001-08:00

ok ok ok, so I actually almost went an entire week without any additions to the blog. Just for that, yeah you guessed it, more pictures of the kiddo. We were goofing off tonight and tried to dress her in up for a picture. That lasted about 30 seconds....

Riley's ready to head to the slopes...(and even more ready for mom and dad to put the camera AWAY!)

No, it's not time for thicker glasses (yet). This was just the results of dad goofing off with both the camera and the picture software.

Meeting even more cousins...

2005-03-14T19:38:00.000-08:00

This past weekend, Riley got to meet two more cousins for the first time. For Spring break, Claire and Chase were on their way to Sea World in San Antonio, and stopped by for the night. As you can see, Claire and Riley hit it off, and Chase had more fun playing with the dogs, and feeding them his left-over cinnamon roll...haha

Claire holding Riley (somebody's missing her two front teeth :)

PK trying to talk Chase into playing ball outside

Claire and Newman, the two camera hams!!!

Hanging out with Grandpa Gary

2005-03-08T19:43:00.000-08:00

The "Old Man" surprised us with a visit today. As you can see below, Grandpa and the kiddo hit it off quickly.

Twins?

2005-03-06T19:52:00.002-08:00

Ok maybe not, but I thought the similarities were pretty funny. The first picture below is a picture of Taylor holding Kylie Madison, Riley's cousin approx. 2 weeks after she was born in Hawaii. The second picture is a picture of Riley Kay 2 days after she was born. Both kiddos had a ton of hair at birth, and yes I was wearing the same shirt both times...haha

Taylor and Kylie - November 2003

Taylor and Riley - February 2005

Riley's first bath...

2005-03-03T20:24:00.000-08:00

I know what you're thinking, and NO, after 3 weeks, this is not the first time that we've cleaned the munchkin. Riley's umbilical cord finally fell off so she now gets to take the real thing! The jury's still out on whether she's a fan or not..

Uncle Shea and Riley

2005-03-03T20:14:00.000-08:00

Uncle Shea attempted to give Riley her first story-tale. Unfortunately, I think Riley was a bit preoccupied daydreaming about lunch!

4 generations

2005-03-03T19:31:00.000-08:00

And you think grandkids are spoiled??? just imagine what happens with great-grandchildren!! On her first visit to Grandma's house in San Antonio, Riley got to meet the whole Cage and Mullins crew. It was really neat to be able to have 4 generations of both the Mullins and Cage around today.

Mom (Kodi), Grandma, Great-Grandpa Moon, and Riley

Great-Grandpa Moon and Riley Kay

Great-Grandpa Rube, Grandpa Bob, Mom (Kodi), and Riley Kay

Great-Grandpa Rube and Great-Grandma Shirley with Riley

Then there's Great-aunt Wilma and Miss Dottie Watt getting to spend time with the kiddo. I'm sure both will be very instrumental in telling Riley of the MANY tales regarding her great-grandma Mo, God bless her soul.

Learning the ropes...

2005-02-27T17:42:00.000-08:00

Hmmm...See if you notice the trend here. Daddy holds baby....baby cries... :) After 2 1/2 weeks, I'm still working on perfecting the whole baby holding thing. I've finally realized that the one (or two) thing that she wants, I don't have!!! :)

Kylie and Riley meet at last...

2005-02-24T10:00:00.000-08:00

Tongue twister, I know...Kylie, Garrett and Madonna came to town last weekend. Kylie was more interested in kissing the pups and chomping on the chocolate covered strawberries, but did manage a few "hello baby"'s!

Kylie playing Peek-a-boo

Uncle Garrett, holding the two girls...

Yummy!!!!

Proud Grandmas

2005-02-24T09:23:00.000-08:00

"If your baby is "beautiful and perfect, never cries or fusses, sleeps on schedule and burps on demand, an angel all the time," you're the grandma." - Theresa Bloomingdale

Thanks to both Grandma Kay's (thus the middle name) for keeping us afloat and offering INVALUABLE guidance these past few weeks. They've alternated taking care of the kiddo and helping around the house we're recovering and adjusting...haha

Introducing the pups to the new addition

2005-02-24T09:10:00.000-08:00

As everyone knows, this wouldn't be a true story of our lives without our first two kiddos in the family...none other than PK and Newman....

We were a bit cautious in bringing Riley home as the two dogs have had full reign of the house over the past 5 or 6 years, so they were in for a rude awakening. Surpisingly, they have been awesome with her. Any time Riley is crying, Newman isn't far away crying with her, trying to sneak in a few licks along the way.

Hook 'em

2005-02-24T08:54:00.000-08:00

Inevitably, it didn't take her long to show her true colors. (talk about a sigh of relief!!!) haha....She actually did this on her own, Grandma was just quick enough to add the hat!

Pictures from the hospital

2005-02-14T12:14:00.000-08:00

Here are a few other pictures from our time at the hospital...
already perfecting the scowl to dad...

hanging out with uncle Gentry

crashed out....

BURP!

wide awake..

Proud parents

2005-02-14T11:46:00.000-08:00

It's a safe bet to say that on that night, all 3 of our lives changed for the better and it was the single most special night of our lives. We are so thankful that our family and friends could be there to witness the occasion.

The official weigh-in

2005-02-14T08:36:00.000-08:00

Once we passed the original due date of January 30th, it was becoming very evident that this kiddo was going to be just as hard-headed as her momma, and thus far, she has not disappointed :) She weighed in at 8 lbs 12 oz and was 21 inches long.

FINALLY!!! IT'S A GIRL!

2005-02-14T08:17:00.000-08:00

At 6:56 PM on February 10th, we heard the screaming and shouting, and instantly we knew that life as we knew was to instantly be turned upside down. There was a new addition in the family and she was taking charge! Welcome to the world Riley Kay!