The Ransdell's Holiday Adventure

Where and what in the world have the Ransdell's been doing for the last two weeks??

Well, fasten your seat belts friends because you're in for a very bumpy ride!! I know all of you have seen the Christmas movie with The Griswold's.....well change that to The Ransdell's Christmas vacation. We started out on Friday, December 12 after work and headed to Patrick's parents house. It's a very long ten hour drive...yes, ten hours with a six month old. We had the Jeep packed with suitcases, X-mas gifts and every possible toy/gadget/accessory to occupy Walker's time. Oh, and our friends let us borrow their luggage holder that sat on the top of the Jeep that was packed too. Seems like we need an eight passenger van just for three people. Finally arriving in Kentucky at 3:15am we were able to rest a day and then we were off to our second adventure.

Hhhhmmmmm......where are we going now people????

Almost every year Patrick's parents treat the family to a snow skiing trip. We have found a place we absolutely love, but it just so happens to be in British Columbia. On Sunday, December 14 we made our way to Whistler, British Columbia for our annual family skiing trip. Whistler is about 2 hours north of Vancouver. Walker is the best baby in the entire world. He was so great flying on his second airplane ride and made lots of friends with the flight attendants. Walker loved spending time with Pops and Jules. Patrick and I were very lucky to be able to ski during the day and have Jules spend time with Walker. They do not get to see him often, so they really enjoyed the bonding time. He had a hard time adjusting to Pacific time, but what did we expect...

While we were there Walker got to go swimming for the first time. He loved it!! I got in with him the first time, but just couldn't do it the second day. Even though the pool was heated it was still way to chilly for mommy. He loved it so that I think we are planning on getting him swimming lessons this summer. Walker would put his mouth in the water and really splish splash. We practice splish splashing every morning in the tub. All of mommy and daddy's hard work paid off:)

It was so funny to watch Walker's face while walking in the village. He was so snuggled in his bear outfit. He had a really hard time figuring out why it was so cold and why he had to wear all this extra gear. Walker you are a very spoiled beach baby!!

Here is a picture of Walker and Jules looking out the window watching the gondola's go up the mountain. He enjoyed looking out at the snow. This was also a great place to sit and read to him. They spent most of the days by the fire and looking outside.

Mommy and Daddy picked up a brochure for Whistler Kids. Walker will be able to start taking skiing lessons at age three. We still have a little time to get him adjusted to the cold weather. Patrick and I had fun watching the little kids ski down the mountain with their instructors. I hope I'm not the mom that skiis behind the group making sure Walker's okay....they call that a "Helicopter Mom":)

We had to stop and take a picture by Mr. Bear. Which bear is the cutest....Well, Walker by far!!!!

Merry Christmas Walker Leigh

We finally arrived back in Kentucky and it was now time to prepare for Christmas. Patrick and I have been so excited about Walker's first Christmas. He definitely did not know what was going on, but just watching the excitment in his eyes to get the wrapping paper in his mouth was PERFECT. Merry Christmas Walker! Everyone has asked me what I got for Christmas....I received an early Christmas gift on June 12, 2008....an ANGEL. We are so blessed to have you Walker Leigh. Now, Christmas will be so special and I can hardly wait until next year!!


On Christmas Eve before bed time we read Night Before Christmas by the fire and left cookies for Santa. We promised him Santa would be able to get down the chimney once the fire cooled off:) Check out Mommy and Walker's pajamas....how cute!!

Walker loves Elmo! We all think Elmo is very clever and very entertaining.

Ribbie is always so good with Walker. She is always checking on him, but we still get those hilarious looks from her....like please can you put him back. I use to get all the attention and toys at Christmas:) Why is my stocking half empty and his is exploding????


I love this picture. Pops...could you please move the globe a little closer so I can put the entire thing in my mouth!!

Walker also met a new friend while we were in Kentucky, Miss Ella Grace McDonald. Ella is 10 months old and soooo cute. Ella's dad is WKU's head mens basketball coach. They loved just staring at each other. Next time they see each other they both can run around and play together. Thanks Angie for such a great play date!! We are looking forward to next time:)



Walker's first WKU basketball game and his first encounter with Big Red. One big happy Western family!! Big Red is so enormous Walker gets kind of lost:):)


The day after Christmas we headed to my parents house for the weekend before heading back home. I will post some more Christmas pictures soon.

HAPPY 6 MONTHS OLD WALKER LEIGH!!

Happy 6 Months Old Walker Leigh!!

I can't believe you are a half year old. Where has my little baby boy gone? Well, I don't know if you have ever been "little"...you came out big and continue to get bigger and bigger. You are sooooo much fun these days. I thought 4 months was a fun month, but it doesn't get any better than 6 months:) You are such a happy boy and you are getting more and more animated. It's so easy to make you laugh and you think Mommy's singing and dancing is hysterical. I'm actually getting a great workout dancing in front of you.

You have just started clapping your hands together...all those times we've played patty cake with you is finally paying off. You are really enjoying saying DaaDaaaDaa....Could you please start practicing MaaMaaMaa. You love to pull our hair and pull my earrings. One thing that you've starting doing that is actually quite scary is....we call you "shark" because you attack our chins with your mouth. You bite down and suck on our chins...by the time you get done with me I have no makeup on.

You have mastered all the fruits. Sweet potatoes and carrots have been very successful. Peas are another story. Both Daddy and I hate peas, so I guess thats why you gagged several times when you tried peas. Next week we are trying green beans and squash. We have moved on to Oatmeal and you love it mixed with fruit.

Walker you bring so much joy into our lives. Thank you for being the best baby boy in the entire world. I don't know how we got so lucky........We love you buddy!!

We took Walker to see Santa last weekend. We had so much fun. Moppy got to go with us too:) Merry Christmas Walker Leigh. Your first Christmas is going to be so much fun!!!!!

He Speaks!!

Oh my goodness. You are not going to believe what happen today.

My mom (Moppy) is here spending the weekend with us and after a few hours of shopping with Walker we came home to feed him and pick up Daddy for a dinner out. As Walker was finishing his snack he turns and looks at Patrick and says..........DaaaaaDaaaaDaaaaa! I couldn't believe what I was hearing. I think it was the biggest smile I have ever seen on Patrick:):) We all were so excited, it brought tears in my eyes. It was great because Moppy got to hear his first words too. We are always practicing MaaaaMaaaaMaaaa and DaaaaDaaaaDaaaa with him. All of our hard work finally paid off.

Walker your little innocent voice is absolutely music to my hears. We love you so much!!!!!

A Visit to the Farm

We visited Thrasher Farms on Friday afternoon. My brother and Uncle Doug purchased the farm last year. They have five chicken houses and cows. We actually went to visit the farm to see Walker's hefer my dad is raising for him. My dad or PaPa is raising a Hefer for Walker to eventually sell. One day Walker will have so much fun playing on the farm. He will be able to ride the 4-wheeler, gator, terrorize the cows, look around in the chicken houses and has my dad says "play in the mud"....My newphew Logan will be able to teach him all he needs to know about being a country boy:):)

Walker meet your very own Hefer named "Judy". Isn't she cute.....The next time we see her she will be much much bigger. Thanks Papa for my very first moo moo.

I took a picture of the inside of one of the chicken houses. I felt very sorry for theses poor baby chicks...although they are treated very well while they are at Thrasher Farms:) These are actually high density chickens (pumped with steriods). Usually they have drug-free chickens (organic), but this batch needs a little extra boost...I guess. Can you believe in one house they have 32,000 chickens......I can't wait for Walker to be able to run around and enjoy this will his Uncle Ben, PaPa and cousin Logan. Eat more chicken!

Walker & Mason

The boys are getting so big. Mason and Diana stopped by to see us on Friday. It's amazing how much they have both changed since seeing them last July. Don't they both look so thrilled to be together. It's always fun visiting becuase Diana has truly helped me through the last 5 1/2 months. I don't know what I would do without being able to call Diana with questions. We are really looking forward to celebrating Mason's 1st birthday in January. Thanks for stopping by to see us. Maybe the next visit the boys won't sleep the whole time.

Thanksgiving Fun!

Happy Thanksgiving to all of our family and friends!!

We had such a wonderful Thanksgiving. We went to my parents house on Wednesday and spent the entire weekend there. I was so anxious to get there to see the fam and for everyone to see Walker. We are so thankful for so many things. This year we have been so blessed with such an amazing little guy. I don't think we could ask for anything more than to have a healthy, handsome and happy baby boy! Thank you to everyone who made Walker's first Thanksgiving so special. We love you all very much!!

Walker had his first experience in a highchair. He loved it and I might say it was so much easier feeding him. He loved to sit in the highchair and watch everyone in the kitchen. Moppy and PaPa are getting Walker a highchair for Christmas. Maybe, he can help me cook in the kitchen. We can't wait to use it!!

We thought he would be to small to swing......he was actually a perfect fit:) Walker absolutely loved swinging....we have added it to his list to Santa:)

And to think Walker use to HATE to lay on his stomach....now he prefers to play on his stomach and sleep on his stomach...yikes!

Thank you Uncle Doug, Aunt Patsy and Cousin Cody for spending Thanksgiving with me. Aunt Patsy even got to feed Walker his first vegetable...sweet potatoes. After the fifteenth picture we finally got everybody to smile at the same time. Love you guys!!

Mommy I'll Help......

I can't leave him alone for 2 seconds on the bed without him flipping over on his belly. He loves to lay on his belly, especially when he gets to lay on our bed. I guess because it's so soft and fluffy. This afternoon Walker and I got a few things ready to pack for Moppy and Pops house. We will be spending Thanksgiving at my parents house. We are looking forward to seeing everyone and Walker is looking forward to showing off his new tricks.

I thought these were so cute...I couldn't just choose one:) Please think about us as we make the journey to the grandparents house.

First School Pictures

I could not resist posting Walker's very first "School" photos. His school had the photos taken the beginning of October. I said well I'll just get the class picture....well I had the hardest time not ordering all of his pictures. A couple of the ladies at work told me you have to get every school photo taken even if he has buggers hanging out of his nose:) These are scanned photos, so not the best quality. I wanted everyone to be able to see them. The picture below Walker is the last one on the right in the bouncy seat...or the extremely chuncky one:):) Also, pictured are his teachers Ms. Dot and Ms. Lorraine. Ms. Mira is not pictured because she was out of the country. Walker is so lucky to have Ms. Dot & Ms. Lorraine. They treat him like a KING!!

Okay, Where's the snow??

On Sunday after church we decided to try on a few things we bought for Walker's first skiing trip that came in the mail on Friday. You never know how things are going to fit him due to his growing belly:) Both outfits are big, but I think he will grow into them by next month when we go. I could not resist posting the pictures. Both Patrick and I were laughing so hard we had tears in our eyes:) He is going to be the cutest snow baby on the mountain!


This little outfit is the softest. He looks like a baby bear:) Check out his little ears on the hood. It also folds over to cover his hands and feet. I wish they made things like this for big people.

HAPPY 5 MONTHS OLD WALKER LEIGH

Five things I love about you Walker Leigh:

1. When I walk in the room your face lights up. Everyday when I'm driving to pick you up from "school" I can hardly wait to see your beautiful smile.

2. When we put on your PJ's you giggle so loud. You are so ticklish under your arms and your hands.

3. In the mornings when you are ready to get up...you coo and coo. Its music to our hears.

4. I love to play patty cake and sing ABC's to you. I could do this all day just to see your smile and how much you love for us to sing to you.

5. I love to look into your beautiful blue eyes and see the LOVE you have for your mommy and daddy. We are so blessed to have such a special baby boy. We love you Walker!

Everyday you seem to amaze us. You are growing so quickly. I know I say this every post, but it's true...you are changing so much. There is not a day that goes by that you don't make your mommy and daddy laugh. You are becoming more and more curious. You are very aware of whats going on around you. One of your favorite things to do is eat....and now you would rather pull on my shirt, pull on my bra strap, break your neck to watch tv or just smile at me while you are trying to eat. You haven't quite figured out that you can't do all of that and eat too. You are a master at rolling over now. You actually enjoy being on your tummy. You have graduated from eating apple sauce in your rice cereal. Tonight you tried bananas for the first time in your rice cereal. I think you would have eaten the entire container if I would have let you:)

Walker you are so very close to sitting up by yourself. Ms. Dot at "school" says you are going to sit up early because of your extra chunk and your wide bum:) I chose this picture because he loves Mr. Giraffe. Mr. Giraffe pretty much goes every where with us. Patrick will say to Walker, " Mr. Giraffe, Mr. Giraffe loves Walker...Walker" and he will just giggle and smile. We were at the mall over the weekend and Walker was riding in his stroller and I looked down and he had sat up by himself and was leaning over trying to eat the front of the stroller. It scared me to death, because I didn't know he could sit up by himself.


I'm not sure who is having more fun....Walker or Ribbie. Walker gets so excited when he sees Ribbie. I think Ribbie's face is priceless.... We are so lucky to have such a gentle dog. Walker has such a wonderful big sister!!

Tag...You Are It

Thanks to my two friends Diana and Jamie....I have officially been "tagged"....now I have to write seven things about me that you may not know or realize.....here I go.....

1. My ultimate dream would be to open a store. I would absolutely love to own a store that sold fine gifts and stationary. I was fortunate enough to live in Oxford, MS for two and half years and living there really spoiled me with lots of fun boutiques and speciality stores.

2. My biggest fear is Fire. I constantly worry about our house burning down. Growing up we had a chimney fire and I was in a apartment fire in college. Fear of fire is called "Arsonphobia".

3. Since moving to the beach I have taken up golf. I started taking lessons a year ago. I have always enjoyed going out on the course with Patrick. I decided if I didn't learn how to play, I would probably never see my husband once he retires. You should see my clubs...pale blue and pink. One of the most important things about playing is you have to look the part:) I actually joined a summer golf league:)

4. Walker Leigh is a family name. Walker is my grandmothers maiden name. Leigh is Patrick's grandfathers name.

5. I can't bake to save my life. I have a very hard time following a recipe...well, sometimes I follow the recipe word for word and the dessert still gets screwed up.

6. Growing up I took tap, ballet, jazz, piano, clogging, tennis and tumbling classes. Thank goodness for having a little boy.

7. Growing up with a Big Brother was not always fun. My brother did things to intentionally hurt me....let's see....He pulled my arm out of socket by dragging me out of his room. He also sprang my wrist...by body slamming me on the trampoline..both times he did this in front of his friends trying to be cool. For pay back one night after he went to sleep I tiptoed into his room and slammed a flashlight on his forehead several times......giving him a concussion. I locked myself in the bathroom....needless to say I got him back:)

8. I am very afraid of the dark:) A little embarrassing, but so true...just ask Patrick!

Okay, now I'm going to tag:
1. Amy
2. Mary Beth

Yum Yum!!

We have big news..............

On Monday night Walker had his first taste of rice cereal. Yes, everyone I finally broke down and fed him rice cereal. This is something that I have really struggled with over the last month. I really did not want to give it to him just yet, but over the last two weeks he has not been the best sleeper.

So, as all of you know Walker is a total "chow hound" and will eat every chance he gets....well.....Patrick and I thought for sure he would totally dig the rice cereal.....NO, we were totally wrong. HE HATES RICE CEREAL. For the last three nights he has refused to swallow it and made it so difficult for us. So, tonight with lots advice from my friend Amy and my mom I tried mixing the cereal with baby apple sauce. He absolutely LOVED IT. He smiled, giggled and kicked his legs for more:) I think we have found the solution.

Thank you Amy and Mom for calming me down and helping me!! Lets see if he finally sleeps through the night after two very LONG weeks.

Much happier baby eating that yummy yummy apple sauce/cereal. He is so easily tricked:)

Bye Bye Daddy & Mommy, See you tomorrow!

Patrick and I finally did it. On Saturday we went to Charleston to help host a "Stock the Bar" wedding shower for our dear friends Michael and Ann. We had a great time and enjoyed our much needed mommy/daddy time. I definietly missed Walker like crazy, but he was in good hands with my Mom and Aunt Patsy. The party was so much fun and it was so good to see everybody. Its so nice to finally live close to friends. The picture above are all the couples who helped host the party, plus the bride and groom. Can't wait till June:)


We enjoyed seeing all of our friends so much. We finally believe Tucker....he does have a girlfriend....and a gem she is:) It was so good to meet you Mandy. We hope to see you guys in MB soon!

One Rolled Over and One Fell Off!!

One of our favorite songs to sing in the mornings on the way to school goes a little something like this......

There were eight in the bed and the little one said, "Roll over, roll over"...so they all rolled over and one fell off, there were seven in the bed and the little one said, "Roll over, roll over"...so they all rolled over and one fell off........

Walker finally rolled over at school last Wednesday. I walked into his class to pick him up and both of his teachers were smiling from ear to ear. They didn't want to tell me, but couldn't resist. They both said to me, "Walker really wants to show you something when he gets home." Patrick and I have been waiting and waiting for him to finally roll over and he DID IT. All those extra rolls finally made it over:)