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August 29, 2007
I had this vague notion of putting together a nice little video montage for Riley’s second birthday like I did for his first, but technology has conspired against me: my desktop machine is stubbornly refusing to acknowledge peripheral devices and thus the fancy digital camcorder remains clogged with footage from the last few months. Suck.
I’d feel more guilty, but I finally put together his “Baby’s First Year” book (thank you, Shutterfly!) TWO WEEKS AGO, so clearly this whole delayed Precious Memory stuff is par for the course in my household.
Humor me, pretend this space [ X ] contains a lovely video showing my son’s miraculous leaps of development from squalling, angry one-year-old to squalling, angry two-year-old. With fancy transitions and shit.
Riley’s birthday is on Friday, and the current plan is to be hanging out at the family cabin in Oregon, hopefully enjoying some nice weather and eating a big ole Dairy Queen ice cream cake. There was some murmuring about whether or not I wanted to bake him something myself, until I reminded all involved parties that I DON’T HAVE AN OVEN. I didn’t use all caps when I said it, but they were implied. Besides, I still remember last year and the adorable, delicious homemade heart-shaped (HEART. SHAPED) cupcakes I slaved over, and how Riley viewed my efforts with the kind of suspicion normally displayed by customs agents and British headmasters.
It has been a trying, exhilarating, amazing, difficult, and unforgettable two years since Riley entered our lives. I feel like we have climbed Mt. Everest a thousand times over, and the view is always changing, more marvelous than the day before, but the terrain never gets any easier. Sometimes I think that’s the nature of the very best things in life, that they take hard work, because the payoff is that much sweeter. (Of course, sometimes I think that’s idiotic and there’s a reason why everyone wants to win the fucking lottery.)
Parenthood is the biggest thing I’ve ever done, that I ever will do. It is the hardest thing, it is the most relentlessly brutal, and it is a wondrous and nearly painful joy. What can I say that hasn’t been said a thousand times before? I love my boy, so very much.
Newborn.
6 months.
1 year.
18 months.
2 years.
(Oh, how quickly it’s gone by. It’s hard to believe, but there it is in pixels: two whole years.)
Have a wonderful weekend, friends. I’ll talk to you in a few days.
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76 Responses to “730 days”
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aww. nice. happy birthday, riley.
Happy birthday Riley.
Happy birthday, Riley!
Happy birthday Riley!
A very happy birthday! Thanks so much for sharing a piece of your life with us.
Touching post. Happy Birthday Riley!!
Aww, that’s a lovely post, and lovely photos. Happy birthday, little dude!
Mmmmmm, Dairy Queen. Good choice :D
Happy birthday, little dude!
I love the Mt. Everest analogy. So, so, so true. Happy birthday, Riley. Happy Momiversary, Linda.
Bay-bee Riley! Soooooo cute! Remember this, because when he is 10 and has learned to NAG, these moments will be the only thing keeping you from strangling him! (hmmmm, revealing little comment, this).
wadda beautiful kid! Happy birthday, Riley and it’s ok…the birthday cake won’t bite!
Happy birthday, Riley! And congrats, Sundry! And good lord…were you in the room when JB sired that clone? I’m kidding, of course. I love that video. And you, and Riley, and JB. You’re an inspiration, and I love reading. Happy 2 years to you all.
Happiest of birthdays to my favorite internet bebe!
Wow, he looks exactly the same. I’m one of those children who looks ridiculously different from birth to six months, thus my shock.
Also, if my mother said “We’re having Dairy Queen for your birthday” I’d be all HUZZAH!
Happy Birthday, Riley!
Wow, and I remember when you were just pregnant. He is adorable.
I love the photos! I adore the fact that you can actually see the boy he has become in that newborn face. Sometimes I can see it in my daughter too! Have a great birthday celebration!
It’s amazing how some babies look completely different when they are older but Riley looks pretty much the same as he did when he was a baby…still ever so CUTE! Especially the suspicious look, that he has HANDS DOWN. I’ve never seen a better one from any other kid that young! ;D Happy 2nd Birthday, Riley William and enjoy your birthday weekend with your family!
Happy birthday, Riley! Happy two years of momhood, Linda!
I doubt Riley will notice, but, DARN, I was looking forward to that video this weekend! I’ll survive, however. One of the reasons I’ve read you for so long is that you are not only funny, honest and talented; but you post with such regularity. Thanks for keeping us in your life!
Oh Riley bear, happy birthday!
Happy Birthday, Riley. Very sweet!
Hey, how do you like those photo books? I’ve been thinking of ordering one – are they pretty nice?
Happy 2nd B-day Riley ~ your smile makes a lot of us smile too :)
Happy Birthday Riley!!!!
(and thanks for bringing me to tears before 9am!)
It’s funny how MUCH LIKE HIMSELF he looked as a newborn! And he is so, so cute.
Happy Birthday Riley! The good times do fly by.
Happy Birthday little man…and congrats to you Linda and JB on two great years with this little munchkin. We, internets, are happy to be along for the ride.
Happy Birthday Riley!
(Also, I rewatched the one year tape, and Jeez, that kid of yours makes my ovaries ache with the thought of adorable snuggly babies. Stupid ovaries.)
Isn’t he funny, even a tad suspicious as a newborn. So cute! Happy Birthday Suspicious One!
Happy Birthday Riley!
In all honesty, I’d take a dairy queen cake over home baked any day. Although I am sure your cupcakes last year were delicious.
Happy birthday Riley!
It has flame on it. Surely the Primary Care Unit understands that flame is dangerous. I cannot believe the carelessness of these earthlings! :D
Happy Birthday Riley, happy anniversary of parenthood, Sundry and JB.
Also, HA!!! http://www.econ.ucalgary.ca/fac-files/rjo/wp0807.pdf
WOW! Happy Birthday!
And as usual… another wonderful post that brought me to tears! Riley is one lucky kiddo. Have a great weekend!
Don’t feel bad, my oldest will be 9 in January and I still haven’t done his first year book. SLACKER!!!
Happy Happy Birthday Riley!!!!!!
Happy Birthday Riley! I cannot believe he is TWO? I sent your one year video to my entire fam right before we had our baby in February because it made my hormonal preggo self bawl – so I too had been hoping for a video – BUT the progressive photos from newborn to present were perfect…
Enjoy the day & the weekend, and here’s to hoping that he is slightly less suspicious of the Dairy Queen cake than the cupcake (such a cutie pic).
He even looked suspicious as an infant. What are you getting Riley for a birthday present? Trucks? Tractors? A spy kit? :-)
Happy Birthday Riley! You are a blessed and beautiful boy. You have an amazing mother and I hope that you always realize that.
Happy birthday Riley! And happy parenthood anniversary, Linda & JB! It’s hard to believe how big he’s gotten & how quickly those 2 years have passed.
Sarah – I know you didn’t ask for my opinion, but I love the Shutterfly books! I did the 1st year book & it looks more like a coffee table book than a photo book.
Are you running XP on your desktop? What kind of devices do you have plugged into it? I know this sounds odd, but XP is notorious for randomly giving up the ghost of USB. You could try unattaching all USB devices and plugging in only the camcorder. You could also try downloading new drivers for any of the USB devices (especially older printers). Anywhooodle.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, RIWEY.
Also, happy birth day, Linda.
Happy Birthday Riley!
I always get a little choked up when it comes time to sing to my babies on their birthdays. I’m so excited for them, to be growing up and learning and changing, but damn, it hurts to let them go.
I love the picture of him as a newborn. What a pretty newborn. I didn’t read your blog then, so I’ve never seen pics of him that little- but I can see that he still has the same look. Man, I have baby-want soooo bad! And I have a baby. And I DON’T want another baby right now. Even though I have babywant. Make sense?? Not to me either.
Is it your birthday too? Happy Birthday!
Happy Birthday Riley!
Happy Day Riley!!!
It’s amazing to look at the newborn picture and see those beautiful brown eyes of the 2 year old Riley. And speaking of the newborn photo…do I see a spec of suspiciousness? :)
Have a safe trip. Looking forward to the recap.
Don’t you wish you could keep him like this forever? So very, very cute. I had one like that once — and now she’s almost my height and practicing to be a teenager.
Enjoy every moment. What a blessing!
“the view is always changing, more marvelous than the day before, but the terrain never gets any easier”
Beautifully written. Thank you for summing things up so well.
Happy birthday to Riley!
Don’t stop taking pictures after your kids get old enough that they aren’t cute anymore. I have a bazillion baby pictures. Then after about ten I have sporadic pictures briefly documenting the next eight years. And for the last five years you might not even be able to prove I exist if it weren’t for my mug shots. Sometimes I wish I had more pictures of myself to remember my recent history. But alas, that’s a big fat negative.
Have you ever thought of making a second, fake baby book, and doctoring all the photos to make Riley look like a mutant or a girl or something, and showing that to him when he grows up. Maybe bust it out when his first girlfriend comes over.
Tell Riley to eat some cake with his hands for me. I have no cake, but I will eat some eclair pie in celebration of the little mans big day. Have fun in Oregon.
Happy birthday Riley! And really, wow, your description of parenting is amazing.
Happy Birthday Riley!
I’m getting choked up just thinking about the one year video from his first birthday. It’s the reason I hauled my very pregnant self to best buy to get my own camera, and why I’ve tried my best to document my baby’s first year on video. Looking forward to seeing year 2 in moving pictures, even if it does take an extra month or seven ;)
Happy Birthday Riley!
Happy Birthday Riley! Lots of love to you and your parents.
Happy birthday Riley! I’ve loved reading about him for the past few years and, yeah, there has been much worse time spent at work than seeing pictures of your adorable boy.
Happy Birthday Riley! :)
Just print that out and paste it in a scrapbook. Done. Beautifully written, per usual. I just adore that first picture. Happy Birthday, Riley!! You’re such a lucky boy, and not just because your mom buys you Dairy Queen ice cream cakes.
Oh wow, happy birthday, Riley!
Happy Birthday and have a wonderful weekend…
Happy birthday, little guy!
I love that he looked suspicious even as a newborn. That is excellent.
Oh, man, is he cute. That face!! Why isn’t he suspicious in any of those pictures, though? Perhaps it’s hidden suspicious, undercover suspicion if you will.
Either way, have a very happy birthday, Riley! (DQ cake is the absolute best).
he has grown so much! ahh. crazy to me that i have been reading your blog since a little after he was born. thanks for keeping me entertained and to the boy who is the reason behind it all… happy birthday riley!
What a great post and fabulous photos.
Happy 2nd Birthday Riley! And congratulations to your Mom and Dad for surviving the past two years!
Happy Birthday, Riley!
Happy Birthday Riley! I’m proud to share this day with such a suspicious individual.
If wishing Reily a happy birthday is as siccessful as wishing Ian a happy birthday yesterday was, then…I’ll just tell you to wish your son a happy birthday from me. *smile* It’s hard to believe how quickly 2 years goes by.
Happy 2nd Birthday Riley! I hope the trip wasn’t too painful and you’re all having fun this weekend.
Happy Birthday Riley!!!
Hope you get that ice cream cake, and Riley has a great birthday. Lucky you, that you have such a beautiful family, and lucky them, that they have you. Because you kick serious ass with the jokes and all.
The suspicion, it was there since birth. As was the insane cuteness. Linda, between you and Amalah? Cutest wee dudes on teh innernets. The ovaries, they explode. Happy birthday, little dude!
PS: consider me having a howler monkey tantrum that we can’t get a video of Riley. I’m dying to hear his Extremely Important Things To Say.
he is so beautiful!
That child is ridiculously beautiful. Happy birthday, kiddo. :-)
Happy Second little man
God DAMN. I bawled last year when watching that video, and I knew I’d cry again but STILL had to give it another go. And this year? SOBBING. I’m sure being pregnant doesn’t help but my lord woman. You sure know how to play with our emotions!
The happiest of birthdays to Riley and you and JB. Thank you for letting us read about his life, and I can’t wait to read more (about the new little one too).
Happy birthday, Riley, and happy Riley’s birthday, Linda and JB! :)
Happy Birthday to the cutest boy I’ve ever seen! HOORAY RILEY!
I love that last picture. He’s adorable.
Thanks for sharing it with us all.
The montage is fantastic. Wish I could put together stuff like that.
I’d love to hear more of your thoughts about parenting…