Dynamic Duo

This Saturday Jim and I got to experience what life would have been like with twins. We had the pleasure of watching little William while Meg and Joe went to a wedding. When Tyler woke up from his nap and saw his friend he just couldn't believe it. They both stared at each other for a while and that was about the extent of their interaction for the remainder of the afternoon. Even though they were both in the same room they rarely acknowledged each other unless they were after the other's toy or someone was making a lot of noise.
The two rediscovered each other over a dinner of chicken nuggets, carrots and oranges. With dinner being such a hit Jim and I braved a double bath. Once in the tub both boys were tickled pink to have some company. Then Tyler started splashing and quickly found out that William has learned a thing or two in that department, most likely from big brother Vincent. We thought Ty splashed big but William puts him to shame, dousing us as well as a lot of the bathroom floor! Jim and I were rolling! Once dried off, the dynamic duo watched the other get into PJs and get ready for bed. Jim took Ty and I took William and both boys were out as their heads touched the mattresses. Jim and I agreed, while we're not ready for twins, we loved having little William over and hope to do it again soon!

And He's Off!

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First Christmas

Celebrating Christmas for the first time with a child is wonderful. Although, Tyler was probably more confused than anything, it is a memory that Jim and I will cherish for many years to come. Tyler's first Christmas, unfortunately, started off with a pretty bad cold, complete with fever, raspy cough and stuffed up nose, and ended up with a double ear infection. Despite this, he was in pretty good spirits.
We started the celebration on Sunday at Shannon and Mark's house where it snowed and blowed all day long. It was fun to visit with the kids and see Tyler interacting with his cousins. We played games, opened presents and had an Italian fondue for dinner. Tyler made out like a bandit, coming away with plenty of new (and noisy!) toys. :) Of course I left my camera at home so I"ll have to post pictures from Shannon later.
The next day was Christmas Eve where we usually get together with Jim's entire extended family. Unfortunately, Tyler's cough and disposition both worsened so we opted to stay close to home that day. However, it was Christmas Eve that Tyler started crawling on all fours for the first time! He also cut his two front teeth that day (all he really wanted for Christmas, after all).
Christmas morning brought about high spirits and wonder from little Tyler who probably thought, "Where did all these toys come from and where are all my old toys??". He stayed pretty happy throughout the day, no doubt due to the arrival of Nana and Papa Buffo for Christmas dinner. Tyler adores his Nana who always seems to make everything feel better. We had a yummy dinner of ham and potatoes and Tyler put on quite the entertaining show. I was happy to be able to talk with my family back in Texas throughout the day. Although, I loved having a white Christmas at home with my boys in Minnesota a part of me was sad not to be in Texas too. The long distance makes it hard to be there physically but my thoughts and heart were with all of them this Christmas Day.
That night Tyler slept fitfully and we ended up taking him to the doctor the next day where he was diagnosed with the ear infection. He's been taking medicine for two days now and appears to be recovering. He's finally sleeping and eating normally and back to his perky old self.
The three of us received many wonderful gifts this year but were reminded of the most precious gifts: The birth of our Lord, wonderful friends and our family.

So Big!

Tyler has a new trick thanks to his best friend William. I never really worked with him on raising his hands over his head in response to the question, "How big is Tyler?". Answer: So Big! (Hands over head). However, Meg worked with William on it and posted a video of it on her blog when he mastered it. Tyler loved watching William's video so we'd always watch it at least once a day. Then, at dinner, the other night, Tyler kept raising his hands up over his head. I asked him the question and he did it again...and again and again. Ha! Thanks for being a great teacher William! Although, I'm not sure he really gets the entire concept. He'll also raise his hands up if you ask, "How hungry is Tyler?". Hee hee.


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Countdown to Christmas

We've been busy getting ready for Christmas and our house shows it! Every day it seems we get another big box filled with presents for Tyler. Our closets and other spare spaces are filled with his Christmas loot. He doesn't even know how spoiled he's going to be this Christmas!

During the days Ty's been keeping me company as we shop for family and friends and wrap presents. I hate to keep getting him out in such cold weather but his biggest complaint seems to be being bundled up. Since we're due for some snow the next couple of days we're planning to try and keep busy at home.

This week Jim and I got an unprecedented two date nights. Monday night Nana and Papa Buffo came to watch Tyler while Jim and I went to watch the Bears take on the Vikings. Unfortunately, the score didn't turn out quite like we hoped but we had a blast anyway. Tuesday was Jim's office Christmas party so we got all dressed up and went downtown for drinks and dinner. This year's party was head and shoulders above any of the previous gatherings. They even had a hot chocolate bar!! Yum!

In other news, Tyler crawled on his hands and knees for the first time this afternoon! It was only for a few scoots and then he flopped right down and started to army crawl again but it's progress. I started clapping and telling him how good he did and he was grinning from ear to ear and clapping his hands too.

Bad Hair Day

William Turns One!!

This weekend we attended William's first birthday party! Meg and I reminisced about how a year ago we were both very pregnant and anxiously awaiting William's arrival. I can't believe it's been a year. At the party we had a delicious taco bar complete with plenty of chips and dips. The babies ate oranges, cheese and ground beef then visited with all of William's friends and family. Before going down for a nap William dug into some cake and just loved the frosting! Here are some fun pics from the day. Congratulations William!

Busy Days

It never ceases to amaze me how quickly change can come in the life of a baby. These days it's coming fast and furious to Tyler James.
He's perfected his army crawl/drag and can scoot himself across a room in no time. He's quick to get up on his hands and knees now, too, and rock back and forth for a few minutes before dropping to his belly or sitting himself up. He's started pulling himself up to his knees recently and will use anything nearby to haul himself up: toys, chairs, me, tables and even dogs! Since some of these things aren't stationary or can't bear his weight he's had several tumbles, which scare him more than anything else. Sometimes he'll even stick out one leg like he's going to stand up but never does. Another little move he's doing now is leaning over and straightening his legs so his body is in a triangle and his body weight is on his hands. From this he plops over into a sitting position. He's really working on strengthening those little leg muscles!We've discovered some new games that he enjoys immensely. Whenever we're holding both him and Pup or sitting with them both in a chair he'll toss Pup on the floor then immediately reach to get him. We'll then hold him upside down and lower him to the floor while he giggles like crazy to pick up Pup. I swear he could do this for hours! He also loves to knock down blocks that Jim and I stack up. Be it 2 or 15, if he sees you building a tower he's heading your direction determined to knock every last block to the ground.

He's getting better and better about playing by himself too. However, with this new found independence comes fits of frustration if you try and take away a toy or remove him from a situation when he's not ready or even change his diaper. He'll flail his arms and legs and scream in protest. We've discovered the best way to deal with these tantrums is to distract him with a toy. They don't typically last long but that doesn't make them any less frustrating.

The past two days after waking up from a nap Tyler has taken out his pacifier and hurled it to the floor where it has stayed until the next nap or bedtime. This is definitely a new behavior as he usually will put it in his mouth whether he really needs it or not. As a result of this, the past two days have been filled with his babbling. He's not saying mama yet but he's trying. His version sounds like "bwabwa" but it's a start! We met my friend Katie and her new baby boy Joey at the Mall of America yesterday. Tyler was talking away in his stroller and a man stopped me to comment on how cute Tyler is and what a great personality he has. I couldn't agree more!

10 Months Old

Today Tyler turns 10 months old! When you put it in that perspective, it's hard to believe he's been through as many changes as he has in such a short amount of time. To celebrate all that he's become, today for lunch he had his first meal made up entirely of table foods, no purees. Yay!! He ate chicken strips, cheese, carrots, oranges and toast. Here's a video of him at breakfast the other morning. Only 2 more months to go until the big O-N-E!!


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Who's Got Pup?

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Good Times With Good Friends

This Saturday we spent the snowy day holed up with some of our best friends and their little ones. It was an exciting time watching all three babies in different stages interacting with each other. Anna was such a gracious hostess, sharing her toys with Tyler and Elise. Tyler showed everyone how he can move now and Elise was running around everywhere and smiling up a storm. That evening, the plan was for all 9 (!) of us (6 adults, 3 children) to eat together but the kids decided they couldn't wait and ate an impromptu dinner in the kitchen. They then joined us in the dining room for the adult version. We had such a great day laughing at the kids and at us as parents. At one point all the husbands were involved in a rousing rendition of "The Wheels On The Bus". Ha! It's a wonderful feeling watching your friends parent and seeing them interact with their little one. Thanks for a fun day!

Finger Foods

When Tyler turned 9 months I started trying to get him to eat finger foods. Much to my dismay Tyler wasn't having any of it. Whatever food I put on the tray he would smash with his hands and fling it to the floor but wouldn't put it in his mouth. When I tried to show him how to do it he would make gagging noises and dig the food out with his hands. Okay, I can take a hint. I guess he's not ready for this stage and back to purees we went. In the past week or so that has since changed. Yay! We started small and easy with some toast. Now he's getting to be really good. The foods he eats best by himself are toast, grilled cheese, mandarin oranges, deli meat, cheese and, once, macaroni and cheese. He'll also eat pears if I feed it to him on his spoon. With this new talent come new mannerisms. I have learned that I can only put 1 or 2 pieces of something on his tray at a time because he will try and stuff whatever is available in his mouth at once. His eating also reminds me of my cousin Chad who grew up with the nickname "72 Chew". With purees Tyler could house his whole meal in minutes. Now he takes forever to eat! He'll chew on one bite for 5 minutes before he decides to swallow! Mealtimes are so fun now and with all the new foods he's trying it's always an adventure!

Tough Man

Tyler is really growing into his little personality. He makes new noises all the time and has the funniest facial expressions. One of my favorites is the one he does in this video clip. He usually pulls it out when he's really excited about something but just recently started doing it when Jim or I do it first. He scrunches up his whole face then breathes in and out through his nose really fast. He looks like a bull that's about to charge. What a hoot!


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Something's Different...

Hey Mama, there's a tree in our living room!

A White Thanksgiving

That's right, here's what our street looked like on Thanksgiving.








Nana and Papa Buffo came over to help us celebrate Tyler's first Thanksgiving. He had such a fun time showing off his new moves and toys. When it came time to eat we pulled his high chair right up to the dining room table with us and he was so excited! He tried cranberry, potatoes, dressing and, of course, turkey.
In other news, Tyler is still waking up super early in the morning but has been taking extra long naps during the day. We're really hoping his teeth pop through and all can return to normal but we'll just have to wait and see. Today Jim and I put him in his crib to play and he pulled himself up to a standing position twice!! That's definitely a first and serves as a reminder that sooner rather than later he'll be motoring around the house. Ha!

Come Out, Come Out Wherever You Are!

Tyler's teeth that is. Poor Tyler has had a pretty rough week all due to his eye teeth that are coming in, slowly but surely. We started to notice something was amiss when he was refusing to eat most foods and drinking dramatically less formula than usual. Then he started waking up very early in the mornings crying like he was in pain. I took him to the doctor on Tuesday because we thought it might be an ear infection but his ears are perfectly healthy. She spotted the swollen gums and large bumps just to the side of where his two front teeth will be and said they should cut through in a day or two. So, for now he's on pain relievers at night and getting lots of cuddles during the day. Hopefully I'll be able to post some cute pictures of his new teeth in a day or two. For now, you can enjoy this video of Tyler playing his new favorite game of peekaboo with his bedroom door. He's learned how to push it so it opens and shuts and now it's all he wants to do!


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Fun With Neighbors

This Saturday Jim and I spent the day and evening with our favorite neighbors. Jim and Joe went to the Minnesota Gopher game and then out to dinner with some of Joe's college friends. Meg and I held down the home front with the three little boys. Tyler and William had a fun playdate then they all ate dinner together. After the kids were safely tucked into their beds Meg and I ordered in from Chili's and relaxed with a little wine and some good conversation. Once the husbands returned we all played some competitive Guitar Hero into the wee hours of the night. Joe, who is a G.H. master, beat the pants off of all of us! We had a blast!

Hard At Play

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TGIW!

That's right, Thank Goodness It's Wednesday! Yesterday we had our weekly playdate with Christa and Anna and the day was so much fun. We spent the day at their house and from the moment we got there Tyler and Anna were enraptured with each other. They would sit facing each other, feet touching, and play footsie, have conversations and reach for each other. Anna was such a great hostess. She showed Tyler how all her toys work and shared her high chair during lunch time. Tyler had a great time exploring the new spaces and new toys. He showed the girls how he can book it across the room, especially when he's chasing a pretty little girl! We had a great time. Can't wait to do it again ladies!

Conquering Fears

About a month ago Nana and Papa Buffo came for a visit and brought Tyler a new toy. It was an inflatable tube that, when pushed, jingled and then rolled back to you. It was a great toy except Tyler was terrified of it. Whenever we sat him near it he would instantly start to cry and twist away from it. As the weeks went on we would catch him staring at it from the corner of the room. Thinking he was ready to play with it we brought it over to him. No dice. Then, as he started to get more mobile he would make his way over to it, give it a quick tap, then retreat like crazy. Finally, after a month of fear, he got up the nerve to play with it and now he loves it! He pushes it and will chase it across the room and sits up with it turning it over on it's ends. It's so funny to watch his emotions towards something evolve!

Got Milk?

9 Months Old...

and on a roll! Tyler's had a busy week so far. Besides his new tricks he tested out a new indoor playground on Monday. We met our friends Nicole and her two sons Josiah (4 years old) and Samuel (5 months old). Tyler had fun watching all the kids and playing but when he really gets moving he will love this place! On the way home from our play date we saw our first flurries of snow. The flakes were tiny and sparse but they meant that winter is definitely here!

Today Tyler had his 9 month check up. He now weighs 25 pounds, 2.5 ounces putting him in the 95th percentile for weight. He's 29 inches long which puts him in the 75th percentile for height. Besides having to get a flu shot the visit was a success. After his appointment we went downtown and met Jim for lunch. Jim was the proud papa showing Tyler off to everyone at work. This afternoon, after naps, Tyler got his first taste of American Government in action. I took him with me to vote in our local school district elections and he was very interested in what was going on. Might we have a future US President in our midst? Here are some fun pictures.