So long Swing?

Sadly, it might be getting time to retire our trusty swing. Tyler no longer sits back and relaxes when placed in the swing. Instead, he struggles to lean so far forward until his upper body is held in place only by the restraining belts then slams himself back down, banging his head on the swing in the process. In an attempt to distract him from this new "game" I attached his tray with toys built in. He then used the tray to hoist himself up, removing the tray in the process! Here are a couple of pictures of Tyler in action. Check out that upper body strength!

Mommy's Favorite Bib

Tripod Tyler

Here's how Tyler sits up now. Soon he'll be all the way upright!

Weekend Away

This weekend I went up North with several of my girlfriends and Tyler and Jim had a weekend alone. It was so nice to have 2 whole days with my friends. We went to dinner, grilled out, read, watched chick flicks and fished. I also got to sleep in! We had so much fun and have decided to make this an annual trip together.
Back at home Jim and Tyler were having a lot of fun too. Tyler took great naps for dad! On Saturday they went to Shannon's where Tyler got to play with his cousins and his Nana and Papa. Jim also cleaned the entire house while I was away! I'm so lucky to have such a wonderful husband. Jim, you're such a great dad and I love you very much!

Minnesota Lynx

Once a season the WNBA team in Minnesota has a noon home game. Since their season is during the summer, this game is a popular one for daycares and day camps to attend. Yesterday the Target Center found itself overrun with kids of all ages to cheer on the Lynx. Always up for doing something in a kid friendly environment, Tyler and I joined the masses and both watched our first WNBA game. Jim let us into an unused suite where we had lunch and watched most of the game. Tyler was enthralled with all the lights and music. He didn't even flinch when they let off fireworks! We also got to see our good friends Tony and Nicole Wolverton who are expecting their first baby in January. We had a great time visiting daddy at work. Thanks for asking us to come!

Baby Party!

This Saturday Tyler and I met up with our friends Christa, Sarah, Mark and Lisa and their little ones; Anna, Elise, Riley and Fletcher. We hadn't seen the Filla boys in a long time so it was great to catch up and introduce them to Tyler. We also got to see Elise's walk and Anna's army crawl. We had a great time and Sarah treated us all to a great BBQ. Thanks for having us over Sarah. It was great to see everyone!

New Expressions

A few days ago Jim and I noticed Tyler was making a new face at us when he smiled. He squinches his nose up and squints his eyes almost shut while baring his gums at us (pictured above). It is the funniest face and we just can't figure out where he picked it up!

Each day he's getting more and more expressive and aware of what's going on around him. It's so fun to see him interact with his surroundings. For instance, he's really started to notice the dogs now. Whenever they are in the room he stares and "talks" to them. When he's on the floor with them he will grab hold of their collars and stroke their fur. He's at such a fun age and everyday Jim and I are reminded of how blessed we are to have him.

Flying With Daddy

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Favorite Toy

Lately, Tyler's favorite things to play with are his feet! Whether on the changing table, in his car seat or on the floor he's always reaching for his tootsies. At first this required some serious concentration but now he's a pro. Next step: get them in the mouth!

Slip 'n Slide Bonanza-Part 2

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1st Ever Axe-Buffo Slip 'n Slide Bonanza

It was a scorching 95 degrees in Blaine on Saturday so when the Axe family invited us over for a day in the baby pool and on the slip 'n slide the Buffos couldn't cross the street fast enough! The moms and babies hung out in the shade in the baby pool. The boys were splashing away and looking cute in their matching swimsuits and hats. The bigger boys (Vincent-age 3, Jim and Joe ages 30+) had the time of their lives on the Finding Nemo slip 'n slide. They situated it on the steep hill in the backyard and quickly made a game out of who could slide down it the fastest and craziest. It was during this mini battle that the slip 'n slide decided it had taken all it could handle and busted at the bottom. We packed it up and called it a morning, with all the boys headed off for afternoon naps. However, Jim and Joe were determined to keep the fun alive. Jim came back from Target with lunch and a super long Spiderman slip 'n slide!
After naps (2 hours!) we all geared up for round 2. Vincent had so much fun playing with his Daddy and Jim and the babies had fun watching them. We look forward to many more days with our great friends Meg, Joe, Vincent and William!

Happy 4th of July!

This 4th we went to Jim's aunt and uncle's house in Hastings for a BBQ and pool party. We had such a good time hanging out with all the Kranz family! It was fun to get caught up with everyone. Tyler was so well behaved, too. He let himself get passed around and showed off his smile and his talking skills. We had him in his new little swim outfit but he never made it into the pool. He still looked cute though! Thanks for having us over Uncle Marty and Aunt Nancy!

Here's some pictures of Tyler in his new swimsuit and matching hat. He's being held by his Uncle Teddy and his Great Grandma Lucy.

Busy Weekend

This past weekend Jim and I celebrated our 2 year wedding anniversary. Jim's parents stayed overnight with Tyler so Jim and I could have a night to ourselves. We stayed downtown in a nice hotel room and had a great dinner out. It was really fun to be just adults for a night, not parents.

The next day we took Tyler to get his pictures made. The photographer is the wife of one of Jim's high school friends. She runs her business out of her home so the atmosphere was nice and relaxed. We took 2 hours getting all the shots we wanted, plus took plenty of breaks to rest and eat. Tyler did really well, although he got off to a slow start. We started him in a cute outfit we'd picked out for his pictures but he did the best at the end when he was on his tummy completely naked!

After pictures we set out for Hastings, MN to hang out with some other of Jim's high school friends. One of his good friends now lives in New York and was back for a visit so we all got together to catch up. Tyler did so good! He let everyone hold him and he was very interested in watching all the other babies and kids. The full day must have taken it all out of him because he fell asleep on the way home and slept clear through until 7:30 the next morning without a peep!

Monday Afternoons

Every Monday afternoon Tyler and I go to our New Parent Connection class at the hospital where he was born. This class is offered free of charge to new moms and is overseen by a registered nurse. The classes can range in size but ours is really small, just us and one other mom and baby. So, it ends up being more like a weekly play date than an actual class but we still like it. Lina is the other baby and she's about a month behind Tyler. It's been fun watching them both develop. When we first started they both either had to be held or stayed in their car seats. Now they both roll around on the floor and talk to each other. These pictures are from last Monday's class where they had a particularly engaging conversation. They were both on their belly's just gabbing back and forth at each other!