The past couple of days have been filled with fun Halloween activities. On Saturday we met Steve, Christa and Anna at the Como Zoo for ZooBoo, a Halloween themed fundraiser. As it took place outside we decided against costumes that evening and bundled the kids up in their winter wear. We walked throughout the zoo and were met with many costumed characters and fun themes straight out of storybooks and songs. Tyler was in awe the entire time. He talked up a storm to anyone who would look at him and never stopped kicking his little legs. Towards the end of the walk Anna and Tyler sat down for a sunset dinner. Yes, love was in the air! We joked that it was their first dinner date, chaperoned of course!
This morning we met Anna and Christa and our friends Karissa and Max at the Children's Museum. Costumes were worn for this adventure! Anna was a precious lion, Max came as Elmo and Tyler was a hot dog. All three had fun exploring and playing together then had lunch. It was so fun to visit with everyone and see the kids all dressed up. Happy Halloween everyone!
Summer has officially left here in Minnesota. The leaves are changing colors and this morning we had frost on our lawn. Yes, it's time to pack up the shorts and tank tops for another year and say hello to turtlenecks, gloves and scarves. For Tyler and I our days of stroller rides and swings are waning fast so we're taking advantage of every last day we have. Yesterday we met some friends at a local park then spent the afternoon swinging at the playground just around the corner from our house.
Tyler, too, is going through some changes. Nothing as dramatic as starting to crawl but subtle differences that show he's on his way to becoming a little boy. Everyday his vocabulary of sounds increases. Twice this week he's waken us up in the middle of the night by talking and laughing to himself in his crib. He still hasn't said "mama" yet but I'm hoping for it soon! He's also learning how to express his displeasure in new ways. Instead of crying he will jerk his arms and legs and "yell". Yes, I think the temper tantrums have begun. I had no idea this would begin so young and that realization has prompted me to check out several discipline books from the library. I know there's not much to do right now but Jim and I know we need to have our game plan together sooner rather than later!
He's also moving around quite a bit. He can turn all different ways on his stomach and can also inch along a little by stretching his body out as far as it'll go. He's using anything and everything to pull himself up to his knees, including his crib railing. Jim and I lowered his crib mattress last week just to be on the safe side. He's also taken to reaching out for me when we're sitting on the floor together. He "dives" for me with his arms out and ends up resting his head in my lap. It's pretty cute!
This week I noticed that he's playing with his toys differently too. He has a set of blocks that have different functions on them. Normally he will knock them over and try to stick them in his mouth the second I stack them up. Lately though, instead of knocking them over he's been gently exploring how each function works and getting excited when he figures them out. Then he proceeds to stick them in his mouth!
All these changes are an exciting prelude for what's to come but they also serve as a reminder to cherish the times we have now. Soon Tyler won't be our little baby but our rough and tumble little boy.
On Friday Meg and I took the boys to the Children's Museum. We had such a good time even though the place was packed!! Their theme right now is Sesame Street and, although Tyler is too young to appreciate it, it brought back a lot of good memories from my childhood. Vincent "worked" really hard at the block and paper factory while Tyler and William played together in the Habitot area. William can crawl like a champ and Tyler is paying close attention. Tyler can now get up on all fours and rock back and forth a few times before falling down. It's only a matter of time! Enjoy these cute pictures!
On Wednesday Tyler and I went with our friends Christa and Anna to an apple orchard. Unfortunately, because of all the rain we've had recently, it turned out to be a pretty muddy experience. There was a petting zoo but the animals were pretty dirty so we had the kids just look from the safety of their strollers. After seeing the animals we walked around in the barn and had a picnic lunch inside. Since it was the middle of the week the hay rides weren't open for business but we plan to try again on a weekend soon. Thanks for a fun day Christa and Anna!
After an exciting five days in the Lone Star State Tyler and I are finally home. We had a jam packed week with never a dull moment. Tyler met a ton of new relatives and friends and loved every minute of being the center of attention. Wednesday my mom picked us up from the airport and we were off to meet Great Grandma and Grandpa Fondren. Tyler has started experiencing a little stranger anxiety so I worried how he would react to all these new faces in such a new environment. My concerns were completely unfounded. Tyler was a little ham and flirt the whole week, smiling and showing off for whoever would watch. He quickly won the hearts of Great Grandma and Grandpa with his smiles and great disposition. From there we headed to my dad's house which would be our home base for this trip. On Thursday Tyler got reacquainted with Poppy, Gammy and Honey (who had flown in the night before on a tiny two person plane!) We went on walks through the neighborhood with Duchess the Yorkipoo and then had lunch out and did a little shopping in the afternoon. On Friday my relatives from Tyler, TX drove over to meet Tyler. He got to meet Great Aunt Linda and Uncle Fletcher, my Cousin Karen and her daughter Anne. What a precious and sweet little girl! Tyler loved watching her walk around and she kept him supplied with toys. It was such a fun afternoon catching up with them. We hope to see you again soon! That night I went to my friend Haley's for her birthday party. I got to see friends from high school and college and was able to meet some of their new little ones; baby Kinley is 3 months old, older sister Aubrey, and Jackson who is 16 months. On Saturday morning some of my friends came over to meet Tyler and visit with him for a while. It meant so much to me that they could see him. It's been hard with everyone so far away so this was very special to me. That afternoon we were back at Tyler's Great Grandparents to celebrate Great Grandpa's birthday. He also got to meet Great Aunt Ellen, Great Uncle Mark and Cousin Sydney. Saturday night Grammy watched Tyler while I went to a baby shower for my friend Genni and her husband Chad. They're expecting their first child next month, Grace Riley. The shower was a great party with delicious Mexican food, college football on every tv and lots of great friends. She had people come from California, Florida, Minnesota and all over Texas. I've known Genni and her family since 2nd grade so it was so great to see everyone again and celebrate the upcoming arrival of baby Grace. Sunday was the most low key day we had. The day was spent packing up and preparing to head back up North. Despite a few travel complications we arrived home safe and sound and ready for a night in our own beds! As wonderful and memorable as this trip was we missed Jim a lot and, well, there's just no place like home!
Tyler and I are headed south for the remainder of the week. There are a lot of friends and family anxious to meet little Bubba for the first time. We're planning to relax, swim, watch football and get Tyler in touch with his Texas roots. We should have lots of fun pics and stories when we get back! See y'all then!
I apologize for the lack of posts recently. This past week The Thymes had its annual warehouse sale and they asked me to help work it from Wednesday through Saturday. It was so much fun getting to be with all my friends from work again but it's tough being a working mother! On Thursday and Friday I only saw Tyler for about an hour each day because he goes to bed so early. Nana Buffo came and stayed with us to watch Tyler on Wednesday and Thursday. Jim took Friday off to hang out with the little man. On Friday Jim brought Tyler up to the sale to see everyone. Most people hadn't seen him for several months so it was fun to show off how much he's changed. On Saturday the sale went until 2pm, then I got to come home and spend the afternoon with my boys. I had such a good time catching up with everyone and working the sale, however this week has made me appreciate how fortunate I am to be able to stay home with my son. I'm very thankful to my wonderful husband who works so hard to make that happen. Here are some pictures of Tyler hanging out with daddy. Also, I discovered on Saturday afternoon that Tyler is cutting his 2nd tooth on the bottom!
This weekend was a lot of fun. My neighbor Meg and I had a "girls night out" scheduled for Saturday and we started the evening off with a little shopping. I got Tyler the cutest Halloween costume! You'll have to wait until the end of the month to see what he is but it is precious! After shopping we had a long relaxing dinner at the Melting Pot. Thanks to our wonderful husbands for watching the boys! Tyler has been feeling much better. He still is a little phlegmy but his cough and runny nose are almost non-existent. He's been a busy boy too. He's been practicing his clapping and is getting really good at it. I'll try to get a video of it soon. He also tried some finger foods for the first time yesterday. He didn't really enjoy the experience but I figure he'll have to get used to it. First off, he couldn't pick up the Cheerios to save his life and when I put one in his mouth he acted like it was killing him. Oh well, we'll keep trying! He's also getting more and more frustrated with his stationary position. You can tell by the frustrated whine that seems to have become a constant in our house. I know he'll figure it out sooner rather than later. He has mastered the art of spinning on his stomach. When you flip him over he can rotate himself 360 degrees on his stomach to access any toy nearby. Another new thing he's learning is his name. He doesn't do it 100% of the time but usually now when you say his name he'll turn and look at you. It's progress!
The past couple of days have been filled with fun Halloween activities. On Saturday we met Steve, Christa and Anna at the Como Zoo for ZooBoo, a Halloween themed fundraiser. As it took place outside we decided against costumes that evening and bundled the kids up in their winter wear. We walked throughout the zoo and were met with many costumed characters and fun themes straight out of storybooks and songs. Tyler was in awe the entire time. He talked up a storm to anyone who would look at him and never stopped kicking his little legs. Towards the end of the walk Anna and Tyler sat down for a sunset dinner. Yes, love was in the air! We joked that it was their first dinner date, chaperoned of course!
