Sleeping baby

Every night before I go to sleep I peak in on Tyler. He's just such a cute sleeper. I'm sure that's what all parents think. His new thing is to take things to bed with him. This night he took one of his brushes to bed and fell asleep, after tossing and turning, with it in his hand. He woke up the next morning and the brush was gone. I still haven't found it. I have NO idea where it could be. One of these days I'm sure it will appear!

Baseball Glove Chair

For Tyler's first birthday his grandparents - Jerry and Judy - gave him a baseball glove chair. At first he wasn't sure about the chair. It was a little wobbly and different than the chairs that Mommy and Daddy sit in. One day he was having a rough time so I gave him some milk in his sippy cup and put him in his chair. It has now become his relaxing chair. He takes his milk sippy cup, books, toys and anything else he is attached to to cuddle with in the chair. It's so cute to watch him kick up his feet and relax. Here are a couple of pictures to show you what I mean.

My train blocks

Just kicking back with my block
Yummy milk!
Really relaxing!
Almost asleep!

Big Boy Bathtime

Loving bathtime

Many, many months ago we stopped bathing Tyler in the infant counter-top bathtub and took him in the shower with one of us. He loved it. At first he was very slippery and would just cuddle with us. Then he graduated to sitting on the floor of the shower playing with his toys and learning to dunk his mini basketball. It's Collin's favorite time with Tyler because Tyler really cuddles with him in the shower. I figured however, that it was time to get him adjusted to being in the big boy bath tub by himself. He'd been in a bathtub before as well, but again, it's always with one of us. So I loaded the tub with toys to distract him and put him in. He had so much fun with Daddy. He'd splash around, throw his toys over the side and walk up and down the tub. So he's not a sitter in the tub, but at least he was happy and having fun!

Do we have enough toys in the tub?

Here Daddy!

Always a toy in the mouth, even in the bathtub.

Toys, toys, toys! So much fun!!!

We have our first word....

For the past few weeks we've heard Tyler say a few words. He says Mama, Dada, Ongo (for Mongo) and b (for ball). No one else could ever determine what he was saying - that was until this weekend. He figured out how to say DOG! He even uses it correctly. When we were walking Mongo on Saturday night we passed another dog. In his stroller he immediately said "dog"! It was the only thing he said the whole walk. On Sunday, we went to The Grove, an outdoor shopping center in LA and Tyler saw a ton of dogs. The only thing he said all day was "dog"! It was great to see that he really has his first word!!! Before we know it, he'll have a HUGE vocabulary!

Playdate at the Park

I planned a visit to the park for the Mommy group. This was Tyler's first trip to the park. He actually let me put a hat on him! We walked down to the grass and put out the picnic blanket. I then put him on the picnic table bench. He looked like such a big kid sitting there!

I love Mommy's sunglasses!

Mommy, do you see those kids?!?

We waited for the other moms and their kiddos to arrive. While waiting, Tyler loved crawling around on the grass and in the sand. He thought the taste of sand was absolutely delicious! He and I also played on the play structure and went down the slide together. The best part of the day for Tyler was the swing. He did not enjoy the travel swing we tried when he was just an infant (I can't believe I can't call him an infant anymore!) so I wasn't sure how he'd react. Just take a look at the pictures to see what he thought of the whole experience!

Not so sure yet.

It's getting better.

Ok, this is fun now!
Weeeeeeee

Big smiles!
All giggles!

It was an awesome afternoon. We made some new friends, felt new textures (sand, rubber mats, the wobbly bridge) and had new adventures. We cannot wait to take Daddy back with us to the park! Maybe when he gets home from London we'll go show him what a big kid he has now!

Sleepy time - ready to go home.

Feeding Ducks

Last Friday, Tyler and I met Kim and Emma for a walk around Bridgeport. We went to feed the ducks. This was Tyler's first time seeing ducks up close. These ducks were very friendly and the kids loved it. After watching the ducks fight over the bread and the geese fight for their territory, we continued on our walk.
We came upon two women taking photos for three 7 week old puppies. Tyler and Emma were very cute with the puppies.

We then hit up the bridge where we saw a ton of turtles. I love turtles and Tyler's nickname when he was first born was Tyler Turtle! We were so excited to watch them swim and eat the bread we were throwing.
We then watched them crawl up onto the sides and lay out in the sun. It was so fun to watch! I can't wait to take Tyler and Daddy back! It's a lovely setting for a family stroll!

New Enemy

Now that Tyler is 1 the doctor said it was time to try real cow's milk. I had some in the fridge on Tuesday so I figured I'd give it a try. He LOVED it and really couldn't get enough of it. Wednesday morning we had the same reaction. By Wednesday afternoon he had a fever, runny nose, and a mild cough. I called the doctor and was told it could just be a reaction to his shots from Tuesday so I figured I'd watch it. By Friday it still wasn't any better so I started looking at shot side effects online. Other than a mild fever he didn't have any listed reactions. That's when it occurred to me - maybe it was the milk. Sure enough - every website lists his symptoms as side effects of a milk allergy. So I guess it's time to go back to formula and breastfeeding. To think we were almost weaned and now with him not feeling well that's all he seems to want. Poor guy! We are almost 24 hours milk free. He's up and down in his crib and has been for the last two hours. I hope that he is finally able to get to sleep tonight and that tomorrow he is back to his normal happy, go lucky kiddo! Darn milk! We'll have to try again in a few months.

Reminiscing

An old friend, Aimee, has been blogging for quite a while now. After I had Tyler I thought I might try it out! Little did I know how much I'd love doing it. With over 100 posts now, I feel like I'm getting the hang of it. It's only been about 10 months since I started blogging but now I have this amazing story of Tyler's first year of life. I'm able to look back at all of the big moments that I've captured on video, camera or just in my mind. I love this new format of sharing these moments and marking them down for Tyler. Someday he'll be able to see all of this (I may have to transfer it to a document, but at least I have it!). Thanks for inspiring me Aimee. I love doing this for me, for Tyler, for anyone who loves reading about my little baby boy!

Happy St. Patrick's Day

What a difference a year makes!

Tyler 1 week old
Tyler 1 year and 1 week old

Happy St. Patrick's Day! We spent the morning at Sky City Bounce House with some friends. It was a quiet morning there but we had fun on the giant slides and crawling/waddling around.

We then had a nice lunch at home and ended the afternoon with a runny nose, small cough and slight fever! Big bummer!!! Guess we'll spend the evening cuddling!

Disneyland Birthday

The first birthday celebration continued on Sunday when 10 of us went to Disneyland for the day! Grandpa Jerry, Grandma Judy, Grandpa John, Grandma Betsy, Andy, Kim, Emma, Collin, Tyler and I went to the Magic Kingdom for one more day birthday fun. We arrived at the park in the morning.

Riding the tram with Grandma and Grandpa
Eating ice cream with Grandma Judy while waiting for Emma to come in the park!

Emma fell asleep almost as soon as they arrived to the park. We decided to hit up the Matterhorn while she slept. Andy was nice enough to take Tyler so I could go to. Tyler waited in line with us most of the way! He and Daddy enjoyed watching the riders!
Then Kim and I watched the kids as the rest of the adults hit up Splash Mountain. When they all came off the ride soaked we know we'd made the right decision to skip it! While we were waiting we fed the kids some snacks, watched the ducks, met Brer Bear and enjoyed people watching!

So adorable!
Great buddies!
Same height - two months apart! Poor Tyler!
Brer Bear
Emma says "No thanks!"

Tyler fell asleep shortly after our picture with Brer Bear. The rest of the adults then joined us for lunch. It was good and we were all very hungry. Tyler slept for a good hour and then we took both kiddos to Toon Town. This was Tyler's first visit there! He loved it!

Posting with the fire hydrant!

Inside Toon Town there is a great kid's playground. These two had SO much fun crawling around. Tyler even practiced his walking on the rubber bark. They found a fake hose and thought it was so fun to play in!

They are great buddies and get along so well together.

Posing in the windowsill!
Family photo time!
The Simcox Family




Walking with my Grandmas!

After enough play time we headed to Mickey's house to see the big guy! He was so awesome up close. Neither one of the kids got scared. They even posed for us and we got some fun pictures with the Mouse!

Big family photo!
Our Family!
The Simcox Family
Leaving Mickey's Garage - I found a funnel!


Visiting Mickey's Chickens

On the way out of Toon Town we stopped at Small World. Tyler loves this ride. It was Emma's first time and I think she had fun too! She seemed just as amazed at all of the colors and animation as Tyler was both the first time he went on and this time!

Mommy and Daddy - Tyler is on Daddy's back and wouldn't look at the camera!
Awww!
On the ride - look at that face!



Emma can't be bothered by the camera - too much to see!

After Small World the Simcox family had to hit the road. The rest of us hit up Fantasyland. We rode Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, the Carousel and Pinocchio's Daring Journey. The only ride he didn't like was the Carousel! Go figure - the other two are a little dark and a little scary and he doesn't mind either one of them!

Grandpa kissing Mr. Toad

Mr. Toad's Wild Ride - with Grandma and Grandpa
Waiting for the Carousel - I'm a little nervous!
Silly Grandpa!
Another silly Grandpa!
Grandma
Another Grandma
GET ME OFF OF THIS HORSE!!!!!!!

We then decided to call it a night. We stopped by City Hall to pick up a birthday button and a "My First Visit" button (it wasn't Tyler's first visit but I never got one on his official first visit so I had to get one now!). You would have thought we had given him the world. Look at that smile! What a great, great way to end Tyler's first birthday celebration!!!

See my two buttons!
I LOVE THEM BOTH!!!