Playtime at the Mall

Last week Tyler and I went shopping at the mall. He was such a trooper as I tried on clothes, searched for shoes for a wedding this weekend and pushed him through all of the stores. After about an hour I decided he should get out and run around so I took him over to the little play area in the mall. There was only one other child there so it was perfect. Many times we've gone to the play area only for Tyler to be run over by the bigger children.

He had a blast crawling through the tunnel.

He had fun climbing over the car.

It's such a great play area with so much to explore. I'm thankful he had a chance to really have fun without being interrupted. After about 20 minutes of playtime we finished our shopping trip and headed home. It was a nice day at the mall and a success for both of us! I have a great shopper on my hands, especially when he is rewarded with playtime!

Another Word

Tyler has his third word - "go". He loves telling me that he wants to go - go outside, go into the playroom, go into the car! Just go, go go! Better get myself moving so we can GO!

Music Class

Today Collin was able to work from home after getting home late last night from Cincinnati. I talked him into going to Gymboree Music class with us! We had so much fun listening to rock and roll oldies this week. During class Tyler did a little dancing and even showed how to share with others. He is growing every day. In the middle of class he said "ball" and has been saying it all afternoon. I guess we have our second official word - ball! So now we are set with dogs and balls!

Finally Caught Up

I took a few weeks off of blogging but have finally caught up! I've added videos to some of the previous posts (Disneyland specifically) and added a lot more. It's been a busy few weeks! Enjoy!

New Shoes

So Tyler is a walking fool now. We heard about these squeaky shoes that help kiddos learn to walk correctly. I've only seen them in catalogs and online. Today at the car wash they had a few different pairs. After debating I decided to get a pair. While I was at the register I found out they were half price so I bought two!

We came home from the car wash and I put a pair on Tyler. Oh my goodness - he had so much fun! He began stomping and Mongo went crazy thinking Tyler's feet were suddenly new squeaky toys for him. I wish someone had been home to witness the fun. After a few minutes it dawned on me to record him with his new shoes. I got three videos - not the greatest, but at least you can see the smile on his face as he discovered the squeaker! How fun!!!


Trying out Tyler's new shoes


Attacked by Mongo!


Final video of squeaking shoes!

I wonder how long I'll be able to handle the squeaks of these shoes? Right now it's fun, but will it always?

Lost Videos

Collin has been gone for the last few days so I've been spending my evenings catching up on the blog and cleaning up the cameras. I found three videos that I hadn't uploaded yet. The day before Tyler's birthday my parents, Tyler and I headed to Manhattan Beach to pick up his cake. We had a lovely lunch and then headed to the bakery to pick up the cake. We decided to get a treat before we headed home. I went ahead and got Tyler a mini cupcake. I figured it would be a good practice round for his birthday party the next day. He had sooo much fun with this little bitty cupcake. I'm glad I was able to capture it up close!

New Car Seat

Big boy seat

Now that Tyler is one he has his big boy car seat. As with everything we buy we researched this seat a great deal and decided on the Britax Boulevard CS. We even went to Babies 'R Us to make sure it would fit. Once we decided on the seat I scoured the internet for the best deal. We found it, ordered it and had it in just a few days. The first time he took a ride he hated the new seat. It's quite a bit bigger than his old one. After two trips though, he's in heaven. Many times he falls asleep shortly after we get in the car. He is good about putting on the straps and helping me pull them tight. For his safety we're keeping the seat backwards and will until he doesn't seem to fit anymore. Good thing there is a mirror for me to keep an eye on him! Just one more big boy milestone he has reached now that he is one!

Kicking back, enjoying some snacks!

This seat is gigantic!

Getting comfy in my new seat!

Switching Roles

On Monday Tyler found Mongo's basket of dog toys. He decided to dig through them and pull out some of the older ones. One he found and just loved was a pink squeaky bone. It got awful quiet and when I turned around from cooking dinner I found this...
They both love hanging out in front of the fireplace. It would have been the perfect picture if Mongo had one of Tyler's toys in his mouth like he usually does! Too cute - my little switcheroos! They just sharing toys.

Music Man

Tyler has always loved having something in his mouth. It started as pacifiers then quickly moved to his brush and now its just about any toy. He's realized it can be his third hand. When crawling up or down stairs he carries his toys in his mouth. In the carseat he holds one toy in each hand and one in his mouth. At Gymboree he grabs any ball or air shape he can find and it immediately goes in his mouth. He cracks me up when he does it and it always gets a good laugh or comment from strangers that see him in his stroller! The other day topped it all though - just check out how talented my music man really is!

Cage bell and four maracas - where's the rest of the band?

Finding his Voice

Tyler is just finding his voice. He says "dog" and what sounds like "Mongo." He's also been going on and on with what sounds a little like "tickle, tickle, tickle." It is just sooo cute! I'm glad I was able to capture a little of it on video!

Dinner with his Girlfriend

Last Friday night we met our friends the Simcoxs for dinner at Chi-Chi's. Tyler just loves hanging out with Emma. They greeted each other with lots of hugs and kisses! These two are just sooo cute together!

My girl, Emma!

She's going in for the kiss! He's being playing hard to get!
Hugs!
Kisses!
ENOUGH ALREADY!

Backyard Playtime

Since moving to our new home last fall we have really enjoyed the additional space we have in the backyard. Our old house was a concrete slab with no grass. Our new yard has lots of grass (thanks to all of Daddy and Grandpa's hard work laying the sod!). Tyler just loves being outside and playing. Now that he is walking he is all over the yard, usually with Mongo not far behind.

Love those beach balls!

Here Mama!

Oops! That grass is still a little tricky to walk in!

Crab crawling with the beach ball.
Two boys making trouble!
Chasing the beach ball
Tyler got it!
Now what???

Easter

Tyler's second Easter was a day of fun with family. My parents, John and Betsy, were down from Roseville. Collin's parents, Jerry and Judy, and Collin's grandpa Elton joined us for a day of celebrating the big bunny!

Daddy and Tyler

Our family!
Grandma Betsy
Grandpa John

After the Schoenfeld clan arrived, Tyler took them outside to play in his turtle sandbox, a birthday present from Great-Grandpa Elton. He enjoyed playing in the sand and with his orange egg on the grass. He even posed for an Easter family picture!

The Easter Bunny brought all of these sand toys!

But I still love my Easter rubber duckies the best!
Come and get me!

We had our good friends the Perrys over for Easter dinner. It was a special meal together. About half way through the meal my dad said "I think we're having an earthquake." We all looked at one another, then at the blinds, then at the little hot air balloon we have in the ceiling and agreed. Indeed, we were having an earthquake. It was a LONG quake, but not too strong. Collin turned on the T.V. to learn there had been a 7.1 earthquake in Mexicali, Mexico. That was over 400 miles away and yet we definitely felt it. The rest of Easter dinner was uneventful.

The table

The spread - Honeybaked Ham and Turkey, rolls, cookies, broccoli salad, potato salad and green beans with bacon, onions and mushrooms. Yum, yum!

At the end of the evening we played a little Phase 10. It got heated right from the beginning with my lovely husband skipping me twice in the first round. I may have started in last place but in the end, I won! It was a fun evening with family and friends and a great second Easter for Tyler. I still can't believe he has had two Easters now!

Playing with his two bunnies while we play Phase 10

M & M's

Tyler has found the M & M's. Now that he is one, I decided an M & M here or there wouldn't hurt so I gave him one. He LOVED them. So every once in a while he gets an M & M treat. On Easter morning he was sitting on the kitchen counter. Next thing I know he was crawling toward the window. It took me a second to figure it out - he'd spotted the M & M's and was headed straight for them. We decided to sit back and watch - let's see what he'd do. The video really captures the moment, but the pictures are fun too. By the way, I'm not sure why he was just in a diaper as he rarely crawls around without clothes. There must have been a good reason though!

Look at those hands! They're FULL of M&M's.

Love the drooly chin!

Grandma is trying to clean up!

Can I fit one more in my hand?

Easter Egg Hunt

The kiddos awaiting the hunt!

The Mom's group I belong to held an Easter Egg Hunt at a local park. The kiddos had so much fun searching for the hidden eggs. It was Tyler's first time collecting eggs.

On his way to find some eggs!
I found some!

He is a BIG collector of things though, so this was a fun new thing to collect. He got the idea of putting them in his basket, although he really wanted to keep two in each hand and one in his mouth. They were a little tricky to hold but he managed!

Yummy plastic eggs!
Using my basket!Look at that collection!

Too busy to pose with Mommy!

He even figured out how to swing with two eggs in his hands. Silly goose!