Today was just like any other day. We had some errands to run this morning and Tyler was awesome. He played with the new friend he met at one of the houses I had to stop at. He helped me measure the church's conference center for thirty minutes without complaining or making too much noise. Then he walked from the car wash to the book store (a good walk for a little one) with me in 100 degree heat.

He did all of this without complaining, asking for treats or asking when we got to go home. So after we picked up my car I said, "Thanks so much for all of your help today. I really appreciate your patience." His reponse, "It was MY pleasure Mommy. Really, my pleasure."

I just love the sweetness in his voice and how kind he was when he said it. I couldn't ask for a better son, a better helper and a more kind kid.

Then this afternoon, while climbing into his car seat to run yet another errand he kind of fell in to it a little wonky and said, "this is unbelievable! My seat is so tricky - just unbelievable." I love that he listens and has learned these great words and actually uses them. Was the situation so unbelievable, No, but the fact that he makes the attempts to use these words just makes me smile.

Preschool

Tyler started preschool today at Creative Years. It was a long search but we are soo happy with the preschool we chose for Tyler. You just knew it was a great place to be the moment you walked in the door and were greeted by the owner and office staff.

A traditional first day pose outside the front door.

Yesterday they had a meet and greet with the teacher and to find out some of the in's and out's of the actual first day. Collin stayed home so he could go with us. As we walked into the building, Tyler just held on to Collin and said "Don't leave me. You're not going to leave me, right?" That just about broke both of our hearts. Collin was having a difficult time with this and I was pretty much ok until he said that.

We found out Tyler has Ms. Sandi. We met her in the Math and Science Room. That's where they would be starting on their first day. (Each day they start in a different room!) Tyler walked right in and started playing with some toys. A few moments later he was joined by a little boy who we used to go to Gymboree with. That was fun to meet up with an old acquaintance.

Building a road

Laine and Tyler 

After about twenty-five minutes he was very comfortable in the room, with his teacher and it was time for us to go. He and his friend Miranda walked out together. They are excited to be in the same class!

Tyler and Miranda

Hug and a kiss - my little aggressive boy!

So today was the first day of preschool. Collin did not stay home and I was not sure whether to take him or not. Earlier in the week we found out Tyler had croup. It was supposed to not be contagious and he was supposed to be good to go to school today. He woke up with a runny nose and the cough was more consistent now. I debated because I don't want to be that parent but I didn't want Tyler to miss that first day. Sooo, I decided to take him and talk to the teacher.

Ready to go - stylish in this Turtle shorts, green shirt and of course, his brown loafers!

 He walked into the school today (an improvement from yesterday). We were really early so we took some pictures around the school. When Ms. Sandi arrived Tyler walked right in and got started building a road. He agreed to a few more pictures, then a VERY quick hug and kiss. He didn't even see me leave. So there it was, 9am and I was walking out of the school knowing he was in great hands. 

Enough already Mommy!

What he'll learn this month!

Cubbies!

We are the rocket class!

Tyler's green rocket. How did she know???

Getting a closer look at his cubby!

Tyler and Ms. Sandi

Picture, then a quick hug and a kiss and I was gone.

I came home and worked for a while - not really knowing what to do. When I arrived to pick him up he was very excited to see me. I got a great big hug and kiss and then he told me all about his day. He learned about shells and the ocean, then had pretzels for snack. He was too nervous about the slide so he skipped going down today. Maybe next time he said. Then it was off to the music room where he played with a bunch of instruments. They ended the day in Art and he painted with red and blue. He wanted to take his painting home but they were drying. Hopefully we can see his masterpiece soon!

He then told me when we walked out "I'm lucky. Can I come back here?". We ended the day with a celebratory lunch at In-N-Out.

In-N-Out celebration hamburger and fries!

All in all it was the best first day of preschool anyone could have. Soo lucky we found this school, we can afford to send Tyler to this school and that he loved it so much! Here's to a great beginning!!!

Funny things he says

Today Tyler was upstairs playing while I was finishing cleaning up from breakfast. He wanted me to come up and play and I told him I would as soon as I finished. He played for a few minutes and then I heard, "Mommy Elizabeth get up here right now. I said, Mommy Elizabeth get up here right now!"

He is just soo cute. I do not know why he knows my middle name is Elizabeth since it is not something he hears but apparently he does.

Then we were playing hide and seek and I hid under the sheet in my bed. He came in. Looked around. Said "guess there is no Mommy here. Just a beautiful fluffy pillow waiting for me. Aww!" followed by a big thump as he landed on me. He is such a little character.

Another very cute thing is when he says his nightly prayer. Instead of "if I mess up, I'll ask you to forgive" he says "if I messed up, I'll ask you for to give." I'm probably not getting it totally right but it brings such a smile to my face when he says it each night.

I love my boy. He makes me smile everyday. I am so lucky to have the time with him that I do!

Good night candy, good night man

Tonight Tyler and I headed to the drug store to pick up a prescription for Collin. Tyler loves this store because there is so much candy to look at and try to convince me to buy for him. It never works yet he never stops trying.

While waiting for the prescription we looked down the toy aisle. After two minutes they called us. Now Tyler was disappointed because he couldn't look down that toy aisle like I promised. He pulled his shoulders down and did his normal pout while saying "I never get nothin'." Poor kid, never gets nothin.

So on the way out he looked at ALL of the candy and pointed to every one he wanted. In order to get him to leave I told him to say goodnight to the candy so we could go. He proceeded to point to EVERY, yes, EVERY candy and say goodnight M&M's, goodnight gums, goodnight red one (since he didn't know the name of the Kit Kat). He went down the whole row. The cashier just stared at us. This poor teenager had no idea why I would be encouraging him to say goodnight.

We then rounded the corner and he proceeded to say goodnight to all of the jelly beans and gummies. Then he turned to the cashier and said, "Goodnight man, goodnight man's balls." Just at that moment the manager rounded the corner and gave me this look. like what did he just say???

Tyler continued to walk out of the store saying goodnight to the candy eggs, the candy in the quarter machine and the bouncy balls.

The good news is we made it out of the drug store without one request for candy but I'm not sure how soon I can go back in there without that poor cashier and the manager remembering Tyler saying goodnight to them.

Things he says

It seems like Tyler has just been a talking fool lately and I've forgotten to write down my favorites so here are some of them!

He has a rash all over his legs and arms. It's lasted for a week now and they itch like all rashes do. Every time we put on the caladryl he would say "I need to get rid of these sprinkles." I hated the rash and it brought me to tears just about every time I had to put the lotion on and when he would wake up in the middle of the night itching. The best thing was his way of describing this was calling them sprinkles. Last night he prayed that God would make his sprinkles go away.

Another cute thing he says is "I'm so proud of you Mommy." He'll just walk up to me and give me a big hug and say he is proud. I'm thrilled to make my boy so proud. I'm not sure what it is I do, but I'll keep trying my best!

Some of our other random favorites:

"Um, guys. Um, guys."

"I have a problem."

"Give me that phone...I gotta play some games." This is DEFINITELY a problem. He thinks my iPhone belongs to him. We definitely have to keep my phone locked up.

Mommy, it's chillwy

Last night was a very long night with Tyler. So come 6:45 tonight, we had him in his pjs, stories read and were giving hugs and kisses tonight. He was trying to get cozy when he said "Mommy, I so chillwy. I need a sweater."

So we went to the closet and pulled out a sweater vest (his version of a sweater) and pulled it on over his Stud Puffin pjs.

And now he lies, cozy and warm in his sweater vest, stud puffin pjs and his favorite red socks.

During the day he is almost always dressed so adorable - all matchy matchy and pulled together. You'd never know he cares about what he wears each morning based on this precious outfit. But at least he isn't chillwy anymore!

Tough Times Parenting

I knew there would be days that would be very difficult being a parent. Yesterday was DEFINITELY one of those days. Tyler had been sick for the past four days, running a low grade fever and really just having a runny nose. After sticking close to home for those four days we decided we'd venture out to the park with some friends. After all, he was almost done with the runny nose and we were both a little stir crazy.

The first friend Tyler saw was Sophie. They immediately took out some sand toys and were truly playing together, picking up sand and playing with it on the sand table under the play structure. Everything was great. I was getting some much needed adult interaction and he was feeling good and loving being outside.

Then another mom came and dumped her sand toys in the sand. In this pile were two small balls. Before I knew it Tyler had those balls and was running around with Sophie chasing him. They then ran onto the play structure and seconds later Sophie was crying. I knew what happened. I didn't even have to ask, Tyler was the culprit and Sophie had to be hurt because she NEVER cries. Sure enough, Sophie wanted a ball - Tyler didn't want to share and his way of saying no was to bite her hand. I had really thought, or at least hoped, that we were past this biting phase. I was soo disappointed.

I picked up Sophie and cuddled her. She'd be ok but I wanted her to get my attention, not Tyler. We picked up our sand toys and less than 20 minutes after arriving we were on our way out. Tyler cried most of the way to the car wanting to hold my hand and be close to me. I had to let him know how disappointed and upset I was. I felt like the meanest mom and that parking lot felt as though it were MILES away.

We got in the car and headed to the grocery store. I told Tyler just how disappointed I was. I harped. A lot. We got to the store and he was silent in the cart. I was still upset. We shopped in silence and I knew he knew he was in big trouble when he didn't even say goodbye to the cashier.

Just as I was about to put him in the car he said, "Mom, your eyes are sad. I'm sorry."

BROKE MY HEART.

They were sad and I was sad.

We got home, had a little lunch and then it was nap time. I decided after nap that we'd try to move on and have a better night. We made dinner and about an hour after Dad got home, it happened AGAIN. This time he bit Collin on the arm, leaving a mark through a sweatshirt. What happened? I just don't understand. He knows. I know he knows.

He went to bed immediately, without stories, without songs, alone. It broke both of our hearts. As we were talking to him about biting he kept hiding his eyes.

Collin and I were just trying to figure out what to do. I took away one of his toys. He had to say goodbye to it and I told him we'd be taking it to another child who could listen and be kind.

This was a TOUGH day for all of us. Tyler knows better. We thought we were doing a better job monitoring this and teaching him right from wrong. We both went to bed feeling very defeated as parents. We were those parents whose child was a biter.

This morning was our first day back at MOPS which meant Tyler went into childcare for 2.5 hours. This time his best friend would be there - they are like brother and sister so I was worried about that. We talked about it ALL morning. He will not kick, hit or bite. He will be kind. He will treat others the way he wanted to be treated. I must have said it to him 50 times and had him repeat it back to me.

I watched the childcare numbers throughout the whole meeting. My number was never called. As I picked him up he said to me, "Mommy, I did not kick. I did not hit. I did not bite. I was a kind boy. A good boy." We were both beaming.

Then I found out that there was one boy who wouldn't share and was pretty mean to Tyler. The childcare workers told me he told the boy to "be kind, share" and instead of hitting, kicking or biting, he walked away until the boy was ready to share again.

Can I tell you just how proud I am that he seems to be learning? Maybe yesterday was a fluke? Maybe it was the Claritin (the first time he's ever taken it was yesterday)? Maybe it was just a day we all needed to go through to remind us that this parenting this isn't so easy. And sometimes, being an almost 3 year old little boy isn't so easy either.

Thanks for the good day we're having today. I hope the lesson we were all meant to learn yesterday has cemented in our brains and that we are all better for it today!

Christmas Gifts that Last

This was Tyler's third Christmas and it was a FANTASTIC one! (I'll post more on that later.) But what I really love is how he remembers Christmas, talks about it and still asks to sing Jingle Bells every night at bed time. He is enchanted by the season and that's so much fun with an almost three year old.

This year he got a few toys that have been amazing. He plays with these things almost every day. It's good to know Mom, Dad and the grandparents have such great taste! And Santa, well he has the best taste of all. This year Tyler got an awesome train table with train tracks on it from Santa. It's just about the first thing he plays with every day and the last thing he touches before heading upstairs for bed. It has already provided many, many hours of fun and enjoyment for him.

Grammie and Grandpa John gave Tyler and Collin two marble runs. Although he is a little young for them, many days the marbles are what wakes me up. No longer does Tyler come into my room at the ungodly hour he wakes up at, but instead he goes directly to the playroom and starts to run those marbles through the tracks. He just LOVES playing marbles with Daddy.

On Black Friday, Collin and I stood in a CRAZY line at Toys 'R Us for a silly little camera that was only $20. I figured he might play with it once in a while, but nope - it comes out just about every day too. He is getting better at aiming the camera properly and actually getting shots of people and not just his toes. This morning he and I had a fun "photo" session where he said "cheese" and I smiled and posed a lot. He then got crafty and took a picture of his breakfast! Gotta love this kid and his love of taking pictures. I wonder if it's because I had the camera in his face from the second he was born!

The other gift that was a real, real hit were his games. In particular, Candyland and Memory. Tyler just loves playing these games. It has really brought us together as a family when we have these little game moments together. I just really love it. I love that when Daddy gets home from work Tyler begs him to come upstairs because he has a "surprise"; ie. a game of Candyland set up, waiting for Daddy. He's figured out the good cards to get - the ones with the pictures.

I love that we found things that Tyler loves. I'm so glad that he continues to grow and learn and enjoy playing like little boys should.

Kings game

Last weekend we were lucky enough to get tickets for the Kings hockey game. This was Tyler's second game and he was ready. Back in December Tyler stayed with grandpa John for a few days and spent some quality time watching the Sharks play so he was ready!

We stopped at Lawry's Cavery for lunch. He was so excited to go he didn't want to concentrate on lunch. We quickly ate and headed over. The seats we had were awesome.

Tyler watched the game so intently. He knew when to cheer and when to boo. He watched his first real fight. Gloves were thrown down and punches wre thrown. The crowd was on their feet. Now the dilemma is to convince him that hitting is never ok. Ha ha ha!

He was glued to the ice all three periods in between his popcorn snacks and jelly beans! In between the first and second period the little kids came out. He started asking over and over again when they were coming back.

He also loved telling me every time someone was put in "time out" as he called it. That happened a lot!

It was a great day. We are going back in a few months to see the Kings play the Sharks with grandpa John. That should be great fun! We've got a hockey fan on our hands. Maybe one day he'll try the ice.

Halloween

Last week I had a Halloween party for my Mom's group. We had a photographer come to the house and set up a backdrop so the kids could take cute Halloween pictures. For a few months now Tyler has been telling us he wants to be Mickey Mouse. We got a very cute Disney Mickey costume and when we first tried to put it on - he CRIED. He HATED it!

It has been a few weeks now and he still dislikes his costume. Here's the pictures from the Halloween party the photographer took.

He finally succeeded in taking off the costume. We did actually get ONE cute picture...not in a costume, but at least it is kind of Halloweeny!

And then I jumped in for a few shots...they didn't turn out the greatest, but we sure tried!

Hoping tonight's trick-or-treating is a success!

Happy Halloween!