bathroom access

Tyler has learned to open the bathroom door on the main level. He opened the door and closed himself inside with the lights off. Alex waited for him to call for help or start to cry, but no noise came. When Alex opened the door, Tyler was just chilling in the dark with no worries. He's such an explorer!

up on the big bed

The bed in our master bedroom is very high. Before we had Tyler, when Daisy was the baby of the house, she always wanted to be close to us. So we put a step stool at the base of the bed so she could hop up and down on her own. It took about five minutes to train her how to use it.

Tyler, all on his own, climbed up on the stool and then up again onto the bed to join Mommy. He was so proud of himself that he scooted backwards off the bed so that he could do it over and over again.

animals

While Tyler can't say all of the animal names, he understands all of them. I can ask him to find and bring me a monkey, elephant, giraffe, gator, and lion. (Those are all of the ones that we have in the living room). He points to them in his books when asked. But his favorite is still a dog, which he has said, signed and ruffed at as they pass by on the street. He also does lion and gator noises.

buh

"Buh" is Tyler's word for button. It is also Tyler's word for bus. As I drop him off at daycare oftentimes there is a school bus that picks up neighbor kids and he loves to point at it and tell me what it is.

i

I was talking to Tyler tonight and I told him, "I love you." Then I asked him if he could say, "I love you." He said "I." I asked him again and he repeated, "I." That is close enough for me!

name that tune

Tyler listens to a mix of songs while splashing in the bathtub. He's so familar with the songs now that he can name them (usually after just a few notes)!

memorial weekend at the park

We had three house showings on Saturday so we needed to get out of the house for awhile. And the weather was extremely beautiful so we went to lunch and then spent time at the local park, Lake Elkhorn. We had a great time running around in the grass and throwing Tyler's O-ball around. Alex even taught him to move it with his feet like a soccer ball.

monkey

I got Tyler a toy monkey, which was really excited about. He started to toss him and thought that was hilarious. Then later he used the word (very clearly) "monkey!"

headbanger

Our boy loves music and he can't help but rock to the beat (and lip synch)! (for some reason I can't seem to get the audio to work, but imagine this with Funky Cold Medina playing)

the look

Just a cutey!

the VCR ate it

When the designated remote for Tyler's play use disappears, check inside the VCR!

you're welcome

I thought I heard this phrase the other day and as it turns out, he's been using it all the time at daycare. So he's got his thanks yous and you're welcomes...now we just need to get a please!

student driver

Don't worry! This is not a Britney Spears move; the car is in park! But for a little guy who is totally into cars and trucks this was a special treat! (tilt your head 90 degrees to the left for optimal viewing)

18-month checkup

Tyler went to his first appointment with his new doctor (his health coverage changed along with Daddy's when Alex got a new job at Hobsons.) He couldn't like Nurse Claire more! He also entertained the other kids in the play area of the waiting room. He slipped and noticed that it made the kids giggle. So what did he do? He pretended to slip over and over again. I can't blame him; his audience was enchanted each time!

By the time he got to see the doctor, he showed all normal signs of development, weighed in at 26 pounds, 4 ounces (50th-75th percentile) and measured 33 inches (also 50th-75th percentile). His head circumference was 18.5 inches (25th-50th percentile) so my baby has a smaller head, but the doctor seemed to think he looked proportional.

mother's day

I can't say that Mother's Day was relaxing because the Campbell family spent the day working on our house (it went on the market Saturday). But it was rewarding and Tyler and I (and Daisy too) had some quality time together wrestling, reading, playing cars and cuddling!

18 months

Officially 1 1/2 years old today! My my. Our little baby is now a little boy. He is picking up new words daily it seems. Today he snorted like a pig when I got to that page of his farm book. It took me a second to realize that that was what he was doing. Cars and trucks are still his favorite things, but he does enjoy animals and animal noises. He really enjoys rough housing with mommy and daddy (and thankfully this hasn't carried over to Daisy). He is also so loving. He loves to give kisses and hugs and cuddle in our arms with a blanket and a book. And we'll have to start spelling words soon because Tyler's comprehension is through the roof. What he can say is only a small percentage of words that he understands. So we know he listens when he wants to! And yes, he's is definately up to something ALWAYS!

oh snap!

Alex got Tyler to try snapping his fingers. It's adorable to see him concentrate on the task.

ruff ruff duck

We were on the deck and heard some dogs barking in the distance and I asked him what noise a dog makes and he said, "Ruh Ruh" copying my ruff ruff.

Tyler loves his animals. Since he was a baby, Old MacDonald has been his favorite song. He also LOVES to play with his magnidoodle (like an etch-a-sketch, but using a magnetic pen and stamps) which has animal stamps. I pointed to one and asked him to tell me the animal name and he said, "Duck!" He points to the appropriate animal when asked and go figure...Gator is one of his favorites!

kamikaze

While changing Tyler into his PJs after his evening bath he decided he was ready to get down on his own. I had leaned over to sort through the clean laundry to find his PJ top while keeping my left hand on his side. Lesson learned: one hand is not going to stop Tyler. He took a nose dive off the changing table and onto the floor head first. He cried for half a minute and then seemed fine. In fact, he seemed more upset by the fact that mommy was crying so he offered her some toys to cheer her up.

pincher

Tyler loves playing with an old cell phone that we gave him. However, this time he kept putting the antenna in his mouth. I asked him to remove it. He did and then put it back. I told him again to take it out. He did and then put it in again. A couple more times of this and I decided he'd lost his cell phone privileges. I took the phone away which caused a meltdown.

I scooped him up in my arms to switch environments and try reading him a book. He started poking at my neck and it took me a minute to realize he was so pissed at me and was trying to pinch me in retaliation! Little devil! :) I sat him down, got his attention and told him NO PINCHING. Then we started to read a book and he cuddled against me, no hard feelings. :)

macgyver

While I'm not exactly sure what he did, but Tyler was inventive enough to escape his crib after his nap! AHHH! Alex and I were listening to him using the monitor and knew that he was starting to wake up. Then after some soft thumping noises Alex joked that it sounded as though Tyler was running around in his room. As we opened the door to his room a little person pushed back! HEHE! Tyler thought running around his room unattended was the most hilarious thing!!

ball

Tyler pointed to my T-shirt from basketball camp and said "Ball!" Although it sounded more like Baw. Another fun word added to his vocabulary.