car rides

Tyler loves car rides. He just chills out back there and watches the world pass by. A few times I've even caught him flirting with those in neighboring cars stopped at the light. And other times all I hear are ZZZZZZs.

missing daddy

Alex had been out of town for training for his new job with Hobsons. During dinner Tyler looked over at a framed photo that sits on the ledge in between our dining room and kitchen. The photo is of Alex and me from our dating days. Observing it closely Tyler smiled, pointed at it and said "Dah!" He repeated it several times and pointed to Alex each time smiling all the while. How sweet!

hunter time

A hat trick of playdates? Yes, Tyler has had a full weekend! We were lucky enough to have another out-of-town friend visit. Katie and her son Hunter came all the way from South Carolina. The boys bonded over cars. So sterotypical.

ayla time

Another playdate? This time Kristen and her daughter Ayla came to hang out. Kristen and I enjoyed catching up and Tyler and Ayla loved spending time together. He was doing a great job of sharing his toys (might have had great practice the night before).

lollipop and oreo

Two new sugary sweets for Tyler. First we allowed him to try a lollipop from the hair shop under close supervision. Not even close to the disaster I thought it would end up to be. He tried to pop the entire thing in his mouth but after showing him how to hold it he was all set.




Tyler ate like a champ at dinner. Must have worked up an appetite with all that play. So I let him try the 2-pack of Oreos that came with his kid's meal at dinner. He LOVED them!

first haircut

It was finally time. Tyler's hair was close to his chin on the sides and hanging well below his collar in the back. We took him to Cartoon Cuts in the Columbia Mall. I was already a little nervous and the kid in the first seat screaming at the top of his lungs was not reassuring! But Tyler's hairdresser was FABULOUS. She worked with the speed and efficiency of Edward Scissorhands. Tyler watched Dora on the mini TV and leaned away from the hairdresser at times. When she used the electric trimmer above his ears Tyler swatted at her like a fly, but overall was very unaffected by the process. We got a certificate with the first hair clippings as a keepsake. What a pleasant experience for all involved (namely a nervous mommy)!

Before

cuspids

While playing with Tyler I noticed something new. I was tickling him and as he lay there with his mouth wide open, I noticed more teeth! He had been drooling nonstop several weeks earlier but I didn't make the connection. Turns out he was busy popping out three cuspid teeth with his lower left one ready to join soon.

howeses at our house

Stacie and Simon came over for dinner and a playdate. Tyler is still learning to SHARE! He sometimes strips Simon of his toys without blinking. But when asked he'll usually offer up a toy (with the few exceptions when he extends his arm as if to offer the toy and then quickly yanks it back)!

Tyler and Simon also had a funny exchange where they playfully slapped their hands together giggling nonstop.

blowing kisses

SO CUTE!!! Tyler has learned to put his palm to his mouth (wide open) and toss his hand in our direction to "blow us a kiss!"

men at work

Well, not men at work, but a little man. While Debbie was off for the holiday Tyler spent the morning with Daddy and the afternoon with mommy at work. Everyone got a big kick out of how big Tyler is growing and how fast he was scooting around. Tyler had a great time meeting new people, seeing old friends and helping Auntie Joy with mail processing!

easter basket

Tyler was really impressed with his Easter basket this year. He was so interested by the toys and snacks. He so eager to try a Reese's peanut butter cup that he didn't wait to unwrap it first. He just took a big bite of paper and all. Oops! We stuck to the raisins and puffs after that!

Later in the evening Mommy and Daddy dyed eggs. Tyler was able to join in using a wax crayon to create scribbles on some of the eggs before getting their color.

egg hunt

Tyler spent the evening before Easter with the Jones side of the family. He really enjoyed the egg hunting. Especially when he discovered the surprises inside!

chicks dig me

poor sick boy

Tyler came home from daycare on Monday without his usual spunk and energy. I should have known when he wanted to be carried on our evening walk and would barely touch his dinner. Sure enough he came home from daycare on Tuesday feeling sick. Stayed home Wednesday and Thursday. His low grade fever broke and he went back to daycare on Friday. He's still not himself, but he's finally shaking the yucks. What a trouper!

happy st. patty's day

The Campbells made sure to wear their green today!

to cut or not to cut

That is my mommy dilemma. Tyler's blonde curls at the nape of his neck hang over his collar. But it's his long hair on the sides of his head that is just a pain. They hang in front of his ears and look like 3-inch sideburns. I'm constantly tucking them behind his ears. Is it too early to cut his beautiful locks? And do I take him to a professional the first time since I've not cut boys hair EVER? Your thoughts? Leave me a comment.

more words

New words seem to sneak out of Tyler daily. He's added tink que (thank you), bye, car and kuck (truck).

lookout

It's a good thing that we have a little scout or two to keep an eye on the neighborhood!

a few of my favorite things

Tyler's most recent loves: bananas (he eats them like a starving gorilla), planes, cars, coloring, running and getting into ANY- and EVERYTHING!

my boys

Here they are getting ready for a walk. Aren't my boys the cutest?

16 months

1 and 1/3 years old. I remember how important those extra fractions could be when I was in school. I'd write my name on my lunch bag and then my age 5 and 3/4.

evening walks

Walking the dog as a family in the evening is one of my favorite things. Tyler loves to run through the grass, point at planes, feel the bark of trees and say hi to passersby. We ask him, "Can you point to the sky, Tyler?" And he points up to the sky, and then we ask him, "Can you point to the grass?" He stops, bends down and points and pokes at the blades of grass.

dot and mommy

Tyler is so communicative. He uses words like Hi, Doggie, uh oh. Mama became Mommy today for the first time and Dad still sounds like Dot. He says "Hi Dot!" nearly every morning. And he uses sign language. He knows milk, more, bath, and telephone. It seems his only limitation is how many signs mom and dad know. And we're maxing out, so we're going to head to the library later this week to brush up on our signing vocabulary.

tampon

I had my hands full getting ready for work and carrying Tyler downstairs to leave. I made the mistake of letting Tyler help me carry some of the items. And one particular item kept him giggling: a tampon. The green crinkly wrapper was very interesting! When I tried to trade a tin of mints for the tampon, he ended up with both. Poor mommy couldn't stop giggling herself.

auntie deb

Auntie Deb, who is a DHS star in DC, hopped the Metro out to join us and Oma for brunch and then some sister shopping time. Tyler loved having a new fan in his audience.

big on balloons

Boy these are fun! Tyler likes to hit them together to make noise!

ahhh

Tonight Tyler was enjoying his milk at dinner so much that he added a big AHHH after each sip. Adorable!

mister independent

Our baby is a baby no more. He is a little independent thinker with his own ideas of what he wants to do. FIERCELY independent! He still likes to have us close at hand for cuddles, but he wants to walk places on his own, not be carried; wants to feed himself; and wants to get dressed when he's ready. But despite these stubborn times he's still really giggly and easy going. What a fun little guy!

signs

Tyler really knows his sign language. He was facing Daddy when I asked, "Is it bath time?" Immediately he started rubbing his chest which is the sign for bath.

airplanes

Today was the first break from the bitter cold and the Campbell family took full advantage of it! It was such a gorgeous day that we walked our dog without needing to wear coats. We took our time and watched several planes approaching or departing from BWI. I don't think I've ever seen so many planes overhead. Tyler loved it! He pointed to each one, sometimes spotting them before us. As he watched them he pointed to them and tried to say "airplane," which didn't sound remotely close yet! And then we walked to the nearby playground and watched the other kids and ran around. Fun fun!

uh oh

Tyler is such the little mimic. If I tap my hands to the beat of a song, he does the same. He was playing with a little toy truck and Tyler rammed it into the wall. I said, "uh oh." Then I heard this little "uh oh," copying the same tone.

hi doggie

Last weekend as we drove past a man walking his dog, Tyler exclaimed, "OG!" We thought out loud, Did he just say Dog? Well, apparently he did. He's used the word at daycare when playing with Snowball, Deb's little dog. And this morning as I got him out of his crib, he looked down at Daisy, waved hello and then said, "Hi doggie!"

blueberrries

We offered blueberries a while back. He ate a few but wasn't convinced. I had a full package and offered them to him thinking he'd down a few. He ate every last one of them at one sitting in addition to his dinner!!

happy feet

Tonight we watched part of the movie Happy Feet with Tyler before his bedtime. He was cuddled up between the two of us in our bed. He was so sleepy he kept lying down, but as the music and dancing from the movie kicked in, he just had to get up and move. Up on his knees he moved back and forth to the beat and flapped his arms like the penguins. It was the cutest thing ever!

dah

He's said mah for mommy and now he's said dah for daddy! He's having so much fun with his funny daddy.

big waves

Tyler has really found the enjoyment in waving goodbye to friends and family. Earlier this week, he waved to Meg as she left, to Daddy as we were about to hop in the car and today to Oma. Sometimes they are big waves with some elbow/arm action, somtimes little finger curl waves and sometimes he even waves his hand toward himself.

first metro ride and time to DC

My sister is working in DC until May and her family came down to visit. Alex, Tyler and I hopped on the Metro and spent the day with them touring the National Museum of the American Indian. He liked the Metro, hated all the elevators and loved his cousins Perrin and Andrew (aka Harry Potter)!

bath fun

Bottle of bath wash? Now you see it, now you don't! Who me? I didn't do a thing!

bottle bye bye

Tyler has used a straw and various sippy cups for quite some time but this week we eliminated the backup bottle entirely. It seems he's had less milk than usual, but we're confident he'll get with the new program soon.

fruit and chocolate lover

Oma joined us for a fun dinner out at Applebee's. I think Tyler impressed her with his appetite. He ate chicken nuggets, applesauce, apple, pineapple and strawberries. He tried (and promptly spit out) some steak. And then he still had room for his favorite chocolate Teddy Grahams for dessert and some bites of mom, dad and Oma's chocolate mousse.

sweet n' sour

Tyler had his first Happy Meal experience from McDonald's. He was happy to gobble up the nuggets and fries, but it was the sauce that he particulary enjoyed. He dipped both in the sweet n' sour and then when he ran out of fries, he dipped his finger in the sauce.

good eater

During Tyler's last checkup we asked the doctor's advice on making sure Tyler gets a balanced diet and doesn't fill up on snack foods. She had some great pointers which we already implemented and seen results. Tyler's most favorite healthy snack is raisins. He can pop those nonstop!

mardi gras

Tyler loves to party. And he loves to play with the Mardi Gras beads from our 2005 New Orleans trip. He carries them around and loves the clinking noises they make as he swings them around.

more

We taught Tyler another sign a few nights ago. A long time ago we taught him the sign for milk and since then he's started to use it for other things he'd want by pointing and then signing milk. Almost as though the milk sign now means "gimme." So I tried teaching him the sign for "more" and he learned it within a few minutes. Guess we're overdue to expand his vocabulary!

one-armed plane

Tyler absolutely LOVES to dance!! His best new move -- rotating in a circle while holding his left hand up. So cute!

basket case

I bought some baskets for the living room to store the growing number of Tyler's toys. But he found a new use for them!