Stacking

After a morning of grocery shopping, Ty enjoyed helping me unpack the bags, which led to a game of stacking the groceries. It started with just the cans but then he incorporated other groceries as well as tupperware. I was so proud of his creativity!

asleep

They really are little angels when they're sleeping! :)

The Tummy

Many of you have asked to see it, so here you go...a picture of my tummy at 36 weeks!

Christmas 2007

We had a wonderful Christmas this year! It really is always wonderful but it just gets better and better with kids! It seems like we have been celebrating for weeks--maybe that is part of the reason it has been so fun! Corey, Ty and I celebrated an early Christmas with my family two weekends ago because, according to my doctor, traveling after 35 weeks might not be the best idea. Then, this past weekend and through Christmas, Corey's parents came to us to celebrate the holiday. It was the first time we've ever been in our own home on Christmas morning! I have been so excited about starting our own family traditions. After a pancake breakfast, my cute husband read us the Christmas story and then we opened presents. I think Ty is still a little bit too young to really enjoy the opening of the gifts and already too smart to know the difference between toys and the real thing. He would much rather play with the real phone than his new toy phone and prefers the real stereo to his toy radio! But, he is such a joy to watch and he has definitely been the highlight of my past two Christmases! Here are a few of my favorite pictures from this Christmas season...

Merry Christmas!!!

Merry Christmas from our family to yours!

Love,
Corey, Janet, Ty, and baby too!

a surprise visit

Guess who rode through our neighborhood in a horse-drawn carriage today! And guess who liked the horse better than Santa and Mrs. Claus! :)

trying to take a Christmas picture

Trying to take any kind of picture with an almost 1-and-a-half-year-old is next to impossible!!! I tried to take several pictures of Ty last Sunday after church in his Christmas sweater vest (Isn't it hard to resist little boys in sweater vests???), but he wouldn't stay still. Later that day, Corey gave him an old deck of cards, which kept him busy for a while! I think he looks like a Vegas blackjack dealer! (See pictures below) Tonight, we tried to get a family picture for our Christmas cards, but every time the camera was pointed at him, my normally very smiley little boy either wouldn't smile or he stuck his finger up his nose! I couldn't believe it--that little turkey! So, if you get a Christmas card from us with a straight-faced little one, please know that we really tried!!! :)

Inauguration

Today is the inauguration of our new blog! In the anticipation of our new little one joining the family, I felt like we needed a new title that reflects our growing family. And, we just wanted to join the google family. We've heard it's the place to be! :) So, I say all of that to say that we need a great title for our new blog. I've thought of "Life with My Boys" since I'll have two very shortly and the majority of my current postings have mostly been about my firstborn. However, I'm not that creative (in fact...I think I may have stollen that title from a friend) so I am open to suggestions! Just let me know if you come up with anything great! I am going to attempt to transfer my old blog to the new one and get rid of the old one because I need everything to be in chronological order (I'm just like that). If I'm successful, you'll find older news below. I hope you enjoy both the old and the new! Happy reading!

Important Phone Calls

Ty is not saying a ton of words yet, but I think he’s going to take off soon! His new favorite thing is the phone, which he calls a “doe.” He walks around the house with it pressed to his ear just jabbering away. It is so funny to watch! Here is a quick snapshot of him in action...

Ready for Christmas

I LOVE Christmas time!!! I don’t like to start the season too early, but I love everything about it once it starts! We put up our tree yesterday, and it is beautiful! Ty thought so too. He started clapping when he saw it lit up with all of the ornaments on it. He thinks the ornaments are balls though. He has done great not touching the ornaments, but I don’t think I’ll be able to put any gifts under the tree early. He’d be in them in a heartbeat!

One of the big new things in our home is that Ty is eating basically everything we are and loves it! I learned quickly, however, that there are some foods I need to feed him rather than letting him feed himself. Spaghetti is one of those foods! Look what happened before I learned my lesson...He had more on his face (his face was literally tinted orange by the end of that meal!), in his hair, on his lap, and on the floor than he did in his tummy! It made for some very cute pictures though, and I remember seeing one of myself when I was about Ty’s age that looked really similar!

Happy Thanksgiving

This picture was taken on Thanksgiving day. I need some lipstick (badly) and Corey's smile is a little crooked, but Ty looks like a little model. So, this is our Thanksgiving 2007 family photo. We had a wonderful Thanksgiving! We spent a pretty relaxing two days in Kentucky with each of our parents, we ate two turkey dinners (one on Thursday and one on Friday), and we discovered that Ty loves turkey...and corn!

Space Shuttle in STL

We saw on the news the other night that the space shuttle (Discovery) would be returning to earth on Tuesday and would be passing over the St. Louis sky for three minutes beginning at 5:26 AM. So, my sweet husband woke up with me at 5:20 so we could go outside (it was FREEZING) and see the space shuttle, which we expected (for some reason) to see in full detail. For anyone curious, it just looked like a small shooting star moving slowly across the sky. Even though it was kind of a disappointment, it was fun to get up early in the cold and look for it together!

Candid Moments

Ty loves to play by the front door. He likes to open and close it or try to close himself between the front door and screen door. And, he likes to put things (his toys, our shoes, etc.) between the two doors and then close the door. Here, I caught him in the act.

Here, he climbed up on the vent to peek out the window.

My Smiley Little Boy

"Daaa!"

“Daaa,” we heard Ty calling from his room this morning. He likes to run in there, shut the door, and hide. And, he loves to be chased! This morning, he was calling for Corey, who he recently started calling, “Da” (half of “dada”). We think it’s really sweet!

Ty is sixteen months old and very active! He is running, climbing, and exploring everything! He even says lots of things now…some, only his mom can interpret! Others you can understand by looking at what he’s pointing to. He says “dog” very clearly! (I’ve never seen someone so excited about dogs!) And dogs say, “huf, huf, huf!” He also points to and says, “bird, bowl, and ball”–which sometimes tend to sound the same! He was saying, “quirl” when he saw a squirrel in our backyard until this week he’s decided it’s a “dog!” He says, “shoe,” “mama,” and “side” for outside. He loves seeing airplanes and pretty much any other mode of transportation. Oh, and he can say “star.” I’m really proud of my pumpkin…can you tell?

I am also 27 weeks along…beginning my third trimester! I can’t believe my due date is approaching so quickly! I have felt really great and have been using my second- trimester-energy-boost to clean out the depths of our closets and prepare for the new baby! I keep telling Ty that there is a baby in mommy’s tummy but since he understands what a baby is and what a belly button is, I think he’s confused as to why mommy is calling her belly button a baby.

Here are some pictures of our little monkey…an appropriate Halloween costume for our little climber! And, a picture of Ty in his rocking chair that was mine when I was a little girl.

my babes

things that make me smile

There are so many things in a day that Ty does that just make me smile. His new thing recently has been putting things in random places (I think I’ve shared that before.) Anyway, I smile every time I pull out a drawer or open a cabinet and find animal magnets in them. Today, I discovered a plastic spoon in my tennis shoe! I love how Ty starts dancing immediately when he hears music, and it makes me smile that he stands with his feet wide apart and really gets his hips into it! It makes me smile when he makes silly faces at me including his new one in which he holds his breath, his face turns red, he opens his eyes really wide, and he makes “fish” lips. Random, I know, but it’s really cute. And, I love how he started holding his arms out when he’s trying to say, “Where is it? or Where did it go?” He does that when he drops something from his high chair or as he’s watching a bird or dog or some other animal in the backyard and it moves from his line of vision. I smile every time he smiles or giggles or laughs really hard. It’s the best! It makes me smile that he can point to his nose (and say “nose”), mouth, ears, and belly button! I’m so proud of him! And even though I wanted “mama” to be his first word, it makes me smile when I ask him if he wants more (dinner, for example) and he says, “nooooooooooooo” in a really sweet way.

Ty knows what a lot of things are even though he can’t yet say their names. I like to play this game where I tell him to go get one of his stuffed animals and then watch proudly as he brings it to me. He’s really great at this game…He brings me his doggie, giraffe, turtle, etc. He also knows fire truck, shoes, mommy’s brush ( I was really impressed by that one this morning), and things like that. I decided that I would teach him a new word tonight–gorilla. He has a stuffed gorilla eating a banana. Anyway, I said, “Ty, where is the gorilla?” He walked in the direction of the basket filled with toys (as though he were going straight toward the gorilla) but then stopped at a picture frame with the three of us in it and pointed to me!!! And he giggled when he did it! That little stinker! Oh well, we’ll work more on that later.

beach baby

Hi friends! I’m sorry that it’s taken me so long to give an update! We wrapped up our summer by visiting family and going on vacationnnnnnnnnnnn! (We haven’t been on vacation in awhile! It was soooooooooo fun and much needed!) We went to Gulf Shores, Alabama and stayed on the beach. It was beautiful, relaxing, and wonderful! And Ty had the best time in the water! He absolutely LOVED the water! He preferred the pool over the ocean, but he had a good time playing in the sand and watching the waves come in! Here are a few pictures of my little beach boy…

Afternoon at Shaw Park

Outnumbered

Well, it looks like I am being significantly outnumbered over here! We just found out that we are expecting another little boy! What a treat! We are so excited to have another precious boy and for Ty to have a little brother and friend! And, I now have two wonderful potential candidates for marriage for my friends with daughters! (Is anyone else up for arranged marriages?)

a few pictures

This is my sweet baby boy after a long day of no napping. It was this past Sunday so he missed his first nap because we were at church. Then, he just didn’t take his second nap. He jumped up and down in his crib and talked away instead to sleeping! So, we took him to the mall (to find some new running shoes for Corey–yes, he is running now!) thinking he would probably fall asleep in his stroller, but again, no. He finally fell asleep when we were about two minutes from home. Poor thing–then we woke him up to feed him dinner.
This is Ty when he found out I had just taken a picture of him putting his blocks on the side of the fridge (where it’s almost impossible to get them out!) He LOVES putting his toys in things, which is hilarious to watch! He puts his toys in drawers, in laundry baskets, in the bathtub (I found this out when I couldn’t find my hair brush all day), and if we’re not careful, in the toilet!
And, this is my living room after my tiny tornado blows through. He is sooooooooooo busy these days and into everything! But, I love it!!!

kiddos in the wagon

This is Ty with our neighbors' kids posing for a picture in the wagon.

fun in the tub

What did you say?

While we were in two different rooms, this conversation actually took place between Corey and I yesterday:

J: Are you tired?

C: Why?

J: I heard you yawn.

C: (something I couldn’t understand)

J: What?

C: (again, something I couldn’t understand)

J: What?

C: Are you kidding?

J: No, I promise I didn’t hear you.

C: You’re not going to believe what I said.

J: What did you say?

C (repeating for the third time): You have supersonic ears.

Hairspray

I went to see the movie, “Hairspray” with a friend tonight, and I absolutely LOVED it! Loved it!!! It’s one of those movies that you leave feeling good. I laughed, I almost cried (maybe it’s because I’m pregnant…I’m not sure) but it was terrific! You should definitely see it!!! John Travolta plays a woman, and he was hilarious! The whole cast was great! It was just really enjoyable! If you see it, let me know what you think!

the goats

I have to tell you about the crazy goats at Grant’s Farm. We went with some friends to Grant’s Farm to celebrate their little girl’s first birthday. It was my bright idea to buy a bottle of milk to feed the goats in the pen. Well, let’s just say I won’t be doing that again! They are vicious little creatures! They jumped on us and head-butted each other to get the milk. And, I think I stepped in goat pee! It was terrible! I don’t think Ty really liked them either! We did, however, love seeing all of the other animals—from outside the fence!

Who Needs a Nap?

I put Ty down for a nap and collapsed on the couch for a minute before I decided to call a friend. While I was on the phone, I started hearing this weird sound coming from Ty’s room. It sounded like ree-er-ree-er-ree-er-ree-er. I had to ask my friend to hold on for a second so I could see what that little one was up to. It really sounded like he was sawing the crib with his teeth! He likes to chew on the sides of his crib but I’ve never heard a noise like that! Anyway, he must have heard me coming down the hall because he hit the deck! I peeked in and he was laying down on his tummy with his head up, looking around. I waited and watched through the cracked door for a minute, and then I saw the source of the ree-er-ree-er-ree-er-ree-er. He got back up, held onto the side of the crib with both hands, and started jumping up and down!!! So much for the nap! (That was about 30 minutes ago, and he’s still in there sitting up and chatting away!)

On the Digestive Tract

So, Ty has a red, sleeveless Cardinal’s outfit that has the word “Cardinals” across the front of the shirt. Well, the letters recently began to slowly peel off, especially the more it was washed. While we were walking the other day, I realized Ty was eating one of the letters that he had peeled off the rest of the way. I quickly got it from his mouth and we moved on. Apparently however, that wasn’t the only letter he had eaten. When I changed his diaper later, there was a letter…I think it was the letter “S” (I didn’t want to look too close)…in perfect condition! So, there you have it! His digestive system is working just fine!

summertime colds

Isn’t “summer cold” an oxymoron? I’ve never understood colds in the summer, but I have had my share. And now, Sweet Babyheart has one. Poor baby! He had a little fever and his nose has been running like crazy! One secret I’ve learned is that if your kid won’t take cherry-flavored Tylenol, try grape. It worked like a charm for us! Also, I’m not sure what happened but last night when we tried to suction his nose (this is kind of a gross thing) he screamed and kicked and fought us so much that he kicked over the lamp on his changing table! Today, however, he has decided that it is hysterical, and he cracks up laughing during the process! (I’m thankful for the change of heart!)

I forgot to mention this, but Ty is quite a dancer! He doesn’t just bop to music. He sways his hips back and forth and really gets into it–whenever he hears music! It’s awesome!

Last thing…Ty is getting more and more confident walking! In fact, we went for a walk today and he actually started running! Uh oh! And, nothing is too big for him. Stairs, a big hill…no problem (in his mind!) He’s growing up so fast!

Turning One...and Other Fun Things

Well, it’s official! Ty is one year old! (I can’t believe it!!!) We celebrated his big day with all the grandparents, friends, and lots of cupcakes! Ty had a chocolate frosted cupcake–his first time having sugar! It was fun to watch him poke it and eventually lick his fingers to discover that he actually liked that brown stuff! And, he ended up eating about three fourths of it! I think Ty’s favorite part of the day, however, was the balloons! He smiled and laughed, and he kept trying to grab them even though they slipped out of his hands almost every time! Here are just a few pictures from his BIG DAY!


We are waiting any day for Ty’s first word. He says, “da da” but not really to or about Corey. He is still babbling a lot and now he has started imitating sneezes and coughs. He thinks it’s hilarious! And, he can say “more” in sign language, which he uses when he wants more Cheerios. He also uses it at the grocery store, while he’s eating other food, and when he already has more Cheerios on his tray! We’ve been working on signing “All done,” since he was four months old. He hasn’t gotten it yet. When I move his hands to make him do the sign, he just smiles at me. Oh well. Maybe he will talk soon and then we won’t need sign language!

We just recently started brushing Ty’s teeth. I had no idea I was supposed to be doing that starting with his first tooth. He’s got seven teeth now, and we just started brushing them. It was TERRIBLE at first! He closed his mouth tightly and turned his head away. I tried to shove the toothbrush in anyway, but I didn’t want to scar him and make him hate brushing his teeth. (This was especially important to me as I am one who brushes my teeth about 10 times a day! I really like clean teeth!) Anyway, a friend clued me into the secret of brushing kid’s teeth–yummy tasting toothpaste that they can swallow! Voila! It worked like a charm. Ty actually likes brushing now and even opens his mouth for me!

A few new fun things Ty loves: the pool, water in general, playing hide-and-seek/peekaboo, and fruit! He LOVES watermelon, grapes, strawberries, and cantaloupe. Oh, and he loves to put his head on the floor and look upside down between his legs. It’s really cute! Although, I’ve tried capturing this pose in a photo, but my camera isn’t fast enough. By the time I snap the picture, he’s moved on! (I tried about five times the other night!)

Corey and I are doing well too! He is plugging along learning Hebrew, and he’s doing great! (I’m really proud of him!) We like living in St. Louis because it’s a fun city with lots of things to do! We recently went to see “Much Ado About Nothing”–a play in the park, and “The Lion King” at the Fox Theatre. The Lion King was incredible; breathtaking, really. We absolutely loved it! Other than that, we have just been hanging out with friends and doing lots of grilling (that’s Corey’s job…and he loves it!) Hope you all are doing well!