Drewzers

Ty turns 3!!!

My baby is "free!" (as he would say, but he means "three")! :) We celebrated the big occasion with a Cars-themed party at Oak Knoll Park with lots of friends, and it was a blast (my favorite of his birthday parties so far). I loved seeing all of the kids excited about the presents. Each of them wanted to be in the middle of the gift opening. The kids watched with eager anticipation at Ty opened each gift, and they followed him when he walked away from the table to open another one. It was also sweet to hear Ty exclaim, "I'm having a cookie!" and ask for more cake. With an allergy to milk and peanuts, he doesn't get to have many desserts. It's always fun to make treats that he can have. (Today, it was applesauce cake and tea cookies.)

Thank you to all of our friends who came to Ty's third birthday party...you made it so special!

lighting the candles

blowing out three candles

"What is it? I don't know! Maybe it's a puzzle!" (It turned out to be Mack and Lightning McQueen--way better than a puzzle!)

the gift-opening entourage

a few of the boys enjoying cake and cookies

Grant's Farm

Grant's Farm is one of our St. Louis favorites, and since we haven't been back since last year, we made a trip over there today with Mimi and Grandpa! It was really fun this year with the boys at the ages they are. Ty fed camels and llamas, Drew petted the llamas (the white one, not the brown one--he was standoffish!), Ty pet a snake (mommy tried hard not to freak out), and Ty conquered his fear of the carousel! It was a big day! :)

Curious George--the movie!

Reason # 436 why we love St. Louis--free family film festivals! Some girlfriends and I took our kiddos to see Curious George at the movie theater. It was so fun! With snacks, friends, and Curious George on the big screen, the boys (even Drew!) made it through the almost hour and a half show!

Ty's birthday weekend with Poppa

Last weekend, we went to Paducah to celebrate Poppa's and Ty's birthdays, which are exactly one week apart. The weather was BEAUTIFUL so we spent much of our time outside. The boys had the greatest time! One highlight was this miniature monster truck that used to be Dylan's (my nephew) when he was younger. Ty jumped in it the moment he got out of the car after pulling up in Nonna and Poppa's driveway, and Drew jumped in--well, he actually grunted and pointed until he was lifted into--the driver's seat anytime Ty got out of it.


Drew, very focused in the truck
one of Ty's birthday presents...his new wagon
The other MAJOR highlight was Poppa's 4-wheeler. Here are Dylan, Ty, and Drew in the Polaris. (note that Ty is sitting on Drew's lap, and Drew is thinking, "WHAT is happening to me?")

little cutie in the Polaris

Ty testing out his new clubs
The weekend was a long one for Drew. He konked out on Poppa's shoulder right before we left. (Then, of course, both boys were wide awake in the car for the entire trip home!)

communication

I haven't done a very good job at keeping track of Drew's first words, but his vocabulary is growing! His first word was "uh oh" followed quickly by "bye-bye" and "da!" (meaning, "daddy" and it's always exclaimed). Drew has been my quiet kiddo up until this past weekend--it seems like he's becoming a lot more verbal. He started repeating, "neh, neh, neh, neh" whenever I tell him "no" and he started saying, "wow" after he heard his big brother say it. He also says a lot with his hands, facial expressions, grunts, and pointing. When he wants to get up on a chair, he pats the chair and kind of grunts in order to communicate his wishes. He has so much he wants to say but can't. Poor thing...he needs more words! Don't worry, sweet boy, they're coming!

In the mean time, here is a picture of my favorite non-verbal for "Where did it go?"

Cardinal's hat

Today, we bought Ty his first Cardinal's hat. He put it on and said, "I'm a little baseball player!" We think he looks soooooooo cute, and he's all set for his next game with daddy.
In the process of trying to get a picture of Ty in his new hat, I said, "Smile, Ty" and this is what I got...