The Picture Post

Mommy said to tell you guys that she knows that you all just come here for the pictures. So this time, she's giving you what you want. Just me, myself and I. And if I do say so myself, I have never been cuter. In the first couple pictures, I am using Mommy's sports bra as an accessory. I have recently learned how to put things on and take them off, so I try it with everything. I am not too happy in the next pictures. You know my fascination with unrolling all the toilet paper? Well, sometimes that goes awry and I get stuck in it. And then I can't move so well. And for whatever reason on that day, my dumb Dad was just taking pictures of me instead of assisting me in removing the offending toilet paper. DADS! And then the last pictures are of me having fun in our neighborhood park, assisted by my quad (courtesy of Gramette and G-pa). I sure do love my Q-ride!

How I Roll

Here's me and my new ride, courtest of G-pa and Gramette! Most of the riding I've done has been in the house so far....it's too cold outside! But oh, it is FUN!!!!!

"Christmas" Pics

Okay, so Mommy did not take hardly any pictures of actual Christmas. Mimi and Aunt Heather will have to send those to her.

BUT. On the way back to Colorado, we stopped at Fort Union to look around. In case you don't know what Fort Union is, here is a blurb from the website:

"Fort Union was established in 1851 as the guardian of the Santa Fe Trail. During its forty-year history, three different forts were constructed close together. The third Fort Union was the largest in the American Southwest, and functioned as a military garrison, territorial arsenal, and military supply depot for the southwest. The largest visible network of Santa Fe Trail ruts can be seen here."

Since my parents (especially my Daddy) are very into history, things like this are what they like to do with their free time. They are nerds. And I am their cling-on.

So anyway, here's some pics of me and my guardians at Fort Union. It was a beautiful day. There's a picture of me "doing it myssef" with my stroller, and digging in the dirt like good boys do. The middle picture Mommy LOVES LOVES LOVES. And the last two are of me and Mommy walking on the Santa Fe Trail. Please excuse Mommy's saggy butt jeans....we were traveling and she didn't feel the need to dress up.

For G-pa.......

Here are some pictures of my pre-Christmas mischief.......

Embarassed

My Mommy said to tell you that she is very embarassed that it's been over a month with no blog. Pathetic. What can I say? I keep her so busy that she has nary the time to go to the bathroom, much less blog about me.

And oh, I keep her soooo busy. There are so many things that have happened to me in the last month.

The scariest is that I fell down and almost knocked out my two front teeth. One of them is chipped now but thankfully they both stayed in. That was a stressful week for Mommy because we had to go to the pediatrician and the dentist and it was no fun for me. Mostly in general I don't like people messing with me, so I gave that dentist the what for. I didn't bite him though so that's something.

I have just returned from a very fun Thanksgiving with my Aelvoet family.

But before we went to Hondo, we went and saw my great-grandparents in Odessa. My G-Gpa has the funnest thing--a WALKER! Oh how I loved to be pushed around in it by Daddy! That was the best and highest car ever!

I was very good on the trip to Hondo and on Thanksgiving Day, I loved seeing everyone and was quite the social butterfly. I met all of my cousins and lots of extended family. There were plenty of little kids to play with and I just walked around all day and had the best time!

And then on Friday, Mommy and Daddy went to Houston to visit their friends and left me ALL ALONE with Gramette and Gpa. I was a very big boy and was very brave. I was well-behaved too, or at least that's what they told Mommy. She knows me so she finds that hard to believe, but whatever. I also learned how to wave bye-bye (and mean it) and how to be an indian over the holiday.

Our drive home was pretty scary. We were caught in a blizzard in Northern New Mexico, and Mommy was very scared. Daddy was pretty chill about it, though. And I'll admit, I was somewhat cranky which added to Mommy's distress. I worked through it though.

Mommy and Daddy mostly took video so there aren't lots of pictures but here are some! These pictures are of me with my great-grandparents and riding on G-Gpa's walker, playing with the tugboat in the pediatrician's office while I was there for my teeth, and me just getting into general mischief at the house. Mischief is my business.....and business is GOOD!!!!

That is One Cute Dog!

How Big Is Tyler???

SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO BIG!!!!!!

**props to Gramette and G-pa for teaching me this nifty and oh-so-adorable trick!!**

Homecoming! And Boston!!!!

I have been a very busy boy the past few weeks!

First, I went to down to Lubbock to Texas Tech's homecoming with my Mommy and Daddy. Gramette and G-pa and my aunts and uncles all met me there! We played Nebraska and it was a great game. I also got to see my first parade! Even though it was raining, I still had a great time!

Then my Mommy and Daddy took me on my first plane ride! I got to go to Boston and Cape Cod. It was really fun. I didn't behave too well on the plane ride there, but I was an angel on the ride home. And I did great the whole time we were there too. We saw lots of cool things in Boston. My favorite was getting to see the ducks in Boston Common. I have this book called "Make Way for Ducklings" that my Gramette bought me that tells all about the ducks I saw in Boston. I even got my picture taken with them!

Oh yeah, my other favorite thing was getting to see my cousin Alex! She is my fave cousin (or one of them!) She goes to Boston College and we got to take a tour with her and hang out with her all the time! We also got to take a tour of Harvard. Mommy and Daddy say I will be smart enough to go there for sure, but they won't be able to afford it!

And then when we went to Cape Cod, I got to ride on a BIG boat called a ferry, all the way to Nantucket! I loved watching the water and feeling the wind in my hair. I got to put my feet in the Atlantic Ocean too. It was kind of cold and made me cry, but it was a milestone moment either way.

We also got to see my friend Reed! He lives in Cape Cod and his Mommy knows my Mommy. Reed has two older brothers and they were fun to hang out with too!

Here's some pictures of my adventures!

My First Haircut!

So Mommy and Daddy decided that my hair was getting a little too shaggy for their liking. So Mommy took me to this neat place called Kiddie Kutters. They have tons of toys there. In fact, I was perfectly satisfied to play with them and not get my hair cut at all. But Mommy made me. I think it turned out pretty cute, myself.

My paci gave me courage. I didn't cry at all!!! And I got a certificate with a little baggy of my hair for my baby book!

So now that I'm all studly with my short hair, I am TOTALLY ready for Tech Homecoming this weekend! I'll have my red and black on and am ready to tease Uncle Zac about being from Nebraska. Plus I get to see G-pa and Gramette! And Aunt Anna and Uncle Dave and Aunt Katie! Hooray!!!!







In other news, I've discovered yet another new talent. It's finger painting. With my food. And it's not messy at ALL.




The finger painting was pre-haircut. As I'm sure you can tell.

My New Talent

I have discovered something fun that lives in Mommy and Daddy's bathroom.

Are you ready?

It's the bathtub faucet!!!!!

Get this. You turn the lever, and water comes out. Isn't that amazing???

It is the coolest thing. I LOVE to turn it on and could do it all day long. Thankfully the side that I can reach is the cold water, because I love to stick my hand in the water, and it would be a shame if I got scalded while I was just trying to have a little fun.

The unfortunate thing is that usually when I decide to turn it on, Mommy or Daddy happens to be in the shower. The rush of cold water to the bathtub creates a rush of boiling hot water to the shower. But hey, a couple third-degree burns are nothing compared to my cuteness!!!

PS--one rule of turning on the faucet is that you must keep your favorite one of Mommy's ponytail holders in your mouth. It makes it twice as fun.

Take that G-pa!!!!

This is what I think of G-pa very rudely implying to Mommy that she was doing a crap job of keeping up with the blog this afternoon. So there, G!!!!

In actuality, that's a picture of me having my first waffle! It was so delicious and I could not stop shoving it in my face. I ate a whole one all by myself. And then I smelled like maple syrup all day, so Mommy and Daddy just wanted to gobble me up!!

In other exciting news, I can WALK!!!! Okay, sort of. When I feel like it. I still prefer to crawl, and in fact have started doing this cute half-crawl, half-walk thing where I look like an ape. Mommy tried to get a picture but I move too fast. But anyway, if I'm so inclined, and especially if Mommy sets me down and lets me walk to Daddy, I can take steps! I did seven or eight in a row the other night! I'm such a stud muffin!!!!

Oh yes, and I now refuse to nap. It's pretty awesome. Mom really appreciates it. Instead, I spend my time in my crib doing this:



And finally, I had my one year appointment a few weeks ago. I weighed almost 22 pounds and was 30 and 3/4 inches long! I was between 75-90% for height, but only 50%for weight. I'm a skinny little thing but I bet I won't always be!!!!

The Big Birthday!!! (two weeks late.....)

After a much too prolonged absence, ladies and gentlemen, I am back.

And I have very good news to share with you.

I AM ONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Me, my Mommy and my Daddy made it through my first year, and they're still alive! Sleepy, yes. Frustrated occasionally when I won't eat my vegetables, yes. But alive!

Yippee Skippee!!!!!

We had a very big party to celebrate the occasion. Does occasion have one "s" or two? I can't remember. And I'm too small to look it up in the dictionary. In fact, what is a dictionary?

Anyway, my Gramette and my G-pa and my Mimi and my Pops all came up to celebrate with me! And plus lots of my friends came over. It was really fun. I got to eat cake! It was delicious!!!

Here are some pictures to commemorate the event. And then I need to take a nap. But later, I'll share what I've been doing since my birthday. I've been up to LOTS of mischief!!!!

PS--Mommy was going to post more pictures, but I'm furious. She'll be back.

It's Coming......

Mommy, for the last time.

An update is coming. I promise promise promise promise.

I seriously have had NO TIME to do anything lately. But I will do this. I swear.

More Birthday Ideas

Mommy's back again! Since the ideas I came up with already are obviously not numerous enough for some of you (who shall remain nameless), here are some more!!

Busy Gears!
http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3051035



A Drum! *Side Note--he really likes to bang on things*
http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2310732



Books! *Side Note--he thinks books are for chewing*
http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2743424



And seriously, that's all that I can think of.

Tyler is doing really well and has become a little monkey as of late--he's climbing on everything!! I have some good pics to post later. And I'll tell you why Ryan and I are definitely in the running for the Parent of the Year award!!!!

Getting Into Trouble!

Now that I am pulling up everywhere, I have become Mr. Curious about everything! This is cute but also annoying for Mommy and Daddy. In the past two weeks they have caught me chewing on all sorts of things, from batteries to a Tylenol bottle. No, they are not neglectful parents. I make these things materialize out of thin air!!!

My new favorite thing is, while they are taking a shower, I open their bottom drawer and pull all their hairdryers and curling irons and everything out. This is the best entertainment there is!!!!

I also have become fascinated with the dogs and love to pet them and squeeze them and pull on them. They are so soft. Every once in a while, they attack me with kisses, and then my face is priceless! Mommy tried to catch it on film....she did an okay job......

TTFN!

My New Favorite Toys

There's two of them!

One is my new car. Mommy and Daddy can push me all around the house, and outside too. It's so fun!! The horn works and I am a master honker. Plus I can put my hands on the steering wheel and turn it!



The other is my new horsie, Yoyo. Yoyo is on loan from Zoe and Emmy Hendricks, and I'm so glad they decided to share her with me! I love to rock back and forth (with Daddy holding me on, of course). I also like to pat Yoyo's soft mane and tail. She is the best horsie ever!



You can really see how crazy my hair has become against the blue of Daddy's shirt in the Yoyo picture. Mommy has tried to put product in it, but I just end up with crusty wings. So we just let it fly!!!!!