Ty at 11 months- Mr. Personality

11 months old!

I'm a little over a week late posting this, but here is Ty's 11 month update...

Time is going by way too fast - I wish Ty could be my baby forever. Over the past couple of months, his personality has blossomed; he definitely knows what he likes/dislikes (and he is not afraid to let you know). He is such an easy-going, sweet, loving baby - I hope he stays this way through toddlerhood!

Loves:

-his big brother. MJ and Ty are two peas in a pod; they want to be around each other all of the time. I actually think Ty is a little sad that MJ is back in school.

-being outside. I am so glad the weather is starting to cool down - he could play out there forever! The park is always a favorite.

-"walking"- as long as he is holding onto or pushing something. He is still afraid of walking independently (which is just fine by me). :-)

-anything with wheels.

-balls. He could entertain himself for hours by throwing a ball and chasing after it.

-books. He likes to sit and turn the pages- he usually turns them much faster than I read them.

-getting into everything. There are only 2 cabinet doors that are not baby-proofed in my kitchen. He knows exactly which ones they are, and he goes right to them every day. He dumped my entire bag of Dunkin Donuts french vanilla coffee (which I obviously didn't think he could reach) on the floor the other day. Mommy was not happy. Daddy promised to baby-proof that cabinet asap.

- airplanes. He will stare at one until it is no longer in sight. If we are inside and he hears one, he immediately looks up (and is disappointed he can't find it)!

-the bathroom and the stairs. Any time you open the bathroom door, he makes a bee-line over to it. He is so fast that he often gets there before you can shut the door. Same thing goes for the stairs - if he sees or hears you open that baby gate? Forget about it; he is there in a split second. It's like he knows these places are "forbidden"

-eating. Especially feeding himself (not so much with the spoon - see dislikes below)

-sleeping. Still a great sleeper. 2 naps (about 1.5-2 hours each) during the day; 11-12 hours straight per night.

Dislikes:

-being changed. Sometimes I feel like I have to pin him down in order to get his diaper or clothes on. He is strong, too!

-being fed with a spoon. We have to distract him with something or he won't eat from the spoon. Little Mr. Independent prefers to feed himself.

-confinement. He does not like being in the exersaucer, jumperoo, or walker; he wants to be able to roam around. He will actually get behind the walker and push it instead of getting in it!

-missing his naps. This leads to one cranky baby.

Words and babbles:

These words are not always reproducible, but he says them when he wants to!

-"ball" - specific to the object.

-"bye-bye" - he waved to me and said this the other day when I put him down for a nap.

-"mama" - sometimes this is just a babble, but other times he is trying to get my attention.

-"wow" - I know this is just a babble, but he usually says it in the right context. It cracks me up.

Next month will be my last monthly update for Ty... my baby is going to be one. It is truly bittersweet.

Happy 11 months, my sweet baby boy.

Destin Trip

Daddy and MJ

We headed down to Destin for Labor Day weekend...little did we know Tropical Storm Lee would be headed in the same direction. The first day was actually perfect beach weather, and the boys had a blast playing in the sand.

You look silly, MJ


I love the beach!

The second day we were there, my dear friend Whitney and her beautiful family joined us. Our children are roughly the same age, so the kids had a great time playing together (in spite of the off and on rain showers that day).

Whitney with Jadyn

Jadyn (7 months) had fun crawling, pulling up, and cruising along the beach chairs

MJ and Jax (who turns 3 this week)

Chasing eachother down the beach

Ty playing with the big boys

Due to the weather, we decided to cut our vacation short and left a day early. To make it up to the boys, we took them to the aquarium (always a favorite).

MJ had fun showing daddy all of the fish (it was Steve's first trip to the aquarium)

Ty LOVES the fish- he kept waving at them and saying "WOW!"

Ty's 11 month update coming soon!

First day of school

I'm ready!

Last week, MJ had his first day of preschool. He was in the "Young Two's" class at OLA last year, so this year he is in the Monday, Wednesday, Friday two year-old class.

Let's go!

Mom, how many more of these pictures do we have to take?!




MJ with mommy

Monday morning, we had a meet and greet with MJ's teachers and the other kids in the class. He liked having me there at school with him and kept insisting that I was going to school with him every day. I was pretty nervous about drop off on Wednesday.

Our conversation in the car on Wednesday (his first real day of school) went something like this:

MJ: Mommy, are you worried?

Me: I don't think so, bud. Why do you ask?

MJ: Because you look worried.

Me: I guess I am a little worried. I don't want you to be sad; I want you to be happy when you get to school. I can't stay with you today, sweetie.

MJ: Don't worry about me, mommy. I am going to be just fine. All of my friends will be there to play with me...and I will get a pillow pet if I don't cry!

Ok, I must call myself out here (please don't judge me!)- I told MJ that if he didn't cry at school, I would get him this pillow pet thing he has been talking about for the past month. It is truly the ugliest thing I have ever seen...but it did save me a lot of heartbreak- drop off went smoothly and MJ was all smiles. :)

August Heat

We love the zoo!

It has been one hot summer. The past few weeks have been busy as usual... We've had family birthday celebrations, a ton of playdates, cookouts with friends, outings to museums/parks/the zoo, and ofcourse trips the pool!


We try to take the boys swimming at Dunwoody Country Club every weekend we are in town. After a few weeks of thinking about jumping off of the diving board, MJ finally did it! (and ofcourse, now he won't stop)!

I'm going to do it this time

YAY!


Splash

I think I'll hang out here in the baby pool and watch

My dad had a BIG birthday last week...At the request of my mom, I won't publicly state how old he is (but you may be able to tell if you look closely at the cake). :)
We had a great time celebrating at their house on Lake Lanier.

Granddad with MJ and Ty

Happy Birthday!

So, I have to call out my wonderful husband just for a second. I went to a prayer group one night last week - I was gone for maybe an hour, and this is what I came home to:

Sigh. A mommy never rests. :)

Here are pictures from our recent "adventures"...

Fernbank:

MJ the explorer



Cheese!



Ty in the canoe


Petting the triceratops


Photo booth with mommy

PDK airport park (always a favorite):

Mommy, it's getting hot out here


I think I can pull myself up with this rope

Northpoint playground/carousel with Ms. Lisa:

Children's Museum:

Hey mom, check out this forklift!

Fun in the backyard:

Ty with Sam (Ms. Lisa's nephew)

Ty at 10 months

I forgot what a fun age this is! Ty is learning at an exponential rate, and it is incredible to watch.

Favorite toys:
Like most babies, his favorite toys are actually not toys at all- he prefers to play with water bottles, remote controls, car keys, phones, and anything with wheels. He and MJ have also been enjoying their new water table...

Favorite games:

He is becoming more playful every day.... He loves to roll the ball back and forth to his brother. He likes to throw toys and chase after them. He still hides behind sofas/coffee tables/etc to play peek-a-boo. He laughs hysterically when MJ chases after him - he is so good at crawling that sometimes it is hard for MJ to keep up! We ask him "how big is Ty?" and he will throw his arms up while we say "SO BIG!"

Gross motor skills:

While MJ was able to walk across a room by 10 months, Ty (thankfully) is still in the cruising phase. He pulls up on everything- my leg, the sofa/coffee table/bathtub/chairs. He is able to walk a few steps with his little "push" walking toy (see pic below). I am not in a hurry for the walking thing; his incredible efficiency at crawling has already added enough stress to my life! haha

He is even crawling up the stairs now, so I am constantly reminding myself to close our baby gate (which I haven't had to do since we moved in).

Babbles:

Ty has been saying "dadada" for a couple of months now, but this month he started say "mama" much more. I swear that sometimes he knows he is calling me. If he gets scared or upset, he crawls over to me saying "mama, mama;" then, he gets to me and waves his arms until I pick him up. Does that count as his first word?? I'm not sure that Steve is buying the whole "mama" thing, but I am definitely convincing myself. :)

Favorite Foods:

Just like his daddy and brother, he loves the Waffle House, especially the raisin toast and waffles. He still eats atleast one jar of baby food at each meal along with solid food (pancakes, bread, granola bars) that he is able to feed himself. His favorite snacks are Cheezits and Goldfish. He is down to 3 bottles a day; I can't wait to transition to milk in 2 months!

Hair:

Ty got his first haircut this month! He handled it like a pro, and the cut is adorable. Here are the before and after photos:

Sleeping Habits:
He continues to be a great sleeper. He sleeps 11-12 hours at night and takes a nap from roughly 9:00-11:00 and 2:00-4:00 during the day.

Happy Baby:

Doesn't this smile just melt your heart???

Happy 10 months, my sweet baby boy.