Kyler -- Month 13 (11/18/12-12/17/12)

[Sorry for the delay -- Ryan will take the blame for this...]

It was such a busy month for our little man! There were many new places to explore, foods to try, and trouble to get into. His one year appointment went really well. Our "little man" has remained tall (31.5 inches) but with all his activity his weight has started to plateau (23 lbs 15 oz). The pediatrician called him "motorific," and we could not agree more with that descriptor of our child. He continues to dig into our cupboards, but has now discovered that he can find and bring us snacks when he wants food (which seems to be all the time). Kyler discovered the fun of gravity and the great bounces that things take when they are thrown through our gate and down the stairs. He still loves to push anything with wheels, but has also started to "ride" the toys and push himself backwards. He started to climb into boxes and onto different toys to get up into things we once thought were out of reach. Though at this point he could not climb onto the couch or chairs yet, he displays no fear of heights and if you are not right there, he will take a flying leap into the great unknown (or Christmas tree). After his evening baths, Kyler loves a goofy game of "peek" with his bath towel on the changing table. Even though he is continuously busy, he also started to migrate towards only one nap per day, which has been an adjustment for everyone.

Though Kyler is extremely advanced in his motor skills, he still does not say many words clearly, but now says "Mama" and "Dada," as well as sticking out his tongue when you ask him to do it or do it yourself. He started to shake his head "no" even though we are not sure where he picked that up. :) He has been following so many directions, including doing two things consecutively, like "find the ball and put it into the truck." Much to Ryan's excitement, he became very good at hitting a ball with a bat (on a stationary tee of course), and--to Ryan's dismay--he has shown an affinity for kicking/dribbling a soccer ball. He continues to try many new foods, including cows milk, beets, egg whites, tomatoes, oranges, and strawberries. We have worked on drinking from a cup, and he does it very well when he wants to. Kyler often likes to put his food in the cup and then try to "drink" his food. Thankfully, we have been able to get the "all done" wave down, but often not until Duncan has been fed most of Kyler's food.

We also had a lot of fun traveling to see family and visiting with friends. We had a great time visiting the whole Bebej family over Thanksgiving, and Kyler had a great time playing with his cousins and celebrating his birthday. Kyler especially loved that he got to sleep in his parents' room, and after much screaming and crying, he even got to have an impromptu sleepover in bed with us. Kyler slept great, but Ryan and I found no comfortable way to have a toddler sleep between us without at least one of us being awake. Kyler has also become very curious about wheelchairs and walkers, taking Great Grandpa Hodge's for a spin and stealing walkers from little old ladies while visiting Great Grandma Van Dyke. We visited Ryan at work and ran around the halls of DeVries Hall (not very quietly though). We visited Hager Park with Jess, Michael, and Ashley and for Ryan's birthday. During these trips, we discovered that Kyler's walking skills are diminished with any incline or decline. :) It has been so much fun watching his mental wheels turning more and more, and we are so excited to see how he continues to change in the months ahead!

Zombie baby? Too much Twilight? Or just eating beets? :)

The best toys are usually the cheapest -- and balloons last for a very long time!

Dressed up for Christmas pictures...

Kyler truly has become attached to his lovey...

...But how cute is this!

One of the best Christmas pictures--looks like Kyler didn't hate it too much!

Showing off our newly acquired tongue skill in the tub -- and check out those curls!

We now like to empty out the container bin from inside the container bin!

"Hey, I'm driving here!"

The wonders of the sippy cup :)

Never stationary for very long, this kid is always on the move!

We even like to ride on our pirate ship! Preparing to come aboard!

All the grandkids at the Bebej family Thanksgiving dinner

Kyler still showing off his tongue know-how

Loved playing with his cousins and the new birthday truck!

This is hard to believe, but he does remain still for BRIEF times

"Now, how can I get the DVR to record Super Why?"

Kyler turns one!

We had so much fun over the past year with our little man, and we still cannot believe that he is already a 1-year-old. We had a great Sunday lunch with family, including Ryan's parents who drove up just for our special guy! Kyler seemed to love the cake (I think the pictures speak for themselves), but he did not enjoy opening presents as much as we had anticipated. KayLynn and Duncan knew what to do, but Kyler just wanted to sit on his gifts and play with them after they were open. But no matter, we are very blessed to have this miracle in our lives and cannot wait for many more years of blessings.

Gotta have the balloons!

Birthday cake, made from scratch--Kyler got the baseball as a "smash cake"

"What are these things? They move when I touch them!"

Not sure how to open gifts...

...but he likes to stand on them!

"Mommy, can I just sit up here?"

Riding his pirate ship--arrrgggh!

Happy family!

Seeing the cake...

...touching the cake...

"This is my cake?"

...tentatively trying the cake...

...smooshing the cake...

...taking a bigger bite...

"Oh, this is good!"

"I love cake, Mommy!"

This is the best!

Oh, wonderful sugar!

Must have water after the sugar rush

Kyler -- Week 52 (11/10/12-11/17/12)

I cannot believe that this is the last week of Kyler's first year. It has been such a joy to have this little man in our lives, and I cannot wait to see what new adventures the coming years will bring. He has grown so much in the past year that I have felt it important to update weekly, but now that his growth has slowed down a bit--and given that my boy  keeps me very busy--I am only going to be updating once a month or with special events.

Kyler had a lot of fun making up his own games this week. We love to push buttons, especially if (like his new nativity set) they play music when pushed. Kyler also has discovered a way to keep himself entertained while waiting to be picked up out of his crib--throwing everything out of the crib. There are many mornings and post-nap times that I come in and see what looks like a battlefield of blankets, stuffed animals, and clothes (yes, sometimes his pants or socks) strewn around his sleeping fortress. If I give him back any of the previously mentioned ammunition, it goes right back onto the ground. Kyler has also discovered the joys of toilet paper. At this point, he simply likes to have us chase him around the house while he carries it. Hopefully, he doesn't learn how to unroll the stuff any time soon, otherwise we'll have a perpetually "TP'd" house.

Kyler has become super smart when it comes to recognizing and bringing us things. He loves to bring us book after book to read to him, and we have noticed that there are several books that he selects more often than others. He also continues to bring us snacks from his unlocked cupboard and seems to stand there waiting to get a snack. I swear, we feed our son, but he seems to be famished at all times. I guess we just have a growing boy. Kyler also really enjoyed his freedom, which makes shopping with him more of a challenge than ever before. He used to be content just sitting in the shopping cart or my arms, watching all the wonders of the outside world. But now he wants to be a part of it. While doing a quick run to Ulta, where shopping carts are nowhere to be found, I had to put him down to pay for my purchase and ended up running after him to keep him from sprinting out the door. At Target, that very same trip, he figured out how to turn 180° in the seat with the strap still buckled. Kyler is now the kid standing up in the actual cart, trying to climb out or empty my purse of its contents. So if you see us, just smile. :)

"What? So I like to snuggle with my bear--is that okay?"

"What is this new toy, Mommy?"

Helping Grandpa with the new basement cabinets

Playing with his nativity set and learning about Christmas

Say, "Cheese!" Or just drool

Reading with one of his favorite books with Papa

Kyler has become very good at drinking out of his cup

Kyler -- Week 51 (11/3/12-11/9/12)

We had a great busy weekend, which included making Kyler's birthday/Christmas list and going to visit Great Grandma Linda and her mother at Red Robin. When we got to the restaurant, Kyler was so excited to explore all the arcade games and watch the ceiling fans with blades that looked like French fries. He had a great time eating in the restaurant, but Ky seemed to have a hard time understanding that Duncan was not there to pick up all the food he dropped on the floor. We even gave him a few fries, which he just sucked on and chewed up--I'm not sure he ever really ate much of it! Daylight saving time provided us all with an early morning, but Kyler soon adjusted and was back sleeping well very soon.

Later in the week, Kyler was starting to act really snuggly and was crying all the time. He was feeling really warm most mornings and, on Wednesday, we took his temperature to discover that he had a fever of 103.3°F--poor little guy! We gave him a lot of liquids and Tylenol, but he did not sleep well all day and wanted to be in my arms non-stop (which, if he had been feeling better, would not have bothered me in the slightest). At first, the pediatrician thought that he had roseola, but after looking in his mouth and seeing blisters in the back of his throat, she decided that it was more likely herpangina, which would clear up after a week or so. She suggested that we not have him in contact with kids for a week, and since it was a virus, there was nothing we could give him but love and liquids.

Thankfully, Kyler began to act himself as the rest of the week went on. We noticed that he was itching his head a lot and waking up a lot at night, but thankfully the fever was reducing. On Friday, he woke up with a horrible rash all over his body, which seemed to be roseola. So we are not sure if Kyler was lucky enough to have both viruses at the same time or if he was misdiagnosed. Either way, he loved snuggling with his giant bear and Mommy during his recovery

Playing with his new toy: the oxygen mask from his surgery

I just pretend that he is learning to be a doctor--specifically an anesthesiologist (wink, wink)

Trying to figure out this yogurt thing!

"Oh, Mommy, but this works so much better!"

"Hi, Mr. Bear! You sure are tall!"

Time to pat his nose...how cute

What a goofy boy!

Not feeling the best, but lounging around and enjoying some television

A shot of his poor rash! Boo...

Kyler -- Week 50 (10/27/12-11/2/12)

Our little guy is getting so close to being a year old already! I can hardly believe how fast time has gone, but there are so many things that remind me of how much older he has gotten. Lately, when you ask Kyler to bring you something, he can go and get that specific item. Later in the week, I asked him to bring me a book. Now, his favorite activity seems to be emptying out his library on our living room floor and bringing us a book to read. This a trend that I hope he continues. Kyler has also been exploring where things go when he "puts" them into things. His favorite place to "put" things is the tub, which often has an assortment of things thrown into it while he stands there and looks at them. I think part of this fascination with the tub stems from the fact that he has been missing his time in the water. Even when others are in the tub--including me--he comes in and likes to splash the water.

We had a lot of fun trying pineapple and turnips this week. He liked both of them, and it baffles me that my son would rather eat turnips than pumpkin! Kyler had a lot of fun getting dressed up like a raccoon for Halloween. He tolerated the hood very well and looked adorable walking around with his little tail swishing back and forth. Since he was still getting over a cold, we only visited Grandpa and Grandma's house, but there we got to see cousin KayLynn in her U of M cheerleader outfit. They had fun playing the piano together, and KayLynn really liked Kyler's tail.

Unfortunately, sleeping was not too great this week. On Tuesday, Kyler was really upset and super fussy, refusing to nap and easily tearful--not like him at all. We went into the pediatrician's office and were informed that Kyler had developed a sinus infection and that his molars were coming in. On top of the surgery recovery and the cold, I just felt so sorry for the little guy. Without all the sleep, there was a lot of snuggling on the couch and plenty of cuddle time. It's amazing how much you do not care if you sleep, as long as you are with your little guy, and he is happy in your arms.

Already looking for cash

Our new favorite toy to play with together--chopsticks, here we come!

We love Grandpa!

Helping Mommy unwrap her birthday presents

Ryan with his boys...er, um, animals...

"I am a fierce raccoon!" Fiercely cute!

The cousins hanging out at Grandpa and Grandma's

KayLynn really liked Kyler's tail

Cute little ones sitting by the piano

I think KayLynn is pretty much carrying the tune

Out of all the laundry I was folding, Kyler decided that my sports bra was the best...uh-oh...