Thursday, July 11, 2013

Kyler -- Month 15 (1/18/13-2/17/13)

It was another busy month for Kyler! He tried many new things, had lots of visitors, and even gained a new cousin! One of the first things that he learned this month was how to kiss people goodbye. It is always cute and nice to get a little affection from this little one, but he has still not mastered the "closed mouth" kiss, often leaving the recipient with a pretty wet cheek. At meal time, Kyler began to fold his hands when we ask him to pray, and even though he may only keep them folded for a short time, we still love it. Kyler has liked to "blow kisses" or pretend to eat food with his hands during meal time. He also began to go down the stairs during this time, learning to sit on his "buns" when we ask him to. He spent many hours just going up and down the stairs with Mommy and Daddy.

We had some great visits from Uncle Bob and Aunt Dawn, and later Papa and Grammy with Uncle Dave, Aunt Kami, and cousin Kathryn (who will be a student at Hope next year). Kyler loves to show off for his visitors and has so much fun bringing them toys and trying to make them laugh. At one point, we had a pizza party with cousin KayLynn, where Kyler's long hair ended up in bows (yes, that would be his Mommy's doing). A few days later, Kyler also got to meet his newest cousin (KayLynn's baby sister Mekinley) at the hospital. Though he was not too interested in her right then, I know that they will become great friends just like Kyler and KayLynn.

Kyler continued to love being out in the snow, climbing on anything that he could (including the new couch), and trying new foods, including a new fave--pomegranate seeds! Though they can be messy, he eats them like candy, and we can barely keep enough of them on his plate. Kyler began transitioning more and more into having only one nap in the afternoon, but even on those days, he still had mornings where he was sleepy and almost asking for a nap. One time he even took his soccer ball with him to bed. Our little boy always keeps things busy and fun!

He loves cottage cheese... Yum!

Mommy and Kyler during snuggle time

Does this kid look excited about cars or what!

"What do you mean I have something on my face?"

"Okay, time to bust some kneecaps!" Uh-oh...

Real men can rock bows, and Ky can even handle the pink polka-dot kind!

"Gotta get my miles in before nap time"

Getting so good at drinking from a cup

"Uncle Bob makes me laugh!"

"Yes, I know I am cute"

This little boy loves his puffs

Had a great time with Uncle Bob and Aunt Dawn!

Snuggling with Mommy on the new couch... I wish these moments could last forever!




Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Kyler -- Month 14 (12/18/12-1/17/13)

I still cannot believe how fast a month can go by, though I know that with the holidays, things went by faster than ever. Kyler continues to grow, learn quickly, experience new things, try new foods, and enjoy spending time with anyone around him. He is a very outgoing little man who seems to show no fear of strangers which has made getting to know people very easy. We started to notice a little more caution and even a few tears when separated from us though. I started going to coffee break at church on Thursdays, and now that we have been fairly healthy, Kyler has also been in nursery much more often. However, even after completely switching over to one nap a day, he still was getting pretty tired right in the middle of the morning.

Kyler learned a lot of new things this month. He learned to shake his head "no," but we are not sure that he really knows what it means. He can now point to his nose, mouth, and sometimes other parts such as ears and eyes. His favorite part is still his tongue, which he will readily stick out at you when you do likewise. When we ask to give kisses, he will lean in to receive them, but he has not figured out how to give one yet. He also likes to lean in and receive kisses from Duncan! We play downstairs more often now that we have carpet to play on, and when asked to if he wants to "go downstairs," he will run to the gate and reach up his hands for you to pick him up. Our favorite thing that Kyler learned this month is how to pray. He will fold his hands together when we ask him to pray and look up at us with a smile--now how cute is that?

Kyler started wanting to watch television much more this month, often bringing us videos to watch and wanting to actually cuddle in our laps while watching. We now have to be strict about how much television is on now so that we do not end up with a couch potato for a son, but one video a day doesn't seem to be too much. We often went out to play in the snow, but Kyler often throws a bit of a fit when he has to come back inside--which was a new experience for us, but certainly not the last. Ryan has taken on the duty of making sure that Kyler gets to ride "Sandy" the horse after shopping for groceries. (For those of you who do not know, it's a mechanical horse at all Meijer stores you can ride for a penny.) Kyler also really started to "sort" things this month, grouping similar things together and in a certain order, only to move them to another place minutes later.

Over this month, we had many different family Christmas parties, Skype conversations, and places to visit. Kyler's foods continue to vary, as he has tried peanut butter, ham, blueberries, cherries, bell peppers, cranberry juice, spinach, and blackberries. He continues to eat very well and has been using a spoon to eat yogurt on his own, though we often have to clean the yogurt off everyone (including the dog) when he is done. We went out to breakfast as a family during Ryan's holiday break, and though it went really well, our days of dining out leisurely are a distant memory for now. Kyler continues to grow into such a good boy, even with the occasional temper flare up, but we love to see his big smile with all 15 teeth!

Batman! Gotta love a boy in a cape

Kyler demonstrating his tongue knowledge

Having a good time with the rockin' table!

Oh, teaching the boy to use a spoon with yogurt...

...yep, not clean at all!

So cute, yet so distracted by the birds outside

Playing in the guest bedroom...we often find toys there

One of Kyler's "sorts" -- because all plastic balls belong in Daddy's slippers

Hanging out after spending the morning with nice ladies at church

"I see you, Mommy!"

Kyler showing his biblical knowledge by putting his zoo animals on the pirate ship...I mean ark

Notice where he puts his blueberries...yet another sort...what are you thinking about, kiddo?

Looking out the window and waiting for Daddy to come home


Christmas!

This was our first year not traveling for the Christmas holidays, and although we did miss seeing Ryan's family, it was a nice way to start our own family traditions. Kyler was pretty interested in our tree, and although he generally listens pretty well, we were forced to move our ornaments higher and higher on the tree. I did buy two soft reindeer ornaments to hang low on the tree where he could touch them, but that did not seem to deter his drive to get into the Christmas tree at all costs. We enjoyed family Christmas parties, video-chatting with other family members on the computer, and, of course, seeing what Santa Claus left on Christmas morning. On Christmas Eve, we (yes, even Duncan!) piled into the car and went out to look at Christmas lights (see video below). Kyler did not seem to mind driving around, especially with his snacks and juice. We felt very blessed this Christmas and look forward to many more together as a family!

Our Christmas tree--with a very minimally decorated bottom half

Ryan's slightly sacrilegious nativity scene using Kyler's Little People toys

Our front porch!

Kyler riding his new rocking horse...

...but he would rather pet the pony instead

Kyler getting Mr. Potato Head

Our little "buck"...I mean, bison :)

Finally learning to unwrap some presents

Daddy sharing his love of superheroes with Kyler

Kyler's first Louisville Slugger from Aunt Britani and Uncle Charlie--watch out, windows!

Ryan having fun with his boy

"I'm all ears, Mommy!"

Santa brought Kyler a whole zoo!

Our little man ready for Christmas pictures

"Cheese!"

Best family picture this year...Kyler has become much more wiggly :)


Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Snow!

Kyler seemed to love every flake of snow we got in Michigan over the winter. Though we often struggle to get him into his snow gear, he loves to point, walk, and touch snow. We have a nice little sled that he loves to ride in, and you often got a small grin on his face when you went a little faster than walking. Kyler loved attempting to walk in the snow, but with all his layers, he needed a little help to get back up after falling down.

"I like my sled, Daddy--what do you mean you need a break?"

Hands full of snow, but still looking out for more

A boy and his dog--the best of buddies

After a little tumble, he was back up and ready for more

He has this downward dog thing figured out, but he just can't move well in those snowpants

Mommy doing the walking assist

"What do you mean I have to go inside?"

Pink cheeks right before heading inside for some juice

My little snow bunny