Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing
Monday, April 4, 2011
New Pasttime
This is a new game the boys have invented. Very peaceful and relaxing. Can summer PLEASE get here so we can get outside already???
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing
Basketball Practice
For some reason I couldn't get this video to work in Tyler's update post but it's working now. Enjoy :)
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Overall Update-Tyler
Tyler has been doing lots of growing and changing too. Over the past few months he's been discovering and exploring new interests. One of those, as I mentioned in a previous post, is music. Sparked by his Imagination Movers CDs he now loves to "rock out" all the time. Anytime he has a spare moment he's "playing" an instrument, usually the air guitar. He also loves to make up his own songs using his guitar and the drumsticks. It's so cute to hear him make up songs about all the things that fill up his days.
Another new interest for him is geography. For his birthday he got a puzzle of all the states and he loves putting it together and telling us something special about the states. He also has a really cool Children's Atlas book and spends time each day hunting for certain things on each of the continents.
Tyler has always loved basketball but has recently taken it up a notch. He's attended 2 Timberwolves games this year and after each one he comes home and wants to do nothing but practice. He works on dribbling with each hand, free throws and layups. Some days he spends the entire hour of his rest time in the basement "exercising" with basketball and "rocking out". He has also noticed that professional athletes have cheerleaders and this is now my official job. I am expected to sit on the sidelines and watch him practice, cheering every time he makes a shot. When my imaginary pom poms weren't cutting it Tyler brought me 2 egg shakers and told me to use those. Ha!
Along with all his new interests come new fears. One night, not too long ago, Tyler suddenly developed a panicky fear of the dark, complete with imaginary monsters hiding in the house. After several nights of waking up frequently in the night we bought 2 very bright night lights for his room and the hallway that have helped immensely. He's also suddenly gotten very worried about thunderstorms, lightening and tornadoes. He asks all kinds of questions about why we have to go in the basement during storms, something he is remembering from last Spring. We haven't had any Spring storms yet so we'll see how this fear plays out in the coming months.
There are days when I swear I can see Tyler growing up before my eyes and days when I cannot believe he is only 4. With Winter drawing to a close (supposedly) Tyler has cabin fever more than ever. While he still doesn't mind suiting up to go outside I am beyond tired of it and have started sending him outside to play by himself. He has to stay in our yard or on the sidewalk in front of our house where I can see him through our front windows. Several times he's gone across the street to play with Vincent and William in their front yard with Meg and I keeping a close watch. The first time he went out to play with his friends by himself almost brought tears to my eyes. They organized a baseball game and I could hear their laughter all the way across the street inside our house. Such big boys :)
Other times he seems mature beyond his years are when he's with his little brother. He is definitely a Mother Hen with Cal and sometimes I wonder if I'm even needed! Tyler loves to greet Calvin after his nap by bringing him his drink and asking how his sleep was. I often overhear Tyler teaching Calvin how to do something or explaining something to him. He even wants to hold him and kiss his boo-boos when he's hurt! 98% of the time this is so cute and we just love to watch Tyler in his "first born" mode. The other morning I was in the other room when Calvin announced he was all done with breakfast. By the time I made it into the kitchen Tyler had bussed Cal's dishes, gotten him out of the chair and cleaned up his face, hands and the front of his PJs! Ha! However, the other 2% of the time Tyler needs to be reminded that he is not the boss and cannot control every little thing. This morning Calvin spilled his water at breakfast. As I was wiping it up Tyler was giving Cal a lecture about not being careful.
Tyler: "If you're not careful Calvin then you cannot drink of out a big boy cup. You will have to have a sippy"
Me: "That's ok. It's just water and it was an accident"
Tyler: "No, it's not okay. If he spills then he cannot have a big boy cup"
Me: "Tyler, you are not the parent"
Tyler: "Yes I am the parent. Just stop arguing with me about this mom"
Hmmm, how old are you again?? And where do you get all the things that come out of your mouth? They sound vaguely familiar... :)
It is such a joy to watch these two boys grow and change. Our hope is that they will always have as much fun together as they do now and grow into the best of friends. We are so proud of them both!
Another new interest for him is geography. For his birthday he got a puzzle of all the states and he loves putting it together and telling us something special about the states. He also has a really cool Children's Atlas book and spends time each day hunting for certain things on each of the continents.
Tyler has always loved basketball but has recently taken it up a notch. He's attended 2 Timberwolves games this year and after each one he comes home and wants to do nothing but practice. He works on dribbling with each hand, free throws and layups. Some days he spends the entire hour of his rest time in the basement "exercising" with basketball and "rocking out". He has also noticed that professional athletes have cheerleaders and this is now my official job. I am expected to sit on the sidelines and watch him practice, cheering every time he makes a shot. When my imaginary pom poms weren't cutting it Tyler brought me 2 egg shakers and told me to use those. Ha!Along with all his new interests come new fears. One night, not too long ago, Tyler suddenly developed a panicky fear of the dark, complete with imaginary monsters hiding in the house. After several nights of waking up frequently in the night we bought 2 very bright night lights for his room and the hallway that have helped immensely. He's also suddenly gotten very worried about thunderstorms, lightening and tornadoes. He asks all kinds of questions about why we have to go in the basement during storms, something he is remembering from last Spring. We haven't had any Spring storms yet so we'll see how this fear plays out in the coming months.
There are days when I swear I can see Tyler growing up before my eyes and days when I cannot believe he is only 4. With Winter drawing to a close (supposedly) Tyler has cabin fever more than ever. While he still doesn't mind suiting up to go outside I am beyond tired of it and have started sending him outside to play by himself. He has to stay in our yard or on the sidewalk in front of our house where I can see him through our front windows. Several times he's gone across the street to play with Vincent and William in their front yard with Meg and I keeping a close watch. The first time he went out to play with his friends by himself almost brought tears to my eyes. They organized a baseball game and I could hear their laughter all the way across the street inside our house. Such big boys :)
Other times he seems mature beyond his years are when he's with his little brother. He is definitely a Mother Hen with Cal and sometimes I wonder if I'm even needed! Tyler loves to greet Calvin after his nap by bringing him his drink and asking how his sleep was. I often overhear Tyler teaching Calvin how to do something or explaining something to him. He even wants to hold him and kiss his boo-boos when he's hurt! 98% of the time this is so cute and we just love to watch Tyler in his "first born" mode. The other morning I was in the other room when Calvin announced he was all done with breakfast. By the time I made it into the kitchen Tyler had bussed Cal's dishes, gotten him out of the chair and cleaned up his face, hands and the front of his PJs! Ha! However, the other 2% of the time Tyler needs to be reminded that he is not the boss and cannot control every little thing. This morning Calvin spilled his water at breakfast. As I was wiping it up Tyler was giving Cal a lecture about not being careful.Tyler: "If you're not careful Calvin then you cannot drink of out a big boy cup. You will have to have a sippy"
Me: "That's ok. It's just water and it was an accident"
Tyler: "No, it's not okay. If he spills then he cannot have a big boy cup"
Me: "Tyler, you are not the parent"
Tyler: "Yes I am the parent. Just stop arguing with me about this mom"
Hmmm, how old are you again?? And where do you get all the things that come out of your mouth? They sound vaguely familiar... :)
It is such a joy to watch these two boys grow and change. Our hope is that they will always have as much fun together as they do now and grow into the best of friends. We are so proud of them both!
Overall Update-Cal
It's been a while since I've posted an update on the boys and there are plenty of changes to report. I thought I'd break it up so this post doesn't become too long. Here's Cal's update:
Calvin has been growing by leaps and bounds the past couple of months. Suddenly he is much more little boy than baby. It seems every day he is learning new words and phrases. Our days are filled with "What's this?" as he now craves to know the name of everything he sees. Another word we hear a million times a day is "why?". Calvin obviously picked this up from Tyler and now thinks it's the appropriate response to anything anyone might say. What's worse, even though we know he doesn't grasp it's meaning we can't help explain our comments to him as if he's 2 or 3 years older. However, this only results in another "why?" and we're back to square one. We have discovered that answering with "because I said so" tends to stop the cycle so this is now our go to response. Sometimes our conversations sound like utter nonsense. An example:
Me: Calvin, what do you want for breakfast?
Calvin: Oatmeal (pronounced O-mail)
Me: Okay I'll make it for you.
Calvin: Why?
Me: Because that's what you asked for.
Calvin: Why?
Me: Because I said so
Another change in Calvin is his fierce independence. He has become very good at declaring "I do it!" and "I did it! Woo woo!" (with both arms raised in the air) when he's accomplished his task. He knows exactly what and how he wants to do things and woe to those that get in his way. For example, when eating yogurt he has to be the one to pull back the foil and put the spoon in or the entire carton becomes suddenly inedible. At night I sing him a song before putting him to bed. Lately, he tries to request certain ones and I sometimes have to hazard a guess as to which one he's talking about. If I am wrong he will put his finger up to his lips and say, "Shhh mama shhh" and I will have to try again.
He usually wants to sit in a big boy chair now, only opting for his booster seat when he's in the mood to do the buckles himself. Then he'll sit for a good while latching himself in and crying "I did it!" and "Again" as he needs help being released from the straps so he can start the process all over again. This little game keeps him quite entertained at restaurants. I just recently let him drink out of a big boy cup at the table and he is beyond pleased with himself, spending the majority of meals picking up and putting down the cup and grinning from ear to ear.
Another sign of his growing up is the fact that we've had to start a little discipline. Calvin can throw a pretty good tantrum when the mood strikes, and the mood strikes often. We started putting him in his room and closing the door for a minute or two and when we go back in he says "all done", walks back downstairs and goes about his business. We've also used the No No chair a few times too with pleasing results.
Our gate at the bottom of the stairs in the basement has been broken for a while now and we recently removed it altogether. Surprisingly, Calvin has done really well with this. He loves the freedom of coming and going and is pretty safe on the stairs for the most part. A few times we'll all be in the basement and hear the door at the top of the stairs slam shut as Calvin has decided he's had enough of us and wants some alone time upstairs. We're not yet ready to remove our gates in the main level but definitely see it happening not too far off.
Overall Calvin is a blast. Yes, he has a strong personality but he makes all 3 of us laugh every day and has such a sweet nature. His love for his "bubba" and daddy melt my heart each day and there's nothing sweeter than when he burrows into my lap for a snuggle. We love you Calvin!
Calvin has been growing by leaps and bounds the past couple of months. Suddenly he is much more little boy than baby. It seems every day he is learning new words and phrases. Our days are filled with "What's this?" as he now craves to know the name of everything he sees. Another word we hear a million times a day is "why?". Calvin obviously picked this up from Tyler and now thinks it's the appropriate response to anything anyone might say. What's worse, even though we know he doesn't grasp it's meaning we can't help explain our comments to him as if he's 2 or 3 years older. However, this only results in another "why?" and we're back to square one. We have discovered that answering with "because I said so" tends to stop the cycle so this is now our go to response. Sometimes our conversations sound like utter nonsense. An example:Me: Calvin, what do you want for breakfast?
Calvin: Oatmeal (pronounced O-mail)
Me: Okay I'll make it for you.
Calvin: Why?
Me: Because that's what you asked for.
Calvin: Why?
Me: Because I said so
Another change in Calvin is his fierce independence. He has become very good at declaring "I do it!" and "I did it! Woo woo!" (with both arms raised in the air) when he's accomplished his task. He knows exactly what and how he wants to do things and woe to those that get in his way. For example, when eating yogurt he has to be the one to pull back the foil and put the spoon in or the entire carton becomes suddenly inedible. At night I sing him a song before putting him to bed. Lately, he tries to request certain ones and I sometimes have to hazard a guess as to which one he's talking about. If I am wrong he will put his finger up to his lips and say, "Shhh mama shhh" and I will have to try again.
He usually wants to sit in a big boy chair now, only opting for his booster seat when he's in the mood to do the buckles himself. Then he'll sit for a good while latching himself in and crying "I did it!" and "Again" as he needs help being released from the straps so he can start the process all over again. This little game keeps him quite entertained at restaurants. I just recently let him drink out of a big boy cup at the table and he is beyond pleased with himself, spending the majority of meals picking up and putting down the cup and grinning from ear to ear.
Another sign of his growing up is the fact that we've had to start a little discipline. Calvin can throw a pretty good tantrum when the mood strikes, and the mood strikes often. We started putting him in his room and closing the door for a minute or two and when we go back in he says "all done", walks back downstairs and goes about his business. We've also used the No No chair a few times too with pleasing results.Our gate at the bottom of the stairs in the basement has been broken for a while now and we recently removed it altogether. Surprisingly, Calvin has done really well with this. He loves the freedom of coming and going and is pretty safe on the stairs for the most part. A few times we'll all be in the basement and hear the door at the top of the stairs slam shut as Calvin has decided he's had enough of us and wants some alone time upstairs. We're not yet ready to remove our gates in the main level but definitely see it happening not too far off.
Overall Calvin is a blast. Yes, he has a strong personality but he makes all 3 of us laugh every day and has such a sweet nature. His love for his "bubba" and daddy melt my heart each day and there's nothing sweeter than when he burrows into my lap for a snuggle. We love you Calvin!
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Imagination Movers Concert
For his birthday, Gammy and Poppy got Tyler tickets to the Imagination Movers concert and he was so excited! Tyler has liked the Movers for a while but since getting two of their cds for Christmas has been slightly obsessed with their music and the rest of the family doesn't mind it either :)Tyler started out quietly observing the concert, as he usually does in new situations, but by the end he was dancing and playing air guitar and drums with everyone else. Our seats were in the first balcony and towards the end of the concert Mover Rich made his way up to our area to say hello to all the kids. He climbed right over our seats and clapped Tyler on the back. I'm not sure who was more excited, me or Tyler as I've always thought Mover Rich is pretty cute :)
It was such a special night for the three of us and one we will remember for a long time.
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
March
We're on winter's home stretch and we've all got a bad case of Spring Fever. Can you tell??
On the other hand we sure will miss the hot chocolate!
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