November 10th, 2006 – Mom

Tyler, 3 years, 11 months

Jamison, 11 months, 1 week

Everyone is doing great and gearing up for the crazy few months ahead of us. Next week, Pa and Nana come into town and two days later, Steve and I go to Puerto Vallarta for a 3 night getaway. We come home just in time to celebrate Jamison’s 1st birthday, then Thanksgiving, Steve’s birthday, Jamison’s birthday party, Tyler’s birthday party, Tyler’s 4th birthday, Hanukah and finally, Christmas!  As crazy as the next few months will be, I hope we all get a chance to enjoy it since Tyler is beyond excited for his birthday party and is still loving Santa Claus. This year should be fun.

Amidst all this excitement, Steve starts a new job on December 4th. He is excited about the opportunity to work within Human Resources in the entertainment industry and to top it off, the office is 1.5 miles from our house. Steve could ride his bike to work. This is a far cry from his one hour commute to work and one hour commute home everyday. We are all thrilled for this new chapter in our lives.

Let’s see, time to brag about the kids. Tyler is doing fantastic in Blue Group at the preschool. He is really enjoying his teachers and they are challenging the kids with conflict resolution and taking responsibilities. His teachers, Sheryl and Maria, say he is their biggest helper and he gets involved in every project they put out. They have learned about rainbows, molding (yes, mold!) pumpkins, and lots of new ways to make art. Tyler is truly my friend. He loves running errands with me and will do anything from grocery shopping to coming with me to get a manicure and pedicure. I am really enjoying my time with him since I know he won’t want to go shopping with me when he is older. He is a joy to be with and a very smart kid.

Jamison is at a fantastic and slightly challenging age. She is crawling efficiently and standing up on things and will occasionally take a step but really has no interest in walking yet. She loves to share her food and toys. She is in the phase of pointing at what she wants and screaming to get it. We are really working at saying the word of what she is pointing at and trying to get her to say it. Jamie is a great eater and loves to eat. Her favorites are turkey, tofu, steak, black beans, green beans, apples, veggie booties and gerber snacks. She sings when she eats and it is adorable. She also sings when she reads a book. She loves to crawl into Ty’s room, take a book off his bookcase and sit in his room and read to herself. There are many times a day that I find Jamie in Ty’s room just reading. I am still doing second time mom’s Babygroup with her and I am feeling like she needs another class. She loves music so once she goes from two naps to one, I will take her to a music class. Jamison is a great sleeper. She takes 2 naps…morning for 1-2 hours and afternoon for 1-2 hours. Then she sleeps at night for 12 hours. She is a happy, sweet, squishy, loveable baby that brings all of us so much joy everyday.

Tyler loves her to pieces and Jamie will follow Tyler around all day and night and just be happy watching him. We are soo lucky and how well they play and get along. Tyler keeps telling us he wants another baby since he loves Jamie so much.

I have to quickly mention Halloween. Halloween was like a Polish wedding this year. Tyler was obsessed with Halloween. We went to two pumpkin patches, Boo at the LA Zoo, a Halloween party at a friends house…and then it was Halloween night when we went trick or treating with his friend Gillian. Tyler dressed up as a MotorCross Driver and Jamie was a Bumblebee. They looked great and Tyler has already decided that his birthday party next year will be a Halloween party!

Speaking of birthdays. Since I probably will not write another journal until the birthdays are over, Jamison is having a birthday dinner on her real birthday at my parents house with all of our family….Bill and Barb, my parents, Tracy and her family, Karen and her family and Gigi and Irving. Then, her birthday party will be at our house with a jumpy, piñata and art project. There should be about 35 people here.

Tyler is having a Magic Party. We are having magician Tony Daniels do an hour magic show. It is going to be at the auditorium at Joslyn Park since there are too many kids (inviting 25 kids) to have it at our house. He is so excited about his party, he talks about it everyday. I hope it is as great as he hopes it is.

So no complaints from our house. We are just looking forward to a wonderful few months with family and friends!

September 9, 2006 - Mom

Tyler - 3 years, 9 months

Jamison - 9 months, 2 weeks

I can’t believe Tyler starts his second year of preschool in a couple days.  We had a great 6 weeks off of school. Karen, Jack, Matthew, Hannah and Joshua were in town this summer and all of August, Tyler and Jamie spent time with their cousins. They all had such a great time together. Hannah and Tyler got so used to being with each other everyday that when they spent a day apart, they would both be depressed. We went to a music and movement class at Fundamentals, went to visit GiGi once or twice a week, Tyler and Hannah took tennis lessons once a week, we went to museums, the beach, Chinatown, the Pier and Tyler went to Legoland with them. It was a whirlwind of fun activities and now reality and school and schedules set in again. I will miss Tyler when he is in school. It has been great having him around when Jamie was napping and just have him to do stuff with. I think Jamie is going to have the hardest time saying goodbye to Ty every morning at school. She adores him and he always makes her smile.

I have a bunch of classes set up for Jamie with friends once Ty is settled back in school and I think she will love going to classes and being around a lot of kids. She loves people and smiles at everyone. She is such a great, happy and easy baby. I wish she could stay at this awesome age forever….

Jamie started crawling when she was 8 ½ months old. She is the queen of taking a bath in Niki’s water dish and getting to every cord in the house. She loves following Tyler around and he loves when she follows him around. They play great together and I can usually find them in Tyler’s room laughing and playing.

Tyler keeps saying he wants another baby to play with and Steve and I just look at each other and roll our eyes.

Tyler stopped napping as soon as school was over. It has been nice since he falls asleep around 9 p.m. (which is a lot better than 11 p.m.) However, the afternoons are a bit challenging. Around 4 p.m., he gets really tired and grumpy and getting him through to bedtime is a challenge and full of a couple tantrums here and there. I know this shall pass and he will get used to no naps.

Tyler is also going through a mommy stage. He wants me to do everything with him. All day he will ask about Daddy and as soon as Daddy comes home, he wants me to give him dinner, he wants me to give him a bath and read him books and put him to bed. He has also been talking back to Steve and not being very nice. We are hoping this is a fast moving phase. Otherwise, Steve always has Jamie!  :-)

Overall, the kids are awesome and we are enjoying them.

July 2006 - Mom

Tyler - 3 years, 7 months

Jamison - 8 months

I have been meaning to write another journal and every time I sit down to write, something comes up. So, I am sorry Jamie for not documenting this time in your life better, but here goes.

At 7 months to the day, Jamie decided she was done nursing. She arched her back and refused so I thought she had an ear infection. A trip to Dr. D and to no avail, no ear infection. The next couple days she did the same thing so I decided not to push it and she weaned herself. I was pretty bummed about it but then Steve and I went out for sushi and then I had a margarita and I started to be okay with it all. Then about a week later Jamie was inconsolable during her 11:30 p.m. dream sleep bottle with Steve and we decided she wanted to drop that also. So, since then she has been sleeping from about 8 p.m. to 8 a.m. with no feedings. Steve was a bit sad to lose that 11:30 p.m. bonding time with Jamie but she certainly has a mind of her own.

She is doing great with baby food. She LOVES, LOVES, LOVES her bottle and she eats the food but doesn’t love it. She just cut her 2 bottom teeth and has been enjoying eating cheerios the last couple days. She is a chunky baby with some serious thunder thighs. People are constantly commenting on how cute and squishy and beautiful she is.
She is sitting up perfectly and gets in the crawling position but goes backwards. I would predict in the next couple weeks, she will be full on crawling.  We finally just switched her out of the bucket into the Britax car seat. It will be a bit more challenging doing errands with her since I will have to carry her everywhere instead of just lugging her in the bucket. I am actually anxious for her to start walking...but crawling will come first.

Ok, onto my buddy Tyler. He “graduated” from the yellow group at preschool to the blue group. They had a really fun beach day on their last day of school and Tyler had a ball running into the water with his friends. He has a big crush on Anna…a crush to the point that he blushes when he mentions her name. She is darling and they look great together. But throughout yellow group, Tyler has gone from Ruby to Elizabeth and now to Anna. He is a ladies man!

He has been taking tennis lessons with Anna, Sammy, Samantha, Elizabeth and Claire and he has been really really enjoying it. Coach Marty has been really impressed with his improvement and he wants to play with Steve every night when Steve gets home from work.

 
This summer should be a long one of entertaining Tyler but I am looking forward to doing some fun things with him and enjoying time together.

 

May 27, 2006 - Mom

Jamison – 6 months, 6 days

Tyler – 3 years, 5 months, 14 days

Jamison is 6 months old. I really can’t believe how time flies. I feel like I was just pregnant and now we have a six month old! Jamie had her 6 month appt. yesterday with Dr. Kimberly Diamond and she did great. Tyler insisted on coming with us to hold her hand and he was an awesome big brother. Her six month stats are: weight: 17 pounds, 3.5 ounces (75th percentile) and length: 27 inches (90^th percentile).  We started her on baby food carrots today. We decided to start with vegetables, then fruits and then introduce rice cereal and oatmeal. There have been numerous studies that show it is better to start with veggies and fruits before grains. I personally don’t think it matters but I think carrots and sweet potatoes sound a heck of a lot better than rice cereal.  :-)

Jamie is a wonderful, happy and easy baby (knocking on wood as I type). She takes a morning nap, an afternoon nap and sometimes an early evening nap. The naps range…sometimes they are only 20 minutes and sometimes they are an hour and a half. The morning nap is usually in her stroller while I do an exercise class called Stroller Strides or in the car if we are running errands. She prefers napping in her crib but I need to get things done while Tyler is in school. We put her down around 8 p.m. I dream nurse her at 10 and Steve gives her a bottle at 11:30. Then we usually don’t hear from her until about 7…except for the 3 or 4 times we go in to put her pacifier back in her mouth. She is in her crib in her room now and she is a good sleeper… for now!

She does not have any teeth yet but she has the signs … drooling! She is rolling over. However, I have yet to see it. I will lay her on the floor in Tyler’s room or her room and Tyler will yell “Mommy, Jamie just rolled over.” Another time I was at yoga with her and I literally turned my head for a second and she rolled over! Jamison also loves sitting up and can do it on her own for a couple seconds before tipping over. She really just likes seeing everything going on, which is why she is weaning herself from nursing. She is at about 50% breast milk and 50% formula and I hate to admit it but she LOVES the bottle. She gets sooo excited when she sees it.

Ok, now it’s Tyler’s turn. He is doing great in school and loving it. He is playing more and more with his friends and getting so creative, the stories he comes up with and the things he says! I wish I had a tape recorder to remember the things that come out of his mouth. He is still a complete night owl. He usually falls asleep at about 10:30 and we wake him up at 7:45 in order to get him to school on time.

Tyler is still happiest when Jamie is around. We wake him up to get to school and he is asleep until he hears Jamie and he sits up and gives her a big hug and kiss. She is also happiest when he is around. When she sees him after school, she is so excited. I hope it is always like this between them but I know that is wishful thinking.

We started a soccer class at his insistence and it’s not going great. He wants to just sit with me and watch. Today was his third class and he did better. He actually kicked the ball in the goal a couple times. I am hoping in a couple of classes he will be playing. He is learning through observance and his personality of “slow to warm up to a new place” is shining though.

He loves going to the kindergarten yard at the school down the street from our house. We walk there a couple times a week and he plays great with whoever is there…even though his favorite playmate by far is daddy.

We have play dates about every week with his friend’s Nico, Mason and Kira. Most of the time they come here to play and they all have baby brothers (Aris and Kian) or sisters (Devyn) so the babies all hang out together as well. It is so great for Jamie…she already has a group of friends.

Well that should do it for now. We are heading to Virginia in a couple weeks to celebrate Bill’s retirement so we will post pics and a new journal entry after the big trip. This will be Jamison’s first airplane ride. Wish us luck with both kids on a 5 hour flight.  :-)

April 6, 2006

Jamison - 4 months, 3 weeks

Tyler – 3 years, 4 months

Ok, so Steve was supposed to write this one but he has been really busy at work. His office is in the process of moving so along with all of his normal responsibilities, he is project manager for the move. So, I will write this one!

Jamison is at such an awesome age right now. She is smiling all the time and laughs out loud often. She starting cracking up today when she scratched a pillow and it made a silly sound. She is such a great baby. She cried when she is hungry and tired and that is it. She will sit for hours just watching Tyler and she adores him and is completely entertained by him. At her 4 month checkup she was 14 pounds, 12 ounces (75 percentile) and measured 25 2 inches (90 percentile) and her head circumference was 40 ½ (45 percetile). The dr. was very pleased with her growth and her development. Jamison really prefers naping in her crib. She will take 20 minute naps in her car seat or stroller but she is happiest sleeping in her crib. She naps in her crib in the nursery but sleeps in her co-sleeper in our room at night. Steve gives her a bottle at around midnight and that holds her until about 7:30 a.m. when I feed her. She is a good sleeper but from 5 a.m. on, she needs her pacifier put back into her mouth every half hour to every hour. So she is still in our room our of sheer laziness of us not wanting to walk the 10 feet to her room to put her pacy back in. She really is a joy and such a great baby…for now.  :-)

I am still nursing her about 90-95 percent of the time. She has her one bottle at night before bed and sometimes she has a bottle during the day as well. She is a very efficient eater and will nurse on each side for about 4 minutes. It is nice because it is fast but does not give me much time to relax with her.

February 7, 2006 - Dad

Our littlest one had her 8 week appointment on January 19 and she behaved like a champ.  She got stuck like a pin cushion, but took her three shots well.  She weighed in at 11 pounds, 5 ounces (75% percentile), 22 3/4 inches tall (70% percentile) and a head circumference of 38 centimeters (40% percentile).

Jamie is really starting to get a great personality.  She smiles a lot and laughs every once in a while. She loves the sound of her voice and loves to talk to whoever is listening.  Tyler can make her smile at just about anything.

We've recently battled a couple of bad colds at our house.  I started it with bronchitis and a sinus infection which Tyler got later.  Michelle steered clear of that one but has come down with her own bug in the last couple of days.  Jamie, until a couple of days ago, had escaped everything.  She has a bit of a cough and runny nose, but the doctor said that until she isn't sleeping at night, she doesn't need to come in.  (Easy for the doctor to say!)

January 13, 2006 - Mom

Life with two has definitely been a challenge at times but has been good. Tyler is an awesome big brother and already very protective of Jamison. He can’t wait til she can play with him and he talks about all the things they will be able to do together. 

Jamie is a very good baby. She cries when she is hungry, tired or has gas. That is about it. She has been giving us about a 4 hour sleep stretch at night since she was about 3 weeks old. Some nights she goes 6 hours but most of the time it is 4 hours and then she is fed and goes back to sleep for a couple more hours. She is very laid back and not like Tyler was at all. I am not sure if Jamie is really an easy baby or if it is because we are much more laid back and relaxed with her. I told Steve that Tyler has his personality (a bit uptight but very sweet and protective) and Jamie has mine (mellow and laid back). So the transition from one to two has been easier that I thought it would be.

Tyler just had his 3 year check up and he is 41 inches tall (off the charts) and 40 pounds (95 percentile). He has been potty trained for a couple weeks now. We waited until he turned three and it was really not a big deal. He has had a couple accidents and still wears a diaper for naps and bedtime. Overall, he is doing great and the doctor was happy.  Jamison has her 2 month appt. next week so I will include her new stats on the next journal entry.

Tyler’s third birthday lasted about a week. The day before his birthday my mom and dad took Ty and his cousins Hannah and Matthew to Disneyland and they spent all day and evening there and had a ball. On his actual birthday, they celebrated at his preschool (The Early Years) by making him a special snack of his choice (pasta and sauce), singing him Happy Birthday, making him a very special piece of art and I came in at the end of school and read a book to his class. He loved being the center of attention. His birthday ended with a party at Kidnasium.  Curious George was the theme since Tyler loves the books and he is our curious monkey! He had 26 friends there. Some from his class at Early Years and some friends he has known since he was born. It was a very fun day.

The holidays were great this year. Tyler was obsessed with Santa and we went to see him four times! He asked for a snow globe from Santa and he got one with his stocking. Tyler loved his stocking and the gifts were ok too. I have to say that with his birthday just a couple weeks before Christmas, he was a little over the presents. We actually took a break halfway through opening the gifts so he could play with a toy. We had my mom, dad and Karen, Jack, Matthew, Hannah, Josh, my grandmother and Irving over for brunch on Christmas morning and it was a really nice day. That night we went to a movie and Steve was a little beside himself. He had never been to a movie on Christmas and needless to say, we were not alone. The theatre was packed as seeing a movie on Christmas is a very normal thing for Jewish people to do.

Then my sister Tracy, Lawrence,  Brendan and Ryan came into town the day after Christmas so we had more fun activities with the kids. New Years Eve was with my sisters and I and the husbands and 7 kids running around. We made dinner for the kids and then put a video on and then the adults had a nice dinner. It was nice spending the time with just my sisters and our families.

OK, I know it has been awhile since I wrote a journal, but this is long enough. I will try and be better about updating the site but no promises! It is great having two kids but the time I have to get things done is pretty limited. If I am not feeding Jamie, I am with Tyler. All is great but little downtime.

Happy New Year!

December 8, 2005 - Dad

Wow, what a wild ride!  Life changed substantially for us on November 21 with the arrival of our beautiful daughter, Jamison.  The morning started out as normal as possible for Michelle, who was 38 weeks along.  She went to her regularly scheduled OB appoint for an exam and ultrasound and they decided that if the baby didn't appear by November 28, that we would induce then.  So, Michelle and her mom went shopping for a few things and - BAM - Michelle's water breaks in the Big 5 Sporting Goods store.

A phone call to her doctor was quickly made and she and her mom hustled to Cedars-Sinai.  A phone call to me at work put me into panic mode as I quickly made my way to the hospital.  (My apologies to the California Highway Patrol for driving solo in the carpool lane!!)  I arrived at Cedars and found Michelle in the OB triage room.  Her contractions were relatively strong and pretty regular.  She was admitted to a labor and delivery room and we made ourselves comfortable.

After several rounds of increasing painful contractions, Michelle got an epidural.  And sure enough, the contractions more or less stopped.  We waited for about an hour or hour and a half for them to return, but they didn't.  So, at about 3 p.m., they gave her some pitocin to speed things along.  By 4 p.m. the contractions had come back and by 5 p.m. things were pretty regular.  At about the time Green Bay kicked off the Minnesota on Monday Night Football, things were getting pretty serious and I beginning to wonder where the doctor was.  Michelle was 100% dilated and full effaced and "ready to go".  Our awesome OB nurse, Teisha, had received permission from the doctor to have Michelle try some "practice" pushes.  We'll after only a couple of these "practice" pushes, the baby's head was crowning, and yup, no doctor in sight.  Michelle's mom, who stayed through the delivery, and I were trying to contain our panic.  Then at about 6:30 p.m. he comes strolling in, looks and Michelle and goes into hyper drive to get his scrubs on.  A couple of pushes later, with the doctor nicely in place to play catch, out came Jamison.  She came out pink and screaming and wonderfully healthy.  Michelle did great too and got through the delivery without any complications.  The doctor said that is as close as he's cut in quite some time.  But don't get me wrong, he is an awesome doctor and we wouldn't have wanted anyone else there.

Taking lessons from our hospital experience with Tyler, we gave her up the nursery in the evenings so we could get some rest.  We also let them supplement her with a bottle, which caused zero problems.  We checked out of the hospital on Wednesday the 23rd and brought our little angel home.  More later from the homefront!

September 18, 2005 – Mom : Tyler 2 years 9 months; Baby Girl 29 week in-utero

Life has been pretty eventful the past three months. Thus the reason we have not updated the website. The summer went so fast, all the trips we wanted to take just did not happen. We did go with my parents and the Makkai family to Disneyland for three days and we stayed in the Disneyland Hotel which is something I have wanted to do since I was a little kid. The first day there Tyler wanted to go on all the rides but was pretty clingy during each ride. By the last day, he was running from ride to ride and wanting to sit in the front row. Our actual very last “ride” was taking the monorail back to the hotel and Steve, Ty, my dad and I sat in the cockpit. It was very cool (but I did have to look down a few times so I did not get scared…yes, I am the wimp in the family). That was such a great weekend that we recently took Tyler to Disneyland and California Adventure for the day. He loved it and went on many rides that I could not go on (due to pregnancy) or that I just wouldn’t go on (cause they spun or went up high). I told Steve, our next trip there, Tyler will be going on the roller coasters with him!

The Makkai’s spent the month of August in LA and Tyler had such a blast with his cousins. We did a series at the Hollywood Bowl and he took a class at Fundamentals (Music and Movement) with Hannah and Josh-y. He adored being with his “Aunt Karen and Uncle Jack” and he looks up to Matthew and listens to everything he says (although he may come crying to me when Matthew said “No” to him J)

In July, Tyler decided he was “all done with crib” and that it was “his baby sisters bed.” So, we got him a big boy bed fast…before he got used to sleeping on the floor on a mattress. He has been doing great in his bed but he is still exploring his freedom in his room and there are many, many nights that Steve and I are in bed before he is. He reads books, plays with his stuffed animals and just loves being in his room. He recently moved out of his room/nursery and into the guest room with the help of Nana and Pa pushing us to get the nursery set up.

Nana and Pa (aka Bill and Barb) came out for a visit in Aug./Sept. and we had a great time. We went to the beach, went on a boat ride and they spent a lot of great time with Ty. He wanted Nana to read him books, give him a bath, sit next to him in the car...basically do everything and anything with him. He was very sad to see them leave but was happy to know that Nana is going to come out as soon as the baby is born….for as long as Bill can spare her.  :-)

So, as you can see. I think I am in slight denial still that a little one will be coming in a couple months. I feel her moving all the time and I have ballooned to the size of a house, but besides that, we have not done much to get ready for the newest Dean arrival. Tyler is getting ready for his baby sister and every time I have a doctors appt., he asks if I am going to bring home his baby sister. He seems excited but time will tell how he does having to share the attention he has had 100 percent to himself the last 2 years and 9 months. Ty being in school hopefully will transition him into being more independent…cross your fingers!

So, yes Tyler started school at The Early Years last week. We are in the transition process still so I have not left him at school yet. He is enjoying himself and says that he really likes his teachers Andrea and Kimberly. There are 12 kids in his class… 5 boys and 7 girls with 2 teachers and a teachers aide to come when all the parents are gone. It is a half-day program that he really seems to like so far and it is a great school.

So, between Disneyland, family visits, a new big boy bed, school and the upcoming arrival of baby #2, we have been busy. We are sorry for not updating the site sooner and we home everyone out there is doing well and had a wonderful summer.

Xoxo

Michelle

July 19, 2005 – Dad

Wow!  Time sure does fly!  Well, the pictures on the home page speak for themselves.  We’re so happy to let everyone know that we’re expecting baby number two (a girl!) around December 1.  We found out in March while we were visiting my parents in Washington D.C.  And now, despite reassurances from two separate doctors, I think Michelle still won’t believe we’re having a girl until we see her.  Naturally, Tyler is very happy to be having a baby, but I’m not sure that enthusiasm will stick once he realizes she’s not going to come out ready to play catch in the backyard.  He’s also cute because it is “his” baby whose name will simply be “Baby”.

As for the proud parents-to-be, well, we’re in a bit of denial.  It is slowly sinking in, but not nearly as fast as with Tyler.  We joke that we’ll start getting ready for her arrival at about the time Michelle’s water breaks.  We are making some strides however.  On Saturday the 23^rd, Tyler will be his new bed.  He’s decided he wants to stay in his old room, rather than move to the front room.  So, we’ll begin preparing our front guest bedroom as the nursery. 

Tyler is very excited about his new bed.  So much so that he’s digressed a bit.  Our great sleeper has suddenly become a possessed crazy child right before bed.  He really, really wants to sleep in Mom and Dad’s bed (like he did at Disneyland a couple weekends ago!), but Mom and Dad really don’t want to go that route.  After a couple of nights of Tyler on his mattress on our floor, we’ve moved his actual crib out of his room and now his mattress is on his floor.  For the last couple of nights, bedtime has been a real test for all three of us, but the Steve and Michelle dynamic parenting duo refuse to be beaten by the little guy.  And yes, he has been putting us through all the tests!

Everything else is going well.  Michelle’s pregnancy is progressing normally.  She was much more nauseous this time around, but she also doesn't have the luxury of relaxation for this one.  I think the glow of pregnancy is effectively erased while parenting an active 2 1/2 year old all day!  It seems that now at the 20-week point that her energy is coming back a bit and the nausea is a thing of the past.  (But, keep in mind this is Steve speaking!)  Now if we can just remember all our birthing class lessons! 

Feb. 25, 2005 – 2 years 2 ½ months  - Mom

  I cannot believe that we have not updated our website since the holidays. Time really does fly when you are having fun!

  Tyler and I are keeping really busy with Toddler Groups at The Early Years and Little Village, swim and gym at the Y, Kidnasium and lots of play dates with friends.

Steve had a couple business trips in the past couple months. He went to Las Vegas for a week for the Consumer Electronic Show. He was able to enjoy himself a little bit after long days on his feet. When he was away, Tyler and I went to Palm Desert and spent time with Karen, Jack, Matt, Hannah, Josh and Grandma and Poppy. Tyler had a ball with his cousins but was very happy when Daddy came home safe and sounds. Then a couple weeks later, Steve had to go to Cincinnati for a couple days for business. I definitely realized I would not be thrilled if Steve had a job where he had to travel a lot.

I turned 33 this month and had a very nice birthday. My parents were in South America so that was a bit strange not having them around. My grandmother had a tea party for Tyler and I to celebrate and both of my aunts were there which was a nice surprise. After eating a lot and having a gorgeous cake, we came home to roses, wine, an awesome cake and sushi from Steve. So, it was a day of some serious eating.

  Enough about me, I know most who read this want to know about Tyler. He is doing awesome. He is becoming even more independent and vocal about everything. He is a very sweet boy who will share with his friends and loves to play. He likes TV and his favorite shows are Calliou and Dora the Explorer. We limit the TV but he does get a couple shows a day. That would be the time I shower and get ready for the day. Ty is great at puzzles, loves to throw things, is obsessed with choo-choo trains and his new favorite game is bowling down the hallway with Steve. He likes to set up the cups and have the ball ready so as soon as Steve walks in, it is playtime. Poor Steve can barely put his bag down these days.

Starting in September, Ty will be in Preschool. He will be going to The Early Years in Santa Monica mornings Monday through Friday. I think he and I are both getting ready for him to start school but it is definitely making me appreciate all the time we spend together now. I know as soon as he is in school, our days of play dates and hanging out are limited. L

We are taking a trip to Virginia in March to see Nana and Pa and Tyler is so excited to go on an airplane. We are really looking forward to seeing them and taking Tyler to D.C. to some museums.

  I hope everyone reading this is happy and healthy and will come visit us soon!

  Xoxo

2 years - Wednesday, Dec. 15, 2004- Mom

Tyler is officially two! Hard to believe. Part of me is shocked that my baby is two and the other part of me can’t believe that he has only been in my life for two years.

Tyler is doing awesome. He had his yearly checkup today. He wanted to be about anywhere else in the world besides at the doctors office…and he let everyone know it! In other words, he was hysterical! We did however get his stats. He now weighs in at 33.3 pounds (93 percentile) and is measured at 37 ¾ inches (off the charts).  Apparently, at 2 you can double their height and that is what their height is as an adult. According to the doctor’s calculations, Tyler will be between 6’5 and 6’6. It is hard to believe my little boy will tower over me…well, not tower but lean.

Tyler is talking so much now, it is incredible. He is talking in 3 and 4 word sentences and the things that come out of his mouth constantly amaze me. He is now using words to manipulate me. When he does not want to go to sleep, he says “Mama, me have poop.” Of course, I walk in there and nothing but a grinning little guy wanting to get out of his nap. He loves to push all my buttons and pushes me to my limit. Most mornings I wake to Tyler yelling at me through the baby monitor. There I am in dreamland and I hear “MAMA! MAMA!” And there it is, my day begins! I am working at getting a grip on the whole setting limits thing and most of the time I am successful but I am hoping for 100 percent success one of these days!

We spent Thanksgiving with my family in Palm Desert. It was fun and crazy and chaotic. All six cousins were together. Matthew, 8; Brendan, 7; Hannah, 3; Tyler, 2; Joshua, 1 and Ryan, 3 months. The kids had a ball and the parents drank a lot to get through the chaos!  :-)

Steve also turned 35 on Thanksgiving Day so that added to the festivities. Lucky for us, he is not big into birthdays so he had a pecan pie with a birthday candle in it.

Tyler, on the other hand, was all about his birthday and the presents this year. We threw him a birthday party for about 35 kids and 50 adults at a place called Under the Sea. It is an indoor playground so the kids ran around and the adults ate and chatted. Tyler had an amazing time with his friends and sitting in the birthday chair was a highlight for him. (Pictures will follow.) We followed that party with dinner at my grandmothers on his real birthday. It was my grandmother, Irving, my mom, dad, Steve, Ty and I. It was very nice and it was great to share the day with my grandmother.

Now that the birthdays and Hanukkah are over, it is time to gear up for Christmas. Tyler loves our “Santa Tree” (our Christmas tree); is amazed at all the “yights” (lights) and he dances to “Santa songs” (Christmas music). He is really loving this Santa guy this year. This Christmas is going to be so fun for him. He really loves everything about it. If only we could get it to snow. Well, at least we can have a white Christmas in our dreams!

Happy Holiday everyone. Peace, Health, Wealth and Happiness.

21 months - Wednesday, September 15, 2004 - Dad

How sad that I haven't been able to update the website in the last three months! :-(  I guess we've just been having so much fun with Tybo that I haven't gotten around to it.  He is really an absolute joy to be around.  He gives kisses or high fives to just about anybody and makes us laugh daily.  He'll still cower behind Mom or Dad's legs if a stranger approaches too quickly, but it doesn't take long for him to warm up.  Even though he's playful and sweet and funny, Mich has the bruises to show that he doesn't know his own strength!

His vocabulary is still picking up steam and we read somewhere that he's learning up to 30 words a day at this age.  He strings more and more words together each day:  "I want swing", "I want sit", "I want see", "Mama sit", "Mama snack".  Many of Tyler's girlfriends that are his age are really talking up a storm, but he and his buddies know that they'll be plenty of time for chatting later on in life!

If Mich or I aren't entertaining him properly he'll start asking for "Coco".  "Coco", as it turns out, is his favorite show, Blues Clues.  We always keep a couple of episodes on the Tivo and will turn it on as a last resort or to give Michelle enough time to take a shower in the morning.  Michelle likes to take him with friends to the Santa Monica airport (a small local airport about a mile from our place) and he even took his first photograph the other day.  I hope he follows his mom's footsteps so that we can decorate our home with his photographs one day.

He actually went in for a dr. visit today to check out the remnants of an ear infection.  Diagnosed a couple of weeks ago, it led to some very scary high fevers (104.8!) that we had difficulty keeping under control.  Luckily, the ear infection is gone, but unlucky for Ty, he got a flu shot!  The doc also weighed Mr. Tyler... 32 pounds, one ounce.  His height was 36 inches.  (At 21 months, he's already 1/2 his mother's height!  Scary.)  

So lets see... what else has been going on.  Michelle went to Vegas with her girlfriends in late August and I went out for a guy's weekend to Seattle last weekend.  We took Tyler to Boulder to see the Grays in early August and had a great time with them.  (Congratulations to them on their new arrival - Ryan Hudson Gray, August 30, 2004!)  We also had a fun  summer with the Makkai's, who vacationed in Los Angeles.  Scott, Lee and Sydney weathered hurricane Charlie in Orlando, headed to NC for Francis and counted their blessings with Ivan.  Grandpa Bill and Grandma Barb come out from Virginia again in October, so it'll be nice for them to see Ty again.

78 weeks - Wednesday, June 16, 2004 - Dad

Our "little" boy had his 18 month checkup today.  He weighed in at 30 lbs, 2 oz (93rd percentile) and is 35 1/4 inches tall (off the chart).  His head circumference is 48 1/2 centimeters, which is in the 75% percentile.  All else checked out very well.  The doc was happy with his growth, cognitive skills and motor skills.  Of course the little motor mouth clammed up, but the doctor said that most kids are screaming their lungs out at the 18 month appointment.  If the online height predictors are to be believed, Ty will be 6' 5".  Only time will tell, I guess!

He is a really, really great kid.  His spoken vocabulary has expanded a bit and now includes probably 20+ words (although some words keep us guessing) and I'd swear that he now understands absolutely everything we say.  We think that like his walking, his real talking will just happen one day and Michelle and I will wonder what happened to the silence!  He likes to mug for the camera and then immediately needs to see the digital picture that was just taken.  He has a really sweet disposition and makes us laugh all the time.  For all you parents to be out there, 18 months is really a great age!

In true little boy fashion, he had both a black eye and a skinned knee a couple of weeks ago.  (Here is a picture of the remnants of his black eye taken with my new camera phone.)  Not sure how the black eye happened and the skinned knee was one of the many trips he's taken over his size 8 toddler shoes.

On the family side, we're preparing to celebrate Grandma J's 60th birthday on Saturday the 26th and will get to see Tracy, Larry and Brendan who are coming in from Colorado.  Karen, Jack, Matthew, Hannah and Joshua (whew!) will be staying in Los Angeles for the summer to escape the heat of the desert, so we'll get to see lots of them.  We will also host Grandpa Bill and Grandma Barb from Virginia later in July.   

73 weeks - Wednesday, May 5th, 2004 - Mom

Could it get any hotter? It is over 100 degrees and only the first week of May! We are keeping cool and busy these days. We have a lovely inflatable pool in the backyard that Tyler loves to play in and we have gone swimming a lot at friend’s houses.  We have really converted our backyard to a kid’s zone. We have two swings and a slide and we spend a ton of time out in the backyard.  (I think we're only one pink plastic flamingo away from being labeled as the neighborhood trailer park.)  Tyler has also been playing with the kids on our street these days. There are two 2 years olds, a five year old, six year old and eight year old that all gather outside every afternoon. It does not seem like we live in LA when all the kids are playing in the front yards. Tyler and I spend so much time outside, the two of us are going to be so tan and blonde by the end of the summer, it will be scary! So, besides melting away, we are doing great.

Tyler is such a joy to be around. He is adorable, sweet, funny…and really smart. I know I am being one of those annoying bragging moms, but he really is smart. He understands everything and is beginning to say a lot more. His two newest words are "bubbles" and "crackers". He knows every animal sounds and every time he sees a bird, he gets all excited and says “Caw Caw.” (Thank you Grandpa Bill for that one :-).)  Steve and I communicate perfectly with Ty as he vigorously nods up and down for yes and side to side for no.  He is no longer a baby but my buddy. We have so much fun hanging out together.

As perfect as he is, he is starting to throw tantrums and not wanting to share his toys. It takes everything I have to not laugh when he throws himself on the floor crying. I know it is mean but he looks so silly and there is no calming him so I just let him cry for a few minutes and then try to distract him. Luckily he has only thrown a couple tantrums but it just shows Steve and I what we have to look forward to in the coming year(s).

He has had a big growth spurt in the last couple weeks. I know this because Tyler can now reach things he was not able to a few weeks ago. He grabs my makeup, hairbrush, can touch the stove, and can get his own water from the refrigerator door.

Steve is doing great at work. As I say, “he is working hard so I don’t have to.” He comes home from work and it is all about playtime with Tyler. He does not even put his briefcase down and Tyler is jumping into his arms. On the weekends, he only wants daddy also and I am ok with that. It actually gives me the downtime that I need.

So, no complaints from the crew here in LA. I hope everyone is doing well and enjoying themselves as much as the three of us are.

xoxo

67 weeks - Wednesday, March 24, 2004 - Dad

Whew... it's been a while since I wrote an entry.  Everything is peachy here in Steveandmichelle Land.  Tyler is doing great and is a wonderful kid.  He is active, inquisitive, caring and tons of fun to be around.  He is extremely mobile and gets wherever he wants very quickly.  He's a bit fearless, which makes us a bit worried when he approaches stairs or a swimming pool.  He's never too far out of sight while in the house and if is quiet for too long, a call of "Where's Tyler?" will generally get him running.

His vocabulary is developing quickly.  He's got some basic words down and will surprise us every once in a while with a new one ("duck" the other day).  He still is big into pointing for things rather than saying them, and when we confirm his request ("You want water?") we'll occasionally get a head nod or a head shake.  He doesn't repeat a lot of words except for "Dada" and "Mama".  The LOVES to have books read to him and he's memorized the actions for his favorite interactive books.  (For those who know it, Pat the Bunny is a favorite and he's usually a page ahead of us when it comes to acting out the book.)

One of the things that I've been most amazed about is his ability to understand everything around him.  If we tell Tyler to "go get his red balloon from the other room", off he runs to get his balloon.  It has been a real education for me that just because he isn't talking, it doesn't mean he's not listening and comprehending.

Some other fun facts for our 15 month old:

• He loves to eat with a spoon or a fork.  Sometimes he needs help keeping the food on, but he can be downright stubborn about it.

• He's not so fond of bath time anymore.  I see a battleground developing!

• He'll tell you that a sheep says "Baaaa" and cow says "Mmmmm" (close enough!).

• When he's hungry, he'll point to the refrigerator and grunt.

• He's had a touch of a cold (or really bad teething) in the last couple of days, but generally he sleeps from 8:30pm or 9pm to 7am-ish.

• His last pediatrician stats from March 10th are : height - 33 1/4 inches (97th percentile); weight - 27 pounds, 10 ounces (90th percentile); head circ.- 48 inches (75th percentile). 

Well, that about wraps it up for now.  We promise we'll update the journal more frequently!  

59 weeks - Friday, January 30, 2004 - Mom

What a long, strange month it has been! Right after Tyler’s first birthday celebration, I came down with a nasty case of strep throat, closely followed by the flu and bronchitis. I was on the mend when Tyler got the stomach flu….not once but twice in three weeks! On top of all that, 3 of Tyler's molars came in during this time.  So, needless to say, we ended 2003 and started off 2004 with a bang!

In mid January, Tyler decided that crawling did not get him places fast enough so our little man got up on his feet and started to walk. And let me tell you, he has not stopped since. He is a crazy man. He climbs on the tables, into the bathtubs and loves to smack the cats and dog on their heads. For some reason, they let him abuse them.

He is getting very demanding. Tyler points at what he wants and if he does not get it, he gets upset. He is also very stubborn. Gee, I wonder where he gets that from! Today at the park, he wanted to go down the stairs but did not want me to help him and he kept pushing me away. So, we have a one year old with a combination of demanding, stubborn and independent. Takes just after his daddy…lucky kid!

He desperately wants to talk but besides Da Da, Ma Ma, fish, meow, that, go and cat, he is mostly speechless! I am okay with that as Steve and I are not anxious for him to start saying No to us.  :-)

He is an awesome kid and I love spending time with him…I mean chasing after him!

Your turn Steve!!!!

52 weeks, 5 days - Wednesday, December 17 - Mom and Dad

Happy 1st Birthday Tyler!!!!!  (December 13th)

What a fantastic weekend we just had to celebrate Tyler's first birthday. Karen, Jack, Matthew, Hannah and Joshua came in town from La Quinta to celebrate the big day. We had a casual dinner on Fri. night with them.

Saturday night my parents threw a great family birthday dinner. Complete with balloons, party favors, meatloaf, mashed potatoes and gravy and green beans. And, of course, family, family, family. Grandma J, Poppy, Gigi, Irving, Ocean Gigi, Aunt Karen, Uncle Jack, Cousins Matthew, Hannah and Joshua, Great Aunt Linda. Great Aunt Ellen and Jon were all there. It was a very fun celebration.

Then on Sunday, we had Tyler's “BBQ, Broncos and Beer party”. The day started out nice and we all set up to host our guests outside.  However, at about 11:00am it started to rain.  Needless to say, that put a little krink in the party, but we weathered it well. (Those of you who remember our wedding will not be surprised at this fact!) The rain was a bummer since we had to put everything under a tarp outside and Smoking John the BBQ guy had to BBQ in the rain. 

All Tyler's friends came and we had a houseful of about 30 kids and 70 adults. It was cozy and a lot of fun. Matthew  (Ty's 7 year old cousin) did a very cute puppet show for the kids and lots of bubbles followed. Then, Ty got his cake, appropriately enough, in the shape of a football.  Surprisingly though, he did not dive in as expected and needed some coaxing to get his hands dirty. Thankfully, Hannah (his 2 year old cousin) grabbed a spoon and showed him what to do. So, the party was a success and the football game went into OT with a fantastic win for the Broncos. Yeah Broncos!

In addition to the birthday celebrations, we had a very nice Thanksgiving trip to Virginia to see Steve’s parents and brother, sister-in-law and cousin Sydney.  The airline travel was mostly okay… 4 hours going out and 5 coming back.  He did pretty well and mom and dad managed to survive as well.  Ty got to see his first horses up close, experienced snow flurries and got to see the Jefferson and Lincoln Memorials in Washington D.C.  He also got to ride on Grandpa’s new riding lawn mower.  

A couple cool things to report since we have not added a journal entry in awhile: Tyler can say “fish”, “cat”, “duck”, “tree” and “hot”.  He is cruising on everything and will use a small chair as a walker across the floor.  He has 8 teeth with two more on the top popping through. His smile will melt your heart and his laugh is infectious. (Can you tell he is loved a little bit.) :-)

Lastly, here are the stats from his one year checkup from December 16th:

Weight - 25 pounds, 15 ounces (90th percentile); Height - 32 1/4 inches ("off the chart"); Head Circumference- 47 1/2 cm (75th percentile)  

His appointment went well.  His iron levels are in the normal range, he got a TB test and yet another shot.  (Too bad the same couldn't be said for Michelle, who has a nasty case of strep throat!) :-(

We’ll have pictures from both Thanksgiving in Virginia and his birthday party posted soon – stay tuned!