Christmas Trains

The day after Thanksgiving, we took the boys to see the trains at the Duke Energy building in downtown Cincinnati.  Adam was in heaven!  Duke puts up the display every Christmas season, and it's a great family trip to share with the boys.  This year, Sue Sue and Pawpaw were also able to join us for lunch and trains.  We all had a great time!

Tyler's Viral Rash

Tyler had his first cold of the season this month, and the poor guy is such a trooper.  Since all doctors now seem to agree not to give cold medicine to children under 2, we didn't give Tyler anything but ibuprofen for a mild fever.  And he did remarkably well, especially with the humidifier in his room during sleep time (and that's another story trying to clean those things out this year!).  

But, with Tyler's cold, he developed a rash each night.  It was the strangest thing I'd ever seen, and at first I was worried he had scarlet fever.  I had a piano student with strep and scarlet fever, so I was worried Tyler may have caught them both.  When I couldn't get a hold of my dad one night (a family doctor), I called Tyler's pediatrician after hours.  She confirmed that rashes can develop from any viral infection, and that's what it sounded like to her.  The next night, my dad told me the same thing, so I felt much more comfortable then.  

I had to take a picture to document the occasion, and this one was only one of the areas he would get a rash.  He also had them on his thigh, his upper arm, and his eyebrow - all at different times and days.

Halloween was last month...

Oh yes, yet another holiday that I never got around to posting about. So here are a couple of photos of the boys this year all dressed up!

Happy 1st Birthday, Tyler!!!

And Tyler's birthday was also back in October, but alas, where does the time go?  I can't believe our baby is ONE!!!  That's just crazy!

Tyler is certainly turning into a precious little boy.  He has such a personality and is so similar, yet so different, than his big brother.  

1.  Tyler scoots.  Yes, he scoots on his little bottom and basically refuses to crawl.  I promise to get some video of it because it's just adorable!  He gets around where he wants to go just fine - who needs crawling?  We are going to have to nickname him "Scooter."  He's pulling up to his knees, so I don't think he's ready to walk any time soon.  He's just taking after Uncle Chris who never crawled and went straight to walking.

2.  Tyler's a great eater!  Particularly loving goldfish, canned fruit, green beans, and BANANAS!  Oh goodness, I didn't know a child would love bananas more than Adam did at this age.  He loves them so much that he calls ALL food "nana."  When he's hungry, you'll hear him calling for "nana."  (Sorry, Nana, we'll have to work on what that name really means!)

3.  Tyler laughs all the time.  Especially when he knows he's being adorable.  And when big brother is entertaining him!

4.  Tyler's arms are twice as long as you think they are!  He can grab something that I would think is too far away, and he's always reaching for everything.  Especially things he shouldn't be getting into.  We have to be really quick and constantly keep an eye on him.  Magnetic child locks in the kitchen are working quite well!

5.  Tyler is F-E-A-R-L-E-S-S!!!  He's not afraid of anything, unlike his cautious big brother.  I found Tyler sitting on the second step from the top of our basement stairs reaching for the next lower step!  Not sure how he did that without tumbling down the entire flight of stairs.  Looks like we'll be installing some safety gates which we never had to do with Adam!

6.  Tyler LOVES to dance!  I've definitely got to get video of this.  He dances every time he hears music.  I believe he's going to be our little musician when the time comes!  Adam does not dance very much now, and he never did as a baby.

7.  Tyler favors his left hand, so we'll see if he turns out to be a lefty like his Daddy.  

Tyler's birthday party was so much fun - cupcakes!!  We had some great visitors in town, as well.  The kids were certainly spoiled!

Uncle Dan and Aunt Torrie

Nana and Granddaddy

Click Here for more pictures from Tyler's birthday!

Happy 3rd Birthday, Adam!!

OK, so Adam's real birthday was way back in October, but I am just now getting the opportunity to upload some pictures and post about his fantastic 3rd birthday! How sad is that?

Here are a few tidbits of information about Adam these days.........he's really turning into such a wonderful big boy!

1. Adam still loves his thumb and blanket. Not sure which one he'll give up first, and right now, they both make life easier for him these days. If he's upset, his blanket makes it all better, after Mommy does, of course. He loves to "make a hole" with his blanket by wrapping it around his left first finger and holding it under his nose while he sucks his left thumb. Sniffing his blanket is like a 3 year old's drug of choice. One sniff......just one more!

2. Every word Adam says is completely legible. He's so precise that about 95% of people can completely understand him. He's so thorough in his talking and always has been. He's really getting into cause and effect lately. Although, not to the effect that discipline is easy with him. Oh, boy, that's another story!

3. Potty-training - where did it go?? It's pretty non-existent now. I'm just waiting for Adam to decide that he's done with diapers and pull-ups. One day, he's just going to decide on the spot and will want to wear real underwear........please just let it be soon! Apparently, that's how his mommy switched from diapers to underwear - on the day SHE was ready. :)

4. Adam loves "Baby Tire!" He's really good when he plays with him and entertains him. Of course, not when Mommy actually asks him to or when she needs him to. But, we're working on that. For the most part, Adam loves playing with Tyler, and REALLY loves to make him laugh. They are just adorable together! I am envisioning a strong brotherly bond growing through the years......

5. We may have finally found something that works for disciplining Adam - taking away toys one by one. Timeouts are not working, spanking doesn't really phase him, discipline has been really frustrating!! But as soon as we tell him that we're about to take toys away when he doesn't listen to us, or if we take one of his favorites away, he calms down pretty quickly. And then he earns his toys back when he's good. Let's hope it keeps working!!

6. Adam LOVES Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Little Einsteins. He's even getting into singing along which he's never done! Adam has never been a big singer or dancer, so it's always funny to see him interact with the shows now. We are going to see his sing with his class next week at school - can't wait to share pics and stories from that adventure!

Click Here for more pictures from Adam's birthday celebration!