Christmas in Cleveland

After a couple of great Christmas eve celebrations, we had Tyler open presents from Santa on Christmas morning with my parents, Brian, Mike and I watching on! Grams helping Ty unwrap gifts Sweet gift Mommy & Daddy Mommy and Ty enjoying one of his new books from his stocking
Ty pushing around all his new loot in his shopping cart...a gift from Uncle BrianAfter all the presents were opened, we made the trip up to Cleveland for a few days. We stopped first to see Mike's Grandma Neida and Aunt Louise for a Christmas dinner and gift exchange in Mayfield Heights. Mike & Mike's annual matching gifts from Aunt Louise! I'm jealous actually...I want to steal that red one!
Ty snuggling his new bear from his Great Aunt Louise and checking out Great Grandma Neida's tree..."wow Mommy...it's just my size!"
After quality time with Grandma Neida, we headed over to Sandusky to meet up with the Hester/Burkle family of 60+ for a hotel celebration, glow-in-the-dark bowling, and dinner. Our family is so big, that we have to rent an entire block of rooms at a hotel, plan events and dinners, and get a party room so we can spend time all together in one central location. This year we stayed at a hotel that had a bowling alley, waterpark and a famous bar in it. Great choice this year Debbie! It' s always an adventure!

Tyler checking out cousin Annabelle...it was the first time I thought he might be old enough to handle a sibling. How cute is that!?
Mom (Grams) taking her turn at glow-in-the-dark bowlingNotice the glow-in-the-dark blowing extravaganza in the background...toddler sensory heaven!
Don't worry...it's empty...but I thought it was funny anyway! Drinking and bowling :)What can I say...the boy is obsessed with balloons...see exhibits A, B & C below:) Grams and Granddad grabbing a few more minutes with Ty before we headed home

Christmas EveS

On the 23rd we headed over to the Fletcher residence for a Scherman/Fletcher/Horn Christmas dinner. Marcia made a wonderful Lasagna meal and we had wine and presents a-flowing! Tyler enjoyed his first present-opening and we all enjoyed watching him light up as each gift was revealed. We can't leave out the fact that Tyler was obsessed with his Mimi and Papa Dave's humongous Christmas tree, and was determined to climb the mountain of presents and open every one prematurely (regardless of whether it was for him or not!). It was a lovely evening with our extended family! We enjoyed sharing the holidays with Dave's kids and their significant others too. We are really looking forward to continuing the tradition (and the alcohol consumption:))Trying to scale the mountain of giftsDaddy helping Ty opening his giftsThanks Auntie Cindy for Tyler's broom...he clearly loves it! Cindy loving her Brett Favre tshirt :)
Mimi and TyPapa Dave and his buddy Mike and his mom Wow...look at that huge tree! Mommy...I'm so tired! Uncle Mike looks like a good place to curl up!
On Christmas Eve, as is the new tradition, Mike and I hosted our families for a dinner and gift exchange at our new home. It was so great to finally be able to fit everyone in the house and be able to entertain in my new kitchen! I love it!! It was a great time, as always, and it was wonderful to spend quality time with our family!

Who knew a musical card was all Tyler needed for Christmas (thanks Therese!)

Wow Daddy, that truck is pretty cool! How much longer will it take to get it out of the packaging? (side note: does anyone else think the packing on toys is just ridiculous!?) Ty's big gift from Mommy and Daddy, a ballpit (the slide was his gift for his 1st bday).Really "getting into" unwrapping his giftsA bike helmet from the Alfreds for his motorized truck (oh yeah...he has one...yikes!) Mimi, it looks pretty good on you too:)Newly engaged Elizabeth (my cousin!) and TyMom (aka Grams), Brian and me...my Dad was too busy entertaining (what else is new!) Mimi and our new sister Noelle (Dave' daughter), in from NYC with her boyfriend Jay cocktailing and chatting around our new kitchen table (thanks Mom and Dad!)Ty and Daddy chillin before heading to bed to await Santa's arrival Puttin himself to bed in the hallway trying to trick Santa into coming earlyPsyche...too much more running around to do...no time for sleeping

18 months...can you believe it?

Tyler turned 18 months on Christmas Day. I still can't believe it's been that long since he entered our lives, and obviously much longer than that since I found out we were pregnant. As cliche as it is...my time does fly when you're having fun! Tyler James is the light of our lives...truly! We are constantly telling each other how awesome he is and how he's the most hilarious person we know. Our 18 month wellness visit to good ole Dr. K went well. Ty is still in the 95% for height at 34 1/4" (growing 1 inch since his 15 month appt) and 25 lbs (50%). He's no small fry for sure! It was hilarious though because this was the first time I held his hand and walked him into the examining room, the first time he said "hi" to EVERY nurse and receptionist he could find, and the first time he stood on the "big boy" scale on his own (and loved it so much he cried when I made him get off). He passed all the developmental questions with flying colors and got through his 1 shot like a trooper. And of course took a big poop right before Dr. K came in for the exam...natch!

Ty is now saying many more words: mommy, daddy, Mimi, Granddad (Ga-da), ball (more like bop), ni-ni (night night), bu-bye, hi, hello, dog, cat, Kelly, Dana (his teachers), up, down, thank you (more like nay-noo), Buddy, book, shoes (sooz), socks (boks), blanket (na-na), no/no...I'm sure there's more. This is a drastic change, though, from just a few weeks ago...it happened overnight! He also babbles constantly. He will come up to our faces and babble with a straight face for a few minutes, like he's having a full conversation with us. He even counts to 3 in his language when we count with him. It's adorable...and funny! He is just hilarious! I can't explain it more than just saying that...we are constantly laughing. Ty can now get up and down from the couch and bed on his own, he is obsessed with books and balloons (understatement!!!), climbs and stand on EVERYTHING, walks up stairs while holding the wall or a hand, loves making tents (aka blankets over his and our heads), and knows what the following things "say" (dog, cat, fish (you have to see it to understand) sheep, horse, frog, teacher, car). He throws really well too! Ty is all boy! We're now free from the bottles (finally!). We just can't believe how he changes every single day. It's amazing that he is understanding commands, responding to prompts, and has a memory like a steel trap (knows all his immediate family members and can point to them in person or in pictures AND every character from Mickey Mouse Clubhouse). Tyler is also a singer and dancer. He sings along with me in the car constantly (in his language of course) and loves singing to his Disney TV shows. We could go on and on...but we'll just end by saying he's just awesome!

Prepping for Santa's Arrival

This year we really enjoyed picking out our Christmas tree with Tyler in tow (or Ty running around the tree lot at full speed). We found this great place that had 50% off coupons online so we got a killer deal...27.50 for a tree (woo hoo!). Now...problem is...the tree looked great hanging from the ceiling, it looked like the perfect tree. When we got it home and turned on the lights, we could see THROUGH the tree (I've gotta admit credit for picking such a crappy tree too...sigh!). It's our tall and skinny little Charlie Brown tree that never sucked up a lick of water. Oh well...at least it lasted through Christmas and looked the part. :) Who could beat the price anyway. Tyler was obsessed with the lights and ornaments. He always whispered "wow" (one of my favorites of his words!) when we turned it on or passed it on the way up to bed at night. It was oh so cute!

We also got the chance to attend the Holiday party at Tyler's daycare. It was a very cute concept. Each room practiced and sang 1 Christmas carol for their family and friends at a designated time during the party. Tyler's "waddler" room picked Little Drummer Boy. His teachers had each toddler make and decorate their own drum they were to wear around their necks and drum during the song. Although Ty's string broke, he and his friends "sang" their carol and drummed away. It was adorable...and impressive...considering the room ages range from 12-18 months.

The daycare also provided a Santa Claus for the kiddos. We were excited to get another perfect picture with Santa (like last year...it was oh so easy when he was 6 months), and not have to wait in line for hours at the mall to get it. Man were we in denial...see proof below. Thank God we didn't wait in the line at the mall...it would have been a disaster! :)

Happy Holidays!

We hope you all had a Merry Christmas and wish you a safe and happy New Year! We'll get to updating the blog again soon!

Winter Wonderland

This weekend we got our first "snow" here in Cincinnati. Although we didn't have proper footwear for Ty, we did have a snowsuit that was given to us by Mike's cousin. We bundled him up and let him experience the snow. He had an amazing time!