A trip to the circus.

On Saturday we went to the circus. Tyler has never been to the circus, but when I asked him if he wanted to go he started jumping up and down chanting yeah, yeah yeah! Then he suddenly stopped and said, "What is the circus mommy?" I wasn't exactly sure what he would see at the circus, and not wanting to make promises I couldn't keep, I told him there would be clowns and an elephant for sure and that we'd have to go to find out what else was there. When the show started Tyler was so excited, but his interest faded with each act that came out. By intermission he had lost all interest in the show and was playing with Riley. Since we had gotten our tickets for free, and both the boys were getting tired anyway, we decided not to stay for the second half. All in all it was a fun time though, and Tyler enjoyed his first trip to the circus!

Tyler hiding from the clown!

In the past Tyler has refused to feed large animals (elephants and giraffes at the zoo) so I was surprised when he actually fed the camel.

They had me hold the carrot with my teeth in order to get a 'kiss' from the camel. FYI, camels have very scratchy wiskers!

So excited for the show to start!

Tuckered out from all the fun!

Happy Birthday to me!

Today I celebrated my 28th birthday! My friend, Diana, came over in the morning and surprised me with chocolate covered strawberries! Thanks again Diana! In the evening the Shilo's came over and watched the boys while Matt took me out to dinner. I ended up boxing up half my dinner just to make sure I had room for dessert! The surprise Matt was making me turned out to be chocolate mousse cake! We use to go to a restaurant called Captain's Tavern down in Miami, and their chocolate mousse cake is amazing! We never left the restaurant without some. Even if we were stuffed after dinner we would order our cake to go! Matt got the recipe from the restaurant and made if for me! It was just as good as I remembered! Thanks honey!

Tyler 'helping' Matt make my cake!

Even Tyler, who is a chocolate snob and usually only likes chocolate milk, thought it was delicious!

Getting ready to go out.

A quick family picture before we left.

I forgot to take a close-up of the cake before it was served! For the record, there isn't any actual cake in the chocolate mousse cake! It's more like a mousse pie.

So you think you can dance?

This video cracks me up! We were at a wedding reception on Saturday and Tyler was showing off his dance moves. He does really well following along until he realizes he has an audience, then he starts acting silly. He's such a little stud!

Thing One and Thing Two

I haven’t posted updates on the boys in a while, and both have been to the doctor recently, so here you go…

Thing One

Tyler had his 3 year check up with his new doctor (thanks for the recommendation Manda!). I wasn’t sure how this appointment would go since last year he screamed and cried like the nurse was stabbing him with knives when all she was doing was measuring his head! This year was the complete opposite, he willingly got on the scale to be weighed, sat still while they measured his head and took his temperature, and had no problem laying down to be measured. He weighs 34 lbs and is 38 inches tall, which puts him in the 75th percentile for his age. The doctor was very impressed that Tyler has only been to the doctor for well child check ups, and said he looks perfectly healthy!

He has discovered he likes suckers!

Here are some fun facts about Tyler:

- He takes everything you say literally. For example, the other night we were finishing up dinner and I told Matt I was going to go jump in the shower. Tyler immediately pipes up and informs me that I can’t jump in the shower because I will bonk my head and get hurt.

- He is very much into pretend play now. One day he put one of my hats on and for the rest of the day he was mommy and I was Tyler. He even put me down for a nap, saying exactly what I say to him! It was so cute! Another time we were all a different Mickey Mouse character (Tyler was Mickey, I was Minnie, Matt was Goofy and Riley was Donald) and Tyler wouldn’t respond if you asked him something unless you called him Mickey! Most recently we were a bug family. I had to call him Tyler bug and he would call me mommy bug. Never a dull moment in our house!

- He has memorized quite a few of his books and loves to sit and read them out loud. Once he decided I needed to be read to as I was going to the bathroom!

- Not only can he memorize books, he’s pretty good at memorizing songs as well. He knows most of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, and parts of Rock Star (Pink) and Beat It (Michael Jackson). After witnessing how easily he learns songs I have vowed to only play church music while the boys are in the car. I would love it if he spontaneously sang the words to a hymn one day!

- His newest obsession is pretending to play the guitar.

- His two favorite movies lately are Cars and Wall-e.

- He has given Riley the nickname ‘Little buddy’.

He built this 'fort' to watch TV in!

Out of the mouth of Tyler:

- Pointing to my chest, “This is Riley’s milk, and this one is his water!”

- I made chicken curry for the first time and Tyler wasn’t a fan. After his first bite he hands me his cup and says, “I need more drink to get the yuck off my tongue.”

Thing Two

Riley went to the doctor last week for another weight check and he had gained almost 2 pounds in a month! He is now up to 16 lbs 13 oz, which is still small for his age but the doctor is happy that he is steadily gaining weight. We no longer have to go in each month to get his weight checked, although we will be back next month for his 9 month check up!

Here is what Riley is up to now that he’s 8 ½ months old:

- He is now eating like a pro (finally!). So far his diet includes baby cereal, green beans, carrots, bread (any kind), Cheerios, Gerber puffs, and mashed potatoes. He now thinks that any time we are eating he should be too! I usually give him bites of my dinner and once I do he is not happy with plain old bread! He really likes split pea soup and spaghetti sauce.

He loves his food now!

- He reaches to be picked up now.

- He cruises around the house like he owns the place! When he sees something he wants he can really move!

- He can pull himself up to a standing position. He can also climb onto some things, like the dishwasher door!



- He has begun the separation anxiety phase. This one is new for me since Tyler completely skipped it. If he can see me I either have to be holding him or close enough that he can touch me (and if I move out of that range he will immediately crawl over to me). Gone are the days when I can put him on the floor to play with Tyler while I make lunch. He starts sobbing like I’ve just abandoned him and crawls into the kitchen after me. Yes he’s gotten good enough at crawling that he can crawl and cry hysterically at the same time! He’ll crawl up to me, then use my legs to pull himself up, and stand there crying until I pick him up. I wonder how long this fun stage will last?

- He absolutely adores his big brother!

- No teeth yet, but his gums were bleeding a little today so I think one is coming!

Tyler was so excited that Riley was dressed like Tigger!

Happy Birthday Jamie!!!

Even though it was yesterday, HAPPY BIRTHDAY JAMIE! I wish we lived closer so we could celebrate the next 8 days together! After looking through my pictures I have decided we need to hang out again soon since these are the most recent pictures I have of us together!

Jamie and Tyler.

Back when Tyler and Casey were babies!

Jamie with an 8 week old Tyler.

Pregnant with Casey at my wedding. I love this picture!

He's got skills!

Matt has some pretty sweet skills in the kitchen! On Sunday he made this chocolate-mint cheesecake. And yes, it tasted as good as it looks!

His culinary skills are not limited to desserts though. He regularly makes breakfast on Saturday mornings (usually while Riley and I sleep in). Things he has made in the past include: blueberry muffins, pancakes (both from scratch), bacon, omelets with bell peppers, mushrooms, spinach and mozzarella cheese, French toast, and fresh squeezed orange juice. When Riley decides he’s starving at the exact moment I decide to start dinner, Matt will start it for me. 9 times out of 10 he ends up finishing it as well! He told me he was making me a surprise for my birthday, which I am eagerly anticipating!

Brotherly Love

This is how Tyler entertained Riley while I put groceries away. He is such a good big brother! As you can see Riley thinks so too!

A little too helpful.

The other day I was making bread and Tyler was sitting on the counter helping me. I had to leave the room for a minute and when I returned Tyler was holding an empty measuring cup over the bread pan. He looked up at me and proudly stated, "Look mommy I helping you!" The recipe called for 1/4 a cup of oats, and he was holding a 1/2 cup, which he had used to add some oats for me. He was so proud of himself, all I could do was smile and thank him for his help. I wasn't sure if he'd added the entire 1/2 cup so I just turned the machine on and hoped for the best! It didn't exactly turn out!

This is what happens when Tyler helps make bread unsupervised!

This loaf is the same recipe minus Tyler's help!

Not a mom?

I heard the most absurd thing on TV tonight. A female executive from the ALL detergent company was being asked about the company's target audience. The conversation went like this:

"Who would you say your target audience is?"

Executive: "Women, 25 and older."

"Are they mostly moms?"

Executive: "No, not moms. Women with children. These women are more intellectual."


Excuse me?!? I take offense to the insinuation that referring to myself as a mom makes me less intellectual. I’m a lot of things; I’m a daughter of God, a college graduate, a wife, a friend, a sister. Right now though, my most important role is a mother. When I look at my two boys I am in awe that the Lord has entrusted them to me. What a responsibility! What an honor! The world would have us believe that the role of a mother is not important, or something worth aspiring to. I take comfort in knowing that our Heavenly Father doesn’t feel that way at all. We mothers are doing the greatest work there is to be done in this world. We are raising the next generation.

I am not a 'woman with children'. I am a MOM, and I'm proud of it!

Happy Birthday Mom & Dad!!!

Yes, you read that correctly. My parents not only have the same birthday, but it also just happens to be April Fools Day as well! I told Tyler it was Granny and Grandpa's birthday today and he excitedly said to me, "And my birthday too! We can share!" I guess when you're 3 your birthday can be never ending! Anyway, Happy Birthday Mom and Dad! We love you!