All I want for Christmas is Elmo Live Encore

After Tyler's finalization we headed out to the mall for a little visit with Santa. I was worried that Tyler would be scared of him and cry, but he didn't! We were the first ones there to greet Santa and there was no line behind us so we got to take a lot of pics. The hardest part was that they would only let you choose one for your photos for the photo cd :-( I had a tough time picking between this one and the one of him actually looking at the camera. In the end I decided it was pretty cute that he was looking up at Santa and so we picked this one. I think it will be somehow integrated into our Christmas cards this year. The tree goes up tomorrow - I can hardly wait!

Finalization - yay!

This morning we finalized Tyler's adoption! We waited a long 9 1/2 months for this day and I have to say, it was pretty anticlimactic. We arrived early, as our attorney had directed us to - you have to pass through metal detectors and the lines can be long. In our case, we didn't have to wait long. We were in the waiting area for Surrogate's Court at about 8:40 for our 9:00 appointment. We waited until nearly 9 when our attorney showed up. One of the Sheriff's who was working brought us back to the judge's chambers where we sat and talked about sports while the judge signed/initialed a multitude of paperwork. He explained the details of getting Tyler's amended birth certificate and social security number. We posed for a few pics and that was it. We were in our car and headed out by 9:15! What a great birthday present for Chris!

9 month check-up

Tyler had his 9 month check-up this morning. He weighs 22 pounds (75th percentile) and he's 29.5 inches (90th percentile). That's right where he was at 6 months. The doctor says he's doing great in every way. He's healthy and clearly happy - he spent the whole exam clapping and blowing raspberries at her. He got his last dose of Hep B and the 2nd part of the seasonal flu vaccine. They didn't have any H1N1, but she said that he should get it. There has already been one round of H1N1 flu in the area and they are anticipating a second round in January when the seasonal flu typically hits. She suggested we either take him to a clinic - yippee there were like a million people standing in line for hours at the one that was yesterday - or we keep checking the pediatrician's website as they will post when they have the vaccine in the office. She also recommends the vaccine for Chris and I, but we aren't in the category that's allowed to get it at this point. I think that's about it... we go back at 1 year!

Good Deals!

I've been surfing around online today checking out all of the great deals that are around. I don't know if any of you check out the same sites or not, but I thought I'd share what I've found -especially with Christmas coming! I really started at www.babycheapskate.com and went from there. I LOVE that site!

Several of the websites I visited point to www.coupons.com for some Hasbro toy coupons which can sometimes be added with other coupons at certain stores - like Target that has their own coupons that just came out this week. I'm going to check out some of these today - might make some nice Christmas presents :-)

http://earlymotherhood.blogspot.com/, which I linked to from babycheapskate, shares several great ideas:

* How to get 7 preschool games for basically less than $4 at Toys R Us (this deal subtracts off the $10 gift card that you earn so you really pay $14 plus mail in rebates but you get that $10 gift card for later). The webpage with the rebates includes many other great games that cost a little more - you can still get a great deal though http://www.hasbro.com/familygamenight/en_US/discover/upload/RevisedHasbroGameNightRebateForm.pdf

I also found freebies on this blog (thank you earlymotherhood!):

*I followed this link for free Mozart for Infants and Toddlers downloads http://www.munchkin.com/information_station/downloads.html.

*I followed this link to the leapfrong website to sign up for a free board book: http://earlymotherhood.blogspot.com/2009/10/free-leapfrog-abc-animal-orchestra.html

*This link will let you sign up for a free Geotrax train dvd at https://store.mattel.com/transition.aspx?TransitionID=155.

Happy shopping!

Halloween 2009

Tyler's first Halloween was a great success. We took him to Target for his 8 month pictures a couple of weeks early. The pictures came out great, but he refused to smile at all! Here are a couple of pictures of him in his costume.

We also had regular 8 month pictures taken. These also came out very cute, even without a smile. They asked us to sign a release so they can use his pictures to show to others :-) I mean, we know we have a SUPER cute kid, but it's nice to hear it from unbiased parties!

On the Sunday before Halloween we carved our pumpkins. Tyler really liked that part! After Daddy took the top off and scooped out most of the seeds, he let Tyler stick his hands in. Tyler LOVED it! He couldn't get enough of it! He had both hands all the way inside the pumpkin up to his armpits. He even pulled a little bit of pumkin guts out and had a taste - yummy!

On Halloween night we took Tyler out kind of early, around 6:30pm. We visited a few select neighbors that we new would appreciate seeing him in costume. It was a long walk for Daddy carrying his heavy little man. It's unbelievable how big he's gotten and how fast! Tyler loved Halloween! He enjoyed the entire trip out - he even liked his costume! I wonder what he'll be next year????

7 months

People always say how fast kids grow, but it's so amazing to see it happening right before your very own eyes! Tyler turned 7 months old a week ago today. I can't believe that we are closer to age 1 than we are to the day he was born. It's so unreal! I swear he gets cuter every day - not that I'm biased or anything :-) His latest development is trying to crawl - I say trying as he likes to lay on his tummy, lift his arms and legs off of the ground, and then move all 4 limbs like crazy. He looks like he's pretending to swim! Now if he can just get the opposite down (belly up - legs and arms on the ground), we're going to be in big trouble!

6 months old

Tyler had his six month check up this morning. It went very well. He didn't really care for the exam portion this time, which was new. I think he was playing a little strange with the doc. Of course the shots went over like a lead balloon, but other than that, he did very well. We found out that he now weighs 19 pounds 3 ounces (surprisingly low for anyone who's carried him around at all) and he's 28 inches long. His percentiles have totally flipped now... He's in the 75th percentile for weight and the 90th percentile for height. Not a bad place to be! Maybe there's hope for a basketball player yet... I was beginning to think football was a better fit :-)

We got the green light to go ahead and try many new things. He can now have a little water in a sippy cup (she says still no juice - think of it like soda - only once in a great while as a treat). He is also moving to 2nds for food, but can start with 3rd stage in the next month or two. She said that 2nds are really the same as 1sts just bigger containers and sometimes combining more than one ingredient. 3rds will have pieces of actual food in them - more like mashed up peas instead of pureed peas. At about the same time as 3rds he can have cheerios (she doesn't recommend puffs or teething biscuits or anything like that b/c of sugar content). She did say that some developmental specialists recommend Kix b/c of the difference in shape - it has something to do with development of the mouth... who knows. What he's eating now is great - we can add the same meal at lunch as well at any point now. Hmmmm... what else... also when we starts 3rds we can start some real food too - no honey is the big thing - aside from that he can eat pretty much what we eat - minus choking hazards.

As for shots, we were happy to learn that he only needed 3 - no polio this time, but then she added in the flu shot so the poor little man got 4 anyway. When we go back at 9 months he gets part 2 of the flu shot and probably a swine flu shot too. So much for thinking 9 mos would be shot free :-(

I think that's about it. He's doing great!

Could I be any more in love?

This little boy just continues to amaze me every single day. He is sleeping so much better at night, but he does get up once, usually around 6am for a quick bottle. He sucks down 4 ounces in about ten minutes and then just cuddles with his mama. I LOVE this time with him. At these moments I can't help but think of Nicole. I hope she knows how much we love her and how happy we are that she chose us. Tyler is such an amazing gift! After four and a half months I still can't believe that he is really here - it's all just totally unbelievable.

Happy Memorial Day!

We've had a very relaxing Memorial Day weekend. We met Chris' parents at the outlets on Sunday. It was a beautiful day outside. Tyler slept most of the time - he's started taking pretty long naps in the middle of the day. Today, Memorial Day, we took Tyler to the mall to shop for a christening outfit (that will be next weekend). I'm sure we will end the day with a cookout! The weather has been unbelievably beautiful for the past week. I hope it will continue - although we could probably use a little rain.

3 months old

Tyler turned 3 months old on Sunday and 13 weeks old on Tuesday. He is getting to be such a big boy. When we hold him he tries so hard to pull himself to a sitting position. He has also found his hands. He's been chewing on his fists for a week or two now. He sticks his whole fist in his mouth, sometimes gagging himself on his fingers. You would think he'd stop doing it, but he doesn't - those fists are just too tasty!

Here's my adorable sister-in-law and my brother at their baby shower. Emmalyn is due within the next month!

Go 'cuse!

I love this picture of him from his 13 week birthday. He loves to hold onto his carseat like this.

12 weeks old tomorrow!

Tyler continues to grow so fast! It's just amazing! He has basically doubled his birth weight in less than 3 months. We celebrated an absolutely amazing first Mother's Day together yesterday. We had an eventful weekend when Tyler met Aunt Clare for the very first time and had Grandma T. here for the night on Friday. The very next day his Grandma and Grandpa W. came for the day and night. One of my closest friends helped us celebrate our first Mother's Day with the most beautiful baby shower on Saturday. It was a truly special weekend. The highlight would have to be a beautiful text message from Nicole, Tyler's birthmom, saying Happy Mother's Day. She is the most amazing girl I know! We love you Nicole!

10 weeks old!

Tyler turned 10 weeks old yesterday! It's so hard to believe! He is smiling like crazy these days and doing a great job holding his head up. He is cooing and making new noises every single day. I can't wait to see how much he changes this month. I have a good friend whose son I saw at about 1 1/2 mos old and then not again until he was 3 mos old and I couldn't believe the difference!

Here he is watching the Yankees on his 10 week birthday!

This is a few days earlier enjoying some of the nice weather while daddy BBQs.

Tyler is 2 months old

Tyler turned two months old yesterday! It's very exciting, except for the part where Monday he has to go to the pediatrician for four shots :-( Poor little man! Here are a few pictures from the day.


We tried to go out for ice cream with friends to enjoy the beautiful day... well, our favorite spot was closed (opening Monday) so we headed to Friendly's. It was a zoo inside, so we decided to eat outside. It was a bit cold, but the ice cream was yummy!

HAPPY 8 WEEK BIRTHDAY!

Where does the time go? I cannot believe that our little boy is nearly 2 months old! He's getting so big so fast! I got so many smiles from him today - he's just too cute! All of these smiles were right after he woke up, which is rare. Usually he wakes up screaming hungry!

We've had a fun packed couple of days with Grandma, Bobbie, and Mitchel visiting. Yesterday we spent our afternoon at Bounce It Out. Mitchel had a great time and expended a lot of energy! Afterwards we went to see Monsters vs. Aliens in 3D at the IMAX - pretty cool stuff! Tyler stayed home with Daddy during the movie, but he did seem to like Bounce It Out with all of the bright colors and loud noise.

Happy Easter!

Happy 1st Easter to Tyler! He woke up a bit cranky, but before the morning was out we did get him to cooperate for some really cute Easter pictures. Daddy wasn't too fond of all of the pink, but many of these bunnies were gifts the Easter bunny left for me when I was a kid.

First Smiles

Tyler is starting to smile on purpose! It happened for the first time on Saturday - 3 times in fact. He did it again on Sunday and even more today. I actually caught a few of them on camera. It's tough to catch though, especially since the camera is so distracting to him :-)

Another trip to the doctor...

Tyler's 5 week check-up (that actually came at 6 weeks because we were in Florida) was today. His grandma calls him her chunky monkey and it's for good reason... Tyler is 22.5 inches long and weighs 11 pounds 12 ounces! We were guessing 10.5 - 11 - wow! What a big guy! The doc says that everything is great. He's doing well - no reasons for concern. He did get his 2nd hepatitis shot today. He DID NOT like that! His face turned bright red and he screamed :-( I guess he will really not like it on the 20th when he goes back for 4 more shots. Poor little guy. At least he got over it quickly today.

6 weeks old

Tyler has had a very eventful 6th week! He turned 6 weeks old while on our trip to Florida. His Uncle Jeff got married last Friday right on the beach! Here's a quick overview of our week:

Wednesday - This was Tyler's very first plane ride as we flew out of Rochester and headed to Tampa. He was very good for the entire flight although he was wide awake for most of it! Our first stop was at Uncle Kevin and Aunt Corinne's house where we all met Tyler's 10 week old cousin Caitlin for the first time. Caitlin and Tyler are the first grandchildren for Chris' parents. We were so excited to get them together! As you can see from the pictures, Caitlin is much longer than Tyler, but what you can't see is that Tyler weighs more!

Thursday - We headed to Clearwater Beach to check into our beautiful ocean view hotel room. Mommy went out for a mani/pedi with Grandma, Aunt Corinne, and the wedding party while Daddy took the little man with him to pick up his tuxedo. Afterwards, Daddy went to a pre-season Yankee game while Mommy and Tyler went to lunch with Aunt Corinne, Caitlin, Grandma, and Grandpa. After a couple of hours of relaxing it was time to head to the rehearsal and the rehearsal dinner.

Friday - The BIG day arrived! We had breakfast with Chris' whole family and headed back to the hotel for a little nap. We had to be ready pretty early for the 5:00 wedding so that we could take family pictures. The wedding was beautiful and Tyler was SO well behaved through the whole thing. His good behavior continued on the throughout the entire reception too!

Saturday - We began our day with brunch with the bride and groom. Afterwards we headed to the Lowry Park Zoo in Tampa with Uncle Kevin, Aunt Corinne, and Caitlin. From there we went to Uncle Jeff and Aunt Nicole's for the rest of our trip. This gave us the use of a house, which is much easier with a baby and gave them a dog sitter. Kobe, their chocolate lab, really loved Tyler!

Sunday - This was a pretty rainy day. We spent much of it relaxing. We did go out to lunch at Smokey Bones and then over to the mall.

Monday - We spent this day at Epcot Center with Grandma and Grandpa. Tyler had a lot of firsts! It was of course his first trip to Disney. He also rode his first "roller coaster" when we went up into the ball. He went on several boat rides. He also slept through "Honey I Shrunk the Audience" - his first 3D event. Maybe if we had given him some glasses he would have stayed awake! Mommy and Daddy really enjoyed Soarin', but poor Tyler was too small to ride - not yet 48"!!!

Tuesday - Our last day, but also Tyler's 6 week birthday. Even though we had a late flight it still felt like a wasted day. We did have lunch with Grandma, Grandpa, Aunt Kate, and Uncle Jim. Tyler was kind enough to poop his pants on the plane, giving mommy my first experience in an airplane restroom :-) Tyler slept through the entire flight until this event of course. Overall I think we had a pretty good trip with a newborn baby!