He Is Going To Be A Beast

"He is not going to be a 6 pound baby", said the ultrasound tech this morning. I just got back from my 29 week appointment and was informed that Carson is weighting about 3 weeks ahead of schedule...also known as 3 lbs. 14 oz. I asked my doctor if there was anything I could do differently in my diet to keep him from being so portly and was informed it was all genetics. Since Tommy weighed about 10 lbs. at birth, genetics are not looking like they are on my side. When you think of having two, naturally you always assume the oldest is going to be the one to try to push the other around...hmmmm.

King Of Stall

Sometimes I get so caught up in the nuances of everyday tasks with Tyler that only when I go to bed at night, or have to time think about something he has said or done does it strike me that he is absolutely hilarious. The latest trick of Tyler's is stalling when it is time to nap or go to bed at night. The hysterical part to Tommy and I, is not that he is trying to stall, but that the stalling tactics become more advanced every day.

For the last week or so, when Tyler is suppost to be in bed, he will run in our room while we are resting or watching tv and point to each of us and tell us our names and then run out of the room just as fast before we can even get on to him. Literally- he will run in and yell, "Momma, Daddy, and Ty!" while pointing and then take off. Cute, but after about the 10th time at 10:00pm it gets old.

Last night, he decided to mix things up. After putting him in bed, he strolls into our room and in the most pitiful voice begs for water. How can you argue that he is not thirsty? Clever. Tyler gets water and then proceeds to his room. The priceless part was him gulping down the water and looking at us almost to convince us of his thirst. My child did inherit some of my flare for theatrics.

Tonight was the topper. Anticipating the water stunt, I brought him a glass before he went to bed. He almost looked disappointed. So, as Tommy and I are sitting in bed awaiting his next move-sure enough, we hear little feet padding down the hall. Tyler shuffles up to the bed with blue bear and blue blanket in tow and declares, "I pooped". Tommy and I about lose it with laughter. Tommy says, "Tyler, did you really poop?"(like any parent would make their child return to bed with a messy diaper). Tyler looks back and forth at us trying to decide if he should carry on with his fib. He decides to. "Un hu." We pick him up to obviously discover he has no poop in his diaper and therefore return to bed.

It is a little sad to admit, but we find this very entertaining and almost look forward to seeing the strategy he will employ each night. I am sure that this will become less amusing once Carson arrives and we are juggling two getting to bed.

Brotherly Love In Uteruo

I can almost hear my mothers gasp as I type this..."Jennifer! No belly shots on the blog!" Modesty aside, I could not help but share Tyler's curiosity over my expanding waistline with the world. Tonight he crawled in my lap, lifted my shirt and lap repeated Carson's name while poking at my belly like it was some foreign object. This will probably be the only belly shot ever shown on my blog (unless I manage to avoid stretch marks again and get my six pack back after delivery :) ), so enjoy.

New Year, Nothing That New To Report

Nothing that is, if you call a whole lot of playing with blocks, trains, and cars nothing. Main reason for all these indoor activities...weather. It is COLD. And this is coming from someone who will bundle Tyler up in almost any weather to go hit ball in the yard. So I guess my reason for the long delay in blogging is that we have all just been trying to keep busy as indoor cats this week and really have no new earth shattering news (not that I frequently do). We do have a FEW things to report...

First, Tyler has managed to put our home phone in a glass of water AGAIN, making this the 4th set of phones we have gone through from being waterlogged. So until we brave WalMart, we are cell phone accessible only. Also, Tyler is going through a phase of really bothering our cat and chasing him around the house non stop, always ending in a death grip bear hug which I know one day will result in a bad scratch across Tyler's nose. My aunt Linda gave Tyler this stuffed cat that looks just like our real one. It purrs, kneads and meows when you pet it's back or feed it from a bottle of milk it came with. I was hoping this new toy would divert Tyler from the real thing- no, so far. Anyway, Tyler and I were all settled down for a long winters nap the other day when I was awakened by this loud meowing. I got up looking for our cat in the house, I was sure it was injured. Only when I went in Tyler's room to find him also awake and groggy did I spot the toy cat underneath him. Apparently, he smuggled it to bed with him while I wasn't looking and had accidentally turned it on. So to avoid being awoken and confused by strange cat noises, nap time is reserved for blue bear only.

The only other somewhat newsworthy information ( I am fully aware that the previous stories might not be considered newsworthy by the majority of readers, but again- it has been cold and we have been trapped inside for days- so work with me), is that we have attempted the potty training process. And it is a process. Tyler is showing definite signs that he is ready, so we thought this would be a good time to start introducing the potty again. This also happens to be the week where Tyler has started saying, "no". It kind of has a french sounding accent when he says it, but it is still no. We bought stickers. We sing, we dance, we all pile up in the bathroom cheering him on. It kind of looks like Barnum and Baileys Circus when attempting to get him to go. We are not having a lot of luck- he has accidentally trickled #1 once by accident (it is quite obvious he was trying to hold it). We have promised him a live fish if he produces #2 in the potty. My prediction is that we will be fishbowl free for some time.

Christmas Roadtrip 2007

Christmas was really special this year. For one thing, this was the first year where Tyler really started to understand and get a little of the traditions associated with the holiday. In fact, it was a year for a lot of "firsts". It was his first year to unwrap presents by himself. His first year to somewhat enjoy (or at least not cry) seeing Santa. And it was his first year to overall leave the tree and decorations alone.

We started off the celebrations with a trip to my sisters house on Saturday for dinner and unwrapping gifts with her family, my mom, and grandmother. It was so fun to watch all the kids unwrap- they are at the age where everything is such a big deal and are so proud of their new toys.

Sunday was spent getting presents put away, getting the house organized for the baby (I think Tommy and I are both going through a nesting phase), and packing to get ready for our trip to Nashville on Monday.

The next morning we hit the road and headed for Tommy's parents house- Tyler slept on the way over, so he was raring to go when we pulled in the driveway. The weekend was spent playing ball, visiting the playground, and eating (I am afraid to get on the scale at my doctor's appointment tomorrow). Monday night we opened presents. One of Tyler's favorites was the jumbo Mr. Potato head set with over 50 pieces! Pirate potato, clown potato, lady potato...and the possibilities go on and on.

Another big first for Tyler was him actually becoming more aware of his surroundings. On Christmas Eve, Tommy's dad let Tyler help him collect sticks (one of his favorite activities, only to be rivaled by throwing rocks in water) in their back yard. The stick pile became a bon fire later that night which Tyler LOVED. Tommy's parents live out in the country and have a lot of land that backs into woods. This was the first year where Tyler realized he had an endless backyard for a playground. Before we left, Tyler spent most of the day collecting rocks, sticks, rolling over logs, and just being a boy in the great outdoors. We had a great visit, and I know Tyler is looking forward to building a fort at his grandparents in the summer.

On our way home Wednesday, we met up with some of our close friends to visit and see their beautiful baby girl born just a month ago. It was so great to see the entire Reid family!!! Our road trip ended in Oak Ridge last night at my grandmothers to see more family. Many of my aunts and uncles were in, and Tyler got to visit (although road weary, he hung in there long enough to play a little and visit). It was so good to get to see almost all of our family in the span of a few days. Needless to say, we all slept well last night when we finally got home! Hope everyone had as wonderful as a Christmas as we did.

The Partridge Family Just Called...They Want Their Accordion Back

G-Ma giving Tyler some private lessons before taking their show on the road...and yes, accordion playing is still cool and making a comeback.

All I Want For Christmas Is A WasteBasket, Empty Cup, And Golf Ball....And Pants

My sister asked me today if Tyler was in to "creative play". I initially said not really, but after tonight might need to change my answer. I guess when you get tired of playing trains, blocks, and reading- a boy is forced to improvise.