Jumparoo King

Jake loves his jumparoo, it is by far his favorite toy! He goes and goes, sometimes for 45 minutes before he gets tired. His jumparoo allows him to turn in 360 degrees, and one night this week he spun himself to face the fireplace and jumped for 30 minutes while talking to the fireplace! I was laughing the whole time, he was having one serious conversation with that fireplace...maybe he was waiting for Santa! Over the past month he has really started paying more attention to the toys on the jumparoo and this week he discovered the spinning toys, especially the sun. (I'm posting video of that later.) His legs have also gotten very strong and more and more often he will "stand" in his jumparoo...he loves to do that and then pull his legs up and just hang there for a few seconds. It has been so fun watching him discover that his arms and legs are his and that he can move them to do all sorts of things. I feel like he does something new every day lately...he now rolls both ways from his back to tummy, but still has no interest in rolling from belly to back. He wants to crawl so badly, but still has no clue what he needs to do to make that happen. He rolls to his tummy and you can tell he knows there is more to do, but he gets frustrated because he can't figure it out. He has started pushing a little bit with his legs...but the past couple of nights he's actually been pushing himself backwards instead of forwards! I can just see it now...my baby will be the one to learn to crawl in reverse :-)

Here are some pictures from our playtime in the jumparoo today:

Big smiles!

almost got him sticking his tounge out

okay, this is his new face and it cracks us up! he makes it just before he smiles...we call it "the bill cosby face" because he purses his lips and shakes his head a little when he does it. i have been trying to get a picture for a while, but he does it at the most random times...this is the closest i've come...it's still not the face, full out. i have no idea where he learned it, but i love it!

here he is spinning his sun toy

and here you can see him showing off his jumping

this is another of his new favorite things, "beating up" daddy...you'll hear him laughing big time

Busy, Busy Week

Sorry that it's been so long since my last blog...it has been a long week in the Tyler house! Stephen had his last football games on Monday and Tuesday night, but then turned around and started basketball tryouts on Wednesday and Thursday, and as I type this he is at the Plano West playoff game...he's literally been home for only 2 hours that Jake has been awake this week! Needless to say I'm a pretty tired Mommy! I do LOVE being a coach's wife, but this year's football season was a definite adjustment since the addition of our little man! We had a few rough days, but we survived and I am so looking forward to next year's football season when I get to chase Jake all over the stadium during games :-)


Since I was a single mama most of this week, I didn't get to take as many pictures as normal. I'd planned on taking more, but Jake had a few fussy days this week on top of everything else! Here is what the Tyler's have been doing since our last blog: Stephen's team played in the city championship game on Tuesday night, after leading the entire game they fell behind in the last few minutes. It was a tough loss, but Jake and I were still very proud of Daddy! My plan was to get a family picture on the field since I don't have one of us at all from this football season, but we didn't get to.



On Wednesday, I finally got to take Jake back to Mesquite High School, where I'd worked the past 9 years. I had lots of fun showing him off to all the ladies in the offices and old co-workers. The main reason I went that day was because one of my former students was signing her commitment letter to play college softball. She asked me to come and I couldn't say no! As much as I love being a stay at home mom, my heart misses the impact I got to have on kids lives as a teacher. Here is a picture of Jake at his first 'signing day.'

Stephen during one of the few hours he was home this week...you can tell how excited Jake is to see his Daddy!

Jake has finally decided he likes his bumbo. He sits in it in the kitchen while I cook or make his bottles. A few days ago I decided to attach the tray that comes with it, that way I could put a toy on it for him to play with. Over the past few weeks, he has also developed a 'game' Stephen and I call "jake smash!" (like on the Incredible Hulk "hulk smash!") He waves both arms and up and down really fast and laughs. Well...on this morning I put the tray on the bumbo with a toy, went to the sink to put water in his bottle and heard a big crash....check out what Jake did!

what? you don't see a tray on the bumbo? that's because Jake decided it needed to be on the floor! Jake Smash!

...so I walked over and picked up the pieces and put the tray back on bumbo, put the toy back on it and once again started to make his bottle. When I walked over to Jake, this is what I saw...

...he knows he's busted, he knocked the tray off AGAIN!

He is awful proud of himself!

Jake is still doing really well eating his cereal. He now eats it every day and is up to about 2 tablespoons/feeding. He's getting better at using his tounge to swallow and can eat the cereal at more of a food consistency now, as opposed to liquid. He will hold his mouth open for the next bite, it's so cute! We will start oatmeal this weekend, can't wait to see how he likes it.

He knows he's about to get the good stuff!

that's some good stuff mommy! he will smile between bites a lot of the time, i love it!

And then last night, Stephen called me over to see this...yep, that's our little guy holding his own bottle!

Starting Cereal

On Sunday morning, our little man had a big milestone...his first "solid" food, rice cereal. We had been suspecting for a couple of weeks that Jake was ready for more than just formula. We both read up on starting solids and found key developmental milestones to look for: good head and neck control, ability to be a supported sitter, doubled birth weight, turns ahead away from bottle when full, "push out" reflex of tounge lessening, keen interest in what you are eating. Well, we could put a check next to each of those for Jake. His official 4 month doctor appointment was Monday, but I wanted Stephen to be able to share in this big moment so we decided to try just a little on Sunday morning. Jake didn't know quite what to make of it...he didn't react badly, but he wasn't gobbling up the cereal either. We had been getting him used to his high chair for about 2 weeks...I stole the idea from my friend Leanne...we started putting him in his chair at dinner time with us and he adapted really well. So, he was used to his chair, but the spoon was a whole new thing. He was pretty fascinated by it and kept wanting to hold it himself, I let him explore with it, but only without food on it. He "ate" maybe about a teaspoon altogether...I say "ate" because as you will see, I think more of it ended up on his face and bib, but he did swallow several bites of it.

At our 4 month checkup, our pediatrician confirmed that Jake was indeed ready for solids! She said with his size, his body is definitely ready for the next step both developmentally and for the increase in calories. She said we introduced the food very well and it sounded like Jake would have a great transition to solid foods. She wants us to stick to cereals and oatmeal this month, then introduce veggies in month 5 and fruits in month 6. I am so excited to see what Jake likes and dislikes...knowing him, I'm sure he will make his opinions known!!!


Here are pictures and video from Jake's first solid food feeding!

I gave him his first bite while Stephen took pictures

I love that his eyes are totally focused on the spoon...you can

tell he is thinking "what is that?"

not too sure about this mom!

"seriously, what is this?"

He wanted to help with his spoon

This stuff is pretty cool Mom

you can see it's starting to get all over his face

there's a good bite!

Stephen steps in to give a few bites

starting to get the hang of things

Now that's the sign of a good meal!

Here is the video!

Jake's First Halloween

We had a very ambitious day planned for Jake's first Halloween: pre-trick-or-treat party at our friends Chad and Heather's house, our niece's birthday party, a stop to trick or treat at the grandparents house, and then back home. Our day got off to a shaky start...Jake had a very restless night and after a night of very little sleep for me, he decided to start his day at 6:30 this morning! (an hour and a half earlier than usual) I knew our day depended on Jake sticking to his schedule and such an early start could make for a very crazy day! Thankfully, I got him back on track with his morning nap and we actually had an amazing day! Jake made it through all our activities like a trooper, and never fussed while posing for the many, many pictures of the day. We even were able to make an extra trick-or-treat stop on the way home. What made the day even more special, is that Stephen did not have to be up at the fieldhouse and we were able to make it a true family day for Jake's first Halloween, I was so happy!

Here is Jake, all ready for his first Halloween...what else could he be, but a football player!

Posing with the pumpkins...he wasn't too sure about them, but mommy insisted he take his picture with the pumpkins. :-)

Daddy and future linebacker

Our first stop of the day was a pre-trick-or-treat party at the McKinney famiy's house. They had a yummy spread of all sorts of fun Halloween themed food! It was so fun to get our boys all together for a group shot of them in their costumes...and it is always fun for their mommies and daddies to see each other too!

Me and Jake...I really thought he would hate his helmet, but he never minded it each time we put it on for pictures

The mommies and their boys!

Leanne and Carter, Heather and Tyler, Me and Jake

And then it was the daddies turn:

Jon and "monkey," Chad and "teddy bear," Stephen and "football player"

After some yummy hot dogs, chips and guac, cupcakes, cookies...and a diaper change, we headed off for our second stop of the day, our niece, Mia's 3rd birthday party. Thankfully, Jake took a quick nap as we drove. This was Jake's first birthday party! It was at a pre-school in Lucas and the theme was "a pony party."

Granna and Grandpa with Jake

(Stephen's Dad and Stepmom)

Granna took Jake for a "carriage" ride...he was more interested in looking at his shoes :-)

Family shot: again, he's more intersted in his shoes. Finally something he gets from his mommy!

Jake on his first pony ride...he wasn't too impressed. I think he thought it was just a big version of Daisy!

Then Daddy took Jake for a carriage ride...the little Shetland's name was "Giddyup" and she was dressed up as a pumpkin for Halloween, too cute!

Jake did really good at the party, we got to eat birthday cake and ice cream...he got to eat a bottle, so unfair for the poor guy! After leaving the party we wanted to stop by Stephen's mom's house so that Jake could see his other grandparents on Halloween.

Jake with Grandma and Grandpa

(Stephen's mom and stepdad)

We were getting close to bedtime, and Jake got a little fussy at Grandma and Grandpa's so we decided it was time to head home. He fell asleep almost as soon as we got in the car. I was really hoping we could stop by best friend's house on the way home. Auntie Seana and Uncle Jason live just 3 blocks over from us, so I kept my fingers crossed that he would wake up when we got closer to home, and he did! So we stopped by for Jake's first official "trick or treat!"

Here we are waiting for Auntie Seana to answer the door

Jake and Auntie Seana "trick or treat!"

and with Uncle Jason

Stephen decided he needed to try on Jake's helmet...oh my!

After trick-or-treating, we headed home and our little man passed out! I also wanted to post a few pictures from our trip to the Dallas Arboretum yesterday. My mommy group had been trying to get the arboretum all together, but the weather kept interupting our plans. Heather and I had a semi-spontaneous trip on Friday afternoon and had a fun time with our boys! Here are a few pictures.

me and my little man

Chillin' in the pumpkins

my first time carrying Jake in the baby bjorn

I got one great shot of Jake in his stroller, I love his "baby blues!"

4 months

It is so hard to believe that our little man is already 4 months old! The past 4 months have passed by so quickly and at the same time we just can't remember what our life was like before Jake. He has changed so much over the past month, I feel like Jake has gone from a baby to a little person :-) Well, okay I can't really use the word "little" and Jake in the same sentence! We go for our 4 month check-up next week...I am guessing he is at least 28 inches long and somewhere between 18 and 19 pounds. We had to move into 6-9 month onesies and pj's this past week, not because of weight, but length! Aside from growing a lot physically over the past month, I feel like Jake's personality has grown as well. He has favorite toys and activities, and his face and tone of voice are so much more expressive. His personality clearly takes after Stephen and I. Jake is not a baby that will lay in his swing all day and just "chill." He wants to be playing, going and doing every minute! He is not so much a cuddler, but he does love to when he is getting tired before naps and bed. The funniest thing for me is he already has very specific trait...he is stubborn! If we are playing with a toy and he wants to hold it, he won't be happy until he is! He is very particular about how he wants to play with his toys and will make sure we know when we aren't doing things "his way"...so much like Stephen and I already! He isn't a fussy baby, but he is quick to let us know when we aren't doing things "his way." But I can't be mad at him, because I am the same way! This boy loves his schedule and isn't happy when we deviate from it...it is so hard to get him to take a bottle at playdate or a football game, I think because the surroundings aren't familiar to him...same thing with a nap, I have yet to get him to take a real nap at playdate...I can see his little face say "nope, this is not my crib and I only sleep in my crib!" Heaven help us when he can really start talking, it should be pretty entertaining! But, in all seriousness, I can't begin to put into words how fulfilling it is to be Jake's parents! Jake has been the biggest blessing from God in my life...my biggest life's goal is that Stephen and I provide a godly home for Jake to grow up in and that our love for the Lord will one l day lead Jake to that same relationship with Christ. It's funny how quickly everything else fades to just secondary things...

Here are some pictures from the week Jakey turned 4 months old. He has started doing lots of new things that he wants to tell everyone about, so I will turn the blog over to him :-)

Here I am sitting in my bumbo! Yes, I finally like it now...but I'm so big that when mommy or daddy pick me up to get me out...the bumbo sticks to my legs and bottom! I'm going to be too big for it soon. Oh, I also have decided that I like my swing now, but I won't let mommy take pictures of my swinging in it.

This week I started sitting in my high chair during dinner time...but all I get to do is watch mommy and daddy eat their food. They tell me they are helping me get ready for eating solid foods soon, but I think it's mean to eat yummy food in front of me without sharing! But I am usually a good boy and play while they eat.

This is me doing one of my favorite new things...sitting on mommy's tummy and touching my toes...I love my toes! They are the coolest things! I didn't know they were there at first, but now that I have found them, I think they rock! Aren't I cute in this picture?

Here I am showing off one of my new skills, firmly grasping all my toys independently. (bet you didn't know i knew such big words!) I love holding all my toys by myself and I get very frustrated if mommy tries to help me hold things.

After I hold things, I LOVE to put them in my mouth...EVERY thing goes in my mouth now. I just love to chew on things...my fingers, rattles, toys, it all tastes good to me!

Here I am watching football...mommy thought this picture was funny because I was watching so intently. I wish she would stop taking pictures while the game is on! If I had a profile picture of my daddy, mommy would post it so you all could see just how much we look alike!

This is my favorite thing to do with Daddy! He holds me up in the air and flips me upside down, I laugh SO hard when he does it! Then he kisses my neck and I laugh even harder...mommy is putting a video of it at the end of the blog.

Here is Daddy giving me kisses! I miss Daddy a lot right now because it is football season, so I am extra happy when he is home on Sundays and plays with me all day!

Here I am at playdate yesterday with my friends Ava and Brinley. We all loved the toy! I am the youngest of the babies in this pictures, but you sure would never know it! I think the girls are really pretty though :-) Maybe they like younger men....

Here is a video mommy took of me playing with the toys on my bouncy seat. When I was a little baby I didn't pay much attention to them, then I got older and started batting at them, then I got a little older and would grasp the handles, but now I'm a big boy and I really go to town on them!

Here is a video of me and my Daddy playing. I love my Daddy so much, he makes me laugh really hard!!!

Bye everybody, mommy says it is past my bedtime and I need to go to sleep! Over the past month I started waking up for a bottle around 3 AM each night...I don't know why mommy and daddy aren't excited about this! I was sleeping through the night ever since I was just 7 weeks old, but I am a big boy now and formula just isn't keeping me full overnight anymore. Mommy and daddy are hoping once I get to start solid foods this month I will go back to letting them sleep at night! I'll think about it :-) Love, Jake