It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas

Yesterday we got the BEST surprise, SNOW IN TEXAS! I was so excited to see what Jake thought of it. I grew up in Chicago and snow is absolutely one of my favorite things in the world, and one of the things I miss most about home...especially having a white Christmas. I knew there was a chance for snow in the area, but I didn't have my hopes up because usually all we get is ice. Well, right as I was making Jake's breakfast, huge, beautiful snowflakes began to fall. I wanted to take Jake out in it so badly, but we were both in our jammies so instead I opened the back door and let him watch, he was mesmerized!

surprisingly the snow actually stuck...but melted less than an hour later

Jake was hungry so I opened the blinds by his chair so he could watch the snow while he ate his oatmeal. He just stared and stared. That snow is some pretty cool stuff!


Jake also loves all of the Christmas decorations, especially the lights on the tree and on the garland on the mantle. Christmas has always been my favorite time of year and this year it is going to be so special to celebrate Jake's first one. I remember this time last year thinking, "this time next year, the baby will be here (we still didn't know if it was a boy or girl)" I couldn't wait to show him/her the tree, lights, decorations, all of the things we are getting to do now with Jake. I already know the memories of this Christmas will be precious, precious ones.

Lots of New Things

I think this past week has been one of the busiest Jake has had developmentally! I feel like he was doing something new each day, it has been so fun! It's not just physical things, but his appearance is changing day by day. His hair is now coming in very blonde and in the past week has grown so much on the top part of his head. I look at his newborn pictures and can hardly believe how dark his hair was. And if it's possible, I think he has gotten even taller! He makes such fun new faces, his favorite seems to be sucking his bottom lip in as far as possible and then smiling...it's the cutest face and I LOVE it! The past few days have been even more fun because Stephen was off of work and able to here enjoying it all. Jake loved having him home and was quite the daddy's boy all week.


Fun new thing #1: Solid foods-he still loves his cereal and oatmeal, but now also loves trying to feed himself. After each spoonful, he puts his hand in his mouth and will also grab the spoon as I try to feed him. I am trying to let him explore (which I read in magazines was good to do as he started solids) but also balance actually getting some food into his mouth. He does eventually let me get the food in his mouth, but makes a big ol' mess doing it...which means the classic "messy eating pictures" have started! This past week we also started veggies, peas and green beans. He isn't too sure about them, but he doesn't spit them out so I'm pretty impressed. The face he makes is priceless though! He eats them very well when I mix them with his oatmeal or cereal.

Here's my little messy eater, check out his hands covered in ceral as well

Fun new thing #2: johnny jump up-we all know how much Jake loves his jumparoo. This week we decided to try a new toy, johhny jump up. I've had it sitting in the closet for a few months and wanted to wait until he got a little older before we tried it. If you don't know what it is, johnny jump up is very similar to a jumparoo, but it clasps to the top of a door frame...kind of like baby bungee jumping :-) He wasn't sure what to do at first, but he got the hang of it after a while.

Here is some video of it too: no jake's were harmed in the making of this film.

Fun thing #3- big push ups and swimming! Our little man is so wanting to crawl...I know he's got a few months to go before he puts it all together, but he is so active during tummy time now. He still doesn't really roll from tummy to back, but just this morning he did a 360 roll from back to back, so I think he is any day on that skill now. He "swims" with his arms and legs, he kicks so fast sometimes. And his pushups are so much higher now, he gets his stomach off the floor most of the time. He now also lifts his bottom up into the air and sometimes gets his knees under. All the pieces are there, he just needs to learn how to put them all together, and then mommy and daddy are in lots of trouble!

tummy time with daddy

jake practicing his big pushups


and here he is "swimming"



Fun thing#4-DAISY! Jake has found Daisy, and he loves his puppy! Whenever Daisy enters his sightline, she is all he wants to look at and follows her with his eyes all around the room. Daisy has warmed up to Jake a lot too. She will come over and sit by him when he's on our laps and let him pet her. We guide his hands for now so that we know he is gentle until she gets more used to him. One time he was too fast for me and got ahold of her ear really good, but Daisy didn't care at all. She has even given him a few kisses lately. I have a feeling once Jake starts crawling, Stephen and I aren't the only ones who are going to be in trouble, poor Daisy!


Fun thing #5-Daddy's boy! This past week has been full of Daddy time for Jake and he loved every minute of it! They already have games that just the two of them play...if I try it, Jake's reaction is nowhere near the same-they play beat up daddy, wrestle, upside down jakey, and Stephen gives him big kisses on his tummy before bedtime. Jake has even started trying to give him kisses back, but he doesn't quite understand, so all we get is Jake pulling our face in close and then he opens his mouth and licks our cheek. It's precious and I wouldn't trade those kisses for anything. (he has also started doing the same thing to his reflection in the mirror)

one of jake's favorite things: standing on daddy

trying to "kiss" the baby in the mirror

Fun thing #6- Razzberries! I saved the best for last! Jake has learned to make a razzberry and I think it's the funniest thing he has learned to do yet! Two days ago we were driving in the car and +Jake was talking to himself in his mirror like always. Then we started hearing the "razz" noise and I look back, sure enough he was doing it! And he hasn't stopped since! He sounds like the Tazmanian Devil!!!! This new skill has also led to him making the "mmm" sound a lot now too.

Happy Thanksgiving!

It is very easy to think of reasons to be thankful this year! I have a wonderful husband, a beautiful and healthy baby boy, families that love us, and friends that are always there for us. And of course this year is even more special because it is Jake's first Thanksgiving. Typically, we have always spent Thanksgiving with my family in Mississippi. However, this year we started mentally thinking of all we would need to pack for Jake and ourselves and realized it just wasn't possible. I was still excited to spend the holiday here in Texas with Stephen's family...I am so blessed to have the most amazing in-laws, they have treated me like a member of their family from day one! We had a wonderful day; lots of food, family, and football...it can't get much better :-) Jake did SO good...he loves to be out and about, but he still won't nap or eat well away from home...so today I was anxious to see if would take a nap at Mimi's house, because if he didn't we might have to leave early. Well, I had nothing to be worried about, he went right to sleep in his pack-n-play in mimi's room. He only napped for 20 minutes, but it was enough to get him through the day. He took his bottle and ate his cereal like a pro...and would go to any family member that wanted to hold him. Just more signs that our little guy is getting so big!

Here are our pictures from the day:

He woke up in the best mood this morning! This beautiful face is the reason we are most thankful this year. We have been blessed with such a happy and healthy little boy.

Jake watching his first Macy's Thanksgiving Parade:

I think he liked it

Grandpa and Jake...he was checking out all the yummy food in the kitchen.

We told him he had to wait until next year for the good stuff!


Playing with Granna

Tummy time with Grandpa:

anybody see a family resemblance here? :-)

Mommy and Jakey

Daddy and Jakey, watching the Cowboys game:

Cowboys were winning, thus the big smiles from my boys!

Jake gets his thanksgiving dinner:

Just a bottle and cereal this year :-(

Happy boy after his nap!

Our family:

So then, just as you received Jesus Christ as Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.

Colossians 2: 6-7

5 Months Old

Jake is 5 months old!! I know each month I say it, but I can't believe how fast time is flying by. Each month he changes more and more and learns more and more new things. One of the books I was reading says he should have doubled his birth weight by month 5, HA! let's try almost tripled with my big boy, but he has also grown over 7 inches since birth as well :-)

This month Jake has become a pro at rolling onto his tummy...he still has zero interest in then rolling back to his back :-) I really think it's not that he couldn't do it, he just loves being on his tummy and working on crawling that he could care less about rolling the other way. His legs are so strong, probably because he is in love with his jumparoo and spends so much time in it! He has really taken to solid foods, he loves his oatmeal and eats his cereal really well. His favorite thing now is to put his hands in his mouth while eating and try to help hold his spoon, it's really cute, but it makes such a mess! (Pictures of that coming soon) He loves to be on the go...daddy's games, the grocery store, walks, etc. He still doens't eat or nap well while we are out and about, but we are working on it. He nightime sleeping has gotten a lot better, he still wakes up for one feeding, usually around 3-4. However, he celebrated his 5 month birthday by sleeping through the night for the first time since he was 3 months old! I'm hoping we are close to going back to his normal sleeping through the night!!! He started sleeping through the night at 7 weeks, I never realized how lucky we were! His naps, however, are still super short :-( He takes 3 naps a day, each one about 45 minutes...sometimes only 30, but sometimes I get lucky and he sleeps for a whole hour! It definitely makes it harder for me to get a lot done during the day, but I'm adjusting. My favorite time of day with him is when he wakes up in the morning, and from each nap...the minute I stick my head over the side of the crib, his face lights up into a HUGE smile! When Jake smiles, those big blue eyes light up...you can tell his whole heart is smiling :-)

I have a new toy...I've seen several friends' blogs that have made video montage's so I decided to give it a try this month...I'm sure I will get better at it as we go, but here is my first attempt...looking back at the past month of Jake's life!

And here are pictures from this past week:

Jake says "I'm going to eat this duck for Thanksgiving dinner!"

cheesin'

love love love this face

okay, i finally got some good shots of "the bill cosby face"

He loves sucking in that bottem lip!

happy boy!

and here is yet another jumparoo video, sorry! he's just too darn cute when he gets going...in this one he is showing off his "mariah carey" impression, he screams when he gets excited and it is super high pitch!

We are very excited for month 6 and all the new things that are coming soon: Jake's first Christmas, learning to sit up, and learning to crawl!!!

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!