"I Can Eat Big Kid Food!"

First Bite!

"Whoa! What was that?!"

"Actually, I think I kind of like this stuff!"

"I could get used to this food thing."



"And the spoon is pretty cool too."

"Give me more! I'm hungry over here!!"

"Would you just let me do it myself?"

"Ok, that's enough. Get me out of this chair, please!"

"What I really want is Mommy's water. I think I'm ready for a big kid cup now too!"

Go Twins!!

Ok, so they didn't win, but we had a great time at our first Twins game in the new stadium! Tyler was a little champ. He loved looking at everything. He was pretty mesmerized by all the people and the lights.

Whirlwind Vacation (Sort Of)

Ok so it wasn't really a vacation so much as a lot of traveling and tons of great times crammed into eleven days. May parents came from Kansas and camped near Eau Claire for a couple of weeks. We were there as often as we could be before and after my LITTLE brother Jacob's wedding! In eleven short days, we went on four, three hour car rides, and many 45 minute car rides. We stayed in a camper 2 nights, back at our house for 2 nights, in a tent 1 night, a camper one night, a hotel 2 nights and back in the camper for one more night. Tyler went to his first family wedding and danced his first dollar dance. We helped set up and went to a wedding rehearsal, dinner and a gift opening, I got an amazing new sister-in-law, Tyler went on his first paddle boat, swam at a water park, played on the swings with Grandpa at the park, got his very own mini camping chair from Grandma & Grandpa, and took his first bath in a real bath tub! There's no going back to the little one now!  :-)

And doing all of those things with a baby went amazingly well! He did a great job camping. It was ridiculously cold for him in the tent though, so after the first night we moved into the camper with my parents. I was a little nervous that Tyler wouldn't make it through the wedding and I would have to take him out and miss it. Carl was video taping so I would've had to take him out. But he was awesome! He made a couple little babbly noises, but that was it. And at the reception, he was great too! He actually fell asleep there for most of it so we got to stay for the whole thing. Very exciting!

We had a great time with my siblings and my parents while they were here. It was so good to see them and so sad to say goodbye again! I wish I could just pick Kansas up and move it a little closer... Tyler definitely had fun on all of our adventures. He took a couple days to crash and adjust to normal life again when we got back though. He made it through everything better than I'd hoped for, but he was TIRED when we got home! Jacob's wedding was beautiful and we're so excited to have Laura in the family now! Everything was perfect and we're so happy for them!

The Beautiful Couple
(Swanstrom Photography)

So Cute!

Tyler Met His Long-Distance Girlfriend :-)

Chillin' With Auntie Em

A Brand New Voice

Tyler has officially found his voice. He's been "talking" and babbling for quite awhile. But yesterday he discovered a few very exciting things about his voice. He learned that there are many different noises that he can make, as well as many different pitches and many different volumes. His favorite: high pitched and LOUD! He learned this new little trick on the way to the grocery store yesterday and he has hardly stopped since. He yelled at his book all the way to the store and while I was shopping I don't think I made it down a single aisle without at least one person commenting on how much he loves to talk.  :-)

The funny thing about this wonderful world of sound is that if you aren't looking at him, you really can't tell if he's happy or sad. It all sounds the same, but his expressions change very quickly. He switches back and forth between pure baby bliss and deep and extreme frustration with his toys at a surprisingly fast rate. By the time I realize he's upset, he's happy again! Mostly, I think he just likes the sound of his amazing little voice.

Tyler is SO active, that I thought we might have a little athlete on our hands. But now that he's discovered his big voice, he just might be a singer. Whatever he decides to be when he grows up, he will definitely know how to make his voice heard.

Way Too Fast

I'm not sure how it happened, but my baby is definitely NOT a newborn anymore. He was four months on Tuesday! He is a happy, playful, spunky, and pretty hilarious little bundle of fun. He rarely stops moving, he has a lot to say, and has some pretty big opinions. He loves to stand, sit, bounce, smile, read stories and sing. He's a good sleeper at night and loves to snuggle to fall asleep for his naps. He gives big sloppy kisses and puts every single thing he sees in his mouth. He is growing up way too fast! I love to see him learning so many new things, but slow down little man!

We had Tyler's four month appointment on Monday (shots again - ugh!) and he was a little champ. He is 13 lb. 8 oz. (25th percentile) and 25 1/2 inches long (75th percentile)! Tall and skinny, just like his Daddy.

Tyler discovered his feet last week so it was next to impossible to get a picture of how long he is!  :-)

I'm In Trouble

Tyler has always liked to stand up. He would stand up all day just holding our hands if he could, but this getting a little ridiculous! He's too little for this. I swear he's going to walk and climb before he crawls.

And I'm sure I've said this before, but I have a new favorite picture of Tyler. My favorites change weekly.

Congratulations Carl!

Carl is an amazing husband, a wonderful dad, a hard worker and a super smart guy! He works really hard everyday and because of his smarts and hard work, I get to stay home with Tyler. I am so thankful for that. And on top of all the work he does at his job, he spent the last three years working on his Master's Degree.

We had a little party on Saturday to celebrate the fact that he's done and we get to see him again!

Thank you for everything you do for us Carl. We love you and we're so proud of you!!