18 Month Check-Up

Tyler went to the pediatrician's office today for his 18 month check-up. He only got 1 shot....Hepatitis A. They were out of flu vaccines so we have to go back once they receive the next shipment. Tyler was such a trooper and barely cried at all! He weighed 24 lbs. 8 ozs. and was 32.75" tall. This put him at the 30th percentile for weight and the 70th percentile for height! This is quite a jump from his last check-up, 3 months ago, when he was only in the 11th percentile for weight and the 50th for height. Our lil' cuddlebug definitely hit a growth spurt, and is becoming more and more interested in foods he wouldn't consider eating several months ago. The doctor was pleased with Tyler's growth, development, and health. We are so thankful for a healthy and happy little boy!

Below are a few recent pictures of Tyler for your viewing pleasure ;-).

he sure does look like Dada in this shot!

this is one of the cool editing options in my new camera

the classic "tyler look" with the 2 fingers in position

18 Months

Tyler turned 18 months old today!!! He is growing up so fast! We cannot believe he is halfway to being a 2 year old! Here is a picture of Tyler the day he turned 2 weeks old......where has the time gone?

Orange vs. Purple Scrimmage

The annual Orange vs. Purple basketball scrimmage was last night. The purple team won 3 out of 4 "games". We were especially impressed with Tanner Smith's performance.....very consistent and solid. It was Tyler's first Clemson basketball experience. He seemed to enjoy it, but also found the folding seats just as entertaining.

tip-off

some of the action

Elmo Wrestling

Tyler loves Elmo.......and he likes to wrestle with Elmo! Ben was always played rough with Tyler and wrestled around with him so I guess Tyler decided he'd let Elmo in on the action too. It's really funny because he grunts and breathes heavily as though he's really giving it to Elmo. Of course they always end each round with a kiss to show their good sportsmanship!

pinned 'em

pinned 'em again

awwww...

Body Parts & Animal Sounds

Here is the updated video of Tyler pointing to his body parts and saying animal sounds.

Weekend Fun

Tyler spent Friday night and Saturday at Nana & Papa's house so that Momma & Dada could go to the Clemson football game baby-free. It was a good game for Tyler to miss due to the cold, rainy weather....again! Tyler had so much fun with Nana & Papa that it was obvious he was happy with the plans too. Clemson defeated Wake Forest 38-3 so that made up for the weather a little bit. We had a good time visiting with friends and tailgating.

We went to Austin's 1st birthday party on Sunday. Austin is Tyler's best friend. Tyler thoroughly enjoyed the party.....he's always glad to see his friend. After the party we went directly over to Brian & Anna's house for a family day with the Johnsons. Ben's parents, Abbey, & Andy were here visiting from AZ. We had a pizza eating contest.....and Andy was the winner!

I recently got a new Nikon DSLR camera and so far I absolutely love it!! My parents knew I'd been looking into getting one (researching, comparing, talking to others with SLRs) and insisted that they would buy it for me as an early birthday/Christmas gift! What a great gift!!! Thank you so much Mom & Daddy! I've been experimenting and the 1st two pictures below are some of my favorites so far!

close up of our cuddlebug

look at that perfect pose.......model material

Momma & Dada @ the game

isn't it beautiful

Austin's 1st birthday party

Yay....empty box

Austin enjoying his cake

Lucinda & Trey playing ping-pong

Tyler looks guilty and everyone else looks stuffed after the pizza eating contest

Elmo Show

We brought Tyler to the Sesame Street Live show “When Elmo Grows Up” last night. Tyler had a great time and really enjoyed the show!! He loved seeing all his Sesame Street friends in person. He watches Sesame Street everyday. Of course, his favorite character is Elmo. He’s also fond of Ernie, Cookie Monster, Big Bird, and Abby Cadabby and knows each of them by name. I think we heard “Elmi” about 1000 times during the show. He was sure to point out all his other favorites too….he didn't want us to miss anything :-). Tyler danced along with all the songs and clapped after the performances. Ben and I had fun just watching Tyler’s reactions. We all had a good time!

waiting for the show to start

Burp Cloths

My latest sewing project is making these cute burp cloths for babies. I got the idea from one of our friends, Rebecca, who made some for Tyler when he was born. I love picking out all the adorable fabrics and they are fun to make. They look super cute with a monogram or name embroidered above the ribbon!! Below are a few pictures of some I recently completed. If you are interested in some let me know. They make great baby gifts.

these are for a baby boy

these are gender neutral

here's a shot of one unfolded

Denver Downs Farm

Today, we went to the Denver Downs Farm in Anderson with our church. We learned that the Denver Downs Farm is one of the few remaining "century farms" in SC, meaning that the farm has remained in the same family for over 100 years (over 160 years in Denver Downs' case). Similarly, Ben's Grandparents Harmon own a century farm in Indiana. Most of Tyler's Sunday School friends were there which added to the fun. There was a giant corn maze, pumpkin patch, farm animals, hay rides, games, barley boxes (like sand boxes), and a hay bale maze. We had a great time, especially Tyler :-)!!

Watching the goats

Tyler & Ike

Walking on top of the hay bales

Playing in the barley box with Chloe, Emily, Sam, & Troy

He loved it!

Riding by the pumpkin patch on the hay ride

Playing in the pumpkin patch

Tyler showing his "girlfriend" how much fun he's having

Apparently he likes blondes ;-)

Once Upon A Time....

Let me start by saying that Tyler loves, loves, loves to read books (and have them read to him, of course)!! I read him 50 or more books a day easily. Now, these are board books we are talking about, but it's still a lot in my opinion. Tyler picks out a book, from his large collection, and brings it to me and says "here ya go" every single time. He sits in my lap and we read the book. The moment the story is over he goes and picks out a new book to bring to me. He generally does this at least 10 times every reading "session". After that I either go do something else to force him to play with other toys, or he has his fill. Tyler also reads books to himself. It is so cute and funny. He babbles, mixes in some real words, and inflects his voice like he is really telling a story. Sometimes Tyler remembers stories so well that he actually says the correct words when reading to himself. When Daddy gets home he is often greeted by Tyler handing him a book while saying "here ya go" :-).

Gramma Johnson sent Tyler a big box of books and we really appreciate it.....and so does Tyler. Ben and I can probably read most of Tyler's books verbatim without even opening it since we've read them so many times. Tyler has even learned what comes next in many of his books. New books are always welcomed so we were thrilled when we received them. Plus, seeing Tyler's face when he saw the mountain of books was priceless - you can see for yourself in the above picture.