This Pronunciation Trivia is cracking me up!

First, upon further review, I think "guacamole" sounds more like "dat-da-wall-e" when Tyler says it.

Can you guess these? Don't feel bad if you can't. The ones I remember are the ones he pronounces the worst.

Please guess, because it does make me laugh. But even if you don't, I want these for when I print this blog into a baby book of sorts!

1. co-ah
2. cum'ah co-ah
   
3. pow
4. prubble
5. huhnuh
6. hainey
7. booh-ah

On a side note, I just asked Tyler to say #5 above. He obliged, but he had a mouth full of croutons, so I requested, "Say it again." He replied, "Anen" (aka "again.") Smart aleck.

Tyler trivia + answer

Okay, guys, I'm not posting an answer to yesterday's trivia until at least one person guesses.

Here's today's trivia. What is Tyler saying if you hear this:

"wa wa wole-y" (This is one word.)

Because there's no chance anyone will ever guess this, the answer is in the comments.

Tyler trivia

I love that Tyler is learning to say so much, and I think his pronunciation is adorable.

Can you figure out what he's saying:

"itty eez kuh-grrr tah"

If you've already heard this one, don't ruin it for everyone else. If you want to guess, leave a comment. Check back tomorrow for the correct answer!

Things the Mother of a Potty-Training Child Should Be Prepared to Say

1. Sweetie, why don't you go pee-pee in the potty?
2. I'll give you a [piece of candy] if you pee-pee in the potty.
   
3. Don't pee on the sofa, okay?
   
4. No, don't pee on your train track.
5. No, don't pee on your train.
   
6. No, don't pee in the dog's food.
   
7. No! Don't pee on the dog!!!!!

And do you know what a potty-training toddler learns to say when he pees all over the floor? "OOOOOOOH NOOOOOOO!"

Tyler's New Best Friend

Dakota here tried to adopt my cousin's family. Unfortunately for her, their dog objected.

So Tyler suggested she adopt us. He's pretty persuasive, isn't he?

Fortunately for Tyler, she seems to like us.

Fortunately for me, she seems to have unlimited patience for the hugs and antics of a 2-year-old.

A line of kisses

I walked into the kitchen last night to find a row of unwrapped Hershey kisses. Probably 12. And someone had bitten off the very top of each.

I wish I had the self-restraint of a two-year-old.

Toddler Sci-Fi

So, last night, I decided to brush Tyler's teeth before we went to his room for the diaper, pajamas routine.

Once again, he was fighting me, so I decided to give him a "choice." Per the suggestion of Tyler's Grandma Denise and Tyler's OT, I shouldn't say, "Do you want to brush your teeth?", I should say, "Do you want to brush your top teeth or your bottom teeth?"

So I tried it.

"Tyler, top teeth or bottom teeth?"

He got very excited and reached for the toothbrush saying "gongun" (bottom). I let him have the toothbrush. And guess where he tried to put it. Yep, he tried to brush his *bottom* teeth. I'll have to put the diaper on first from now on@

The ABCs of dental hygiene.

Tyler does not care to have his teeth brushed. At least not by me. I don't know if it is a sensory thing or if he's just contrary.

At any rate, Brian and I have always said the ABCs as we brush Tyler's teeth. I just feel like it gives him a better understanding of when the torture will be over. And I thought he might learn something.

The educational aspect seems to be working. As I brushed my teeth yesterday morning, he said (sort of) "Mama, A, B, C, D" in a sing-song voice that exactly matches the alphabet song.

mmmmm... Marshmallows!

So, Tyler yelled, "Eat!" and ran to the pantry. Instead of pulling out dried bananas (his current favorite), he grabbed a bag of small marshmallows. I think this is one of those foods that the experts recommend waiting a while on (choking hazard), but if my son wants to try any new food, who am I to tell him "no"? So I gave him one for each hand and proceeded to eat a few myself. After several minutes of licking marshmallows (and feeding a few licked ones to me), he ate one. And asked for more. I think he ate five or six total. Tyler ate marshmallows!! I'm ecstatic.

But it makes me wish Paw-Paw were still here. He loved giving all the kids marshmallows, and every time we visited, he wanted so badly to spoil Tyler with treats.

This Little Piggy Wrapped Your Present!

Santa Bribes Tyler

Tyler met Santa on Sunday. Brian's cousins Casey and Kay hosted a "Meet Santa" party, and his cousin Regina — a talented photographer — brought all of her gear to capture the special moments.

Tyler has no idea about Santa. He was running circles in the hallway while the other kids were lined up in front of Santa and chattering 90 miles an hour. But then Tyler discovered Santa has stickers. And he was very interested in the stickers. It took four attempts, including one that ended with Tyler laying in the floor screeching at Santa, and three stickers, but we finally got some Santa pictures.

Santa, Regina, and even the other kids were very patient, and it was a special day for me!

B-b-b-b-b-stutter

Tyler was reading Don't Wake the Puppies (a Clifford, the Big Red Dog, book) to me tonight. This is kind of how his version of the story goes:

Tyler (point at bird): DIRD!

Jaime: B-b-b-b-b-BIRD!

Tyler: B-b-b-b-b-b DIRD!

Tyler: B-b-b-b-b dutheee! (puppy)

Tyler: B-b-b-b-b-b Clifford! (I can't even begin to spell his mispronunciation for Clifford, but it starts with a "D" too.)

Tyler: B-b-b-b-b-b hot dog!

Tyler: B-b-b-b-b-b qwrl! (squirrel)

Tyler ate grapes.

A lot of grapes. He asked for more. I cried. Do you understand how huge this is?

Grapes are wet. They are squishy. These were kind of cold. Tyler doesn't like any of these characteristics. But he likes grapes. Praise God for helping my little boy.

More kisses for Paw-Paw

You know, I started this blog with two people in mind. My Grandma (my mama's mama) and my Paw-Paw (my daddy's daddy). They both enjoyed the Internet and a blog seemed like the perfect way to share Tyler with them since I didn't talk to them via phone very often.

Don't get me wrong. I'm thrilled that my parents, my sister, aunts, uncles, cousins, a few friends, and probably some people I don't know read about my precious son and his antics. I love when readers leave a comment (thank you, Jodi!) or tell me they enjoyed a certain story (thank you, Grandma!).

But every time I've considered blogging in the last two weeks, I've felt this huge sense of loss. You see, my Paw-Paw died on November 21. And I feel like I've lost half of my audience. He never left a comment. I don't even think he realized he could, but it took him so long to type that he probably wouldn't have bothered anyway. But I know he was reading about his little buddy.

Even as we deal with our grief, my precious little boy is showing me so much about losing our Paw-Paw. Every time we get in the car, he says, "Nanny. Paw-Paw." (Because we visited so often while Paw-Paw was sick, Tyler began to associate car rides with going to their house.) Then he tells me, "Paw-Paw heaven." And he blows kisses toward the sky.

And sometimes I cry. And sometimes I smile. But I always encourage him to keep kissing Paw-Paw. And I hope Paw-Paw can see all these kisses.

As for me, I'll keep writing. For you guys. And for me. I love looking back through old entries, realizing how much Tyler has changed or laughing at something I would've forgotten if I hadn't blogged about it for Grandma and Paw-Paw.

And I'll keep loving my Paw-Paw and knowing how proud he would be if he could see his little buddy.

Mothers: Do you remember?

My submission for the Mother Letter project:

Dear Mother,

Do you remember the first time you breathed in that sweet baby breath? Do you remember how your back ached because you forgot to settle comfortably in the chair before you fed your little one and you wouldn’t move because your comfort had become a secondary consideration? Do you remember the first time you slept 5 hours straight — and the panic you felt as you rushed to check on your little one?

Do you remember the first time you felt your heart contract with love for your child? I do. My Tyler was 2 months old, and he’d just woken up from a nap. He smiled his first “real” smile at me, for me. And I fell ever so much deeper in love.

Do you remember the first time you heard “Mama”? I was “Babu” for a few weeks, but it sounded just as sweet!

Do you remember the first time you heard “I love you”? My Tyler is 2 years old, and he said “Wub Mama” for the first time yesterday. Of course, he also “wubs” his trains! And he "ugs" (hugs) the trains before he "ugs" me! But that is okay, as long as he keeps asking me to "ug" him.

Aren’t they wonderful, delightful creatures? May our hearts always contract with love at their smiles. May we always delight in their hugs and kisses. May our love — and theirs — continue to grow.

It is so amazing to realize that as much as we love these young children, we barely know the people they will become. Think of all the memories we have to look forward to!

Blessings,
Jaime

Puppies, Skeletons and Monkeys, OH MY!

Lessons learned: Always try hand-me-down Halloween costumes on weeks before Halloween!

Apparently, Travis was a little shorter when he wore the puppy costume.

Luckily we had a Plan B.

Back in the car, our little skeleton was very proud of his night's earnings.
Half a pumpkin of candy and only two houses.

And just for fun, remember the cute little monkey from last Halloween?
Can you believe how much they change in a year?

Toddlers do not belong in the kitchen.

I'm nursing a sore throat and decided to treat myself to a cup of hot chocolate. Nevermind it is 75 degrees and I'm running all the fans in the house.

I heat the milk, stir in the packet of chocolate and go look for marshmallows in the pantry. Of course, Tyler climbed up on a chair and stuck his finger in the hot drink. At least he's learning about "hot" without actually hurting himself, right?

I got sidetracked and let the drink cool down more than I intended. I finished it off rather quickly since it wasn't very hot. It wasn't until the last couple of swallows that I noticed a definite peppermint flavor. Now, this is a ceramic coffee mug, not plastic, but I still began to wonder if the mug had absorbed some of the flavor from my mom's peppermint tea or something.

It wasn't until I rinsed the cup out that I realized the glob of chocolate at the bottom was NOT undissolved hot chocolate mix but a Junior Mint that Tyler had tossed into the cup.

Cursing you hippie moms!

Yes, Melissa, I mean you.

We have the house to ourselves, Tyler and I. So he's been naked for about 2 hours. It really does help with the potty-training.

But no one has ever told me what to do when the naked 2-year-old falls asleep on the sofa immediately after drinking a cup of apple juice!!!

Want to place bets on whether he wakes up when I get the diaper? How long to you think I have until he's good and asleep?

Tyler's 2nd Birthday

Marshmallow Elephants!
(If you've seen Tyler make an elephant noise, you know why. Precious!)

They don't always like each other, but they love each other!

10 p.m. on a Monday night

Jennifer goes upstairs to get ready for bed.

Over the baby monitor, Brian and I hear Jennifer dropping something or throwing something.

I am thinking awful thoughts about my sister being so loud when she knows Tyler is not sound asleep yet.

Then we hear Jennifer: "Jaime, you have a naked little boy up here."

Apparently all that crashing around was Tyler opening his bedroom door... After he'd stripped off his pajamas and left his diaper laying in the middle of the floor. Luckily Jennifer was concerned about all the noise and went to check on Tyler, whom she found walking down the hall. Naked. With two stuffed puppies.