Waving and blowing kisses!

Tyler, just have to add a few things you are doing that is so fun! Your wave is the cutest! You usually wave bye and youwave to yourself. You have started waving by shaking your hand back and forth to say hi and bye. It is so sweet! Just yesterday morning, you blew me kisses when I dropped you off! I blow you a kiss all the time and it is so sweet to have you do it back! I am so excited for your first Christmas! Lots of excitement to come this weekend! Love you baby girl!

Busy girl on the go!

Tyler, it is my New Year's resolution to keep updated on your blog, so why wait...I am starting now! As I type you are playing here in front of me and I cannot believe how much you grow every single day!  Right now you are full of giggles.  You love especially when Daddy tickles you...I've never heard you giggle and laugh so much!  You are really starting to mimic everything we do more and more.  Daddy taught you to make noises with your tongue and mouth.  It is so cute to watch you!  You squeal when you get excited and it makes me want to squeal too...because it is so cute!  You are walking like crazy! I think in the past week, I have only seen you crawl once!  Ahhh...I think that means you are quickly moving out of baby stage and into toddler stage!  I am not sure I am ready to say that I have a toddler?!  You follow us all around the house.  Every once in a while I will catch you off playing by yourself and I just stand back and watch you.  I love to see you explore and discover the world around you!  You are quite inquisitive...always taking in every little thing!  This time of year always seems to go fast, but this year I think it is in double speed.  I have really made myself slow down and just enjoy every moment I have with you and not get caught up in perfection.  It is amazing how things just last year at this time seemed so important and now today I would never rank things such as shopping for every little thing as that.  Spending time with you is way more important.  Wow, I used to think I was a home body, but now I KNOW I am!  And that is completely fine with me!  A night in with you is always fun to me! 

You love to hear music and singing and you add your own little dance too!  You love to clap, patty cake, roll em, itsy bitsy spider, wheels on the bus!  All your favorites!  You adore all little kids, they always get a smile out of you and more recently that little squeal of yours!  You have now been to two Hornet basketball games and you just clap to the cheerleaders, the band, and with the crowd!  You are definitely full of life little girl!  I am definitely looking forward to being home with you for a week next week, however, I am scared for what Daddy is going to have to deal with when I have to go back in January...I'm afraid I will be quite the mess!  I am looking forward to some much needed snuggle time, play time, singing, dancing, and learning! 

You will be 11 months old next week, so planing for your first birthday is definitely in full swing!  I am so excited to make a fun and memorable party for you!  This week will be your first of many Christmases.  I am looking forward to making and celebrating traditions with you, but most importantly teaching you about our Lord and His love for you!  I once read a statement from another mother about getting so worried about everything being perfect and worrying about useless details and getting upset when things don't go perfect, but then her daughter started singing Jesus Loves Me and she knew that the whole time she was beating herself up about not being a perfect mother, she realized in that moment that maybe she hadn't failed after all.  I sing this to you all the time, because this is what I want you to know first and foremost, Jesus!  If I know you know Jesus, I think I will have succeeded as a mother.  I know Jesus has blessed us beyond what we deserve by bringing you into our lives!  You are the most special person to your Daddy and I!  We love you beyond our imagination! 

10months!

Tyler, you were 10 months old on Nov. 28th! Wow! Every milestone with you amazes me and gets me emotional...but something about saying I have a 10 month old doesnt seem like I have a baby but more of a toddler! Especially since you are walking like crazy everywhere!  You are in to everything and make me a nervous wreck!  You want to put everything in your mouth, you try to pull out every plug and touch every outlet...ahh!  We put up all of our christmas decor and trees and you have done really much better than I expected with leaving them alone.  I bought a gate and everything, but have not needed it.  Every once in a while you will go over to touch an ornament or want to taste it..ha!  While I was decorating you just played with ribbon...I can't wait for the many years to come to make more of these memories with you!  We took our own pictures of you this month and they turned out great!  We sent out our first Christmas cards with you on it and it looks adorable! 

Exciting things going on:  You had your 1st Thanksgiving!  You loved the potatoes!!!  It was a long day/weekend for you, but you did pretty good. You loved all of the play time you had with your cousins Alex and Ethan! 

Your schedule:  You have not been the best sleeper lately.  First I think it started with teeth, but then you got a cold and I think you could not breathe!  Now Mommy has it too, so I know how you have been feeling and it is miserable!  You go to bed around 10 lately and get up around 1 and want to be held the rest  of the night.  Last night was the first night we have not had to hold you through the night in a while.  I love rocking you and holding  you, but not getting a good night's sleep night after night and then having to go to work is wearing on me!  You take a morning and afternoon nap, usually at least an hour each.  Sometimes you have an evening nap for about 30 min.  I try not to let you have this, but you are so hard to keep awake when you are determined to sleep!

You still eat a bottle in the morning and then fruit/cereal, veggies twice, and then a night time bottle.  I am thinking I need to change this, but haven't decided how I want to yet.

You weigh about 22 pounds.  I think right on track! 

We are so excited for your first Christmas!  We have not gone to see Santa yet, because you came home with your first black eye on your eyelid from the babysitter Thursday...ugh!  Poor baby!  It looks like I took purple eyeshadow across your eye. She hit her tooth on your eyelid.  She said you didn't even cry, which I can't believe because it looked like it hurt!  We have tried on your Christmas dress and attire and it is so cute on you!  I can't wait to take pictures of you! 

Tyler, you are our world and your Daddy and I love you so much!  I cannot imagine life without you!  My whole outlook on life has changed because of you and I wouldn't want it any other way!  Your smile makes us smile, your laugh makes us laugh!  I miss you when I am away from you and can never get home to you soon enough!  I love making memories with you as a family!  You continue to amaze us each day with how much you are growing and developing (slow down!)  This is only for a season, so I try to soak up every moment I possibly can!  Thank you for bringing us so much joy!  We love you dearly and wish the world for you!  Love you to the moon, Mommy and Daddy