What the?!

Dinner tonight involved marinara sauce . . .

Can you tell?! I just can't seem to resist these messy face photo-ops!

It was all fun and games til her eyes started

to burn from marinara poisoning!

Poor Baby.

Thanksgiving Fun!

We had a great Thanksgiving this year.

Family, food, and fun.

What more could you ask for?

Silly boys!! Can you tell how

picky Skyler is?

He ate a roll, and lucky for him

his grandma kindly made him

some easy mac. Ha Ha! ;)

Followed by some traditional

Thanksgiving Ice Cream.

And Taylee was spoiled with an
early Christmas gift.
And LOTS of playtime!
I don't think Paw Paw

quite fits in her house.

Kent needed to burn some calories
with an after-dinner workout.
Much to Taylee's enjoyment!

Silly Girl

It's been awhile since I posted, so here are some random silly shots.

Apparently 3D glasses are WAY fun!

She spilled some water on the floor -

Then tried to lick it up like a doggy.

Um . . . Gross.

Tubby Time!

And the little smartie covers herself so I

don't get arrested for child pornography.

New exciting developments -

*The word "No!" Used in the proper context. :)

We are still hoping for a few more "meaningful" words.

*A newfound LOVE for Sesame Street.

*Taylee can now jump on command.

Which is really just her bending then

quickly straightening her knees.

It's VERY cute.

Coming Soon . . . To a Mailbox Near You!

For the first time in my life, I am going to send out Christmas cards. I know, seriously. Yes, seriously. I don't know why I've never done it, I just haven't. So, now that I have two fun and frisky kiddos, it's time. We went for a little family photo shoot with Mark and Amber last weekend, and ended up with some decent shots. Help me pick which one to use for our card . . .

No 1

No 2
No 3

Halloween

Ok, these are my comments on Halloween. First, her costume is up for debate. No, it didn't have a name when I bought it. I thought it was a fairy. Due to the lack of wings, Kent said she was a wood nymph (?!). And Grandma, well she thought she was a flower. I think any of the above are reasonable guesses. Wanta take a shot? The other thing is - we took at least 30 pictures of her on Halloween. She does NOT stay still, nor does she tolerate hats. These are the only 2 halfway decent photos of her costume. And what an interesting expression she has on her face. We had a fun afternoon and evening, visited some grandparents, and did just a little trick or treating. Whatever she was, she was a cutie. Happy Halloween!

Paw Paw's Birthday

We celebrated Grandpa's birthday at Tepanyaki's this year. We were hopeful that Taylee would be impressed by the exciting cooking demonstration! Not so much. She was however, very impressed by the noodles.

As usual, we adults were impressed by the cooking demo, and Kent was the only one to succesfully catch the flying shrimp.

After dinner we enjoyed dessert at the restaurant, and again at home!! We love us some dessert! Happy Birthday Paw Paw! Love you

Backyard Football

Our house has recently become the sight of many an after school backyard football game. It's fun to have all the fun and excitement at our house. Skyler has only recently become a social butterfly, and we dig it. The only problem we've encountered is feeding this hoard of hungry teenage boys. These football games were originally tackle football, but since the inclusion of Skyler's friend JR (who is a little behind the others in the growth department), they've switched to flag football. Probably safer that way anyways. Unfortunately the flags they invested in tear about 4 times per game. Each one has been stapled back together multiple times. Taylee LOVES to stand on the back patio and watch the action. The boys call her the ref. She just likes the attention and excitement. Skyler is hoping to try out for the football team next year. I'm thinking he better hit the weight room! Maybe next fall we'll be enjoying some Friday Night Lights at Syracuse High . . .

15 Months

Taylee had her 15 month check-up today. She is a healthy girl, and she got a couple shots, as well as her flu shot. ;( The only major topic of discussion was our continued concern over her speech development. If, at 18 months, she still is not saying 3-5 meaningful words, the Dr wants us to pursue an additional avenue of speech therapy. (Besides Early Intervention). By meaningful words, she means saying mama and meaning me, or saying milk when she wants a drink, or hi when she sees someone. Currently she is saying a couple words, but it is basically just her babbling. She walks around saying no no, hi, and mama, but none of them at specific times or directed at specific things. They are just sounds she makes, with no more meaning than ga ga goo goo. Don't be confused though, she definitely knows how to communicate. She uses a series of grunts, whining, and pointing to tell us EXACTLY what she wants. Maybe I am enabling her by being TOO responsive to her needs? Anyways, she is doing well, and as always, Dr. Strasser likes to comment on how much personality she has. I take this as a compliment . . .

And the stats (for posterities sake)
Height: 30.4 inches - 49th %
Weight: 21 lbs 6.5 oz - 27th %
Head 44.6 - 16th %

Hoarder?

I think Taylee may be a hoarder in the making.

When she gets up from her naps she insists on

grabbing every single blanket from the chest

next to her crib. Then she goes to her closet

and collects 2 or 3 stuffed animals.

She gets very upset if you take her

from her room before this ritual is complete.

She has also found a corner of the living room

where she likes to stash her toys.

Then she sits among them and surrounds herself.

It's pretty funny.

Here she is with a few of her favorites.

Yogurt Anyone??

Taylee has some texture issues with feeding. We try to follow the advice of the developmental therapists, and let her play with her food sometimes. This goes against our instincts.

Hmmm, I wonder why . . .

I'm not so sure it's helping, but she sure has fun!