Go Cubs Go!!

Mike went out of town last night for his fantasy baseball draft so I snuck out and bought Tyler his first Cubs outfit! As you can tell, he really liked it (and he looked super cute in it too)!

Finally....some new pictures!

I've been getting a lot of requests for updated pictures of Tyler. I've been trying to take pictures but he gets camera-shy. He'll usually be in a big smile and then once he sees the flash he opens his eyes really wide and gets this completely dumbfounded looking face. I got lucky the other night after he ate a big container of carrots (notice his face is stained orange) and tonight during tummy time and bedtime. Enjoy!

Tyler loves eating his veggies!

Getting to be such a big boy!

Flirting with the camera!

Tyler just loves tummy time now!

We have such a good sleeper. We can put him into his crib while he's still awake and he'll soothe himself to sleep. And he's been consistently sleeping through the night for over 2 weeks now!

Happy Five-Month Birthday Tyler!

Happy five-month birthday to you
Happy five-month birthday to you
Happy five-month birthday dear Tyler
Happy five-month birthday to you!

Many more birthdays to you
Many more birthdays to you
Many more birthdays dear Tyler
Many more birthdays to you!

Whoa! Tyler is five months old! Sounds so much older than four months, I think just because I know next month is six months! Aside from a slight illness (Tyler had a cold this month that gave him a high fever), this has been a very fun month indeed! Tyler has really enjoyed starting solid foods this month. We started with rice cereal which Tyler really liked from the start. He has also tried most of the veggies now. He seems to like them all but the peas. Next we are on to the fruits! I am sure he will love those sweet tastes. The solid foods have helped Tyler in sleeping through the night more consistently. He isn’t waking up for his middle-of-the-night feeding much now, which we LOVE!! We have really seen Tyler’s personality develop this month. He is very giggly and silly and he’s a huge flirt with the ladies! He’s also really starting to reach and grab things now--especially his spoon and bottle. He's getting to be very strong. When we put him on tummy he is starting to scoot backwards. It's so cool to watch him develop a little more every day. Unfortunately, I don't have any new pictures to share but I'll try to keep them coming throughout the next month!

More Icky Sickies

Well March isn't bringing any better luck to the Ellsworths trying to stay healthy. Tyler made another unplanned visit to his pediatrician today, this time after spiking a temp of 102.8 last night. His doc said that Tyler has a viral sore throat which is causing him to spike a fever. Not strep throat though, so that's a good thing at least.

The doctor also told us that Tyler is ready to start eating his veggies so we tried green beans tonight for the first time. You can tell from the pictures how Tyler liked them....although I think he managed a few swallows after all the gags.
"Eewww....that's NOT my cereal!"

"So I'll pout about it."

"This is much more my style! And look I can hold my own bottle now!"

Good thing February is the shortest month....

...because at least one of us has been sick every day this month--literally! We started the month with Tyler getting sick with RSV. He recovered quickly, within a week, but then Mike and I both got colds or upper respiratory infections that lasted about two weeks. I actually lost my voice from it and still don't feel 100%. Now Mike has come down with the flu for the second time this year (we both had it in January). So Tyler is spending another weekend with his Grandma and Grandpa Ellsworth in attempt to keep him healthy! I really hope March brings better health for all of us!

Yummy Yummy!

More firsts for Tyler!! First time sitting in his high chair and first bites of solid foods. The doctor told us to feed Tyler cereal when he's hungry so he'll be more apt to take it but he doesn't know our little guy very well. Anyone who knows Tyler knows he doesn't mess around when it comes to mealtime (the apple doesn't fall far from the tree, if you you know what I mean!) so our first attempt didn't go very well! Instead of swallowing, he just cried and let the cereal run out of his mouth. So we've now figured out that he needs his bottle first, then the cereal and it's going much better! Here are some pictures from the first unsuccessful feeding to tonight's very successful feeding! Enjoy!

First picture of Tyler in his high chair--not happy

Tyler's first bite of cereal--what you don't see is the scream that followed

Second attempt--Getting a little happier, smiling at Daddy

Tonight--Tyler says "Feed me or I'll eat this bib!"

"What?!"

"Here's a bite!"

"Whoa, that's good stuff!"

"Yummy Yummy!"

On a different note, Mike has been very busy and involved with work. He was busy all last month interviewing potential candidates to fill two teller positions and has spent a good part of this month training them. He had the credit union's annual meeting Saturday afternoon (that's where he went all jazzed up in the picture below). Tonight he is at a conference here in Bloomington and in March he'll be going to Chicago for another conference. I'm having a hard time keeping track of him these days!

My hubba hubba hubby!

Happy Four-Month Birthday Tyler!

Happy four-month birthday to you
Happy four-month birthday to you
Happy four-month birthday dear Tyler
Happy four-month birthday to you!

Many more birthdays to you
Many more birthdays to you
Many more birthdays dear Tyler
Many more birthdays to you!

Wow! Where does time go? Tyler is already 4-months old! Memories of being on bed rest in September seem so long forgotten yet still so vivid in my mind. When I look back at pictures of him from the early days or when I see a newborn baby, it's so hard to fathom that he was ever that teeny-tiny!

Tyler has really changed a lot this month, both physically and developmentally. We took Tyler to his 4-month well-baby check-up today and were shocked to hear he weighs 15 lbs even (placing him in the 50th percentile) and is 24 1/2 inches long (placing him in the 45th percentile)! His pediatrician said you wouldn't even know he was a preemie because he's all caught to where he should be! The formula just doesn’t seem to be cutting it anymore for Tyler (he wants to eat 6-8 ounces every 3 or 4 hours) so the doctor gave the okay to start giving him cereal. We are anxious to see how he does with a spoon! We'll be sure to have the camera out for his first real meal! Developmentally, we’ve really enjoyed watching Tyler hit many milestones this month. He has now discovered that he has hands and that he can explore his world and learn with them. He is putting his hands together, putting them in his mouth and grasping objects placed in his hands. He has also started reaching out for things he wants to hold. Tyler has finally started to enjoy his tummy time, which led to his first time rolling over on January 27th. We also got to enjoy his first time sleeping through the night on January 31st with a repeat on February 15th. He continues to smile and laugh constantly when we're being silly with him or for no reason at all. From a speech pathologist's standpoint, I am pleased to say he has started vocalizing some consonant sounds (/b/, /m/ , and /n/ mostly) and he's starting to string them together with vowel sounds to make some beautiful baby babble! He is also gurgling and blowing raspberries to express his delight!

I've been posting more pictures this month so I don't have many to share today. I have been saving this one to share because it's my favorite from the month! I have this picture on the bulletin board right above my desk at work. When I look into Tyler's big blue eyes, I feel like he's saying "Hurry up and finish your work Mom, so you can come play with me!" I just love it!