Ty really wants to cuddle. The problem? He would have to sit still and he just can’t do it. :). Last night he was so tired and he was sitting in Jim’s lap. He kept laying his head on daddy’s chest but then would lift his head to grin at Jim. Over and over and over this went. I could tell he wanted to relax in daddy’s embrace but he couldn’t keep himself from interacting.

At the moment, Ty actually has a very short leash to Jim and I. Most kids go through the separation anxiety stage at an earlier age but both mine waited a bit. Ty is bcoming very very co-dependant right now. In the evening, it seems he is never more than 13 inches away from me. This goes on for hours. He wants to be wherever I am and can’t concentrate on play because he just wants to be with mama. This is actually getting very difficult because this means mommy can’t concentrate on anything either because TyJo is climbing all over me, trying to take whatever is in my hand, sitting on lap, using me as a playgym, wanting me to read books, and even sitting on my lap and placing his face in front of mine so that if I try to look around him, he moves his head and blocks my view. He wants my FULL attention all evening. I am wanting him to start playing a little more independantly but at the moment he seems far off from that.

On Monday I left Ty with Jim to go pick up dinner. Jim was in the playroom playing with Tanner when I left and Ty had followed me to the front door. He started crying his eyes out when he realized I was leaving. As I closed the door I noticed he was holding his breath. I waited a few seconds before coming back in. By the time I got to him his lips were blue and I was throwing him in the air. He hasn’t come close to a pass out spell in awhile.

I made a big mistake by decapouging my BSF notebook with family pictures. Now I really struggle to do my BSF homework because Ty wants to get in my lap and study my notebook every morning. Today I did my study outside so that Ty was distracted. Worked well but it was quite hot out there still.

All you people that live in the colder climates and have green yards…I am sooooo jealous! Heidi’s mom is getting ready to move to Illinois and the backyard of the home they are looking at is like a wonderland! I dream of green!!!! My backyard is still not landscaped and is ugly brown dirt. Boys are happy with that but mamma hates it. I want grass but Jim doesn’t want to mow it and I can’t because I am allergic to grass so cutting it makes me really sick. Wish we could afford a backyard full of fake grass. They have some really nice stuff! Maybe even just a portion of it? I would love a beautifully landscaped back yard and I really really really want a jacuzzi with a gazebo someday!!!! They aren’t as scary to me as pools because you can padlock them when not in use. While I am dreaming, I would also love a reading gazebo. Not that you can make much use of it April through September, but the other half of the year I could enjoy it. I am daydreaming and need to get back on task…

My Climber
Remember a while back I was concerned about the open wall space behind my couch? I was afraid Ty would climb on top? He hasn’t done that but nearly climbed into my kitchen by way of the kitchen wall opening! My kitchen is gated so he can’t get in HOWEVER my recliner sits near the kitchen wall and above it is a 4×4 open cut out in the wall above my kitchen sink. Ty climbs up my recliner, leans the back against the wall so he has a ramp and leans over the cut out into the kitchen. Pretty freaky to turn around and be eye to eye with your one year old!

He also did a back flip over the arm of that chair this week. Scared me to death! He landed square on his hand and barely even cried.

Disneyland

We are excitely planning our December trip but I am starting to be concerned about one aspect. I mentioned recently that Ty is scared to death of Tanner’s T-Rex. He will lay prostrate screaming when that dinosaur is turned on. You can overexpose it to him for a few days and he’ll get over it but than when it reaapears later you have to start the conditioning process all over. (Same story as the glowbaby but worse). It occured to me that Ty’s problem may be sensory overload. I suspect he has some sensory issues common to micro preemies and I wonder if this is an extension of it. It isn’t any one thing that scares Ty, it is the combination of movement, sound, and lights. This does not look good for the animated world of Disney does it? Ty’s PT suggested I take him to Chucky Cheese’s and see how he does with the animated characters there. They don’t really “light up” though. I think he would be okay with the characters themselves but if we took him on Peter Pan’s Flight (for example), I am concerned the movement, the sound, and the lighting will scare him to pieces. If that turns out to be the case, I’ll be very glad that other family members are going so that we can rotate our ride experience 🙂 . I am a junky for amusement parks and it’s been years since I got to ride anything fun at Disney. My last Disney trip was when I was early in pregnancy with Tanner (we were celebrating), so I could only ride on the kiddie stuff.

Also, I am a bit dissapointed that we won’t have 2 weeks for this trip due to Jim’s new job. We have decided (I think) to purchase City Passes so we will be going to 3 days at Disney/California Adventure, 1 day at Seaworld, 1 day at the San Diego Zoo, and 1 day at Knottsberry Farm. Probably is WAY over doing it but Jim and I have looked forward to this much needed vacation for a long time so we are just going to go for it!

Other reasons that I am considering a sensory issue: (a) doesn’t respond much to temperature (hot vs cold). (b) still has a bit of texture aversion (c) very high pain tolerance (d) can’t seem to concentrate in a very stimulating environment – too easily distracted by stimulas. (e) the above sensory overload issue (I made that word up I think) (f) has been covering his ears to sound some. Not because things are too loud, more an issue of too much noise or noise he doesn’t like.

Screaming

Okay all you mom’s out there….I need to know…how do you stop toddlers from screaming? This is driving me CRAZY!!!! I am open to your suggestions! Tanner didn’t do this so this is new for me. Ty doesn’t cry – he just YELLS when he is aggravated. I have tried seperating him from the room we are in so that he doesn’t get the attention he is after and I have tried the playpen or changing his scenery. When he gets determined about something though he just lets you know it. Yesterday Papa made the mistake of letting Ty type on his computer. When it was time to quit, Ty started screaming and screamed for darn near 15 minutes over that dumb computer. Aaaghhhhh!!!!!

Walking

No change. He walks with his hands high above his head like a little monkey 🙂 . He is choosing to walk between more furniture on his own but he still won’t walk much more than 6 feet and he will only walk that far if he is being encouraged to. He still cannot go from a sit to a stand on his own (meaning from the center of the room with nothing to hold on to). He also can’t stand still for more than a couple seconds or he will lose his balance.

Talking

Here is an updated word list. Did I remember all the words?

Daddy, Mommy, Tanner, Papa, Jodi, No No, Ya Ya Ya, Um Um, Hi, Bye Bye, Me Me Me, Baby

Recent additions: Nigh Nigh (he gets paranoid that it is Nigh Nigh time everytime we go into his room for anything); Uppa – we have heard him say this a couple of times for “up”; and this week “A-meh” for Amen!

Signing

Please, More, Bye, Eat, Drink, All Done, Blows Kiss

Teeth

Ty has had his top 4 and bottom 4 for quite awhile. This week he started getting his 4 molars in – all at the same time. Two have broken skin and the other two are about too. He has had a real runny nose which I thought was from teething but Tanner started it too so I guess they both have a cold. Calling the Dr. today to find out about this years RSV shot for Ty.