The tummy bug monster has been visiting Kennedy Rd, first Tyler then Chris. I've managed to avoid it so far *touches wood*

As with everywhere, it's been pretty cold down here, but luckily no snow at all. Here's Tyler looking very styly in a lovely 'jerwy' knitted by Granna. And Sting colours too! :)

I have my final exam for HRM next Tuesday - eeek! It's definitely a LOT harder to study with a wee man around. So much more fun playing with him. ;)

Yesterday was Anton's 14th birthday. Chris had rugby at Gore and then we planned to go out for tea (Anton's choice). However Chris buggered his shoulder at rugby, so we got lots of takeaways and a yummy cheesecake, a couple of DVD's and a PS2 game and partied at home instead.

Here are the two bros hangin' out...

And here's Tyler in his favourite reading spot

Poor wee man is sick, has some kind of tummy bug :( He stayed home with Chris yesterday and seemed to have come right during the day, but went downhill again overnight. This morning he is just sleeping on the couch and drinking water when he wakes.

He is going through a polite phase and says 'Kankoo' and 'Peeees'. If he wants me to get out of bed he will drag my dressing-gown over and push at me saying "kankoo" until I get up. He also says 'K' for OK.

Tyler's routine for having his bedtime bottle has been to say "Bawli" (bottle) and then climb onto the sofa and recline against one end until ones of his slaves brings it to him. He has now decided the couch is not suitable and makes us pull out the Lazyboy and pop the footrest up, then he climbs up and sits back like Lord Muck until the bottle arrives. When finished he says very imperiously 'Finee now' and holds out the empty bottle until a slave takes it away.

Goaty died yesterday :( He managed to get his rope caught on something. It won't be the same without him, he was a real character.

This picture is of the mark left when Tyler got bitten by another kid at daycare :(

And this one I call 'Mr Grumpy'. He often goes to sleep like this!

We spent last weekend in Queenstown, as it was Melanie and Greg's wedding. We had a good time although it was freezing. Tyler cut 2 more molars this week and has also been suffering from a cold, so stayed home with Daddy today. Now Mumy is getting the cold!

Looks like winter is on it's way, it was very cold and rainy today. Tyler had a dose of hand, Foot & Mouth last week, which is common amongst pre-schoolers and toddlers. Fortunately it wasn't a bad dose.

I'm going to try and add a link to the little bit of video I took of him saying "I don't know". Look for the link on the right hand side of this screen.

Milestone moment yesterday - Tyler said his first sentence! He came to show me something and whatever it was (a piece of fluff I think) dropped onto the floor. So I said "Where is it?" and he replied, clear as a bell "I don't know". I nearly fell off my chair! And best thing of all, I managed to capture it on video because he repeated it each time I asked the question. And all accompanied by a palms up gesture and shrugging of shoulders. Too cute :)

And this morning when he had finished his breakfast he said "Finished now".

We've had a lovely Easter, although Chris started work on Sunday, which meant that we missed Leona's birthday so HAPPY BIRTHDAY LEONA!!

Tyler and I popped up to Dunedin on Sunday and stayed with Rachel, Chris and Samantha. The kids played very well together and we got some great photos including this one of them kissing.

We also visited Grandma Holford - she is looking much better now, and Donna and Garry.

Today we put Tyler in a big bed for the first time...

Tyler has lots of words now. He calls Anton 'Budda' which we figured out means brother. He can name lots of body parts, and says book, pussy, bath, boody (ball - apparently that's what Anton used to call it as a toddler). His very favourite word though is No. Or more commonly Noooooooo! or Nononononono!!

He is getting quite good at feeding himself with a spoon although if it takes too long he resorts to fingers again.

He loves watching his 'Thomas the Tank Engine' DVD while having breakfast. His favourite songs are Incy Wincy Spider and Roll a Bobbin up, both complete with actions.

Well it's not being for lack of trying that we haven't posted for a while. Dang dial-up! And yes I know we could get broadband via sattelite but it's over $100 a month - thanks but no thanks.

Anyway, before it all craps out on me again, here's a pic I took the other day of Tyler eating spaghetti bolognaise. He starts off with a bowl and spoon and then gets impatient...

Quick post just to put up this photo taken tonight while T was watching the Commonwealth Games...

Nan (Rosina) was down last weekend from Christchurch, so it was lovely to see her. We went to tea at the Tin Shed Cafe where they now do a great buffet on a Sunday night.

Big bro Anton did really well in his speech exam. He stays with us 3/4 nights a week and Tyler thinks he is the bee's knees (or as Chris would say - the duck's nuts!).

Speaking of which, the ducks have taken up residence in the hen house, and we now have 2 pigs. Tyler is getting very good at imitating their grunts.

Modelling Daddy's watch

Tyler loves the mini-vac, only here he seems to have it confused with the telephone.

Mummy has been in the wars lately, first tearing her calf muscle playing touch (and with one Final still to be played!) and then having a scare with her left eye which was behaving as if the retina was torn or about to detach. All OK now though.

Here's Tyler having fun in the bath tonight. What a cheeky monkey!

Yesterday Chris and I went to a wedding so Belinda (daughter of one of the partners at PRLaw) came out home to babysit. She said Tyler was wonderful, so I hope she wasn't just being kind ;)

We are considering moving T to a 'big' bed, as we think maybe there are times when he wakes himself up banging against the bars of the cot.

Tyler, Anton and I went to the fair in Queen's Park on Saturday. T was too little for most things, but I was able to take him on one of the little jeeps. He thought that was pretty cool and randomly did the Queen's wave at people as went round! Not so happy when it was time to get off though. :) He is loving having his big bro Anton around.

He has been sleeping badly the last couple of nights. Not teething, not hyper on fizz so Aunty Helen's suggestion may correct, and he is having a growth spurt. He certainly feels heavier carting him around anyway.

Tomorrow he will be 18 months old! Where has the time gone??

Posted at 10:43pm, Tuesday 14th February 2006.

With the hot weather plus some showers, growth has been lush on the farmlet. Here are Tyler, Benji the goat and Milly the dog all getting lost in the dandelions.

Today Tyler had his first decent fall, running on the driveway. A bleeding nose (both nostrils) and a fat lip, plus a few abrasions on his toes. 'Special juice' (orange and water) had amazing restorative properties. :)

Posted Monday, 6 February 2006 at 9:43pm

Posted 28 January 2006 at 5:12pm

It's been a while between postings. Tyler has cut two molars and had a dose of champylobacter which was not pleasant.

Today we took advantage of the fantastic weather and went to the Edendale Crankup Day. This features vintages tractors, so Tyler was in his element.

Tyler was restless during the night so came and slept with us (as I started work today and needed the sleep). He spent the day with Chris and was a bit feverish, refusing food and wanting cuddles and sleep. He also had 'interesting' nappies. Lo and behold, tooth No. 7 has just poked it's head up! He's now a box of fluffies.

Totally zonked out! When he sleeps, he's all over the place.

Here he is just after daddy gave him a haircut with the new clippers (thank you Grandad & Jan).

He is a budding mechanic and loves to help Daddy do things to the cars and bikes.

Here's Tyler's 2005 Santa photo.

Yesterday we drove to Cromwll for their New Year touch tournament. We've played in it for the last 3 years. It was overcast and windy, but still warmish. Our team came second in it's grade, although we played 3 girls/3 guys whereas everyone else played 2 girls/4 guys. We lost the final 5-3.

We also stopped in to visit Chris' Uncle Ron and Aunty Noeline near Arrowtown. Tyler didn't sleep on the way home so was grumpy and overtired. I also think he is teething - this will be tooth number 7.

Posted at 1:11pm, Sunday 8 January 2005

On Monday Rachel, Chris & Samantha from Dunedin came for lunch. Tyler and Sam had a great time together, and both were pretty tired by the end of it all. Rachel is 12 weeks pregnant and glowing!

Tuesday, we went swimming with Helen, Stephen & Rebecca. Tyler was very reluctant at first, but finally decided that he wanted to join in the fun, and then demanded to be with Anton all the time, preferably at the deep end with lots of splashing :)

Tyler's latest word is 'tacta' for tractor. He is also very good at waving goodbye and saying 'ta-ta' and blowing kisses. His repertoire of animal noises has expanded to include 'bk bk' for the hens and 'ssss' for the snake. 'RRRRURRRR' for the lion is still the enthusiastic favourite.

Happy 92nd Birthday Great-Grandma in Dunedin!!

We went to Te Anau for New Year's. We stayed with Bruce and Ali, where Tyler had more fun on the four-wheeler, checking out the animals. We also visited Paul and Kirsty and their new baby Shelby, who is a wee darling.

We were all big Nanas and in bed by 11:3pm so did not even see the New Year in!

Back to Invercargill today. Rachel, Chris and Samantha from Dunedin are visiting tomorrow. Sam is 5 days older than Tyler.

And here I am with my new Playskool bus...'the wheels on the bus go 'round and 'round.....

Aunty Helen, Uncle Craig, Stephen and Rebecca visited today for afternoon tea. I got hungry, so Aunty gave me my bottle.

Posted at 5:52pm Thursday 29 December 2005

Posted at 9:11pm Christmas Day
We had a lovely Christmas day today. Tyler got lots of lovely presents, he particularly liked the little toy dog from G-Aunty Betty and G-Uncle Dennis and the DVD from Bel and Kim. Mummy and Daddy gave him his own little sofa to sit on......

We opened presents at Granna & Richard's in the morning, and had a wonderful Christmas dinner there - turkey and ham, new potatoes and of course plum pudding with custard and cream.

We had a BBQ tea at Helen and Craig's with Craig's family. Luckily Chris was able to finish work early and was home by 5pm.

This is what happens when Tyler feeds himself pizza! We are off to a Christmas Eve party and then home to sleep and hope that Santa visits :)

We're on the countdown to Christmas. Tyler is at daycare today, so Mummy and Daddy can do some shopping in peace :) Big bro Anton arrived last night and is with us for the holidays. AND he is moving down to Invercargill next year with his Mum and sister, so Tyler is very happy about that, cos he adores him!

The hot weather is great except it does make it a bit hard for a wee boy to sleep at night. In fact he's running around outside with Daddy right now and it's 9:15pm!!

He now has his first pair of shorty 'jamas. So cute :)

Tyler now has his sixth tooth, so he has four at the top and two at the bottom. Here he is reading in bed with Daddy. Get a load of that bed-head hair!

Here's Tyler helping Daddy tune up the four-wheeler.

Last night he had a great sleep, from 8:30pm - 6:30am. And tonight he went down at 7:15pm!!!

Tyler's preferred method of transport :)

Here's Daddy reading Tyler a bedtime story.

A big couple of days for Mr Tyler.

Yesterday he had his 15-month immunisations. He had a good scream with the MMR one, and the injection site is all red and swollen today, although he doesn't appear bothered by it. He was grizzly afterwards and was in bed asleep at 7:30pm which is a record for him! :)

Today he had his 15 month Plunket check. He is 11.66kg and 82cm tall. No other dramas and of course they were all smiles because he is still being b/fed.

He has also cut his 5th tooth, in the top gum.

It's birthday week in the McLeod family. On Friday we celebrated Granna's birthday. She had a lovely dinner out with Richard and then we all had cake and coffee and lots of other yummy things at Helen & Craig's.

Today is Grandad's birthday but he is in Rangiora so that's a bit far to go for cake and coffee :)

Tomorrow is someone else's birthday but we won't mention that will we? ;)

Tyler has a mirror in his room on which we have stuck the painted wooden letters of his name that he was given by Aunty Leona for his birthday. He now says 'Ta-ta' every time we point to his name. His favourite game at the moment is 'Ouch' which consists of him bouncing up and down on Daddy or Mummy's tummy making them say 'Ouch' very loudly (especially if they have just had tea).

Isn't this a lovely photo of Tyler and his Daddy?

As promised, some more photos from the party.... cousin Kim and Nathan as Bonnie & Clyde and big brother Anton as Sherlock Holmes.

A lovely day, where we all just pottered around the farmlet, riding the four-wheeler, and the new dirt-bike. Pop and Ali visited too. We had tea at the local pub.

In an effort to tire Mr Toad and make him sleepy, we went for a big long walk around the farmlet after we got home last night. And it was working until at 8:30pm when he was almost asleep, someone knocked on the door to say that Benji the baby goat was running down the road. Grrr, I wonder what goat steaks are like? So it was 9:45pm before he was down, but on the plus side he slept right through till 7:15am. I bought the book 'No-Cry Sleep Solution' so will be interested to see what help I can find in that.

He is going through a clingy stage at the moment, and doesn't like me leaving him at daycare.

Mr Toad is at it again *sigh* Not asleep until 10:30pm. I blame Daddy though. Just as Tyler was starting to nod off at about 9pm, Daddy comes home from work and whisks him off outside to check the livestock. Guaranteed to wake up a small boy get him bouncing off the walls again.

Ah well, at least he slept right through, in fact I had to wake him at 7:30am. Found him upside down in his cot, on top of the covers with his head jammed in the corner.

Just a quick post and a of photo from Pop's (Chris' Dad, Bruce) 60th birthday party in Te Anau on Saturday night. We went as Popeye, Olive Oyl and Swee'pea. Tyler's big bro Anton was Sherlock Holmes. The band played one song especially for 'the wee man in blue' - The Wheels on the Bus'. We'll post some more photos tomorrow.

Tyler the future Mozart Fellow

As you can see, Tyler was about to do some research in the Oxford Companion of Music. That's Mum's boy :) Actually his favourite books are Dear Zoo and Jungle Friends, both given to him by Granna. He especially likes the lion rrrroar!!

Managed to get Mr Toad to sleep by 9 last night and wonder of wonders he was asleep in bed by 8:15pm tonight! Transferred asleep from the car, but who cares?

We had a plan so cunning you could have put a tail on it and called it a weasel. Drive all the way to Tiwai to pick Daddy up from work so that Tyler will fall alseep in the car and can be put straight to bed. Hahahaha - NOT! So it was nearly 11pm before Mr Toad was finally asleep in his own bed. The bags under my eyes are so big I could pack lunch for four in them. :\

Here's a pic of Tyler brusing his teeth.....all four of them.

Last night he didn't go to sleep till 10:30pm. Mummy and Daddy spent all evening trying to stop him bouncing off the walls and wondered if someone had been secretly giving him orange fizz!

Frankie, T's pet lamb died on Saturday, we're not sure why. Fortunately T doesn't seem to have noticed he is missing. Benji the baby goat is still leaping around though.

Yesterday we bought him a little plastic lawnmower so he can follow Daddy around pretending to cut the grass. We got it at the Warehouse and he insisted on pushing it all the way to the checkouts, taking many unplanned diversions on the way. As the toy department was at the opposite end of the building to the checkouts, this was a loooooong journey. :)

Hello and welcome to Tyler's blog. We can't promise to post daily, as Tyler isn't very good at typing just yet, but we'll try and be regular.

Yesterday he got his first pair of shoes, some summer sandals. He did NOT like wearing them to start with and when we finally persuaded him to try and walk in them, he walked like a sumo wrestler!