Hungry Pelican or Hungry Taft?

Today it is raining and Taft and I are staying in if possible. He loves to be outside so it is hard to not be able to take him. While I was taking a shower I heard Shelby bark (which almost always means that the doorbell is ringing). When I got out I checked the front door and there was a package from Gran. Taft was very happy to see a new toy. The Hungry Pelican. It is a very cute crib toy that has little shrimp, fish, and crabs to "feed" the pelican. I showed him how to do it and he caught on pretty quick. The only problem is that I think he ate all the pelicans food!

He must like shrimp!

Taft trying to eat the pelican
Gotta have a crab dinner

One happy little boy!

First Swing!

Taft went to his first birthday party today. He was invited to our friend Emma's 5th birthday party at the park. This was also his first trip to the park. He always likes to be outside and to see other kids. This was the place for him. There were kids and babies everywhere and the kiddie park is beside the dog park. We had a constant show of dogs of all kinds and sizes.

Shane and I spotted the baby swing as soon as we got the pavilion and waited until it came available. I wasn't sure that he would like it but we thought that we would give it a try since he is sitting good on his own now. He loved it from the first push and as you can see he knew that the camera was on him. I have to say that he has a great personality and a lot of it!

Emma seemed to love her party also and she really racked up on the great gifts.

Happy Birthday Emma!

Finally - Our first toothy!

Getting a picture of Taft's new toothy has not been easy. If you get your finger close to his mouth to open it up, he covers the tooth with his tongue everytimg. Since he is loving the camera this weekend I was hoping that he would help me out. Thank goodness for that huge smile of his. You can barely see the front bottom tooth but it is there. The one next to it is also there but has not quite broken the skin yet. Our little man is getting so big so quick. I think that he must have had a lot of resolutions that he is working on! =)

Happy Birthday Isabel!

Last night, our friends, Sam and Olivia, came over to go eat Japanese. We always enjoy being with them and their girls, Angel and Isabel. It was also a special day because it was Isabel's 2nd birthday. After dinner they sang happy birthday to her and brought her an ice cream sundae. When we got home to our house, Taft changed into his jammies (since his bedtime is earlier than the big girls =) )and they all played in his room with his fun little toys. Here are just a few photos of them together. As you can see, Taft has discovered what a camera is!

Taft, Angel, and Isabel

Sweet little kiddies

Poor Shelby!

I have never professed that Shelby was the smartest dog on the block and I think that you will be able to see why. She is a very sweet, loving dog and almost never barks. But - for some reason - she decided to eat her tail. On Thursday night she was chewing on herself like she seems to do at times. I was on the computer and she was in her bed beside me. I got tired of hearing the chewing so I told her to stop. When I looked over there I saw that there was blood shed. She had chewed until the hair was out and she was taking off skin. Why you ask? The vet said that some dogs are just stupid and chew on themselves not knowing that they are making it worse instead of better. Shane had to take her to the emergency vet since it was of course after hours. She came home with this really attractive cone and two weeks of meds. Poor little girl.

Anything to Make Me Happy

Over the weekend, Taft has had a really hard time with teething. So far we have tried Motrin, Tylenol, Oragel, and frozen toothy rings. The Motrin seems to work the best since he has been running a fever between 99 and 101. The only thing that we could do last night to keep him happy was to take him outside for a ride in the jogger. Shane did the taking out while I mixed meds and worked on things in the house. He was out at 8 pm and 1 am. He finally went to bed at 3 am for his daddy while mommy got some sleep. We started the day at 6:30 in a pretty good mood. I am going to try to get the teething tablets today and give those a try. We would love to know what worked for your little ones before we lose our minds, =)

January Update!

We stayed in Alabama an extra day due to the fact that Taft was sick. Now I am not sure that he was really too sick. He had a runny, stuffy nose, a little fever, and could not sleep. We called the doctor and he told us what to do. The meds and vapor bath helped him and he was able to sleep. We headed back to Florida on Monday. On the trip home, I sat in the backseat beside him and noticed that there is a little tooth in the front bottom that was trying to get through the gum. Then today we saw that it has a little friend beside it. After talking to friends and family, it seems that all of his symptoms could have just been teething. He seems to be doing okay with it though. We just keep the Tylenol close by.

Also - he is beginning to sit up on his own. I'm so proud! I have been sitting with him between my legs giving him just a little support. Today I moved away while he was playing with his new Noah's Ark and found that he could do it all on his own. When he saw that I had the camera and not him, he did fall over. Just like a kid on a bike for the first time. =)

Happy Seven Months Old!

It is so hard for me to believe that Taft is already seven months old! It has all gone so fast. He is really starting to grow up. I know that he is at least 20 pounds now and he is wearing 9-12 month clothing and size 3 diapers. His hair has really started to come in great around the back and sides where it had all fallen out. He notices everything and squeals and screams at animals, children, and Moose A. Moose on Noggin. He loves that Moose!!
He is doing great with 3 meals of baby food a day and bottles in between. Sometimes I can't get the food in his mouth quick enough and he bangs on the highchair. He loves juice, especially the banana blends which is strange since he doesn't really like the banana baby food. He loves his DVD player in the car and it helps with long trips. Also - he is chewing on EVERYTHING that he can get in his mouth. I think that there are little teeth just racing to come through.
He is still not sitting up on his own for very long and he is still working on crawling. Hopefully he will get the hang of it soon.

Happy New Year!!

We want to wish everyone a wonderful new year! 2008 was a great year for us with the birth of our son in June. The last 6 months have been more than we could have imagined. He is our life at the moment and we of course think that he should be. I believe that Shane stayed up to ring in the new year but Taft was out cold by 7:30 pm. I have to admit that I was in bed by 9 myself.

We look forward to spending this next year watching him learn to crawl, walk, and talk. It's going to be a lot of fun and a lot of work! At this point, we have made no real plans for the year as far as vacations or events. I (Kyetra) have decided to do a Project 365 this year with taking a photo a day and journaling about each. It should be a change to remember to take a photo everyday. Also - I am excited about Easter falling on my birthday once again. I love Easter and I love my birthday. Shane is working on his business and I know his golf game. =) We have also played with the idea of moving back to Alabama. Of course that is if we can sell our house in Florida. Maybe we can be back in Alabama by the time Taft starts Kindergarten. Other than that I think that we are going to take it as the year unfolds before us.

I do want to congratulate my dad on his first deer of the season. He shot him yesterday and we took the opportunity to let Taft wear his new camo for a picture with Pawpaw.

McCary Grandchildren

On New Year's Eve we decided to try to get a photo of all the McCary grandchildren together. If any of you have ever tried to get 5 children all under the age of 9 to behave and smile at the same time, then you will understand this photo. It was windy outside so the hair is all over the place and it was pretty cool. Mallory was not in the mood for group photography and Taft didn't last very long either. We do seem to have one child that enjoys "modeling" at the moment. Harleigh wanted to get her picture taken as long as she could have a few with her daddy. Finally, we were able to get good Harleigh and Mallory photos and the one of the boys is great too. Maybe as they get older we can get them all to look at the camera at least.

Harleigh (age 3)

Harleigh and Patrick

Mallory (age 18 months)

Travis (age 6), Taft, and Gaven (age 8)

Christmas With The McCary's

On December 30th, we had Christmas with the McCary's. We all had dinner together. Taft was able to give all of his cousins their gifts that he brought them. They all seemed to like them, especially the boys and their camo PJ's. He sat in his great grandmother's lap to open all his gifts. He got new outfits, sleepers, a hat and mittens, toys, a piggy bank, and a sock monkey. He seemed very happy even though he was sleepy. We are lucky that we get to stay with the family until January 2nd.