We've had a busy last 2 weeks. For 6 days we were watching Bruno for dallastwin. The first 2 days were pretty stressful, trying to play mediator between the dog, the cat, and the boy. After Sypz got used to Bruno (and stopped hissing at him), it got much easier. The main things we were trying to teach Stryker was not to pull Bruno's tail, not to hit Bruno in the face, and not to play with Bruno's water dish. After 2 days we gave up on the water dish. We'd tell him no and I even tried to make him sit in the corner, but it wasn't working. He spilled water everywhere many times and liked to splash in the water or drop object in there. Finally we gave up on the water dish and put it out of Stryker's reach, just offering it to Bruno pretty often. Other than that, it was great! Stryker loved having a dog around and he would often chase Bruno everywhere. When I'd throw the ball for Bruno to play fetch, Stryker would run after Bruno. It was like playing fetch with the both of them. We'd definitely watch Bruno again sometime, but know that Stryker is too young for a dog right now. Training one kid is enough and it will be awhile before I want to train something else.

Stryker is getting into everything! He has been for awhile, but he's getting taller now. So he's starting to pull things off the table and making more of a mess. He also loved to see things tip over. He's constantly pushing the trashcan, his highchair, and anything else that will tip over to see the effect. He's such a curios little man. And I believe he's so advanced. Not only is he walking and running around at a year, but he's walking backwards and likes to spin in circles sometimes. As much of a pain he can be, he's too cute not to love.

This is a mess Stryker made yesterday. There is cereal all over the floor

Tags: stryker
Current Mood: amused

On Saturday we got Stryker his first haircut. It's crazy how much hair they cut and how different he looks.

Stryker before


Stryker after


I love his new haircut, but he looks so different I can't stop looking at him. We took him to a little place that specializes in kids. In the beginning, Stryker did pretty well, but after a few minutes he really hated it! He was a little screamer, and I have no idea how stylists would want to deal with kiddos all day long.

On the other topic, Stryker has started enjoying sucking on my neck. I'm not sure why he does it. Is he giving me kisses, is it comfort, does he just love how I taste? Either way, the first few times I thought it was really funny and jokingly told Mike that Stryker was going to give me a hickey. Turns out... he did. I forgot how strong his sucking power is. Here's a picture.



At least I know my son loves me :)

Tags: stryker
Current Mood: amused

My little man is 1 year old. The first 3 months went so slowly. The next 3 were a little better. After 9 months, the time has flown by. Stryker went to the doctor on Friday for his 1 yr checkup and everything is good as normal. We have such a healthy little man. He's had a cold a few times during the winter, but other than that he hasn't even had so much as an ear infection. He's 50% for height and 3% for weight. But the doctor said his weight is fine, he wouldn't have even thought he'd weigh so little just by looking at him. The rest of Friday was spent preparing for his birthday party. I'm sure I drove Mike crazy trying to get so much done. My Mom and I made Stryker's birthday cake. I'm really proud of it, because we did it without a pattern. It took awhile, but turned out so well!



I even made a little duckie for Stryker that he could demolish



Saturday was great! Stryker took a good nap, which is so important, and was a happy boy all day long. For awhile, Stryker played outside with his cousin Lexi and played with this big balloon you hook up the the hose and it sprays water. They had a blast.



Here's Stryker after eating his first cake



When we were opening presents, Stryker would just walk around until he saw something he liked. He liked his toys, but seemed to love his yellow bows and tissue paper. Such a cutie! After people left, some friends stayed over to play games with us. At one point Stryker sat in Shelli's lap calmly for a good 10+ minutes. (This is very unusual) We realized Stryker never really showed a sugar-high, but this was probably his sugar-low. Overall, it was a great First Birthday Party!

A few things about Stryker now that he's one. Although it drives me crazy, I love that he's active. He always keeps me guessing. Stryker loves carrying objects from one place to another. Sometimes I will find a magazine on top of the laundry bin, or a shoe in the dryer. I also think it's adorable when he drinks out of a straw... he looks so grown-up. He's gotten to be a happy little man, even when he's teething like right now. At least we're on tooth 6, so 2 more to go and then we get a break. I also love to see him running around, he's such a toddler. Stryker is so curious! He analyzes everything and wants to know just how things work. His favorite toys right now are balls of all sizes, and the roomba which he will follow around and try to pay chicken with.

I made it through the first year, yipee!

Tags: stryker
Current Mood: cheerful

I finally finished the Christmas stocking I started for Stryker about a year and a half ago. It's all cross-stitched, but hasn't been sewn into the stocking shape yet. Here's a picture of it.



I'm quite proud because it took so long. In the beginning I didn't have much time to work on it. But I'd work on it almost every day while he took a nap. Next I have to start one for Mike. If we have more kids someday, I'll probably be working on stocking for the next 5 years at this rate.

Tags: stryker
Current Mood: accomplished

This is the 2nd time I got a jury duty summons sent to my parents. I wouldn't mind going, should they send it to the correct person at the correct address. They keep sending it to Kristi Stryker, and I haven't been that in 3.5 years. Sometimes when I tell people that I will not go, they think I'm being weird, or lazy, or something. But am I supposed to go every time they send one to my parents with that name and also when they send it here with the correct name? And If I didn't live in the next town over, would people be reacting the same way to me not going? If I lived in somewhere like Houston, no one would ever expect me to go.

Turns out I get out of it for 2 reasons. One, I don't live in Plano, and also I have a kiddo under 10 that requires my supervision.

But seriously, if the government can't get my name and location right, it's not my problem.

Current Mood: annoyed

I love the days like today when things are fun and easy with Stryker. He's been sleeping so much better, so then he's happier during the day. And twice this week I got to go work out. And he's actually doing well in the kid's area... finally! He loves watching other kids and gets fascinated by them. We've been going to the park pretty often and he's getting really good with his shoes. I still have to try to keep him from eating the bark chips that are on the ground, but he's having a good time. He's even getting a bit more mellow and will sit for longer periods and enjoy being in the stroller taking walks. When you see him again, you probably won't notice a difference and still think he's constantly moving, but I can see a slight calmness forming. Or maybe it's just wishful thinking.

I can't believe Stryker will be a year old in 2 weeks! This has been one of the most challenging 12 months, but there seems to be a light at the end of the tunnel. He's such a big boy, and I'm so proud of him. I'm amazed at how smart he is and how quickly he catches on to things. He wants to know how everything works, and I'm sure he'll be just like his dad when he grows up.

Tags: stryker
Current Mood: happy

We've had a bird that chirps all day and night long living in our trees for a few months. It's getting really annoying at times. One night it decided to go to the tree outside Stryker's room, and I think that's what woke him up. Good thing I've trained Stryker to like the white noise of a fan in his room. I just turned it up a notch and it drowned out the sound. Last night, it was so loud we could hear it in our room. And our room doesn't even have a tree next to it. It reminds me of this movie, Failure to Launch. It wasn't a great movie, but there was a part in it where someone wanted to kill the Mockingbird outside her room because she couldn't sleep. I totally understand how she felt. Why does this stupid bird chirp during the night? Seriously, doesn't it need sleep too?

Current Mood: annoyed

Stryker is no longer crawling. He's pretty much determined that walking is easier and faster and does it all day long. Except, that is, when we put shoes on him. We went to a children's shoe store last weekend to get some good shoes that fit well. The second we put them on him he started crying and refused to even stand up. We tried on a few pairs, but since he didn't really seem to like any of them, we went with the lightest ones that gave the most flexibility for him.

Here's his new shoes


He's getting better though. I keep putting them on him for a bit each day so he'll get used to them. Maybe then he will try to walk with them. Right now, he refuses to even stand up if they are on his feet. He's really such a stubborn little man.

Here is a better picture of him walking. No shoes, so he's happy. Stryker loves to walk around the house carrying as much as possible. He'll have stuff in his hands and mouth while he walks. I think it's so cute!

Tags: stryker
Current Mood: cheerful

Does anyone else notice that lately people seem to be more rude and inconsiderate? I don't know why I'm really noticing it now, but it seems to be getting worse. Driving is probably the worst. In the last few weeks I've been cut-off more than ever, or people are just doing really irresponsible things. The other day a lady decided she had to make a U-turn in a place where there were 2 "no u-turn" signs and there was no inlet for her to pull into. So she had to stop traffic to do something illegal, when 10 feet in front of us it would have been more convenient and legal. I'm just so confused why people are so careless. Or why when there is obviously a line at a grocery store, do you cut in front of everyone without caring? I guess that's what gets me... people don't even care what they do anymore. I know everyone has their days, and no one can be perfect. But really... why has it gotten so bad?

PS, on a lighter note... I heard some sirens really loud kinda close to the house and I seriously thought to myself "did those neighbor kids start another lawn on fire?"

Current Mood: curious

Have you ever noticed that they always have celebrities do hair and beauty commercials? I'm not sure why that is. I totally don't believe that Eva Longoria or Sarah Jessica Parker dye their hair using a box of coloring. No... they go to the most expensive salon to get it done. So why do they do the commercials? And are the celebrities really using cheap cosmetics you get in Walmart? I don't think so. I know it's random, I just think it's unbelievable and odd.

Current Mood: cynical