Being 2 1/2

We don't really celebrate 1/2 birthdays at our house and if we did I would be a month late, but since they are both officially "1/2" I thought I would dedicate a post to each of them and who they are right now. Plus, this blog kindof takes the place of babybooks in our house, so this is a way for me to show the kids what they were like when they were this age. So sorry about the length and don't feel obligated to read the entire thing - it will be long!
I decided to start with Tate, so here it goes:














Tater (as we call him - he refers to himself as TaterTot!) is quite the daredevil. He will jump on or off of anything he can.




















He is quite the ham and loves showing off - will dance, sing, do tricks. Pretty much whatever you ask of him. He especially looks up to his sister (even as much as they pick at each other, he still wants to be big like her) and he LOVES his cousin Jackson. Soon they will be playing farm together for real.





















Speaking of farm, Tate loves John Deere and green is the first offical color he can name everytime he sees it. I was worried for awhile, but I think he is catching on!















Potty training is another story. That is not catching on, but I have learned from other parents of boys and have decided to let Tate decide when this is happening. Maybe this summer? Who knows, but for now we will take the random trips to the bathroom and the reading of the "dump truck book".

With summer coming Tate will get to enjoy more of one of his favorite foods - corn on the cob. He is messy, but doesn't have much leftover when he is finished!

Still lovin bathtime and doing much better not soaking the entire floor with water. He even lets me wash his face and hair without screaming bloody murder - progress!!

Speaking of screaming bloody murder...Tate does have his meltdown moments just like any other 2 year old. We are pretty lucky that there are that many and he seems to understand the timeout/consequence concept. I will admit that it is really hard sometimes to stick to my guns because the kid is so darn cute and hilarious, but I gotta do it.

Tate has always been a good sleeper and still is. He has since moved onto a big boy bed (aka-crib without one of the sides) and has been doing pretty well. He plays for about an hour after going to his room, but he doesn't really come out and puts his toys away before going to bed. That is a battle I am not going to fight because he is in his room and stays there!

Addicted to chapstick. Sometimes he gets Teagan's lip gloss or play makeup - that is a sight to see!

Everybody at our house loves Aunt Beth and Tate is no exception. We don't get to see her as much as we would like, but she is so good about saving some time for the kids when she is home. Here she is playing trains with Tater, another one of his favorite activities.

Who doesn't love some ice cream? Tate would actually prefer freeze pops to a cone, but would never turn down a couple bites of cookie dough ice cream.

He loves "driving" anything that has wheels. Here him and Teagan were on a 4-wheeler at Bass Pro Shop and Tate decided to take Teagan for a ride.

Right now Tate is totally into Disney shows. We went to see his favorites last fall. Handy Manny and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse are at the top of his list. Some of his other favorites are: Dora, Diego, Max & Ruby, Little People, and Thomas.

Tate can rarely be seen without one of these - his cup or a blanket. He doesn't have just one blanket he has to have, but if he could he would have one with him all day long. We have laid down the law and now blankies are only in bed or if he is resting and watching a show. We started using a big boy cup (no lid) at meals this week and it has gone pretty well. But the sippy cups are so nice that I am not ready to get rid of those for awhile - call me lazy, but we have enough stains on our carpet the way it is!

Tate loves his Hawkeyes! Anything that has a tiger hawk or looks like Herky is "Ricky Stanzi" to him. He is starting to enjoy watching other sports too and we are pumped to get to some baseball and softball games this summer. Not to mention the golf course!

Hide and Seek is one of his favorite games right now. Still not super great at it since he hides in the same spot everytime and tells the seeker where he is at. Teagan is very patient with him though and is a good sport about playing with him for at least a little while. He will also play school, babysitter, and house. Can you tell he has an older sister?

There he is - Mr. Tater Tot Casserole.