Christmas Guitar

Tommy rocks out with a ukelele on Christmas Eve at Aunt Lisa and Uncle Brian's house. Little did he know he'd receive a real big boy guitar from his Secret Santa, Brennan, the next day. He sure loves his music!

Big Brother, Little Sister

As I said in the previous post, Tommy gets a kick out of matching outfits. Here the wee Wedewers sport coordinating shirts.

Merry Christmas!

Tommy and Annalise ham it up for the camera in their matching PJs on Christmas morning. Tommy gets the biggest kick out of the two of them wearing the same outfit! Santa was very good to both kids this year...Tommy received more cars and airplanes than a little boy could ever ask for and Annalise got some new pacifiers and crib toys. It was a joyous morning for us all...if only we could all see the holiday through the eyes of a child.

Bye, Carissa!

Tommy's best girl, Carissa, and her parents, our dear friends Tom and Serena, packed it all up and moved to Albuquerque. Boo! We will miss them bunches, but we're so happy they get to live near Serena's family now. She's surprising them with the news for Christmas...not breathing a word until Tom pulls up in the moving truck. This picture was taken at their good-bye party last week.

Santa 2007

I took the kids to visit Santa at Town Square on December 9. This year was a vast improvement over last year's scream-fest. Looks like Tommy's fear of Santa is gone.
Tommy was kind enough to share the big man in red's lap with his baby sister.
Tommy asked for a black airplane and a fire truck. I think Annalise asked for milk...it's all she has on her mind lately!

Tommy Goes Bowling

We took Tommy bowling for the first time over the weekend. His friend Carissa gathered a bunch of buddies to hit the lanes...and they had so much fun! Tommy bowled a respectable 76 (thanks to bumpers and lots of help from Daddy). Definitely an activity we'll be doing again!

"I Don't Want to Hold Her"

Tommy attempts to soothe Annalise. Apparently he doesn't have a knack for it just yet...

Tommy Cuddles Annalise

Tommy cuddles with his two-day-old baby sister, Annalise.

Halloween 2007

Tommy had lots of fun this Halloween. He dressed as Mr. Incredible and went trick-or-treating with his friends Carissa and Nicole.

Posing with Uncle Derick before hitting the streets. Uncle D really gets into Halloween!

And they're off! Princess Nicole, Tommy Incredible and Pablo Carissa head out to get their candy.

Sneaking a treat out of his candy stash.

A short video of the kids knocking on doors.

My New Sister

In case you haven't heard, I'm now a BIG BROTHER!!! Here I am with my brand new baby sister, Annalise Michele.

She was born Monday, October 29 and it's been a lot of fun having her around. She makes more noise than me! I love to squeak when she squeaks, tell her "Bless you, Baby!" when she sneezes (or hiccups!) and give her kisses and "pets." See how much I love to give her kisses?

She even brought me this brand new Hummer toy as a thanks-for-being-such-a-cool-big-bro present. She's the greatest!

Love My Boy

Just a little note for Tommy to read when he's all grown up...

You gave me the best snuggles before you went to bed tonight. You and I squeezed into your rocking chair (no small feat with Baby Sister in my belly), Daddy turned off the light and we listened to your favorite lullaby CD together. You cuddled up to my shoulder, got nice and cozy, then lifted your head for just a moment to say "I love you, Mommy," before you snuggled up with your white blanket in my arms. You melt my heart! I truly cherish those special moments with you. You give great cuddles and you are such a wonderful son to your Daddy and me. You're going to be a great big brother, too! I love you, Tommy.

Love,
Mommy

Kitty Cat Hat

Tommy poses wearing an art project he made at school...a kitty cat hat! He loves to give us drawings and paintings he's done during art time, but this is the first 3-D project he's brought home. How cute!

"Catch Me, Daddy!"

This picture speaks volumes for itself. What fun!We enjoyed a lovely day at the park last Saturday. First we joined my Aunt Ginger and Uncle Don for a picnic benefitting Small Paws Rescue (http://www.smallpawsrescue.org/), an organization which helps find homes for Bichon Frise dogs. There were DOZENS of the little white fluff-balls running around the park, but the only picture I snapped of one is Don's dog, Wizard, which is also the unofficial mascot for his glass-art enterprise.After the picnic we wandered over to the Summerlin Pumpkin Festival, which was packed with families! We saw many of our friends there and partook in all sorts of autumn activities. Tommy enjoyed the hay maze and loved crawling around on the hay bales in the "pumpkin patch" they erected for the cause. The kettle corn was great, too!

And after running around the park like crazy for a few hours, he took a much-deserved break resting on the hill with Daddy. I love my guys!

Tommy's "Hat"

Tommy crowns himself with his favorite hat during a meal last week. He calls it his "birthday hat" and will run around with it on his head for the better part of an hour if we let him. He loves to riffle through his kitchen cabinet and play with the unbreakable bowls, collanders and cake domes.

Big Boy Lunch

Tommy & Mommy enjoyed a day of shopping at Fashion Show Mall earlier this week. We found Christmas outfits for him and Baby Sister, then celebrated by eating Subway sandwiches and Cheetos on the patio. No high chair required! He's becoming such a big boy.

Rides

Tommy attended a little pumpkin carnival near our home this weekend. Aunt Cindy & Uncle Jeremy were out from California and had lots of fun watching their nephew enjoy himself. Here he rides a very old, ancient pony with Uncle Jeremy guiding the little guy around:*He does own another shirt besides this one...he's just obsessed with wearing his Cars t-shirt whenever I admit that it's clean!

And here he rides the "Big Banana," enjoying a lollipop all the while:

Art Festival & Lunch

September 29 our family attended the Summerlin Art Festival with Tommy's good pals Carissa & Bella. The kids enjoyed getting some "ink" done by a local artist. Tommy sports his Lightning McQueen tattoo. Think he's a little obsessed?Carissa got a pink doggie. I think it's Magenta from Blue's Clues:And Bella dons Snoopy:Then they danced!After they got their groove on, all three sat quietly and watched a ballet performance for upwards of 20 minutes without fussing. They were entranced! Tommy talked about the dancers in jazzy black costumes for the rest of the day, stating they were his favorite. I personally liked the blue tutus better.

And we wrapped up the day with a lunch at BJ's. Three toddlers in a booth is lots of fun! Trust us, they were not this serious the whole time!

Tommy & Carissa Do Laps

Being quite the gentleman, Tommy pushes Carissa around the family room and kitchen in his wagon. I think I'll require helmets next time!

Cowboy Tommy

Tommy went on his first pony ride yesterday at his friend Avery's birthday party. What a wonderful treat for all the boys and girls! Here's a short video of him trotting along in the parking lot:

And I love to get pictures of him wearing silly sunglasses!

Tommy's Gym Class

After several months, Tommy's grown a little tired of his soccer class, so we're trying something new: gym class! (He's my little BOY, so I just can't bring myself to say he's in gymnastics...what's next? A leotard? But whatever I want to call it, they wear themselves out!)

Anyhow, he joined the Desert Gymcats with several of his buddies and they have a ton of fun bouncing, jumping, climbing and playing. He likes the balance beam and trampoline best so far and we're trying to convince him to hang like a monkey from either the rings or the bars...he'll get around to it when he's ready.

Climbing the "firemen's ladder" to swing from the parallel bars. His teacher, Ms. Trish, helps a friend ascend while Tommy's right on his tail (in the red shirt): Teeter-tottering with his buddy, CJ:Lots of climbing! He loves to go up and down, over and under, here and there...all over the place!A video of Tommy on the trampoline:

He Climbed Out of His Crib...

Around 6:40 this morning Daddy went into Tommy's bedroom to get him up for the day and found our little buddy playing outside his crib. James asked him "What did you do?" and Tommy replied "I fall out of crib. I hurt head." Upon inspection we found no bumps or bruises, but what a surprise! Looks like we'll be heading out to the furniture store to purchase a big boy mattress for him this weekend.

Here's a quick picture of the daredevil catching up on The Wiggles after his escape:

Tommy Videos

Here are a few new videos of Tommy. I'm working on uploading more from our trip, too.

Tommy playing piano with James:


Tommy helping James wash the car (sort of). The giggles are the best!:

First Day of School

Today was Tommy's first day of nursery school, which he will attend each Tuesday and Wednesday morning. He had a fantastic day making friends, painting pictures and breaking bread (well, crackers & PB&J!) with fellow tots. First, the obligatory backpack pose in our living room.He was enchanted with the school supplies displayed outside his classroom.And a pose with Daddy & Mommy before we said goodbye. He ran straight for the toys and didn't look back...we had to convince him to come over to give us hugs!

Road Trip 2007

July 27 - August 7 we packed up the family SUV and took off on a 3,000 mile road trip around the West. With the help of many books, toys and a DVD player loaded with his favorite movie "Cars," Tommy was a very good boy during our travels. Our first stop was Salt Lake City for one night, then we zipped through the western part of Yellowstone Park on our way to Bozeman, Montana to visit with Grandma Norma and Papa Rick.Tommy poses with Papa in the back yard of their Bozeman home.Tommy poses with Great Grandma Untz in Grandma's back yard.

Onto the Blue Angels air show at the Bozeman airport. Tommy LOVED looking at all the planes, though he declared the air show itself "TOO LOUD" as he covered his little ears. Our little guy's first ride in a motor home. Grandma and Papa took us to the air show in style. It was a great place to cool off on a 100 degree day...quite a rarity in Montana!

Tommy enjoyed a stop at the Bozeman Children's Museum. The rice table was his favorite. He also enjoyed a rousing pinball game with Daddy.A cheesy grin in Grandma's back yard. What a view! Cool dude in a stylish pair of shades...more on his love of sunglasses further down the page.
The whole family posing in front of a beautiful waterfall near Grandma's home. Feeding the ducks on the Montana State University campus, just a few miles from Grandma's house.

More sunglasses! These are Tommy's FAVORITE...an old scratched up pair of Mommy's glasses. He really likes to wear them everywhere. We get lots of smiles from passersby.On toward Portland! We drove this leg of the trip in one day...about 800 miles and 14+ hours in the car. This photo was taken in front of Multnomah Falls, about an hour outside of Portland. This is the only proof we brought the dog for our trip, as this is the only picture we got of Kaya the whole time! A shot of Tommy admiring the waterfall. It reminds him of his favorite scene in "Cars" when Lighting McQueen and Sally go for a leisurely drive.Our little ham.Enjoying an ice cream treat at Multnomah Falls.Grandma Renee, Mommy and Tommy smile for the camera at Laurelhurst Park in Portland. More ducks to feed and we walked around the pond Mommy used to visit when she was a little girl.Another ice cream stop at Ben & Jerry's on Hawthorned Boulevard. What a great way to cool off on a muggy day! The gang spent a morning at the Oregon Zoo. Henry and Tommy vie for Addilyn's affection.

Playing with his second cousin, Avery, at Aunt Donna & Uncle Gary's house.
A group photo of Mommy with her best friends and their little ones. From left to right: Sarah and Kelton, Mommy & Tommy, Jessica & Henry, Bradi & Addilyn and Amy.
Hanging out with his girl, Addilyn. These two are so goofy together and they are getting along MUCH better than they did during her May visit.
"It's hard work to be this cute."
Playing with the rock fountain at Uncle Gary's house. I'll have to post the video of him playing with this soon...there are some hijinks with a just-out-of-reach power switch that made for an entertaining clip.
With Grandpa Rick at Uncle Gary's house.
Celebrating Great Grandma Thompson's 94th birthday at Uncle Gary's house.
Posing with Aunt Donna, Uncle Gary, and most importantly, the boomerang. He's obsessed with boomerangs!
Heading south. On our way to San Francisco we stopped for a night in Merlin, Oregon to stay with Sarah's parents, Jay & Lynne. Lynne took us for a quick visit to the nearby Rogue River to take in the gorgeous views. He had to touch the water!

Now in San Francisco. A park in North Beach/Little Italy before dinner out.
Mommy's cousin, Paul, joined us for dinner. He lives in the city and it was great to see him.

Tommy's first taxi ride. He certainly liked the novelty of being outside his carseat in a moving vehicle.
The view from our hotel room in the Financial District. The Metreon Center was just a couple blocks away.Coit tower. Unhappy to pose for a picture. Coit Tower. A lot happier to pose for this picture!Mommy needed a chai latte at Ghirardelli Square. Tommy decided shoes were optional even though it was a brisk 50 degrees! Posing in front of a fire truck at Fisherman's Wharf. What a highlight!

Finally, Burger King in Barstow, California...only hours from home. He LOVED the crown, but wouldn't go for the flame broiled burger. He's more of a McD's fan.