Teddy is 2 1/2

These days, if someone asks Teddy what his name is, instead of simply answering "Teddy" he typically goes into a very long answer:  

"I am 2 1/2.  And I am a big boy. And I am Theodore Hoschek."

So here is my big two and  a half year old. I can't believe how quickly time is flying and how much he grows and changes each day. 

The day he turned 2 1/2, Teddy literally threw his first all out temper tantrum.  I am talking- throw yourself on the ground, legs turn to noodles, all out screaming tantrum.  I can't even remember now what he was upset by, but I do know it was the first night we have ever put him to bed with out reading him a story.  We understand that overall we are extremely lucky; Teddy is very easy going and typically does what we ask.  But we are definitely getting to practice some of our parenting skills as he strives to find his independence and test out limits.  He is truly a joy to have in our lives and we are so thankful for him every single day.  He continues to be very talkative and outgoing, and he speaks to strangers where ever we go.  He gets along well with all of his little friends in the neighborhood and at playgroup.  It is really neat the way they have all started to play/interact/talk to each other.  He has started asking me in the mornings, "Where are we going to go today?" and then will ask me if certain friends will be there.  He also loves music and often in the car I hear from the back seat, "Mommy, what is this song called?" or "Who is singing this song?"  He can recognize several country singers by their voices now and I think some of his favorites are The Zac Brown Band, The Band Perry, and he still loves Bob Marley.  We also recently introduced him to Crystal Gayle, whom he loves!  This summer he has really enjoyed going to the pool and has gotten very confident about jumping off the side.  He also loves the spray park, though I admit we have been spending a lot of time inside due to the heat (and my pregnancy).  He continues to love helping Mommy and Daddy and often wants to do things "by myself."  His imagination is also fantastic- I love to watch him play.  Now when he tells me things I have to ask him "did that happen for real, or for pretend?"  The other day, I went downstairs to do some laundry.  I came back up about 10 minutes later and Teddy was so excited he said over and over, "Mommy I called Grandma! I talked to her on the phone!"  He insisted it was "for real" and when I checked my phone I saw that he had actually called my neighbor.  And according to her- he called her and had a full conversation with her! So funny!  If you ask Teddy what he is going to have, he excitedly says, "A baby brother."  And while I know he can not grasp how drastically his life is about to change, I do know that his brother will be lucky to have him!  

Cousin Maverick Visits

I am way behind on blog updates one again.  So here comes several updates with lots of pictures and a few comments. 

We were very happy to have Cousin Maverick, Aunt Sam, and Grandpa Steve come to visit us.  Aunt Sammie brought Teddy a VERY cool bubble toy.  He loves it (as you can tell):

Teddy sits with Grandpa:

The farmer's market:

Hanging out with Uncle Shae:

Wearing Teddy's hat:

Traveling can sure wear you out:

This is one of my all time favorite pictures.  We are headed to the pool.  Sammie is carrying Maverick.  But good thing we have the stroller.... so Grandpa Steve can push the beer!!  

Of course my mom couldn't wait to get her hands on baby Maverick:

Teddy loves Maverick.  Everywhere Maverick went, there was Teddy:

And he loves helping: 

COUSINS:

In his free time, Teddy hopes to form an 80's hairband:

Summer Fun

I started this post a while ago but didn't realize I never finished it.  Where did June go? Anyway, here are some of the things we have been up to this summer so far.  

Teddy had a blast when the traveling petting zoo visited our library.  Here is is with the pig:

and the little lamb:

Teddy and his buddy Drew:

Teddy and Lilly check out the little pony:

Aw, brushing the pony:

Back to the pig:

So much fun (except for the crazy allergy attack I got 15 minutes into the trip):

Teddy, Neil, and Daniel:

Although the boys had fun with the animals, they had just as much fun (if not more) playing with the acorns, leaves, and dirt:

We went swimming with my friends from work.  Teddy loves little Stella Rose:

It's not all fun and games around here.  Teddy has to earn his keep:

"Washing" the car:

OK, back to fun.  We love playdough.  Well, Teddy does.  

Happy Father's Day!

Teddy had fun making koozies for the father's in his life.  So much fun, in fact, that the day we made them, the first thing he told his dad when he got home from work was, "I made you a koozie."  So much for the surprise!

Opening presents in bed:

I think he likes them.

Shae went fishing early in the morning and we brought him some bagels for breakfast.  Here are my boys "toasting" their bagels...

Teddy on the bridge:

Can you see Shae out there on his boat?

We brought lunch over for my parents since my dad is still recovering from his eye surgery.  Here are three of my favorite fathers:

We went back over for dinner to visit with cousins too:

Teddy had a blast playing with his cousins:

We had a few left over koozies- so Teddy asked to make one for himself.  He uses it on his sippy cup!

We hope everyone had a very happy Father's Day!

Camera pictures

Memorial Weekend 2012

We had a blast on Memorial Day Weekend.  After traveling several times together as a family, Shae had to travel two weeks in a row for work.  We were looking forward to a weekend with no long car rides, but when our neighbors invited us up to their lake house in SC, we couldn't turn down a day at the lake.  So we packed up early Sunday morning and headed to the lake.  Teddy was a little excited:

Teddy and his buddy Drew enjoying a snack on the deck:

Playing with cars:

BEST part of the day: getting to DIG in the sand.  They had tons of fun:

The water was great too:

Chillin on the deck after a day on the water:

We were having so much fun e didn't realize how late it was when we finally packed up the car and headed home.  Teddy got all of his favorite things: to swim, ride on a boat, play with his friends, eat chips and chicken nuggets, and digging in the sand.  The drive was under two hours, and luckily Teddy entertained us most of the way.  He sang the same song.  Over. And over. And over again.  For at least thirty minutes this is what we heard:

Of course on Memorial Day we remembered all of the soldiers past and present who have served our country and those who have died doing so.  We will definitely teach this to Teddy as he gets older.  But for now, he seemed to enjoy the long weekend of fun in the sun.  Monday we spent the early afternoon at our neighborhood pool.

All that sun will wear a guy out:

My cousin Jamie was driving through town so we went to my parents' house for dinner.  I think Teddy enjoyed the homemade fudge sauce my mom made:

(Yes my mom keeps it SO cold in her house I need a sweatshirt in Atlanta in the summer).
Teddy and cousin Jamie:

So the rest of this blog update is not about Memorial day, but I will just put the rest of my pictures on here so for the moment I will be "caught up" on this blog.  This past week I got two cake pop orders...so there have been A LOT of cake pops in our house!

Between a baby shower and a princess party, I ended up making six dozen cake pop!  All that left over chocolate and 6 months pregnant..... so this is what I did:

The chips barely lasted 24 hours but the boys helped me eat them!

For the princess/knight party:

Teddy got into the spirit of things....

Along with Shae: