I signed Liam up for a 6 week session at our local Toddlin' Time (think Little Gym but WAY WAY WAY cheaper!) and then took him to the Open House this morning to see if he in fact would enjoy himself.
He did. He Fat Person Waddled around screaming almost the entire time when he wasn't actually playing with the toys and, of course, the speaker cord, door handles, speakers...
Then we proceeded to WIN a FREE SESSION! Since we already paid for the upcoming one, I'm going to hang onto it & use it for the winter session when I'm sure we will be out of the house a LOT since this little one LOVES to be outside (we have to spell it already...).
A few of the Mommies from my Mommies Group where there - Lisa with her little girl (same bday as Nathan) and Lauren with her mommy Julie - so that will be nice to be able to "connect" with them more. Lisa is one of my CM customers so I know her already but meeting other mommies is always good.
Thankfully, the class is between his breakfast & noni time so we rush home to jump into bed - hopefully for a nice long nap!
I really like the price of this place - under $50 for 6 weeks, where compared to Gymboree which is $70 a session with a minimum of 3 sessions (!) AND a registration fee...you really cannot beat this with a stick. Although, I hope beating things with sticks isn't part of their curriculum ;)
Monday, August 27, 2007
Sunday, August 26, 2007
AFTER First Haircut
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Liam got his FIRST haircut today! It wasn't bad at all! He sat very still, taking in all his surroundings & checking all the action around him and not every much attention to him. Dada held him on the little plank while Mama took pictures & fought back tears. They nearly came though when the hairdresser (women are hairdressers, men are barbers) next to us winked & smiled at me - then I had to choke the tears back. Twas the nod of understanding between two mothers, you know?
We went to this barber shop down the street that my Mommies Group recommended & we were in & out of there in under 5 minutes. No kidding. He looks really good with it all cut & trimmed up - nice, straight lines & still some curl in the back!
Of course, I saved some hair & thankfully Matias had a static bag in the glove box because I forgot to grab one of my little envelopes from CM that are made especially for things like this! He didn't really get all his curls cut off cause there is an issue with a "bald spot" in the back that would have been revealed if we truly cut all of it off in the back! No mullet though!
There are more photos up at dropshots, of course :)
First Haircut
We are going to get Liam's hair cut today. His first :(
I'm not really ready for this yet but he is - his bangs are hanging in his eyes & I have to suck it up & just let it go.
I no longer have a baby. I have a toddler who gets his hair cut at a barber shop.
Maybe I'll leave some little curls in the back though without making it too mulletified.
Expect pictures.
I'm not really ready for this yet but he is - his bangs are hanging in his eyes & I have to suck it up & just let it go.
I no longer have a baby. I have a toddler who gets his hair cut at a barber shop.
Maybe I'll leave some little curls in the back though without making it too mulletified.
Expect pictures.
Saturday, August 25, 2007
Thinking of Halloween already
We saw this costume at the Smithsonian store while waiting for our flight at National & knew this was what we wanted Liam to be for Halloween!
Isn't it fantastic??!
Putting himself to sleep!
I do believe we can consider it Official now since he put himself to sleep for his nightnight sleep last night WITHOUT A PEEP!
He cried when we left the room, after going through his routine of getting his chupie, his pillow & turning on the music but that was the only sound we heard out of him!
Matias, I think, is having a hard time with this also - he said "what am I going to do now?". This was also his "special time" with him after work & possibly not seeing him all day...so there will be some adjusting on both our behalf's occuring here.
I'm really not all that shocked that it's happened so quickly - when Liam decides he wants to do something, he really just kind of does it. End of story.
It is an end of an era though. Progress though, for sure, but sadness for Mama & Dada who really love(d) this special time with him.
He cried when we left the room, after going through his routine of getting his chupie, his pillow & turning on the music but that was the only sound we heard out of him!
Matias, I think, is having a hard time with this also - he said "what am I going to do now?". This was also his "special time" with him after work & possibly not seeing him all day...so there will be some adjusting on both our behalf's occuring here.
I'm really not all that shocked that it's happened so quickly - when Liam decides he wants to do something, he really just kind of does it. End of story.
It is an end of an era though. Progress though, for sure, but sadness for Mama & Dada who really love(d) this special time with him.
Friday, August 24, 2007
Is it bad when...?
...your child is being unusually quiet & just sitting there actually watching his DVD or playing nicely with his toys & you automatically think something is wrong? Maybe you should take his temperature? Does he want his teething ring?
Taking after his namesake
Well sorta. But not really. ;)
Liam Robert was named, partially, after Nana's father - Robert William Gardner (we didn't know his middle name was William until after we picked Liam...) - and he LOVES to play in the "garden"!
He waters the plants on the deck, multiple times a day with the watering can :) Talk about cute toddler behavior!
He walks around to each planter with the watering can & "waters" them & then toddles off to the next one.
I got some video of it last night but it's not the best example of him doing it...
Last night he was opening the cooler, putting the watering can in it & trying to scoop up the water that is still in it! GENIUS!
Not so genius is his need to go mess with the recycling bin - I'm looking at you Grandpa.
Last night Matias & I were talking about how cute it was that he really enjoys going around & watering the plants and when Matias said, "he's a natural born gardener...", I couldn't resist by responding by "yes, yes he is!".
Liam Robert was named, partially, after Nana's father - Robert William Gardner (we didn't know his middle name was William until after we picked Liam...) - and he LOVES to play in the "garden"!
He waters the plants on the deck, multiple times a day with the watering can :) Talk about cute toddler behavior!
He walks around to each planter with the watering can & "waters" them & then toddles off to the next one.
I got some video of it last night but it's not the best example of him doing it...
Last night he was opening the cooler, putting the watering can in it & trying to scoop up the water that is still in it! GENIUS!
Not so genius is his need to go mess with the recycling bin - I'm looking at you Grandpa.
Last night Matias & I were talking about how cute it was that he really enjoys going around & watering the plants and when Matias said, "he's a natural born gardener...", I couldn't resist by responding by "yes, yes he is!".
It's [possibly] Official!
Liam has not been going down well for me (and only me) for naps lately so I've been putting him down on his own. And he does it!
Secretly, I think I'll miss rocking him to sleep more than I missed the nursing sessions. I loved being able to nurse him, do not get me wrong but when he decided he was done with that, I had no choice but to move forward. There was no time to mourn during weaning, it was a quick & clean operation on his part but this is different for me, I think. Possibly because the rocking has lasted longer than the 7 months of nursing...but I suspect it's the actual act of watching him fall into a nice, deep, safe slumber in my arms/lap that I will miss.
So good for him! He's a big boy who needs no rockin' from his Mama!
But I just might cry a little through the smiles.
Secretly, I think I'll miss rocking him to sleep more than I missed the nursing sessions. I loved being able to nurse him, do not get me wrong but when he decided he was done with that, I had no choice but to move forward. There was no time to mourn during weaning, it was a quick & clean operation on his part but this is different for me, I think. Possibly because the rocking has lasted longer than the 7 months of nursing...but I suspect it's the actual act of watching him fall into a nice, deep, safe slumber in my arms/lap that I will miss.
So good for him! He's a big boy who needs no rockin' from his Mama!
But I just might cry a little through the smiles.
Thursday, August 23, 2007
Possible "duh" moment
We have honestly either been on the road or had company for the past month - between birthdays & friends visiting, Nissan & Grandparents uprooting camp and replanting themselves here for FellowSitting duties - it's been a whirlwind of activity.
All of this is good - no offense intended - we love traveling & we love company. But I think that might have been what messed with Liam's sleep schedule. Or nap schedule to be more exact.
For the past two weeks or so, Liam's nap schedule has been up & down. It first seemed as if he was transitioning to the Big Sleep of One Nap but with the catch of it only lasting under two hours. Which...sucks.
It was really Heads & Tails and we couldn't make sense of it - one day it was Heads and the next day he would have us on our Tails - with no second PM nap - we were really hurting. He would usually nap from around 11 - 1 or if we were really cruising for a bruising from 1pm (or later) till 2pm. Total suckage. And he would stay up to his 9pm nightnight time. Nothing was getting done, it was way too hot outside to spend too long out there - even a trip to the pool didn't induce a noni. Then some mornings he was waking before 8, sometimes before 7 and then the erratic nap pattern. BOO!
But Tuesday, the Grands left (no offense!) and Wednesday he took two naps - each about two hours at his regularly scheduled time and his regular bed time. Just like that. Tuesday, I tried giving him his dinner early & putting him down early - which worked so I was going to repeat it Wednesday when his nap schedule went back on track.
And it made me realize - hey, what if all these [wonderful, loving, fantastic] visitors caused him to throw his routine (and part of our sanity) out the window? And I feel like a moron not figuring this out earlier but he's never reacted like this & well, I don't know maybe, I just wasn't really paying attention to the obvious. I kept looking for teefies, thinking of the Big Sleep of One Nap, and not focusing on the environment changes...
Long story short - he's back to 2 two hour naps at his regularly scheduled time and a 9pm nightnight time. And I cannot see the nose on my face.
All of this is good - no offense intended - we love traveling & we love company. But I think that might have been what messed with Liam's sleep schedule. Or nap schedule to be more exact.
For the past two weeks or so, Liam's nap schedule has been up & down. It first seemed as if he was transitioning to the Big Sleep of One Nap but with the catch of it only lasting under two hours. Which...sucks.
It was really Heads & Tails and we couldn't make sense of it - one day it was Heads and the next day he would have us on our Tails - with no second PM nap - we were really hurting. He would usually nap from around 11 - 1 or if we were really cruising for a bruising from 1pm (or later) till 2pm. Total suckage. And he would stay up to his 9pm nightnight time. Nothing was getting done, it was way too hot outside to spend too long out there - even a trip to the pool didn't induce a noni. Then some mornings he was waking before 8, sometimes before 7 and then the erratic nap pattern. BOO!
But Tuesday, the Grands left (no offense!) and Wednesday he took two naps - each about two hours at his regularly scheduled time and his regular bed time. Just like that. Tuesday, I tried giving him his dinner early & putting him down early - which worked so I was going to repeat it Wednesday when his nap schedule went back on track.
And it made me realize - hey, what if all these [wonderful, loving, fantastic] visitors caused him to throw his routine (and part of our sanity) out the window? And I feel like a moron not figuring this out earlier but he's never reacted like this & well, I don't know maybe, I just wasn't really paying attention to the obvious. I kept looking for teefies, thinking of the Big Sleep of One Nap, and not focusing on the environment changes...
Long story short - he's back to 2 two hour naps at his regularly scheduled time and a 9pm nightnight time. And I cannot see the nose on my face.
What sound does an airplane make?
Liam will mimic the airplanes going over head (hi! Dulles landing pattern!) by making a "swoooooosh" sound - just like the engines preparing for landing :)
Working on the "woo-woo" that a train makes (hi! VRE station/CSX tracks down the street!) - it's coming to him slowly!
Pretty sure he "meowed" yesterday but the jury is still out on that one since he could have just been over excited while tackling his PIC (Partner in Crime) to the ground.
Last night in the bath, I hummed a gibberish song to him while I bathed him & he started humming back. He's mastered the "la la la" sounds & we are now working on the "ba ba ba" sounds. Matias just looked up at me, with this wonderment on his face when Liam would repeat back to me the stanzas I had hummed to him. Sometimes we do that while he's playing or eating - he hums something to me & I repeat it back, and so on and so forth. I really enjoy doing that with him for many reasons. One, how cute is a humming Toddler? Two, it means he's listening. Three, it means he's paying attention to what I'm actually saying. All of those things are really cool to me & I try to encourage it as much as possible. Nothing he utters or hums goes unnoticed (or at least I try to notice it all) because at this point, beyond his actual vocabulary, this is he sole means of communication & to ignore that, I think, would be a determent to his speech evolution.
Another "cute" thing is that whenever anyone gets their purse or something out of their purse he immediately thinks we are going in the car. And then proceeds to ask to go "car?" and goes over to the gate and sometimes he even goes and gets his diaper bag. Like a dog, you must sometimes spell the words (ALREADY?!?!) for "go out", "car" & "walk" so that you do not give Liam the wrong impression that we are actually, at this exact moment in time, going out to the car to get his stroller to go for a walk.
He has also started doing more than just clanging the pots & pans around - he now "stirs" things with spoons & dunks bottles and such into his pots & pans! WAY cute! So now, I'm on a mad search for nice, cheap, play kitchen (I think I found one, just need to "justify" spending the money for it...) to entertain him so that I do not have to clean up His Drawer 45279064 times a day. How cute is this imaginary play business?
I also chase him with his giraffe from his train set he got for Christmas...and he LOVES it. He will now go and get the giraffe & bring him to me then take off at full speed to get away from the giraffe. My son will be the only one afraid of giraffes at the zoo.
But he will also be the only one meowing at the monkeys.
Working on the "woo-woo" that a train makes (hi! VRE station/CSX tracks down the street!) - it's coming to him slowly!
Pretty sure he "meowed" yesterday but the jury is still out on that one since he could have just been over excited while tackling his PIC (Partner in Crime) to the ground.
Last night in the bath, I hummed a gibberish song to him while I bathed him & he started humming back. He's mastered the "la la la" sounds & we are now working on the "ba ba ba" sounds. Matias just looked up at me, with this wonderment on his face when Liam would repeat back to me the stanzas I had hummed to him. Sometimes we do that while he's playing or eating - he hums something to me & I repeat it back, and so on and so forth. I really enjoy doing that with him for many reasons. One, how cute is a humming Toddler? Two, it means he's listening. Three, it means he's paying attention to what I'm actually saying. All of those things are really cool to me & I try to encourage it as much as possible. Nothing he utters or hums goes unnoticed (or at least I try to notice it all) because at this point, beyond his actual vocabulary, this is he sole means of communication & to ignore that, I think, would be a determent to his speech evolution.
Another "cute" thing is that whenever anyone gets their purse or something out of their purse he immediately thinks we are going in the car. And then proceeds to ask to go "car?" and goes over to the gate and sometimes he even goes and gets his diaper bag. Like a dog, you must sometimes spell the words (ALREADY?!?!) for "go out", "car" & "walk" so that you do not give Liam the wrong impression that we are actually, at this exact moment in time, going out to the car to get his stroller to go for a walk.
He has also started doing more than just clanging the pots & pans around - he now "stirs" things with spoons & dunks bottles and such into his pots & pans! WAY cute! So now, I'm on a mad search for nice, cheap, play kitchen (I think I found one, just need to "justify" spending the money for it...) to entertain him so that I do not have to clean up His Drawer 45279064 times a day. How cute is this imaginary play business?
I also chase him with his giraffe from his train set he got for Christmas...and he LOVES it. He will now go and get the giraffe & bring him to me then take off at full speed to get away from the giraffe. My son will be the only one afraid of giraffes at the zoo.
But he will also be the only one meowing at the monkeys.
New nicknames!
Here's a sampling of the names that float around the house on any given occasion -
I'm sure you can discern why we would call a budding Toddler Mr. Destructo...he is like a hurricane, this one. Part of me loves it cause he's active & exploring & having a grand ol' time but then, after hours, part of it cannot stand it cause someone has to clean up the path of this Mr. Destructo. We've become our own FEMA.
One really funny thing he does (to which I call him my Sea Otter) is he takes the remotes off the area rugs to throw them against the hardwood floors, thus making it easier to get the blasted batteries out of them! GENIUS! But, oh so annoying!
Can you say "hands full"?
Mr. Destructo would also much rather toss his Gears & Wheels toy on the ground scattering the wheels this way & that instead of sitting nicely and playing "proper".
Mr. Destructo would also much rather throw his wooden stacking 'parts' behind the laptop/stereo entertainment center than stack them on the proper poles. Although, in all fairness, he has started to actually stack them this week.
Mr. Destructo would also much rather pull his entire basket of books off the ottoman rather than take one out at a time. I've tried to put the basket on the floor but that only encourages him to make a mess on a consistent basis rather than just when the wild hair is up his butt. I'll deal with the wild hair moments, thank you.
He is now saying "bebe" so I will continue to call him that along with all the other bebes he finds and points out to me.
Stink usually is a prelude to Mr. Destructo - it's like that little devilish behavior is just building up & not quite ready to morph into full on hurricane force destruction - call it a tropical storm, if you will.
Monkey takes the brunt of Mr. Destructo (quite happily, I might add) while Mystic takes the hit from Stink (not as happily, I might add). In fact, Mystic gets hissed at by Stink, while Monkey gets laughed at (or with, I cannot decide).
When does Hurricane Season end for Toddlers? October, right??
- Mr. Destructo
- Stink
- Bebe
I'm sure you can discern why we would call a budding Toddler Mr. Destructo...he is like a hurricane, this one. Part of me loves it cause he's active & exploring & having a grand ol' time but then, after hours, part of it cannot stand it cause someone has to clean up the path of this Mr. Destructo. We've become our own FEMA.
One really funny thing he does (to which I call him my Sea Otter) is he takes the remotes off the area rugs to throw them against the hardwood floors, thus making it easier to get the blasted batteries out of them! GENIUS! But, oh so annoying!
Can you say "hands full"?
Mr. Destructo would also much rather toss his Gears & Wheels toy on the ground scattering the wheels this way & that instead of sitting nicely and playing "proper".
Mr. Destructo would also much rather throw his wooden stacking 'parts' behind the laptop/stereo entertainment center than stack them on the proper poles. Although, in all fairness, he has started to actually stack them this week.
Mr. Destructo would also much rather pull his entire basket of books off the ottoman rather than take one out at a time. I've tried to put the basket on the floor but that only encourages him to make a mess on a consistent basis rather than just when the wild hair is up his butt. I'll deal with the wild hair moments, thank you.
He is now saying "bebe" so I will continue to call him that along with all the other bebes he finds and points out to me.
Stink usually is a prelude to Mr. Destructo - it's like that little devilish behavior is just building up & not quite ready to morph into full on hurricane force destruction - call it a tropical storm, if you will.
Monkey takes the brunt of Mr. Destructo (quite happily, I might add) while Mystic takes the hit from Stink (not as happily, I might add). In fact, Mystic gets hissed at by Stink, while Monkey gets laughed at (or with, I cannot decide).
When does Hurricane Season end for Toddlers? October, right??
Thursday, August 16, 2007
I'm leaving on a jet plane...
...be back on Sunday evening!
We are going to Deer Creek in Indy this weekend for the final shows of DMB at that venue.
Wanted to let y'all know that I will be back sometime next week & hopefully back to my regular programming :)
Nana is FellowSitting with Grandpa this weekend so he is in GOOD hands, but he will be missed. I almost nearly had a little tear appear when saying good night to him this evening since I will not see him until we get home on Sunday.
Alrighty, enough of that.
I put the video up on dropshots :) Tell me that kid just doesn't get about 5 months older looking every time you see him???
Chau!
We are going to Deer Creek in Indy this weekend for the final shows of DMB at that venue.
Wanted to let y'all know that I will be back sometime next week & hopefully back to my regular programming :)
Nana is FellowSitting with Grandpa this weekend so he is in GOOD hands, but he will be missed. I almost nearly had a little tear appear when saying good night to him this evening since I will not see him until we get home on Sunday.
Alrighty, enough of that.
I put the video up on dropshots :) Tell me that kid just doesn't get about 5 months older looking every time you see him???
Chau!
Animal Crackers in my Soup
We have our first Official Animal Noises emitted from our favorite Fellow!
1) SSsssssnake - I hiss ssssssss sounds at him before pointing to snakes & he has finally followed suit along with making sssssssnake ssssssounds when discovering new ssssnnnaaaaakes in his other books!
2) Monkey sounds!!! You say monkey (the REAL kind, not the feline variety) and he goes "oooh oh oooh" - you understand, right? It's too cute :) My mom just called him a little monkey and he responded with his new noises!
Also, he is indicating to us that he wants us to do something or that he wants something he has his own little question phrase that he uses...sometimes a little more aggressively than I would prefer, so we are working on "please" to possibly calm down his request :) It's quite a cute three whine request! My mom plays this little game with him & his hands and he will hold his hands together and do his little three whine request.
OK I just took a video of it :)
1) SSsssssnake - I hiss ssssssss sounds at him before pointing to snakes & he has finally followed suit along with making sssssssnake ssssssounds when discovering new ssssnnnaaaaakes in his other books!
2) Monkey sounds!!! You say monkey (the REAL kind, not the feline variety) and he goes "oooh oh oooh" - you understand, right? It's too cute :) My mom just called him a little monkey and he responded with his new noises!
Also, he is indicating to us that he wants us to do something or that he wants something he has his own little question phrase that he uses...sometimes a little more aggressively than I would prefer, so we are working on "please" to possibly calm down his request :) It's quite a cute three whine request! My mom plays this little game with him & his hands and he will hold his hands together and do his little three whine request.
OK I just took a video of it :)
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
Nana!
Our little Liam Fellow has taken to calling Grandma "Nana" and I do not think she minds one teeny tiny little bit.
It's really quite adorable to watch, not only Liam, but Nana react to this new development.
We have two new C words added to our vocabulary - corn & cough :)
LeNelle & I taught him how to do the Warehouse Woo with your arm raised like Stefan's & we worked on the two arm raise for Stay like in the video - really, it might be a little wrong how much we enjoyed doing this :) also came really close to teaching him the Louie, Louie portion of Warehouse...
It's really quite adorable to watch, not only Liam, but Nana react to this new development.
We have two new C words added to our vocabulary - corn & cough :)
LeNelle & I taught him how to do the Warehouse Woo with your arm raised like Stefan's & we worked on the two arm raise for Stay like in the video - really, it might be a little wrong how much we enjoyed doing this :) also came really close to teaching him the Louie, Louie portion of Warehouse...
Thursday, August 09, 2007
Astronaut Liam Blast Off cake
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Made with love by Auntie Leanne
I put some MORE pictures up on dropshots from July so click on the July link on the left hand side under 2007 & scroll. The pictures are approximately on July 4th, July 7th & July 21st & 22nd...
We just got Matias' mom's pictures this weekend hence the reason I put MORE up and just wait cause I've got a diaper load more to come when I get my mom's & sister's :)
We've been house-locked due to the 110 degree heat but today we are going to get his water table cause all the boy wants to do is go outside & play. And we need something for him to play with when we are outside in 110 degree weather. He is beginning to think that ALL doors open by an adult putting their foot on it, so many times he will pick up our foot and put it on the door - poor little guy. Smart! But sad, sadness about not getting the doors open. He knows how to open & close the screen door so that's always an exciting adventure ;)
He's saying "down" almost regularly now & we are still working on "up"!
Thursday, August 02, 2007
Wow. Totally making myself a liar.
I didn't think we had any more FIRST Birthday pictures to share, I thought they were all taken on other people's cameras...turns out Matias had some from his Mom's camera that we NOT in the correct location on our drive so I didn't know they were here until I went looking for cute pictures I might have overlooked. And SURPRISE, I found some :)
Liam loves his Gears & Wheels (I don't know if that is the name or not but it is now!) that he got from my friend Jen & her daughter Mia.
Ms. Nikki - here he is with the book you sent him!
LOVE the expression on his face!
I don't think I've ever been around a happier baby. He just loves everything he does! It's so fun to watch & be a part of :)
P.S. Rach, I'm sure my mom/sister have pictures of him with your outfit (adorable, btw), I just don't have them yet!! I'm still not even sure where these pictures came from!
P.P.S. I put more photos on dropshots under the July 22 date - I don't like changing the dates up since it might/could mess some people up looking at them, you know? So anyway, go over there & scroll :)
Sidenote: I still haven't been able to get all THREE videos up there, 2 and 3 are but 1 will not load. It isn't as funny without all three :(
Liam loves his Gears & Wheels (I don't know if that is the name or not but it is now!) that he got from my friend Jen & her daughter Mia.
Ms. Nikki - here he is with the book you sent him!
LOVE the expression on his face!
I don't think I've ever been around a happier baby. He just loves everything he does! It's so fun to watch & be a part of :)
P.S. Rach, I'm sure my mom/sister have pictures of him with your outfit (adorable, btw), I just don't have them yet!! I'm still not even sure where these pictures came from!
P.P.S. I put more photos on dropshots under the July 22 date - I don't like changing the dates up since it might/could mess some people up looking at them, you know? So anyway, go over there & scroll :)
Sidenote: I still haven't been able to get all THREE videos up there, 2 and 3 are but 1 will not load. It isn't as funny without all three :(
Wednesday, August 01, 2007
Last one! (for now)
Cousins!
There's Ms. Alexis (all 5'8" of her!) the day before she went back to CA at Camp Carolina with herbaby toddler cousin Liam.
There's Ms. Alexis (all 5'8" of her!) the day before she went back to CA at Camp Carolina with her
Again with the pictures!
I swear I thought I posted this one on dropshots (but I'm not talking to them at the moment...) but I don't see it so I have to put it here...phew...
We got a huge ass gate for the dining room/living room area - two reasons - one being the Fellow can unlock the china cabinet & two so I can stop worrying about Ms. Mys misbehaving in there. The opening is different than our other gates - no foot pedal to begin with & also, as you will see in the picture below, a little more "wiggle room" to get in trouble.
He climbed up there all on his own & then couldn't get down. He got stuck an inch off the ground. But let me ask you...you think I've got a climber on my hands?
We got a huge ass gate for the dining room/living room area - two reasons - one being the Fellow can unlock the china cabinet & two so I can stop worrying about Ms. Mys misbehaving in there. The opening is different than our other gates - no foot pedal to begin with & also, as you will see in the picture below, a little more "wiggle room" to get in trouble.
He climbed up there all on his own & then couldn't get down. He got stuck an inch off the ground. But let me ask you...you think I've got a climber on my hands?
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Think he likes it?
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We got Liam a Radio Flyer Wagon (the one with the seatbelts & storage) for his FIRST Birthday Present - here he is with Luccia cruising up & down the block :) He LOVES it! Just sits back & chills. He even watches Dada cut the grass and water while sitting nicely in it & not clambering all over himself to get out!
How to do this quickly...?
LIAM IS WALKING. I REPEAT, LIAM IS OFFICIALLY, FULL-ON, WALKING.
Right now, it's at about 75% of the time that he walks over crawling. The extreme long distances are still accomplished with ZOOM!ZOOM! but otherwise the Fat Person Waddle (TM Matias) is in effect. Very, very exciting!! There's a video on dropshots of him taking a handful of steps at Camp Carolina - he has taken more steps than that but it's the best video I have of it :) So far. HA. Yesterday he walked while he drank. Blows my mind. He can also turn around, pick something up while squatting & stand again to continue walking, and take a poop while standing without holding onto anything.
Also, he's clapping :) And actually making a CLAP!CLAP! sound with his little tiny, toddler hands while doing it & it's so damn cute I could almost cry every time I hear him do it. And let's not forget to mention that he CLAP!CLAP! to Michael Buble on TV the other morning - with NO prompting!
Right now, it's at about 75% of the time that he walks over crawling. The extreme long distances are still accomplished with ZOOM!ZOOM! but otherwise the Fat Person Waddle (TM Matias) is in effect. Very, very exciting!! There's a video on dropshots of him taking a handful of steps at Camp Carolina - he has taken more steps than that but it's the best video I have of it :) So far. HA. Yesterday he walked while he drank. Blows my mind. He can also turn around, pick something up while squatting & stand again to continue walking, and take a poop while standing without holding onto anything.
Also, he's clapping :) And actually making a CLAP!CLAP! sound with his little tiny, toddler hands while doing it & it's so damn cute I could almost cry every time I hear him do it. And let's not forget to mention that he CLAP!CLAP! to Michael Buble on TV the other morning - with NO prompting!
The Citizen of Fellowville is not happy.
We are currently in the midst of Round 40597 of Surge of the Teefies.
Same old signs as last time - no good sleeps, early rising and not going back to sleep for hours (I'm talking 4am here, folks), and general crabbiness from my little Cancer.
Not fun. And when the Fellow ain't happy, ain't no one happy.
Again the one nap for the day took longer to get him to take than the actual nap itself, which was less than an hour. And getting him to nightnight took over an hour also, but we started earlier cause the boy was pooped & simply fighting it.
I had bought him a new teething ring & he really worked on it this evening so I'm going to offer it to him more tomorrow, I hope that gives him some comfort cause gnawing away on his fingers cannot be much fun.
Last time this type of reaction only lasted about 1 1/2 days so I'm crossing my fingers in hope that this round will last the same amount of time.
I've been lacking in posts because of my extended holiday to Camp Carolina & upon my return a lot of CM work to do (that's a good thing) and now teething...
But to keep you current on our schedule we will be out of town this weekend for Cousin Luccia's 1st birthday, then LeNelle returns on Tuesday for house scouting & job searching, my parents arrive on Friday to start their round of FellowSitting because NISSAN is on Saturday!! Then my mom stays in town because Mama & Dada depart on Friday morning for Deer Creek sans Fellow - first time that BOTH parents are away from him!
I do want to write about his FIRST Birthday Party & post more pictures but a ton of them are only on my mom & sister's cameras & I'm waiting to get those on CD from them...and of course, I have to write his Thank You cards & mail out his 12 Month Quarterly Update after I pick up his 1 Year Picture tomorrow :) All of this would be much easier to accomplish (or just plain old get it done) if the boy would take a nap for his Mama.
I have no idea if & when I will write a 12 Month GushFest for the Fellow, I'm sure I will, lest the guilt overcome me...but right now, I don't see getting around to that until he is at least 15 years old.
It sure was thoughtful of Liam though to wait & have his little Insurgents attack until I was alone with him for the first time in about 2 weeks! Although there isn't much anyone else could have done for him, it still sucked having to call Matias & ask him (at 5:30pm) when he might be coming home cause I needed the relief pitcher to make an appearance...I really hate clock-watching and I feel like I haven't really done much of that since his Fussy Hour days, usually I'm just curious to know when I might expect dinner to be served ;)
I've got a REALLY funny video on the camera that is sitting upstairs on Liam's dresser...but be warned, Dropshots has changed their platform & is running wonky at the moment...so be gentle with it! I'll post more pictures tomorrow, as soon as I can get him to sleep more than 20 minutes :)
I'll leave you with the clues that the video has to do with his [MINE] Pillow & the proper place to keep your [MINE] Pillow. Even when feeling lousy & in possible need of a cuddle.
Same old signs as last time - no good sleeps, early rising and not going back to sleep for hours (I'm talking 4am here, folks), and general crabbiness from my little Cancer.
Not fun. And when the Fellow ain't happy, ain't no one happy.
Again the one nap for the day took longer to get him to take than the actual nap itself, which was less than an hour. And getting him to nightnight took over an hour also, but we started earlier cause the boy was pooped & simply fighting it.
I had bought him a new teething ring & he really worked on it this evening so I'm going to offer it to him more tomorrow, I hope that gives him some comfort cause gnawing away on his fingers cannot be much fun.
Last time this type of reaction only lasted about 1 1/2 days so I'm crossing my fingers in hope that this round will last the same amount of time.
I've been lacking in posts because of my extended holiday to Camp Carolina & upon my return a lot of CM work to do (that's a good thing) and now teething...
But to keep you current on our schedule we will be out of town this weekend for Cousin Luccia's 1st birthday, then LeNelle returns on Tuesday for house scouting & job searching, my parents arrive on Friday to start their round of FellowSitting because NISSAN is on Saturday!! Then my mom stays in town because Mama & Dada depart on Friday morning for Deer Creek sans Fellow - first time that BOTH parents are away from him!
I do want to write about his FIRST Birthday Party & post more pictures but a ton of them are only on my mom & sister's cameras & I'm waiting to get those on CD from them...and of course, I have to write his Thank You cards & mail out his 12 Month Quarterly Update after I pick up his 1 Year Picture tomorrow :) All of this would be much easier to accomplish (or just plain old get it done) if the boy would take a nap for his Mama.
I have no idea if & when I will write a 12 Month GushFest for the Fellow, I'm sure I will, lest the guilt overcome me...but right now, I don't see getting around to that until he is at least 15 years old.
It sure was thoughtful of Liam though to wait & have his little Insurgents attack until I was alone with him for the first time in about 2 weeks! Although there isn't much anyone else could have done for him, it still sucked having to call Matias & ask him (at 5:30pm) when he might be coming home cause I needed the relief pitcher to make an appearance...I really hate clock-watching and I feel like I haven't really done much of that since his Fussy Hour days, usually I'm just curious to know when I might expect dinner to be served ;)
I've got a REALLY funny video on the camera that is sitting upstairs on Liam's dresser...but be warned, Dropshots has changed their platform & is running wonky at the moment...so be gentle with it! I'll post more pictures tomorrow, as soon as I can get him to sleep more than 20 minutes :)
I'll leave you with the clues that the video has to do with his [MINE] Pillow & the proper place to keep your [MINE] Pillow. Even when feeling lousy & in possible need of a cuddle.
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
ONE YEAR Checkup!
Just a quick run-down of stats from Liam's ONE YEAR Checkup!
Height: 31 3/4"
Weight: 21 lbs. 8 oz - YAY!! A gain of 1 lb 5 oz since his 10 month Anemia check
Head Circumference: 18 3/4" - check out the big brain on Bob
Hemoglobin: 12.3 - YAY!! above average of 11.9 - ALL DIET!!
3 shots - he actually screamed which was not pleasant for Mama at all.
He opened the door to the room (he was on the inside) - it was one of those "french door levers" and the doctor turned and said "he shouldn't be doing that until 18 months..."
She very pleased with his vocabulary - to which, this week, he has added a two word sentence of "go down" & "kitty".
I think that's it for now...I'm wasting time as I wait for the dropshots pictures to upload...then I have to go through & label/caption all 68 of them just from our camera alone!
Height: 31 3/4"
Weight: 21 lbs. 8 oz - YAY!! A gain of 1 lb 5 oz since his 10 month Anemia check
Head Circumference: 18 3/4" - check out the big brain on Bob
Hemoglobin: 12.3 - YAY!! above average of 11.9 - ALL DIET!!
3 shots - he actually screamed which was not pleasant for Mama at all.
He opened the door to the room (he was on the inside) - it was one of those "french door levers" and the doctor turned and said "he shouldn't be doing that until 18 months..."
She very pleased with his vocabulary - to which, this week, he has added a two word sentence of "go down" & "kitty".
I think that's it for now...I'm wasting time as I wait for the dropshots pictures to upload...then I have to go through & label/caption all 68 of them just from our camera alone!
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Birthday Boy with Cake!!
Auntie made him his own special cake for his actual birthday on Friday - this was his first TASTE of sugar :) He was a little tentative at first but then torn right into the icing (didn't much care for the actual cake!) & then at one point just about threw the whole thing overboard!
He had icing everywhere! In his ears, up his nose, all through his hair :) Even got it all over Mama & Dada as he wasn't too sure about it all and needed some reassuring hugs throughout the "ordeal"! I felt like I was covered in icing too - only to find out that I WAS! I had icing in my ears, across my forehead, in my hair - but it was too cute to watch him have this experience!
I have some more pictures to share, of course I just need to gather them all together :)
Thank you everyone for your very special birthday wishes to our Liam Robert - I really appreciate it!!
I'm going to upload a bunch to drop shots later so that you don't have to be bogged down here with a ton of pictures :)
Thank you everyone for your very special birthday wishes to our Liam Robert - I really appreciate it!!
I'm going to upload a bunch to drop shots later so that you don't have to be bogged down here with a ton of pictures :)
Thursday, July 19, 2007
Happy FIRST Birthday, Liam Robert
Happy First Birthday, Liam Robert
Please click on the above link to see what I quickly threw together this morning :)
At this time last year, I was being wheeled into the operating room, fully ready to meet our Bebe. Little did we know, that our Liam Robert was awaiting us.
I didn't put much time into this, actually just grabbed the pictures in my desktop folder but I wanted to test it out to see what it was like, so excuse the gaps & holes in his past year but you get the idea :)
Happy Birthday my little Star of Wonder. Mama loves you.
A Year Ago Today
I was in my 15 hours of labor only to end with a c-section & two doctors' hands "all up in me" undoing Liam's feet from my ribcage only to miss the 7.19 deadline by 20 minutes.
Tomorrow is my son's FIRST birthday. Liam Robert will be one year old.
...the best is yet to come...
Tomorrow is my son's FIRST birthday. Liam Robert will be one year old.
...the best is yet to come...
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
Another Twist on an Old Game
Yesterday Liam started (and let me try & graphically describe this properly...) adding a new twist to peek-a-boo (aka Where's Liam?)...
Now he covers his eyes completely with his hands, palms turned out towards us & squints his eyes closed BUT he does peek every now & then to see if we are playing along!
At first, I thought he was rubbing his eyes cause he was tired but then he would whip his hands away and make a BOO sound & smile aplenty - only took Mama about 2 times to figure out it was a new variation of an old game :)
He had Naked Dinner last night because he leaked through his clothes right before meal time & I wasn't about to feed him with some clean jammies on since it's been getting a little messy these days with all the attempts at self feeding!
Now he covers his eyes completely with his hands, palms turned out towards us & squints his eyes closed BUT he does peek every now & then to see if we are playing along!
At first, I thought he was rubbing his eyes cause he was tired but then he would whip his hands away and make a BOO sound & smile aplenty - only took Mama about 2 times to figure out it was a new variation of an old game :)
He had Naked Dinner last night because he leaked through his clothes right before meal time & I wasn't about to feed him with some clean jammies on since it's been getting a little messy these days with all the attempts at self feeding!
Sunday, July 15, 2007
Seriously.
The kid wakes up this happy/excited every single time from a nap. I don't know how he does it cause if you know either one of his parents, you would know that he doesn't get it from us.
But you know, I think I could wake up that happy if I slept like this...
The 5K Lounge
Y'all thought I was joking about the lounging part, eh? He really was more thrilled about the whole thing than he appears here!
Lounge, Part Duex
Friday, July 13, 2007
Liam Robert's 11 Month GushFest- just under the wire!
In the last month, Liam’s personality, the good, the bad & the ugly, has exploded. He started to learn the fine art of tantrums by “expressing his negative emotions” through arching his back & kicking his legs when I attempt to get him to do something he does not want to do. Like, oh, get in his highchair or take a nap. (sidenote: I just typed ‘napa’ and instantly I thought, “if you’re tired you take a napa, you don’t move to napa” – total extra credit points if you know of what I’m speaking!) I’m thinking he has a short fuse, like you know who, or maybe this is just normal exploration of his feelings…either way it’s very interesting to see him expressing himself, negatively or not!
Liam started pointing at things and/or taking my hand to point things out – normally when he’s taking my hand to point, it’s because the item is a new addition to his environment & he’s being “cautiously curious” and plus, it’s really cute. He waves hi & bye to people – and that circle of being is expanding every day – he had Stranger Wave Anxiety for quiet a while but is slowly getting over that. He barely has any Stranger Anxiety when family comes over – he’s used to them now & fully recognizes everyone – especially in pictures! He will point to Grandma and smile – too sweet!
Liam’s favorite word of the moment is Dada – whether he is looking at his picture or actually in his Dada’s arms, he loves to just chattering away about his Dada. He still says “clock” when he sees the pictures of his clocks that Grandma gave him.
Liam went to his FIRST concert! It was such a pleasure to take him to see Huey Lewis with his Grandma & Grandpa – Fun! Fun! Fun!
Liam participated in his FIRST 5K Race for the Cure – he lounged the entire time & garnered many a comment from the surrounding ladies about that fact! I’ve got the pictures; I just need to post them. My thinking was (about participating) that since Liam benefited from MY healthy boobies that the two of us should support those who are afflicted & continue to Race for the Cure. He might be a boy, and at a lower risk, but his Momma was able to supply him with the Pimp Juice because she (me!) is healthy. And for that we are very thankful.
We played in the pool at Camp Carolina almost every evening & he loved every minute of it! We swung in his swing and giggled every time we approached “lift-off” – thank you so much Camp Carolina for making his stay SO much FUN for him! He truly loves exploring Camp & spending time with everyone – we are so lucky to have you so close & so available (and willing!) to come spend time with him & to make it so easy for us to come stay with y’all!
Liam is now walking with his walker but still prefers to use every either single thing that is not designed for walking with. Of course. He loves to push everything around & grins and giggles the entire time. He has made progress & will take ONE STEP between pieces of furniture, but still prefers to drop & ZOOM! ZOOM! to his destination of choice.
Liam has a new found love for his Goodnight Gorilla and we are back to reading it multiple times in a row, multiple times a day! He still laughs & does his adorable Scrunched Up Old Man Face when we get to the surprise of finding a gorilla in your bed. He can stand and pass me book after book after book, until his basket is empty and then he starts all over again. He loves his books!
His favorite thing on his Music Table is the ABC Song – he wants me to sing along with him & he grooves his little tukus to it every time. He really enjoys his fridge magnets & is especially partial to Farmer Tad & his banjo playing. He’s learning the correct way to put the animals on it so that he might get the song to play – he’s really funny when he dances to this – he stomps his foot & swivels himself around!
I cannot say enough about my Little Big Boy, as you can tell probably. He really is my little Star of Wonder. I feel so lucky to have him in my life every single day. It’s fun for me to tell Matias what he has done that day – I LOVE sharing him with everyone! He’s such a special HAPPY little Fellow that it’s hard not to be excited about him & what he is doing and experiencing. Even when he pushes my buttons, I know that this is the best thing that has ever happened to me (beyond, of course, meeting his father which without now of this would have been possible).
I know that everyday takes me further away from being his sole dependent (to an extent, people!) and it’s been really hard for me to wrap around my brain that he is going to be ONE YEARS OLD NEXT WEEK. Even Grandma somewhat “refuses” to refer to him as a Toddler but that’s what he is, my Little Bundle, our Bag of Potatoes, is now well on his way to being our Little Boy, our Toddler, our Forward Facing in the Car Seat, Self Feeding, Milk Drinking, Non-Pureed Eating Big Fellow Boy. It is truly bitter sweet, these ages & stages milestones we pass every day but I truly treasure every day I am able to be with him & watch him continue to develop into this HAPPY, SMILEY, GIGGILING BOY!
I also want to thank y’all for coming along for the ride with my little family. It means the world to me that I have this fantastic Global Virtual Family that will support, love & encourage Liam (and myself) through it all. I can feel the love & I feel connected to each of you through all of this & I hope you feel the same. Thanks for reading for the past 22 months, I really feel lucky to share our Fellow with you, I hope you feel a part of it all also.
I’m off to get the Liam Fellow dressed for the day – he’s up from his nap, talking away to himself. He’s got a huge kiss coming from me – just for being him. And lord knows, he deserves more than that, my little Star of Wonder.
Thursday, July 12, 2007
Water Baby
It was a beautiful day today - low 80s with zero humidity so I took Liam to the pool after his lunch & we had a great time!
He loves the water - zero fear - which I have to watch because he wants to dunk himself sometimes & doesn't really mind floating on his back but is still really suspicious of it.
He spent most of his time cruising around the perimeter of the 1 foot deep baby pool alternating between that & sitting in my lap splashing & kicking around. It was such a great, relaxing (minus the whole "don't slip, don't slip" chanting I was doing internally while he was doing all his cruising) time, I wish every day was a prefect pool day. I know I said I would go everyday with him but sometimes, as we all know, things don't work out like that for some reason or 549056 million other. I am going to work on being better about it because everything we do is so good for him that I should make a distinct point of doing that with him.
He also had great fun playing with my sunglasses - tossing them and walking/cruising after them & even bending over to retrieve them from the bottom!
One bad thing is he can get out of the baby pool. It's just like climbing up a big step for him I suppose, but it takes watching him to a whole new level. Now, granted, my eyes are never off of him & I barely ever/rarely don't have a hand or foot or leg on him physically but still...the slipping, just once, could do a lot of damage!
Another bad thing is the lifeguard rotation schedule they have for the Big Kid Pool - there's 3 guards working, one on rotation, the other 2 on "break" but they all take lunch at the same time for over a 1/2 hour & no one is allowed in the Big Kid Pool. Which is totally bad management. Why on earth do all 3 guards have to break at the same time? That's exactly why you have 3 guards & trust me, my 6 years of guarding has at least taught me that much. So once we got our fill of the Baby Pool, I was going to take him to the Big Kid Pool & let him hang out in his little floaty thing - he got tired out waiting for the guards to decide to start working again. So we came home & out he went for a 3 hour nap :) And the FOUR doors I have to maneuver with a stroller to actually get to the pool kind of get my knickers in a bunch too. That and the fact that I have to a) give them my pool ID card [that has my address on it] and then b) sign in on a form with my name, phone # and address [which hello, 2/3 of that info is on my ever-loving card that I just handed you].
Love the pool, hate the management.
He wore his trunks from Old Navy today - the ones with the flames on the sides of the legs :) Too cute. Sorry, no pictures but watching him is more than I can handle, don't even think about me handling a camera also!
Liam was being really cute though at one point...they have the tiles around the BABY POOL that say "no diving" and how deep the water is (1 foot) so he kept taking my hand over to them to tell him what they were...at some point, I added "how old is Liam going to be?" and I would point to the 1 :) I'm hoping that with in the next week (ohmygod) I can "train" him to respond with ONE when he's asked how old he is!
He also spent a lot of time watching the planes coming into Dulles - this time he started waving at them! Of course, he still smiles as he watches them in the sky and more specifically when he FINDS them. We always say to him, when we hear a plane, "where's the plane?" and then he looks up at the sky to find where it is and he smiles. And now he points :)
He loves the water - zero fear - which I have to watch because he wants to dunk himself sometimes & doesn't really mind floating on his back but is still really suspicious of it.
He spent most of his time cruising around the perimeter of the 1 foot deep baby pool alternating between that & sitting in my lap splashing & kicking around. It was such a great, relaxing (minus the whole "don't slip, don't slip" chanting I was doing internally while he was doing all his cruising) time, I wish every day was a prefect pool day. I know I said I would go everyday with him but sometimes, as we all know, things don't work out like that for some reason or 549056 million other. I am going to work on being better about it because everything we do is so good for him that I should make a distinct point of doing that with him.
He also had great fun playing with my sunglasses - tossing them and walking/cruising after them & even bending over to retrieve them from the bottom!
One bad thing is he can get out of the baby pool. It's just like climbing up a big step for him I suppose, but it takes watching him to a whole new level. Now, granted, my eyes are never off of him & I barely ever/rarely don't have a hand or foot or leg on him physically but still...the slipping, just once, could do a lot of damage!
Another bad thing is the lifeguard rotation schedule they have for the Big Kid Pool - there's 3 guards working, one on rotation, the other 2 on "break" but they all take lunch at the same time for over a 1/2 hour & no one is allowed in the Big Kid Pool. Which is totally bad management. Why on earth do all 3 guards have to break at the same time? That's exactly why you have 3 guards & trust me, my 6 years of guarding has at least taught me that much. So once we got our fill of the Baby Pool, I was going to take him to the Big Kid Pool & let him hang out in his little floaty thing - he got tired out waiting for the guards to decide to start working again. So we came home & out he went for a 3 hour nap :) And the FOUR doors I have to maneuver with a stroller to actually get to the pool kind of get my knickers in a bunch too. That and the fact that I have to a) give them my pool ID card [that has my address on it] and then b) sign in on a form with my name, phone # and address [which hello, 2/3 of that info is on my ever-loving card that I just handed you].
Love the pool, hate the management.
He wore his trunks from Old Navy today - the ones with the flames on the sides of the legs :) Too cute. Sorry, no pictures but watching him is more than I can handle, don't even think about me handling a camera also!
Liam was being really cute though at one point...they have the tiles around the BABY POOL that say "no diving" and how deep the water is (1 foot) so he kept taking my hand over to them to tell him what they were...at some point, I added "how old is Liam going to be?" and I would point to the 1 :) I'm hoping that with in the next week (ohmygod) I can "train" him to respond with ONE when he's asked how old he is!
He also spent a lot of time watching the planes coming into Dulles - this time he started waving at them! Of course, he still smiles as he watches them in the sky and more specifically when he FINDS them. We always say to him, when we hear a plane, "where's the plane?" and then he looks up at the sky to find where it is and he smiles. And now he points :)
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
Progress!
Liam put himself to sleep for his nap this morning!
He was sort of being combative to the extent that he was trying to bite me, throwing his chupie overboard for fun, and grabbing at the "pimp juice extractors" (ahem) so I just put him down in his crib with his [MINE] pillow & chupie & left.
About 10 minutes later, after some playing around but no screaming or crying he was asleep!
[UPDATED: Liam also put himself to sleep again this PM (Thursday) after our time at the pool & not because he was being "combative" but because when Mommy had to "use the facilities" he was asleep when I got back!]
He was sort of being combative to the extent that he was trying to bite me, throwing his chupie overboard for fun, and grabbing at the "pimp juice extractors" (ahem) so I just put him down in his crib with his [MINE] pillow & chupie & left.
About 10 minutes later, after some playing around but no screaming or crying he was asleep!
[UPDATED: Liam also put himself to sleep again this PM (Thursday) after our time at the pool & not because he was being "combative" but because when Mommy had to "use the facilities" he was asleep when I got back!]
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
And we are back on the air!
We are back from our extended weekend in CT for the Fourth! The fireworks got rained out but the party didn't :)
There's some pictures & videos up on the place where shots are dropped of Liam playing with his cousin Luccia (who is two weeks younger than he) that are really quite endearing. It was so fun to watch them play together! We made a point of spending a lot of time with her so that they could explore everything together and play with each other as they never get much time - it's erally cute to watch the two of them since they are so close in age.
I'll write more when I get a chance - trying to get the house back in order, do laundry, clean the floors...you know, all the fun stuff you have to do when returning from a trip!
LeNelle is visiting us this Sunday through Tuesday so Liam will have someone else to dote over him :) Then Wednesday Grandma & cousin Alexis are coming up early to help me get everything prefect for Liam's FIRST BIRTHDAY!! GAH. People, he's a year old next week?
In this time I have to go over & get his pictures taken too - maybe we'll do that next week though - closer to a year, you know?
Liam has a few new words & he now waves whenever he is saying hi & bye BUT yesterday he did say "hi" while waving! And he yells GOL! whenever he sees soccer being played and since Copa America is on right now & Argentina is in the semi-finals - soccer is on a LOT. It's really cute though & I'll get some video of it soon!
I'll write more later!!
There's some pictures & videos up on the place where shots are dropped of Liam playing with his cousin Luccia (who is two weeks younger than he) that are really quite endearing. It was so fun to watch them play together! We made a point of spending a lot of time with her so that they could explore everything together and play with each other as they never get much time - it's erally cute to watch the two of them since they are so close in age.
I'll write more when I get a chance - trying to get the house back in order, do laundry, clean the floors...you know, all the fun stuff you have to do when returning from a trip!
LeNelle is visiting us this Sunday through Tuesday so Liam will have someone else to dote over him :) Then Wednesday Grandma & cousin Alexis are coming up early to help me get everything prefect for Liam's FIRST BIRTHDAY!! GAH. People, he's a year old next week?
In this time I have to go over & get his pictures taken too - maybe we'll do that next week though - closer to a year, you know?
Liam has a few new words & he now waves whenever he is saying hi & bye BUT yesterday he did say "hi" while waving! And he yells GOL! whenever he sees soccer being played and since Copa America is on right now & Argentina is in the semi-finals - soccer is on a LOT. It's really cute though & I'll get some video of it soon!
I'll write more later!!
Picture(s) of the Day
Liam with his new Mets cap having some breakfast at his cousin Luccia's house.
He actually seems to enjoy wearing this cap!
He even got a jersey from Uncle Jimmy & Auntie Micaela!
Mommy thinks she knows what Liam will be wearing for a pose in his upcoming pictures!
He actually seems to enjoy wearing this cap!
He even got a jersey from Uncle Jimmy & Auntie Micaela!Mommy thinks she knows what Liam will be wearing for a pose in his upcoming pictures!
Tuesday, July 03, 2007
Patience is a Virtue & Love is a Gift.
Historically, I have a low patience threshold. Post-Liam, my patience has increased ten-fold. I also have learned to deal with my 'lack of' differently but the past two days I've really been put to the test.
The Insurgents are winning. These Teefies are wreaking havoc on our household on top of everything that needs to get done before we depart tomorrow until Sunday & then his birthday in just two weeks time & normal household Stuff.
Liam was up from 4-6am this morning & I woke him up when I went in to find Matias sleeping with him - I had to make sure he didn't need to get up since the alarm was going off at 6:30am.
Then at 9am we had a struggle going down for a nap & properly finishing his breakfast. Not in that order though...
He slept for less than an hour.
We had a bottle & went out to Target (got the cake plates - no FIRST birthday but really cute design). He got dozy in the car but didn't nod off, so I feed him a full lunch and attempted to put him down for a nap at 1 - a good 3 hours after he last woke up from his less than an hour nap. He yelled in my face a few times, and thrashed around attempting to find a comfortable spot. I put him in his crib and left. 20 minutes later he was now crying, without a chupie & had thrown his pillow outside the crib. Plus he had pooped. So, I changed him & got us all settled to Go To Sleep.
But during that time & especially this morning, my limits were being pushed. The yelling in my face is not pleasant but he's frustrated and in pain. Motrin does nothing for him - that I can tell. The tossing & turning doesn't achieve anything for him - he finally just collapses on his stomach and is out in 2 minutes when he finally LETS HIMSELF go to sleep. And yes, he IS tired the whole time. He throws his Chupie Overboard and thinks it's a fun game - because of course I retrieve it. IF I don't retrieve it, then he NEVER settles. I'm about done with the chupie cause I'm am done picking it up cause he thinks it's funny.
I get really frustrated with him during all of this. Not AT him just WITH him. I want to will him to just lie down & take a nap. I want to persuade him that he will feel so much better after he naps - for longer than an hour. I want him to stop throwing his chupie & just hand it to me (which he understands how to do) when he doesn't want it. I want him to stop telling in my face. But none of this is happening. And I want to scream. just scream. Not at him though. Just scream because of MY frustration. And normally, I would do just that.
What I'm trying to do & work through is when ever I feel like screaming or getting frustrated AT him and beyond WITH him, I'm trying to just simply hug him to me & smoother him with kisses. It makes me feel better (trust me - that could heal everything.) & I hope it makes him feel better and CALMER. Because there is only so much taking myself out of the situation that can occur, obviously. I have to be present - mentally & emotionally - and I feel like these past couple of days have had me tipping the balance on those fronts. And I know none of this is his fault - he's not doing this on purpose & I can repeat that to myself all I want but as the days pass it gets harder to gather the energy to keep that up.
I'm not trying to say I need or want a break - actually what I want is for this to PASS. Move along, Teefies! I want my little Fellow back & I know he wants that too. He's miserable & I feel like I cannot do anything for him but hug & kiss him.
And at some point, I have got to comprehend that I cannot make this "go away", we have to work through this together to get to the other side & me losing my patience (as thinly as it is spread to begin with...) is NOT going to help matters.
I'm trying. And the hugs & kisses I get in return do make it all worth while.
The Insurgents are winning. These Teefies are wreaking havoc on our household on top of everything that needs to get done before we depart tomorrow until Sunday & then his birthday in just two weeks time & normal household Stuff.
Liam was up from 4-6am this morning & I woke him up when I went in to find Matias sleeping with him - I had to make sure he didn't need to get up since the alarm was going off at 6:30am.
Then at 9am we had a struggle going down for a nap & properly finishing his breakfast. Not in that order though...
He slept for less than an hour.
We had a bottle & went out to Target (got the cake plates - no FIRST birthday but really cute design). He got dozy in the car but didn't nod off, so I feed him a full lunch and attempted to put him down for a nap at 1 - a good 3 hours after he last woke up from his less than an hour nap. He yelled in my face a few times, and thrashed around attempting to find a comfortable spot. I put him in his crib and left. 20 minutes later he was now crying, without a chupie & had thrown his pillow outside the crib. Plus he had pooped. So, I changed him & got us all settled to Go To Sleep.
But during that time & especially this morning, my limits were being pushed. The yelling in my face is not pleasant but he's frustrated and in pain. Motrin does nothing for him - that I can tell. The tossing & turning doesn't achieve anything for him - he finally just collapses on his stomach and is out in 2 minutes when he finally LETS HIMSELF go to sleep. And yes, he IS tired the whole time. He throws his Chupie Overboard and thinks it's a fun game - because of course I retrieve it. IF I don't retrieve it, then he NEVER settles. I'm about done with the chupie cause I'm am done picking it up cause he thinks it's funny.
I get really frustrated with him during all of this. Not AT him just WITH him. I want to will him to just lie down & take a nap. I want to persuade him that he will feel so much better after he naps - for longer than an hour. I want him to stop throwing his chupie & just hand it to me (which he understands how to do) when he doesn't want it. I want him to stop telling in my face. But none of this is happening. And I want to scream. just scream. Not at him though. Just scream because of MY frustration. And normally, I would do just that.
What I'm trying to do & work through is when ever I feel like screaming or getting frustrated AT him and beyond WITH him, I'm trying to just simply hug him to me & smoother him with kisses. It makes me feel better (trust me - that could heal everything.) & I hope it makes him feel better and CALMER. Because there is only so much taking myself out of the situation that can occur, obviously. I have to be present - mentally & emotionally - and I feel like these past couple of days have had me tipping the balance on those fronts. And I know none of this is his fault - he's not doing this on purpose & I can repeat that to myself all I want but as the days pass it gets harder to gather the energy to keep that up.
I'm not trying to say I need or want a break - actually what I want is for this to PASS. Move along, Teefies! I want my little Fellow back & I know he wants that too. He's miserable & I feel like I cannot do anything for him but hug & kiss him.
And at some point, I have got to comprehend that I cannot make this "go away", we have to work through this together to get to the other side & me losing my patience (as thinly as it is spread to begin with...) is NOT going to help matters.
I'm trying. And the hugs & kisses I get in return do make it all worth while.
Monday, July 02, 2007
It's the Final Countdown Take 1
So, it's Liam's Birthday Month.
WOW.
In less than 3 weeks my bebe will be ONE YEAR OLD. A toddler. A no-longer-bebe-boy.
But before I fall out of my chair & render myself unable to complete this post let me get to what I came here to talk about :)
His Birthday Party. And the preparations of.
They are going really well, so far ;) I'm becoming QUITE obsessive about finding the PREFECT Happy FIRST Birthday cake plate. And I think I might have to concede to whatever power is blocking me from finding them.
I've got my orange, red & blue tin candle holders for outside. I've got my orange & blue plates/napkins/cups. I've got a blue Happy First Birthday banner. I've got a blue crown (!). I've got my orange favor bags that have to be embellished with my blue & red die cuts courtesy of my Sizzix Side Kick. [note to self - don't forget to make the 25 die cuts for the bags!]
But I cannot find the prefect cake plates. Matias could care less - or to quote him (to be fair) he's "not that concerned about it". My first choice would be something with the right colors (see above...) with Happy FIRST Birthday on it and nothing gay-ing it up. No teddy bears, no smiley faces, no nothing but possibly in JenLand Heaven a rocket ship. My second choice would be the above requirements for no gayness but minus the FIRST birthday part. Then the last choice is just plain plates. BLAH. I REALLY want something that says FIRST birthday but with nothing else on it (gay or otherwise) & I just CANNOT find it.
Google has failed me. And I really need to step away from the computer and STOP searching for "first birthday cake plates". And please, especially stop showing me the return for the stupid teddy bear gaying up my rocket ship that says FIRST BIRTHDAY. I am _thisclose_ to just covering up that little teddy bear.
:)
So I'm really close to being ready for the party (I think.), I just have the die cuts to make to complete the Favor Bags...
Next up - what should Liam wear for his pictures AND his party.
DECISIONS.
WOW.
In less than 3 weeks my bebe will be ONE YEAR OLD. A toddler. A no-longer-bebe-boy.
But before I fall out of my chair & render myself unable to complete this post let me get to what I came here to talk about :)
His Birthday Party. And the preparations of.
They are going really well, so far ;) I'm becoming QUITE obsessive about finding the PREFECT Happy FIRST Birthday cake plate. And I think I might have to concede to whatever power is blocking me from finding them.
I've got my orange, red & blue tin candle holders for outside. I've got my orange & blue plates/napkins/cups. I've got a blue Happy First Birthday banner. I've got a blue crown (!). I've got my orange favor bags that have to be embellished with my blue & red die cuts courtesy of my Sizzix Side Kick. [note to self - don't forget to make the 25 die cuts for the bags!]
But I cannot find the prefect cake plates. Matias could care less - or to quote him (to be fair) he's "not that concerned about it". My first choice would be something with the right colors (see above...) with Happy FIRST Birthday on it and nothing gay-ing it up. No teddy bears, no smiley faces, no nothing but possibly in JenLand Heaven a rocket ship. My second choice would be the above requirements for no gayness but minus the FIRST birthday part. Then the last choice is just plain plates. BLAH. I REALLY want something that says FIRST birthday but with nothing else on it (gay or otherwise) & I just CANNOT find it.
Google has failed me. And I really need to step away from the computer and STOP searching for "first birthday cake plates". And please, especially stop showing me the return for the stupid teddy bear gaying up my rocket ship that says FIRST BIRTHDAY. I am _thisclose_ to just covering up that little teddy bear.
:)
So I'm really close to being ready for the party (I think.), I just have the die cuts to make to complete the Favor Bags...
Next up - what should Liam wear for his pictures AND his party.
DECISIONS.
The Insurgents are here!
They've surrounded Liam Fellow's mouth!
Folks, we have another teefie this moring along with some swollen gums right beside it (lower right for those keeping track at home) so I'm not sure if that is indicative of more teefies to come or just swollen from the one who made its appearance last night.
Poor Fellow was awake basically from 3:30-6:30 with all the aching & then slept till 10 (!) but now has not gone down for his nap until 1:30ish. Whacked out day, for sure. He did get some Motrin though to help ease his pain.
Folks, we have another teefie this moring along with some swollen gums right beside it (lower right for those keeping track at home) so I'm not sure if that is indicative of more teefies to come or just swollen from the one who made its appearance last night.
Poor Fellow was awake basically from 3:30-6:30 with all the aching & then slept till 10 (!) but now has not gone down for his nap until 1:30ish. Whacked out day, for sure. He did get some Motrin though to help ease his pain.
Saturday, June 30, 2007
For the archives
We will have fifty billion videos of Liam just about walking.
Everyday it seems he's [pun intended] one step closer to doing it on his own. Tonight he got a REALLY big kick out of us singing & cheering him along while he was walking with his walker, the goofy full teeth bared eyes disappeared from squinting grin was in full effect. So I think as long as we continue to act like his biggest cheerleaders (which we are anyway...) he will be encouraged more & more to get us to act like his biggest cheerleaders.
To which I pray doesn't make the final edit of the video when we finally capture his first steps. Cause I tend to be sounding more and more like a moron with each video I take of me encouraging him to do something. That just might be part of his own Evil Plan. This kid is onto me.
I'm in deep, deep trouble.
Everyday it seems he's [pun intended] one step closer to doing it on his own. Tonight he got a REALLY big kick out of us singing & cheering him along while he was walking with his walker, the goofy full teeth bared eyes disappeared from squinting grin was in full effect. So I think as long as we continue to act like his biggest cheerleaders (which we are anyway...) he will be encouraged more & more to get us to act like his biggest cheerleaders.
To which I pray doesn't make the final edit of the video when we finally capture his first steps. Cause I tend to be sounding more and more like a moron with each video I take of me encouraging him to do something. That just might be part of his own Evil Plan. This kid is onto me.
I'm in deep, deep trouble.
Friday, June 29, 2007
Where is my BEBE and what have you done with him!?!?
This was taken a few months ago actually on Matias' cell phone - he LOVED this little trike & we really wanted to get him for his birthday but we will wait for Christmas. But please, someone tell me, where has been teeny, tiny bebe gone?
Funny Fellow
I gave Liam some red grapes today to see if he might like those better than the white grapes I've been giving him and watching him toss overboard...
Turns out he does like the red ones better but with a twist.
He eats all the meat out of the quartered grape & hands the empty skin back to me. Guess he doesn't much care for the skins...but you can bet your tuckus I'm not peeling grapes for him!
I tried to take pictures but it was difficult...so I might have evidence of it later. Right now, we have about 6 pieces of empty grape skin sitting on his tray.
Turns out he does like the red ones better but with a twist.
He eats all the meat out of the quartered grape & hands the empty skin back to me. Guess he doesn't much care for the skins...but you can bet your tuckus I'm not peeling grapes for him!
I tried to take pictures but it was difficult...so I might have evidence of it later. Right now, we have about 6 pieces of empty grape skin sitting on his tray.
New Trick!
In the past few days, Liam has started to POINT at things!! I was "worried" [with a lower case w, not upper case W call the doctors our son is damaged worried] about it a little since he wasn't pointing at things BUT what he does do is actually go get the thing I've questioned him on...
Example - "Liam, where's your bottle?" ZOOM!ZOOM! over to his bottle & brings it back to Mama.
Example - "Liam, where's the phone?" ZOOM!ZOOM! over to the phone to bring it back to Mama.
Nothing wrong in that, right? In fact, quite genius level comprehension, no? :)
But the other day, he "pointed" to something he wanted - at first, I mistook it for him reaching for that item but nope, it's just First Time Mommy Retardedness kicking in there - his full hand reach is actually his Pointing!
We are slowly working on encouraging him to Full Hand Point at things but sometimes he just goes & gets them...
Example - "Liam, where's the Monka Kitty?" ZOOM!ZOOM! over to extract 1/2 of Monka Kitty's winter coat from his backside. I'm sure Monka Kitty will appreciate the encouragement of the Full Hand Point as much as the next Monka.
So it's rather cute now to watch him Full Hand Point to something & then of course, go retrieve it :)
Example - "Liam, where's your bottle?" ZOOM!ZOOM! over to his bottle & brings it back to Mama.
Example - "Liam, where's the phone?" ZOOM!ZOOM! over to the phone to bring it back to Mama.
Nothing wrong in that, right? In fact, quite genius level comprehension, no? :)
But the other day, he "pointed" to something he wanted - at first, I mistook it for him reaching for that item but nope, it's just First Time Mommy Retardedness kicking in there - his full hand reach is actually his Pointing!
We are slowly working on encouraging him to Full Hand Point at things but sometimes he just goes & gets them...
Example - "Liam, where's the Monka Kitty?" ZOOM!ZOOM! over to extract 1/2 of Monka Kitty's winter coat from his backside. I'm sure Monka Kitty will appreciate the encouragement of the Full Hand Point as much as the next Monka.
So it's rather cute now to watch him Full Hand Point to something & then of course, go retrieve it :)
Progress on the Walking Front
Although Liam has not started walking yet, I believe he is just taking his time to figure out exactly how to do it & then once he does he will be OFF - just like his crawling & about everything else he has learned thus far!
What he does do expertly though is stand alone and multi-task ~ which I believe to be a feat in and of itself!
He can drink his bottle while standing alone, he can play with his music table without touching it for support & he reads his books while standing up.
Pretty nifty, eh?
Grandma tries to claim she saw him take his "first step" while no one else was in the room & even though I "believe" her I am not counting that since *I* was not there to see it happen :)
He has let go of the chair, or his table and swiveled around, placed his foot in a different spot and reached for something new to hang onto - first steps? I THINK SO!
I've done something Evil and moved the ottomans further back from the couch. This makes him have to let go of the ottomans to reach the couch and TAKE A STEP. Evil, yes? But using my powers for good? Yes! Although now my feet don't reach them...but seriously, I am not spending my days lounging on the couch with my feet up! Alright, maybe between 3-4 when the Bebe is sleeping but even then I'm not lounging and it has nothing to do with my feet not reaching anymore :) I digress though...
He has started using his walker a little more but still favors pushing the office chair or music table around. He has also started showing more interest in walking with us holding his hands and even, within the week, has shown interest in "coming to Mama/Dadda" when we are about A (as in ONE) step away from him. He prefers that we be on his level and not standing & even yesterday CHEATED at this little task and POUNCED into my lap instead of taking that ONE step. I do not think he's lazy or not ready to walk, I think he's got a good thing going with this ZOOM!ZOOM! and won't give it up until he can master the walking thing with as much confidence as he has with ZOOM!ZOOM!
I'll keep you posted though - as we always have the camera set to video these days - just in case, you know?
What he does do expertly though is stand alone and multi-task ~ which I believe to be a feat in and of itself!
He can drink his bottle while standing alone, he can play with his music table without touching it for support & he reads his books while standing up.
Pretty nifty, eh?
Grandma tries to claim she saw him take his "first step" while no one else was in the room & even though I "believe" her I am not counting that since *I* was not there to see it happen :)
He has let go of the chair, or his table and swiveled around, placed his foot in a different spot and reached for something new to hang onto - first steps? I THINK SO!
I've done something Evil and moved the ottomans further back from the couch. This makes him have to let go of the ottomans to reach the couch and TAKE A STEP. Evil, yes? But using my powers for good? Yes! Although now my feet don't reach them...but seriously, I am not spending my days lounging on the couch with my feet up! Alright, maybe between 3-4 when the Bebe is sleeping but even then I'm not lounging and it has nothing to do with my feet not reaching anymore :) I digress though...
He has started using his walker a little more but still favors pushing the office chair or music table around. He has also started showing more interest in walking with us holding his hands and even, within the week, has shown interest in "coming to Mama/Dadda" when we are about A (as in ONE) step away from him. He prefers that we be on his level and not standing & even yesterday CHEATED at this little task and POUNCED into my lap instead of taking that ONE step. I do not think he's lazy or not ready to walk, I think he's got a good thing going with this ZOOM!ZOOM! and won't give it up until he can master the walking thing with as much confidence as he has with ZOOM!ZOOM!
I'll keep you posted though - as we always have the camera set to video these days - just in case, you know?
Grandma Trick - revised
Since about November Liam has been copying Grandma's cough - we call it his Fake Cough. He copies everyone's cough and always has a very distressed look on his face while doing it. He has issues with sneezes though (welcome to Allergy Season!) and will try to figure out how to manage to fake a sneeze but usually goes with the tried & true Fake Cough.
I've attempted to teach him a fake sneeze by going AH! AH! AH! CHOO! in rising degrees of "something great is about to happen" noises but he usually just laughs his butt off or Fake Coughs. Although at times you can hear him start the AH! AH! AH! which can sometimes sound like 1! 2! 3! but he never follows through with the CHOO! portion - which maybe is his Fake Out Sneeze??
Anyway...my point here today is to tell y'all of the Revised Fake Cough. Grandma started saying to him (in May, I believe) "oh, you've got a bad cough" to which he responds with more Fake Coughs. So now every time he coughs, we all tell him what a bad cough he has. Sometimes he throws a laugh in there as if to say "fooled ya!" but other times, he gets very distressed look on his face and Fake Coughs some more :)
I've attempted to teach him a fake sneeze by going AH! AH! AH! CHOO! in rising degrees of "something great is about to happen" noises but he usually just laughs his butt off or Fake Coughs. Although at times you can hear him start the AH! AH! AH! which can sometimes sound like 1! 2! 3! but he never follows through with the CHOO! portion - which maybe is his Fake Out Sneeze??
Anyway...my point here today is to tell y'all of the Revised Fake Cough. Grandma started saying to him (in May, I believe) "oh, you've got a bad cough" to which he responds with more Fake Coughs. So now every time he coughs, we all tell him what a bad cough he has. Sometimes he throws a laugh in there as if to say "fooled ya!" but other times, he gets very distressed look on his face and Fake Coughs some more :)
Thursday, June 28, 2007
New Meal added to menu!
Last night I tried the pasta again for Liam - this time I made the alphabet noodles thinking it would be easier for him to chewchewchew & well that didn't go over very well - he didn't quite like the taste of the pasta & butter SO we added carrots & spinach to his pasta & he GOBBLED it right up!
I'm cooking up his turkey for him this afternoon as soon as it defrosts & I think I might make him some "baby lasagna" complete with pasta, cheese & turkey - I swear I don't know where my little big boy has gone. He's so grown up now :(
I'm cooking up his turkey for him this afternoon as soon as it defrosts & I think I might make him some "baby lasagna" complete with pasta, cheese & turkey - I swear I don't know where my little big boy has gone. He's so grown up now :(
Up, Up, Up!
We have been letting Liam climb the stairs whenever we take him up there to change his diaper or put him to bed but today the funniest thing happened...
I asked him if he was ready for Noni (nap) and he said "uh huh" and then took off ZOOM!ZOOM! to the stairs, waited for me to open the gate, sped right past the cat food bowls (thankfully!) and right up the stairs into his room, over to his CD player for me to turn his Beatles on for him!
And Noni time happened :)
How freaking cute is that? And of course, brilliant of him :)
My little boy! What is happening here?!?! What's up with all this maturing?!?!
I asked him if he was ready for Noni (nap) and he said "uh huh" and then took off ZOOM!ZOOM! to the stairs, waited for me to open the gate, sped right past the cat food bowls (thankfully!) and right up the stairs into his room, over to his CD player for me to turn his Beatles on for him!
And Noni time happened :)
How freaking cute is that? And of course, brilliant of him :)
My little boy! What is happening here?!?! What's up with all this maturing?!?!
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
New Game
This is how Liam enjoys playing with his Farm - by standing on it & rocking back and forth while watching TV.
File Under: That's Pretty Obvious
I have a BUNCH of updating to do, cue the title...
But I do want to add that today, for like the 5th time or so Liam climbed up the stairs unassisted.
We have video of it that I have to upload to drop shots later...and a note about the stairs & baby gates...
He CLOSES the gates himself whenever we ask him or if he sees that they aren't shut. I'm convinced he's keeping the cats out/playing a game with them and doesn't quite grasp that they are to keep HIM out of harms' way. It's really cute - he ZOOM!ZOOM! over there & SLAMS the gates shut & THEN stands up and browbeats the cats :)
AND he's added a new word to his vocab - Book! We were having the hardest time figuring out his "toddleresse" but I think Matias nailed it with "book", I was thinking "bird" but I'm quite sure that's not it :)
AND he's got ANOTHER TEEFIE! That makes SEVEN. SEVEN? Yes, SEVEN. It's another upper & I'm still waiting on some lowers to come in - I think they are _rightthere_ waiting to come through.
Ok enough one-liners for now - I owe you a 11th Month GushFest you know! And we have to measure him against our Ghetto Growth Chart for his 11 MONTHS MEASUREMENT.
[my god, my baby is ONE in 3 weeks]
But I do want to add that today, for like the 5th time or so Liam climbed up the stairs unassisted.
We have video of it that I have to upload to drop shots later...and a note about the stairs & baby gates...
He CLOSES the gates himself whenever we ask him or if he sees that they aren't shut. I'm convinced he's keeping the cats out/playing a game with them and doesn't quite grasp that they are to keep HIM out of harms' way. It's really cute - he ZOOM!ZOOM! over there & SLAMS the gates shut & THEN stands up and browbeats the cats :)
AND he's added a new word to his vocab - Book! We were having the hardest time figuring out his "toddleresse" but I think Matias nailed it with "book", I was thinking "bird" but I'm quite sure that's not it :)
AND he's got ANOTHER TEEFIE! That makes SEVEN. SEVEN? Yes, SEVEN. It's another upper & I'm still waiting on some lowers to come in - I think they are _rightthere_ waiting to come through.
Ok enough one-liners for now - I owe you a 11th Month GushFest you know! And we have to measure him against our Ghetto Growth Chart for his 11 MONTHS MEASUREMENT.
[my god, my baby is ONE in 3 weeks]
That's the POWER OF LOVE
Almost a month ago, Liam went to his FIRST CONCERT! We attended the 5th Annual Huey Lewis celebration at Wolf Trap :)
Liam was FANTASTIC. He was given dinner there in his stroller - since we sat at the very top of the lawn we didn't block anyone with our stroller (and yes, we were allowed to bring it in, isn't that awesome?) before the show started. He enjoyed the opening act, which coincidentally was called The Grandsons and [from what I can remember!] spent most of his time lounging around and discovering the lawn. He didn't cry or fuss ONCE. He got passed around between the four of us & just enjoyed himself the whole time.
The title of this post comes from his "reaction" to the song - Power of Love - he was with Grandma at that point & just could not stop covering her face in kisses throughout the entire song. It was quite endearing, if not sloppy.
He came up with Matias & I to a closer spot under the pavilion to view the stage a little better (or at all, I should say!) and to hear the music close up - HE LOVED IT.
The whole time he was either making out with us, dancing or cheering at the end of songs at the top of his lungs. We passed him between us mostly because he would want to go to someone else more than having to pass him off cause he was so fussy. He had so much fun & it was so exciting to be able to share this with him. Sadly, no baby sized concert shirts for the Fellow :(
He only fell asleep during the encore break - at about 10pm - so past his bedtime & during a show which is really nothing to complain about. Matias just rocked with him (more like dancing honestly in that setting) and then put him in his stroller which was reclined to the "bassinet" position where he slept until we got back to the car!
My mom & I headed back up to the pavilion area to get a good look at the Huey during the encore & when we came back up Grandpa had everything packed up & Matias was MIA. Turns out he RAN from the VERY TOP of lawn DOWN TO THE STAGE. You know why?
TO GET A SETLIST.
WHICH HE GOT.
LIAM HAS A SETLIST FROM HIS FIRST CONCERT EVER.
My baby daddy rocks.
Liam was FANTASTIC. He was given dinner there in his stroller - since we sat at the very top of the lawn we didn't block anyone with our stroller (and yes, we were allowed to bring it in, isn't that awesome?) before the show started. He enjoyed the opening act, which coincidentally was called The Grandsons and [from what I can remember!] spent most of his time lounging around and discovering the lawn. He didn't cry or fuss ONCE. He got passed around between the four of us & just enjoyed himself the whole time.
The title of this post comes from his "reaction" to the song - Power of Love - he was with Grandma at that point & just could not stop covering her face in kisses throughout the entire song. It was quite endearing, if not sloppy.
He came up with Matias & I to a closer spot under the pavilion to view the stage a little better (or at all, I should say!) and to hear the music close up - HE LOVED IT.
The whole time he was either making out with us, dancing or cheering at the end of songs at the top of his lungs. We passed him between us mostly because he would want to go to someone else more than having to pass him off cause he was so fussy. He had so much fun & it was so exciting to be able to share this with him. Sadly, no baby sized concert shirts for the Fellow :(
He only fell asleep during the encore break - at about 10pm - so past his bedtime & during a show which is really nothing to complain about. Matias just rocked with him (more like dancing honestly in that setting) and then put him in his stroller which was reclined to the "bassinet" position where he slept until we got back to the car!
My mom & I headed back up to the pavilion area to get a good look at the Huey during the encore & when we came back up Grandpa had everything packed up & Matias was MIA. Turns out he RAN from the VERY TOP of lawn DOWN TO THE STAGE. You know why?
TO GET A SETLIST.
WHICH HE GOT.
LIAM HAS A SETLIST FROM HIS FIRST CONCERT EVER.
My baby daddy rocks.
Thursday, June 21, 2007
The Fit over the CDs
I'm uploading the video of Liam having his little fit (poor little guy) over the CDs not being books. Yes, I laugh at him & maybe I shouldn't but, come on, sometimes these things are funny!
For the record, putting it on my head has totally stopped the mini-meltdown (as far as Liam Meltdowns go, this is pretty bad for him) so I will continue to balance them on my head.
Enjoy!
For the record, putting it on my head has totally stopped the mini-meltdown (as far as Liam Meltdowns go, this is pretty bad for him) so I will continue to balance them on my head.
Enjoy!
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
And in this corner...!
We weighed Liam ourselves the other day & the Ghetto IKEA scale (which STILL says I've only lost 7 pounds since GIVING BIRTH) and we are proud to unofficially report that he is just a tad over 21 pounds!!
If that is true, that means in a month he has gained OVER a POUND!!
HIP!HIP!HURRAY!
Now that's cause for celebration :)
If that is true, that means in a month he has gained OVER a POUND!!
HIP!HIP!HURRAY!
Now that's cause for celebration :)
Creative Parenting
For those of you who will surely run into this problem soon enough, I offer the following advice.
When your child freaks out & cries for 40 minutes because the CD is not a BOOK and then brings you more CDs to read the next morning, simply put the CDs on your head!
Then wait for them to bring you more & see how many you can balance at once. Right now, I'm only up to two at a time. I'm sure I'll get a ton more practice in my coming days. In fact, I'm typing this with two CDs on my head. I'm totally not even kidding.
When your child freaks out & cries for 40 minutes because the CD is not a BOOK and then brings you more CDs to read the next morning, simply put the CDs on your head!
Then wait for them to bring you more & see how many you can balance at once. Right now, I'm only up to two at a time. I'm sure I'll get a ton more practice in my coming days. In fact, I'm typing this with two CDs on my head. I'm totally not even kidding.
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
What's in YOUR freezer?
Time for another rousing rendition of "What's in YOUR freezer??"
- plums
- carrots
- beef
- broccoli
- peaches
- potatoes
- sweet potatoes
- yellow squash
- winter squash
- kiwi (fridge)
- cottage cheese (fridge)
- yogurt
- blueberries
- asparagus
- ground turkey!!
- peas
- apples
- broccoli
- potatoes
Monday, June 18, 2007
New Lenten Period
When we departed Camp Carolina it was noted that Grandma & Grandpa would not be seeing Liam until his birthday, July 20th, which was roughly 40 days later.
Thus, I called it "Liam Lent" - fasting for 40 days before celebrating the birth of Liam & the resurrection of the Grandparental Visitation.
Let me tell you this though - one mention by Matias that they are welcome to come up this weekend & BOOM - Liam Lent is broken & plans for a long weekend are in the making :)
So Grandpa & Grandma are coming up on Friday & leaving on Monday! YAY!
Thus, I called it "Liam Lent" - fasting for 40 days before celebrating the birth of Liam & the resurrection of the Grandparental Visitation.
Let me tell you this though - one mention by Matias that they are welcome to come up this weekend & BOOM - Liam Lent is broken & plans for a long weekend are in the making :)
So Grandpa & Grandma are coming up on Friday & leaving on Monday! YAY!
And I think to myself...
i've seen trees of green, red roses too. I see them bloom for me & you. And I think to myself, what a wonderful world.
i see skies of blue and clouds of white, the bright blessed day, the dark sacred night
i've heard babies cry, i've watched them grow, they'll know much more than i'll ever know
Thursday, June 14, 2007
Few minor things!
Just a quick grocery list of things Liam is up to these days!
- He had blueberries for the first time yesterday & since his personality is shining through so much these days watching his little animated & very expressive face discover blueberries was a lot of fun!
- The Teefies were in full attack mode yesterday and caused quite a horrible, long day for both of us. Today seems much better. Thankfully.
- He is attempting to Self Feed. He takes the spoon & puts it in his mouth then touches the table (as if scooping more food) and brings it back to his mouth. Creates very long & messy meal times.
- He mastered the entire flight of stairs here at home. Monkey Kitty was in front of him & I think that proved just the right amount of motivation for him to keep going!
- The dining room is now off limits since he opened the LOCKED china cabinet. Mystic Kitty is none too happy about this.
- We have a Love/Hate Relationship with the dishwasher. He loves to turn it on, I hate that
another Photo Essay - Favorite Pictures from the Last Two Weeks Part One!
Mama getting a Beso from her Stink
Please note the very important things on her desk - phone, coffee & Stefan (calendar)
The Cutest Little Two Piece PJ Wearing Big Boy Playing with his Learn & Groove Music Table EVER!
At the Mommies Group VA Division Picnic Liam decided to "fill his pants" between the coolers containing all the grill fixin's!
After the picnic we went to the Manassas Railway Festival to see Nothin' Fancy play - Liam spent some time on Grandpa's shoulders dancing & watching the band!
Dinner got a little messy.
First time I've had to strip him while he was still in his highchair.
Please note: Mama was NOT feeding him!
Scroll down!
I posted some pictures & such from my birthday & Mother's Day but since I started the post & then saved it as a draft, it published it on the date I started the post...weird...
So if you want to see some pictures that are over a freaking month old - just scroll down!
I also have to catch us all up on our Grandparent's Visit, Liam's FIRST concert, more Crawling Convention pictures, then our Holiday to Camp Carolina.
So if you want to see some pictures that are over a freaking month old - just scroll down!
I also have to catch us all up on our Grandparent's Visit, Liam's FIRST concert, more Crawling Convention pictures, then our Holiday to Camp Carolina.
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
Nicknames
Mama goes through nicknames like bottles of wine (oh, I kid! The wine goes quicker...!) so the Little Big Boy acquires new monikers frequently.
His newest ones are Senor & Stink. Not Stinky but simply Stink. And not because he smells but mostly because he acts like a little Stinkerton. I have no idea how else to explain it except pair his Old Man Disgusted Face with the Slap!Slap!Slap! crawl coming at you and that is Stink.
Sometimes he is also StinkStankStunk. And on more formal occasions Mr. StinkStankStunk.
Of course, he's still Fellow and sometimes Pumpkin and often Little Big Boy but lately mostly Senor & Stink.
You would hear a lot of "where's the Stink?" if you visited. And oddly, I would not be referring to his diaper.
His newest ones are Senor & Stink. Not Stinky but simply Stink. And not because he smells but mostly because he acts like a little Stinkerton. I have no idea how else to explain it except pair his Old Man Disgusted Face with the Slap!Slap!Slap! crawl coming at you and that is Stink.
Sometimes he is also StinkStankStunk. And on more formal occasions Mr. StinkStankStunk.
Of course, he's still Fellow and sometimes Pumpkin and often Little Big Boy but lately mostly Senor & Stink.
You would hear a lot of "where's the Stink?" if you visited. And oddly, I would not be referring to his diaper.
Tuesday, June 12, 2007
And also...
...Liam only uses his Chupie when he's sleeping & most times not even for his whole sleep BUT when I go up to get him from a nap or the morning, I always say to him to "please put your chupie down" or "can you put your chupie down for me, please?" AND HE DOES IT!
So smart, this little Liam Fellow.
And he said "cow" this morning while reading his book in bed with us. I confirmed it with Matias this evening since it was early (7:15) and neither of us were really quite awake. But there's another word we are working on!
So smart, this little Liam Fellow.
And he said "cow" this morning while reading his book in bed with us. I confirmed it with Matias this evening since it was early (7:15) and neither of us were really quite awake. But there's another word we are working on!
Mama's Birthday & Mother's Day - a Photo Essay!
We went to my favorite oyster bar - Tony's - in Cary for my birthday dinner. Here's Grandpa trying to keep Liam away from the "dangerous stuff"
A proud & happy Mama with her Fellow before blowing out the candles on her cake!
Mother's Day Portrait! I love how this turned out & I'm going to have to print out a copy to put in a frame!
Matias gave me a lovely pearl bracelet from Liam for my First Mother's Day celebration! I was very surprised that I was gifted with another piece of jewelery simply because Matias is not the jewelery giving type!
Me & Grandma with her album that Liam gave her for [Grand] Mother's Day!
Attack of the Teefies!
Ladies & Gentlemen,
Liam has TWO new teefies breaking through right now! One upper left & one lower left - I didn't expect the upper one to come in but I knew that lower one was on its way! He has TWO more attempting to break free on the top right.
And not a complaint in sight. Sleep is fine. Naps are great. They just pop on in!
Liam has TWO new teefies breaking through right now! One upper left & one lower left - I didn't expect the upper one to come in but I knew that lower one was on its way! He has TWO more attempting to break free on the top right.
And not a complaint in sight. Sleep is fine. Naps are great. They just pop on in!
Monday, June 11, 2007
And, we're back!
All the fellows, Mama's & Dada's are home safe & sound! I think I'm just going to do a photo essay of all our adventures BUT I cannot do it at the moment since my power source on my computer decided to up & die while we were gone :( All my pictures are on that machine since my mom & I use Groove Share & the folder is not accessible since the computer is powered down. I'm on the laptop at the moment so I can still access email & such but not my new pictures. Bummer!
Needless to say, we had an awesome time at Camp Carolina :) The Little Big Boy is talking up a storm (clock!) & he had so much fun in his pool, his swing & our 5K walk!
I will post more (and pictures) when I can - but I do not know when I will be rushing out to the store to get a new power source (everyone cross your fingers that is what the problem is and not a hard drive crash).
I've got a lot to do as Liam's FIRST birthday is sneaking up on us & I have to get the invitations out the door, pick a cake, and get started on creating & making his goodie bags!
But don't despair, we will be back to our regular programming shortly! Right after I make a freezer full of food, address & fill in 20 invitations, clean the house, organize my CM business & do about 3 loads of laundry!
Needless to say, we had an awesome time at Camp Carolina :) The Little Big Boy is talking up a storm (clock!) & he had so much fun in his pool, his swing & our 5K walk!
I will post more (and pictures) when I can - but I do not know when I will be rushing out to the store to get a new power source (everyone cross your fingers that is what the problem is and not a hard drive crash).
I've got a lot to do as Liam's FIRST birthday is sneaking up on us & I have to get the invitations out the door, pick a cake, and get started on creating & making his goodie bags!
But don't despair, we will be back to our regular programming shortly! Right after I make a freezer full of food, address & fill in 20 invitations, clean the house, organize my CM business & do about 3 loads of laundry!
Friday, June 08, 2007
Shifting Schedule
I'm under the impression that the little big boy is still a little too young to be switching to a One Nap a Day little boy BUT it seems that is the direction he is heading...
It's hard to tell since he's not at home & he hasn't been on his "regular" schedule with the grandparents visiting and all so I'm not going to commit to this line of thinking until we get him settled back into his own routine. Of course, each kid is different & he very well might be switching his naps already but I wasn't quite prepared for it :) I suppose I will get a lot done during those 3-4 hours smack dab in the middle of the day & I suppose we will be heading out much more in the late afternoon/early evening than we normally do so...
Also with this shift, I think he might be heading back towards an 8pm nightnight time - he switched himself to a 9pm lights out time a while back & it worked a lot better for him - he would go down in 5-15 minutes' time & we wouldn't have any squabbling like we did when we attempted to keep him at an 8pm go nightynighty time. Last night he went to bed at 8pm after napping for 3 hours from 12-3 - but those 5 hours were busy & active so there was definitely no way he was making it to 9pm. He actually fell asleep during the Grandfather clock's (clock!) 8pm chime sequence - it started & he was awake, it finished & he was O-U-T!
Like I said - I'm not committed to this new schedule as I'm not sure he is but we'll flesh it out & see what comes :) What I can say, is Maman will be getting a lot of scrapbooking done with 3-4 hours in the middle of the day suddenly now house-bound!
Aren't you excited that I'm talking about sleep schedules again?!?
Next up - More Teefies! I do believe he is sprouting another upper :)
It's hard to tell since he's not at home & he hasn't been on his "regular" schedule with the grandparents visiting and all so I'm not going to commit to this line of thinking until we get him settled back into his own routine. Of course, each kid is different & he very well might be switching his naps already but I wasn't quite prepared for it :) I suppose I will get a lot done during those 3-4 hours smack dab in the middle of the day & I suppose we will be heading out much more in the late afternoon/early evening than we normally do so...
Also with this shift, I think he might be heading back towards an 8pm nightnight time - he switched himself to a 9pm lights out time a while back & it worked a lot better for him - he would go down in 5-15 minutes' time & we wouldn't have any squabbling like we did when we attempted to keep him at an 8pm go nightynighty time. Last night he went to bed at 8pm after napping for 3 hours from 12-3 - but those 5 hours were busy & active so there was definitely no way he was making it to 9pm. He actually fell asleep during the Grandfather clock's (clock!) 8pm chime sequence - it started & he was awake, it finished & he was O-U-T!
Like I said - I'm not committed to this new schedule as I'm not sure he is but we'll flesh it out & see what comes :) What I can say, is Maman will be getting a lot of scrapbooking done with 3-4 hours in the middle of the day suddenly now house-bound!
Aren't you excited that I'm talking about sleep schedules again?!?
Next up - More Teefies! I do believe he is sprouting another upper :)
Wednesday, June 06, 2007
Summer Holiday!
Howdy!
Just wanted to drop in real quick to let y'all know that I'm on "holiday"! Last week Grandma & Grandpa were in VA to kick off our Summer Concert Tour (more on that later!!) & now this week we are at Camp Carolina to do the Race for the Cure on Saturday - Liam Fellow will be participating (in his stroller, of course) also!
Updates will continue to be fleeting BUT I will note now that Liam has a vocabulary of about 5 (FIVE!) words right now!
He says - car, cat, mama, dada & duck! He's working on learning "clock" today :)
Talk to you all soon!!
Just wanted to drop in real quick to let y'all know that I'm on "holiday"! Last week Grandma & Grandpa were in VA to kick off our Summer Concert Tour (more on that later!!) & now this week we are at Camp Carolina to do the Race for the Cure on Saturday - Liam Fellow will be participating (in his stroller, of course) also!
Updates will continue to be fleeting BUT I will note now that Liam has a vocabulary of about 5 (FIVE!) words right now!
He says - car, cat, mama, dada & duck! He's working on learning "clock" today :)
Talk to you all soon!!
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Picture of the Day
Can you see the same little mischievous look in his eyes that I do?
Taken yesterday while grillin' out for Memorial Day (dressed in his CDN flag tshirt!)
And, also! Why you gotta hate on the Cheerios?
Liam will actively pick out the Cheerios and leave them OR just toss them on the ground.
Sunday, May 27, 2007
Velcro! I curse you!
I cannot stand de-tangling all the bibs after laundering them! All the velcro! It sticks to itself!
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