Rowan is 1 Month!

This first month has flown by so quickly!  I'm sure part of that is because of the holidays.  It has been so nice to have Mike home to help out with the kids.  Going from 1 kid to 2 adds a lot of work and often issues when they both need you at one time!  There are many things that Rowan does that reminds me of Liam, but she is definitely her own little person with her own personality!  She still has not taken to the binky which can be very difficult when she is fussy and we can't calm her.  She generally likes to be calmed by being held, which is nice most of the time, but can be difficult when we need to get something done, and also to get some sleep.  She does seem to be getting a little better about sleeping, but that varies night to night.  She does not really like being on her back, and really does not like her bassinet.  Unless she is deep asleep, she will wake up if we put her in her bed.  We have noticed that she is getting a little better about hanging out as her awake time gets longer during the day.  She has enjoyed her swing and bouncers a few times.  After her belly button healed up we were able to give her her first real bath, and we recorded it.  She seemed to like it for the most part.  She seems to be a very efficient eater.  She eats a meal in about 1/2 the recommended time to feed, and even then she sometimes eats too much and ends up spitting up!!  I was a little concerned at first that she wasn't eating enough, but she is gaining weight just fine, so no worries there.  We got her professional pictures, and they turned out so cute.  We are sending out the announcements now.  Rowan also had her first Christmas in her first month of life.  She got some cute gifts from family, thank you!  Sadly, she also has her 2nd cold, and she's just barely a month old!  One of the downsides of having a winter baby, poor thing.  Overall, this last month has been pretty good.  We are definitely sleep deprived, and stressed at times, but then one of them will do something so cute, and it makes it all worth it.

comment by Gaylene on 01/02/2010
Love that picture! She is darling. Time sure is flying by fast.

Rowan (2 week update)

I can't believe it's been 2 weeks already! Rowan is already growing so quickly. She had her 2 week check up this morning, and she has already gained nearly 1 pound, and grew an inch. So now she weighs 7 lbs. 14 oz. and is 20" long. The nurse says that they like to see the baby gain back what they lose after birth, so she is definitely on the right track. She is such a sweet baby, and loves to snuggle. Her favorite place to sleep is right on our chest. I think she likes it because she can hear our heart and perhaps is reminded of being in the womb. We were relieved that she started to nurse right away since it was a bit of a struggle with Liam because he was a preemie. Basically, she is your typical baby, loves to sleep during the day, and is up more at night. Her general waking hours are between 3 am and 5 am. Some nights are better than others, but we seem to be getting better. Sadly, she has had a bit of a cold, so her nose is stuffed up at times and makes it hard for her to breathe and nurse. The Dr. also checked her heart murmur today, and said it was completely gone, which is a huge relief.

Liam was not able to visit us in the hospital because of the H1N1 this year, so the first time Liam saw Rowan was at our house. He opened our bedroom door where I was holding her on the bed, and then immediately closed the door after seeing her. He has been a bit shy of her, but has slowly warmed up to her over the last couple of weeks. After several days he touched her foot. Then one evening he comforted her when she was crying. He stroked her cheek, and offered her the binky (which strangely she doesn't like as of yet). He will say 'Baby Sad' when she is crying, and he is surprisingly understanding when we need to attend to her. Recently I was able to put Rowan on his lap and took a quick picture. He pointed to her eyes, nose, mouth and ears. He really seems quite interested in her, and has been nothing but sweet with her....just wish that would last forever!! Anyway, we are enjoying our new bundle of joy, and still adjusting to little sleep, but it has all been worth it!

Liam is 2 years!

This last month has been quite eventful for the whole family...it started off with Liam's early birthday party in November.  Then shortly after that we had to say goodbye to our dear friend, Sequoia.  He calls her 'Carsi', and he surprised us with how aware he was that she was gone.  When we got back from the vets, he pointed to the car and said 'Carsi gone'. The next several times he was in the car he would say that too.  He recognizes her in her pictures, and we hope that he will always have a good memory of her.  The next big event in November was the arrival of Liam's little sister Rowan Kendall.  She was born on the 26th, Thanksgiving Day.  He's not quite sure what he thinks of her yet, but he has been slowly warming up to her.  His first reaction was kinda funny.  He was not allowed to visit her in the hospital because of the H1N1 flu this year, so the first time he saw her was at our house.  I was sitting on our bed, and he opened the door excited to see me...he saw her, and promptly shut the door.  It took him several days to touch her foot.  After a few weeks, he has comforted her, and pointed and touched her eyes, nose, mouth etc., but overall he really is rather ambivalent about her.  I'm sure with time, and her growing and becoming more playful, he will be more interested in her.  This month he has really decided he is not really interested in Elmo anymore, and he really likes Curious George and Thomas the Tank Engine.  He can't get enough of 'Georgie', and always asks to watch him.  One cute word that he's been saying lately is 'Begeena'.  It is his word for blanket, and we have no idea where the word came from, but we thought it was cute.  He likes to have his 'Begeena' on him in the car.  He has also started to like to be tucked in with his blanket at nap time, and bed time.  A couple of frustrating habits he has acquired as of late has been ignoring us.  It is as if he is completely deaf.  He also has been spitting, which is a habit we'd like to kick real fast. Since I've been on maternity leave, I have been home with him all day, so I have started to give him 'time out'.  I am not sure he quite gets it yet, and I have to 'hold' him in place, but we are hopeful with time and consistency that it will start to work.  We froze some of Liam's birthday cake from his party, so today, his actual birthday he got some cake to enjoy.  He is growing into such a cute and smart little boy, and we hope to enjoy many more birthdays with him!  Happy 2 years 'Little Man'!

Rowan's Birth Story

The week Rowan was born I had been feeling contractions, and was already dilated to 3 cm. Wednesday night I was feeling some pretty strong contractions, and thought maybe it was time. Later that evening the contractions lightened up, so we just figured it was pre-term contractions. The next morning around 9am I felt my water 'break'. Since Liam's water technically broke 2 days prior to being born, we were unsure how much time we had. I wasn't feeling any strong contractions like the night before, but we knew if the water had broke we should get to the hospital to have it looked at. I was 98% sure this was the real thing, so we spent the morning packing up and finishing up some last minute things. We dropped off Liam at Grandma's house, and then headed over to the hospital around noon. They confirmed that the fluid was amniotic and since I was only at 3.5 cm, and not contracting, they offered to give me some pitocin. We decided to wait to see if I progressed on my own. Mike ran to get a bite to eat since he hadn't had any food that day...when he returned they checked me again and I was the same so we decided to get started on the pitocin. They kept checking me, and I was progressing very slowly. Shortly after I started to feel some pain in my back, and told them I would want my epidural soon. 20 minutes or so went by and the anesthesiologist was not there. I guess I just figured the Dr. was already at the hospital, but he had to be called in. And since it was Thanksgiving, people were busy with their family dinners...They said he was on his way, but another 20 or so minutes went by and he still was not there. I was going to just wait till I really needed it to ask for it, but I am glad I didn't because it was close to 2 hours before he showed up, and I had progressed to 6 cm. He had to go in twice because the first one was going into a blood vessel. After I got the epidural both our heart rates had dipped, and they had to keep adjusting my position to make sure we stayed normal. They also turned off the pitocin until the Dr. could get to the hospital. My normal OB was not available that day, so his partner filled in. I didn't know anything about him, so I was sad that my OB wasn't going to be there. After they turned off the pitocin I didn't progress any on my own, so when the Dr. showed up around 7pm, they turned the pitocin back up. Finally about an hour or so after I was finally at 10 cm. The nurse adjusted the bed and told the Dr. we were ready. She was going to have me push a little, but her head was already crowning!! The doctor came in, and they had me push about 3 1/2 times and she was born at 8:34 pm! They took her over to the prep cart, and wiped her down. The nurse said she was the stickiest baby she had ever seen....I joked that it was all the creamed honey I ate! They let us hang out for 2 hours in the delivery room, which was nice since I had been rushed out with Liam, and ended up passing out in the bathroom. I was able to let the medicine wear off and take in the experience. She started nursing right away, she was a natural!! Then we moved to my room around 11pm. They took her to give her a bath, and check her out. After she was returned Mike was able to say goodbye. He needed to get home to let the dogs out and feed them after being inside for 13 plus hours. Rowan and I spent the night and next 2 days eating, sleeping (me only cat naps) and bonding. She loves being held and wasn't too happy if I put her down. One of the nurses told me that Rowan was the ONLY baby born in that hospital on Thanksgiving. And also one of only a few there the whole time we were there...which is quite remarkable considering we live in Utah county, probably the #1 county of births in the U.S. Before we left they told us that she had a heart murmur, and the Dr. checking her out wanted to see her the next day to see if it was going to be an issue. We took her to be checked out on Sunday, and the Dr. said it appeared to be fixing itself, and to follow up on her 2 week visit to be sure. We are slowly getting used to having a new born again, and no sleep, but are just loving our new addition to our family.

Welcome Thanksgiving Baby!

I will post the birth story soon, but just wanted to announce that our little girl came one week early in the evening of Thanksgiving day, November 26th 2009. Her name is Rowan Kendall, coming in at 6 lbs. 15 oz. and is 19 inches long. She has a lot of beautiful hazelnut brown hair, and we are already smitten by her!

Baby Bump #2 (38 Weeks)

So I have to admit that I'm a little surprised that I've made it to 38 weeks. Unlike a lot of women out there, I am not in any hurry for her to come. I actually love being pregnant...and it's kinda a bitter sweet moment now because we are fairly sure (not 100%, but close) that she will be our last kid. I started to pack some things last night for the hospital, but still need to do some last minute things before I'm ready-ready. Not a whole lot else to report. I've been going weekly now to the Dr's to be checked and measured and all seems well and normal. I have had some small contractions here and there, and I can tell my body is getting ready for her to come.

Liam is 23 Months

Liam has such a cute personality.  He is very smart, and very stubborn, both traits he inherited from his dad.  He really is starting to take command of languange and takes every opportunity to practice his words.  The most often ones he's been using this month have been his numbers and colors.  And he is actually starting to get the colors right!  He will combine the word 'Boo-geen-lellow-red' for Blue,green,yellow,red'...it's pretty cute!  He did start saying the word 'Wow' , and 'Oh-no!' and he'll put his hands up to his face and say it...He will say 'again' if he wants you to repeat something.  And he also has taken a liking to picking up trash and wanting to put in in the trash can.  When we are in the play room he likes to 'steal' our spots on the couch.  If we get up, he will run to our spot on the couch and yell 'mama's spot' or daddy's spot'  He will also do something that makes us get up, so he can take our spot!  He's quite mischeivious that way.  He is also really good at puzzles.  He is also still obsessed with lights.  He used to want them on all the time, but lately he wants them off.  He loves to turn the switches on and off too.  If I'm having a difficult time with him, I will distract him with the option of helping me with the lights...it generally seems to work.  He had a bit of a transition issue with starting to wear his winter clothes.  He did not want to wear long sleeves, pants or jackets...but after a few weeks it seems he is getting better about putting these clothes on.  A couple of weeks ago we moved him to his new room.  We ended up keeping his bed a crib for now.  He hasn't shown much of an interest in climbing out of his crib even though we know he is capable of it.  We figure it will be good to adjust to his new room and mature a little more before we move him to the toddler bed.  He still does not understand not to touch the plugs or mess with his furniture, so we feel its safer to keep him in his crib until he's a little older. 

 

This month we had Halloween, and he went trick-or-treating for the first time.  We started Halloween evening off with carving pumpkins. Liam is too young still to participate with the actual carving part, but we had him watch us cut them open and take the guts out. He kept saying 'Ewe' when we showed him the insides. The way he says 'punkin' is soo cute too!  We gave him his pumpkin to play with, and then gave him a glow stick since he just LOVES lights, and we figured he would get a kick out of a glow stick.  Then we got him dressed in his Elmo costume so that he could go trick-or-treating...The trick-or-treater's had already started to show up while we were taking his picture. He wasn't too sure what to make of everything. He seemed a bit shell shocked, so we were able to capture a few pictures with him being cute and calm. I took him out first, and we ran into some neighbors just outside our house. He was talking up a storm about his Elmo costume and how he had shoes on. The first house we went to he was hesitant to say 'trick or treat' , but he grabbed a piece of candy out of the bowl. I was fairly surprised that he knew just what to do.  We just went to a few houses, then dad wanted a chance to take him out, so he took him to a few more...he did end up saying 'Trick-or-treat' at least once, and 'Thank you' too.  When he got home he did NOT want to let go of his Elmo basket. We had to pry his hand open to take his costume off and wash his hands...then we let him carry his stash around the house. He really seemed to enjoy this Halloween...although I think next year he will have a much better understanding what all the fuss is about.

 

For Liam's 2nd birthday party we decided to host it at The Living Planet Aquarium. We also had his party one month early because Rowan is due right around his real birthday which is Dec. 7th. We had the party room for 1.5 hrs. so it was a bit rushed, but overall I think everyone had a good time. We first had a light brunch with bagels and fruit, then we had a treasure hunt with the kids. Liam did not like the activity at all, he just wanted to run around the aquarium and do his own thing...after the treasure hunt, we had to quickly have cake and open presents. Again, Liam didn't want much to do with this, he just wanted to run around and play...guessing this is normal for his age.  I think his favorite part of the whole party was his balloons. He held onto those things and punched them all over the place, it was pretty funny!  After the party, all the guests were free to explore the aquarium...Liam loved splashing in the stingray tank, and crawling around in the ocean caves. Overall I think the party went well. It felt a little hectic and rushed to me, but that is probably because I was the host. It was fun, and the best part of all was I didn't have to clean our house at nine months pregnant : )

Baby Bump #2 (35 Weeks)

So Rowan is about 18 inches long, and is about 5 1/4 lbs. about the size of a honeydew melon. Only one more week and I'll be in my 9th month. Also if I make it till then I will be further along than I ever was with Liam. I do have a feeling that she won't be AS early as he was, but do think she still might be a little early...but who knows?! All I know is I want her to come when she is ready and healthy. I have been a bit lax on the exercise program since I was sick a few weeks ago. Taking a week off just ruined the momentum, and it's been hard to get back into it. Plus I have been feeling a lot more tired and sore, and would rather just take a nap if given the chance. But I have been doing a little bike or yoga once or twice a week, and it does seem to help. Being 8 plus months pregnant is what I imagine getting old feels like...it's hard to get up, bend over, lots of aches and pains all over. And I only have one little one, I can't imagine how hard it is to carry multiples! Anyway, I kinda have the whole nesting thing going on, but probably not as strong as some women do...maybe because I work and when I get home I just want to sit down and relax. A few days ago we moved Liam to his new room, and decided to keep his bed as a crib for now until he's a little older and used to being in his room. We know that he is probably capable of getting out, but he really hasn't shown an interest in doing it yet. So now that he is out of his old room, I'm starting to transition it to Rowan's new room. She will be in our room at night for a while yet, but I do want to have a place to nap her, and have her things organized on the 2nd floor for when we are up there. Anyway, I will be having an ultrasound later today and will update this post when I find out if she is still breech. And also will post a picture later too...so check back.

Baby Bump #2 (32 Weeks)

Well it's been 32 weeks now, and Rowan is about 3.75 lbs. and about 16.7 inches long, about the weight of a large jicama. I definitely can not complain about not feeling her move anymore. She is moving a lot now, and it's obvious. In fact, sometimes I will hold my hand to my belly if I start to feel her move, and she will give a good kick and it startles me, it's kinda funny, and it's definitely a relief to start to feel her move. For the last week or so her movements have been at 3 and 9 o'clock (on sides) instead of at 6 o'clock (bottom), then yesterday for the first time I felt her move at 12 o'clock (top), sooooo, I *think* that she might have moved head down, but we will not know for sure until the Dr. checks her. I'm not as nervous about the labor this time round, although subconsciously I think I am a bit because I've been feeling a bit of anxiety lately. But that also could just be the whole idea of having a newborn, and a 2 yr old at the same time. I will miss the one on one attention that I was able to have with just one baby, but at the same time it will be fun to see how Liam is with his sister.

Liam is 22 Months

It's so hard for us to believe that Liam is only 2 months away from turning 2 years old.  He will officially be our little boy, and not our baby anymore.  He is growing up WAY too fast!  He continues to pick up new words everyday, and they are so frequent, that I've lost count.  His phrases that he's starting to say have meaning, and he uses them to communicate with us.  One morning he was asking for dad, and I told him that daddy was gone and that he was at work, and he said back to me 'Daddy Gone' and 'Daddy Work'.  He also still tells us when he's pooped, but usually he says 'Poot', which we think is so cute.  Most of the time he is right, but we think other times he just likes to tell us.  One morning he even told me he was wet when his diaper leaked.  We have hope that this is a good sign that he will be easier to potty train when the time comes.  He is also using description words like heavy, hot, and cold. And he is starting to count, learn his letters, and know his colors and shapes too.  He will try to say most words that we ask him to, although I haven't been able to get him to say his own name.  Another word that he won't say is 'Open'.  He will make the 'O' shape with his mouth and give me a smile, but won't say it.  He has also started to like other shows other than Elmo.  A couple of his favorites are 'Curious George', and 'Super Why'.  He especially is getting into 'Super Why' and will say the letters and words along with the show.  A really cute thing he started to do that he saw on TV was to put his hand under his chin, and say 'Hmmmm'.  He is a lot more sure footed these days.  He runs, jumps, hops, skips, dances and climbs EVERYWHERE!  He still does not understand the concept of gravity, and I worry one day that he is going to fall off the side of the couch head first.  I continue to tell him to sit on his bum when he's on the couch, and he thinks it's a game.  We recently got him a table so he can color, although at this point in time he thinks the table is funner to climb on.  As far as food goes we think he's the typical toddler in that one day he likes something, then next day he doesn't.  In general the one food group that I've had a hard time getting him to eat is his veggies.  Sometimes he will, most of the time he won't.  Guess I'll have to keep trying on that one.  One personality trait we've noticed that he has is he is very stubborn and strong willed.  Both his parents can be that way as well, so there isn't any surprise there.  His new obsession this month has been lights.  We put some night lights in his room, and he HAS to have them on at all times even though they turn off when it's light in the room.  He notices lights everywhere now, and points them out, and wants them on.  He also likes to turn the light switches on and off.  This issue has been a bit of a hard one, but we are hoping it's just a phase.  He continues to make us proud parents, and we are looking forward to adding a new addition to our family in the not too distant future, and think that Liam will be a great 'big brother'.

Update: A day after I wrote this Liam started to say 'Open'...he likes to proove me wrong : )

comment by mom/grandma on 10/07/2009
sounds like he's the same here as home, he says op-de for open here, he also spells o-p-e it's on one of his Elmo video's here, what a little smarty, we love getting to share him.

Baby Bump #2 (30 Weeks)

Well today marks the 30th week of our pregnancy. Rowan is now about 15.7 inches long, and almost 3 pounds, about the size of a head of cabbage. It's so hard to believe that there is only 10 weeks left?! And maybe even less if she decides to come early like her older brother. We hope that she will at least wait until we have celebrated Liam's 2nd birthday party which we are having at aquarium on November 7th, a month before his real birthday. I had been doing pretty good until last night when I was getting Liam ready for bed, and I was sitting on the floor with my legs straight out in front of me. I twisted my leg somehow, and hurt it. I don't think it is muscle related, it feels more severe. At the time it really hurt, but I rubbed it out, and figured it was ok. Then I decided to try my workout, and it seemed to be OK, so I did 5 miles on the stationary bike. Hind sight, it was probably not the best idea...later that evening my leg got really stiff and painful. I read this morning that the hormones produced during pregnancy cause the ligaments that support your joints to become relaxed. This makes the joints more mobile and more at risk of injury. Although the crazy thing is, I wasn't doing anything strenuous, I was just sitting on the floor! Anyway, I think I did something to the joint or a ligament, and I'm hoping that it heals soon....I can barley walk. I joked that now I waddle with a limp. So my next Dr.'s appt is on Monday. Then I do think that I will be going to the Dr. every 2 weeks. Man time is just flying by!

UPDATE 9-28-09
About 24 hrs. after I hurt my knee, it started to feel better, and thankfully it feels all better now. I had my 30 week check up today. Not a whole lot to report. I am feeling her movements more now, although most of the movements are low, and we're guessing its because she is still breech. About this time with Liam, there was a hard spot in the middle of my belly which we called 'Butt or Head', but with her we don't feel any particular body parts...I'm crossing my fingers that she heads down soon!! The doctor agreed that we should check her a little earlier at 34 weeks instead of 37 weeks, since Liam did come 4 weeks early. Next appointment is in 3 weeks.

comment by Gaylene on 09/26/2009
Be careful sweetie and heal fast! Wish I could see your waddle ;)

Liam is 21 Months

Liam's verbal skills have exploded over the last month or so.  He is saying so many new words, it's hard to keep track of them all.  We will ask him to say a word, and he will say them back to us.  He is learning to count, and learning his colors too!  He's starting to put words together also, like if he wants his shoes or socks off, he will say 'no shoe' or 'no sock'.  Also, if he hears someone fart, he will say 'No Fart'....it's sooo funny!  He's been doing a lot of cute things too.  When he takes a sip of a drink, he will say 'Ahhhhh' in a refreshing way.  Another thing he picked up that we didn't realize we did was if someone burps, we say 'Nice', and now when he burps, he will look at us and say 'Nice'!  So funny!  He will pat his back if he's coughing.  He had a scratch on his knee, and he would point to his knee, and say 'boo boo'.  After it healed, if we asked him where his boo boo was, he would say 'Boo boo all gone', and he would do the sign for all gone too.  He would fill his cheeks with air a bit when he said 'boo boo', so the word came out with some pressure.  I just love how he says it, so I ask him all the time where his boo boo went.  He also has started to say 'Hi' a lot...he knew 'Bye' pretty well, but now associates seeing someone, and saying 'Hi'.  And then sometimes he will follow it up with 'Sup' (for what's up?)  which I realized that I say ALL the time after he started saying it.  He likes doors to be closed, so if he can he will say 'close' and then close it himself, or he will point to the door and say 'close'.  We are still working on the word open...he will smile and look at me, and open his mouth in the 'O' shape, but hasn't said it yet.  We had to put a safety lock on our playroom door, and he makes sure that we lock it.  If he thinks it's unlocked, he will go to it, and say 'Fix'.  He has a book about Elmo's Puppies and he loves when I read it to him at night.  There is a part where it says 'What is Elmo Thinking about'...'That's right Puppies', and I will pause and he will shout 'Puppies!', then later in the book it will say 'Shhhhh' Puppies need their sleep....' and he will put his finger up to his mouth and say 'Shhhhh', it's sooo cute!  A couple of scary things that he did this month was one he stuck a black bean up his nose.  Thankfully, Mike was able to get it out in one piece...and the other is he is really close to climbing out of his crib, so we are going to try to transition him to a toddler bed pretty soon.  We are just finishing up getting his new room ready for him.  It seems he really knows who we are now.  He will call us 'Mama's' or 'Dada's', and has recently has said 'Daddy' too.  He will see a picture of us and if we ask who it is, he can tell who is who.  We just can't believe how much he has changed in the last month, and we are pretty excited about the fact that he's learning so many new words.  It just makes things so much easier when we can communicate with him!

Baby Bump #2 (27 Weeks)

So I had my 27 Week check up today, and there isn't much to report...everything is going pretty smoothly. Heartbeat and measurements are good. I am starting to get a little more achy in my lower back, especially if I lay on my back for any amount of time. It's getting harder to get off the floor too. She moves a little here and there, but sadly she's not as active as Liam was. The Dr. says that is OK, and that every baby has their own bar of movement. He also said that only 2% of breech babies at the 1/2 way mark don't move down by their due date, so most likely she will move (crossing fingers). Anyway, only 13 weeks to go, although if she comes early like Liam could only be 9 weeks!! We are hoping she will at least hold out till we have had Liam's 2nd Birthday party which we are planning a month early since she is due very close to his birthday.

Happy 20 Months Liam!

Liam has changed a ton in the last month.  I would say the first half of the month, he was pretty cranky,  perhaps he was teething.  He has also started getting really serious about tantrums when he is not getting what he wants.  Also, during the last month I had some restrictions because of my pregnancy.  I wasn't supposed to lift him, and he started being stubborn about going up or down the stairs and going where I needed him to. It was a rough couple of weeks. He has also figured out how to open the lever door handles.  He has escaped a couple times, so we had to put a lock on the playroom door. 

Then the last half of the month, he's been a pretty happy kid.  His language skills have taken a leap.  He is saying a lot of new words, and also starting to say words back when we say them to him.  We got him a few new toys that he likes.  He now has a little car to ride around in.  He likes to get in through the window, Dukes of Hazard style!  He also has a new slide, and pool to play in.  He LOVES the water and especially likes to slide down his slide into the pool.  He will say 'weeeee' when going down the slide or when we swing him.  He also loves to be outside, and will ask to go 'outside' or 'side'.  Some of his other new words are: 'cookie','kick','strawberry', he said 'dinosaur' once, and will say 'go' when we say 'ready set'.  He also is starting to put two words together.  The other day I took his shoes off, and he wanted his socks off too, so he said 'No Sock'.  He is also learning his different body parts and will point and say the word when we ask where they are.  I've mentioned in previous posts that he LOVES Elmo, but it seems that his love has turned into an obsession.  He has to watch him all the time, and he also has started to use his Elmo doll as a comfort toy.  He will snuggle Elmo under his arm, and likes to sleep with him too.

We got him a baby book that has pictures of a family bringing a baby home. He really likes the book, and will say 'baby' and point to it when he wants to look at it.  He knows what a baby is, and anytime he sees one on TV or in a book, he will say 'baby'.  

So the last milestone that I want to mention is that he got his first haircut!  My aunt Gina is a beautician and we took him to her to get a haircut.  We really like his hair on the longish side, so he just got a trim.  He did amazingly well and sat on dad's lap while Gina trimmed him up.  Anyway, this month has had it's ups and downs, but thankfully it ended on the up note.  It is just crazy for us to believe that he is only 4 months away from turning 2?!  Even though he's growing up so quickly, we still like to think of him as our little man...I'm sure one day he will protest, but for now that is what he is!

comment by Gaylene on 08/10/2009
oh, I'm excited for you guys. Liam is sounding more grown up...what a doll with his Elmo.

Large Mango (23 weeks)

I know it's only been a week since my last pregnancy update, but I have some good news!! I had a follow-up Ultra Sound today since the recording machine was not working the last time. The technician checked the placenta and it has moved, or rather grew enough that it is not laying low! This means the restrictions I was on have been lifted! We are all very happy about that. We got a great video of her moving about, and playing peek-a-boo, and toward the end we can see her opening and closing her mouth....she is sooo cute! Also, her position was breech, which I kinda guessed because I have started to feel more of her movements, but mostly it feels like she is dancing on my bladder. I am guessing that being breech at this point is not a big deal because they are still moving around a lot.

We had been a little concerned about the lack of movement, since Liam was so active by this stage...but last night Mike was able to feel her move!

Baby #2 Update (22 Weeks)

22 weeks marks the start of the 6th month, and Rowan is about 11 inches (about the length of a spaghetti squash), and is nearly a pound. Today, I had my first Dr's visit since my Ultra Sound when they told me I had a low lying placenta. Naturally, I had a list of questions regarding this issue. Basically, this is a fairly common thing, and he just wants me to 'not overdo it'. It's OK for me to lift Liam, and do a little yoga, but still no work-outs, and continue pelvic rest. And if anything causes me to bleed, then I need to stop! They were booked for the ultra sound machine today, so I have an appointment in a week to get the video, and they can check the placenta again then. He says that the heart beat sounds normal, and I'm measuring good. And the fact that I don't feel her move as much as the first pregnancy can be normal, but there would be a concern if that doesn't change in a month. As far as my due date, they have given me so many different days...thinking I will just stick with early December when people ask. I'm feeling pretty good overall. So far there doesn't seem to be as much growing pains as the first time round, and I'm guessing that is because it's already been stretched out. I am still a little bummed that I still can't work out because I am starting to gain more weight than I would like, but I know I don't want to risk hurting our little one, so I will just have to work on losing the weight after she is born.

Baby # 2 (20 weeks)

Well, this week marked half way...Rowan is about 10.5 oz. and about 10 inches head to heal, about the length of a banana.  I'm not sure if it is because of the low placenta, but I have not felt much of her movements.  I remember Liam doing acrobats at this point, and even Mike felt him move at 19 weeks!  We do know that she is indeed moving from the Ultra Sound we had, and I do have a heart monitor that I can hear her heart, so that is reassuring, but it is a little weird that I can't feel her much yet.  Anyway, I do have an appointment with the Dr. next Thursday, so I will have a HUGE list of questions regarding this placenta issue, etc. We also should be getting a video recorded since it wasn't working the last time.  Looking forward to that appointment for sure!

Baby # 2 Update (19 Weeks)

So after the Ultra Sound tech told us our baby was a girl, the rest of the appointment was a blur. She had told us that I had a low placenta. I did ask her what that meant, and she had said that in most cases it fixes itself, but if it does not than I would need a C-section. The following day I went about my business as usual, and did a 20 min. workout on the elliptical. Afterward, I got to wondering if there was anything I should be doing or not doing with this issue. I got on the Internet, and others with this issue had said their Dr. had told them not to exercise or do heavy housework, etc. So, I called the Dr.'s office to see what the deal was. The Dr. was not in the office, but I was able to talk to a nurse. She told me to 'take it easy' over the weekend and she would talk to the Dr. and call me back on Monday...and she did. She said that I should not be working out, this includes yoga, housework, pelvic rest, lifting anything over 20 lbs. (which Liam is), etc. I am pretty bummed about this because I had been doing so well, and feeling great with my workouts. The yoga was really helping a lot with my aches and pains! Although, I know my Dr. is pretty laid back, and if he says to do or not do something, I better listen! So, until we can check to see if the placenta has moved, I will be 'taking it easy' as best that I possibly can.

comment by Tiffany on 07/14/2009
You are doing so good at taking pictures. My first one was at 31 weeks. You look great!

Liam Is Going to Have a Sister....

So we had our mid-way ultrasound today, and found out that it's a GIRL! I was really surprised! I really thought it was a boy, and before she announced it she had said 'Oh, he's touching his toes there.' So I figured she knew, and accidentally said 'he' before telling us. My reaction was, what?! really?!?! So far everything is looking good. She looks healthy and well. The only concern that they have, and want to watch is that the placenta is laying low. She said that in 85-90% of cases it will move to the correct position, but if it does not, than I will have to have a C-section. I'm really hoping it moves because I really prefer not to do that. Unlike Liam's ultrasound, the baby gave us a really great profile shot, and lots of others too. Liam was being stubborn during his Ultrasound, and would not give us a profile shot, and the tech ended up only giving us a gender shot of him. Unfortunately, their recording equipment was not working, so we did not get a video today. But, she said that she can make one for us at my next appointment.

Also, I have another due date. At the first U.S. they were saying December 8th, and the Dr. was saying December 4th, if you go by my cycle....but today they said December 3rd, so we figure we will go by that one since it's the most recent measurement.

We also are pretty sure we have a name picked out too. Although I really hesitate to share because of people's reactions....But I will share anyway.....For the first several weeks we kept thinking of names...and one day we were watching a movie and heard the name...we were originally thinking of it for a boy, but later I asked Mike what he thought of the name for a girl. He actually liked it, and we haven't thought of another girl name since. In fact we started calling the baby this name, and it seems to have stuck. Pretty similar to how we named Liam too! We are really liking the name Rowan...it is a unique name, but its familiar enough that it makes the top 1000 SSA list. In fact it was ranked 469 in 2008. Anyway, we reserve the right to change the name right up until we write it on the birth certificate, but for now that is what we will be calling her.

comment by Kellie on 09/16/2009
Hi, I am new to your blog. I stummbled upon it searching the web. I found it so interesting because I too have a little one named Liam and I am currently pregnant (with a little boy) that we have named Rowan!! What are the odds I thought!! 
Well, Congrats on your pregnancy!! Have a good day.

Liam is 19 Months

Liam is 19 Months now.  He still has new words here and there, although it seems he's taking a little break from language and developing new skills.  One of which is climbing out of his playpen!!  We have to be super careful now when we put him in there because he can escape that thing pretty quickly now.  He's not quite at the age that we can take our eyes off of him for a second, so this makes getting things done around the house pretty difficult now.  He can also climb up on the couch with out stepping on anything or getting any help, and he's also working on opening doors, the one with the lever handle! 

 

His attention span is getting longer too.   He can watch a whole episode of Elmo now.  He has a little portable DVD player that he likes to watch while sitting in his chair.  He does like to touch the buttons sometimes, so we tell him not to, and to sit back in his chair.  Most of the time, he will listen.  We are working on this one.  He gets 3 warnings, then it's taken away for a while.  Now that he's starting to understand us a little, we are learning how to discipline him, which is a little weird as first time parents.

 

He has never liked wearing hats since he was a newborn, but he's starting to wear a hat now which is good since it protects him from the sun.  Now we just need to work on the sunglasses!

 

As far as his words go, our favorite new word that he is saying now is 'Bing'.  Dad will take a hair band and fling it in the air toward him and say 'Bing', and Liam just LOVES this, and he will pick the band up and fling it back and say 'Bing'...it is super cute!!

 

I've been teaching him the word 'brother'...we know he will be a great big brother!!

17 Weeks (End of Month 4)

Starting to show....

The weeks and months are pretty easy to follow, although the months aren't as easy. One would think 16 weeks, would be around the start of 4 months, but really it's toward the end of the 4th month. Below is from a chart I found online to make it easy to follow.

Weeks 1-4 (1st Month)
Weeks 5-8 (2nd Month)
Weeks 9-13 (3rd Month)
Weeks 14-17 (4th Month)
Weeks 18-21 (5th Month)
Weeks 22-26 (6th Month)
Weeks 27-30 (7th Month)
Weeks 31-35 (8th Month)
Weeks 36-40 (9th Month)

So in reality, if you make it to your due date, you are 10 months pregnant!

Baby #2: 15 Weeks

So the little one is 15 weeks along this week, measuring about 4 inches long (head to rump) , and weighs in at about 2.5 oz., about the size of an apple. I am in my 2nd trimester now, and my energy level has definitely improved. The first several weeks, I was extremely tired, and could hardly get anything done. I'm glad I have my energy back because I really want to stay in better shape this time round. I have been pretty good about exercising and doing my yoga lately, which I think will help a lot. I was pretty good last time too, although we ended up moving about 1/2 way through and then I had no time or energy to keep it up. Anyway, there is not a whole lot to report as of yet...I am starting to show a little, and we are really excited to find out if the little one is a girl or boy in about a month.

Liam is 18 Months

Liam is now a year and 1/2!!  He continues to pick up new words all the time.  He will tell the dogs to 'down', or 'stay'. And he also has started to say 'Thank You'.  He was saying 'Dutch' for Thanks, but has started using 'Thank You' with the sign this past week.  He has also started to do a little dance when he's happy.  When he finds our shoes, he will bring them to us, and help us put them on.  He also likes to try them on himself and walk around.  Another cute thing he's been doing is making an elephant sound and putting his arm like a trunk when he sees a picture of an elephant.  He has also been getting more playtime on the main floor, and he just goes around like a little tornado (LT) getting into everything!  We still are working on getting it child proof, although we don't take our eyes off of him because he is extremely smart and creative especially when it comes to getting into trouble!

 

On the downside, it seems he has been teething.  His canine teeth have cut through, and it looks like his second set of molars are coming in too.  He has been a total grouch about getting into his highchair too.  We are not sure if this could be related to the teething, or just a phase he is going through, but it has been a little frustrating when we need to feed him.  Regardless of his grouchy moods at times, we still love him and wouldn't change him for the world!

comment by Gaylene on 07/03/2009 I love seeing kids with big shoes on, one of my favorite pictures!

comment by mom/grandma on 06/10/2009 I thought it was just me, he's been a pill about the high chair here too!

Our Big News!

We will be welcoming baby #2 on December 8th, which is a day after Liam's birthday. Although, if this one comes early too, it could be a November baby. The other day we asked Liam if he could say baby, and he pointed to my belly and said baby several times. It was sooo cute! We think the pointing to my belly was totally random, but we were still pretty impressed. Today marks the 13th week. I had a Dr's appointment yesterday, and he was able to find a strong heartbeat. So far so good. I was also able to schedule our next ultra sound for July 9th. This is when we will find out if it's a boy or girl. We are pretty excited for Liam to be a big brother! Stay tuned for more updates : )

Liam is 17.5 Months

Liam's social skills have really been blooming lately.  He has always scored the lowest in this area on the Dr's questionnaires, so we are thrilled to have him really developing these skills.  He is consistently saying bye to us when we leave, although it's more like 'Bah', it is so cute.  He also will give us kisses.  We say, can I have a kiss? And he will lean in and say 'mmmm' and give a little kiss!!  One of his new words lately has been 'phone', and he will pick up a toy or real phone and put it up to his ear and say 'hello', or what sounds like it anyway, then he will babble a conversation, and then say 'bah'.  It's really cute!  I know I've mentioned before that he LOVES ELMO, but I just have to say again that he REALLY LOVES ELMO.  He asks to watch him now, and we also found an Elmo movie on our Roku that really keeps his attention for a long time.  He also loves to splash in the water.  He kicks and splashes a ton in his bath.  We got him a water table for summer time, and he just LOVES to play, and splash until he is drenched.  At night time we will ask if he wants to go to bed, or go to sleep, and he will do part of the sign for it by putting his head to the side, and he smiles.  He just is so smart and cute, and we are so impressed with him all the time!

Liam is 17 Months

Here is a list of Liam's 17 most common words

Shoe

Kitty

Fish

Dada

Mama

Book

Bear

More

Please

Food

Elmo

Ball

Milk

Bottle

Coco

Fan

Gobble

Liam is 16.5 Months

Liam continues to surprise and amaze us.  He has really got the hang of the buttons on his toys.  He knows how to turn them on and off, turn the volume up and down, and how to switch it to Spanish.  He's also started to climb up on some of his toys, and he will stand on them and clap.  We had to take away a few of them so that he doesn't hurt himself falling.  He absolutely LOVES to be outside, and loves to explore.  He often gets bored of his play room, and wants to go explore elsewhere.  He will take our hand and lead us out of the room when he wants to leave.  He also LOVES his bath time, and even has asked for one, by saying 'bath' and doing the sign for it!!  I taught him to plug his nose if he has a stinky diaper.  So far, he will plug his nose if we ask him if he's stinky, he will do it even if he's not, but we still think it's funny!  He really seems to be picking up new words too.  His new word lately has been 'shoes'.  Our time with him is just flying by, and we just can't believe that he is nearly 1.5 years old already?!

Liam is 16 Months!

Liam is changing in leaps and bounds.  He has been a chatterbox lately and is 'talking' all the time, and starting to say new words, like 'fan'.  He likes the ceiling fans in our house, and wants them turned on most of the time.  If they are off, he will point to them, so we will turn them on.  He also likes to have cabinets and doors closed, and if they are open he will point to them and say 'uh-oh' until we close them.  He is also starting to use more signs that we have taught him.  Grandma taught him the sign for 'please' and he picked it up really quickly.  So we have been learning more signs this week, so we can teach him.

He also has started to use a spoon, although we tend to still feed him most of the time.  We also have to be careful how much food we put on his plate because he tends to stuff his mouth, and then has a hard time chewing.  For the past few months Mike has made us breakfast on Sunday mornings.  Liam loves the pancakes, hash browns and especially the veggie sausage!!  He asks for more of the sausage before he will eat anything else.  He also likes the OJ that we share with him.

He has also found his belly button, and thinks it is quite interesting.  He will also point to it if we ask him where it is.  He is just learning so quickly and we are really excited to be able to communicate better with him.....we often wish we could understand what he's saying, and know we will be able to soon.

Liam is 15.5 Months

Liam's personality continues to grow everyday.  He has started to throw little tantrums, which so far we think is cute.  The first one we really noticed is when he was having a good time in his bath and we were in a bit of a hurry so we got him out.  He wanted to play some more, and he started to cry.  The next one was he was playing outside with G'pa and Dad and it got cold and dark, so they brought him in, he again started to cry because he wanted to stay outside.  To us this really indicates that he is realizing that he is an individual, and can say whether he is happy or not about a situation.  Although, we're sure this will start to get harder as he gets older, but right now we think it's an interesting development.  His language skills have really grown lately.  One weekend I was flipping through the channels and stopped at the 'Little Einstein's' show.  The kids on the show said 'Raise Your Arms' and he did!  I hadn't watched this show with him, but realized he must have seen it at G'ma's house.  He also does the 'Pat, Pat, Pat' on the legs that they do, it's pretty cute!  His new word this week has been 'Book' and if we ask him to bring us a book, he will do it.  The other word he says a lot is 'Koko', (who is G'ma's and G'pa's dog) that he plays with while we are at work.  I will ask him if he wants to go see 'Koko', and he will start to say it back to me.  Then when I pick him up after work, I will say do you want to go see Gretchen (who is our dog).  He can't say her name yet, but he does understand who I'm talking about because he starts to smile.  He and Gretchen just LOVE each other.  When she comes to see him, he gets this HUGE grin on his face, and then he will stick his tongue out like she does and try to give her a kiss.  We got him some flashcards that have the Alphabet and a word on one side and a picture of the word on the other.  When I show him the picture of the Bee, he does the 'Bzzzz' sound.  We are just amazed how quickly his language skills are developing, and we are excited that we will be able to communicate better with him.  We were invited for brunch at our friends house this past weekend, and the new foods we discovered that he likes is Goat cheese, and Kalamata olives!  That kid has a taste for fancy and different stuff!

Liam is 15 Months

Liam is starting to understand things that we say.  One day we asked him to help pick up his blocks, and he surprised us by actually doing it!  He even grabbed a few from across the room that were with some of his other toys!  We were pretty impressed by that.  The other day I asked him how old he was, and he put one finger up, and today I asked him where his nose is and he pointed to his nose!!  I also asked him where Elmo was, and he pointed to Elmo.  He has gotten pretty good about asking for more by doing the sign, and saying 'more' or 'mmm' and pointing at what he wants.  So far, some of the words he can also say and/or recognize are 'Cheese','Fish','Kitty','Bear','Dog','Ball','Balloon' and  'Koko' (who is G'ma and G'pa's dog).  If he's hungry he will do the sign for more, and if I ask him if he would like some food, he will do the sign for food, and get really happy and excited because we understood him.  He's getting really good at climbing and can just about get on the couch by himself.  He also has discovered that if he stands on something he can get higher up which makes climbing up on things easier.  One of his new tricks lately has been walking backwards.  He really loves books, and will sit on the floor and turn the pages, and also bring them to us to read to him.  He especially likes to have a book to look at right before bed, and it will usually help calm him down if he is crying because he doesn't want to go to bed.  We got him some baby safe toothpaste that is fruity flavored, and since then he has been much better about brushing his teeth (knock on wood). Some of his favorite foods lately have been mango's, kiwi, strawberries,tofu,hard boiled eggs,veggie hot dogs and sliced turkey. He had his 15 month check-up today, and he now weighs 21 lbs. 13 oz. (15th%), he is 30.75 inches (40th%) and his head is in the 91%.  Yes his head is BIG!!  We love having Liam in our lives, and are grateful he is with us each and every day.

comment by Star on 03/14/2009
baileys only a pound more!

Liam is 14.5 Months

Liam is starting to copy some of the things we do.  He sees us hiding the TV remotes behind our back, and then he will hide a toy behind his back, it's really cute!  He also has started to fake sneeze when we sneeze,  he will put his hand over his mouth and make a sneeze sound.  Although if we try to trick him with a fake sneeze, he knows it. Sometimes when I check his diaper and it's stinky,  I will make a 'KKKKKK' sound, and he started to copy the sound.  I didn't even realize I was doing it until I heard him do it.  Now he does it randomly, it's pretty funny.  He is a pretty independent kid most of the time, although lately he has been wanting a little more affection and being a little more social.  He has started to come up to us and put his arms up to be held, or walk by and sit down in our lap.  He also has also started to wave and blow kisses more often.  His motor skills have always been pretty advanced...he started to stack his cups this past week.  If we hand him the right cup he can get all 10 up!  We were pretty impressed with his balancing skills too, he will even hold the other cups in place so they won't tumble down.  He is eating all sorts of food now, but we do find that the ease of the task can be hit and miss depending on how tired he is and his mood.  One day he will love something the next he will hate it, we are guessing this is just age related.  Another thing we have struggled with is brushing his teeth, he absolutely HATES it, but we just have to get it done!  We are hoping that one will get easier soon!  Anyway, he is such a joy in our lives, and we can't imagine life without him.

Liam is 14 Months

Liam is 14 months now, and just gets cuter and cuter everyday.  He has learned to use a straw and really prefers it to the sippy cup now.  He is climbing on everything, and can just about get on the couch without help, although he does not understand edges and the concept of gravity yet, so he will sit right on the edge backwards and we have to be really careful that he doesn't fall head first.  He also doesn't want to crawl up or down the stairs, he wants to walk, but he's not quite tall enough yet so we have to spot him very carefully!  He loves piggy back rides and when we sit on the floor he will come up and tap us on the back for a ride.  We will sing 'datadatada' around the room, and then when we put him down he will run around the room shaking his head side to side and sing 'datadatada'...it's so cute!  He also has started to bounce up and down to music when he's sitting on the floor.  He will find little pieces of fuzz or fur on the floor and he will bring it to me.  Then I say 'Thank You' with lots of enthusiasm.  He has Winnie The Pooh sheets in his crib, so sometimes when we get him from his crib he will pick up imaginary pooh characters to give to us.  We thought that was so adorable.  He tends to do something or say something once and then he won't do it again for a long time so we have to really relish it.  Like one day he waved AND blew a kiss to me, but then hasn't done it again.  That also applies to food too. One day he will like something then the next he doesn't.  Ever since we gave him gold fish crackers he has sworn off Cheerios.  And after a bit of a delay on our part we finally tried giving him peanut butter, and thankfully he is not allergic!  He loved the PB and J sandwich we gave him the first couple of times, then he decided he didn't want any the last time we gave it to him.  He has now learned he can spit out his food if he doesn't want it...hopefully this is just a faze!  He gets really frustrated when he points and cries that he wants something and we don't know what he wants.  Usually this happens if he's really tired, but sure can be frustrating for us too!   Although, even though we can all get frustrated, the minute he does something cute like smile or pat our back, all is forgotten!!

Liam is 13.5 Months

Liam is starting to look less and less like a baby, and more like a little boy.  He's starting to have a bit of an attitude lately, mostly when it comes to eating.  Although now that we are transitioning from his baby food to big people food, he tends to be more agreeable.  It surprises us the types of food that he likes.  He eats (and likes) bell peppers and onions!!  And he really likes hummus.  Now that he has some molars he chews a lot better now, and we are more comfortable feeding him.  He really enjoys graham crackers and goldfish crackers too.  His favorite food is still cheese and cottage cheese and he will now say 'Mmmmm' when we get it out of the fridge.  He tends to point at the food if he wants more, and will cry a bit if we aren't getting it fast enough.  We are teaching him the sign and word for 'more', so that he won't get frustrated when he wants something.  He started to get part of the sign down, and we are pretty sure he said 'more' a few times too. He is starting to climb onto stuff now.  We showed him how to climb onto his riding train, and now he gets on and off all by himself.  He knows how to crawl up the stairs, but is not so good crawling back down, he wants to stand and go down that way, but he's not big enough to do that, so we have to be really careful when he's around stairs.  One cute thing he started doing a while back that I'm sure I mentioned is he will 'Roar' when he sees a picture of a lion or tiger.  His favorite word lately has been 'Uh-oh'.  I saw him trying to open our door knob the other day, and I said 'Uh-oh', and I think he was concentrating so hard that I scared him, and he started to cry.  His other cute thing he's been doing lately is singing to us.  He will start with a sound and either go up or down.  Over the weekend he decided that he did not want his afternoon nap, so we are thinking he might be going to one nap a day soon.  When he doesn't have a 2nd nap he tends to be a little more tired in the evening which makes him more cuddly.  He will sit on our lap and hang out for a while. It's a rare treat for us, since he's usually such a busy body!

Liam is 13 Months

Liam's walking has improved a lot in the past month, and he walks pretty quickly and is even starting to run.  It's so second nature to him now, that sometimes he doesn't watch where he's going.  We decided it was time to get him some shoes, and found a cute pair of Nike's.  We expected that he would be pretty wobbly learning to walk with shoes, but he surprised us a bit how quickly he learned.  Another new item we needed to purchase when he turned one was a new car seat.  Mike did some research on a safe seat, and it came down to the Britax and the Recaro.  Both are well made and safe.  Recaro is a new brand for baby car seats, but are well known for making seats for racing cars.  We ended up buying the Recaro, and so far we really like it.

 

It's so cute how much of a 'boy' he is.  He likes to throw stuff, and has a pretty strong arm too.  He is also starting to roll his cars along making the 'Vroom, Vroom' car sounds.  His favorite word lately is 'No'.  He usually says it if he's mad or upset.  One habit he is learning that isn't so fun is he is starting to throw tantrums, and whine when he's upset.  Although to be fair to him, he's also starting to cut his molars, so that could be part of it.

 

His chewing has improved quite a bit lately.  He doesn't gag near as often as he used to, and that makes feeding him certain things a lot easier.  He really loves cheese, and cottage cheese.  And lets us know if he really loves something by going 'MMmmmmm'.  Although, if he doesn't like something, it makes feeding him really frustrating.  He will hold it in his mouth, or turn away and cry or whine.  We usually will have to mix something else he likes with it to get him to finish it.

 

Both Mike and I had a some time off for Christmas.  We spent a lot of time with Liam, which was fun.  This year was his 2nd Christmas.  I actually put up the tree this year!  He got a lot of toys for his birthday which added to the plenty he already had, so we decided to get him mostly books, and a couple of toys for Christmas.  His attention span is all of 5 minutes, if we are lucky, so it worked out good.