My boys :)

How did i forget this one!

Liam took his first trip to ama's work and to Illinois over my spring break :)

For those that are counting...

Liam's fourth molar FINALLY broke through yesterday.  Whew... a break from teething is welcomed!

Zoo Trip

Jon and I decided to 'forget about' a few things on our to-do list last Sunday and go to the zoo for some fun! Liam loved his trip to the aviary and the farm. We watched a video on how they milk the cows... we are now hearing about 'milking moos', 'milk from udders' etc., etc.! Here are a few cute shots!

Not so sure about seeing the birds so close!

 "A monkey!"

 "Hug you!"



Misc. Weekend Fun!

We have so many fun shots with Grandmas and Grandpas that I thought I would just throw a few out there!

Baseball

Grandma and Grandpa came to visit this week to help us get a few house chores done (THANK YOU!!!)  Liam had a lot of fun playing with the squirter (pics to follow tonight!), reading books, playing playdough and baseball!

Happy Birthday!

With all these birthdays lately, Liam has really taken off with some new creative play!  I was making dinner last week and Liam was 'cooking cupecakes' when I hear him start to sing happy birthday to Uncle!  Couldn't catch the original fast enough... but this is re-created :)

Reading with grandpa!

Tree-hugger!

Liam decided he NEEDED to hug a tree :)

A house

Liam built a house with his crayons (note the outside of his placemat)!

Easter basket

What... A noodle?

Fever... boo :(

We got home on Sunday from Easter at Grandma and Grandpa's house and Liam spiked a high fever.  He had been running one all day, but it got to be about 103.7 in the early evening... We had never seen Liam so 'down and out' before.

A quick after hours/holiday call into the doctor and a prescription dose of Motrin and the fever broke.  It came back in the night, but again was controlled by meds.  Liam was feeling much better in the morning and two days later is perfectly fine. 

I am not sure what that was, but I am certainly glad it is gone.

Easter

We celebrated Easter over two weekends (I don't have pictures from my parents... you should really post those Papa), but I do have some very cute ones from our weekend at Jon's parents. We had such a lovely time!  Mary cooked such a wonderful meal for Jon's Grandma and his aunt and uncle.  It was nice seeing them again (uggh... we forgot pictures of that!)  We did a lot of playing and relaxing otherwise.  Liam got to sleep over in Grandma and Grandpa's room, eat cookies and cupcakes (cupecakes!), and play!

 The boys... flying a kite!

 I know it's blurry, but what a cute face!

 Building a project!

 You can almost hear it: "Grandpa how come your stick is bigger than mine?"

 Hmm...

 Wonder what's in there?

I'll just get it!

25 Months

Once again our little boy has grown and grown. (yes, I also realize, once again I am late with this as well!)  I always like a little perspective when writing these... so here is our little Liam one year ago (ish):

Funny how obviously he has changed... but really looks quite similar :)  Just love him!

So, here is what Liam is into right now:

• Jumping... almost there!  He has and can jump with both feet off the ground.  The cutest thing about it right now is the windup and the butt wiggles before the jump!
• Favorite toys include: diggers, cars, books, legos, puzzles and shopping.  He also loves throwing balls and hiding!
• Favorite books: The cow that laid an egg, pigs to the rescue, all farm books, where the wild things are, singing books and some of his old favs as well!  Books still continue to be his favorite thing to play - he sits ands reads everyday!
• Eating is very two-year old.  His staple foods are cheese, yogurt, fruit and breads.  Even these he doesn't consistently eat!  He will eat some veggies now and again as well as some meats...  At school he eats EVERYTHING.  They actually called me at work one day to tell me he was eating noodle.  Not at home though, not at home.
• Loves outside... he is an explorer (with a mommy or daddy!)
• Can independently climb and go down a slide, get his own snack from the pantry, wash his hands when the stool is there, pick out his clothes... I am sure there are others!  We are working on getting dressed (got a sock on once!), pottying (went potty twice on the potty at school - WOOHOO!), putting coats on, putting shoes on, etc., etc.
• Liam is quite fascinated by 'abc's lately.  He likes to point to the words and have someone read them.  He likes to spot trucks with words and screams "ABCs" in the car!  Liam is able to count up to ten pretty reliably now and is still working on consistent one-to-one correspondence.  He recognizes shapes and is starting to recognize numbers as well!
• He loves giving kisses, hugs and telling everyone his loves them.  He says please and thank you on his own a lot of the time.  He burped and then said excuse me all by himself (yes, mommy is still working on this herself!) He is such a sweet, kind boy! 
• We are working a bit on discipline as he is quick to temper and quite frustrated at times, which he shows us by hitting, kicking and what I have affectionately named 'mean words' (NO, go away, etc.).  He sits for anwhere from 10 seconds to 1 minute, getting up when he is ready and says "Sorry for ... hitting, kicking, mean words" or any combination thereof!

I can't imagine what next week will look like let alone next year.  For right now I try to just soak up every bit of Liam... just love that kid so much!

Celebrating the Memories

It is always hard to lose someone.  Having Liam has changed both Jon's and my perspective on family and how much we cherish every memory we have.  It is amazing and humbling to watch others love and enjoy your child.  We love sharing these moments with all of our family.  Here are a few pictures that remind us of very cherished memories

You just never know what to expect...

Farm animals driving a digger!

Moo moo moo

Do you want to mow the lawn?