The Beautiful Life of Liam James

Friday, March 4, 2016

Liam James | Ten Months

As usual, mama is late posting the blog...but we have been busy around here! Liam is crawling now and getting into EVERYTHING so I don't have time to sip my coffee and write a blog. But in all honesty, I LOVE this life. I cannot believe my baby is 10 months old already!

Liam keeps getting taller and chubbier. Everyone told us that Liam would "slim out" once he starting moving, but that is not the case. One day he just started crawling and was clumsy about it (he gets that from his dad, I swear.....) and all of a sudden he disappeared up the stairs. He is lightning fast, too. He still puts everything in his mouth - some new things I have found are bobby pins, tape, tags, and dog food. I swear I don't know where it all comes from. Anyone who knows me, knows I am a CLEAN FREAK and am constantly sweeping and vacuuming so where he finds those objects is beyond me. Terrifies me to think about what I haven't dug out of his mouth that he has ended up swallowing......

Sleep
Boy does this kid love his sleep! Now that Liam is pulling himself up and is mobil, napping hasn't been as good, especially at daycare. He used to take two 2 hour naps at daycare and that has turned into one 45 minute nap if we are lucky. So that has resulted in Liam going to bed between 6:30pm-7pm and now he wakes up at 7am. I guess I should have known that the blissful "Liam sleeps in until 8:30am" thing wouldn't last. He still sleeps about 12 hours straight which I am forever grateful for. Now if only I could go to sleep shortly after he does, I could actually get some good sleep. Of course, Liam is still sucking his thumb and is growing very attached to his lovie. He even sometimes tries to stick both thumbs in his mouth!

Eating Liam still LOVES to eat. I believe that is something that will never change. Now that he is crawling, his chubby body has been needing more calories. Just the other day, he polished off TWO grilled cheeses - no joke. Some of Liam's favorite foods are mac-n-cheese, scrambled eggs, apples, black olives, avocado, oranges, lemons (not kidding) and peaches. Oh, and any type of meat. He eats 3 solid meals a day plus has two snacks at daycare that are usually crackers or puffs. Liam is still drinking plenty of breast milk every day as well! Liam now knows how to sign "more" "done" and "SOOOO big"!

9    Month Weight: 27 lbs 0oz
10 Month Weight: 29 lbs 0oz

9 Month Length: 32.5 inches
10 Month Length: 33 inches

9    Month Diaper Size: Size 5
10 Month Diaper Size: Size 5

9   Month Clothes Size: 18-24 Month
10 Month Clothes Size: 18-24 Month

Firsts / Milestones

12.24.16 Made first Christmas Cookie

12.25.15 First Christmas
12.31.15 First New Year's Eve (rang in the new year sleeping in bed with mommy and daddy)

01.09.16 Crawled for the First Time

Making his First Christmas Cookie!

Playing in Grandma's Santa Bears!

Opening Presents!

Christmas morning opening more presents!

Always getting into things...

Crazy what difference a year can make!

Oh yes, and also, this talent. I love me silly little boy. Liam, You are always making us laugh. You are so perfect in every way.

Tuesday, January 12, 2016

Liam James | Nine Months

Liam is another month older and just keeps getting cuter!

Liam continues to grow and change each day. There are days when I drop him off at daycare and pick him up and he has learned a new skill. I am told at least three times a week by the daycare staff, that Liam needs a little brother or sister because he just LOVES the other kids at daycare (but he won't be getting another sibling for a while). They tell me that he is constantly smiling and trying to talk and play with the other kids, even the babies! Liam loves playing with his cousin and it is so fun to get them together. The are constantly smiling and talking to each other as well as hitting each other in the face and stealing toys.

Liam is still not crawling forward yet, but he sure gets around anyway. He is crawling backwards, rolling around, getting on his hands and knees, and scooting on his butt. His new fascination is banging two objects together and pushing things over....even his activity table. He is putting anything and everything in his mouth too. Some interesting things I have found in his mouth include cat and dog hair, pine needles, dead lady bugs, and clumps of dirt. I could literally sweep and vacuum the floor and he will still find things to put in his mouth.

Sleep
Liam is still sleeping like a champ! He has been going to bed a bit earlier the past month, usually between 7pm-8pm. He typically sleeps through the night until about 7:30am, but occasionally will wake up around 5am and want to nurse. Liam is taking two solid 1-2 hour naps per day, and sometimes takes a little cat nap after supper for about 45 minutes. I usually lay him down at night awake, and he will sit up and talk in his crib for about 15 minutes then start to whine, then before we know it, he is out cold! He also started sleeping with his lovie at night and likes to hold it up to his nose when he sucks his thumb - just like mommy used to do!

Eating
Liam still LOVES to eat. Liam finished off his "baby food" this month. I told him that once it was gone, he would only be eating what mommy and daddy eat. He was more than okay with that since he pretty much only wants what we have anyway. Some of Liam's favorite foods are mac-n-cheese, scrambled eggs, apples, green olives, and any type of meat. He eats 3 solid meals a day plus has two snacks at daycare that are usually crackers or puffs. Liam is still drinking from a sippy cup (with water only) and has discovered that if he tips his head backwards, water actually comes out of it! Liam is still drinking plenty of breast milk every day as well! Liam also learned how to sign "more" this month!

Least Favorites
When Mama Walks Away | Being in the Car seat Too Long | Being Hungry | Bibs | Getting Dressed (would rather be naked)

Firsts / Milestones
11.26.15       First Snow Fall
11.26.15       First Thanksgiving (LOVED all the food)
12.07.15      Cut Down First Christmas Tree

We Cut Down our First Christmas Tree!

Liam's First Christmas Tree

First Thanksgiving Meal

Making Lefse with Grammy!

Loves to tip over EVERYTHING

Easiest Kid to Take to Stores

Sleepy Boy at Target

Mommy's make-shift bathtub until our new one comes!

Lazy Saturday watching Christmas movies (this is mommy's favorite)

Cuddles with the puppies

Cuddles with Daddy

Liam loves to make silly faces!

And faces like this too...

There are no words to describe how much I love this little boy.

I LOVE BEING HIS MAMA!

Wednesday, November 25, 2015

Liam James | Eight Months

Liam has officially spent the first month in his new home and boy is he one happy babe! Look at that little ham!

Over the past month, Liam has been slowly transforming from a baby into a little dude. I say this every month, but this month trumps all other months in terms of how rapidly his personality is emerging. It’s been the most amazing thing to experience! He’s so squirmy, coy, goofy, curious, and can be very serious and focused too. I know every parent says this, but I honestly fall more in love with Liam every day.

Liam is also starting to display a little bit of separation anxiety when mama leaves the room. This has made it really hard to get anything done, and he is way too heavy for me to carry around while I do things so either I don't do the things, or he has to be patient and pull himself together. I do let him cry a little most of the time so he will learn patience and also so he will learn that mama will always come back for him. There are some nights where I cannot wait for him to go to sleep, but as soon as I lay him down at night, I miss him so much (but of course I revel in some alone time).

Since we have most of the "important" renovations done in our home (painting, baseboards, window trim, etc.) we have officially gotten all of our pets back into the house with us and Liam is in Heaven. He loves petting the dogs, especially their ears, which he grabs and tugs at, but the dogs are so patient with him and just look at us like, "whyyyyyyyy?" Sarabi (my kitty) is also very patient with him and will come and rub up on him when he is sitting on the floor. Liam squeals and is learning to be "gentle" to the kitty.

Liam has transformed into a little dude over the past month. He has 9 teeth and wants so badly to crawl. He is able to get up onto his hands and knees but doesn't understand how to move forward. He currently moves backwards and side to side. I hope he can hold off another week because we really need to get our cabinet doors hung up or else the kitchen will be his favorite place to escape to. Liam has also been very vocal the last month, more so than ever. He says "mamamama" and yells all the time. He is very loud and happy and I love having little conversations with him!

Sleep
I have nothing to complain about when it comes to Liam sleeping. Liam takes two naps at daycare from about 11am-12:30pm and 2pm-3pm. He also almost always falls asleep on the 50 minute commute back home too. He usually makes it until about 6pm and gets tired and goes down for about an hour before I hear him yelling and talking in his crib. I always go get him (because I've missed him during the hour he was napping) and we hang out for another hour and he goes down for the night between 8-9pm. He will usually sleep until about 7am and then he nurses and is ready to take on the world!

Eating
Liam is a kid that LOVES to eat. Liam continues trying new "big kid" foods, and there isn't anything he hasn't liked yet. What mama and daddy have on their plate is always way more delicious than what is on Liam's plate, even if it is the same thing. Liam eats about 3 times a day - usually twice at daycare and once at home around 5pm. He still eats rice cereal for every meal (gotta get that iron). I have also been offering a sippy cup to Liam filled with water and he is already getting the hang of it! Liam is still getting that good 'ol booby milk every day as well and loves that just as much as he did before.

Least Favorites
When Mama Walks Away | Being in the Car seat Too Long | Being Hungry | Bibs

Firsts / Milestones
10.31.15       First Trip to the Minnesota Zoo (with "Big Brother" Antonio)
10.31.15       First Halloween (dressed up as an Ewok)
11.03.15      First Trip to the Park

Liam the Baby Ewok

Watching the Shark Feeding at the MN Zoo with Antonio

Loved going down the Slide at the Park

FaceTiming Daddy

Cuddles with the Puppies

So Close to Crawling!

Playing with cousin Meadow

First School Picture (7 Months)

"Care and support, protect and let go. Nurture, allow, cherish and know. A mother's joy is a son's greatest treasure. A son's happiness is his mother's greatest desire.

Know that you are loved."

Wednesday, November 4, 2015

Liam James | Seven Months

Well, I realized today that I completely forgot to write about Liam's seventh month of life!

I do have a very valid excuse for that though....we BOUGHT A HOUSE!

See! That's us holding our new house keys! We closed on October 5th and having been turning the house into a home ever since! We painted every wall, every closet and every ceiling with Killz because the house was formerly smoked in and we needed to get rid of the smell. We then painted all the walls in every room and are re-doing the cabinets. Oh - and we are also replacing all the window trim and baseboards as well!

Liam has been such a good baby the entire time we have been busy with the house. He has done a great job of being patient with Chris and I when he needs something and done an excellent job of entertaining himself.

I don't mean to make it sound like Chris and I stick Liam in a box with 3 toys and expect him to fend for himself while we work on the house - but there are times when Chris needs my help with something and Liam just hangs out while we get stuff done! Liam has definitely done a great job getting himself into a routine since we've been back on our own!

Liam's personality changed overnight in the past month. He is learning to recognize people, especially Chris and I, and waves at everyone - even the dogs!

Sleep
Oh, sleep. How I missed you. We were able to move back into my in-law's basement (after the flood) for two week before we actually moved into our house. Being back in his crib did wonders for Liam. He went from being up ever 1-2 hours each night to sleeping from 9pm-6am straight. Even when he wakes up at 6am to eat, he goes back to sleep until about 8am. This mama is loving the extra sleep!

Eating
Oh man, and I thought Liam liked to eat before. Now that Liam has started eating "big kid" food, I realize that there is a whole new level of loving to eat! Liam has never really been into the "baby food" puree, but will eat it if it is all I offer. His favorite is puffs. The second he sees me pull that yellow container out of the cupboard he starts kicking his legs, smiling and reaching for them! Liam eats about 3 times a day - usually twice at daycare and once at home around 6pm. He eats rice cereal for every meal (gotta get that iron) and I usually add some fruits and veggies in with it or cube some up and put it on his high chair. Oh does this child love to eat anything and everything and of course, what mommy and daddy have is always WAY more interesting. Liam is still getting that good 'ol booby milk every day as well and loves that just as much as he did before!

Least Favorites
When Mama Walks Away | Being in the Carseat Too Long | Being Hungry | Bibs

Firsts / Milestones
09.20.15     First Rice Cereal
10.05.15       Mama and Daddy Bought a House
10.16.15      Discovered How to Wave