New furniture

Yesterday, we had something new on Liam's daily report from daycare...he decided to start learning to use the potty!  He had been watching one of the older boys do it and apparently decided it looked like fun.  So to encourage him, we went last night and Liam picked out a potty for us to have at home.  It is currently a fabulous new addition to our kitchen area, although I suspect at some point it will eventually (I hope) migrate to one of the bathrooms.


We got not only the Elmo toilet, but the book "Potty Time with Elmo", so between Jessie at daycare and Elmo, we are in good shape.  I'm not sure I'm ready for this though, wasn't quite on my radar yet.  At the same time, we'll go with what Liam wants and let him set the pace here...I can't say I would miss diapers :)

I also learned last night that 1) I will be that mom who goes to multiple stores in order to find the Elmo potty...even Wal-Mart, 2) Wal-Mart does a good job of putting irresistible items at the eye-level of a child riding in a cart and that 3) I am apparently a pushover when it comes to a new truck and a giant Curious George coloring book!

18 months (and some change)

We had our official 18 month appointment today (just a couple of weeks late!) and it was confirmed that we have a happy and healthy and growing kid.  :)  I still can't get over the fact he is now over 19 months.  These have been some of the craziest, busiest, stressful, happy, worrisome, yet absolutely awesome months of my life. 

Measurement-wise, her percentiles stayed about the same.  The nurse was nice enough to point out to us though that his head is actually ON the charts this time for size (94th percentile) versus every other appointment where his head circumference was OFF the charts big, ha.

He is officially 32 inches tall (30th percentile) which is about what we guessed, but I have to say I don't think of him as being on the "short" side.  He seems to tall to me (then again, most everyone does!).  We may be in for another big growth spurt here soon I'm thinking.

Weight is tipping the charts at 26 lbs 10 oz.  Despite my worries about his eating, his refusal to eat unbreaded vegetables and various allergies, he certainly seems to be getting the food to keep him growing and healthy!

In short, we have a happy, healthy and growing kid, and if all goes well, we won't be back to the doctor until his 2 year checkup!  Although I'm not holding my breath on that one...

I managed to get one shot with monkey here during nap time, I may try to get him to pose later once he gets up!

Riding the "Tahn-Tune"

Thanks to two weekends of the flu at our house, plus a 5k weekend and the two fabulous trips to Michigan, we have not been up to the lake or to see Grandma and Grandpa Zwagerman since Memorial Day.  And because the weather was so bad both of the weekends in May we were visiting, that means that we hit the Fourth of July without a ride on the "Tahn-Tune", the new boat (a pontoon, which eldest niece heard as "tontoon", which is now the boat's official name)!

Luckily, when all of us headed North to celebrate the Independence Day Holiday weekend (Happy Birthday, America!), the weather cooperated and we had a fabulous long weekend with family and friends.  Time on the boat and in the water, karaoke, the Barefoot, S'mores, even a haircut, it was another big weekend for Liam!

Now it's time to do some laundry, get some groceries, and get ready for another busy week and possibly weekend.  Liam gets his ears checked tomorrow at the ENT (fingers crossed the tubes are still doing the job) and then later in the week we have Liam's 18-month appointment (and shots, poor kid).  I am looking forward to getting the official height and weight measurements though, but I really cannot believe that we have had Liam in our lives for 18 months already. 

Liam Becomes a Yooper! (Temporarily at least...)

Liam and I just got back from our second trip to Michigan this month...this time we hit the Upper Peninsula to go meet baby Lilah, visit Lilah's parents, and see all the family up in Big Bay. It was, as always, a wonderful visit with everyone there, but too short a trip. Liam and Lilah hit it off and Ariane and I are thinking it might be a good idea to just arrange the marriage now :)

Visits with Ariane are always refreshing, and I'm fortunate to have someone I can call my best friend for over 30 years now! I hope that someday Liam is so lucky to have someone like that in his life. Liam had a ton of fun with all the family, he was just fascinated watching all the big kids and dogs running around and laughing and having fun. It was wonderful to have Liam meet the rest of the U.P family and we are already looking forward to our next visit!

The Williams Boys (and Girls!)

Liam and I took our first long roadtrip together, and he was an AMAZING travel companion.  He did so good on the road, despite dealing with a virus, that we actually did the whole drive home (600+ miles!) in one day.  The best part of the trip though, was seeing and spending time with all the family.  I always love the opportunity to see the aunts, uncles and cousins, but for Liam, this was his first time meeting many of them!  With only about 72 hours in the state of Michigan, the visit was too short (as always).  Liam got to hang with almost all of the Williams boys, learned basic skills like eating pretzels and "high-stakes" card games, and observed a cut-throat game of Williams-family Wiffle ball.  He also developed a strong case of hero worship for his 10-year-old cousin Joey, who fortunately was really good with his shadow. He also got to play with the Beck boys, where he learned the joys of the merry-go-round and then had the rest of us giggling as he bopped and weaved.  All in all, a completely successful trip!

We have our next big trip already this week, up to visit more family, Aunt Susan, Uncle Jerry, Steph, Ava and hopefully the boys, and meet Miss Lilah (oh, and see her parents too of course!). :)

CHEEEESSSEEEE!!

Liam loves the camera.  I mean LOVES the camera.  He will pick up my phone, and instead of put it to his ear, he will turn it around so that he is looking at the back of it, hold it away from him, and say "CHEESE!".  And if I break out the real camera, he makes sure he gets in front of it. And of course, I take his picture, because he is too cute to resist!

I was taking a few photos to update our real estate listing after finishing all the painting, and Liam kept running into the room.  So we did an impromptu photo shoot

May Round-up!

Life continues to move forward here in Iowa, and Baby Lamb continues to grow and entertain.  He has such a personality, and he loves to laugh -- and to make us laugh.  He ADORES Curious George, and good old George has become our new best friend when we travel.  The tablet, a holder attached to the seat, a few episodes of CG, and we can make the drive to the lake without stopping (with the addition of a few books and snacks that is).  This will be put to the test this coming week as Liam and I go on our first road trip, heading to MI to see all the family.  We'll be splitting the drive up, but it is still a long drive for a little man.

Liam is no longer in the "baby" room at daycare, as of June 1 he was moved up to the "Tots" and we've already seen changes that come with hanging out with the older kids!  He's started to "shush" us at random times, to count, and to be much more independent.  The stubborn streak is emerging more often, but he has a great, loving personality to balance it all out!

We took two trips up to the lake to visit Grandma and Grandpa in May, but the weather did NOT cooperate either time, so Liam hasn't had a chance to ride on the new "tontoon" yet :)  He still likes to snuggle up with me and watch a show or two before bed, and I enjoy every single minute of that snuggle time because I know it won't last. 

The perfect reading chair at the lake...especially on a rainy weekend

Reading to Grandpa

Reading with Grandma

Learning the finer points of how to play cornhole

Mr. Cool

Mr. Cool trying to take Harley on a walk

My kids

Trouble.  Trouble with a capital "T"

Grandma and 3 of her 4 grandkids

Working on his art

The joys of sidewalk chalk