Innsbrook Baby

Liam is definitely an Innsbrook baby. Granted he has been out there a few times before but this Memorial Day weekend, he was finally able to take it all in!
We got there around 2 on Friday and headed straight to the beach which we had all to ourselves. At first Liam was not sure about the lake and didn't even want to get his toes wet, but once Daddy showed him how it was done we couldn't get him out of there.
On Saturday we enjoyed some pool time and the Innsbrook party where Liam made some new friends. And then Sunday we hit up the beach again.
Liam loved being in the water and was so brave about it all. He also loved playing with his new toys in the sand.
Other than all the water time, we also enjoyed many walks, relaxation and lots of good food. Only interrupted every now and then by the chaos of 5 dogs.
It was a great weekend and I can't wait to get Liam back to the water. The sprinkler in the front yard just isn't the same.
Here are some pictures from the weekend (again, none of me!) Hope everyone survived the heat.

Next adventure on the horizon... Liam's second trip to Chicago next weekend to see Katie and Jim and celebrate Great G-ma and G-pa's anniversary. I am really looking forward to seeing everyone.

The BOTTLE

At our 15 month appointment the doctor asked if Liam was still on the bottle. She told me that it was time to start weaning him off that. She also told me I shouldn't be giving him any juice but I think that is a whole different post.
Of course when she told me I obliged accordingly. However the more I think about it, the more it bothers me and I am also realizing what an impossible task this is going to be.
Now it is not like the bottle is Liam's life line or anything. He rarely takes one during the day anymore, but man does he need that thing at night. Like clock work the kid gets crabby around 6:30. He knows a bottle is coming and he sucks down a good 8 ounces sometimes in 5 minutes flat. But it is not just the milk he is looking for. The bottle seems to be his night time comfort. Some kids latch on to pacifiers or blankets but for Liam it is his bottle. After he drinks the initial bottle, he really needs another one to help put him to sleep, usually falling asleep in his crib with it still in his mouth. It is already a struggle getting him to go to sleep at night, I can't imagine what it would be like without his comfort item.
Now, don't get me wrong, we have tried giving him milk out of sippy cups and multiple types of sippy cups that is. He usually takes one drink and then throws it on the ground with a look on his face like "how dare there not be juice/water in here!". We have pretty much stop giving him any juice so the only thing he gets in his sippy cup is water or milk, but still no dice.
On top of all that, I am really not ready to get rid of the bottle because I feel like he will no longer be a "baby" when he no longer needs his bottle. And that is a sad day for me. Plus I have seen like 4 year old kids at the grocery store with pacifiers in their mouths, this can not be any worse!!
So for now, I continue to give him a bottle at night and go against the doctor's advice. I know at some point we will have to get rid of it, but I am just not ready for that quite yet. I mean how can you deny this little guy what he wants??

Injury Prone

I guess I should get myself used to it... especially since my husband has informed me as a child he used to bang his head against the concrete sidewalk... Liam is injury prone.
This weekend was a perfect example. I don't know when or if ever you stop hurting so much when you see your children hurt. I just wanted to take all the pain away and endure it for him.
Everything is fine, but here's what went down...

On Saturday night we went to Aunt Amanda's house to celebrate Ceil's (granny's) b-day. The afternoon started fine and Liam actually got to wear his adorable outfit for a couple hours before there was blood stains on it. :(

 Did I mention his legs are already so scratched and bruised up I am considering putting him in pants for the rest of the summer?!

Happy Birthday Granny! Don't mind me, I am just boozing it up!

I didn't see the actual event happen but I guess he was trying to crawl up the concrete stairs on the patio and bit it. We thought at first it was just a bloody lip but later discovered he skinned up this finger pretty bad and CHIPPED HIS TOOTH!! When I saw that, I just wanted to start crying but held it back to try and not freak Liam out even more.
Good thing it is just a baby tooth and hopefully it won't cause him too much irritation and we can let it go till he is a bit older.

If that trauma wasn't enough, injury struck again about 24 hours later!
We were having lots of fun walking about in mommy's shoes...

Oh, hi there!

But the fun wouldn't last for long. I was on the phone and Liam was crawling up and down the couch as he does 100x a day so I wasn't paying too much attention to him. On the way down, he started to fall. I half way caught him but he landed with his left arm all twisted up behind him.
Well he was inconsolable for about 30 minutes. His arm was all limp and he cried hysterically if we tried to move it, so we decided to head to the Urgent Care. They proceeded to give him X-rays where the child wailed unlike anything I have ever seen. I was convinced something was broken. But in true Liam fashion, as soon as the doctor came in to see him, he waved that left arm up almost to say, "Hi Doc, I am fine!". And he was of course!
I feel so exhausted from all of that. And to top it all off we had an open house on Sunday so we spent the rest of the weekend getting the house prepared!

Hey Mom!! I am exhausted too. When is my vacay?



I am ready for vacation... so I will take one. Well a small one at least. We leave Friday afternoon to go out to Innsbrook for the long weekend. Can't wait!

Mother's Day Recap

I know it is late, but we had a great mother's day weekend. The weather was absolutely beautiful and I was determined to take advantage of that.
Liam was a wonderful son and sent me 2 dozen roses of various colors on Saturday.

Of course we had a million things to do to get the house ready to go on the market, but we were able to have fun too! On Saturday the three of us went to the Botanical Gardens and had lunch and walked around for a couple hours. Liam loved running around all over and really loved the sheep although he kept calling them "doggies."
On Sunday we meet Keith's parents for brunch at Bricktops. Even though the service was pretty slow (they took $20 off our bill), the food was great and Liam somewhat cooperating letting us have a nice meal. :) We then headed to the zoo with my family. The place was insanely busy! It took about 20 minutes to park, but once we got it, we had a great time. Once again Liam loved it. He even got spoiled on "my day" when I saw a stuffed giraffe I couldn't resist.
And even though it was Mother's Day, I didn't get any pictures with my little guy (lots with daddy thought!). I am so bad at that, but here are a few cute ones I did get.

Also I found this old pic of me and my mom and thought it was appropriate to share now. Sorry for the quality, it is a picture of a picture.

Side Note: Have any of you seen that Johnson and Johnson commercial of the baby "talking" to his mom... telling her she is doing alright? Cutest thing ever, almost started crying. So happy belated mother's day to all you out there and if your little one wasn't old enough to tell you yet, I am sure they were thinking it!

On the Market!

Well it has taken a lot of hard work and we still have a long journey ahead of us, but our house is finally on the market!
Please pass along to anyone who might be interested. We are going to need all the help we can get! :)
http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/8-Eldorado-Ct_Saint-Louis_MO_63119_M82477-62810

15 Month Check-Up

So I finally have Liam's 15 month stats.
He is weighing in at 24 pounds 10 ounces, in the 75% (up about a pound since his 1 year).
He is 32 and 3/4 inches tall, in the 93%!! (up 2 inches from a year).
He got his chicken pox and measles/mumps vaccines which is never fun to watch!

I can definitely tell he is tall these days. He is able to reach up and grab pretty much whatever he wants up the kitchen counter or dining room table. I feel like if we went in for his appointment just a few weeks later he would have been even taller. With the amount of food he has been eating, he has to be going through a growth spurt. Last night at Hacienda he ate a whole taco (cheese, chicken, tomatoes) half a thing of sweet corn and numerous bites of beans, chips, rice etc. I swear he would eat all day long if we let him.

He is getting more and more adventurous, learning to climb on more things (still hasn't gotten out of the crib on his own yet, fingers crossed) and is still into everything.

Here are a couple pictures. Happy Friday!

 All the toys are not enough, I must get in the toy bin as well!

Still waking up but have to be playing!

Heat Wave

We had a great but crazy weekend. It was one of those weekends where you are just go, go, go until you look at the clock and realize it is 7:00 pm on a Sunday and you are left wondering what the hell just happened.
On Friday night we had Colin and Carly over for a pizza party and sleep-over. On Saturday we ran around like crazy trying to get the house together to take pictures for our listing. (All done so hopefully the house will be listed very shortly!) I am glad that we briefly forgot it was Cinco De Mayo cause it was hot and muggy outside and I am sure we would have just been miserable trying to partake inany festivities. Don't worry though, we did enjoy some tacos for dinner.
Sunday I helped host a baby shower which we attempted to have outside. After running around getting everything set up and cleaned etc, etc, I was HOT!! I was ready to jump in a swimming pool. Since this was not an option, we did the next best thing. We were already headed over to my mom's for dinner so we just decided to go a bit early and get out the sprinkler.
This was for sure the highlight of the weekend. Liam wasn't too sure about the whole thing to start with but after Daddy and Uncle JC gave him some pointers, he was right back to his monster self. He loved running up to the water and then running back just before it got him. After a while he figured out that he could pick up the sprinkler and spray everything or everyone in his path. Who would have thought that on May 6th it would be so hot that we would have to break out the swim trunks.

Here are some pictures of Liam enjoying his new favorite activity!

And I didnt forget that I promised I would post Liam's 15 month stats. I am just not one of those moms that remembers every inch, ounce and percentile (I know, I am horrible!), so I have to actually remember to look at the paper the nurse wrote it down on for us. :)

Hi to All My Followers! :)