Well, it's that time of year again. When there's a holiday every single month for 4 months straight! First up is Halloween. Liam celebrated Halloween last year, but slept through most of it - as you can see at this post: "Happy Halloween" a tale (more so a tell-all photo) of Liam's first Halloween. haha... This year Liam was a little more enthused about the idea of dressing up in a costume, seeing pumpkins, dancing, animals, and anything else fun that is associated with celebrating Halloween (sorry son, you're too young for candy). We first started out by going to Party City and picking Liam's costume out. He decided to be a dinosaur and we were more than thrilled with his choice. On Saturday we got up and decided the weather was nice enough to head out to Dewberry Farm. We had such a great time there! We visited their HUGE pumpkin patch field! It was a large field with tons of pumpkins and we took plenty of pictures of Liam. He even took off walking through the pumpkins at one point. Then we headed to the corn maze and got lost for a LONG time! lol... When we escaped it turns out we had only made it through 1/4 of the maze! After that we were exhausted and decided to head home for the day. The next morning we went to the zoo for the Houston Zoo's Halloween celebration--Zoo Boo! It was so much fun! We walked in right on time and caught a performance of people, who were dressed as animals, doing Gangnam style. Then we saw the Dinosaurs exhibit that is in Houston right now and then we walked around and let Liam enjoy the sites! After the zoo we headed to McGovern Lake and hung out on the grass to enjoy the weather. It was much too nice to rush home and miss out on such a beautiful day! That's about all we did for Halloween. What fun things did you do to celebrate?
Well, another month has passed and Liam is now a 13 month old. We had a pretty exciting weekend considering Liam walked for the first time on Friday night (the night before he turned 13 months). Way to time it right, little man! LOL... A few wks ago on Oct. 2nd, Liam took 4 steps in a row, but never did it again so we just brushed it off as a fluke. Well, this time he's really walking. He still prefers crawling, but he knows how to walk and does it when he feels like it. He has become very keen on just taking off and walking across the living room like a seasoned pro! The weekend went well. We went out to lunch on Saturday and made our weekly trip to the grocery store. We had originally planned on taking Liam to the pumpkin patch on Saturday to celebrate his second Halloween and to have him pick out his first pumpkin, but that plan quickly went South when we pulled up to "Old McDonald's Farm" and their pumpkin patch wasn't anything more than a group of picnic tables with tiny hand-held-sized pumpkins on them. Kobe & I just decided to wait it out and go to a real pumpkin patch next weekend! Anywho, that's about all we did on Saturday--Liam's 13 month birthday. hehe... Excuse the time lapse, I originally typed this up on Oct. 21st & never hit "publish." Oops!! Here are some videos from the weekend of Liam's 13 months!
Good morning! I'm 13 months old!
The first video we got of Liam walking-and taking a dive! lol
Hope y'all enjoyed that! Have a great weekend! -Amber
Hi baby boy! I hope you're enjoying reading all these blog posts. With this one I just wanted to share your first haircut experience with you! We decided it was time to get your hair cut because it was getting so long that we were having to tuck it behind your ears. Daddy & I decided to take you to "Cool Cuts 4 Kids" since you're little and we wanted you to enjoy your first experience. We walked in and they called you back right away. You got to sit in a little red fire engine with a tv in front of it that was playing Spongebob Squarepants. The haircut lasted about 10 minutes or so. Nothing too drastic--just a little trim and style! You did great for the most part. The clippers' buzzing scared you for a second, but you didn't cry very much. You cried for a few seconds, but quickly regained your composure! For the most part, you did amazing for your first haircut experience. Here are some videos and pictures for you to remember the day by:
First 4 minutes of Liam's haircut!
The finished product: front view...
Side view...
Afterward with mommy.
The car ride home! **Disclaimer: I usually don't ride in the backseat, but Liam just so happened to start crying so I hopped back there & brightened his mood. =)
Well, sweet boy... that about sums up the day. You were such a big boy and did so well during that haircut! I hope you enjoy reading this some day. Daddy & I love you so much! -Amber (Mommy)
So, it's been almost three weeks since Liam turned one year old and I'm just now posting about this. Bad mother award anyone? lol JK! Well, let's get to it. Since Liam's birthday happened to fall on a Thursday we didn't do much... just a celebratory breakfast & then spent some time together at home before I headed off to work & left Liam & daddy to have a boys day without me. We then celebrated a few days later on Saturday with friends & family at Liam's First Birthday Bash!!! The party was so much fun & we are so glad we decided to spend the extra money on a photographer because we now have all of our beautiful memories captured on film. Some of the highlights of the party are when Liam enjoyed his VERY FIRST taste of cake, when Liam got to take a picture with every single guest at the party, & then when we had a blast jumping in the moonwalk for the first time!
Liam & his smash cake!
Liam, with momma & daddy! We love you so much, baby boy!
Liam & daddy being silly in their robot shirts!
Jumping with momma!
Kobe & I would like to take a moment to thank everyone for coming out & helping us celebrate Liam's first year. This was the most special day we've ever celebrated & we can't wait for all the years to come. Liam had so much fun seeing everyone & we are so happy with how his special day turned out!
Following the party, we had an amazing time at home playing with Liam & all of his new toys. We attempted to only open one at a time, but ended up caving & opening nearly all of them! Go figure! We have lots of fun at the Nol household. haha!
Here's our messy living room full of toys & left-over party containers. Liam is one lucky baby boy! Kobe & I joked that it looked like Christmas all over again! lol
Liam playing with his new ball-drop chute game! He's a pro at it.
Sunday came & went, then it was Monday-Sept 24th, 2012. Dun, dun, DUNNNN! Liam had his appt for first b-day shots at Dr Farella's office. He weighed in at 16 lbs 10.5 oz and measured 28 inches long. Our little man is growing up so well! Also, our awesome doctor said she wasn't even worried about Liam being "small" since Liam is following his own curve perfectly on the growth cart! Just what we wanted to hear. I'm also happy to announce that Liam has not had a bottle since that Monday at noon. He is exclusively using sippy cups now! We found one sippy that Liam uses great compared to all the others, in case you mommas-or anyone else who reads this post-would like suggestions on an awesome sippy cup. The NUK Active Cup is what I'm talking about. We got ours at Wal-Mart & I ordered 3 more of the same cup off of Amazon because they are sold out in all stores in our area after I nabbed one!
Ta-Da!! The magic sippy cup that beat all the rest of them out. =)
Isn't that cup the cutest?! The spout is soft, so it feels like a bottle nipple, but it has the shape of a sippy cup spout. Perfect for transitioning to a harder spout sippy cup! It is such fun having a one year old, they are learning so many new things & Liam is such a smart baby. He's recently learned to shake his head no & to hold the phone to his ear & say "hello!" Keep checking back for more updates on our little man. I'll leave y'all with some more pictures now, I've gotta get back to my big boy! He's wanting breakfast! lol
Liam enjoying his first dinner as a 1 year old! We've recently discovered that Liam's newest favorite food is chicken!
Our big boy drinking from his sippy cup!
What a difference!! Liam at one week next to Liam at one year!
Well, it happened... I already cried at the thought of Liam turning one year old. Yep, you read that right-our baby boy will be 1 yr old in less than 24 hrs & just thinking about it brought on the momma sobs. All I can say is that this has been the best year of my life. From the moment I saw his tiny little body come into this world & heard his loud first cry, I haven't been the same. I know any mother would say this about her child, but I seriously feel like Kobe & I have the best baby in the world. Just thinking of all the happy memories we've made this past year and all the new parent situations we've lived through... It's just such a happy occasion that we'll be celebrating tomorrow. I cried tears of joy earlier, but there was also a smidgen of sadness because my baby isn't such a little tiny baby anymore. He's a big boy who loves to dance & eat & watch the Sprout channel! I don't care how big he gets though, as long as I'm living my baby he'll be. =)
Oh Em Gee!!! Liam is 11 months old. We didn't do much to celebrate Liam's 11 months. Both Kobe & I worked, so we just spent our evening together. I am still amazed at how quickly this first year has gone by. I cherish all these little moments that we have with Liam... Parenthood is definitely not for the weak, but it's all worth it when your little bundle of joy starts hitting all kinds of new milestones and every time they lay their tiny heads on your shoulder. Speaking of milestones, Liam had a really BIG month! He moved up in clothing size, learned to say Dad, started walking with his learning walker, learned to do the "Indian" sound, got his first 3 teeth, and finally, Liam said mama for the first time!! To put into perspective how fast things have happened here's a little bit of chronological order for y'all: Friday, Aug 10th--Liam said "dad" for the first time, Saturday, Aug 11th--Liam started walking with his learning walker, Monday, Aug 13th--Liam got his first two teeth in & did "the Indian," Thursday, Aug 16th--Liam said "mama" for the first time, Friday, Aug 17th--Liam got his 3rd tooth. Wow, then 3 days later Liam turned 11 months. Impressive huh? That makes 5 words at 11 months old! Little smarty pants. =) Here are some pictures to showcase his 11th month.
Here's Liam ready for a Saturday out on the town! He loves his dino shoes. =)
Caught, red-handed! lol
Mmm, Momma! This Chipotle food is YUMMY!
Liam showing off his three new teeth! Such a little cutie!
Liam doing "the indian!" *wait for the very end... lol
So, on Tuesday I went to Toys R Us & bought Liam one of those sit-to-stand walker toys that babies can use to learn to walk. I chose this one by VTech because it was the newest option with the most buttons & learning songs on it. Plus, it was way cuter than the other sit-to-stand walker toys they had. haha
This is the one we chose!
I'm so happy with this purchase because I had been holding off on buying big toys, but this one was a must. It's helping him with walking--and who knows, we might have a walker very soon!
Here's Liam walking with his toy:
This new milestone definitely made our weekend just that much more special. Hope y'all have a great one too.
Hey everyone! I just thought it would be nice to update y'all on Liam's word list since the last post about "first words" I made was back in April. Liam now officially has 4 words (possibly 6) in his vocabulary--this doesn't include all the extra incomprehensible words he is constantly saying to us. These are Liam's words: 1. dada (first said it in April) 2. no-no which he pronounces as "na-na" (first said it in June) 3. tickle, tickle (first said it in May)... now for the newest word... 4. DAD! lol... he hasn't managed to figure out mama except for when he's having a meltdown, but he can say all forms of the word father. I see how it is! haha The other 2 words I won't count--because he doesn't say them consistently like the others--are: 1. teta (bottle in Spanish) 2. mama (only says it when he's crying or when he's babbling-you'll hear a mama in the midst of all his other words) I can't wait to add to his list of words. My boy is such a little sponge. He just soaks it all in! =)
I'll leave y'all with a video of Mr Liam saying his newest word--dad!
Well, Liam you turned 10 months old on Friday (July 20, 2012). I know I say this every month, but here I go with my broken-record self... I can't believe you are TEN months already!!! You're getting braver & braver every day. You still stand against furniture and pull up on everything--you even climb the entertainment center when we're not looking. You still have no teeth, but your top two center teeth are just sitting there waiting to come out. The pediatrician pointed them out back in June at your 9 month appointment, but they still haven't popped through your little gums yet. I'm thinking we'll get them really soon though b/c they're very noticeable through the gums. This weekend we celebrated your 10 months by taking you on your first road trip to Waco & Austin! You did so great in the car--as always. You didn't cry & stayed awake for the majority of the 3 hour drive. We had to make one stop after what we thought would have been a poopy diaper, but it wasn't & that was about it. Oh & daddy had to jump in the backseat to play a Barney video & a Yo Gabba Gabba video for you, just once, until you fell asleep. Once we arrived in Waco, I showed you & daddy around the Baylor University campus--this would mark your first-ever college campus tour. We walked around & saw Pat Neff, Draper, and even the bear pit! I also showed daddy & you around the Baylor Bubble & daddy drove us past my freshman year dorms & the university apartments I lived in during sophomore year. You slept through most of the walk around campus, which was okay because when we arrived at the bear pit even Joy & Lady were sleeping. Then daddy & I decided to go have lunch at McAlister's & you woke up when we got there! You even had a few bites of my soup & a bit of some turkey from my sandwich. Next we drove down Valley Mills & saw Floyd Casey Stadium--where the Bears lose most of their games (I admit... they aren't the best college football team out there). Then we decided to drive out to Lake Waco. We drove down Highway 6 & pulled into a park where there was a sign that said "Midway Park-Lake Waco." hahaha... The conversation that would take place when we pulled up to the gate would prove to be the highlight of daddy's day.
It went a little something like this: Man: "Can I help you?" as he opened the door to the gate booth Daddy: "Ummm, we're just visiting." Man: "Visiting who?" Daddy: "The lake???" Man: "This is a campground & boat ramp. The park you want to go to is across the bridge." lol
We both got a good laugh out of the whole "visiting the lake" comment. Too funny!
Finally we drove on over to Austin to have dinner with some of the mommas, daddies, and babies from the mom group I joined last year when I was pregnant. We had such a great time! .
Road trip! First stop: Bucee's!!!!
Sleeping through your first college campus tour... haha
Daddy showing you the cool aquarium!
You & daddy playing with one of the push/pull toys!
Here you are saying, "Look at me pretty girl, I'm strong enough to climb this fence!"
Going down the slide!
Daddy said, "that's a good picture." Mommy said, "yeah, we look like ghosts!"
That's better!
See the top two? They've been like that for the past month! Maybe you'll get them soon!
Lastly, here you are dancing to your favorite YGG video! I know, I know... you'll probably be embarrassed when you get older, but you are just such a cute little dancer!!
Go Liam, Go Go, Do the Liam, Go Go!
I hope you enjoyed reading how we celebrated your 10 months of being here. We have enjoyed every single second of you being here and we love you so much!
So last week, Liam celebrated his first 4th of July! It was a pretty fun day. We started out by packing for our move (we recently moved into a larger apartment so Liam could have his own space), then I realized the unthinkable--Liam didn't have a 4th of July outfit! This would be the first holiday he didn't have a shirt, onesie, or bib for. I quickly ran to the store & scored a 4th of July onesie on clearance for $3! Awesome, so now we were set to go celebrate. We decided to go downtown to sit at the bayou for the "Freedom over Texas" show that they do near Eleanor Tinsley Park every year. At first I was a little nervous as to whether Liam would like the fireworks or not, but he did great! He was a little distracted by the crowd's "Wooos" and "yeahs," but he overall watched the whole show. Not one tear! Here are some pictures that document our night!
Liam's 4th of July outfit... he looked so handsome. Can you see the smile behind his binkie? lol
Daddy wore Liam on our walk from the parking garage--here is Liam in the Beco Gemini (great carrier if you're in the market for one)!!
Where we sat!
Me & my baby boy. He was super excited!
My loves--Liam & daddy!
I hope y'all enjoyed this short post. Stay tuned for next week's post--10 months! Ahh!
So Liam officially fast forwarded past 8 months and said "Hello, momma and daddy! I'm 9 months old today." (well, 2 weeks ago) If you keep up with his monthly updates, you probably noticed I skipped his 8 month update, well there's really no excuse for that except that I was a lazy momma and life just gets a little hectic at times. Anywho... we're here now so I'm sure you're dying to find out what Liam does now that he is a whopping NINE months old! hahaha! After looking at the comparison of his skills today than the skills he had when I wrote his 7 month blog post it is so surreal. I can't believe our baby boy is growing up so fast!! In just 2 months he is now sitting up like a pro, he can crawl as fast as a 1 yr old can run, he can stop mid-sprint/crawl and sit up like it's nobody's business, and he also stands and climbs on furniture like a pro! He's even let go of furniture before and stood for 1-2 seconds before he plops down onto his booty. Liam now eats 2-3 containers of baby food a day, plus his 24-30 oz a day of formula (he eats six 5oz bottles a day, but sometimes only eats 4 of the 5oz). He weighed in at 15lbs6oz and he measured in at 27 inches long. The doctor witnessed first hand how hyper and on-the-go he is and said that she thinks he's really small b/c he burns too many calories! Takes after his mom & dad! He has also started eating solids. We have given him spaghetti, string cheese (a favorite of his), fruits, ground turkey/rice filling (we used it in stuffed peppers), guacamole, blueberry muffins, and even BBQ baked potato (his absolute favorite). There are so many changes. It is amazing to see how quickly babies learn things. Liam is such a smart boy. He now high fives and tries to clap (he hasn't gotten the clapping thing down yet). We have no teeth yet, but the dentist said that's completely normal since boys develop teeth a little slower than girls. I am in no hurry to see him suffer through teething, so it's fine by me! lol Since there's a lot of catching up to do, I'll leave y'all with your favorite part - pictures & videos of the little man. ENJOY! ^_^
5/21/12: 8 months & 1 day old - Bath time with his letters.
Memorial Day - all cleaned up after a day at the beach.
Daddy feeding Liam his dinner!
Just 1 week shy of 9 months old on the day he nearly gave me a heart attack by climbing the entertainment center!
Hey son! So, this post is to share your first "swimming" experience with you. The other day, dad & I decided that we should take you to the pool for the first time since it's about to be summer time. We expect to visit the pool a lot since it's so hot in Texas and figured that it might be wise to introduce you to the pool beforehand. You did great! I think the water was a bit too cold though b/c your bottom lip was shivering after about 10 minutes of wading around in the water. You were too cool though with your little swim trunks and sunglasses on. Most babies tug on stuff that is on their face or head, but not you! I guess they didn't bother you since you are smart enough to realize that they're protecting your little eyes from the sun. Smart little man! Here are a few pics for you to reflect on:
Your first feel of the water... you look a little shocked! lol
Me & you!
Ahhh! Scary moment alert! This is shortly after I realized there was a huge black flying ant on your back & in an attempt to swat it off of your back, I accidentally dipped your face in the water. Oops!!! Sorry baby boy. You were quite upset, but got over it quick.
All calmed down after that crazy ant & face-in-the-water ordeal!
You & daddy... looks like I caught both of y'all off-guard!
So, there you go, Liam. Your first time "swimming." The date was March 19, 2012. Yep, one day before you turned 7 months old. Dad & I plan on enrolling you in swim classes this summer at the YMCA down the street. Since you're so young, we'll have to be in the water with you. Of course, you won't be expected to learn to swim... it's really just to get you used to the water so that you will, in turn, not freak out when you have real swimming lessons in a few years! Hope you enjoyed reading this. Love you so much!
Kobe & I met back in 2006 after being neighbors for 8 years (unbeknown to the both of us). We were instantly drawn to each other. I admired his goofiness and bad boy charm, and he thought I was cute little good girl. lol! After almost 5 years of being in an honest, true-love, fun & exciting relationship, we are so ecstatic to be welcoming our first baby!
