Visit to Illinois

We got back on Monday evening from a long (yet too short!) weekend in Illinois, where we got to spend some time with family and friends-- and where we were especially excited to meet some of Liam's brand new friends!

We flew into Midway and said a quick hello to the Blues Brothers...



...before getting on our way to the city to meet little Conor McC! Conor was born March 30 and is the sweet second baby of my good friend and college roomie Becky. Here he is waving hello:



Liam had fun catching up with his buddy Elisa, too!



After lunch and a short visit, it was time to head to Milford. Liam was overall a patient and good little traveler, but he was sure happy to get to Grandma and Papa's house and stretch those legs! "Catch me if you can, Papa!"



"And you too, Surabhi!"
He made a lot of folks chase him throughout the weekend...



On Saturday, Liam got to meet his second new friend, Owen G. Liam and Owen are destined to take after their dads and be long-distance BFFs. They started out great, that is until Mommy held Owen...

Now note that when I held Conor the day before, Liam walked up to me, patted me on the shoulder, and declared "MomMAH". As in, "Listen kid, you're cute. But let me make this clear. This is my Mom."

So when I picked up little Owen, this must have been the last straw. Liam sat in front of us, watching intently... and then slowly (and a little dramatically, might I add) the corners of his mouth started to droop, his chin quivered, and then he just crumbled into tears. As in, "How could you do this to me?! I thought I was your baby!!"

Needless to say, my time holding Owen was a bit short-lived. Once I assured Liam that I was still his mommy and that Owen had his own mommy, he took a little time relaxing (and learning that a Digger indeed digs!) with Owen's grandpa and uncles:



And after that, he realized that Owen wasn't so bad after all. And hey-- I think he likes him! The friendship has been saved!



Us with Bill, Kristin, and Owen:



Back at Grandma and Papa's house, Liam enjoyed some silly time with Dad and cousins Toni and Aidan:



My favorite pic of the weekend (Uncle Andrew always gets the best smiles out of Liam! Reminds me of the first time they met!):



The weather was absolutely gorgeous all weekend, so we got to enjoy some good walks and even a fun morning at the grade school playground. Aidan and Liam getting ready to go down the slide:



"I LOVE SWINGS!!"



On Sunday afternoon, we had an awesome visit with many of Liam's extended family. Catching up in the kitchen with Uncle David and Aunt Lyn:



Liam also got to hang out with his fave cousin Drake. Can't believe how much these two have grown!

They had a blast playing peek-a-boo behind the curtain!



Time out for kisses for Toni!



Our last night together (for now!)-- Liam with Papa and Grandma:



What a weekend! Liam catching some Zs on Daddy at the airport:

First Trip to the Zoo

The day after Easter, Mommy had the day off and Uncle Tim and Aunt Jackie were still visiting, so we decided to take a little trip to the...



None of us had ever been there, and we thought it would be a great way to enjoy the gorgeous weather and take Liam somewhere new. It was so much fun! Here's Liam (doing some people-watching) with Aunt Jackie and Uncle Tim at the entrance:



One of our early stops was to the Reptile and Amphibian House, which Liam really liked (mostly because you couldn't bring in a stroller, so he got to do some major toddling!):



"Hey you! Check out that huge turtle!"



Some pics by the big elephant (and although there are many cool animals at the zoo, this was unfortunately the closest thing to a real elephant they have these days...).

After a fun day, Liam helped walk Aunt Jackie and Uncle Tim back to the car:

Back at home, Liam reunited with his little buddy Lilly ("Finally! An animal I'm allowed to play with!"):

We got to dog-sit Lilly for a couple of days this week while Uncle Tim and Aunt Jackie were in NYC. Liam had lots of fun with her (as long as she wasn't nipping at his fingers or feet!) and has been looking for her around the house ever since she left. We had a great visit and hope to get to see them again before Uncle Tim deploys this summer!

Happy Easter!

Happy Easter, everybody! Liam was excited for the Easter Bunny to come to our house this year, and to have Nana, Grandpa, GG, Uncle Tim, and Aunt Jackie join in as well. Here's Liam in his Easter duds heading out for mass in the morning (many thanks to Aunt Ellen and Uncle Jim for this adorable outfit!!):



After church, Liam got to meet his new "cousin" Lilly! Lilly is Uncle Tim and Aunt Jackie's Yorkiepoo puppy, and we all instantly fell in love:



We also celebrated Grandpa's birthday on Sunday. Here's Nana and the birthday boy with his cool present:



GG, Aunt Jackie, and Uncle Tim:



Liam loves, loves, loves his popper push toy from Nana and Grandpa! He laughs out loud every time he hears it go *pop*.



Look what the Easter Bunny (and GG) brought me!



Liam opened each of his eggs one-by-one and carefully dumped the contents (cheerios!) onto the carpet. He then kindly shared the empty egg with Aunt Jackie:



Taking a little walk (but more interested in Lilly than Mommy's camera...):



Silly time with Nana:



Liam is slowly learning the "nice" way to play with Lilly... and even though he doesn't quite have the hang of it yet, he at least knows how to give her a kiss!