Joergen's 1st Day of Preschool

Somehow, when I must not have been looking, my sweet baby Joergen became a preschooler.  Even with this as a major motivator in the potty training process months before school was to begin, the day still felt like a surprise to us.  Joergen alternated between being excited and apprehensive, but that morning, he was nothing but ready.  Lookout preschool, here he comes!

Dad and I both went to work late that day so that we could be there to see our little man off to school.

You know he was in a good mood that morning because he was especially tolerant of my picture-taking habit!

On his way into Mrs. Tenney's classroom, he was excited to see his name on the bulletin board welcoming him to school.

He has known Mrs. Tenney since he was a baby and Liam was in her class, so seeing her was a happy reunion!

Joergen found his name card to check into school (and had to decide which "J" name was in fact his...)

... and then took his spot on the rug for circle time. Meanwhile, I did my best to keep it together.  He looked so little and so brave-- I knew this wasn't easy for him, but he was definitely ready to start this new adventure!

At the end of the morning when I returned to pick him up, I found a very happy preschooler waiting for me.  I couldn't have been prouder of him!  Needless to say, he slept very well that night :)

A Most Important Milestone

After a great first week of school, I surprised Liam with a trip to South Bend for his very first Notre Dame football game!  Little did he know, I had been planning the trip for months as a mini-reunion with all my old roommates and friends.  We had rented a house off campus for the big Michigan weekend, and we all decided to bring our oldest kids to join in the fun.  I couldn't wait to see my friends and get these kiddos together!

We left that Friday (I actually had to take Liam out of school early to catch our flight... parent of the year right here!) and flew into Midway.  I couldn't go through that airport without stopping to get Liam's picture at our usual spot :)

We rented a little car and went straight from the airport to Notre Dame's campus for the Friday night festivities.  The pep rally was on the lawn between Hesburgh and the stadium, which gave us a pretty perfect background for our "We Made It!" shot!

My fearless boy getting his picture taken with the #NDGoldGang!

Right after the pep rally ended, the sky went black and a massive storm blew in with a drenching rain that just wouldn't quit! We ran as fast as we could back to our car just as it was starting, and headed to the rental house in South Bend to meet our friends.  That night, Liam had his very first delivery pizza (fitting that it be Papa John's in the company of my college roommates), and I thanked God that we had come out on the other side of his lactose intolerance.  Mozzarella for everyone!

Saturday was GAME DAY!  Kick-off was not until the evening, but thanks to Becky and Pat's incredible planning - and most awesome tailgating van - we had a prime parking spot in a lot close to the stadium for a day full of fun.

Me and my girls! Leanne, Kellie, Carly, and Becky

The best part was seeing how quickly all the little ones bonded over lollipops and Notre Dame football :)

Noah, Jameson, Xavier, Conor, James, and Liam

But the most adorable bond to witness was definitely between Becky's daughter Elisa and Liam.  Although they had met a few times before (and most recently in June during our road trip to Illinois), they cemented their relationship over candy in the back of the tailgating van while drinking Gatorade "shots" out of little shot glasses hanging from their Irish necklaces.  Yes folks, parent of the year right here indeed!

Liam and I left the tailgate an hour or so before kick-off so we could catch the band marching into the stadium.  We snagged a great spot in front of the Snite, and I have to tell you, that parade was one of the most exciting moments of the day. It was so nostalgic to be there, and sharing it with my son made it all the more special.

And speaking of special... this fine photograph is of none other than the high-five exchanged between Liam and the Fightin' Irish Leprachaun himself!

There are certain days in Liam's life I will never forget, and this was undoubtedly one of them.  As we walked into the stadium, Liam's eyes were as big as saucers as he tried to take in everything around him.  All of the sudden, he just stopped, looked up at me, and burst into tears, burying his head in my side.  I bent down and gave him a big hug.  "What's wrong, Liam?  Are you ok?"  And through his tears, I heard a little voice say:

"Thank you for bring me here, Mommy.  This is the best day of my whole life."

Carly hooked us up with amazing seats for the game.  After watching the Navy Seals parachute in...

... it was finally time for the game to begin!  And holy cow what a game!!

This was ND's last scheduled match-up against long-time rival Michigan, and the Irish clearly wanted to end this rivalry with a bang!  With four - FOUR! - unanswered touchdowns...

Notre Dame shut out the Wolverines, 31-0!

Liam and Noah with the scoreboard to prove it

It was the best, most decisive win I'd ever witnessed in ND stadium, and I couldn't have been happier to share it with Liam.

It was well after 11 pm by the time we got back to the rental house, and closer to midnight before the excitement died down enough for Liam to fall asleep.  I think we could have slept the day away on Sunday if not for our 1 pm flight out of Chicago!

The fun was not totally over for the weekend, however,  While getting ready to land in Philadelphia, our flight attendant leaned over to Liam and asked if he wanted to sit in the cockpit after we landed.  Is the Pope Catholic?!  As soon as that Fasten Seatbelt light went out, she came to get him (and my phone) and told me they'd meet me on the gangway.  A few minutes later, I was reunited with both-- the former walking on clouds, and the latter loaded with some very cool pics:

Thank you Southwest Airlines for the perfect ending to a seriously perfect weekend!

Liam's 1st Day of Kindergarten

Somehow, five and a half years have gone by in a blink - and our sweet Liam has started kindergarten!  He could not have been more ready and excited to start this adventure, which I suppose made it a bit easier to see him off on his very first day.  (This is not to say I wasn't freaking out on the inside!  Especially with regard to his allergies. I received no reassurance whatsoever when I called the school nurse to check that they had received his emergency kit and instructions from the allergist, and they said, "I'm sure it's in this stack of paperwork on my desk somewhere!" Super!)

Liam picked out his First Day of School outfit the night before, and I'm sure you can guess the first article of clothing he chose.

10 points if you guessed the TIE!

He was especially excited to be able to go to school with Emily again.  Even though she's a year ahead of Liam, I love that she was there with him for both his first day of preschool and now his first day of elementary.  They really are like sister and brother.

Liam's school is about a block from our house, and we were blessed with a beautiful sunny day for the walk over.  I just couldn't believe I was walking my son to elementary school!  Seriously, how did this happen?

The entourage- Em and her dad, Liam and Aunt Doreen

When we rounded the corner towards school, Liam took off in a full-on sprint to get to the front door and start his day.  I had to yell out to him to slow down and wait for us!  I knew there would be no tears or even hesitation from this guy, but could he at least let us say goodbye?!

Aunt Doreen helped Liam and Em in the door, where they greeted the principal, Mr. Sparano.  He took one look at Liam, complimented him on his tie, and said he looked like he could be his assistant. Be careful what you say, Mr. Sparano - he's just might believe you and assume the role!

I was so proud of Liam being so brave on his first day of school.  When I picked him up at the end of the morning, he said that his teacher had told him that if he was having fun, the time would go very quickly.  "So, I must have had the most fun ever, Mom, because I feel like I just got here!"

Fun, yes -- but he's also really learning, too.  He brought home a Reading Log that day with instructions to log at least 15 minutes of reading a day.  And thus, this started happening:

His reading skills are improving by the day, and he amazes us with the words he is able to figure out with context clues and sounding out letters.  His favorite book to read by far is Dick and Jane and Friends... go figure!