7 Months Old

Seven does not seem to be a very lucky number around here! Following his (fortunately short) stint with the chicken pox, all the congestion (unfortunately) led to ear infections in both ears. So as Liam turned 7 months old last Tuesday, this was the face we got:



Can't say we blame him, as we had to hold him down in order to give him his antibiotic and ear drops and once again suction his poor little nose. I would be miserable too!

But we're happy to say that within 24 hours on that antibiotic, he started to feel a lot better and he's now finally back to his usual self! Here he is getting back into the swing of things with his top from Miss Doreen:




Liam spent quite a while today playing with that baby in the mirror again. He even tried to give him kisses, which I just couldn't catch on camera. So cute!




So to give you an idea of just how much Liam has grown, remember this picture from a post back in March? Compare that with today:



Incredible!

Chicken Pox

Yes, Liam has chicken pox. Let's just say it has not been a good week!

It all started last Friday, when Liam cut tooth #7 (sigh. Can we catch a break please?!) We were visiting Nana and Grandpa, and Liam went on both a sleep strike and a nursing strike. And if you know Liam, you know that this is rather unlike him!

After a VERY long Friday night/Saturday morning (Daddy and I agreed it was probably the worst night Liam/we had ever had), he finally caught some Zs in GGs lap during the Notre Dame-Michigan game. Don't worry, Liam... we didn't want to look either.



By Saturday night we realized that Liam was congested, which explained some of the wakefulness. We figured it was just a little cold. He seemed pretty happy during the day, so we took him out for some fresh air at Heritage Hills for brunch. Peekaboo, Nana!



Nana and Grandpa helping Liam drink from a big-boy cup. He loves cold water!



We also went to visit my friend Desiree and her adorable son Landon, who turned 2 in July. He is all ready to be a big brother by sharing all his fun toys with Liam... Desiree is due in 3 weeks with a baby girl! Here are the little friends (it had been a while since they'd seen each other!):



Back at home on Sunday night, Liam slept a little better, but he was still pretty congested. On Monday, we gave him a steamy bath-- his first time in the big tub! He LOVED it!



PS- If you are the lucky one to give Liam a bath these days, wear your poncho. He is a splasher!



The last pre-pox picture...

When Liam came home from Miss Doreen's on Tuesday, we noticed a bunch of what we thought were bug bites on his legs and feet. We assumed this was just from playing outside and didn't otherwise think much of it. I felt like something just wasn't right with him, though, so I picked him up early on Wednesday, and by Thursday morning, he had a fever and spots all over his chest and legs. A trip to the doc confirmed our suspicions.

Luckily it seems to be a pretty mild case all things considered-- the pox are still contained to his abdomen and legs, and he doesn't seem too itchy. The toughest part has been the fever and breathing problems from congestion, but armed with a steady supply of saline spray, Tylenol, and some extra TLC, we are managing!

Liam's Big Holiday Weekend

Big Holiday Weekend? But it's only Labor Day! Well, this weekend also marked the start of College Football, and in this house, that is a major holiday. And this year was extra festive as we celebrated Liam's first Notre Dame game (first game on TV, that is... a little too young for a road trip and a stadium experience!).

The holiday was complete with presents, and here is Liam sporting his first ND shirt, which he got from his Daddy. Don't mind our laundry in the background...



Liam also received his first Irish sweatshirt from Nana and Grandpa, which arrived on our doorstep right before the game. Great timing!

We decided to catch the game with friends downtown at the Philly ND Club Gamewatch. This was also Liam's first time in Philadelphia! Here we are showing our Irish pride at the Public House.

Liam also got to reunite with his buddies Brigid and Miss Julie. They hadn't seen each other since Mommy's first few days back to work in June, when Brigid helped inspire Liam to go mobile. Brigid just turned a year old in August, although Liam doesn't look much younger! Here's Liam checking out the little cheerleader (how cute are these two?!):

After a commanding Irish win over Nevada, Liam conked out from all the excitement. We have all spent many a football Saturday feeling the same way!

Back at home... just a couple of pictures of Liam enjoying his Labor Day:

mmmmm... love those keys!

Commando Crawling

A short video of Liam cruising around the living room:



He just cut teeth #5 and #6, and they are fortunately his two front teeth to finally fill the space between his fangs :)

I had to take Liam back to Dr. D this morning... he has a little sty on his left eye. Joy!

6 Months Old!

Liam turned 6 months old on Saturday. Happy Half Birthday, buddy!!

He was sporting his cool shades from Aunt Karen when we went for a walk over the weekend, and we finally caught his bottom teeth on camera. Now, if only we could get those funny fangs on film as well!



Liam thought it was funny to "dim the lights" on the world when we put those sunglasses on, but it only lasted long enough for us to snap a picture before he tried to eat them...
He was a little bummed out when we moved them out of his mouth and out of sight.



On Monday, we went to Liam's 6-month check-up. Liam is still in the 75th-90th percentile in height and off the charts in weight (21 lbs 13 oz!). While he can still wear several of his 6- and 9-month clothes, we have brought out the 12-month stuff and it's surprisingly fitting. Sigh.

In an unfortunate turn of events, it seems as though Liam has inherited his mother's tendency to be accident-prone. While trying to grab at his medical chart just a few minutes before he got his next round of shots, he sliced his finger on the metal prong in the folder (truly like mother like son, especially after my accident at Edisto this summer!). Who knew that such a little finger could bleed SO much?!? Aren't you supposed to leave the doctor's office in better shape than when you arrived??

It proved to be an incredible challenge to 1) stop the bleeding, 2) keep a bandaid on, and 3) keep it dry so that (1) could happen! Which leads me to my next question... Why do they make those bandaids so brightly colored for babies?! The second the doctor got a bandaid on his cut, he took one look at the fun new object on his finger and it went into his mouth, where he promptly sucked the bandaid right off (which is of course now a choking hazard!). Between the surprising amout of bleeding and the constant attempts to stick his fingers in his mouth, we went through 3 bandage changes at the doctor's office alone (followed by 2 terrible needle sticks and, yes, more bandaids).

When we got to the car, I had to stick socks on his hands in an effort to keep him from getting his bandages off yet again. Sure enough, he just sucked on the socks instead! I will spare you the yucky details, but let's just say we went through several pairs of socks that day. Here's Mr. Munchy with his improvised mittens:



He's doing fine now, but it was not a fun way to spend a Monday morning!

Updates

RA Training is over, so it's time for a few updates! While Miss Doreen took a few days off, Liam got to spend some special time with Nana and then with Grandma, who flew in for a few days to help out. (Thank you, thank you Nana and Grandma!!)

Liam is now sitting up like a big boy, and really seems to prefer life from this new perspective. We rolled out a giant mat on the floor and keep pillows nearby for when he inevitably topples. Here he is with Daddy, who's teasing him with some bunny ears:

His other new favorite move is commando crawling. Nothing is safe anymore-- he is all over the place! He hasn't quite figured out how to lift his tummy off the ground yet, but we think it won't be long.

Liam has also been adding some new foods to his repetoire. He seems to no longer be a fan of rice cereal; sweet potatoes are the new reigning fave. He's also tried carrots, apples, and bananas. Grandma got him a new bib for feeding time...

It didn't come out well in the photo, but it says, "I drink me milk by the pint". Boy is that the truth!!

Teeth #3 and #4 came through in the last couple of weeks... and much to our surprise (and great humor), they are his eye teeth. We still haven't been able to capture them on film, but this will give you a good idea of what he looks like:

Yes, Miss Doreen's husband, Mr. Sam, has indeed nicknamed him "The Count." We're rooting for those front teeth to pop through before that nickname sticks!

Liam's Baptism

I know, I know... it's been awhile! Liam was baptized the weekend after the wedding, and then I started just 3 days later with my usual August rush at work. Needless to say, I've been spending any free time I've had with Liam rather than blogging about him! But I've found a few minutes here in between sessions, so I'll take advantage with a little update.

The most important news is that Liam was baptized on August 2! The weekend was beautiful and chaotic and we wouldn't have had it any other way. We can't thank our families enough for all they did to get here to celebrate and for making the weekend very special. We felt so blessed in so many ways.

So on to the photos... Uncle Andrew sent us some gorgeous pictures, and we borrowed a few to post. This one is pretty self-explanatory:



As a side note, as soon as we left the house for the church, the skies opened and it absolutely POURED rain-- the kind that soaks you to the bone within seconds. I think Liam decided that if he had to get wet that day, then so did everyone else!

He seemed pretty enthralled with his baptismal candle:



Liam with his parents and godparents, Aunt Erin and Uncle Andrew. We felt really honored to have our older siblings take on this role.



Post-baptism party at our house! It was great to have everyone there-- especially Uncle Tim and Aunt Jackie who had just returned from their honeymoon!



Liam's cake (which he never got to see, because he slept through most of the party!). Since he is named for both of our fathers, this verse really spoke to us:



The party somehow turned into a dance party at one point:



Daddy and Sarah rocking out (with Pierre doing his best Tom Cruise from Risky Business):



Liam finally woke up and joined us. Looks like he too had a good time!