Ethan's Water Polo & Graduation

Ethan had a great season playing water polo.  He was such a strong player with a lot talent and lead his team to many victories.  We are so proud of all he accomplished.  We had fun at his water polo banquet dinner at his school.  

He graduated from St Charles East High School.  They held their ceremony at the Sears Centre in Hoffman Estates.  Ethan will be attending University of Denver in the fall.  He was also accepted into the University of Colorado at Boulder, but decided last minute the smaller school was a better fit for him.  We are so happy he has found the right school and can't wait to experience it with him.  He is so smart and talented and we know he will go far in life just like his big sister Julia.  Congrats, Ethan on such an awesome year and good luck with the University of Denver.  We love you so much!  

Las Vegas - Visiting Mimi & Papa

We had a great time visiting Mimi and Papa in Las Vegas May 6-10.  The boys did great on the flight and adjusted well to the time difference.  Oma also came along, which was so nice especially since we celebrated Mother's Day.  Friday and Saturday night the boys stayed at Mimi and Papa's house so Mommy and Daddy could go out with two other couples.  Oma was there to help as well and the boys did great.  Daddy and Mommy had fun at dinner with friends and loved sleeping in, but missed the boys so much.  Luckily we were able to see them during the day on Saturday and Sunday.  

Daddy and Grayson had fun at the pool and beach.  We stayed at The Delano Hotel (used to be The Hotel) right next to Mandalay Bay Hotel.  Sunday we had Mother's Day brunch at the Four Seasons Hotel and it was the most amazing brunch I've ever had.  I'll do a separate post for that day.  Monday night we went to dinner with Craig's family (Aunts: Violet, Barbara, Mary and their friend Eleanor).  After dinner Craig and I took Oma to see the Beatles Love show and absolutely loved it.  It was amazing and we loved the music.  

Grayson and Liam loved spending time with Mimi and Papa (and Oma) in Las Vegas.  They are wonderful with the kids and it's so nice to be able to have them watch them overnight so we can spend time with our friends.  Thanks, Mimi, Papa and Oma for being the most amazing grandparents to our kids.  We are all very lucky to have them.  We can't thank you enough.  

Liam ~ 9 Months

Liam is 9 months!

New milestones...

First Two Teeth ~

Liam has two new teeth!  His first tooth on the bottom right tooth came in on April 21st.  The second tooth on the bottom left came in on May 8th.  He had a lot of trouble with these teeth, especially since they took forever to come in.  He looks so cute with his new teeth. 

First word~

On May 1st he said Dadada and then Da Da.  Daddy was very happy to hear this, and with Grayson saying Mama first, it was only fair for Liam to say Dada first.  I still can't believe he said his first word.    

Crawling ~

He started crawling on May 16th.  He still has not mastered this skill, but scoots/crawls to get to whatever toy he is eyeing.  He is getting better and better and I'm sure he will be all over the place soon.  We need to make sure things are put away because this boy will be getting into everything.  He loves getting into the diaper bin and playing with all the items inside.  I had to put away the creams because Craig found him with the top off of one about ready to eat it.

Getting up on all 4's ~

He is now getting up on all 4's and rocking like he wants to full on crawl, but he's not quite ready.  I have a cute picture of Liam and Grayson up on all 4's.  

Drinking out of a straw ~

Liam can now drink out of a straw and loves to sip his water.  We also put a probiotic inside because this poor boy has been sick for on and off for 3 months.  He learned very fast.

Sick little boy ~

He has had at least 3 colds, a fever that lasted 5 days and two double ear infections.  Even with being sick for most of the last 3 months our sweet little boy is still smiling most of the time.  The doctor said if he gets two more ear infections he will need to get tubes put in his ears.

Size ~

He weighs 18 pounds 13 ounces (without clothes) and 19 pounds 4 ounces with clothes on.  He is still in 12 month clothing, wearing size 3 diapers (we had to buy the Huggies pull up diapers because he flips over as soon as you lay him down - just like Grayson did) and size 2 shoes.

Things he loves ~

He loves his family, especially his brother Grayson.  He makes these cute sounds to try and get Grayson's attention.  He loves cuddling with his lovies when he sleeps just like his big brother Grayson.  He loves to be held and does not like to be alone.  He loves playing with his chew toys and any of Grayson's toys, although Grayson is still learning to share.  Grayson will take whatever toy Liam is playing with and find one of "liam's toys" which are not as exciting as his.  It's funny to watch Grayson do this.  Grayson is always concerned about Liam and will let us know if he is crying or needs something.  Grayson really loves his little brother Liam and is really good with him.  Liam loves going on walks, swinging and going down the slide.  He went down the slide for the first time at Chi Che Wang part with our neighbor Ali (Daddy was helping). He loves bath time.  He has so much fun splashing and playing with the soft letters.  He loves when we sing songs, especially Old MacDonald.  At bedtime I sing You Are My Sunshine, Twinkle Twinkle and Itsy Bitsy Spider and he also loves these songs.  He loves getting into the diaper bin in the family room and loves to take out every piece of thing inside.  I had to put away the creams because he loves to chew on them.  Daddy stepped away for a second and Liam had the top off of one of the creams and was about to put it in his mouth.  

Things he does not love ~

He hates to be alone and will cry when you put him down.  I thought the second child was supposed to be more independent, but sometimes I think Grayson was more independent as the first child.  He hates when you clean his nose.  He hates getting his diaper change because he is too busy to lay there while you change him.  He does not like baby food (still!) and won't even eat yogurt because it must resemble baby food.  

What he eats/drinks ~

He likes strawberries, raspberries, cheese (cheddar and parmesan), puffs, rice pasta and chicken.  He's not the best eater, but he is doing better.  He has bottles (usually around 6 ounces) at 6/6:30am when he wakes up, 9am (before nap), lunch around 11:30, bottle around 11/12, bottle before nap around 2pm, bottle at 5pm and bottle before bed around 7:30pm.  He takes naps at 9am and 2pm (usually 1-2 hours).  He wakes up at 6/6:30 and goes to bed at 7:30pm.

We love you, sweet Liam!  Your smile lights up our lives.  I must kiss you 1000 times a day.  We love to call you Liam Liam.  Grayson even calls you Liam Liam now and thinks the world of you.  You have brought our family so much happiness and love to last a lifetime and more.  Happy 9 months!  We can't wait to celebrate 1 year with you in 3 short months.