Handful of Firsts

Kellen, Dad, & Liam at the Cubs Game!

It has been a while but we have been busy, busy, busy! The boys are growing learning many things so fast right now and they are keeping us on our toes. If only they would learn to sleep through the night we would have a little more energy to keep up with all their new experiences!

LIAM

Sweet Liam cheering on the Cubs.

 Liam finally figured out walking two weeks ago. He is trucking all around but just needs to wait for his body to catch up with what he is thinking. He forgets to get his balance before he takes off and so there are quite a few tumbles that happen. He has a couple of black and blue marks as evidence of his learning. He continues to eat pretty much everything (but only when he is in the mood). If he isn't in the mood, he isn't going to eat and you can expect that food to be all over the floor. He has been quite fussy but we think he is getting more teeth. I say I think because neither of us is interested in sticking our hands in the shark's mouth. I know he has 8.  He is jabbering a lot, mostly to Kellen, which is pretty funny. This seems to have picked up after he had his tubes put in at the end of August.

His 15 month stats were not impressive. His head is great and continues to move up on the chart but his weight has leveled off. He was 19 lbs. 7 oz. which is still pretty small. Unfortunately he also struggles a lot with constipation so all the things to pack on the weight we can't give him as often as we would like. He gets a more concentrated formula but I am not sure it is helping as much as we would like. He is almost as tall as Kellen but that isn't saying much because they are short!

Brushing my teeth!

Liam loves to point to things, the bathroom, being outside, and playing with the loudest toys we have. He is an avid reader and will sit and flip through his books (on his own of course...quite independent) until Kellen comes and steals the book from him. He loves pears, carrots, chicken nuggets, and vanilla pudding. We learned that pudding only happens at lunch...never after dinner (the sugar keeps them awake for hours).  Liam loves to use his teeth and prefers crunchy foods like graham crackers and puffs.

KELLEN

Kellen with his big smile.

Kellen is pretty much a full time walker now, which is quite a sight since he looks like Frankenstein when he walks.  He has been walking for the past six weeks, increasing in proficiency (and speed) each day.  The funny thing about walking more is that he positions him higher to see more things that we intended to keep out of reach.  This in addition to his climbing ability has us continuing to baby-proof the house.  While he is developing his fine motor skills, he still does not have a single tooth.  The dentist said to give it two more months before we bring him to the doctor, but quite honestly, we're not sure what the doctor is going to do short of fitting him for dentures.  Despite his lack of teeth he is a good eater - he gums his food to a mushy pulp before swollowing or spitting it all over the place.  As a result it takes him at least twice as long to eat a meal.  Honestly, we think Liam quite likes that since it gives him some time when his bully brother isn't trying to steal his books/toys.

Notice the hair...our little curly hippie is gone... :(

Kellen is funny about his shoes and toys.  He loves wearing shoes, all the time.  Sometimes in the morning he will retrieve his shoes and insist that we put them on him, even if the only other thing he is wearing is a diaper.  As for toys, his favorite (in order) are: 1. whatever Liam is playing with; 2. whatever looks dangerous; and 3. whatever makes a god-forsaken noise that could peel the paint off the walls.  He actually gets really attached to a toy and will hold it exclusively.  If he loses that toy, it turns into a crisis.  We've put him to bed with toys when he gets so attached to them.  He also still loves the tags on blankets.  He rubs them on his face and puts them in his mouth.  He often looks like Linus as he pulls his blanket around the house by the tags.  He has an infectious laugh and is ready to play at the drop of a hat.

Kellen and Liam's favorite nighttime activity is watching YouTube videos with Dad.  Unfortunately, we introduced them to "I'm Elmo and I Know It" first, so now they love videos with Elmo and a party beat.  Their favorites are the Elmo/LMFAO parody, Elmo with Katy Perry, Elmo with Will.I.Am, and Elmo with India Arie.  They also like Psy Gangnam Style, but we are trying to break them of that.

Videos with Dad.

Probably one of the most gratifying sights has been seeing the two of them react to each other.  They are truly opposites, but are absolutely brothers.  They don't spend much time apart, as you can well imagine, but on days when one of them has to stay home because they are sick we are told that the child in daycare seems lost and a little lonely without their partner in crime.  To see them react to each other when they are reuinited is priceless.  Their little eyes light up and their faces have big smiles and laughing as they run to greet each other.

So this entry is mostly about firsts, which we have experienced a lot of recently: first Cubs game, first haircut, first run with Dad, first tooth-brushing (for Liam anyway), and first steps.  There are also some other assorted goodies that we couldn't resist posting.

Family picture at our first Cubs game.

Mommy rocking Kellen and Liam in the glider.

This picture completely shows their personalities.

Kellen's New Do.

Liam's New Do.

Morning exercises. Notice the new haircuts...

Our first run together

Kellen and his floppy, hippy-dippy hair enjoying the baby swing

Watching Curious George while waiting to go to school.