Saturday, March 30, 2013

1 Year Photos

Since the boys are about to be two in a couple of months, I figure I should actually order their one year photos! Here are some of the best ones...at least I think so!  While the pictures are old...I give you some new updates!

Family Pic #1: In this picture neither were walking but now...they pretty much run everywhere. The love going up and down stairs, riding their bikes, and chasing each other around the house.

Family Pic #2: They look like big boys but now I would guess Liam is maybe 21lbs and Kellen is 24lbs...though he feels much heavier.

Family Pic #3: They looks sweet don't they? I have a feeling we are in the start of the Terrible Twos. They are rotten.

Family Pic #4

Boys #1: They love to laugh! They LOVE cars. They watch a Cars cartoon at least once a day and traffic all day long. Liam loves it a little more than Kellen but anything Liam loves...Kellen must have.

Boys #2

Boys #3

Boys #4: Luckily we haven't had biting issues and they really don't put much in their mouth they shouldn't. They love their pacifier...love.
Kellen #1: Kellen has a ton of hair. We are ready for haircut #3 because it takes forever to get the soap out.  He loves to be outside, "drive" the car (the solution in a busy parking lot while trying to get the other one in the carseat), hates trying new foods but loves oranges, goldfish, pasta, and every other carb.

Kellen #2: Did I mention he loves pizza. The other day he saw me put a frozen pizza in the oven and cried the entire 20 minutes it took to get it cooked and cooled for him to eat. He gets that from his father for sure.

Kellen #3: He steals anything Liam has. Even if there is the exact same toy in his hand he puts it down and takes it from Liam. Probably his most common (and frustrating) activity.

Kellen #4: He has learned the word Mine and Me and uses it quite a bit. He also points his finger and says No No No. Hilarious. He can also say car, puppy, uh oh, ma ma, and da da. However da da is pretty much everything.

Liam #1: He is the talker. He has a lot of words and is close to saying almost anything we say. The most complex word we heard at the start of March Madness was "basketball". We were shocked but he pointed to the TV and said it over and over again. Dave was so proud.

Liam #2: The crawling stage is definitely over. He RUNS. He does not walk. It is hilarious because he doesn't weight much and wipes out regularly. He is a tough kid with the exception of stealing toys back from his brother.

Liam #3: Still a momma's boy. He was a bit angry when I left for London. He didn't want me to hold him for about 24 hours. It was a nice break but he has forgiven me.

Liam #4: Did I mention this kid loves cars? It is his favorite thing to say and to see. He tries to turn the movie on (thankfully has yet to figure it out completely), looks out the window all the time, plays with cars, and if there is a picture of a car in a book that is as far as the story goes. Loves the cars.
Liam #5: More pictures of Liam because he was more interested in smiling. I am sure the 2 year pictures they will switch and he won't smile but Kellen will. Perhaps they will get it together by the time they are 3!

Thursday, March 21, 2013

It's been a while!

So it has been quite a few months since I posted. The boys are busy so I hope to update soon but here are a few pictures to entertain you until I have some time to update! Obviously Liam likes the camera a little more than Kellen.






















Friday, November 16, 2012

Baby It's Cold Outside

It has been a little chilly in the morning and as required a hat. They hate them but are more than happy to put their arm out to put their jackets on!



Kellen, Liam, and Monkey

Saturday, October 20, 2012

Stomach bug

We are on the mend but the boys have a stomach bug. Hopefully they will be fully recovered soon!
Clockwise: Kellen playing with 2 of his bottle caps; Liam napping with bear and monkey on the floor; Kellen sleeping; Liam's profile.

Thursday, October 18, 2012

The Drama

Kellen made all these faces in about 3 minutes. He wanted the phone as he knows he can watch videos on it.

And then there is Liam. He didn't want the phone, he wanted mom as usual.

PS 1st time blogging from the phone. Something won't go right I am sure!

Sunday, October 14, 2012

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.