Can we say cabin fever?

This is the first time Gabriel has pulled out his saxophone the entire time we've been married (he played in junior high and 9th grade...). Liam wasn't sure what to think.

It's an ice storm

We woke up to a world covered in ice this morning, and it isn't over yet. Trees have been crashing down all around the neighborhood, so I thought I'd go ahead and post some pictures before we lose power. It seems inevitable with the ice continuing to fall.

Gabe called in to work, which makes me and Liam both very happy.

You can keep him home from the architectural firm, but you can't keep him from doing architectural things...

What now?

At his 9 month wellness check-up, the nurse practitioner said Liam is behind on the major motor skills, but seems to excell at the fine motor and verbal skills.

At 10 months, the story is still pretty much the same.

He does not crawl, pull-up on things, scoot, cruise, or regularly roll over.... He does like to stand up and practice balancing by holding on to something, but we have to get him into that position.

He still doesn't like to be on his stomach, so we were surprised when we went to pick him up from the nursery to find him happily playing with toys while lying on his stomach. I commented on it, and the nursery worker said he'd been like that for a while and was scooting (minimally) from side to side and turning himself around! Amazing.

And look what he did this morning: This is major milestone development here...
And then he started screaming because he was stuck.

Mr. 10 Months

So, it's time for Regis and Kelly's Beautiful Baby Contest, and I am planning to enter a picture of Liam. No, I don't intend to create a poster child, but there is some major college scholarship money at stake here, not to mention a trip to New York.

I have a few pictures in mind. What do you think?

In the backyard

Sunday afternoons are meant for spending time in the backyard, even when it is only 32 degrees outside...
We bundled Liam up and started a fire. We all had a great time, but no one more than Liam. This boy loves the outdoors. I wonder where he gets that from?

Yummy hummingbird vine pods...

Lately, he exclaims "Ohhh..." with wonderment at anything and everything.

Liam still isn't crawling, but he sure knows how to sit and reach.

Hey, have you heard?

We have a new President!

I'm singing with joy.

Linda, let's dance.

Dish boy

Gabriel and I were cooking dinner together tonight, and Liam wanted to be part of the action. Sharp knives and hot pans do not go so well with little boys, but we found a solution.

He took it all in from his own special seat. Don't worry, he doesn't pull up on things yet, and I was right beside the sink the whole time. He loved it.

Liam has been giving us this look a lot lately, where he lowers his head and peers at us from under his eyebrows. Sometimes, it's a little frightening. So serious. So mischievous.

We had pizza last night. Liam was very excited about it. Mmmm....

tasty treats

What is a batch of cookies without some good old spatula licking? Gabriel loves sharing this rite of childhood with Liam, and seems just a little peeved that he doesn't get to keep it to himself anymore.

Tasty, tasty, tasty.

Bye Bye

Liam's newest thing is waving hello/goodbye and saying "bye bye." This is his first word, even before Mama or Dada. I tell myself it is because he is really good at making the "b" sound. Everywhere we go, Liam waves at all the people passing by. He also waves at things he wants or doesn't want. It really has opened up alot of communicative possibilities. So, I suppose "bye bye" isn't such a bad first word...

Here he is waving and saying "bye bye, "but it isn't his most articulate moment. You still can get the idea, though.

Dance With Me

Liam loves music, and he loves to dance. His other new thing: he likes to roar. Notice his dancing face, too.

The music is from the Putumayo Kids: Sing Along

Alabama

Only three days after getting home from San Diego, we left for Alabama to visit Ben, Carolyn, and little Grace, who it turns out is not so little :-) She is 8 weeks old and weighs 15 pounds...that's only 2 pounds less than Liam who is 9 months old! She is super cute and amazingly calm and content most of the time. It must be all that extra padding keeping her warm and happy (maybe that was Liam's problem, since he has always been so skinny and fussy).

Here they are together. Liam still isn't pulling up on things, but he balances really well when we prop him up.

I made Grace these pants for Christmas out of a recycled sweater.
I made Carolyn a Mei Tai wrap to carry Grace around in. It turned out really nice and Grace eventually learned that it is great for snuggling.

While Carolyn and I stayed busy cooking, taking care of the little ones and sewing the new carrier, the guys won a number of levels of Super Maryo (a free internet knockoff of the original). Apparently, it was really exciting :-)

They also played Settlers of Catan. Liam helped Gabe win.

Liam was really glad that Auntie Linda came along. Lots of kisses.

All set and ready to go for a trip.

We had a great time, but we are definitely ready to be home for a while.

Something new...

Check out my new blog.

Don't worry, I'll still post pictures here.

Dog Beach

Our last day in San Diego was my dad's birthday. We took the dogs to dog beach in Coronado. It was windy, but we all had a great time.

Daphne was excited to see me and Gabriel, but she was not happy to see Dahlia. She obviously loves being a California dog!

Dahlia had a fantastic time running on the beach. The last time we took her there she was a teeny tiny puppy, and she did not like getting all that sand on her nose... but now the beach is nothing but fun!

Molly knows how to capture the moment...

Beautiful.

Liam loves to have his fingers kissed, especially by Grammie.

Sisters.

Like I said, it was windy.

Happy 50th birthday, Papa!

Giving Uncle FoFo a left hook.

After the beach we went out for lunch at Jalisco's, a yummy Mexican restaurant. The moment we walked in the door, Liam projectile vomited all over himself, Molly, and straight onto the floor next to some poor diner's table... It was very gross.

Regardless, we had a nice lunch, then it was back to the Halls to pack up and leave.

We left San Diego at 5 that night, and made it just past Flagstaff before we stopped for the night.

A word on driving across the country with a nine month old: just don't do it if you can avoid it! But if you must,driving while he sleeps is the only way to do it. On the trip out we drove straight through the night. 27 hours, non-stop! Yes, it's crazy, but it was the only way we could get there without enduring screaming.

We finally made it home at 3 am Sunday morning. Arkansas had never looked so good...

On the road again...

San Diego Fun

Our Element's first oil change... Gabriel got all gussied up for it...

We went out to eat at a fantastic Thai restaurant in Hillcrest called Amarins. Liam found another use for the flatware holder.

Liam really enjoyed getting to know his cousin Hannah, who is 10 months older than him. They smiled at each other, shared toys (sometimes...), and Hannah gave him spontaneous smooches on the lips!

Such a cutie!