Sweet Baby Spencer

Being an Auntie is a new experience for me.  Being an Auntie from 400 miles away is really hard!  It was so difficult being away from my sister as she delivered.  As a NICU nurse I wanted to be right there, just in case… But we were able to get up to visit when Spencer was just a week old.  I had a blast cuddling him, oohing and aahing at him and then passing him off to his Momma when he started screaming.  Man, that kid has a ton of hair.  So much more than Liam ever had.  But holding that little guy brought back such wonderful memories of holding my own little guy.  What a special time!  Marcy and Jay… you guys are great parents already.  Spencer is a lucky boy!  And I’d have to say you are pretty lucky too!  Enjoy this time, it goes so fast!  And take lots of pictures!!!

Look at all that hair!

 

 

Big old boy barely fit in this basket!

 

Time for a snack break.

I think this is my favorite picture of him, I just love that little smile.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Welcome Baby Spencer, we love you sooooo much!

Birthday party….Number 1

This year for Liam’s birthday we had an untraditional couple of “party days”.   Since my sister, Marcy, had just given birth to her first child we decided to head up to Northern Cal for Liam’s birthday weekend.  We spent his actual birthday at home and celebrated with Grandpa Ray, Grandma Ruth, Uncle Michael and our new friend Jackie.  We had a wonderful dinner at BJ’s and then came home for cake and presents.  Liam was so excited to open all the presents…but when it the tape was too tough he just wanted Daddy to open it for him so he could get to the good stuff inside.  He had so much fun and scored some super cool gifts.

The birthday boy and Daddy

When the tape gets tough…use your teeth.

 

Showing off how he is going to use the stuffed fence from his new farm

We are big Buzz and Woody fans.  We watched this movie 3 times on the way up to Grandma and Grandpa Thorne’s house.  Made the trip a whole lot nicer!

 

I am not known for my cake decorating ability.  I have an excuse for the way this one looks though….a two year old got to it.  I forget how tall Liam is and sometimes neglect to push things far enough back on the counter.  Liam’s little arms reached right up there, grabbed the edge of the cake caddy, and slid the whole thing off the counter.  I looked over to see him holding the cake, by the little lip on the edge of the cake container, tipped completely on it’s side.  The cake slumped to the bottom, the frosting now stuck to the plastic rather than the cake itself.  All I could do was laugh.  Good thing it was his cake!

 

Here is the cake after a few touch ups.  He even managed to break the

candle when he pulled it all down, Daddy had to melt it back together.

 

He loved the singing and blowing out the candle this year….

we did it three times!

 

 

 

Success!

More to come from Liam’s NorCal birthday celebration!

Our little man…

I never really noticed how quickly time passed before Liam came along.  How can we have a big two year old already?  It seems just a few months ago he was learning to walk, now he runs and jumps.  Liam had been a blessing in our home.  He has brought us such joy and happiness.  He is a 27 pound, 3 foot tall bundle of energy!  He loves to learn and explore.  He is very smart and picks up new skills and words with ease.  He has a wonderful sense of humor.  Trust me, two year old humor is much like adult “boy” humor.  Burps, toots and funny noises are hilarious.  I love that Liam loves to be a helper.  He is always willing to do little chores, like putting his cup in the sink or helping clean up.  He is still very social and loves to be out and about.  He always talks to people at stores, and quickly makes friends everywhere we go.  He talks to all the sales clerks when we go shopping.  It melts my heart to watch him fold his arms, close his eyes and bow his little head at prayer time.  I love to hear him loudly say “amen”, even when it’s in the middle of prayer.  He loves nursery and is *usually* very kind and loving with the other kids.  I still can’t get enough of him… the sound of his voice… the feel of his soft skin.  How can you not fall a little more in love every time he places his little hands on your cheeks and gives you a big, wet kiss on the lips?  It’s the sweetest thing.   So, our dear Liam, know that you are loved beyond words.  You mean the world to us!  Daddy and I feel so lucky you are in our family.  Happy Birthday, sweet boy!

The birthday boy!

 

Liam was fascinated with the flowers we found.

 

 

Showing Mommy the flower…

 

 

I love all of his silly faces!

 

This is Liam’s fake smile.  It’s the one he gives me when I’m shouting,

“Smile Liam, smile!”

 

 

 

 

 

                                     Falling down….

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cheering….Yeah Liam!

 

This is what Liam does when you ask him to “show me your muscles!”

 

A boy on the move.

 

This next set of pictures crack me up.  I asked Liam to go stand near the green plants.  He must have heard, stand IN the green plants. It’s an adventure!

 

There’s my boy, in front of the plants.

 

 

Puckering up for a smooch.

 

We had to take a break and have some play time. 

The higher the better for this boy!  He kept yelling, “again, again!”

 

Just love those eyelashes.

 

 

So handsome!

 

Pack it up and head home. 

He was such a good boy during his photo session.  We went to get candied apples from Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory as a treat. 

Yummy!!!