Lucky

Six years ago today I married the man I love and my best friend. I never doubted that he was the right one for me. I tend to think that God moved the Walles' to Canton just so we would be together. (He really knows what He's doing!)

Evan is everything I'm not; patient, understanding, and calm. His integrity for a 28 year old is really something to admire. He is thoughtful, loving and so creative. His creative ways not only help with his artwork but also raising our son. He will play games with Liam that I have never even thought of.  He is a great father and I learn so much through watching him.

When I met Evan twelve years ago I never dreamed that we would be here now. Married with one amazing little boy, a house and a dog. We have our own little family that I just love. We are also part of two larger families, the Fink's and the Walles'. I know that most people can't say that they love their in-laws. But I can and I know Evan can to. My sister-in-laws are some of my closest friends and my mother-in-law....I feel so blessed to have her in my life. I hope that one day I will be as kind, loving and thoughtful as she is.

Twelve years go by pretty quickly when you've found the one that God designed for you. I love you so much Evan!

Not making me laugh

Maybe it's just because I woke up at 5:30 this morning so I'm a little irritable but let me replay my conversation with Evan this afternoon.

M: Hey, what time did you guys wake up this morning?

E: Idunnoknow (yes, I know I misspelled this and didn't put any spaces between the words but I want you, the reader, to really feel this conversation)

M: Really? You don't know what time you got out of bed? The alarm clock is right next to your side of the bed.

E: Idunnoknow

M: You don't know what???

E: Would you rather me say I'm not sure?

M: Yeah, I think I would. Because when you say Idunnoknow, it makes me want to punch you in the face. In fact, if I had one wish I would wish that Idunnoknow would be stricken from your vocabulary. Cause you say it all the time. You say it when it's not even an option.

E: But then I would say I'm not sure or I am uncertain in regards to your question. Would you rather me say those things?

M: YES! Anything but Idunnoknow! I hate Idunnoknow!

So, after six years of marriage this is where we are. In case anybody was wondering.

Making me laugh

Just a couple of funny things that Liam did tonight that made me laugh and remember how very lucky I am to have this sweet boy a part of my life.

As Evan is at a Sox game that means I am kicking it single parent style. Talking a walk with the stroller and the dog can prove to be challenging at times but at the very end with only 4 blocks to go, Liam grabbed Butters' leash so that he was "helping" me. What a big boy!

During dinner, Liam was eating happily when I put a pea covered in mashed potatoes on his tray. He kept pointing and making a 'this' sound (which is his very concerned noise, that sounds like This? I am very concerned with this, I don't like it, please remove it from my sight).

While reading his bedtime story of Green Eggs and Ham, that he picked out, there is a part where they go under water. I always make the sound effect which gets giggles from Liam, but tonight he was trying to make the sound effect too. It was very cute!

I love being a mama!

Sick Again

As my sister Stephanie watched Liam while we were away, we were told by her babysitter that Liam had Hand, foot and mouth disease. We of course knew that the blisters on his foot were actually from the shoes that I had shoved his feet in a week ago. So, we left him in good hands and went on our merry way.

Saturday morning we call to check in to find out that Liam has a new blister and Stephanie thinks that the blisters or spots have increased in number. Not the best feeling when you're an hour away in Chicago during NATO weekend, but we continued to stay in denial.

That afternoon Stephanie called to say that the rash seemed to be traveling up his legs, she doesn't know what is the matter but Liam is in good spirits so she'll call us to come get him if he begins to become irritable. 'Say what??? Oh, you think he actually may have this disease? Cause I'm still living in denial!'

On Sunday when we picked Liam up he was happy to have us back. We were enjoying being around him again and still very much in denial. Cue my sister who brought me back to reality quickly. She suggested that we take him to the doctor tomorrow to have his rash checked out because she knew her babysitter would be checking her kids out with a microscope. 'Oh, maybe he really does have something wrong with him. Whoops!'

This morning while we were sitting in the doctor's office, our wonderful pediatrician confirmed that Liam does in fact have Hand, foot and mouth disease - from sitting across the room. Yeah, it was that obvious!  To top it off he was extremely contagious before the rash showed up (when we had no idea that he had it) but still contagious now. Which would explain why it's a Monday but I'm sitting at home. Oh yeah, to top it off, he can not only pass it onto other kids but to us as well. I think my hands will be raw from washing them by the end of the week.

Want to know another fun fact about Hand, foot and mouth disease? It could take weeks before it goes away!

At least it has not traveled to his mouth yet. Right now it is confined to only his feet, legs and fingers. We're going to pray that it does not continue upward and for a speedy recovery!

And because Blair and Stephanie are the best they took all the kids to Build-A-Bear so Liam would have a souvenir from the weekend!

Meet Spot:

Weekend getaway

This last weekend I was dreading but also looking forward to. It was in fact the very first time we were going to leave Liam overnight. (correction, 2 nights!) I had no concerns with where he was staying or even actually that he would miss us, it was me who would miss him.

So, it wasn't that bad. : ) I know kind of anti-climatic. Evan and I actually had a lot of fun and it was kind of nice to go eat somewhere without having to worry about getting a highchair or what we would order for Liam to eat. It was really nice not to have to worry about nap time and getting back to a hotel before Liam falls asleep in the stroller.  It was even better not to be concerned with bedtime and having the freedom to stay out as late as we wanted.

Would we do it again???  Give me a month or two but yes, we will definitely do it again!

A big thank you goes out to my sister and brother-in-law, Stephanie and Blair, who watched Liam, fed him and played with him. And of course, Violet and Eli who wore Liam out every day and night! Feel free to drop Violet and Eli off at Aunt Melissa and Uncle Evan's house for an overnight trip anytime!

 In Chicago

 Before the wedding, at the Cancer Survivor's Garden

 The Walles'

 Just a couple of crazy kids in love!

Judging before you know

Isn't it amazing how before you become a parent you have all these preconceived notions and judgements on other parents?

I remember going to restaurants and hearing children screaming and I would actually cringe. I would think  "What are those people doing? If that were my kid I would grab his arm, we would be marching out of the restaurant and he would be getting his rear whooped in the car."

I also remember my best friend telling me how she was going to let her son tell her when HE was ready to quit breastfeeding. I thought "This chick is crazy! Why would an infant be able to tell you that he didn't want to continue to breastfeed."

Here's the thing: it is so embarrassing when your child has a meltdown in public. No one can or should judge you for it, because it is SO embarrassing!  This has not happened to us yet. It will, of course at some point and I hope I will have the courage to pick him up and just leave the restaurant, grocery store or mall. I pray that I will have the courage to leave my entire grocery cart in the middle of the store and walk out with a screaming child wishing I had a bag to put over my head.

The second judgement up above I am really struggling with. Breastfeeding has always been something that I was committed to. I didn't know when I was going to quit but I just figured by the first birthday he would be done because that's when a lot of people quit breastfeeding. Breastfeeding is really hard-which not a lot of people talk about. In the beginning, Liam did pretty well, and then we went through a phase where he would scream whenever I tried to nurse him from one particular side. We worked through that and then he started to bite me. (Ouch by the way!) I didn't give up though, I was living on the edge while nursing him, waiting for those little chompers to come down on me but I didn't give up!

Slowly we have worked down to just one nursing session a day. Liam is almost 16 months old and I still breastfeed him. If you would have told me this a year ago-I would have told you you were crazy! The thing is, I enjoy my time with him. I like to feel his soft skin against me and have him hold my hand while he is nursing. It's a special time. I'm having a hard time letting go.

Our time is coming to a close soon. In two weeks we will be going to Chicago for the weekend and I will be without my baby for the first time overnight. (Actually it will be for 2 1/2 days, I'm trying not to stress about it) I don't have to quit nursing him but it's time. Liam still enjoys nursing but it's more like, "Give me milk now lady or I'm gonna scream!" And I know that Liam will be ok without Momma's milk and that he will be ok with Uncle Blair and Aunt Stephanie while we enjoy our time in Chicago. But right now I'm having a hard time.

Wrong Grandpa

Because this has happened twice now, I have to write about it.

While Liam takes his nap in the afternoon, I sometimes will watch Ellen. He will usually wake up in the middle of the show and I will just leave the TV on while we are having snacks and playing.

One of the commercials that will come on is for Peoria Methodist Church. The pastor is talking about the church and why you should show up the next Sunday. Every time Liam has seen this commercial he points at the screen and says, "Gran-pa! Gran-pa!" Because I think it's too funny, I laugh and then tell him  "No Liam that is not your Grandpa. Yes, he does have white hair and coincidentally is a pastor but no that is not your grandpa."

As this is the second time he has done it,  I'm assuming that he hasn't figure out that all men with white hair are in fact not his Grandpa Walles. We'll keep working on that.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rbnPy9jYbw0

Bye-bye Paci

A few weeks ago we decided it was time to take away the pacifier. Liam was 15 months old and the doctor said once he gets an attitude about it, it's time to pitch it. Liam had an attitude about his paci.

I had read several recommendations of cutting back on the time of the paci. Since Liam is only allowed to have it at naptime or bedtime that didn't really apply to us.

There were also articles that I had read about cutting the tip of the paci until there was nothing left for him to suck on, but we decided to just go cold turkey and not let him have it anymore. I told him I had thrown them away and he didn't need them anymore.

First night without paci I must say we were nervous. Liam was a champ and fell asleep at 8 pm and didn't wake until 6 the next morning. We were feeling pretty good about things until we realized that he doesn't really use it during the night. Now in the morning,  he was pretty upset that his paci was not under his blanket like it always is and even more upset that I wouldn't give him one when he demanded one. Tantrum ensued.

Since bedtime was not an issue without paci, thank you God, I didn't however have such a good feeling about naptimes. We have always encouraged Liam to fall asleep on his own. Sure we will read a couple books, sing a couple songs but then it was paci in, put him in the crib and walk out of the room without looking back. With no paci to rely on we had to teach Liam how to put himself to sleep all over again.

We put him in his crib, walked out, crying started. 10 minutes later go back in, lay him down and soothe him for 1-2 minutes. Eventually he got the hang of things again. Man, did that take us back 8 months ago!  Nothing is worse than listening to your child "cry it out" but putting yourself to sleep is something that Evan and I feel is an important tool to have.

I would say it took maybe three to four days for Liam to stop looking for his paci. In the beginning he would check all the usual spots of where we kept them but once he realized they were really gone he quickly got over it.

Two to three weeks later Liam rarely asks for his paci. Once in awhile he will point to his blanket in the morning when I get him up wondering where his "friend" has gone but after asking him what he's looking for he quickly will move on to pointing out the next thing in the room. Usually Butters.

Good-bye Paci!

Favorite time of the day

Liam loves going outside. Walking around, seeing new things and pointing them out to me is one of his favorite times of the day.

However, we don't play in the yard, the yard is boring and only has his swing which holds his attention for about 5 minutes.

Liam likes to walk out of the carport, along the sidewalk to point out the flowers.

We then take a "break" on the front porch steps.

Once Liam is sufficiently rested we move on towards the end of the front walk towards the steps, pointing out flowers along the way:

This smile is one thing that I get to see a lot of during outside time, isn't it great?