Liam Eats a Cupcake

Today, Liam gave his birthday cupcakes a second chance. I cut up a bright blue one, and oh how quickly did that cupcake disappear!

Strike a pose!

Look at that smile! Notice the new teeth. :)

Here's a short video...

A few more pictures at the Picasa web album.

Liam Rides Like a Big Boy!

Since Liam is one year old now, he is able to ride in a forward-facing car seat. He was pretty happy to see the world going forward, and to also be able to see Mommy and Daddy in the car.

One Week Left!

After many years of hard work, Matt is now only one week away from receiving his bachelor's degree! With Matt's luck, his journey wouldn't be complete without a few final "tests." After taking a midterm on Thursday of last week, Matt was happily driving home when his car broke down in the canyon between Bakersfield and Tehachapi. Luckily, AAA came to the rescue, towing him to the nearest auto mechanic in Tehachapi. After four days of the typical runaround, we were finally able to drive down to pick up his car on Monday evening. At that point, we figured Matt would be home free until graduation. Nope! When he woke up Tuesday morning to make some finishing touches on a paper that was due at 9 a.m., he checked to see if the pass was open. It was closed. Matt ended driving to the pass and waited for it to open in attempts to turn in his paper on time. He missed class completely, and tracked down his professor in her office. She gave him such grief and attitude for missing class, but she still accepted his paper. PHEW! He (and his car) survived the last few days of class mishap free (but he did managed to catch a cold). :) We're praying that everything goes smoothly next week!

On a side note, Bennett was absolutely enthralled with Tehachapi. We drove through "Old Town" where there were many blinking stop signs, train tracks, a giant water tower, and of course the windmills. The entire drive home he talked about how amazing Tehachapi was, and that he wanted move there when we get a new house.

It wouldn't feel right to post without a picture of the boys...

Bennett and Liam this morning, playing in Bennett's room.

In other news, Liam is starting to get his two front teeth! Once they get a little bigger I will post a picture. :)

Liam's First Haircut

"I'm ready for my haircut!"

Liam has been growing a little mullet for a few months now. I figured since he was a big boy turning one, he needed a new haircut to celebrate his special day. Here are some before pictures of his baby-doo.

Before

(Notice the "toofers", too)

From the side.

Look at those curls!

After, now he looks like a little boy again!

Such a big boy.

Liam handled his haircut so well. He just sat watching Bennett play in the backyard while I chopped off his little baby locks (sniffle!).

Happy Birthday Liam!!

Liam turned one year old today! I can't believe how quickly this year has passed. It has been so fun watching him grow and change everyday. He is showing so much personality. Liam is certainly a mild-mannered little guy; he's very easygoing, happy, curious, and absolutely LOVES the outdoors (I think he would live outside if we let him!). He usually only fusses at us at the end of the week, after spending four days on Grandma's lap! :)

He is also becoming quite the opinionated eater - he often judges food based on color or texture. Many foods don't even make it to the mouth! Foods that are green tend to be particularly unpleasant...for awhile he liked kiwis, but this week he decided that he didn't like how they felt in his mouth. Currently, his favorite foods are CHEESE and anything made with cheese (homemade pizza, quesadillas, sandwiches, etc.), pears, berries, raisins, and graham crackers are always a hit. He still doesn't like Cheerios! They always go straight to the floor. :)

It has been such a joy to have little Liam in our lives, and Bennett is truly starting to enjoy his little brother. Liam gives him company outside, and always laughs at his silly faces and funny games. Bennett thought that since Liam turned one he could finally start to play with Legos...he was disappointed to hear that Liam has to wait a few more years. They are quite the pair!

Bennett and Liam

We celebrated Liam's birthday at Mom and Dad's house. It was pretty low-key...perfect for Liam. Jo and Grandma were also there to help us celebrate!

Liam's birthday cupcakes...pretty unexciting
compared to Bennett's train...

Liam is not sure what to think about all this...Liam wasn't very fond of his cupcake
(maybe it's due to his bias against green food).
There's a smile! We managed to coax him into "trying" a bite.
He enjoyed it a little more after that....

Grandma and Papa gave Liam a new truck to ride.
Now, he has a better chance of keeping up with big brother.

Bennett picked out a "touch and feel" book to give to Liam, and Liam also got a xylophone and a melody push chime (the more sane version of the corn popper). For more birthday pictures, visit the Picasa web album.

Mud Pies

We have had such beautiful weather in Ridgecrest the past few days. Bennett and Liam have been enjoying themselves outside. When I was making dinner this evening, Bennett started to make mud pies. Naturally, Liam was very curious, and decided to help him. My camera was out of batteries, so I took a short video. Enjoy!

Walking Baby

Liam's walking has sure taken off in the past three weeks. He is starting to gain confidence, and how he walks nearly everywhere he goes. He still can't stand up by himself, so if he falls he has to crawl to something to help him stand up again. It sure is fun to see him go. He just cracks us up every time he takes off, with his arms high above his head. Silly boy!I put together a short video of him walking. It was sure difficult to get good videos of him...a lot of them are of him walking away. Enjoy!!