Persnickety First Snippety

This past Saturday, at 11 months + 1 week old, Mr. Liam had his first haircut. We thought it would be a disaster, as he is generally wary of strangers.....so a stranger holding scissors and buzzing clippers to his fuzzy little head surely would lead him to a meltdown.

That kiddo always manages to surprise us.

Doesn't he look dashing? : )

Then, Liam's stylist asked if she could give him a little baby mohawk, since we had asked her to leave his hair a little longer on the top (ok, that was MY request...I wasn't ready to totally give up his long flowing locks!). Apparently, Liam was just barely containing himself until this point, because here is what happened next:

Doesn't that sad little face just break your heart?

Luckily, however, Liam survived. : )

When did my baby become a boy? *sigh*

Hello...? Is It Me You're Looking For?

I know I don't need to state the obvious, but yes, I have managed to slack off on my blogging duties for the entire month of March. I had the best intentions, but every time I thought about posting an entry I would realize that I still needed to upload the accompanying photos. And then I would get caught up in something else, forgetting to upload said photos. And then I would get mad at myself for forgetting. Repeat, repeat, repeat.....and now it is April 1.

I promise to post photos soon (for real), but for now here is a brief update:

Liam is now a very precocious 10 1/2 month old. His personality is developing at a lightning pace, and I find myself ruminating on how absolutely ADORABLE he is at least ten times a day.

Me: Did you see how he grips onto the front bar of the stroller, like a big boy? He is SO cute!
Jeff: (chuckles) Yes, hon.....he is cute. Just like he was cute when he sneezed an hour ago, and when he crawled into the kitchen holding a funnel a half hour before that.
Me: Whatever.

(Obviously, Liam gets his adorable nature from his Mama.)

Every day, it seems, Liam has picked up a new skill. He now knows how to:

* wave bye-bye (when he feels like it)
* play "So Big!" (he raises his arms as though he is Moses, parting the Red Sea)
* crawl like a wild man
* walk along furniture (though he is getting more brave about not holding on as tight)
* strut along while pushing his little walker (we still think he is on the brink of walking on his own)
* says "Mama" (on occasion), "Dada" (pretty frequently), "Baba" (for bottle), and as of yesterday, "Bop" (which we are pretty sure was in response to us making fun of his little 'burp')

A few of Liam's favorite things:

* Books, books, books (he LOVES being read to, especially Brown Bear, Brown Bear and his Sandra Boynton books)
* chewing up said books (we've already had to replace two)
* destroying any towers or structures that Mama and Daddy have built for him
* trying to sneak into the bathrooms when he thinks we aren't watching (what is SO interesting in there??)
* Being sung to (his current faves: Busy Little Bee, My Liam Lies Over the Ocean, Stinky Toes, The Nigh-Night Song and The Bathtime Song. All of these are nonsensical songs made up by Mama, which doesn't bode well for his future taste in music.)
* Going for stroller rides or spending ANY time outside
* Pulling Mama's cookbooks off the shelf
* Crawling the loop around the kitchen, dining room and living room, all while making little motor noises

He is turning into such a funny, happy little boy.

Man, are we lucky. : )

Nine Months

The title of this post brings to mind the movie of the same name, starring Julianne Moore and Hugh Grant, who comically tackle the adventures and challenges of pregnancy and new parenthood. And while I'd be lying if I denied that I was daydreaming of going through that all over again (*SIGH*), right now my focus is on my adorable, incorrigible little nine month old, who officially reached that age milestone today.

Seriously. SO. CUTE.

Liam had his nine month appointment on Tuesday, and here are the stats:

Weight: 21 lbs. 2 oz. (60th percentile)

Height/Length: 29" (75th percentile)

So it appears that his weight is sloooowwwly catching up with his length, which we sort of suspected. At any rate, we have about 1 inch to spare before our little monkey can no longer fit into his infant carseat......so a-shopping we must go for a convertible version. I am SO not ready for that!

Doctor Rhodes-Dekko also said that Liam is doing so well, eating perfectly for his age, and that he is also very advanced in his gross motor skills. "I hope you two are prepared for an early walker," she said with a grin.

Um, what??!!??

Ok, so we suspected as much, but wow......it's hard to imagine that Liam will be toddling around the house in the not-too-distant future. Luckily, he's already kept us pretty busy with his hopalong style of crawling, which has definitely picked up speed over the last couple of weeks. : )

We have a NINE MONTH OLD.....a SOON-TO-BE-WALKING nine month old.

Oi.

But man, if he isn't the greatest thing ever.

The Social Lives of Infants

Liam and I recently met up with our buddies in Mom & Baby group at our friend Susan's house in St. Louis Park. Not everyone was able to make it, but we still had a great time! Now that our babies are becoming much more mobile, it was entertaining to see them play together, rather than just laying on the floor, staring at one another. : )

"Whatcha doin', Momma?"

Upon spotting a toy, Liam the Bulldozer barrels over anything and anyone (poor Simon!)

in his path....

Victory!

Vivi and Claire looked adorable and content, but Liam was apparently a bit disgruntled...

Claire to Liam: "You're cute, but this toy is MINE."

Simon was content with his barnyard friends.....


And Liam kept his busy little self entertained for some time going through the rabbit hole...

It is difficult to believe that our babies are growing so big, so fast. Remember when they were just a bunch of little squishers, laying around and cooing?

*SIGH*

"Strange Things Are Afoot at the Circle K..."

Now that the holidays are over and the tree has come down, our newly-crawling (as of a few days before Christmas!) Liam is busy discovering a whole new world....

"Yes, I know I'm cute..."

"Superstar!"

"Look, Momma....it's my identical hand twin!"

"Are you talkin' to me?"

So....perhaps we should finish baby-proofing? : )

Love,

Farrah, Jeff & Liam

Little St. Nick

Trimming the Inches

I am woefully behind on posting photos and updates, so my hope is to wade through the stacks and get everything up-to-date by next week. Lofty goal, I know.

CHRISTMAS/NEW YEARS

This year, we spent the actual Christmas holiday (eve and day) with Jeff's family. Even though his parents only live about 15-20 minutes north of us, the impending storm convinced us to pack a few (ha!) bags to spend the night, so we didn't have to make the trek back the next day. I'm so thankful that we did, as the storm created a landscape that was both icy and miserable. Despite the weather, most everyone was able to make the drive, and we had a wonderful time (and TONS of food)!

Mom & Dad Wiberg (and Jacob!) enjoying their gifts on Christmas Eve....

Ryan, Paul and Kris relaxing 'round the tree....

Christmas Day dinner was lively, with many members of the Wiberg extended family....(donning hats from our party poppers!)

King Liam says, "Where's my dinner???"

Back at home on Sunday, December 27th we received some very special surprise visitors....our dear friends Mary and Lindsay, in town from New York! This was the first time we had seen them since they moved to NY over a year ago, which also made it the first time they had met Liam (as well as our house).

(Liam, as you can tell from this photo, was absolutely giddy with excitement. ; ) )

The lovely Christmas weather caused a slight delay in my parents' arrival from ND (they arrived on Monday the 28th, rather than Sunday), but they made it in one piece to celebrate a late Christmas with us (as well as with my sister Laura and her family) over the New Year's holiday. Laura hosted the festivities at their home 10 minutes down the road, and it was lovely...though as was the case the previous week, we ate WAY too much! (We all decided that we made waaaayyyy too many treats this year, so next year will be scaled back a bit (tighten those belts!). I love holiday baking, so this will be a challenge for me....though less stressful than figuring out a schedule in which to bake 7+ treats!)

"Hello, doggie...."

Liam's first Christmas was a toy-a-palooza....!
As with any baby, nothing that resides under the wrapper is ever as much fun as the wrapper itself. : )
Alex and Gabe, looking SUPER stoked about the winter activities we picked out for them (actually, they were excited....the next day found them out in the drifts!)
The ubiquitous bow-on-the-head photo (can you tell that Liam was teething?)
"Mmmm.....trucks are TASTY.....!"

Jeff, looking dapper as always....
Jeff M and Laura....looking cozy
Getting ready to dig in to our "Christmas" dinner.... Mom & Dad (aka "Grandma & Grandpa") Haase get silly with our boy....

Gabe, Liam and Alex....completely adorable, and will probably give us a run for our money someday....! The boys with Grandma and Grandpa (or as Gabe and Alex call them, "Bubba and Dobby") Laura the card shark (is she cheating?)

Alex and I dueling on the Wii (and yes, he kicked my butt)

Daddy and Liam, ready for takeoff!

And in the blink of an eye/shutter flash, the holiday season was over. We had so much fun, and are so thankful for the time we spent with everyone (as well as for your generosity!).

Here's to an even better 2010!

Love,

Farrah, Jeff & Liam