July saw a few days of sunny summer weather, so we made the best of it. Â We enjoyed a warm Canada Day at the Gorge Family Fun day. Â We had a family reunion at Beckwith Park, where Liam snoozed under a tree and Caleb learned to play baseball. Â Liam has been rocking his little booty, and loves to dance and get his groove on. Â There were trips to the park and petting zoo. Â Caleb started Sportball Soccer camp and the Summer Reading Club at the Library. Â We spent a day in Parksville, at the sandcastle competition and at the beach. Â We celebrated our 8th wedding anniversary, and spent the night doing a family photo session with Blue Lily. Â It was a busy, but fun month!
Highlights: * Caleb’s 6th birthday! I know, six…! * Liam starts running * Caleb graduates from kindergarten (more photos to come) * We hosted the best Lego themed gymnastics party * BBQ season officially begun – as in BBQing with others… because really in our house it’s BBQ season 365 days of the year! * Ally did some fun photoshoots for Squishy Prints and the Squishy Prints website was relaunched. * There were several babies born to friends and neighbours * We got a decent family photo – finally!!
Happy Summer!
(and yay – all caught up in our four people monthlies!)
So, this four people project is supposed to consist of a photo each month of four of us. Â You would think with an average of 30 days in a month, that it wouldn’t be so darn hard to get four of us in front of the lens. Â Wrong. Â It. is. so. very. difficult. Â So may I present our four people photo for May…
Why are there only three?  Well, this was taken on Mother’s day.  My wish was to get a nice photo of me and my boys. Check. Family photo was a no go.  The neighbours cat was distracting Liam and Caleb was being a goof.  By the time we tried to get set up with a tripod it was too late.  We should have asked the new neighbours. I mentioned this to the missing member of our photo – he declined.  So by default he is not in our monthly photo.
May highlights:
Caleb played a munchkin in his school’s production of Wizard of Oz.
We celebrated Mother’s Day
Liam had his first taste of Beacon Drive-in ice cream
We started to clean up he garden – including watering the new flowers and tomatoes that were given as mother’s day gifts
Caleb befriended our new neighbour (although we still miss the Toveys)
Liam and Caleb both love chalk, running to the mailbox and chasing bubbles
Ally started taking antidepressants for PPD
May was so much better than April…medication helps!
Ally’s 33rd birthday
Ally goes back to work
Liam’s first birthday
Liam starts walking
Liam’s first anitbiotics…second antibiotics… two allergic reactions and one trip to the ER.
Easter
Caleb goes on several school community fieldtrips – and doesn’t get put in jail with the bad guys at the RCMP detachment (which cause so much anxiety that he almost missed his class trip)
Adam’s grandma also passed away after battling cancer and dementia for several years. We will miss her very much.
April kind of sucked… really, truly sucked.  Which is probably why my four people project stalled for so long.  The stress took over from the highlights, and it made this month uncomfortable, sad, stressful and it really just plain sucked.
Happy birthday to my beautiful baby boy! It is hard to believe that a year has passed and you are already one. It’s been such an adventure for all of us.
This past month you have been gearing up for growing up. Mommy went back to work and that has been a hard adjustment for all of us… mostly me. You have coped very well. The first few days were the hardest, but you managed. In fact on one of my first days leaving you for 5 hours, you were so excited when picked you up that you ran five steps to get to me. You are getting so close to walking independently. You still prefer to crawl, but you can cruise the perimeter of a room just holding on to furniture and walls. You stand up independently all the time and will take a step or two.
This month you have been quite sick. Maybe you picked up germs for all the extra outings we squished in – to the park and Tumblebums. You have had constant runny noses and fevers. We found out the hard way that you are allergic to some medications. I apologize that today was spent running in and out of the doctor’s office and at the pharmacy. It was not the fun day that I had planned. And unfortunately the Benedryl you had tonight to combat the drug allergy has made you a little dopey. What a way to have a family party!
This first year of your life was definitely a rough go at times. You have battled gastro-reflux, terrible cradle cap, bad eczema, having to nap around your brother’s schedule, being exposed to every germ at the elementary school, and the dangers of having a big brother that loves you a little too much at times. We have had some bad sleepless nights, and cranky days together.
But throughout it all, your charming smile and infectious giggle, along with your driving independence and ability to observe and learn, have kept me totally in love with you. You have made our family so much greater than it was. I love you so much.
Happy birthday Liam Bean!
Love always, Momma XO XO XO XO XO XO XO XO XO XO XO XO
{12 month stats: 20lbs; can reach the top drawers; can say: mama/mom, dada, baba (brother), uh-oh, uh-huh, uh-uh (no); can sigh: more, milk, and bye; waves bye and points a things; claps hands and imitates with objects; blows kisses; crawls super fast; stands-up; goes up and down stairs; feeds self; drinks milk from a sippy cup; still nursing; 7 teeth; 2 haircuts; loves Elmo and Katy Parry!}
Welcome to the last month of babyhood. It’s hard to believe in one short month you will be a year old. Â You are now are now 20.4 lbs, and have six teeth, and it looks like seven and eight are on their way.
This month you learned to let go while standing. Â You will stand for longer and longer periods of time. Â You also learned to get up from the middle of the floor. Â You know how to squat down and stand back up too. Â You are very proud of these new skills and you will look around and wait for the applause.
Speaking of applause, you learned how to clap a few weeks ago. Â You can work a room and make everyone clap with you. Â You also learned to wave bye, and give a high 5… although you seem to reserve those for a select few. Â Sometimes you sign more. Â You are very good at shaking your head no, and you are still saying “up” and “mama?mom” – although not as much as the month before.
You have started to somewhat like drinking milk from a sippy cup.  Slowly we are weaning off nursing in anticipation of my return to work in a few weeks.  It makes me sad, but also slightly relieved.  You like to bite down -hard, as well as pinching and pulling.  I have almost weaned you off due to the sure torture you inflict on my boobs!
You have become very independent with eating and prefer finger foods more and more. Â Some meals you refuse to be spoon fed. Â Tonight you insisted on eating your spaghetti (tomato sauce, squash and all) with your fingers.
You are also growing more independent with play. Â After dinner you love to crawl up the stairs and cruise around the playroom and play with all the toys. Â You keep yourself very busy. Â You are also starting to “play” more outside too. Â You have inherited your brothers old tricycle and you can use your legs to push yourself. Â Caleb “rescued” you from going down the hill into the trees.
But the biggest thrill was today. Â I left you with Great-grandma, to practice for when I go back to work. Â Five hours later when daddy and I returned to pick you up, you got excited and you ran five steps independently from daddy to me! Â Yay! Â We are so thrilled that we were both there to witness those first steps. Â I have a feeling that you are going to be walking around everwhere at your first birthday party.
I love you little boy. Â You will always be my sweet baby bean.
Love always,
Mama
It’s a goofy picture… but it’s us! Â Caleb has been totally silly when it comes to taking photos, and either tries to hog the camera with goofy faces, or hide from the camera. Â Liam just tries to steal the camera and usually goes in for an extreme close-up.
February brought forth Chinese New Year – and the year of the rabbit. Â We took a walk around Chinatown, so that I could take photos for my photography class. Â February also brought about Valentine’s day which Caleb loves. Â He got lots of little notes and treats from school. But the best Valentine’s gift was when Liam started to say Mama. Â This is one of his first words, and he planned it perfectly, saying it in earnest on February 13, so that he was able to say it on cue on the 14th.
February also brought snow, snow and more snow. Â It was enough to close the school down (snow day!), and enough for sledding and snow forts. Â We enjoyed the fluffy white stuff on and off for over a week. Liam was unsure, Caleb loved it, and Adam and I are jsut glad that we are no longer shoveling the driveway!
