Grant Goes to Daycare

So today was the first day of daycare for Mr. Grant. Of course it was difficult enough for me to leave my baby with practically strangers. Doing so was even more stressful given that when I arrived to drop him off on this 90 degree day, the daycare assistant had locked herself and all the kids out of the house by accident! I lingered for a while and then phoned the primary provider - knowing that she would be getting out of her class soon. Thankfully, I got a hold of her and told her what was going on. She hurried home to let everyone into the house. Not the best way to start things! I was so stressed walking into the classroom to teach!

Liam's first sweetie and Grant's first giggle

I meant to post this yesterday night, but a bizarre accident with the powerlines on our block knocked out some of our power for several hours. But I had to share two cute stories about the boys.

Grant had his first (and second) *real* giggle yesterday! One giggle was with me and other was with daddy. He is so easy to get smiling! We noticed that he seemed to be trying to giggle all last week, but yesterday was the first time he made a sweet little noise with his huge grin. :D

Liam's story is actually from last Tuesday. We went to the splash pad at the park to meet up with kids from his preschool. There he ran into Kenzie - the little girl that he paled around with last year. They immediately were playing together again, like they were never apart. They ran and chased each other playing tag. Too bad Kenzie is a year older and is starting Kindergarden. I know he will miss his little sweetheart in class this year.

The Great Outdoors

There is something so magical about mother nature - it sooths a fussy baby or a tantrum-prone preschooler. Both my boys calm right down when we are outside. Today I got out a little tent I purchased at a yard sale for Grant. He's sucking on his thumb in this picture. He happily hung-out while Sean painted the house, I gardened, and Liam "helped" me. It's really nice when things come together and everyone can enjoy a peaceful afternoon together.

My Boys

The picture pretty much says it all!

Cooler Weather

I'm so happy that the weather is more back to normal (for Michigan) the past few days! It was so lovely out this morning that the boys and I took a long walk around the neighborhood. We were out for nearly an hour. Liam had fun collecting different kinds of leaves from plants. We looked at all the leaves when we came home and then put some in the phone book to press.

This evening I took a few minutes to do a little gardening and then sat with Grant in the lovely sunshine on the patio. :)

A poop of biblical proportions!

I'm a little late posting this, but Grant had the hugest poop ever this Monday. It had been a week since his last poop and this one exploded right out of his cloth diaper and oozed up his back and down his legs! As luck would have it he pooped just before I had to lead for an appointment, but at least it was BEFORE the appointment, not DURING!

In good news, Liam has been a little better the past couple days. We've had much less screaming. He also went to daycare yesterday and had a really good day. He must have played really hard, because he fell asleep on the living room floor a 7pm! Grant also slept pretty well last night - his first ever 6 hour stretch!

Mr. Scream and Mr. Smile

Well, it's been a hard week. Liam has regressed a little and has gotten back into the habit of screaming when he gets upset or doesn't get what he wants. It's been quite exhausting to deal with and has lead me to look into additional therapy for him.

On the flip side, Grant has been very smiley and is a pleasantly happy baby - even when his brother is screaming nearby. Thank goodness for small favors! I've had a hard time trying to get a good picture of his smiling face, this photo is a little blurry.

CooCooCachoo

Grant has grown so much in the four weeks and handful of days he has been with us! He is already cooing and spends stretches of time being alert and looking/listening to everything around him. Just like his big brother, he likes to try to "stand" and push up with his legs. He can tolerate more that a couple minutes of tummy time and can lift his head up pretty high too. Liam enjoys playing with his little brother while he's on the mat or in swing. Liam shows him toys and fossils, sings songs to him, and even attempts to dazzle him with a few magic tricks. Liam also tries to sooth him when he cries. It's all too cute.

Four Years of Fun!

Well I just missed August 3rd by a few minutes - but we had such a busy day that I didn't get this post up in time. Today (the 3rd) Liam turned 4 years old! It's hard to believe that four years have passed since I first became a mother. Time really flies! Grant also turned 1 month old too. So there were important milestones for both my boys. It also just so happened that today was election day and both Grant and Liam accompanied me to the polling booth. A journalist snapped a picture of the three of us as I submitted my ballot - I wonder if our picture will make it into the newspaper?

I spoiled Liam in a couple of small ways today. First, I got him a sunday at McD's. I also let him pick what he wanted for lunch and dinner. Lunch was popcorn and a movie (Thomas the Train) at home. Dinner was chicken nuggets and macaroni/cheese. After dinner we had a little birthday party with the family. Earlier in the day Liam got to pick 4 cupcakes out at the bakery. I put a candle in each cupcake for him to blow out. Once we ate our sweet treats, Liam opened his presents. He got a sticker book, bug puzzle game, bug stamps, small stuffed lady bug, and a marble run block set. All items were a big hit! Liam and Daddy played with the marble run most of the evening. We had a blast!