Liam Update

Here are the stats from Liam's two month checkup.  He is having no problem growing and the doctor said things look good.  He now weighs 12lb 6oz and is 23 1/2 inches long, which puts him around the 96th percentile for both.  His head is also big.  =)  I'm kind of shocked by how long he is - is it normal to grow 4 inches since birth?!?  At any rate, I hope both of my boys continue to grow taller and have their daddy's long legs.

Today I took Liam to a chiropractor.  Since about 2 1/2 weeks old he has had times where he cries for no apparent reason.  I know babies cry, but the amount he cries doesn't seem right.  And people that have been around Liam for an extended period of time notice, so I know it's not me being a paranoid mom!  To try and figure out why he cries I cut out dairy, strawberries and gave him formula.  Each tactic would work for about 3 or 4 days and then he would cry again.  Our doctor really didn't have any advice on what else I could do or why he cries like that, so I decided to try a chiropractor.  Beckett never went to one, so this was new territory for me!! 

The Dr. adjusted Liam's lower back and said I should notice a difference in a day or two.  He is taking a really good nap right now, so I'm hoping it did the trick.  I'm also hoping this doesn't "wear out" in 4 days.  We shall see!  For now I am enjoying a little boy that seems a bit happier and more comfortable. 

Liam: Two Months Old

Our little man is two months old today!  His two-month checkup is on Tuesday, so I'll have a report for you afterwards. 

 No crying this time!

 Looks a little freaked out by the wipes container.

My little froggy!

Big Brother Beckett wanted to be included too.  I should have pulled out his onesie.  =)

The Knight Returns

I must have bad karma where shopping trips with Liam are concerned.  Yesterday I went to Wal-Mart with a big list of grocery and toiletry items (yes, I go to Wal-Mart because I am all about saving a few bucks, especially when buying the things I hate spending money on in the first place).  Liam was great, I found most things on my list, and I completed the trip with just enough time to drive home to feed him. 

Fast forward to hauling Liam in the house who was crying like he needed to eat a half an hour ago, and Chad helping me unload the van.  I wanted to get my receipt out of my wallet so I didn't forget to enter it in the checkbook.  No wallet in the diaper bag.  Flashback to me setting the wallet in the cart and saying to myself "don't forget to take that out."  I started shrieking hysterically with the realization that I had left my wallet in the cart, which was now in the corral in the Wal-Mart parking lot.  My dramatics are going to give Chad a heart attack some day.  My wallet had the most cash I've ever had in it due to birthday and blow money (Dave Ramsey term, I have not turned to a life of drugs) that I don't have time to spend on myself.  

Chad hopped in his work vehicle - thank goodness he is home for lunch at opportune times!! - and raced to Wal-Mart in the hopes of my wallet still being there.  And would you believe that it still was?!?  My Knight comes to the rescue again. 

And, it's probably not Liam and I with the bad karma, it's me and my wallet.  Or, as Rissa believes, it's what I get for going to Wal-Mart. 

Play Date

Ever wonder if pregnancy might be contagious?  OK probably not, and I hadn't either.  But.... when we moved in our home there were six completed homes on our block.  In four of those homes (including mine) lived pregnant women due in January, February and March! 

I work in a school with 13 classrooms.  This year five staff members were pregnant, with four of us being on maternity leave at the same time.  Now I know that when you are pregnant or trying to get pregnant you notice every pregnant woman out there, but I was literally surrounded by pregnant women this year!   And last week Liam and I met up with the 3 other staff members who are on maternity leave.  I guess you could call it Liam's first play date!

Babies from left:  Liam - 7 weeks, Mikenna - 4 weeks, Sajen - 10 days, Holden - 16 days.

Easter

As promised earlier - a recap of our Easter.  Liam visited Nana and Papa's house for the first time, and was able to meet many relatives at Mateo's 4th birthday party.  I lost count of how many times Kaden hid easter eggs for us to find, but he was always able to find an eager hunter in Beckett.  When we returned to Sioux Falls to celebrate with Chad's side of the family Brooklynn was able to hold Liam for the first time.  It was a great holiday filled with lots of fun with family, just as it should be! 

 Liam gets a cute Easter chick from Nana and Papa.

 Another display of Rissa's mad cake decorating skills.  A spidey cake for Tao's birthday!

 My cousin Rachel demonstrates the "gassy baby hold." 

 Beckett Russell:  Easter Egg Hunter

 Beckett and Kaden examining their loot.

 And sharing their finds with Liam.

 Brooklynn and Liam.  He loved sitting on her lap!

Beckett was excited to find his Easter basket when we returned home.

Gray Hair

On Saturday I found it - my first gray hair.  Some people freak out about gray hair, some people embrace it.  I'm indifferent.  I was curious, however, how gray hairs come to be so I looked it up online and this is what I learned. 

Our hair follicles contain pigment cells that produce melanin.  Melanin determines what color our hair is (and our skin too) and as we get older we produce less and our hair loses its color and becomes transparent (or gray or white).  Hmmm, this must explain why I feel like I get more pale as I get older too! 

So I guess I can't blame that gray hair on having kids or being stressed, and my parents can't blame theirs on me either! 

And now you know why hair turns gray.  Unless you're like my know-it-all-recently-completed-his-masters brother-in-law Greg who knew it without looking it up on the Internet.

Time to Snooze

When Beckett was having a hard time with the bedtime routine we pulled out a CD we played when he was first born.  I received it as a shower gift from a teacher, and it has some of the sweetest kids songs I've ever heard on it.

One of the songs is called Snooze and it's good for slowing down before bed, so I play it for Beckett and will sing part of it for him before he goes to sleep.  Beckett picks up on song lyrics pretty quickly, but I was surprised when he sang the whole song to me!  I wish I had a video of him singing it because it's so cute (and brings tears to my eyes), but for now here is the first verse to our favorite bedtime song, Snooze.  *we skip a few lines, so below is how we sing it.  You can see complete lyrics at the Go Fish website and you can hear the entire song here.*

I had fun today doin’ what we did

I’m so glad that you’re my kid

But . . .The day is over now

Another memory

I had good time being with you

I hope you had a good time being with me

Tomorrow is another day

We haven’t got a minute to lose

So lay your head down so you can rest up

It’s time to take a snooze

Smile!

Liam recently started smiling.  I really should have this written down somewhere, but I honestly couldn't tell you the exact date it happened.  I know he was by Easter because he was smiling at Papa.  Here is some video of the little charmer in training! 

Anybody Home?

Ahem, yes the Paulsons are still here, but Momma Paulson has been a bit (OK a lot) behind on blogging.  I have stories I want to share, I just need to find the time to share them!  I promise to post a few things this week -- for an update, and to keep current on my version of a scrapbook.   Thanks for hanging in there!

Happy Easter!

We had a really great Easter weekend spending time with both sides of our family.  I have two overstimulated kids right now, but I'll post more pictures from the weekend later.  For now here are outtakes from my two cute little bunnies wishing you a Happy Easter! 

 I think we got it on the last shot!

Liam's Photo Shoot

After Beckett was born I took some pictures of him to use for the birth announcements.  With Liam there was a picture that was taken at the hospital that worked great for his birth announcements.  But then I got to thinking I should take a few "staged" pictures of Liam too! 

Beckett's picture - about 1 week old.

 Liam's pictures - one month old.

Looking a little shocked!

Beckett told me that Liam wanted to wear his hat.  Maybe an easter accessory?