New Hairdo

Liam must have thought my new haircut lacked something, so he spent some time teasing it and giving it more body and volume this evening. He was having a ball giving me my new, fashionably disheveled look! Poor guy, yesterday was a bad day for him (teething upper and lower, right and left cheek teeth all at once....) so we were relieved when he was back to his typically happy self today.

August Blog

I can hardly believe August is nearly over. And I haven't been blogging all month.... so much for my blogger abilities. We've been busy around here. Little man is now crawling at super-sonic speed and he's into everything! He still hasn't taken any steps on his own yet, but is getting close- he's an old hand at cruising the furniture and can walk with us holding just one of his hands. 2 weeks ago he started one day a week at a Mother's Day Out program, 9:30 am to 2:30 pm at a local church. The age group of his class (the "Bouncing Bullfrogs") is 10-18mos and naturally, although one of the youngest, Liam is the biggest baby there. According to his report cards, he's enjoying himself socializing with other youngsters. He's the one sitting in Miss Susie's lap right after Greg dropped him off. They have a schedule of activities they do every day, 15-30 minute blocks... snack time, singing songs, story time, diaper change, chapel (I'd like to see 6 Bouncing Bullfrogs pay attention during chapel!), outdoor play, lunch time, free play, naptime....Of course, I get the rewarding part- picking him up! It's such a rush when he clings like a monkey and laughs and sings out his happiness in the car on the way back home!

Splish Splash

Liam can now beat the heat in our own backyard in his new kiddie-pool. I usually get right in with him and he splashes up a storm to keep us both nice and cool. We've needed it- 105-plus all week. Thank God for A/C. We've been keeping busy at work, which is a nice change from the slow pace of last month. Greg has only a couple of weeks left of classes before his second summer break. I'm sure hoping he's going to get something accomplished on our front porch when he has the time! Hint, hint, Honey. Liam is now using his walker like a battling ram and zips forward and backward and around the kitchen island like a pro. He loves to try to catch you and if he hits your bare feet, it's torture! We've taken to wearing crocs in the house at all times if he's in the walker!

July Update

We had a very pleasant 4th of July at the Ranch and had a treat- my brother Bill was on leave and visiting from Georgia. It was great spending some time with Billy. He's truly a sweet young man, and gives me a lot of laughs. Liam was uncertain about his only uncle! I guess the stranger anxiety kicked in. He doesn't see Grandma Dee and Grandpa Paul very often (on average once per month) but he remembers them and revels in Grandpa Paul. Dee and I have to laugh because she knocks herself out for him and he only has eyes for Grandpa Paul if he's in the room. Liam started cruising the furniture while we were there, and now that he's home he travels the couches and coffee tables with ease. And I'm thrilled to be "Mama"- his first word!

Hot Days

This little guy apparently found a cool place to hang out- in the strawberry plant on the back deck. We've been enjoying it out there, too. Greg got the mist-system going and we've done a lot of grilling to save the A/C from stove and oven heat indoors. Gregor Dan is turning out to have a talent for the grill, which we received for Christmas from Paul and Dee. What an awesome gift it has been! Liam loves to swing in the mist, and he thinks having his feet sprayed with hose water while he swings is even better. With over 100 degrees weather, I have to agree. Not too much news here. On the little guy front, he's now able to get into a sitting position by himself, and is starting to cruise just a little bit around the coffee table. Proudly toddles all over the house while holding onto hands. We are really loving this 9 months age- he's just such a character. He loves trying new foods and is starting to find trouble- chasing the cat around, digging through the trash. He is close to crawling but still does a lot of rolling around. Already hearing a few 2-year-old-esque tantrum squeals now and then. A preview of what's to come, no doubt, but for now he's easily distracted and the naughty stuff is almost more of an experiment on his part, so it's hard to keep a straight face!

Nine Months

This blog is just basically all about Liam. I don't seem to have any other topics that interest me half as much! If I could change the title of my blog from "The Blog With No Name" to something like "The Liam Journals", I'd have to do it. But wow.... today marks the nine months birthday. Nine months in the womb, and nine months out. What a life changing year and a half it has been, and I still marvel at how absolutely in love I am. Its almost painful sometimes! I need to schedule his third quarter professional photography...we ought to be able to capture some standing up, which he is getting really good at. In fact, he thinks he's better at it than he really is, and keeps trying to let go of hand-holds and falling down. He scares me- sometimes he takes intentional dives for the thrill of it and comes up grinning when you catch him! What else... with lots of encouragement, he's finally starting to take steps, 6-8 at a time. Babbling the G-words all day yesterday. Loves sampling foods from our plates- the other night he had "nano-burgers" (tiny pinches of hamburger and bun) which he seemed to just love. He's finally learning to be more gentle with kitties and has been rewarded by Fergus approaching him and allowing some chin scratching. That's about all I can think of and Greg needs to write an exam, so I'll sign off now!

That Seventies Guy

This is Mister's ultra "sober chops" expression. The other night Linda sent Liam home in a retro outfit she'd found in the attic (well, it belonged to Greg when he was a tot... not sure if all that stuff is literally in the attic- seems to be getting some use!) I just thought it suited him so well. It reminds me a little of Star Trek with that collar/zipper/sleeves. Well, not too much news. Life is good in the Holland Household. We're in the process of baby-proofing, though Liam is still not crawling. He's more of a rolling stone. Greg is back to teaching summer classes, and work is fine at Midwest Vet. We're looking forward to tomorrow, when Dad is bringing Papa Krauser to Durango from his winter digs in Holmes Beach, Florida. They are stopping here mid-afternoon and spending one night. Papa broke his hip about 2 1/2 weeks ago, so he needed some help driving home. I'll try to get back to posting a little more often!

Safari Guy

Here's one from today. Daddy took Liam grocery shopping while I was on call at the hospital. When I came home Liam had a new hat to model for me! It's been a quiet day. As you may have noticed, I dropped the ball on Project 365 when Greg went to Utah for a week. Not that it's his fault- I was either too busy or I was just too lazy. We really enjoyed our time with parentage/grandparentage while they were here. Paul and Dee were so much help and they really enjoyed their time with Mister. Then Dad and Peggy drove out, and I was pleased that Liam didn't show stranger anxiety with his least-known grandparents... Dad hadn't seen Liam since he was 2 1/2 mos and Peg hadn't seen him since he was 1 week old! But all went smoothly. I fear the Oklahoma visits are a bit of a trial for Peggy because we don't have much to do around here, and it's such a hot time of the year even if there was something to do! What a huge relief when Greg returned a day early. His trip was a success, but he was glad to be done and home. Now our company has left and it's just the three of us, and we're back to our pleasant routines. Yesterday Liam babbled the B sounds for long stretches and it was the first he'd really done that! What fun it is to have all these firsts in our household!

Liam, De-Planter

Today we had such a pleasant day visiting with Grandma Dee and Grandpa Paul. It's fabulous having adult company, and they're thoroughly enjoying the grandbaby. Dee was so sweet and brought me several flats of potting plants and a beautiful mandevilla, so we went to work planting this morning while Liam napped and Paul looked on. Later, Mister woke up and came outside to join the party on the back deck. We thought we'd have a cute photo-op for Liam amongst the flowers, but he immediately uprooted the nearest plant!

Avocado ... Mmmm

Liam had a wonderful day visiting with Grandma Dee and Grandpa Paul. He also had a messy-fun time exploring the taste and texture of avocado. As you can see, it was a big hit!!

Bye-Bye, Daddy

Greg is pulling out at 5AM tomorrow and will be gone for one week. He and Gary are heading to Utah for a preliminary/scouting trip for a field-collecting fossils and minerals class they will be offering for Geology elective in the future. He's both excited to get out there and do some field work, and dreading leaving us. This will be the longest he's been away from me in almost 6 years, and he's never been separated from Liam at all! We're a little subdued tonight, but everything is packed and ready to go. Pray for safe travels and a speedy return!

A Great Starter

This is my favorite way to start the day! Every morning as I'm in the bathroom blowing my hair dry, at some point I look up and see this! Daddy helps Liam peek around the door to "surprise" me, and I react with great delight, and it's great fun all around!

No Idea What To Write

I was in the middle of blogging last evening when we suffered a sudden power outage. It was weird because it was not stormy or windy at the time, but the power stayed out until 5 am and we did have a huge thunderstorm move through late last night. I was surprised it didn't wake Liam- it was flashing lightning and constant booms. I couldn't sleep well knowing the baby monitor wasn't working because of the power outage, but when I went to check on him, he was sleeping soundly. Blogger must have auto-saved my uploaded picture from last night, when Greg and Liam took a walk outside (and posed for the camera) while waiting for Gary to drive in with our grill. We loaned it to the College for an Engineering cookout last week, and finally have it back. So the back deck is finally ready for company. I'm sure my Dad can figure out how to fire it up when he gets here. I'm getting tense just thinking about how much we're going to miss Greg next week. Luckily I'll have company from first my mom and then my dad to keep me occupied. And Mister is always my pal. I love, love, love my boys!

Baby Irony

Liam had laugh at my expense today. This morning we were drinking coffee and watching Liam do his "Walker, Texas Ranger" (as Greg calls it) when I mentioned that I thought it odd Liam hadn't really started babbling yet. He was scooting around in the walker doing squeals and growls and I wondered aloud when he might say something like "ba ba ba". Shortly thereafter I took him in to the work so I could evaluate progress on several patients in the hospital, and as I was unloading him from the car he sang "Ba Ba Ba Ba".... coincidence or baby irony?

Happy News

It's official: Liam just has a great big head. We already knew that, but the CT results confirmed no brain abnormalities and we have been so relieved all day! Thank you all for your words of encouragement and your prayers. I felt like coming home and celebrating with Mister, but this is all I got to see of my guy tonight since I was on call and had to go in before he and Greg got home. I wish I was the recipient of that "bear hug".... actually, it looks like Liam's snuggling the north end of a south-bound bear!

My First Mother's Day

A picture of myself, Liam and "Gigi" celebrating Mother's Day. Today Greg had a lovely vase of flowers, chocolate cupcakes, and signed cards from himself and Liam for me, and overall we've had a pleasant day. We went to a steakhouse for a tasty meal with Great-grand-pop and G-ma and G-pa Holland, and Liam had pieces of dinner roll soaked in steak juice. He went wild for it, so I think he'll fit in with the rest of the family and wind up loving that red meat! After lunch we all went over to the nursing home and visited with Nan, who unfortunately was having a rather bad day. (She wants nothing so much as to leave the nursing home, and felt like Mother's Day was just the day for it). Larry and Sally, Carole and Don, and Kristin and Jason also arrived at the nursing home in time for a big family visit, and of course we had a few friendly extras who were drawn to the baby stroller as well. I missed not seeing my own beloved mama today, but I called her when we got home, and found out she's riding to the rescue next week and plans to help out and visit me and Liam while Greg is out of town. Hallelujah!

A Productive Day

Had a great day today. I FINALLY had a chance to get on my riding mower! Mowed~ three acres in the front yard (it was as relaxing as I remembered) and then we teamed up and took Mister outside with us while we cleaned the back deck. Now I can barely hold my eyes open. When I wake up tomorrow, it will be my first Mother's Day.

Friday Night

Greg is at the college graduation ceremony, so I had a date with the Little Mister tonight. I took him "hanging-plant shopping" after work... we picked out 4 hanging plants and text-messaged with Greg while he was apparently bored out of his mind at Graduation. No, not a very exciting Friday night, but when you're dating a 7 1/2 month old, the options are a little limited. If all goes as planned, we're going to clean deck furniture, pick up clutter, and try to beautify the back deck tomorrow. Sort of in honor of my Dad and Peggy coming for the Memorial Day holiday- if it's not sweltering, maybe we'll sit on the back deck, drink some wine, and enjoy the frogs singing. No, there isn't too much to do in rural Norman, OK. And why is it I'm only motivated to do cleaning projects when company's coming? I thought this was an interesting photo- I took it in full darkness with only the flash for lighting.

Now For the Waiting...

What a relief to have the CT scan over with. Liam was a champ. He didn't cry, or try to wiggle out of his restraints, and the CT tech said something along the lines of "Wow, he was the best baby I've done!" I was able to help get him strapped in (I smiled and made it seem all fun!) and then I held his hand and sang the "Froggy Went A'Courting" song while he was apparently fascinated with how the CT scanner whirled and buzzed. It was over in just a few minutes- I didn't even get through all the verses of the song, and we were finished. Afterward, G-ma Holland took us to El Chico for a lovely lunch, and she snapped this photo as we were leaving. 24 to 48 hours for results of the test....

Hanging In There

Off our back deck. Which we will be cleaning and beautifying this weekend. It's on the honey-do list. (Something needs to occupy us while we await Liam's test results!) Tomorrow is Liam's CT scan. I spoke to a CT technician at Norman Regional Hospital today, and she was so kind and helpful, basically gave me an overview of what to expect. I will be able to don radiation-protective gear and go into the room with him. The whole scan should take 5-10 minutes if all goes smoothly. Greg and I are nervous, and pretty uncomfortable about the radiation we're subjecting him to, but on the small chance that he does indeed have hydrocephalus, the benefits of catching it now probably outweigh the risks. Anyway, thank you all for your words of encouragement and your prayers.

A Prayer Request

A picture of the rain falling on our little koi pond today. If it looks a little gloomy, then it reflects my mood well. I think nothing can prepare a parent for the burden of worry that comes with loving a new baby. We need your prayers that everything is ok with Liam. At his 6 months wellness visit they noticed his FOC (fronto-occipital circumference) was slightly veering away from the normal curve, and asked me to return in 6 weeks to take his weight, length and head circumference measurements again to see if the trend had continued, and so today we went for the measurements and FOC was even further off the curve. Of course, all of his measurements have always been 99 percentile or greater, but they did follow the curve, just larger than the normal range. However, on today's FOC chart, even I could see it didn't look like a small deviation but rather a large one. He is scheduled for a CT scan on Thursday to make sure it's a just a normal large head, and not hydrocephalus or some other serious developmental issue. The doctor said she sends about one per month for a CT scan and in her 15 years of practice, she's only had 2 infants with an abnormality. She'd rather send 12 per year than miss one. On the bright side, Liam's totally normal with all his developmental markers and he's alert and acts like a normal baby, but it's so very hard not to totally freak out.

Mister's Moth

Liam had cheer-up Mommy duty tonight, and he delivered. After a lovely weekend, it was back to the grind today, and as sometimes happens, it was sort of a Black Monday...I was Doctor Death. A couple of sad cases, one was a HBC (hit-by-car) shepherd with a fractured mandible, scapula, and cervical vertebrae. I was afraid his neck might be broken since the dog had pain perception but no motor ability in all four limbs, and radiographs confirmed it. Wound up putting Ringo to sleep. ... I also put to sleep a 15 year old dog with a large intra-abdominal tumor. I hate days like today, but at least we ended suffering for those babies. I needed to get home and get myself a "Liam Alexander fix" to cheer me up, and a hug from Gregor Dan, too. Then a bonus during dinner- a cute little moth landed on the table next to Liam, and he snagged it. We almost had a mouthful of moth, but then it escaped the maw and crawled right up his face onto his head, at which point we grabbed the camera!

Quite a Quiet Day

Liam's quadruple-teething. He's getting a new lower incisor and three upper incisors all together. Drooling like a St. Bernard. Really, considering how sore his gums must feel, it's been a quiet and pleasant day. He's such a sweet boy. The house smells great- Greg's doing his wonderful Jambalaya (for the second time today, the first batch he botched by adding some bad crawdads... but he wasn't about to let that get the best of him, so he scoured the pot and started over!) Tomorrow we start the first full week of May. Two weeks away from my single-mom trial. Makes me appreciate a quiet day at home together all the more. The Lord has truly blessed this home and this marriage.

Pickle-Tasting

Today's blog photo is from the Engineering student "picnic" we attended this afternoon. Greg took a break from grilling hot dogs and hamburgers to give Liam a taste of dill pickle- the students (who suggested the idea) were all gathered around him to see the pickle faces, and the little mister didn't disappoint! It rained another inch this morning. I'm thankful for the rain, but it meant I will not have the pleasure of mowing this weekend. It also kept the "picnic" indoors in the Engineering Lab. After we cleaned up the lab, we stopped by the Spirit Shop where Liam is technically too young to enter the premises, but the cashiers allowed him in as long as he didn't try to buy anything. Now I'm about to pour myself a glass of nice Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon and watch the Kentucky Derby...

Flowers for Friday

Here's a photo of the Indian Paintbrush in our front yard. Lots of wildflowers and green, green, green from all the rain. I'm so glad it's my weekend off. I'm fairly itching to get on the riding lawnmower. Last spring I was pregnant and not allowed to ride it, so if the weather permits it will be my first time mowing since 2007. Yeah! I LOVE my riding lawnmower! I'll definitely leave the Indian Paintbrush alone. I'm ready to relax tonight and have some Asian-style stir-fry over Basmati rice prepared by my husband. Love that man. Greg spent the day at G-ma Holland's house where she made cookies and baby-sat and he graded tests. Today was a rather dreary, cloudy, slow, boring-at-work kind of a day. By mid-afternoon I was in the mood for some sort of surgery to come in.... a c-section or better yet, a laceration repair. Of course those generally come in closer to 6 pm on most Fridays, and only when the appointment book is chock-full!

Thursday Thoughts

My little guy woke up from his nap this morning in such a sweet mood! Liam is definitely responding to quite a few words and phrases- he understands: where is the doggy/kitty, do you want a bottle, stand up, open wide, and Daddy's home, to name a few. He's also trying to mimic sounds. Last night he did the funniest cat's meow when the cats were nagging Greg to feed them.

We've had a nice day so far (though it got off to a bad start for me when I stumbled into the bathroom this morning and stepped on a disgusting soaked bathmat and opened my eyes to a flooded toilet in the master bathroom.... but to my surprise, Greg manned up and dealt with the mess. Lord, I love that man!) I had to laugh at Greg last night because he expressed concern that his students might somehow stumble onto this blog and read yesterday's entry. You see, he's a stickler for homework and teaches difficult courses without curving the grades, so they call him "Hardcore Holland" - a title he relishes. I think he's concerned that the image of Hardcore Holland might take a hit if students read about his wife living the Little Kisses Lifestyle....

Living The Little Kisses Lifestyle

I call him Gregor Dan. Have I mentioned how much I adore my husband? He pampers both of us. (Figuratively in my case!) When I'm grumpy about something, he can always fall back on his one surefire way to sweeten me up- he takes my face and gives me 20 or more little kisses on my forehead. I just inhale him- I think he has pheremones in that beard or something, because it does work its magic, probably through some neurotransmitter pathway in my brain. The funniest thing, though, is the last 2 days we discovered that Liam also soaks up the little kisses. Greg will have him in his lap, facing forward, and he'll arch back and tilt his face up to get his forehead into that beard, then close his eyes and smile blissfully as the kisses start. After a minute Liam breaks away by leaning forward, looks around the room, then throws his head back for more! I can totally relate to it- they're addictive! I used to require little kisses before I could get out of bed in the morning. I guess that ended when I was pregnant- I didn't have time for little kisses as I was in too big of a rush to get to the toilet!

A Day Off Work

Liam and I went to Walmart and Sam's Club, where he has so many friends and admirers. Little traffic stopper... he was so full of himself today. Giving great cheesy grins to cashiers and shoppers and other cart-riding kids. I treasure this time when he's so sociable, knowing that a time is probably coming when he'll develop stranger anxiety. Thanks to Aunt Deb for the cart cover- it even fits the wide-load carts they have at Sam's Club and he loves to mess with his toys. Today he was chewing those extra vigorously because another tooth is in- another lower incisor for a total of 4 in a row down there! At the end he slumped over sideways and fell asleep until we stopped at the register and he realized there was another cashier (and the next cashier over) to charm, so he sat back up.

To Do or Not To Do: Project 365

My cousin Natalie is doing "Project 365" where she posts a new photo in her blog every day. I feel that this could be too ambitious for me, but what the heck. If I fail, my friends and family can flog me with spagetti noodles. I will have to make an effort to include some variety rather than Liam, Liam, and more Liam. I think it's probably breaking some Project 365 "rules" to post a photo taken by your spouse the day before, but I'm going to go with it anyway, because this one is just too cute. It was actually taken by Greg yesterday while I was at the hospital or off to see the little old couple with the Great Dane...but the photo is new to me- I just found it on the camera tonight and had to upload it. Just looking at it gives me the strongest urge to go wake him and smother him with kisses! (BAD IDEA....)

Take me OFF CALL!

I'm so relieved my weekend was quiet on the on-call front. I did make a housecall yesterday to help an 80 year old couple with a Great Dane who had been shot. They of course could not lift the dog in order to bring him in (neither could I)... nor could they safely drive even if they could have loaded him. He was at least 150 lbs just eyeballing him, nice dog, luckily I didn't have to put him to sleep. But this is why 80 year old couples should stick with chihuahuas.

I have one more night on call then a day off tomorrow with my precious boy. I really don't like Mondays because I'm always on call and we don't close until 7pm. By the time I get off and maybe see an emergency or 2, then drive 45 minutes to get home, Liam's bedtime already passed, so I missed the full day with him. Then I have to stand over his crib and watch him sleep and look forward to Tuesday when we can laugh and play. I could just EAT HIM UP! Thankfully we're hiring a new graduate as soon as she, well, graduates. In May. Then she's the low dog on the totem pole and stays until 7pm on Mondays!

My Beautiful Boy

I have a sneaking suspicion Liam Alexander Holland will figure prominently in my blog. Here's one from yesterday... his first time in the grass. Pray to God he didn't get chiggers. I didn't even think of it. Another of Greg's observations as I was happily reminiscing about how much fun he was having trying to get a mouthful of green. I just about choked on my crabcake!

First Entry

My blog. I've titled it aptly and assigned it a web address under considerable duress. I'm not sure I'm going to be a wonderful blogger, considering I sat for about ten minutes trying unsuccessfully to come up with a title, and then finally accepted Greg's sarcastic suggestion. I'm sure that's not original though, because the web address matching the title was unavailable, indicating that prior frustrated new bloggers have resorted to this title. All in all, I thought it was a rather inauspicious beginning, so I used that for my web address. If this winds up having six or eight entries, ever, then at least the web address will have been accurate!