Wanting to Move

So Liam is about to move into the stage of mobile. AHHHHH! I was secretly hoping that maybe he wouldn't decide to start moving until he was around 5 but looks like it might happen before then. Liam has been sitting up for awhile now and is just been much more interested in things around him. He has been caught rolling over pretty frequently and has now moved to going from sitting to his belly fluidly. He then attempts to start crawling but is in the process of figuring out how to make all his limbs coordinate movement without ending in a face plant.

Liam has also been very interested in pulling himself up on anything that is close. This is often my legs or a couch but yesterday was the laundry basket. I grabbed the camera and caught these shots.

Interest...

The Peek...

Settling for a nice gnaw (teething?)

Caught in the act!

I think it will be all too soon that Samuel and I will be chasing Liam around the house. I am hoping he will only be interested in his and Samuel's toys and will leave all the other stuff alone. I know another unrealistic hope but can you blame me? We will keep you updated!

Soccer Balls

Yesterday Samuel, Liam and I headed out to the park to meet some friends. The boys both got soccer balls for Easter and needed to get them dirty. Here are a few of my favorite shots.

Here is Samuel is full action. He is running and kicking and I have to say pretty well! Maybe a soccer player in our future?

Liam decided that sitting and holding his soccer ball was safest at this point!

This might be one of my favorite shots ever. Samuel is fascinated by his shadow. He was so excited that "he do it like me mom!" I had to smile and tried to remember when something so little brought me so much joy!

Opening Day

For Easter, Gram got each of the boys a Chicago Cubs article of clothing. Of course we had to pull out the camera and get some shots especially with this week being the beginning of the season! Here are the cuties...

Liam totally unaware of how crazy and fanatic this house gets around baseball season!

Samuel kissing the ball goodbye before he hits it out of the park!

A cute shot of Samuel ready to head to the park.

Go Cubbies!

Snow?

Who knew that it could snow in Seattle at the end of March? This is what is going on outside my window as I write. I am not the least bit thrilled about it by any means. I only thought weather like this happened in Michigan...

Spring is Here

Spring is here! The weather is getting nicer, the sun is shining more and we are getting out to play. Living so close to the lake and only a 20 minute walk to a big playground is so great. We make it to the playground usually twice a week now. The library is also within walking distance and will become a regular outing also. Here are a few pictures from last week that said "spring" to me!

Sidewalk chalk

Dirt

Clear blue skies

Easter Fun

Here are a few pictures of our Easter fun...

Uncle Mike and Samuel waiting for the egg hunt to begin...

Mommy and the boys...still waiting...

Liam was fascinated by eggs this year. Here he is going for his first one!

Samuel caught on pretty quickly and started collecting eggs!

What could it be?

Liam could care less about what was on the inside. He loved banging them together!

Liam showing off his egg.

The Easter Bunny

This past week we were out and about and had to make a stop at the mall. Being the time of year the Easter Bunny was in full force. Samuel was all about waving and saying hi from a distance but wanted nothing to do with getting close to the overgrown, carrot eating, monster. Liam didn't really have a say in the matter and was pretty fascinated by it all. I did get to capture a few pictures of the event. Here is a brief conversation that I believe was playing out...

Liam: Help me!
Samuel: It's ok buddy. I am pretty sure he is a vegetarian.
Liam: Are you sure?
Samuel: No, but he doesn't look very hungry.

Samuel: Listen, mom does this to me every year. Just sit still, put your hands on your knees like this, say a little prayer and it will all be over soon.
Liam: Easy for you to say. You aren't the one sitting up here.
Liam: Ok, if you say it will be alright.
Samuel: Just look at mom and pretend you are excited. She will get a picture and we can get on to the toy store.
Liam: Thank goodness Santa is still 9 months away! By then I will be able to run away.
Samuel: Don't worry little dude, we have time to plot together!
Both: Cheese!

Uncle Mike Is Here!!!

The boys are thrilled to have Uncle Mike come and visit for the next week. Here they are the first couple of days. I will post more pictures as I take them.

Liam getting his few seconds before Samuel comes flying in.

Samuel and Uncle Mike playing with sidewalk chalk.

Early mornings...

Happy Saint Patricks Day

Need I say more...

The Beginning of the End

As the beginning of March came upon us I realized that we only have about 5 more months here is Seattle. Wow. It is so hard to believe that our time here is almost through. It will be much harder to say goodbye than I ever anticipated. Mike and I are in the process now of figuring out how we want to do that and do it well. Seattle has been so much to us over the past three years and a sense of closure feel very needed, at least on my part. We quickly realized that Seattle is all the boys have ever known and leaving will be just has hard on them as it is on us. Lots to think about over the next several month...

Here is what we have left...

April
Mike's 30th Birthday
Mike finishes another trimester
May
Mike walks in graduation (they said yes)
Mike begins his last two classes
June
Mike finishes his last two classes at MHGS
Jenn hands over her leadership role
July
Samuel turns 3
Liam turns 1
We celebrate our 7th anniversary
We grieve the death of Hannah (4 years)
A going away party and spend time marking our end here
August
we begin the drive

At this point I don't feel ready for all this. Although the past three years have been the hardest three we have endured, we have been so transformed by our time here. We will leave this place with such a sense of gratitude. We are different people individually, together and as parents. So...the journey continues...

Reading Fun

Being a teacher this shouldn't surprise me. I know kids do this but it is still amazing when it is yours.

We came across this the other night when Mike was reading to Samuel. He stopped at some point and Samuel spit out the next several words in the book. Mike continued reading and stopping every so often. Samuel continued to finish the sentences for him. We have found that there are at least three books he is able to do this with! Pretty cool!

Liam Update

Since Samuel was previewed the other day I figured Liam better get a shot also. It is amazing how fast he is growing and how quickly he is doing things. He is still only sitting. No crawling in the near future, thank God! He is very interested in everything around him and is very sad when he doesn't get to participate. Oh the life of a seven month old!

As far as a doctor update. He went the other day to have his ears checked. They are clear! Yeah! He does have a minor infection on the outside of his ear where he continues to grab and pull. They are guessing it started as eczema and since he digs at it all the time it got infected. He has cream we put on it and it is clearing up well. He also hit the 20 pound mark! Crazy...no wonder my arms are tired!

Here are a few cute pictures from today. Enjoy!

Cheese mommy!

The better side of him. I think the toy he was playing with went out of his reach!

He is laying up on my legs here and trying to attack me to get the camera. This picture cracks me up each time I see it!

Learning to make lots and lots of noise!

Give me that mom! He almost grabbed it before I was able to snap the picture!

The Best Daddy Ever

We are a pretty lucky group...that is Samuel, Liam and I...we have the best daddy ever! The boys absolutly adore thier dad. Faces light up, squeals escape little bodies and feet come running as soon as daddy walks in the door. A bad day can instantly be turned better when Mike arrives home from work. We are so lucky to have him. And I couldn't possibly hope for anyone else to do this whole parenting thing with. I love you sweetheart!

Here are a few pictures of daddy and Samuel this past weekend at the park!

Time Outside of Seattle

This past month we were able to get out of town for a few days. We headed down to Gig Harbor, about an hour and a half south of Seattle for some much needed rest and relaxation. We should have known better. Nothing that involves two children can be considered rest, relaxation or a vacation.

Regardless we went. It was just Mike, I and the boys on Wednesday . Thursday early afternoon, Jon, Annie and Grant were able to join us and Friday afternoon Jessi, David and Lachlan joined the fun. We all stayed through Saturday before heading back into Seattle. We stayed at a beautiful place right on the bay. Each day with the tide the water changed by 5 feet of so. It was amazing to watch how quickly it happened. Here are a few of the highlights...

Jenn falling down the stairs with Liam (everyone ended up just fine)
Liam falling over on his toy causing a huge bruise on his check.
Bailey cutting open her foot pretty badly (all repaired now).
Samuel stepping in a pile of dog poop bigger than his foot.
Two full games of Settlers while most kids slept.
Good food and good wine.

We also got a couple of great pictures.
The Clark Family

The whole gang!

Our New Niece

Mike and I had a new niece born this week. She was born early Tuesday morning.
We can't wait to meet her soon!
Here she is...

Ruby Neylon Puck
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
8lbs 1oz

Addison and Ruby

Back into the Swing

Well, I hope this week that we are able to get back into the swing of things. It feels like we have been out of commission for a few weeks and that the world did not wait for us to get healthy. It kept going...imagine that.

Mike is back at work this week and seems to be feeling better. He has quite a bit of catching up to do since he has been home for a week and a half (the week was vacation). Classes also continue for Mike so there is always reading and paper writing to do.

Samuel seems to be back to his old self. He is very much 2 1/2 and is finding more and more ways to push our buttons on a daily basis. He is still on antibiotics but is back up to moving nonstop from activity to activity.
Liam is officially done with his second round of antibiotics and is needing to go back to the doctor to have his ears checked. We really hope they are clear but since he is still pulling on them I doubt they are. If they are not we will probably have to see a specialist to figure out why they won't clear and look at other ways to help him out.

I am feeling much better than a few weeks ago. I still have a week of antibiotics to take but am actually able to function a bit better this week. I still always feel like I need to take a nap but that could also be the fact that I have two young children. Hopefully nights will provide a bit more rest this week.

Guess that is it from the home front. We have a short six months left here in Seattle and the reality of our leaving is starting to sink in. Good in some ways, sad in others. Guess we will have to wait and see what the remaining time brings.