Liam's New Toy

May 31, 2008

Much to Mike's dismay I bought Liam a new toy...an exersaucer! (Mike has put me on a toy budget...so sad.) I felt like he needed something to get him off his back so that he can continue to strengthen his neck and torso muscles. I shopped around and found this exersaucer that had lots of fun toys with lights and music for him to enjoy.

He is still a little small for it so I have to put a blanket around him to help wedge him up but I am sure he will grow into it in no time. Look how cute his little feet are...so precious.

May 26, 2008

The days here in Alabama have been so blasting hot that we are always looking to do something in some good quality air conditioning...our air here at the rental house can't keep up. So today we went to the space museum in Huntsville which is about 1 hour 15 minutes from the house. Space has always intrigued Mike and I went along for the ride :)

It actually turned out to be a really fun day. We saw 2 movies, one was an IMAX movie about the moon and the other was a 3-D movie about the sun. Liam slept through the IMAX movie and was awake for the 3-D movie but spent most of his time nursing. He got a kick out of the glasses for the movie!

One of our favorite things at the museum was a real rocket that you could walk under. The size alone was amazing. I was also able to finally understand which parts of the rocker broke away and where the astronauts were at in the rocket. It really turned out to be a fun day.

Oh another favorite part was getting to try astronaut food...always wanted to buy that stuff as a kid on field trips and now we did. It wasn't so bad. We tried the cinnamon apples, the ice cream sandwich, and the mint chocolate chip ice cream. I could not imagine living on that stuff for very long.

Having a Ball!

May 24, 2008

Liam has been getting stronger every day. I broke out his Bebe pod (when I registered the Bumbo chair was on recall) and he did really well. He would start to get tired and slouch over to the side. He seems to enjoy watching the television while in his chair.

We have been working more on tummy time and doing little push ups. At first he did horrible but each day he makes a little progress. He likes this elephant toy that I got him, you pull a cord and the little mouse goes around the mirror. It holds his attention for quite a while.

Road Trip to Atlanta

May 20-23, 2008

This past week Liam and I took a road trip to Atlanta to meet some friends from Indianapolis. It was great to see everyone, I miss them so much. We had plans to go to the Georgia Aquarium and the Atlanta Zoo.

I was so excited about going to the aquarium, it is the world's largest and has 4 whale sharks and even a hammerhead shark (pictured above). Mike and I have always dreamed of going scuba diving with the whale sharks in Belize but have been unable to plan a trip there due to the short amount of time that they are there each year. So this would be so exciting to see...the 4 whale sharks at the aquarium range from 17 feet to 19 feet long and could grow to 35 feet long!

It was everything I had dreamed of, there was a tunnel that you could stand in to see the whale sharks and then also a big glass wall that you could watch from too.

The glass wall was really neat because you could sit down in front of it and watch the fish go by. Liam seemed to enjoy all the colors and watching the fish float by.

While we were there I did a little research into a new program that starts in July...diving with the whale sharks!!!

I am so excited about this and surprised Mike with the details when we got home. I have made reservations for Mike, my brother John, and myself to do this in November. Now don't worry about how big the whale sharks are they can only swallow things smaller than a quarter even though their mouths are 4 feet wide. It is a little intimidating to think about getting in the water with something so big but I just can't wait to do it...when else will we have a guaranteed dive with a whale shark? It will be an experience of a lifetime. The other neat thing is that my sister-in-law, niece, and Liam will be able to watch us! I wonder if Liam will be old enough to recognize me with scuba equipment on?

Well after all the excitement of the aquarium I wondered how the zoo would compare...it was pretty nice. We had an enjoyable day there. My favorite was the gorillas. The exhibit was quite expansive had about 4 different groups of gorillas...I think they said there was 27 gorillas in all! There were a lot of babies in the exhibit, this mother had twins and brought them right up to the glass for us to view. Amazing!

My friends boys (Pete and Blake) really seemed to enjoy the zoo and were able to run off some of their crazy energy! It was great to watch and

something to look forward to when Liam gets older.

The other really neat exhibit at the park was the pandas. When we went in to see them one was up moving around. Pete was standing by the glass and it stood right next to him on the other side. What a sight!

Well I could not have asked for a better trip...I am thankful for having such great friends! I am looking forward to moving closer to home so that I could spend more time with them.

Doo Dah Days!

May 17, 2008

Today was Doo Dah Days, which is a kind of pet parade/celebration that raises money for local animal shelters. Mike, Liam, Sassy, Fletcher, and I walked in the parade with the Birmingham Greyhounds. It was our first time meeting everyone with this organization and they were so welcoming!

During the parade Sassy rode on the float to take a break from the heat and walking. We thought that she would be nervous up there but she was like a pageant queen waving her paw and smiling for the crowd.

Fletcher walked the entire way because he discovered that the people watching the parade had treats. He was not shy about it and went up to people looking for the treats and even riffled through some bags. What a character!

After the parade we dropped the dogs off at home and headed back to the parks to listen to some music and enjoy the beautiful day. We spread out our trusty Star Wars blanket (Mike has had this since he was a kid!) and lounged around. It was an enjoyable day.

CMMA Dinner

May 15, 2008

Tonight was a dinner sponsored by CMMA, which is a Christian Medical Group that Mike and I belong to. I know it is a surprise to many that Mike and I would join a religious based group but it has truly been a great experience. My friend Lindsey invited me to go to a Monday night meeting for couples that are med students, residents, fellows, physical therapist etc. At the meeting we discuss challenges that couples need to overcome in such a demanding career. We have made some great friends there and have learned a lot.

So back to the dinner, it was at Vestavia Country Club so the whole family had to get dressed up. Liam wore a true "Southern Boy" outfit commonly referred to as a bubble suit...he looked too cute. My outfit was a little more challenging, nothing seems to fit like it used to! I was grateful that my boobs did not fall out of my top during dinner! Dinner was great, Liam behaved and the speaker Tom Randall was excellent. He told inspiring stories and really made me want to strive to become a better person.

Rub-a-Dub-Dub

May 14, 2008

Liam is in the tub! Today I took the sling out of the bathtub...maybe I should have done it sooner? Anyhow Liam had a great time splashing and making a mess! He is just such a sweet boy and makes me laugh all the time.