Movie Night

Mr. Man has really, really been having a rough couple of weeks. I met with the social worker today and we talked about this. One thing I'm trying to do for him is to make some special time just for him. We started tonight with Movie Night...something we'll do every other Friday. Liam LOVED the idea (especially since one of the requirements to attend movie night is that you must be at least 4 years old).

Tonight's flick: A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, of course. It was a hit!!

And he looks so innocent...

This kiddo is a handful!! Tonight, I was sitting in a chair to the right of our stairs and Liam climbed into my lap. We were cuddling and talking and all of a sudden, I hear the upstairs gate banging. At first I thought it was the cats, but then saw they were downstairs with me. Somehow, in a matter of maybe 1 or 2 minutes, my little monkey opened up the downstairs gate (yes...opened it!), climbed up the stairs on his own, and headed into Liam's room where we found him sitting in Liam's Anywhere Chair.

Oh yeah...and he's starting to take his first steps.

Anyone out there reading this...please just send a little prayer out for me. :)

Not Feeling Well

Poor little guy woke up at 2:30 last night and then again this morning was complaining of being sick. He's pretty much just sat on the couch all day and stared off into space. He never naps anymore and this is how he looks right now. Poor little man!

Happy Birthday, Baby Boy

I cannot believe that you are 4! You woke up today so very excited to be 4 and was happy all day. We headed out to Cox Farms again and you went down the slides on your own several times. At your check-up yesterday, you were 41 inches and weighed in at 38.7 lbs.

You continue to be the love and heart of my life. It has been awesome this year watching you develop into a great big brother and, while I miss Daddy so much, I love how much closer this deployment has made us. I love you so much, Liam and thank God every day for bringing you to me and making me a mother. Daddy and I are so proud of the little man you are growing up to be. Happy birthday, Liam. We love you!

Happy Birthday, Sweet George

George, in some ways this is a very difficult post to write. A year ago today, you were born into not only our family, but the Army family. When you were just three months old, we said goodbye to Daddy and sent him off to war. It has made for a very difficult year in some ways with Daddy gone and often I feel that you are both blessed and cheated. Blessed because you will not remember this 15 months without Daddy. But cheated because you had much of your first year without Daddy and with a very tired and stressed out Mama. I'm not always sure that I have done the right things for you these past 12 months, but I am sure of this...Daddy and I love you so very very much and I wouldn't trade this year with you for anything.

It has been such a wonder to see you grow so much so quickly. You are already crawling at high speeds, cruising all over while holding onto things, drinking from a cup, and harassing your big brother. You say "more", "this", your own version of "dog" and babble "dada." You can wave bye bye, show touchdown, and send kisses in the air. You adore your brother like he is a God and want to do and have everything that he does and has. You are happy. Truly happy and content and I hope you keep that part of you. I hope you are able to hold onto that relaxing part of your nature.

Your Daddy will see you again in 7 days and it will be a wonder to see him react to all the changes that you have gone through. It will be awesome to watch you and Daddy get to know one another again. God willing, the coming year will bring your first steps, Daddy coming home, a move, and hopefully a christening. There are so many joys to come and I cannot wait to share all of them with you. I am loving that I am able to stay home with you now and thank your Daddy every chance I get for enabling us to do that. It is such a special time in your life and I don't want to miss a second.

Your first birthday was a bit stressful, but fun. Your brother had a difficult time sharing the limelight, but you took it with such stride and showed him that you will not always be willing to be pushed around. :) You enjoyed your first cupcake and first gifts tremendously. The firetruck that Liam gave you was an instant hit. I loved being able to spend today with you. It brought such a warmth to my heart. I love you, sweet George. Always have, always will. Happy birthday, baby boy.

Evaluation Results

I received the official results for Liam's eval yesterday. He off course passed vision (I could tell that right away with his Kung Fu Panda answer..ha ha).

For motor, the cutoff score is 5 and he got a 9.

For concepts, the cutoff score is 8 and he got a 14.

For language, the cutoff score is 8 and he got a 13.

So well outside the range.

Yay!

Rock It, Mr. L

So, if you've been around long enough, you know that Liam was a bit slow on getting going in his early years. He crawled (if you can call it that) at 11 months, pulled to standing at 14 months, and walked at 18 months. All of this involved early childhood intervention, which I am all for when needed. He exited out of the program a year and a half ago, but this did not withdraw us from the Army's Exceptional Family Member Program (EFMP). The program exists for the protection of family members that may need extra services that are not provided at all locations. Because Liam's services were through the state, Taylor cannot be stationed internationally since Liam could not be serviced there.

Anyway, as we are waiting on orders and hoping for England, I am in the process of getting us out of EFMP. Part of this process involved Liam getting evaluated on Monday. In past evaluations (a long time ago), he obviously came up with delays. While I am okay with that, it still is frustrating at the same time. You have no idea. Anyway, this evaluation was AWESOME. As Taylor put it....Mr. L finally got vindication. Things he was asked to do and performed perfectly included:

sorting, cutting on the line, counting, naming colors, naming shapes, catching a bean bag, skipping, vision test (where he called the picture of the panda "Kung Fu Panda"...funny b/c he's never seen that movie), naming objects (he called the pop-up toaster a "TV with bread coming out of it", pronunciation, body parts (missed ankle), copying building objects, counting out objects (could do up to 3), etc. There were more things, but cannot remember them now. I was amazed by some of the things he could do. Some items I teach in kindergarten. It was such a difference to not only not see him qualify, but do an amazing job. Blew me away.

Oh and the other thing he missed....he said his name was "L". Hee hee.