A Week of (Fantastic) Firsts

Liam's recovered from his stomach bug. He is back to daycare and winning the hearts of all who meet him. It seems like he aged a month in a week. He began sitting on his own and taking "big boy" baths in the tub instead of his plastic whale.

He started crawling. I really need to do more baby proofing. The dangerous, breakable stuff is out of reach but the PITA stuff to keep picking up(DVS, books, etc), is still within reach. During these times, I am glad our great flood taught me that I don't need so much crap. Anyway, Liam and I went to the library Friday afternoon. We had run in so I could check out a quick book or CD but this was the first time we'd gone for him. We made our way up to the second floor. I was so excited to see that they still had a taranchula. When I was little, there was one in the children's room. It was gone for awhile and I was sad that Liam wouldn't get to be fascinated by the giant, scary spider. He barely noticed it, even when Beezus (the tarachula) was crawling around. Liam was a huge fan of the heat lamp, confirming my theory that the only place I ever need to take him is the Home Depot.



He looked at the fish and tried to grab at them. The we went to the board book section. He picked out a couple of books that look delicious. He can't actually stand on his own, but he is an excellent leaner. We took out a few books that came we have been reading over the past few days. I may try to get there every other Friday. There were also quite a few moms there. One came over to chat about our sons. I wish I had thought to go there awhile ago. I think it would have been tough before he was sitting on his own. I liked watching him explore.



Liam also attended his first concert this weekend. We went to Pops in the Park and enjoyed the Rhode Island Philharmonic. Mike and I realize how lucky we are to live in an area that provides a lot of free entertainment. We need to take advantage of it more often. I am so happy that, after a week of scary firsts, we had a week a fantastic firsts!

A Night of Firsts (Popsicles, Hospital Visits)

Liam is turning out to be a lot like him mama and daddy. He is adapting well to daycare. He is making friends and having a grand old time there. It is such a relief. He is trying so hard to crawl and manages this sort of army crawl and scooting. This afternoon, he was trying to stand up on his own. Sitting on my leg, he would try to stand up. He'd even wobble and try to keep standing. He is one determined little fellow.

At the beginning of the week, I had some trouble keeping food down and assumed it was first day of returning to work/starting daycare jitters. Yesterday, when I picked Liam up, he vomited all over me. This continued all evening. At 8:00, we called the pediatrician, who told us to give him a little bit of Pedialyte every 5-10 minutes and if he vomits again to take him to Hasbro Children's Hospital. Small amounts stayed down and he took a nap. At 10:15, he woke up and took an ounce of Pedialyte. It came right up so we headed to Hasbro at 10:30. They gave him Zofran but we were unable to get him to take any liquids. He did have his first popcicle. Of course, they gave him a red one and he made a giant mess. Since Liam just wanted to sleep and not eat, we got the ok to take him home but were told if he didn't have a wet diaper in the morning to come back because he was dehydrated.

We got to sleep about 2. At 6:30, we woke up and checked the Booba. Dry diaper. Back to Hasbro. He was crying but no tears would form. He sounded like an 80 year old chain smoker. It was heart wrenching to see. It is amazing how strong love can be for another person.

Hasbro is right next to Women and Infants, the hospital that delievered Liam. It seems like just yesterday yet forever ago that Mike and I were driving down Eddy St in silence, understanding that we would be leaving with a baby and our lives were forever changing. As I watch Mike and Liam sleep in the living room chair, I feel like I learn a little more every day what it means to be a parent. I knew Liam's illness was not life threatening, he was in good hands, and would recover just fine. However, I would have done anything to make him feel the least bit better. I fully understand that this is not the last time Liam will ever be hurt or sick. I also understand how lucky I am that his first scary illness was so easily fixable. As I watch Liam sleep on Mike's chest, I have to remind myself yet again how lucky I am. They look so peaceful and cute together.



I know this will not be the last time Liam hurts or cries. His pain will not always be fixed as easily as last night's popcicles, Zofran, and Pedialyte. For now, I have to appreciate the difficulties that accompany parenthood with the assurance that the rest of our lives will get easier and harder.