Sibling Day!

To Goose and My Sweet Sunshine,

Happy Sibling Day! I know it's so early but the two of you love each other and it's so fun to watch. Growing up without siblings was sad at times. I knew that one day, if God would grant it, I would want more than one child so they could share - joys, experiences, happiness, sadness, and... toys. :) 

Grace, Liam has loved you from day one - the day we told him he was getting a sister.

It's a girl!

He read and talked to you, patted you in my belly, and tried to feed you goldfish through my belly button. The first time he saw you in the hospital, he smiled and reached out to touch you with a smile on his face.

He loves you in the ways a brother should love his sister. Every morning when we wake up, he finds you sitting up in the boppy on our bed. He'll climb up and say, "Good morning, Grace! You sleep all night?" Yesterday he said, "Grace, you're so cute!" He tells me if you are upset and reassures you, "Don't cry Grace - I'm right here!" He brings you your toys. He talks to you - when you squeal he answers right back in your talk. The two of you could (and can!) go on for quite some time. And in case you think it's too good to be true, he tattles on you too.. "Grace is eatin' her straps" (car seat buckles) or "Gracie won't hold my hand!" You're getting much better arm control, but when you were just beginning to figure that out, Liam would get right in your face and you would wave around your arms and hit him. Taken aback, he'd say, "Gracie push me!" Now he says, "Good job, Grace! You're learning!"

Liam, You are already living up to the namesake of your great-grandfather. William literally means "protector" and in your baby book, Daddy and I wrote that we hoped that one day you would be the protector of your siblings by being the first born. You are already the sweetest boy to your sister and love her so very much. 

I know that one day soon Grace will be in your things and tattling back at you. I can only hope that the two of you keep some of this sweet relationship and grow up to be friends. I'll never forget the day we got you the pink iced cupcake telling you Chee-pea (Chickpea) would be a girl - and your sister. I whispered to you, "Daddy and I have the greatest gift for you - something we never had: a friend to grow up and grow older with. Please don't ever be upset that we are sharing our love not just with you but with someone else, because part of her heart will love you too. She will help make our family whole."

Always holding hands. <3

I hope you are both always proud to call each other brother and sister. Happy Sibling Day!

Love, Mama

Happy 27 months, Goose!

Liam,

It's been a while! You and Gracie have been keeping us busy but tonight, as you both sleep in your own rooms(!), I write my letter to you. <3

Wow have you changed in the past few months!

Our silly Goose

Speaking: Your language continues to astound us. If you spend a night at Mom-Mom and Papé's, we always notice a difference when you return home. You speak mostly in sentences instead of phrases. Your question of "Where are you?" in a singsong voice is no longer "Are you?" but the real thing. People other than us can pick out when you say "excavator" and "amplifier." We hear a lot of "I no like it!" even if you are choosing to not choose something at the moment. It sounds like your stereotypical Italian-American when you say it too. When you want something, you say you need it. This is especially funny for items like cookies and cell phones.

"Want some?" Trying a homemade veggie sushi roll

You are able to talk about what you want. One day (a while back in January), you handed me your Magna-Doodle and said, "Draw Coe-e (Chloe), Mama?" And it turned into this picture. You asked for Liam by Chloe, Mommy holding Grace, Gracie's swing, your train table, and Thomas and Gordon. I'll let you decide which doodles are what. :)

Love <3

Comforting: If Grace cries, you immediately go over to her, take her hand, and give her kisses. It melts our hearts to hear you say, "Don't cry, Grace! I'm right here." If you disobey, you apologize (after a while... usually) and say you're sorry.

You love playing the piano and singing, especially to Grace. "Gray-see!" or "Gray-see-poo!" followed by "I love you!" is a typical song while pounding away on the keys. Here you are mid-lyric and Grace is loving every second, already enthralled with her big brother.

Loving: You cuddle with us, squish close to us in any chair with a sigh ("Ah!"), and hug and kiss like there is no tomorrow. When I pick you up from daycare, you meet me at the window: I put a hand up to the glass and you return with yours and a huge smile. I walk in the door, you greet me with the biggest hug, then act super silly.
You grab our faces saying, "Cheekies!" and plant huge kisses on us. On Valentine's Day, you said "I love you, Mommy!" while we walked together down the stairs. It was the first time you said it without me saying it first.

You're also in love with YouDee (aka Big Bird).

You received your YouDee sweatshirt on Super Bowl Sunday in honor of Joe Flacco, a UD grad, on the Ravens. You wouldn't have taken it off for days if we allowed it. You recognize the interlocking UD on paper, advertisements, and on campus. When we travel to Main Street, you ask where YouDee is and call campus his home. Just another testament to the fact that you absorb everything you hear.

The best view after a long day at work. 

Independent: Knowing nothing about small children (until you get to the stage, of course), I thought we had a few more years before you started acting like a teenager. Time outs are becoming a little more frequent and you are already testing your limits. Most of the time, misbehavior is just a game to you - we catch you saying no, but then hiding your smiling face so we can't see it. Other times you are definitely serious, but so are we. :) I hope we get to reap the benefits of following through with your consequences sooner rather than later. We also have become quite good at knowing what to pick battles on. Fruit bars for every meal throughout the day is a no; milk in the (third) cup of your choice is okay. Refusing to take off your monkey jammies when the thermometer says 22 degrees outside - it's not happening but taking Monkey (your backpack) with you everywhere, stuffed with boots, books, trains, and legos is acceptable. Speaking of Monkey, you strap that thing on your back in the most awkward way and then announce, "I going to school. Bye Mommy! See you later!"

Making pizza

A preview of your teenage years - truck, cell phone, and all.

Child proofing our cabinets - and putting away groceries
Note the barilla pasta box going under the sink. :)

Lego lover

Keeping Chloe away from your cheese stick and milk.

I know the day you become a big boy is quickly approaching. Preschool starts in the fall ("The bells - on Main Street!) and when I look at Grace, I sometimes can't believe you were that small. You have quite the personality and I'm already so proud of you. I can't wait to see what the next months have in store, but in the meantime, I can enjoy all you've already become.

Love you, Mama <3

Best Buddies <3

A sideways (sorry!) "Cranky the Crane"

Documenting Our Family of Three

Before Liam was born, we had our wedding photographer (of Heather Fowler photography) take photos of us (and belly) down in Cape Henlopen. We had previous had some post-wedding portraits taken on Wildwood's boardwalk and Cape May so we thought we'd get in Kevin's beaches too. :)

For our newest addition, we wanted to be sure we had something similar. I hear lots of stories about how the children after the first one get gipped in terms of pictures, albums, and other special stuff. As an only child, I cannot imagine doing this! Chickpea already has the beginnings of a baby book and free 4D ultrasounds - courtesy of that subchorionic hemorrhage. 

I love the photojournalistic style (in layman's terms: photos without manmade backdrops or tons of posing) but I also love getting different photographers' views. Enter Emily. :) I met Emily as a freshman in college and was already admiring her photography skills of pictures she took of our campus. She now has her own business, Emily Troutman Photography, so if you are in the Delaware area you should check her out!

Here are some of my favorites from her blog post of our session. Check out her page to see more! 

Our Family <3 <3 <3 <3

Liam's obession with phones led to this idea. :)

You don't know what you're in for, Liam!

This is one of our ultrasound photographs with a verse (John 1:16).
"From the fullness of His grace, we have received one blessing after another." 

I can't believe we are one step closer to welcoming our baby girl! <3