Liam's First Passport Stamp - St. Lucia

It was supposed to be Grand Cayman, but Hurricane Gustav forced a very last minute change of plans. What was originally to be a 2 1/2 hour flight to the Caymans ended up being a 5 hour flight to St. Lucia. In the end, we all had a blast. Liam did great on the plane with the exception of a 15 minute period on the return flight home (it seemed like it was about an hour). We can't blame him though. He was just exhausted. The island is beautiful, the people were very friendly, the food was great, our little beach-front condo was very nice, and the sunsets were incredible. Liam also had his first boat ride, during an all-day excursion on a giant catamaran to the Pitons, drive-in volcano, botanical gardens, cocoa plantation and snorkeling. Click on the picture below for a link to the Picasa photo album.

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I'm a ramblin' wreck from Georgia Tech...

Let the brainwashing begin! Just kidding. I thought I would take Liam to his Dad's old stomping grounds of Georgia Tech for the football fan day. Liam got to run all around Grant Field at Bobby Dodd Stadium and see the football players sporting their new uniforms, coaches, the Wreck, and of course the cheerleaders! He even got a chance to meet Tech's new head coach, Paul Johnson. He was a hit with the cheerleaders as you can see from the photos. They really liked his GT/Buzz tatoo. Liam was a trooper considering the weather. It felt like it was about 115 F on the field (you can tell from Liam's face and my shirt in the picture with Paul Johnson).

First Cone

Liam took in (by "took in" I mean inhaled) his first ice cream cone from Brusters. Mint chocolate chip was the flavor of choice for Liam. He finished off his small cone, and then decided that he would like a taste of Mommy and Daddy's chocolate raspberry truffle cone. So he ended up with a minty green/chocolate goatee. Tasty!

Airplanes!

Liam has recently taken a keen interest in airplanes so we decided to take him to lunch at Downwind, the restaurant that overlooks the runways at PDK. Liam had a great time. See the pics below.

Liam Discovers... The Playground

We took advantage of the long weekend, and brought Liam to the Henderson Park playground on Sunday 6th. Before, he thought the swings were OK, but really wasn't ready for the other playground equipment. It was all different this time. He climed all over the equipment, and he loved spinning the captain's wheel. He went down the slide for the first time, and after a few times he was sliding down all by himself... and... ep hem... walking back up the slide. Not exactly safe, but we were close by, arms out ready to catch him. He's a daredevil, that is for sure. He had so much fun that he really didn't want to leave. REALLY. We will have to go back soon.

Independence Day Trip to the Zoo

Liam had his first trip to the zoo on the 4th of July. We went early in the morning, to beat the heat as well as the crowds, and met our friends the Lytles - John, Melissa and Julianna - at the front gate. Our first stop was to see the flamingos - Julianna's favorite. Then the elephants. Note the puzzled expression on Liam's face in photo #3..."Why are the elephants covered in red clay dust?" Good question. Thank goodness for the air conditioned "treehouse" in the monkey exhibit. The kids had snacktime, and then we saw the pandas. Liam and Julianna were troopers - we got to see the whole zoo, and they even had energy left for the grand finale - the petting zoo.

Lawnmower Proxy

We decided that something had to be done about Liam’s plastic lawnmower obsession, and before Christmas. Fortunately this weekend we stumbled upon a lucky find at the neighborhood yard sales on Saturday – a toy vacuum that very closely resembles the conspicuously absent mower. After a quick disinfecting scrub, we let Liam have a go at it. Did it work? Yes, judging by the look on his face, we concluded it was a mission success.

Shake whatcha mama gave ya!

Liam loves to dance. His favorite artists are Radiohead, Rhianna, Gnarls Barkley, and various world music. His taste is quite eclectic. Here are some short clips of Liam feeling the rhythm…until he saw the cat outside the window.

Happy Easter

Liam's First Easter Egg Hunt (or plastic lawn mower hunt?)

Liam went to his first Easter egg hunt on Saturday, organized by our neighborhood garden club. There were almost 30 kids that showed up, including a few close to Liam's age. There were 2 separate egg hunts - one for those under 3 (wee eggs) and another for the bigger kids. We didn't expect Liam to be terribly competitive in the egg hunt, but he got sidetracked by another child's toy - a plastic lawnmower with a moving smiley face on the front. One glance, and he was transfixed. When the hunt started and the other kids took off looking for eggs, Liam started chasing the boy with the lawnmower. Forget the eggs...he wanted that lawnmower! Liam chased him across the yard and back, then over to the driveway. When the other little guy turned his back on the lawnmower for just a second, Liam seized the opportunity and grabbed it. He looked so pleased with himself once he finally got his hands on that plastic enigma. He started pushing it all over, with that ever growing look of satisfaction on his face. He wanted to push it everywhere, but daddy had to draw the line when he wanted to push it into the street. A power struggle ensued, and of course daddy won. I guess we know what Liam will be getting for Christmas...

Liam's First Swing

So we took a trip over to Henderson Park (most of you are probably wondering where that is...it's off of Chamblee-Tucker Road in Dekalb Co) Friday afternoon to let Liam stretch his legs and to see how he likes the playground. He tried out the swing for the first time. He loved it at first, but after a few minutes, he wanted to get back on solid ground and explore.

Liam's 2nd Snow!!

Liam saw snow at his house for the second time in just 3 days! This snow was a little more impressive than the first. We bundled him up in his snow suit, and he had a blast!