It's go time

This week has been a flurry of test after test. I have taken 6 tests in the last week, 3 of then finals, not to mention the 2 or 3 tests I take every day from QBank. I think I have answered at least 1,500 questions in the last 7 days. The pressure is taking its toll, and I cannot wait for the next 3 weeks to be over. But I am still working my butt of trying to prepare for the test of my life. I swear in life there is always one more hurdle to jump through, and one more butt to kiss. This is appearing to be especially true in the field of medicine, but I am sure there is no shortage of hurdle jumping and butt kissing in other fields. This hurdle is a big one, so pray that for my sake and my family's sake I don't screw it up.

Liam is getting bigger all the time. We went to church today and saw some of the other babies who have recently been born on our ward and he looks like a giant compared to them. He has a doctor appointment on Monday and I bet he has gained about a pound or two. Jen and I are excited for a lot of you to meet him in a few weeks.

Also, this week my parents are picking up my little brother Justin from his mission in Thailand. We can't wait to see him back. It seems like he has been gone forever sometimes. We are excited to introduce Liam to Justin and all his other uncles.

Not much else is going on here, and not much else will unless I completely lose my mind from studying and start wandering around the neighborhood naked looking for Spiro Agnew. Luckily that doesn't happen very often, and when it does the neighbors are kind enough to lend me clothes and not press charges. I can't spare the community service hours, I am too busy with babies and tests.

Jen and I have decided that Liam is getting too big too fast. We were able to compare him to a couple other babies this week and he is getting huge, causing Jen to scold him for growing up to fast. 

When Liam was born he got just under a thousand blankets. He uses all of them, but he has a few favorites. The green felt blanket from Great Aunt Chris, and the quilt Grandma pieced and Aunt Diane quilted. 

Jen decided to test the quilt out with him. 

Today was Liam's first day at church. We got him all dressed up. He was a good boy, so after church we wanted to reward him. He loves to be out in the sun, and feel the wind blow on him so... 

After church, we went to the lake to hang out for a while. 

Jen and I's new place that we have been living in for about a year now is really close to Lake Ponchatrain. It's a great place to spend a quiet afternoon (should there ever be a quiet afternoon). 

Here is a look at the view that we were getting. It was a beautiful day, and we couldn't pass up the weather. 

Anybody want to pony up a couple grand so Jen and I can buy one of these things? Looks like a nice way to spend a weekend. 

Do you mind Mama? 

Jen has had this Giraffe suit for while now and has been dying to put Liam in it before he gets two big. He no longer fits in his new born onesies. Jen keeps telling him to stop growing so fast. 

Jen and I have to have some incriminating photos to show any date that he may bring to our home in the future. We are slowly collecting material. 

Look at him, little man about town. 

This picture freaked me out a little. Look at us, heads cocked at the same angle, both squinting at the son. He looks like a young clone of his Dad. He is a better dresser though, something he should thank his mother for. 

Admit it, this picture is so cute your heart just skipped a beat. Yes Sarah, we are copying you. Have your lawyer call our lawyer, and clear a spot in your basement. We are planning on moving in soon. 

Our very, very good friend Lori came into town to hang out and see the baby. I am afraid we bored her to tears. Such is the life of new parents. But to try to soften the boredom, we offered Lori Honorary Aunt status. 

In order to get honorary aunt status certain sacrifices must be made. We tried to document Lori's introduction in this office, secretly hoping that Liam would shower her with.. uh.. thanks... yeah... shower with thanks. That's what I was going to say all along. 

We spent some time at Jaeger's, a great seafood place where you can get anything under the sun fried or boiled. We had Crawfish and Hush Puppies, and got beer spilled all over us. Luckily, Liam came out unscathed. 

We'll leave you with the view from the balcony at Jaeger's. Crawfish tastes even better watching a Louisiana sunset over Lake Ponchatrain. 

Nothing beats a little morning snuggle time. Occasionally, Liam gets what Jen and like to call the Cuddles. He refuses to be happy unless he is being cuddled. He had an outbreak this morning an had to be cuddled up to a sleepy Mommy. I left for a few minutes to take a shower, and when I came back this is what I saw. 

Liam loves his bathtub. It was hard work to keep him awake. He hated bathtime before. He used to cry and scream, but not anymore. Now he could sit in there all day. Notice the strategically placed towel. 

Jen and I didn't want to be accused of publishing naked photos of our son. I am sure he will hate us for this later in life, but we tried to maintain his modesty by covering his bits and pieces. 

The bath was apparently a little to relaxing. Usually this kid screams his head off when we dress him for bed. He was so relaxed that he feel asleep before we could get him in his jammies 

Here is our doctor, Dr. Truitt. She is the best, and Jen and I think the world of her. Liam, however, apparently finds her boring. He just couldn't hold back the yawn. 

Jen wanted me to post this one too. We wanted to prove that he is not happy all the time. We told many of you how he screams when he gets his diaper changed. We wanted to publish some proof. Jen wants to make clear that she still thinks he's cute even when he is screaming (though we have decided that he is less cute if he is screaming at 3 a.m.) 

Week 2

Well another week has gone by, and Jen and I are pretty tired, but are doing well. Liam is like a little clock that need some attention every 3 hours. He wakes on the dot and wants to be fed. We are trying to get him on a schedule and so far he is cooperating nicely.

He has gotten into a bad habit of excreting on Dad. In the last two days I have been peeed on, pooped on and spit up on. But Liam and I are bonding, as you can see from some of the photos that follow. Really though, he is such a well behaved baby. He gives Mom and Dad very little to complain about.

Tomorrow we are all going to the Doctor. Jen will get her post op checkup to see if she can have her freedom back. She has been going stir crazy, but since she had that bleeding episode last week it hasn't been hard to convince her to take it easy. Liam is getting a check up too, and hopefully he can keep from peeing on all the staff like he did at his last visit.

Dad is starting to feel the pinch of the end of the year and the pressure of his upcoming licensing boards. I have a test Friday, then a final Tuesday, a final Friday, a final Monday, and then only 3 weeks until I take my boards June 4th. So I am getting pretty scared and am trying to study like crazy. Jen and Liam are going to go back to Utah on the 21st so that I can have some time to study, and I will need every minute. Having Liam here is worth it, though.

Other than that all is well. Here are a few snapshots of tha last few days.

One thing that Jen and I have found is that Liam loves his time in the sun. We sit him in it every morning to help break down the extra bilirubin (jaundice). Here he is, basking in his own glory.