Life Lately

Hey, friends. I hope you are all having a good week. Our life lately looks so different. I have found the best thing to do is stay busy, but that can only work for so long. The grief and pain are still here at night no matter how hard I try to ignore them during the day. Right now is about Liam. I can work through my own thoughts as I go, but Liam’s anxiety needs my focus. Everything reminds him of daddy – even sleep – because they snuggled together every night. Maybe I am taking things a little too far, borderline spoiling Liam by giving him more opportunities and spending more money than I should (I’m looking at you thrice weekly McDonald’s!) I’m just trying to do the next right thing to keep him stimulated and enjoying his little world.

Here’s a look at our life lately summer edition. You’ll notice one face who was with us at the beginning of summer who didn’t quite make it to the end. Liam’s sweet daddy…

Liam really wants to like fishing. He just can’t be quiet for more than .0006 seconds! Or still. Every time Jud would take Liam out on the pond, it would usually end in someone fussing. I was with them one time when the little bream fell off the hook and into the bottom of the boat. It was flopping around as you can imagine a fish out of water might do. Before Jud could pick it up and throw it back in the water, Liam was about to jump overboard to get away from the thing! It’s silly in hindsight, but Liam and fishing aren’t quite syncing yet. His Uncle Bob takes him, and they cast from the bank. Maybe that’s where we should have started.

One rainy Saturday afternoon Judson and I took Liam to see the Super Mario Bros. movie. It was the first full-length movie Liam had ever sat through, so I was proud. We’ve now seen several of the little $1 kiddie movies our local theater offers on select summer mornings.

Liam and I have taken two road trips since Jud’s funeral. I will recap those more in depth later, but I thought this grizzly sniffing spot at the Memphis Zoo was hilarious. Liam had no clue of course, but his cousin Holly encouraged him to try it, and I am glad I got the picture.

We stopped at the McWane Science Center on our way to the space center. It was our first time to go without Daddy. Jud loved all things science, especially physics, and he was much better able to help Liam participate in the activities.

Well, they say 7 is the number of perfection and completion. We now have a 7th dog! My in-laws had this little girl for 10 months or so, but she was getting into trouble quite frequently. Let’s just say she enjoyed playing with the chickens a little too much… So Emma lives with us now. I was able to house train her within two days. Interesting fact – she’s totally deaf. You should see my crazy self waving around the yard trying to get her attention!

Liam and I took our annual road trip to the US Space and Rocket Center without Daddy. Liam even mentioned how much more fun it was with Jud which broke my heart. However, he did have MawMaw along for the ride this time, and she made things better!

This has been the year for swimming! He is not as scared of water anymore and doesn’t hesitate before jumping in – to the shallow end. He’s still terrified of diving boards or anything deeper than 4 feet, but he’s getting better. (Special shoutout to Mrs. Korby and Mrs. Denise for all those lessons!)

We are also spending a fair amount of time at my dad’s house. Pop always has some kind of project he and Liam can work on together, and Pop is also quite the pushover. Every day is a day for ice cream!

 

I spy Emma! She and Pearl (the chi) always go with us to Purvis.

I missed Vacation Bible School this year when I was with Judson in the hospital in Texas. The theme this year was just adorable, and Liam said it was his favorite one yet. I am so thankful for all of my friends who carried my load when I backed out at the very last second. And my sweet mother-in-law was a trooper once again carting Liam to VBS every day for a week and swimming lessons for another week!

On our road trip to Nashville, Liam and I visited the Adventure Science Center. He found this little chemistry set where he could measure out water, add certain drops to various tubes, and watch the colors change. There was a book with close to 20 experiments he could do with the color, glitter, and other stuff it came with. Very cute.

Another shoutout to MawMaw for allowing him to make this mess in HER kitchen!

I just had to throw this photo in for posterity. My dad and brother flew out to Houston to visit Jud in the hospital (little did they know they were saying their goodbyes). The big deal was my silly dad had not been on an airplane in 42 years. Getting him aboard the plane was a huge undertaking but getting him home (without Thomas!) was even wilder. He won’t admit it, but he enjoyed it.

Another day, another pool.

They say the three of us look alike – and act alike…

Daddy takes a beating every time he plays swords with Liam. Those things are thick wood. Judson wouldn’t play with Liam – he knew better!

Liam accidentally wound up at Meistersingers rehearsal one night. The choir and director were very gracious about letting him crash the party until my brother showed up to babysit.

He sat still and sang the whole 30 minutes he was there. Adorable!

We’re lucky to have a wonderful children’s museum nearby in Meridian. My sister-in-law gave Liam an annual membership, and we take advantage of it every time we can.

Surrounded by girls as always! The Junior Auxiliary of Newton County held a “Princess and Pirates Breakfast” in July, and Liam spent more time with Snow White than me or MawMaw. He fell in love!

We’ve only had ice cream 2,847 times this summer!

Liam went to a waterslide birthday party for one of his friends…

and our church had an end of summer waterslide party for the kiddos.

I think I took this on one of our trips to the movies. He always has to act silly!

Someone is already asking Santa for a scooter for Christmas. He went to a little bikes and trikes event (with his very nice trike), and spent the whole time on some other kid’s scooter. He hasn’t stopped talking about it since.

I don’t think that lady could love her grandson more! They are tight!

Well, that’s a little look at life lately. We’ve had plenty of smiles, but trust me, the tears are still here. I hope I’m navigating this season well for Liam. It’s all one day at a time. One breath at a time. Thanks for stopping by and loving my little family!