- First off our amazing little boy joined our family in July 2010. Liam Jaiden was born on the 20th of July at 1:16 pm. He was 8lbs 2oz and 12 days early. He actually arrived on my first day of maternity leave, which was good timing.
- Liam was a very popular boy with many visitors his first couple weeks. His grandparents all came to see him within the first few weeks, which was awesome. He also had visits from his Aunt Judy and Uncle Art, Great Grandma Gaffney, Auntie Jill, Uncle Tyrel, and Cousin Madison, all wanting to welcome him into this world.
- When Liam was 9 weeks old we he took his first plane trip. We went to the Bay Area to celebrate our 5th anniversary. While we were there we went to Muir Woods and saw giant Redwood trees, visited, Tony and Alison; Sean, Bekah, and Leora; and Alex and Ali. It was a great time and Liam did amazing through the whole thing.
- About 4 weeks later Liam was again on a plane. Liam and I were on our way back to Phoenix to visit family before my maternity leave was over. Liam and I spent about 2 weeks in Phoenix before Daddy came out, and we then headed onto San Diego for Great Grandpa Fischer's memorial service. He passed a few weeks earlier; he was a wonderful man, and we will miss him so much. While we were in Phoenix we went to the zoo, picked out pumpkins for Halloween, and had a family photo shoot with Round Lens Photography. While we were there Liam also met his Great Grandma Fischer, Great Grandpa Papa, and Great Grandma Kaisa for the first time.
- Our first Thanksgiving as a family was very laid back with just the three of us at home, but we had a lot of fun together. Christmas too was also just the three of us, but Liam really enjoyed opening his presents, and later in the day we took him sledding for the first time.
- Winter was a lot of fun; we loved to take Liam out, and he really loved the snow.
- Liam is our very determined baby boy, we didn't think he would even crawl because all he wanted to do was to have us help him walk around everywhere, but when he was about 6.5 months old he decided that he would give crawling a try. He had so much fun when he realized that there was freedom that comes with moving. Our house hasn't been the same since, but watching Liam learn new skills is the most amazing thing ever.
- At the end of March and beginning of April we had some wonderful visits from family. Our first visit was from the Cruz family. We are so happy that a conference brought them into town. It is always amazing to see them, and to see them develop a relationship with their Godson. After that the Holcombe-Stern clan came to visit, which was so much fun. It is amazing to see all the cousins together.
- As spring changed into summer we were outside more. Liam took his first steps around 9.5 months and that opened up new places to explore in the house and on the playground. Jason and I were both very lucky to be home and with Liam when he decided to take his first steps. Jason and I were talking in the living room while Liam was playing, and then he decided that he wanted a different toy so he stood up and walked six steps over to it.
- In May, for Mother's Day we all went camping with our good friends the Kimbles. This was Liam's first time camping, and also a first for the Kimble kids: Jessa, Alaina, and Aidan. We had a great time and a little excitement. While we were camping we had a huge storm go through and with it a tornado warning. We were all stuck under a tent canopy while the storm raged. Liam was pretty indifferent to the whole episode and the girls were troopers through the whole hour. It was probably a good thing that we had had ice-cream just before the storm hit.
- Liam also had a great time this summer taking swimming lessons. He loves the water and had so much fun learning how to jump in and kick his legs.
- As Liam's first birthday approached it was hard to imagine that his first year of life was almost over. Everyone says that the time flies by, but until you experience it yourself it is a hard concept to grasp. There are so many more changes that occur the first year of a child's life than will ever occur again in their lifetime, and Jason and I are so blessed that we have been able to be a part of each change in Liam's life - from his first smile, first laugh, first time rolling over, first time sitting up by himself, first time eating baby food, first time crawling, first time saying mama and dada, to his first steps. All of these firsts have been amazing to see, and we are looking forward to all the new firsts Liam will have as he continues to grow.
