Subscribe to continue reading
Subscribe to get access to the rest of this post and other subscriber-only content.
Category: Baby Talk
-
My son Finnegan and I finished our nursing journey this week after sixteen months. Like his brother before him, he nursed full time for a year, then we slowly weaned for the next four months. Though I intentionally weaned them, I didn’t force either of my boys to stop. I knew that I would know when it was time, and this week, it was time for Finny. Though it was time to turn the page, I’m so sad that we closed this chapter. Babies and mamas belong to each other at every stage but this was the last stage that would be ours alone. When Liam was fully weaned I was sad because our time was done but I knew another baby was on the horizon. This time, I know that our family is complete and my baby is growing more independent of me every day. That’s a hard realization at every stage of motherhood and for me, this one is particularly poignant.
I was rocking Finny to sleep earlier this week, fully aware that our nursing time was coming to a close. As I rocked my baby, sang lullabies, and stared into his deep brown eyes, I thought about the connection that mamas have with their babies. I thought about the power in a mama’s voice.
O ye’ll tak’ the high road, and I’ll tak’ the low road,
And I’ll be in Scotland a’fore ye,
But me and my true love will never meet again,
On the bonnie, bonnie banks o’ Loch Lomond.
I sing three songs to my boys when I want them to relax or go to sleep: “The Bonnie Banks o’ Loch Lomond,” “In the Bleak Midwinter” and “The Skye Boat Song”. (My heritage is showing, I know!) These three songs are chosen by design – they are the songs turned lullabies that my mom sang to my sister and me. Liam now knows them too and we sing them together. Listening to Liam sing the songs that Nanny Pammy sang to me fills me up in a way that I can’t describe.
In the bleak mid-winter
Frosty wind made moan
Earth stood hard as iron,
Water like a stone;
Snow had fallen, snow on snow,
Snow on snow,
In the bleak mid-winter
Long ago.
They’re most powerful though, maybe even magical, when I sing them at night, in the dark, when it’s just me, my baby, and the songs. The words pull us together into the deep mother and child bond that cannot be described, yet can be felt in such a deep way. For me, the beauty is that I feel them as both a mother and a child. The power of the songs makes me five years old again, asking my own mom to sing me to sleep, being pulled into the lyrics and melody. I watch my sons do the same. Their mouths, bodies, and minds quiet as they relax and sink into my arms and as the power of the mother’s voice takes over us both. It isn’t that my singing voice is so great, or that I myself have a special way with words. It’s that, in that very special moment, the power of the mother’s voice overtakes us both and comforts us both. It comforts our hearts and minds, and brings the heaviest of peace.
Speed, bonnie boat, like a bird on the wing,
Onward! the sailors cry;
Carry the lad that’s born to be king
Over the sea to Skye.
I save “The Skye Boat Song” for last each night because I feel my own mom the deepest with these words. From the very first word of the song, I’m back in my mother’s arms and I can feel her in my soul. I’m sure it’s no coincidence that it’s also the song that Liam connects with and sings the most (though, admittedly, until I looked up the actual lyrics, we definitely sing it incorrectly as “Happy the lamb that’s born to be free!” instead of “Carry the lad..” – Ah well.) I haven’t actually heard my mother’s voice in nearly twenty-two years, but in these quiet moments, it doesn’t matter. I sing the song and I hear her words, feel her voice, and radiate her love to myself, and to her grandsons.
Mothers are magic.
I wish I had the words to explain how this magic happens, but I’m lucky I have the words to identify it at all. What I know is that the calm and quiet, both literal and figurative, that are created by a mama’s voice transcend logic and time and, thankfully, stay with us forever.
-
I like to think that someday, I’ll come back and write a post for each month of sweet Finnegan’s first year, but for now, let’s all just meet me where I am, and celebrate the fact that our Finny is 13 months old!
Finnegan is an absolute delight. He’s happy 99% of the time and he lets us know when that 1% hits with the most blood curdling scream I’ve ever heard. We had to have a monitor for Liam because he wasn’t much of a screamer and would often just wait for us to come and get him. In fact, he is still quiet when there’s something wrong – so quiet that when he sneaks into our room in the middle of the night, he either scares us or we have no idea he’s there until morning. Finnegan is…different. If it wasn’t for checking in on him in the middle of the night or morning wake ups when he’s happy and NOT screaming, we definitely would not need a monitor.
Our food journey with Finny has been completely different than it was with Liam. He’s had food sensitivities since the very beginning and were confirmed when he was about two months old through NAET testing with Dr. Greg Kempf. We identified sensitivities to dairy, fructose, and gluten, and so avoided each until recently when he was tested for actual allergies. He is not allergic to any – but is allergic to peanuts. After we discovered that he is not allergic, we have started to introduce each category slowly (except peanuts!) and so far, so good. We have another week in our mini gluten trial, then will add in dairy the following week. (We are still doing “trials” because though he isn’t technically allergic, he could still be sensitive and have some degree of reaction.)
The backstory to all of this is that we started to see a direct correlation between my milkshake addiction 😬 and his digestion and his skin. We consulted with Dr. Kristy and the AMAZING lactation consultants at Senders Pediatrics, checked his stool for blood, confirmed the microscopic drops to indicate irritation, and started to see Dr. Kempf for testing.
The NAET, or Nambudripad’s Allergy Elimination Techniques, is 100% a “have to see it to believe it” kind of situation. The very short, non-expert synopsis is that it is a means of identifying sensitivities and allergens and then desensitizing the identified offenders. NAET practitioners give vials of allergens to patients (one at a time) and, while holding the vial in one hand and holding out the opposite arm at chest level, the practitioner tries to lower the arm with slight pressure with his or her finger. If the arm drops, there’s a sensitivity. If not, there’s not. Got it? 🤣
We went to the first appointment knowing that the offending allergen was likely dairy and in fact had already eliminated it from my diet, but needed confirmation and help. We went through lots of vials, one by one, and all of a sudden, while I wasn’t paying attention, my arm dropped. (Because Finny was a baby, I held the vial on his head and held my arm out – I was like a conductor for the energy.) I thought I had just lost my concentration – we were chatting away, so surely, I was just distracted. I said oh shoot, try that again. Sure enough, he used one finger, pushed on my outstretched arm, and it dropped like a stone. I looked up at Dr. K – he said “that’s dairy”. I said “SHUT UP” because… because it sounds like nonsense! How is that a thing?! He tried it on Shane and same reaction. Once we got over the shock, we went through the desensitizing process, which is essentially acupuncture or acupressure. I am obviously a firm believer in acupuncture after the success we had with it with both boys’ transfers, so this required no convincing from Dr. Kempf. Finny was desensitized, we eliminated dairy from our diet
We went back twice more with additional sensitivities and identified fructose and wheat. The great news is that Shane and I each lost a TON of weight – my current grand total since Easter 2021 when we first started eliminating is about 42 pounds and his is somewhere close – maybe a little more. His GRAND total is well over 100 pounds, but that’s a story for another day. As I like to remind him, clearly we are sensitive to those foods as well because essentially “all” we’ve done to lose that weight is eliminate dairy, fructose, and gluten, and all sweets. No problem, right?! Thankfully we did it in stages so it never felt like deprivation.
Back to Finny… as far as 13 month milestones go, he is completely mobile, walking and hurrying everywhere (he has figured out how to hustle when he sees an opportunity to make a break for it out of the living room). He loves to imitate – actions, sounds, etc. Big Brother thinks that’s hilarious so he does silly things to see Finnegan do them too. Food is becoming more fun as he has more options. He is – and has been for a while, actually – very clingy to me. We joked that it was because I was the food source, but now that we’re in the weaning process, I think it’s just an attachment thing. Speaking of weaning, we’re down to about three times a day at most. Unlike Liam, who required intentional weaning, Finny is doing it much more naturally, which is perfect for him and for me.
So that’s it! Finny is a blast, I love this age so much, and I am so excited to watch him continue to grow and develop and get to know who he is!
-
Making our way to Papa’s to drop off Sadie for her own vacation 
The view from our bedroom… 
Looking north, up the beach. 
The Brennens! Just arrived at Topsail Beach 
Family time! Auntie Em, Liam, Auntie Cindy, Aunt Kathy, and Uncle Chris (with Uncles Guy and Tim in the background) 
Looking south, down the beach 
Our first view of Topsail Island 
Grammy’s giftbag for Liam’s roadtrip! 
The back of our rental 
Auntie Em brushing Liam’s teeth 
Post bathtime cuddles with Auntie Cindy 
Card Sharks 
Liam loves yogurt! 
“Say KATHY!” 
Checking out the beach on the first day! 
Cheers, Auntie! 
Alison, Chris, Em on the beach 
Supermodel 
Golfing day with Uncle Tim 
The new besties 
Cleanup crew coming back upstairs from the beach 
Aunt Nita and Liam 
Movie time! 
Dinner prep! 
Uncle Papa prepping his smoked meats! 
Smoking dinner on the beach! 
Bocce ball! 
Uncle Papa 
Matt paddling down the coast! 
Liam learning to clean 
Liam, Uncle Tim, and Liam’s friends 
Our daily setup right on the beach! 
Moonlight reflection 
Liam asking for Goldfish crackers with a fish face 
Papa teaching him to whistle 
Papa, Liam, and Daddy 
Baby Supermodel 
Daddy and Uncle Chris flying a kite 
Shane at the sea turtle hospital 
Until next time, Topsail! 
Aunt Cindy & Liam 
The view from the top deck 
The view from our bedroom door 
The Ringlers 
The Brennens 
Uncle Tim and Liam 
Tim & Juanita 
The Coxes 
The Browns 
The view from the deck – looks like a cruise ship! 
Part of the crew after a morning walk 
He might be covered in yogurt but he sure is cute! 
One of the sea turtle nests on Topsail 
Daddy and Liam 
❤ 
Papa and Liam 
Liam at dinner 
The sea turtle well bay 
Daddy and Liam checking out the hospital 
One of the healthy turtles ready for release! 
Sea turtle made of beach trash found on Topsail 
The Cox Family -
Our story was featured in Today’s Family magazine on April 24, 2019. The article is linked above, and the text is copied below in case it ever disappears!
“Paving a Path to Parenthood” By Nina Polien Light
Alison and Shane Brennen tried to conceive for a year before turning to doctors for help. The Chesterland couple learned Alison ovulates irregularly and Shane has abnormal sperm morphology, or misshapen sperm. Alison took three rounds of Clomid, an oral medication that stimulates ovulation in some women, but it didn’t work. Frustrated, the couple visited a fertility clinic where doctors placed the chance of conceiving without medical intervention at just five percent.
“The reproductive endocrinologist said, ‘If you want a baby, you’ll need IVF, and even with IVF, there’s only a 40 percent chance you’ll conceive,’” Alison says, referring to in vitro fertilization, or the process of fertilizing an egg and sperm outside the body and later transferring the resulting embryo, at a stage known as blastocyst, to the uterus. “We talked dollars and it’s just horrifying and scary. We did a lot of crying, praying and talking to really figure out if this was the way to go.”
The couple started the IVF journey in fall 2016, which resulted in four embryos. One embryo didn’t survive to the blastocyst stage and one rushed embryo transfer (performed because doctors were concerned about the embryo’s viability if not used immediately) was unsuccessful. Devastated, the Brennens didn’t attempt another transfer until the following March.
“This transfer was more calm and it was scheduled,” Alison says. “I had acupuncture before and after the transfer. It was very chill, it was lovely and it took.”
The couple’s son, Liam, was born on December 12, 2017.
IVF technology has improved significantly since Louise Brown, the first baby conceived through the process, was born in England on July 25, 1978. The then-experimental method is now a go-to treatment for couples, like the Brennens, experiencing infertility. It’s also an option for women with blocked or missing fallopian tubes, women who have frozen their eggs because of illness, single women who wish to become mothers through donated sperm, women whose partner has a low sperm count and other reasons.
“Nothing has a higher pregnancy rate than an in vitro cycle,” confirms Cynthia Austin, MD, medical director of in vitro fertilization at the Cleveland Clinic. “The success rate for women under age 35 is 60 percent. For women (ages) 35-37, it is 50 percent.”
Some women are hesitant to try in vitro fertilization because of a mistaken belief it works too well—inevitably resulting in twins, triplets or higher multiples. But preliminary 2017 data from the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology, the latest statistics available, indicate 86.6 percent to 93.1 percent of in vitro patients, who use their own eggs and achieve pregnancy, give birth to singletons. Of the remaining live births, only 6.9 percent to 13.1 percent are twins and fewer than .3 percent are triplets or higher multiples. Further, more than 82 percent of deliveries occur at full term.
IVF is divided into five steps:
- Ovarian stimulation. This takes a week or two and involves using medication to coax the ovaries to produce follicles. “At the beginning of the menstrual cycle, there’s a group of follicles that could continue to grow, but in a natural cycle, only one does and the rest die,” Dr. Austin explains. “In IVF, we try to get more of that initial group to grow instead of just dying.”
- Egg retrieval. About 36 hours after the woman receives her final injection to trigger ovulation, the doctor performs a low-risk procedure using transvaginal ultrasound. While the woman is under sedation, fluid is aspirated from the follicles. It usually takes about 10 minutes.
- Sperm retrieval. Sperm is collected from the woman’s partner or donor.
- Fertilizing and culturing the embryo. Egg and sperm are united and cultured in the hopes of forming an embryo. If successful, five days later the embryo will reach a stage known as blastocyst, when the fertilized egg is in its second growth phase.
- Freezing or transferring the blastocyst. At this point, the doctor can gently glide the blastocyst, which is encased in a syringe with a little fluid, through a catheter and into the woman’s uterus. If it “takes,” the embryo will implant several days later. Alternately, blastocysts can be frozen for future use. “Once frozen, they have no shelf life,” Dr. Austin says. “They remain as good as the day after they are frozen as they would be 10 years later.
But IVF will not work for everyone. Fortunately, there are other options for a woman to have a child who is biologically her own.
“If a woman is able to make her own eggs but does not have a uterus, or her uterus is damaged, or she can’t sustain pregnancy, she can have a friend or hire a person to carry the pregnancy for her,” Dr. Austin explains. “We create the embryo and transfer it to a third party.”
By Ohio law, this third party is called a gestational carrier. Both she and the biological parents-to-be are required to retain separate attorneys to protect their interests. A legal document, signed before the IVF cycle begins, addresses a host of issues, such as spelling out the identity of the legal parents, determining who is in the room during the embryo transfer and mandating who makes medical decisions if complications arise during delivery.
Women may turn to a trusted friend or relative to serve as a gestational carrier, or reach out to an agency that specializes in screening candidates.
“We also screen the gestational carrier for the couple to make sure we think, medically, this is a good person,” Dr. Austin says. “That’s a lot of trust to put in a person. You’re not going to hire just anybody to do it.”
With or without the use of a gestational carrier, IVF takes its toll physically, emotionally and financially—often running up bills of tens of thousands of dollars, depending on the number of cycles a woman undergoes. But for couples, like the Brennens, the payoff is priceless.
“When I held Liam in my arms, I told Shane it was worth every penny, every tear, every shot,” says Alison, who hopes to one day transfer the one remaining embryo. “There’s something to be said for a struggle. I appreciate this process. The knowledge the doctors have to give a baby to a couple with a five percent chance of having a baby on their own is a great miracle.”
To read more about the Brennens’ path to parenthood, visit their blog at www.thebrennens.com.
-
Happy Birthday, Baby Boy!: We celebrated Liam’s first birthday on December 15 with family and friends and – unfortunately – a sick baby. He seemed pretty happy all morning, but when I got him up from his nap, he clearly wasn’t himself. In all the craziness, I wasn’t able to pay as much attention to him as usual, and as a result, probably missed the warning signs of how sick he was. He didn’t dig into the cake as we assumed/hoped he would…didn’t seem interested in frosting, or even taking bites. A while after cake time, we were opening some gifts in the kitchen and it started. He spent the next few hours vomiting off and on (and off and on himself and me!) which was a LOVELY way to spend an afternoon and evening! We were pretty sure that he was actually sick, but got some well-meant feedback from family members that he may have just had too much sugar. Our suspicions were confirmed, however, 36 hours later when Shane and I both woke up with it. Needless to say, I’d like a re-do for his first birthday party! At least it was memorable?
Who doesn’t want a ball pit in their house?! Sick, sick, sick (again): After Liam spent his party day sick, Shane and I both came down with it the following Monday and we spent two days going between the couches, our bed, and the bathrooms. Ugh. Liam seemed to be OK on Monday, probably well enough for school, but neither of us had the strength to get him in the car to go to daycare. (It was quite the day of exceptional parenting, let me tell you!) He went the next day, and Wednesday, but at the end of the day on Wednesday, his teacher sent me a message and said he had a fever. UGH. He was also diagnosed with a double ear infection (again) (and plenty of teething) that week at his one year appointment. He went on Augmentin (moment of silence for all of the parents who have changed the Augmentin diapers…eww…) and then spent the rest of the week at home. I was with him on Thursday and Emily stayed on Friday. WHEW. The good news is, the diseases are gone, all four one year molars are in and with all of that came some good sleep! I think we even got like four nights in a row of no wakeups! (We’ve been 50/50 on sleeping through since around the beginning of October.)
#RealLife Christmas: Though this was not Liam’s first Christmas, it sure felt like it was since we essentially slept or didn’t sleep through the last one. It was so much more fun to open gifts and play with the toys and chase him away from the Christmas tree… He got some pretty great presents: a John Deere tractor trike, a light up play set, a bike trailer, a zoo membership, some foam gymnastics equipment…lots of stuff to try to burn off his one year old energy!
LOLOLOLOLOL Christmas Story: On Boxing Day, we planned to visit the Christmas Story House and have dinner at the Hofbrauhaus with Shane’s family – the Christmas day out! Unfortunately, a stomach bug hit Hank and Tonia so we were down two for our adventure. We carried on though and had a fun Grammy Day touring the house and eating some delicious German food! We’re hoping to make the day out a tradition – but are hoping to leave the stomach bugs in 2018!
Music Man: One of Liam’s most hilarious birthday gifts is this crazy goose. Aunt Kathy and Uncle Papa bought it for Liam for his birthday and OMG. So funny. It’s such a great gift for him because he LOVES to dance! He doesn’t seem to have a preference for a type of music yet, except for the kind he can dance to! He has been to the big kid music class at school a couple of times and when he isn’t attempting an escape, he’s apparently learning a lot: one day we were listening to one of the kids’ stations on our Echo and the “Itsy Bitsy Spider” came on…and he did the motions! (Mostly…he can do the spider parts!) I’m so anxious to see if all of these interests and talents will translate into his grown-up life (Mostly… I’m savoring this time!).
Feeding: I was re-reading some of our old blog posts and I noticed that I shared about our feeding experiences way back when Liam was about six weeks old. Our nursing journey was pretty rocky at the very beginning, but I’m very proud of the fact that I’ve provided the majority of Liam’s nutrition since the first weekend he was home. The only exceptions were the formula we had to give him while he was jaundiced and the real food he’s been eating for the last six months. We’re officially down to just two feedings per day – morning and night (and during the night – ugh) – and I know these will be the hardest to drop, but I’m kind of letting Liam take the lead on this one – truly baby-led weaning.
- We got another round of the stomach bug between Christmas and New Years, then had a quiet New Year’s Eve with a dinner prepared by Chef Shane (filet mignon and lobster tail – yum!) and a quiet New Year’s Day with the aunties (Uncle Chris was stricken with another of the floating diseases).
- We’re trying to hit the zoo on a more regular basis so we went twice over the holidays. Daddy added teeth and hair brushing to our nightly routine, which is just as freakin’ cute as you’d imagine. That’s their time together but I did sneak in and get some pictures for posterity.
- We’re planning on far fewer diseases in 2019! New year, new immune system, right?!
- And that’s about it! Otherwise we’re just doing our thing! Daycare, work, rinse, repeat. We’re just desperately in love with this little boy and the joy he’s brought to our lives and are amazed that God chose us to be his.
PS: if you’re watching the video and are concerned that he’s wearing moccasins in on the soft ground, have no fear: he is now the proud owner of some fancy light up tennis shoes!
-
I come before you today, humbled by the fact that I have a one year old son.
The journey to parenthood was hard.
The journey to the one year mark was hard.
Parenting without parents is hard.
But being Liam’s mommy? One of the easiest things I’ve ever done.
Pick Up and Go!: Most recently, he’s not just walking, but can pick himself up from the floor without needing assistance. Throughout this first year, I’ve been careful to avoid announcing milestones until I REALLY hear or see something. Once doesn’t count. He needs to do it with intention and purpose. I saw him get up on his own once before, but just before his birthday, he started getting up consistently – and just like that, we were done crawling!
Books a Million: As an English teacher, there aren’t words to express how happy it makes me when my son goes to grab a book and crawl into my lap to read it. He is even turning pages! Not at the right time or the right amount but at 12 months old, and for a kid who doesn’t sit still for anything, I’ll take what I can get, ok?! 😂 He isn’t allowed near paper books and he’s destroyed a bunch of board books BUT we’re reading and it’s amazing. His consistent favorite is Five Silly Monkeys (which ripped and Superdad repaired!).
Adapting: Shane has been traveling for work more often lately and in November worked in Columbus for five days. Our parenting is so fluidly connected that I was pretty freaked out at the idea of being a “single parent” for that amount of time. Thankfully, Auntie Emmy passes our house on her commute to work each day so she was around a lot to help out in the morning and after school. And the good news is that we all survived! (Including Daddy who both had a great time with his friends and missed his little family!)
Daddy and Liam reading right after Daddy’s trip. He’s loved this filter for months and months! Liam is EXCELLENT at signing for milk / alerting me that it’s time for bed. Just before this, I was asking him if he was cranky because he was tired… First Thanksgiving: We also celebrated Liam’s first Thanksgiving. It was a beautiful day – our baby boy’s first and our first in our new home.
First Harley Breakfast: One of our longest standing family traditions is the South East Harley Davidson Christmas open house on Black Friday. We’ve been going for almost thirty years so being able to take Liam was so, so special. I miss my parents so much, maybe the most on days like that especially because I know that both of my parents would have LOVED these moments with Liam – and Grandpa John would have been SO proud that he saw Santa!
Sick, sick, sick: Right after Thanksgiving weekend, we all got sick in one form or another. Shane had body aches and a fever. Liam was diagnosed with double ear infections on the same night that I was diagnosed with strep. He’d been working hard on his one year molars too so he was a bit miserable for a while, the poor kid. We were both home from school for a couple of days that week, but thankfully were well enough by the following weekend because it was another one of our most favorite days of the year: Tree Day! This year, our Auntie Cindy came into town for some of our December activities, including our annual tree hunt. Again, if you’ve been fans of the blog – or our family – you know that our Christmas tree hunt is EXTRA special for us – and was even more so with Liam! (And Aunt Cindy, Uncle Papa, and Aunt Kathy who joined us this year – what a treat!)
I’m so proud to be Liam’s mommy…when people have said how “smiley” or friendly or sweet he is, I melted with pride. When he was RUNNING by his first birthday, I exploded with pride. When he looks at me, into what feels like my soul, I am just a puddle of the melted, bursting pride, because never did I ever imagine what this love could feel like.
Saying that we wanted to have kids, or that we wanted a baby, and going through the struggle we did to get here, we really had no idea what we were saying. I certainly was not prepared to be the mom of a newborn. I’m probably still not really prepared, but what I am prepared to do is love this little boy with all of my heart and protect him as much as I can, and let him fly as much as I can, and show him as much as I can, and really just do the best that I can.
Year 2, here we go!
-
Clothing Clean-out: This isn’t shocking to any parent, but it just blows my mind how much clothing we go through! I transitioned Liam from his 9 month clothes to his 9-12 and 12 month wardrobe this month and the sheer volume of clothing he has, has gone through, and has yet to wear is just astounding. Our system is to separate each type of clothing (short sleeve, long sleeve, pants, sleepers, etc.) into grocery bags and then put the bags into bins (we’re huge fans of the smaller black bins with yellow lids from Costco to keep the different sizes separated).
Pumpkins, Pumpkins, Pumpkins!: As has become our tradition, we did lots of pumpkin-related activities this month…we went to Patterson Fruit Farm for pumpkin shopping with the aunties, Mapleside Farm for a pumpkin festival with Shane’s dad and stepmother (which will be a BLAST next year for Liam – there’s a ton for bigger kids to do), and then of course had our carving/pumpkin day. All of this was fun before, but it’s so much more fun with Liam around – it’s all become baby-centric and that could not make me any happier.
Grandparents: With Shane’s mom and stepdad in Florida, we started having weekly dinners with his grandparents. It’s good for us, good for them, and really good for Liam. As I’ve said before, Liam is at a tremendous deficit with grandparents, but he is blessed with a ton of great-grandparents. When I was born, I had none left – Liam has five! What a lucky little boy. He also spent his first Halloween with his great-grandparents, though with his super early (self-imposed!) bedtime, it was admittedly pretty anti-climatic. He did get all dressed up for school though and had his first Halloween party!
Democracy: We voted early this year because I wasn’t sure what obstacles would face us with voting in a new place. I actually requested absentee ballots for us but they didn’t arrive until about a week after the election. Knowing how important this election was, and maybe even more importantly to start setting the good example for Liam early, we went to our board of elections in Chardon on the Sunday before the election – along with what felt like half of the county – and voted. We know that we cancel each other out on many issues, but that doesn’t matter: what does matter is exercising our right!
I think that’s about it! He’s walking everywhere – trying to run!, attempting to escape from our giant playpen at every chance he gets, laughing, clapping, dancing, singing – he’s a blast. We feel so, so, so lucky to be his parents.
The Brennens... 