
Friday, December 27, 2013
The Whole Keenan Clan

Wednesday, December 25, 2013
Monday, December 23, 2013
17 Months Old
Stats: Height: 33 1/2 inches. Weight: 23.13 pounds.
Favorite Foods: No huge developments in the food department. He has eaten mac & cheese a couple times and seems to like it, so I need to find a healthy & quick version to make for him. Cheese really seems to be his thing these days... cottage cheese, string cheese, goat cheese, etc. He gets particularly excited about Boursin on rice crackers (one of mama's favorite snacks too)! And for a little treat every once awhile we buy Teensy Fruits; he goes crazy for these things and will be on his best behavior as he slowly picks them out of the package one by one!
Breastfeeding: Nursing a toddler has been quite the experience! I love how it calms him down and gives us a few quiet moments throughout the day. Some days he only nurses twice (nap time and once before dinner) and other days, that seem to be rough for the little guy, he nurses frequently. Liam hasn't been sick at all this winter, which I attribute to him still being breastfed as well; there are just so many benefits! He's still nursing throughout the night, but hopefully this will start to slow down as well!
New Words: We have a little chatter box on our hands! There are far too many new words to list! It has been so fun watching him figure out how to communicate with us and to see just how quickly he can learn a new word. Hearing his sweet voice just melts my heart. I cannot wait 'til the day that he says "I love you!"; that will be a big moment for me!
Sleep: He is only sneaking in a 2nd nap if we're in the car late in the day, otherwise he's down to 1 nap and that usually happens about 2 hours after he wakes up for the day. Still sleeping from 8:30am-8:30pm and waking up about every 3 hours (this is an improvement from every 2)! I think he may have slept for 7 hours straight one night, or I just slept through him waking up and nursing. Either way, I was excited! Liam's is still in our bed, and we are perfectly fine with that. :-)
Favorite Interests: His interests are really starting to show. This month brought an obsession with cars & trucks! He loves to walk around our neighborhood and point out every single vehicle we pass, and pretty much does the same thing in parking lots. He also just discovered puzzles, which quickly became a favorite activity. He will sit quietly at his table taking the pieces all out and then putting them back in; it's one of the few times he is still. He looks like such a big boy that I just can't handle it! As usual, books are his number one, absolute favorite, I could do this all day activity. We now keep a book or two in the car for him to look at while we're driving. We've been reading The Goodnight Train on repeat lately. He loves all the fun things in the pictures, and Mama has fun reading all the rhymes, winner winner!
Our love for sweet baby Liam grows with every day! He is constantly changing & surprising us, and boy are they the best surprises! His smile & laugh are contagious, and his hugs & kisses are so tender they just warm your heart. He has his moments where his frustration shows, but he is quickly back to a happy boy. Liam is such a smart & handsome boy, but as his Mama I may be a bit biased.
And I wasn't going to say anything, but... I'm going to have a one AND a half year old next month! What?! That's not possible! I love watching him grow, but mourn the days of his babyhood slowly disappearing. I'll try to live in the moments, but it is hard! Can't wait for all of the fun that is surely ahead of us, and the coming new year!

Tuesday, December 17, 2013
DIY Felt Christmas Tree
- Felt.
- Fabric scissors.
- Hot glue gun.
- Chalk.
- Painters tape.
- Grab a glass of wine; you should never craft without a beverage! :-)
- Grab a bottle of wine if you are
makinghaving your husband participate. - Use chalk to outline the tree shape you want on a large piece of felt folded in half. This way it will be symmetrical. (The chalk will rub off when you are finished).
- Felt sticks to felt, so that is how the ornaments stay on the tree. However, you may want to permanently affix some things (like the star on top or decorations on the ornaments), so use a hot glue gun for that.
- Be conservative with the hot glue; it can easily seep through the felt and look messy.
- Use painters tape to hang up your tree without having to worry about it ruining your walls.

Monday, December 16, 2013
The Halls Have Been Decked
I love using fresh wreaths & garland whenever possible, so the two outdoor wreaths (on our upstairs window & front door) are real, as well as the garlands on the porch. Home depot had 15 foot garland for $5 on Black Friday, note to self for next year! It's hard to see in this picture, but this Pottery Barn wreath hanger is engraved with our last name, so simple yet it adds that extra bit of extra special. I'm pretty sure I registered for this when Conor & I got married. A wonderful gift for newlyweds in my opinion!
Details on our crazy tree can be found here if you missed it! I really need to find a tree skirt & tree topper, but I am being much too picky at the moment and just can't find one that a really love. While I don't like staring at the tree stand, the presents that have started to appear since taking this picture are hiding it pretty well.
For the banister garlands, I decided to use fake pre-lit ones so that I don't have to buy new every year. I found some really natural looking ones at Costco. Plus, they will hold up better with little hands always grabbing at them. I love how this turned out; I instantly get a huge smile on my face every time I walk upstairs. I had a real hard time deciding whether or not to have the wreath face outside or inside; eventually, I decided that I would enjoy seeing it more than the neighbors, so inward facing it is! This is the entry way to our house; it's the first glimpse of Christmas you get on your way in! Anyone notice our little elf hiding...?
I, of course, had to add a little flair to Liam's playroom, since we spend so much of our day up there. This Pottery Barn Kids banner can be found here. I really wanted to purchase some Christmas bedding for Liam, but let's be honest.... he doesn't sleep in his crib! Conor convinced me that would just be ridiculous. So maybe, just maybe, he'll be soundly sleeping in his own room next Christmas and I can go to town decorating his little space!

Friday, December 13, 2013
Five on Friday
It's officially 12 days 'til Christmas, and I am loving every bit of this holiday season! Tonight I am hosting my book club (which will of course include festive drinks & dessert). Then Saturday & Sunday will be spent making "neighbor treats." Yeah, my neighborhood is that cool! We've already had a mini bundt cake left at our doorstep; I can't wait to see what our little delights are headed our way! Come Monday, it's the hubby's work Christmas dinner which MAY be the 1st time we leave Liam with someone other than my mom. A night out.... in heels...without nursing friendly attire...or a baby trying to crawl into my lap! Hopefully it will all work out. Here's my weekly Five (thanks to all the lovely hosts: Christina, Darci, April, & Natasha)!
-ONE-
While at Whole Foods this week, I discovered the most amazing Peppermint Cream cupcakes from Rubicon Bakery. I love buying festive treats this time of year, especially to surprise Conor with. To say he loves all things peppermint is an understatement, so these made for one happy husband. Cupcakes for the win! If you live close to a Whole Foods, go snatch these up before everyone else does!
-TWO-
Another festive treat I've devoured this week are the holiday bars from Theo's Chocolate (a local Seattle company). We had a friend visiting from out of town, and she brought Washington wine & chocolate as a hostess gift. Any guest who brings wine & chocolate can stay as long as they like (take note future guests)! Back to the chocolate... how do you say no to coconut mint or peppermint stick? You don't! If you're a Seattle local I recommend taking their factory tour and sampling all their chocolates. But even if you live far away, some specialty stores (like Whole Foods) carry their chocolate.
-THREE-
With mason jars being all the rage right now (I know I'm obsessed), I was excited to find this cocktail shaker! This is adorable and a necessity for all summer cocktail shaking. I fear that my kitchen is being taken over by specialty glassware, but this needs to get on my bar right away!
-FOUR-
We had a big moment in the Keenan house last night.... Liam was showing signs that he was definitely tired, but it was a bit early to put him in the tub. He kept trying to get me to go upstairs with him, so I figured we could spend some time in his playroom before we got him ready for bed. When we got upstairs he went right to his bedroom, started trying to take his clothes off, and told me "bath". Whoa! Did he just tell me that's it's time to get ready for bed?! It was pretty amazing. My little boy is growing up, and much too fast for my liking!
-FIVE-
Another Liam moment that put a smile on face this week happened while we were reading Pooh Loves, a Classic Pooh book. I'm all about classic pooh (my teddy bear growing up was classic pooh); he is so much better than that Winnie-the-Pooh bear. I love how beautiful the illustrations for Classic Pooh are, but they are a bit different and really throw Liam off. He insists that Piglet is a mouse, even though I always tell him otherwise. So for now, Piglet is a mouse and he says "squeak squeak squeak"!

-ONE-
While at Whole Foods this week, I discovered the most amazing Peppermint Cream cupcakes from Rubicon Bakery. I love buying festive treats this time of year, especially to surprise Conor with. To say he loves all things peppermint is an understatement, so these made for one happy husband. Cupcakes for the win! If you live close to a Whole Foods, go snatch these up before everyone else does!
-TWO-
Another festive treat I've devoured this week are the holiday bars from Theo's Chocolate (a local Seattle company). We had a friend visiting from out of town, and she brought Washington wine & chocolate as a hostess gift. Any guest who brings wine & chocolate can stay as long as they like (take note future guests)! Back to the chocolate... how do you say no to coconut mint or peppermint stick? You don't! If you're a Seattle local I recommend taking their factory tour and sampling all their chocolates. But even if you live far away, some specialty stores (like Whole Foods) carry their chocolate.
With mason jars being all the rage right now (I know I'm obsessed), I was excited to find this cocktail shaker! This is adorable and a necessity for all summer cocktail shaking. I fear that my kitchen is being taken over by specialty glassware, but this needs to get on my bar right away!
-FOUR-
We had a big moment in the Keenan house last night.... Liam was showing signs that he was definitely tired, but it was a bit early to put him in the tub. He kept trying to get me to go upstairs with him, so I figured we could spend some time in his playroom before we got him ready for bed. When we got upstairs he went right to his bedroom, started trying to take his clothes off, and told me "bath". Whoa! Did he just tell me that's it's time to get ready for bed?! It was pretty amazing. My little boy is growing up, and much too fast for my liking!
-FIVE-
Another Liam moment that put a smile on face this week happened while we were reading Pooh Loves, a Classic Pooh book. I'm all about classic pooh (my teddy bear growing up was classic pooh); he is so much better than that Winnie-the-Pooh bear. I love how beautiful the illustrations for Classic Pooh are, but they are a bit different and really throw Liam off. He insists that Piglet is a mouse, even though I always tell him otherwise. So for now, Piglet is a mouse and he says "squeak squeak squeak"!
Enjoy the weekend everyone! Only two more shopping weekends left!

Wednesday, December 11, 2013
The Tree

Tuesday, December 10, 2013
Holly Jolly PJ Party


Sunday, December 8, 2013
Jolly Ol' Saint Nick
Coat: Northface / Boots: Frye
