liam at seven

Tuesday night, Liam went out to dinner (Red Lobster!) with my parents, followed by a special birthday shopping trip. On the way home, he was tired. Not just that, but he told my parents he was tired, and when my mom gave him a blanket and a pillow, he laid his head right down and rested. It doesn't seem like such a big deal, but it's one of those things that sneaks up on parents. We get so used to kids who go-go-go-go until they melt down and collapse in exhaustion, and then before we realize it, we've got a kid who is self-aware enough to know when he's tired and to do something about it before the meltdown stage.

Subtle milestones like that have marked this past year for our Liam. He is leveling out emotionally, understanding the reasons for things without having to experience negative consequences firsthand. He is so responsible, so in charge with his brothers, or at least he tries to be. Every morning, he helps Henry out of his crib and downstairs, where they quietly play together because, as Liam says, he knows that Mike and I are tired and he wants us to rest. Max, of course, chafes at the idea of Liam having any authority, but Henry revels in it. He wants to do everything Liam does, follow Liam everywhere, and Liam is patient enough to not just let him, but to teach him — most of the time.

The world is wide open for Liam right now, and he's doing everything he can to find his place in it. He reads voraciously, gets obsessed with video games, runs with joy. And lately, he's been getting more and more into art. On their shopping trip, my parents took Liam to the art supply store and got him his very own set of colored pencils, markers, paints, charcoal pencils, and oil pastels — that last one was what Liam specifically asked for from them for his birthday, so he can make a cityscape that's been in his imagination — along with a sketch pad and other supplies, all in a very grown-up case. He's been using them all day, and it's so fun to watch how happy he is when he's creating something, and how serious he is about taking care of his tools.

So today, we're celebrating Liam. The kid who doesn't like frosting because it makes him "feel funny" will have a grape Jello cake topped with cool whip. He'll go to swimming lessons. He'll play with his brothers, and enjoy the freedom of being a kid on summer break. And maybe the best part of all, he'll listen to me and his dad joke around — and he'll get the jokes! Welcome to 7, Liam! It's going to be a great year.