Spotlight on Liam

I would like to take a moment to put the spotlight on Liam. Yes, this blog has turned out to be mostly about him anyway, but before I get to his most recent stint, I wanted to include a couple of memorable events from his baby years that I had failed to mention before.

Mommy and Liam (7 months old)

(Photo courtesy of Kristen Somody Whalen/Parenting.com. All rights reserved.)

When Liam was only seven months old, we were invited by a dear friend from Church to participate in a photo shoot by Parenting. The photos would be used as stock photos for that year. To our knowledge, only two photos were used (see below). One of Liam's photos appeared for an ad in Parenting magazine and another photo was used in Baby Talk magazine for their monthly advertisement section (meaning, the same photo appeared every month). It was such a fun experience.

The above picture of Liam (mommy "photoshopped" out) was featured in "extras" advertisement section of Baby Talk magazine throughout 2008.

(This is a scan of the magazine ad.)
(Photo courtesy of Kristen Somody Whalen/Baby Talk Magazine/Parenting.com. All rights reserved.) 

 This picture of Liam (from the same photo shoot) was used to advertise the "Beautiful Baby Week" from the Live with Regis and Kelly morning show. This ad appeared in the February 2008 issue of Parenting Magazine.
(Photo courtesy of Kristen Somody Whalen/Parenting.com. All rights reserved.) 

Also fun, (more for me than for Liam because he was only 4 months old at the time) was a TV segment on a live morning show. We were modeling a snap n' go stroller for a Mother's Day segment and we got good air time. We are featured up close starting at 1:08.

Fast forward to December 16, 2011- Liam's second photo shoot ever . We heard about this one through my husband's job. They needed some models to pose with toothbrushes that look like mini light sabers. Knowing Liam's fascination for all things Star Wars, we gladly accepted. We were informed though that the ads (with the volunteer models, Liam included) are NOT for regular commercial use but intended for "internal" purposes, meaning they will only be seen in dentist offices. Still we thought it would be a fun experience and it certainly was! The commercial ad features a professional child model.

So, these are all of the photos that I took that day. The professional shots were taken with a green background so that the ad agency's "photoshopping" process would be easier. I can't wait to see the finished photos. I do hope that at least one of the photos he was in got picked for the ads.

Liam was shy a first, but warmed up a bit when he saw the other boys having fun. I brought his Darth Vader costume along for the photo shoot just in case they would need it which in fact they did.

dum dum dum      dum  da  dum      dum  da  dum...

 Liam overheard that Darth Vader would come by later for a few photos and he could hardly stand the wait. After every round of photos, he would immediately race to the door to see if he was coming. When he finally appeared with a Stormtrooper, well I thought Liam would just burst with excitement. He ran and grabbed a light saber to "battle" with him. Then, he begged me to slip his little Darth Vader costume and I could not have put the costume on fast enough.

 Moments later when it was time to take pictures with them up close, Liam couldn't help but stare, making the picture taking somewhat challenging at times. When he was asked after the photo shoot what he though of these adult-sized Darth Vader and Stormtrooper, he said that they were "a little bit creepy". Yeah, it's one thing when you see them on TV and quite another when they are there in person towering over you, just a little too close for comfort.

While we are on the subject, I have asked him about his fascination with this particular villain and his militia. He says that he thinks their costumes are really cool, which makes me wonder. They really should make the heroes costumes better looking than the villains costumes!

By the way, the GUM Star Wars toothbrushes are now available in stores everywhere. We really like the light saber toothbrushes that light up for a whole minute to indicate when the child is done brushing. Excellent feature. The spin brushes and the other standard brushes with the Star Wars characters are also a huge hit with my little Liam.