Our Little Turkey

We had a low key birthday for Nora - although, true to Hetzner style, we stretched the low-key celebrations out across four days. We celebrated with my parents, Helki, and her friend Emma, then with Ron and Joan (alongside the Super Bowl), then on Nora's actual birthday with our little family of four (Jason stayed for it!), and then the day after with the Steele clan. The first time we sang her Happy Birthday she was all like "Really? For me? Not Liam? Actually for me?" She cannot say all that... her look said it all. See for yourself:

Happy Birthday Nora I from NMPH on Vimeo.

She is definitely embracing toddler hood. Nora is talking more and more every day - and she's getting clearer with what she's saying as well. She always wants to sit on the potty and often successfully produces something! She throws temper tantrums and puts her hands up over the sides of her face while she crumples to the floor in the most dramatic display of emotion of all time. She loves taking care of her baby dolls and cooking in her kitchen and singing and dancing and playing super heroes with Liam's toys. She really loves to color and so far seems like she's ambidextrous. She loves giving hugs and kisses - but only on her own terms. Above all, she loves to be included. She is so happy when Liam and Sydney want to play with her and she was so happy when we signed her up for gymnastics and she realized she wasn't just on the sidelines watching Liam anymore. Also, when everyone else is laughing, she laughs too, just so she can be part of it. And, I am happy to say that Nora is now outgrowing her 18 month sized clothes and is starting to wear 24 month. Which means her size has pretty much caught up to her age. I am really looking forward to her check-up on Friday to see what she weighs and whether she's actually on the growth chart now.

She's one of a kind. And I'm so happy she's ours.

2.10.13 ~ Parenting

This shows why we love them... and also why we drink.

kids dancing from NMPH on Vimeo.

Stay tuned for a recap of Nora's second birthday!

2.4.14 ~ Happy 2nd Birthday, Nora!

Today marks the end of babyhood for Nora and for our family. Holy mixed feelings.

Nora as a two year old. Where do I even begin? She's one-of-a-kind. She's loving and sweet and tough and affectionate and sensitive and observant and in-the-mix and careful and reckless and confident and caring and beautiful. She's practically perfect in every way. Happy Birthday Little Nora Bear! We love you!

noras bday4 from NMPH on Vimeo.

2.3.14 ~ More About Austin

I promised a recap of our Austin trip so here we go:

A few days after Christmas, Jason, the kids, and I flew to Austin to visit Jill and Josh. The plane trip was a nonevent -- thank goodness because kids are always a wild card on planes. Both kids behaved, the flight was on time, and Jill and Josh were waiting for us upon arrival. We shed our jackets (though it was actually cold there, certainly by Texas standards), hopped in the car and drove off toward my happy place. I love that city. This is not news to anyone. But each time I go back, it hits me all over again. Even though the city is barely recognizable from when I lived there, it still feels familiar and relaxed and happy and comfortable. I lived there during such an important time in my life. Such a time of change and development and discovery. I wonder where my kids will spend those periods of their lives.

While we were there we did a mix of things - some kid-oriented, some not. Whitney was also in town, so one evening we left the sleeping kids with a sitter and went out to an amazing dinner with Jill, Josh, Whit, and Adam. It was a spicy and boozy Thai dinner - and Jason and I were happy to be out together, with friends, and without children. That doesn't happen often.

But it wasn't all dinners and kid-ditching. Jill and I also took the kids to the children's museum and to this amazing wildlife zoo. That's why, in the pictures I posted, there were ones of Liam and Nora petting camels and zebras and other wild things. It was really one of the coolest things I have ever done with them. Those children are animal lovers and having the opportunity to feed and pet animals - some that they've only ever seen in books before - was really memorable. Especially because the zoo was so laid back and no one was barking rules at us. The kids did what they wanted and no one was eaten or run over by a tractor or trampled by a bison. So it proved to me once again that sometimes it's just best to let them be.

I'm not sure though if Nora was more impressed with the exotic animals or with Sandy and Shady, Jill and Josh's puppies. She loved those puppies and sought them out all day long. She wanted to be with them when they ate, when they played, and when they slept. We had to create some boundaries because the doggies did not feel the same affection for Nora. Especially Shady was not pleased with Nora's proximity at all times. Jill put the dogs in their crates and we told Nora they were sleeping so that they could have some peace. So Nora ran around the house whispering "shhhhhh puppies" to everyone. Over and over again until they came back out to play.

On New Years Eve we fed the kids, wished them a happy new year and put them to bed. Jill and Josh threw a party at their house and our children miraculously slept through all the merriment. Which was good. Very good. The weather was chilly but Jill and Josh set up a fire pit on their newly redone patio. We ate, we drank, and we celebrated the end of 2013, mostly outside. I may have celebrated so much that I don't have much recollection of the beginning of 2014. But I know it got off to a happy start in a place I love surrounded by great people.

And Jill and Josh. I can't even say enough about them. They are the best hosts, the best friends, the most invested in kids that aren't theirs, the most thoughtful, the most fun.. and the list goes on. We are so grateful that they let us descend upon their neat and cozy home with two tiny monsters, three big suitcases, and a back pack full of toys that pretty much exploded all over the place.

It was a perfect trip, except for one important detail: Pia wasn't there.

Happy 2014!

1.9.14 ~ More about Christmas

I've recapped our Christmas and New Years in pictures and now am adding a few thoughts too. A couple days before Christmas my siblings started arriving in Catonsville. Every last one of us were there by Christmas Eve. That's Anya, Hannah, Nina, Vera, Jonas, and Helki...Plus spouses and kids and babies in utero. That was a crowd of 20 something at my parents' house. But in very not Philipsen/Campbell style, everyone got along really well. Maybe we took our cues from the kids who became instant friends. Liam and Kaya and Nora and Heiko paired off to play. Liam loved being the big cousin and the group leader. And Nora. Oh Nora. She was in heaven just being included. Little Heiko showed an interest in playing with her and she began following him around and trying to do everything he was doing. After that he couldn't shake her. Heiko and Kaya are both amazing kids and I am so glad that the cousin love is happening even with the distance between our families. And then there's Theo. When they arrived at Christmas it was my first time meeting that sweet baby. Theo handled all that chaos so well. He slept, he ate, he cooed, he observed, and he snuggled. He rarely complained or cried. I can't wait to see how he develops. Also, Hannah and Vera are the ones with the babies in utero... So there are two little girls who will be joining this crazy clan soon.

Because of the crazy activity at my parents’ house it was nice to have our apartment to retreat back to. Vera and Chas stayed with us, so they retreated too. And they celebrated Christmas morning with us. This was the first Christmas where Santa visited Liam and Nora in their home. He wrote Liam a letter a few weeks before Christmas letting us know Liam had been a good boy and to leave a window unlocked for him (since we don't have a fireplace). On Christmas morning the kids woke up and came downstairs to find that Santa had left them a small kitchen and table with chairs. Nora also got a stuffed dog and a puzzle and Liam got a two-wheel scooter and a batman cave (his specific wish). Santa had eaten the cookies the kids had set out and had also left behind a ton of tinsel on our tree. It was truly magical.

After our peaceful Christmas morning, Vera and Chas headed off to Chas’s family and Jason, the kids, and I delved back into the madness. We started the day with waffles and sausage over at Granddad’s house and then headed over to the Nana and Grampa’s. In the evening we had a huge dinner with everyone over at Jeff and Angela’s. In all three places the kids got more gifts and we were surrounded by family. Every year the chaos is a lot to take in. But I would have it no other way.

I will also write about our trip to Austin – but another day.