11.29.11 ~ Our Little Three Year Old Turkey

Liam's birthday was a hit (oh, and so was Thanksgiving!). He was so excited about his party, his cake, "his girls", and his presents. He seemed older this weekend somehow. There were several instances where he did new things that he had never done before. For example, on Thursday evening Jason was headed to the Ravens game. When Liam figured this out and learned that he was not going, he got so disappointed that he cried for a long time about it. And it wasn't a temper tantrum cry. It was a really sad, disappointed cry. The depth of his emotion and the length of time it took for him to feel better about it was totally new. I couldn't distract him with anything. He just had to work through it. When he woke up the next morning, he wasn't upset about it anymore, but he was still talking about it. His reaction sort of seemed appropriate for a three year old - but not a two year old.

Another example was when he tried out his new scooter. He had been borrowing his friend Simon's scooter in New York, so he had already gotten a bit of practice there. But it took him about one day in Baltimore to work up to flying down the side walk at maximum speeds. He figured out how to steer and how to coast balancing on just one leg. And when he got really comfortable, he started lifting one leg high in the air like a figure skater. Jason and I were totally shocked. Liam is usually so careful and deliberate about everything. He's never been a risk taker and tends to shy away from heights or anything else dangerous. We were so surprised to see our little non-risk-taking kid zooming down the side walk on his new scooter. He literally stopped being a toddler and became a little boy before our eyes.

  Liam trying on his new snow boots, umbrella, and wolf backpack.

 A car just like Klaus's!

Scooting home with his balloons. 

 A new bike!

 Hook em!

 Liam took this picture with my camera. Impressive, right?

 Aunt Bar made a Liam a firetruck cake!

Liam and his girls. 

 No tears this year when we all sang happy birthday. All smiles. 

11.24.11 ~ Are You Ready?!

Tomorrow is the big day! Today we'll be enjoying turkey and stuffing with our families and tomorrow we'll be celebrating three years of Liam. Happy birthday, Little Turkey. You make us so happy and proud! And Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

11.23.11 ~ Liam-Fest Birthday Bash Kick Off

We've been counting down:

And yesterday we kicked off the celebration with Liam's friends at school:

11.17.11 ~ The Third Trimester

Yesterday was the first day of the third trimester for baby number two. I didn't realize it until this morning, but I thought it should be documented. So, I grabbed my phone and took a lame mirror shot before Liam and I rushed off to school. I have barely seen my dear husband in almost two weeks since he has 9,000 deadlines today. But he should be free as a bird this weekend and I will stick a real camera in his hands and we'll do this again the right way. Until then... this is what 28 weeks looks like:

11.8.11 ~ Three Year Check-Up

Yesterday we had our three year check-up with the pediatrician. During the walk to the doctor's office I tried to prep Liam on what to expect. 

Nina: So the doctor is going to check you out with her eyes and her tools. She will check your eyes and ears and mouth. It won't hurt you. She is just making sure you are healthy. 

Liam: She has tools?

Nina: Yes, doctor's tools.

Liam: She has a screwdriver? 

Then in the waiting room: 

Nina: The nurse is going to come out in just a minute and say your name. When she does we have to follow her to the doctor's room. 

Liam: OK

Nurse: Liam Hetzner

Liam: No thank you. 

Despite his hesitation, Liam did an astoundingly great job. The last few visits have been marked with crying from the point that I start to undress him until we leave. But yesterday, he didn't shed one single tear until he got his flu shot (which, I think, is a perfectly reasonable time to cry). And even then, he only cried for a minute or two and recovered very quickly. He's a very healthy but little guy. His weight is still hovering right around the 10th percentile (he's still only 27 lbs!). Also, this was the first time that his height was measured standing instead of laying down, which is supposed to be more accurate. According to his growth chart, his height has dropped from around the 50th percentile to just under the 20th. Which, thinking about Liam compared to most of his friends, definitely seems more accurate! Jason and I are just fine with having a little shrimp. However, we are wondering whether Liam's little sister will also be small, or whether she'll be towering over him soon! 

And his small size is not due to lack of eating. Here Liam is snarfing down my whole milkshake at dinner on Friday night! 

10.31.11 ~ Trick-Or-Treating in NYC

This was our first year of trick-or-treating in New York. And it was a surprisingly great experience. Obviously it works a little differently here than in the typical free standing home neighborhood. People here either trick-or-treat at shops or go from apartment to apartment within a building. We did a little bit of both. First we hit up the stores along Columbus, Amsterdam, and Broadway with Liam's friend Simon and his family. Liam and Simon very quickly got the hang of it. At each store they would shout "Trick or treat!", then "Thank you!" and then "Happy Halloween!". Between stores the little fire fighter and triceratops got plenty of attention as they raced down the side walk, hand in hand, singing a "Happy Halloween" song to anyone passing by.  Then we met up with William and Isaac and their families (from Liam's class) and trick-or treated in William's building. It was a relief to finally be in the warmth. It was also nice to have William's apartment as a home base with lots of treats, drinks, and toys. And his building had 18 floors and an elevator. That's trick-or-treating in  style, people. Overall, Liam had a total blast. I wonder if he'll remember this Halloween next year. Even if he doesn't, the concept of the holiday seemed to at least sink in this year. Costumes and candy and scary decorations -- Liam was down with all those things.

Trick-or-treating in the wine store.

 Triceratops and Fire Fighter.

 Trick-or-treating in the drug store.

 Trick-or-Treating in the cupcake shop.

 "Happy Halloween!"

 Eating candy with Isaac and William.

Waiting for the elevator.

"Trick-or-treat!"

10.30.11 ~ Dinos, Tutus, and Snow in October

This was the perfect weekend. On Friday, Liam's classroom had a pajama party so Liam went to school dressed in his pjs. Friday was also the last day of school for him before Halloween, so over his pjs he wore his triceratops costume. He was so excited that he decided to eat breakfast in full costume. 

After school we went to Annabelle's house where there was an impromptu pajama, tutu, dance party. 

And then, Saturday morning, Jason, Liam, and I woke up early but stayed in bed to snuggle and play until almost 10am! I can't remember the last time we were able to do that! And once we finally got out of bed, it started snowing outside! We took a little walk in the falling sleet and snow to grab burritos for lunch.

 Liam was quite excited to carry his own umbrella. Though, I think we should probably get one his size!

The rest of Saturday was spent cleaning and fixing up stuff around our apartment. It's starting to feel a bit more like home now. And it was oddly comforting to spend a day indoors puttering around with tools and cleaning products when it was too cold and wet to go out anyway. 

This morning we had another lovely, lazy morning and then headed outside to enjoy the little bit of snow on the ground in the sunshine. Liam had a great time sliding around on the ice. 

I'm hoping for many more perfect, fall weekends. 

10.26.11 ~ Poor Second Child

I have been a real slacker about documenting this pregnancy. But, suddenly, I can no longer pretend I'm not pregnant. My belly has really grown in the last two weeks. I'm starting to get uncomfortable. I think she's sitting a lot higher than Liam did. I constantly feel pressure on on my ribs and stomach and lungs and whatever else is located up there between my belly and my boobs. I keep feeling like I'm already out of space, especially after I've eaten. I have no idea how this little girl and I are going to exist in the same skin for another 15 weeks.

Liam is really funny about the whole thing. He's always commenting on how my belly is getting bigger. And he has fully digested all of the information I've shared with him about the baby and how this all works. He knows that she's in there and that she is in a separate compartment than the food I eat. He knows that she gets her food from what I eat and that it comes directly to her tummy through a "straw" and not through her mouth like his own food. He knows she's swimming around in there in a pool of water and he knows she can hear him. He even knows that she is going to come out eventually and that he is going to help take care of her. But he has no idea how much this little baby is going to rock his little world. There is no way for him to know just how things will change for all of us. There's really no way for any of us to know that.

Jason is kind of funny about the baby too. I think he's a little weirded out that she's a girl. He had no sisters and no cousins. He grew up with mostly boys around. Thank goodness for Christy Ricker. Without her he would literally know nothing about girls. Also - and this isn't a girl thing because he was the same way when I was pregnant with Liam - he is still freaked out by feeling the baby move. He thinks it feels like a person stuck in a pool under a tarp, trying to get out. Geeez.

Anyway, this little baby has definitely already experienced a lot during her 25 weeks in there. Most of these experiences have not been very baby centered (dissertating, moving, etc). However, I will try and be better for the remaining months of this pregnancy. Try and focus on her a little more. And try and document what's going on a little better. At a minimum, hopefully, we can choose a name for her!