While we were in Wilmington, NC visiting Grammy and Pop McDonnell, Pop took us to the Wilmington Children's Museum, which turned out to have a truly excellent array of fun hands-on activities to explore. Doctor Liam loved the room where he could use all of the doctor's equipment to check out whether the bears were healthy. He ran straight for the thermometer and ran over to the giant bear and took his temperature in his ear.
After checking out the bears in the doctor's office, naturally he had to race over and play dentist with the dragons, hop into a kayak for a quick read, and then play trains with Daddy.
But then the wild fun really kicks off when he discovers the outside exploration area...and a real live school bus. For a little boy who loves singing "The Wheels on the Bus" this is akin to walking into your favorite MTV video. He goes ape. He walks up and down the stairs at least 17 times, singing to himself the whole time. He chatters away about the song and eventually makes his way to the driver's seat.
After exhausting himself on the bus, he discover some large "builders"-- dump truck toys. These, naturally, are most excellent for racing around.
After a few warm up laps by himself we hear, "C'mon daddy!" and the races begin. Notice the advanced defensive racing technique, cutting off the opposing driver.
One day Liam went over to play at his friend Elliot's house and got to watch the Nashville Predators, our local hockey team. And from that day forward hockey has been among his favorite sports. He especially loves to go over to Elliot's house and play hockey with Elliot, complete with sticks and helmets.
The images are sort of blurry but there's something nice about that too, because when the boys are together, the boys are sort of a blur of activity as well. Though amazingly, they play really well together, and even though rowdy we've yet to have one of them get injured with the stick. Perhaps its because of those awesome helmets...
There's a funny little thing about kids. Every once in a while something happens that makes you remember that these crazy wonderful little creatures don't know how to do so many of the things we take for granted. Like spit. It seems like little boys should know how to spit from birth. That your primary problem as a parent would be teaching them NOT to spit.
But after Liam turned two he was eligible to move up to big boy toothpaste with actual floride in it, provided he could learn to spit instead of swallow it all. So we had to begin the lessons in spitting. The first couple times he just couldn't get the idea. He would chug down the water, swallow and then open his (empty) mouth wide.
Then the very next morning he tried again and voila! victory!
We learned a while ago, thanks to Terry, that Liam was actually soaking up and retaining much more of his stories than we thought. Now we have fun by letting him "fill in the blank" while we read the stories.
In this reading of Goodnight Moon he got distracted by mom and the camera, and then halfway through he gets obsessed with finding the "elephant." Have any of you who know Goodnight Moon ever seen an elephant in there? I'm betting not. But our little eagle eyed reader found an elephant on the shelf in the last page and now hunts for it on all the pages of the room.
This year Nashville saw the much heralded return of the cicadas. Liam was at first scared, and later fascinated by all the "buggies." After one particularly ferocious storm, leaves and buggies were strewn all over our back deck, along with some styrofoam from the recycling container.
I noticed Liam was crouched at the threshold and repeatedly picking up and putting down one of the pieces of styrofoam. It turns out he had constructed a little styrofoam lean-to house for one of the live-but-exhausted buggies.
Later Liam took his little Liam-sized broom outside with me and we both "swept the buggies" off the porch. This became a favorite activity and for nearly a week every morning he wanted to hand me my broom and lead me to the back door so we could "sweep a da buggies."
After he finally works up the courage to pick up one of the (dead) cicadas, he takes him on a little tour of the deck to find more of his buggy friends "C'mon cicada. Here cada. Where are you?" and later after I suggest that he throw the cicada over the railing, Liam thinks on this suggestion, looks at the cicada and makes the observation "Having wings. Fly."
One of the most interesting things I read in the Montessori in the home book was that children become increasingly fascinated with mimicking household routines once they've mastered walking.
One of the first things that Liam became really fixated on was sweeping. As soon as he sees me take out the broom or swiffer he cruises across the room and wants to take hold of it and do it himself. It is just so incredibly cute. This is a video from one of the first times he did it.
Liam went through a weird phase where he seemed really interested in breathing through objects. We gave him one of those long decorative plastic straws that is sort of crinkled like an acordion all along its length. He quickly learned that he could breathe out it rapidly and make a sound like a flute. But mostly he liked sitting around and breathing deeply through the straw like some creepy crank caller.
Ditto when he managed to pull down the wine aerator off the shelf. He plopped it right in his mouth and started that silly deep noisy breathing. Darth [breathe, breathe] I am your baby.
And yes, I supervised his use of the aerator the entire time and shortly after this video I took it away from him and removed it to a higher shelf.
I would say that Peekaboo is, hands down, Liam's favorite game. He loves all forms of the game. He likes hiding his face behind the curtains while I change his diaper and then peeking out. He likes hiding under a piece of laundry that he steals from the couch while I'm folding a load. His favorite book is a peekaboo book where he finds things that are hiding behind other things, and every single time he uncovers the elephant and I read "peekaboo! braaaloooo" he laughs like he's never heard it before.
He likes crawling up on the bed in the morning and uncovering Daddy's sleeping head from beneath the covers--peekaboo alarm clock. And he will even on occasion hide behind his own hands and play a straight peekaboo game. People who try to play just the hands part of peekaboo, hiding and uncovering their face silently, that's okay. But throw in a good enthusiastic proclamation "peekaboo!" and he falls over in gales of giggles. If it is his first discernible word I would not be surprised.
But by far and away his favorite incarnation of the game is peekaboo pantry. Whenever the pantry door is even slightly ajar, he crawls inside, gets himself seated, and...well, I won't spoil the rest. Just take a look for yourself.
The other thing that I find precious about this video is that there are not a lot of domains where it seems clear that he is reacting to verbal speech in a particular way, but in this video you can see that he opens the door when I talk about "where's Liam?" and the one time I wait for a while without saying anything, he also waits inside without opening the door.
For the life of me I cant recall if I already posted this, but it seems like not. Its from December 11th, before we left on the great holiday tour of 2009. This was the first time we saw Liam doing intentional mimicking, so I like to think of it as the dawn on baby communication.
As previously mentioned, the day of Liam's first birthday was a massive snow storm in Nashville. It was Chicag-style snow. It threatened to derail the party, but thanks to some hearty playgroup friends, the party went on! Here are some cute photos of Liam experiencing snow for the first time...
Liam and Terry in the snow in front of our house
Liam's first experience with snow...
...which, like everything else, mostly involves asking "is it tasty?"
Crawling in Snow
Tasty tasty snow
Liam continues to struggle valiantly to crawl. Cora decides it is probably much smarter to sit like a lump in her marshmellow suit
Gal pal Cora with her Mama Ariana
Two of the most stoic babies I've ever seen
Because we have no sled, I get all mac guiver and repurpose a box
When the box breaks down, Grandma takes turns carrying Liam home from his snowy walk.
Something about this video reminds me of video installations you might see in a museum. Small baby trucking diligently across the yard.
This was an unusually warm and sunny day, even for Nashville. Or maybe this year I should say especially for Nashville, because we had the 11th coldest February on record. We took advantage of the warm day for Erin to set up our composter and Terry to build the raised garden beds, and for Liam to have some free time to cruise around the yard experiencing nature.
The week before my 30th birthday Liam began standing independently. He wouldn't push himself up from the ground, but if he pulled up on something he could then let go and stand for a few seconds. Terry and I would make a game out of it, setting him up and then letting him stand and balance by himself. Sometimes we'll count out loud how long he's been standing. And whenever he decides he's done we clap for him.
During my birthday weekend he set a record, standing by himself for thirty seconds before he got down!
Just after his first birthday he seemed to start boycotting independent standing. When I would try to set him up and let him go he would lean heavily back into me, so that he was almost horizontal and if I took my hands off his back he'd flop over unceremoniously. This boycott went on for about a week. During that time, the only times I saw him stand independently would be when he was leaning against the coffee table and wanted to pick something up with both his hands. Without really realizing he was doing it, then he'd be standing a bit apart from the table intently examining whatever had caught his fancy. Soon he'd realize he was standing, and very cautiously he would slowly squat down to a kneeling position. But in the past few days he has started independent standing again, and seems like he may be ready to take some dramatic first steps (perhaps more like stuntman dives) soon.
Grandma Schultz came into town for Liam's first birthday, but she just barely made it, because even as I drove to the airport to pick her up, the flurries had begun. Nashville doesn't usually get much snow, so the city more or less shuts down when it gets even an inch. But the weekend of Liam's first birthday we got SIX INCHES! It kept us at home on Friday (ice + no salt = dangerous even for a chicago girl) so I didn't get to go out and get the birthday decorations I had wanted. No balloons, no streamers, no party hat for the birthday boy. I was feeling seriously bummed. I was committed to not going overboard for his birthday (ahem, no pony and clown etc). But still I had wanted to make it a fun and festive and memorable occasion. After all, a baby only turns one once.
And I knew also that the snow might mean that no one else would come. I thought our next door neighbors would brave the trek, but all of Liam's friends from playgroup seemed unlikely to come.
So it was with great happiness that I got a few emails that morning saying that some of his friends who lived nearby were going to brave the snow! In the end it wound up being a wonderful group of folks and just the right size that none of the babies got overwhelmed. Liam's gal pal Cora came with her mom Ariana. Dillon, a february girl from Liam's playgroup, came with her mom and dad. Quetzal Sol, a march baby from Liam's group, made the trip out with his mom and dad. There were babies crawling all over the place, chasing balloons, crawling under the coffee table and hiding out together, and shaking noisy toys. It was delightful.
Singing Happy Birthday (aka Flame Swallower)
Liam Eats Cake
Birthday boy with mom and dad
Eats cupcake
Liam LOVED the balloons. He chased them all over the house with glee.
Liam and Core play with Liam's new Leap Frog table
For my 30th birthday some of our close friends flew in and we all rented a cabin in the Smokey Mountains together. It was wonderful to be able to spend concentrated quality time just being together. It was quiet and loud, there were moments of serious bonding and moments of that were just silly. So all in all, it was just what I wanted. Even though I had a minor meltdown and got stupidly caught up in the little details that don't matter (like burning the turkey and burning my hand using a flimsy washcloth to try to remove the burning turkey) and lost my temper.
But even that was sort of a growing experience, and strangely became one of the more reflective moments of my birthday. Customarily I like to pass birthdays by reflecting on what the past year meant to me as a person and what the upcoming year may hold. But often life gets so busy I haven't always made time for those reflective moments. But losing my temper over something stupid, and in front of all my closest friends who had flown around the country to be with me, was a startling moment that catalyzed reflection. It made me realize, or be more conscious of, the ways that being a mom, and always giving giving giving to Liam taps into a store of patience. I am now more aware that I have to be conscious of when that reservoir of patience is getting low and make sure that I plan in more "me" time than I used to need. I used to joke that I got all the "me" time I needed during my brief morning shower, but that isn't so true anymore. A good friend of mine recently quipped that sometimes she feels like she'd be a better mother and person if she occasionally got a week long vacation from her family. And even as I love my husband and son from the bottom of my soul to the top of my head, I can understand now that sometimes at the end of the day all I want is to curl up in a symbolic cave and read a book and have no one ask anything of me.
Well, that became more of a confessional than I intended. But this is as much for me and posterity as it is for all you readers, so I suppose it is good to faithfully represent what happened, even (or especially) when it doesnt show me in the best light.
But there were also great time! Girls laughing in the hot tub! Boys playing pool! The best freaking birthday cake ever!
The view from our balcony when we arrived at the cabin was spectacular
Wenona and Eric enjoying the sunset with baby Zane
My college roommate Natasha flew out from San Francisco to join the fun
Liam meets baby Zane
Eric demonstrates the finer art of playing pool while wearing a sleeping baby
Everybody hangs out in cozy jammies while Terry makes a great breakfast
Zane gives Sian some quality snuggles
Zane does a little tummy time. Check out that drool!
Eric and Erin rock the baby carriers on our outing to Gatlinburg. We thought it might be quaint. Turns out it was a major tourist trap, complete with its own Ripley's Believe it or not!
Wenona and Sian in Gatlinburg
Back at the cabin, Liam passed that iconic baby stage: he discovered the toilet paper and promptly unrolled an entire roll.
In homage to years past when we hosted our friends for Urban Family Thanksgiving, I wanted to have a turkey dinner for my birthday dinner. This was perhaps a little overly ambitious for the poorly appointed cabin kitchen. There was burning things (including my fingers), turkey stock all over the oven, cursing, and more. A good reminder that sometimes ordering pizza and spending time with friends is a better idea.
Getting the babies acquainted
Hey lady, are you gonna kiss me?
Liam corralled so he doesn't climb the stairs.
Liam and Ian sharing a very funny joke
Liam makes a cheese-ball grin with Aunt Natasha
Moms and sons
Dads and Babies
Everybody together on the balcony for the last afternoon.
As a young teenager I remember my cousin Delaney's first Thanksgiving. I remember it so well because in front of the entire gathered family, they gave baby Delaney a pickle, and she made the most dramatic, hysterical face. Maybe it is a bit sadistic of me, but I've been looking forward to giving Liam his first pickle at the holidays in front of my family in the grand family tradition. He has such expressive faces, I was sure his reaction would be a riot.
But actually, what is most remarkable about his reaction is how non-plussed he seems to be. In fact, I stopped recording after a while because it was just a baby eating a pickle. And after the end of this record, he goes on to snarf most of a pickle, even picking up and preferring the pickle pieces to his favorite: blueberries. Really? a baby who prefers a pickle over fruit? What worldly little taste buds :)
Update: Liam is STILL a pickle monster. Pickles are his new favorite food. At lunch most days he gets one third to one half of a Vlassic dill pickle cut up into cubes. If I'm lucky I can sneak some of his "real" lunch into his open maw while he's busy shoveling pickle cubes in as fast as his chubby fingers will allow.
Over the holidays we got to spend a week with the McDonnell family, which was lots of fun. Liam got to see Aunt Bri and Uncle Jesse for the first time since he was just a little lump of potatoes last spring. This time he was an interactive little charmer.
Grammy Mac Makes Liam Laugh
Reclining on Aunt Bri's lap is very comfy. Maybe someone could feed me peeled grapes?
Hanging out with Grammy. I like racing down the hallway and then going up and down stairs (with Grammy's help).
Taking my bottle on mommy's lap. I like looking out the window at the golfers.
