Yet Some More Camping Pictures

Mike didn't post some of my favorite pictures on our second camping post so here you go!
Doesn't Liam look so cute sleeping in the tent for the first time?
The view from our campsite was amazingly beautiful especially at sunset.

Rocky Lake - the non-crying pictures

So, Tara would have you believe from the pictures she selected that our trip to Rocky Lake was tantamount to abuse. The kids didn't acutally cry the entire time. Only some of the time. :) No, really, Liam and Emma were fantastic, and I think both of them really enjoyed the new environment.

Camping at Rocky Lake

We are about ready to set off in the canoes. Look at how unsure both Liam and Emma look. Luckily, the both adapted well once on the water.

Mike and Liam spent a lot of time just exploring our campsite. Liam loved the trees.

Emma was really not a fan of her life jacket at first. Each time it was put on her she got more used to it. By the end of the trip she hardly put up any fuss about the life jacket going on.

Liam wasn't happy about his first swim in a lake. He did look pretty darn cute in his little green speedo!

Here we are the happy camping family!

Tough Guy

To make up for the fact that we don't have pictures of our camping trip yet, here are a couple of pictures of what Liam wore to plan the trip. He wanted to look like a tough guy to prove that he was ready to go out into the wilderness.

Liam's Big Adventure

Last weekend Liam had his first really big adventure. On Saturday morning Liam, Mike and I met up with our friends Brian and Carolyn and their 1 year old Emma to go canoe camping. We stopped in Ellsworth to get some provisions and then made our way to Rocky Lake, which is about an hour and a half or so away from us. We got to the lake, packed up the canoes and headed out onto the lake. It was a beautiful day for canoeing. After a bit of confusion as to where to camp we finally found a small island, which had a great campsite. We unloaded our canoes and set up camp. Emma, Carolyn, Brian and I swam for a little bit. We put Liam in his little swimsuit but he was not at all a fan of lake swimming. I guess when you are only ten pounds you get cold pretty quickly. Mike bundled him back up and they sat on a rock and watched us all swim. Following our swimming adventures we made some dinner and enjoyed the campfire. Before long it was dark and the loons were calling. The lake was utterly silent except for the call of the loons. It was a fantastic night for star gazing. After a bit of time looking at the stars we all headed to bed.

Liam was so good sleeping in the tent. We had him in so many layers and then put him in a little blue hooded fleece bunting to sleep in. He looked a bit like a teletubby. The only trouble with him being so bundled was that it was a bit hard to nurse and burp him.

The next morning we woke up and ate some yummy oatmeal. Liam spent much of the breakfast hour laying on a blanket cooing at the trees. He loved the way that the light played through the trees. He is not often content laying on his back and not being held. This was not the case in the woods. He loved it. It was so amazing to watch him be fascinated by his natural surroundings.

After we cleaned up from breakfast we set out across the lake in our canoes. The day before we had spotted a sand beach across the lake that we wanted to check out. So, we packed some lunch and paddled our way to the sand. The beach was really beautiful and the water was warm so Emma went for another swim. She splashed and played while Liam ate and then managed to poop all the way up his back to his neck. We really had no choice but to strip him and give him a good dip in the water. Boy was he not a fan of that! It did do the trick though and he was clean enough to put back in clothes. Luckily, I had packed him an extra outfit for our canoe to the beach.

We had a great picnic on the sand and then paddled back to our campsite. Once we got there we packed up our gear and headed back to the car.

We could not have been more pleased with how the weekend went. It is great to know that Liam is easy going enough to handle a canoe camping experience. We are hoping to try a longer canoe camping trip sometime soon.

Sadly, Mike and I forgot our camera. Thankfully, Carolyn brought hers. We are waiting to get the pictures from her and once we do we will post some pictures from the trip. You will all love the look of our little camper.

Two months and Ann Landers

So earlier this month, my parents were here for a few days to meet Liam. It was a wonderful visit, and it was hard for everyone to say goodbye. However... I just couldn't resist posting this little picture. Sorry Mom, I just love the expressions.

Anyway - Happy Birthday, Liam. Two months today. It's amazing to me how much you have changed in just eight weeks - from something somewhat cartoonish to the little, growing person who eats, farts, coos, chirps, cries, smiles, stretches, sneezes, yawns, lifts up his head and looks wide-eyed at the world around him. It gives me so much joy that he seems to be enjoying the sky, trees above him, and fresh air around.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

So the other day I had a parental rite of passage - swallowing my first unsolicited bit of "advice" from a total stranger. It happened in the library, where the boy and I had gone to check out some new cookbooks. I had him Bjorn'd, but naturally, he began to express his displeasure about 5 min after entering the library. I think I was fumbling around for his pacifier when another library patron approached and suggested that the child was probably hungry, and that I should have his head bundled up better than I did. I wouldn't call it condescending, just overtly nosy. I kind of bristled inwardly and immediately felt protective - it was strange. Instead I just informed her that Liam had just been topped off minutes ago and that he 'was probably just tired'. (Oh yeah! This kid hasn't eaten in HOURS! What am I, insane? I don't dare go anywhere with him solo unless he left the house right from the nipple. Sorry if that's crude, I'm just not keen about going on a stroll with a hungry Liam. Not much I can do about it right now, if you know what I mean) Anyway, I kind of felt like I was being inspected, so I left to walk it off. Turns out I was right about the tired. A little bit of waking and viola, he was out for a good hour. The person's comment was probably not much more than a friendly suggestion, but I really disliked hearing it. I'm sure this won't be the last time that total strangers offer their mis-timed suggestions. I guess it's something to expect from nosy biddies who shuffle around the library all day. There, that felt better. :)

Bar Island

Liam and I took a nice little hike around Bar Island on Friday. Bar Island is only accessible at low tide (if you should happen to be talking to Mike O ask him what happens when you miscalculate the tides). This hike is within minutes of our house so it makes a really easy afternoon outing for us. Liam put up with me taking our typical pictures while out on the trail. It is pretty amazing how he can continue to sleep on rocks and itchy grass without much fuss. We certainly are lucky to have such an easy going little guy.

He is getting bigger!

Liam seems to be changing everyday. I have started to notice little fat rolls on his legs and the start of dimples on his knuckles. We took him to the doctor the other day and found out that he is now a 10 pound baby! It is amazing that he has grown so much already.

Watching Liam each day is fantastic. The littlest things seem to capture his eye. Shadows, light dancing on the ceiling, the contrast of paint between the ceiling and the wall. All the noisy light up toys in the world would not be as interesting to him as the simple pleasures his natural surroundings provide him. It makes one wonder when it is that people start to lose the ability to revel in the simple.

Sunday Hike

Mike, Liam and I set out for a hike on the Great Head Trail right off of Sand Beach. It was a picture perfect day with a clear blue sky and nice cool breezes. As always, Liam was the hit of the trail. Many people stopped to ask if this was Liam's first hike. They were pretty surprised to find that he had been out on the trails for awhile. One couple went as far as to call us brave and warned us that there was a place that we had to climb up some rocks. The Great Head Trail is one of the easier trails in Acadia so we had to giggle about their worry when we were out of earshot.

I have noticed recently when Liam is out in the Baby Bjorn that he kind of lifts his head to the wind and enjoys the feel on his face. It is so great to watch him take in his new environment bit by bit.

Mike's B-day

Emma has a very cute way of hugging. She takes her head and puts it on Liam's hand or head. Carolyn, our good friend and Emma's mom, and I were loving watching the two of them together.


Aunt Chris can't get enough of Liam's very cute hands. He is so relaxed with her. It is wonderful to have such good friends to share Liam with.

Emma seemd to want to pick Liam's nose or maybe she was pointing out that he had a nose. Whatever she was doing it was pretty cute.

This is our dear friend Brian with his daughter Emma. She seems to really like Liam though I can't decide if she think he is just a rather big doll that moves and makes noises.


Here we all are at Mike's birthday dinner. We were lucky to be joined by our good friends (start from Mike's left) Barbara, Steve, Brian, Emma, Carolyn, Chris and Joel. Can you see little Liam all tucked up on Mike's chest?

Big Smiles for Grammy and Grampy

We had another great day today. We took a nice long walk on the Jordan Stream Trail and then walked on a carriage road between Seal Harbor and the Jordan Pond house. After our we went to lunch at the Thirsty Whale in Bar Harbor. It was great for Liam to have his first Whale experience. We came home and all relaxed for awhile before heading to dinner at McKay's. After dinner we enjoyed a nice chocolate cake to celebrate Mike's and Grammy's birthday, which is tomorrow. Following cake, Liam gave his Grammy and Grampy some pretty big smiles and maybe the beginnings of a laugh. Each smile continues to amaze us all. I love that we are starting to see the beginnings of his personality. He certainly seems to have a silly side.

Liam meets Grammy and Grampy

Liam has finally been able to meet his Grammy and Grampy. They arrived late last night. Today we headed over to Ship Harbor to check out some ocean creatures. We found tons of fun creatures, including one tiny seastar that we felt compelled to put on Liam's head. In the true Camp Nuhop tradition we wanted to make sure that he really experienced the sea. We are looking forward to further adventures with Grammy and Grampy.

New Tricks

It seems that each day finds Liam doing new things. This morning he smiled at Mike two times. I had told Mike that Liam had smiled at me but he had yet to see it. The smiles are few and far between at this point but they are priceless when we are rewarded with one. Liam has also started to be able to hold his own toys a few minutes at a time. It is so cute to see him holding onto his little toy bird or ladybug that came with his playmat.
His final new trick happened last night. We have been giving Liam tummy time to build up his neck strength. Last night he turned himself over from his tummy to his side. He almost had himself all the way over to his back. I think he would have had it but he became too frustrated and mad to get there.

Liam and I have had pretty low key couple of days. We try to get out for a walk each day. Liam is finally comfortable in his stroller. It is great to throw a book in the bottom of the stroller head to the ocean and read once Liam has fallen asleep.

Each day is a new adventure!