Raised by Anteaters

Picnic and Bedtime

2009-03-24T21:56:00.002-04:00

Liam was a total toddler today. He was a crazy mix of frustrating and adorable. This morning Mike and I were both ready to pull our hair out due to a nonsensical tantrum before we all headed out for the day. Thankfully, tonight he melted our hearts by having a cute picnic with "lots and lots of friends." If that wasn't cute enough, when I went up to go to bed I peeked in and saw Liam with two books propped up and him fast asleep. There are many of my habits that I wish Liam would not have picked up. I adore the fact that he has to have at least one book in his bed when he is heading to sleep. That is a habit I hope he always keeps.

Enjoy.

Crazy blue worm

2009-02-03T20:22:00.003-05:00

Hmm...it seems like our house has been infested by a large alien worm from a faraway planet!! Oh, nevermind. Just Liam.

Liam downhill skiing

2009-02-03T09:32:00.003-05:00

Liam had his first true downhill experience on Sunday. We have had him on his downhill skis a couple of times now generally just trekking him up small hills and letting him slide down. Sunday, however, we took him on the chairlift and let him ski down the hill with the help of the Ski Leash. He did amazingly well. He loved riding on the lift. I couldn't get over how natural being on skis was for him. The skis became an extension of his body and his was able to figure out the balance necessary to ski without falling. I had to do very little with the leash except for periodically use it to guide a turn or to help him stand up when he did fall. He is quite the little athlete and I love it. I so look forward to sharing skiing with him in years to come, just as Mom and Dad did with us.

Looking for winter fairies

2009-01-26T21:48:00.002-05:00

Swimming, Christmas, and Cake Batter

2008-12-11T23:40:00.010-05:00

Hello blog, remember me? Ah yes. But really, did anyone think that two procrastinators such as Tara and me could make it beyond one year?? So I guess we already defied the expectations. Hah!

Liam is rapidly approaching the 2.5 mark and astonishingly I see the first glimmers of little boy and less toddler as the weeks go by. He certainly seems taller, and he's a heck of a lot heavier, and looking over here at the door frame where we measure height, he's grown a good inch since his birthday in June. And he's grown in so many other ways - little milestones that he crosses that seemed so far away when he was born are now a matter of course. He is singing along to songs and and sit and can sit and look at books (for short periods of time). He can run - fairly fast too! - and he can hop around the house like a frog. This past weekend we went for free swim at the Y and he really took to the water like he never had before. He was extremely comfortable jumping in from the side holding on to my hands, and even going under the water as we traversed between lanes in the pool. He climbed on to my back and hung on as I swam a lap down to the deep end of the pool where we watched people diving in from the diving board. We practiced a bit of kicking and paddling, but my hope is he learns how to swim naturally. That just through time and experience, one day he just goes. A few weeks ago, Liam got his first pair of real downhill skis - handmedowns from a friend at work - but real bindings and real metal edges. We just need to find the boots. Liam is thrilled - he knows exactly what they are and what they do and the day we got them he was standing on them on the living room rug and asked to go sking. So between swimming and skiing, it is going to be an active and fun winter. Anything to get us through darkness at 4 pm.

And there have been some other milestones that cause us to pause. Such as the first time we think he had a nightmare and said it was a monster. Where does that come from? Learned or simply experienced and 'monster' - was the word he heard other people using? Who knows. I think the first monster he ever enocountered was the cookie one. Liam definitely wants to experience life first hand. His way of saying, 'I can do it', like when descending stairs, is to say 'my turn', and he does get frustrated when you say, no, it's not your turn, it's my turn and we have to get moving, so let's not dawdle and yadda yadda yadda. It's enouraging to see how he's taken on the concept that failure is not an endpoint but a reason to try again. He's likes to say 'try again,' or 'maybe next time' and tends to not get frustrated with immobile things in life. He saves that frustration for mobile things like his parents, who tend from time to time to hold him back against his will. I know, it's rough for 2.5 year olds.

Liam is extremely excited about Christmas; mostly for the lights and the music, and the shows, and less, I think, for the presents, which he hasn't mentioned and therefore, I don't think he really understands. The day after we set up the tree, he crawled underneath the branches to look up at the lights and later he decided to crawl in behind the tree, hiding himself in a corner, but probably in a world of colorful lights. He is also asking to listen to 'Christmas Songs' and seems to like just about anything we put on - JT, Martin Sexton, and the inimitable John Denver, of course. We're heading back to OH and NY at the end of next week, but before we leave we're going to try to have a pre-Christmas just to ourselves. Should be fun.

First Dentist

2008-10-08T22:11:00.005-04:00

I can't think of a better reason to post on this blog than to tell you that Liam had his first trip to the dentist today. Unfortunately, the trip to the dentist was predicated by two trips of the other sort. In the first instance he tripped and landed face first on a ceramic bocce ball. That ended up in a trip to to the ER, lots of blood, a chipped front tooth, and a couple other teeth that were moved back a bit. Stove-up as they say in Maine. And then last Thursday, he fell down the basement steps. Again, the banged up his mouth and tore that little flap of skin that attaches your top gums to your upper lip. The ferenium, I think. More blood, but we did have him checked out and no head trauma, concussion, etc.

So, we made an appointment with a pediatric dentist at the suggestion of the ER, to have things checked out.

The dentist is up in Bangor, so it's basically a half-day outing. Liam and I arrived and I filled out the forms while he played with the many toys in the waiting room. Then we were led back into the exam room. They've obviously done this once or twice, and Liam being two, they were fully prepared for a full on rebellion. Which is what they got. But it was fairly gentle. I held him in my lap such that I had his legs wrapped around my waist and I held his hands in mine. The nurse/hygenist held his head and did both a cleaning and inspection. Then the dentist came in for a look. All in all, they said that his injuries were fairly minor and that they see much worse. We still won't know for a few months if the jacked up teeth have fractured in any way, and even that won't be known unless the teeth turn color or an infection forms. They didn't do an xray because there was no way Liam was sitting still. All in all, it was a good visit if not entirely satisfying for dad. But what can they really do? The damage is already done and all we do now is wait and see. In the end, Liam was extremely glad to leave and only partially pacified by the stickers, balloon, and free toothbrush.

And finally, I'll note that one of my great realizations of fatherhood has been that the songs 'Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star', the 'ABCs' song, and 'Ba Ba Black Sheep', are all the SAME TUNE. Who knew?? Well, apparently Liam has figured this out.

A Whole Lot of Catching Up....

2008-09-01T09:42:00.005-04:00

As is abundantly clear, we have not done a very good job keeping up with the blog this summer. Therefore, some catching up is in order. Our summer was pretty good. The weather in Maine was nasty and rainy for a good part of the summer but we did manage to get in some good times. Over the Fourth of July weekend, we went on a fantastic kayak camping trip to an island off the coast of Deer Isle. It was a beautiful non-rainy weekend full of kayaking, swimming, yummy food and great friends.
In July, Liam and I went back to Ohio to visit our family. It was so nice to be home. Liam had an awesome time with his cousins. He was a total champ in the car to and from Ohio. Thankfully, I had our friend Kay Raplenovich with us on the way to Ohio and Mom on the way back to Maine. They both did a really good job of keeping Liam entertained.
With the beginning of August came a trip to Nova Scotia with Grammy and Grampy. It was so beautiful there despite some rainy days. We drove along the Cabot Trail traveling through the National park. It was so gorgeous! We also went to a really neat fort that was kind of similar to Willimsburg. Liam was a big fan of the fort aside from when the soldiers would play their drums and flutes. He seemed to find that pretty menacing.
Liam had a ball throwing about a million rocks into the ocean with Grammy and Grampy. He can throw rocks all day long and be perfectly happy. Good thing Maine is so rocky!

Liam is turning into such a little boy. His language amazes us as it seems so much more advanced then a normal two-year-old (every mother must say that though...). He cracks us up daily. Ever since his birthday party in June, he loves to yell out "Happy Birthday Cake!" The cake part is always tagged onto the end. He has recently taken to pretending to cook birthday for us and passing out imaginary pieces. We walked into the kitchen the other day and he had an oven mitt on one hand and a kitchen towel hung over his shoulder. He had the oven door open (thankfully, the oven was off) and turned around to pull his "cake" out of the oven. It was pretty clear that he had been doing a lot of observing of our cooking habits. Liam also amazes us with his ability to sing and remember songs. He loves to sing Moonshadow, Circle Game, Mike O's song I can Be Anything, and other songs like the ABC's and Twinkle, Twinkle. He often comes out with lyrics that we had no idea he knew. It is pretty darn cute. He is so fun to interact with at this point in his life. I love two, if only we could rid him of some of his meltdowns and make him more pleasant to take out to eat. I guess we can't have everything. We are hoping to squeeze in another camping trip or two before winter is upon us. With any luck we will not only camp but post about it in a more timely manner!

A little home improvement

2008-06-17T23:50:00.004-04:00

Time to play a little catch up here...

Grammy and Grampy visited over Memorial Day weekend, and when they are here, it usually means a project (or three). As you can see Liam was extremely helpful moving our large pile of dirt.

Or, perhaps a wheelbarrow is better used as a sedan chair.

Liam took his share of water breaks. It was a hot day.

Remembering

2008-06-10T23:35:00.000-04:00

Liam and his Papa, July 2006.

This blog is ultimately a way for us to keep in contact with our distant friends and make sure that everyone can see Liam as he grows up. For Mike and I, this blog also acts as a baby book of sorts. That being the case, I want this entry to mark both the death of Dad but also a way to remember him so that Liam can return to this blog when he is older and feel a deeper connection with his Papa. But what do I know really? For all I know, right now, Liam is communicating with Dad in ways he will always hold onto.
Let me try to explain what I mean...
When Mom was staying with Liam while I was in the hospital (lest we forget what a terrible spring it has been for us here in Maine), she and Liam would play a game in which they would pretend to be on the phone with Papa. "Hello Papa" they would bellow out and then giggle away. Liam could play this game for ever and still find it hilarious. Well, Liam continues to have phone conversations with Papa but they seem to last longer now. Children, especially young children, seem so much more open and present then we are as adults. When Liam was an infant I was convinced he could see things that I was not aware of. He could sense changes in energy and light faster and more consistently then I. I noticed times when his hair would raise up like an animals when they are excited or sense danger. All these things about his perception make me wonder if he isn't communing with Dad on some more cosmic level- I really hope he is.
With all that aside, there is so much that I want to make sure that Liam knows about his grandfather. As Tyler said at Dad's service, you had to experience Dad. My hope is that without that possibility, Liam will experience Dad through the stories and actions of those who knew and loved him so well. I fully expect Trevor, Tyler or our cousin Byron to surprise Liam with his first wet willy. I hope that when we meet Dad's old fraternity brothers they will tell Liam why Dad was called Flapper. Some Christmas when all the cousins are older, I can't wait for Mom to pull out the Ungame and force them all to go through the "Frightful Forest." I wish that Cathy will help me take Liam on his first official cemetery hike. I hope for years of campfires in which Turtle's voice and Dad's favorite songs become as much a staple of childhood as they were for me. While I doubt I will be able to get a dog in a jar (ex-science teacher and Dad's sick humor sometimes made for a really strange mix), I hope that I can channel enough of that sick humor to leave Liam with stories that will leave his future friends wondering what kind of house he grew up in.
I remember vividly that when my great-grandparents and then my grandmother (Dad's grandparents and mother) died within a very short time of each other, he spoke of placing them each on a different star in the constellation Cassiopeia. He did this so that as he took in the night sky and gazed upon the constellations he would feel a deeper connection to those he lost. Family, both immediate and distant, were always important to Dad as was nature and the night sky. By using Cassiopeia, Dad was able to make sure that whenever we all gazed upon the stars, no matter how far apart we were, we would always be connected by the things he loved. My first night hike with Liam, I plan to point out the constellation and name each family member who resides there so he will know the strength of the family from which he comes.
They say it takes a village to raise a child. My hope is that it will take a village full of people who loved Dad to let Liam experience all the strange and wonderful ways that Dad looked at and took on the world. May Liam see the love Dad had for all people shine through each of you that we are lucky enough to have in our lives.

Mother's Day 2008

2008-05-12T12:58:00.003-04:00

It is hard to believe that I celebrated my second Mother's Day yesterday. It was a beautiful spring day here in Maine. I started off my day on a walk with Angie, while our families made us a nice breakfast. The kids (mostly Eliza) helped cook some cute heart-shaped pancakes and Mike made a quiche. Liam had such fun playing with his buddies Sammy and Eliza that he was falling asleep on the way home. Following Liam's nap, Mike, Liam and I went to to the Asticou Azalea Gardens and then to Seal Harbor Beach to let Liam run around in the sun. He had a ball and so did we. Liam is a big fan of water and throwing rocks, sand, leaves or basically anything into the water. Once we got to the Seal Harbor Beach he was so happy just to be throwing and playing in the sand. He managed to get knocked over by some waves and was not too impressed by that. He did recover quickly and just became more weary of the water coming towards him. We certainly live in the perfect place for a boy who so adores the water. As always, we delight in watching him play. His enthusiasm for life is certainly infectious.

Slovenia

2008-04-29T14:59:00.008-04:00

Liam had his first extended time away from us, or I should say we were away from him. Mike and I headed to Slovenia over my April break. It was an absolutely fantastic trip. I cannot accurately describe how beautiful we found Slovenia. The mix of mountains (the Julian Alps) and hillsides covered with vineyards was at times breathtaking. We were visiting and staying with our friend Kay Raplenovich. Kay and her husband Bob have been living in Slovenia the last couple of years.
Our time with Kay was simply wonderful. It was filled with good conversation, laughter and having Kay share her surroundings with us. We were right on the border of Italy and Slovenia so we were able to explore parts of both countries. One of the highlights of the trip was hiking around in the foothills of the mountains on one bright sunny day. Mike wanted to take a picture as we were driving so we stopped on the road side. As Mike was taking the picture, Kay and I started to follow the sounds of water. As we looked across the road we noticed a sluice way of sorts, which lead to a series of man made terraced waterfalls leading up into the mountain. We followed it a ways and ended up finding this natural mountain spring, just bubbling out of the mountain. Kay and I decided that it must be the spring from the book Tuck Everlasting- and we all drank.
After that little hike, we enjoyed a great picnic lunch at a church high up on a hill with the mountains as a backdrop. Another highlight of the trip was attending a choir practice with Kay. Mike and I attempted to sing with the choir but our command of Slovene made singing along very difficult. It was a fun attempt though. Following the practice the choir always retreats to the wine cellar for some excellent wine made by the choir director in his wine cellar. Along with the wine there was much good homemade cheeses, salami (mike loved this)and bread. Periodically, the group would burst into song and it could literally bring tears to my eyes.
Slovenia is a beautiful country and the culture is so healthy. I was so happy to see how everyone cycled or walked everywhere. Kay also reported that everyone makes their own food. In addition, people apparently have just what they need and don't kill themselves striving for more then what they need. Excess isn't something they reach for. It was so refreshing to experience a culture in which these things were priority.
Liam did well while we were away, aside from coming down with a nasty case of the flu just hours after we left. My mom was great about taking good care of him though! He has recovered and seems to be back to his silly self. When Mike and I returned Liam eyed us for about 30 seconds before collapsing into our arms for a huh. I am pretty sure that he was trying to decide if he was mad at us or happy to see us. I guess he decided that he was happy as he really hasn't wanted us to be too far out of his sight since then.
So now we are back in Maine and looking forward to the forward march of spring (yes, spring is just now arriving in Maine). Shops and restaurants are beginning to open just as the trees are starting to bud. It feels great to have our town coming back to life. Slovenia and its lush green colors and beautiful flowers has me ready for that all to happen here.

Elmo and words

2008-04-03T22:50:00.006-04:00

Liam has recently developed a bit of a fascination with Elmo. So much so that we decided to get him a little Elmo toy/doll for Easter (see post below). I have to admit I was surprised when Liam didn't immediately form a bond with the Elmo doll. In fact, I think within an hour of having Elmo, he was already throwing him on the floor. At this point, Tara and I say sympathetically, 'Oh, poor Elmo. Did that hurt Elmo? Elmo, are you OK??' At first Liam didn't know what to make of this, then he thought it was rather cute that T and I were lavishing attention on Elmo after he had been thrown around. Now, he will throw Elmo on the floor and will pick him up and ask in Liam speak "You Kay, you kay?". Then will bring him (Elmo) over to one of us for a hug and a kiss. Liam will sometimes hug and kiss Elmo too, but he mostly prefers to throw him. One reason is perhaps that Elmo has large plastic eyes that make a loud cracking sound when they hit the floor. Ouch.

This morning, we had a critical moment with Elmo. As I was getting Liam ready to go. "OK, Liam, hat, boots, coat, outside" (is our current routine), Liam seemed to be hanging on to Elmo. Given my great insight into minds of toddlers, I sensed that if I told Liam we had to leave Elmo behind, it would quickly deteriorate into something unpleasant. I also didn't want Elmo to go to daycare thinking that something equally unpleasant might ensue the moment Elmo is 'borrowed' by one of Liam's daycare pals. Thinking quickly, I suggested to Liam that Elmo is tired and needs to go night-night while we went off to Annette's house - his daycare provider. At this suggestion, Liam paused for one moment, and actually agreed. He didn't say so, but with my help, we tucked Elmo in under a blanket on the couch. A few hugs and night-nights from Liam to Elmo and we were off on our morning routine. Success!

Words are coming along fast, and for a while, we had been keeping a list. Some recent words are 'puter' (computer), sorry, yoga (where daddy goes on Wednesday), tofu, tickle, smooshy face, and much to our surprise one day: 'I did it'. The other big surprise has been his counting. We usually count when we go up and down the stairs, and when we're reading his books that deal with counting. The other day he offered up '8, 9, 10' on his own when I stopped counting at 7. For whatever reason, he seems to leave out 4 through 6 when we count. He goes straight from 3 to 7, or will repeat 3 until we reach 7. Interesting.

Here's a little smorgasbord video of 2 minutes in the life of a toddler...

Happy Easter!

2008-03-23T07:56:00.004-04:00

We are going to head out for a Belgium Easter brunch at our friends Natalie and Rich's house, here in a little bit. There is some sort of Belgium tradition called Cocogne, it somehow involves smashing each other's onion died hard boiled eggs. Also in the Belgium tradition our brunch will consist of eating good cheeses, bread, chocolate and fruit. There is also be an Easter Egg hunt. We will post pictures upon our return.

In the meantime, We wanted to post a little clip of Liam dancing this morning with his new Elmo doll. He got Elmo as an Easter present. It should be noted that the song that Liam is dancing too is by our own dear Mike O. We got a package from him the other day containing a cd with his song, a movie he acted in called "Freedom" as well as some other fun surprises. Liam took to the song immediately. The Mckernan's are convinced that Mike O needs to make a whole cd full of kids songs. We happen to know how many people are always in search of kids music that adults like to listen to as well. Mike's music happens to be just that.

We hope everyone has a great Easter. Look for a new post of our Belgium Easter Brunch soon.

Photobooth

2008-03-18T21:21:00.000-04:00

Blogger changes

2008-03-05T22:53:00.002-05:00

Well, I decided to update to a new version of these Blogger templates. I'm not so sure that was a good move. I'm seeing a lot of strange margins and the like. Hmm... stay tuned for various small changes. Hopefully all for the better.

Children's Museum

2008-02-21T17:24:00.005-05:00

This week is my February break, so I took the opportunity to take Liam to the Bangor Children's Museum with my friend Angie and her kids Eliza and Sammy. Eliza also brought her friend Catherine. It was a great day of fun at the museum. Liam was thrilled to be there with Eliza and Sammy, who he idolizes. He had no trouble leaving my side to wander the museum but would never travel far from the proximity of the his friends. Liam was a huge fan of the giant Lite-Brite that was in one of the sections. He was also really into the example of a 10 foot long earthworm that was/can be(?) found in the Australian Outback.
There was a Charlotte's Web room as evidenced by the picture of Liam and Sammy on Wilbur.

Other highlights include Liam running out of a giant mouth in a room dedicated to the human body. He thought it was a riot to run on the giant tongue.

You will notice some pictures of Liam playing in some flour. It should be noted that I was not intending to let him play in flour. Those pictures are direct evidence of what happens when you are not paying enough attention to your child. I was literally 10 feet away from him but my view was blocked. I happened to be loading up pictures from the museum to send to Angie and I noticed that Liam was being awfully quiet. When I peeked over the counter I saw Liam and a big floury mess! Enjoy.

Liam makes his pick

2008-02-19T10:39:00.004-05:00

This photo appeared in an online photo gallery of one of our local papers. It was taken during the caucus the weekend before last. (Thanks for the tip, Chris!)

Liam's first ski

2008-02-17T21:07:00.007-05:00

Liam had another exciting first experience today - downhill skiing! (on a first-time, toddler, scale of course). We spent the day at Hermon Mountain near Bangor. Mountain is being rather generous, it's a big hill with one lift, a t-bar and 7 or 8 trails. Not where you want to go for thrilling downhill, but great family skiing. Liam got a free ticket because of his age, and we rented him some tiny downhill skis. He seemed to do OK in the lodge while we worked on his boots, but for some reason, as soon as we went outside, it was an utter meltdown, which we're sure was boot related. So, off went the downhill ski boots and back on when his snow boots. Luckily, our friends brought a small pair of skis with a softer, strap-style, binding that worked well over his boots. That seemed to do the trick because we went right back outside and he commenced to 'ski' for a good couple of hours.

For a while, I just let him shuffle around in his skis so he could get the sensation of having them on his feet. Tara and I took turns hanging with Liam while the other did a couple runs, then we would swap. Both of us would fish-scale up a tiny grade, either holding Liam or pushing him up the hill. Then we would put him between our legs and ski back down to the bottom. Tara, who is the pro ski instructor for kids, skied backwards in front of him while he more or less skied down , facing Tara on his own power. The hill was so shallow and he's so light, that sometimes he needed a little push or tug to keep his momentum.

So, aside from the real ski equipment, he had a great time. It was a kick to get him out on skis. It was hard not to think about him becoming a confident little skier in just a few years, trying to keep up with his older cousins and friends and leaving his parents in the dust.

Little video below - you can hear Liam mistake the snowboard instructor for daddy.

Words and Songs

2008-02-09T23:30:00.000-05:00

Liam was positively gleeful after being allowed to climb up the stairs in his birthday suit on his way to the bath. (the leaf is a bit of photoshop by the way, not a leaf stuck on with scotch tape)

It's been rather rainy here since late January, so we haven't had many skiing adventures with Liam, except for this weekend. He and I went for a ski on Sunday afternoon, and he happily rode along in the baby backpack. At one point, I heard him say 'uh-oh', to indicate that his shoe was falling off. Boy, was I glad he let me know his boot was falling off - it would have been a drag to ski back to find it.

Liam has been starting to find his voice over the last few weeks. When we go out and about around town, he'll say 'hi' to passing strangers, and people we meet. He will point and say something in toddler talk, and then we'll look together and try to learn the word. His new language acquisition is ramping up too. We taught him to say 'Obama' the other day, and 'touchdown', complete with arms raised in the touchdown signal. He's learning a couple of nursery rhymes - Twinkle Twinkle and Ring around the Rosie. Instead of 'Ashes, ashes', it's 'Ash-y, Ash-y, all fall down!' And then he needs s little help to fall onto his bottom. That and the refrain of 'Twinkle Twinkle'. Every now and then he'll shock us with some word or short phrase we had no idea he knew - like 'jack-in-the-box' for example. Today it was 'egg' and the other day 'cracker'. He already had 'cheese'. And he knows that 'outside' means he has to put on his 'hat', 'coat', and 'shoes' or 'boots'. And to our surprise, he said 'yes' this weekend; not, however, in response to a question, but in repeating 'yes' as he heard Tara or I say it. His favorite word, by far, is 'no'. Although half of the time, it's sort of a generic response to any statement from mom or dad that sounds like it might be a question.

We're also in the process of shoring up our babysitter pool. A friend of ours and professor at College of the Atlantic posted a note to the COA email-message board and we got five responses in just a few days. So far, we've met two of the students and they seem really nice. We're going to meet one more on Friday. Ideally, we want to find first year who will be around for a few years, and who doesn't have school nights or school athletics like our high school babysitters tended to have rather frequently.

Weekend Getaway

2008-01-22T21:02:00.000-05:00

This past weekend we went to Sunday River in Western Maine with a bunch of our friends. We took this trip last spring as well. We stay at a great cross country ski lodge called the Sunday River Inn which has a very family feel. It is really low key and makes a great place to take kids.
Saturday morning we set out at 5:30 so we could get in a good day of cross country skiing. I demoed a pair of skate skis, with part of our group while Liam and Mike went sled riding with some of the others. Liam is getting to such a fun age in which he loves to hang out with the big kids. It is so fun to see him interact with Sammy and Eliza. He is also good about being very gentle with his little friend Anouk.
We got in some really fantastic skis and as always Liam was a total champ. He adores being outside, which is such a plus for us.
While he was great during the day, he did have a horrible night on Sunday night. He was totally against sleeping and spent a lot of time screaming and crying. I don't think Mike and I got much sleep at all that night nor did our friends who were sharing a chalet with us. Last night I mentioned bed around six and Liam went straight to our stairs to go to his room. He started climbing up the stairs intent on an early bedtime. After a weekend full of good friends, great skiing and one night of little sleep we were all ready for some extra rest.

Dylan jr?

2008-01-07T22:38:00.000-05:00

So, here we are, first post of 2008. We had a wonderful trip back to Ohio and Rochester; Liam braved the 32 hours or more he spent in the car, and we never had to turn toward the DVD contingency plan. Excellent! Liam received many gifts from his grandparents, aunts, uncles, and friends. One of his favorites - see below...

What mousse?

2007-12-13T23:12:00.000-05:00

Look what happens when we turn our backs for just one second...? He's right in the chocolate mousse.

Snow Day!

2007-12-03T18:01:00.000-05:00

I had my first snow day of the season. Mike and I can't remember the last time we had snow up here before Christmas. We kept hearing that a big storm was coming our way but we were being pessimistic about the possibility of us really getting snow. Low and behold, I got a call around 5:40 saying that school was canceled. It was so much fun when Liam woke up to take him to the window and let him see the snowy world outside. He was pretty mystified. He just stood with his head pressed to the window for the longest time. We got a call from Angie asking if we wanted to take a snow day trip to the pool. Liam and I bundled up and headed to meet Angie,Sammy, Eliza (and one of Eliza's friends), Natalie and Anouk for a little swim. All of the kids had a blast. Liam swam forever and was having such a ball. We were at the pool for close to two hours and by the time we got home Liam was exhausted. I tried giving him lunch but you can see by the posted video that he was just a bit too tuckered out for that.

Mike came home from work early. He reported that the lab was a bit like a ghost town on such a stormy day. When Mike came home, we all headed out for a little snowy play. Liam had fun with some neighborhood kids. He was a big fan of the snow and was pretty excited to be playing with the big kids.

Finally, Mike worked hard all fall to get the outside of our house looking good. I posted some pictures so you can see the fruits of his labor. Looks great, especially with the snow.

Lots to be thankful for.

2007-11-25T19:10:00.000-05:00

It's become increasingly evident over the last month or so that Liam has become a little sponge. I was saying to Tara earlier tonight it's just amazing that not long ago he was a tiny baby, entirely dependent (still is, but to a slightly lesser, but really significant degree, you know). He seems to pay attention to things - to objects in the house and to both verbal and physical communication, and is irrepressibly curious. He'll actually stop, listen, and crane his neck and head in one direction or another to get a better view of whatever he's checking out, or to get a better view from around Tara's or my legs. Every once in a while, we catch him doing something completely independent. For example, he'll climb up on the couch, grab a picture book that is sitting on the cushion, and enjoy the book all on his own. He'll also pick up a book and back himself into my lap if I'm sitting on the floor. I don't want to take for granted some of the small but really wonderful things he's learned to do and say:

Call out loud for 'Da' or 'Dad' to ascertain his location or ask for attention
Growl like a monster from Where the Wild Things Are
March around the house waving a little flag
Say goodbye with a wave (still working on blowing kisses)
Use his legs to shake off his pants when we're getting him undressed for the tub or for bedtime
Say an approximation of Thank you
Pretend with props- tonight we were pretending to mix up and taste using a mixing bowl and spoon
Is *much* more easygoing about diaper changes. He now only cries and tries to escape about 50% of the time. Probably close to 0% at daycare, too.
Can pull himself up into his highchair, turn around, and sit down
Say the number 2 and understand it comes in sequence after 1
Kisses

We're so fortunate. . .

Here's a new video from a hike we took this weekend in the Park.

Haircut

2007-11-11T23:09:00.000-05:00

The other exciting event of the weekend was Liam's second haircut. I took him to Ray's Barber Shop (affectionately known as Razor Ray's), where we waited about half an hour for our turn. The fact Liam sat relatively still on my lap for 30 minutes waiting his turn was nothing short of astonishing. Unfortunately, the long wait + haircut extended through his lunch and into his naptime, so the moment he sat in the chair, it got a little dicey. Unfortunately, the best I can provide a is a photo from the waiting room, and then a video from this evening, so you can see a before and after shot (the before shot gives a nice view of his chompers, too). Liam was flailing around and having a fit for most of the haircut, so pictures were out of the question. It's amazing how a haircut can make him look so much older...

Before

After

Halloween!

2007-11-11T17:15:00.000-05:00

Well, we may be a little late but here are some pictures from Halloween. Liam, as you can see, was a bumblebee. He wasn't sure about the costume at first but soon seemed to forget it was even on. We weren't sure how Liam would like going out and about to join in the trick-or-treating festivities but he loved it. The town of Bar Harbor wisely blocks off the most popular trick-or-treating street. Thus Ledgelawn takes on the air of a festival. People who live on the street go all out with decorations to make the event that much more fun. The street is so overrun by costumed children that there is literally candy donations for those who live on the street. A house could easily spend over 100 bucks on candy each Halloween. Anyway, as soon as we let Liam out of his stroller he darted off down the street. He had no fear and didn't care about us, he only wanted to see the other kids as well as the Halloween lights. He was so cute walking down the street in his little costume. So many people commented on him. We went to a few houses with Liam's friends Emma and Anouk and their parents, Carolyn, Natalie and Rich. Following our trek down Ledgelawn we went to the Lompoc for dinner. Liam had a ball their playing on their bocce court. All in all Halloween was a great night.

On a separate note, Liam has really continued to love books and reading. I am including a couple of pictures of him curled up with a book as the pics were too cute not to share.

Dancing in the Morning

2007-10-28T09:44:00.000-04:00

Liam is quite a little dancer. He has also taken to playing a little musical instrument, which is really only the tube that helps blow up my exercise ball. We love to watch him march around like the Pied Piper and see the pure joy on his face when he is listening to music.

The sound of crunching leaves

2007-10-14T21:26:00.000-04:00

Blogging from Oregon... Here a couple more videos from our Sebec trip last weekend. Liam experiencing the sound of crunching leaves and playing in the stream. No nature deficit disorder for this child!

Salamanders and Cranberries

2007-10-13T08:43:00.000-04:00

Late September and October (thus far) continue to be relatively busy. I'm trying to finish painting the house amid rainstorms, falling temperatures, and other commitments. I'm off to Oregon today for a work meeting, leaving Tara and Liam behind for a few days. We have to get our iChat's going so we can videoconference our hellos.

We're really glad that Columbus 'discovered' America so we could be rewarded with a day off from work. Good job Chris! We celebrated his efforts with a trip to the Smith's cabin on Sebec Lake and a canoe excursion for wild cranberries. The cabin, as usual, was a wonderful retreat with good food and games with B, Chris and Joel. Last time Liam was there, he took his first bath in a kitchen sink. This time he took his first stream bed hike. Down the road from the cabin is a mossy streambed, with little pools of water for splashing around. It was the perfect place for salamanders, and we managed to find a few, which Liam (like me) found fascinating. When I let it go, Liam picked it up remarkably gently and was able to hang on to it despite wriggling and attempts to leap away. Yes, salamanders can leap. After Liam's attempt to taste or eat the salamander, we let it go. Much to it's relief, I'm sure. See the video below. We still have to be rather vigilant with what Liam attempts to put in his mouth. He tried a penny the other day, which he didn't like. I was able to snag it before it went any farther down the pipe. He made a rather hilarious sour/gross face, and I'm sure he was thinking 'I guess that's what 1000 pants pockets taste like'.

To round out our Columbus Day celebration, we went wild cranberry picking with Rich, Natalie, and their baby daughter Anouk. We took Liam cranberry picking last year, when he was a little less mobile. I remember he wasn't thrilled about being cooped up in the Bjorn while we bent over to search for cranberries. We canoed up Northeast Creek, into a what Rich described as a 'fen'. Liam was a great canoe passenger this trip, sitting in the middle of the boat, letting his hand trail in the water, and helping paddle. The ground up the creek is relatively firm unlike a swamp or a bog, so we got out of the canoes and searched on foot for cranberry plants. This was the perfect plan. Not only are the berries abundant away from the edge of the creek, but we were also able to sit Liam down on top of a cranberry bush and he could commence picking and eating to his heart's content (the report from his daycare provider is he had several bushels of undigested cranberries in his diaper the next day).

Liam's walking is starting to pick up speed, and he's making moves toward jumping, I think. He likes to stomp his foot, one at a time, and alternating. He's starting to climb up onto chairs and walks over to his booster seat when he wants a snack. His favorite perch is standing on top of a very low end table, where he has a view out the window. He's also starting to pick up a few more words (sock, shoe, hat, ball) and sounds (moo) since our last few posts.

Wandering around the green and the fair

2007-09-29T08:42:00.000-04:00

Liam has been having a rough time the past few days. He fell out of his crib yesterday morning at about 5 am (I'm pretty sure he found a way to bounce his way out), he's got the start of a cold, and more teeth are emerging. His mood has been less than chipper. But besides that, we have been fun exploring the world in new ways now that he can walk. He's taken to squirreling away little things in random places too. For example, we'll find a shoe and a book and maybe a pen which he put into his bike trailer, or we'll open the pots and pans drawer and find his bottle hiding out in there. I'm trying to tell him not to use the trash can to hide his little possessions, but I don't think he's quite caught on to that yet. He's getting better at sitting and reading too. He'll now pick up a book and walk over, and I can pick him up and put him in my lap and we can read the book together. He really likes turning pages and his interest to turn pages rapidly means the book gets in snippets as the pages fly by. Here's a video taken a couple weeks ago when I took Liam to the village green to practice his walking. As you can see, he's really getting the hang of it. The green was blissfully uncrowded on a weeknight as tourist season is starting to wind down.

Last weekend we went to the Common Ground Fair in Unity, ME. This was Liam's second time to the fair. He was *really* into it this year. We spent most of our time relaxing in the green in the middle of the fair and hanging out at the animal barns. We also took Liam to the children's area, but he was a little too small for most of the activities there. His favorite was the goat barn - I think he could have stayed there all day laughing and chirping and screeching with excitement. In the poultry barn, he was fascinated by the geese and started to mimic their honking sound. It's so cool to see him learn new things. So his repertoire of animal sounds now includes dog, kitty, duck, and fish (sucking sound with his lips). He tried a bunch of food at the fair including fried shiitke mushrooms, baked potato, strawberry cream puff, and a few varieties of heirloom apple they had in the kiddie tent.

Walking!

2007-09-13T19:18:00.001-04:00

Liam came home from his daycare yesterday walking! It is true. He had been taking a few steps here and there the most being to dear little Eliza, who is the best little babysitter ever. She had him taking five steps to her one night when her parents Angie and Chris were watching Liam for us. Apparently, if we just leave Liam with other people, he comes back with new tricks. Yesterday though, he really took off. We took a little video of it tonight to show you all. It is the cutest damn thing to watch!

Vermont and Visitors

2007-09-02T08:22:00.000-04:00

A few weeks ago now, Liam and I joined Mike on a business trip to Burlington, Vermont. Burlington is a great town located right on Lake Champlain. Liam did fantastically well the entire trip. One highlight for all of us was going to the Echo Lake Aquarium and Science center, which is located right at the water's edge. It was the first science center that Liam had been to. The center had a dinosaur display, which highlighted some big moving, sound making dinosaurs. Liam seemed totally unsure about the dinosaurs. He always seemed to keep one eye on them as if he were afraid they would start in after him. The science center also had a toddler room, which Liam adored. He made friends with the other kids in the toddler room and explored everything.
Burlington is a fantastic town as it has a nice little pedestrian street, which is blocked off to traffic. All of the restaurants on this street have outdoor seating making it really easy to have a little person with you. Liam and I spent much time wandering up and down this street exploring stores while Mike was in meetings.
When we got back from Vermont we had a couple of days and then Mike and I went to see James Taylor play in Portland. Our friend Barbara stayed with Liam making it our first night when neither of us was with him. We were so thankful to have a good friend whom we trusted enough to not have to worry about Liam and one who was willing to watch him! James Taylor was amazing!! We are thrilled that we got to see him.
A few days after coming back from Portland, Liam's Grammy and Grampy came to visit. We had a wonderful visit with them full of hiking, canoeing, good meals, playing with Liam and in general just good hanging out together. I believe that Grammy and Grampy were amazed by how active little Liam is. It is true that the boy never stops moving. Liam loved playing with his grandparents and was certainly sad to see them go. We all stood on the porch and waved goodbye and he gave us his very dramatic cry in which he is on his hands and knees and then drops his head and wails. The kid is born to be an actor!
The next day we picked up our good friend Mike Ostroski at the Bar Harbor Airport. Mike O arrived for the week ready to enjoy Maine in the summer. Mike gets up to visit every year to year and a half. This was his first time visiting in the summer. He was in love with how green it is here and how nice the temperature was. It was also his first time meeting Liam. He was great at entertaining Liam when Liam was sad. He would pick up the guitar and start singing to the little lad. Our favorite song of the week was kind of Greenday sounding called "Dancing with my Mom in the Morning." As with Grammy and Grampy's visit there was much good food, many good outdoor activities and in general just good companionship.
I started work last week. It was just teacher inservice days but it was getting back into the swing of things. Liam certainly knew that we were transitioning to a new kind of schedule and I am not sure he was thrilled. He has seemed really happy with his new daycare situation. I love picking him up and seeing him outside playing with the other kids. He loves being outdoors so I know he is happy.
Our camera was totally out of batteries for Mike O's visit and we couldn't find our charger so I will post pictures of that visit when we get Mike's pictures. Since we can't charge our camera all of our pictures with Grammy and Grampy are also going to have to be posted later. Stay tuned!
Finally, I have added a short video clip of Liam and his future drum career.

oops!

2007-08-13T08:50:00.000-04:00

I am not sure how we did it, but we managed to forget to put up a post about Liam's first birthday party. We did have one for him, it was a little late but it was a great time. We attempted to make a Hungry Caterpillar cake for him but the face got a little melted. Anyway, the food was good, the company was great and Liam was as cute as ever.

I am also posting some pictures of the house. Mike has been slaving away painting the outside yellow and people have wanted to see pics, so here they are at long last.

Changes and Visits with Friends

2007-08-12T07:28:00.000-04:00

It has been a busy few weeks since our last post. As you can note by the new pictures, Liam has had his first haircut and he is finally popping his two front teeth. They are so slow coming in but Liam is coping with it well. We are amazed with how much Liam's haircut has changed his looks. By having the trim he seemed to morph from baby to toddler instantanously. We would have pictures of him sitting in the barber's chair getting the cut but our camera battery died just as we got there. Liam did really well sitting for most of the haircut. The barber that we took him too is a classic old time barber shop down to the red and white striped pole outside the shop to the two older gentlemen who are inside cutting hair. It was actually intimidating to walk into the shop as it has the feel of a secert club. They were incredibly good with Liam though and there were a host of others in the shop there to witness the first haircut and to distract Liam. The shop is called Razor Ray's so I had to make sure to specify that I didn't want a buzz cut. I wanted some length left on Liam's hair and they honored my wishes.
A week or so ago, I met up in Belfast with two old and great friends. Lindsay lives in Bath, Maine with her husband Rick. Mike and I don't get to see near enough of Lindsay and Rick. For whatever reason the three hours between us seems huge. Lindsay is pregnant so maybe after baby Davis comes along we will try to get the kids together more often. Claire lives in Florida but was visiting her parents who have retired to Maine. Claire and her husband Jay have a litte boy named Jack. He is too cute and gave me a glimpse of what life will be shortly with Liam. It was great to see them all.
On Thursday of this week, Lindsay's parents called to say that they were in Bar Harbor and asked if they could stop by. I had a quick visit with the Pappas clan, which included Linday's sister and her husband. The Pappas' have a dog, which Liam could not get enough of. He loves dogs and was literally hopping with excitement. It was really funny.
The last of the big news this post is that I recently switched jobs. I will now be teaching in Southwest Harbor instead of on Swan's Island. It is still a special ed position but this one doesn't require a boat ride. It will be really great to have less travel time in my life. The position will have me working with kindergarten through fifth grade students. I look forward to having more time in the morning and afternoons to spend with Liam and Mike too!
.

Canoe Camping

2007-07-27T16:17:00.000-04:00

Last weekend we went canoe camping on Rocky Lake. It was a trip we took last year when Liam was just eight weeks old. We weren't sure how he was going to do this year being older and more mobile. I had tried him in his life vest around the house just to get him used to it. In the house he hated it so I feared a canoe trip filled with his screams. Thankfully, once we were in the boat and on the water he was perfectly fine with the life jacket. The best part of Rocky Lake is that we can camp on an island. This year we went to Rocky Lake with our friends Angie and Chris and their children Eliza and Sam. It is great to have Eliza and Sam around as they are fantastic at entertaining Liam. It is so cute to watch them play with him and take care of him. Sammy and Eliza are also great little campers. They had a ball swimming, canoeing and camping.
The downside to camping this time of year was the mosquitos. They were horrible for a period of about two hours. The kids all tried to be tough but they were being eaten alive as were the adults. Baby Liam as the kids call him, has quite a lot of bites on him now. One bite that I could have lived with out this camping trip was a leech bite. Yep, Liam had his first leech on his wee little leg. I had just told Angie the day before that it was no big deal if there were leeches in the lake. If one happened to latch onto any of us we would just pull it off. I was not so calm and collected when I found the leech on Liam. I might have yelled out like a girl and made Mike pull it off Liam's leg. Luckily, Liam didn't seem at all phased by the leech and continued to be happy to be out in the canoe with us.
We were totally amazed by how well Liam did sleeping in the tent. We thought for sure that he would not want to go down for a nap or for bedtime in the tent. Boy did he prove us wrong. He was amazing in the tent. He went right to sleep and seemed to be really happy hanging out in the tent. We are so lucky to have such a little nature boy.
Angie, Chris, Mike and I decided that since our Rocky Lake trip was such a success we would try Kayak camping later on this summer. Should be fun!

Rehoboth Beach Trip

2007-07-12T10:29:00.000-04:00

Liam had his first trip to a real sandy beach. Beaches around here just don't count, really. We met up with the entire Dunlap clan for a week at Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. My Uncle Jess and Aunt Linda have a condo there so they and my cousins Byron and Jenn as well as their significant others stayed in their condo while Mom, Dad, Ty, Leanne, Quinn, Colin, Trevor, Sarah, Ashton, Mattie, MIke, Liam and I all stayed in the condo next door. Boy was it crazy sometimes with all of those kids in one condo. As crazy as it was, it was fantastic to get to spend so much time with the family. I am not sure that Liam knew what to make with so many people around. He is used to the relative quiet of our three person home. Having the cousins around to entertain him and love on him was a definite pleasure though. He would trail behind them as they all went along their way doing the things that small children will do.
The first few days, Liam was not at all sure what to make of the ocean waves. He has been dipped into the frigid ocean waters of Maine but being near the waves of Delaware is an entirely different experience. The first few times we ventured near the water he would get quite scared of the waves rolling up towards him. Eventually, he grew to love them. On many occasions he would set off crawling away from out small village of umbrellas and towels and jet towards the wave without so much as a backward glance. We would trail behind him trying to determine what he would do. It soon became apparent that he was fully ready just to crawl right down to and in the water. We would scoop him up right as the water came sweeping past his knees and he would laugh. We certainly have a little water baby on our hands.
Liam was also a huge fan of the sand. He was perfectly content to sit and play in the sand and eat a ton of it as well. One would think that after your first mouthful of sand, you would not put more in your mouth. Liam seemed to think it was tasty as he would just keep shoveling more in. I guess he really believes in becomming one with nature.
Rehoboth has a nice little boardwalk that has a small amusement park for kids and grownups alike. Trevor was addicted to skiball the entire time that we were there and he seemed to pass on his addiction to Ashon. Liam just loved to got to Funland and watch the people and see the lights. Mike did take him on the Merry-go-round but he was not at all sure what to make of that. The rest of the cousins though were totally into the rides. At one point Colin, Mattie, Ashton and Quinn all were on these little kiddie swings, it was ridiciously cute.
I am sure that we will have many more beach vacations to look forward too. Next time I have no doubt that Liam will be ready to go all the way into the water and take on the waves.

Playing Catch Up!

2007-06-25T20:03:00.000-04:00

It seems that I always think about needing to blog, but never quite do it. Since our last post, we have celebrated Mike's first father's day. We celebrated by going out to breakfast in Ellsworth, a town about 30 minutes from us. On our way home, we stopped by a field of lupine to catch some pics of Liam. The lupine blooms for such a small window of time but it is so beautiful while it is in bloom. You really can't beat fields of purple and pink. Liam seemed to really like the lupine but also seemed to want to try to eat the flowers.

Today, Liam and I joined our friend Natalie and her daughter Anouk for a trip to Birdsacre, a sanctuary in Ellsworth. None of us had been there before and it was really amazing! The are about 200 acres of per served land right in the heart of Ellsworth. The sanctuary has restored the childhood home of Cordelia Stanwood who was an ornithologist and photographer in the early to mid 1900's. In addition to being able to tour the home you can walk the trails on the 200 acres and enjoy the tranquility that you wouldn't expect to find so close to town. Birdsacre also takes in injured birds so Liam got to see many owls and hawks. It was a beautiful day and a fantastic discovery.

As many of you may remember, Liam will be turning one on Friday! It hardly seems possible that so much time has already gone by. So, here is the lowdown on Liam at almost one. He isn't walking yet but cruises around on the furniture constantly. He will let go and stand for a few seconds but will eventually ease himself to the floor. He is the fastest crawler around, really. He still only has two teeth, we are getting a little worried that the rest of his teeth will never come in. Perhaps we will get him dentures for his first birthday. He pretty much will eat anything so long as he is in control of getting the food to his mouth. He loves fresh fruit, kalamata olives, tofu, avocado, pita bread w/ or w/out humus and cheerios. His favorite books are Hop on Pop (still), The Hungry Caterpillar and Brown Bear, Brown Bear. The only time he sits still is when we are reading, it is amazing. His favorite song is No Bad News by Patty Griffin. He dances to it every time. He already loves folk music, just like Mom and Dad.

We are heading to Rehoboth Beach to meet up with the Dunlap side of the family Friday after Mike gets off work. We are so excited to see everyone and to introduce Liam to a warm section of ocean, hot sand and real waves!

Closing in on the big day

2007-06-10T23:20:00.000-04:00

We had a lot of fun with Liam in May during this large gulf between posts. I promise we weren't sitting around at home learning the abacus or something. Grampy McKernan came up for Memorial Day weekend and helped us get a huge start on the summer project (I hope it doesn't last all summer) to paint the outside of the house. I'm continuing to plug away on the weekends and after work.

Liam is excited because he has a new bike trailer in which to zip around, attached like a little wagon to my bike. A few Sundays ago, he was out on the Park loop road for about three hours - there was a lot of stopping - and he did great. He also enjoyed the carriage roads, which are gravelly and a little bumpy, and more for mountain or cross bikes than for roadies.

While I was painting, Tara took Liam and had with some friends a lovely picnic at the Wonderland area in Acadia National Park. This spot has somewhat flat granite blocks, which make up the beach, providing plenty of space for little 11 month olds to crawl around.

And speaking of 11 months old, we're getting close to the big day! It's just crazy how much he has changed in just 12 months. The two big things right now are learning how to stand and learning how to feed himself. Liam is now to the point where he would rather feed himself than be fed by Tara or me. In fact, when we approach with a spoon full of something pureed, he will try to whack it away with some baby jujitsu move. It's cute at first, but can be a little trying. I have learned to be wicked fast and to anticipate his moves, so I'm pretty good at feeding despite his defensive moves. He has also recently learned that food can be thrown (as he tests his parents' will and ability to modify his behavior). Food throwing was the next logical step after he mastered the art of food smashing - a surefire sign that Liam is full. "Nothing else can fit in my stomach, so whatever is left...it must be destroyed."

Anyway, the self-feeding works pretty well when the food is banana or avocado or Cheerios, etc. Not so much when it's puree sweet potato, squash, blueberry. You get the idea. I think we're done with purees and might instead opt for thick-cut steamed veggies. I'll have to try that this week to see how he fares. However, I suppose he has to learn how to use a spoon eventually.

Liam is starting to stand a little bit. It usually happens when he's pulled himself up onto something. Before he realizes what he's doing, he's been standing for 5-7 seconds, completely unsupported. Still haven't been able to capture it on film, as much as I'd like to have record of this milestone.

Mother's Day breakfast

2007-05-14T20:35:00.000-04:00

Liam and I took Tara out to breakfast on Sunday to one of our favorite (and unfortunately, seasonal) breafast spots in Bar Harbor. Liam had his first blueberry pancake - no syrup - and made it about two thirds of the way through before sputtering out. What I love about this series is you can see him struggling to finish - and stay awake. After a trip to see his summer friends at the farmers market, we went home and put him down for a LONG nap.

Spring at last!

2007-05-12T17:50:00.000-04:00

Well, Bar Harbor has officially reopend her doors. The shops are opening, the cruise ships are spewing out their passengers, the Park loop road is once again feeling vehicles on its pavement. We have arrived. For those of you who haven't visited Bar Harbor in the winter (or at all), everything closes and our little town resembles something from the set of Northern Exposure. All year round residents breathe a sigh of relief as things begin to quiet down but come May we are ready for our favorite haunts to open again.

As the bars and restaurants reopen the trees start to bud and the sun finally begins producing heat. Today was the type of day I love here on MDI. The whole town was alive and buzzing. Liam and I set out to hang out for a bit in the Village Green. We sat in the sun for awhile. Liam was getting the biggest kick out of watching other kids run around and play in the fountain. He sat still (this never happens) watching and taking in the sights. He finally decided that he had to join the action so he took of crawling. I followed him as he explored the green. Towards the end of his explorations, we ran into some friends and their dogs. I have to add here that Liam adores dogs. They make him laugh the cutest little belly laugh. So, he was thrilled to learn that we would be going on a walk with the dogs and their owners. He giggled for a good part of our walk down the Shore path. He loved it. After we parted with our friends we started to head towards home. We got a few minutes up the street before running into another friend, Jen. Jen and I stood on the sidewalk talking and as we did so, Liam crashed. Head to the side he let himself sleep in the warmth of the sun.

A little less then two weeks ago, our friends Rich and Natalie gave birth to a little girl. We are so pleased that Liam has a new friend to play with. He is not at all sure what to make of Anouk right now. He kind of gives her curious looks and every now and then tries to reach out and grab her. On Thursday night, Anouk and her parents asked a bunch of us to meet them at the Lompoc (our favorite restaurant/bar) for drinks and dinner. Towards the end of the evening both Liam and Anouk were fast asleep. It was so cute. Liam used to fall asleep at the Lompoc all of the time when he was wee little. We were convinced we would never be lucky enough to have that happen again. It seems to hold its sleeping magic though as two nights now have found Liam fast asleep in my arms after dinner.

I am posting many pictures of the boy as he has grown and changed so much. It is amazing to think that we are fast approaching his first birthday. We no longer have a baby, I fear he has already become a toddler.

Easter Weekend

2007-04-20T11:35:00.000-04:00

First of all, let me apoligize for not posting in such a long time. I just couldn't seemm to get my act together in order to post. There is no good excuse for this except maybe that my thumb is still splinted and it is a drag to do modified typing.

At any rate, we have some catching up to do.

Grammy and Grampy McKernan came for a visit over Easter weekend. They timed their visit just perfecty enough that the had to drive through Maine at the tail end of an April Nor'easter. Yep, we got well over a foot of snow for Easter weekend. It seemed impossible that I would find myself with a snow day in April but I did. While I wasn't super excited about the snow at first, it did provide is with the opportunity to go snowshoeing. On the Saturday of Easter weekend, we all strapped on our snowshoes and took to the hills. It was fantastic. As you can see in the pictures, Liam made the switch from the Baby Bjorn to the backpack. We were finding that Liam was a little too tall for the Bjorn these days. It is so hard to believe that he has grown so much but he has!

At his nine month well child check Liam checked in at almost 30 inches tall and about 19.5 pounds. We were checking the weight limit on his car seat after the appt. and were shocked to find that he was too tall for it by four inches! So, if anyone has an extra convertable car seat kicking around let us know.

We had a great rest of our visit with Grammy and Grampy. Easter was a pretty laid back affair as Liam was feeling a little under the weather. He had a temp and seemed pretty exhausted. We thought he had the start of a cold but a few days later we realized that what he really had was a new tooth popping through. Little Liam now has two tiny little teeth poking through the surface of his bottom gums.

I had this week off for our April Break. I was hoping for georgous weather so that Liam and I could walk everyday. Sadly, the first four days were rainy, windy and cold. We got out Thursday afternoon for a good walk. It was a bit cold but we were just so happy to see sun we didn't care. Today was beautiful. It was warm enough that as we were walking our loop I was able to wear a tank top. It felt good to get some sun on my skin. Liam seemed to enjoy soaking up the rays as well. I did have to remember to lather him with sunscreen. He is so fair skinned I was sure that he would be burnt to a crisp if the sun had a direct path to his face. After our walk we went for a nice swim. He still loves the water and has no fear. He kept wanting to swim away from me.

Mike is in a canoe race tomorrow. We are hoping for the best as the water appears to be pretty high. Luckily, he is paddling with an experienced white water paddler. We will let you know how it goes. While Mike is racing Liam and I will be enjoying some Earth Day activities at the College of the Atlantic. I promise a new report after the weekend.

Last Ski of the Season (we think)

2007-04-02T19:22:00.000-04:00

Liam had another exciting weekend of indoor and outdoor fun. Friday night was his first wine tasting (and I think ours, too), as we tasted some possible wines for Chris(tine) and Joel's wedding. Liam did great and we he got to bedtime, we laid him down in spare bedroom at C and J's place and, go figure, he actually fell asleep. Allowing for a more indepth study of the wine. I think we concluded that more research would be necessary.

On Saturday, we ventured off at the crack of dawn to The Sunday River Inn with a group of our friends.
The weather was amazing and the skiing was pretty decent for the last weekend in March. We had to pick our way around some mud and water but a good number of the trails were very skiable. On Sunday we were able to ski in short sleeves. I believe we even managed to get the first sunburns of the season.
Two members of our group (Steve and Rich) made a last minute decision to enter the Inn's annual triathlon
Liam as always was great and seemed to have a lot of fun skiing and hanging out with the crew. He was very lucky to have two older friends (Eliza and Sammy) to entertain him on the car ride and for most of the weekend. Liam seems happiest when outside playing. He spent much time in the Bjorn skiing with Mike. He and I also took an early morning walk on Sunday while we were waiting for everyone else to wake up.
I am still in my splint so it was pretty interesting figuring out how to x-country ski without hurting my thumb. I had to be a bit more cautious then usual but I did mangage to make it through the weekend without anymore breaks.
We are so lucky to be surrounded by great people with whom we are able to share some really fun weekends. We are even more fortunate in that they all love Liam and seem to enjoy him as much as we do.

Happy Birthday, Mom!

2007-03-25T11:09:00.000-04:00

Today is Tara's 30th birthday! Happy birthday Tara! T is going to celebrate her birthday with a Thai yoga massage, which I think she'll enjoy. During the massage, Liam and I are going for a hike. Temps this week will be in the 50s, and I'm willing to bet we've seen the last skiable snowfall (at least on the coast). So, welcome spring.

Speaking of spring, I discovered this morning that Liam's first tooth is starting to emerge. Bottom tooth, left side from Liam's perspective. The crown is just peeking through the gums, and it probably cut through yesterday or overnight. I'd post a picture, but it would take three of us to hold him down, hold his mouth open, and snap a picture which would inevitably be blurry. Sounds humane. But it's exciting that he's on the breach of another new development.

Liam's is getting better and better at crawling around the house and we are learning to be very watchful. I think just as kids slowly learn to move around and explore and satisfy their curiosity, so does 'parental radar' develop and become more refined. So by the time a kid is 16, the radar is pretty much like a walking NORAD station.

Liam is crawling between rooms - going from the living room to the entry way where he can play with a big pile of shoes. Yesterday, he criss crossed the kitchen as I was trying to bake Tara's birthday pie and cake - going from the shelves on one side to the trash can on the other to the stack of cookbooks, and then in the middle of the floor, I put a wooden spoon and few other toys. I was baking and redirecting and saving him from potential pitfalls all at the same time. It was more fitness than baking. He's also starting to get into a crawling position and push himself up by his feet into a brief quasi-downward facing dog position.

We're also hearing a few new sounds like mamamamama and Brian and I are almost certain he said Emma. As Tara was holding Liam the other day, she and I swore he turned around and gestured with is hands and said 'hi'. Probaby a great coincidence though. Not sure if anything qualifies as a first word, but Tara is pretty excited about mamama.

Finally, I know who's going to protect me from the neighborhood toughs now...

A little break and crawling

2007-03-15T20:41:00.000-04:00

So, I think we have a pretty good excuse for our recent lack of activity (at least online). Tara, Liam, and I went skiing the weekend before last at Saddleback Mountain. Incidentally, Saddleback is a neat little ski area in western Maine. It gets very little attention because of Sugarloaf and Sunday River, and I think most of the skiers are Mainers and not from unmentionalble states to our south. We had a great day skiing until, naturally, the last run of the day, when Tara decided to break her thumb. At first we though it was a dislocation, but xrays confirmed a pretty decent fracture. During all the chaos, Liam was enjoying himself in the slopeside daycare facility (another reason why Saddleback is nice; plus, the day care is cheap, and qualified to watch kids). A few days later she underwent surgery to set and pin the bones back into place. Of course it was her right hand.

It's been interesting around the house, especially for me, as Tara is just now able to help with Liam a little more. She can sort of move him from place to place, and she can feed him and play with him, but she's still unable to change diapers, change clothes, give baths, or really anything that requires two hands. And since Liam is incredibly squirmy, that's basically everything.

While Mom is injured, Liam has been doing great. As I think we reported before, Liam has shown tremendous progress in easily getting from his belly to a seated position, and even getting up onto his hands and knees. He was able to crawl in reverse, but when he tried to go forward, he would plop back on his belly again, much to his frustration. As of Wednesday, though, Liam has started to tentatively crawl forward! And he seems to be figuring it out at an increasingly fast pace.

Liam's favorite toy right now is our iPod cable, or really any white computer cable. We put it on the floor about four feet away from him, and inch by inch, he made his way over to the cable, and was able to grab it with one last lunge at the very end. It's very cool that he can get around a bit on his own. I think it makes him even more content, and he rarely cries now when he ends up on his belly. He must know he is now able to extract himself from any position if he rolls around, or sits up, and now he can crawl away. He was upset yesterday when he somehow managed to get himself stuck under the couch up to his waist. He was just stuck there and couldn't pull himself out. It was rather funny.

The other new thing is his mobility in his crib. We always put him to bed on his back, but he almost immediately rolls over to his side, and curls the blankets around his head. Tara and I have been peeking in a couple times a night just to see where he has ended up. He could be on his back, belly, or side. Sometimes he has crunched himself into the corner or one end of the crib.

It's exciting to see him move around, and strike out in different directions. I think the major activity this weekend will be baby proofing the house.

in only 8 months...

2007-03-03T22:15:00.000-05:00

I think this is just amazing...

Skiing

2007-03-03T21:37:00.000-05:00

We had a great snow storm on Friday. The storm dropped quite a lot of snow on us. Sadly, we also had some sleet, which compressed the snow a bit. At the end of the storm we did end up with some nice snow to cross country ski on today. Our first attempt at skiing with Liam a couple of weeks ago was not so successful. Today, we had a great ski with our friends Chris, Joel, Natalie and Rich (that's Rich in the picture with Mike, and Joel, Natalie and Chris, below). Liam babbled and blew raspberries almost all of the time we were out. It was great to listen to him on the trail. He seemed to love the downhills and his raspberries appeared to be his means to get Mike to move faster.

Tomorrow, we are heading to Saddleback Ski resort in western Maine to downhill ski. Liam will be spending the day in the daycare run by Saddleback. Mike checked out the daycare the last time he was at Saddleback earlier this season. It appears to be a clean and well organized place. Hopefully, Liam will have a good day. Mike and I are certainly looking forward to being on some of the powder that fell on Friday.

Mimi Visits

2007-03-03T21:20:00.000-05:00

My mom was here for the past week. It was a fantastic visit in which Liam got to spend great amounts of time with his Grandma. Mom flew in the 22nd of Feburary and left on the first of March. She babysat for Liam all week long and even let us go to the movies and on a cross country ski over the weekend. Liam and Mimi got along famously and they both seemed to enjoy going for afternoon walks, hanging out in the mornings, reading books and of course just playing. It is always a joy to have grandparents around for extra love and support for our little guy.

As far as new things that Liam is doing.... he has finally figured out how to let go of the crackers once he gets it to his mouth. He is so very close to crawling that we think it could literally happen at any second. He gets up on his hands and news and rocks. He does this for awhile until he finally decides that he will try to move forward. As soon as that happens he tends to fall back onto his belly. He seems to get stronger each day though. He has been rolling around the floor a lot. Rolling and hopping on his bottom see to be his best means of getting from one place to another.

Liam has a favorite book. He loves Hop On Pop by Dr. Suess. It is pretty much the only time that he sits completely still. He will sit and listen to that book and just soak it in. As and experiment we will often try out another book right before and right after Hop on Pop but those never quite get a quiet little boy. It is so amazing to us that he can already have a book that he adores. He actually squeals with happiness when he even sees the cover. Mike and I on the other hand might be getting a little tired of reading the same book over and over again.

As always, each day brings Liam new delights. He continues to soak up the world around him. We love that he is so active and curious.

Future Olympian

2007-02-19T15:54:00.000-05:00

Liam has been learning some new things recently. The other day we set up a rowing machine in our spare bedroom (thanks Scott and Linda!). Of course we couldn't wait to let Liam try it out. He loved sliding back and forth on the seat. Once I got on it to actually workout I was wishing I had someone just to push me back and forth too!

The next new sport that Liam tried recently is swimming. I took him for his first swim last Thursday when I had a snow day. He loved it so much that Mike and I brought him back today. He is a little fish already. He will hold on to just our hands and kick his little legs. He will also let us dunk him underwater without so much as a whimper. He comes up smiling most of the time. I am so pleased that he likes the water. I know that we will log many hours this summer swimming in some local lakes and probably the ocean too.

Onto non-sport related topics. Liam has been learning how to feed himself. We bought some organic baby crackers for him and have been letting him try to get them to his mouth. He has a pretty decent pincer grasp on the wee little crackers and he gets them to his mouth but then he forgets to let them go. Boy does he get mad when he then only gets part of the cracker in his mouth. Sooner or later I am sure he will figure out that he has to let it go in his mouth to get the whole bunch of goodness.

Finally, we swear that Liam said Dada when Mike walked in the door this morning after running some errands. I had Liam on the floor playing and Mike peeked his head around the corner. Liam said something that sounded a whole lot like Dada. Now I know that at this age any words are just accidental and are most likely not said on purpose but it was pretty thrilling to hear.

It seems like everyday this little boy is learning new things. It is great fun to watch and experience each first with him.

Poetry and film

2007-02-13T19:26:00.000-05:00

Well after a very active week (not to mention the activity of the weekend prior), Liam's weekend was decidedly low-key. He napped like crazy on Saturday, but I'm getting ahead of myself. We had a small adventure on Thursday night when we took the ferry over to Swan's Island to attend the poetry slam at Tara's school. The poetry slam was fun. One of the kids wrote a poem about his favorite NASCAR team that I literally can't get out of my mind. Seriously. We spent the night out on Swan's at Mimi and Gary's house. It was a little wild to spend the night on the island, knowing we were a 45 min ferry ride away from MDI.

Liam's weekend was rather mellow. After some much needed R & R around the house, we hired back to back babysitters (cha-ching) on Saturday and Sunday nights and T and I went to the Banff Mountain Film Festival world tour as it swung through Ellsworth. The film festival is an annual rite - something to look forward to during the long and dark winter. If the festival hasn't come to your area yet, you should should check it out. If you love anything outdoor (mountain cultures, snow sports, insane freeride mountain biking, free climbing, ice climbing on icebergs, etc), you will love this show. More than anything, it was another reminder of the fun ahead with Liam on skis. Safely away from his father, of course.

The photo is in honor of Melanie Ganim, Liam's godmother, who sent Liam this awesome onesie. Thanks Mel, have a great tour! And good luck to Liam's godfather, my brother Matt, as he heads out on tour with his band (sorry, no web link).

A few firsts

2007-02-05T22:28:00.000-05:00

What, we haven't posted in over a week?! Lots to catch up on, then. It's been an exciting here during the last few days - Liam has had several exciting firsts which I'm pleased to report. Last Friday, Tara and I woke up around 6 am feeling remarkably refreshed, downright energized, even. We both knew what had just happened - Liam had slept through the night for the first time in his life. A full 11 hours of sleep from 7 pm to 6 am! I'm sure he woke up once or twice during the night, but his waking time must have been fleeting b/c neither of us heard a peep. He woke up naturally at 6 am, and had a really great and very happy day. We tried to figure out what we did the night before and nothing unusual popped out - other than I made what I thought was a radical and dicey choice - to put him down without the aid of his pacifier. It worked, he went down quietly, but I doubt that was the reason he slept all night. We didn't get our hopes up for a repeat performance, which is good, as he is now back to getting up once in the middle of the night and once ~4 am. Not to bad, considering other stories I've heard, but sleeping through the night felt REALLY good on Friday morning.

The other exciting first is Liam learning how to clap. T and I have been working on clapping for a while now, demonstrating and helping him move his hands in a clapping motion. Then out of the blue as I was getting him into his car seat on Friday morning, I thought I spotted a rough looking 'clap'. I stopped, clapped broadly, and he did it again once or twice. I called Tara down and we both tried to get him to clap a few more times, which he did with a big smile. It was a great way to start the day. We've been clapping all weekend - Tara and I will clap, we'll look at him and say 'your turn!', and then he'll clap 3 or 4 times. Sometimes he'll miss wildly, which is cute, but so far this seems to be the first discrete thing we've taught him - and, the 'your turn' command seems to be the first direct response he's made to a verbal command other than 'where's daddy', 'where's mommy'. The other cool interaction is when he's lying on his back and I put two fingers in front of his hands, he will grab my fingers and sit or stand up from lying flat (depending on how much I pull him).

The final big event of the last several days was a short XC ski trip yesterday afternoon. MDI finally got some decent snow this weekend, so T, Liam and I headed to Jordan Pond, which is one of our favorite places to XC ski. Before we left I had to apply some new kick wax appropriate to the temperature. People who have skied with us before will tell you that I have a bad track record in picking the right kick wax. Even with all the wax wizards and temperature guides, I always seem to pick the wrong one. ANYWAY, with the skis freshly waxed, we were on our way. Snow conditions weren't great so we picked short 1+ mile loop just to test things out. Given the Bjorn and the baby backpack, we picked the Bjorn for Liam, and I strapped him on my chest. Even as we set off, we knew the conditions weren't ideal. The snow was a little icy and it was wicked fast. Fast - like I wish my XC skis had metal edges and fixed heels fast. I think it was on the first decent - and this is a decent so gradual it would be pretty boring on sled - that I fell. I fell like I was sliding into home (but much less dramatic), and landed on my side cradling Liam into his Bjorn. So Liam was fine - he was very safe and didn't get upset at all - so we kept going. As it happens I fell like this three times in total, all on account of the fast icy snow, my skittishness with Liam, and the inability of my stupid skis to steer or stop like downhill skis. On the third fall, Liam started to cry, so I figured that was enough sking for one day. I walked back with Liam in his Bjorn and skis over my shoulder. The snow was so slick and my wax job so bad, that the pace of my walk was much faster than the pace of Tara on skis. So she walked too. We got back to the car, not willing to call it a day. We surveilled the local sledding hill, and ultimately decided on something a bit more mellow for a Sunday afternoon in February... Oh, and for future ski outing swith Liam (least XC skiing), we could really use one of these (the Chariot would be fine, thanks).

Light and Shadows

2007-01-27T22:21:00.000-05:00

Perhaps one of the simplest joys of childhood is playing with your shadow. Twice now, I have caught Liam experimenting with the way light and shadows work. Since his birth he as found pleasure in watching the tricks of light. Now he has found that he can manipulate light and make it work for him. This morning as the sun shone in our living room window, Liam played with his shadow. He sat with the light on his back holding forth with the light as if it were his orchestra. With arms raised he played with the light and made his little shadow friend dance. Mike and I were lucky enough to be witness to this shadow play. I truly will never tire of watching this boy learn and delight in new things.

A photo tribute to dinner

2007-01-20T18:46:00.000-05:00

Hi Friends - just this weekend, Liam tried two new things - pickles and tofu (that's little bits of silken tofu mixed up in his sweet potatoes). He loved both. In fact, he was downright rebellious when we took away the pickle he was gumming. He's also become a rather squirmy little fellow, which adds a new element of action when it's time for dinner. He eats willingly, but T and I have to be fast to get the spoon into his mouth instead of on his face or into his eye as he scans his surroundings looking for something to grab or shove in his mouth.

6 month checkup

2007-01-11T07:24:00.000-05:00

Liam had his six month check up yesterday. We're pleased to report that he's doing great, right on track, and even doing a little better in terms of his weight. At 6.5 months, he's 27.5 inches (85th percentile), and 16 lb. 2 oz (30th percentile). I don't recall his head size, except that it's grown 1 inch since his last check up a couple months ago. We had a nice discussion about his sleep patterns - he's still getting up a couple times a night. Perhaps this weekend we'll try to work on that a bit. He also had 4 shots - yuck. He's really got the hang of sitting up on this own, and we can sit him in the middle of the floor relatively confident he won't topple. He can turn from his back to his stomach in one twisting move. Once he's on his stomach, he can work is way around 360 degrees, but hasn't quite got the forward and reverse down. Overall, he's squirmier than ever. He loves to move, flap his arms and clap them down. It's amazing how much he's grown in just two months.

Youngest member of the Academy

2007-01-08T21:06:00.000-05:00

There was an interesting article that appeared recently in the New York Times. Their chief film critic, AO Scott, encourages parents to take their kids to the movies. And not just the kids' movies, but the movies the parents want to see. I say, great idea! As appropriate, of course - Apocalypto and Borat, perhaps, not the best movies for kids. But, he says parents have an opportunity to teach their kids the magic of watching movies in a theatre. Scott quotes another article that says today's kids will grow up watching movies via netflix, tivo, cell phone, internet, rather than at the theatre. Of course, that's regrettable, given that movies experienced in a darkened theatre can be magical indeed. The experience is simply heightened, and all senses absorbed. And you don't fall asleep on the couch. Liam is certainly too new to comprehend much of the movie going experience, but that hasn't stopped us from taking him along with us to the movies (well, maybe saving babysitting $$ has something to do with it too...). The first few were easy - he slept right through. The last few more difficult as he becomes more squirrely and susceptible to what he sees on a screen. It will be nice when he's older to go back and view *again* some of the movies he's already seen (in order, according to Tara's and my best recollection):

Inconvenient Truth
A Prairie Home Companion
Pirates of the Caribbean 2
Monster House
Who Killed the Electric Car?
Wordplay
Islander
Little Miss Sunshine
Flushed Away
Happy Feet

Holiday Madness

2007-01-05T15:33:00.000-05:00

Hello All-
We are back in Maine after being in Ohio for the holidays. We had a wonderful time seeing family and friends. Mike gave you the update all the way up to Christmas. Following Christmas we spent some fairly low-key days visiting with my family and enjoying the time catching up with friends.

Little Liam was finally able to meet some little friends that he didn't know he had. We got to spend a couple evenings with our dear friends Leah and Steve Bechtol and their son Wyatt. It was such fun getting to see Liam and Wyatt play together in the way only babies and toddlers do. On the 28th we also go to meet up with three friends from high school and their families. Lindsay and Rick were in Ashland from Bath, Maine. Claire and Jay were passing through Ashland with their son Jack and Julie met with us with her daughter Mya. It was a joy to see them all again and to be amazed with the passing of time. It truly doesn't seem so long ago that we were in high school together hanging out at Malabar Farm, skiing together or just hanging out. How wonderfully odd it felt to met for lunch with our husbands and children.

We left Ashland on Friday the 29th. We got to the Columbus airport only to find out that our flight was canceled and that we were on a much later flight. We called my parents back to the airport and got them to take us out breakfast. Then it was back to the airport for a long day of waiting. We waited for the flight out of Columbus, and then waited for our flight out of Cincinnati. Liam was a champ through the whole thing. He even managed to sleep through both legs of our flight again. We finally arrived in Maine at 10:00 or so. We stayed at Lindsay and Rick's in Bath and then the next morning woke up early to start our drive towards Northern Maine. We had plans to meet up with a group of friends for a New Years celebration in the woods of Maine. We finally met up with our group and headed to the wilderness camp at which we would spend the next couple of days.

We had a great time at the camp. The cabins were rustic but provided us with heat and relatively comfortable beds to sleep in. We were able to play in the snow, hike on the Appalachian Trail and enjoy hanging out with a great group of people. Liam had only one major meltdown the entire trip and that was midway through a long hike. He was pretty hungry and probably a bit cold. One feeding him he fell right back to sleep and we enjoyed the rest of the hike.

We rung in the New -Years while playing games and having good conversations in the woods of Maine. One can't complain about that. We are so lucky to have gotten to know so many good people in Maine who help us to provide great experiences for Liam. I once heard that the way you spend your New Years is indicative of how your year will go. If this is the truth then we are in for a great 2007.

Christmas trip to OH

2006-12-25T12:16:00.000-05:00

Merry Christmas to everyone in Who-ville! We're currently in Ohio enjoying a Christmas vacation with Tara's parents. We arrived on Wednesday, flying from Portland to Columbus through JFK. Liam did a great job during his first flights. He was a little fussy when we left PWM, but then he fell into (we think) a stress - induced sleep. The rest of the flights he slept through from takeoff to landing. I was glad I didn't have to pass around earplugs to our fellow travelers (I had some just in case). Perhaps on the flights home. My recommendation to fellow travelers - avoid JFK, especially Delta at all costs. The terminal is nutty and overcrowded, and most flights are delayed. As we waited at JFK (our flight was delayed ~2 hours), Liam was doing his usual happy pterodactyl-esqe screeching. A recently studied-abroad and "cosmopolitan" college chick cleverly observed that 'babies in Europe are so much quieter than babies in the US'. T went into mother wolf mode, and said that if she said another word, there would be issues. Luckily for the college chick, she kept additional observations to herself. It was a long travel day, but we arrived in Ashland safe and sound.

Liam's having a great time meeting new friends and family members. We actually celebrated Dunlap Christmas on Dec. 22, when everyone could get together before going separate ways for Christmas Eve and Day.

Liam was baptised at Trinity Lutheran in Ashland on Saturday evening. We had a private ceremony with family and friends. Tara's brother Tyler (an ordained pastor, but not practicing), performed the baptism. Liam was good until I passed him to Ty, and he was pretty displeased until Ty passed him back to me. After the baptism, everyone had dinner in the church home (an incredible turn of the century mansion donated to the church). Thanks Sarah, Leanne, and Terrie for putting everything together!

Tara, Liam and I had Christmas Eve with my parents at my uncle Scott and aunt Linda's house. It was wonderful to catch up and see aunts, uncles, and cousins some of whom I hadn't seen for several years. It was a great evening - good wine, food, and catching up with everyone.

So, it's Christmas Day and the house is fairly quiet. The big event for the day will be making Hungarian nut roll and chicken paprikash. Nut roll is pretty involved pastry to make - part of the process is rolling the dough on a bed sheet, lifting one end of the bed sheet to create a hill, and letting gravity take over to roll everthing up into a log. I'll have to post some pictures later. It's a pretty neat process.

Tara and Liam and I wish everyone a very happy Christmas. We hope everyone is having a warm and cheerful celebration wherever you are.

Delish!

2006-12-18T19:54:00.000-05:00

Sorry we have been a little lax on posting lately. I think we're still pretty close to one post a week, which isn't entirely embarassing. OK, only three posts in December is actually pretty lame. We have a few things to tell you about our weekend and some local Christmas happenings. Stay tuned. And stay tuned as well for what I'm sure will be an interesting post about Liam's first airplane ride and our first airplane ride with a baby. We fly PWM to CMH, connecting JFK on Wednesday. I'm less concerned about his behavior than I am about connections and delays. Usual air travel unpleasantness. Today's post, though -- food.

Overall, Liam is a great eater. His veggies include carrots, sweet potatoes, peas, and a somewhat ambiguous (but organic) blend called GREENS. I think it's green beans and spinach. His favorite by far are sweet potatoes, carrots and peas he can handle pretty well. The greens, however... I'll let this little still-camera based video speak for itself. (I think you need to have quicktime installed and your browser properly configured to see it. If you can't see it and still want to see the video, say so in the comments and I'll send it along)

Sorry, I just tried to figure out how to post video directly to blogger and it seems I'm not smart enough right now. For the time being, you are welcome to view the video here.

In which Liam plays in the snow

2006-12-09T13:28:00.000-05:00

Once upon a time there was a very cute little boy named Liam. Now Liam had never seen snow before. To everyone's delight the streets of Bar Harbor, Maine were covered in snow when they greeted Friday morning. Friday was a blustery day, not at all the type of day that small boys should be out playing in the snow. So dear little Liam had to wait until Saturday morning to truly experience his first snow fall. Saturday morning finally came and little Liam got suited up for his outside adventure. On went his long johns and warm socks. Then came his Kelty snowsuit and finally his hat. Liam and his mom and dad then went right out to their yard to play. First they made some snow angels. Liam wasn't so sure about that but he played along anyway. Next they made some snowballs. Liam even threw one at his daddy. Finally, Liam and Daddy played the game in which Liam is thrown into the air and his daddy catches him. It was so much fun he just couldn't stop giggling. As with all good things, the fun had to end. So Liam and his mommy and daddy went back inside to sit by the tree. Liam had another idea though. He thought a nap was a much better option after so much fun.

First Tree and a visit to Santa!

2006-12-04T17:07:00.000-05:00

On Friday, Liam, Emma, Carolyn and I took a trip to see Santa. The rec center in Soutwest Harbor had free pictures with Santa. The line once we got there was pretty long but Liam slept almost the entire time. I thought for sure that he would have a fit and would not grace us with one of his adorable smiles. I was so wrong though. He got to Santa and his face lit up. I didn't have our camera as it was a last minute decision to see Santa. Once I get the picture from the Rec center or Carolyn, I will be sure to post the picture. I love how having a child brings the magic back to holidays. I can only imagine how each passing year will only enhance the experiences.

Well, we finally got Liam's first Christmas tree this weekend. We picked it up on Saturday. Liam slept through the picking out of the tree but he woke up just in time to charm the sellers of the tree. We got the tree home and a few hours later began to decorate. Liam was pretty interested in the lights and the tree itself. He also got a kick out of listening to the Muppets Christmas cd.

After we put up the tree, Mike and I began to prepare for a Christmas party we were attending. Now I realize that when you hear that we were attending a Christmas party you may picture people standing around in nice clothes drinking holiday drinks. This party however is different. This party is annual and has a costume theme to go with it. It also has an 80's dance party room and a room to play old atari games. This year the theme was aliens. So, Mike and I threw together (with the help of our friend Jen) some Star Trek costumes. We had a babysitter for Liam that night. I have to say that while I adore my time with Liam there are times when it is very nice to enjoy a night out. Sadly, for Mike he had to fly to Texas on Sunday morning for work, so his night was not as stress free as mine.

That leads me to the fact that as we speak I am flying solo with Liam. I thought that we would never get out of the house this morning. I am so used to having Mike around in the mornings to help get Liam ready that I was having serious trouble getting us both ready to leave the house. It is really strange not to have Mike around to share Liam's funny antics. He comes back on Wednesday and I know both Liam and I are more than ready to have him home.

Thanksgiving with Mimi and P-paw

2006-11-26T17:24:00.000-05:00

Liam had a great first Thanksgiving. We were lucky enough to have Mimi and P-Paw come up to Maine to celebrate the holiday with us. They arrived on Tuesday night. Mike and I had to work on Wednesday so Mom and Dad got to watch Liam for the day. Mom just couldn't get over how much Liam eats. Since starting solids, he has pretty much chowed down on everything we will give him. The only thing he really hasn't liked is a green pea, spinich and green bean mix. It really makes him gag. His favorite seems to be sweet potatoes. He is also a fan of avacado, bananas, applesause, oatmeal and rice cereal.
Anyway, on Thursday we spent much of the day preparing for Thanksgiving dinner. We had plans to have Thanksgiving with our friends Brian, Carolyn and Emma. Members of both Brian and Carolyn's family were also up for Thanksgiving. They also had invited some other friends so in all there were about 18 people including five kids aged seven on down to Liam. It was festive to say the least. It was a wonderful way to spend Thanksgiving.
On Friday, we went to Freeport home of L. L. Bean for some shopping. There are many outlet stores there. We had a good time though it was tiring at times trying to beat the shopping crowds.
The rest of the weekend was spent enjoying the quiet of Bar Harbor in post tourist season. We played with Liam, enjoyed the ocean and took a nice Sunday drive.
With another holiday down I get more excited for Liam's first Christmas. It will be so wonderful to get back to Ohio so that Liam can meet all of his family, spend time with his Grammy and Grampy McKernan and meet some of our good friends as well. I am sure it will be here before we know it.

Determination

2006-11-14T11:33:00.000-05:00

I don't really have much to report but I thought I would post this cute picture of Liam. I think it really captures how hard he works when having tummy time. He is getting so good at pushing up on his still scrawny arms. I love the look of determination in his eyes.

template changes and suggestions

2006-11-10T21:22:00.000-05:00

So, I've been playing around a bit with the template of this blog. Thought I'd try to give it a little character and make it look a little less prefab (which it is, of course). You'll notice the banner image at the top, and I've added height and weight tallies on the side. I'll update H & W after his checkups. I have a few other ideas - maybe a rotating 'picture of the day' thing, or I thought an occasional poll would be fun. Maybe a new foods checklist. Any other suggestions for this blog? Anything you've been staying up at night thinking 'jeez, I wish they would just do X'? Maybe I'll try to look around at some other baby blogs to see what other parents are up to.

OK, enough blog stuff. Liam is growing and changing weekly and daily, it seems. Just in the course of two weeks he is learning how to grab things. Two weeks ago, he would reach out with his hand in kind of a claw shape - hoping to hook whatever was in front of him and reel it in. Not so effective. A couple days later, he figured out that his hands could work as a grabbing tool, and for the last couple weeks, he's been practicing grabbing hair and small toys. He's particularly tenacious when it comes to hair. One really interesting thing he does is grab the thumb of his opposite hand and splay out the fingers. I'll have to post a picture, if I can get one of him doing this motion. It's like his right hand is out saying stop, but his left hand is grabbing his right thumb. He was helping me cook the other day when I watched him reach over from this right side, grab the top of a loaf of bread and drag it over to his chair. It was incredible. It was very purposeful, he knew exactly what he wanted to get and he did it. In other developmental milestones, he's much better at tummy time, he's starting to push his torso up with his arms, and he's getting better at rolling. Right now we're practicing sitting up - which we hope he'll have a handle on by Christmas. No pressure, though.

Boo!

2006-11-03T07:55:00.000-05:00

Well, Liam had his first Halloween. We celebrated by carving pumpkins, going on a pumpkin walk at the College of the Atlantic and going to a Halloween parade in Southwest Harbor. On Halloween night we dressed Liam up in his little pumpkin costume and headed to the street in Bar Harbor that gets all of the trick-or-treaters. We didn't actually go begging for candy but we did walk around the street and enjoyed the festive feel of the night. The Bar Harbor police shuts down the street to cars so it will be safe for all of the kids. Doing this makes the street have the feel of a street fair. We talked to some friends of ours, who live on that street, about 1.5 hours into the night. They had purchsed 75 dollars worth of candy and they were already out. They ended up getting more from the Baptist church that is next to their house. After getting our fill of that scene, we went to our favorite restaurant/pub. The Lompoc also had a festive Halloween feel to it. Liam and his little friend Emma were the hit of the place in their very cute costumes.
Liam's first Halloween was great all around. I have always loved holidays but having Liam makes it so much fun. I can't wait for Thanksgiving and Christmas.

The Headless Horseman

2006-10-24T19:09:00.001-04:00

On Saturday, we went to watch a showing of The Headless Horseman put on by a local puppetry troupe called The Frogtown Mountain Puppeteers. They are not only great people, but they are really talented at puppeteering. We watch their shows every year at Christmas and Halloween. It was a real treat to be able to take Liam to his first puppet show. He was entranced throughout most of the show. He fell asleep for the last fifteen minutes. Other than that, he was up and watching carefully to the action on the stage. Watching him soak up new events is such a treat. One of the best parts of going to these shows is to listen to the children in the audience as they laugh and clap during the show. The joy that these puppets bring to small children is well worth the price of admission. I look forward to the days when Liam is a bit older and can give a big belly laugh to the puppets antics.
After the show, we went up to see the puppets first hand. Liam was pretty enthralled with them. It makes me wonder what goes on in his head. How does a little mind even begin to sort through and make sense of a puppet?

Sunday was another gorgeous fall day. We enjoyed a very relaxing morning and then set off to find a letterbox. No, this does not mean that we were shopping for a new mailbox for our house. This does mean that we were searching for what is known as a letterbox. Letterboxing is a fun activity, which we have just recently learned about. It is much like a treasure hunt. People all over the United States and England who are into Letterboxing hide little containers, which hold a stamp and minature notepad. Then they post clues as to where these containers are hid. Then fellow Letterboxers follow the clues to the box. Usually, Letterboxers carry with them their own stamp pad, stamp and notebook. Once you find a Letterbox you stamp your stamp into the logbook and then take the Letterboxes stamp and stamp your notebook. The notebook from the hidden container acts as a logbook to see where fellow Letterboxers are from.

The Letterbox we found was hidden at the Indian Point Blagden Nature Conservancy right here on MDI. It was well hidden and contained stamps from people all over the United States. This is only the second Letterbox Liam and I have found and the first for Mike. I have a feeling that as Liam grows older this could turn into a fun family activity. It appears to be the kind of thing that you could do no matter where you went in the US.

After finding the Letterbox, we continued down the trail and landed at the ocean. We enjoyed walking on the beach and then took a small fire road back up to the car. On our way up the road, Mike spotted a little cemetery set back in the woods. As most of you know, I have a love of cemeteries. Finding one hidden in the woods is pretty exciting to me. We stopped to check it out. What we found was pretty interesting. There seemed to be two main families represented in the cemetery. It appeared that both families lost many of their children in 1863. Our guess is that some sort of epidemic swept through the island at that time. I hope to have time to research that theory. Finding the cemetery added even more fun to our day. I have very fond memories of going on cemetery hikes with my dad when I was a kid. He taught me so much on those hikes and started a love for history and genealogy that I carry with me today. I hope to be able to pass on the same to Liam as we continue to explore cemeteries together.

Pumpkins & Cranberries

2006-10-18T08:52:00.000-04:00

Last weekend we did two very fall like activities. We got Liam his first pumpkin and we went cranberry picking.
I am a nut for holidays. Because I am a nut for holidays I find it very exciting that with Halloween we are starting in on what I feel is the beginning of the holiday season. To me this starts with buying a pumpkin and ends when you take down your Christmas decorations. It is so easy to see the ghosts of Christmas future. A little Liam in footed pajamas sleeping under a lit up Christmas tree. I love the image that brings to mind. Needless to say, I couldn't wait for us to go pick out pumpkins. Of course this activity was really for my benefit and not Liam's. Mike and I have very different feelings towards getting holiday decorations. I am of the sort that is ready to get our pumpkins as soon as I see the first ones being sold at a roadside stand. I also always want to pull out Christmas decorations and buy a Christmas tree the day after Thanksgiving. Not Mike. He likes to wait. I believe that he might like the anticipation of waiting. It will be interesting to see how having Liam helps us to create our own holiday traditions.

With pumpkins purchased, we decided to try a new fall activity. We have heard for years that there is an area on the island to harvest cranberries. So, we put the canoe on the jeep and headed out to find them. The weather was quintessential fall weather. Just the perfect amount of chill in the air. The sky was blue and made the perfect backdrop for the colorful leaves. We paddled for a bit and took a small tributary towards our cranberries. We had been told the general area in which to find the cranberries. True to the directions given, we found the berries on low bushes not far from the shores of the creek. Mike and I both tried to pick them at first but Liam was not impressed with being held in the front pack while I was bent over picking cranberries. So, Mike took a turn sitting with Liam as I searched for the berries and then we switched jobs. It was harder work than we anticipated but it was also fun. It was almost like a mini treasure hunt trying to search through the bushes. Hopefully, we will be rewarded for all of our hard work with a cranberry tart that Mike plans to make.

First Food

2006-10-13T09:03:00.000-04:00

As Mike said, Liam has been started on rice cereal. He seems to really enjoy the act of eating. It cracks him up to try to grab the spoon and help to put in his mouth. The funny part is that when he nurses he has to push his tongue out. This is exactly opposite of what needs to happen when he eats. This being the case, he ends up pushing much of the cereal out with his tongue. He was starting to get the hang of it last night. Connie, Liam's babysitter, reported a more contented kid yesterday. We are guessing that having a belly that is full is a major plus.

It has been hard getting back to work. Having to be away from him for so long is sad. He seems to be adjusting just fine though. The lack of sleep is starting to get to me though. It figures that the week before I started back was the week he decided not to sleep as well. It is difficult to go from him only waking up once during the night to waking up multiple times.

Even with being tired and having to juggle going back to work. I couldn't be more thrilled with the little guy. He seems to learn new things every day.

The pictures for today are of him eating. I also added in a funny picture that was taken this past weekend. Liam makes a pretty funny mad face!

Love those three day weekends

2006-10-11T22:21:00.000-04:00

Another fantastic three-day weekend, and was it ever a beauty. Warm and blue skies and turning leaves. A perfect autumn weekend in Maine. As you can see, my parents visited for the weekend, making the 11 hour drive from Rochester. We managed to squeeze in a lot of activity, including practical stuff (insulating the new bathroom, installing the dishwasher (hooray!)), and fun stuff too. We tried to get into the park every day. On Saturday, we hiked the Witch Hole Pond Loop, Saturday it was Day Mountain (a beauty neither Tara nor I had done), and Sunday was a seaside hike from Otter Point to Thunder Hole. The tide was high so Thunder Hole wasn't exactly thundering. But that didn't stop the bus throngs from gathering at the top of the Thunderhole walk-down - digital cameras ready - to snap that perfect shot of splashing seawater. It was a rather hilarious sight.

In less positive news, Liam has not been sleeping all that well of late. It seems like he is up every hour, crying for food. Tara had been feeding him, but we decided today to get him started on solid food a little early - rice cereal, and he seemed to like it. Milk alone didn't seem to be satiating him, and maybe a little bit of rice cereal will stick to the ribs and allow him to sleep. Will have to post pics of the first solid food tomorrow. I take it for granted that he only knows how to eat one way - suction. This whole chewing thing is more like swishing the cereal arounnd in his mouth, and kind of swallowing half (or hiding it in the crease of their neck). T will post some pictures tomorrow.

Camping at Baxter

2006-10-03T09:56:00.000-04:00

This past weekend we went on what we thought was going to be a canoe camping trip. We decided that we would leave early so that we could get up to Baxter State Park early. We wanted to make sure that we had plenty of time to paddle. Well, we set off on time but we had quite a time trying to find the best place to paddle and camp. Once we got near Baxter we decided we would try a lake right out of the park. We traveled down an access road in an attempt to get to what sounded like a beautiful lake. The lake might have turned out to be gorgeous but we weren't able to get to it due to the state of the access road. It took a good hour to travel just over 2 miles and we still had 2 miles left to travel. So, we headed up to the access gate for Baxter. We arrived to find out that the only campsites available were 17 miles into the park. Baxter is a very pristine park. It has only one narrow dirt road that winds though the park. The speed limit on said road is 20 mph. Needless to say it took us awhile to get to our campsite. Once we finally arrived we set up camp and then took a short hike. It started to get dark so we headed back to our campsite and got there just before total nightfall.
As always Liam was such a trooper. I swear he sleeps better in a tent then in our house. I woke him up once during the night to eat otherwise I think he would have slept the entire night without waking.

The next morning we had a nice breakfast then packed up our campsite. We decided to drive all the way up to the north gate in order to check on another possible camping spot for future trips. The drive was amazing. The fall colors were so bold. It was well worth the drive to see them. We stopped along our way to take a short hike down to a river to eat lunch. We put Liam down on some rocks and he slept for a good 45 minutes with the sound of the river in his ears. Again, he seems to like napping on rocks better then in his Pack-n-Play. Crazy kid.

Even with our lack of canoeing and the insanely long car trip on the first day, we had a great trip. I can't get enough of watching Liam soak up his time outdoors. He is a true nature lover.

I Think I Can!

2006-09-29T13:51:00.000-04:00

Liam has rolled from his belly to his back twice in two days. He seems so proud of himself when he finally makes it. He had rolled over once a month or so ago but I think it was an accident on his part. These last two times were purposeful. He is getting so big and strong!

Party Time

2006-09-28T10:10:00.000-04:00

Liam's good friend Emma had her first birthday party last Saturday. We attended said party on the rainy Saturday to enjoy the yummy party food and watch Emma get super messy with her cake. It was so fun to think of celebrating Liam turning one.

At the same time we also find ourselves sad when we realize that Liam is growing out of outfits. I almost mourn him growing bigger. It is so hard to believe that he won't always be able to fit in my arms. Both Mike and I love to snuggle him.
Each day does bring a more expressive little boy. He is practicing his sounds and has found great ways to make his voice change. I love to watch his facial expressions as well. He is so expressive and amazes many by how alert he is.

We think we are going camping again this weekend so stay tuned for more camping tales.

MOO!

2006-09-26T10:58:00.000-04:00

Last Friday we went to the Common Ground Fair, which is run by the Maine Organic Farmers Association. This is a old fashioned fair experience. There are no rides, no games to waste your money on and no scary carnies. Instead you get great agricultural demonstrations, craft tents where Maine artists can sell there wares and fantastic food. It is a vegetarians paradise! I look forward to the food every year and try to plan out my food throughout the day. Each year I look forward to a few items. Good Indian food and a strawberry cream puff dessert. I fill in between those items with new food each year.

This year we went to a talk on how to raise strawberries. When we moved into our house we were lucky to have a strawberry bed that the previous tenant's had started. The berries are amazing and we would like to keep the bed running for as long as possible. Liam was a gem the entire time during the talk. He was cooing and smiling at the people sitting close by to us. It seems we might have a little flirt on our hands.

After the strawberry talk we thought we would take Liam to check out the animals. Well, we enjoyed seeing the cows, horses and the alpacas. As you can see from the photos Liam was too tired to care. Perhaps next year he will find them a little more exciting.

Towards the end of the day we wandered over to the farmer's market. On the way there we passed a small hill that was littered with children sliding down the hill on pieces of cardboard. They looked like they were having a ball and Mike and I talked about how great it was that kids were enjoying something so incredibly simple. No electronic devices were needed to occupy these kids, just some grass and a piece of cardboard. It made us excited for future years when we could set Liam to playing among the other children.

No, that's not your furnace exploding

2006-09-22T21:40:00.000-04:00

So, Liam is great and he had a fun day and yadda yadda yadda, we had and EARTHQUAKE yesterday!

That's right, we've had seismic activity here over the last 36 hours - our very first earthquake. Here's the story.

Thursday night between 7 and 8, I'm sitting in the living room and hear what sounds like an explosion and very small rumble coming from down the street. It sounded not unlike an exploding boiler (at least how I've imagined it). I didn't give it much attention - it could easily have been a large truck rumbling down Cottage St.

Then, Friday morning, around 6:30, T, L and I are in the living room and a deep rumbling shudder comes out of nowhere. It still sounded like a booming explosion, but this time a strong one and much closer to the house. Our old house vibrated a bit, as the aftershocks of the explosion rumbled and eventually diminished. Tara and I uttered some choice words - 'Jeepers, what could that have been?'. We wondered if our own boiler had cracked, and we wondered if we should take any evasive action, like leave the house. We looked outside and none of our neighbors were around, and no homes were on fire. We figured it was not an explosion because it must have come from next door, and both homes were intact. I called the fire department to report an explosion sound (by this time, we considered it might have been an earthquake). After half a dozen tries to the non-emergency line, I finally got through and the dispatcher said the've been hearing from people even down to Otter Creek (which is some distance from Bar Harbor). So, we figured it must have been an earthquake.

And that's exactly what it was - a magnitude 3.5 earthquake centered a few miles under Kebo Mountain. On the USGS aerial photo, the epicenter is the red square - less than a mile from our house. Check out the USGS page - it's full of interesting info about our little quake. Interesting to note the many maps on the USGS site - one of which suggests that our part of Maine is a relatively uninteresting seismic area. I've felt two more tremors (aftershocks, perhaps) just this evening.

Trip to Portland

2006-09-22T08:46:00.000-04:00

On Tuesday Mike, Liam and I went to Portland to meet up with our dear friend Susan Faja. Sus came East from Seattle so we decided to meet up in Portland. It was a great to catch up with Susan and have her meet little Liam. While in Portland we ate some good food, walked around the Old Port and even saw a homless guy throw-up at nine in the morning. It was the perfect introduction to the big city for Liam! As always Liam was so good. He impressed Sus with his good social communication skills, his adorable smiles and the way he loves to stand on his very strong legs.

After we left Portland we headed to Freeport for a little shopping. After buying Liam some cute clothes at Oshkosh we made a stop in Bath to see Lindsay Davis. It was so nice to see Lindsay and Rick. Lindsay and I have been friends since birth or shortly there after. Having Liam meet Lindsay was great. He snuggled with her for a bit and drooled on her too. He sure knows how to make a good first impression.

We are heading to the Common Ground Fair today. Look for Fair photos in the near future.

Wedding Fun for Liam

2006-09-19T08:44:00.000-04:00

Our good friends Barbara and Steve got married on Saturday the 16th. Saturday brought great weather for their outdoor wedding. The ceremony was beautiful and the reception was so much fun. Liam spent most of the wedding and part of the reception with a babysitter that Barbara and Steve provided for their guests. It was a super way to have our first babysitting experience as he was only feet away in the inn while we were outside enjoying the festivities. It certainly felt strange not to have him with us all of the time. I do have to admit that it was nice to be able to enjoy a meal eating with both hands. I am so used to having to hold Liam and eat at the same time. The last couple of hours of the reception we had Liam with us as the babysitter had left. Liam was fantastic. There was no shortage of people who wanted to hold him. Eventually, Liam feel asleep and he just hung out in his car seat on the table. We are so lucky to have such an easy going little guy!

Barbara and Steve looked great. We are so happy for them. It is so wonderful to watch friends get married!

It seems that Liam might have enjoyed the reception a bit too much. We are going to have to keep a closer eye on him.

More visitors for Liam

2006-09-15T13:48:00.000-04:00

Notice that this post says more visitors for Liam. I do recognize that these days it is Liam that people really want to see and not us. We have come to accept this and are only to happy that people want to shower Liam with love and kisses.

Our most recent visitors were Kay and Ed visiting from Ohio. They arrived on Saturday the 9th and were here through the 12th. It was wonderful to be able to share Liam with them. The weather was perfect and thus we were able to get out in the park for a few nice walks/hikes.

Ed gives Liam a nice little snuggle shortly after their arrival.

Liam has been digging being able to sit up a bit more in his cool chair. He also loves to chew on his fist. All in all he was a pretty content little boy.

We were waiting for the Island Explorer ( a great free bus service that runs through the park) so Liam was taking advantage of that time to stretch out on the grass.

Liam was not at all sure what to think of his first bus ride. He looked that scared most of the trip.

More Pictures from the Lake

2006-09-12T08:44:00.000-04:00

I just got a hold of our friend Barbara's pictures from the cabin. Some of them are so cute that I had to post them.

Looking back over the blog I realized that there aren't very many pictures of me holding Liam. So, this is the proof that he really does spend time with me too.

ARRRRRR.... I'm a Pirate!

Liam enjoyed a bath in the sink up at the cabin....well, he was a bit unsure at first but he loved it in the end.

Labor Day at the Cabin

2006-09-11T21:38:00.000-04:00

I am way behind on my blogging. Sorry!

We spent Labor Day up on Sebec Lake at our friend Chris' parent's cabin. We love going to the cabin as it is so relaxing and gives us a nice break away from Bar Harbor during tourist season.
While we were at the cabin we took advantage of the lake for what was probably our last lake swim of the season. The water was cold but we swam anyway. We decided not to torture poor Liam with a swim in the lake. It was fun to imagine him up at the cabin next summer though when he would be more into the water. Our other cabin activities included reading, eating lots of good food, soaking in the hot tub and enjoying the company of good friends.

Liam spent a lot of time hanging out with Mike while Mike researched our next canoe trip. I don't think I will ever get tired of seeing Mike and Liam cuddled up together. It is hard to believe that there will come a time when he won't fit into our arms the way he does now. Knowing that day will come someday way too soon we try to soak up each and every cuddle.

Colorado Visitors

2006-09-06T20:24:00.000-04:00

Liam, Mike and I were lucky enough to have visitors all the way from Colorado. Debbie and her new husband Matt (Congrats again guys) came out for a short but sweet visit. We had a wonderful time being able to share Liam with them. He got so many kisses and hugs from them both. Matt was pretty impressed with Liam's baby Bjorn and his Patagonia diaper bag. I was worried for a bit that I was going to have to check to make sure that he wasn't stealing them.

While they were here we ate tons of good food, walked out on the bar, appreciated the beautiful weather and enjoyed being together. It truly is a fantastic feeling when you get to introduce your child to close friends.

Yet Some More Camping Pictures

2006-08-31T06:54:00.000-04:00

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

2006-08-30T14:40:00.000-04:00

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

2006-08-30T13:29:00.000-04:00

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

2006-08-29T16:56:00.000-04:00

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

2006-08-29T16:32:00.000-04:00

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

2006-08-24T23:20:00.000-04:00

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

2006-08-21T09:20:00.000-04:00

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!

2006-08-17T11:53:00.000-04:00

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

2006-08-14T07:42:00.000-04:00

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

2006-08-10T10:52:00.000-04:00

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

2006-08-07T22:22:00.000-04:00

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

2006-08-06T18:38:00.000-04:00

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

2006-08-02T08:39:00.000-04:00

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!

Saturday Field Trip

2006-07-29T20:02:00.000-04:00

Tara said she was in need of a field trip, so we took a wonderful day trip to Blue Hill and Cape Rozier. Blue Hill is a small town ~45 min south of MDI - made famous because it was the summer home of EB White. In fact, the fair in Charlotte's Web is the Blue Hill Fair. It has more carnies than the book suggests.

We didn't spend much time in Blue Hill - just lunch and a couple of stores before we were on our way to the Cape Rozier peninsula.

The drive over was very scenic with great views of Penobscot Bay over rolling hills and forest. Seemed like a great bike route for a future trip... We ended up at the Holbrook Island Sanctuary, and hiked a trail which took us through some meadows, a mosquito and deer fly filled forest and ended up at a deserted beach. As you can tell, Liam LOVED his 'swimming'. Tara and I were undecided whether or not he is still too small to go in more than his feet. Maybe next time. He was delighted when I dipped his head in the water.

After Holbrook, we drove the dirt roads around Cape Rozier and saw some incredible views of the bay across the islands and over to Castine. It was very rural, with lots of small saltwater farms and only a few modern summer homes. It seemed much more authentic coastal Maine than anything around MDI. If only I had a spare few hundred K.

Anyway, it was a cool discovery - next time we'll squeeze in Deer Isle while we're there.

Some Random Pictures of Liam

2006-07-27T13:35:00.000-04:00

Liam and I had a visitor on Tuesday. One of my students came for a visit. She had been dying to come and meet Liam and to see me. She was really cute with him. It was fun to see them together.

We went back to the doctor yesterday to see if Liam had gained any weight. He had! He is now an eight pound baby. Between his doctor's appointment and the weight check yesterday, Liam had gained a bit more than an ounce a day. Pretty impressive. It is good to know that he is putting on weight.

On our walk downtown

2006-07-25T18:21:00.000-04:00

Bath Time

2006-07-25T18:19:00.000-04:00

First real bath and first day on our own

2006-07-25T10:07:00.000-04:00

Liam was finally able to take his first real bath on Sunday. We had been waiting for his cord to dry up and fall off and it finally did. I was beginning to get a little concerned that he was going to hate water. Before his cord fell off we had to give him a sponge bath and he hated it. It was very exciting to see that when we put him in his little tub he loved the water. Normally he cries when he is naked but he was perfectly happy in the water. I can't wait to be able to take him swimming. I want this kid to be a water baby.

Yesterday was my first day alone with Liam. It will be interesting to see what kind of a schedule we can work out. It took us a really long time to get ourselves together but we finally made it out of the house for a walk around 1:00 pm. I was keeping close track of how much he ate yesterday and it turns out he ate about five times before we left the house. It seems like he does the majority of his eating in the morning and slows down in the afternoon. I have a feeling that the afternoons will be our best chance to get out and about. When we finally did make it out yesterday we went downtown. I got a book and we took it to the village green to read for a bit. It is so funny to see how drawn to babies people are. So many people will stop and ask to see Liam. It seems that wee little babies are people magnets.

Mike and I took another walk when he came home from work. It was a beautiful night for sitting by the water.

Ashton and Liam

2006-07-24T09:10:00.000-04:00

Here are a couple of pictures of Ashton and Liam. Ashton was so sweet with Liam. He would come up and kiss and pat Liam. With the cutest little voice he would talk to "Baby Liam." He also really wanted to teach Liam. We have some really neat black and white flashcards for Liam. Ashton loved to show Liam the flashcards every chance he got.

At the doctors appointment

2006-07-22T20:26:00.000-04:00

Swimming pictures

2006-07-22T20:22:00.000-04:00

Swimming fun at Long Pond.

First doctors appointment

2006-07-22T20:12:00.000-04:00

Liam had his first doctors appointment yesterday. All checked out well. The only thing we need to watch is his weight gain. He is back up to his birth weight but he should have gained a bit more since it had been three weeks since his birth instead of the customary two. I have a feeling that he might have his father's metabolism, he sure has his appetite.

Poor Liam did get his first shot. It was so heartbreaking. I had to have Mike hold him as I just could not stand it. He was terribly mad at first and his face turned bright red but he soon recovered. I am sure the shot was just the first of many heartbreaking moments we will have to endure.