Transition time

As I reflect on my last days before going back to work, I realize that my goals for my leave were much more ambitious than what could actually be accomplished. On the plus side, I did clean out about half of the basement, and I caught up on some movies that I had wanted to see. I read a library book and returned it only 7 days overdue. I decorated and undecorated for the holidays, and I experimented with some new recipes for dinner. But I didn't get to work on the kids' baby books, or edit any of our home videos from the past 12 months. Most meaningful, though, was the time I got to spend with Liam. I really did enjoy that, even though some days I felt as if I had gotten nothing accomplished. I was really fortunate to be able to stay home as long as I did. I've got to focus on the fact that it's sometimes just not important to cross things off a list.

One of my other accomplishments during my leave was to get Charlie to his first dentist appointment, which I did on Monday. We met with the dentist, and she counted Charlie's teeth. Next time he'll get them cleaned. Charlie enjoyed seeing the stuffed animals that they had at the office, and he got a balloon and a prize. As we walked through the exam area to see what the chairs looked like, another child was crying and upset. Charlie clearly made note of that, but I also pointed out the other child who was being examined quietly. Ever since the visit to the dentist, Charlie has been obsessed with brushing his teeth, not just before bed, but also sometimes in the afternoon or in the morning.

Charlie has been getting really good at catching a soft football, as long as it's thrown in the vicinity of his chest. The other day he put on my stocking cap, and John's gloves, and said the cap was his "helmet."

Liam sneezed yesterday, and Charlie said "he's making bless you." I guess he's so used to people saying "bless you" when he sneezes, that he thinks that is what it is called! He is learning other words for bodily functions, like "gas" and "fart." And he's showing more interest in trying to go on the potty again.

Liam has slowed down his eating a bit, but still sleeps through most of the night, getting up at about 4 or 5 for one feeding. I put him into his first 6 month outfit last night. It's amazing how much bigger he is than Charlie was at this age. 3 month photos are posted on my flickr site.

We're off tomorrow to Disney, and Charlie is really excited. I hope he becomes comfortable with the larger than life characters quickly, and isn't too shy. Speaking of which, I'd better get back to packing!

Our colorful world

We have realized that at some point in the last few weeks, Charlie has finally gotten his colors straight. Either he was faking ignorance before (purposely telling us the wrong answer when we asked him what color something was, or pretending not to know what to do when we asked him to point to an object of a particular color), or it just finally clicked. He is now freely, and sometimes voluntarily, pointing out what color things are, and getting them all correct. This makes life much easier, when you want to tell him to "bring me the yellow outfit for Liam" or "pick up that red block and put it away in the blue bin."

Liam has also reached a milestone of sorts-- he laughed for me for the first time about a week ago. He has not done it much since, but he smiles a great deal when he sees or hears someone he recognizes, even big brother Charlie. He continues to grow as well, although he has slowed down his eating a bit. We're transitioning to size 2 diapers this week, and only about half of the 3 month size clothes still fit him. I'm struggling with what exactly to pack to take with us to Florida. It will be nice once I can see what the weather is forecast to be that week. If it's going to be too warm, I may need to go buy some new shorts for Charlie!

Liam continues to impress us with how quickly he is getting to holding his head up for significant periods of time, and he's starting to want to push off a lot with his legs, like he's trying to get somewhere fast. He really likes the portable travel swing I got for him at the resale shop, and the carseat is still the easiest place for us to get him to sleep. He often sleeps in it next to his crib for at least half the night.

In other news, John is terribly busy at work, and struggles to keep up. I've been trying to do my best to relieve any burdens I can at home, but it means I am not accomplishing some of the projects I had hoped to complete while I was off work. Nothing critical-- just things I had wanted to catch up on, like editing videos I've taken of the kids this past year, filling out their baby books, and reorganizing the basement. Entertaining Lucy has now taken on a bass player, so practices (and the gear in the basement) continue to grow.

I'll try to post some photos on Flickr next week when Liam turns 3 months old. But I may not get a chance to post here again before our trip.

Snow days

Charlie is back at daycare this week after two snow days at the end of his first week at the new building. I think the stress of all the recent changes in his schedule and routines have taken their toll. He's been more irritable and the rash on his face has flared up a bit. He has also not been going down for naps or at bedtime as easily as he used to. But he seems to be getting back in the swing of things this week.

I had some fun taking some photos in the backyard last week of birds and snow. In an optimal world, I would have had some white clothes to wear, and left Lucy inside, so the birds would have been more trusting and come closer. But a little patience did finally pay off and I got a couple of really nice shots of some cardinals.


Charlie also had fun playing in the snow last week-- helping me shovel was his favorite thing, even more than sledding down the front yard. Some photos and video are posted on my flickr site.

Entertaining Lucy is back to practicing here in the new year, now including a drummer. Charlie is readjusting to the loud noises coming from the basement when it's time to go to sleep. Liam is getting accustomed to it as well.

I have been attempting to get motivated to finish up the list of tasks I had wanted to get done while I was on leave, but the snow days last week sort of sidetracked me. Now I have less than 3 weeks to prepare for our big Florida trip and my return to work. Liam generally lets me get some things done during the day, but every once in a while we have a night (like last night) when he doesn't sleep much, and it leaves me wanting to nap all day the following day. But the way his face lights up with a smile when he sees and hears me makes it difficult to be mad at him at all.

Little Big Boy

Liam had his 2 month check-up today at the pediatrician. We thought he felt heavier than Charlie at this age, and we were right! He weighed 12 pounds, 11 ounces (80th percentile), compared to 11 pounds, 2 ounces that Charlie weighed at his 2 month appointment. He has definitely made up for the fact that he was almost a pound lighter at birth.

His height measured at 23 inches (50th%) but I think he might actually be a bit longer, because he was fighting the nurse as she tried to stretch his legs out straight to measure him. His head was 16 inches (60th%).

Charlie had a good first day at the new daycare yesterday. They must have really worn him out, because he was looking very tired when we went out to dinner to celebrate. He was excited to see snow on the ground in the parking lot-- he said he wanted to "go crunch crunch and make handprints." One of these days he will learn the difference between handprints and footprints!

Photo recap of 2009

I decided to go through my flickr posts of photos taken in 2009, and select those that were my favorites, and which would also document the year for our family. You'll find a healthy mix of photos of the kids, along with a lot of animals and plants. Seems I tend to take a lot of the same sorts of photos. Maybe my resolution for 2010 should be to branch out and challenge myself to take more photos of inanimate objects. I seem to remember enjoying doing that before the kids came along.