It's Christmas Time in the City

I love all things Christmas (0kay, the Christmas carols are starting to get to me a bit) and so on Saturday we headed into SF to check out the lights in Union Square.

First off, let me say that you would never know we are in a recession looking at Union Square. I have never seen so many people out shopping, not even on Boxing Day or Black Friday. It was insane. Thankfully Liam was in his carrier, so no unruly shoppers could jostle him about.

So we went into Macy's for our favourite treats at The Cheesecake Factory (1 hour wait!). Liam enjoyed hanging out in his highchair checking out his surroundings.

Then we went down to Union Square to check out the massive tree and skating rink. Liam loves looking at all the Christmas lights, and they even had the palm trees decked out in lights which looked beautiful.

On the way back to the BART we looked at the Christmas windows in Macy's, where they showcase cute little puppies and kittens waiting for adoption. So adorable!

It was a long day for Liam, and the little man fell asleep promptly in the car.

California Academy of Science

Mike's work gave everyone the day off today, so we decided to head into SF to the recently opened California Academy of Science. It was, in a word, awesome. Seriously, if you're ever here for a visit, I highly recommend it.

Liam, was fascinated. He loved watching the fish, trying to reach out and grab them. And by far his favourite was the penguins. There was one particularly friendly one who kept diving down and nudging the glass where the kids were. Liam kept reaching for him and was absolutely riveted. It was so cool!

Liam's parents spend an evening out... without Liam!

So last night was the first night that Mike and I went out without the little man. It was Mike's work's holiday party and we felt it was important to put in an appearance. So at 6:30pm we dropped Liam off at my friend Dana's house and off we went.

I was initially a little nervous, obviously not because I don't trust Dana, but because this is really the first time we have left him. I thought he would do great though, and I was right. He enjoyed seeing his little "girlfriend" Hayes (Dana's daughter is 4.5 months old), playing in her exersaucer (which we will be purchasing for Christmas), eating pears, drinking his milk from his sippy cup, and getting loads of attention. So all went well, and by the time we picked him up at 9pm (a little past his bedtime) he was just getting cranky.

I'm sure it helped that Dana is a familiar face and Liam loves her, so yay! I'm glad he wasn't upset at all, and my friends and I have all decided to do some babysitting swapping, so we'll probably be hosting a baby playdate at our place next!

Picture above is Liam playing oh so gently with Hayes' ear at the Baby's Holiday party.

Liam VS The Bear - 7 Months

You'll be happy to know there were no issues this month between Liam and the Bear.

Busy Little Boy

It's been a few weeks since I've updated Liam's blog, it's so hard to find the time with this busy little guy! He's still babbling up a storm, and I'm pretty sure he's starting to associate words with objects. If I say "where's the kitty" he will look around for Luna and he gets all excited when he sees her. So cute!

I think he's also starting to sign 'milk' at me, which is really cool. He just sort of wiggles his fingers around but I get the idea. We're taking a weekly signing class with him and it's amazing how many sign Mike and I already know.

Solids are going great, he nearly polished off a jar of pears at dinner on Friday night and then nursed on top of that . Hmmm, I swear he has hollow legs. He also loves sweet potatoes and oatmeal, bananas are hit and miss, and rice cereal is out. I love preparing his little meals for him and helping him drink water out of his big boy cup.

Stay tuned for the 7 month bear picture!

Happy Halloween from the Little Monster

Liam enjoyed his first Halloween this past Friday. He went as a little monster, isn't he the cutest?! Seriously, if my kid was any cuter... well, I don't think that's possible.

Anyways, the day started off with a trip into the city to drop Megan off at a job interview. Then Liam, Tante Moni, and I made our way to Mike's work for his work's annual Halloween party. I think my little monster was a bit overwhelmed with all the people, music, and decorations, but he seemed to have a good time, especially playing with the balloons.


Afterwards we took our tired little monster home, lit up his jack o' lantern that his Daddy carved for him, and then it was off to bed.

Liam VS The Bear - 6 Month photo shoot

Liam turned 6 months old this past week, and we finally managed to get around to taking his Bear picture today.

Unfortunately for the Bear, Liam is not as willing to share the spotlight as he had been in previous months.

At first, Liam didn't want the Bear anywhere near him:


Then he tried to explain to the Bear that maybe they should try taking the picture with other friends:
The Bear wouldn't listen, so things got ugly:


So we tried the picture without the Bear but Liam wasn't happy with the results:


And so finally we all agreed to just get along:

Solids!

So the little man tried his first solid food yesterday! We gave him little bit of rice cereal, and had the camera and video cam ready for the expected funny faces he would make. And you know what, he loved it! He ate from the spoon like a pro, it was like he had been eating solids for months. This makes me feel better since I didn't want to start him too early but all signs point to him being ready (making chewing motions, improving pincer grasp, interest in food).

Sadly his Oma has to leave him today. I wonder how he'll react, since he is quite smitten with her, and is much more aware of others than he was when we were home in the summer. Having her here has been great, our move wouldn't have gone nearly as smoothly without her watching Liam for us. And seeing Liam smile and laugh with her, hug and play with her, has been such a joy for me.

Liam's First Thanksgiving

Yesterday was Liam's first Canadian Thanksgiving, and it was a big day for him! Not only was his Oma here to celebrate with him, and we were in our fantastic new apartment, but he reached a big milestone. Liam officially started babbling yesterday. So far we've got "ma ma ma" and "ba ba ba". I love it! He also is able to get onto his knees during tummy time for a few seconds. He's such a smart, strong little guy, watching him grow is truly the best thing in the world.

Liam's Oma came down to help us out during our move, and it's so sweet to see him bonding with her. He loves it when she sings German songs to him, and she has all sorts of fun games that make him squeal and laugh. It makes me wish so much that we could live closer to family, but at least we're on the West Coast.

The Great Glass Pumpkin Patch

I love doing seasonal things, and now that Liam is in my life it's even more of an excuse to go out and do fun kid type stuff. So yesterday Liam and his friend Aidan (and their mamas of course) headed to Palo Alto for the Great Glass Pumpkin Patch. I love blown glass, and this is basically a pumpkin patch of blown glass pumpkins made by local artists.

There were hundreds of pumpkins, and it was pretty cool! The boys didn't really seem to notice to0 much, but it was a good opportunity for some nice photos.

Adventures with a sippy cup

Liam has been busy since he turned 5 months. Not only is he sitting on his own (!), but he's also started to use a sippy cup. He always stares at us forlornly when Mike and I are drinking/eating, and since he's not quite ready for solids yet I thought maybe a sippy cup with some water would appease him. And boy was I right. He is crazy for his sippy cup. As soon as he sees it he usually stretches his arms out and frantically opens his mouth. I'm not sure he's actually swallowing any since his shirt ends up soaked, but he's already figured out that he needs to tip it back to get anything out of it. So cute!

Liam VS The Bear

I started doing this when Liam was 2 weeks old, having seen it on some of my mommy-message boards. I think it's a cute way of showing how much the little man has grown. I just took his 5 month picture, so enjoy the photo-montage!


2 weeks:


1 month:


2 months:


3 months:


4 months:


5 months:


Note to Bear: I think Liam is winning

ps- If you think that bear looks familiar, it is the Charity Bear from the Bay, circa late 1980s

Whee!

We bought Liam a Jolly Jumper a few weeks ago. I can't believe these are still around (I have vague memories of jumping around in mine) and I'm so glad they are. The first few times in it he just sort of pranced around, pleased with himself for being able to move as he wished. Now he's starting to get the hang of it, bouncing up and down more and more each time he goes in it. Seeing this picture makes me realise how much my little man has grown. It's hard to believe that 5 short months ago he was but a wee babe who couldn't smile or laugh. Now his wonderful personality shows itself a little more each day, and he is honestly just the best.

Stay tuned for his 5 month Liam VS The Bear picture montage!

First post, about Liam of course

Hello All!

Liam is changing every day, and what better way to share his adventures (and keep a good record of them) then by starting his own blog? Yes, it's all about Liam these days, and we're loving it.

We just got back from dropping Daddy off at the train, and the little man is sleeping soundly in his car seat at my feet. His days in the bucket seat are numbered, since as of his 4 month appointment he was almost 26 inches and the limit is 29.

We're right in the middle of a nasty heat wave which stinks. Our apartment is like a little oven, it was well over 30 degrees in here yesterday. Ugh, totally vile and unbearable, so Liam and I had to escape. We had a lovely day at the park with some friends, and then hid in his Daddy's office for the remainder of the day. Today promises to be just as hot, so after our stroller fit class this morning (should be loads of fun in this heat) we're off to San Francisco to meet some friends for a playdate in the park. I'm happy to say our new apartment has no direct sunlight so it should be pleasant year-round.

As for Liam, he is seriously the happiest little boy in the world. He LOVES other babies and when we go to playdates he just smiles and laughs when he sees his friends. I can't get over how friendly and adorable he is. I have a feeling he is going to be quite the little social butterfly when he gets older. We have such a great time when we got to the park, he loves looking at the trees and feeling the fresh breeze. Thankfully we're staying in Foster City which has loads of great parks.

He's also getting stronger and stronger each day and can now pull himself up into a sitting position when I hold his hands. The first time he did it he seemed quite pleased with himself, I'm sure thanks in part to me cheering him on which he loves. He can sit for quite a while now without falling over, I'm sure it's just a matter of weeks before he's ready for sitting in a highchair.

Tomorrow is Mike's and my 5 year anniversary, can you believe it?! If the heat sticks around we'll probably go to the beach for a picnic.

Have a great weekend!!