Guess Who Found a Bee-Bo!

That's right! For Liam's birthday, George got a present too...his bee-bo (belly button). Liam is actually really excited. He's been fascinated with the entire process and kept telling everyone that George's bee-bo wasn't ready, but his is.

George is doing really well. He is such a happy little baby. Last Thursday was his two week checkup. He weighed in at 8 lbs, 8 ozs, so already surpassing his birth weight! We're not totally surprised because this kiddo loves to eat. Liam enjoyed the appointment and watching all the things the pediatrician did with George, but was a bit disappointed to learn that George could not longer make his in-utero noises that we heard at the appointments before George was born. It was pretty cute, actually.

Other things we have noticed about our little guy is that he is extremely vocal for his age. He often likes to look around and make all kinds of noises while awake. He has been awake a little bit more, but still sleeping a bunch. George does really well with tummy time and won't fuss for quite awhile. The other thing he absolutely loves is snuggling with Daddy, as you can see. This pretty much always calms him down nearly instantly....



This past weekend was big brother Liam's birthday weekend and George got to meet his Mimi and Tooey for the first time, as well as Uncle Judd. This coming weekend will bring a first meeting with Aunt Michaele!!

He's his own little man

One of the first things we have noticed about little George is how different he is from Liam, and not just in appearance. It's like from the first second he entered this world, he has made a point to say to everyone that he is not his brother. Not that there is anything wrong with Liam, of course. But George is definitely his own little person.

At 12 days old, little G is doing great. He is eating well and gaining weight. We took him last week for a quick checkup and, at 8 lbs, 3 ozs., he was just an ounce and a half short of his birthweight. Everything checked out well. His apgars at birth were 9s and he never developed jaundice.

One of the biggest differences between little man and his big bro is how relaxed he is. Liam did not sleep this much when he was born and was rather high-needs and colicky from the start. The handful of times we've seen George even whimper was during diaper changes. At other times, you can find him just laying out and quietly relaxing...whether asleep or awake. George's favorite sleeping position is with both arms above his head (touch-down style). He hates to be swaddled! He loves to snuggle and is just a really chill baby.

We decided to give our little man his own site since we keep Liam's blog as a baby book of sorts and want to keep it more focused on him. Also, this will give George his own space to highlight all these new and different things that he is surely to do. You can still find photos and videos for both boys on the same sites, and all will be linked together, so just look for the links on each boy's site. Hope you enjoy!

Will post again after his 2 week check up on Thursday.

It's a George!!

After an uncomplicated cesarean surgery, George Charles joined our family on Wednesday, October 3rd at 8:37 in the morning. He weighed in at 8 lbs, 4.9 ozs and 20 inches long. Two days later, we are all home from the hospital and adjusting to being a family of four. Liam seems to like his little brother, but is still obviously very nervous about the entire situation. Will write more in a day or two, but wanted to let everyone know that we are doing well. To see more pictures, you can always visit Liam's photos site at http://www.flickr.com/photos/mr_man_1/

Problem Solved

When Mr. Man wakes up in the morning, he comes down the hall and into our room. Many days, this is as early as 5:30 in the morning. To entertain him while we rest a bit longer, we put Maisy on the TV (we have the episodes TIVO'd) and he likes to lay down and relax on the floor next to Taylor's side of the bed. Most mornings, since it's so dark still, he complains that it's too bright when we put the TV on.

This morning, he came up with a solution:



Problem Solved!!

Ready to be a Big Brother

We had our final doctor appointment today at the clinic. The baby is doing fine. I'm measuring at 41 weeks (so about 3 weeks ahead). The c-section will still be Wednesday, so just 5 more days! Liam came with us to the appointment and was so good. He loves hearing the baby on the doppler. As we were walking down the hall from the exam room to the doctor's office, we passed the office of the nurse I saw most of the pregnancy. Liam instantly recognized her, walked right into her office, and hit her up for a lollipop. He's got the routine down!

Liam is extremely excited most days. The only sign we've seen that he is nervous about everything is he is becoming a bit of a terror at school. He's been hitting, spitting, biting, and telling his teachers "No!"....totally not your typical Liam at all! The good news is that his teachers are wonderful and extremely patient and understanding. They are handling everything exactly as I would have hoped. Otherwise, Liam is loving school and doing really well. His language has exploded tremendously lately...the assistant director of his school was commenting on this too, lately.

The doctor today put me on maternity leave since my feet are so swollen from being on them all day, so I'm off work officially! We just have this one last long weekend with Mr. Man before his brother joins us. A bit sad, but exciting. We have an appointment to meet the surgeon on Monday and then report to the hospital at 6:30 a.m. Wednesday morning. My mom will be coming Monday night to stay with Liam. Should be exciting! In the meantime, we are enjoying our last few days as a family of three.

12 Days

Just a quick update....all is going well with our littlest one. We had an ultrasound today since I am already measuring at full-term. Our doctor determined that unless I miraculously deliver naturally (baby prayers, please) before then, our c-section will be on Wednesday, October 3rd! Baby looks great and, as you can see (or not...Taylor cannot), we got two great face shots. He is weighing in at around 6 lbs, 9 ozs. right now, although the Dr. said that she expects that's a bit of an underestimate.

We have a follow-up appointment this week and then, if nothing happens before then, our surgery in 12 days. Plus, our little one will be delivered by the oldest person in the military (he's been active dute for 47 years!) Kind of neat, even though we would both prefer to have the surgeon be our normal doctor. That's the fun of free medical, though.....Go Army!!

Liam is doing really well. He seems both excited and anxious for his little brother. He is doing well in school. Potty training is so-so. He'll go several times a day of his own initiative on the potty, but will often wet his diaper/pull-up. He wants NOTHING to do with underwear right now, so we're not pushing it until after the baby comes. We have time and his teachers are very understanding of everything going on right now.

I have 6 more days of work and not sure I'll make it. :) Those kindergarteners sure keep me busy. Work is also throwing me a shower on Wednesday, so that should be interesting. Anyway, here's one more shot. I will update and post photos of Liam at the end of the weekend.

I'm a Big Boy!!

Liam has had a lot of changes going on the past few months. One big one was moving him to his bed, which is when we started working with him on being a "big boy." We are trying to get him a bit more independent and feeling proud of all the things he can do.

When Liam went back to school two weeks ago, we decided that paci would only be for "night night." He only uses it to sleep at home (not for napping at school). He has his moments where he wants it, but pretty much has transitioned effortlessly.

The other thing that has come up a lot (other people are so worried about this, while Taylor and I have a very laid-back attitude) is potty training. We haven't even attempted it for three main reasons: 1) he shows very few real, consistent signs, 2) most boys do not potty train until 3 or older, so I was never going to attempt this until he was 3, and 3) new baby = a most-likely regression in certain behaviors, including potty training.

Taylor and I are not ones to work for months on potty-training. When Liam is truly ready, this should only take about a week or two to get down. Well, while I hold a lot in reservation, he finally has shown us some signs this week. He has gone on the potty three times (he asked to use it on his own and was successful) and is trying really hard when he wants to go. He was so proud of himself tonight talking about what a "big boy" he is. While I'm not going to push it too much, we may try to encourage him a bit more this week and see what comes of it. If he takes to it...great! If not, we'll probably hold off until his little brother is here and settled (i.e. Novemberish). Either way, he is using the potty a bit now and seems pretty excited about it.

Mr. Man is truly becoming a "big boy"!