Rollin'

Lance has been working on his moves for you all and has perfected rolling over! He surprised himself so much the first time that it took awhile for him to do it again, but here's a super quick video of him in action!

Also featured: a fussy Lance trying to scoot his way off the playmat. I think I might be in for it... he was actually gaining ground! Time to baby proof the house already?? I hope not! yikes!

Whew! What a Weekend!

It was a thrilling weekend for the Harmelings, this past weekend. Stef, Lance and I headed over to one of our most favorite, indulgent, spots for a night at the Mauna Kea to celebrate one year of marriage and introduce Lance to his eagerly awaiting auntie and uncle, Les and Jeff!

Here's a shot of their meeting. Jeff had just come back from a successful fishing expedition (hence the footwear- he doesn't wear black socks on the beach unless he's wearing them with his Birkenstocks) and Les was enjoying some r&r:

I was super excited to introduce Lance to my sis, but also to get some time with her myself!

Lance took his longest recorded nap since his sleepy first week with Daddy on the lounge chair. He agrees, the Mauna Kea is just sooooooo relaxing...

The excitment came to a head on Sunday when Lance donned his mismatched swim outfit and made his way down to the ocean for his first dip!

We really weren't sure what to expect, considering that the water was a tad chilly getting in even for us! But, to our total delight, he didn't fuss one bit! In fact, after a couple of minutes, he even started to enjoy himself!

Here's a shot of Lance warming up in Daddy's t-shirt after the big event:

As you can see, it was an action packed weekend! Nothing beats family time, favorite hotels and salt water!

Below are a couple of videos of Lance's ocean swim. Enjoy!

Two Months Old Already!

This isn't the best quality shot, but I had to post it because Lance's expression when he woke up on his two month birthday is priceless! He hadn't even eaten yet! must be proud to be two months...

Some of Lance's highlights during his second month include...

finding his thumb:

Spending lots of quality time with Grandma:

and Daddy:

Dressing up as a dragon for Halloween while coincidentally scoring the same exact costume as his buddy Cruz:

Feeling grumpy about posing for so many pictures in his costume (Koko wasn't too happy either but Stef and I were pretty psyched!):

Modeling some of his new purchases from his first trip to Target:

and cuddling with his bunny from Nini:

What will month three bring? Lots more love and excitement, I'm sure!

Lance Meets Pops and Elisi!

What a lucky guy! In his first two months of life all the way over here on the Big Island, Lance has been able to meet FOUR of his grandparents! Pops and Elisi made the trip to Hilo last week and were able to spend some time with us and the little guy.
They contributed a whole stack of books to his growing library and even managed to find several Hawaiian stories and board books! We ate some yummy dinners compliments of Stef and Mama Mary and enjoyed time together. Lance can't wait to see them again at Christmas!

The Next Generation

A meeting of the cousins! Lance got to meet his big cousins, Max and Millie this week! The Matthews fam came to the Big Island and we were lucky enough to spend some Q.T. with them this week. Max, the oldest of the cousins, could not believe how "tiny" Lance is and was so proud to get a chance to hold him.
Millie was totally thrilled about the "baby" and would exclaim "baby!" and then point and pet him gently. How sweet!!

It was a huge treat to have the time with Tera and Brian also. Stef and B hit up BJ Penn's gym and Bryan got to see the big star in his element! Here's a pic of Max modeling B's new shirt:

I got to ask my sis endless questions about sleep, nursing, carseat crying, and life after babies. Once again, we are so lucky!!!

Lance and Daddy Time

Good Morning Lance!! Here's how Daddy likes to wake his boy up. His boy seems to like it too (we think...)!

The Morning After

OK, so first of all we have a perfect baby who never keeps us up all night..... not!
Second of all we never sleep with our baby in the bed with us like our parents did because it's so dangerous...... yes we do!
Third of all, aren't all three of us absolutely perfect looking while we sleep?? :)

Lance Turns One Month!

So happy to be a whole month old!

Yep! Our little guy celebrated his one month birthday this weekend. Some highlights from the last couple of weeks include smiles, his first bottle (success!), his first ride in the stroller, and after over three weeks with a VERY stubborn umbilical cord that wouldn't fall off, his first real bath!


Lance also met his grandma, who we are lucky to have here with us for the next two months! They are already in love. :)

He loves hanging out in Daddy's arms and holding hands...

And, of course, he is still working on his hairstyles. He's going back to 2003 for the fauxhawk look:It is so much fun getting to know Lance as he changes and grows. Amazing that it has been one month already!

An Amazing Week with Nini!

Stefan, Lance and I were lucky enough to have mom (Nini) here for the last ten days while we adjust to new parenthood. It was SO wonderful to have her around- not just for the help, but mostly for the company. I guess there's not much that can compare with having your mom around while you are trying to figure out the whole mom thing yourself...

Nini cooked up a storm with several amazing meals, did a ridiculous amount of laundry, helped clean the house, and, most importantly, cheered Stef and I (okay, mostly me) on as we work on becoming parents.

Nini also got lots of good, quality time with Lance...
providing tons of love and affection as he wakes up to life in the overly stimulating world, being genuinely interested in the color of his poops, watching his looks change in just a week, and already pointing out how his developing personality matches his astrological chart PERFECTLY!!! :)

We miss her already. Being so far away from family is THE hardest part about living out here... but ten days of quality time makes it doable, and we are SO grateful! Love you Mom!!

The Other Babies

A popular question we got asked before Lance was born was "How do you think the dogs will do?" My answer: "We'll find out!" Stef's answer: "Great!"
Well, Stef was right. They have been amazing!

Here are a couple of shots of the initial meeting:

Moses was very excited at first, but listened well and contained his energy!

Kohala was curious and a little shy, but has warmed right up to Lance:

Moses has taken on the role of "Den Mother" and pretty much sits at the foot of wherever Lance is... his bed, the couch, the chair, his swing, and stands guard. Koko isn't nearly as protective, but she likes to hang out too...

Aside from the dogs, I'm sure you'd all like to see a pic of Lance's face and not just the back of his head up against the milk machine. So! Here he is:

We'll work on getting some more awake shots. They just aren't as easy to capture!

Introducing Lance Ebon Harmeling!

"Wazzzzzzz Up!"

He's here!!
and, of course, I am at a total loss of what to say. The obvious- we love him SO much already it is almost impossible to imagine life before him...

Lance was born on Thursday, September 10th at 11:52 am after an extremely long labor. He weighed in just one ounce short of seven pounds- 6 lbs, 15 oz. and 19.5 inches long. I told him that if he hadn't pooped all over me and him during our postpartum bonding session that he might have hit the big seven pound mark! oh well!

Here are some pics from his first three days-

MAJOR cone head and swollen face (and ear!) after trying to make his way through my pelvis and birth canal for three hours... poor guy! not his best look!

And looking more like himself the next day... great recovery, Lance!!

We are home safe and sound- so far he is a great sleeper, an awesome eater and is doing great!

He has been much more awake and alert for the past couple of days and we finally got some shots of him with his eyes open!

He's also been working on his hair styles...

The Wall Street?

The Comb Forward:


Or the Clark Kent?

Impossible not to love him, isn't it???

THANK YOU to everyone for your support and love over the past days and months..
and for old time's sake, here is the last shot of me and Lance on the day we went into labor-