24 Weeks

It's pretty challenging to explain "baby brother" to a seventeen month old with little to no concept of what a brother is... anyway, we are trying! I'm pretty sure Lance thinks I have a doll in my belly but, on the bright side, has taken to his pink outfitted doll we've named "Baby Brother" and even read him a story this morning.

baby what?

Growing...

Minus Stef, all of the Harmelings are growing at a rapid rate these days...
Lance's growth seems to be mostly in his development (while mine and #2's is a bit more physical) and it is hard to keep up. Stef and I both wish we could slow down time to soak it all up. His memory, comprehension, communication and motor skills are skyrocketing.
and he is talking... a LOT!!! He can sound out all of the animal sounds, name his body parts, answer yes and no questions, say please and sign thank you, exclaim "good!" and "wow!" when he sees or does something he likes, call Moses and Koko by name, name or repeat most one syllable objects names, and generally get his point across most of the time. Being able to communicate has taken the fun and enjoyment of being together to a whole new level. Here's a quick video of dinner time last week...

Little number two is busy kicking, punching, and doing yoga in my belly. We are over the half way marker at 22 weeks and the big question remains... "What will his hair look like?!"

Here are some shots of the growing Harmelings over the last couple of weeks.

Holiday Fun

I realize it's almost a month after the fact, but I'm finally getting around to posting pics from our wonderful Christmas. We were lucky enough to have Nini here for a whole week and spent the time relaxing and celebrating the holidays in Hilo.
Stef and I definitely felt like first time parents (went a little overboard) but couldn't help ourselves. Despite being slightly overwhelmed, Lance loved it and naturally was more excited about Moses and Kohala's gifts than he was his own...

a moment of intense anticipation from all as Daddy unwraps the beef hide bones...

I think we spent so much time relaxing that I forgot to get the camera out for some quality shots of Lance and Nini. Needless to say, Lance had a wonderful time with her and was proudly able to pronounce her name perfectly by the time she left.
I did manage one cute pic from the car ride over to Kona...
It was a perfect end to a fabulous year. Happy 2011 everyone!

Brothers

We got a peek at number two today and, you guessed it, (or not based on the poll...) Lance is going to be lucky enough to have a little brother just 20 months younger than him. With me growing up with all sisters and Stef growing up with all brothers, both of us really know and understand the value of those same sex sibling relationships. Not that they're all perfect, and not that brothers and sisters don't also share an awesome bond, but there does seem to be something about two bros who love each other like best friends. This is what I'm envisioning (hoping for!)with Lance and our new addition.

Gender aside, the little guy looked great. His heart, head, spine, and limbs looked healthy and the ultrasound tech remarked a few times on how active he was. Looks like we're in for another energizer bunny! I can just picture the two of them tearing the house apart in another year or two...
Here's a quick video of the baby in action- you can see the heartbeat and spine if you look closely.

The Christmas Spirit

Lance is really feeling the Christmas spirit this year. It's so fun to see him get excited about trees and lights, decorations and advent calendars. I think it will only keep getting better with each holiday season!
Here are a few videos from the start of the festivities...

This is at the annual Hilo Christmas Lights Parade. Lance was so into it!!! He loved all of the marching bands, floats and lights. If you look closely, Lance says "get out of my face, Mommy!" and then, at the end, "More, please."

Here's his first glimpse of an actual tree inside the house... a strange but much loved Christmas tradition!

and here he is testing each bulb for temperature control:

Introducing Number Two!

Yep! We have officially fallen into the category of crazy parents going for two babes under two years...
Lance has a little sib on the way- due at the end of May!
Stef is convinced it's a girl, while I'm not so sure. Any votes from our faithful readers? New poll on the right!

Now that I'm starting to come out of the first trimester ill, hopefully I'll be a more active blog poster. Lance has been up to all kinds of exciting new things like walking all over the place, climbing everything in sight, propelling himself face first down the slide and face planting at the bottom, traveling to California with mommy for 10 days and behaving like a world traveler on the plane, and getting more proficient at his animal sounds.
More to come!! I promise!

A Fall Trip to California

Lance and I were lucky enough to spend a little over a week with family and friends last week. Despite both of us getting sick and having to lay lower than planned, we had a great trip.
The only camera I had was my phone, so these aren't the greatest shots, but here are some highlights from the trip:

enjoying his last moments with daddy before getting on the plane:
relaxing in the extra seat we scored and playing with the airline's crayons and coloring book:
fascinated by the sunset on the airplane:

enjoying Nini's chili with Max and Millie:
coincidentally having the same jammies as Will:

locating the music source and cozying up (and dancing with) the speaker on a regular basis:
rocking his new sweatsuit and bouncing on the trampoline:
watching his cousins and somehow learning how to hold a bat in excellent form (I swear this isn't posed):
and falling in love with Japanese food and miso soup especially:

It's always great to get home after a good trip. Lance got some new sneakers while we were gone and after a complete tantrum in the middle of the shoe department (not wanting to wear them) he now begs to put them on every time we go outside. Here he is, back in his element: