Maya Wants M&M's!

Since Halloween, Maya has been hooked on M&M's. She requests them at least once a day, and when you hear how she says "M&M's", you'll understand why it's so darn hard to refuse! I usually cave in to her plea for M&M's. She's so cute that I can't say no! Her daddy, on the other hand, doesn't mind saying no to the request for candy. You can see how she reacts when Will suggests that she can have some later...

Doing the Rounds

We met the last doctor in the OB practice that we have been seeing all these months. There are 4 doctors, and I have enjoyed meeting all of them. I can honestly say that I don't care who shows up to catch baby Liam because I really liked all of the docs! That's a wonderful feeling. Baby Liam continues to grow and take up more room than he should be by this point. I'm 35 weeks and 2 days, and he is measuring a solid 37 weeks. They assured me at the last ultrasound that he's not large by any means, so he must just be really stretched out in there! I can constantly feeling him under my left rib cage, which makes bending over for anything a real treat. Sometimes it's actually painful to bend over! It feels like his feet (or whatever) are going to bust right through my bottom ribs! I also get shoulder pain every once in a while, and I believe it's referred pain from him squishing my spleen (also located on the left side)! I remember always being able to feel Maya's butt in my left upper abdominal quadrant, but I never remember it being painful. He must be turned the opposite way, causing his feet and knees to take up residence where her butt used to be. I think I preferred the butt!

Dr. K. asked me a little about my labor and delivery with Maya and whether or not I had an epidural and if I planned on having another one. I told him that I did with her, and I'd really rather not have one this time around. He was very reassuring that I could get through without it, and basically just told me that if I can just make it to transition (7 cm is when that starts), I wouldn't have the opportunity to have one at that point because I'd be too close to giving birth. I thought that sounded great... If I can just get to the point that there's no going back, and it's too late to get meds, I can make it. He said labor and delivery will be easier this time, and he urged me to use the bathtub they have in each room. He was very encouraging!

Maya did really well at the doctor's office today. As soon as Dr. K. (a warm, older, grandfatherly-like man) walked into the room, Maya pointed at Will and said, "Dada", then she pointed at me and said, "Mom." Dr. K. just laughed, talked to her for a minute, thanked for the introductions, and shook her hand. Maya was clearly very proud of herself for helping. She sat on Will's lap during my exam (measuring my belly and fetal heart tones) and and listened intently to Liam's heart beat, bopping along to the beat of the music. It was so cute. Dr. K. asked her if that was her baby brother, and she shook her head yes and responded, "Ah-huh". After I sat up, she wanted onto the table with me. As Dr. K. was wrapping up the visit, Maya laid down on the table, pulled up her shirt, and started patting her belly. Dr. K. took notice and asked if she needed her belly checked. She shook her head "yes", so he mashed around on her belly a little bit, while she laid as still and serious as could be. When he finished, he said, "Well, everything looks good!" She continued to lay on the table and started pointing to his coat then back to her belly. It was when he pulled his doppler out that she shook her head "yes" and said, "Mm-hmm". Dr. K. turned it on, placed it on her belly and let her listen to the static for a little bit. She was pleased as punch! When he finished listening, he helped her sit up, told her everything looked good, and she gave him five and shook his hand. It was the cutest darn thing I've ever seen. I was so glad that she interacted so well with Dr. K., and that he was SO nice to her. It was easy to see that he got a kick out of her personality and curiosity. That was by far the most fun I've ever had at a doctor's appointment!

"Pie!"

Tonight, after Maya and I brushed her teeth, she was standing on the bathroom counter, looking in the mirror at her little naked self. She was goofing off, spinning in circles, laughing, and just having a good time playing with me and checking out her reflection. We had been singing the "Feeling Good with JoJo" song that goes, "... reach up, way up HIGH!" When I sing that part of the song, Maya puts her hands way up in the air and sings, "PIE!". Every time she put her hands up, I tickled her armpits, and she would crack up laughing. The best part was that she would not put her arms down! She would leave her arms up and just double over in fits of giggles. It was so cute! At the end of the JoJo song, she says, "That's me!", so now, when I finish singing the song, Maya goes, "ME!" and points to herself. I didn't even know she knew that part, and I don't sing that part. It blew me away when I finished that last verse, and Maya shouted, "ME!" I was like, wow, she's way more observant than I give her credit for!

Another favorite cartoon song of hers is from "My Friends Tigger and Pooh". It's the song that the Super-Sleuths sing when they are solving a mystery. Part of it goes, "When we have a problem, think, think, think...", and Maya sings, "tink, tink, tink!" as she taps the side of her head with her little index finger. It's really cute. She loves Pooh, now, by the way. Every time we go to the store, we look for "Pooh!" She thinks he's great and loves to say his name.

In case you're wondering, no, we don't watch TV all day long. Playhouse Disney is our favorite thing to tune into in the mornings. Usually we watch for about an hour, during her diaper change and breakfast. If she's really into whatever show is on, I'll leave it on for a little longer while I clean the kitchen. For the most part, once she's down from the table, she's too busy to actually watch the TV, so we turn it off. If she's being particularly cranky, sometimes those cartoons engage her enough that she not just fussing around the house. We'll just sit and watch them together. The nice thing about those cartoons is that I like them, too!

"Bubble Toes" (Da da dada da da...)

Maya's favorite song at the moment is Jack Johnson's "Bubble Toes", so we probably listen to it about 20 times a day (at least). When she sits down in her chair, she points to the IPod and says, "Da da". You will see her singing along with the "da da dada da da" part of the song on the video. She's a pretty good singer, and check out those dance moves!

Also, when she sits down at the table, she points out where "dada" sits, which is right next to her, and she'll say, "Sit! Sit!" It's really cute. If I'm not in my chair, she'll point at the chair and say, "Mom!" She knows where we're supposed to go and likes to make sure we're in the right spots, just in case we forgot.

We've also been practicing a few words lately. I'm trying to teach her to say "Liam", and so far that comes out as "Me-me". The other one we're working on is M&M's. She got some for Halloween and loves them! She calls them "meana-meana". LOL! It's SO CUTE! I'll try to get some videos of those words to post. Stay tuned!