For 9 months I walked around pregnant. I watched my belly grow from looking like I was eating too much cake to looking like I swallowed a basketball. Layers of muscle and fat and skin kept me away from seeing what was between me and the baby growing inside of me. For 9 months all I had was wonder. I wondered, is this baby going to make it? Will I ever meet it? Are we adding another girl to the group or will this one be a boy. Are these boy symptoms I’m feeling or girl symptoms? I wasn’t sure. One thing I did know was that this baby was very active. I remember feeling flutters super early, way before 12 weeks. After three pregancy I knew the familiar feeling of flutters. As the baby continued to grow, the movements continued to increase, reassuring me throughout the day that it was there and it was ok. I loved that feeling. I remember at work, when we had the pre-schoolers rehearsing for graduation, this little one would flip and move with excitement as the kids sang there songs. I noticed the same thing while sitting in the auditorium, listening to my daughters holiday concerts. The response to music continued as we’d sit in our entry room listening to the girls playing their flutes. I’d think to myself “this kid really likes music”. This kid also made me very nauseous! I was nauseous for the whole pregnancy. It was awful. I was hungry but nothing delighted me. Well, except for cake! I had no cravings just hunger and naseau. Towards the end of the 2nd trimester I started experiencing numbness and pain in my right arm. The pain was so bad that I couldnt cut or write anything with my right arm. I couldnt even get thru stirring chopped meat for taco night! The nights were even worse. I had to ice my shoulders and hands to relieve pain in my arms. I’d never experienced such a thing in my other pregnancies. I cried alot, not cause of hormones but because I was in so much pain. I was so worried that it would never go away. How would I function? I couldnt drive or push the cart at the supermarket without my hand going dumb and pain striking my arms. At times I’d think to myself, what have I done. What if I put myself self through all of this and something goes wrong and it was all for nothing. But one little kick and a smile would appear on my face. The pain, the unknown, the naseau, the sleepless nights, they would prove to be worth it! One thing I did notice in this pregnancy was my hormones. I wasnt emotional or sensitive like I had been with the prior pregnancies. No one really got on my nerves and if they did I didnt meow about it like a cat, I roared like a lion. Almost like I had testosterone inside of me. Most of the time it was the kind that caused me to chase my husband morning, noon and night! Otherwise I was as cool as a cucumber or picante like a spicey pepper. Amir believed that the cause of all of this was a little boy. An energetic, high testosterone little boy. And he was right. I dont know how Liam entered the world, did he come out screaming and crying or was he silent. Due to an emergency c- section, that is a question we will never know the answer to. But I do know that Liam loves to cuddle. He doesnt like a soiled diaper, not even a barely soiled diaper. But he hates to be changed, go figure! You feel like your in a battle, the way he moves his legs and arms all over the place, desitin ends up all over the place, sometimes the diaper rips cause I’m trying to go as fast as I can so I dont have to hear the angry, high pitched scream he makes and to top it off he pees and has been known to poop all over me. Thats completely new to me. My little girls never did that to their mama. He frets if hes hungry, like hes been starving for days. Hes delighted by the hugs of his big sisters and absolutely loves to be in his daddy’s strong arms. He does not like to be alone, loves to be ooed and cooed at. He loves being outdoors and  looking up at the trees. He loves to sleep. Thank you for those 5 to 6 hour stretches in the early evening! Hes not a big fan of the car seat, luckily the car ride always puts him to sleep. Theres so many things we are learning about him every day and so much hes learning about each and everyone of us. So thankful for him. Two months ago we didnt know if he would be Liam or Natalia and now I cant imagine this life without him. So glad you are here Liam.