Siblings

Welcome to the real world

Today was a big day for Mason -- and all of us really -- as he had his first day of preschool! He's attending Central Park East II on the Upper East Side, where we're oh-so-glad to have landed a spot. Turns out even public Pre-K spots (at good schools!) are difficult to come by in this city!

So, bright and early we headed off this morning -- the whole family -- to his first day. Mason was rockin' his new New York Yankees' backpack, which is almost as big as he is. He got a little lift from Dad-O on the way there.



Piper rocked her apple shirt/skirt combo, if only because it seemed fitting for a first-day-of-school sort of thing!


When we arrived at the school, we found Mason's class lined up in the big school yard and waited (nervously, for Mommy) for the big moment when we'd head inside to the classroom. We also managed to squeeze in a family picture.



We headed upstairs to his classroom and helped him find his name on his cubby and unload his backpack, then it was time to say goodbye. Mason handled it the best of all of us, I think. He looked at me and said "See ya later, Mom!" I practically had to beg for a hug and a kiss ... then leave before I started tearing up! Rob gave him one big squeeze and then we reluctantly headed out and hit up the new-parent breakfast down the hall.

Three hours later, Piper and I were back to pick him up and take him out for a special lunch at McDonald's. The first thing he said to me was "I loved school, Mommy! Thanks for telling me about it!"

Oh, kid, if you only knew. I'll have to remind him of that in a few years and often after that, to be sure!

Pretty in Pink

Before Grammy left, we snuck out to do a little "girlie" shopping. Thank goodness for gypsy cabs and the new Target/Babies R Us/BJs trifecta of stores across the river. We got plenty of girlie stuff for our new girlfriend.

So far, she's looking like one well-dressed little princess...

Pretty in pink (notice she still has a thing for the dramatic hand across the forehead look):



Her first outing (to Mason's preschool picnic) outfit:



Her first dress:



Rockin' a headband:



And maybe my favorite look of all, hanging with her very loving big brother:

Guess Who?

So, I've got some picture labeling to do. Mason and Piper look nearly identical in their hospital pictures. Care to guess who's who?

It's a girl!

We are so happy to welcome our new little one, Piper Rose Mercier, born at 1:27 and weighing 8 pounds, 6 ounces.

Catching Up

So, we've hit the due date and I haven't had a whole lot of time to post lately. That might have to do with a little something called nesting, but I digress.

Here's what the Mercier clan has been up to in our last few weeks of only-child life...

Heading out to Staten Island to take in a (Staten Island) Yankees game with the CU Alumni group:



Pal-ing around Central Park and taking in the scenes and kiddie rides at Victorian Gardens:



Mommy and Mason took one last big "adventure" as a duo -- heading out to Prospect Park to take in the zoo:







Then heading over to the carousel for a quick spin ... and some ice cream!:



A different kind of adventure -- heading to N.J. and Ikea to get a new big-boy bed for our soon-to-be big brother:



Our first visit to the *new* Yankee Stadium:





Never underestimate the power of the rally cap. Yankees are down, Mason dons his (again) and voila ... back-to-back eighth-inning homers propel the Bombers to victory:



And last but not least ... welcoming Grammy to the city and spending a fun day with her in Central Park (while Mommy was at her zillionth doctor's appointment!)



Hopefully the next time we check in, we'll have some big news about a new little one!

Surprise!

My girlfriends teamed up to throw me -- and the Bean -- a surprise shower last Sunday. We had a great time visiting, eating, drinking and eating some more at Jess' and Becca's place, but the highlight was the goodies I got to take home.

Here you can see the girls hard at work designing custom-made onsies for the Bean. I supervised from the couch while sipping on Courtney's delicious watermelon-mint punch concoction. Mmmm.



And here are the finished products all lined up and waiting for a little person to model them. Too cute!