Scooter McScooty Pants

Finnley can sniff out a remote control from 100 feet away. She can also sniff out a telephone. And a plastic bottle. And a catalogue. Or anything else, for that matter. She is just that talented. I really do give her that.

And, although she doesn't "crawl" just yet, she does scoot. Or shimmy. Or self-propel.

She can move 20 feet across the room to find that coveted remote control or other treasure. Not quickly, but she moves.


And, sometimes when she finally reaches that treasure, well, she likes to eat it. Ok, I should clarify. EVERY time that she finds the treasure, she likes to eat it. Now, sometimes when she eats the treasure, she drools. And, sometimes when she finds the treasure and eats it and drools...she also spits up. On the treasure. Like you can see in the pictures here.


Poor remote control. It didn't know what it was in for.

Still...

Finnley still has her favorite games. And one of them is still "pull the blanket over my head while doing anything". It is a great game. Lots of fun to be had by all, I assure you! I managed to pull the blanket back just enough so that you can actually see Finnley under it...while eating her afternoon bottle. Silly girl. Still.

And....

they called it PUPPY LOVE!!!!

A Week in the Life...

ate, slept, pooped. ate, slept, pooped. ate, slept, and pooped some more.

had major diaper blowout. I mean major. MAJOR!

spit up on the bead drum during music class at Gymboree.

refused to nap. several times.

napped a few times only in the afternoon. only for about an hour. whatever.

spit up on the mat at the end of play and learn class at Gymboree.

screamed while trying to crawl but not being able to crawl. several times.

let the dog lick her hand and face after eating. several times.

cried for the babysitter. pretty much non-stop. babysitter and baby ended up having to join us out for dinner. good thing the babysitter was our niece. stranger anxiety = fun!

played, read, danced, bounced. played, read, danced, bounced. played, read, danced, and bounced some more.

spit up on the floor. several times.

ate full jar of food during single sitting. several times.


The good. The bad. The ugly. They all pretty much make up every week in the life of Finnley. When you are as cute as she is, though...the bad and the ugly really aren't that bad or that ugly. It is all pretty much GOOD!

Mac Daddy!

I am so excited. I have been "missing" for a few days because my computer sucks. Well, it did suck. Past tense. The reason it sucked? Because it had Vista as an OS. Then it sucked even more because it got sick with a nasty Trojan virus. Damn virus. So, the virus was the final straw that broke the camel's (computer's) back. Result? New computer. MacBook Pro!!!

Can I just say..I LOVE IT???

The internet is up and ready to go as soon as I turn on the computer. No more fighting. No more wars. No more silly virus. No more ...well...no more lots of stupid stuff.

Just to put it out there...I will not miss you Vista. You were never my friend. As a matter of fact, I think I always hated you. Jerk.

I am still learning about my Mac. But, we are already fast friends. I think we might even be in love. A little bit. Ok...a lot bit.

Oh, and the old computer was not the only thing that was struck by a nasty virus. A horrible stomach virus hit our house. I mean HORRIBLE. I am not sad to see that go, either. There is seriously nothing worse than being the mom of an infant AND being sick all at the same time. I am glad to report we survived, though. Until the next time, at least.

That is all I have for you. For now I will leave you with just a couple of videos to pass the time. And for you to get your "Finnley fix"...if you were looking for one, that is.

The one video shows Finnley playing in her exersaucer (a bit violently, I might add) and playing one of her new favorite games...blowing spit and spit bubbles all over the place. Fun!



The other video simply shows Finnley still trying to crawl. She has the rocking bit down...only a matter of time, I guess! I look forward to her being mobile simply for the fact that being non-mobile makes her SOOO MAD!! Patience, Peanut...patience...



Well, so long for now. Mac and I will be back soon. We promise.

My Funny Valentine

Pics of my little Valentine from today. Awwwwwwwww!


And...finally a pic that shows off those beautiful teeth! Such a big girl! Totally heart my babe!



Slideshow:All the pictures from the day...including Finn in her V-day PJs and fancy hair clips that were a gift for the big day from the Anderson family! I also just updated the slideshow to showcase our little trip into LOVE Park in Philly the day after Valentine's Day. It is a "tradition"...all two years strong!

MY HEART

On this Valentine's Day, I just want to say....

To my husband: thank you for being the man that you are. thank you for loving me. thank you for choosing me. thank you for accepting me for all that I am, including my imperfections.

To my dog: thank you for sharing and teaching unconditional love on a daily basis. every minute of every day.

To my daughter: thank you for blessing us with your presence. thank you for completing our family. thank you for mending our somewhat fractured hearts.

To my parents: thank you for loving one another and for bringing me into this world. without you, none of what I have would have been possible.

Again...AGAIN!!!!

So, here it is. Yes. We did get hit with another Nor'easter. A blizzard, to be precise. And, yes...we did get pummeled. And, yes...we are buried up to our eyeballs in snow, snow, and more snow. And, yes...we might see the grass again come summer. Maybe.

Here are the photos from the latest storm. They were taken this morning, or as I like to call it...THE MORNING AFTER.

Enjoy!

Just Photos...Just Because...Just Clownin' Around

Again...AGAIN?!?!?

yes...again. update and photos to come tomorrow. if we can unbury ourselves. at all.

6 Month Checkup...Still a Genius!

Or so we say! And we matter. So what we say is really important. Just trust me! Or at least humor me.

Finnley finally had her six month well-child visit at the pediatrician's office this morning. The doctor was very impressed with her. Nothing makes a mommy and daddy more proud! OK, so we don't really need the doctor to be impressed for us to be proud...since we are impressed all on our own...but it IS nice. Having someone with "authority" back up your overly biased opinion is sweet!

According to the doc's "standards" Finnley is now an "unsupported sitter". She can hold herself up for long periods of time all on her own. Doc said that most babies do that around 7 months or later. Finnley is doing it at six months. Go, Finnley! The other "impressive" things that Finnley does / can do: getting into a full-on crawl position and rocking back and forth, standing and bouncing with assistance, rolling in both directions with ease, eating 2nd stage solid foods and feeding them to herself (sort of...it is a messy process...very messy), tracking everything, grabbing her feet and eating them (this is a skill, really), babbling, blowing rasberries, and so much more. The doc said that the earliest she has seen a baby crawl is seven months, and she thinks that Finnley is going to be right in that group...crawling early. Did I say how proud we are??? I did??? Oh...moving on then...


In addition, Finnley is still striving to be a supermodel...and she is doing a damn fine job of it! Long and lean. She is up two pounds since her last visit, putting her at 13 lbs and 10 oz. That is the 10th percentile. Lean. She is also now 26.5 inches from her fuzzy head down to her sweet little piggies. That is the 75th percentile. Long. She definitely doesn't take after her mommy who has always veen self-described as "squatty". Maybe daddy used to be a supermodel?!? Maybe! We all have our secrets, afterall!

What else? Shots. Three shots. Three stupid shots. Three stupid shots taken like a champ. Because not only is my baby a genius and a supermodel...she is also a rockstar!

As of now, we are to have Peanut eating three solid meals a day! Wow! In addition to her bottles of "the good stuff", of course. Meals are certainly more complicated now. We can also start offering Finn little pieces of over-ripe bananas to finger feed to herself. Tried it today! I actually had to feed them to her, but she did eat them. We can also let her taste things off of our plates if she is interested (things that do not pose a choking hazard, that is). My little babe is becoming such a big girl!

We don't go back to the pediatrician's office for our next well-child visit for another THREE months! Crazy! By that point Finnley should be well on her way to becoming the extrememly independent little princess that she obviously wants to be. Wish us luck as we get closer to having a mobile babe in house! Lord help us these next few months as that happens!

Finnley's First Sled Ride!!!

Again?!?!

Yep. Again. Another Nor'easter. Another two feet of snow. Another day filled with plowing, snowblowing, sitting in awe, cooking chili, reading Playboy while drinking a beer on the patio (for some), romping through huge snow drifts (for some others), having an all day fire, snapping picture after picture...and partaking in another day of firsts. Another day of firsts for Finn, that is.


Finnley got to go for her first ever sled ride! Riding all bundled up in her first ever snow suit. G-ma and G-pa bought her this fancy sled for Christmas after we had already had our first major storm. Winter storms aren't all that common here, so we weren't sure we would have the opportunity to use the sled this winter...but alas, I think we got the chance. A two foot chance. A two foot chance that was 20 hours in the making.



But that is ok, because I do love firsts. Getting a peek at Finn in her snow suit, I am sure you will love firsts, too.

L.M.I.

Little Miss Independent. That is my girl. My big girl. Sitting up all by herself on the chair. With her big girl shoes on.

How is it that you change so much so fast? Slow down, wee one! Give Mommy-Lady a chance to keep up with you!

(BTW...this has to be one of my new absolute favorite pictures of Miss Finn...sweet sweet L.M.I.)

Laundry Basket

Use: to carry laundry with ease (clean or dirty) to one place or another.

Alternate use: to carry Finnley with ease (clean or dirty) from one place to another.


Yesterday I wanted to get the laundry basket downstairs. And, I also wanted to get Finnley downstairs. Easiest solution? Kill two birds with one stone and carry them both down together. So, I propped Finnley up on a wedge pillow, and off we went. She had a cockeyed grin on her face the whole ridiculous ride. She also was enjoying the basket so much once we got to the living room that I just left her play in it for a half an hour.



So much for expensive pack 'n plays. So much for expensive toys. Sometimes it is best to amuse oneself with the simplicities that already exist in the world around you. Hence, LAUNDRY BASKET.


Ah, to be a babe...

The End

Literally, in this case!

Finnley loves to roll over. All the time. No matter where she is. At Gymboree we are working on slides right now. Should you roll over on the slide? Um, nope. Does Finnley try? Um, yep! Yesterday she was on her play mat, and the next thing I know...she rolled over three times in a row. I guess she wanted a change in scenery.


She also rolls over during diaper changes, which is how she ended up on the chair with her pants around her ankles and her butt up in the air. Diaper changes with this one are not easy in the first place, but add rolling over? Forgettaboutit! So, as payback for making diaper changes such a battle, Mommy-Lady took these pictures. Pretty fair trade-off, don't you think?

Here is the church...

and here is the steeple...