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...

Signs that you could be a bad mom...

They are out there everywhere. And, if you don't see the signs...then other people will tell you what the signs are. Or, if they don't tell you what the signs are, then they might just subtlly imply what all the dangers lurking in the world for your child could possibly be. That you aren't aware of. And, by missing those signs, well, you probably already ARE a bad mom. Well, I don't mind. I already know. Really, I do. The pictures below are obviously a huge sign. Do I always pay attention? Nope...sometimes I am blind to it all. Because Finnley is having fun. And, I don't want to take away the fun!!! Taking away the fun...now, that WOULD make me a bad mom. So, could I be a bad mom just for letting her play with suffocatingly viscious plastic diaper bags? Maybe. Does Finnley think I am a bad mom? Nope...not at all. She thinks I am awesome! Love that girl!






(And, just in case you are feeling comment-snarky or worried or intrusive or...well, whatever...and are wanting to add your two cents...DON'T, BECAUSE...NO, I DO NOT LET HER PLAY WITH PLASTIC BAGS UNSUPERVISED! Hell, she hasn't even had a sip of outrageously polluted, contaminated, and disease-ridden water from a garden hose yet. All is good. Just trust me on this one!)

Cinderella, Prince Charming, and The Peanut

All dressed up...and actually some place to go!


Cinderella, Prince Charming, and Peanut took a couple of pics before leaving (sans Peanut) for "the ball".


Murphy's Law? Peanut spit up on my dress thirty seconds after I picked her in an attempt to show the babysitter how we manage our bedtime routine. Figures, right? Nothing a little water couldn't handle, though. Such is the life of a "glam-mom"!

Mommy-Lady

Yep, this post is all about me. Mommy-lady. Why? Because sometimes, as I have discovered, you have to take time out for just you. Even if it is to remind yourself that there is a "you" and not just a "we" or an "us". Don't get me wrong, I love all of the roles that I play...but each of us are all a bit narcissitic at times, aren't we? So, today is my turn. It is my day!

What about me? Well, I have figured out that if I want time to do things...I need to make it. And to make that time, I have started getting up earlier in the mornings. If I do this, before Peanut awakes, I can carve out a space where I can work out (Wii Fit or a run with the dog), wash bottles, play on the computer, eat a bowl of cereal, hang out with the dog, talk to my husband, take an uninterrupted shower...whatever. Now, I can't usually do ALL of these things...but I can do at least some of these things, certainly. I enjoy this little blip of time just for me. This time where I am not running around like a crazy person just trying to entertain a wee one and a dog. It is my "aaaahhhh" time.

In the evenings I have my "me time" by imbibing in a glass or two of red wine. Now, am I alone when I do this? No. Does that really matter? No. Just having that wine lets me unwind and feel like I can still do the things I used to do. I am not an entirely different person these days. I am just a different version of the old me. I am a mommy version. I am beginning to figure out what that is and what that means. I think I kind of like this new me. Then again, I have always been a pretty big fan of myself, so that is no surprise!

Tonight I am carving out more space, but the space is not just for me. It is for "we". The couple "we". My lovely is taking me out for a night on the town. We have a babysitter (thanks, Cate!), and we will be leaving the Peanut for a few hours while we attend the black tie preview for the Philly Auto Show. So, not only will we be out and about...we will also be dressed up. Like real people. Like real fancy people. Cinderella and her Prince Charming will be attending the ball, folks.

We will be sure to come home before our carriage turns into a pumpkin, though. Mostly because even though we are still a "me" and a "we"..."we" are also now an "us"...and therefore need to get back to that little one who will hopefully be sound asleep in her crib when "we" return.

So, enough about me. And we. Time to return to us. My time is up. Peanut needs me. Because I am mommy-lady, afterall.

I'm a Little Cupcake

I'm a little cupcake
short and sweet



here is my frosting
here are my feet (just work with me here...)



when you get hungry, you can hear me tweet
just pick me up and eat, eat, eat

So, cupcakes don't have feet. And, they probably don't tweet. Probably. But, whatever! Finnley doesn't seem to care. And, she IS a little cupcake. Just look at her! Couldn't you just eat her up?

Rub-a-dub-Dub!

"Rubber ducky, you're the one...who makes bath time lots of fun..."

My Sweet Big Little Baby Girl

Finnley LOVES, LOVES, LOVES standing up on a pillow on the couch and holding onto the big back cushions. She is such an active little girl, and this activity allows her to "stand", be free, bounce, dance, and look out the window at the big world outside. She does this every day. It never seems to get old. So, I will oblige my little Peanut. Whatever she wants is hers! (well, except for a pony...we just don't have the space for a pony)


Finnley has graduated up to 2nd Foods...you know...from those grandiose 1st Foods. There really isn't a difference in texture or consistency, but there are a heck of a lot more flavors / choices available. She has decided that Gerber Yogurt Blends are AWESOME! The mouth just keeps opening in anticipation before I can even get the next bite ready. Wow! So, I decided to start adding some of the yogurt to her formula...and you know what? She is eating better! She is eating more! Our tiny babe could use that, so we are all in for the moment. Gerber baby yogurt, we love you!


Our little evil visitor seems to be here to stay...that lurking tooth broke through the surface of the gum, and it is now trying to become a full-blown member of Peanut's mouth. Daddy thinks it is sort of creepy. Daddy also thinks it is too soon for his little baby girl to be getting a tooth. Not much to be done about it, though!


One week away from being six months old. So hard to believe. So hard to believe. Wait, did I already say that? Well, it is...so hard to believe.

note from the editor: as of today, Monday, January 25th...our big little baby girl now has TWO bottom teeth sticking through the gum. Yes, TWO!!! Oh my!!!

Single Mom

I can now say that I do not know how single moms do it...except for the fact that they probably have no choice. I am lucky that I am not a single mom. I know this much to be true. It was hard enough "playing" single mom for the week. Matt was off to a national training conference, so Finn, Boo, and I were left to fend for ourselves.

WE SURVIVED!!!

Barely.

Ok, that isn't true. We survived just fine, really. But...we can say this much...NOT being a single mom is way better than the alternative. Getting a break every once in awhile is awesome. Having adult (well, whatever it is that we have) conversation with a spouse is fantastic. Having another person to witness the absolute terror of teething...priceless.

So, I think all of us are happy that "daddy" is coming home tonight.

WELCOME HOME HONEY / DADDY!!! WE MISSED YOU!!!

Can't ya tell???

So, a picture tells a thousand words. Yup! So, these pictures should easily tell you what the pediatrician told me today....

FINNLEY IS TEETHING!!!

She has one little tooth trying to break through her gums on the bottom of her mouth. That would explain the crankiness. And the fussiness. And the gnawing on EVERYTHING! And the jamming things so far into her mouth to chew on them that she actually pukes. And...well, the list goes on.

My baby is getting a tooth! Awwwwww!

McPouty Pants

I can pout if I want to!!!

This is what happens when "someone" doesn't sleep for 5 or 6 hours straight, which pretty much happens EVERY day at our house. This babe is just NOT a napper!!! Two or three cat naps of 15 minutes each. That is about what we have come to expect. I don't know how she does it!!!!