Baja Bound

Tomorrow, Sean, Finn and I set forth on an adventure across the country. We are flying to Phoenix to spend some time with family there and we are meeting up with my parents and my sister and her family. Then, on Wednesday, we drive to San Felipe, Baja California, Mexico to visit with my Grandma. We will be there until Sunday, then drive back to Phoenix and fly out Tuesday to complete the trip. We are so looking forward to seeing everyone and having them meet Finn. We are a little leary of the actual plane trip with a very active 12 month-old, but no matter what, it will make for good stories when he is 18.

If you all want to see us living the high life on the beach this Thanksgiving, you can check out the webcam right outside of my Grandma's house. We will try to be outside to give a wave at 3pm EST Thanksgiving day.

I hope everyone has a most wonderful holiday. We will have lots of pictures and stories to share when we return.

A Bucket Full of Silly

Finn really likes putting things on his head (or mine or Sean's or Lily's for that matter). I think it stems from when he was younger I would put things on my head to make him laugh. Well, he received a bucket with some toys in it for a gift for his birthday and he loves it. He loves to put toys in and then dump them out and then put the bucket on his head! I really am waiting for Mensa to come knocking on our door! Pure genius :)

Two Top Teeth

Finn has cut his two top teeth. It is a bit of a surprise for us. A week or so ago, I was wondering if he was teething as he was quite fussy, but it was also right after his 1 year check thus it could have been a bit of something from his vaccines. I just wasn't sure. Then it passed and I didn't think much of it. The past few nights, Finn has had more wake-ups than usual, but it wasn't out of a completely normal realm for him, so again I didn't think much of it. I was chatting with my mom today and she asked if Finn had gotten anymore teeth. I told her, "no," but then it got me thinking that I hadn't checked out Finn's top gums lately. I gave a good look and lo and behold...two teeth. They have barely just broken through, with one still partially submerged. I feel extremely unobservant and clueless! It is exciting to see some more teeth.

Fe and Pb

We got the results of Finn's 1 year blood tests back.

His lead levels were much below the expected normal, which is great news. As Sean put it, we have managed to keep him from eating paint chips.

His iron levels (hemoglobin) were above the expected normal, which is also great news. As Sean put it, we are feeding him well. This is also a bit immature, but it makes me feel good after that first pediatrician threatened that they would be low at his 4 month check up (yes, I do hold a grudge). Ha, I say take that, psycho pedi!

For the love of DOG

I know I have mentioned before how much Finn loves Lily, but the cuteness of their relationship just requires lots of posts!


Lily always has to be in the middle of things and is typically in Finn's room when we play. Finn now likes to bury his head into her and roll all over her. She just lays there and takes it:

I know I have also mentioned that Finn loves to stack things. Apparently, this includes stacking things on Lily:

A good hug for a great dog:

1 Year Well Check

Finn had his 1 year well check at the doctor on Tuesday. I was a bit nervous about it because at the last visit he had dropped to the 23rd % weight class and the doc wanted me to really push the nursing. Well, this time around he weighed in at 21 lbs and 1 oz, still in the 23rd percentile. He also remained in his height percentile (70th) at 30 1/2 inches. This is great news. He is growing steadily and the doc thinks he was just "finding" his proper growth curve. She also thinks he is doing exceptionally well developmentally. All in all, a happy and thriving little boy!

He did have to have several vaccines (MMR, Hep A, Chickenpox, and seasonal flu). Poor babe, they hurt! He didn't have much of a nap prior to the appointment, so was already tired when we got there. He was upset just being placed on the scale, so the needles really got him to crying. Then, just when he was recovered and happy, I had to take him to the lab to get his blood drawn to test his lead and hemoglobin levels. It was so sad to have to hold him down while they took blood from his arm. He was quite the trooper and recovered quickly with a good nap in the car on the way home. We will hopefully hear on the blood work soon.

Our Lap Dog

I am afraid in the lead up to Finn's 1st birthday, it slipped my mind to create a birthday post for Lily! I feel terrible about it. She turned 4 on October 30th. She is by far the best dog. She has been so accepting and gentle with Finn's addition to her life. Happy belated birthday, Lily Sweets, our lap dog!

A Birthday Celebration

Last Saturday, we celebrated Finn's 1st birthday with a harvest brunch. It was a gorgeous day and a lovely get together. Here is the plethora of pictures taken.

Playtime in Finn's room:


Mmm, brunch! I discovered a french toast casserole recipe that was really good. Let me know if you want the recipe:

Presents:





Lily was tuckered out with partying:


We all got some energy out in the yard:






CAKE TIME (harvest pumpkin apple cake, again new and awesome recipe):

One Year

• Finn loves stacking things. Anything he can get his hands on becomes a tower. It is fairly impressive how much he can stack. He often gets 6 blocks on top of each other. He likes trying to stack my spice bottles (the plastic ones) and is thrilled when we get it above his head when he is standing up.

• Finn has learned how to blow raspberries on bellies. He thinks it is very funny.
• Finn is learning how to give kisses. This consists of him opening his mouth very wide and pressing his slobbery lips onto your mouth.
• Finn has quite a sophisticated palate. This week alone, he has enjoyed a greek frittata, spicy pea and squash curry, and lemony potatoes with capers.
• Finn has really taken to using the spoon. You can load it with food and hand it to him. He will either eat it, grab it with his hands and eat it, or catapult it across the room.
• He likes combining foods too. For instance, if he is eating toast and you give him a spoon full of applesauce, he will put a piece of toast on top of the applesauce and eat it. This sounds lovely, but he has also happily combines anything and everything he is given and some of the combos are very strange.
• He has taken to dairy, finally enjoying yogurt and cheese.
• Finn loves lift-the-flap books.
• He is really getting into cars and trucks.
• Lily is Finn's idol. He loves to follow her around and imitate what she does. He is also always getting out her toys and offering them to her.
• Finn loves sticks, dirt, mud, leaves, anything he can get his hands on outdoors.
• Finn is not enjoying back wraps anymore, but loves to go for piggy back rides. He is happy to be in front wraps.
• Finn is babbling a lot and coming up with new sounds all the time. No words yet, but I am convinced he is trying to say "dog" sometimes.
• Finn likes to help in household tasks. He likes to grab the broom and sweep. He likes to put clothes into the dryer as I hand them to him from the washer.
• Finn loves produce as toys. Potatoes out of the pantry can be rolled, thrown, gnawed on, and placed into unsuspecting shoes.
• Finn has a very silly sense of humor and is always looking for a laugh or just plain cracking himself up.

Happy 1st Birthday, Finn!

Little Seed by Woody Guthrie

Take my little hoe, dig a hole in the ground
Take my little seed and I plant it down;
Tooky, tooky, tooky, tooky, tidalo,
We’ll all dance around and see my little seed grow.

Tooky, tooky, tooky, tooky, tidalo,
Tooky, tooky, tooky, tooky, tidalo,
Let’s all dance around and see my little seed grow.

The rain it come and it washed my ground
I thought my little seed was going to drown
I waded and I splashed and I carried my seed
I planted it again on some higher ground.

Tooky, tooky, tooky, tooky, tidalo,
Tooky, tooky, tooky, tooky, tidalo,
Let’s all dance around and see my little seed grow.

The sun got hot and my ground got dry.
I thought my little seed would burn and dir.
I carried some water from a watering mill,
I said, “Little, you can drink your fill.”

Tooky, tooky, tooky, tooky, tidalo,
Tooky, tooky, tooky, tooky, tidalo,
Let’s all dance around and see my little seed grow.

The snow it blowed and the wind it blew;
My little seed grew and it grew and it grew.
It grew up a cradle all soft inside;
And a baby was sleeping there covered over with vines.

Tooky, tooky, tooky, tooky, tidalo,
Tooky, tooky, tooky, tooky, tidalo,
Let’s all dance around and see my little seed grow.

Trick-or-Treat

Happy Halloween! We had a fantastic day. We woke up early and Finn became a little monster. We went to surprise Nana and Papa and take a walk in the woods.

Monsters can play the drums:

Monsters and dogs live in harmony:

Monster on the loose:

Monster attacks highway vehicles:


Monster plays basketball:


In the evening we went Trunk-or-Treating in the Deerfield town center. Because it is the country and the houses are so spread out, everyone drives to the town hall and they line the cars up. Then, treats are given out of the tailgates. It was an absolute blast. People got so into it and decorated their cars. Next year we are going all out too, now that we know what it is all about. I felt silly without a costume.