Scootin' or Crawlin'?

This little guy has been working very hard lately to figure out crawling. He gets closer and closer every day. Whether he's rolling, scooting, or doing his "worm crawl" he manages to get wherever he wants to get. Usually, he's trying to get to the remote, a drink, or Molly (rather than one of his actual toys, of course).

So, today, I got the camera ready and set up some bait. I set my drink on the ground, and sure enough, he went for it. Here's the result:






I barely got the drink out of the way in time. Then, he decided to go for Molly, so I started to record again. For whatever reason, he loves to grab her tail or drool all over her (which seems to be his way of kissing). He especially loves when she returns his kisses! It cracks me up how she just patiently stays there waiting for him to come over and start torturing her. He seems to think it's pretty funny too! Here's some more video:




P.S. I apologize for the poor quality. I recorded all of this on our regular camera and not our video camera.

Let the baby-proofing begin!

6 Months...Seriously?

A couple of weeks ago, I was talking to my mom and she commented that she was excited for Finn's first birthday. I told her to calm down because it was still far away, then she simply pointed out to me that I was already half way there! Then, I almost started to cry. I can NOT believe that this little guy is already 6 months old! So, before I get all weepy, here are some stats:

-19 lbs., 14 oz...90th % (he was 8 lbs., 11 oz. just 6 months ago!)

-28.75 inches long...over 95th % (he was 20.5 inches just 6 months ago!)

-he LOVES to sit and play with his toys

-he also enjoys his books, especially when he can chew on them and hit the pictures really hard.

-still no teeth, but we're pretty sure they're on the way.

-he has just started to get the urge to figure out crawling. So, he can go from sitting up to laying on his tummy. Then, he'll do a little push-up, but he's not so sure what to do with his legs so he usually just screams or scoots backwards.

-his scream can literally make your ears bleed. I honestly don't know where he learned it, but he will arch his back and scream in a way that will wake the dead! He might be moving in with his grandparents when he reaches his terrible 2's.

-his smile is the cutest thing on this entire earth! People will stop in the store or at restaurants to give him love, and he's such a little ham. He'll smile and talk to them (I think we all know where he got that from)!

-he's doing very well with the transition of mommy going back to work. He goes to Aunt Andrea's on Monday, my friend Shannon's on Tuesday, then Tenneal's on Wednesday, and he's home with daddy on Thursday and Friday. So far, he has been great (let's keep our fingers crossed).

The past 6 months have been so great. We love this little guy so much and he has made us incredibly happy! Here are some of his 6 month pictures! We got them done when Blake and Finn went to California. Enjoy!

5 Months

Our little Finner is just over 5 months now and I really don't know where the time has gone. He is just too cute for words and he's growing so fast! He is sitting up on his own really well and got to sit in a high chair at a restaurant the other night. You can tell that he felt very special!! And, just like his daddy, he was flirting with all the ladies and showing off his adorable smile (they're both such hams).

He has also been loving Molly quite a bit lately. He will reach out and pet her, he giggles when he sees her, and he loves when she gives him kisses. The other day, he tried to return the favor by giving her a big open-mouth kiss on her head. It was kind of gross but cute at the same time!

Then, he had the privelege to ride in a Power Wheels with Chas the other day. Don't worry though...Blake took extra precautions by using the seatbelt that was already there and by creating another one with his own belt. And he also ran along the side of the car as they went on their drive (even though it was just up and down the driveway).

It makes me sad to think about how big he is getting, even though it is so fun to watch him learn new things. I love to just sit on the ground and play with him. He is such a sweet boy! Just look at that smile!!

SSSHHHH...Don't Tell Daddy!

It might be hard to see, but I gave Finners a little lightning bolt with some eyeliner this morning. I'm obviously way too excited that "Harry Potter" is coming out today, but I couldn't help myself! Finn is officially 5 months old today, so we had our own little celebration! Ha ha! Blake won't be happy, but he gave him a mohawk...so we'll call it even!

Utah

I took my first trip alone with Finn to Utah and it was quite eventful. First of all, I have to say that my prayers were answered because this guy fell asleep right as the plane was taking off and slept until we landed. I was terrified that I would be the lady with the screaming baby, but I wasn't!

I met up with my parents at the Vegas airport since they were coming in from their Hawaiian getaway. Then, we drove from there to good ol' St. George. We were there for a week and we had a blast. Finn got to meet the rest of his cousins and his Aunt Sara, Uncle Ben, Aunt Melissa, and his great-grandparents Jerry and Jerri. We went swimming every day, we watched movies, we took naps, we went to a baseball game, and we took lots of pictures!

My nephews, Tyson and Marcus, were so great with Finn. I had some stressful moments because I was missing Blake's help when I was washing bottles, teaching two online classes, and running back and forth to the guest house when I forgot something, but I could totally count on those two guys to entertain their little cousin. Obviously, the rest of the family was very helpful, especially when Finners was in a cuddly mood, but I was just so impressed with their "Itsy Bitsy Spider" singing abilities!

Overall, it was a fun trip but I don't know if I will be able to do it on my own again. We missed Blake a lot and he really missed his little guy. Plus, this kid just gets bigger by the second and I swear those airplane seats just get smaller and smaller...Enjoy the pictures!

Hanging out with Grandpa Jerry.

He was having a very serious conversation with Grandma Jerri.

Watching movies with cousins Marcus and Tyson. Is he kidding me with that smile??

The 5 boys...Marcus, Caleb, Braxton, Finn, and Tyson.

"Lil' Gramma" and "Big Papa" with their 5 grandsons.

4 Months!

Finn had his 4 month check-up on Monday. He got some shots, which did NOT make him happy. I think they actually bothered Blake even more...he was looking a little woozy and he didn't enjoy seeing his son get tortured!

So, this "little" guy is 27 inches (over the 95th percentile), 17 lbs, 9 oz (95th percentile), and his head is 17 inches (75th percentile). The doctor was quite impressed with his size and says that he looks very healthy!

Finn and I are heading to Utah tomorrow. We're leaving Blake at home, which means that I'll be attempting Finn's first flight alone (wish me luck) and poor Blake will be without his child for his first Father's Day! I didn't realize that it was Father's Day when I booked the flight. I feel so bad, but I want to say that Blake is a fabulous dad! He absolutely adores his little boy, and his little boy's face lights up when he sees his daddy!! They are both my reason for living and I truly appreciate what a fantastic dad he is! Happy Father's Day!!

A First Time for Everything

Let me start by saying that our laptop decided to completely stop working a couple of weeks ago. Not only did it stop working, but it decided to stop working on the very day that our 2 year warranty expired. So, needless to say, we were very frustrated and now have a different computer up and running.

On to more positive things...Finn has started the process of becoming a big boy! He has had quite a few "firsts" recently. Ever since our Memorial Day trip to California, he has been waking up twice a night to eat. Basically, he was eating every 2 to 3 hours and I was not too thrilled about this. So, we followed the advice of experienced parents who suggested giving him some rice cereal at night to help him stay full for longer. I was expecting him to hate it, but he gobbled it down in no time. We tried this for a few nights, but he was still waking up quite a bit. So, we decided to put off the food for now until he's a little older. He must have been going through a growth spurt because he's back to eating every 4 hours and only waking up once (yay!).

Here is his first bite. He wasn't so sure about it:

But then he realized that this is some pretty good stuff

Another "first" was at Reese's birthday party. Kevin and Melissa rented a really fun water slide. Blake, of course, had to test it out and was quite embarrassing to watch...just imagine a grown man waiting in line to go down the slide with 4 year-olds. Then, he took Finn down for his first water slide! He LOVED it!

He has recently started to hang out in his exersaucer, which keeps him super-busy. I wasn't sure if he would be big enough for it, but he's plenty big as you can see. He is doing a great job with his hand-eye coordination and is starting to figure things out. It has been so exciting to watch him learn and grow. And it has been especially exciting to have extra time to wash bottles or clean up the house while he's hanging out in it!

His other "first" is rolling! One morning when we were doing tummy time, I looked away for a second. By the time I looked at him again, he was on his back! It took me a second to really figure out what had happened. Then, I ran to get our video camera and caught him doing it again. He still isn't real consistent with it yet. He just does it when he wants to. And he's really trying to go from his back to his tummy but I think his big gut just gets in the way.

So, as you can see, it's been a busy couple of weeks and I've been sad that I haven't been able to post. Tomorrow he will be 4 months and is going to the doctor for his check-up. I will post his newest stats ASAP!