The Adventures of the HRGCs: October 2011

C'est l'Halloween! Hey!

October 31, 2011

At this age, Halloween may be more for us than for Fin.

This is the pumpkin that we picked that you can see on one of our previous blogs where we went on a hay ride and got lost in the Egyptian themed corn maze. Despite my (Tyler) extensive pumpkin carving past my talents do not surpass the triangle eyes and crooked teeth look. Lyndze did a nice job on this one.

Here is Finlay sporting his dinosaur costume. He was unimpressed with the head piece.

Here is Finlay's first of many attempts to rip the dinosaur head off.

There. Now it's off. So much happier.

We were able to get Fin to wear the head piece while in the stroller but if you look closely you can see the tears on his cheeks.

So cute, even though he looks somewhat defeated.

Mama decided to wear the hat. Finlay was very happy with this decision. He often gets freaked out by Lyndze in hats, but he liked the look of Mama with a dinosaur head.

We went to play in the park. There were a couple other toddlers in costumes but not too many. It was a beautiful Halloween day in Victoria. The sun was shining and the park was calling.

With his monkey hat on, Finlay morphed into a kind of "monkey-saur."

And what a cute "monkey-saur" he was!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_U8gIOi0_0

Here is a video of Fin giving us his best dinosaur impression. It was too cute.

We know that at this age Halloween is really just for us. But we really appreciate Finlay playing along and being the cutest little dinosaur we could ever imagine. Fin is off to bed soon and then L and I are going to watch some Rocky Horror Picture show while Lyndze enjoys some of her new gluten-free beer and pumpkin seeds!

We hope you all had a "spook-tacular" night! (ya I know that is not really funny, dad joke)

Lyndze, Tyler and Monkey-saurus Rex

Big Love

October 25, 2011

When life gives you lemons... look at your baby and smile because he is the best! There is nothing like a hug and a wet kiss from Finlay when you're down. Had a bit of a down day today and now that Fin is in bed I miss him. I usually miss him when he naps or is down for the night but tonight I really would like to hang out some more and play and dance and cuddle! So instead, I will add some sweet pictures of us lately.

Tyler was home sick on Saturday so we had lots of "daddy time." This means that I am in a few shots this time!

Finlay is pulling up to standing any time he isn't crawling. He just loves to stand and sit down and then stand again. He also love doors of all kinds. Cupboard doors, little doors on toys, the bathroom and bedroom doors... Opening and closing them all day long. I'm right behind him and encouraging him all the way EXCEPT when it comes to the buffet (pictured above). He seems to pick up on this and is really attracted to playing with the drawer and opening the doors and banging on the glass. It is full of breakable things, but more than that because the glass itself is the original glass from the 70's and it is single pane and I'm worried he'll get hurt if he breaks it. Got a good tip today though and I'm hoping that it will be less attractive soon!

Notice the black napkin in the background.

He likes to pull all of the items out of the drawer. Soon he'll be learning to put them away, right?

The chubby baby is a little less chubby these days! He has lengthened and so his thighs and cheeks (which ones? BOTH) are not quite as chunky. More drawers and doors. Loving some naked time!

He doesn't seem to act any differently whether he is naked or not. Still plays with the door stop...

When for a Family walk on Sunday down Dallas Road. Walked along the ocean and through the park near our home.

As we sat near the water watching another little boy playing with sticks and rocks we heard a familiar name... The other little boy was also called "Finlay" and his mother was calling him "Finny." We actually have lots of nicknames for Fin (Finner, Finner-McKinner, Fin-Fan, Fin-bot, the list goes on) but Finny is not one of them.
Anyway, it was a beautiful fall day. This is one of my favourite pics of the two of us and I love looking at us together when I miss him.

Pumpkin Patch

October 16, 2011

There is nothing cuter than a baby in a pumpkin patch! This is why we went to one on the weekend: you are only a baby in Autumn once and we needed to see Finlay with some pumpkins. It was sunny and warm and when we pulled into Galey Farms we knew we were in the right place. Everywhere you looked there were parents and grandparents, young children and babies. Also, there were fields of pumpkins, hay rides, a corn maze, a children's singing act, and a petting zoo! We brought a picnic and our camera and really enjoyed our time as a family.

The farm also has a few quirky elements. There is a haunted house, some haunted abandoned town features, the corn maze is "Egyptian" (it has a sphinx) and some other strange aspects.

Finlay in the corn maze.

A look-out point in the corn maze.

The sphinx in the corn maze.

There was a haunted grave yard. Tyler wanted to show the "scary" creature that pops out of a grave. See behind me in this photo compared to behind me in the next photo.

So scary.

Finlay loved being worn in our Ergo backpack. He snuggled right in and actually fell asleep for a bit.

So we really wanted a good picture of Fin in the pumpkin patch. He was questioning how important it really is to us...

"I'll think about cooperating..."

He also picked a pumpkin to take home with us. The one to his right will be carved for Halloween!

"Okay, fine. Like this?"

"How about this?"

This one is our favourite!

What a great day!

Finlay Occupies Victoria

October 15, 2011

The personal is political. Everyone has their own political aims and opinions; their own ethics and values. We hope to encourage Finlay to critically think about the world and to engage as an activist. After all, it is just as political to disengage.

This year has seen many voices calling out for change. On Saturday, we joined in support of the Occupy Wall St Movement in the Occupy Victoria rally and march. It was a beautiful day with nearly 1000 people congregating, marching, dancing, making some noise and coming together in solidarity and hope for a fair and just world for everyone.

There were a lot of young families and older adults at the rally. My guess is that most of the young and middle-aged people went to Vancouver.

Finlay seemed to really enjoy himself. We brought him a music maker and he played along with the drums and protest songs.

This is Fin before things got crowded. Once there were a lot of people we mostly carried him.

Some "plain-clothed" police officers. They were pretty unambiguous with their boots, radios, and stance. They pleasantly posed for a picture with us and pandered to the people who filmed and questioned them.

"We need the money out of politics like I need teething to be over!"

"Everything will be okay, just keep shopping!"

A beautiful blue sky.

Making some noise!

As we walked toward the Legislature Lawn, there were nearly 300 people in front of me and when I turned around I could see the end of the crowd down Government Street. Pretty cool.

A short video of Finlay making sure his voice was heard:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Ax70V3Z8T4