Reindeer Games

December 27, 2012

Christmas has come and gone!  I knew that the time around the holidays would fly.  I didn't really think through what being nine-months-pregnant at the time of the holiday would mean.  It was a little intense and Fin and I caught another cold the day my parents arrived which put my energy level even lower.

All in all, though, it was a successful Christmas.  All of the guests were very helpful and wanted to play with Fin, bath him, give him lots of attention, and also help out with cooking, cleaning, shopping, and so much more.  The wine was flowing and the food was delicious and I really enjoyed the company.

Finlay couldn't care less about Santa but he totally got that it was Christmas and that there was a tree and that the deer were coming to our house (via flight) and giving him presents.  He was also pretty enthralled with his visitors.  He quickly learned names and was really excited about the "practor" (Gramps) and kept asking for help with his "back hurt."  It was priceless.  He was eager to hug and kiss everyone, show people the house, invite them into his bus-tent, and ride Piggy around and around.  He did have a little accident just before nap-time when he fell off of Piggy, face first, and ended up putting his bottom teeth into his upper lip.  There were tears and blood but he managed to get over it after a little while.  He looked pretty rough for a couple of days (fat lip, cut chin, bruise on his cheek, and his remaining scar on his eyebrow from a previous run-in with the coffee table).  Poor guy!

We watched a lot of Rudolf over the past month.  He was really excited to feed the deer the oats and sparkles that daycare had given him to spread on the lawn.  

He was pretty excited that the deer would come to our home!

Our tree with filled stockings.

Finlay rode Piggy into the living room and saw his broom right away!

So excited to sweep!

Santa brought him a new hat and a toy school bus.

His lovely Aunts, Uncles, and Grandparents spoiled him with books....

Food for his kitchen...

Finger paints...

A toy truck...

There were cinnamon buns and lots of other yummy treats!

A sushi set!  

There is also an easel all set-up and plenty of art supplies.  He has already begun painting his Thank-You-Art.

I read that the most precious gift we can give to children in our lives is our time.  So that is what I have be focussing on getting back into the habit of before Billy arrives.  We are having a lot of fun playing and creating memories together.

It was a lovely Christmas.  We missed many of you but it was special to have family here to share in Reindeer Games and West-Coast Turkey and the wonder of our little Fin on his third Christmas.

Visitors and Visiting

December 23, 2012

We've been busy!  Getting ready for visitors and visiting.  Uncle Shaw-Shaw (AKA Chris) and Aunt Go-Go (AKA Joanna) flew out from Ontario for a week.  Finlay and I had been looking at pictures of them before they arrived and talking about where they would be sleeping.  He helped to make the bed and was talking about them a lot that morning.  When they arrived he was very excited!  Too excited to nap.  We took at trip to Nanoose Bay to visit (Great) Auntie Chris and Uncle Mike and Finlay was also more than familiar with the place and the family as soon as we arrived.  He ran right up to Christine and started talking away about the snow and the drive and the reindeer.

Finlay has developed a slight obsession with Santa's reindeer.  We have watched the old Rudolf movie at least once a day for the last 10 days.  He talks about the deer flying.  He doesn't seem to care about Santa at all but when we talk about the deer coming to our house he gets very excited and flails and squeals.  It's pretty cute but I am a little sick of having "We are Santa's Elves" stuck in my head.

We so rarely see snow.  This is the first time Fin has seen/touched it this winter.  He liked to throw it, but was not that excited by it.

Seeing Mama, Gaga, or even himself in the mirror with deer antlers on was VERY EXCITING (at Chris and Mike's).

Opening his Christmas present from Chris and Mike.  Unwrapping presents is exciting and he totally gets it, which surprised me.

He got a set of pots and pans and cooking utensils as well as a tea set!  He was very excited and went right to work saying "I cook!"  

At home, he has been having many a tea party as well.  I love it!

One minute a tea party and the next he is shaving with dad!  No razor yet but he gets some shaving cream and gets to play in the water.  He just loves doing when we do - shaving like Gaga is pretty fun!

We went for a walk through Cook Street Village and Dallas Road with Shaw-Shaw and Go-go.  Finlay taught them his wee-game.

You hold hands with him and you have agreed to play.  When he says "more wee" you lift and swing.

They were pros.

Two years later: another shot of my brother and his nephew by the ocean.  So sweet.

Finlay kissing the belly.  He is getting more affectionate with "Billy."

Since our last midwife appointment, when he heard the heart-beat and heard the way Uta talked about the baby, he has been making more of a connection with the belly.

Well, Billy is almost here!  Being 9 months pregnant for Christmas is quite the gift.  My hips have recently started to cooperate though so I am no longer uncomfortable (relatively, that is).  I am hoping the baby comes after New Year's but Uta says everything is ready to go and it could be any time now!

We'll see.  Billy and I are pretty determined people.

Terrific Two!!

December 14, 2012

Today Finlay turned two years old.  Today was also pretty terrific.

As some of you may know, Finlay really likes buses.  He also really likes being in a tent.  We found this beauty on UsedVictoria.  It's a bus-tent.  The wheel turns!  

We filled it with presents the night before so that, when our early morning wake-up call came, we wouldn't have to fumble around pre-coffee.

We told Fin that there was a surprise for him in the den.  I wish I had captured his expression when he first saw the bus-tent, but I really wanted to take it in without a camera in front of my face.  It was priceless: genuine surprise and pure glee.

He looked at me for a second, with a questioning glance, as if asking "is this for me?" To which I replied, "Go ahead, get in there!  It's your bus-tent!"  In he went!

"Whoa!" he said, over and over.  

Pretty soon he said "Mama, I sit!  Mama in here!" and I squeezed my large, 8-month-pregnant-body, into the tiny tent.

We opened presents and cards together.  Finlay would rip the paper and say "I help!"

There were books, some cute clothes, finger puppet dinosaurs, a puppet-card, and a duplo-lego set.  He was so excited about it all!  But, all day, all of his presents (and the paper and envelops they came wrapped in) had to stay inside the tent!  I tried to take the clothes to his room but he stopped me and insisted "that in there, tent!"

A while ago, Aunt Lindsay sent Finlay a bicycle.  Until now, he has been just a bit too short for it.  But today was the day!  We pumped up the tires and...

"I bike!"

It was amazing how quickly he picked it up.  There is a learning curve but he got the concept right away and, with Gaga there for back-up, he was willing to keep trying.  I was impressed with his resilience.  He was awkward and slow and unbalanced in the beginning but he didn't let himself get discouraged and just kept pushing himself back up on the seat and walking.  Steering the bike came naturally, which surprised me, and he is learning how to catch himself.  We got pretty cold, out there on the bike for an hour, and had to go inside to warm up.

 

A toast to the birthday bub with some hot apple cider.  We actually went back out for "more bike" later in the day.  He just got more and more confident.  So many smiles!  Tyler and I sure are loving it!

We timed cake to be after nap.  We thought that having it for dessert, right before bed, would be asking for trouble, and this way we had the afternoon to burn off the sugar.  Finlay was excited!  He chanted "cake, cake, cake!"

Of course, we sang to him, and you can see the video here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YLXc_NNdp4M&feature=youtu.be

Then he picked a cupcake, Gaga "peeled" it for him and cut it in half so it would be easier to eat.

He was squealing. 

Cake meets the mouth of a two-year old and wow...

Chocolate-peanut-butter-goodness.  A lot of "num-num" and talking about the cake but mostly this calm enjoyment of such a treat.  I don't think he has had cake since his last birthday!

"Finlay, do you like cake?"  "Yeah!"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah!"

At the end of his cake (he ate the whole thing!) he asked for more cake.  We explained that we only get one cake today.  He was not impressed.  He proceeded to ask for more cake at random intervals throughout the afternoon and evening.

Emily, or "Um," Finlay's friend and former Nanny, sent him a Birthday Song video.  She is a musician and wrote him a song about the times they spend together.  Tyler and I thought it was pretty funny.  Fin had to watch it a couple of times.  He just couldn't believe "Um" was singing him his own "kong" or song.  He was dancing with her and imitating her and just watching intently and smiling the whole time.  "More kong!  More Um!"

It was a really lovely day.  Lots of yummy food (we had sushi for dinner, one of his favs) and play. Finlay helped to clean up his toys and his bus-tent at the end of the day.  We read our new books before bed and he just loved them!  He went right to sleep when we put him down - he looked so satisfied, happy, and settled at the end of the night.  It was so nice to focus all of our energy and love on him for the whole day.

Now for some champagne, popcorn, and a little walk down memory-lane with the co-parent.  Feeling pretty good about having a two-year-old.  He's the best.

On Your 2nd Birthday

December 14, 2012

An(other) Open Letter to our Finner McKinner 

     










A year ago today your mother wrote you a letter for your first birthday - you can see what she had to say here - http://harvey-roach.blogspot.ca/2011/12/happy-1st-birthday-finlay.html

She had just spent the a year on maternity leave where she spent almost every waking hour of that time with you.  It was hard to believe that so much could have happened in one year and yet here we sit at the end of your second year of life and I struggle to put into words all the memories we created and all  the feelings you made me feel over the past 730 days (and nights).

It is amazing the person you have already become. The individual personality you continue to develop.  It is so hard to believe that a year ago today you were still mastering how to crawl. Your spoken words were few and you still relied on us for so much.   And just one year later you run, your carry on conversations and not only do you rely on us so much less but you adamantly refuse our help with daily tasks so that you can proudly show us how you can climb the stairs all on your own, how you can put on your own boots and how you can climb up onto your chair and use your own fork to feed yourself and it breaks my heart but I know all I can do is smile and say "You did that by yourself! How did that feel?"  And while this independence may seem so minimal in the grand scheme of things I can't begin to describe what it means to your mother and I.

The year also saw you enter the "real world" as your mother's maternity ended and you entered the new world of daycare.  The first day in a new place ended with tears in all our eyes.  We were nervous to leave you on your own and you looked afraid wondering why we were leaving you in this strange new place. But quickly you made friends and we saw you grow even more.  As you began to learn more words much of what you would tell us was about the other kids in daycare.  The day you came home saying another child's name followed by the smacking your lips and making kissing noises.  We  asked the daycare for translation she explained that "Finlay has taken to going into the tent and kissing the other kids."  Nothing could have made two parents who first met on canoe trip more proud!


As we move into your third year you will take on a new role of a big brother. Over the past two years you have proven to be a kind, loving, and caring person and I am so excited to see you be that kind of big brother.

I love you so much.

Happy 2nd Birthday Finlay!

Love GaGa...