First Christmas

December 30, 2013

There are so many firsts in these early years with kids.  Finlay's first Christmas was when he was just 10 days old.  Shay will be one in a few short weeks and it is only his first Christmas.  We stayed with Nans and Gramps in London for a few wonderful days.  Nans put on a lovely Christmas; the house was decorated (she went above and beyond) and even Finlay's room had some deer decals and a Rudolph stuffy on his bed.  The tree was large and bright and there were many presents underneath it.  There was snow, and lots of it, out in the woods behind the house.  But, most importantly, there was family, friends, and a great sense of appreciation for these moments shared together.  I just love seeing other people enjoy my kids.  The food, the drink, the giving and receiving, the music and atmosphere, and the mood of the season was cheerful and warm.  So much love!

It's the big day!  Finlay has a look of pure joy.  I can see the red hue in Shay's hair.  Ty looks... tired?  Couldn't be because Nans and Gramps had the baby most of the night.

Christmas!!!!!!!!!!!

Fin walked into the living room and went right to the window to admire the snow.  Gifts can wait.  Admire beauty first!

Santa ate the cookies and some of the carrot Finlay and Shay left for the big man.

Going for the stalking first.  He just couldn't believe any of the toys were for him!

Shay had a beautiful stocking made for him by his Gramma. 

I think he can read because he went right for his little trike.

Happy first Christmas Shay-Shay!

He was more interested in the presents and the unwrapping that morning.

Finlay got a camera from his Nans and Gramps.  He walked around snapping shots and saying "say cheese" over and over.  It was adorable.

Shay wanted in his trike.  We sighed 'bike' and he was say 'eeee' and flap and get so excited.  He was actually getting the thing to move, too.

Among all of the lovely things that were Christmas, there was more snow!  And hockey, as the Harvey family tradition goes.  The World Juniors were on so our kids were exposed to an almost-as-large-as-life picture of the game(s).  Gramps got Fin a hockey stick and he and Carleigh (and some Aussies) went outside to "shoot some pucks."

"Finlay got a stick!"  

"Keep your stick down, honey."

He treats everything stick-like as if it is a sweep for the chimney a la 'Burt' in Mary Poppins. 

Carleigh showed him how she does it.  

"Like this?"

"Keep the stick down, please."

And he shoots...

Mostly he wanted to "cut" the snow with his stick.  He is interested, but in his own somewhat-sheltered-from-televised-sports sort of way.  We'll try to expose him to more sport this coming year with soccer in the summer and some time playing Football (Aussie rules, of course).

A big and special thank you to all who participated, hosted, visited, and were understanding of our busy pulled-in-many-directions time in Ontario.  We really enjoyed spending what time we did have with you all.  And, for those we missed, we hope to return in the summer time!

We feel very loved and it was a joy to see the kids interact with you all.  Thanks for the lovely and thoughtful gifts and all of the many ways in which you tried to make our time in Ontario so special.  It sure was!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Christmas Time Part One

December 23, 2013

First snow, first trip to a big city, first train ride, first Christmas (in Ontario and just first for Shay).  It has been lovely.  The plane ride was full of mishaps and delays, but we arrived in one piece, filthy but alive.  Fin was wondering what all that white stuff was on the sides of the streets.  He was fascinated by the tall buildings and big city lights.  After spending a quiet evening with Megan (she was an amazing hostess who promptly supplied us with wine to sooth our travel woes), we all slept hard.  The next morning, the kids woke up late (or early Pacific time), and Finlay really saw the snow.  I had to dress him in the kitchen because he was too excited and wouldn't let the snow out of his sight.  "Can I step in it?" he asked me.

Megan joined us for some play outside.  Gramma and Auntie K arrived just in time to watch us from the dinning room window.  Fin was pumped about his snow-suit and boots (thanks Megan!) and was quickly diving into the white stuff.  

We made a snowman.  Fin danced and explored.  It was a whole new sensory experience for him.  Although he didn't seem interested in the snow the way I imagined, I quickly recognized that he was experiencing his for the first time (outside of the one time it snowed in Vic when he was 13 months old).  He was taking it all in.

Through the eyes of a child - it was bright, that smell of snow, the cold and damp so different from home, the sound when you step on it, the way it makes everything glitter...

How warm a hug feels in the Canadian winter!

Fin helped us with the head.

He was happy to pose for the picture with Megan.  It's a good looking snowman!

Shay was cuddled by all.  But he is so busy these days it was difficult to hold on to him for too long.

There were presents, of course, and Fin was excited to open them.

Shay wasn't so interested in the presents but the paper was fun.

The excitement!

"Look Shay!  Seamus!  Hey, look at your gift kid."

There were stairs.  Both kids were pretty excited by that.

Look at that grin!

We had a lovely Christmas dinner with the family and, sadly, said goodbye to our hosts and went on the train to London.

The train was a lot easier than the plane but there were still delays.  Much better than the roads and highways though.  

It's really the way to travel, especially with kids.  They could move around and we could rock or bounce Shay when he needed it.  We could hang out as a family.  It was just beautiful to watch the snow fall and the little farms and the flat, flat, South-Western Ontario landscape zoom by us.

Shay loved the rocking of the train and looking out the window.

Fin slept a good chunk of the trip.  Aren't they cute!

And, there is wi-fi on the train!  We had a lovely stay in Toronto and we are excited for the next part of our journey.  

Celebrations

December 15, 2013

Because we have a birthday party on Fin's half-birthday, in June, we spend his actual birthday as a family doing whatever he wants to do.

The day began with pancakes, continued to presents, included a bus trip and hot chocolate, his aunty Car-Car and a ferris wheel.  He was too tired to have a special dinner.  He took one bite of his spring role and went to bed.

There were some lovely gifts.  Finlay is getting the hang of ripping the paper off of presents.

He got a croquet set for the lawn.  He wanted to play immediately but we haven't mowed in a while and it was raining pretty hard.

He got a Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer train set!  Complete with Bumble's Cave and character-themed cars, it was a real hit!  The Rudolph theme continued with Shay's gift to Fin; an Operation game where you operate on the Bumble.  At first he was scared of the monster's roar but once he realized it was "not real, just pretend" he had some fun with it.

He got his own seat and his "brella."

He wanted to go to a cafe.  Seriously.  So we went to one near where we would have lunch and had a hot chocolate.

Shay slept through most of the morning out.

Carleigh met us for lunch and the ferris wheel.

Pure glee.

Yay!

Carleigh may have been actually scared.

Ty and I went with Fin too.  He wanted to go three times because he is three.

And there was cake.  Christmas all year with this kid's Rudolph obsession.  

He loved it!  Especially the candles and singing the song!  Being three is pretty great.

Little Brother

December 14, 2013

It's tough being a little brother.  You share the spotlight.  As the oldest sibling, I wasn't really aware of this fact.  At least not to this degree.  But now, as the mama, it is clear that Shay shares a lot more than parents with his big brother.

Both kids are born on the 14th (Fin's birthday is today, Shay's is next month).  Although I haven't kept up with Shay's monthly mention over the last eleven months, I would like to write one for today.  It seems significant to me, more so than when Fin turned eleven months old, that there is only one more month left of this first year of Seamus.

Shay is super playful.  He is always looking for toys or things to put into his mouth.  He has established an commando crawl and he is very fast with his method.  He has chosen not to crawl in the traditional way.  This sometimes stresses me out a little but I am sure that he will develop just fine.  He is OBSESSED with standing.  He pulls up constantly.  Sometimes, I wake up in the night and he is pulling up on my shoulder IN HIS SLEEP!  This is even more humorous as he wears a sleep-sack when he sleeps.

He is cruising around the furniture whenever he can.  He even lets go and stands on his own momentarily.  He will crawl right outside and off the stoop if we left the door open.  He will crawl off the bed and cry with fury when we stop him.  He is adventurous.  He is a risk-taker.

He is in L.O.V.E. with his big brother.  Shay lights up like a CFL bulb at the sound of his voice, his heavy footsteps, or the mention of his name.  He follows him from room to room and wants to do whatever Finlay is doing.  If he can't figure it out, he'll just watch him with a focus Fin has never known.

He has a chuckle of a laugh that is reminiscent of his uncle Chris as a child (I can't be sure I remember his laugh as a baby but I can recall with clarity his laugh at 3 or so).  His smile is toothy.  Six-toothy to be exact.

He is a snuggler.  He nuzzles.  Seamus loves when I sit on the floor with him so that he can just play with a toy while leaning on my leg; he just wants to touch me and be touched by me.  He is acting strange (sorry Ontario) and gets upset if Tyler or I leave a room.  Sometimes, at meals, me sitting beside him is too far and he wails until he is secure in my lap and his food is in my hair.

He is 11 months old and we love him!