Finley had swimming lessons again this week. We repeated the class we took two weeks ago; it's a class you continually take until your child reaches three years old. This week was MUCH better than our first week! First - the weather was warmer...no blue lips! Secondly - we had an awesome instructor! Each day we worked on specific skills that were age-appropriate (no diving board), and sang songs to practice the skills.
There were four ECASD teachers that took the class together; surprisingly we all have boys...there's Carter (standing), Ethan (two weeks younger than Finley), Caden (Leslie's baby) and Mr. Finley!
On Wednesday, Rachel and Carter came over to splash around in our water table. The boys had fun, but Carter had it out for Finley - he had a few not-so-gentle touches. Rachel put Carter into time-out twice and we tried soooo hard not to laugh - great disciplinarians we are! Carter was quick to say, "Sorry" and gave a gentle touch afterwards.
Establishing an oral hygiene habit has been a battle; Finley has hated having his teeth brushed! While I hold Finley's arms with one hand and his head with the other, he manages to lock his mouth shut! Even though Dr. Myhre said no toothpaste until he can spit; I went against her advice and tried some safe-to-swallow-toothpaste...SUCCESS! Finley now LOVES to have his teeth brushed; after I brush them, he practices on his own.
We did LOTS of cleaning this week! Finley used to be scared of the vacuum and I was forced to save the chore until nap time; but after playing with it turned off, he's taken a liking and chases it while I clean.
I wiped down our blinds this week (hate this job) and discovered a toddler isn't a great helper. I turned around to rinse my rag (3-4 seconds maybe?) and turned back to discover we have a climber! Finley was a good sport; it took 3-4 (interrupted) hours, and he happily came with from room-to-room playing while I dusted.
On Friday, Heidi and Spencer came down; Grandma took us out for lunch and then to the mall toys. Finley is getting very active at the toys - he loves crawling up things, now he just needs to learn how to get safely down (not face first); he did 1-2 times, so it's coming.
Friday night we had dinner at Grandma & Grandpa's - it takes less energy to stay in rather then go out. The boys had fun playing in the water! Finley was too funny; he'd pull the handle up (water would turn on), then bend down to touch the water and push the handle off. He must've tried 4-5 times, each time he'd stick his hand under just as he'd shut the water back off...Grandma and I laughed so hard, unfortunately I couldn't get the camera switched to video quick enough.
Friday night we had a very LOUD, very LONG thunderstorm starting around 12:30 a.m. Finley slept through our last thunderstorm and I kept my fingers crossed when I heard the first boom. No luck! I heard him right away, peeked in and Finley was standing in his crib looking nervous. I brought him to bed with us - good thing we have a king-size bed, the bed hog was ALL over us. Check out how comfy Finley was, nice feet!...glad he slept well, I was pushed into 6 inches near the edge and slept crappy.
Saturday was "Mommy's Day"...ALL day! It started with my new GPS watch counting every mile of a beautiful 10.5 mile run; I arrived back home to an empty house and enjoyed a shower without my foot holding the shower door closed. Faith picked me up at 11 to go tubing; after debating over a cocktail, we decided to take a chance on the stormy forecast and hit the Chippewa River! For three baby-free hours we gossiped, drank Captain and caught up - it was perfect! Afterwards we had some yummy bar food and sobered up for our trip back to reality. We hadn't done this in over two years and had a great time!
Meanwhile, Finley was surviving a full day with Daddy - the last full day they spent alone was in January!! Patrick and Finley ran errands, stopped to play with Spencer, ran out of gas in my car (thanks Grandpa for the rescue) and attended Summer Fest in downtown EC. Because Finley "wasn't acting tired" he only napped for 45 minutes - all day! Patrick has a little to learn about our daily routine; for example, I put Finley down for a nap BEFORE he acts tired, it saves you a fight and makes for a happier baby...and Finley still takes TWO naps each day, oh well, they survived! The boys returned home and I got my over-tired, very crabby baby in bed by 6:30; then headed to bed myself at 7:30 - thanks to the sunburn and my fun with Captain, I was exhausted. Hoping Patrick had documented their day, this morning I found three pictures on my camera...yeah, not so much...
One email from Auntie and I got a glimpse into Finley's day with Daddy...
Ring-A-Round-The-Rosey....
Sprinkler time with Spencer...now I know why Finley's shorts were damp this morning - I'm pretty sure Patrick didn't pack the diaper bag before their day out...in fact, in 13 months, I'm pretty sure he's never packed the diaper bag.
Playing in the rain...
This week Finley turned 13 months old! A few more updates, Finley...
- can sign the words: milk, all done, and more. Sometimes they look similar, but he seems to be catching on that the actions mean something. We are working on: please, water and thank you.
- is cruising all over; he swiftly moves along furniture, a wall, the cupboards, etc. He smoothly moves from one piece of furniture to another.
- stands unassisted for 5-10 seconds.
- loves to give real hugs and kisses; he'll wrap his arms around your neck and put his head on your shoulder - this is the best!
- likes to tickle my belly.
- loves to be chased and has caught on to chasing others.
- plays the "asleep - awake" game...we learned this from Spencer. I will say "aaassslleeeppp" and Finley puts his head down, then I say, "Awake!" and he quickly picks his head up...then we repeat it about 50 times.
- coughs on demand; if someone coughs (real or fake), Finley does too.
- talks on the phone; Finley was jabbering away in the backseat, I looked back and he had his toyphone up to his ear.
- uses the words mama and dada appropriately (not 100% consistent yet).
- points to what he wants and jabbers while "telling" you.
- shakes his head, "No" when he doesn't want something. If he does want something, he just looks at you...we're working on shaking our head, "Yes."
- is not allergic to peanut butter. For fear of a scary reaction, I've been hesitant to have Finley try PB; so on "Mommy's Day" Grandma and Auntie decided he could try it with them...no hives, no blue face - yeah, no allergy!
I'm not counting down, but there's only three weeks left of summer vacation - it makes me ill to think about returning to work. I love teaching Kindergarten, but I love being home with Finley more. Leslie and I plan to start putting our room together next week...ready or not, it's coming!
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