Finn Update

Warning: this next post is really intended for the grandparents and other family members, with an exhaustive Finn update. So if you're not as fascinated with his every move as we are, (though I can't imagine why not ... ) please feel free to delete!  No one will know, and therefore no one will be offended. 

Finn now has 5 1/2 teeth--4 are fully in, another is almost in, and another is just making an appearance.   He delights in using these teeth and loves to bite down on crackers--rice crackers are a favorite--and hear the crunching sound.  He also loves to bite almost anything else--our fingers, our shoulders, whatever he picks up.  He's actually left teeth marks on my shoulder before, so we're working on the "no biting people" concept.  He eats a pretty good variety of fruits and vegetables now, sometimes plain, sometimes mixed with rice or barley cereal.  He loves sweet potatoes, apples, pears, prunes, spinach and mangoes.  He tolerates squash, carrots and peas, and sometimes likes oatmeal, sometimes not.  

He's crawling on hands and knees now, but he still prefers the army-crawl. He'll often start out towards a toy on his knees, but then get impatient, drop his tummy to the floor and shimmy his way over.   Matt recently made him blocks out of milk cartons and he loves knocking over a tower of blocks.  He's also quite happy with almost anything that comes out of the kitchen.  I bring him in with me while I'm cooking, give him a bowl along with a few utensils and he's happy playing at my feet for at least 30 minutes, sometimes more.  

He's been a really happy boy lately, primed to giggle at almost anything.  Sometimes it seems like I don't even have to tickle him--I just act as if I'm going to tickle him and he starts to giggle.  A few favorite games recently involve holding him in my arms while walking very slowly for a few steps, saying "slow, slow, slow," then going quickly and saying "quick, quick, quick, quick, quick." He also seems to like being chased. I take him down to the indoor playroom in our building, which is often empty. I throw the keys about 6 feet in front of us and Finn immediately goes after them.  I follow, on my hands and knees, a few steps behind, and Finn just giggles the whole time.  He chases the keys like this all over the room--it's quite the workout!  

He's not really pulling himself up yet, and doesn't seem to have much interest in walking.  He lights up when Matt gets home from school, and loves the weekends, when Matt is home the whole day.  You can just tell, when we're all eating breakfast together, and Finn looks back and forth from Matt to me, that he's thinking, "aah, this is how it should be, everyone together." When he's really happy he'll flap his arms and kick his feet, and he does this when one of us puts on the Ergo carrier--I think he likes to be held so close and likes to go outside.     

Along with kindermusik class once a week, we also go to an "open gym" session at gymboree once a week.  It's fun--a big room with gym mats on the floor, and lots of things to crawl over or though, lots of balls and hoops to play with. Finn seems to like being around all the other kids, though he definitely is an observer first.  I'll set him down on one of the mats and he takes a good 5 or 10 minutes to just look around before he starts to venture out.  He doesn't seem nervous or upset by all the commotion,  and he doesn't need me right next to him, but he does need a little time to take it all in before he dives in himself.  Last week they had set up a low basketball hoop and hung bells on the net, so when a ball went though, all the bells rang.  Finn sat and watched the older kids play for quite a while (there are kids up to age 4 who come to this), smiling whenever a basket was made.  

He's also getting more affectionate.  He frequently, while playing on the floor, will crawl over to one of us, put his head on our knee or leg, smile, then go back to playing. It's such a sweet gesture, just checking in and saying hello.  Moments like these get us through the more frequent night wakings we're experiencing now (teething? wanting to practice his new skills? separation anxiety? growth spurt?)  We sure wish you all were here to get some of these "knee hugs"!  

Here's a few pictures of him, dressed up for winter walks (which can mean temperatures anywhere from 50°-70° F).  Enjoy! 

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