Hello all,
Just thought I'd do another quick post to let you know that Finn is feeling much better now, thank you!
And I've got lots of videos to prove it.
But first, here is sick Finn - we don't watch a lot of TV in this house, but Baby Einstein is a winner when we do! It certainly keeps Finn still and engaged - enough to take his temperature!
Also, James feels it's important to have videos to help us remember everything - not just the good things. So he insisted on a video of sick Finn. It's a bit heartbreaking to watch - I dare anyone to watch it and not want to jump in and make it all better. A bit of explanation though - this was in the night, and we were giving him some medicine when he started reaching for food - he seemed to have maybe got his appetite back, so we were offering him some of his favourite foods to see if he would eat anything. (it is not, however, a wotsit (or a cheese puff) - it is a baby-corn-carrot-puff-thingy... we don't give Finn wotsits!) And he was trying to eat them - but was so miserable that it wasn't going well. Poor poor Finn - but this is an example of what we were dealing with for about three days straight.
Now after that, how about some nice videos, eh?!
Two of him in the bath, being silly and one of him with his cherished bowl...
We're back safe and sound from Berlin. Finn did brilliantly on the flights, as always, and we all had a really excellent time.
Unfortunately, since we've been back I caught a nasty virus with stomach cramps and raging fever. It has since gone away, but it is clear that Finn now has the exact same thing. We're doing all we can to manage his fever, but he's simply miserable and my heart goes out to him. It must be so hard to feel so awful and not know why, or why no one is fixing it. And to top it all off, he's got a tooth currently breaking its way through - so even nursing, which always helps to calm him down, is just causing him more pain and that's upsetting him even more.
Poor, poor baby.
Anyway, we've got our hands full trying to help him stay calm, get some sleep, drink as many fluids as he can etc etc. So in the meantime, I thought I would post a link to our Berlin photo album that I put up on facebook. Have a look at the fantastic fun times we had. And send lots of get-better-soon thoughts to our wee unhappy baby.
First up - the hair. I went in during his bath today with the hopes that the wetness would show off his hair better, and it definitely did. You can see all his super-fine-fuzz (and his gorgeous, gorgeous blue eyes). And you can see some of the colour debate - it looks a bit red in the top photo, but very blond in the bottom...
So here it is, ladies and gentlemen, Finn's hair - it really does exist!
Secondly, we tried very hard yesterday to get video of him clapping and we managed not one - but two! Finn claps randomly while hanging out on the couch and then again when he was playing with the "other baby."
Enjoy!
Lastly, I thought I would throw in a little montage (just click on it to make it bigger) that explains how hard it is to get photos and videos of a baby that thinks cameras are the coolest THINGS EVER!!!
It has been ages since an update. I'm sorry. My best friend from home came to visit me for a couple weeks and it became a bit all-encompassing. I actually wrote a blog post in advance so that I could just post it while she and her husband were here, but even that didn't happen. (I'm still saving it...). I was just all over the place quite literally. And to top it off I've got a job interview, we're headed to Berlin next week, I was trying to find a nursery place for Finn... etc. etc. life. etc. Oh, and did I mention that the football was on? It was time for Euro 2012 - and the football is an extremely important part of life that shall not be interrupted. By anything. Including bath time.
ANYWAY! I'll make up for my long delay with lots of photos and videos, shall I?
On the 2nd of July, Finn turned 9 months old! I tried very hard to get a good picture of him but as he gets more and more active, he is less and less inclined to sit in the chair. Soooo it's not the best - but here they are side by side anyway!
8 months old
9 months old
And here are a couple of the outtakes :o)
As for the updates -
He currently weighs:
9.13 kilos
or 20 lbs 1 oz
or 1 stone 6 lbs
depending on your preference.
I don't know how long he is, I didn't check.
As always in these monthly updates I have MORE teeth to report. He now has SEVEN! Yup. Seven. He seems to be holding at seven though, which is odd - normally the matching one comes only a couple days after the first (as in two on the top, two on the bottom, the two next to the two on the top) but he's only got three on the bottom and no sign of the fourth. Who knows. Strangely though, it feels like he's about to get two more on the top - which are supposed to be some of the last to come in... but since when have Finn's teeth cared?
So, yeah, lots of teeth.
His hair is at least an inch long, but you still wouldn't know it to look at him... Janet swore it was red though - so I'll take her word for it! You can see it a bit better when it gets wet, or when he wakes up from a nap and it's all fuzzy all over. This picture sort of shows it...
He doesn't zombie crawl anymore - it's now a full on commando crawl. The trouble is that he's so good at it (and FAST) he doesn't seem to be at ALL interested in normal crawling - no big worry though because he gets around just fine. And I know that he can get up onto his hands and knees because he likes to crawl on top of things. Particularly James' guitar. And, when he's doing that he will even get up on his hands and feet! Like so:
He also REALLY likes to stand up. He's pretty strong and can't hold all his weight if you balance him. And he also likes if you help him 'walk' around. Then James introduced him to 'running' and it's now one of his favourite things to do. No more walking now that he's learned about running. Luckily James is happy to oblige:
Speaking of guitars, he is getting super skilled at playing his. He can strum! Yup, that's my baby - can't crawl, can't sit up, but boy can he strum a guitar. And grow teeth. Those are two things he can do.
Just to prove it though, here's a video of him playing his guitar:
Other things that need updating...
We thought that he had learned to shake his head "no" because I had seen him do it at one point. So we kept trying to get him to do it again and mimic us saying "no" but he wouldn't. Turns out, we were wrong. He carried on doing it but only when he wanted to. Eventually I made the connection that he was only doing it if he heard music... yup - he thinks he's dancing. Apparently you dance by shaking your head back and forth. And he will start dancing any time he hears music. Or "music" - because he also dances to the beeping of a truck backing up, or the rattling of a shopping cart, or the thumping of the washing machine. Now, some may say that he doesn't know what music is - I say he finds music in all things!
Here are a couple examples of him dancing - one from when James started playing his guitar and the other when he heard his favourite toy 'Scout' the musical dog...
Apparently he also knows how to clap - but again, he won't do it "for" us. He does it on his own while he's playing. If you try and clap and get him to clap back he looks at you like you are crazy. So we thought he just didn't understand. Imagine my bafflement when I woke up in the middle of the night to him lying in his crib clapping to himself... Of course this means we have no video of him clapping. Sorry. I'll keep trying though.
He has discovered his index finger and loves to touch things. It's really funny to watch! He's always loved different 'stuff' and textures but now he will spend ages reading a 'touchy-feely' board book carefully stroking each page with one finger... very very odd to watch and strangely endearing. It's only not pleasant when he decides to do the same to explore your face and those two interesting holes under your nose... Here's him investigating a flower:
We finally found a table chair that fits over our table skirt and we love it! It has the added benefit of fitting on nearly any kind of table (except glass) and we have since tried it out many places. Different restaurants, pubs, picnic tables. Brilliant. I almost love it a lot except for one thing - it's hand wash only. WHAT?! Who makes a seat for babies to EAT in hand wash only?! Silly. So I've sewn a couple covers out of James' old work shirts that can be tossed in the wash. Looks a bit scruffy, but not as bad as a bunch of gross caked on food. Because believe me, this boy makes a MESS!
He's recently discovered a new trick though - we put a chair underneath his seat because... well... I don't know really - lack of a better place to store it? Anyway, he's learnt that he can use it to stand up. And sometimes he finds this the most entertaining thing to do during dinner. Luckily, if we get too fed up, we just take the chair away. But most of the time it's just funny (and probably good practice - standing in general I mean, not standing during meals per say).
(PS - you will be reassured to hear that he went on to eat the entire apricot and many others after that. All his best foods start out with a horrible face of some sort!)
I think that's all the major updates. As I mentioned, he still can't sit up without pillows around him because he topples over - I reckon it's just all those teeth weighing him down :) either that or his great big clever brain.
So I guess I'll leave you with the pictures from some of our tourism trips out with Janet and Marcus. We did loads and loads of stuff!
We explored the city - Piccadilly Circus and Buckingham Palace
We got a car and went out to see Stonehenge
(I LOVE Finn's new sling by the way - it makes traveling around so much simpler and quicker! And I can hide him when he's sleeping...)
We visited a castle
And when we went to Big Ben, Finn was himself the tourist attraction! That's right, my baby is so cute that people stopped us on the street to take his picture. One woman even asked to hold him so she could have a picture taken WITH him. So weird. But, let's face it - he IS pretty darn cute! (and thank you to Marcus for the pictures!)
I've got an additional update for you, days after the last one! That is because one very important change has occurred -
Finn has a guitar.
Let me explain.
As has been mentioned, Finn loves all things noisy and musical. He LOVES when James plays his guitar and would watch for long periods of time, every now and then singing along. But, as with all things, he soon wanted to have a go himself. So James would let him bang the guitar while he played or feel the strings. This soon became a favourite game. But James was a bit wary of letting Finn have free-reign over his guitar. And these sorts of loves are only to be encouraged. So we decided to buy Finn a small guitar. It's officially classed as a toy because it is smaller than any real guitar could be, but it does have metal strings and is completely playable if a little hard to keep in tune. Finn loves his guitar more than anything and if it is anywhere in sight all other toys are completely forgotten. So we do have to hide it from time to time, especially if we want him to eat/be changed/read a book/ANYthing other than 'strum' his guitar (it's more like scratching and rubbing the strings, really).
Anyway, we brought it home and showed it to Finn - and he made his way across the room faster than I have ever seen him move! No more zombie crawling. If there is a Finn-sized guitar involved it means serious business. Neither of us had ever seen him move like this before so we can only blame the inspiration of the guitar. Of course we got out the camcorder to capture it! Soon I will post a video of him playing his guitar, but for now, here he is speeding across the floor to get it.
And while I'm posting videos - here's one I forgot before... a compilation of Finn making silly noises :o)
June 2nd means Finn is 8 months old!
Here are his side by side pictures.
7 months old
8 months old
He currently weighs:
8.8 kilos
or 19 lbs 6 oz
or 1 stone 5 lbs
depending on your preference.
I don't know how long he is, I didn't check.
He has four full teeth, his fifth broke through a couple days ago and his sixth will be out within the week, I think. (Seriously - I don't think Finn has stopped teething for the past 4 months... )
He's starting to get a lot more hair, though it is so fair and fine you barely notice it!
He has started to "zombie crawl" as I call it. Basically pulling himself along the ground like a zombie coming out of a grave...
Here's a video:
The zombie theme continues in his new habit of giving "kisses" which are actually open-mouthed slobber attacks. With all his teeth, however, it really feels like he's trying to chew on your face... like a zombie.
And I don't know if Zombies ever made exercise videos, but Finn does that too - with this strange hip thrust move:
What else? He LOVES his mirror and can talk to the 'other baby' for ages:
He's learning to drink from a sippy-cup:
He adores all things that make noise, and has many musical instruments, which he sometimes uses to accompany himself as he "sings"
As a side note, we all went down to see the flotilla on the Thames in honour of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee. There were lots of people so we watched some of it in the reflection of a building (an excellent view!) but were able to see the important bits in person - ie: the Queen!!! We were quite lucky to be near the beginning as it only started to rain on our walk home. Which meant we still got soaked but it was all part of the adventure and at least we weren't just standing around in it!
I can't think of much else to update - so here are some funny pictures to leave you with!!
Hello everyone!
Firstly, apologies for letting a whole week go by without putting up the brilliant pictures that I promised (it's been even longer since I started this post! Sorry!). It's been one of those weeks that feels so so busy and then you look back and can't understand why because nothing seemed to get done... I did put some pictures up on facebook though, and I'm going to try not to duplicate them here - but if you haven't seen my facebook album, you can link to it here after you read the blog for just a few more pics: Antigua Album
But anyway! Antigua! The beach! Finn in a bathing suit (or swimming costume as it's called here)!
Before I get to the pictures, I will just say that it was a fantastic trip. It was very hot and humid but so lovely to get to hang out with so much of James' family. And I really liked the beach and our little paradise - except for the sand. Sand is... well... I best not put into words how I felt about sand by the end of the trip... this is a family blog after all. Finn likes it though:
So what did we get up to?
Well Finn handled the flights well, as always. It's a bit harder now that he wants to be rolling about but we were able to distract/entertain for the most part without any meltdowns.
And the overnight flight back he actually slept! I don't know how, with the time difference and everything - but it meant that he was a lot less jet-lagged on return as James and I were! He was certainly on the wrong time when we got there though - so James and I (and then just James while I slept) got to see lots of Caribbean sunrises!
Finn loved all things to do with the water, splashing especially.
The heat meant that he slept a LOT (which I was totally ok with)... so here are a series of pictures of Finn asleep in different places...
There were lots of fun activities to do like sailing, kayaking, ping pong etc. These two pictures are of Oliver and I in a kayak.
And we all had fun, even when it rained. Here are Finn's cousins having a blast. Including Cousin Jake who I hear is a big fan of the blog! Hi Jake!
And when it did rain, it was a very quick downpour that dumped loads of water and then was done. This was no big deal - you were usually already wet, and the rain was lovely and cooling. There was only once that it was a problem...
Most of the restaurants there were open air at the sides with a roof over top, including the tiered place where the wedding reception was held. During dinner, Finn fell asleep so we laid him down on some towels on the next tier down (so he was away from the noise but we could keep him in view while we ate). About 30 minutes later the skies opened up with a torrential downpour - at which point we realised that the lower tier was NOT under a roof. You've never seen two people leap from a table faster. We ran to get him but by the time we got to him he was a) awake b) wet and c) ANGRY. He calmed down very quickly but was not about to fall asleep again. And obviously word got round the reception (as you would expect when two people run out at the first sound of rain) that we were the couple who left the baby in the rain. OOOOOOOPS :)
We took a trip out to see a bit more of Antigua than the resort - it was pretty cool (though, again, very hot!).
And of course there was the wedding which was gorgeous! As were all of us :)
It was also my birthday, and James gave me an amazing present. Remember my old blog Bump and Beyond ? Well James spent ages copying, pasting, formatting, adjusting etc and had it printed out in a book! It's incredible! I love holding it - it may be the only copy but it makes me feel like a proper published author :) I love the internet and all, but there's something very satisfying about holding all your words in your hand in the form of a hefty hardcover. And over the holiday I re-read the whole thing. I haven't looked back on it much since Finn was born so it was really interesting to go through it all again. Anyway, it is fantastic and I will treasure it for a long time. Here're a few pics:
I think that's all the description of the trip... but there are still a few pictures of Finn that I LOVE. So I'll just stick them all here if that's alright. And if you want more, don't forget to have a look at the album link above.
