6 Month Superstar! Finn turns 1/2 Year!

We have lots of catching up to do as the months of September and October were busy for Finn. In September Finn got to attend his buddy Garin's 1-year birthday party and then he got a special visit from Grandpa and Mimi. He showed them all his new tricks: rolling over on both sides (and now continuously which makes him dangerously mobile), eating solid foods (sweet potatoes and peas), new "words" (more like loud screeches) and almost sitting up on his own. In October Finn turned 6 months old and he also got to attend Uncle Steve and Uncle Ken's committment ceremony where he flirted with all the women. He's full of laughs and also a little crankiness as his gums are getting ready to cut some teeth.

Garin's First Birthday party at Folly Beach.

Mama let me play in the water a bit: strange that this weird squishy stuff keeps getting caught between my toesies.

First attempt at solid food: baked pureed sweet potato.

Before:



During:

After:

Grandpa and Mimi took me out for dinner at a French Restaurant. Mama and Dad got to come along too. The escargot and crabcakes were delicious.

I got some new shoes. I like them lots.





Yippee! Today I turn 1/2 year old! Daddy took these pictures of me first thing in the morning!

I told Mom and Dad I'll play rugby when I get older.

"What do you do with a drunken sailor, what do you do with a drunken sailor, oh, what do you do with a drunken sailor, early in the mornin'?" (an old Irish tune)...

Steve and Ken's rehearsal dinner. I'm so excited for them I can't contain my smiles!

I decided to get all dressed up for the ceremony and party. Since this is South Carolina I wore my sailing sweater, and I just had to wear my new monkey shoes. All the ladies thought I was handsome but they wouldn't stop pinching my cheeks and giving me lipstick kisses.

Sidney my doggie got hurt. But she came home and I am helping make her better. We're pals. We have an understanding: she lets me pull her fur and I let her give me kisses.

Shots from September: Finn's Continuing Development

Finn is growing by leaps and bounds. He loves to stand up and while sitting he loves to play with his toes. Still has very little interest in being on his belly, but he can almost roll over (in part out of shear frustration at being put on his tummy). His drooling phase is climaxing, especially because he loves to blow raspberries. This is especially effective right after he's eaten (and still has milk in his mouth) or after a healthy burp. It cracks him up, but we have yet to capture him in the moment with a photo. A few more weeks and he'll be getting his first taste of sweet potato--how much fun to see him blow raspberries out of that. Below are some random photos of Finn at five months.

Dinner at Sharon and Brandon's. Finn takes a real liking to Sharon's shirt, but loses interest once the SC game comes on. She's trying to make him a native. We told Sharon and Brandon we can no longer go over for dinner since everytime we do, we seem to announce we're expecting again...



Finn loves dogs, especially Marley and Sid. But, he also took an interest in Baxter, Marley's best friend (and Sharon and Brandon's practice child).



These aren't Finn's best mugs. His drooling phase is at its climax, a mosquito found him very tasty, and in attempts to curb his cradle cap with oil, he's sporting a new 'do. Note that his hairstyle matches his eyelashes.





Of course by now it is quite evident that Finn loves his thumb. He's also discovering that Mr. Monkey (real name yet to be determined) is becoming another favorite soothing mechanism. Thanks Aunt Chris--you may have to get a second one for backup after he's worn this one out...





Finally! The weather turned cool(er); we celebrated with a beach excursion at Sullivans Island. First we stopped for a quick bite. Unfortunately, we never made it to the beach because Finn became too tired and fussy (and very unusual for him), but we did enjoy the outdoor breeze and the people-watching.

Waning Days of Summer: Grandma Connie Visits Finn (and us)!

Shortly after returning from Tokyo, one day after to be precise, we went back to work--a hard adjustment given our jet lag and learning how to balance a more chaotic family life. But, thank goodness, Grandma Connie came down a week later and allowed us some catch-up time; more importantly, she got to spend some special one-on-one time with Finn. Thank you Grandma for all your help!

Hanging out with Grandma Connie. She gave Mom and Dad a break from feedings and burpings as they were still adjusting to balancing work and baby...



Thanks, Grandma, for all my great new play stuff! My new exersaucer keeps me very busy: there's all kinds of fun things to do. I especially love the things that go round and round and round...and the cow that plays "Old MacDonald...".







Finn is currently interested in photographs. Grandma Connie gave him his own special photo album (baby-friendly); he is especially fascinated by his Mom and Dad's wedding photo.

Whew! All that playing wiped me out! Let me just suck my thumb and I'll be asleep in moments. Thanks, Grandma, for all our fun time together!



Not to be outdone, Marley the dog has his own unique way for falling asleep.