Looks Like It's Time To Baby-Proof

 

Sleeping Peacefully

Finn has been doing great with his bedtime routine.  He goes to bed awake and gently drifts off to sleep without a fuss.  We have our evenings back!  And now we get plenty of sleep.  That's a relief because I was not doing well on only a few hours of sleep. 

It is a far cry from where he was a few weeks ago with this... 

These pictures were from day two of "scream till you pass out".  

Finn Can Talk!

About 2 months ago, Finn started saying "Ma Ma Ma Ma Ma" and "Da Da Da Da Da".  I didn't really consider these to be his first words because even though he would look at us and say them, he never said "Mama or Mommy" or "Dada or Daddy".  I think the repeating Ma Ma Ma Ma Ma several times makes it not count as actual first words. 

But he did speak his actual first words this weekend.  Guess what they were...  Well I can tell you what they weren't.  We didn't get to hear Mommy or Daddy.  He said, plain as day, "Jay-Jay".  It was like he had been dying to say it for so long.  He was sitting in his high chair, eating breakfast, when JJ came up to him (waiting for him to drop some food of course).  Finn pointed right at JJ and said, with a huge smile on his face, "Jay-Jay."  It was so cute.  He has since said it a dozen times.  He seems so proud of himself that he can say it.  I thought it seemed a little early to be saying words; but I guess it is time to start using the flashcards with him.  I don't expect him to start talking in sentences next week or anything, but I am a firm believer of flash cards.  My brother and Tonya used them at a really young age with Landon (my nephew) and by 18 months, that little boy was talking in sentences.  And now at 3, he has a very developed vocabulary for his age. 

Nine Months Old

Finn had his nine month check up last week.  He is 20lbs 8oz (51st percentile) and 31 inches long (95th percentile).  He is going to be tall like daddy.  He is on track for everything as far as motor skills and milestones go.  We talked to Dr. Eisenhut about how Finn has been tough the last month at night.  Out of nowhere, he started giving us problems.  He would wake up in the middle of the night and scream his heart out.  He wanted us to come and get him and hold him the rest of the night.  In the past, if he woke up, we could just go in his room and give him his pacifier and a few pats on the butt. That was all it took and he was immediately back to sleep.  I guess we have been spoiled.  He has been hard to get back to sleep once he wakes up at night.  We were exhausted.  Dr. Eisenhut said something triggered it the first time with him - maybe his gums were sore from teething or something (he does have 3 teeth that are about to break through up top).  That first night, we assumed something had to be really wrong with him. It was so unlike him to act like that.  So I admit, we coddled him a little.  And so started this bad routine that lasted nearly a month.  According to Dr. Eisenhut, Finn was training us.  He had us coming into his room every night several times, rocking him to sleep, cuddling him and even putting him in bed with us (a couple times).  So now we have to break him of this.  Dr. Eisenhut said the only way he will know how to put himself back to sleep when he wakes up is to learn from us putting him to bed awake initially.  He said it should only take about a week and a half or so and he will be used to it. 

Let me tell you this is terrible!! We put him in his bed and he immediately got up on his knees in his bed, holding onto his crib and screamed bloody murder through the crib bars for an hour.  We went in there every 15 minutes and gave him his pacifier and laid him down and told him we loved him; but we were instructed not to pick him up.  It made me physically sick listening to him scream like that.  Eventually he fell asleep on his knees smashed into his crib.

This is going to be a long week and a half... 

But we are sticking to the plan.  I can't have him controlling us.  If he wins with this, where will it end?? 

Officially Crawling

I was making dinner the other night, so I put Finn on the floor in the family room with some toys.  I usually peek in on him every 5 minutes or so to make sure he is okay.  I heard him talking to himself and realized he was kind of echoing.  I peeked around the corner and saw that he was in the hallway.  He was crawling towards me!  He crawled all the way into the kitchen.  He has been scooting around for about a month, but now at exactly nine months old, he is officially crawling.      

Musical Fun!

Rene generously gave us this Leap Frog musical table.  Finn loves it!  He plays with it every day.  Sometimes we take the legs off of it and put it on the floor and sometimes he kneels against it.  He can stand up against it, but only if we are right there.  He hasn't quite perfected that yet. 

Napping In The Playpen



We use the playpen as much as possible.  Now that he can crawl, I have to keep him in there while I am showering and getting ready for work in the morning or if I need to get a few things done around the house.  Sometimes he fusses a little and wants to get out, but he is usually pretty good.   

A Second Selke To Bless Our Clan



Yep, that's another one.  I am 10 weeks pregnant.  I know, we must be gluttons for punishment.  This was a little surprising to us.  We had planned on trying to get pregnant when Finn was 9 or 10 months old.  But it looks like God was ready to bless us now.  We are very excited.  After a rocky start, our little unborn Selke is cruising through the first trimester.  I, on the other hand, haven't exactly felt like cruising.  I am at the part of the pregnancy that is no fun.  I feel nauseated all the time.  I haven't thrown up yet, which is a nice change from when I was pregnant with Finn.  But I feel like I could hurl at any time.  Also, I am exhausted.  I just want to sleep all the time.  I am not sleeping well at night either; so when I wake up in the morning I feel really tired; not rested.  I will be excited to get my energy back.  Everyone told me to enjoy my first pregnancy because it wouldn't be the same the second time since I would have a baby at home to take care of; and they were right.  It is harder.  But I did take their advice when I was pregnant with Finn.  I napped all the time.  I think, if I remember from the first time, I should feel better in about 5 weeks or so.  That will be a relief for Jason too.  He has had to be on duty more with Finn.  I am pretty thankful that he is there and he doesn't require a ton of sleep to function.  We are usually pretty 50/50 when it comes to day to day things with Finn.  We take turns when it comes to getting up at night if Finn wakes up, getting up with him in the morning if he decides he is ready to start his day super early, taking him to and from the sitter's, doing the feeding and diapering, and pretty much anything else he requires.  But lately, I am dragging.  So I am afraid my poor husband might have to pick up my slack. 

We aren't going to find out this baby's gender before he/she is born.  I know it will be tough but we did it with Finn and I am glad we did.  I think our friend's and family are more anxious to know if the baby is a boy or girl than we are.  We will find out in about 30 weeks!!  From the looks of our ultrasound pictures, we might be having a tadpole.

Froggy Kick

Finn does this when he gets excited.  It is one of my favorite things. 

I laugh every time. 

This Might Be Borderline Neglect...

Finn was sitting on the counter, eating some puffs, when I really noticed it...

What is going on with this kid's hair?!  He looks like a little war orphan! 

This is terrible!  I don't believe in the old wives' tale about it being bad luck to cut a baby's hair before they turn one; but apparently my husband does.  He refuses to let me cut it.  He wants to wait.  I told him Finn is starting to look ridiculous; but he disagrees.  I know this isn't the kind of thing I can just do one day when Jason isn't home; but lately, I am starting to consider it.  

Weekend At The Cabin With Friends

We got to the cabin on Friday and Finn's friends, Owen and Emma, weren't arriving until the next day.  So we had some time to hang out as a family.

 

 This thing is great!  I definitely need to get one for home.  It is a perfect place to have a bottle. 

 

    

It was a little chilly out Friday.  But we managed to get a few swings in anyway.  I tried swinging with Finn at first, but it made me totally sick.  I can't believe that a swing would do that to me.  Looks like my days of riding roller coasters are over.  Finn seemed to like the swing.  If it was warmer out, we would have gotten the baby swing out.  I think he will really like that one. 

Finally some friends to play with.  Between the three of them, we had all kinds of new toys to play with. 

Dinner time was comical.  Three hungry babies will keep you on your toes!

Babies in jammies.

  

    

Emma thinks Finn needs a haircut too. 

Thankfully, the next day was beautiful!  It was a shame that we had to go home around lunch time; but at least we got to swing a little and hike through the trails.  Owen and Finn slept in their Ergo baby carriers during the whole hike.

All in all, it was a nice weekend away.

Content With Keys

I love it that he can occupy himself for 45 minutes with something as simple as a set of keys.  By the time he got bored with the keys, I had finished making dinner.