Last week, we decided to bundle up in this cold (er, not-so-cold) weather and go for a walk. At the halfway mark, not quite sure how, but there we were, deciding that this was a badass walk, which required the badass photo stance.
Finley couldn't quite get the stance down while he was tied up in a baby sling, but he rallied with a fierce smile under the monkey hat.
And other moments from the past few weeks have been pretty wonderful, too.
Mmm...mango shake love.
The piano's finest scale.
This photo was taken by a friend, Molly, whose daughter
wears tutus and might rule the world some day.
Well, not truly walking solo -- yet -- but walking with his truck. He actually started doing this at 8 months, but he's pretty much perfected the "assisted" walk at this point. This video is from a few weeks ago.
He hasn't shown any more inclination to walk on his own yet, which is just fine by us. He gets around plenty quick enough as it is!
On January 11th, I posted on Facebook that Finley had officially spoken his first word: "blue" (pronounced "boo").
A fairly lively comment thread followed:
Let me respond to a few folks:
@Cousin Paul: Finley and "Blue" Ivy Carter are officially betrothed, but we're trying to keep it a secret from TMZ to avoid the paparazzi.
@Robert Gordon: Yes, "boo" does mean "baby" in certain circles. Among linguists, it's generally referred to AAVE, not Ebonics. On another note, aren't all rappers self-referential?
@Terry Hanzel: "Kind of Blue" -- I can only hope Finn's music tastes are so refined.
@Co-workers Carmella & David: I'm truly sorry. I tried to start with Green and White. I really did. See?
Finley, admiring an original colored pencil drawing
given to him by his Grandpa Louis Solomon.
Finally, @Mom: You asked for context. Why, you may ask, would Finley's first word be "blue"?
Well, a few weeks ago Finley became absolutely obsessed with a specific group of Christmas decorations put up in our living room. There are about a half-dozen blue items: vases, blown glass ornaments, etc. Whenever Finley saw them he would use body language to indicate that he wanted to be shown them, and we'd always say, "Do you want to see the blue things?" Before long, he started asking to see them by saying, "Boooooo! Booooo!"
We actually had a little ritual going: some he could only look at, but certain pieces we'd let him he'd touch with his finger, and others he'd shove into his mouth. His favorite "boo" thing was a lovely vase (made by my cousin Eric Kaufmann) because we would regularly try the Chad Goertz Test of Good Pottery* on it:
*The Chad Goertz Test of Good Pottery: if you voice weird noises into a piece of pottery and it sounds cool, then it's a good piece of pottery. Incidentally, Eric's vase passes with flying colors. (Chad Goertz was my closest high school pal and college roommate.)
Austin's job includes a few great perks, and one of them is that he has a lot of time off. He had more than three weeks of vacation over the holidays, and we were able to have a leisurely family Christmas as well as travel for 10 days visiting family.
We've been abroad for the past three Christmases, so it was wonderful to be home for the holidays.
We didn't put up a tree this year because we have such a tiny house and such an active baby and, as I mentioned, were gone for 10 days...but excuses notwithstanding, I resolve to be less bah-humbug next year.
For starters, our Christmas (e)card:
Who needs a tree when you can wrap the baby in beads?
Finley's first Christmas present:
fascinated with the wrapping paper
a bird house with four little cloth birds
loving his new toy
Christmas morning
The Solomon clan:
With my grandma, aunt, cousins, brother, and parents
Finley, Victoria, and I have been enjoying the fact that I have a few weeks off for Winter Break. That means we've all been able to have a little family fun. Yesterday, for example, we went to Impressions 5, a children's science center in Lansing with a mission to help kids of all ages experience the scientific wonders of the world.
Their "First Impressions" room was perfect for Finley.
He loved all the mirrors!
Handrails at the perfect height.
Racecars zooming down a track.
The padded tunnels were no end of fun!
And, by chance, we met Finley's friend Samara there with her mother, Molly.
Peek-a-boo!
We all enjoyed our time at First Impressions so much that we decided to buy a year's membership so that we can go back any time. We figure it's a great way to fight a long, cold Michigan winter.
Secretly, I just can't wait for Finley to get a little older so I can enjoy some of the bigger kids' activities at Impressions 5. In particular, I'm looking forward to...
Lego-Palooza Day!
The "Gross-ology" Exhibit, with such fun activities as Urine: The Game, Snot Guy, and the Barf Exhibition.
Most of all, I'm stoked for Trebuchet Day, when competitors see whose trebuchet (a.k.a. "catapult") can hurl a bowling ball the farthest!
Anyway, we hope Impressions 5 will continue to bring this smile to Finley's face for many months and years to come! And we also have two free passes, so if anyone wants to check it out with us, just let us know!
With a deep sense of dread, I have been waiting for the winters of Michigan. For about six months now, I have wondered: What will I do when it snows out and I'm stuck indoors with the baby? Where will I go when it's freezing cold outside? I hate the cold -- how will I endure the winters of Michigan?
Well, I should have just taken a chill pill (as my 8th-grade self would have said). First of all, for myself, there is no need to fear being cold. I don't take buses or the subway anymore, so there is really no extended standing-outside-in-the-freezing-cold times like I had in Seoul for the past three years. Second, I am always carrying at least 30 pounds around, and let me tell you, that warms you up. And finally, it's gorgeous here in the snow!
See for yourself:
Good morning, white world! Finley was fascinated with the snow. (But not so fascinated that he didn't cry when I put him in it in our back yard later that day).
bushes
berries
porch
Here's the kicker, too: people are used to cold weather, and there is plenty to do with a baby. Heck, just letting him crawl all over the bookstore in town is good enough for both of us on a cold, snowy afternoon.
A number of Finley's major milestones -- first teeth, crawling, pulling himself up to a standing position -- have come and gone in the month of November, and -- unfortunately -- we haven't done a great job of keeping the blog quite up to speed.
So here's a November photo & video retrospective to fill you all in on what you've missed!
For starters, he's learned to channel Elton John...
And (much to his father's delight) enjoys
playing (read "pounding on") the guitar.
He got into his first fight. (Actually, he just had some
beets for dinner. Or, as Victoria joked, "He got 'beet' up.")
He learned to drink from a cup (with help).
He learned how to crawl... though not at first.
Not quite...
That's it!
He learned to pull himself up to a standing position.
(Don't worry. We've since raised the crib railing.)
He's started wearing shoes.
He's made some new friends.
And he celebrated his first Thanksgiving.
(More on that to come.)
