So much happening

Finley is the most amazing little guy ever! I am sure every new parent has said that and it is cliche but really it is true I am amazed by him everyday.

He is having the language explosion. Since february he has increased his language skills so mcuh. lots of new words (and half words) but now he is starting to use the words to communicate (not just to "name" things). he is even trying short sentences. and pointing things out to me & his dad. and we all get a bit frustrated when we can't understand eachother. he is still using sign language along with his words. it is really cute but also very effective.

some of the cuter and more memorable things he is saying now is "meow" for kitties. he calls them that and says "meow" to them if he sees them.

if we are outside he points to and says "chees" (trees) and "ky" (sky) and "maaaarrooow" (flying sound of airplane). and of course cars, kaia, augie (georgia's dog-altho now all little dogs have become "augie" according to Finley) and "juju" (aunt georgia) and "mah" (uncle Matt).

he says "ni, ni" (night night) and "peo" (pillow) when he is tired and ready for bed. and he loves his ""bay" (blanket) and "melmo" (elmo) doll. and yesterday he saw the flowers that Bill got me for my bday and Fin said "fawar" (flower) and then "awa" b/c the flowers are in water! I was very impressed.

Finley likes to run up to my aquarium if the light is not on and he gets very concerned and says "oh no, oh no, sheesh, yite". which translates to oh no the fish need their light turned on!

a couple weeks ago Finley stuck his hand under the vaccum while it was running and some skin got rubbed off his finger. he was very upset and we had to put a big bandaid on it and some sport tape to protect it. once the skin healed Finley was still concerned about the "owie" and the "booboo" and every time we see a new person lately he walks up to the and shows them his hand and says "booboo owie". what a memory!

we have had our fair share of parent-toddler language confusion. for weeks he was saying "awa" repeatedly and we had no clue. turns out he was saying AGUA! they learn spanish for some words at school. and he was saying water! we are very SPECIAL parents. then last weekend we were outside doing yard work and he was helping (of course) and he ran to the door and starting saying "how" (house) so I went inside with him and he ran to the kitchen and was pointing tot he cabinets saying "nak" over and over again. then it hit me-he is saying SNACK! how could I not realize this?-the poor kid is starving.

oh well I guess this is how it goes. we are just so proud of him for his language explosion-right no time developmentally. we are so damn lucky. i am so thankful. so so very thankful.

we have been re-doing our deck (well Bill has been doing this along with the help of my dad and his dad & brother) and we also got a new fence put in the back yard. Finley has much enjoyed the projects and the time outside. this will be a wonderful long and fun summer for him. we have already been so happy to get outside to enjoy the great spring weather. for the most part it has been very nice and sunny most days for the past 3 weeks or so. what a relief! we had such a long snowy winter.

Georgia, Matt & little augie are coming voer for dinner tonight. we have done a good job of seeing them about every 1-2 weeks for dinner. this si very importnant famiyl time for us and we are so lucky to have eachother nearby. Finley loves it and so do Bill & I. we wish Leah, Mike, Kurt & kelly lived closer but for now we won't complain b/c we are happy to have all these great people in or lives.

Leah & mike are really struggling with the 3 babies right now. but I know that very soon those babies are going to start "giving" back to their mom & dad and they will become bright shining stars-each of them. these babies have been difficult b/c they were so little for so long that L & M had an extended period (10-12 weeks) of infancy-whereas most parents only have 4-6 weeks of that kind of tiny needy baby. the triplets are starting to really show their different personalities. it is just goignt o get mroe & more interesting.

I got to go to a doctor appt with Leah & Zach yesterday. sadly he has a herniated umbilical cord stump so it is painful and swollen but the doc said it should resolve itself and everything will be OK (9/10 times). if it doesn't get better then he might have to have surgery but for now they are waiting. It was really nice to spend time with Leah & to see zach by himself a bit. when the 3 babies are together it seems a bit overwhelming but as a singleton he is just a normal baby. what a sweet beautiful by he is! I am so impressed with my nephews. I can't wait to watch them grow like Finley has. it is such a joy.

I can't stop saying to myself how lucky we are. everyday i am thankful to be here in America. the economy is a mess and getting worse everyday and there are doomsday sayers all over the place- I can't even watch the news without getting very upset and overwhelmed. so I have stopped. but I feel so much hope and joy. I am so glad to be able to live my life and watch my son grow up. we have jobs and a great family and so much love and so many blessings. we are so lucky. i refuse to be scared. we try to live as simply and as sustainably as possible and we are getting better everyday.

well. Finley just took off his clothes and now is removing his diaper. I better go give him attention!