.busy bees.

We're still here, just been busy...you know...watching the Olympics and other

important things.  No, but really, besides watching obscene amounts

of great physical feats, its amazing how much time is taken up by just LIFE.

I've been on a busy streak this week, that was prompted by an all out couch day of sickness on Monday.

Inspired by my sister Angie's deck of paradise (really just a nice place to enjoy the cooler mornings and evenings), I cleaned down my own little outside space, scrubbed down my chairs, bought a small cheap table, and threw some pillows out there. 

Tada(is that even a word), my own slice of paradise with a stellar view of  "the" Jordan Ell. 

We've enjoyed are morning meals together out there, chatting about the day ahead. 

Does it get any better then that?  I think not. 

Besides making our deck space livable again, I have been diligently working out

the budget and working on how to be better fiscally disciplined all around. 

And on top of all this and that, I have a child that climbs up on everything. Everything. EVERYTHING!

If that doesn't keep one busy, I don't know what will.

.16 weeks already???.

.what we do in the summer.

*sigh* I finally have a moment to sit down and put all of our pics and recent happenings to post.  We have been busy whiling away the simmering summer days doing the following:

 Being little Pollock's by painting with water on the sidewalk.  A good way to have fun without getting too dirty.

Working on our stacking, our favorite things being can's from the cupboard.

Getting some use out of our zoo pass.  We ventured out when the weather dipped into the low 90's instead of the 100's,  and every other mother in Utah had the same idea.  

Hiking Albion Basin to see the wildflowers...of course Cecret Lake provided lots of entertainment for little boys who like to throw rocks and dip toes in the water.  We also saw a few moose...this one not 10 feet off the trail, YIKES!

Painting the "Red" wall and undertaking more work then originally anticipated.  Step by step I guess.

 Re-unioning with family.  Finn and uncle Sean relaxing at the end of the day...can you tell he's tired?

 Momma and Finn dancing

 This is Finn dancing with my sister Angie and then his favorite partner, cousin Sully.  He didn't want anything to do with anybody else...just Sully.

 More reunion time up Big Cottonwood.  The outdoors are perfect to play and be little boys in.  Finn was showing me all of his sticks he had picked up.

More family hiking up at Brighton's Silver lake.  Finn looks a bit awkward in the picture, but he had just finished yelling at the ducks, so that might have something to do with it.  As another side note, Roy does not make a habit of wearing rope around as a belt, we had just taken Finn's "leash" off for the   ducks.

Roy has had the whole month of July off from church callings and we have enjoyed having him home a lot more.  We've spent lots of nights eating dinner at the park and playing at the playground, swimming, wrestling, running around in diapers, eating LOTS of watermelon, and all around having a good ol' time despite all the heat.

.notes of no interest.

Does your face ever hurt?  I mean really hurt?  No?  Well mine does, and it's hurting right now.  I mentioned earlier how this pregnancy has lent itself to quite a few differences from Finn's.  One ill side effect of all these hormones coursing through my body...yucky face.  I can't seem to get a handle on all the blemishes that keep popping up in greater quantities.  I miss my old face!

Finn is a completely new kiddo today.  He is happily playing and getting back into everything like he is  discovering it for the first time.

I was re-reading some of my fall posts, and it made me excited for all the goodness of autumn.  Not to mention the cooler temps.

We got a lot coming up in the next few weeks including cook outs, reunions, and camping.   Oh I can't wait to go camping.  We haven't been since Finn was 5 months so I know he's going to enjoy it a lot more this time around.

Roy has scout camp the first week of August, which means he'll be gone on our anniversary again.  I swear if I had known that the first week of August was the go to for scout camp I would have chosen another day to be married.  I know I shouldn't be upset and annoyed by the fact that we just have to celebrate it on another day, but I am...

In celebration of Finn recovering from his week long sickness we are heading up for a Saturday morning hike to get out and enjoy the cooler mountain air, and also get our packer out for some more use.

One bonus of summer are the farmer markets.  I'm excited to go pick out some yummy local food.  There is just something about picking and buying food that is fresh from the farms and family bakeries...it's good for the soul.

I made homemade bread this week.  I made it thinking Finn could handle homemade bread to eat.  It felt like twice the undertaking because of a needy baby.  Consequently, I let the loaves rise a bit too long.  I had one GIANT loaf that I had to wrestle into a bread bag.  The batch was also a bit bigger then I normally make because my poor beast of a Kitchen Aid didn't cut it.  I had to knead the rest of the flour in by hand, and then spent the next 45 min. cleaning out all the nooks on the machine where the dough had squished into.  I need a Bosch for my bread dough!

Alright, I'm off to do laundry and clean out my fridge.  FUN DAY!!

.the sick days of summer.

Its Thursday, and the day is looking up.  We have passed the last 4 days in pajamas (sometimes no pajamas at all), taking lots of baths to cool off, swallowing obscene amounts of Tylenol and Advil, and basically eating only cinnamon cheerios and Gatorade.  Finn went to bed Saturday with a 103 temp, and woke Sunday with 104.  The temp peaked at 105 and at that point I made an after hours visit to the pediatrician.  Lucky (or unlucky as the case might be) for us it wasn't strep, but a virus that would cause his fever to stick around for 5 days and leave us with nothing to do but try and keep the kid comfortable *impossible*.
I think we're out of the woods now since the fever has finally broke and he slept through the night without having to have me hold him through great portions.
The plan for the day is to get out and go see the dogs and tractor at Grandma's and go take lunch to daddy.  As for me, I'm going to de-frump myself and try to put some order back into my house.  It's amazing how quickly things/people fall apart when you are holding your baby boy 12 hours a day.

.lets not forget.

Today while gathering paint supplies at Lowe's and hearing Finn say "Hi" and "bye" to everyone we passed, it occurred to me that I haven't properly updated life with Finn in some time.  That boy of mine seems to grow bigger by the day, and I have just now had the energy and desire to start taking pictures of our days together.  So sit back for some Finnegan updates.

As far as talking go...he jabbers A LOT, but I have yet to perfect that understanding between toddler language and parent.  He'll be looking at me and saying something over and over, and I just sit there looking confused trying to guess what he's saying...if I'm lucky I get a pointed finger.  He does say quite a bit that I can decipher (mostly B words) like ball, bike, bye, bottle, bubble, & balloon.  He does say mama now, but he still uses dada more then anything.  Of course he's picked up on NO and does so  while shaking his head.  His most recent word is "gone" which he says when he's done eating of thinks that what were feeding his is all gone.  Of course our most favorite word of all, as well as his, is "tractor".  I don't know why he picked up suck a complex word, but he says it all the time.  Tractor pretty much means anything with wheels: car, truck, train, motorcycle, lawnmower, actual tractors, etc. Even when I don't see the motorized vehicle, as soon as I hear him say it, I know there is one nearby that he's spotted.  There is a tractor down the road at the golf course maintenance shed that he knows is there.  Whenever we are out walking and we start heading down that road he will immediately start saying tractor and pointing in the direction of tractor.  No walk is complete without a stop at the tractor. I've been working on telling him the actual names for the different vehicles, and I think he's picking it up because I hear "tarsz" and "choo choo" thrown into the mix.  

He's started methodically lining up his cars and pushing them

Without warning Finn finally became and eater!  Ohhh it's been wonderful to just feed him what I've made up and not have to worry about making anything different of special.  He must be hitting a growth spurt because if I let him he will snack all day long, along with his meals.  We've become quite the pair eating at regular 2 hour shifts, and luckily he's helping me eat all the fruit I get every week.

Everyday I'm discovering how much he really understands.  Sometimes I think he's still a little baby, but then I will say something like, "lets go downstairs", and he will head right and start going down the stairs.  Or "Should we go get some breakfast?", and he always goes over to his high chair and waits to be put up.  Of course he loves going outside so if I saying anything about outside he runs over to the closest door waiting to be let out.

His latest obsession is with planes.  I laugh because only a few months ago when we flew to Florida, he could have cared less.  But now he's constantly pointing up to the sky, even before I'm aware their is a plane flying by I see Finn searching and pointing at the slightest hint of a sound.

It's been fun watching more of his personality coming out.  He will now smile when asked (it's a weird quirky thing), and he loves to wrestle.  Dad of course is his favorite person to wrestle with, but mom has to do during the day.  He climbs up on EVERYTHING, and is getting more and more daring.  He's  in nursery, and has been for about a month due to callings.  It's been a wonderful break not to have to juggle him around for the last 2 hours of church, and I think he's happier too with all the toys and snacks he gets.  He always comes out with crumbs on his face and clothes...too funny!

Pretty much he's a live wire, and a silly happy boy, that we can't remember life without.  Life is good when you have a Finn to share it with!

.large marge.

As I think is the case with most second time mamma's, I'm feeling the bulge sooo much sooner then I did with Finn.  And even though I still weigh less then I did when I first got pregnant, I feel GIANT.  It probably has to do with the fact that I feel like I'm stuffing my face ALL day long, but those clothes I worked so hard to get back into, are now pinching my middle.  I refuse to let myself get down about getting BIG again due to pregnancy because that's just how it's going to be, and I'm ok with pulling out my maternity get up sooner if I have to to feel comfortable.   SO that's were we are folks...getting LARGER and I'm ok with it.  I'm just happy to be able to do some exercise again without wanting to die.
So here is our update at week12-