Young Mr. Finn had a great time in Leadville with his grandparents (a.k.a. "GPs," a.k.a. "Jeeps"). My mom brought In Grandma's Arms, a book the two of them read together several times & that Margot's mom read to Charlie. Here you can see a gallery (HTML) of some of the good times.
Margot, Finnegan, and I had a terrific time this week in Leadville and Boulder, CO, and Finn proved himself a wonderful traveler. We're glad to be back at sea level, breathing the thicker (albeit smoky) air and getting the small guy back into his familiar crib.
Among the highlights of the trip, we got to introduce Finn to his cousins Patrick ("The big guy") and Charlie ("The 'getting bigger/no longer the baby' guy"). Here you can check out a gallery (HTML) of the three of them in action--but be warned, you may want to don protective eyewear before glimpsing such cuteness ;-).
Given the (relatively) giant melon little kids have to cart around on top of their necks, they need plenty of exercise, and baby docs all seem to recommend plenty of "tummy time." This weekend we got the squirrel going with some extra TT--all while perched on his dad's tummy. Good time (and happily, no spit-ups!) ensued. :-) Here are some pix.
New Dad John is having a fine Father's day weekend with our little man. I surprised him yesterday with a new, more rugged stroller, since he really enjoys taking Finn on long stroller rides through our neighborhood. With all the uneven sidewalks, curbs, and tree roots, our little green stroller was not able to manage too well. Now with our bright orange "BOB", complete with real tires and shock absorbers, both Dad and Finn should have a smoother, more enjoyable time.
We also gave Dad a little brag book, with the help of Aunt Laura's scrapbooking skills. So now Dad can carry little photos of Finn with him when he travels, and show all his colleagues how cute our boy is.
After a night with John and I alternating duty on Finn's sporadic wake-up calls, Dad was a little groggy this morning, but happy to see our little guy when it was truly time to wake up. Here are a few shots (HTML).
It's been too long since I've posted pix of our young friend! He's been a busy boy...
Upon learning of the passing of rock pioneer Bo Diddley, Finn started playing the harmonica (seen here, at left). He also wrote a little song for the occasion, using Bo's signature riff:
"Bo Diddley's dead,
Bah DAH duh dah dunh...
Goin' down in a hole.
Bah DAH duh dah dunh...
Nobody ever gonna see him;
Bah DAH duh dah dunh...
Might get eaten by a mole.
Bah DAH duh dah dunh..."
From there Finnster donned his old-timey prison stripes, with mom set to match in hers, and had some good times on the bed. Naturally all the downward-facing excitement resulted in a huge... well, let's just say you can see the aftermath in this set, but thankfully not the event itself. You can also see our little guy starting to become aware of these fleshy little "feet" things hanging out somewhere south of his tummy. Without further ado, here are the shots. (HTML)
The three of us had a ball on Saturday visiting with our hilarious friend Reen (aunt to our friend Hughes). She brought a great little sampling of books (including some by Sandra Boynton, known for her greeting card illustrations) and confessed to having spent a couple of hours in the kids' section at Borders, enjoying all the great stuff that's out there. Regarding the ever-popular (and gnawing-resistant) "board books, " she says, "I'm looking forward to being a major contributor to the Finn Library (hardcopy branch)." Here are some photos. (HTML)
Two weeks ago now (man, time is flying!), Finn, Margot, and I were treated to an early Friday evening dinner with our friends Bruce, Mira, and their little daughter Anja. Looking for cute blog-fodder as always, I hovered around the proceedings with my camera. No word yet on whether Finn will be requesting a second serving of Mira's bicep. ;-) Here are the pix. (HTML)
Our friend Peter Krogh and his wife Allison recently sent Finn a terrific sheepskin rug that our boy's been enjoying. The Kroghs say their kids loved having such soft pads of their own, and it's easy to see why. Peter is a pro photographer, so I tried not to stink up the picture-taking too much on this one. ;-) Here's the gallery. (HTML)
Finn has been diligently practicing his "tummy time" in order to strengthen his neck muscles and improve his head control. Of course, we think he is the Incredible Hulk in this category and demonstrates superhuman strength--and we have the photographic evidence to prove it!
We also got a few cute shots of Finn and his Aunt Laura during her visit this weekend. She and Finn had some good times on the playmat, reading "Pat the Bunny" together, and chitchatting while mom and dad went to the movies one afternoon. Check it out! (HTML)
Finn's Aunt Laura is in town for a visit, and we took some time out from domestic administration to go out for frozen yogurt. In Liggett family tradition, this is known as "coning", which stems from our frequent childhood visits with Mom and Dad to Braum's, the local dairy in our hometown, where we'd get ice cream cones and sit in the car and people-watch as we licked our cones. Here in San Jose, we don't have Braum's, but we have what we fondly refer to as "The Yogurt Hut" just down the street in our neighborhood. It's a tiny freestanding frozen yogurt shop with plenty of outdoor seating for good people-watching.
Here are some pics from our outing. It was a particularly good day for observation! Aside from Finn being happy and cute as he chatted with his Aunt, we saw dancing boys with their aunts and grandmas, little girls playing a plastic saxophone, and even a southern California plastic surgery victim. (We selected only the cutest subject matter, ourselves :-)).
Er, well, the small guy decided he wasn't gonna play ball, at least when the camera was around, and now the flowers have departed. Even so, the resulting pair of images are kinda fun, I think. <:-P
Margot and I watch way too much "Iron Chef America"--or rather, we did pre-Finn, when watching TV was actually an option. We get a particular kick out of the ridiculous character of "The Chairman's Nephew," played by a totally overwrought martial artist, screaming "Battle... {food item}!!" at the start of every show. It's all accompanied by frenetic camera zooms, dry ice smoke, and him giving kind of a karate chop towards the ingredient du jour ("Battle... GOAT LIVER!!").
For some reason (long-term sleep deprivation, or maybe the 100-degree heat here in San Jose), I'm reminded of all this when I look at some recent Finnpix. Therefore I present... "Battle... DOMENDITE!*" (HTML)
* Translation for everyone who isn't a weirdo who grew up in Galena, IL: big toe. ;-)
Happy Mom's Day to all the mothers out there, and most especially to newly minted mom Margot!
We're having a pretty quiet day, with Finn alternately fussing, sleeping, eating, and staring at things ("regarding faces," as the baby books say); in other words, I suppose it's been like pretty much every day, ever. ;-)
While Margot gives our friend a snack, I've uploaded a gallery of images from the day (also in HTML). You can see the little tree I bought for the occasion. Its little bushes of leaves remind me of Margot's "mop," and the whole thing makes me think of a Margot-and-Finn arboreal peanut. :-) See also Finn's newfound love of exploring his tongue.
When you listen to as much jazz as we do throughout the day, well, a little soft-shoe will inevitably break out. :-) Here are the pix. (Also in HTML.)
Hey Chicago, whaddya say?
The Finnster's gonna win to-day...
Finn's Grandma Liggett is a diehard Chicago Cubs fan, which is a fondness also shared by the Nack side of his family (all Illinois natives!). Just this week, Grandma L sent Finn a little Cubs jersey/onesie so he can start rooting for the family's team. It is, of course, absolutely adorable on him, which you can see for yourself. He seems pretty excited to be wearing it, and we hope it still fits by the time he makes it to Chicago in August to visit his extended family!
Here's a gallery of Finn sporting the new duds (also in HTML).
On a lighter note (than vaccinations and squalling)...
:-D
Our beamish boy was beaming indeed this Wednesday as his mom & I took him out for his first night away from home. We stayed at Le Meridien in San Francisco as I was working late at an Adobe event next door. M&D munched on room service (take that, expense account!) while the wee man partied on the "Big Boy Bed." Amazingly, no one died in the night due to collisions with unfamiliar furniture. Finn's sleep pattern was more whacked out than it's been lately, but we figured this would be a good dry run for this summer's planned trips to Colorado and Illinois.
To see more pix of our adventure, click the link above or click here (also available in smaller HTML form).
PS--Finn looks duly suspicious of his dad's new Finn-enabled exercise regime.
Today we celebrated Finn's 8-week B-day by taking him to the park in nearby Los Gatos. We spied what Margot dubbed "the tiny train filled with tiny people" and eagerly imagined taking him for a ride on it. A family we encountered had just rescued two abandoned kittens from the bushes, but somehow I failed to get a picture of los gatos in Los Gatos (d'oh!). In any case, here are a few snaps I did take along the way (also available in smaller HTML form).
Finn has a message for you; click the photo at left to see it. :-)
On Sunday our friend Eileen Whitson (hence "E-Dub") dropped by for a first visit with the Finn-man. She's a real pro when it comes to finding groovy, offbeat gifts (previously scoring a tiny Lucha Libre mask for Finn!), and on this trip she brought flowers and some great little baby sunglasses. Unfortunately our small friend was too fussy to wear the specs, but I'm sure they'll pop up soon in pictures.
Here's the gallery (also available in smaller, simpler HTML form in case you have problems viewing the Flash version).
PS--Extra credit if you can spot Finn tossing up a gang sign ("Wes' siiiide!"). ;-)
Yesterday and Friday we had the treat of having our friends Adolfo and Romina visiting from Buenos Aires. They taught us all kinds of fun Spanish words for Finn-related things ("chupete" for pacifier; "cachetes" for cheeks), and we showed them around the area, including a trip to Santa Cruz (nowhere better to inspect North American Paleo-Hippies in the patchouli-scented flesh). I've combined those photos with some Margot and I snapped of the young Captain around the house. Here's the gallery (also in HTML).
Look!
It's a bird in a bath!
In a sling!
On a mat!
How 'bout that?
Here's the latest round of photos of our young amigo, including some where he's "wearing his purple Speedo"--aka sitting in his new little rocking chair.
I've always read about how babies' eyes don't focus beyond 8" or so for a while, about how they're fascinated with faces, about how they love mobiles and other dangly bits, and so on. I'd never heard, however, of a kid being captivated--I mean straight-up FASCINATED--by something as simple as the color of a wall. Every time we put the Finnmaster onto his changing pad, however, his eyes immediate go to & stick on the wall. Seriously, check it out! He's so persistently taken with this experience that we've come to call it "Finn watching his shows." Soooo trippy. ;-)
You know, when it gets to be 6:30am and you haven't managed to sleep all night, it just might be time to write off the idea and get ready for work. :-) (The Finn-man played a role in the current state of affairs, but so did my being wired with all kind of exciting work stuff unfolding now.)
The Liggetts headed home on Monday, but before they left we were able to grab a few shots with them, and to capture Finn and Margot in some nice light. In a couple of images he's decked out in his little "Peanut" shirt from cousins Alicia, Fito, and Alejandro.
Happy Easter, everyone. Here's hoping that this message finds you well. We all had a wonderful day with both sets of grandparents on hand, putting up with the in-house paparazzo (me, of course). Here are the festivities.
The Nacks are winging their way home early tomorrow morning, while the Liggetts will be here for another week, helping to ease the transition as I return to work.
Today Mr. & Mrs. Liggett flew into town & were promptly introduced to our young amigo (Grandson III for them). We've rapidly shortened their handle from "Grandparents Liggett" to "GP's L" to just "Jeeps L." :-)
Finn's been a bit fussy today & especially this evening, but I do believe I caught him giving his grandpa a little smile...!
It's great having everybody on hand, and we're looking forward to a great Easter feast tomorrow.
People often ask whether I miss my cat (sent to live with my folks due to Margot's allergies). Nah: now we have another warm little companion who sleeps 20 hours a day, popping up just occasionally to eat & flip out. :-) Here he is with his dad & Grandpa Nack. (Watch for his little bicep-kiss!)
Finn's Grandma Nack (!) arrived on Tuesday, and his Grandpa Nack (!) joined us yesterday. So far it's been great to introduce them to the little dude & to talk a walk, though he's been somewhat fussy. (Right now Margot is dancing with him, singing a little Nada Surf song (something about Finn having "a party in his diaper"), and that seems to be working.) Here are some photos of the visit so far.
Hey everyone--Happy St. Paddy's Day! The wee man has of course gotten into the spirit of the day, thanks especially to a very cute out from our neighbors Kristin and Steve. He actually got a little too into the spirit, pounding drinks last night and then coating himself in puke (too much info, I know, but I couldn't resist ;-P)).
Update: See also the very funny "Stuff White People Like" post about the holiday.
We're having fun hanging with our pal Alethea, introducing her to Finn and letting her take on some of the "honeydo" tasks that I've been shouldering. (3am shushing remains my gig, however. ;-P) Yesterday we all went for a walk while I put the "papa" back in paparazzo.
Quote o' the Day: "Is it possible to have a 'Trophy Baby'?" -- proud Mama M. :-)
I'm honestly trying not to overload the world with shots of this little character but, well, who am I kidding? Here are some recent snaps:
More to come!
You be the judge:
:-)
Hello, everyone! Margot and I are just beyond elated that our little Finnmaster General has arrived. :-) We thought we'd start this little blog to chronicle some of the goings-on of the little guy and our thoughts about the whole experience. (Hey, dad's got to have *something* to do while up at 3am, and maybe this way we'll bore fewer of our friends with in-person stories of BMs, spit-ups, and the like. :-))
To get things started, let me point you to a few photo galleries we've posted:
We'll no doubt be burning up the camera in the days, weeks, and months ahead, so we've set up a Photos category on this blog. You'll be able to find the latest and greatest sets of pix by pointing your browser to http://www.jnack.com/finnegan/photos/.
Love,
Team JMF
