Micronaxx

Clearly Dad was having a little fun with the ol’ Adobe products this weekend. Mom was on hand to art-direct. 🙂
Finn spontaneously performs this squeezing gesture every time he sees any kind of work truck (white pickups, box trucks, or just about any truck with a light on top). He knows they’re somehow related to trash cans (i.e. the things the garbage truck *squeeeezes* with its big gripper arm).
Apparently this morning I missed some big adventures with a backhoe, Bobcat, and jackhammers. Mom and Finn were on the scene. Childhood curiosity rocks!

Grandma Nack: Guffaws requested
West Coast Naxx: Guffaws *DELIVERED*!
Our little squire loves to romp around saying “NOK-a-DAH!,” aka “Knock you *Down*!”–and of course we’re only too happy to oblige. 😀

Yeesh–we’re so used to the most crazy, complex technology working without a hitch, and yet of course it can fail. Our blog server has been acting up, so we haven’t been able to post any news (or approve comments) in a few days. In fact, we’ve had to hide comments temporarily. To quote Finn, “*Bleaugh!*”
Anyway, we’re working to get the problem fixed, especially as we have lots of fun photos we’re waiting to share.

Over the last couple of weeks, Finn has gotten really, *really* interested in All Things Stinky. He loves to go to the back door and say, “Bleaugh, bleaugh!”–as in, “Take me to the garbage cans immediately!” Wednesdays (trash days) are a real hit, with Finn checking out the garbage trucks and saying “Beep beep beep… bleaugh!”
The whole ritual has gotten quite elaborate lately, involving trips to the neighbor’s yard where they let weird lemon-like fruit fall and rot. Finn grabs each piece of fruit, at which point we walk it several doors down to another neighbor’s where he theatrically fires it into their garbage can. I don’t know whether people think we’re insane, charming, or both. 🙂
Here’s a little documentary evidence of our activities:

Finny really knows how to bring on the hilarity! Every day it’s something new and totally unpredictable.
We’ve known that Finn is very into toes (touching them, purposefully stepping on our feet, “sweeping” them with a paintbrush), but today he added an entirely new angle to his repetoire. One of his current favorite books is Dr. Seuss’s Hop On Pop. His favorite page in the book is “HE ME. He is After Me!” wherein a goofy tiger/lionish looking creature with big teeth is biting an equally goofy-looking kid on the toe (see image).
As he and I were goofing around, barefoot, on the couch this afternoon, he spontaneously leaned over, bit my big toe, and growled, knowing that the appropriate response would be to holler “No!”, which is what we say when we read the book. I delivered a good yelp of “No!”, and started laughing hysterically because it was so unexpected. This encouraged Finny to bite the toe several times and wait for my soap-operatic reaction. He was super surprised when I grabbed his toe and did the same thing!

Yesterday morning, I found myself in the kitchen with Finn (doing his typical let’s-grab-grownup-knees thing) while Margot was in the living room seeking some Kleenex. “Finny,” I said, handing him a box of tissues, “Bring to mama? Give to mom?” And off he toddled, bringing her the box.

I was delighted (having freed my knees & gotten out of the task myself), and I said to Margot, “This marks my first use of Finn as an economic implement!” Way to go, kiddo, contributing to family welfare. (Just let’s make sure Kathy Lee Gifford doesn’t read this post & start recruiting him as a future sweatshop employee!)

Oh, how I wish what happens in Vegas would stay in Vegas! We 3 Nacks had a good time seeing our pals Adolfo, Romina, and Brunito, but man we were fighting some tough circumstances during our stay.
Wandering around in the Las Vegas heat while 7 months pregnant with a raging head cold is, well, not ideal. What I thought was just allergies is actually a nasty cold (which John also got during our stay), which I am *still* getting over and which has now passed itself to Finny. Trying to keep a little guy fed, entertained, and not-too-sleep-deprived is a tough order when all you *really* want to do is blow your nose and rest in a dark room.
And then Finny had his own sleep issues…he was so *not* interested in the crib we requisitioned from the hotel. He slept there one time (because he was probably too pooped to complain much) but the rest of the time it was in the bed with mom and dad and their stuffy heads. Naps, nighttime sleep, all of it. And waking up when you’d leave the bed to go to the bathroom or get a drink. Yeesh.
Now that we’re back he’s struggling to readjust to sleeping and napping in his own crib. Yesterday afternoon and last night were not too bad but this morning’s nap went nuclear for about 45 minutes until he just plain pooped himself out. I tried staying in his room and patting him but that didn’t seem to help at all…and leaving him on his own had the same effect (more crying). Finally he gave up the fight, and hopefully this afternoon’s nap will go a little smoother. I think replacing his rancid, dirty “Leo” with a clean one threw him off his game, too, but I worry his mouth’ll rot out if he keeps sucking on something that smells like a hamper full of dirty socks!

We’re here in Las Vegas with Finny to meet up with some far-flung friends. There’s a big tradeshow this week that John is attending, as is his friend Adolfo-from-Argentina. Adolfo’s wife Romina, and cute-as-can-be son Bruno are here, so we decided to come as a threesome as well. We last saw Adolfo and Romina when Finn was only a few months old, and Romina was pregnant with Bruno. We’re all so excited to see each other again, and to see how our boys are growing up.
We arrived Monday afternoon and will stay through this afternoon. Bruno’s already a strapping 7-month old! Romina and I stick out like sore thumbs amongst the overly tanned, processed, and botoxed females in Vegas. We’ve got our diaper bags, strollers, and little containers of kid snacks :-). We’re looking forward to sharing photos of our poolside adventure and more as soon as Adolfo can upload them.

Finno is exploring language like mad. He’s recently learned to say “Toot toot!” when hearing a train in the distance; he beeps along with trucks backing up; and he offers a commanding impression of Harley Davidsons rumbling by.
Now he’s trying to move into three-syllabled territory. Current projects:

• Domendite: Our silly word for toes. Finn likes to start poking my shoes insistently while trying to loosen the laces, saying “Domen, domen!” The “-dite” part is now getting clearer.
• Polkabats: We enjoy reading about these crazy creatures “dropping smelly polka-turds on people down below.”
• Poop Robot: The little guy A) wears robot PJs, and B) loves to eat dried fruit. How ’bout we just leave it at that?
• Mahna Mahna!: A crazy old Muppet song provides much distracting entertainment on car trips.

Ah, you probably thought that this blog was the definitive source of Finn-related info online, right? So did I, until Margot turned up the illuminating Finnegan Facts site. Did you know, for instance, that:

• Finnegan has the resources and expertise to formulate and execute global strategies?
• In the last five years alone, Finnegan has represented clients in more than 100 Federal Circuit appeals?
• In an era where partners routinely leave firms for greener pastures, Finnegan has sustained a remarkable retention rate?
• Managing Intellectual Property Ranks Finnegan #1 in Patent Prosecution and ITC Litigation?
• Finnegan Filed a Petition for a Writ of Certiorari in Bilski?

What a busy little man he is. 🙂 The legal gene may have skipped a generation, but Finny seems determined to restore the family tradition. (I think his cheeks will go really well with the powdered wig.)