..the hogle zoo..

dear finn,

ever since you were a tiny baby, grandma cindy has wanted to take you to the zoo. we were going to go a few different times last summer, but due to one thing or another we never made it. well, the weather has been so nice lately, and you are at an age that i think you actually might be able to appreciate the funny-lookin' creatures that the zoo exhibits. lucky for us, grandma cindy spent the night last night, so after listening to you cry for 30 minutes because you didn't want to take a nap, we decided it was a great time to take you to the zoo.

we got there pretty early..around 10:30 or so..but apparently that wasn't early enough, because it was packed! once we got inside the crowds dispersed in different directions and it wasn't bad. first we went to see the monkeys. none of them made any loud noises though, and i think that that is what would have caught your attention more than anything, so you didn't really seem too interested in them. we made our way through the zoo, stopping to look at the lions, giraffes, crocodiles and insects, and my personal favorite - the elephants. there is just something so cute about those gigantic creatures. i especially loved the toddler elephant, zuri. what a cutie! :) you took a ride on a carousel for the first time, and we also took a train ride. as we all well know, the train ride wasn't your first, but it went a lot more smoothly than the last train ride we took! ;)

even though you fell asleep in your stroller halfway through, it was still a fun day and i am glad we all got to go together, you, grandma cindy, dad and me. :) we bought a zoo pass, so i'm guessing that this was the first of many zoo adventures to come this summer.

love ya!
mom

..one year stats..

dear finn,

today you had an appointment with dr. reece, and unfortunately you had to get some shots. :( that part is never fun, although i must admit i was curious to see how you measured up. your one year stats are as follows:

weight: 22 lbs - 38th percentile
height: 28 3/4 inches - 19th percentile
head circ.: 47.5 cm - 81st percentile

now, i fully believe the weight and head circ, bc you sat pretty still during both. but when nurse bobbi was measuring you, you were arching your back and wiggling all over the place, so i'm almost positive the height is inaccurate. not to mention the fact that at nine months old she measured you at 29 inches....i'm pretty sure you didn't shrink! haha so i'm thinking she probably meant to write down 29 3/4 inches, and just wrote it wrong. you have always been pretty high on the charts for height, so that 19th percentile sure doesn't seem correct.

dr. reece asked me lots of questions about your development, and you are right on track little one! he said you're even a little early to be walking. he said that you seem to be happy and healthy and he is pleased with how well you're doing. :)

as would be expected, you did not like your shots. you had to get four (2 in each leg) and you screamed bloody murder, and i, shamefully, laughed. i am so sorry, but it happens every time and i just can't help it. it is a loving laugh, i promise. ;) you cheered right up when nurse bobbi gave you a sticker, and you fell asleep almost the second we got in the car. rough morning for my baby finn!

love ya man! so glad you're so healthy, and i'll keep my fingers crossed that things stay that way.

love,
mom

..happy birthday, finn!!!..

dear finn,

HAPPY BIRTHDAY kiddo!!!! can you believe you are ONE year old today?! wow, has the time sure flown by. it has been a year full of great adventures, lots of learning and fun, and while there are parts of me that are sad to say goodbye to this first year of your life, i can't wait to see what the next year and all the years after that bring. :)

we woke up this morning and you and i went to breakfast at einstein's. i wasn't sure if you had ever had a bagel before, so i thought your first birthday was a perfect time to try one. :) we just sat in einstein's for a good hour, enjoying our breakfast and watching all the people that came and went. you sure are a people person, and love to observe. at one point, i left the table to throw something away, and when i came back i saw you waving to an older man. it was pretty dang cute, you little friendly bug, you. ;)

after breakfast we came home and you were ready for a nap. you went down without a peep and slept for two hours, which was so nice for me because i had lots to do to get ready for your party! pretty much the rest of the day we just hung out. you were patient with me and did a good job of playing by yourself while i finished cleaning the house and getting things ready for the party. dad was home for a good portion of the day, so you ran some errands with him. we enjoyed a cafe rio burrito for lunch, then grandma cindy came over to help prepare for the party. you went down for another nap, and slept like a champ again, then when you woke up it was almost time for your party!

lots of friends and family came to support you and show their love on this special day. dave, jenny and madi mcconnel came all the way down from tremonten. the kettle's came, the clark's, the phippen's, grandma cindy, grandpa jeff and grandma wendy, great-grandpa and great-grandma powell, nanny goat and even grandpa jimbob made a special appearance! we enjoyed just sitting around and talking with everyone. some of the people who hadn't seen you in a while couldn't believe how big you are and how old you look! grandpa jimbob was so proud that you can walk! all the little kids had fun playing on your new swingset, especially max and lucy. i think as you get a little older you will love it even more. :)

after eating and visiting, we decided it was time for you to dig in to your cake. now, grandma cindy and i had already seen your cake smash for your pictures, so we knew this one would most likely be just as hilarious. okay, we were a bit mistaken.....this one was even better!!! i don't know what it was, maybe the fact that you had done it once before and remembered how glorious and delicious it was, but you just splashed and patted and had fun playing with your cake for a good 15 minutes, and you loved every second of it! you looked like a little blue smurf when you were done! everyone there got a big kick out of it, it was something i don't think i'll ever forget. :)

after cake, you opened your presents, and you were sure spoiled rotten! you got so many new fun toys.....lots to play with inside, which is great bc you're pretty sick of the ones you already have, and lots to play with outside, which will be so fun as the weather continues to get warmer.

it sure was a special day, and i'm so happy we got to spend it with the people who love you most in the world. you are one lucky little boy, mr. finn, and i'll say it one more time - i can't believe you're one! this last year has flown by, but it has been an amazing one, and thinking back on all our fun memories from this past year makes me so excited for all the fun that's in store for us this coming year. happy FIRST birthday little dude, you are the greatest!

love,
mom

..ONE year old..

my dearest baby finn,

i am already in tears as i'm typing this. i seriously cannot believe you are one year old. it is such a happy occasion, and i am so glad we made it through this past year! i just can't figure out why i keep crying. i think part of me is just so sad to see you grow up so dang fast. the last year has been an absolute joy for me. staying at home with you, watching as you grow and learn and become the boy you are today....i have loved every second of it, and am so proud and honored to call you my son.

i feel like there must be a special place in each mother's heart for her firstborn. afterall, they are the ones who teach her everything about being a mother. it was you who taught me patience and sacrifice. you who brought a whole new meaning to my life. i had always dreamed of being a mom someday, but until i held you in my arms for the first time, i never knew that this kind of love existed. i would give anything for you, i would do anything for you. you mean the whole world to me, and i am so thankful to our heavenly father every single day for allowing me the privilege of being your mom. i am thankful to you for wanting to be a part of our family. even though things can be crazy at times, your dad and i couldn't have dreamed of a more perfect baby boy.

you have such a special something about you finn, i can't even put my finger on it. i just feel like you have a very special and unique spirit, and i know you will be called to do great things in our heavenly father's church and kingdom someday. i hope that as you grow i can do my part to teach you the principles of the gospel, and help lead you along the correct path in life. i hope you will gain your own testimony as a young boy, for you will need it to help you get through all the trials and challenges that this life brings. i hope you will have the desire to serve a full-time mission, and get married and sealed to the love of your life in one of the lord's holy temples one day. i also hope you will have a desire to learn and receive a good education. i hope you will have your father's work-ethic, and desire to provide a suitable life for your future family. i hope you will be a good example to your younger brother and other siblings, for i know that they will look to you as a beacon. i also believe you are the biggest blessing your father will ever receive, and i think you will do great things for him, spiritually speaking.

okay, enough of this mushy business, let's get onto the fun stuff! as in every other month, you learned to do so many new things this past month that it just astounds me. i can't believe how much you grow and change in just one short month.

.....your fifth and sixth teeth popped through (top left and top right). you now have four teeth on top and two on bottom...a little top heavy but i'm sure you'll get some more bottom teeth in no time! for the most part you are still really good when teething, half the time we don't even realize you have a new tooth until it's more than halfway poking through.

you are still a really good eater and will eat most things we give to you. when it comes to actually eating the food, you've become quite silly. if you are eating something pureed or watery, you will just sit there and gargle it. haha it's kinda gross, kinda funny! you also love to babble with a mouthful of food. lol these things are quite cute, considering you're so tiny, but we'll have to teach you some table manners as you get older. ;) when it comes to food, i have to say that you have a major sweet tooth, and it makes me kinda nervous. i'm sure it's normal for babies to like sugar once they've tasted it, but you know exactly what it is and as soon as one little taste of something sweet hits your tongue, you are a goner, and will yell and scream at us until we give you more! most of the time it's pretty funny, but it can get a little obnoxious. haha i'm hoping you'll still like to eat fruits and vegetables as you get older, and not one of those kids who only wants candy and ice cream. ;)

as was stated in a previous post, and probably one of your biggest accomplishments to date, you took your first steps on march 17th. it was just three small steps, but you got braver and braver each day after that and about two weeks later you were full on walking! of all you've learned to do in the past year, this is probably my favorite to watch. there is nothing cuter than seeing your little baby, all grown up, walking around the house like he owns the place. the way your belly sticks way out in front of you, and how you walk a little bit lop-sided with one side of your body farther ahead than the other....these things just melt my heart, they are so incredibly cute!

you saw the first pictures of your baby brother this month! until a couple days ago we didn't know it was a brother, but now we do and we are all thrilled! even though you probably won't know what's going on for a while, i have a feeling you'll grow up to be best friends, and that makes me so happy and excited. :)

you have become more interested in and attached to your blanket and the stuffed animals in your crib. :) at first i used to worry about this, because in all honesty, i don't want you to be that five-year-old boy who has to take his blanky to kindergarten, but it doesn't worry me too much anymore because you don't need it, you just like it. if we are in the car and your blanket is close enough, you will reach for it and kinda snuggle up to it as we are driving...it's adorable. :) same thing in your crib...you reach for it and bring the soft side right up to your face. you also have some stuffed animals in your crib that you used to pay no attention to...sometime you would actually throw them out of the crib haha but this month you've started grabbing them and snuggling up to them when you sleep at night. melt!

as the weather got warmer we started playing outside a bit more, and one of your favorite things to do is to play on the trampoline! you love to crawl around as we chase you from the ground. it's a fun little game we play, and you get the biggest kick out of it! the trampoline scares the crap outta me (pardon my french), but since you haven't tried walking on it yet i still feel comfortable enough playing our little game.

you love, and i mean looooovvvve, bath time. one time we were playing hide and go seek.....you went into the bathroom and crawled into the bathtub, lol! it was the funniest thing ever. mostly your daddy baths you, and you just love to sit in the tub and splash around. i think you could spend hours in there! :)

we have been trying to teach you how to wave for months, and i think you kinda figured it out a while ago, but just in the last couple weeks you have really caught onto waving and now, anytime you hear the words "hi" or "bye" you'll lift your hand and wave. the other morning we were eating breakfast and i said, "baby finn, can you say hi." i was trying to get you to actually say the word "hi," but instead you lifted your hand and started waving! afterall, to you that is hi. it is seriously the cutest thing!!!

you're still not speaking actual english, but you speak your gibberish language all day long and i just love listening to it. sometimes i'll speak back to you in gibberish, and i swear we have conversations because you respond as if you completely understand what i'm saying. ;) it's so cute. i do look forward to hearing actual words come out of your mouth, but in the meantime i'll continue to enjoy your own special finn language. :)

we have had such a good run of it this past year. you make me laugh every single day. you make me smile every single day. you bring tears of joy to my eyes almost every single day. i know that people who read this must think i am just posting the sunny side of our life, but in all reality, being a mom has been all sunny for me. i feel so lucky, because you have been healthy, you are happy, and you are honestly the world's easiest baby. you eat well, you sleep well, you play well. you rarely cry. you're just so easy going and laid back, i couldn't ask for a better baby to spend all my time with. i realize that i am one of the very lucky few, and i am grateful for that. i feel like the transition into motherhood has been very easy for me, and i have you to thank for that. i worry about this next baby, because it seems as if the other foot has to drop at some point. needless to say, i am a bit scared to see how things go with your little brother, because you have set the bar so high.

i love you more than you'll ever know.....to the moon and back x infinity and beyond. you are one of the loves of my life, and every day i think back to april 10, 2011 - the day you were born - and thank my lucky stars you're mine. :)

love,
mom

..happy easter..

dear finn,

today was easter sunday, and your second easter! i can't even believe it...two easter's in under a year. kinda weird.

easter is one of my favorite holiday's. i love the peaceful spirit that is always felt on easter, in church and really just the whole day long. even though our savior's atonement and resurrection is something we should think about all year long, it is nice to take a day and really show our gratitude and love to our savior for the amazing sacrifice he made on our behalf. none of us would be where we are today without him, and none of us would have that hope of eternal life if it weren't for him. we are so lucky to have a big brother who loves us so much that he was willing to lay down his life for us. i have a strong, undeniable testimony of our savior jesus christ, and the love he has for me, and for you, and i hope that as you grow older you will have the desire to gain a testimony for yourself. he is the greatest friend you will ever have, and i know you will come to realize that as you grow up.

you and i woke up bright and early this morning, got ready and went to sacrament meeting up in park city with grandma cindy. dad has been sick all week, so we let him sleep in. :) it is always fun to see old friends, and visit with people we haven't seen in a while, which is one of the reasons i wanted to go to church up there. as could be expected, everyone was so excited to see you, and thought you were the most adorable little thing in your easter outfit. :) you did pretty well in church. you stayed calm and sat on mine and grandma's lap through the sacrament, then after the sacrament was served you and i went out and walked the halls. you sure love to be on your feet and on the go. after a while i think you got tired, and just sat on my lap for a while. after sacrament ended, we went back in and said hi to some more people. everyone was so excited to see you, so i am really glad we went up there. we'll have to visit grandma's ward more often!

after church (just sacrament) in park city, we came home and guess who had stopped by??? the easter bunny!! he came and hid our easter baskets. so after dad got ready we all looked for our baskets and had fun opening them together. i thought you would like some of the candy more than you did, but i guess it's good you didn't think much of it. i had to hurry and make a cake for our easter party at the hansen's tonight, so i asked dad to keep an eye on you. well, he didn't keep a very good eye on you, because about 5 minutes passed by and he came upstairs, and in a very sheepish voice said, "finn has chocolate all over him." at first i thought he was kidding, because really, what parent would allow you to be alone with chocolate?? bur turns out he wasn't kidding, and you were, indeed, covered from head to toe in chocolate, with a mouthful (wrappers and all) in your mouth! momentary panic overtook me, as we still had two parties to go to and i had been looking forward to showing you off in your adorable outfit for a month! we hurried and undressed you and threw your clothes in the wash, and only moments later i realized i should have gotten a picture of you, because you looked quite hysterical!! it was just a typical boy getting dirty, and i will forever have that image of you burned in my brain! love it. :)

we went and visited great-grandma keller with nanny goat, and she sure thought you were somethin'! you met her a few weeks ago when tiff and kevin were in town, but her memory is pretty much gone so i don't think she remembered you. she sure thought you were a handsome little fella though! and nanny goat gave you your first haircut while we were there! it was just a mini trim, to get rid of some of the longer pieces in the back. nevertheless, it was the first time any hairs were cut and that's a big deal, right? :)

after visiting with nanny goat and great-gma keller, we came home, changed you back into your easter outfit and headed over to grandpa jeff's for an easter party. a lot of grandma wendy's family was there, and all the little kids had so much fun playing with you. they thought you looked just like the easter bunny in your outfit, haha. as always, great-grandpa powell was sooo excited to see you. you are his pride and joy mr. finn. we told him that we are having another little boy, and he said, "well i am excited, but not half as excited as i was when i found out about him." (him, meaning you!). he sure loves ya! everyone there was so amazed with how well you walk and with how big you are, i guess it had been a while since we had seen everyone.

we ate some lunch and visited with everyone there, then left to go to the hansen's for another easter party and lots more yummy food! i'm pretty sure you were stuffed silly by the end of the day haha. grandma cindy gave you an easter basket yesterday....and she had another present for you today! your easter  basket yesterday had a darling bunny (it's one of my favorite's ever!) and some balls. we've needed some balls for you for a long time, so i was so glad she got you some. she gave you a soccer ball, basketball and football. you're favorite was the soccer ball. you took it right out of the basket, held it up to your mouth and took a great big chunk out of it! haha it was hilarious! you did it a few times actually. :) anyway, the present she gave you today was supposed to be from uncle zac...it was your first set of golf clubs!!!!

anyway, after visiting with everyone there, we came home and put you to bed. it sure was a busy and fun filled day, and hopefully, even though you're so little, you felt the spirit and know of the love our savior has for you.

happy second easter baby finn! love ya!

love,
mom