Christ the Lord is Risen TODAY! (Happy Easter!)

 

I love Easter. This year is no exception. Sick kiddos or not, we were gonna celebrate in style. Keagan may have seemed to get it last year, but this year he REALLY figured it out. Maybe not the true meaning behind Easter (this will come). But he has learned how to find eggs, and not just the out-in-the-open ones. He also has figured out that eggs can be dyed. And he has thoroughly enjoyed every aspect of the Easter festivities. I love watching this child learn and grow. His brother was along for the ride, but he was so pleasant today that I have to think that he must share my love for this redeeming holiday.

 

Buckle your seat belts, kids. This post is filled to the brim with pictures from the Easter activities. And I am staying up waaaaaaaaaaay past my bedtime to get this done.

 

Egg coloring started out rough. I bought the wrong coloring kit. Then when Josh went to find the "right" one, Wal-Mart was out! So, good ol' fashioned food coloring it was. And let me tell you, we will never go back to the kits again. Our eggs turned out so vibrant and they were soo easy!

This year our church didn't do an Easter egg hunt for several reasons. We were all kind of disappointed, but then decided to get together with some friends to let the kids enjoy the holiday! Keagan, Isaac, and Reagan had a blast...and we had fun making this happen for them! It was kind of nice having an exclusive egg hunt because the kids were exceptionally friendly to each other, and helped each other out! No fighting, no tears, no hurt feelings. It was so pleasant!

 
Happy Easter! Keagan isn't into smiling for pictures much anymore. Or it could be that I was stressing him out because we were already late but I HAD to take pictures!...  

Keagan, Isaac, and Finn after church this morning. These boys are great buddies; or as Isaac told me the other day "We make a great team."  HA! Sweet. :)

Easter basket and egg hunt time! Keagan couldn't be more excited to have a Mickey Mouse basket! Finn was just happy to be happy!

Grandma and Grandpa and Great Grandma Gail sent little Easter gifts for the boys so after naps they sat and dug into their goodies!!  So much fun!

Lastly, I had some Easter pics taken by my friend from college, Shawna. She did all of Keagan's baby pictures and we thought we'd get some brotherly pictures done in the Easter duds! The session was less than stellar and I was sure we wouldn't even get one good one. No one was behaving and I was kind of stressed. But they turned out pretty good!! So I am happy to share them with you! If you are interested in her photography services, check her out here.

And I'm Spent.

Happy Easter, everyone. I hope that with all the fun and the bunnies, chicks, eggs, and candy, you can remember the real meaning for this fantastic holiday. Thank you, Lord, for sending your only son to die on the cross for our sins. I cannot imagine that kind of sacrifice, but I am thankful that I don't ever have to.

Eight. Is Great!

Finley is 8 months old. What the wha???? Ha! During some reflection time the other night (i.e. "me-time" while I took a shower after the boys were in bed) I realized that Finn is 4 months shy of being a year old. And it made me cry. It really isn't fair that babies grow and change so rapidly, all the while the momma is losing sleep and has a tough time enjoying the baby stages. Maybe "tough" isn't the right word...but you know what I mean. I would love love love to have energy and not be so fatigued so I could even more enjoy these fleeting baby moments.

Finley is really such a joy. He is a very happy baby most of time and he loves to catch your eye and smile. It is special and heart-warming. The rest of the time the child is a bear. And it isn't his fault. He has lived with an ear infection since the first week of January. At the doctor yesterday we learned he still has infected ears (yep, two!) and the antibiotics are not doing the job. He is on his 5th round of antibiotics and we now have a consult with an ENT to discuss tubes. I am anxious to get this done because I know that Finn will finally have some relief. Like I said, he is a pretty happy baby, but when he is sad/mad I am certain our neighbors can hear it and there is NOTHING that makes him happy (not even a boob). And I am finally not in denial about it: he just plain hurts. I do find that I beat myself up over it, over letting this go on for so long. But then I know you don't just jump right into surgery at the sight of the first ear infection. But the child has had straight ear infections since he had RSV in January, with no break. See? I go back and forth. I am sad for him and I can do nothing for him at this point but love on him and try to remind myself to be sensitive to his cries because he likely hurts.

OK, so enough about that. Baby Finn is well-adored by his brother and the feeling is mutual. I stand in awe of this daily because it amazes me just how strong their bond is already. But just as strong as their bond is their desire to play with each other's toys. And this often causes screeches and screams from both. It's kinda funny, really. And the bickering also expands to the dinner table. Where they "argue" over food, napkins, silverware, etc...you see Finley is a grabby-Sam and has arms like his momma and can reach just about anything within a 3 foot radius. It's amazing really. And he grabs at his brother's stuff constantly. Speaking of food, Finley is eating just about everything now. We've started him on finger foods (puffs) but he hasn't figured them out just yet. Occasionally he will get one to his mouth on accident but it usually comes right back out, a soggy mess. The other night I did notice him chewing on one though. I haven't found a food he absolutely detests yet, once he gets used to it. The kid even likes the potted meats in baby food jars (I am making my own food again but I can't do the meats...makes me gag more than just opening the jar). And he absolutely adores ice cream. Yep, I am that momma. And I don't feel a bit bad.

From a motor development standpoint, I thought Finley was on the verge of crawling, but he isn't. And I am A-okay with this. Two mobile kids is worse than one. He'll get close to getting on all-4s but pretty much doesn't know what to do once there (and I can set him in this position but he freezes!). He's a great sitter and has awesome trunk strength and reaches way outside his base of support to grab at things (thus the brotherly fighting). He can nearly come to a sitting position from laying down by using his abs...it's hilarious. He is huge and chunky, but is more solid than roly-poly. Keagan had fat-rolls in the middle of his arms but Finley does not. He is long and solid.  He even kind of has a neck. Keagan didn't have a neck til he was two! At the doctor yesterday he was 20lbs 11oz. Finn now has two teeth, both on the bottom. They really are only visible when he is screaming. But I fear (yes, fear. this child is not a pleasant teether...but I guess it could be those darn ears?!) that we are getting some top ones soon. He is so drooly and chews on everything.

Favorite toys: anything that Keagan is playing with, his singing airplane from Grandma, his raz-berry chewy thingy (looks like a paci), his soccer ball that sings from Aunt Stacey, empty water bottles (his absolute fave)

Pictures and fun from the last month:

One of the most peaceful faces. I hope this image is in my memory forever!

 Big enough to sit in a high chair now!!

 

Snuggles with Daddy. Unfortunately any rare snuggly moments with mommy aren't documented. But they are extremely few and far between. Jealous, much? Yup.

 

Trying on hats and shoes from one of Keagan's bins...we've had to dig into the 12-month size clothes but they are all summer. Sooooo, we are bridging the season gap with whatever we can find right now! This child is massive. HA! 

 

How he typically hangs out with Mommy. The child must be held 24/7 and so this is how I hold him so I can have a couple arms free. He LOVES it. This is how I also tote Finn during Keagan's soccer games and practices...and he really will hang out for hours like this. My back, on the other hand, gives in quicker! 

 

Finally, actual 8-month photo shoot. Quickie-pics before work one morning. He was not a happy camper, but honestly this is how he has been the past several weeks (or months, really!).

 Classic: diggin' at the ol' ear.

 Another typical scene in our house these days...a face only a momma can love. And boy do I love it! 

 And finally, two teeth. One more visible than the other.

Here's hoping this next month is a pleasant one for you, sweet baby! One with less discomfort and more laughter than tears. And maybe more sleep. I still love you, though. :)