Enter to win GORGEOUS hand knit gloves http://bouffeebambini.blogspot.com/2010/11/cactusdesign-hand-knit-fingerless.html

I'm posting this not only to help my friend Hanna gain recognition but also to try and win some of this amazing stuff. I need to starting branching out with my knitting. This stuff is awesome.

Homemade Baby Food

Sorry folks. Again I've been busy being a Mama so sometimes that means it is near impossible for me to have time to upload photos, and write my story. But tonight my sweet angel went to bed early YAY!!! Hopefully he will sleep through the night. He woke up at 2:00am this morning which is actually unusual but happens on occasion. He is actually a really good sleeper but tends to not get to sleep until 10:30 at night even when I attempt to put him to bed way earlier than that. I have been taking different approaches with him to get him on a better sleep schedule to mesh with his growing appetite for play time. Today was an awesome day despite the 2am wake up. He woke again at 6am to nurse then slept in until 8:30. He had three naps and finally went into his crib at 8pm. If I can keep this up this will be a perfect schedule. He is such a wonderful little boy. I am having so much fun watching him grow and change. Yikes I spoke too soon. He just woke up again. Well I'll give it awhile and see if he falls back to sleep. Since I am writing though if anyone has any tricks for getting back into sleepy land that would be awesome. I have a binky for him, a white noise machine, night light. You name it and I most likely have it. He is also teething too of course but nothing seems to really work for him and I have tried everything from homeopathic to Tylenol to cold washcloths. Again if anyone has any tricks for teething I am open to it. Well this was just supposed to be a side note. My post is actually about the fact that I made baby food today with the machine my Aunt Lynda bought for me. So far Finn loves Mangos and Bananas. Today I made homemade applesauce with organic apples and separately I made pureed butternut squash. He wasn't so sure about the applesauce but next week I'll try the squash. In the mean time here is some pictures of Finnbug and the food I made.

Rollin'

Well we need to keep working on tummy time because I tried to get it on video but little Finn was already exhausted from floor/tummy time and then one big roll. He rolled from his tummy to his back for the very first time about an hour ago. He was rolling from side to back a little bit but didn't seem like he was anywhere near being ready for a full roll. I am so proud of my little man. The Pediatrician said he may be late on this milestone due to his size but not to worry. Ha I get to tell her that he did it at our 6th month visit. I still cannot get him still enough to capture the tooth teeth he has but in the mean time I am including some recent video and pictures.
Happy Dia de los Muertos everyone!!!!!!!!!!!!!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN

Finn got his two front teeth and it's not even Christmas

So another tooth has emerged. He has two bottom front teeth and possibly a third coming in. I can't get him interested in food yet and I'm not pushing him too hard. I feel that he will decide when he is ready. I just politely offer variety. I offer something new every week and try it a few times each week. He doesn't like rice cereal at all. He did show some interest in green beans but ate maybe a teaspoon at most. I know that they usually don't eat much more than this when starting out but some things he has just flat out refused to keep in his mouth. Poor little guy has been really fussy lately. I can only assume it is due to the two new pearls in his mouth. The one thing that seems to work the best is Oragel but he hates the taste of it. It does calm him down almost instantly though. I also give him cool wash cloths and an infant toothbrush to chew on. If I didn't have stretchy skin on my belly I might have a 6 pack from carrying him around everywhere. That is something that has been a little frustrating and sweet at the same time. It's not like I haven't tried to just put him down and let him fuss. He wants to be in Mamas arms ALL the time. But at least I'm getting a good workout. A month ago I couldn't pick him up off the floor without one hand on a table or a couch. Now I can bend down to my knees and pick him up with both hands and get right back up. I can feel the muscle, unfortunately I cannot see it. We walk daily but not always as long as I would like depending on him. He prefers to be carried in my arms or in the stroller. He is a very strong little man already. He loves when you make funny voices and faces at him. He already loves a cartoon called The Backyardigans. We bought him a new car seat today because he has already outgrown the one that fits in the stroller. Sheesh I am exhausted. JUst wanted to send out a quick post to keep things going. I'll write a juicier one when I am not so tired and can upload more pictures and videos. He's a growin boy. Cannot believe how much he keeps changing. Oh it's cheesy but I wrote a little poem for him.

Oh little Finnbug
You change from day to day
With just one little smile
You take my breath away
There are days that I feel
Scare and insecure about being a Mom
Then I see you sleeping in your crib
And suddenly I feel calm
Time will only tell us
What kind of person you will be
So in the meantime I will shower you
With all of my love endlessly

Baby Laughs

This was too cute. All I was doing was making funny noises and he starts laughing like this. It is random when he will actually laugh this loud. On that happy note I have to reveal that I think we have just started into the "terrible two's" early. Could it be just that he's teething? Or is he learning so much so fast that he just isn't sure what he wants? Who really knows. His attitude changes from one minute to the next and I'm slowly but surely realizing that it is all completely normal behavior. He is our precious little Finnbug and no matter how many tantrum there are, I love him to pieces. He desperately wants to stand but guess who has to have the strong arms to hold him up. I am getting stronger but after awhile it's like Finn buddy I just cannot do it anymore and he gets mad. He will do the exersaucer for a while, his play mat for awhile, and now he will do his highchair for a bit if I put some toys on it. I am just experimenting with a play rotation of sorts and also getting comfortable with letting him cry it out sometimes. Because occasionally he will cry and fuss and then just stop and start talking to himself and playing with his toys. It's really funny to watch actually. It is really hard for me to do because I just want to stop whatever is making him cry but sometimes I have literally done everything I can think of and just have to let him get it out. I'm working by trial and error, other mother advice, books, and just plain old mothers intuition. I think I am getting the hang of this. I just have great days and frustrating ones. But I am so happy to be a Mama. And especially Finns Mama.

A tooth?

YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Believe it or not our little Finnbug has a tooth. I noticed that ALL afternoon yesterday he had either a finger or a hand in his mouth and tons of drool. He sometimes gums my finger too. He doesn't really like all the teething toys. Well when I gave him my finger yesterday I felt the top of his first tooth center stage bottom. Was not prepared for it so early. He is still getting the hang of rice cereal. He did try green beans and I think he liked them. Next week we will try butternut squash. He is growing so fast. I just cannot believe it. He is standing up in his Exersaucer toy and loves it. Although he gets tired quickly because he plays hard. He has also really acknowledged Lucy. This morning he was patting Lucy on her ear and Lucy would lick his hand. They went back and forth about 4 times with a little pat and then a lick. It was so sweet to watch them begin to bond.

Enter for a chance to win an ADORABLE handmade bib

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Four Months Old

Sorry folks been busy and got a new computer so had to move some files around and the little Finnmeister has been craving more attention. So it is past midnight and here I am blogging but I have so many awesome things to share. So this is what our little Finnbug has been up to. He can now sit up with support and he can sit in his Bumbo chair alone but supervised ofcourse. He can hold his chest up while lying on his belly. He is even more of a chatterbox and lately he has been sort of humming himself to sleep. It's really cute. The best thing that happened this month is that he is now sleeping in his own crib in his own room and he is sleeping an average of 9 hours per night. He is just the best baby ever. He had his 4 month check up today and is perfectly healthy. I was a little worried that I might get chewed out for his weight but the Doc said " We like to see fat babies". Finn is now 26 inches and a whopping 19 pounds. He said since he is being breastfed, the weight is not an issue and it will come off easily once he starts being active. We are looking forward to his first plane ride. I hope it goes well for him. I will probably breastfeed him until we are up in the air so that his poor little ears don't pop. Oh and my friend Kiaras Mom just asked if she could use Finns picture for a flier on mental health. She is the Duke for Southwestern College in Santa Fe. It is a holistic school that offers a Masters degree in mental health education. Kind of ironic considering we were worried about his mental health outcome for so long. Well that's actually about it for this month. He is growing like a weed and I cry a little bit every time I put another batch of his clothes away to save. I'm pooped so I will add some pictures and some videos and say goodnight.

Just when the caterpillar thought its life was over, it became a butterfly

My Dear friend Tracy came into my life my junior year of high school at Santa Fe High. She was so very kind but in high school I was completely annoyed by her because she was the type that got straight A's no matter how much or how little she studied. The truth is i wasn't annoyed I was just jealous that I didn't have that ability. We also attended nursing school together and yes she was still a straight a student. She left the world unexpectedly and too soon on Sunday, September 5th 2010. No one truly knows the cause of her death. She loved butterflies and making cakes and she made my wedding a cake as a gift. She leaves behind a wonderful husband and a son just a few months older than Finn. I have lost many friends over the years but this one I am having a real hard time with. I am still in shock and I don't think it has really sunk in yet. I will miss her so much.

You are beautiful

Today is my Moms birthday. She would be 61 today. She was the embodiment of beauty inside and out. It hurts so much that she died before getting the chance to be a Grandma. I decided that I would call her Angel Grandma. I want Finn to know her in spirit and soul as well as he will know his Grandma Murphy. As weird as it may sound I want him to feel free to write to her, send her pictures etc.. In a very special and important way I am going to give my Mom the chance to still be a Grandma. I love you Mama. Happy Birthday

Finn and Daddy

Here are some pictures and a video of him and his Daddy. The other day Brian was bringing Finn into the bedroom and was about to turn the light on when out of nowhere Finn starts laughing hysterically. We tried to get him to do it again but by the time I got the camera ready to go he had stopped and we haven't been able to get him to do it again. Anyway the video is Brian trying to get him to giggle again and the others are just some random shots including a couple from our hike last weekend.

Finn one week ago

So this is my first attempt to add a video to my blog. I'm hoping it works. I will continue to add little snippets so you can hear him and see him crawl etc... This is going to be a very short blog because you know who needs a diaper change.

Finns first tram ride

Again with the backtracking. Here are a couple pictures from the tram ride we all took when the Murphy ladies and tots were visiting. It was chilly up there and no view due the clouds but we went on a sweet little mountain hike and then took the tram down to this great New Mexican restaurant called Sandiagos. They have the best blood orange margaritas!

Daddy's bathingsuit

So I am backtracking a little bit since I started this late. This is Finn several weeks ago wearing Daddy's bathing suit. This was Brians baby bathing suit. Finn hasn't been in the water yet except for baths but by the time we make it to the beach or to Paw Paw I know he'll be too big for it. When the Murphy girls came for a visit we were planning on taking him into the pool at the hotel but the pool was a bit too cold for him. I definitely want him to take swimming lessons and then eventually Daddy can teach him to ski. Brian and I always have a blast swimming with the Murphy girls so you can imagine how excited we are for Finn to learn.

First Blog

Okay so I had started blogging on another blog site but my friend Hanna uses this one and I prefer it. I'm still getting the hang of this blogging thing which is weird since Facebook is sort of a blog in itself. But Facebook is a lot simpler in it's design and I can have a little more fun with this. So folks if you become a follower you can be updated on little Finn and occasionally his parents. And I promise not to change blog sites again.