two

So Finn is recently obsessed with the word, "two".  Perhaps you didn't know, but "two" refers to any number larger than one.
I think this all began with the arc that Finn got as a gift, which he spends many an hour playing with, identifying the pairs of animals - one, two. One, two. One, two. But now, "two" has taken on the meaning of two, three, four...basically anything more than one.
Every day, we walk down the road to visit the "buck bucks" (man, there are already a lot of quotation marks in this post and it's only three sentences long). Buck bucks are chickens, and one of the women who works at Finn's daycare owns them (name: Missy. Finn calls her Dizzy) so we feel comfortable wandering down into their back yard and visiting. Oftentimes, we stay for 15-20 minutes, just watching the chickens. We plan to get some next spring, so it's good practice for both Finn and for our dog, Nugget, to get used to having them around.
Missy has eight chickens, and oftentimes, I count them for Finn. Some are usually in the henhouse, others in their run, and still others who are outside of their fenced-in area, wandering around the yard. So we count the chickens in the different areas...one, two, three, four, five, six, seven eight. Or at least that's what I say. Finn, on the other hand, says "two, two, two, two, two, two, two, two" in the same tone of voice I use when I count.
This past weekend, we had a birthday party for a friend and got a dozen balloons. This was the first time we got to see Finn get excited about a balloon (AKA "boon"), and he was thrilled to have them tied everywhere - inside and out. "Boon out-ide" was the refrain of the day as he went in and out pointing out the balloons hanging in different places.
We do point out a lot of things that there are two of - eyes (particularly since we got smacked with a case of pink eye this weekend - there's been lots of talk of eyes), ears, arms, hands, etc. Finn's also recently discovered elbows, which he likes to make us show him by bending our arms and pointing them at him so he can gently tough them, grin, and say, "elbow!" He requires one to take the elbow out of any shirt so he can see it bare, however, which sometimes requires some level of undress to occur before he is satisfied.
And speaking of undress...Chad has two tattoos and I have three, and Finn has recently discovered them. TA-too, he demands, and we adjust our clothing accordingly to reveal our TAtoos to the little tyrant :)
This is one of those things I can't imagine myself ever getting sick of. He's just so darn cute and it's so one of those little things that I'll want to remember when he grows up and discovers three, four, and five.
Two - in just about two months, he'll be two. Hard to imagine - two years old and a big brother.  Times they are a-changin'...

tee too

This is just one of those things that if I don't write down, I may forget, and that would be terrible...

The first in what I'm sure will be come a running list:
Things Finn is doing right now that are TOTALLY awesome.

1. Tee Too
This is "thank you" in Finn language. He uses it almost to a fault, saying it when it's not exactly necessary, but still so darn cute we can't help but say, "you're welcome". Our favorite story about "tee too" is when he wakes up in the night. He normally just needs a quick adjustment to get back to sleep - either he's lost his sheep, or uncovered himself, or mysteriously ventured to the farthest reaches of his crib. He goes from fussing and not-quite-awake to comfy and snug in just a matter of moments and - without fail - says "tee too" to whomever has readjusted him. Totally makes getting out of my nice warm bed totally worth it.

some new kicks.

Oh, I do realize how ridiculous this is, but it makes me so happy that I had to share. I am a big, big fan of Chucks from "back in the day", so popping these on Finn's little feet gives me a great deal of joy. He loves them, too, which makes it all the more satisfying (it might just be that they're red, but I like to think that his fashion sense is already blossoming). They're just a smidge big for him now - perfect for summer, so we have to keep them out of sight, otherwise he'll insist (as only Finn can inisist) on wearing them.

Seeing his made me bust mine out, too - ah memories...so glad these have never gone out of style. Not that it would really matter.

she!

Oh for goodness sakes, I just realized I haven't updated you about baby number 2 yet - silly me :)

A couple of weeks ago, my mom, my husband, Finn, and I traipsed over to find out who we'll be welcoming into our family in July, and we are very pleased to report that it looks like little MISS Crossman-King will be arriving to complete our family.

We are totally thrilled to know that a daughter is headed our way, and Finn is going to be an awesome big brother. He's already saying "baby", and pointing to my belly and has just begun giving my belly kisses, which is just about the most adorable and hilarious thing ever, especially since he insists on kissing the absolute center of my belly button.

I'm feeling great and think that I've officially "popped" in the last few weeks, so it's nice to look down and see evidence of the awesomeness to come (not to mention the bumps and blips that are becoming stronger by the day).

Since we're in the unique situation of living on an island, we have a pretty good idea of how many students will be in her class, and it looks like there will be eight girls and two boys so far. What an interesting dynamic that will be after a class with four boys and two girls! I'm hoping they'll all be best friends, rather than engaging in the cattiness that can characterize girl relationships sometimes. Being in the school these past couple of months has really opened my eyes to those characteristics, something I can choose to worry about now or just revel in ruffle bum tights (I've decided on the latter).

We've got a couple of name ideas so far, but nothing official yet. I think we're going to wait to meet the little miss before making a decision. I'm just slightly worried that one of the other expectant moms may be thinking of a similar name, but I guess we'll just wait and see!

This is just going to be amazing/terrifying/overwhelming/life-changing and I cannot wait! Well, that's not true. I'll be very happy to wait until July. I've got a few things to do until then!  :)

1!

My goodness, what a glorious weekend.

It was the first time so far this season that we got to really spend time outside, starting with firing up the grill on Friday afternoon for some pizza with friends, continuing through the weekend to tons of yard work, an impromptu canoe ride (Finn's first!), and picnic outside on the deck. Glorious.

(unfortunately, the only apparatus I had with us is our video camera, so you'll have to take my word for it).

April has fooled us once again, though, with a rainy, cloudy, gray morning, but I'm still warm from the weekend. Come on, spring!

play...

Finn's been teaching me to do something I haven't done in a while - play. I realize now how very long it's been since I played as an adult, but with Finn - well, it's his job, so he takes it very seriously.

The honeymoon with our new house is over, so there are very few things I can look at without wanting to change them, but this little built-in bookshelf under the stairs has been a godsend (apart from the lead paint that was on it when we moved in!). It's the perfect place to stash all a portion of Finn's goods....in an more organized fashion some days than others.

This sweet little workbench was scored by my clever husband at the swap shop, a place at the dump where people leave items they no longer want, but may still be desirable to someone else. It's the perfect place for the tools he's acquiring as a result of his Dad being a contractor.

I just love the ways Finn's belongings seem to invade every corner of our world. It was something I was actively avoiding for some time, but gave into once we moved, and I must say, I was fighting a losing battle in the first place.

A rocking eggplant? Why not?

witching hour

Hello!

Sorry it's been so quiet around here lately - we're still here, but WOW, does a full-time job take ones blogging time away! 

I've been really enjoying subbing at the school again, and feel like I slipped back into it pretty easily. I think (hope) that the kids are learning, and I've almost got all their names down (K-12 - sheesh!). OI realized today that I'm about halfway through my subbing and the time has absolutely flown. There are certainly challenges and days where I feel like no matter what, I've failed (at being a teacher, a wife, a mom, an all-around human being), and some when I'd just like to give myself a pat on the back for getting it all done. Most days, it's all of the above...

But this whole "witching hour" thing.

WOAH.

I didn't notice it so much when I was home during the day and could get a lot of the dinner prep done while Finn was napping, but now that I pick him up from daycare, come home, walk the dog, and have a very limited amount of time to get dinner on the table, I've noticed it a whole lot more. First off, Finn is very adamant about not wanting to leave daycare, not wanting to put his jacket and shoes on, and not wanting to be picked up, instead choosing to walk out of the building and down the stairs by themselves. Then, he MOST CERTAINLY does not want to get in the car, and does that really fun back arching, screeching, freak out thing in his car seat. By the time we get home, he's calmed down and MOST CERTAINLY does not want to get out of the car. Regularly, we walk the dog when we get home, so I pop him in his stroller or let him walk until he starts tiring out. That usually works pretty well, but when we get home, there's this super tricky time. We've usually got about an hour before Daddy gets home, and that hour finds me by the window, mentally trying to convince every vehicle that drives by to be Chad so I can hand this little devil child over. The screeching, whining bundle that was once my sweet little boy is quite a handful and VERY tricky to keep entertained, especially when I'm trying to get dinner together. 

All is not completely lost, though - I know this is all a phase, and I've discovered that he's more likely to NOT freak out if he's participating in the dinner prep (AKA making a huge mess of foodstuffs while I get dinner together). I'm secretly hoping that he's getting interested in cooking because, as much as that would slow things down sometimes, it would be SO FUN. Just imagine - in a few years, he could have his very own little repetoire of meals he can make by himself. Which would, hypothetically, encourage his sibling to imitate him and they could cook together...Ah! So cute and fun.

But in the meantime, here are some fun photos of our last few weeks. Finn turned 20 weeks yesterday, and we reach the 20 week mark (halfway!) of this pregnancy tomorrow. I guess 20 is the magic number this week. Only 10 more days until we find out the sex of the baby!!!

a mischievous grin - methinks someone knows his foot does not belong on the table...

staring contest with daddy

(lest you think my son is always cute and photogenic :)

first sledding adventure!