Finn Grows a Fin

Finn had his first swimming pool experience over the weekend. As a recap: We arrived at the pool, which is indoors, at a great Portland community center. I'm not a huge fan of indoor pools, but I AM a fan of not having to slather sunscreen all over a wriggly toddler. Finn was hesitant. We looked through the glass at the pool and I said, "You're going to love it!," to which he promptly replied "I DON'T love the pool." Once we got changed and went into the pool, he was sold. There is a beach entry, so we could walk in gradually. We spent most of our time swimming and floating together in the deeper water, but as Finn gained more confidence, he walked around in the shallow water and played with the water feature. We spent about two hours in the water, which was longer than I expected. He did start to get pretty cold, since I was the one swimming for both of us, so we had to get out and warm up once. Overall, he loved the water. It was family swim time, so there were beach balls, noodles and rafts in the water. Lots of fun. When we got home I asked Finn "Did you have fun at the pool today?" and he said "I saw a big fan." Yes, there was a big fan by the pool and, obviously, this little engineer decided that was the best part of the whole water extravaganza. Always keeping us on our toes. (As Finn and I were there by ourselves, there unfortunately aren't any pics of the two swimming beauties. But I did capture this one of Finn all wrapped up in his towl.)

Finn and the Flaming Lips

Finn's love for music is blossoming. On the rides home from school, I ask him what he did during the day, and the first thing he says is always "Dancing!" Last week, we were having dinner at a pizza place and a Bee Gees' song came on the radio. Finn very seriously announced, "I need to dance!" We might have a little Baryshnikov on our hands - ha! Finn is especially fond of the guitar right now. Fortunately, we have one in the house. With his makeshift pick (a Visa credit card), he belts out great hits like Old McDonald and the ABCs. His music is so incredible that he must clap and scream "Yaaaay!" No shame in knowing what you're good at. :) The interesting thing here is Finn's latest choice of music. Anything playing on the Ipod must include guitar and he has been insisting on The Flaming Lips song "She Don't Use Jelly." After several listens, I decided this is actually a funny song for kids (despite the gramatics, of course). Here's a taste:

I know a girl who thinks of ghosts
She'll make ya breakfast
She'll make ya toast
She don't use butter
She don't use cheese
She don't use jelly
Or any of these
She uses vaseline (x3).

I know a guy who goes to shows
When he's at home and he blows his nose
He don't use tissues or his sleeve
He don't use napkins or any of these
He uses magazines (x5).

Feeding the Ducks...and Ourselves

There's a beautiful park behind our local library, complete with waterfall, fountain and pond. Naturally, Finn gravitates there almost every weekend. We usually bring some of Tom's homemade bread with us to feed to the ducks. I'm guessing about 30% of it is actually tossed in the water; someone of the human variety usually devours the rest. :)

A Fun 4th for the 6 of Us

The closest thing we've got to family in the Pacific Northwest, Dave, Shelly and the infamous Baby Henry, came to visit for the 4th of July. Despite the lack of fireworks, the visit was nothing less than fabulous. Henry is a little Michelin Man and a joy to be around. Finn wanted to do everything Baby Henry did, including sitting in the Bumbo seat (he actually fits in that thing quite well!). He also exclaimed "That's Baby Henry's...(insert random baby item of your choice here)!" about a hundred times throughout the visit. Tears were shed when the Griffiths family pulled out of the driveway.