bowling

 

on a lighter note from the last post, we went bowling! here's the thing about being three: yeah, it's rough behavior-wise, but he's finally old enough to fully participate in so many things and he's actually pretty fun and funny as an individual.

this was his second time bowling but really his first ever sending a ball down the lane. he was in heaven! it was a spur-of-the-moment adventure and being close to bedtime, we only got one game in. he could have bowled for hours, though. 

 

 his bowling technique was to take a running start, pause for a full stop at the lane, and roll the bowl from over his hip down to the pins. this resulted in sloooow motion excitement over which pins might get knocked down (thank goodness for bumpers). but each time a few went down he jumped for joy and danced to the loud music.

he was really good about understanding turns and letting us bowl on our own. he was careful and helpful when the balls came back and cheered us on when we knocked pins down. i caught him rubbing his hands over the air dryer before picking his ball up to bowl. he loved his little toddler bowling shoes (um, yeah, cutest ever) and was thrilled to see the black lights in action. we haven't done a lot of family outings like this and it's exciting to think about his age lending to a new interest in participating and enjoying adventures.

also, bowling + pregnant is funny. and with the number of tweens and teens there, i'm betting my gait and general appearance while bowling provided a bit of a reminder on the realities of pregnancy. it didn't help that i wore a white shirt. it seems black lights paired with a giant white bump protruding from my midsection is really hard to ignore.

terrible threes

this face, terrible? i know it seems impossible but three is so far less rewarding than the years prior. with age comes the desire for independence and autonomy, but much to his dismay, i seem to squash his every free whim.

two was hard, yes. one was also hard. it's all hard. but my patience for three is really thin. his outbursts and disappointments with daily life begin at waking and last until into bedtime. some days he'd prefer to not take his soaked nighttime diaper off in the morning. the battle of wills over this is worth me fighting because his PJs are likely wet and he's day time potty trained, so no more diapers. his insane screams at 7:15am and kicking legs falling over the edge of the changing station? so not the way i want to start my day. does he want puffins and milk? yes. NO! but yes, too. can he watch the same episode of fireman sam three times in a row? when i say no and suggest an alternative it's a meltdown of epic proportion, similar to if he were being burned over coals. this goes on through the day. eating, getting dressed, using the potty. anything he doesn't want to do, he bolts and hides or cries when "forced". the things he wants? "please? but i want to! please! please mommy!" i'm saying no because i mean no, so yeah, NO. it's impossible to decide what's worth fighting, what isn't a big deal, when to ignore, and when to engage.

we've been trying to see if timeouts work better than removing items or activities or vice versa. when we do our 123 magic system, we get to 3 and head for time out. he goes limp, starts sobbing/screaming, and pleads "but i want to be good!". (yeah, i wanted that, too. remember when i warned you at 1 and 2?) when he treats his things poorly we take them away, putting them up for later when he can try again to treat them nicely. when we're out and time outs don't work (he doesn't sit still in a one place, our timeouts at home result in time spent in his room with the door closed but with access to his things), we take activites he enjoys away from him. i hate this. "bad" behavior/poor decision making on his part leads to no afternoon movie or no story time before heading to bed. it feels awful to take these things and i don't even know if it works.

i find myself being very short with him and unable to figure out how to cut him some three year old slack. when he isn't being a terror, he is super cute and lovely. but even then, he is inquisitive and demanding of my time. i am 27 weeks pregnant. i just don't have it in me to answer every why? and what?, color or play exactly this way or that, and watch over every minute detail of his day. that whole "cherish this time, it will pass so quickly" is true but it's impossible to do all day, every day. i'm trying to find it in me. to remind myself that he wants me now, even though he might not need me in the way he did when he was younger, and that's important. i just wish we could both enjoy him being three a little bit more.

i talked to my girlfriends today about wanting to miss finn. being at home with him almost 100% of the time means i have no chance to really feel a longing for him. i experience his hourly tantrums and i don't get time off. of course, i am lucky to see him all of the time and to help shape his life (by his current account, "crushing his dreams"). but that "distance makes the heart grow fonder" stuff has an appeal. and i'm not talking about a trip to target for errands. that helps, but an hour of picking up toilet paper rolls, kid toothpaste, and other random household goods does not make me miss finn much. i don't know what works, but i feel like i need some away time to remember how wonderful he is and maybe forget just a tiny bit of all of the current drama he exudes. people don't call and tell you what a terror your kid is while you are away. they point out the cute things and gloss over everything else and then you remember all of those good things, want to experience them first-hand again, and await the reunion with excitement. with another baby on the way, i don't see this away time happening all that soon, but a mom can dream, right? in the mean time, i'll stick to figuring out what i can do to ease the pressures of being three (for me and for finn).

finn's 3rd birthday

we celebrated finley's third birthday a few weekends ago and his party was so much fun. because he's three and his preferences change on a whim, i didn't ask him what he might want for a theme. i picked construction because i knew he'd like it and it was easy!

we decorated the night before while he was asleep and when he woke up he toured the house and said "i'm so impressed by this place!". sometimes i think i'm just doing this stuff for me, but he loved it.

 

i designed the invites trying to bridge the gap between "all boy" and my own style. all of the printables had the same theme (favor tags, flag banners, cake toppers, food labels) and the color scheme of yellow and orange was easy to carry throughout the party.  i bought large disposable roasting pans and filled them with sand and construction trucks for a little indoor digging station and provided each child with a construction hat. we didn't have any games or activities outside of "play in the dirt" and "take out all of finn's toys", but toddlers and preschoolers don't need more than that to have a good time!

 

the food was simple - basically what a construction worker might bring in their old fashioned metal lunch pail (they still do that, right?!). we had sandwich triangles, carrots sticks/dips, orange wedges, bunny cracker mix, cheese balls and pirate booty. water and lemonade (plus beer, because what 11 am kids party doesn't require cold brews?) were the drink choices and i was happy when my mom already had the sport drink dispenser to balance out the glass pitcher. at the dessert table, the main event was chocolate cake but it might have been out shined by the dirt cups. this was a must for me (and maaaybe why i picked the theme in the first place). i LOVE dirt "cake" so much and i haven't met very many people who disagree. we also had a selection of orange and yellow candies.

the kids had a great time playing and helped finn during present opening by bringing gifts to him. it was chaotic and hilarious and really sweet. we sang him happy birthday as we watched him blow out three candles and i didn't even cry! 

he still asks about his party and is ready for the next one. he's planned it for next week (every week, it's always next week). too bad birthdays only come once a year :)

end of 2nd tri

i'm almost finished with my second trimester already! today i am 27 weeks pregnant and just finished up my glucose test. miraculously, i did not make a scene (faint, vomit, cry...) so i feel like i might be getting better at the whole blood draw experience. it's kind of blowing my mind that i could be this far along with the my second pregnancy. being that we are on the house hunt and currently live in a condo with NO extra space for a baby, we have done nothing (and i mean nothing) to prepare for this new baby. i haven't sorted through clothes, haven't thought about getting the infant seat ready to go, haven't prepped in any way. in fact, finn is still sleeping in the crib and i don't even know where the pack n play is, so this baby will have to find a comfy drawer or something.

we are hoping to get finn out of the crib and onto a floor mattress to transition him (he's slept this way on trips and will be fine in his big boy bed, as well) but we have no storage for the crib so we can't take it apart or move it elsewhere! last time i was planning a nursery, organizing baby goodies, buying my stroller...this time? ugh. when i think about it all i start to panic and sweat, so i'm pretending that i'm hardly pregnant and have plenty of time.

finley is three!

 

my sweet boy turned three. it's hard to believe, as it has every year, that he could be another year older. but there is no mistaking that he is a little boy now. not a baby, not a toddler, but a full on kid. he hilarious and adorable, with so much personality.

 

he is so verbal now and i often have no idea where he comes up with the things he says. when he woke up for his birthday party last weekend he looked around at the decorations and said "i'm so impressed by this place!" i see no signs of speech delay in him anymore and it's hard to imagine that he had any difficulty at all.

 

for personal memory's sake, he loves to eat yogurt, applesauce, and pretzels. he will try most foods and he eats what we eat for all meals. he has oatmeal just about every morning for breakfast and gets sad if i offer him homemade waffles or pancakes. he can't stand certain textures (mainly vegetables) and gags on foods like cream of wheat, mashed/baked/boiled potatoes, roasted root veggies. he's kind of picky but i'm guessing it's more about control over actual preferences.

his favorite toys are matchbox cars, construction trucks, and trains. he loves to read books, puts together puzzles (35-60 piece ones for 4 yr olds), and enjoys coloring with crayons or markers. he spends his days jumping around with unlimited energy, playing with every toy he might see, and watching cartoons (caillou remains a favorite) and movies (he loves the little rascals, the lorax, and despicable me).

he takes an afternoon nap between 1:30pm and 5pm and goes to bed at 8:30pm, which he has for most of his life. we just got him a light up alarm clock that turns green when it's time to get up. i set that for 7:15 and i think he'll adjust to it and helps us all get on a schedule (just before the baby comes to change everything!). he is day time potty trained and is no longer in diapers except at nap and night time. 

he is kind and thoughtful and very aware of other peoples' feelings. he is frequently naughty and terrible twos seem to be leading right into troublesome threes. this whole parenting thing is hard because you never quite catch up. as soon as i figure out how to help him be nice and make good decisions, to try and understand why he gets upset or to play with him just how he likes...he goes and changes and i'm left to figure out what to do next. but that's what we sign up for and why it's so exciting. even though i'd like to stop time and savor him as he is now (as i have all of his life), i look forward to seeing how he grows this year. it's a big year for my baby, who will become a big brother and play a whole new role in our family. with tears in my eyes, i'm looking forward to three.

24 weeks

compare to 24 weeks of first pregnancy. i think my belly is smaller this time!

this picture is actually 24 weeks 4 days because i didn't get around to taking one on sunday when i usually do. it was an eventful day, though, as i managed to fall on the snowy sand dunes of our beach. i slid and caught myself, but i did land on my belly and felt some cramping and tightening just after. to be safe, i called the dr. and they wanted me to be monitored. i spent 6 hours (typical for a fall on your stomach at this point in pregnancy) with the monitors watching his heartbeat and my (very small, infrequent) contractions. in the end everything was/is fine and baby is still healthy.

i have been battling an awful cold for the past 2.5 weeks and haven't managed to work out or eat well, so i softened up and for sure gained a few pounds. most of it, as i can tell, has been in my thighs :( i'm hoping feeling better and spring weather (when it comes) will help me to stay motivated in the later months.

 

how far along? 24 weeks

total weight gain: 22 lbs :(
maternity clothes? yes, mainly for comfort
sleep: pretty good aside from the sciatic pain and pelvic pain
best moment this week: finn's 3rd birthday party with family and friends (unrelated to pregnancy)
movement: yes. he moved the most/biggest just after the fall while i was monitored and it was crazy!
gender: boy
labor signs: none
belly button in or out? stretched
food cravings: lemon! i made homemade lemon curd for a variety of desserts and breakfasts
what i miss: feeling healthy, pelvic bones that are not breaking apart
what i am looking forward to: we're still actively house hunting with fingers crossed!
milestones:i made it to 24 weeks, viability, so that feels (obviously) good. my next appointment is for my glucose test, which feels surreal like it's impossible that i could be that far along already.

a good reading spot?

i found finn in a new reading spot the other day and couldn't resist snapping a few photos. after our trip to the library for new books, he unloaded them one by one behind the couch and paged through each one. he didn't ask me to read to him, he didn't call out for me to come see.

these little moments are my favorite :)