Finn is uber service oriented. Charity = Love. We know our son loves us because he…

• gives us hugs every day
• smiles at us when we need it most
• pulls our face next to his to give us kisses
• sweeps, without being asked
• will drop whatever he’s doing to spend time with us
• takes over the vacuuming so we don’t have to do it
• unloads the clean dishes from the dishwasher
• always lends a hand when doing the laundry
• turns on the music so we can dance together
• takes time out of his day to feed Plato by hand
• always willing to help with any computer projects
• organizes the pots and pans in the cabinets
• waves at neighbors who drive by so that others know we’re a nice family.
• willing to share his food with us when we least expect it
• makes us feel a part of the nightly bath, so we don’t feel left out.
• points out items we may have forgotten, but totally needed, to add to the grocery list
• consistently takes our temperature to make sure we’re not sick
• determined to keep the house clean and organized by offering to go outside to play
• takes naps to keep himself energetic and happy when he’s awake
• is not intimidated to initiate prayers, to remind us that we can not do anything alone.
• makes us feel like geniuses, because he says yes to all of our ideas
• offers to get the mail even when it’s raining
• not afraid to tell us when we have a fly away or need to brush our hair
• doesn’t mind getting dirty if he knows he’s contributing to a bigger cause
• makes us feel like we’re the most important people in the world
• helps us be more efficient with our time, by telling us when the traffic lights turn green
• loves to show us what he’s working on so we don’t miss out on any part of his life
• organizes our dvds
• withholds judgment because he puts himself in other people’s shoes
• does last minute checks on the diaper bag to make sure we’re not missing anything
• (our favorite) knows our names, mom & dad.

So many more reasons which can’t be listed right this second for sake of time, but wanted to jot these down so we remember it’s the little things that count. We are so in love with our son. We love that he loves us so much too.

16 months & 3 weeks old

T2MHF4:

1. Young Women in the ward willing to do my dirty yard work for a small fee.
2. Ikea and the wonderful products, which help to keep things organized, out of reach & sturdy enough for a toddler.
3. Water because it’s not carbonated.
4. Permanent markers which are not permanent. LOL
5. Drawer latches! (1st one installed today) to keep from getting at the “non permanent” permanent markers.

14 months! Finn has been saying, “that” and pointing to everything he sees since about the 1st of March (just took me a while to jot it down). The cutest thing ever! If we scoop him up he’ll then proceed to say, “that, that, that” and point to everything we pass. Pictures, books, toys, toilet paper, necklaces, cell phones, computers, that, that, that! So, we’ve been telling him what “that” is, so he knows what it’s called instead of just saying, “that” when he gets older. Maybe it will work.

He woke up one morning and was just happy as can be. On my way up to see him all of the sudden he started getting really upset an angry and grunting a lot. So as soon as I walked in, he looked like he was trying to climb out and then pointed to the handle of the Fly Swatter (BTW never been used) on the top shelf of his closet by the wall, (really hard to find), and kept saying, “that, that, that!” Being the good parent that I am, I of course asked him, “you want the fly swatter?” He says, “yeah” and starts stomping in his bed. LOL Finally gave it to him and he seriously had it in his hand for about 2 hours, til his nap and then when he woke up and then just before dinner for another hour. Had I known he was such a huge fan of the fly swatter I would have just got him those for Christmas.

He can say: Dad, uh-oh, nite nite, Nana, Maaam, roar (immediately roars when you say the word lion or show him a pic of a lion), oooohh (when he sees something fluffy or cuddly), yeah (when he answers questions), That, arms up (puts his arms up when talking off shirt on command), vroom vroom (while playing cars), and others I’m sure I’m forgetting to write.

He understands when we say: prayer (folds his arms), no, yes, close, open, Plato, wave, clap, dog, drink, sleepies, milkies, lunch, dinner, breakfast, poopies, diaper, lion, sit, stand, bath, bedtime, chew, itsy-bitsy (sometimes puts his little fingers together to try and do it), talk, cell phone, remote, toys, ball, switch (when we have to have him switch toys from one hand to the other) bib, arms up, Jesus (can point to Him in a picture), hi, nose, eyes, point, shoes, pants, socks, shirt, left, right, and a whole lot more.

He can read and understand (but not say just yet): no (shakes his head), arms up (puts arms up), hi, wave (waves), eat, mouth, clap (claps), dog (says ooohhh), cat (says ooohhh) and more I’m forgetting right now.

Had the cutest temper tantrum I’ve ever seen for the first time on the 5th of March just 11 days before he turned 14 months. Was screaming, stomping his feet and clenching his fists, while turning red and then sat down and started crying. (took away a cell phone) So early, we’re so in for it! LOL I was dying of laughter, and of course he did it in front of my Mother-in-law. Embarrassing! Luckily she thought it was funny too. But he has been doing mini ones ever since when he doesn’t get his way or his toy or our toys. So, we’re working on it. But it’s so hard not to laugh, while asking him to explain what he needs or wants and to say, “please.” LOL

Conversations: He can have conversations with you now even better than before. Uses the letter sounds La, Le, De, Da, Re, Ra, and other cute sounds, but mostly loves the L sound. Yippy, I love the letter L too, for obvious reasons. ;)And ask him a yes or no question and he might answer, “yeah.” He’s too cute!

T2MHF4: Fun family times which allow us to grow closer together. We’re gonna be together forever, but wouldn’t it be even better if we had more good memories to replace the ones we’d prefer not to remember. Even if it’s just taking a trip to the grocery store or a ride in the car to get some fries. You can always count on Finn doing or saying something cute and conversations with Clark always start when you’re not rushing around. I cherish the few “down times” we get with each other. Maybe it’s cause Clark makes everything that would normally be boring, fun!

Favorite text-versation with Cory.

from July 3, 2009 (yes been meaning to blog this for a while now, LOL)

Linda: I hope you were able to get some rest yesterday.

Cory: Linda u should know by now, moms don’t rest, we wait for the next crisis & waiting is worrin & worryin is not restful. That’s what the next life is for…oh..wait. Nevermind, we don’t rest there either. I suppose that’s where the phrase “no rest 4 the wicked” comes from.

Linda: LOL you’re not wicked cause if you think you’re wicked then you just better rest now so you can make up for it. Wait… if wicked peeps are not resting and righteous peeps are not idle then who gets to rest? LOL

Cory: Yeah I hadn’t quite figured that one out yet, cuz I’m hoping to get in with those peeps. the ones that get rest.

Linda: LOL Yeah me too! Let me know if you figure something out.

(still haven’t figured anything out. LOL)

Here’s some fun personal texting stats.

Cell Log: Feb. 2 2009 through Jul. 3, 2009 (when I got my new phone, no not an iphone, just a regular nokia)

sent texts: 2830
pic texts: 261
received 1765
received pics: 54

Cell Log: From Jul. 3, 2009 through Mar. 11, 2010

sent texts: 3542
pic texts: 102
received 3568
received pics: 55

My texting has increased! I’ve gotten more texts than I’ve sent them. I think people are starting to like me. LOL I obviously sent a lot more pic texts when I first got my phone. 2 reasons; 1. Finn was born and can never get enough of showing him off. 2. My old phone couldn’t do it. It was my new toy.

I introduced Finn to sippy cups when he first started to eat solids and when he was crawling around. He loved them and of course got the hang of them really quick. We used the sippy cups with the totally flexible and chewy nipples. However, he started to get “nipple confusion” and as a result I was getting really sore. So after enduring that for a while, I decided to try and not use sippy cups for a while. That totally worked! No more soreness. LOL I tried to give him the “big kid” sippy cups which are not chewy but hard plastic and don’t have the easy grip handles, which he would just have to suck on and not chew, (Finn loves to chew!) and thus he didn’t like those plus he couldn’t hold them because they were too big a round.

Anyways…I just gave him the “big kid” sippy cup today again for lunch and voila! He knows how to drink from it. What?! This kid is uber smart!!! I didn’t even show him how to use it since we gave up a few months back. LOL Just handed it to him and he was drinking. If everything is this easy then well, bring it on! LOL no just kidding for real don’t! i.e. potty training.

BTW Cookie decorating at church for Play Group was so fun. Finn and I enjoy going to Play Group. It’s been 3 weeks now.

T2MHF4: A super smart son.

Today was so special! Finn not only folded his arms to get ready to pray for breakfast (which he has been doing for 1-2 weeks now), but he folded his arms even after the prayer. It was like he was telling me, I missed something, forgot to be thankful, forgot to ask for someone to be blessed or something. So, we prayed 5 times for breakfast. It was awesome! It’s humbling to see how he learns things, how his little spirit knows what is right. Persistence also pays off even if sometimes he’s leaning over his chair before a prayer, we now know he is still learning it. We sometimes can’t believe it, such cute little chubby hands and arms. I sometimes peek at Clark and him while praying to see if Finn still has his arms folded. Melts my heart! To see both of them with their arms folded. What a great example Clark sets for our son. Sometimes Finn does have his arms folded and sometimes he doesn’t. Which is okay, so long as we keep doing it ourselves. He really does teach us to be better people too. I can’t say for Clark but honestly, I don’t think I’ve ever prayed this much in a day before and it feels great to do it. Highly recommended for the future. T2MHF4: Eyes which let me see Finn fold his little arms in prayer along side his Dad. It just brings me so much closer to my sweet family.

My favorite thing today was getting to bed on time. It really makes a difference! T2MHF4: The peaceful and quite times when we get to ponder and reflect on our blessings.

“Uh, oh!” My new favorite thing that Finn has been saying. He just loves to say it and thinks it is very useful when something falls on the floor, gets taken by Plato or sometimes when he is going poopy. Lol. T2MHF4: My ears, so I can listen to my family’s wonderful voices, and fun sounds except for maybe Plato’s voice cause his bark is way too loud sometimes and wakes Finn up. Crazy that I used to think it was funny to make Plato bark.

Oh boy there is nothing better than when your body is all achy because you’ve just gotten the workout of your life. LOL Seriously I had the best workout at 5:20 am from the ASAP Boot Camp ladies, this morning. Note to self, don’t shovel snow 2 days before going to work out for the first time, you’ll look like huge weakling. It was also awesome to be able to experience it with my friends from the ward, who are so nice not to mention how clumsy I am and not laugh at me. It’s interesting waking up that early. 1 of my 2010 goals is to wake up at 6am but 5am is actually perfect for working out. T2MHF4: A “sound mind and [especially] body.” I really need to exercise more so I can keep up with my boys. Clark plays basketball to stay in great shape, so I need to workout too. Plus it makes me feel better about myself, even if it’s for just a few min. I was tiered all day, but didn’t regret the workout at all. (I am going to try and work out every M, W, F!)

Finn was playing by himself in the front room, while I was washing the dishes and I of course had to take a peek at him to make sure he was doing okay. He looked up at me from behind the mini-pool table and held up his toy to show me what he was playing with and smiled. It melted my heart! I smiled back and then went back to doing the dishes as my eyes got all watery. Then Clark, being the good BFF to Jonas that he is, was hanging out with him tonight, so he got home a little later than usual. We were whispering in bed and usually have the lights off when we’re whispering but tonight he said he wanted to leave the lights on because he hadn’t seen me all day and wanted to look at me as we whispered in bed. AWE!!!! So sweet, I love my husband! He always knows the right things to say. T2MHF4… These sweet and tender moments!

Today what made me happy was having the whole family together for Finn’s 1st Birthday celebration. Sure, it was chaotic and loud and Finn only wanted to be held by either Clark or myself cause of the amount of people in our house, but it was still awesome to have everyone together. Thenthe thing that made me sad was that I didn’t even take a picture of all of our family. Just a few pics. Seriously can I just install automatic cameras everywhere and the cameras just take random pics throughout the day and I can go through them to see if I like them at the end of each day. You know like the ones on roller coasters. LOL T2MHF4…cameras which allow me to capture the fun moments in life to remember them later, even if I forget to take pictures sometimes, I’m still glad I can when I do remember.