my growing easter bunny

i can't believe this was finley's third easter. his first easter, (2006 in lexington, ky) he was two months old. he was so enormously fat his first easter, we could barely close his easter outfit around his huge legs and bottom.
last year, (2007 in lansing, mi) he was 14 months old and he looked so cute in his seersucker pants and vest. however, he was pretty cranky and did not care much for his easter basket.
this year, (2008 in omaha, ne) he is 26 months old and his legs are finally lean and lengthened. his is still a little guy though, and he is wearing the 12-month size vest from the year before! ;) this easter was fun, because he listened when we read him the Easter story from his children's Bible, he understood and enjoyed the easter egg hunt, and thankfully, still hasn't discovered candy.
he's still our sweet snuggle bunny and we are so blessed to have him!!

wasting time on you tube

i love stuff like this. if i had more time on my hands i would probably do ridiculous stuff like this. unfortunately i don't have that much time to waste, and anything i could think of is already on youtube somewhere.





cute kid video! i love it!



i love anything having to do with japanese competition!

portraits of a two-year old

finley turned two at the end of january and i have been meaning to get him to the studio for his two-year old portraits. i finally made him an appointment and we went today, just in time for easter.

so this morning i ironed his dress clothes, trimmed his bowl cut and got him well-rested and fed before heading to the portrait studio. he was so quiet and well behaved when we first arrived. once the photographer starting taking his pictures he started getting really rascally. if he was supposed to stand, he sat. if he was supposed to be sitting, he ran behind the backdrop. he also never stopped talking so i wasn't sure if we were going to get a smile out of him.

then we moved from one area in the studio to another area to use the white backdrop. when we got there, we had to wait in line because some babies were being photographed in there and it was taking forever. finley sat patiently with me for a few minutes and then started to fidget. i thought to myself that all his good behavior was being spent as we sat waiting and there would be none left when it came time for more photos.


i was right. he then noticed all the props in the studio. tons of stuffed animals, balls, blocks, rocking chairs and toys. he started yelling and demanding toys and balls and other assorted things. at one point he broke free of my hold and ran and grabbed a toy out of someone else's diaper bag! the little girl who belonged to the bag yanked it from his grip and said "that's not yours!" he immediately burst into tears. not the i'm-not-getting-my-way tears, but man-my-feelings-are-hurt tears. he then threw himself into my lap completely sobbing his eyes out, complete with tears and snot and slobber. i tried to wipe his face, recomb his hair, and attempt to get the carpet lint off his clothes but he wanted none of it.


so by the time it was his turn again, his hair, face and clothes were a mess and he insisted on holding animals and balls or else, tantrum!

then when we sat and looked through the proofs with the photographer to order prints things went even more downhill. i was holding him on my lap so he wouldn't run amok or interfere with someone else's portraits. he was arching his back, kicking, hitting, spitting, and doing a constant angry bat screech. i was so stressed and embarrassed that i was sweating and unable to concentrate! i ended up buying way more prints than i went in there for all because i couldn't focus. thankfully i got some cute ones and he doesn't look like a pure brat. thankfully she didn't snap shots while he was open mouth crying or lying face down on the floor.

to see the whole set, click here.

catch-up week.....

becoming a mother has taught me that i can miraculously take full care of another living breathing human being - he has survived, in tact, for over two years now! unfortunately taking care of myself has gone out the window. i mean, a girl can only do so much! so for some reason this week, i was zapped with the motivation to get all my ducks in a row. maybe it is because for once in several years now, i feel settled and "at home". maybe it is because i just turned 32 and i am nervous about aging gracefully, or disgracefully. or maybe it is because i am a stay-at-home mom who wears what my husband calls "house pants" and a tangled ponytail everyday, and while my 2-year old could care less, i was starting to feel like a schlumpadinka.

whatever it was, this was my catch-up week.
monday i went to the dentist for the first time in years. all my panicked nightmares of waking up with shattered teeth falling to a pile of dust on my pillow were unnecessary. by some act of God i still have no cavities! yeah, me! but i am a grinder and though i wear an enormous (can't-close-my-mouth-around-it) night guard, i have still shaved down my enamel and "shortened" my teeth. gross.
tuesday i got my haircut for the first time in at least a year and a half. i already gave up on coloring it a few years ago in nepal, hence the ever increasing silver strands. but apparently i gave up on cutting it too, and it has grown to the longest it has ever been in my life. and it is chock full of split ends and frizzy overgrown layers. i always kept it in a ponytail to try to disguise the mangy hay bail on top of my head. i finally got bangs cut although i have written and signed notes to myself from 2001 and 1992 (10th grade) warning myself to NEVER cut bangs again with many reasons listed why my forehead was not compatible with bangs. but i disobeyed myself and did it anyway. i am such a rebel. so far so good, except when i wake up in the morning i look like richie sambora. nothing a little water can't tame.
wednesday i had a check-up at the doctor. clean bill of health. no lumps, bumps or stumps. just headaches still. they are trying to help me find the source of my headaches, but it seems it is something they can't medicate. it is either hormonal (Lord help us all) or one of the side effects of teeth grinding. oops!
thursday i went for a walk outside. wow, big breakthrough, right? well, after the winter we've had, i have never had such cabin fever. plus, i am not much of an exerciser, though i always am a wanna-be. i always say, "i used to be an athlete" but that may not be evident in my life anymore. i am such a weakling! chasing around a 2-year old boy keeps me from being stationary, but actually getting outside, breathing fresh air, feeling the sunshine on my face and walking around the neighborhood really energized me. i took finley out too (poor boy hasn't played outside much). i pushed him on his tricycle in his enormously ill-proportioned helmet. i laugh to myself the whole time because he looks exactly like elmo when he rides his trike around sesame street. except peach and smooth.
friday i dusted off this poor old blog and i am writing something on it! but, of course, not until after i watched the price is right's primetime million dollar spectacular. ain't nothin gonna interrupt my pricing games!

so i am doing all this stuff this week with the intention of staying on top of it all from now on. who knows though. i may end up having another catch-up week in a few years. if you see me after while and my teeth are chipped and rotting out, my health and fitness are failing miserably, and my hair is looking anything like michelle duggar's, let me know it's time.