Enough balance to dance....what about the walking!!!

Finlay has developed the act of crawling down to a T and has become so good and so fast that why bother walking. Over the past few weeks he has been trying to work out his balance and has gradually been able to stand for longer periods of time, before he giggles and then looses all control. However we have caught him managing to stand and have enough balance to wiggle and twist to music, which seems to be more of an incentive than walking between mum and dad, or being dragged around with Heather's helpful hands. One of those times was when he was at music class. All the kids were sitting around the big drum and banging to the beat of the music. Finlay stood there took his hands of the drum and wiggled his hips and arms. He loves to dance and when he is standing holding our hands he will twist and bend his knees. He is up to seven steps now, and this is increasing everyday as his confidence increases. Recently we saw him perched at the edge of the little wooden chair, twisting his body to the music, when he suddenly slipped onto his feet and we saw the shock on his face as he managed to take a couple of steps to keep his balance.

First steps in books

Introducing Finlay to books has been a completely different experience to the one we had with Heather. Heather enjoyed books from an early age, I seem to remember that Heather could sit through quite a few books at one reading, she was always interested in pulling books off the shelf and either playing with them herself or bringing them to us to read. With Finlay it seems to have been a very different process..... even while I would read to Heather at night, Finlay would be on his own agenda, climbing on a chair and sitting there with a cheeky grin on his face as he pivoted on the edge, or he would be emptying drawers or playing with the door or bouncing on the mattress, not at all interested in listening to the story. To get him to sit through a short story it had to have a Peepo hole that we could play peek -a- boo or a little puppet that he could grab.
However in the last week there has been big changes, he is pulling all the board books off the shelf and turning the pages, exploring the textures and listening to the noises, he is talking and pointing and even listening to a whole book at bed time, just one though and then he wants to do it himself.
After these big steps on the book front, I know what I will be adding to Finlay's letter to Santa......
Great books about trucks, diggers noisy vehicles and animals....all to capture and keep this interest that he has found.

The Lantern Festival

The lantern workshop!!!

This weekend was the Lantern festival in Canmore. Over the past few weeks there have been workshops for locals to go and make really cool lanterns, however as our schedule is so busy, we had to have a little lantern workshop at home one afternoon. Heather loved making a pretty pink lantern from a jam jar, tissue paper, glitter and sticky jewels and became excited about walking with it in the dark.
The procession of light began down town with hundreds of people holding fantastic creations, and our little jam jar looked cute as it glowed too. The procession started with drumming as we set of to wandered in the trails in the woods around the river. There were a few entertainers with fire spinning, fire hula hoops, fire juggling, didgeridoos and fiddling and ended at Riverside park with bonfires and hot chocolate.
We were all wrapped up warm and laden with blankets in the stroller, Heather proudly walked half way round in the procession holding her lantern, until the little tea light faded and then she happily snuggled in the stroller beside Finlay, while I realised that I should have not only worn my thermals, but also my ski pants !!

This little light of mine.

Anyway we all got home and enjoyed some pop corn and a movie with the lanterns on the mantle piece.

Such a stroppy sook

It seems that our wee Finlay boy has reached the terrible two's at 16 months. First it started with wriggling and chasing at bum change, then it was a chase to get his coat on, then it was a struggle to get him in the car seat, and now it seems that it is a struggle with all of these things as well as getting him in the high chair !!!! ( and he isn't walking yet ). At first I thought that he may be just acting up to me as James seemed to manage the bum and the coat, however that idea was soon dissolved when meal time came!!!!

A story of popping shirt button comes to mind !!!....and it's not my side of the family...!!!!...well actually it could be !!!!!

At times I find myself wondering if that extra errand I want to squash into the afternoon is really worth it. Anyway it does seem that a quick visit to the park diverts that energy and all is forgotten when he is given the opportunity to climb and go down the slide head first.
At the same time he is the sookiest wee boy full of smiles and giggles, loves kisses and hugs