Week 7 & 8

As many of you know from the text that both Wes and I sent out, Finley is grinning SO BIG now!!  I'm sure several of you have seen the pic below but just in case you missed it....  This was a picture of her in Wes' lap while we both were singing some of her favorite songs to her.  She really likes "6 Little Ducks" Gram!!

She has discovered her hands this week and we have attempted to capture that in a picture but she always focuses on us and the camera so we haven't been able to catch her in the act.  She stares at her fist, until cross eyed in concentration, and then tries to direct it to bat at her mobile.  She is also obsessed with ceiling fans like her big cousin Ella was at this age.  I have been bringing her in the kitchen in her bassinet and literally turning the fan off and on as I cook and it has kept her thoroughly entertained!!  She enjoys cooking time because she can keep an eye on us but HATES the sound of foil being pulled off of the roll!!?  I scared the mess out of her with that!  It is so cute looking at her as she discovers various things week to week!!

Bath time is becoming less and less of a dreaded event for Finley.  It seems she is actually starting to really like it or maybe it is just that she can hold her head up better and her parents might be getting the hang of it as well. ;)  Some pictures below might not demonstrate our expert skills but at least we have a method down now where she doesn't scream at us!! :)

Little naked bum face down in her frog pose!!

Head propped up on a kitchen towel!

 

Last weekend Uncle JJ and Russlyn had people over for a cookout.  Chad Tims and Justin said that they "had her under control" offering to watch her so that we could go sit out & relax on the back deck.  Uncle JJ thinks he's a pro after his bottle feeding from the previous cookout! ;)  Anyway, we finally got her to sleep and I told Justin that she would just lay in her bouncy seat and shouldn't be any trouble if they were in fact going to stay inside with her.  I also mentioned to him not to get her out of the seat!  Well.... that lasted about 3 minutes.  They couldn't see me but as I looked on from the deck, I saw JJ sneak towards the bouncy seat and pull Finley out and hand her to Chad.  They were just itching to get her out.  They were literally like two kids in a candy store left alone and told not to eat a bite of candy!!  Of course I thought it was pretty funny and kind of cute so I didn't intervene until she really started fussing and I knew that it was time for her to eat.  I was able to snag a picture of their guilt with my poor quality camera phone.

Chad looks like he may need one of these!!

On a business note, Phyllis and Wes now have Learning Link open and we have all been very busy with the biz!!  Aunt Sarah, with the help of Grace and Ella of course, :) helped us by keeping Finley two mornings this week so we could get started with our first student at the learning center.  I think Finley slept the majority of the time both days but it was a huge help to us!  Thanks Aunt Sarah!!  We have all (including Finley, see pic below) been working hard to get some marketing ideas pulled together, the website updated (with Greg's expertise of course!!) and preparing for the booth that we had set up at the mall this weekend.  We had several people stop by our booth, with free helium filled balloons helping lure them in, I believe we had a pretty successful first public introduction!!  Finley stayed with Gary and Grandma Phyllis while Wes and I were at the mall and of course she was an angel. ;)  I keep telling people that she does cry and get upset but she has yet to show that side to many others.

 Finley's make shift pallet in the background!

IN THE NEWS:

•  Record high temperatures for numerous days now!!  I believe it got up to 109 a few days this week.  Hasn't exactly been the awesome summer that I had imagined when thinking about being out on maternity leave "all summer"!!  We can hardly get out in it and have to cool the car off for several minutes before loading Finley up.
• US helicopter shot down in Afghanistan killing 38 troops, the worst single incident for the US in the 10 year war.  Even as I type this it is so crazy to me that we have been there for almost 10 years now!!  I remember 9/11 just like it was yesterday.  I remember Justin calling me that morning as I was getting ready for class to tell me he loved me as we both discussed the devastation and as I watched the news the 2nd plane hit.  All of it was live on the news at the time so you saw as people actually jumped out of the building from several stories up!!   
• Just so I don't end on a sad note with what is supposed to be a fun blog...thinking back to that date reminds me that Wes and I started dating November of that same year.  It is so hard to believe that we have been together for almost 10 years!!  A decade!! A third of my life!!  And now we have this wonderful little bundle of joy that both of us stare at in amazement each day.  Hard to imagine that you could ever love something/someone so much!!  I mean both Finley and Wes. ;)

Well, we will keep you all posted on any new happenings around the Wiggins residence!!