Month: August 2017

Finn Turned 2!

Before August ends, I figured I better get some memories of Finn’s second birthday up on this here blog!

Finn has been TWO years old for 17 days, and I still can’t get over it. In fact, as I sat down to write this post, I made the mistake of looking up last year’s birthday post. And, well, there went 20 minutes down the sobbing, my-son-is-growing-up-way-too-quickly rabbit hole.

Let’s just take a second to remember one year old Finn, shall we?

And two year old Finn? Well, we still love him.

Like last year, we decided to forgo a birthday party. Instead, we opted for a lot of quality family time and a weekend full of Finn’s favorite things: pizza, Mimi & Pops, swimming, lots of park time, waffles, trains… you get the idea. Though I had a little guilt about not throwing him some hopping shindig, I know that he doesn’t really care about a party at his age, and the family time we enjoy on his birthday is much more special when no one is stressing about decorating or hosting or any of the other stuff that comes with having a party.

Finn woke up to his favorite breakfast: waffles! And, of course, he got sprinkles on his waffles. Because BIRTHDAY!

After breakfast, we decided to take him to a new playroom in the city.

He took a particular interest in the train table, which made me SO excited to give him his later on in the day.

Like last time, we decided to do gifts after nap time. We did this for a few reasons: 1. We knew that, once he saw his toys, he’d want to stay in for the whole day and play, and we wanted to get out in the morning. 2. It gave us a chance to set things up during nap. 3. Sona actually had to work, as Finn’s bday fell on a Thursday this year, and we couldn’t possibly open presents without both mommies around.

When Finn woke up from his nap, he came downstairs to this scene!

He made out like a bandit, even though we tried not to over-do it. He got a balance bike, a ton of Cars color changes (which he LOVES), some John Deere stuff (since he thinks he’s a country boy), and a new train table, which Momma made for him! (He also got some gift cards and shopping money from friends and family. Again, SPOILED!)

I’ve had lots of questions about his train table already. So, later this week, I’m going to do a quick post explaining how I made it.

Needless to say, he was pretty excited.

 

Of course, he went for the balloons first.

He played with his new goodies for a bit, and then we had homemade pizza. Even though I’d had surgery just two days prior and wasn’t 100%, I was set on making him a homemade meal that I know he loved.

But the pièce de résistance was the cake, which had his favorite thing in the whole world on it: a tractor!

A John Deere tractor cake? SO not my thing. But it’s Finn’s birthday, and it was a total hit.

Later on in the weekend, we continued the celebration at a nearby water park. Finn has been swimming-obsessed since we got back from vacation, and we knew it’d be a great way for the family to make some memories and for Finn to do what he loves best.

(In all realness: we actually spent all morning Saturday, getting hyped up and prepping for a Lake Michigan beach day. We packed lunches, loaded up on beach toys, walked the 15 minute walk there, only to find that the waves were outrageous and the beach was closed for swimming. By that time, it was really too late to re-group, as Finn’s nap time was approaching. Momma had a little (or a big) cry about it, but we made up for it by doing the water park on Sunday.)

I really can’t believe that Finn is already two years old. How many times can a parent say “time goes so quickly!” But, you guys, IT DOES.

Our little 2 year old is a riot. He’s smart and sweet and ridiculously energetic. He can say his ABCs and sings a million different songs. He knows his colors (but always confuses yellow, for some reason). He still sleeps like a champ, mostly. His appetite ebbs and flows; he frequently boycotts dinner. When he does eat, Mexican, Italian, and Indian foods are his favorite. He talks A LOT. His favorite place in the whole world is our bed. His iPad obsession is still alive and kicking. He is very kind to other kids and has the biggest heart. And he NEVER stops moving.

I love him to pieces, y’all, and I’m excited to have had him around for two years of our lives.

Trip Report :: Grand Cayman

We just got back from a week-long vacay on Grand Cayman–the three of us and my dad. It’s not a secret that Sona and I are huge Caribbean fans. It’s our happy place. I’m actually pushing Sona to move there in the next couple of years, but that’s another story.

Grand Cayman was my and Sona’s 9th Caribbean island and Finn’s 3rd. We’ve been putting it off for a few years because, to be honest, it’s not really our usual Carib spot. It’s significantly more developed and more commercialized than the islands we usually gravitate towards, but that also makes it an easier–and somewhat safer–bet with a toddler. So, we pulled the trigger.

We stayed in a condo right on Seven Mile Beach, which is right in the center of the action. It had a HUGE balcony, which was really the selling feature. We all loved hanging out on the balcony, having breakfast or dinner, watching the sunset, and enjoying the spectacular view. Finn especially loved it out there. He would lay on the lounge chairs in the evening and shout, “the moon is on!”

This vacay was also a little different for us because we spent a lot of time just enjoying the pool and the beach on our property. When Sona and I travel alone, we do a lot of exploring, looking for secret beaches, driving all around islands in search of seafood shacks or great views. With Finn, though, sometimes easier is better. And even though we did do a little exploring with him, we also dialed that back a bit, opting instead for low-key days filled with lots of sand castles, swimming, and naps. Both Sona and I remarked that, though our week-long beach trips usually fly by, last week actually felt full and slow–in the best kind of way. I think we owe that to Finn, as he forced us to slow things down, and that also allowed for more quality family time and more relaxation, both things we really, really needed.

Our typical day in GC went something like this: wake up, have a lazy breakfast on the balcony, go down to the beach, play in the sand and swim for a few hours, grab some lunch, take a long afternoon nap (which we all did every single day), get up, go back to the beach or the pool, swim until sunset, eat a late dinner, and hit the sack–exhausted but happy.

We did squeeze in a little adventure amidst all that beach lazing, though. We did a half-day boat tour, which included a trip to Stingray City and a snorkeling stop. It was the thing I was most nervous about, as we’d be stuck on a boat for several hours, and if Finn got cranky or tired or freaked out, there wouldn’t be much we could do about it. However, he really surprised us–as he did several times on this trip–and he did so well! He danced to the music on board, he swam with sting rays, he played all over the boat, and he held up like a champ, despite having been up since 4AM that morning with teething pain.

I also have to give Finn a huge shout-out for how well he did in the water! This kid went from never having worn floaties before we got to Grand Cayman to refusing to let us even touch him when he was in the pool or the ocean. He started full-on swimming by himself, and he would go and go and go–just like the little Energizer Bunny that he is. I couldn’t have been more proud of how brave he was.

Our nighttime swims were one of my favorite parts of the trip. We always had the pool to ourselves, and Finn would jump and run and splash until far past his usual bedtime. “More swim,” he would say. And then, when he got tired, he’d climb up the stairs, turn and look at us over his shoulder, and pronounce “all done.”

 

 

 

All in all, it was another great vacation, and Sona and I both left feeling so much more confident in our ability to globe-trot with our little tyke. From the long travel days to the extended periods in the hot sun, Finn weathered everything like a pro traveler, and so many of our anxieties were eased. He did 100x better than we expected–and on every front. Since we’ve been home, Sona swears that Finn has matured. “He changed on this trip,” she’s said a couple of times. And I think maybe he did a little bit. But really, I think that the uninterrupted quality time as a family–and the sand! and the sea!–did us all a world of good and it has given us, at least for a short while, a fresh perspective on this whole raising-a-toddler thing.

(Also, I finally got a fat-kini, and I ain’t ever going back to one piece swimwear again.)

Our Grand Cayman Faves and Recommendations:

  • our condo, #30 at South Bay Beach Club
  • eat the lionfish sandwich and the homemade ice cream sandwiches at Macabuca
  • spend a day or two at Smith’s Cove–take a snorkel and mask!
  • get gelato at Gelato & Co.
  • spend an evening exploring Camana Bay, eating at Brooklyn
  • shop at Kirk’s market, stocking up on imported chocolate
  • do the Breakfast with Rays excursion with Red Sail
  • snorkel the man-made reef in front of the Marriott
  • have a romantic dinner at Grand Old House, request to sit right on the water
  • get the pina coladas and fish tacos at Veranda beach bar–both the best I’ve ever had!
  • eat some Asian/Caribbean chow at Hemingway’s