This kid goes to eleven

Finn: My craziness levels all go to eleven. Look, right across the board, eleven, eleven, eleven and...
Me: Oh, I see. And most kids go up to ten?
Finn: Exactly.
Me: Does that mean you're crazier? Are you any louder?
Finn: Well, I'm one louder, aren't I? It's not ten. You see, most blokes, you know, will be playing at ten. You're on ten then, all the way up, all the way up, all the way up, you're on ten on your craziness. Where can you go from there? Where?
Me: I don't know.
Finn: Nowhere. Exactly. What I do is, if I need that extra push over the cliff, you know what I do?
Me: Put it up to eleven.
Finn: Eleven. Exactly. One louder.
Me: Why don't you just make ten louder and make ten be the top number and make that a little louder?
Finn: [pause] I go to eleven.

Today we had quite a day. Farmer's market, with about a dozen dogs to poke/yell/growl at, then the grocery store, then a pool party at the Kearney Heidgerken's. Whatever level of rambunctiousness that had been attained at previous ages was surpassed today at the swimming pool. It was a grand time. You know, it is not possible to tell your son not to run around the edges of the pool when he doesn't (probably) understand the words "walk, run, fast," or "slow." You just hope for the best.

There was a strange, oh, inversion of sorts. He wouldn't get down off the top pool step (4 inches of water) for 20 minutes, but he thought it was the greatest to dunk his face into the water. I think for many kids, putting their face in is a hard step. For Finn, it was the first thing he did. Only later on did we actually go "swimming" which involved lots of kicking, splashing, and being tossed into the air, with maniacal laughter. He was on full display. He only went all the way under by accident twice, and only once was my fault. It was such a fun time that we didn't take any pictures. How could I when I was in the pool?

Katie is out of town for a few days, so it is just me and the little man. Yesterday and today it was HOT. 90+ degrees. We went to a park in San Jose yesterday at about 2 p.m. (smart), and the first thing Finn said when we got out of the car was "Hot-teh. hot-teh." And it WAS hot-teh. But the farm animals and decent playground equipment made up for it. Here we are cooling off in the car before going home. He enjoys the blinker stick.

Finn really likes black beans, which I think is maybe a little unusual. They are a good source of protein. But they really are a mess. But that is half the fun.

Today was yogurt in the hair, which yielded a bit of a "There's Something About Mary" effect until we washed it away in the pool. I has been interesting being fully in charge for 4 straight days. I actually think it will make it a bit easier for me the next time I have to leave for a conference. When it is just you taking care of him, it is just MORE of everything. Harder, but more fun, since you're his world, not just half of it. But now I don't feel like I'm leaving Katie will an impossible task when I leave. But at the same time, you really miss out on some cool stuff. So maybe it will be harder after all . . . .

Like a regular little person

Yeah, he's a talker. "Banana, dog, ball, mama, dada, hot, kitty." Some of these would be a little hard for an independent observer to pick out, but we can. "Hot," he really likes a lot. "Hot-tah." And you can tell him to do stuff. Go get the monkey book. Open that door. Close that door. Bring to mama. It's fun. In the mornings instead of wailing til 6:05 when I come to get him, he more often sits in his crib and yells from time to time. When I finally come in to get him, he sits up and grabs his blanket, ready for his morning banana!

It's been rainy a lot lately, so we've been going outside a bit less. On Saturday we went out in the rain anyway, for over an hour. We went exploring in the neighborhood! We jumped in some puddles, found a soggy 3-foot stick and pushed it around, poked his fingers into rain runoff spouts, stomped on some drainage grates, and yelled REALLY LOUD at a little black pug who was trying to do his business in the front yard. People driving by in their cars pointed at us and smiled. It was a good time.

We're up to 10 teeth now. 8 in front and 2 molars. No canines yet.

Here we are at our 4th annual Oscar party. We had a good crowd, drained some magnums, and best of all, I was the big winner in the Oscar pool. Finn had a fun time and enjoyed sitting on the big people chairs. He was NOT pleased when bedtime came around at 7 p.m.

Dog and monkey show

More videos today!

First, here's Finn with his monkey book. He used to like to pull all the books off of our living room bookshelf - not a very endearing habit. Now 90% of the time he just gets this one. He likes to yell at the monkeys. At the very end he says "mon...." or something like it, and once or twice he's gotten a pretty clear run at both syllables. He can also say "butt" pretty clearly when he wants to. Most other words still lack a final consonant ("dah!" for dog, "nao" for nose, etc.), but somehow "butt" and "monkey" aren't a problem. I would love for his first two word phrase to be "monkey butt." I think it'll be a long time coming, though. He chatters almost constantly lately, and although the cadence and tones are a lot like English, he really doesn't seem concerned about "words."

Monkeys! from Katie on Vimeo.

Next up, Finn with dogs. Every Sunday morning we go to the Los Gatos farmers' market, and usually when we're done shopping we let Finn run around in the park it borders to look at the dogs and the other kids. He LOVES dogs and likes to yell at them in the same growly voice he yells at monkeys, but will only try to pet them if they turn away and he thinks he can sneak in a run at their flank. I think these dogs were too big to yell at. About 10 minutes later we met a big brown Newfoundland, and he didn't yell at that one, either. If only Jason and Gwen were still in town, I'm sure he could yell at Schamali to his heart's content.

Big dog kisses from Katie on Vimeo.

Last up, more dancing, this time to country. There are a couple good head bobs at the beginning, but mostly he doesn't seem quite sure what to do about country music.

Country? from Katie on Vimeo.

Bonus photo: like hats in Minnesota in December, Finn has acknowledged that sunglasses have their appropriate time and place. Plus, I think he thinks he looks cool.

Jonathan leaves for Tucson tonight and won't be back until Wednesday after Finn goes to bed. I have homework due in 2 classes for Friday, and the other one meets on Wednesday. Wish me luck!