Finn's first vacation(s)

We just got back from two weeks out of town which included many car rides, a canoe ride, a ride in a motor boat, 6 flights, a great grandma, a great grandpa, both sets of grandparents, several aunts and uncles and Finn's first swim! We started in Squam Lake, NH at Tyler's grandpa's place with a bunch of family and lots of swimming and boating. Then we headed south to Hilton Head to visit T's grandmom and we ended the trip in Pacific Washington with my family. Here are just a few shots from the trip.

New pajamas from Grandmom covered with undersea creatures. We took him out on the town in those that night and he was a huge hit!

The four of us on our last day with Grandmom (T's mom's mom, Mary Jane)

Finn meeting Effie, Grandmom's dog

Finn in the sink at Great Grandmom's after we feasted on Beef Bourgignon a la Julia Child

The girls and Finn

Back to no coffee so this is what the mornings are looking like these days.

The woods on the way to the beach

A new dress

A while back I said I wanted to make a dress, I think, or at least something new for me to wear and I did it! And one of the best parts of this dress is that it turned out great and it was super economy! I got the pattern at a garage sale at a gas station in Eastern Washington for 25 cents and the fabric came off the remnant table in Berlin for 9 Euros. Woohoo. That second picture you get an idea of the fabric and stuff and I wish I ahd a better one but that is all I've got right now. Plus it shows Finn's new interest--wagging his arm all over the place while he eats which drives me crazy. Oh, I made the middle view(green).

Melanie's Etsy Shop

Wow. Melanie started a business call Plum Cushion. She makes cushions and pillows herself out of really beautiful fabrics. She made a shop on Etsy and if you are in the market for some pillows, she has a bunch up now and does custom orders, too. They're very well made and the fabrics she chooses are very beautiful and high quality. And oh, I love this pillow. Nice work, Mel

Two ideas

picture from oh joy!.

First, I really want to fix up the bentwood rocker that Melanie passed on to us. She was in search of one, found one really cheap but it has a busted seat so I am deciding whether I want to replace the cane seat or put in an upholstered (which I already know how to do). You can still sit in it and rock, but any day now I might drop through the seat and land on the floor! Then, I just across this picture and I think I want to paint it black, too. Actually, I know I do. If I paint it black, I can fill the all the little attempts to fix it with wood putty and paint right over them!

Second, my neighbor is organizing an art show for October involving fiber arts and I have an idea! See those paper cut-outs on the bottom right? I am going to try and make similar things out of fabric for making little bugs, houses and so on...interlocking pieces that are a little bit stiff/structural. I'll keep you posted.

i just couldn't resist

I was combing through some photos and came across this funny one of me in the final weeks of pregnancy. Tyler took this one of me shocked at my own belly. When I saw it the other day it reminded me of the little guy of a friend whose name is also Finn (though everyone calls him Huck) and we seem to make a similar expression of surprise.
Here's huck and me compared. And boy, get aload of that belly! The time when I could barely see my own feet to tie my shoes seems very distant now.

beat the heat

New Yorkers are so cool. What's new?! Check out this article about the other coasters making pools in dumpsters.

Stantients, sliding door, bathroom organized!

This weekend I made a little shade to hang in front of the boxes that hold all our stuff in the bathroom--and then we went to storables and got cool stackable crates to replace the boxes AND this really nice laundry hamper. I just like to stand and look at the under-sink area now. And before I wanted to shut the door to not see it. Ahhh. Sweet progress

These pics are kind of old now, but Tyler has been doing some more construction magic. These are the stantients (custom made by Grant!) and panels for between them. Eventually there will be a railing on top. The plan is to make a three-ply glu-lam of one inch boards so it has a pretty cross section. That is about all I know about that, but it sounds really cool when Tyler talks about it. The green panels were found for free! yes, for free and I think they look really slick. Dwell, eat your heart out.

And, finally, we can send Finn to his room when he's been naughty and he can shut the door. It's a real beaut. Tyler put it all up the door is nice and heavy so it slides really smoothly. When it is open, the pantry is blocked (save that little sliver of shelves to the right). Yet another major stride in our quality of life.

am i back in the swing of blogging?

let's hope. here's more from the pounder.

finn got a new hat (thanks becca!) that sarah generously helped him model for you.

and, well, it's a touch big yet, but we're hoping either that his head gets big fast, or that we have sun ALL year so he can wear it everyday.


And it might not seem like much, but getting something into your hand and then close to your mouth to slobber on it is actually a skill you have to learn and practice. way to go finnjamin!

and, sheesh, if this one doesn't get you, i don't know what will.

closet!

Tyler is really getting it down! He has invented/adapted a really cool way to build shelves. Here are the ingredients:
1. Long pieces of all-thread
2. 1" washers and nuts to fit whatever size all-thread is appropriate
3. Brackets for the wall and appropriate screws (dry-wall, wood, etc... depending on your wall.)
4. Material for the shelf--we used Birch plywood in the closet and walnut veneer in the kitchen. I think he finished the kitchen with Osmo and the closet with polyeurethane.
5. Electric drill
6. Clamps to attach to something above, or screws to attach to the wall above.
He drills holes for the all-thread a couple inches from the face of the shelf, threads the all-thread through, then secures the wood on the top side with a nut and the bottom side with a washer and nut. They are super sleek and simple.
Here is our new closet. Nice work, T! We are going to get some boxes for sweaters and so forth, improve our shoe situation down below, get some kind of screen to slide in front and eventually build out something to replace our dressers, too. All for future posts in future times.

how many posts can be called "more pictures of finn"?

The mug. Finn and his faces is becoming a theme. Let the drama continue!

Finn's new hat

I had some car time on the way to and from Annie and Kevin's wedding so I spent it working on reproducing this really cute hat Tyler and I saw at a street fair. Mostly hand sewn, it's made from a t-shirt that was much better on me when my tummy was huge. There was a cool orange square screened on the center that i cut around for accents. These were taken on a day spent at J and Ryan's house beating the heat on the front porch.

And one to show you how the guy is growing! He is a major chatterbox, has started to copy us a little -- sticks his tongue and tries to make roaring noises. He was sleeping 8-10 hour nights but has started waking up again after 5 or 6. Let's hope it's a phase! I was having some REALLY productive days there for a while. He can grab things and get them into his mouth, though his aim is not stellar yet and he is spending more and more time on his tummy doing frog legs and squealing.

60 seconds in the life of Finn

Click on the image for the full effect.

Wow! Newborns don't do much but sheesh, four weeks out and they really start going for it. These shots are around 6 or so and he keeps getting more and more expressive. Really, he's so advanced. I think he must be a drama genius. Check out the one that is third down on the left. The caption: "Do it again and I slap you!" Where does he learn this stuff? I tell ya. And then, third down on the right: "You've got something with that flying solar car idea...I'll talk to my people." And to think, it all started in the far left corner with an almost-gonna-cry grimace and yawn and it ends in an almost asleep state. The range is amazing. I already know this guy is really going somewhere with his acting.

And yes, the blog has turned into a baby blog. I swear I will post something about the amazing onions and beets I pickled today(at least they look amazing), or the fresh pesto I made, or how my P-patch is a complete weed-lot but is still producing tons of good stuff, or Annie and Kevin's wedding invitation and how cute the bachelorette party was mostly because all of Annie's friends (and Annie) made it so fun and sweet. Or I will just default back to the person that consumes 21 out of 24 of my hours a day and post some pictures of all the darling things that people gave us for Finn or more pictures of him or I could talk about the sun hat I want to make him and on and on. More on that sun hat later!
Okay, so I am really burning the midnight oil now, so why quit. Here are a few more.

We have started cutting off some of Finn's onesies because he is so darn long! And we are packing in those cloth diapers which take up more room than the disposables so everything got a little smaller a few weeks ago.

Cute hat T's buddy, JJ gave to Finn. Can't wait till fall when he can start wearing it around.

And, Walla Walla Sweets that I grew in my P-Patch at Oxbow Park. I am brimming with pride. I can't believe I suffered through being so pregnant and crouching in that silly patch, but it is paying off and it is so rewarding to eat what I have grown there. It makes me think that maybe I am more gardener than landscape architect. Unfortunately my tomatoes are flagging because of neglect. I was fantasizing that I would have SO many I wouldn't be able to eat them but the way things are looking, I will be lucky if I get 20 tomatoes out of my 6 plants! Oh, and one volunteer tomato makes 7!

finally an update on Finn!

Aaron, our neighbor giving Finn a snuggle.

Tyler testing out having Finn sleep on his tummy while watching a movie.

Post-milk curl-up. A Finn standard.
These are all a bit old, but there is more to come. They guy is smiling and maybe sort of giggling and that is way too entertaining to allow for time to blog! eeesh.

a shirt that i wish were mine

the red and white shirt i am wearing in the pic below holding finn is super cute and i love it. my mom and dad gave it to me as a new mommy gift. but, of course, it hasn't stopped me from wanting other new shirts. this one is from one of my favorite designers, Wiksten Made. and i might try and sew one jsut like it. don't know if i have the skills for that...

Finn Potts Philipsen comes in with a wail!

Early, but what a relief to have him already. I finished work on Thursday expecting to have a week or so of torturous anticipation of the birth, but instead, Finn came right along and surprised all with an early arrival.

He weighs 8lbs 10oz
Is 22 inches long
Looks like he will tan way better than his Mom
Has light brownish red hair
and smells like heaven.
What a gift!

The labor was tough but Tyler was a super champ of a tireless partner helping me through all the agony and the midwives were lovely, so calm, so dear and so good at their jobs! I was really blown away.

Can't wait for you all to meet him.