Finn's Finale

It's official!  Both of the boys are finished with ISR!  Finn's final 'test' was last Tuesday, and he did absolutely fantastic (or Finntastic as it were).  For the first time ever, I was nervous watching him, but there was no need because he knew exactly what to do, which I guess is why he passed!

Brady Graduates!

I'm a little behind...Two Fridays ago, Brady had his final, full-clothes-on ISR test.  He had to wear a hoodie, jeans, and tennis shoes.  I expected him to panic a little bit when he jumped in (I know I would), but he stayed cool as a cucumber, waiting patiently for his arms and legs to come to the surface (which is hard!!)

Finn is also doing great!  He has two days left until he's finished.  He'll need to do some refresher lessons in the spring, but he's able to swim about 5-10 feet on his own, and when he realizes that he doesn't have anything to grab, he knows to roll over onto his back and float.  Amazing!!!

We also have had several exciting firsts around here!  Brady's reward for doing such excellent work at swimming was his first pet, a fish!  Brady chose a turqoise beta and named him 'Swimmy'.  So far we've kept him alive for 2 days, so I'm hoping we can keep it up.  Brady picked out all the stuff for the aquarium, and it looks great - he has great taste!  Also, Friday morning Brady and I were talking about how fun the swimming finale party was going to be that evening.  He asked me if he was going to get a swimming trophy.  Not wanting him to be disappointed, I told him that I didn't think he was going to get a trophy for swimming, but soon he would get one for something else.  Little did I know, he really would be receiving a trophy that night - his first!  Here's the fish and the trophy!

Finn also had a first this weekend...his first wagonride!  He LOVED it!  It was a PERFECT day, and I can't think of a better way to spend it than going for a wagonride.

ISR Week 4 - We're getting close!

These last 4 weeks of swimming have flown by!  Brady is getting really close to the swimming-fully-clothed test, which is kind of like the final check.  Finn made some HUGE strides this week!  He went from crying and looking for me at all times to smiling, splashing, and waving, and in general doing the 'watch me, watch me' thing.  At one point, he was holding onto the bar and he launched himself forward and swam toward Amy without her prompting!

In other news, Finn has started imitating in the last 2 days.  He'll give you a kiss or stick his tongue out at you and laugh.  Tonight I signed 'milk' to him and he did it back.  Too cute!

ISR Week 3 and a Big Birthday!

ISR continues to amaze me, with both boys making excellent progress again this week!  Finn went back to crying a bit more than he had been, but I'm sure it's a little nerve-wracking to be learning all this new stuff.  Even so, he is swimming farther and farther distances.  Brady is just off to the races.  He looks so comfortable, as if he's been swimming forever!  We are so proud of these two!

The other big news is that it was Finn's 1st birthday on Sunday!  Yay Finn!  I would bet every parent says this, but this year has gone by SO fast!  Finn has a very laid-back, happy personality, and we feel so fortunate that he's part of our family.  Nothing makes Brady happier than getting a laugh out of Finn.  For his birthday, we had a nice day together, including a trip to the splash park for some time in the fountains (**why is it that this activity doesn't seem NEARLY as fun when your mom is prepared with swim trunks/towel as it is when it's a random day and you go in fully clothed and not prepared?**)   Later, we had our neighbors over for dinner/presents/cake.  At first, Finn didn't seem to care what the fuss was about, but by the end of the presents, he was getting into it a little more.  After present, he really enjoyed his cake!  At first, he wasn't sure how he should go about getting it into his mouth.  He tried leaning over and putting his mouth down on it, but that didn't quite yield the results he was looking for.  Eventually, he just picked up half of it and proceeded to feed himself bites.  I made him a special birthday bib, but he didn't actually get very dirty.  It was a lovely celebration with good friends!

loving the fountains

with the girls

opening presents

singing happy birthday

the cake

full birthday gear

yum!

ISR Week 2 and Labor Day at the Beach!

Despite being rained out one day, the boys both made more excellent progress at their swimming survival lessons this week.  I tape the whole lesson (10 mins each), but will just post short clips here as I'm sure this is about 10% as exciting for the general audience as it is for Brandon and me.

This is Finn swimming to the bar and pulling himself up.  I don't believe she's holding him anymore than just maybe the tag of his shorts.

Here Brady is working on the swim/float/swim technique.

For Labor Day, we rented a beach house in Galveston with our neighbors, The Webbs.  It was so much fun and very relaxing!  This video shows sandcastle building, but what I wish I had been taping was Brady boogie-boarding the next day!  The waves were a bit bigger than normal because of all the wind, and I was just amazed to watch him jumping into them with enthusiasm, even when they crashed over the top of his head!  I guess you just have to enjoy some moments as the mom rather than the videographer.

The beach was a big hit both days, but it took it out of us!  Finn took very long naps both days, and had good sleeps at night.  After dinner, the rest of us played games and watched movies.  It was a great getaway with great friends!

I guess now would be as good a time as any to post our First Day of School pics.  Brady's doing great in his new Kindergarten room (he's still pre-k age, just sitting in the Kinder room) and Finn continues to do great at Dixie's.

In front of the school on the first day

Here they are in Dixie's front yard - I don't think Finn likes this pose!

Walking and Swimming?

Here's a front view of Finn walking in his jammies this morning.  It's so funny how there are big bursts of growth.  Last week, after taking that video of just a couple steps, the very next day, Finn walked from the living room into our kitchen.  He's off to the races now!

This week was also our first week of ISR (Infant Swim Resource) for both boys.  ISR is a wonderful (not to mention intense) program that teaches kids a swim/float/swim sequence that they can rely on in water.  The theory is that if they can see underwater and find a target, they can get themselves there as long as they know to float for a short time to catch their breath.  The main focus is drowning prevention, but the water confidence gained is also huge.  Both boys are doing great!

What you're seeing in this first video is Brady floating, and then turning himself over to swim to a target (in this case the teacher or the steps).  I apologize that he's off camera for a little bit...my trusty assistant moved my camera for me prior to the lesson.

This one is Finn.  He has learned this week to be able to roll himself over into a float.  Though he gets mad while he's in the water, he's no worse for wear once he gets out.  It is absolutely thrilling to see our child gaining this valuable life skill!

Finn's off and running...er, make that walking!

Finn took his first steps a couple weeks ago, and I haven't been having much luck getting several steps on video.  Tonight, Brady asked if he could use my Flip video camera, and I realized that he might be the perfect videographer!  Sorry for the clanging and banging...it's a typical day's soundtrack with two boys around.

I think Finn is really happy to be walking.  He seems less frustrated now that he can navigate the world upright and on his terms.  He has entered that cute, goofy-smile, lots of belly laughs, huffing and puffing laughter stage.  I love it!

This one is from early July (Finn already looks different now!), but this is pretty typical.  Brady would do nothing all day but squeeze and kiss on his brother if Finn would let him!