Who Needs a Bowl?

I'm not sure how many times I have said "There is no lack of entertainment in the Finnestad household." Today proved to be no exception. With a still recovering and nauseous James on the couch, tonight's dinner looked a little different. Instead of eating at the dining room table, we spread out and ate in the kitchen/family room...providing Aliya access to a new sort of "bowl" for her noodles.

"Mom! Aliya is putting her noodles in Josiah's hiking boot." "She's doing what?" Sure enough, our little 2 year old had filled the sole of his boot with her noodles & proceeded to eat out of it. I promptly reprimanded her, dumped the noodles in the sink and cleaned out his boot - only to find her filling the other one with noodles and attempting to tell me how much she wanted to eat out of his shoe!

While I am still attempting to understand the mind of our two year old, one thing is for certain....it's back to the dining room tomorrow night!

Recovery Road...Here We Come!

Our brave little James is home after a successful surgery. His first attempt at coming out of anethesia was a little difficult, so they knocked him back out for a short time. Things went much better the 2nd time and I even had the privilege of being there about 10 minutes after he began waking up (thanks to my awesome friend Jen who showed up at my house to watch the younger kids). Two Popsicles and a little juice later, he was asking to go home and was back by 10:30! He's a little nauseous and very tired, but all things considered is doing great.

Dressed and ready for surgery!

Post-op

First Popsicle

Ready to go home
Thank you so much for your prayers. Time to journey down recovery road!

Surgery Day Begins

And they're off...Jimmy & James just walked out the door to begin James' big day of getting his tonsils and adenoids removed. James was so excited and pretty nervous throughout the night. He was dressed and ready for the day at 3:30 am! I was thankful for the hour of talking and reading time we had together, despite the early hour. After falling back to sleep on the couch, I listened to him snore and breathe irregularly and was reminded why we are doing this. Our 6:00 am alarm was met with a little less enthusiasm. "Why do we have to get up so early Mom?" I just laughed, thinking about how ready he was 2½ hours before!

Jimmy surprised him with a Rubik's cube, which brightened him right up. He told James that his job was to twist it up as much as he could before surgery and Jimmy would try to put it back in order before surgery was over. James was thrilled with the challenge...and the thought of a get well gift and lots of Popsicles waiting for him at home.

Jimmy's other job is to call me frequently with updates & take lots of pictures, so hopefully I will be sharing both throughout the morning. Please keep James in your prayers...as well as Jacob, who is preparing for surgery right now as well.

Back to School - One Week Later

The first week of school couldn't have gone better. The kids have adjusted well to the new schedules and teachers. James has been thrilled everyday to come home and announce he got his name on the board (which is actually a good thing). Mrs. Lutes writes their names on the board everytime they serve as an example for the class, which results in getting to choose something out of the treasure box at the end of the day. He is so proud to have gotten a treasure box pick 6 days in a row! We are so proud of him as well!

Abby is thoroughly enjoying her new teacher and her classmates. She's happy to have several of her closest friends from 2nd grade in her 3rd grade class this year. She was also beaming after the first day as she came out of the school doors. James was not in the "designated meeting spot" between their two classrooms, so she went to his class to discover his teacher would only release her students to parents or older siblings. Well, she being an older sibling, was able to get him out of class and walk him out to meet us. She felt so grown-up and responsible. We are so appreciative of her willingness to come alongside of her little brother and "keep him safe."

He is happy to return the favor during 3rd recess. Several of his friends delight in chasing Abby and her comrades around the playground. James' "job" is to chase his friends and save the princesses from eminent danger. Sounds like a recess to look forward to for sure!

It's fun to watch as Josiah and Aliya's relationship continues to grow. While they have always enjoyed playing together, it is completely different when it's just the two of them. Yesterday it was cute watching Josiah be "Daddy" and Aliya be "Mommy" as they busily cared for "Baby" (a.k.a. My Little Pony) - taking her on walks and sitting with her on the swings.

What a great start to the new year!

Kicking Off Soccer Season

Today marked the official start of the soccer season. It's the year of the bee's in the Finnestad household, as James plays for the Hornets and Josiah for the Bumblebee's. The boys ran so hard during their Jamboree games today and both of them even scored a goal!



Josiah gets to play on the same team as his buddy (and next door neighbor) Connor. They are quite the pair out there on the field!

First Day of School

The kids are off for their first day of school - Abby in 3rd grade and James in 1st.

They were a little nervous, but also very excited to begin a new school year.

Teanaway Camping Trip

What a perfect way to finish off our summer - camping with friends on the Teanaway River! The long weekend was full of bike riding, s'mores, exploring, tree climbing, wood collecting, playing at the river and enjoying time with Grandma and Grandpa Finnestad, the Curreys and the Earnhardts.