After Elise had her 7-10 day old doctor visit, we took big brother to a nearby playground in Repulse Bay for a brief romp. This playground has some fun spinny toys that other playgrounds don't have, which Finley loves!
Last weekend, at a mere 1 1/2 weeks old, we took Elise and Finley on their first big outing together. We went to Hong Kong Park downtown-- this park is awesome. Though in the middle of busy Admiralty, it is huge and beautiful. Water features, fish, turtles, aviary, awesome playgrounds, etc. I will admit, most of us were getting cranky by the time we got home, and Finley did go completely crazy in the aviary and then had a meltdown when we were forced to leave the aviary due to his behavior, but otherwise the outing went well. It is full on to attempt an outing like that with a rambunctious toddler and newborn, even with a 1:1 adult/child ratio! Here are some photos.
Elise's first bus rides. We decided to bus it instead of taxi because I figured I could nurse more safely and easily on the bus if I needed to than in a taxi. Yeah. Easier said than done on the narrow, windy roads around here! (But obviously Elise wasn't bothered by it.)
Here's Finley, captivated by the turtles sunning themselves.
Super cool water feature. Finley is flapping his arms in excitement. This was probably his favorite part of the park.
Waiting for the bus home.
Nate and I also took the opportunity of Elise being very young and cooperative to go out to an early dinner date last weekend while Cathrina fed Finley dinner at home. That way we could get home in time for bath and bed routines. Of course, Elise had to be fed during dinner, but it was otherwise smooth sailing, and so nice to have a little time to relax together as a couple!
So today is Elise's due date, and yet she's already 2 1/2 weeks old! I can definitely tell a big difference in her behavior and development in the past couple of days as she's neared her due date. She is awake more, and fussing more, and she startles more easily. She's starting to hold her head up better, and she was even trying to push with her legs. I think she just had to spend the first couple of weeks recovering from the birth and getting a bit older before being ready to do these things. Elise is eating plenty, and definitely seems to be gaining weight. We're getting those pudgy cheeks back!
Nate has been back at work this week for the most part, so that's been an adjustment for all of us, especially Finley. His screaming is back in full force, but I'm hoping it will get better again soon, because at other times he is the sweetest, funniest 2 1/2 year old you've ever met. I just want to be like, "You don't have to do this whole terrible 2's thing! Just be your cute self!" But of course, you can't really reason with a 2 1/2 year old, and part of his growing and developing is (constantly) testing boundaries. A couple of cute Finley-isms: Today we were reading Peter Rabbit and in one part Mr. McGregor says, "Stop thief!"...but Finley said, "Stop beef!" He also came home from school with a robot he made, saying, "I am a robot," in a monotone robot voice. So funny. Loving all this verbal development, and actually being able to communicate with him!
