The Illusion of Spring

As the American Midwest is dealing with blizzard after blizzard, I have been enjoying the false spring of a Finnish February. Temps have been above freezing for at least a week. Combined with the reappearance of normal amounts of daylight, and Finns have been abandoning their coats and scarves as if summer was almost there.

I was excited when I saw the trucks hauling away snow, until it occurred to me that they are simply clearing space for more snow. Alas! The temps have returned to seasonal norms with a fresh dusting of snow now, but no big snow dumps. At least the trucks provided excellent baby entertainment!

On March 20th, just around the corner, daylight in Helsinki will surpass daylight in Milwaukee. We are on our way back to eternal sun, and I am SOOOOO ready. It’s amazing what a difference there is when the sky is light when you get up for the day. I’m back to witnessing spectacular sunrises in the early hours.

This baby is moving and grooving. But crawling? Nope. Not a chance.

This clever boy has figured out how to pivot on his butt to get most things he wants. He can get from tummy time to sitting in about 5 seconds flat, doing the splits perfectly on the way. If he gets stranded without a toy, he will happily practice clapping for quite sometime before he gets upset.

He likes to stand, but won't pull himself up. He just whines until you get him, and then stiffens like a board so you can't make him sit. He won't move his feet though, no matter how far you make him lean! We've been practicing walking like he's a puppet.

It's becoming increasingly clear that while he can say Mama and Dada, the only word he uses correctly is Teddy. His cat brother is his absolute favorite thing in the world. And who can blame him when Teddy is so fluffy?

Soren will be turning 1 at the end of the month. One year! Already!
We'll be in Milwaukee and Chicago in early April to celebrate with family, so hopefully we will get to see some of our Stateside friends as well! Let me know!