During dessert tonight Finn paused and looked at me and said, "Mommy, I only eat the icing and not the cake part".  Then he sat and meticulously separated the icing from the cake as if performing some sort of surgery on the cake.  While I was watching him eat these big gobs of icing (blech!) I was struck by how fitting that statement was.  Indeed in life, Finn is all about the icing. 

He hates to get dressed in the morning (and fights it bitterly) preferring Pj's over more restrictive, scratchier clothes.  He pleads, "no hard pants!".  I go to great pains to buy him the softest, most comfortable clothes but nothing is as good as jammies.  Jammies are like the icing of clothes.  You know that feeling at the end of a long day when you slip into a great pair of comfortable pj's...ahhhh, icing baby! 

Finn has a lovey that he is completely attached to.  It used to have velvet on one side and look something like this:

Now the velvet is gone and the ruffle detailing is also gone on 2 of the 4 sides.  It used to be baby blue and now it looks more white.  It is so worn out.  It is the icing of blankets.  I'd post a picture of it but he won't let me have it long enough.

Finn likes to pour out all the hot wheels and not put them back.  He likes to splash the water out of tub, pee in the yard and snuggle with absolute abandon.  He is a consummate snuggler.  Every morning he likes to start his day sitting curled up on my lap, lovey in hand.  He'll find a perfect spot on one of the ruffles and rub it between his thumb and first finger.  He is hell on wheels but he needs a little "icing" to get him started first thing in the morning.

He started giving huge hugs early on, as a small baby.  He's sensitive and sweet.

Finn loves destruction.  He likes to cut up paper, scoop all the dirt out of the potted plants and throw the sand out of the sand box.  He's passionate.  He gets mad with passion too.  He finds it hard to not hit sometimes, cries out loud and stands his ground.  Earlier tonight when I was asking him to "make a good choice" and do what I was asking of him, he looked right at me and said, "I like to make bad choices".  He's going to do me in when he's 16.   Just like icing, he's a little quick to melt down. 

Just a second ago, he turned to me and held up his milk sippy and said, "look Mommy, it's my beer!".  He is full of personality and loves to laugh.  He's much sillier than Sayer and loves to make you laugh too.  He dances and sings.  He can be the life of the party.

He's a handful for sure but he makes me be a better parent.  His idiosyncrasies require me to be more patient.  I have to pay attention, close attention.  When I do, though, I really get to enjoy the sweet parts more.  It's like that little bit of cake in there helps the icing taste even more sweet.  Finn will learn this too as he grows up.

My best hope is that all that hedonistic fire will serve him well.  I think he's going to be strong with big opinions and a firm idea of where he wants to go.  He's not afraid to ask for what he wants and he's not bashful about the big gobs of icing on his plate either.  He knows what he likes.  He likes the icing.