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Have A Merry Christmas

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Just a perfect day

Amongst all the crazy, rushed, stressed days there are days that are perfect. Not picture perfect and not without some mishap but overall, at the end of the day, I can say, "Today was a good day."
Today was that kind of day. Bennett did wake up extra early like he sometimes likes to but was in a good mood all morning. We made a trip to the grocery store and when we got home the weather was too gorgeous to stay inside. So we grabbed some toys and headed to the backyard. Bennett helped me water our veggies.
Then we had a picnic outside.
After all that time outside, Bennett was ready to have a nice long nap. It was a long enough nap that Eric and I were able to put the flowers in the ground that we had bought a couple weeks again. We even had a little time to relax.
After Ben's nap, we headed over to a bounce house to "chump, chump.". (Ben can't pronounce "j" yet). He had a blast there. It's only his third time going to one but he's finally confident enough to have fun. Eric is so great about going on all the things with him. Only problem is the Bennett doesn't want any other kids on the same bouncy as him. I guess he'll learn.
After we had our fun, we headed home for a yummy dinner. Hamburgers and grilled corn. I think summer has officially arrived
Days like today seem especially perfect since we've entered the "terrible two" stage. Seems like lately most days are filled with tantrum after tantrum. We are navigating through this stage as best we can and reminding ourselves "this too shall pass.". It always does.

"It's such a perfect day, I'm glad I spent it with you."

{this moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

Christmas 2011

This Christmas was a little quieter than last. We spent Christmas Eve at my dad and Rhonda's house. Unfortunately, none of my siblings were able to join us. My sister-in-law, Kathleen, and niece, Marissa, joined us from Hampton. My Dad and Rhonda were there, of course, and Rhonda's son, Kain (aka Uncle Candy Kain). Even though it was a small crowd, it was still a very nice evening. Poor Bennett had a cold so he wasn't much into eating but he perked up once it was time to open gifts.
The first gift that was "unveiled" was the toy box that my Dad built for Bennett. It is extraordinary! Dad and Rhonda had showed it to me earlier in the day and I was speechless. I couldn't believe how much time my Dad had put in to making such a beautiful toy box.

Bennett loved it too.

We opened the rest of the gifts from Nana and Grandpa and then headed home to put Bennett to bed and get everything ready for the next morning.
Bennett didn't know quite what to think when he saw all he toys in the living room but he quickly figured out what he wanted to play with.

Bennett was a very spoiled boy this Christmas and even though he had a cold I think he really enjoyed it. I enjoyed spoiling him and seeing how much he enjoyed everything. Most of all I enjoyed spending the extra time with him.

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A few of his favorite things

It's that time of the year when we start thinking of our favorite things. Here's some of Ben's:
-Marley

He just can't get enough and Marley is finally not scared of Ben. A close second to Marley are the cats. Ben calls them "zaza." I think it may be him trying to say Ziggy but he calls Abbey "Zaza" too so I'm not sure.
-Birds
He just started signing "bird." Well, his version anyway. Any time he hears a bird outside or sees one he signs "bird" and gets very excited.
-Being outside

If you ask him if he wants to go outside, he will immediately run to the back door and say "side, side." I have to make sure I am ready to go out because he will get upset if we don't immediately go out.
-Cleaning
Yup, that's right, this kid loves to clean. He loves the vacuum, broom, swiffer, dishrag, whatever.

This may seem like it's a good thing and maybe eventually it will be but right now it just makes it hard to actually clean when he is around.

He's got a lot to say

Here's some of words that Ben says:
Please (sounds like plaes)
Yes (sounds like hss)
Stop
Socks
Shoes
Side (for outside)
Dada (I don't think he uses the for dad just general happiness)
He was saying bread and bite but I haven't heard those in a while. It seems it gets stuck on a letter, like B or S, and practices words that start with that letter. I wonder when he'll start with M words because I still haven't heard him say mama.
Sometimes it sounds like he says phrases like "I did it" and "what's that."

Ben signs a few words too
More
Dog
Car
All done
Bird (looks more like he's waving hi or bye)
Sleep (he just started this one)
Cat (he is still working on that one)

And of course he babbles all day. Not sure what he is saying but he has a lot to say!

{this moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

It's been a while...

Since I've posted and it's mostly because at the end of the day, once I've picked up all the toys, put away the random tupperware and food items that Bennett had pulled out of the cabinets, loaded the dishwasher, etc. I'm tired and quite frankly I just want to turn my brain off. That's no excuse because every mom is tired at the end of every day (sometimes we start the day tired and it's just downhill from there) but we should find time for the things that are important to us. Chronicling Bennett's life is important to me. I want to have it to look back on and I want him to have it to look back on. It's also a nice bonus that I can share it with friends and family as well. So here's what's been going on...
* Bennett has perfected the art of walking (well almost). He walks very well and has even started to run some. It's is the cutest thing to watch my little man suffle around everywhere. It has taken some getting used to. The first few weeks I would do a double take everytime he would start walking because I still wasn't used to him walking.
* Bennett's favorite word is "Please." Before, if he wanted something he would sign "more" then he learned to say "please." It sounds more like "plase" so it is super cute. How can you say no to anything?? Now he just needs to learn some other words because I'm not always sure what he is asking for.
* Bennett loves being outside. When we first goes outside, he beelines for his swing but only wants to be in it for a minute before he signs "all done" and is off exploring. Now if only we could get the dogs to stop digging holes in the backyard.

* Now that Bennett is more mobile we are able to do some fun things. I couple weekends ago I took him to Macarthur mall and let him loose in the play area. He had a blast running around. He wouldn't keep his socks on. He took them off immediately after I took his shoes off and ran around with one in his hand the whole time.
* We have had a fun time exploring the different parks around town. We went to Grommet park at the ocean front several weeks ago. Bennett had a blast sliding on the slide there (with Dad's help).


I took him to Fun Forest Park at Chesapeake Park after work one day. He had a blast running around. We are also lucky to have a park around the corner from our house that we can go to anytime.
*At the beginning of October, we went to the Children's Festival in Norfolk. We met up with Trichell and Sophia. Bennett was still pretty new at the walking thing but we still had a lot of fun.




We are keeping busy and having lots of fun!

First Steps

Bennett took his first steps today. It was very exciting. I have a lot more to catch up on but since we are recovering from a bad stomach virus I am just posting the most important for now : )

Bennett's One year stats

Bennnett had his one year check-up today:
Weight: 20lb (28%)
Height: 29.5 inches (38%)
Head: 45.6 cm (35%)

Healthy and happy

1 Year!

We made it! Bennett is 1 year old today! I spent most of the day reminiscing of where we were one year ago today. I never did post Bennett's birth story. Mostly because at the time it was too painful to recall it. Basically it went like this...nothing went as planned. And now, one year later, I finally am understanding why that is. Because as a mother, nothing goes as planned, ever. And now, one year later, I am finally getting to be ok with that. The more you push for how things "should" be, the more resistance you come up against. The more you relax and "listen" to your little one, the easier things are. I'm not saying that Bennett will always get what he wants. It is my job to figure out what he needs and adapt accordingly. Ok, enough about what I've learned in the past year (and that by no means is all of it) and on to what's really important. What's going on with Bennett?

Bennett's birthday party was scheduled for this past Saturday but mother nature had other plans. Instead of a pool party, we had a hurricane party. Thankfully, the forecasts were off and the hurricane was not as bad as predicted but needless to say we rescheduled the party. We did celebrate his birthday today by going to the zoo.

And dinner out at the Cheesecake Factory.

And just all around silliness

Over the past month, Bennett has been working on his communication skills. He does say words, but not at the right time quite yet. Over the past few weeks, he has started to do some sign language. He can sign "all done", "milk", and "more." He also waves "hi" and "bye." He says "dada" quite a bit but I don't think he associates it with Eric. I am still waiting to hear "mama."

He is still not walking on his own and I'm ok with that. He loves his push walker and between that and crawling he can get any where he wants to. He is cruising between furniture more and more. He has no interest in letting go. He will stand without support for a couple of seconds if you let go of him but quickly falls to the ground and not because he loses his balance. Instead of working on his walking skills, he is busy perfecting the art of climbing. Here he is during our "photo shoot" this afternoon.

I think we are going to have our hands full!

All in all he is a happy, busy little boy. I absolutely love how now Bennett will give me hugs all through out the day. And even though it is exhausting at times, I love that I am still his favorite person. I love that when I enter a room, he lights up. Every day he amazes me and I fall in love with him more and more. This past year has been the best year of my life. I am truly honored to be Bennett's mother and blessed with watching him learn and grow. I am sad that the year has flown by but I am also so happy with where we are now.

Sweet Bennett, I hope you always keep the curiosity and sense of humor that you have now. I hope you stay fearless but not reckless. And I hope that I will always be your favorite person.

Bedtime stories

Bennett decided he would read a book to himself tonight.

I had just told my brother that I couldn't wait to see Bennett "reading" to himself since he loves looking through the books. The very next night Ben decided he would do just that. If you listen closely you might hear him say "read book."

11 months!

I can't believe my little man is 11 months old. I know I say that each time he is a month older but it really is unbelievable. This month Bennett's personality has really been coming out. The picture above is of him doing his fake laugh. He scrunches up his face and breaths out his nose quickly. It's so cute. If I do it, then he'll do it back. He is a little comedian.
He still isn't walking but that is stopping him from getting around. He crawls so fast that I can barely keep up with him. Once I showed him how to use the push walker, he was off. He loves the upright mobility but still doesn't have the confidence to walk unassisted. I think he may have fallen one to many times when he started pulling himself up so he is extra cautious now.

One thing that has been a surprise this month is Bennett's separation anxiety. We really haven't dealt with it until now. He has always been ok with other people holding him but now he is a bit shy around strangers. He is quite a few days that he is extra clingy. I guess with his new mobility comes the realization that mama can leave too and he doesn't like that. We are doing the best we can to reassure him without too much coddling.
Bennett started going to daycare this month. Only two days a week so that he can adjust to the change. He seems to be loving it. This is a picture was sent to me by his sitter, Kelly.

He's a happy boy!
I'm so sad that he will be one soon. I knew the day would come but for some reason I was hoping on could hold on to his "baby days" just a little longer.

This moment- Bookworm

Some of my favorite moments

Lately, Bennett has been doing some pretty fun things. Here are some of my favorite moments from the past couple weeks.


I think he inherited mommma's dance moves : )
A week ago Saturday, I showed Bennett how to use his push walker and within a few days he was off on his own.

This moment- Beach Bum

The Big 1-0

That's right Bennnett is 10 months old today. It's official, he's been out longer than he's been in. Since I just wrote the 9 month post a couple of weeks ago, not much has changed. Bennett is still busy. We finally put baby locks on the bathroom cabinets so that he can't play in them while I am getting ready for work. Although it kept him distracted, he was getting too good at pulling everything out.
On Father's Day, Eric installed Bennett's swing that he got for Christmas from Nana Rhonda. He absolutely loves it! I think he could stay in for hours. Unfortunately, it has been so hot that he only gets to be in it for 10 minutes at a time.

Here's Bennett with his Papa on Father's Day. I made them matching shirts : )

Yesterday, in an effort to cool off, I filled his baby pool with water and let him splash around.



His new best pal is Marley. He tries to play with him all the time and Marley has actually started putting up with it. I think Bennett has even gotten the concept of being gentle well kind of). He no longer pulls Marley's ears or pinchs him. He does, however, pat him not so gently on the back. Marley has a blanket that he carries around with him. It's kind of a security thing. He typically doesn't let anyone take it away from him but occasionally he will let Bennett take it away. Luckily, Ben gives it right back. Today at dinner, Ben was chomping on a piece of naan (Indian flat bread) and of course Marley was hanging out like a piranha. Ben would drop his hand down with the bread in it. Marley would come close thinking Ben was giving it to him then Ben would snatch it back and laugh. It was very funny to watch. Poor Marley.
While on the topic of food, I must say that I am so proud of Bennett's eating skills and habits. Around the time we came back from vacation, Bennett wasn't really into eating his purees. I had introduced some finger foods and he was doing really well with those so I decided that I was no longer going to force him to eat the purees but let him lead the way by offering him foods that he could feed himself. After an adjustment period, he is doing great.

Even with just two teeth, he can eat just about anything. There has been a couple times that he scared me with the amount of food he shoved in his mouth but somehow he gets it down. Some of his favorite foods right now are bagels (with a smear), peas, cantaloupe, and pasta.
Bennett has started to say a couple words. I'm not sure he knows what they mean yet but we have heard him say "baby" a few times. He's also said "hi" and "dada." He goes through phases that he is very talkative and then won't say much for days. One thing is for sure, he will let out a piercing squeal at least once a day : )
I am amazed by my little bear on a daily basis. One of my favorite things he does is in the midst of playing he will stop, crawl over to me, stand up and give me a hug. It's the most incredible feeling. He's not much of a cuddle bug so those are moments I cherish.
Sweet Bennett, you bring a smile to my face every day.

This moment-Love

Teeth

Bennett had his second tooth poke through the gums last night. It was almost exactly a week ago that the first one poked through. I still haven't gooten a picture of those teefers : ) I can barely catch a glimpse of them but they are there. I hope we have a break from teething before the top one's poke through.