Ben's Dr. Appointment

Ben had his 4 month well check up a few weeks ago. I started a post about it, but never finished.
He weighed 24 lbs (100th %ile)
He's 26 inches (82nd %ile)

Not really much else to say. He got his DTaP shot and he's healthy as can be!

Late night hodge podge

1. I signed up two more new piano students! They start on Tuesday. This brings my total students to 11.

2. I thought I signed up for summer school, but due to an email mishap in which I replied to myself instead of the summer school coordinator, I am not. I'm hoping my principal will let me have a spot in the summer school at the elementary. She hasn't given me a definite answer yet.

3. Colin's birthday party was great! He had a lot of fun. I need to upload the pictures I took and blog about it. I will, I will.

4. Ben might be teething. Who really knows until you can see/feel the tooth coming in? All we know is he's a lot more clingy at night, and will only sleep in his crib for short spurts at night, which is so not like him. Last night he slept in his swing for awhile and slept by me in bed later. Maybe it's the 4 month wakeful. And we're tiiiired.

5. Kevin saw Ben roll over for the first time today. There was no re-enactment, unfortunately.

6. Someday I will hire a cleaning lady to come to my house about every other week. I had one come clean the house before Colin's party and it was SO nice not to have to clean it myself. With 2 little boys, working full time, plus teaching piano lesson on top of that, it's hard to find time to wash dishes, much less scrub the little shelves in the shower. Vegging out stress-free on the Friday night before the party was so worth it.

Happy birthday Colin!

I can't believe it has been 3 years since my biggest little man has entered into my little world and flipped it upside down.

This morning we let Colin open his "boring" present. I found some Phineus and Ferb underwear I just had to get him. He was not nearly as excited about them as I had anticipated. He also got socks and a shirt with Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and Goofy on it. I had envisioned him wearing all 3 items, but he ended up wearing none of it. I'm sure he'll come around. He's kind of leary of new stuff.

He took banana cupcakes with Mickey Mouse ears to daycare to share with his friends.
And pineapple fruit cups. A little balance is always appreciated when kids are involved. He also brought his friends little goodie bags with a little toy and Goldfish Grahams.

Sandy gave him a(nother) digger construction toy and a basketball.

This afternoon, we gave him...well, I'll just show you...
I told him he couldn't look in the garage.
Covering his eyesChecking it outHelping daddy pump up the tires
Screwing the valve cap back on Ready to ride!
He rode around on the driveway for a little while, then...

...Decided to swing instead. The attention span of a 3 year old :)

Later on, he rode it a little bit again. It's different than the bikes with training wheels he rides at daycare. He was caught very off-guard when he realized it didn't have pedals. We told him that once he got the hang of riding this one (when he can lift his feet up and coast/balance comfortably) we'd let him pick out a bike with pedals at the store.

Colin requested corn dogs, broccoli, and strawberries for supper tonight. He got his first 3 minute time out and ended his evening by watching his Frosty the Snowman DVD. :)

I asked him today what he wanted to be when he grows up and he said, "Daddy."
I asked him what his favorite present was and he said his dig-dig.

We have more celebrating to do on Saturday when family and friends come for the big birthday bash. But today's small, quiet celebration was fantastic.

Happy birthday big boy!

3 years ago tonight

3 years ago tonight I went to bed with my husband in our quiet house.
2 hours later, I woke up with contractions.
5 hours later, my world became a little better, a little more purposeful, a little noisier, a little less predictable, and a lot different.

4 months old!

Wowzers Ben! You sure are growing up fast!
We had a busy month. Ben got baptized and celebrated his first Easter.
Benny still continues to eat pretty well, although at daycare he has never drank more than 12 oz in an entire day. However, he does enjoy my company in the evenings and the endless snuggles and milk I provide :)

He has slept through the night 6 times. We even had a stretch of 4 nights in a row! All good things must come to an end though. We're currently waking up 2-3 times a night. Must be the 4 month wakeful. There will be an end. I just hope it's soon.

Ben found his hands. He often puts them in front of his face and watches them as they move. He sucks his thumb when he's tired, but just for a few good sucks or until I feed him, and then he's done. That I can handle.

He also found his giggle. He's quite ticklish, actually. When I say, "I'm gonna get ya!" and tickle him he really starts giggling. He giggles as his shirt brushes his side when I'm undressing him. He giggles when I wash his armpits. He giggles when I sniff his neck.
He loves watching Colin play. He gets mesmerized, taking all Colin does in and learning how the big boys play.
He likes the feel of fuzzy blankets on his hands and face.

He wears size 9 month-18 month clothes, depending on brand and specific clothing item. He weighs 24 lbs.

We're probably going to hold off on introducing cereals. In fact, we'll probably skip cereals altogether. I doubt he's starving, and he's getting enough (and better) nutrition through milk. I'll still talk about it with the pediatrician, but for now that's my plan.

While I'm not looking forward to Ben being mobile because of safety reasons, I'm excited for him to (hopefully) learn how to roll over this month and get stronger and be more interactive with his toys, his brother, and of course, me!

Comparisons (Update pt. 4)

Just for fun

Colin 3 monthsBen 3 months
Same: nose, mouth?, eye color
Different: size, ears, eye shape?

I looked back on baby pictures of Colin, and I can't quite describe this, but when I looked at them, it was weird seeing HIM, not Ben, as a baby. After looking at Baby Ben for hours a day, it's strange to see your big boy as a baby. He doesn't look quite like you remember, because the new baby's image takes the place of big boy as a baby. I'm not sure that makes much sense.

Brothers (Update pt. 3)

Here are a few pictures I've taken the last few weeks of Colin and Ben together. Ben loves to watch Colin play.

Balancing Sophie the Giraffe on Ben's head:
Ben has started sitting in the exersaucer (the seat is stuffed with blankets for extra stability). Colin has just as much fun playing with it as Ben does.
Resemblance?

Colin's First Dentist Appointment (Update pt. 2)

He went with me in January to get a ride in the chair and just check the place out. It took him some bribery to even open his mouth so the hygienist could count his teeth. I had previously made him an appointment for April for his real appointment, but since he at least let her count his teeth, we rescheduled him to July.

Or so I thought.

I got a reminder call on Thursday that he had an appointment on Friday. Somehow the appointment didn't get canceled. I figured, what the heck, we'll give it a shot. I honestly thought he had a cavity forming so this was perfect.

This kid is shy. He doesn't like new people or situations. He can be shy with his own grandparents for Heaven's sake, much less a strange woman who is about to put sharp instruments in his mouth. Needless to say, I was prepared for another non-appointment.

He surprises me sometimes.

He marched right up into the chair, laid back, opened his mouth, and let her count, polish, floss, even scrape his teeth! He did have a stuffed animal with him and he did hold my hand, but he definitely wasn't clinging to either of us. When the dentist came in later, I wasn't even holding his hand anymore at all. It was amazing. I was so proud of him so I treated him to a McFlurry for being so awesome.

Oh, and no cavity :)

Ben's Baptism (Update pt. 1)

Ben was baptized on March 25. Here are a few pictures of the day.
At church about to be baptized (sidenote, we've gone to this church for 4 years, but just officially joined last Sunday. Either we take commitments like this seriously or we're just lazy. Could be both).
Obviously he's mad he can't have a piece of cake and has to watch everyone else enjoy it.With my friend Kristin, who is his sponsor/Godmother. Check out Ben's Guayabara shirt. I'm kind of in love with it, and hope we can find another occasion to wear it for.
Colin is missing from this family photo because was being entertained happily downstairs.It was a special day for Benjamin, filled with lots of love. Although we're not openly religious people, we wholeheartedly believe in God and we're are excited to see Ben grow in faith.


Uh, sorry Ben, I'm about to hijack your baptism post here....
While we're on the subject of church/religion, here's a story that has nothing to do with Ben's baptism.

We were at church this morning and the Pastor was talking about Jesus. Colin looked at me and said, "I know Jesus." I asked him what he meant and he wouldn't tell me anymore, but it did make me smile. Oh, and also last Sunday, he randomly kissed me on the forehead in church. Some of his sweetest moments happen in pews.

Sorry Ben.