Top Shots
1 year ago
Thursday, May 31, 2012
Thursday, May 24, 2012
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
Please keep him safe
Ben knows how to roll onto his belly, which is all great fun until it's night time and we find him on his belly, his face either lying on top of his hands or smooshed into the mattress.
The only thing we can do is check on him and turn him over if need be before going to bed ourselves. And then there's a little prayer said before dozing off.
Soon there will come a time when he can roll back over onto his back. Until then, I can only trust that God will keep him safe.
The only thing we can do is check on him and turn him over if need be before going to bed ourselves. And then there's a little prayer said before dozing off.
Soon there will come a time when he can roll back over onto his back. Until then, I can only trust that God will keep him safe.
Friday, May 18, 2012
Ben: 5 months
Benny, Benny, Benny what a joy you continue to be.
His smile and laugh are infectious. Colin gets the biggest laughs from him just by talking to him and acting goofy around him. He watches Colin wherever he goes. He's so easy going. Our neighbor says he's a "placid baby" because he's so calm.
He can roll from his back to his belly now and he's trying really hard to roll from belly to back. He blows raspberries and babbles now too.
His first tooth gives him some problems now and then, but Colin gave Ben his amber teething necklace about a week and a half ago, and the last week he's been much happier. He's loving to chew on his Sophie Giraffe and we resurrected a teether with bristles on it that Colin used that he loves.
He only drinks about 10 oz of milk all day long at Sandy's house, and he can go 4-5 hours between meals. At home in the evenings he likes to spend some quiet one-on-one time with Mommy eating though. We haven't started him on table food yet. We've decided to skip the rice cereal since it has no nutritional value and obviously he doesn't need to be any fuller than he already is!
Ben is moving into 18 month sized clothes now. Finding clothes that fit him is hard because he has such meaty thighs and most shorts/pants can't go over them. So we have to buy old man stretchy "sweat" pants and shorts. I dare venture that at this rate Colin and Ben will be wearing the same size someday. I've just finished packing away Colin's 2T stuff!
Ben has fallen into a pretty predictable routine. Waking up early must run in the family because Ben wakes up before 6 just like Colin does. He usually takes an hour-long nap in the morning and a 2-3 hour nap in the afternoon. Most days he cat naps on the way home from daycare for about a half hour. He gets hungry just before 6:00 and starts getting tired and crabby at 7:00. That's when we give him a bath, put his jammies on, and feed him one last time before bed. Most nights he's sleeping in his crib by 8:00. Ben typically wakes up once a night, but it's also not unusual for him to sleep all night long or to wake up twice when his tooth is bothering him.
It seems like he's growing up so fast. I wish time would just slow down so I can enjoy his babyhood a little more.
He can roll from his back to his belly now and he's trying really hard to roll from belly to back. He blows raspberries and babbles now too.
His first tooth gives him some problems now and then, but Colin gave Ben his amber teething necklace about a week and a half ago, and the last week he's been much happier. He's loving to chew on his Sophie Giraffe and we resurrected a teether with bristles on it that Colin used that he loves.
He only drinks about 10 oz of milk all day long at Sandy's house, and he can go 4-5 hours between meals. At home in the evenings he likes to spend some quiet one-on-one time with Mommy eating though. We haven't started him on table food yet. We've decided to skip the rice cereal since it has no nutritional value and obviously he doesn't need to be any fuller than he already is!
Ben is moving into 18 month sized clothes now. Finding clothes that fit him is hard because he has such meaty thighs and most shorts/pants can't go over them. So we have to buy old man stretchy "sweat" pants and shorts. I dare venture that at this rate Colin and Ben will be wearing the same size someday. I've just finished packing away Colin's 2T stuff!
Ben has fallen into a pretty predictable routine. Waking up early must run in the family because Ben wakes up before 6 just like Colin does. He usually takes an hour-long nap in the morning and a 2-3 hour nap in the afternoon. Most days he cat naps on the way home from daycare for about a half hour. He gets hungry just before 6:00 and starts getting tired and crabby at 7:00. That's when we give him a bath, put his jammies on, and feed him one last time before bed. Most nights he's sleeping in his crib by 8:00. Ben typically wakes up once a night, but it's also not unusual for him to sleep all night long or to wake up twice when his tooth is bothering him.
It seems like he's growing up so fast. I wish time would just slow down so I can enjoy his babyhood a little more.
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
Gazelle Intensity
Kevin and I are big fans of Dave Ramsey. We "graduated" from Financial Peace University two years ago and we're halfway done with paying off our credit card debt. One thing Dave talks about in FPU is living with Gazelle Intensity to pay off debt. Get a part time job, cut your budget down to barebones, things like that.
We've cut our budget down to barebones. We don't set aside any money for entertainment. We don't splurge. We don't eat out (very often). We basically buy groceries, paper/personal products, and clothes and essentials here and there for the boys. That's it.
I teach piano lessons (I'm up to 11 kids which adds up to 2 1/2 hours per week). That's like my part time job.
I told you about my summer school mishap. Well, my principal told me she should have a spot for me the second 3 weeks of summer school. I'd prefer to do the first 3 weeks, but at this point I'll take whatever. This morning the other summer school coordinator approached me and asked if I was available for the first 3 weeks in case she needs me to be a second teacher for some of the fuller classes. It might not even be the full 4 hours of time. Just an hour or two.
And with that, I have this dilemma....
1. I want to, need to spend time with the boys this summer. I've done 6 weeks of summer school the past 5 years. By the time it's over, summer is practically gone. I'll never, ever regret time I spend with the boys. And they're only going to be this little for so long.
2. Entertaining 2 kids for an entire day is hard work. I might need the break.
3. One of the best things about summer is hanging out with friends and their children. If I'm working, when will I be able to do this? Our beach and park visits will be limited to afternoons.
4. But then there's the money. If I just suck it up and work as much as I can this summer, I can cut back next summer. Our credit cards will be paid off by June 2014. My summer school money could potentially go straight towards it and change it to May 2014. Maybe even April :).
I feel so uneasy about working so much this summer. But then I remember I'm blessed that not working for 2 months is even an OPTION for me. And I remember that by paying off debt, we're giving our kids a better life (not with stuff, but with financial peace).
I'm just going to roll with it and see what happens. I feel like if I have the opportunity to make money, I should take it.
And, if you're wondering, no we haven't found a "subleaser" for our daycare spot yet.
We've cut our budget down to barebones. We don't set aside any money for entertainment. We don't splurge. We don't eat out (very often). We basically buy groceries, paper/personal products, and clothes and essentials here and there for the boys. That's it.
I teach piano lessons (I'm up to 11 kids which adds up to 2 1/2 hours per week). That's like my part time job.
I told you about my summer school mishap. Well, my principal told me she should have a spot for me the second 3 weeks of summer school. I'd prefer to do the first 3 weeks, but at this point I'll take whatever. This morning the other summer school coordinator approached me and asked if I was available for the first 3 weeks in case she needs me to be a second teacher for some of the fuller classes. It might not even be the full 4 hours of time. Just an hour or two.
And with that, I have this dilemma....
1. I want to, need to spend time with the boys this summer. I've done 6 weeks of summer school the past 5 years. By the time it's over, summer is practically gone. I'll never, ever regret time I spend with the boys. And they're only going to be this little for so long.
2. Entertaining 2 kids for an entire day is hard work. I might need the break.
3. One of the best things about summer is hanging out with friends and their children. If I'm working, when will I be able to do this? Our beach and park visits will be limited to afternoons.
4. But then there's the money. If I just suck it up and work as much as I can this summer, I can cut back next summer. Our credit cards will be paid off by June 2014. My summer school money could potentially go straight towards it and change it to May 2014. Maybe even April :).
I feel so uneasy about working so much this summer. But then I remember I'm blessed that not working for 2 months is even an OPTION for me. And I remember that by paying off debt, we're giving our kids a better life (not with stuff, but with financial peace).
I'm just going to roll with it and see what happens. I feel like if I have the opportunity to make money, I should take it.
And, if you're wondering, no we haven't found a "subleaser" for our daycare spot yet.
Saturday, May 5, 2012
HapBENnings
What's been happening with Ben?
Well, the little man is cutting his first tooth! We can see a little white dot juuuust starting to poke through. He has been pretty good about it, but appreciates a shot of Tylenol at times. Buying a teething necklace is on my to do list today.
Have I mentioned he sleeps through the night? About half the time, he sleeps from 8ish (usually earlier) to 6ish (usually earlier). Other nights he wakes up just once for a snack. Can't complain about that, since I've seen the complete opposite.
He's also rolling over! It seems like every time we put him on his back now, he rolls right over to his belly. Sandy says when he takes a nap at daycare, he rolls onto his belly. She flips him over and he rolls back. We haven't seen that at home yet. It makes me nervous, but you can't stop him from rolling! We'll just have to be aware of it.
He's digging his exersaucer too. He loves to reach for things and hit buttons.
He loves chewing on the feet of this horse toy.
He loves playing airplane and swinging in the swing outside.
Here's the status of his rolls :)
Well, the little man is cutting his first tooth! We can see a little white dot juuuust starting to poke through. He has been pretty good about it, but appreciates a shot of Tylenol at times. Buying a teething necklace is on my to do list today.
Have I mentioned he sleeps through the night? About half the time, he sleeps from 8ish (usually earlier) to 6ish (usually earlier). Other nights he wakes up just once for a snack. Can't complain about that, since I've seen the complete opposite.
He's also rolling over! It seems like every time we put him on his back now, he rolls right over to his belly. Sandy says when he takes a nap at daycare, he rolls onto his belly. She flips him over and he rolls back. We haven't seen that at home yet. It makes me nervous, but you can't stop him from rolling! We'll just have to be aware of it.
He's digging his exersaucer too. He loves to reach for things and hit buttons.
Here's the status of his rolls :)
He's learning and growing so quickly! I still can't believe he's getting teeth and rolling over already. Where does time go?
Thursday, May 3, 2012
Colin's 3rd Birthday Party
Colin's birthday party was a few weeks ago. He was so excited for it and went down for a nap like a champ before the festivities began. The weather was rainy and cool, so we had to gather in our living room.
He had a Mickey Mouse party, so we had hot dogs and bratwurst as our main dish (to go with the "Hot Dog Dance" from Mickey Mouse Clubhouse) along with fruit salad for our fruit-lovin' little boy, chips, and beans.
Colin loved this card that Grandma and Grandpa F. gave him. It was a Spongebob card that played the sponge's rendition of Happy Birthday when you pressed a button. He listened to it quite a few times, with a huge smile on his face every time. He has kept the card and likes to listen to it.
Colin had great fun! Thanks to all of our family and friends who came to celebrate! I asked him a few times what his favorite present was, and he always had a different answer.
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