Ben's 9 month appointment

Ben had a pediatrician appointment yesterday. Because the Stillwater Lift Bridge is closed for a few months, we had to see a different doctor. It was not an enjoyable appointment. Our appointment was at 4:10, but we didn't get back in the room until at least 4:30. The nurse was a frantic mess, Ben wanted to play on the floor with the toys instead of getting his head measured, his heart rate checked, etc. The doctor was VERY quick with us. It was Friday afternoon. He probably wanted to get home. I get it. But seriously. I feel like he did minimal checking and minimal talking. So different than Dr. C. who is a talker and is very thorough and fun.

Ben's weight is 30 lbs 12 oz, which is obviously still above the curve, but is slowing at the same rate the curve does, so yay! He's 29 inches, which is in the average range. I don't even know percentiles because the doctor said his paperwork would be printed off at the front desk and I could pick it up when we left. When we left the lights in the lobby were turned off and all the desk people left. Annoyed. Dr. C's nurse usually gives us the paperwork.

It was like a flashback to Colin's well baby checks. Not impressed. 

Ben: 9 months

We're a little off center this month. The sign juuuust got in the picture. It's either put it far away and hope he doesn't reach for it or put it close to him and have a drooly crumpled up sign, so I take what I can get these days! Mr. Ben is into EVERYTHING now. He's crawling and pulling himself up, so we now have to keep the bathroom door shut and put the untouchables up high. He's opening drawers and cabinets and has mastered the "dump and run."

He "talks" to us by mimicking. He'll make a noise, we'll repeat it, he'll make another, etc. etc. Or we say his name "Be-en" and he responds with a sound like "Wha-at?" :) He also says "uh" (half of "uh-oh") in context.

I love picking him up from daycare, because he gives me an honest-to-goodness genuine bear hug and then he "kisses" me by sucking on my chin, and then he sucks on my shoulder. If I pay too much attention to Colin first when I pick them up, he won't forget to be shy to yell at me.

He had some separation issues happening the last few months (as is the protocol for babies around this age), but seems to be over it for the most part now. He sat on someone else's lap in church last weekend, and my friend's lap yesterday. He's a bit shy at first and rests his head on my shoulder, but after he surveys the situation, he's, once again, easy going.

Ben is sleeping pretty well. Still not through the night, but he'll wake up once (sometimes twice). Now that I'm back to work I really, honestly don't mind it because it's one more chance to nurse him. Those days are numbered and I want to soak them up! If I didn't nurse him at night, I'd probably only do it twice a day (morning and bedtime) and I'm just not ready to give it up yet.

And these curls! They get curlier in humidity.

Ben weighs about 31 lbs now. His 9 month appointment is in a few weeks, so we'll get the official stats then. Hopefully now that he's reached the weight of a 2 year old his weight will slow down like a 2 year old's. It seems to be slowing. Although we're going to have to figure out a diaper solution because once he hits 35 lbs, his cloth diapers may not fit him anymore. He's wearing 18 month size pants and 24m/2T/3T shirts.

I'm the only parent of a non-preschooler 3 year old.

My facebook newsfeed is littered with countless 3 year olds starting preschool this year, all standing in their crisp, clean, first day of school outfits holding up a sign or standing next to an easel announcing their big milestone.

Part of me feels like a slacker for not sending Colin to preschool this year.
(He's going to be so far behind his peers!)
*Huh. This is the only thing on my list.

Part of me doesn't feel like a slacker.
(He loves daycare and Sandy is doing some preschool things with the 3 older kids this year)
(He loves being with Ben)
(He's a kid and school will start soon enough. Let him be a kid for one more year without the pressure of school)
(He needs another year of familiarity before we start the half day preschool routine)
(He'll learn his letters and numbers when he's ready)

So for now I guess I can just sit back and enjoy not having to worry about school for another year.

Summer Reflection

On the eve of the return of children to my classroom, I'd like to take a moment to reflect on the last 3 months.

First off, it doesn't feel like it  was 3 months ago that I said adieu to my students and hello to my own kids. This summer has FLOWN by.

A minute ago, I went back to my blog entries in August 2011. They're filled with weekly updates of my pregnancy with Ben. It's so strange to think that not even a year ago, he wasn't out here with us and we had no idea who he was going to be. I also noticed that we did A LOT more last summer than we did this summer. I know the weather played a little part in that (heat wave, cold wave), and we were also a bit more homebound. But in reality, Colin was perfectly content bumming around home. So I guess I'll relish in our homebound (and inexpensive!) summers before these boys get old enough to ask to go to the pool, the beach, Valleyfair, Fun Fest, Como Zoo, MN Zoo, etc. etc. etc.

The boys went to daycare a couple times a week, which in the beginning I hated the thought of. But now that it's all said and done, it was good for them and good for me. I got a chance to get things done around the house, and they got to play with their friends.  The transition back into our school year routine has already proven to be seamless.

Among other already mentioned happenings (like the time he learned to ride a bike!) Colin took a class through community ed for 7 weeks. It was a gym class, held in a gymnastics room. He got some experiences with jumping off the vault, hanging from the uneven bars, balancing on the beam, jumping on rebounder trampolines, and being with other kids in a learning environment. He loved the class, so I'm hoping to enroll him in something this fall. Maybe we'll even try a non parent-child class. He did okay with Vacation Bible School, so maybe he's ready for the next step.

Ben has gone from a sitting up and rolling baby to a crawling baby over the span of the summer. He's into everything now. He's gone from drinking solely milk to eating a wide variety of foods and loving it.

So, on the eve of the official return, I bid adieu to the summer and say hello to 20 new kiddos greeting me tomorrow. At the end of 180 work days, we'll start our summer of fun all over again.

Off into the sunset

Thanks to the balance bike we got Colin for his birthday in April, learning how to ride a bike with no training wheels was a breeze! My parents had a bike at their house that the neighbor boy had given them. We were there last weekend, so I asked Colin if he wanted to give it a try. He hopped on, and I held on to the seat, but I could feel that he was balancing on his own, so I did what every good parent does: I let go. And away he went, yelling at me to hold on to him! I told him he was going too fast for me to keep up and he was doing just fine. Over the next few attempts, he gained confidence enough so that he knew he didn't need me to help. We took the bike home and Kevin showed him how to start, and they practiced turning in the church parking lot by our house. Easy as that.

And now we can be seen cruising around the neighborhood (and sometimes farther!) on our bikes, with Ben in the Burley, and it's so much fun :). Kevin and Colin even went on a ride yesterday that was almost 2 miles.

Roasting Marshmallows

We live near a bunch of campgrounds, and when we drive by in the summer, we often see tents set up. Colin always asks if they're roasting marshmallows. He'd never had one himself, so while we were visiting my parents last weekend, I asked my dad if he'd build a fire so he could try one.

Apparently the fire needs to be reduced to this in order to roast marshmallows to golden brown perfection. This explains why I always burn mine, I guess.

I mean, seriously. Look at that golden goodness.

 First taste

And the mess that follows.

He ate 2 marshmallows and got his fill. He liked them, but said they were messy. I decided to forgo the introduction to s'mores for now. Baby steps.

Summer Fun: Teddy Bear Park

Whew! We've been super busy around here. I'm back to share some more pictures of summer fun. First up, no summer week would be complete without a trip to Teddy Bear Park. Well, actually, we didn't go there every week like we did last summer. We mixed it up a little more since Colin is older and enjoys other parks now. But Ben is juuust getting to the age where Teddy Bear Park is perfect for him.

After Ben cut his two bottom teeth, he frequently stuck his tongue out.

Pulling himself up on the end of the slide. Maybe the tongue helps him concentrate?

We met up with Nolan and William at the park. Nolan shared some snacks with Colin.

 

Ben and William shared a slide.

The annual picture-by-the-bear shot.

As always, we love TBP!