Ben: 13 months

Ben is 13 months old and FINALLY had his 1-year well baby visit.

He weighs 32 lbs, 6 oz (100th percentile) and measures 32 inches tall (95th percentile).

He was not a happy camper. We went at 4:00 on a Friday. I'm sure he just wanted to go home, but instead was being checked out by three people (nurse, resident, pediatrician) he didn't know. He didn't want anybody touching him.

He had a rash on his hand. He had it over Christmas break, it went away, and it came back again Friday morning. It was just some dark red spots on his right hand, mostly around his thumb but also on the back of his hand, his wrist, and a little bit on his forearm. I guess the consensus is that it's broken blood vessels. In other words, he gave himself a hickey from sucking and chewing on his hand. He doesn't do that very often, but I guess just enough.

Ben's bottom lateral incisors (hence the sucking and chewing on his hand) cut through on 1/11. His hair is getting to the point where I feel like it's almost time to cut it, but I just can't bear to snip the curls off yet :(

Ben's words are:
"na" = milk
"da" = this/that/there
"uh oh"
"mama" but only sometimes, like when he REALLY wants something.
"hi"

He's a bruiser. When he walks, he has a lot of momentum behind himself and crashes and falls a lot. He always has a bruise somewhere.

I love when I pick him up from daycare and he runs to me, his arms outstretched, and hugs my legs. I bend down to give him a hug and he puts his arms around my shoulders and hugs and pats my shoulders. Then he lets go, looks at me, and hugs me again. Such a great way to feel loved :)

Ben follows directions very well, which I'm quite impressed with! When we tell him to sit in his chair for meal times, he walks over to it. When it's bath time, he walks to the bathroom, opens the cabinet and picks out what toys he wants, throws them in the bath tub, and then stands next to me so I can  take his clothes off. When it's time to put his socks and shoes on, he sits on the floor in front of me and lifts up his little foot. Of course, there are times when he doesn't listen, like when he's getting his diaper changed.

Ben loves to wrestle and play with Colin. He loves to be in Colin's room, and his favorite part about it is his bed. He likes to climb up on it, walk around on the mattress, and fall down.

New Year's Resolutions 2013

We rang in the new year in exciting style. The boys went to bed at their regular times and Kevin and I were tucked in at 11:00, although I wish it were more like 10:00 (or maybe earlier).

I'm so excited for 2013. I already know it's going to be an amazing year. Before I get to my new resolutions, let's review the 2012 version.
1. Pay off more debt.
Heck yeah! We paid off 2 credit cards, and another will be paid off this month.

2. Declutter.
I was a very good declutterer while I was on maternity leave. Our closets are still pretty organized with the baskets and bins I bought last year. As life goes, I didn't finish the whole year's worth of decluttering and it would probably be beneficial to start all over again. I've learned a lot about decluttering though and that "stuff is just stuff" and I truly won't miss the things I get rid of.

3. Survive the "Terrible 2s" and the first 8 months of the "Trying 3s": Round 1 (Colin).
We're surviving and there's a light at the end of the tunnel. Now that he's getting closer to four, he understands there's consequences to his actions and he takes less time outs. Thank the baby Jesus.

4. Be more generous. I don't know...I kept this resolution in the back of my mind a lot though and I like to think I was a little more generous. There's always room for improvement.

5. Make time for Rocket. I made a conscious effort to make sure I gave Rocket attention every day. If he snuggled with me in the evenings as I'm relaxing he'd get a lot more pets. But this is one thing I will be continuing to do.


Now for resolutions for 2013:
1. Pay OFF all debt. The remaining 2 (count 'em TWO!) credit cards will be paid off this summer at the latest! Then we're going to pay off my student loans and the Explorer and then we'll be debt-freakin'-free (aside from our mortgage) baby! I'm so freaking excited about this. We've been working really hard at sticking to a budget and "sacrificing" to get this debt out of our lives forever.

2. Run another 5k. It has been far too long. I've run one time since May 2011. Not good, but growing and breast feeding Ben took priority and now that we're on the cusp of being done with it, I can start running again.

3. Unplug. I admit there are times when I'm on my phone or laptop when I should be playing with the boys or doing something more productive. So I'm going to put the phone and laptop away until they're in bed.

Merry (belated) Christmas!

Our Christmas(es) was wonderful. We spent a bit of time with each of our families and got to spend Christmas Day just the four of us, so it was perfect.
On the 22nd we drove down to Rochester to have Christmas with my dad's side of the family. Paul and Tracy made some delicious food and were so happy to host their first Christmas in their new house :)

On the 23rd we celebrated Christmas with my parents, my brother, and Mandy. Since Ben just had his birthday a few weeks ago, he remembered how to open presents, but Colin still helped him out. He got a Little People airport.

 And Colin got a remote control Gator.

On Christmas Eve, we went to Kevin's parents' house. Ben got a fun xylophone.

 Colin got a(nother) farm. He likes it because it has a pulley for the hay loft and lots of little pieces.

 

Then on Christmas morning, Colin woke up and asked for a banana and Daddy's iPad just like any other morning. I asked him if he thought Santa came. He walked into the living room and it dawned on him that it was Christmas. He looked at the cookie plate and said, "Santa made a mess!"

Then I reminded him about his stocking and he dumped it out. This kid is happy when he gets new socks. Easy to please.

 Then he stared at the Chutes and Ladders game that Santa brought him for awhile.

Benny woke up soon after Colin and found the sled Santa brought him and pulled it around the house for a long time.

I managed to snap a pretty good shot of the boys in front of the tree. Ben, of course, in his sled. The tree decorated by a three year old. There are no ornaments until halfway up the tree, and they're all unbreakable to avoid disaster by a certain 1 year old. Perfect.

 The boys played with the shovels Santa brought them.

Then they dug into the presents we got them. We decided to go with: Something he wants (train cars), something he needs (alarm clock that shows him when its okay to wake up), something to wear (Jake and the Neverland Pirates tshirt), something to read (subscription to Zootles by Zoobooks).

Ben opened his presents in his sled, of course. We didn't really follow the rhyme this year for him. Something he wants ( - ), something he needs (Puddle Jumper), Something to wear (diapers), Something to read ( - ). He's too little to care this year.

The rest of the day we hung out, played outside, and went through the toys in the basement to get rid of broken ones and store the toys they don't play with anymore. They are far too spoiled, and we need to clean out what they aren't playing with. We also Skyped with Kevin's grandparents who are down in Texas for the winter.

This Christmas was fun because it was the first year Colin knew who Santa was, along with knowing about baby Jesus. It was so great to see his reactions and see the holiday from his perspective. This being Ben's second Christmas, but first one that he stayed awake for, it was fun to see his excitement as well.

We are so blessed to have family that gave us such a nice Christmas. Thanks for everything, families!

Ben: 1 year (including birthday party)

Ben is one year old now!

 

He is all over the place these days. He can walk pretty quickly and navigate backwards, turn, etc. He loves to play with a toy broom and mop set that Sandy gave him for his birthday. The day she gave it to him, he didn't let go of them. He passed out in the corner with the broom in his hand. At nap time, he lay down with the broom. Sandy tried to move it out of the way and he woke up screaming at her. So strange! :)

His favorite food is still meat. When he wants a snack, he opens the cupboard and I ask him what he wants. I show him a box/package and he either shakes his head "no" or grabs it from me if he wants it.

I feel like he has a great comprehension for being so little. At night time, we ask him if he wants to take a bath and he walks to the bathroom door. We open it and he tries to climb into the tub fully clothed. He loves taking a bath and splashes himself and has a grand ol' time in the water.

He likes to take his shirt off a lot too. He walks up to me, flapping his shirt up and down as if to say, "take this off for me!" and then when I do he's happy as can be. Look at that belly.

As far as numbers go, Ben has 4 teeth on the top and 2 teeth on the bottom. He weighs an estimated 33 lbs and wears 3T size shirts and 24m/2T size pants. His shoe size is a 7. He only takes 1 2 hr nap a day (he dropped the morning nap soon after starting daycare this fall).

Ben doesn't say many words yet. He says, "na na na..." for milk. He points and says, "na" and that means "take me over there" or "I want that." He was singing "more" but he doesn't really anymore, even though we sign it to him. He has said "mama" but not recently. Typical second child late talker. He makes a lot of noise though, and expresses his emotions through talking, screaming, etc.

Ben's birthday party

We had a birthday party for him on the 8th. Family came over and we had fun celebrating Ben's first year. I didn't pause to take a picture of my awesome birthday banner I made :( We kept it simple, like I usually do. We had pulled pork/beef sandwiches, chips, and a mixed fruit salad. I made cupcakes with homemade cream cheese frosting.

As eager as he looks to dive into his cupcake in this picture...

he didn't even have a bite of it. Instead, he shook his head "no."

He had help opening presents from big brother.

We asked for some Little People toys since they're so well-loved and we didn't have many.

After most of his guests had left or were on their way out the door, Ben started lying on the floor. It was perfect timing to end the party and take a nap.

Thanks for everyone who made Benny's birthday special. He felt very loved and likes playing with his new toys.

Colin's Christmas Program

The 3 year old, 4 year old, and Kindergarten Sunday school classes had a Christmas program. It was pretty much adorable.

Going in, I expected Colin to not participate, and to possibly cry or refuse to stand up in front. We were pleasantly surprised when I did as he was told :) He didn't sing, but I'm okay with that!

And then the kids played Silent Night on handbells, which was too freaking cute. He did a good job of ringing his orange bell when he was signaled to ring it. In between his turn, he looks around to watch everyone else ring their bells. Watch the video. That mouth stretching thing must be a nervous tick or something. He does that sometimes.

So much to say, I don't know where to start (plus also...Ben's 1 yr pics!)

I've been super busy--Ben's birthday party, piano lessons, piano recital--and I have pictures to upload but can't find the cord. I will post soon. I might post-vomit all over here this week. Watch out!

For now...a peek at pictures that Leah took for us a few weeks ago at the Conservatory at the Walker Art Center...Love 'em! Thanks again, Leah :)

 Could his cheeks BE any squishier?

40%

Today we officially paid off Credit Card #2 in our debt snowball! ::cue happy dance:: This means both of MY credit cards are paid off and we can move on to Kevin's. The next one is slated to be paid off in February, and the other 2 by August (calculated using conservative numbers). Now that the cards are getting paid off, it's so fun to see them drop off the radar FOR GOOD.

2 down, 3 to go! = 40% paid off

How are we making it happen these days?
-Cloth diapering
-Breast feeding
-Grocery shopping at Aldi with $80/week budget, and no we are not starving ourselves or our children!
-Emeals for meal planning
-Not spending money just to spend money
-Not eating out (unless we have a gift card)
-Buying clothes that are on sale
-Selling stuff we don't need
-Teaching summer school and piano lessons
-Couponing (a little bit here and there)

2013 is our year. 30 days left until it starts :)