21 Months!

How does the time go by so fast? Mr. B. is 21 months old, and the big 2 is just around the corner! I'm a bad mama because all these pictures are from a few weeks ago, but they'll have to do.

I took this one while he was on the playground. I was on top of the play structure and he was climbing up. This ended up being our Christmas card picture. Too cute!

Trying on Joel's snowboarding helmet. It almost fits!

I bought Ben some new jammies from Old Navy and told him they needed to be washed before wearing. I heard the sound of running water in the bathroom sink, and it turns out Mr. B. decided to take matters into his own hands. What a helper!

These last two pictures are from December. He has already outgrown the shirts he's wearing, and his hair, well....let's just say it has also grown. It's drastically careening past "cute surfer dude" style and into what I like to call, "Joe Dirt Junior." I'll be scheduling a cut soon.

Stuff about Benjamin:

Still wants to read books ALL THE TIME. I love it! I don't know if it's the pictures, or stories or just the time spent with me, but he could read all day. I can definitely relate!

Ok, let's be honest, shall we? Benjamin won't eat veggies. He LOVED them when he was a baby, but now he won't touch anything that looks remotely like a vegetable. I don't make him "special" meals that are different from what Joel and I eat, so I'm definitely not catering to his tastes. He used to eat spinach on top of pizza, or in quesadillas or pasta, but now he flat out refuses. I mean, he literally gags when carrots come near his mouth! This is something he loved! I don't get it. Right now I'm trying not to make an issue of it because I feel like that's the quickest way to get him to NOT do something. I don't want to force him to eat things and start a battle at the dinner table, but now I'm wondering if that's what I should be doing. I don't know what to do except keep serving them and hope that one day he'll just get over it. He was always the type of kid who would try anything once, and now he freaks out if something looks different. What is going on?

What else? Not a lot of talking yet, but it's coming. I've always known that Ben would probably be a late talker. He never even really babbled as a baby, and was late for all of the verbal milestones. He understands everything we say, and the words he DOES use are perfectly clear so I know there's not a hearing issue. Ben is social, but not overly so. That means that he doesn't really feel the need to communicate. You don't understand him? Fine. He'd rather just show you some trucks and move on. You want to get excited about some toys and then talk about it? Whoa! Chill out. Let's just go look at these rocks over here until you calm down. Basically, he is in no hurry to grace us with his melodious speech. Until that day arrives, Ben functions pretty well with his limited vocabulary of around 17-18 words and a variety of sounds. His new words are: bowl, bus, up, ice, hat, gas, cheese and salsa. He also just started saying, "oh boy!" Let me also explain that his favorite word is "no" and he uses it to express his desire to NEVER EVER do anything I ask, no matter what. As in;

"Benjamin, can you say daddy?"

"No."

"Ben, what sound does a cow make?"

"No."

"Ben, I need you to put on your shoes."

"No."

"Ummm...can you say 'yes'?"

"No."

We all know who's in charge here.