16 months (well, almost 17 months)

Last night Ben decided his toys needed some rearranging. Mimi gave him this little play tent, which has become the perfect spot for "displaying" his collection. He spent several minutes walking back and forth from his bookshelves to the tent, placing each item inside separately. 

By the way, have you noticed I finally started putting shirts on the boy? Unfortunately, I keep forgetting about the pants. Darn! I'm always missing something.

Sorry I've been lax about the blog. I haven't had much energy lately, and the blog is definitely taking a backseat. I think it's that end of summer feeling everyone gets. Once it cools off a little I might feel more inspired. Anyway...that means I forgot to write a 16 month update! So, here it goes...

Not to brag or anything, but Joel and I are always amazed at how much Benjamin understands. I think every parent goes through this at some point, but we just can't believe he comprehends the majority of what we are saying. The other night he was pointing to the characters on his pajamas and saying "hm?" so I said, "that's a dinosaur. A dino." His eyes instantly lit up, and he frantically motioned to one of his books. I picked it up, and he turned the pages until he reached the one he wanted, and then pointed to a picture of a rhino. WHAT! I mean, it's not a dinosaur, but I'm impressed that he heard a similar word and knew which book and page to look at. He loves to be read to, and when it's story time he painstakingly looks over every single book. I've actually seen him run his hand over the spines, pause at a book he thinks he wants to read, then change his mind and keep his hand going until he gets to the REAL choice. Just like a mini-adult! 

I've been working with him on talking a little more. Joel and I think he just needs more encouragement about trying new words. His vocabulary has broadened a little bit, and now he says ball, mama, dada, duck, dog, ladybird (bebe!), book (ba), banana (baba), and flower. He also makes "vroom" sounds when he sees a car or truck, and says "MMMMM" when he sees a cow. He has also recently started to use the words "no" (oh joy)) and "mine", which he says like a question--"muh?" I've worked with him on sign language for several months, but he's never really been interested. He does the sign for "all done", and will sometimes sign "more," but that's about it. When he's hungry he just gets his bib and stands next to his high chair, and when he's thirsty he goes to the refrigerator. Works for me! His new "sign" is to very quickly point to an item and then to himself, as in, "give me that." Even thought he's not talking or signing very much, I don't feel too frustrated because I know he understands quite a bit. I can tell him we're going to see daddy, going to the store, changing his diaper, taking a bath, making dinner, taking a nap, etc..and he always knows. 

At this point he's developing so quickly it's difficult to write about everything! I'm personally having a hard time with the switch from babyhood to toddlerhood. I've noticed that Ben has started to run away whenever I say his name, probably because he realizes that I'm going to tell him he can't do something. I need to focus more on what he is allowed to do, rather than instantly saying no. It's a hard habit to break!  I'm such a jumpy and energetic person, and when I'm tired or stressed it's easy for me to start acting anxious or nervous. I don't want Benjamin to feel that way, so I'm focusing more on being calm. I need to realize that messes and accidents are not a big deal. Truthfully, I feel like I'm not a very good mom a lot of the time. But when I look at Benjamin and see how healthy and smart he is, I realize we've had a good start. I'm so lucky to be a mama!

First Haircut

We've been very busy lately. Arrived home from VA yesterday afternoon, and the in-laws are coming to visit sometime this week. Mr. B. is a little under the weather, but I think we're looking at a 48 hour bug so it should be over soon. I'll post pictures from our trip at some point, but for now I have a house to clean and errands to run! 

Ben had his first haircut last week, and I LOVE it! 

The mullet

He didn't cry, but he definitely wasn't happy.

He got to sit in a car chair, which really made the experience palatable. I don't know if he would have been able to sit still in a barber's chair.

Sorry for the action shot. Benjamin is the only child I know who actually runs AWAY from the camera when you point it at him. Doesn't he look like a big boy? 

Teething!

This weekend was not as relaxing as I had hoped. We have a teething Mr. B., and I feel like "teething" does not adequately describe the torture we're all experiencing. One pesky upper molar is turning our house upside down! I must admit that I had several instances of having to stop, take a deep breath, and say to myself, "he's only a baby, he's only a baby." When your 15 month old is insistent on hitting you in the face OVER AND OVER and alternating that activity with CONSTANT WHINING, well....let's just say it's not pleasant.

BUT, here's the funny thing about Ben. When his teeth aren't hurting, he is seriously the best baby. Just the happiest, friendliest, most laid back and loving little boy. Seriously...I'm not just saying that because I'm his mama! After a series of bad incidents this weekend, our little guy switched over to happy mode yesterday evening. Daddy took pictures to prove it!

Exploring 

I know, I know...the hair has to be trimmed at some point.

Splashing

Happy to be here!

End of summer stuff

Ugh. Too many thoughts running through my mind that I just realized are really not worth my time. I tend to feel make myself feel very busy and stressed for absolutely NO reason at all. Type A, I guess. I have some pictures of Ben I wanted to post, but they're on my phone and I can't figure out how to get them off. And I don't have the patience right now to read the instruction manual, so here are some other thoughts.

1.) This week/weekend, I MUST paint a chalkboard wall in my kitchen. I have the supplies, I know where I'm going to paint it, and I think the whole project shouldn't take more than two hours. So why haven't I done it yet?

2.) I think I want to buy this lovely item from Pottery Barn to cover up our couch that I hate. I love it, but it's white. However, it's also an easily removable and washable slipcover. Should I throw caution to the wind? I'm about 97% yes on this question.

3.) Please, somebody, come and take away all of my old junk. I'm begging you. And please convince my husband that he doesn't need 100 t-shirts, and 250 pairs of socks. 

4.) Is anyone else tired of summer? I sure am. 

5.) After much time and energy, I have decided on a completely new furniture layout and decorating scheme for my house. Unfortunately, my vision centers on the purchase of a sectional for our den. Anyone have some money they want to give me? Maybe we could work out a trade involving t-shirts and socks?

6.) I think I'm going to break down and buy Benjamin some new clothes. Yesterday I took him to play with a friend, and realized my son looks like a street urchin. It seems that having his shirts double as bibs wasn't a good idea. I'm going to be honest here, and say that I would much rather buy something new for my house. 

7.) I've been forcing myself to go to bed earlier, which has worked wonders for my tiredness. Who knew? I still feel a little out of it at times, but I'm trying to focus on one thing at a time. It's not easy for me, but it has to be done. I sure wish I had something big to list all my upcoming projects on. Something that would be staring me in the face everyday, so I couldn't procrastinate and would be forced to finish things. Like say, a chalkboard wall? What a great idea!

15 Months

Ben had his 15 month checkup yesterday, and everything went swimmingly. His height is 30.5 inches and he weighs 22 lbs. That means he is in the 25-30 percentile for height and the 10-25 percentile for weight. Dr. Horger said he would most likely stay within those percentiles from now on, so he'll probably always be average height with a slim build. I asked if he was able to predict adult height at this age, and he "guesstimated" Ben would be between 5'8" and 5'10". That's exactly what I had been thinking! 

Overall, the doctor thought Benjamin looked very healthy and happy. He has gotten four new teeth in the past week (including 2 molars!) and he's working on more. When it rains it pours! He was also VERY impressed with his sleep schedule, since he sleeps 11-12 hours a night, and still naps twice most days. I only had two questions, and they both concerned development. Ben is still not too verbal, and he only has about 5 words he uses regularly. Dr. Horger asked if he babbles with a variety of sounds, if he understands commands without gestures, and if he constantly points and grunts. The answers are yes, YES, and OHMYGOSHYES!! So, I guess the small vocabulary isn't a problem. I also asked about learning disabilities, specifically ADD. I felt kind of dumb being concerned about it, but I'm a little hyper-vigilant about that problem because of my own issues. I just want to know if there's anything I should be noticing at this age. He said there is definitely a genetic component to ADD, but the earliest ANY child could be diagnosed would be 3 1/2, and even that is a stretch. He told me not to worry about it, and we would deal with it later if we have to. So, ok! I'm not going to think about it. 

He's still a happy baby. LOVES to brush his hair and pretends that everything is a hairbrush. He also pretends to wash his face all time. And he loves to swiffer! Whenever I'm straightening the house I just give him a swiffer, and that usually occupies him for a while. The favorite activity right now is matching objects. He's always placing lids with containers, and bringing people items he knows are theirs, like shoes, shirts, etc... The other day the whole family had to go to the Verizon store, and Ben occupied himself by taking an item off the shelf, walking around for a while, and then placing it back in the proper spot. It was like one big game of Memory. He also likes to look at himself in the mirror. We have a big mirror leaning against the wall, and he'll walk by and glance at himself, stop, back up slowly, and then wave. He also likes to walk past and take a glance, back up, move forward, back up...on and on and on. I think it's pretty funny.

What else? Still eats a lot. Still loves bananas, strawberries, and blueberries, and could probably live off them. He'll eat eggplant and zucchini if I disguise it, and he loves spinach and sweet potatoes. His new favorite foods are sour cream and salsa. As in...give him a spoon and let him dig in. Apparently quesadillas or other "main dishes" are just accoutrements that I use to distract him from the REAL meal. It's the same with cream cheese or strawberry jam. Bread is just the vehicle for his choice of condiment, and he spends a lot of time carefully dismantling and licking various foods off his sandwiches. I'll turn around and see that he's amassed a pile of gooey, smooshy, and remarkably clean looking bread on the side of his tray, while somehow managing to not take a single bite.

His hair is getting long, but I can't bring myself to cut it! The front is cute, but he's working on a little mullet in the back.

New favorite activity...climbing on stuff. And since we live in the South, shirts are always optional. No shirt combined with a mullet means that maybe I need to step it up in the "making sure my kid looks presentable" department.

This is a new sport called "Scoot-About Swiffering." It's just like Polo, only with a Swiffer. And a Scoot-About. And it's inside. And, ummm...you don't actually hit anything, except, like, maybe the wall or the refrigerator on accident. Maybe I should think of another analogy? And maybe he shouldn't play this game anymore?

Is is July already?

What a crazy couple of weeks we've had! Last weekend our good friends Ryan and Ellen drove down from Winston-Salem and spent a couple of nights. We took the boat out on the Intracoastal Waterway at sunset (and saw dolphins!), ate WAAAAY too much fried food, went to the beach, celebrated Ryan's birthday, had some fulfilling conversations, ate barbeque, and in general had a great time. Also, Joel and I have decided that everyone who visits has to have their picture taken with our mascot! 

Ellen and Ben

Ryan and Ben

Ellen in action!

View from the boat on the Intracoastal Waterway. All of those boats are much, much, much more expensive than ours. But we have more fun, right?!! Actually, those boats have flat screens, bars, and beds, so they're probably having more fun, but whatever...

This past Friday we went to a party hosted by a work colleague of Joel's. Work parties are not really my idea of a good time, but this turned out to be pretty low key. There were probably about 12-15 older kids there, which means they were all CRAZY!! I think Ben was a little overwhelmed. He just wanted to sit and look at everyone. I made some new friends, and it was nice to meet more of Joel's co-workers. 

On Saturday our friends Dan and Sylvia came over for barbeque and conversation. It's always wonderful for me to see Sylvia. We've really connected recently, and I'm looking forward to spending more time with her. I feel like now that the craziness of moving, pregnancy, and having a new baby has passed, I can work more on developing friendships. 

Lots of stuff is happening this week, which I'll write more about later. Joel still needs to grout the backsplash tile, but it looks GREAT. Ben got two new teeth yesterday, so you can imagine how fun that was for everyone:) I don't know what's going on with me, but I am SO. TIRED. Nope. Not pregnant. Just exhausted. I even went to my midwife for my annual, and kept asking, "are you sure I'm fine? I'm so tired all the time." She told me that I'm exhausted because I have a 14 month old, it's really hot and miserable outside, and my hormones are still trying to adjust. I don't know. We'll see. In the meantime I feel like I'm barely functioning. I'm just having a hard time maintaining an interest in anything, even in things I normally love to do, like reading. Maybe this is depression? I don't feel particularly depressed, just really out of it all the time. My energy level has drastically dissipated in the past month, yet the laundry still gets done, the dog gets walked, the bed gets made, and dinner is ready every night. It can't be that bad! I'm still obsessed with finding my "illness" on WebMD though. Why is not wanting to clean your house not listed as a symptom? 

Uh oh. I have a baby who's decided to not take a morning nap today, so my computer time is cut short. I better get moving!

Finally!

I've been trying to upload this video for 3 days now, and for some reason Blogger decided today was my lucky day! *Warning* This is pretty much for grandparents, aunts, uncles, or anyone who has interest in seeing Ben walk. I won't be offended if you don't watch it!