It's All About The Benjamin

2009 Trike-a-Thon to benefit St. Jude's Children's Hospital

2009-11-18T08:28:00.000-08:00

Ben will be riding tomorrow in the 2009 Trike-a-Thon to benefit St. Jude's Children's Hospital. While that may sound adventurous, it involves riding a tricycle for as many laps as possible within 2 minutes during his gym class. Ben hasn't really gotten the hang of the tricycle yet - his teachers say it is not one of his favorite activities - so we're hoping he can complete at least one lap. His teacher said they would help out the kids who aren't proficient on Tricycle yet. ;)

If you would like to sponsor Ben, that would be great - please let me know if you would like to sponsor a dollar amount per lap or a flat donation. His school also has receipts for tax purposes so I can get these for you if you choose to sponsor.

PLEASE don't feel obligated to sponsor him. Really. Christmas is coming up and some people feel the recession strain a bit keenly. I sent an e-mail and then thought I should post this here. I forgot to include pictures with the e-mail...

I need to get the donations to his school by December 2nd. Any checks should be made payable to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

Thanks for taking the time to read this and I hope all of you are well. We're busy and Ben continues to grow like a weed! He's 40.25" tall and his teachers say he excels in language and vocabulary. We're working on name and letter recognition, but he can name 8/10 colors. He's happy, healthy and funny. We're so blessed to have him in our lives!

Be well and I hope to see you all soon.

Again, With The Time Flying And All....

2009-06-16T14:09:00.001-07:00

So! Where were we?

Time is that precious commodity I am not bathing in, So I try to get here when I can. Must try to do it more often. But enough about me! You don't want to hear about my time management skills (or lack therof). Here's what's going on with Ben...
Ben turned three (!) this past April. He measured just over 39" at the beginning of the month. He is a baby no longer - a little boy to be sure. Or rather, a big boy, since we successfully completed potty training last weekend. He's doing so well and we're very proud of him. In the morning when he wakes up we take him to the potty first thing. Lately he's been telling me, "Mommy, don't be happy. Shhhh." Apparently my exuberant cries of "Whoo-hoo! You did it! What a big boy you are!" might be a little much to handle first thing in the morning when he's still sleepy. So I've adjusted my praise to be a bit more somber.
He is very chatty. I read somewhere that a child's speaking has to do with the development of their tongue and lips - the more they use them the more proficient they become at speaking. It has nothing to do with intelligence or brain developement, it's all the the muscles used for speech. Which is why he's so good - he talks a lot! His conversations are so funny and he's really picking up on the art of negotiations: "Just a few more minutes, Mama, and that's all." "Two more jelly beans in a bowl, please, and that's all, Mommy." "Daddy, Opah's going to the store and he's going to buy me a big Luke Skywalker and a blue light saber. You will be Darth Vader and I will be Obi Wan and we'll fight. Okay, Daddy? Okay!"

He's a funny, bright and adorable little boy and our lives have been enriched by his presence. We're truly blessed.
Of course, he still has his tantrums every so often. His Dad and I always stick to our guns. I understand one of a child's "jobs" is to discover his limits - Ben tests frequently to see just what he can get away with. We've always got to be alert - you can't sneak anything by that boy!

His interests are wide ranging: "I love bunnies! They're so cute! I love them all the time." He loves Star Wars, Superman, Spiderman, Batman, dinosaurs. He really enjoys his action figures and usually finds new ways for them to do battle. He loves to run and play with balls; he loves seeing his friends and playing with them, too. He likes to draw in the driveway with chalk; he often asks me to draw Spiderman and stormtroopers.
He loves water and the pool; he's getting better having his hair washed - sometimes he'll even rinse his own head. "That wasn't so bad!," he'll laugh. When we tell him it's time to get out, we get "Just a few more minutes and that's all. Okay? Okay."

I've included a few pictures but I'll try to download some more tomorrow. For now, good afternoon, good evening and good night.

What Happened Here?

2008-07-21T13:32:00.000-07:00

That's one of Ben's favorite questions. He usually asks this with his hands up in the air, hands palm up and parallel to the floor. It always makes us smile.

I took Ben to have some pictures taken on this past Saturday and I'm posting some here:
The place where the pictures were taken usually prints the pictures within a half an hour, but their printer jammed. We went home to have lunch with Ben's Pop-Pop and Uncle Dan, then played in the local park for a while. We picked the pictures up later in the day, then took a walk around the outdoor shops. There was an outdoor fountain, one of those where the water shoots out from the ground in arcs. Ben asked to go in the fountain, but I said no, since I didn't have a swim diaper or towel. I did, however have a clean change of clothes, so I said, sure - go ahead! Ben had such a great time, running and laughing as jets of water hit him in the face, arm, leg, bottom. I waited until his poor old regular diaper was so full Ben could barely walk. Holy cow! Those things are absorbant! Ben was quite unhappy that his fountain outing had come to an end, but I got him dried off and into dry clothes.

Later in the evening we were able to see the fireworks at the town park with some friends. What a beautiful display! The boys were delighted with the booms and accompanying showers of sparks. It was such a fun day, and I'm grateful I was able to share it with such a lovely, wonderful little boy: my son.

Tastes Like...

2008-05-29T12:44:00.000-07:00

Ben is now TWO! Yes, two years old. By the time this post goes up, he will be two years, two months.

He is so much fun, with a great sense of humor and a wee powerhouse of energy. We went to the local zoo last weekend with some friends, and Ben RAN from one exhibit to another. He loves to run, and he runs fast!We all enjoyed his birthday. He had a party with all his friends for tumble time session and everyone had fun. We also had amazing chicken parmesan and cake :) The day of his birthday, I took Ben to the gym for a make-up class, and unfortunately opened the door right over his foot. Oh, that was so sad. I ripped his toenail, but he's since healed; his toenail fallen off and a new one is growing back. He's a resilient little tyke. So we're extra careful now when we open doors.

His language is progressing very nicely, and he's still working on his shapes and colors. We were out somewhere last week and upon seeing Ben sucking his thumb, someone asked him, "What does your thumb taste like?" He looked at the person, smiled a little and replied: "It tastes like chicken." That cracked me up! Where does he come up with this? What a hoot.

He's nearly three feet tall now, and weighs about 30 pounds. I've got to add some more pictures soon, hopefully next week. We are having an insane week at work now, with EVERYTHING due by Friday. I think Friday night I'll be having an orange pomegranate martini.

Happy Birthday to Ben's Dad, who turns the ripe young age of 37. Whoo hoo! We'll celebrate this weekend, once the deadlines are met. Ta for now!

Well, Gee! Time sure does fly!

2008-02-17T15:09:00.000-08:00

Let's recap: Ben had lots of fun at Christmas, unwrapping his presents and saying "Wow!" to each one. He received many of books - which is good because he loves being read to, and toys generally take up a lot room. Our tree is still up - I love leaving it up throughout most of the dark winter months because it's cheery and beautiful. We just have to keep reminding Ben to stop touching the ornaments. Total number of ornaments broken so far: three.

Ben used the potty very successfully once, on January 4th. And not since. His modus operandi is to run and hide, usually in the dining room, then squat while... eliminating. When I see him doing this I say "Hey! Let's go to the potty!" Making it sound like a brilliant and fun idea, but he wants none of it: "No, stay here." I tell him to let me know when he's ready. One day, I guess. It's not like he'll still be wearing diapers in college.

He graduated from his gym class, so now he's in a class with older kids and he loves running, walking on the balance beam, playing with balls and bubbles.

Ben's vocabulary continues to expand and he's building more sentences. While watching Toy Story, he announced "No like Toy Story. Put Tarzan on." I was listening to The Secret in the car yesterday when Ben said "No sink (think) Opah late." The child is brilliant...but of course I'm his mom, I'd think that if he were crushing juice boxes on his head. Ben gives orders a lot: Sit down, sit back, stay, get down, carry!, get out, stay here.. and he combines a lot of those as well.

I brought him to the pool at the Y today and he wasn't terribly thrilled about getting in the water. He looked concerned and said "Get out!" I put him on the side so he could keep his feet in the water. When he realized he could kick and splash... well, let's just say he was delighted. I stayed next to him while he had a blast kicking, splashing and giggling. He looked more interested in getting in the water towards the end, but I thought it might be better to introduce him to the pool a little at the time. If his curiosity is aroused, he'll want to come back and splash again. One day, he might even want to get in the water!

We had to get a tent for his crib as he's already successfully escaped unscathed. We didn't want him trying to climb out in the middle of the night and accidentally hurt himself. It took him a little while to get used to it, but now he's fine.

[The above post was started on the 17th; I completed the rest on 2/27/08]

Ben's new passion is Play Doh. "Pay pay doh!!!" He likes it rolled into balls, flattened out and put on the table so he can make marks on it. Last night I made mini muffins out of play dough and he'd pick them up squash them and hand it to me while jumping up and down: "Make muffin! Make muffin!" I'm really glad he enjoys it, becuase his idea of coloring at this stage is hitting the paper with the crayon, and then throwing crayons around.

Here are some pictures of Ben eating breakfast on Thursday, February 21st. I asked him to smile and this is what he delivered:When I asked what he does when he gets excited, this is what we were treated to:
It cracks us up, every time. More to come, soon, with pictures of our first real snowfall. Ben had a blast! I promise to update soon. I can't believe Ben's going to be 23 months...

Fall Into Christmas

2007-11-30T15:30:00.000-08:00

On Sunday, Ben will be 20 months old - hard to believe he's gotten so big, unless of course you look at him (especially with his new haircut), he looks like a little boy. Which he is, naturally - no stretch there.He loves playing with footballs, basketballs, soccer balls - he's not really choosy, although he's been known to fall asleep with a football. It figures - Ron and I are not big sports fans, at all.

He loves his visits to the L1ttle Gym, where he's made lots of friends whom he'll approach to hug, or kiss the younger babies. His Nonna is sending him to the L1ttle Gym for the next semester too, and he'll be thrilled! He really has a great time. We went to their Halloween party which was packed, and he ran around, dancing, spinning, rolling and pausing to kiss wee babies on their head while parents laughed over the cuteness. That's our boy! Here's a picture from Halloween night while trick or treating in our neighborhood:He calls Spiderman "du-bah-da." He can break it down if we help him: "Spy"="pie", "Der"="duh", "Man" = "mahn". Great! Now put it all together! "Du-bah-da!" There you go. This picture is actually from August, but I love his smile! This was right after I left him try my soy milk, banana and chocolate milkshake:His vocabulary keeps increasing. Grandma Cyna came for a visit in early November and we went to the Philadelphia Zoo. We met up with Ben's friend Nolan at the bear exhibit. He saw (and said) puma, llama, tiger and saw bears, lions, jaguars, elephants... you get the picture - it's a zoo! Then we visited his Pop-Pop and Uncle Dan and their dogs - he loves doggies but we have to remind him to be gentle. Here are some pictures from that weekend:

His two-year-old molars are coming in and it's not pleasing him at all. We can tell by the drolling, the irritiablity and the attempted craming of his entire hand into his mouth. When I've been able to peek in, I see that there is nothing notable on the horizon, so I guess this will go on for a little while. In the meantime, the frozen blueberries and cherries seem to help.

We went to his Nonna's for Thanksgiving where Ron and I cooked dinner (well, Ron did most of the work. I helped and kept Ben occupied for the most part). Ben had a blast visiting with Ilsa (ooooh! another doggie!) Aunt Vi and Uncle Frank, and of course his Nonna, who gave him an adorable little red car for Christmas. Oh, how he loves to be pushed around in it! We've got video; one of these days I'll figure out how to post it so you all can enjoy it, too. And the tantrum he threw when we had to stop for bedtime. (He usually keeps these pretty brief, so it's no big deal).
The next day we went to Fortun0ff's and enjoyed their Christmas displays. Holy Toledo! (as his Opa is teaching him to say), it was quite Christmassy. Lots of neat displays, but I think Ben liked the fake snow and the toy train set the best.Ben has discovered television, much to his Opa's delight, so occasionally he'll watch the W0nder Pets and Sesame Street. He also loves the "Llama Movie (moo-ee)" (Emp0rer's New Grove) and "Fish Movie" (Finding Nem0). But his love of books just keeps growing. His new favorites are Go, Dog. Go!, Bear at Home, Bear Around Town, Are You my Mother?, The Very Hungry Catapillar and My Dad!So that's it for now. We've got to take some pictures for Christmas cards, but I took a few of him in his salior suit our friend Kim made for him. Her boys felt very strongly that Baby Ben should have his own sailor suit...

Fall All Around

2007-10-14T14:36:00.000-07:00

We are in full Fall mode here in Pennsylvania... Just last weekend it was in the 80's; add a bit of rain and see the temperatures drop into the 50's and 60's! Being fair skinned and all, I was really kinda tired of the heat. Ben doesn't really mind, as long as he gets to run around outside.

So! I know it's been quite a while since my last post - hey, we're busy and it's hard to find the time. I'm sure you will all understand. Ben saw his pediatrician, Dr. B, last week and all went well. He's 33" tall, 24.5 pounds: above average for height and below average for weight (that's my lean boy). He's gotten 16 teeth, had two immunizations and cried most of the time during the appointment. Everything else looks just great.

Dr. B asked how many words he's saying, and I know it's terrible, but we haven't kept track. He hasn't begun phrases or sentences yet, but he can say a number of words. I'll try to include them all here, by category...

Body parts: Eye, nose, teeth, ear, chin, neck, toes, ankle, knee, hand, elbow. Knows but doesn't say: belly button, belly, chest, leg, foot, forehead, nail, fingers, foot.
Food: Apple, peach, milk, water (wat), waffle (waff), cheese, toast, cookie (cook), cracker (cack), juice, cake, pea, garlic, beans, eggs. Knows but doesn't say: cherries, blueberries, rice, chicken, banana, plums, pastina.

Animal sounds: Oooh -Oooh (owl), Moo Moo (cow), Arp arp (seal), Meow (cat), wrinkles his nose and sniffs for dogs, Oooow Oooww for coyotes and wolves.
Other: Car, truck (tuck), bike (dik), helmet (hemma), tire (tiwre), moon, star (tar), animal (anmal), owl, bee, turtle, cat (meow), bear, carry (cawwy), bath, bubbles, balloon, baboon, ball, hug, hi, bye, g'bye, Mama, Dada, Opa (pa), Oma (uh ma), pop, baby, pool, bowl, hat, hot, knock (while knocking), no, yes, yeah, dirt, book, box (bocks), clock (cock), ghost & goat (which both kinda sound the same), pumpkin (punk), bottle, pick, up, park (pak), pee, poo, pooh, poop. That's all I can think of for the moment. I'll add more as he says them or as I remember.

One of the latest things is when I'm scolding him, he'll smile, wave at me and say "Hi!" He'll often cry and scream over minor things, like going inside and saying goodbye to the tomato garden when he wants to stay and see them. He's got his own special noise just for tomatoes - a deep guttural "Ooooooooh!" It's a riot! He just started pretneding to give Spiderman milk, while making sucking noises (too funny)! He LOVES bicycles, motorcycles, anything with two or three wheels. He chases after the big boys in the park on their bikes, and desperately wants to touch them. He loves footballs, soccer balls, basketballs... will give them hugs. Really loves playing with balls. Oooh, that sounds a bit funny. But I'm sure you know what I mean. He loves going outside, loves going to the farm to see the animals and pumpkins, loves roughhousing with his dad. He loves going to the Little Gym and playgroup with his friends.
He's so much fun to be around and spend time with. He's a funny little person and we love him intensely. I never imagined that his laughter would become the most cherished sound I could ever hear, or the sight of Ben laughing would raise my spirits to new heights. Happy 18 Months, Benjamin.
love, Mama and Daddy

Welcome to the Pleasure Dome...

2007-08-06T19:06:00.000-07:00

Also known as the tupperware cabinet.

I finally let Ben check out the cabinet today and he LOVED it. (Big surprise, I know). The pictures say it all...

Plus, Ben has a certain... fondness for yellow fruits and vegetables. He played with a lemon two weekends ago at a friend's house until it was all soft, warm and pulpy inside. Here he is with his new best friend, butternut squash. Well, it was his best friend until he dropped it and it cracked.Anyone have good recipes for butternut squash?

Here he is playing in his new pool at Omie & Opie's house. Didn't care for it at all, obviously:
This little boy is such a delight and so much fun! We're over the moon to have him in our life.

Ben at 16 Months and July Zoo Pics

2007-08-02T18:48:00.000-07:00

Ben made used his first sign today: more! I've been signing to him for weeks and at this point figured he just couldn't be bothered. But when he pointed to the cut plums, I asked him if he would like some more while signing. He actually signed back! Well was totally cool. His newest words are cook, pooh (as in bear, although he hears poo an awful lot in this house), and an old one I forgot to mention is toad.

His teeth are still coming in, and a new food today was havarti dill cheese. I'm trying to give him more cow's milk cheeses to increase his calcium intake. He liked it! The little tiny cheeses in little red wax wheels he didn't particularly care for, however. Which means mommy & daddy will have to eat them. Uh oh. Not that mommy & daddy don't like the mini cheese wheels; it's just that we should really avoid such delicious sources of saturated fat and cholesterol.

Here are some pictures from the Denver zoo; we were there on July 12th and Ben was a bit tired and cranky. Enjoy the show!
See the fingers in the mouth? Height of teething:Peacock? What peacock? Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.....

Whoa!

2007-07-30T12:15:00.000-07:00

Ben didn't really start walking until 13.5 months, and I was a tad concerned about it. So many moms told me not to worry; once he started walking I'd find myself constantly running after him.

Well, I now completely understand. We set him on the ground and he's off exploring and looking around earnestly at his surroundings. Hard to believe he's the same little boy who clung so desperately to my leg when we went to our Friday playgroup! Now I've got to watch him constantly. We went to a church fair this weekend and he was happy to just run around, pointing at the people, the lights and rides, babies, and booths stuffed with prizes. He is so much fun to be around! I took him on his first ride inside a giant bear last night with a friend and her son from playgroup. He was a bit scared at first then started pointing and making noises at people and things as they passed by outside of the bear.

His vocabulary is building; he says cake, pea, no, Pa (opa & pop-pop), Dada, Mama (rarely), hot, hat, hi, there, that, baby, happy, teeth, cheese, toes, toast.... I'm sure I'm missing some.

This morning he was chasing bubbles around the bathroom trying to eat them - too funny and thankfully we've got it on video. He did a little dance today after he woke up from his nap that involved a lot of squatting and wiggling - it was hysterical!

His right lower molar is through, and the one on top bilaterally are halfway through. I noticed the top teeth on Friday afternoon and was surprised; he had been in some discomfort a couple of weeks ago but I didn't realize so many were coming through. His left front lateral incisor just broke through the skin today, so he'll be flashing a mouthful of those pearly whites soon.

He now makes "hoo hoo" sounds when he sees pictures of owls, sometimes he'll say "hoo hoo" and point to the book containing the owl. Oh - he also says bee, while pointing to a picture of a bee. He really is a joy and we feel blessed every day we share our lives with him.

Now, on with the pictures!! Eating pastina, egg, spinach & cheese with a spoon...At the fair held by Daddy:
Ben discovers rocks don't taste nearly as good as they look:

15 Months! Time Flies...

2007-07-02T15:16:00.000-07:00

Oh, how it flies. During the first few months of Ben's life, it seemed like time dragged interminably on, whileslipping through our fingers at the same time. Only people with newborns, I have come to find, can understand this paradox.

Ben saw his pediatrician today and all is well with the Squeaky One. He weighs 22.2 lbs and measures 31". The doctor says he's a little below average for weight because he has such little fat. He's lean and muscular, and that's just fine with our doctor. He eats well, and eats a lot. We really put an effort into feeding him nutrious foodstuffs, and we're fortunate because he likes broccoli, peas, black beans, hummus, cottage cheese and yogurt. Loves fruit - seemingly all kinds except for raspberries. Definitely prefers blueberries or grapes to everything. As blueberries are highly beneficial for him (based on the blood type diet), we eat a lot of these in our house.

Gotta run because Ben is home -will update more tomorrow with pictures!

Why, Yes, it HAS Been a Long Time Between Updates...

2007-05-29T15:09:00.000-07:00

Ben is A-O.K.! He's walking now, in fact just yesterday he walked from one end of the house to the other all by himself (Our house is 1100 square feet and long, so make of that what you will). He started off kind of slow and tenuous, but really seems to be taking off. He's eating well and can feed himself on occasion with a spoon - if the food is sufficiently sticky, like cottage cheese and hummus. He likes pesto, fish, cherries (frozen and fresh), peas, green beans, corn, sauteed spinach, salsa, guacamole (spicy only), black beans and rice (with jalapenos), soy cheese, pastina, Cheerios, strawberries, grapes, white grapefruit, chicken, turkey, egg... of course, just because he eats something one day does not mean he'll eat it the next.

He says Dada (and knows who he is), Mama, Mimi (we're not sure who or what Mimi is, but we're keeping an eye out...), cat, bye, yes, there, and he can shake his head "no". He waves hello and goodbye, points, claps hands, and smacks himself in the head, obstensibly to proclaim that he could have had a V-8.

He loves playing peekaboo, hiding his face and then peering out from behind the hiding object (pillow, wall, blanket, my leg) with a huge grin. He loves the soundtrack to the Three Amigos, and a mix tape his Opa made with all kinds of great music on it (Sugar Time, Hindustan, Bibbity Bobbity Boo) and he dances spectacularly! He wiggles his whole body and it cracks us up every time - it never gets old! He loves the swing at the park, loves going outside, and loves the fountain at the nearby Pleasure Garden. Usually dislikes having his diaper changed. If you give him the wrong thing when he's pointing to an object, he'll swat it out of the way in favor of what he really wants.

We're down to one nursing a day, at night before bedtime. I'm following his lead on this and it's working out well so far. And now, here are some recent pictures! Birthday party at Nonna's:

Birthday Celebrations

2007-04-17T18:28:00.000-07:00

My God... it's full of stars..." Ben in pastina:Celebrating Ben's birthday at play group and his first cupcake:
Party at our house on April 1st:

More to come: pictures at Nonna's

Happy Birthday!

2007-04-13T16:08:00.000-07:00

Yes, I realize this post is over due, as his birthday was April 2nd. It is so hard to find the time...

Seeing Ben today, it's incredible to realize this baby boy is growing up; he'll never get any younger or smaller. He'll just keep getting bigger and eventually more independent. I really like his sense of humor... he enjoys fake outs: offering you something to eat, only to put it in his own mouth when you think he's really going to put it in yours. He'll put his arms out to be held by someone, only to turn away at the last moment, wiggling and smiling mischievously. He loves dancing, using his whole body and wiggling his shoulders - it's hysterical! When he coughs, I have instructed him to "Please cover your mouth when you cough", as it's the polite thing to do. Of course he sees mommy & daddy cover their mouths, and he's actually started doing that this week. He has also discovered his tongue, and will be happy to show anyone who inquires as to it's whereabouts. He is a delight and we're grateful to have him in our life.

Pictures to follow soon...!

All Ben, All The Time

2007-03-05T11:21:00.000-08:00

Ben's eleventh month has been a lot of fun. Here are some shots from February. The reason why so many of them are Ben seated in his high chair? Because he's staying (mostly) still! Goodness that little boy can move! He's not walking yet, but he can crawl lickety split. He's also eating more; he LOVES soy cheese (highly beneficial for those with blood type A, like his Daddy), yogurt, green vegetables... almost everything, although he's fallen out of love with lentils. When I handed him the spoon the other day, he actually held it by the handle and fed himself! Then he put the handle in his mouth. Enjoy the pictures!

Just a Few Snapshots

2007-02-16T14:23:00.000-08:00

I haven't taken a lot of digital pictures lately; we're going to get a new digital camera at some point, so I've ben using the old fashioned filmy - point-and-click camera. Plus, Ben is always moving and the digital just isn't fast enough to capture him. Sadly, I forgot to ask for the latest roll to be put onto CD, but here are a few shots from the last month or so.

Happy Heart Day!

2007-02-13T14:15:00.000-08:00

Ben had his latest checkup at the pediatrician's and did very well. He's getting long, at 29 inches and weighs 19 pounds. He is a lean, mean, eating machine! He doesn't get a lot of sugary foods; in fact, I just bought plain whole milk yogurt to mix with fruit instead of the yo*baby yogurt which has added sugar. I mean, really... aren't fruits sweet enough?

He's cruising, crawling and tries to roll while being changed. He absolutely loves jumping and climbing on the couch, which is soft, leather, and now covered in Ben saliva. While jumping, crawling and dooling his face is just alight! And I just got paged that he's now awake, so I've got to go home and relieve Opa. Here's a pic to tide you over...This is after all the jumping and climbing.

Bye Bye, Dada

2007-01-21T17:54:00.000-08:00

Those would be Ben's first words.

He's been saying dada for a while now, since December I think, with some regularity. However not only would he look at Ron and say "dada" but he would also look at the phone, me, food.... you get the picture. Lately , though, he's been saying dada while looking at Ron and seems to mean it. While visiting Daddy at work this evening, and after playing with the mandible on the skeleton (don't worry, it's resin, not real bone), he said: "buh - buh - buh -ba ba ba bye bye dada." We both looked at him and then at each other for confirmation that neither of us was imagining this. He wouldn't repeat it, but it was so cute and groundshaking at the same time. That this tiny little being can actually communicate in words! He's starting to point to things in books, too, so we reinforce this for him. (That's a pineapple, Ben. You like pineapples! It looks odd, doesn't it? But so yummy...)

He's also pulling up on anything and everything. He's just began cruising, tenatively but it's a start. We praise him for his efforts and good job at standing, but we're not pusing him to walk. He'll get there when he's supposed to. He's crawling all over Jabib and seems to suit him well.

Discipline is also an exercise, with a sharp loud NO! when he approaches electrical cords or pipes, or the garbage pail. He responds well, shocked and he'll look at me for confirmation. I usually have to tell hm several times, but at least he listens for now. When he doesn't , we physically remove him from whatever it is he's not supposed to be doing.

He's eating well: mixed grain cereal and fruit in the morning, meat (chicken or turkey) and veggies for lunch, and then cereal with fruit for dinner, accompanied by egg yolk, or soy cheese or yogurt. Just started him on the Yo Baby yogurt and he loves it.

Here's a picture of him at a friend's house for a play date. He certainly knows how to have fun!

Nine Months By a Hair...

2007-01-08T10:33:00.000-08:00

Just nine months and Ben has had his first haircut! He did very well, sitting on my lap and playing with/trying to eat a brush during the trim. Not much was cut off, but some of his hair on top was a bit long so it looks much tidier now, as evidenced here:He had a wonderful Christmas with lots of wonderful gifts bestowed upon him by family and friends, but the whole New Year thing doesn't seem to have phazed him, as he went to bed at his usual bedtime and awoke to a new day greeted by Mommy & Daddy.

His crawling is improving and he's pulling up on any and everything, including my pants if I stay still long enough. He can walk holding on to someone's fingers, and still babling: Mamama, dada, bababa, nananana... oh it's so cute!

He has gotten another tooth, one of the side incisiors on the left. So that makes it three. We're looking for the matching tooth, but no sign yet. He's teething up a storm, though, so we know another one is up there somewhere.

His appetite seems to be dropping, but he looks fine and seems to be getting so heavy, as my lower back has screamed out. One of the gifts was a baby backpack, which is very comfortable and allows Ben to ride on our backs while we have our hands free. He really loves it and has fun smacking the shoulders of whoever sherpa he is riding. Gotta post some more pictures, but the one above will have to do for now. I'm exhausted and still have lots of work to do today. More to come, comments always welcome!

Merry Christmas! Happy Hanukkah! Joyous Festivus!

2006-12-20T13:57:00.000-08:00

We're so excited for Ben to have his very first Christmas! Well, he was around last year, but this is his first Christmas on the outside.
The picture above is the one we used for our Christmas cards - the little man looks perfect! But lest you think that Super Adorable Boy poses like that all the time, here are some other shots for that sitting:

Ah, our little cutie pie, always on the go! Now that he's really got the hang of crawling, there is no staying still. He's happy to follow Mommy about the house as chores are attempted, investigating everything as he goes. The rubbish bin in the bathroom holds particular intrest for Ben (well, it is shiny metal and has a lid that goes up & down...)

His two little bottom teeth have been here for a couple of months, and now he has a new one on the top - the left incisor, but not one of the front ones. The bottom ones came in together, so it's a little weird to kust see one off to the side up on top. But this certainly explains the fountains of drool and screaming fits when trying to change him. At least he seems to like the Tylenol...

His doctor's appointment this month went well; he weighed 16 lbs, 12 oz., measured 27 inches long and had two imunizations. He is a long and lean child! As he loves to crawl and stand, and has a happy disposition, this is just fine. He's eaten chicken and turkey, and loves all the fruits and veggies. Still eating rice cereal and oatmeal, but doesn't seem to have a favorite - he eats everything well, and opens nice and wide for each bite. Yep, I know we're like the luckiest parents out there, having a child who sleeps and eats well. And has a great sense of humor - Ben's latest thing is to pretend to eat your nose! It's messy, but soooooo cute and lots of fun - he really enjoys and and so do we; we love seeing him smile and hearing his little laugh!

Ben also got to meet Santa and sit on his lap! At the wonderful suggestion from his Nonna, we went to Hick's in Westbury, you know - Santa's home away from home. This is how thrilled he was to not be held by Mommy:
I just love the look on Santa's face... Ben had fun celebrating Christmas with his Nonna and Aunt Kris, and opened his first Christmas presents. Nonna gave us santa's Wonderland which has been added to our little Christmas Village in our front window: Our tree has been up since December 2nd, but so far the only prezzies under the tree are for Ben. There really wasn't all that much I needed this year; what I really wanted - a happy and healthy baby - arrived in April. Really, what more could one ask for? How about some more Ben pictures? Well, if we must...

Greeting From Puerto Penasco!

2006-11-27T21:50:00.000-08:00

We're about to fly home tomorrow, but just wanted to get a quick entry about our trip to Arizona and Mexico. We've had a wonderful time visiting with dear friends (Rick, Belinda, Harrison and Oliver) and got to relax in gorgeous weather in Puerto Penasco, Mexico - Ben's first trip out of the country! On this trip he crawled for the first time and waved yesterday! He's babling a lot more (mamamama ba ba bababababa dadadadada lalalaalalalala nanananana). He tried guacamole, wheat bread, rice, beans, butternut squash and loved them all. He saw the Sonoran Gulf, palm trees, pelicans, hermit crabs, Mexican markets and sea shells. We have a plane ride tomorrow back to Pennsylvania then it's back to the cold! He's getting over his very first cold, which was harder on Mommy than it was on him (especially because he gave it to me and it's only going away now!) The picture above was taken on the beach outside our room. More to come!
****Now updated with more pictures:

Seventh Inning Stretch

2006-11-01T10:28:00.000-08:00

Ben will be seven months old tomorrow! I'm just constantly amazed, and I'm sure I always will be. Happy seven months, Ben. You've been the absolute light in our lives. We're just so happy you're here with us.

He's had a busy seventh month. The beginning got off to a very sad start as we said goodbye to Ben's Uncle Will. I'm sorry he never got to know Will, but we have lots of pictures and stories for Ben as he gets older. I know his Aunt Kris, Noona, Pop-Pop and many others will help flesh out the picture of Will.

On his pediatrician's appointment of October 10th, he weighed 15 pounds, 14 ounces and measured 26" long. He handled his immunizations well and barely cried. What a trooper! The two bottom front teeth have come through, after a particularly cranky weekend, but all is well on the dentition front. He's now taking baths in the inflatable tub which fit into the big tub, and he seems to enjoy being able to sit and splash. He has, however, developed a dislike for having his hair shampooed and rinsed.Ben has learned to roll over from his belly to his back, and now does so with apparent ease, seemingly just to show off, we think. It still thrills us and we love each and every little milestone! He can pull up to sitting (and he now sits unsupported very well) and often goes right into standing. He loves to stand! He can support himself on all fours and rock back and forth, sometimes scootching up his knees in the whole rocking process. Looks like crawling is next up on the horizon...

He tolerates all his foods well so far. He was a little iffy about vegetables at first, but now he opens up wide for every mouthful. He just finished spinach for the first time, and now we're working on apples and blueberries. I know he's supposed to start on finger foods soon but I'm a little nervous about that. Visualize whirrled peas... Here's Ben with peas on his face from lunch today:

Ben dressed as a bee for Halloween. We took about 70 pictures and we've only gone through some of them so I've only posted a couple. Mommy took him around our neighborhood and he liked it. No candy this year, but he had fun seeing his neighbors all dressed up and they all loved his little outfit. Our little bee... I can't belive he'll be seven months old tomorrow...

Erm..., This is Food, Right?

2006-09-23T07:55:00.000-07:00

Oh, what a busy month it's been! Ron and I have been swamped with work, having lost our other illustrator so that didn't leave a lot of time for updates. Our new illustrator has started and doing very well, so! On with muffin news!
We started Ben on rice cereal, which he wasn't sure quite what to make of it at first, but he now absolutely loves it. Mouth-open-wide-for-next-bite kinda loves. Once he was having cereal for breakfast and dinner, we introduced butternut squash for lunch. He was less than thrilled, but did manage to eat the entire wee jar in three days. Next! On to carrots! He was okay with the carrots, not excited, but again managed to finish the jar in three days. Mommy also learned how much carrots stain! Ooooooh! What a pretty orange! Mommy bought Oxy Clean so we'll give that a whirl. Next stop: peas, glorious peas! Small, green and round! He doesn't spit them out, and that's good enough for me. I think tomorrow we'll go back to the squash and some more peas, then carrots and peas. I think I want to get him used to the veggies before we introduce the yummy and naturally sweet fruits. We're also going to try oatmeal ceral tomorrow, as he's certainly got the rice cereal down pat.

Ben has been rather cranky lately, likely owing to a growth spurt; he'll be 6 months old next Monday. Yeah, holy cow is right. I can't believe how big he's getting, although he seems small compared to some other large baby friends. He's measuring right on target and we return to the pediatrician on the 10th of October for his next check up. He can still wear some of the larger 0-3 month clothes, but most of what he's wearing is 3-6 months. Everything is so cute, and I must take more pictures. I love this outfit...
It's okay, Ben, you don't have to start working... yet.
He's pulling to sitting without any problems, and he can sit unsupported for very short periods - he tips over pretty easily. He's getting close to rolling from his back to his belly, but not there yet. He can be pulled to standing and can stand for a few minutes. He looks pretty pleased with himself when he does this; of course, we just cheer him on and tell him how great he is. Yay Ben!

See? Jinxed it...

2006-08-16T14:55:00.000-07:00

Sure, right after I posted the last entry, Ben started waking up in the middle of the night. He wasn't waking up to eat, just waking up and talking animatedly to himself. After a while he'd sound annoyed, so I went in to check on him. He had flipped himself over from his belly to his back, so I let him know it was still very early, he needed some more sleep, but it was great that he rolled over. I rolled him back, which he protested and rolled himself back on to his back. I flipped him back over, and he fussed. I went back to bed, and when he sounded louder, Ron went in to flip him back over. He cried for a bit, then fell back asleep. He eventually awoke for the morning at about 7 am. He repeated this the following few nights, with his "back-to-sleep" time getting shorter.

Last night, he woke up at 2:30, chatting. At 3am I got up to say hi, tell him it was still the middle of the night and rolled him back on to his belly. He put his thumb inhis mouth an immediately went back to sleep. I, however, was not so fortunate. I've been up since then since I apparently have insomnia. Oh well. He's still too adorable for words! Last night he was this close to finding his foot and putting it in his mouth. And now, here are some more pics from this weekend!

Ben Mathias. Champion Sleeper.

2006-08-11T17:15:00.000-07:00

Okay, we pretty much realize that we are the luckiest parents ever. Ben is sleeping about 11 to 12 hours a night. When he wakes up, do we hear howls of hunger? Nope, he's all smiles and makes adorable noises talking to himself. Sometimes he's on his belly, head held up high propped up on his hands, other times, he has flipped himself onto his back, looking up at his Pat the Bunny mobile. He is so adorable, and we just love him oodles. Oodles of poodle noodles. I love the startled look on his face on his changing table!He had a busy month - get got to meet some more family - his Nona, Uncle Will and Aunt Kris on Long Island, as well as his great great aunts and some cousins! He's starting to get a little shy but he did great. He turned four months old while we were in Boston last week. In fact, he turned 4 months old on our 5th wedding anniversary (August 2nd). We didn't get a chance to celebrate it, as we were attending the 61st conference of the Association of Medical Illustrators and were in classes and workshops all day. Ron was also preparing his presentation on the work he and partner Rob did on the Wired to Win film (presentation & film came out great, by the way). So we'll celebrate properly next month. I'm including a picture from that wonderful day, as only very few people could make it. Here we are signing the registration, making it legal. Ben is doing great, getting more and more talkative - we love hearing him chatter! And we heard his first laugh on Saturday, August 5th! He loves "Flibbity Floo!" (mommy dips him down to the floor and swings him back up - I swear it's safer than it sounds!), he loves being bounced to the William Tell Overture, he loves going "flying" and sitting up supported. He's started teething - he has periods when it's active, and then periods of rest. Even with the teething, he's doing fine. Here are some pictures of Ben with Opa. Hey, how does Opa make his face all blurry like that?

Don't even think of interrupting my lunch...

Roll Over, Beethoven

2006-07-12T09:30:00.000-07:00

Ben turned 3 months old on Sunday, July 2. Holy cow, the time does fly! He celebrated by rolling over on Friday morning (July 7th) for the first time from belly to back. He has since done this nearly every day, and usually seems surprised and annoyed, of all things. We both got to see him do this on Sunday while we were outside at a picnic, so we were pretty excited. He can't roll the other way yet, but I'm sure he'll eventually get the hang of it. He's sleeping well through the night, getting up at the earliest at 6:30 a.m, but usually between 7:00 and 9:30 a.m.

He's making more sounds and looks like he's really trying to talk. We talk back to him, mimicing the sounds he makes, talking and singing to him all the time. He hasn't laughed out loud yet (just in his sleep), although when he smiles, he opens his mouth all the way like a soundless laugh. He gurgles and makes bubbles, hasn't quite gotten the hang of swallowing his saliva. He's grasping things with his hands and putting them to his mouth (toys and rattles), and loves sucking on his fingers and thumbs. I don't think he's teething yet. He drools, and is usually content munching on his fingers, sometimes seems irritable, but I don't feel any bumps on his lower gum. Ben fell asleep durning tummy time this Saturday and found his fingers...
He's always so chipper in the morning, smiling and talking. He's gaining weight well, although our next appointment with the pediatrician isn't until July 25th. Then we're off to Boston for the annual AMI meeting (Association of Medical Illustrators). Ron and I need to take courses there to keep our Certification current, and we're bringing Ben with us. Thankfully, Opa will be joining us to look after Ben while we attend lectures like "Craniofacial Surgery" and "Anatomy of a Contract". Ron and his friend Rob are presenting the film they worked on, "Wired to Win", discussing what was involved in the storyboarding process for the medical animations used in the film. We'll also see the Body Worlds 2 exhibit, which Ron and I have attended before, but it will be Ben's first time (at least, on the outside). More updates to come, but enjoy the pictures (the shots below are from this morning while Opa was changing him) and leave some comments!

Happy Father's Day

2006-06-19T11:13:00.000-07:00

Hope all you great dads had a lovely weekend. Ron's first Father's Day was oh-so-pleasant, and we all enjoyed ourselves. Here are some pictures from the weekend of the cutest muffin ever:

Getting Better All The Time...

2006-06-13T09:54:00.000-07:00

Benjamin is doing just great! At his two month check up, he weighed 11 pounds & 13 ounces. His head increased 1 inch in circumference (now 15.5") and hew grew another inch longer to 23 inches. His eyebrows also seem to be coming in, although his eye color is still indeterminate and slate grey. Good growth all around, though. Getting big for the co-sleeper...

He makes all kinds of wonderful noises now, and seems to try to talk, ernestly trying out "ah-oooo", "mwaaah" and "eh". It's so adorable, we need to sit down frequently.

Ben definitely seems to be a morning person. He starts stirring around 5 or 6 a.m., making little noises or talking to himself. Once his muttering become a bit more urgent, I go in, put the lights on and sing morning songs to him. He gives me those million watt smiles and I pick him up, continuing to sing and bid him a good morning. I change him, where I get more of those lovely smiles. It's so hard to get a picture, because he loves to move around a lot while smiling! He moves his head, pumps his feet and waves his arms. He's active, and we're glad to see him on the go. Once he's fed, there's more smiling. Ben awoke at 4 a.m. this morning, and after nursing, he was all smiles. While it was wonderful to see, I did have to tell him that at 4:45 a.m., this is the time when we sleep. I put him back in his crib awake, and he fell asleep in about 10 minutes. He didn't wake up again until about 8:45 a.m., so we were happy to get a little more shut eye. He usually does sleep through the night, and I thank him when he does, letting him know that we appreciate getting a good night's sleep. Every so often he wakes in the middle of the night, but thankfully those nights are few.

There he is with his dad in our kitchen (all sleepy), and wide awake with that famous smile! We'll update when we can. In the iterim, we welcome your comments. Enjoy the lovely spring weather!

Not a Creature Was Stirring...

2006-05-24T08:09:00.000-07:00

Ben is 7 weeks and 3 days old, and is somehow sleeping through the night. I keep thinking it's a fluke, but he goes to sleep around 11 pm and awakes around 7 - 8:30 am the next morning. Amazing. We're ticked pink, but even more excited by his smiles!

He's outgrowing this outfit in a hurry, which is a shame because it has the cutest little bear faces on his feeet!
Here he is with his Dad at work on Sunday, May 21. The next picture was taken today during his visit with Opa (on his way to La La Land).

Must get back to work - deadlines abound, and I want to get everything done as quickly and well as possible so I can get back to the muffin. Baby bee says hello to everyone! And then spits up. ; )

Happy Mother's Day...

2006-05-15T09:44:00.000-07:00

..to all you wonderful moms out there. We had a lovely day yesterday; Ron took Ben & I out to brunch at our favorite restaurant, the River Grille in Easton. He did very well, sleeping most of the time, and then quietly ate. Here's the stylin' boy back at home in his crib:Over the weekend, Ben stunned us senseless by sleeping through the night. That means from midnight to 7:15 a.m., and 10:45 pm to about 6:00 a.m. Stunned! We thanked him profusely for such a good night's sleep, although last night he awoke at 3 a.m., and after feeding went back to sleep at 5 a.m. Every day is different, and today he seems particularly under the weather and crying a lot.

Work has been a bit crazy, so I'm back at work (downstairs) while Ben gets to spend some quality time being looked after by his Opa (upstairs). I miss him terribly, but go upstairs to visit whenever I can, deadlines permitting.

My 6 week check-up with my doctor was uneventful and all is well. Must get back to work so I can get back to my boy. Hope you all are well and enjoying the spring! I also hope Mother's Day was pleasant for all those involved. As always, comments are welcome.

One Month Old and Growing!

2006-05-10T14:46:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday Ben was one month old. Today he is 5 weeks and 3 days. Not that I'm counting. (When you try for so long and jump over so many hurdles to get pregnant, believe me, you count every day).

Monday we went to the pediatrician... Ben weighed in at 9 pounds and 9 ounces and grew 2 inches to 22" long. Not bad! He's right on target so that's nice. He had his Polio and Diptheria immunizations and did very well - we were so proud of him! Not that he was terribly pleased about being stabbed in the thighs with huge needles (well, huge to him).

He's been smiling more and focusing his eyes. He often sleeps for three hour stretches at night, which I think is fantastic because I can get some nice rest during this time. He was getting very fussy and had unbelieveable quantities of gas in the evenings, so we started trying Mylicon gas drops. This has made a wonderful difference in reducing his gas and fussiness. I'd be fussy too if I were that uncomfortable! It seems that every day is different; nothing is predictable, which the Virgo in me isn't crazy about. Just gotta go with the flow. He laughs in his sleep which is the cutest thing ever, and his smiles melt our hearts. Here he is with his mom and dad, respectfully:

Your comments are always appreciated - thank you to everyone who's written in. Your support and enthusiasm mean so much to all of us. Until next time,
-Elyssia, Ron & Ben

Where does the time go?

2006-04-26T14:55:00.000-07:00

Ben is three weeks and three days today - we cannot believe how big he's getting or how quickly the time has passed! Here are some shots of the bee from his first week when he was still wee:

He makes noises that sounds like a car 's screeching tires as it's turning around a corner at high speed, or an alternator belt that needs tightening. I have no idea how he makes these noises, but they're a riot. It's amazing, the expressions that play across his face; he rivals Jim Carey, to be sure. Here's Ben from last week:

He loves his vibrating bouncy chair; this is where one can find him when he's not with his mom.

Three generations: with his Dad and Opa
(German for Grandfather)

He went through a growth spurt earlier this week. That means he ate constantly and only caught a few 10 minute cat naps here and there. That was pretty intense, but he's filling out nicely. Yesterday we went for a walk around town using the Baby Bjorn. I'm assuming he enjoyed it - he slept the whole time. He's napping now; that allows me the time to update and get these pictures up. Here he is napping earlier today (again, in the vibrating bouncy chair):

I'm off to go make dinner while our little prince is still dreaming of big and little jelly beans.

Many thanks to thouse of you who wrote comments or sent e-mails. It really means a lot to us. Enjoy these pictures and I'll do my best to post again soon. Love to you all!

Elyssia & Ron

Here I Am!

2006-04-18T12:23:00.000-07:00

Here's a picture of Benjamin Winston Shattuck Mathias on his first day:
He weighed in at 7 pounds even and measured 20 inches long. He's just perfect, but we're a little biased.

He's two weeks, two days today. It's been a bit shaky as we're getting to know each other and learn our schedules (or rather, as we get hip to his schedule), but we're all hanging in there so far. He's such a good baby, sometimes a bit fussy and quite strong. Those legs! I'm sure he'll be kicking field goals in no time. We've caught him laughing in his sleep which is quite the delight. He gives us little smiles here and there, but his life at this point is largely eating, having his diaper changed and sleeping. His umbilical cord stump fell off on Easter (April 16), so now he can start wearing all those adorable onsies we've received. Today after posting he's going for a walk with Mommy to the post office to send off some thank you notes. (I'm trying to get there, really!).

Thank you all for your well wishes and kind words - they've really meant so much to us. It was quite a challenge getting Ben here, and we're just so thrilled to have him with us. Everyone has been so lovely with their cards and gifts - we really appreciate everything.

You can check back here anytime. His Dad and I will update when we can to keep everyone posted with stories and pictures. Thank goodness for digital cameras! And thank you for checking in. Please leave a comment!