18 Months Old

My baby is 18 months old and I want to cry.  He is so big and it just happened overnight.  I just blinked my eye and he is a big boy.  It can't be happening this fast....

Benjamin weighed in at 27lbs even and was 32.25 inches tall at his 18 month visit.  It was at this same visit that he gave Mommy and Daddy a scare.  Given he barely gained any weight from his 15 month visit, the doctor was a little concerned and checked his hemoglobin again.  In the  office the machine read 6.4mg/dL.  For you non-health care folk out there -- THAT IS LOW!  WAY TOO LOW FOR MY BABY!!  The doctor immediately sent Ben for some real labs and the repeat turned out to be 10.4mg/dL -- still a little low, but MUCH better.  The bad thing about it all was that we had to wait until the NEXT MORNING to get the results.  They really shouldn't do that to us worried mamas.  Anyhow, all is good and he is getting some iron to help bring his hemoglobin up a smidgen.

At 18 months Benji is exploding with words!  He is starting to string words together and I am understanding so much more.  Some of my favorite phrases are: Bess yoo Mama, Goofy wey ah yoo (Goofy where are you), I lahv oo (I love you), and ake up Mama (wake up Mama).  He recently started calling me Mom and I am not to fond of that, but everything else he says is just so darn cute! 

Benji is still pure boy.  He loves to run, climb, dig, be outside, and get DIRTY!  He unfortunately can be a tad bit mean at times and we are really working on the no hitting.  Sometimes I think he is just trying to fend for himself in this crazy world and he gets a little rough -- it is tough when you have a big brother!  Behind that rough and tough boy, though, is a sweet loving heart that loves to give kisses.

Benjamin, we love you to the moon and back!  Just stop growing please :)

15 Months Old!

Yes I realize Ben is 16 months old as I am writing this post, but I am really, really behind :)

Benji, Benji, Benji -- where has time gone? 

At your 15 month check up you weighed in at 26lbs, 11 oz and measured 32.5 inches tall (90th percentile for both). You are wearing 12 or 18 month pants (depending on type/brand) and 24 month/2T shirts.  Your chubby little foot requires a size 4 or 5 super wide ;)

Looking back on these past 3 months you have changed so much!  For starters, YOU ARE MOBILE!  You started walking at 13.5 months and have not slowed down one bit.  In fact, before you were even walking you were trying to climb the OUTSIDE of the banister of the stairs -- true story.  You have so much energy and love to climb and explore everything.  You love to be outside and it is not uncommon to find you standing at the back door saying/crying/shouting "a-sigh."  I am kind of worried about the day you figure out how to open the door on your own....

You are talking up a storm, most of which only a few people understand.  Some of your words include: Mommy or Mama, Daddy, Bubba, GiGi, Papa, ga (cup/milk), bye-bye, No, Yes (you have a cute little lisp with yes), up (sometimes bup), down, nigh-nigh, Ma (Molly), bath (baa), and my personal favorite -- I Love you (i uh ooo).  You actually have way more words than this, I am just blanking on them right now.  In addition to words you can make the noises of a cat, dog, monkey, cow, duck, elephant and lion/bear.  One of my favorite things you are doing right now is going to talk to Papa.  When we get to Gigi's house the first thing you do is go to his room to see him.  You talk to him with such intent -- I only wish I knew what you were telling him.

You love to give kisses!  I wish I could say that you were all sweet, but the truth is that you are also a hitter and a biter.  Daddy calls you the little sour patch kid because you hit/bite, but then give sweet kisses.  We are trying to figure out how to get you past this not so nice stage....  Despite the occasional outburst, you really are a sweet boy and I will never pass up one of your kisses!

Benji, we love you so much and I am looking forward to exploring the world with you.

11 Months Old

This 11 month post is long over due.  I tried and tried to get a monthly picture of Benjamin in the brown chair like ALL of the other monthly posts, but I couldn't.  He was just too busy to sit down SAFELY for a split second so that I could take his picture -- oh well, I tried!

At 11 months old Benji weighed in at 24.4 pounds.  He has been wearing 12 month bottoms and 18 month tops.  He is still wearing a 18 month sleeper and size 3 or 4 shoes, if they fit his WIDE foot. He still eats the same amount of formula (or less) and baby food as he was last month, but he still prefers table food if he can get away with it!

Benjamin is on the move.  This kid can crawl FAST.  He doesn't seem to be interested in walking, but that is the only thing.  If we blink for a second he is out of our sight and climbing up on stools and toys.  He can even climb the stairs to the top (he actually makes a bee line for them if we accidentally leave the gate open).  He is the reason they have straps in grocery carts and high chairs.  He is a dare devil!!

Benji is a loving boy who loves to snuggle and give kisses.  Some mornings he gives me/Andy upwards of 10 kisses within the first few minutes of getting up.  But don't let him fool you, as he has a feisty side.  He has been known to play dirty (bites and hits Luke) and he has a bit of a temper if provoked by his brother.  He is my screamer and fit thrower for sure.   

Benjamin you are spunky and that is one of the many reasons I love you so much.  Please stop growing!!!!!

 Here are a few more pictures of Ben from our recent family photo shoot.

10 Months Old

Benjamin is now 10 months old!  He weighs in at a whopping 24 pounds even and he feels every bit of it!  He is wearing size 12 month pants and 18 month shirts and his foot is too fat to fit into most shoes.

Benjamin loves to eat, no news here!  He is eating the same thing as he did at 9 months, but now he is wanting more and more bites off of our plates. In fact, we have to feed him before we sit down for dinner or he screams for our food and won't eat his baby food.  He still has the same 6 tooth grin!

Ben started army/slither crawling right when we got back from Gulf Shores and was crawling on all fours about 1 week after he turned 10 months old.  He is all over the place and in to everything -- this is very different from his big brother.  In fact, he can climb all the way to the top of the stairs....giggling the entire way.  He is going to wear me out!

Ben is very vocal, and by vocal I mean he screams.  He can make a lot of cute noises and he can babble talk, too, but it seems like the screaming has been winning out lately.  As far as words he can can say bye (while waving his hand), da-da, ma-ma, and bub-ba.  When he is not exercising his vocal cords he loves to give big open mouth kisses, so sweet!  Oh, and he knows how the moo cow goes, too....."mmmmm."

Benji, I love you to the moon and back!!  Please stop growing!

9 Months Old

Oh my Benji you are growing!!  You are so chubby and so cute!  Your little knee rolls are to DIE for.  At 9 months old you weighed in at 23lbs, 7 ounces at your doctor's visit, and you were 29.75 inches long, which puts you in the 90th percentile for both.   I can't recall your head measurement, but it was in the 95th percentile.  Just for comparisons, at 9 months old Luke weighed in at 23lbs even and was a bit over 30 inches.  You are wearing all 12 month clothes, with the exception of sleepers which are starting to be mostly 18 months.

You LOVE to eat!  You literally scream between bites or if we pause for the briefest moment.  You take in about 26 ounces of milk daily, divided over 4 bottles.  In addition to that you eat oatmeal or yogurt for breakfast, a stage 1 or 2 for lunch, and 2 stage 2s for dinner.  If you aren't eating when we are eating, then you want bites of our food, too!  For non-baby food items....you like blueberries, bananas, noodles, popsicles (courtesy of Luke).....who am I kidding, you like it all!!! Well, except for baby food peaches.

You are such a good baby and you love to play with your (or Luke's) toys.  We can sit you on the floor and you can entertain yourself for a good long while.  You like to have all of your toys in a bucket so that you can choose what you want to play with.  When it is all said and done you have touched them all and they are scattered a good distance. 

Ben, you are dying to crawl, you just haven't figured it out yet.  Instead, though, you use your super flexibility to reach and get just about everything you want.  If you aren't reaching then you are turning circles or scooting around.  Your other means of transportation is your walker.  You are getting fast and dangerous.  When you are in the walker Luke likes to sit on a stool or on the couch so you don't get his feet.

Benjamin, you are our joy and we love you so much!!!

8 Months Old

Benjamin is 8 months old (an counting)!!  At 8 months old he weighed in at 22.2 lbs which puts him in the 75th-90th percentile for weight.  He is wearing mostly 12 month clothes and seems to be growing by the minute. 

Benji still is a great eater.  For breakfast he eats oatmeal or a yogurt plus a 4 ounce bottle.  At dinner he has 1 stage 1 food and 1 stage 2 food with water to drink.  Other than that he has 3 other bottles (8 ounces) throughout the day, not to mention snacks a plenty! He doesn't seem to be too picky about his food, except that he DOES NOT LIKE PEACHES!  Two days before Ben turned 8 months old he cut 2 more teeth his top, right side and last week he cut the other 2 on the top, left side.  That makes for a total of 6 teeth!  At this rate he will be eating steak in no time!

Ben still isn't crawling, but he definitely has the desire!  He manages to move all around trying to get to his toys or Luke's toys ;)  He is a flexible baby and will practically do the splits to get what he wants!  He also likes to clap, give kisses, walk in his walker, wave, and says things like ba-ba, da-da, and ma-ma.

He is the sweetest little boy and goes with the flow of our hectic lives.  He has brought so much joy into our family and we love him so much!

 I love these hands

 and this sweet face

7 Months Old!

Benji is seven months old and growing!!  He weighs in at 21.5 pounds on our home scale, which puts him in the 90th percentile for weight.  Up until this point Ben has always weighed in about a pound less than Luke was at the same age, but he is now comparable (Luke was 21.6 pounds at 7 months).  He is wearing 12-18 month sleepers and is in mostly 12 month clothes (he still has a few 6-9 month things holding on).

Benjamin still loves to eat and we can't seem to feed him fast enough.  He is eating oatmeal or yogurt for breakfast with a 4 ounce bottle and he eats a vegetable and a fruit for dinner.  In addition to that he gets 3 other 8 ounce bottles throughout the day.  He is really good at drinking water out of his sippy cup and loves to eat any and all snacks (mum-mums, yogurt melts, cheerios or anything else we let him try).

As for new things, we have teeth!!  He had his first 2 teeth break through 2 days before he turned 7 months!!  Also, a couple of weeks before the 7 month mark he started talking.  He has the sweetest little voice and has been saying da-da, ba-ba, and ma-ma.  I know all babies are sweet, but hearing him talke melts my heart.  He is the happiest little baby and really just goes with the flow.  He absolutely loves his brother and I really love to see his face light up when Luke is in the room.

Benji we love you!!

I love those baby blues!

So happy!

Check out those teeth!

6 Months Old

Benjamin has been 6 months old now for a couple of weeks, so it seems fitting that I go ahead and write this post!

At 6 months old Benjamin weighed in at 19lbs, 14oz and was 27.5 inches long (this puts him in the 75th-90th percentile for both height and weight).  His head circumference was 45 cm (again 75th-90th percentile).  Daddy took Ben to his docotor's vist and I am pretty sure he got 2 shots and an oral vaccine.  From the report I got, he took them like a champ!

Benjamin has grown out of his 6-9 month sleepers and his time his in his 6-9 month cloths is limited.  He is already several of his 12 month outfits.

 Benji still loves to eat!  He eats 3 tablespoons of oatmeal in the morning and 3 tablespoons of oatmeal plus a fruit or veggie for dinner.  He has tried all of the first foods and seems to like pears the best.  He gets 4 bottles a day.  For the most part they are 7-8 ounce bottles, with the exception of only 4 ounces with his breakfast.  Ben still has a toothless grin!

Benjamin is such a happy baby!  He loves to be in his bouncer or entertainer and will start to bounce higher if you tell him to jump-a-jump or bouncie-bounce.  He also likes to play on the floor with his favorite toys -- a spatula, a clacker or his links.  He recently has started to play with Luke's ABC school bus and he loves that, too!

Benjamin, you are a special boy and we love you VERY much!

5 Months Old!

I know this is way over due, considering my baby is almost 6 months old…..

At 5 months old Benjamin weighed in at 18.5 lbs on our home scale, which puts him in the 90th percentile for his age. He has the cutest little knee rolls and Buddha belly!!

As you can probably guess, Ben loves to eat. At 5 months old he was eating 3 tablespoons of cereal twice daily, in addition to his 7-8 oz bottles (4-5 per day). He is wearing 6-9 month clothes and he loves to have his clothes changed. I actually look forward to the smiles and giggles I get when I take his clothes off before bath time. He has continued to be a great overnight sleeper, with only a few minor wake ups here and there. As for napping, that is a different story!

The day that Benjamin turned 5 months old is the same day that he finally decided he would roll over!! He started with back to belly and only recently going from belly to back. He loves to be in his bouncer/entertainer and seeing himself in the little mirror. He will play with almost anything you give him, but particularly loves anything he can use to hit a hard surface and make a noise!

Benjamin is such a good baby. He mostly goes with the flow and allows us to tote him all over town. He loves his big brother and I can already tell that he is going to be following him around as soon as he is mobile!
 Benjamin we love you!

4 Months Old!

Benjamin is now 4 months old!!  At his 4 month visit he weighed in at 16 lbs even (75 percentile) and was 26.25 inches long (90th percentile).  His head was in the 75th percentile as well, but I do not remember the exact number.  He is growing like a little weed....yes, I said little -- he is smaller than Luke was at this exact same age :)

Benjamin loves his bottles!  He eats 5 times each with each bottle being 7-8 ounces.  He doesn't always drain them, but I wouldn't say that he likes to leave much behind!  He is starting to change over to his 6-9 month sleepers because of his length and is probably within a few weeks from wearing his 6-9 month clothes.  He continues to be a good sleeper.  We put him down between 8-9pm and we wake him up at 6am. 

At 4 months old Benjamin is learning new things every day.  He is really starting to play with his toys more and more.  He loves his little rattle/teether and his crinkle book.  He especially loves his big brother Luke.  He loves to give him kisses (open mouthed and slobbery) and watch him play.  Luke is so sweet and always thinking of Benjamin.  Luke loves to lay with Ben on the blanket and he is always "buying" him new toys from around the house.

Benjamin isn't rolling over yet, but he is definitely trying.  He gets up on his side, but just can't quite figure out what to do with his arm.  Don't worry, I am not showing him what to do with that arm just yet -- I can use a few more weeks (at least) of no rolling over ;)

Benjamin we love you and are thankful to have you as our son.

This photo shoot was not Ben's favorite.  He was kind of cranky and definitely over the camera.