April showers

Hard to believe, but it has rained for two days in a row. Maybe we won't have such a bad drought this year. I ran some errands this morning, and I think it was the first time Benjamin went on an outing in the rain. I covered the stroller until we got to the store, and he didn't seem to mind one bit. That boy loves him some shopping...so much more interesting than sitting at home!Getting some beauty sleep. It has been a little more challenging the last few days to get him to lie down for a nap, and a couple times it was difficult to put him in his crib for the night. He puts up quite a fight, even when it is obvious the boy is exhausted. We've decided he doesn't want to miss out on any of the action. Once he's asleep for a while, though, he wakes up very happy.
Benjamin is usually pretty content in his swing, but recently he has been struggling to sit up or roll over while lying in it. So I finally attached the toy bar, and wasn't he thrilled! That thing is noisy, but moving those plastic pieces from one side to the other keeps him entertained.
Last week he discovered he can grab hold of his feet. Unfortunately, he has given himself some really bad scratches on his legs (they're collateral damage) from doing this so often . On the upside, feet are really cheap toys.
Mike is a sucker for the hat pictures. There will be plenty more of them now that it's getting sunny and hot.
I was waiting until he could hold his head up really well before I put him in this sitter. He was thoroughly confused the first time he was in it - he kept wiggling and arching his back to get out of it, but he was going nowhere. It's a sturdy little seat, and it's helping me get stuff done in rooms where it's hard to keep him entertained while he's lying down.
Had to include a shot of the Yankees logo.

I had a girls' night out with two of my former coworkers on Saturday. It's still strange to go out without Benjamin, but it was only for a few hours and I had a nice time. Plus Mike got to watch baseball with Benjamin - they need a boys' night every once in a while, too.

Chatterbox

Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing - Photo Books
Still figuring out this video stuff... This clip won't stay here forever, we can only archive so many at a time. This is representative of the sounds Benjamin has been making this week. That wonderful shrieking noise is his favorite - it was cute the first couple times, but let me tell ya, not so cute when Mommy has a headache.

Parents' night out

More of an afternoon out...our friends Jolene & Alex were kind enough to babysit for us on Saturday. We went to a Japanese restaurant for sushi, then went to a coffee place for dessert. The weather was beautiful so we sat outside and talked, just like old times. It was bizarre being able to eat at the same time and not be preoccupied with a baby nearby. The two of us haven't been out to dinner since Nana visited in January.Here's the peewee earlier that day, involved in his favorite activity these days - putting stuff in his mouth. He loves plastic teething rings like this one.
Jolene in the "before" picture...
and "after." She said we hadn't even pulled out of the driveway before Benjamin started hollering. We kind of saw it coming because he wouldn't take his afternoon nap and thought he might be cranky later. Jolene must have done something right, because Benjamin was happy as a clam and asleep in his swing when we got home. She even said she'd babysit again sometime - yay!
We've had a couple people offer to babysit on the weekends, which we're really grateful for. Getting babysitters during weekdays, though, is a bit tougher. Most of the people I know either work full-time or have their own kids to deal with. I hate to bother people to babysit, but I can't expect Mike to be able to leave work every time I have an appointment. He has gone above and beyond so far.
Benjamin just loves this blankie/teddy bear thing. Of course his first instinct is to shove it in his mouth every time he sees it.
Hmmm... Benjamin & bear look a little suspicious here. Gnawing on his fingers has been keeping Benjamin focused & entertained a lot lately.
Happy that Daddy came home from work. Benjamin has been a lot more content to just lie in his crib and entertain himself for awhile, which gives me some much-needed baby-free time.

Hey Warner Robins folks... the Dempseys had their baby!

Grandma's House

We finally made it down to visit my grandmother & introduce her to her first great-grandchild. It was also our first substantial road trip with Benjamin (and practice for the much longer drive up north in a few months). While the trip went pretty well, we are all still recovering. Here's our little angel at the beginning of the trip on Friday afternoon. With a stop or two, the trip took about six hours. Benjamin took a few naps and was fairly happy the rest of the time, as long as he was being entertained. I can't count the number of times he "read" Goodnight Moon. I discovered that there are not so many restrooms with changing stations, and that it's probably just as easy to change diapers in the car. We got to the hotel on Friday night and had a typical night's sleep.
Grandma's condo wasn't very far away, but we couldn't get there fast enough to please Nana on Saturday morning. The weather was surprisingly warm, but we got to stay inside with the AC. This was also Aunt Janie's first time meeting Benjamin.
Many presents were bestowed on Benjamin, which shouldn't be a shock. This cloth book about dinosaurs is from Nana, and Benjamin ended up "reading" it many, many times on the return trip.


AIRPLANE!! This game really tickled Benjamin's funny bone.
Nana's very animated way of playing really captivated Benjamin. It really amused the rest of us, too.
That little wrist ornament is a rattle, one of the presents from Aunt Janie. By the way, if you're ever in her neck of the woods, invite yourself to Aunt Janie's for dinner. She cooked us a fantastic meal of turkey with cranberries, wild rice, and some delicious sweet potato soup. So yummy.
Saying goodbye... For a minute there, I wasn't sure Nana was going to let the little guy leave.

Other than coming unwrapped from being swaddled, we had another decent night of sleep on Saturday. We got out of the hotel exactly at checkout time, and that was with us rushing. As soon as Benjamin felt that car seat under him, he screamed bloody murder. It took a good hour to really get him calm. The rest of the trip back was better, but not as smooth as the first stretch - he figured out these car rides are not so much fun. Plus there was a lot of traffic in Florida, and then there were massive delays in Georgia apparently due to what they called "construction" (nothing actually being accomplished, but barrels for miles). Benjamin is still a bit out of sorts - he wouldn't take a proper nap yesterday, and today he slept for hours with bouts of crying in between. All in all, it was worth it to see family, and it has given us ideas of how we can prepare for the trip to Pennsylvania this summer.

P.S. Uncle Joe was a dork and didn't visit us all at Grandma's because he was WATCHING GOLF ON TV. Lame, Uncle Joe. Lame.

Birds chirp at night?

A few nights ago I got up for a 3 am feeding and noticed the sound of birds chirping. Turns out it was only one bird (and a dog barking at the bird). Then the next night I heard it again. Does our neighborhood just have an insane bird, or do birds always chirp at night but I didn't hear it because I used to sleep through the night?

Benjamin really started to laugh last week, but he's been very vocal in the last few days - every vowel sound under the sun with some consonants thrown in. He will talk at length to anyone or anything that he thinks will listen.He doesn't like to stay propped up like this for very long, but while he was here he told Mommy a story.

We're fortunate that he likes bathtime so much. I think Daddy is pressing his luck by dawdling like this after the bath, though. He is just asking for a present to be left in that nice clean towel.
The infamous pout. I promise you, he was sleeping when he suddenly started crying and making faces like this one. He never even opened his eyes.
The incompetence around this place...
Surprise! Not a picture of a baby. The pecan tree in our backyard started to go green this week. I know I'm not the biggest fan of living in Middle Georgia, but spring can be really pretty around here.

Mike & I took Benjamin out to lunch for the first time this week. It was a mixed success. He did have a meltdown and had to be taken outside to calm down, but the good people at Atlanta Bread didn't scowl at us. I have concluded that going out to eat means being permanently relegated to the kiddie table if it's a big crowd, and only one of us will be able to eat at a time. I have a feeling that, most of the time, going out to eat accompanied by Benjamin will be more trouble than it's worth (wasting money and time, which are both in short supply) . Not a shock, but good to know.

I'm so excited that so many friends & family are seeing the blog now! Some specific comments, if you people are reading...

Heather, we saw your blog, and your house is beautiful! We couldn't figure out how to post a comment or e-mail you (we don't have your address) so I hope you're reading this.

Laurie, where have you been all my life? I haven't seen you in months! I hope you, Joe & the girls are doing well. Give me a call sometime.

If any of Mike's friends are out there (and I know you are), you're allowed to post comments, too.

It only rains when family visits

A bunch of Mike's family came to visit this weekend, & we were so grateful they made the trek. Gram flew from upstate New York to North Carolina, and from there everyone (Aunt Sandy, cousin Justin, cousin Heather & her husband Jamie) made the six-hour drive through many storms to get here. It was supposed to rain all week and didn't, then poured buckets the night they got into town. Sorry, guys! Hope the return trip was easier...Can you guess what everyone's oohing and aahing over? There's a very happy baby attached to that foot.
Gram already has great-grandkids, but this was her first time seeing Benjamin. She has the magic touch and rocked him to sleep several times.
Apparently being a goofball is a genetic trait in Mike's family. Justin's so tall we can't even fit him in the picture!
Benjamin is still a very social little guy so far & loved being passed around. Although we didn't get any pictures of Calvin (our cat), he also liked all the attention and was pretty peeved the next day when it was back to just me & Mike. People familiar with Calvin can guess how he showed his disapproval in the hallway.
Benjamin had a blast with Sandy - she talked, walked, made faces and blew raspberries with him. He especially like the raspberries and has been sticking his tongue out & blowing bubbles for the last few days.
Heather is a great example of how you don't have to have a lot of experience to be good with babies. We already know both she and Justin are good with kids - they're both teachers, and we're willing to bet they are awesome at it.
Benjamin was fascinated with Gram and studied her for a very long time. We're looking forward to visiting her at her own home this summer.
We don't get to see Mike's extended family very much, and they're very important to us, so it was really special to spend the day with them. Uncle Rick couldn't make it, but hopefully we'll be able to drive up to North Carolina at some point to see everybody there.

Rollin', rollin', rollin'

Mike has a gig in Macon for the Cherry Blossom Festival tonight, so he had off this morning. He got up with Benjamin first thing in the morning, and when Mike put him down on his playmat, Benjamin bent his knees, pulled them up to his stomach, and rolled on his side to talk to his little lion friend. This is the first time he has successfully rolled onto his side by himself.
Only Mike saw the first roll - luckily I got to see this repeat performance.
A couple days ago I put Benjamin on the floor and gave him a toy, which he immediately grabbed and wouldn't let go of. He raised it up in the air, never taking his eyes off of it. Then it occurred to him: he can put this in his mouth!
Mmmm, plastic doohickey.
So the story behind this is that someone was very cranky and wouldn't lie down for a nap. Mommy needed to get things done, and Benjamin doesn't like me to carry him around in the front carrier (oh, life would be so much easier if he liked the carrier). Out of desperation, I tried putting him in the sling, which has gotten him to scream on past attempts. But I lined it with a thick blanket so he didn't feel like he was being swallowed up (those slings are deep), and he was hysterical enough that he fell asleep while I carried him around. But that thing got heavy, and when he was asleep for a while, I put the whole package into the bouncer so that I wouldn't risk waking him up. He stayed like that until Mike came home an hour later.
Our little green-eyed monster was sick of Benjamin being the center of attention and decided to take over the photo shoot.

Ask & you shall receive...thanks, everyone who posted comments! It means so much to us to be able to share Benjamin & know we're not posting these pictures in vain.

Mike's relatives are driving down from North Carolina tomorrow night & will be at our house on Saturday - yay! But I had better finish cleaning now...