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...

Yankees' Opening Day Postponed

Okay, so it was really Mike who was upset about the game (though not quite that upset). Benjamin was having a meltdown because I was three milliseconds too slow in getting him more food.
Benjamin is discovering that he can not only: 1. grab things and 2. put his fist in his mouth, but that he can put things he grabs with his fist into his mouth - well, at the same time as his fist, anyway. My finger is the prey here.
I have no idea what he's trying to do with his tongue here, but he was doing it for a long time. He was also fascinated by his musical aquarium - he usually glances at it for a few seconds and is on to the next piece of entertainment.
He really does occasionally look at the pictures in his books, but the camera always grabs his attention. This book is short enough that we almost always get to the end before he blows a gasket.
Yum, rattle. I think Katie's right...I told her how Benjamin has been really fussy lately and having more crying fits than usual, and she was like, "oh, he's teething?" and I was all, "no, he's not to that stage yet, he's just crying for no reason." But I'm pretty sure I was wrong. And Aunt Katie's right. Again. Like how she knew when I'd deliver. How do you know these things??
My heart melts when he smiles like this. No, he did not skin his knee while walking down the driveway to get the mail, he scratched himself something fierce with one of those wicked little fingernails. Actually, he scratched himself twice; the second time was when he scratched the scab off from the first time.

Dare I say it - I think he's edging toward eating every three hours instead of every two. I've tried offering more formula to encourage more time between feedings, but he hasn't been receptive to it until this week, when he's been demanding it. If his eating habits now are any indication of what kind of eater he'll be when he starts solids, we won't have to worry about him being picky or stingy.

Sure do love it when people post comments! (hint hint)

Funny faces

We thought it would be cute to show some of the sillier pictures from the last couple weeks...
What are you trying to do to me?!
Please, TAKE A NAP ALREADY
Benjamin surprised Mike when he came home from work by greeting him at the door wearing this cap from Nana. However, the hat is still a bit big, & Benjamin (who has recently developed a disdain for snug hats) wasn't sure what to make of it.
Easter hangover: this was in the evening after we got back from visiting with friends, and all that excitement hit Benjamin like a ton of bricks.
CHOMP!
Calvin did some chomping of his own on this bunny that was actually a present for Benjamin. Calvin pretty much claimed it as his own as soon as he saw it. It's a musical bunny that's activated by pressing its belly, and Calvin attacks it so violently that he occasionally sets the music off and startles himself.

Benjamin and I went to the commissary today for groceries, and even though the last couple times we went there hardly anyone noticed him, today he was the star of the store. I put the car seat carrier in the grocery cart and pile groceries around him. Several people looked into the cart and talked to him. There were many comments about how handsome and alert he is. He seems to like going out in public, it's just those nasty car rides that still get him fussing.

For those people following the diaper situation of late...after two and a half days, he finally pooped. And pooped. And then pooped a little more.

A shout-out to Aunt Katie: spring break! Woohoo!

3 months old on Easter

It's hard to believe Benjamin is already 3 months old, or just coming out of his fourth trimester, as Mike likes to say. We had a lovely time at the home of some friends for an Easter meal, and we got to show off the bunny outfit that Nana sent. He didn't keep the hat on for long, but it was cute while it lasted. We didn't get a picture from behind to show the bunny tail, though. Love the feet.

Our friend Kate is a pro at handling babies since she has an adorable toddler of her own, and she is an invaluable resource for me as a new mom. Her family just found out they will be moving to another base later this year, which is wonderful for them but more than a little sad for those of us they will be leaving!

Benjamin was a doll for most of the afternoon - as long as he was around a bunch of people, as usual. All that excitement caught up with him by the time we brought him home, and Mike spent a lot of time calming him down so he could eat and sleep a little. He'll sleep well tonight (knock on wood).

Someone's missing Daddy...

...well, I'm sure Benjamin misses his daddy, but this sour face has more to do with him turning into Cranky McCrankerson in the evening.
"Tummy time" is not a real big hit so far. It's funny - he has a strong neck and pretty good control of his head, and he'll pick his head up when he's lying on someone's chest, but he doesn't like being put belly-down on a flat surface. I keep trying it, he keeps loathing it.
Something he likes! This is Ally the Alligator, given by Aunt Rachel & Aunt Beth. She has lights, music, and rings to grab (or chew and drool on). What more could he ask for?
This is in the driveway after coming home from the base today. I took him with me to my doctor's appointment, which he was surprisingly good for. He only had one crying fit right at the end. He usually cries and cries on the way home (can't stand being alone in the backseat) but this time he only cried a little and then fell asleep. I put the monkey mirror back there so I could see him, but also because I've heard that some babies like to talk to this kind of mirror with an animal on it. Benjamin has been eyeing it suspiciously for several weeks, but today I caught him smiling at it. Guess they're friends now.

Happy St. Pat's Day!

This one's for you, Nana. Mike got a bunch of cute pictures of the process of putting the bib on Benjamin, but I've limited myself to only posting two.
This is some funky sideways flying pose that Daddy & Benjamin use to look at stuff. Mommy can't do this one.
Gotcha! One of the few really good smile pics I've been able to get. Still lovin' that lion.

So I forgot to write that our little guy had his sort-of two-month well baby appointment last week (of course the base couldn't get us in when he was actually two months old). He weighed 12 pounds 9 ounces and got his first round of shots, poor thing. The doc said he's doing just fine.

Mike's on the road this week, so hopefully we'll do some more updates in the coming days to hold him over.

Aunt Rachel & Aunt Beth's Visit

Yeah, I know, they're really somehow cousins to Benjamin, but we liked "aunt" better.

We were sooo excited to have Rachel & Beth visit us last weekend! They drove all the way from southern Florida after flying from PA, so we appreciated all they went through to get here. They spent so much time with Benjamin - holding, feeding, playing, changing diapers - that I hardly had to do anything while they were here. He took to the both of them really well. I swear Benjamin was calmer when Aunt Rachel held him than he ever is with me!
Aunt Beth had a great time playing with Benjamin and his playmat. He is talking up a storm to her in this picture. They bought him a toy that he's been playing with a lot - still have to get a picture of that, though.
Looking at this picture, it's hard to believe that he has to be tightly swaddled to go to sleep every night. I know I'm going to have to get used to putting him down more for his naps instead of holding him, but he's just so precious...

It looks like we'll be getting more visitors and traveling in the coming weeks. Mike's grandmother, aunt, uncle & cousin are coming the first weekend of April, and we'll be driving down to visit Grandma, my mom & Aunt Janie the following weekend. It's exciting to have Benjamin meet our families. But I'm still really not looking forward to that six-hour drive to Grandma's!