Old Friend

This is the "womb sounds" bear that we used in Ben's crib for many months to help him sleep. It's been a long time since he's needed it, and I had taken it out of the crib a couple of months ago. It was sitting in a corner of the nursery behind a chair...until he found it this week. This was his reaction when Mike turned the bear on.

Jacksonville

We drove down to Jacksonville last Friday to visit Katie & Brian. It was Benjamin's first visit there. The weather on Saturday was great, and we all went to the Jacksonville Zoo (also a first for Ben). Ben liked the brightly colored birds, like the flamingos.

Mike took him over to the elephants just as this big guy wandered over.

Another close-up encounter. Ben spent quite a while staring at this giraffe as people fed it just a couple feet away.

Checking out the fish with Aunt Katie.

This giant anteater came up to the glass & pressed his snout against it right in front of Benjamin. He didn't have quite enough energy to go through the whole zoo, but it was a great outing.

Whining about two things: not being allowed to play in the fireplace, and not being able to reach the TV mounted above the fireplace.

Hanging out with Aunt Katie before bedtime.

Checking out the fridge with Uncle Brian. Ben sure isn't shy.

I can't count the number of times he went over to the oven & fussed to reach the stovetop.

All tuckered out. He obviously liked interacting with Katie & Brian, and he felt right at home (unfortunately for their cat).

Little "Helper"

We have a lot of decluttering to do before we move to Germany. I have been working on organizing the hundreds of CDs we have. As I put CDs on the shelf, Benjamin pulled them off. This is pretty much the way my days go now.

Mike was going through his baseball card collection. Again, Benjamin was more than happy to help.

Determined to get into the computer room. He has discovered that if he shakes the baby gate, sometimes he can dislodge it.

All these beer bottles, and he can't find a bottle opener...so sad.

One really nice day this week, Mike took Benjamin outside to walk around the backyard. He was in heaven. I get a kick out of how little he looks in our huge yard.

Loving the outdoors. The only problem with him walking through the yard is that when he falls down, he can't get back up!

(Almost) Naked Baby

One night last week when Mike was out of town, Benjamin was super fussy. About an hour before his bedtime I changed his diaper and was going to put pajamas on him, but he was so calm after I undressed him that I let him stay that way. He was happy as a pig in mud. He went running around the living room with his arms in the air and then ran in circles. He now reaches for the ceiling when we ask him, "How big is Benjamin?"

Toy Chest

Benjamin figured out which button on his music keyboard plays full songs. He loves that button. But even that button gets boring. Apparently it's much more interesting to push the button & then close the toy chest with the music still playing.

Shoes & Fruit Salad

I'm trying to get Benjamin to wear shoes regularly now that he's walking so much. I started with these slipper shoes, thinking they're thin & won't make him trip. But he was furious. He cried for a while, but he was still walking all over the house. He got over it & kept the shoes on for most of the day. That was yesterday...I didn't make him wear shoes today.

This week we found out that Ben likes strawberries and blackberries. And of course he still loves clementines. He makes funny faces with the strawberries; I thought they'd be too tart for him, but he'll eat anything that is the least bit sweet.

He loves bathtime with Daddy. We use that blue bowl to rinse his hair, but he likes to use it as a toy. Last time he was filling the bowl with water and pouring it out.

I have been taking the pacifier away for parts of the day to get Ben used to being without it. One day this week I took it from him as soon as he woke up in the morning. I put him down for his morning nap without it, and he was fine. But by his afternoon nap he was hollering for it. I haven't been able to get him to take another nap without the pacifier, but we go on errands without it and he plays for a bit without it.

Switches