Benjamin's 2 year check-up

Benjamin had a great 2 year appointment with his doctor.  He is 30.25 lbs. (86%), 34" tall (39%), head measures 20" (93%) and his BMI is 19.2 (94%).  He is a healthy, happy little man.

Our boy is really starting to become a chatter box.  He is putting sentences together and trying to have full on conversations with us.  He's so fun!  Benjamin is also starting to show interest in the potty.  He asks to "pee pee" before every bath and has also asked to go to the bathroom a couple of times on his own during the day.  I thought he would be my tough guy to train, but he may be proving his ol' mama wrong.  

On to year 2 - I can't wait to see what it brings!

Benjamin's 2nd birthday party

We celebrated Benjamin's 2nd birthday with our families on Saturday, December 12.  We had a Mickey Mouse Clubhouse themed dinner, complete with hot diggity dogs!  Benjamin had a great time and loved being the center of attention.  Happy birthday, sweet boy!  xoxo

Benjamin is 2!

Our Benjamin,

Two years ago, we welcomed you to the world. It was love at first sight.  Your knowing eyes and loving expression took hold of our hearts and never let us go.

One of the brightest points of our every day is your precious smile.  What a handsome, happy little man you've become. We love how determined you are; how you know exactly what it is that you want and you don't waiver.  You're so smart and inquisitive, and you love to figure things out for yourself, and learn how things work. We admire that about you.  Your mind is always working and learning!

You're our furniture climber and our mischief maker.  You cut those beautiful blue eyes at us and give us the cutest smile and all is forgiven.  You dance, you run, you jump, you look for adventure.  And in turn, every single day is an adventure for us, as well.

You have a sweet, gentle side.  That same side that was so apparent when you were just minutes old, snuggling your mama's cheek.  You give the best Eskimo kisses, you flirt shamelessly and you blow kisses (I wish I could bottle them).  Be still, my heart.  I think the best time for us, though, is bedtime.  All is calm and you snuggle into our laps to read a story and in that moment, time stands still. 

Everyday with you is beautiful.  You teach us so much, precious boy, and we are beyond grateful that God chose us to be your parents.  We love you to the moon and back!

All of our love,

Mama and Daddy

Go Deacs!

We took the kids to the Wake Forest vs. NC State game in Winston-Salem today.  The Deacs lost, but the kids had a ball!

Benjamin, 22 months

Benjamin B, the Big Cheese, Ben-ya, cutest boy I ever did see...he's 22 months old!  And, this is what he's up to:

• He says hi to everything...for example, "Hiiii light" as he points to the light.
• He is saying thank you and wants to know "Whats that?" about everything!  He also says Papa, Buddy and Sissy quite a bit.
• Other words we hear a lot: No, turtle, pumpkin, nose (no), eyes, bear, choochoo (train), bunny, down, horse, car, truck 
• He is climbing everything - kitchen chairs are his new favorites, and of course, the trusty stairs
• He is learning how to come down the stairs and get off the couch a little smoother
• He likes to carry around a spoon in his hand (or any toy that's small enough to carry with one hand)
• He is eating with a fork or spoon
• He's using both his right and left hand when he eats
• He usually colors with his left hand
• He likes trains and trucks and LOVES the cows at the farm
• He kisses goodbye
• He can throw a serious tantrum and screams bloody murder to let you know how ticked he is...this usually lasts for a nano-second if you can distract him with something
• Poor guy had his first ear infection - and pink eye - in September
• Likes Jake and the Neverland Pirates & Bubble Guppies
• He'll dance to about any music you put on! 
• He enjoys feeding the cat and hugging Deacon
• He weighs +/- 30 lbs.
• He's in 24 month - 2T clothes, and wears a size 6 shoe
• He's in size 6 diapers
• He takes 1 nap a day and sleeps from 8 - 6:30/7

Farewell, summer!

We had such a fun, busy summer. Lots of travel, lots of fun and lots of memories made.  And I'll tell ya, the kids became pretty good little travel companions...for the most part... :)

We enjoyed our annual trip to Debordieu with VieVie and Papa in August.  We cooked good food, shopped and played on the beach - day and night!  We all had a blast.  The kids are really comfortable there and definitely make themselves right at home!

Next on our summer road trip tour, we headed to Myrtle Beach with the Beavers crew.  Derek's cousin got married late August so we made a weekend out of it.  We stayed at an awesome hotel that had a water park and the kids were in heaven.  By day, we played on the beach and at the pool and by night, we ate good food and enjoyed the outside entertainment - live music!  To top it off, the kids - and Grandbuddy! -  mastered the water slide (Benjamin with assistance, Madeline all by herself!).  Such a fun trip!

To end our summer of fun, we headed to Duck with our friends the Ahearns and some of their neighbors, all of whom have kids about the same age as ours.  We had a great time with new friends and old - it was a great way to end the summer!

Labor Day

We had the best Labor Day weekend.  Kenneth, Kristen and Bristol flew in from Indiana, so we had a chance to love on Bristol and introduce her to her cousins.  It was so fun to have them all together!

On Labor Day, Derek and I took the kids to Pullen Park for some fun.  Vie and Papa joined us, as well, and we played and played.  The kids loved the train, the boat ride (especially Benjamin!) and the carousel (or as Madeline says, the "carous-wheel").  We packed a lunch, so when we finished playing, we had a picnic under the shelter - with a great view of the train!  After naps, we played with the water table on the back porch and had our dinner outside.

Such a special weekend.  One I'll remember and keep close to my heart.

Madeline goes to Pre-K!

Madeline had her first day of preschool this morning - the 4's class - pre-K!  I can't even believe it.  She is in the Geckos class this year with Ms. Julia and Ms. Karen and she is thrilled.  It's going to be another great year at Apex UMC Preschool!

Beavers kiddo update

It feels like ages since I posted an update.  I took a new job at the end of March (which I love!) and then our wild, fun summer hit, so I've been one busy mama.  

Madeline had her 4 year old check-up today and got a great report!  She weighs 36 lbs (52%) and is 41 1/4" tall (73%).  Our sweet sassy girl is so imaginative and so funny.  Her wit is sharp as a tack and she absorbs everything she sees and hears.  Most recently, she has developed a love for musicals (which makes me happy as a clam).  She loves The Sound of Music and My Fair Lady, especially.  Her favorite tunes are "I am 16 Going on 17" and "Henry Higgins."  Every night is a private concert at our house.  We have so much fun singing and dancing together.  She's still very much into Disney Princesses and is often found in a princess dress, crown and high heels before breakfast hits the table. She takes issue with my being friends with someone and when Derek and I kiss (always has to be the cheek...or else).

Benjamin is a wild man!  He runs, he dances, he throws things on the floor, he climbs, and he runs some more.  He still loves Mickey Mouse, his sister, bath time and Deacon.  He also loves the blender.  Anytime I use it, he comes running and wants to help.  Our little man is starting to say things like "thank you" and "more" and when you say "bye bye" to him, he blows you a kiss. His new favorite animal sound is "baaa" for sheep.  He thinks it's hilarious!  If you ask him to raise his arm, he'll do it and wait for you to tickle him, and then he just howls. He has 16 (!) teeth and uses those bad boys to eat about anything in sight.  He's officially sitting in a chair at the table (which he likes much better than the high chair) and is trying to use his utensils to eat - instead of to play.  When he successfully gets food into his mouth with his spoon, he claps for himself and says "yay!"

I am so grateful for these two precious babies that make my days so bright and full of life.  Always an adventure!

Benjamin, 18 months

Our Benjamin is 18 months old! Benjamin has 15 teeth and eats so much food!  He can really put it away. He still has moments of being picky if the consistency is odd, but he’s getting better by the day. He’s down to one nap a day and sleeps about 10-11 hours at night.  We’ve also officially turned his carseat around which makes him a much happier traveler.  He gets really hot and sweaty and we found that the a/c wasn’t getting to him as well turned backwards, so with it being summer, we had to turn him.

He’s not quite the magpie that his sister was at this age, but he is saying a lot of words and will show you what he wants or needs.  His favorite words are mama, daddy, papa, Ya Ya (Madeline), car, cold, light, bus, Deacon, dog, cow, ball, cat, more.  He loves to make out sounds, too.  He moos, oinks, roars, barks and makes a siren sound.  He’s also a little love bug and will give you a hug, kiss or high five and blow you a kiss at your request.

Benjamin is loving music. He loves to dance and “sing” – especially to the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse hot dog dance.  He also loves to be dipped upside down and enjoys leaping off of his little arm chair into our arms.  He smiles and says “tay, tay, tay” and then jumps (we think this is his version of “1, 2, 3”).  He also loves books.  He enjoys being read to and likes to flip through books on his own, as well.  In fact, the first thing he does when we take him to Benna's in the morning is head to the bookcase to select a book, sits down and flips through it!

He is a true 18 month old, which means he throws a true tantrum.  He squeals and stomps his little feet, squirms around and occasionally throws himself on the floor.  Oh, the joys.  This too shall pass, as it did with his sister.  Tantrum or not, he sure is cute and funny!

At his 18 month doctor’s visit, all looked great!  He did throw one of those mighty tantrums when he got shots, but recovered well.  It was kind of funny that two grown women (the nurse and me) had to wrestle this child to hold him down while he was throwing himself around to avoid the needle.  And I’m convinced if he knew curse words, we wouldn’t gotten an earful.  He is 27 lbs., 4.5 oz. (70%), 33 1/2” in length (84%), and head measures 20" (99%).  My little bruiser is growing like a weed.   

End of preschool

Preschool has come to an end for the summer.  Madeline LOVED being a Frog at Apex UMC Preschool and we look forward to more days at school next year.

 

Madeline's 4th birthday party

We celebrated Madeline’s 4^th birthday on Sunday, May 17 with a family dinner at our house. The birthday girl loves mermaids, so we did a mermaid theme, complete with a “scaled” cake and oyster cookies, and per the birthday girl’s request, we dined on pizza. What a fun day celebrating our precious girl.