Giggles!

We discovered that Ben will giggle his head off at falling objects, particularly when he's tired and almost ready for bed.

Here's a little video I captured this evening of Nic dropping objects for Ben.


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A little walk down memory lane

I scanned in all of Ben's "official" photos that I have had taken since he was 6 weeks old. Enjoy!

Ben @ 6 weeks - I didn't dare wake him for fear he'd scream his head off and we'd have to reschedule.

Ben @ 3 months - our little accountant

Ben @ 4 months - he kinda looks like a soft-serve ice cream cone :)

Ben @ 5 months - remember the low-flow shower head Seinfeld episode??

And finally, the photos he had taken yesterday - Ben @ 6 months

And the photoshoot wouldn't have been complete without a "Serious B" shot:

Our little Benji-boo is 6 months old today!

Yes - happy half-birthday to Benjamin!

I can hardly believe how quickly these past 6 months have gone, and a little saddened at the thought of how much more quickly the next 6 months will pass.

Ben has learned so many things these past months. And he amazes me every day.

Ben's a great napper having three naps a day, and has been consistantly sleeping though the night since 3 months of age. He started solids at 5.5 months and in a couple of short weeks he has learned to eat like a pro. Ben is really good with his hands and can handle small objects very easily (he loves shaking his rattles) and he's getting better with bigger objects, like blocks. He's just getting the hang of his Jumperoo now. He is actually jumping! For the longest time he would just hang in it and play with the attached toys.

Ben's almost out of his infant car seat. We'll probably buy and install his convertable car seat this weekend. I'm really going to miss the convenience of the infant car seat, but who am I kidding? I wouldn't be able to physically lug him around in that thing much longer anyway.

And yesterday Ben went on his first ride at Wonderland. We went on a swan ride, then a little train ride. He really seemed to enjoy the swans. And he sat on the train himself with mommy holding his hands. He looked like such a big boy. :) I went on The Minebuster, sans Ben, but one day he'll be big enough to ride it with me! That's a scary thought. Anyway, cousin Kareen took some pictures of Ben on his first ride. I'll post them when I get them.

A day at the park

Nic, Ben, Cleo, and I went to the park for a little picnic today. Ben loves the park. Here are a few pics:

Blocks

I bought Ben some Fisher Price Peek-A-Blocks and he loves them. He especially loves when we stack them up so he can knock them down. And he's getting better at holding larger objects in his hands. Of course, they all go straight to the mouth.

More Benjamin pics!

Ben looking cute on his tummy. And I *love* these shorts. They're just too adorable. What a little man, eh? Believe it or not, Ben is actually *really* happy in this picture. He just pitched his bowl and spoon off the side of his high chair and was pretty excited about it (see bottom left.)Here he is in his "homage to Cleo" t-shirt. It reads "...but mom said it was OK!" ("mom," in this case, should be capitalized, but whatever. T-shirts aren't exactly known for their correct grammar.)
It's almost time to get Ben a new car seat. He's 20 lbs and this seat goes to 22 lbs.
And here he is getting excited about his blanket. :)

Our big boy!

Ben had an appointment today with his paediatrician at which he was weighed and measured. He came in at a whopping 20 lbs 1 oz (97th percentile) and his height measured 27.2 inches (90th percentile.) His head circumference is 17.3 inches (50th percentile, which it has been all along.)

The paediatrician also checked Ben's rash and thinks its eczema, not ringworm, as our GP suggested, so she prescibed him a steriod cream to be applied sparingly for 3 - 4 days, and once it starts clearing up we're supposed to moisturize the hell out of the poor kid. Hopefully this does the trick.

Sling = good investment

Ben and I went to the mall today and I carried him in the sling for a little while when he was tired of sitting in his stroller, and he was SO sweet. I had him laughing really hard... beyond giggles. It was the best feeling in the world. The two of us laughed our heads off in the record shop... I'm sure people thought we, or at least I, was nuts.

I'll try to get some pictures of me and Ben using the sling.

Father's Day

Ben is wearing his special "I love Daddy" onsie (now covered in carrots) and gave Daddy a biking t-shirt and a card. He also gave Daddy a full diaper to change, much to Daddy's suprise. Good boy. ;)

Here's a pic of my special guys, taken this morning:

Uncle Robin corrupts Ben

Yummy food!

Ben has become a good little eater. He opens his mouth for the spoon every time. He didn't much care for rice cereal, but he's keen on his veggies.

Ben likes green beans:

Although he wasn't so sure at first:
Ben also likes carrots:

Ben sucks

Literally. I gave him back his pacifier. I couldn't bear to watch him struggle to fall asleep, especially since he goes down for naps and bedtime so easily and happily with his pacifier and he's not dependant on it to stay asleep. So we have a happy napper on our hands again. :)

Weaning from the pacifier

The other night Nic and I were discussing weaning Ben from his pacifier. He only takes it at naptime and bedtime and doesn't use it any other time of day, so even though it's never easy to wean a child from a comfort item, it will be easier done sooner rather than later.

I hadn't planned on starting right away, but Ben fell asleep for his first nap yesterday after spitting it out, so I intentionally put him down without it for his second nap; he just pulled his blanket into his face and fell asleep. His third nap was more difficult and I caved in and gave him his pacifier, but no more. I don't want to confuse the poor little guy. So I didn't give it to him at bedtime, and although it took him longer than normal to fall asleep, he was asleep within 25 minutes.

This morning I put him down for his first nap and he was asleep within 10 minutes without his pacifier. He's doing so well!

Fortunately Ben is a kid who loves his blanket and is able to derive some comfort from that. Fingers crossed that this is an easy transition for him.

Movin' in the exersaucer

Ben's started to turn 360s in his exersaucer this past week. It seems like at 5 months he grew into some of his toys a bit more. In no time he'll be whipping around in his exersaucer like his pal Cooper.

Miscellaneous Ben pics

Learning to sit up like a big boy:
C'mere kitty!
Hanging out in his highchair:
A little sick and tired of playing:
Looking cool for his stroll in the park:

Anyone got a napkin??

We were going to wait until 6 months before introducing solids, but he seemed ready today. I did a test run with an empty spoon and he opened wide and smiled each time, so I mixed him up a bit of cereal. Of course he wasn't quite so receptive once there was food on it. Go figure.

Ben was obviously a little surprised by the texture, but got the hang of it towards the end of the feeding. We'll try again tomorrow and if he lacks interest we'll hold off another week before trying again.

Showing some interest in his feet

Now that he can reach them!

Ben is beginning to overcome his chubby belly and legs and can finally reach his feet. He has a lot of work to do before he gets them into his mouth, but it's a start.

Ben's first art project

Our little man worked on a t-shirt for his grandpa (my dad) this evening:


And here is the little artist himself:

Daddy's home!

Nic was at a conference in Seattle this past week and Benjamin sure did miss him (as did I!) Here are a few pics I snapped this morning of Benjamin and Daddy.