Trip to Grandma's

These last two weeks Benjamin and I went to Utah to visit family. Benjamin was very excited to go.



Well...he was equally excited by bubble wrap, but that's beside the point.


While out there, we spent time with the Daltons. It was so fun to see everyone. Benjamin was thrilled to play with Katelyn.



So much so that they wore each other out (and everyone else).


The sunshine was wonderful and the food that everyone brought was great. It looked so tasty, Benjamin wanted to get in on the action.


We also visited other friends in Utah. We frequently went to Sofia's house. While I talked to Laura, the two of them would play. When Sofia wasn't viewing Benjamin as a rival, they had fun.


Mostly, though, we hung out at home. There was plenty of stuff to do there. For example, plants to pull over.



Pianos to bang on.


And walkers to cruise around in.



All in all, we had a wonderful time. Seeing friends and family is always wonderful and the amazing weather was an added treat. Benjamin definitely loved it.


In addition, that walker was so much fun, that Benjamin came home and pretended he was in it. He walked across the living room before he realized he wasn't and fell down. I wouldn't say he's walking, because he doesn't seem to realize he can yet, but when we give him a goal, stand him up and let him go, he walks to it. It's amazing! We'll see how long it takes him to realize he's doing it and try on his own.

That's so funny

Benjamin is now 8 months old and he's developing the cutest little sense of humor and quite a love of mischief. Every day I try to find fun things to teach him and try together. The other day I took out a spatula from the kitchen and we made a mini catapult. I took the scrunchie from my hair, laid it on the handle of the spatula in front of him, and hit the other end, sending the scrunchie flying in an arc through the air. I expected him to watch it and maybe even smile, but I didn't expect the hilarity that ensued. He couldn't stop laughing! He watched it once or twice and then decided to join in. He tried to grab the scrunchie before I could launch it. If he succeeded, he'd burst out laughing. If I grabbed it from him and tried to put it back, he resisted, laughing the whole time. He was such a little rascal! He made a game out of stopping me! He seemed to love thwarting my efforts as much as he loved watching it soar through the air.


A few days later I got out my jenga game and we played with the blocks. He loved chewing on them the best, but what elicited more riotous laughter was knocking down anything I built up. It became a game to see how many blocks I could stack before he'd knock it down. Each time he'd swipe at the tower, he'd laugh and laugh, especially if I responded with an outraged, "Hey!" He would look up at me and bust up laughing. We played this game for nearly half an hour before he tired of it. It was so funny.


The final thing that I found so much fun was a game I played with him to teach about magnets. I came home from work on Saturday and he grabbed hold of my name tag, which is attached with a magnet. I sat down on the floor with him, let him hold one part of the magnet while I held the other. Then I brought my part close to his. As my magnet attracted his and he felt it pull together, he laughed out loud at the sensation. I encouraged him to try to pull them apart and as he felt the resistance and the eventual give, he laughed again. Over and over, attach and separate, he played this little game in various ways, laughing all the time. It was fascinating to watch such a young little person find such fascination in science.

This is a really long entry, but I just wanted to share how Benjamin is growing up. So, as of right now he'll either be a physicist or a demolition expert. :)

Kelly and Benjamin like to read the scriptures together.


Kelly changed Benjamin and got him ready for bed, but couldn't resist a little more fun for the evening. Nothing says fun like putting pants on your head. :)


Once or twice a week I need a few minutes extra to myself and Baby Einstein is happy to oblige. Benjamin doesn't take his eyes off the TV the entire 20 minutes. I don't know how it does it, but I am eternally grateful.


A few more cute photos.

He crawls!

Benjamin Valentine's gift to me was crawling for the first time. However, it was only a scoot or two and never long enough to actually get anywhere. Today for the first time, he actually seemed to go after something and cover actual ground. Of course, I whipped out the camera and made him do it again! :) Watch and share in my amazement. My little boy is really growing up.



Here's another video of him crawling. After he crawled I tried to get him to show how he sits by himself, but he prefered to stick his bum in the air, so feel free to stop the video at that point. You won't miss anything. :)

Just having fun

Benjamin and I were just relaxing and having fun. Here are some cute pictures I took during it. The first two he's laughing so hard he almost fell over. It was so funny.






He's great at crawling in reverse, but as a result, he can't see where he's headed. This often gets him backed up under chairs where he can't go any farther.


Kelly was using his headlamp and Benjamin thought it was the coolest thing. It doesn't quite fit him, but it sure looks cute.

Just won't sit still

Benjamin is getting closer and closer to crawling. So far he's mastered going backwards. If given a clear path, he can cross the living room in a matter of minutes. Unfortunately he gets frustrated as the toy he was after gets farther and farther away. I'm convinced it won't be long before he gets the hang of it, though.

Standing up, on the other hand, has become second nature. He doesn't even need anything high anymore, he'll push up off the floor or my leg and up he goes. If there isn't anything to hold on to, he'll go right back down, but usually he'll find something (most often me). He especially loves standing near the tv. Luckily he hasn't figured out how to turn it on. :)


His bottom teeth are starting to shine through his gums, causing profuse drooling, but luckily, he's still quite happy most of the time. In fact, one of his recent favorite games is to "sing" with me. I'll sing and he'll squeel and screech almost non-stop with a huge grin on his face, like he's singing along. Sometimes he'll also take turns with me making noises, like we're having a conversation. It's adorable.

Happy 7 Month Birthday!

Little Benjamin turned 7 months old yesterday. I was so excited that I forgot all about the other big holiday that day! (Groundhog Day - for all the rest of you that forgot too.) Although he doesn't walk or crawl yet, it would be false to say that Benjamin isn't mobile. He manages to get where he needs to go quite well. Whether thats to my bucket full of dirty mop water or my stack of cds or anything else I thought was safely out of his reach. After changing and drying him and sopping up a gallon and a half of filthy water from the carpet, I've realized that he can no longer be trusted to sit still. He has a way of launching himself forward to get things or pulling himself up on anything that will remain stationary. He's also good at crawling (more like scooting) backwards, although he hasn't mastered the forward motion just yet. He continues to keep life interesting and when you look at that adorable face, you just can't get mad, even if he is sitting in a pile of slobbery, scratched up cds.

Like father like son

Most nights Kelly comes home and works on his laptop. Benjamin would happily "work" on the laptop too, but that would be the end of the laptop, so last night Kelly got out something similar for Benjamin and the two of them went at it. What a cute pair.



For me it was just really good to have a little time off. I don't know if it's a phase or teething or what, but Benjamin has been extremely needy and clingy the last two weeks and has given me very little chance to do anything on my own. Even getting up and getting a drink results in shrieks and cries until I return to his side, even if he was able to see me the entire time. I really don't know how to make him stop. When it gets particularly irritating, I just try to remember that it's nice to be wanted.

Procrastinating was never so much fun

I have a lesson to prepare but I'm being lazy and procrastinating it. Instead, I'm doing something much more fun - showing off pictures of my darling little boy. The last time I changed his diaper, he had made such a mess that I had to wash the changing pad cover. So tonight before I put it back on, we had some fun with it first. We played peek-a-boo and a new game I call "look at the beautiful bride." This game basically just consisted of me draping the cover over his head like a veil and exclaiming "look at the beautiful bride!" Barring any gender confusion issues in the future, a good time was had by all...as these pictures will attest.

Just so cute

I have no real reason to post these pictures other than they're cute. And that's really reason enough, don't you think? The first few are from our most recent laundry folding and the others are from the day he wore overalls for the first time. I got them as a gift at my baby shower 7 months ago and I was sooo excited when I realized they finally fit. I think they are so cute!

Benjamin threw everything around and relished every moment.


He threw the sock on his face but didn't seem to mind it. In the end, it was me that took it off! I think he thought we were plaing peek-a-boo and he was patiently waiting for me to do my part.


I was so sad when I saw this was fuzzy just now. I put it up anyway, though because I still really like this picture.

Isn't freezing rain called snow?

Before I moved to Michigan I had a friend from Michigan's Upper Penninsula. He would tell me about "freezing rain." He said it was the worst because it took forever to scrape off your car and it downed trees and power lines all the time. I thought this was the strangest thing because how can rain freeze and not be snow? Well, this weekend I learned what he meant. The rain freezes once it touches something...anything. So, Monday morning I awoke to find my car encased in ice, as well as the trees, my old tomato plants that I still haven't cleared away, and pretty much everything in sight. I wish I were better at taking pictures, but here's my attempt at capturing one of the most amazing things I've seen nature do. Just thought I'd share. :)

My old tomato plants have definitely seen better days.

It's hard to see it, but every single branch on these two trees (as seen from my patio) is encased in ice.

Here are some professional pictures that maybe show it better.

Let's get a professional in here

We decided that at 6 months, Benjamin needs some professional photos taken. We didn't get quite the exuberant smiles we were hoping for, but we think these pictures are incredibly cute anyway.