Bushia must tell funny stories!
Dear blog, I am back. It has been a busy and long couple of weeks, so I apologize for neglecting you so. I'll start off by saying that Chad & I did not move to Colorado and those pictures above are unfortunately not our new back yard. We just came back from a trip though, so mom & auntie Donna came out to watch Ben for a few days. Colorado was beautiful! It was strange though, because the first day as we drove into the mountains I had a claustrophobic feeling. I'm so used to miles and miles of nothingness, that the mountains made me feel so closed in. I got over it though and it didn't bother me long. We stayed in a cabin with mountains all around. I was hoping to see a big wild animal (from a safe distance of course) but the closest we came was a fox and deer with her fawn. It was nice and chilly in Alma (just south of Breckenridge) and got down in the 40's at night. I was loving that!
We spent a day in Colorado Springs as well where we went to the Garden of the Gods - giant rock formations, and Seven Falls. My biggest accomplishment was climbing a total of 396 stairs to the top of the falls and then hiking for a few miles. 6 months pregnant or not, that was tough for me. It was certainly worth it...all except for the time I leaned against the railing for a picture and my camera went overboard (see final moments in picture above :)). Yup, the camera and battery were recovered by some brave young men who worked there, but the piece that holds the battery in and allows the camera to work, as well as the card with all my pictures could not be found. Definitely not one of my finer moments. As my mom would say - way to go baby grace.
We came home to find Ben totally spoiled by Bushia and auntie Donna. Ben now says 'hot poop' when he messes his diaper and 'bugs' in his nose for boogies. It's quite cute I must say. They had a lot of fun I could tell, and I was really glad to spend a couple of days with them before they went home.
A few more tidbits about Ben...we just had his 18 month check up (a month late!) and here are the facts:
Weight: 23 lbs 10 oz - 14th percentile
Height: 31.4 inches - 17th percentile
Head: 47.5 - 45th percentile
So the doc said that he looks fantastic, although it is fairly apparent that he is just short and skinny! He eats like a hog most days, but I guess his constant running just keeps the chub away. He did really well though considering he had 3 shots. He was all excited to go into the back until he saw the little room where he gets his shots. He clung to me and kept saying no. I felt awful of course, but he had fun pulling off the band-aids and he won't need more shots until school time at least. At night, we still like to rock him a little, but he no longer wants to be cradled like a baby. He rolls over and uses us as a recliner until he wants to go to his bed. When did this happen?! What is next...college?! He also waves and says HI to everyone we see in the store. It's darn cute, but I'll have to keep my eye on that!
Blocks are currently his favorite toy. He got them for his 12 month birthday from friends Bob & Rachel, and they are a constant fixture on the living room floor. They sometimes end up in the bath tub too. Food wise, he is in love with cantaloupe. He has always been big on fruits and veggies over anything else, but this kid ate 2 entire cantaloupes in a week. I shouldn't complain that he likes fruit, I just wish he would eat chicken or potatoes that well. He also talks so much now. He has been a good talker early on, but he can form a few short phrases and say big words like alligator. It actually sounds like alligator! He loves to read, and just recently learned to turn the book over if it's upside down! We wondered when he would get the idea :). Oh and he climbs on everything. He pushed his toy piano up to his toy box and uses it as a step to climb onto the toy box. Then he will jump off and land safely in our arms. He will do this for an hour straight if we let him.
Ben's favorite person in the world right now is his daddy. He is always wanting him to play with him, hold him, feed him, whatever. It's adorable, but I'm a wee bit jealous! We did have a great mom & son moment yesterday though. I brought out the jar of peanut butter and Ben climbed up on the couch with me and we ate it straight from the jar without any utensils! He would stick his little hand in there and get so excited about 'butter'. Beat that Chad!
Chad is out of town to visit family and he had some business to take care of in Ohio, so it's been me and the beebs for a few days. We went to the zoo early this morning when it wasn't too hot or crowded. The animals were a bit friskier in the morning too, so we got to see a lot of them up and moving. He is taking a nice nap now and after I think we will play outside if it's not too hot. It's getting a little uncomfortable out there now and mama don't like it.
Henry is doing quite well too. We had another check-up this week and everything was good. I move to appointments every 3 weeks now, and then shortly after it will be every two, one, then baby time! This pregnancy is making me much more tired than I was the first time around. Although I wasn't chasing a toddler around then either. I've been wearing dresses pretty much non-stop, which isn't really my style but so comfortable I can't help it. We have a paint color for Ben's new big-boy room too, so we will probably get started getting it ready in the next few months. I don't anticipate he will move in there until after the first of the year, but at least it can be another play area for him. Henry will take the baby room so we won't have many changes to make there. It really is great having another boy!
Fishy face!
Seriously adorable.
