Cereal Day and a Seriously Crappy Week

The poor kid doesn't know what's about to hit him.

What is with this mush?

Seriously, this is what you people eat every day?

Gimmie that camera!

At least I get to play with my spoon!

Man, this is going to take some getting used to!


Bennett turned six months on Monday, so we "officially" started him on cereal and baby food. Can I just tell you how this kid is the exact opposite of his brother? Wil devoured everything I put in from of him (including prunes) and couldn't get enough. Bennett is going to be one of those kids that has to try the same thing 12 times before he decides whether he likes it. The first day he was somewhat open to the strange and mushy substance being stuck to the roof of his mouth. Every day since then his lips have clamped shut before I even get the spoon near him and if I happen to get the tiniest morsel into his mouth he sticks his tongue out and coughs until it all falls out. What a stinker! I keep telling him that this is people food and it's way better than anything he's getting now. I even tasted the sweet potatoes and pears myself to make sure I wasn't lying to the poor child! The funniest part is that I have been sneaking him cheerios and crackers for a few weeks and believe me, he knows the difference. When I come near him with those little oat circles his little mouth pops open like and automatic trunk! Crazy, no? His doctor says he may just not be ready for it yet, but I am determined to figure out something he might like! Anyone have any suggestions or stories?

I don't understand this phenomenon. Every time Ben goes away on a business trip all heck breaks loose. Last year Wil was so sick he came back from California early. Remember the Wil. vs. fireplace incident? Also when Ben was gone. This time was no different. This was the first time both of my boys were sick at the same time. Wilson did not leave the house for an entire week, literally. There were fevers, puking, coughing fits, loss of appetite and a feeling of overall yuckiness, for the whole time Ben was gone. It sucked. I almost didn't make it through, not even kidding. But, I know I was blessed to have a little more patience and it was actually nice not to have to go anywhere! I am just glad the boys are healthy again. Unfortunately its Ben and my turn to be sick. Lame. Spring, where are you?

Could I be any further behind?

It's a good thing no one relies on this blog as their only link to me, or I'd be in trouble. To say the least things have been crazy around our house. This last week both Wil and Bennett were (and still are) down with colds. Bennett actually has his first case of bronchiolitis and we've ressurected the old nebulizer, but I've only had the heart to give him the treatment once. I don't think Wil has left the house since last Friday. It has been miserable for all involved. Luckily, I haven't gotten sick yet, so I've had the energy to care for them. Of course Ben is in California for training all week, which super sucks. I could never be a single mom, it's too hard. I can't honestly tell you what else has happened since 2009 began. It's been a blur and the time has flown by! I am pretty sure most of that time has been spent at the gym. Ben and I have been obsessed with the bet we made in October to see who could get to their goal weight first. I finally found something to motivate him. If he wins he gets a flat screen TV and if I win I get the money equivalant to his flat screen. (There was no way I could nail down just one thing to buy!) We have both been doing really well and I am proud to say I am already back to my pre-pregnancy weight and have 9 pounds to go until I officially kick Ben's butt!!! I promise I will get my Christmas background taken down and get something more appropriate up (like spring, is anyone else done with winter?) and try to get a few things posted. For now you just get random pictures.

I thought I ordered the large snow storm?!

My favorite picture of the season!

It was an absolute blizzard at my parents house on Christmas. There had to be at least 18 inches of snow on the ground when it finally stopped. You couldn't ask for anything more! The older kids made a snow fort and when it collapsed they decided to start sledding down the hill. Wilson sat by the front door and stared while his frantic parents tried to find all the cold weather gear necessary to feel okay about letting him go out. His dad is not a good example, he was out shoveling walks in shorts and rain boots! We were afraid Wil would not like sledding down the hill, but once again he surprised us. He didn't want to come in at all! Even after all the sledding he still played outside with his cousins! His cheeks were nice and rosy when he came in, but man was it fun!

What a Christmas!

Christmas 2008 was really awesome! Wilson actually kind of understood about Santa and we had fun truly spoiling him this year. Of course, he still liked all his cousins presents better than his own, but that's to be expected. We spent the night at Grandma's and no one slept really well (especially me) but it was a ton of fun. When Wil woke up Christmas morning I went in to get him and asked if he wanted to see what Santa brought him. Well, he thought I meant Santa was in the next room. He got really worried and said, "Mama, I don't want to see Santa!" It was really cute. The big hits were the kitchen that his Grandma and Grandpa got him, the kitchen pots and pans we got him, his fire engine, courtesy of Bennett, and his Lightning McQueen remote control car. Bennett totally got hosed, he got formula, a few little toys and rice cereal in his stocking. Good thing he won't remember anything, right? We are really grateful for my parents who put up with our craziness every year and take such good care of us, too. What a great Christmas and a great year, too!

Mmwah....Gotta Love Bennett

We just got back from Bennett's 4 month appointment! He is getting so big! He weighs 15 1/2 lbs. (50th percentile) is 25 3/4 inches long (60th percentile) and his head is in the 85th percentile! He is hitting all his milestones and is getting more and more fun everyday. He is just now starting to chuckle a little, but it's way harder to get him to laugh than it was to get Wil to laugh. He loves to squeal and scream, especially when he gets a reaction from us! When he's well fed and rested he will just stand up in your lap with wide eyes and grin like he knows something you don't (I am pretty sure it's true)! Wilson has started giving kisses more willingly and one night Ben got him to kiss Bennett's cheek. It's about as precious as it gets, don't you think? At night I will kiss Wil all over his face and he will just giggle and say, "I want more kisses, mommy!" He has an outstanding memory and remembers things from months ago. We were in the car and he announced that his cousins let him have a cow and that his cousin Emma dumped chocolate in a bowl and shared with him. It took me a few minutes to realize he was talking about things that happened at our Harding holiday party which was before Thanksgiving! Then the other night he told Ben that Virginia was really far away. Then he told Ben that Grandpa Mike and Kay lived there. Would someone please call mensa? My boys couldn't be any cuter or smarter (said the unbiased mom)!

Our First Online Christmas Card

Make a Smilebox greeting

I feel extremely lazy this year, but I just don't know where the time has gone! So, because Ben has refused to do family pictures and I can't seem to get my babies to smile in pictures anyway, we have opted to do our Christmas card online! So now, if you wonder where your card is, it's right here, so I haven't missed anyone! It's been a great and busy year and we are excited for the season and the New Year! I hope everyone has a great holiday too! BTW it's supposed to say a christmas card for you, not y. Lame.

A Big Week of Firsts

What a busy week of firsts we've had. Monday morning I was changing Wilson's sheets and I had Bennett on the floor for some tummy time. He was already starting to squawk so I knew I didn't have much time before I needed to pick him up. I managed to finish and turned around only to find Bennett looking straight up at me. I had to think for a minute to make sure I hadn't turned him over myself. Then I said, "Do it again, baby," and flipped him over again. Bennett just looked up at me like, "Do what, this?" and his giant cranium tilted back, he pushed off with his feet and he was on his back again. What a smart kid! Of course I have no photographic or video proof of this occurance because every time I turned on a camera or my phone to record it, he pretended not to know anything about this rolling over business. But, if any of you doubt, please contact my friend Rachel or my sister Heidi who have both witnessed it first hand!

The second first is Wilson actually volunteering to go and talk to Santa. We were at the Festival of Trees and his friend, Parker, was in line to talk to Santa. At first Wilson wanted nothing to do with the bearded stranger, but then I asked him if he wanted to tell Santa what he wanted for Christmas and he gave an emphatic yes. The whole time we were in line I expected him to change his mind. Even as Santa invited him over, I was waiting for the meltdown, but it never came! He sat right on Santa's lap and when asked what he wanted for Christmas, he replied, "A candy cane!", which was perfect because that was what Santa was giving out to all his visitors and I think that was the main motivation for seeing the big man, but it was a cute moment.

Next was Wilson's first real, professional haircut. Pretty sad considering the kid's almost two-and-a-half! He really needed it, though. They tried everything to get him to sit still, Little Einsteins, bubbles, a sucker, the hair stylist even gave him her comb, but he wasn't having any of it. He screamed and cried and even tried to run the stylist through with her own comb (I'm proud to say that Wilson was the first to try that one!). In the end he calmed down and looked very handsome and quite a little bit older with his new do. Thanks to my mom who came with me for moral and physical support in case it went really badly!

Wilson also had his first experience drawing on the walls with markers! He was supposed to be playing in his playroom when he came to the bottom of the stairs to show me his orange hands. He was very disturbed at the mess on his hands. I asked what he was doing to get orange hands and he very candidly told me he'd been coloring on the walls. Well, it was more funny than anything and it was my fault for leaving the marker out in the first place. For penance he had to help me scrub the walls, which he gladly did. That made it even harder to be mad at him.

Bennett and Wilson also ended up in the tub together for the first time that night. I had it in my head that that moment would come a lot further down the line, but Wilson was really good with Bennett in the tub and even shared his Mickey tub toys! Finally, since Wilson was a seasoned veteran with haircuts, Ben decided to let Wilson GIVE his first haircut! So, if Ben's hair is a little crooked, try not to be critical because his barber is 2 1/2 years old!