Seven Months

Finally, here are pics of our sweet Benjamin, who was seven months old on the 17th. He's over 21 lbs. now, adores food, and rolls to get everywhere. He is close to army crawling as well, but not quite there yet. He has the strength to sit alone, but not the sustained desire, so he's still not sitting much yet. He is happy to stand and bounce in anyone's lap, though, which makes me think he will be walking at a much younger age than his sister. Which would be great! He is still an easy smile and a contagious giggler, but he's also learning to make his wishes known if things aren't going his way. He's loud! Here is our sweet boy.

Here's my secret. Benjamin wanted to fold in half to eat the grass, so Jonathan would run over, sit him up, and then run out of the picture so that I could quickly take it. Otherwise...

Benjamin ended up leaning over like this.

Here's a picture of Jonathan wearing the same outfit at Todd and Corinne's rehearsal dinner in October of 2005.

More When Cheryl Was Here

While Cheryl was here for a visit, Jeff and I were able to get away to the city for a night (with Benjamin). It was a really nice time! We rode the train into the city, had dinner at a restaurant that was new to us, and took in all the things that make a city fun to visit but also make us glad to come home. Thanks, Cheryl! She and my mom also got to visit while Jeff and Benjamin and I were away, which you'll see in some of the pictures below. These are from July 11.

Doesn't Grace look big in ponytails? (Courtesy of my mom, who is always kind enough to do something with her crazy hair.) You can see where she skinned her chin. We're pretty sure that fall set her off to get sick later on, too.

My handsome, tree-climbing boy

Cheryl and Gracie

Gracie and my mom

This one is awfully cute.

All smiles!

Big girl! She's not quite tall enough to pedal this trike that John and Cheryl gave to Jonathan the Christmas that he turned two.

When Everyone is Clean and Dressed, Take Pictures

Not that the pictures will turn out well, but this is certainly the time to try to catch some good ones. These were taken July 10.

Family pictures are particularly challenging. Oh, well...

When Cheryl Was Here

These are from July 8-10

Ready to go to church

This seems to be something all my kids do, although Benjamin has done it the least of the three.

Waking up with a smile

Snuggles

Another Catch-Up Post

June 21. Grace and my mom

There were a few days in June that I got exhausted each morning, and a couple of times I accidentally fell asleep on the couch. Amazing, and probably not a great idea since my kiddos need me to be awake. What was even more amazing was that Jonathan and Grace each fell asleep once, as well. They never fall asleep except in bed, so I had to take pictures!

Sweet. I couldn't believe it.

A Catch-Up Post, with More to Come

June 20. Sometimes his smile takes over his whole face. :)

Reading is a full-contact sport around here!

June 21. He liked to sleep like this, with his face jammed against the bumper pad.

Neglecting the Blog

Well, I sat down to post Benjamin's seven month pictures, since I have completely neglected the blog lately. Unfortunately, something about Blogger is making my web browser crash each time I try. Grrrr.

So, I'll just tell you that we are fine, that things keep happening, that the kids are cute, that Jeff's new job is going well, and that I am going to start potty training Grace tomorrow. Which will give me another really good reason for neglecting the blog. Oh, and she was sick for almost a week but we are so thankful she is doing better now. Also, my twin nieces come home from the hospital tomorrow!

I'll try posting pictures again soon. For now, off to potty land...

Music and Geometry

Grace is sick and watching the Boz Christmas DVD, her favorite.  When I asked her what the characters were doing, she said, "Singing a Christmas song.  Could you please not sing it."  Ahem.

And Jonathan asked this morning, "What's the name of the van that's a rectangular prism, not a cylinder like ours?"

When Benjamin starts talking, too, it's going to get even more interesting.  I love hearing the crazy things they come up with!

Getting Into Things

Sitting Practice

I mentioned that I don't give Benjamin much sitting practice.  So, I gave him some on Friday, and he did great.  Maybe he'd be an independent sitter already if I spent more time with him...sitting?  Usually he's either rolling on the floor or sitting on my lap, not on his own.  Anyway, I still think he's adorable, so here are some pictures.  I couldn't choose just one.

And, today, he's seven months old.  I'll do my best to take official "Seven Months" pictures tomorrow.  21 lbs., 2.5 oz., by the way.  He gained exactly a pound this month, which is slower than a few growth spurts when he was little.  There were some times that he gained two pounds in two weeks.  Crazy.  He didn't need to keep that up, did he?  He's still pleasantly plump!





Good at practicing, but when he's done, he's done.  Thank goodness for the Boppy.

She Makes Me Smile

Grace says, "Mommy, I see an airplane!  Actually, it's a bird.  Mommy, I found a bird!"

Meeting of the Men in the Household

Benjamin and Grace...and Jonathan

I haven't been blogging about Benjamin and Grace's milestones as much as I blogged about Jonathan's.

Jeff's mom visited last weekend, and I realized that she knew less of what the kids had been doing because of less frequent blog posting.  Even though I have less time to post now, I think I appreciate what they are doing even more than I appreciated Jonathan's milestones.  They may be less documented, but more...enjoyed.

So, just so you know, Benjamin was over 20 lbs. at 6 mos. old.  He's not sitting alone yet, but I don't give him a whole lot of practice, either.  He likes to play on his tummy, so he does that a lot.  He's been sleeping through the night for awhile, rolling around for awhile, and enjoying solid (pureed) food for awhile.  He has liked everything I've made so far.  He's down to four big meals a day, which is nice.  He doesn't have any teeth yet, but he's chomping on everything and a bit fussy, so I hope they come soon.  He's still an easy smile and very ticklish.  His smiles are a full-body experience.  Sometimes he'll laugh at nothing at all.  He is a delight.

Grace is talking like crazy.  It's so much fun to hear the things she comes up with, and she speaks more clearly each day.  More words help her scream less...sometimes.  I'll try to potty train her soon, which I need to do before the craziness of the school year begins.  Here are a few recent Gracie quotes:

"Mommy, could you put Benjamin down by Jonathan's toes."

After seeing that her brother was upset that he didn't have a lollipop...even though she has no idea what a lollipop is...and she pronounces it "ya-wee-pop."  "I'm crying because I want a lollipop."  And she wasn't crying.

"Is that Daddy's drink on the table?"

"Could you make breakfast?  I need cereal."

The morning that both older kids woke up vomiting, she told the story:  "I throw up.  I made a mess on my sheets.  It was an accident.  It will be OK."

And Jonathan is still very much in the middle of things, getting plenty of attention.  My favorite thing he has said lately:  "I wish I could be an astronaut when I grow up, but I'm going to be a Lego model designer instead."

Cute...for Now

When I was potty training Jonathan, my dear (and experienced) friend, Anna, gave me some advice. She recommended that I have enough training pants on hand that I wouldn't get stressed and angry with Jonathan over an accident just because I was running out of clean pants before I could get more washed and dried.

It was good advice.

For Grace, who is a particularly tricky girl in many areas, I want to make sure I have plenty on hand.

They look very cute. For now. But when we start potty training, and they are full of...um...accidents, they will not be so cute. So I had to take this picture. To remember.

Cheeks

Old Friends and New Friends

One of the great things about going away to college was meeting dear friends far away who grew up nearby. Krista is one of those dear friends. It works well because when we are near our families for visits, we get to see each other! Krista and her husband and family live in Canada now, but they were within visiting distance last week, so we squeezed in a visit with each of our families. It was only a couple of hours long, but still wonderful.

(Perhaps I should not wear my glasses in pictures!)

Here are some pictures of our kiddos. Her oldest, Caleb, is almost 12. Krista was pregnant with Caleb when she was a bridesmaid in our wedding nearly 12 years ago. Chad and Krista's kids are, in age-order from 11 down to 3: Caleb, Katie, Daniel, and Isaac. Our kids really enjoy their kids - the "new friends."

These pictures were taken immediately before Grace slipped and fell on the porch, skinning her chin and lip. You'll probably notice the marks in other pictures...

It's Good to Be Missed

Jeff and I (and Benjamin, of course) went to the city overnight while Jeff's mom was here visiting. (The location explains my long sleeves and jeans.) We had a wonderful time, but it was also wonderful to come back. I don't generally get this kind of reception when I walk into a room. I enjoyed the snuggles!

Lego Creations

Jonathan's summer Lego creations have been mostly animals. That's a big change for him! He and I spent a large amount of time reorganizing them once school was out. There didn't seem to be time for that during his kindergarten school year. And now they're all disorganized again.... I don't mind the disorganization, but I do mind finding them all over the house when I have two little ones who put things in their mouths for fun. Any suggestions on what to do to motivate him to keep the Legos in their place?

Anyway, here are some of my favorite things he's built.

A duck with wings that flap

A parrot with posable head, wings, and tail

A banana slug family on the right with a snail family on the left. (The slugs needed friends.)

Happy Chaos