Planes, Trains and Automobiles

No, you’re not seeing things, this really is a new post!  A very sweet friend emailed me last night saying how she misses my posts and yes, I have been really bad about it. 

The past 2 1/2 weeks have been busy.  We haven’t really done much, but I’ve been so wiped out and in bed by 8 lately.  I guess I’m resting up for some sleepless nights coming this spring.  Ben is just an amazing little boy.  No one makes me laugh like he does. 

He literally amazes me with what he is learning.  Yesterday I picked him up from school and grabbed his jacket and he said “jacket” and then as we were walking out a leaf blew across the sidewalk and he pointed to and said “leaf.”  The amazing thing to me is that those aren’t words I’ve told him. 

He still LOVES sports and is getting over his depression of no more baseball.  Football is “butball” and basketball is “bataball” and he loves them both.  He waves bye to every car, bird, airplane, leaf…anything.  He’s gotten into trains, planes and automobiles lately.  He loves when cars and trucks drive by.  Anything bigger than a car is a truck (SUV, van, truck, bus).  It’s safe to say he’s still ALL boy.  And being all boy I’ve had to sign a few incident reports at school lately that someone has bitten or pinched a friend.  He worries me sometimes.

I love to watch him through the window at school while he plays.  I’m not sure his teachers love it, but I do. Yesterday he put a tambourine on his head like it was a hat and was so proud and walked to tell his buddy Austin (who he calls “Au-too”). 

We practice names each day, too.  He will repeat every family member’s name except Grams.  Most of the time when we say Grams he just laughs.  And he knows who goes together.  If you say Mommy he’ll say Mommy and Daddy and if you say Gramma he says Boots.

He loves to put things away.  He grabs my shoes when I take them off and puts them where we put shoes.  Sometimes we can get him to put laundry in baskets and put his books and toys away.

He is trying really hard to jump right now.  He still won’t lift both feet off the ground at the same time, but man it’s funny to watch him try.  He’s done two tiny jumps and then he falls when they happen.

He loves waffles and calls them awfuls.  Whenever he hears the toaster pop up he says “awful!” 

My favorite thing he does lately is lift up my shirt and give the baby kisses.  When you ask him, “where’s the baby?” sometimes he’ll pull up his shirt and point to his belly. 

Another favorite is when he tells Bruiser no.  The dogs pretty much stay outside when Ben is up and Bruiser has a habit of whining through the window.  It gets pretty annoying so we yell “Bruiser, NO!” quite a bit. Our little sponge has caught on and when he hears it he turns to Bruiser and says “Broo-er NO NO.”  It’s so funny.  Bruiser even barked once at night and Ben got up and said it.  The best is that he takes his little sausage finger and shakes it at him as he says it.

Ben has also become a bit of a Momma’s boy lately.  Yes I love it, but it does get a little uncomfortable lugging around a 30 lbs Ben with a growing tummy.  

I haven’t taken too many pictures lately, sorry.  Here’s what I have though:

Daddy celebrated his big bday a couple weeks ago.  Unlike most normal people he doesn’t want to go out to eat to celebrate and instead insists on me making these ridiculous enchiladas.  So while I was making Daddy’s dinner, Ben chowed down on some pasta and veggies.  I thought he was so cute using his spoon and took the first picture and then looked back and saw the 2nd picture.  He was a MESS!

 

I love this goofy kid!

Here he is helping Daddy make his bday cake (yes he always makes his own rum cake for his bday)

 

It’s been a little cold lately so we had a fire.  Ben was pretty fascinated by it.  I couldn’t get a good picture, but there really is a fire.

 

Ben the little rapper!  He was playing basketball with Daddy and put on Daddy’s skull cap.  We told him to do the pirate dance (he does this at school).  So funny!

For his birthday, Ben got bath crayons.  He was having so much fun playing with them tonight, he didn’t care if the water was gone from the tub.

 

goofy-goof!

So it has been colder lately and Ben has had to wear jackets to school.  He HATES jackets (and clothes in general).  Today I was really worried about him being cold when they go outside so I made him wear a super heavy coat.  He looked like the little boy from A Christmas Story walking around the house.  He was so unhappy in the car.  This is what I saw each time I looked back.  Not one smile the whole way to school.  They were playing when I picked him up and his teachers called him the marshmallow man bundled up.

I should be better about posting the next couple weeks.  After tomorrow I have a whole week off and Ben can’t wait for Pops and Grams to get here!