On the Joys of New Technology

Alternately titled: HOW MUCH I LOVE MY NEW CAMERA (but I didn't want to shout at you :)

Back in February, when I was still in the throws of the first-trimester nastiness, I neglected to mention that Will gave me an awesome Valentine's Day gift … an Ipod Shuffle!  and in pink too!  Isn't it cute?

I was a little intimidated to so fully immerse myself into the world of Apple/Macs/I-this-and-that, but it seems that if you're going to have a Mac laptop, its going to refuse to communicate with any other MP3 player, so there ya go.  And seriously, I have loved my Shuffle!  It's like having your own personal radio station with only your favorite music playing all the time.

And for my next technological upgrade, as a combo Mother's Day and Birthday present, Will has given me an incredible DSLR camera!!!  I was so excited when he came in the door with it one afternoon last week that I almost set some hamburger buns on fire (true story).  So naptimes and etc. during the past few days have found me trying to figure out millions of little buttons, and though I don't know nearly enough about it yet, I do know that I ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT!

Don't I look cool behind it?  (haha) and I feel that I must add that, though I love my new haircut - which you can't really see in this picture - she kinda messed up my bangs again.  oh well.

So, Friday, when we got a "just because" care package in the mail from my mom, I took the opportunity to snap some pictures with new camera and see what I could capture…

Even though the care package came in a pretty small box, Benjamin really wanted to get in it.  This is because we use his huge diaper boxes to play peek-a-boo or choo-choo train or what-have-you, and now he thinks that any box in the house is something he is supposed to climb right into.  So this is his please-mommy-can-you-help-me-get-in-the-box face!


Mom added some old crepe-paper party decorations to the box just for fun, so I thought I'd let Benjamin "play with" (read: destroy) one just for fun. Since it captured his attention for the better part of thirty minutes, I think it was totally worth the 25 cents or whatever I paid for it in high school!  :)

Watch this, Momma!

Whoa!  That was awesome!

Ooh!  Gotta pick up all those pieces!

Look!  I CAN sit down in this box!

…a tiny slice of the aftermath

There are no words...

… for this level of preciousness!

And on the subject of words, I've been meaning to document Benjamin's 18-month word list … I'm already forgetting the days when he had a set repertoire of words he can say.  Now, he just tries to repeat everything, perhaps mashing it up a bit (or a lot), but trying nonetheless!

Benjamin's Words at 18 Months:

- Momma

- Dada

- Hi

- Bye-bye

- Bus

- Truck

- Ball

- Juice

- Shoes

(Since then, he's added so many others - chair, cup, bowl, spoon, no, yes, book, beans, cracker, etc.)

Benjamin's Animal Noises at 18 Months:

- Lion … "Roar!"  (also dinosaur)

- Dog … "Woof woof"

- Cow … "Moo"

- Dolphin … "EEEEE"  (That's my personal favorite :)

- Rabbit … clicking tongue

Hooray for the Library

We have recently discovered the joy of library books!  I was hesitant to check out board books while Benjamin was in the everything-goes-straight-to-my-mouth phase, because, oh my word at the yuck!  But now, he understands (for the most part) that books are for reading and not eating.  (though I'm still the overprotective mom who wipes them all down with baby wipes as soon as we get them home)

We checked out our first batch a few weeks ago after Storytime.  It was a total hit until we had to collect them all and return them to the library - borrowing is a totally new concept, it seems.  But we did succeed in letting them go and were rewarded with a whole new batch to bring home this week.  Second only to the fun of reading them is the joy of taking them in and out of his favorite storage place … the cooler!  Maybe its a little OCD, but its so cute … and he only ever puts the library books in there, not the ones he owns.  Smart little guy.

Then, the book-ish situation hit a new high when Daddy cleaned out some old computer stuff and found a dead laptop - we decided Benjamin could play with it for a little while…

The Evolution of Bathtime

The Sponge Bath Stage

Benjamin's first bath at home

Four days old (i think :)

The Infant Tub Stage

Two weeks old

Two months old

Bigger Baby Tub Stage

Six months old

Just Chillin' in the Sink Stage

Eight months old

The Ducky Tub Stage

Ten Months Old

Just Like a Big Boy

Eighteen Months Old

Its a Boy!! and other misc. news

Yep, that's right!  Benjamin is going to have a little brother!  and we couldn't be more thrilled!  I can't wait to buy them matching little shirts that say "Big Brother" and "Little Brother" … in fact, in preparing to write this post, I was looking online for a picture of some.  I know i've seen them in stores, but had no luck finding them online.  Oh well, I found something even better…

Oh my word!  Little scrubs for Benjamin to wear to the hospital!  Isn't that just the most precious thing ever?!

Anyway, here is the littlest guy in all his cuteness…

I think that profile looks exactly like Benjamin, but I guess we have to wait a few more months to find out for sure.

Most of all, we are grateful that Baby is healthy, active, has a good strong heartbeat and is measuring right on schedule … the miracle of God's knitting together is truly awesome!

In other news, we've had some gorgeous weather recently (finally!) and since Will is officially DONE with his class for this semester, Benjamin has gotten to soak up lots of outside-with-Daddy time…

Just watchin' the traffic together … and evidently waiting for an important call on his Elmo phone! ;)

The child loves a good swing!

"What?  I get to share all this time and attention, not to mention my toys and books, with a little brother?!?!  I can't wait, Momma!"

And for the last piece of news related to my sweet men, we are incredibly grateful today that Will still has a job!  His company announced layoffs last week, but Will's position was spared.  Who knew that in less than two years, we'd have been through two layoffs already.  Sometimes it feels a bit like "Survivor" waiting to see who's going to get voted off next.  We are thankful that our Faithful God holds our future securely in His hands.  But also, our hearts are heavy for those families who have lost their livelihoods.  May God give greater grace.

Survival Guide

A couple of weeks ago, we spent the weekend keeping four kids so their parents could go on a well-deserved tenth anniversary trip.  What a lesson in multi-tasking/zone defense parenting!  Our posse of 5 for the weekend were ages 9, 8, 6, 2, and 18 mo (ours being the youngest).  We legitimately had a good time, but if you ever find yourself in a similar situation, here are some tips … 

1) Always put shoes on the toddlers.  This way, you can hear them pattering around wherever they are.  It happened that these two toddlers are pretty fond of each other and could usually be found together … getting into some kind of mischief!

(Why is dirt always the most fun thing on the playground?)

2) Ask the parents before they leave what kind of pizza their kids like.  Sometimes kids don't know what their favorites are called in "pizza restaurant language."  They will promise you they like something, then be disappointed when it comes because its not what they normally get.  (These sweet kids ate it anyway though!)

3) Take pictures for the parents - it makes them feel better that not only are their children not at the ER or burning the house down, they're having a bit of fun as well.  

4) Write down the outlandish quotes you hear from the backseat.  My favorite from the weekend: (during a discussion of the pros and cons of being the President - of which the weightiest "pro" seemed to be not having to eat things you didn't like) "But if people don't like you, you might get dissassinated, which is a fancy way of saying being shot with a gun."  (I felt no need to correct the pronunciation or definition in this case :)

5) For your survival's sake, keep in mind that you are there simply to keep everyone alive - not for longterm character development.  (This is code for "movie and lollipops for everyone!")

And poor Benjamin, since he is generally used to being the only kid around instead of one of the pack, did extremely well considering.  But Sunday afternoon was about his limit…

Anyway, much fun was had by all, and we didn't have to call 911 even once!  Success!  :)