9 months

Our little Benny is 9 months old!!  He was finally feeling better from his run-in with RSV when he got another little cold...poor guy.  Last week we took him to his well-baby check up.  He has slowed down a little on his weight gain.  Dr. thinks it is a combination of not feeling well and burning lots more calories.  It makes sense, this kid NEVER SLOWS DOWN!!  He weighs 19 lbs. 11oz. and is 28-1/4 inches tall.

Ben is a quiet little guy, but he has a giggle that melts my heart.  He has a little orange nose from all those sweet potatoes and carrots!  He eats pretty much anything we give him (except peas, can't really blame him for that one).  He's a messy eater, luckily he loves a warm bubble bath too.

 

He is ALWAYS on the go.  Always.  He loves to "play toys" (that's a Kate expression).  He'll stand in front of the toy box and pull things out, keeping himself entertained for much longer than I'd expect for a 9 month old.  He thinks stairs are no big deal.  He pulls himself up and cruises around on the furniture.  Lately he has been using Kate's shopping cart as a means of transportation.  He has found that he can push it and walk where ever he wants!

He has been working on a few "tricks".  My favorite is "Mama".  He says it over and over (I'm sure it has nothing to do with me coaching him every waking moment of the poor boy's life).  I'm not sure he is really relating the word to me, but I love the sound of it any way.  Ben would probably say his favorite new accomplishment is clapping.  It is his go-to-trick.  He's getting better at waving and So-Big, but when all else fails he knows clapping will always make everybody happy. 

 

Just recently he has started hearing "no, no".  I think he is starting to catch on.  The stairs and dog food are his two biggest bad boy moves.  For some reason dog food is oh, so tempting (and did I mention he puts EVERYTHING in his mouth?!).

No one can make Ben smile and giggle like Katie can; it has always been that way.  And the two of them play so well together.  I love to watch them interacting...plus, it gives me a couple of minutes to myself!  Like right now, they have been playing together with a cardboard box for the past 20 minutes or so.  Lots of giggles and squeals (and an occasional Ow, owww, my HAIR!)...

Old Friends

Last weekend we got together with a couple of my oldest friends.  It was fun to catch up, reminiscence, and watch our little kiddos run WILD!  I was just a little older than Kate is now when I met Jill for the first time.  I hope Kate is lucky enough to find a couple life-long girlfriends too.

The whole gang:  Drew, Jax, Brady, Ben & Kate

Did I mention things got a little wild?!  Good times...

New Favorite "Toy"

(my favorite-putting her babies to bed, complete with bedtime prayer)

Sick Babies

Both kiddos have had a runny nose and cough for quite awhile. Then, last Sunday Kate woke up in PAIN. She told us she had put rocks in her ear. What?! We looked with a flashlight but saw no sign of rocks. Since Kate never complains about pain, not even a tummy ache now and then, we headed into urgent care. Guess what the doctor found...an ear infection (the whole "rocks in my ear" story is a mystery - we'll chalk it up to being 2).

On Monday my school was canceled. Just for good measure, I took Ben to see his pediatrician. He had many of the same symptoms as Kate and thought we should check for "rocks" in his ear too. Plus, his cough was a little disturbing. Good thing we took that impromptu visit to the doctor because our poor little buddy had an ear infection in both ears and RSV. His wheezing and breathing improved significantly with the breathing treatment they gave him at the doctor's office. So, we've been doing treatments at home 4 times a day ever since. It is an understatement to say Ben HATES the nebulizer! The mask looks like a fish (a small attempt to try to make this fun, I guess). While Ben screams, fights and cries through each treatment Kate is standing by scolding the fish. "You naughty fish! You a bad, bad fish! You hurt my Benny!"
I'm sorry my babies felt so miserable, but cuddling and watching Playhouse Disney for a week has been just fine by me.

Four Christmases, One Post

We are finally home. Drew figured it up and according to Mapquest we drove close to 600 miles and 12 hours. Hmmm, we could have went someplace way warmer than Illinois with all that driving! Although it was lots of sleepless nights with Ben and more stress than I remember it being in years past, now that we are home and the bags are unpacked, the laundry is done, and the presents are all put away - we wouldn't have done it any differently. I'm just thankful I have a patient husband!

Here are a few pictures from the Maurer, Goebel, LeSage and Ruwe Christmases (in that order). It was great reconnecting with family from far away (and close by too!).

Ben's first Christmas.

Kate was such a good helper. She got to help Ben with all his presents. She was "sharing". I'm not so sure Ben will be into this type of "sharing" next year.


Christmas Eve Grammy read "The Night Before Christmas" for Kate and Ben's bedtime story.

Ben and Grandmother Goebel on Christmas morning.

The whole Goebel family.

Lots of presents for Kate...

Jack and Ben playing at the Ruwe Christmas gathering.

Chaos!!

Ben and Jack got their traditional first Christmas gifts from Great Grandpa Ruwe.

Every year Grandma Ruwe comes up with a unique gift for everyone. This year all the "married men" got brown work gloves. From the looks of it, it is exactly what they all wanted. (-:

Our First Christmas as a Family of Four

Santa came to our house a couple days early. We have my family's Christmas on Christmas Eve day and Drew's family's on Christmas Day. Kate didn't know any better and Ben is just along for the ride. The night before Kate and I baked cookies for Santa, we set the "magic" key out so he could get through the front door, and she went to bed amazingly easy!

The next morning she had forgotten all the hype from the night before and we had a restful morning. When we made our way down to the family room she had exactly the right reaction. She gasps, "Oh my goodness, he came!" I've decided that Christmas is so much more fun with a little one around. It should be mandatory!

The only present Kate asked for was a pink bouncy ball. We've heard about this pink bouncy ball for weeks. I thought finding one would be easy. No such luck...I looked everywhere. I was getting very nervous about not being able to find the one and only gift my daughter asked for!! That's when my mother-in-law came to the rescue. She happened to spy a bouncy ball vending machine at the Monicals in Shelbyville. I sent her to "gamble" a few times at getting the pink one. Instead she had a better idea, she asked the manager to open the machine and she dug through to find the perfect, pink bouncy ball! Thanks Grammy!!

Here are a few pictures of Kate opening her bouncy ball. My favorite is the one when she discovers what is in the box (you'll know the one I'm talking about).




And of course we can't forget Benny on his first Christmas. Lesson learned (the hard way), keep wrapping paper away from the baby. Merry Christmas, Ben.

Party Central

Last weekend was full of Christmas parties. Drew and I started Friday night with my school's Christmas party. Grammy & Papa came to stay with Kate and Ben.

Saturday morning Kate and I went to our neighborhood's Christmas tea. It was fun to attend my first mother/daughter event with Kate. She was too cute. We had to leave a little early to make it to the Maurer Christmas on time. As we said our goodbyes and started to leave, Kate called back to the ladies, "We have to take off now, nice to meet you!" I just never know what is going to come out of that little mouth.

Next on our agenda was the Maurer Christmas at my Aunt Jan & Uncle Mark's house. Kate made out like a bandit on gifts. She got her first Barbie (along with her very own dress to match her Barbie) and a My Little Pony. But, the gift she seemed most impressed with was a box of Barbie fruit snacks. She opened them up, gasped loudly, and ran to Aunt Jan. She gave her a big hug and said "I love you SO much!". The girl knows how to make your day!





Our last party of the night was with my friends from high school. By the time we got there I was tired and maybe just a tad bit cranky. We all were. Kate decided she was going to wear her new Barbie dress over her outfit. I didn't have the energy to fight it. Nor did I have the energy to take anymore pictures.

Sunday was (finally) a relaxing day at home. After church and lunch at Panera we enjoyed just being home.


Merry Christmas!