A Strong Grip

Steve and Benjamin spent some time in our bed this morning lounging. Benjamin was so cozy that he fell sound asleep. He didn't stay asleep during the transfer to his pack'n'play though - we are still working on that.

Later in the day, Benjamin got to know his baby rattle - by holding on to it! I was impressed how well he could hold on to it and shake it around. You can see him in action in the video below.

6 Weeks Old!

Our sweetheart is 6 weeks old today! Here he is enjoying some relaxing moments in his beloved swing. He is giving Mommy and Daddy lots of cute little smiles and he has included 'ahh' into his vocabulary (no 'coo'ing yet - I look forward to that!).

Here he is this morning with his Daddy. Daddy, as you can see, has lots of things with which he can entertain Benjamin. You can tell that Benjamin is at the moment enjoying his interaction with a pop-up Triceratops.

Mr. Fat Cheeks

As Benjamin is steadily gaining weight, we have noticed that his cheeks seem to reflect this quite nicely. Steve is very excited about Benjamin's fat cheeks, he finds them very adorable. I definitely agree. You can also tell in this picture that he is getting a little sleepy.

Our Cutie

We have found that Benjamin loves the view from over the shoulder - it gives him a different, higher perspective on his world. It usually calms him down instantly when he is fussing (that and eating!).

Here he is with Grandma Zusman, who is able to come over quite often now that she lives so close! She was able to give him a bottle so I could enjoy making and eating dinner without needing to make sure he is happy and safe!

5 Weeks Old, First Smiles

Our baby boy is now 5 weeks old. Time is going by so quickly! We had our one month well-baby appointment and he weighs 9 lbs 3 oz! They were very happy with his progress and impressed that he could hold his head up so well when on his tummy (apparently something a two month old typically does)!

We are now seeing some smiles from Benjamin, which are so sweet. A lot of times he will stare at your face and then give you a smile. He also has been saying 'ahh' a lot, which is fun to hear! It had otherwise been a lot of grunting and some crying. Hopefully he will start to 'coo', too!

Finally, here Benjamin is in his pack'n'play and in his pajamas. This is how he typically looks in his pack'n'play - alert, never asleep. He sometimes sleeps in his crib, but mostly in his swing. Despite my efforts, he has stopped sleeping in the pack'n'play!

Video of Benjamin Rolling From Tummy to Back

Below is proof that he rolls over to his back when he is on his tummy. In the video, you will notice that he cries while doing so. He tends to do this during tummy time after a bit, so we are trying to get him used to it. Of course I don't like to see him cry, but it got him to roll over!

A Visit from Grandma Zusman and Auntie Shelley

Benjamin is a busy boy! Today we welcomed Grandma Zusman and Auntie Shelley to our house. They loved seeing Benjamin and he, in turn, enjoyed his time with them (when he wasn't crying - I suspect he might have had some tummy issues)! He was really into examining their faces. Grandma Zusman will be moving here for awhile in an apartment nearby to help us take care of Benjamin when I return to work (in November). It will be so nice and we greatly appreciate it! Grandma Zusman is not pictured as she and Steve were too busy moving her into her new place, but a picture will come soon, I am sure!

A Big Trip Out

Yesterday, Benjamin and I visited our friends Sarah and Janet (and their families) at Janet's house. I realized while I was there, that it was Benjamin's first big outing (we were there for around 2 1/2 hours)! It went really well - I was ready with food when he needed it and a baby sling when he started getting fussy. I felt like such a prepared Mommy. We had a lot of fun -Benjamin does so well with everyone. Again, we are lucky to have such a sweet boy!

One Month!!!

Happy One Month Birthday to Benjamin! I can't believe it has been a month since we welcomed Benjamin into our lives. What a wonderful addition - we are so lucky. I don't think Benjamin was too aware of what was so special about today, but we gave him lots of kisses to celebrate!

We have had two nights in a row where he slept pretty well (hopefully he keeps this up!). Here he is this morning spending some time snuggling with us in bed. As you can see, he really enjoyed being propped up by the pillow. A couple of days ago, Benjamin surprised us by flipping over to his back on the bed during tummy time! We were able to capture this on video the next time we had him do tummy time on the bed, but I still need to figure out how to upload it to the computer. So hopefully you can look forward to seeing that and other videos in the future!

Today we also took our longest walk to date with Benjamin. We walked to the closest park to our place, which is a mile away. The weather was great - finally not hot and humid!

New People, New Tricks, and Bath Time

The last three weeks have gone by so quickly! After the wonderful gathering of family at the hospital for Benjamin's birth, we settled in quietly at our home (with many thanks to my Mom, who helped us tremendously by cooking and cleaning for the first few days home) . The last couple of days, however, we have had a lot of visitors come see our little guy. Above, our friends Becky and Loula are playing with Benjamin. They stopped by on Wednesday to see him before they both moved out of town (we will miss them both!!!).

Then Uncle Rick and Aunt Jessica drove down from Minnesota on Thursday. Jessica taught us a little trick to help relieve Ben's gas, which is to fold his legs up toward his head. It worked really well, though you can see that at first he was unsure of it. In the picture, he has a great expression that says, "what are you doing to me?".

Here Uncle Rick and Benjamin are having some bonding time. Benjamin was so well-behaved for our visitors! He is such a sweet boy.

Last night we gave Benjamin his first full bath! He was crying when we undressed him completely, but as soon as we set him in the warm water, he was so mellow! He really enjoyed his bath and we loved being able to wash him so much more easily. Benjamin is now three weeks old and he weighed in at 8 lbs, 4 oz at his doctor's appointment yesterday! What an amazing growing boy!