Weekend Adventures with Grandpa Dale and Grandma Patty

Over Valentine's/President's Day weekend, Grandpa Dale and Grandma Patty came to visit! We had lots of fun and Benjamin showed off his 19 month old tricks to them. This included many rounds of 'head, shoulders, knees and toes' and singing the 'abc' song (us singing, Benjamin dancing to it). It was so funny because Benjamin insisted that everyone participate and if you stopped singing and dancing with him, he would stop his dancing and point at you until you complied. At that point he would smile really big and clap his hands and then resume his own dancing and singing. Grandpa received this pointing many times, as he was not inclined to touch his toes and sing the 'abc' song over and over, as Benjamin loves to do! But he was a good sport and happily sang and danced with Benjamin. Benjamin also showed off his climbing skills by pulling the kitchen chairs out on his own and then climbing on them.

Here are some of the pictures of our fun with Benjamin:

With Grandpa and Grandma at the indoor park

Hanging out, watching the 2010 Winter Olympics at Vancouver!

Hanging out on the comfy chair

At the indoor park - walking the 'balance beam'

At the indoor park - on the firetruck

Grandpa and Benjamin holding hands

Taking a nap on Grandma

'Reading' his book to himself

ABC puzzle

Benjamin has an ABC puzzle that he got from Grandpa Zusman and Grandma Jane for Christmas. He is impressively good at taking all the pieces of the puzzle and putting them back in the right spot without much guidance from us. He will even rotate the pieces until they fit. It might take him a few minutes, but he can often have the patience and determination to complete the puzzle.

Shoveling the Driveway

Today Benjamin helped Steve shovel the driveway by using his new shovel that he got from Grandma and Grandpa Lucken. He had such a great time that he was quite upset when it was time for him to go in - but it was too cold and too dark to stay out for very long.

In his adorable coat from Grandma Zusman earlier in the day.

Working hard

Pushing the snow around

Sledding

Benjamin is 19 months!! Wow, I can't believe that in one month he will hit the twenty month mark.

This past week we have gotten around 6 to 7 inches of snow, and after the snow storms, each of us have taken Benjamin out to go sledding! It was hard to tell by looking at Benjamin's face if he was having a good time, as he often seemed a little cold. However, we would often ask if he wanted to go home, to which he would shake his head, and he would sign 'more' when we would ask if he wanted more. Also, he would say 'weee' when sliding down the hill.

Right outside our home

Signing 'more'

A video of Benjamin sledding - and signing 'more':

18 Months

Before he turns 19 months, I need to tell about what an adorable 18 month old he is!

First of all, his 18 month appointment went really well. He is very healthy and progressing quite normally (I would say that his verbal communication (speaking, not listening) is a little behind and the doctor said his teeth are more like a 15 month old). During the whole appointment, though, Benjamin did not enjoy himself at all, as he knew shots were in his near future. He kept pointing to the door and saying 'out, out, out' and there were many tears. Thankfully, though, no more shots (seasonal shots aside) until kindergarten!!!!!

Here are a few things he has been doing:

*Counts things with his finger while using his imaginary language
*Says 'up' all the time, his new favorite word! He says to get on the couch, chair, bed, etc. and then he says to get down, too
*Says 'more', usually by signing it
*Says 'out', which he says a lot when we go to the doctor!
*Waves hello and goodbye, and has even said 'hi' on the phone!
*Lets me brush his teeth, and even his tongue
*Can identify me, Steve, and himself in pictures
*Can identify lots of different animals, including all of the Winnie the Pooh characters
*Can identify the letters 'A', 'T', and 'O', but can put all the letters of his puzzle back in position!
*Says animals noises, 'hoo' for owl, 'moo', 'woof', 'ssss' for snake
*Additional words: 'goat', 'Be' for Ben, 'all do' for all done
*Seems to understand a lot, can obey directions (when he feels like it!)
*Foods he likes: blueberries, mandarin oranges, cheese, bagel, pancakes, bread (any type), cooked vegetables, strawberries, mac and cheese

Loves his lion and his new lion blanket!

Using the food bin to get better access to his kitchen

He took each window sticker and went to throw them away in the garbage

Loves his Pooh Bear

Our little Illini Fan

He has been putting these hats on by himself

Cutie!

Early Days of 2010

Here are some pictures from early January.

He is working still on transitioning from bottle to sippy cups

Bundling up for a cold January night!

What a big boy - drawing at the table

He likes to prop these letters up on the bath tub's edge

Look at those teeth! Two more on top.

His new train table, courtesy of Amie, Doug, and family

He loves the table!

Ready to play in snow - though we really haven't had much of the stuff this year!

Christmas at Home

Well, it is February, but never too late (or too early?) to talk about Santa Claus! When we returned from Minnesota, we had Santa arrive. Benjamin had a great time opening all of his gifts - he really seemed to start to understand what it means to have gifts to open! Now we just need to convince Benjamin that Santa Claus is not a scary guy and that there is no reason to cry whenever we see him at the mall.

Waking up from his nap to Santa's gifts!

Climbing on his gifts

Checking out the microwave of his new kitchen

Excited to open his gift from Grandma Vicki

Aquadoodle from Grandma Vicki

New ball pit

Elmo