Benjamin - Ten (and a half) Months Old

So sorry for the lack of blogging! January and February have been hard on our family! We have had near constant sickness (I'm looking at you, Benny), and overall have had a tough time adjusting back to the routine of school, work, home, daycare, etc. I'm hoping that I can get back to somewhat regular blogging over spring break. This post is so late, but I definitely want to record what is going on with sweet Benny right now!

Benny Boo,

What an exciting month and a half you've had! Just in the two weeks since you've turned 10 months, you've changed and grown and learned new skills. This is such an amazing time, and I'm so excited to watch you learn new things. You are such a sweet, fun, lovable little guy, and here's what you've been up to lately...

Likes: Benny, there is so much that you love, and you are such a happy guy! You love people and interacting. While you have gotten a little bit more shy (coy?) lately, you still love to flash a flirty smile at people who talk to you. You love Tucker and Andrew, and both are able to make you laugh and giggle. One day in the car Andrew was mad at something I said, and started making a loud, obnoxious sound. I was just about to fuss at him to stop when you started giggling from your seat. This spurred him on, and although I wasn't thrilled with the sound, I loved the sweet interaction between the two of you! You love bath time - playing with cups, splashing, trying to stand up (Mommy doesn't love that!). You LOVE standing and "walking" (more on this below), and are constantly trying to pull up on anything and everything. You also love eating (again, more on this below), and are enthusiastic about mealtimes!

Dislikes: Oh, Benny, you have become a little more sure of your dislikes this month. You don't really love trying to crawl, although I think you'll like it more once you realize it gets you places. You aren't really interested in sitting and playing (you'd much rather be standing). You HATE it when you fall (who doesn't?) and cry a pitiful, sad cry (see the picture!). You still don't like it when you think someone is going to pick you up and we don't - again, cue the sad, pitiful cry! As you become more mobile, you seem to be less fond of diaper changes, and laying still.

Sleep: As seems to be the case each month, your sleep has been interrupted by everything going on with you - teething, sickness, developmental leaps. There are some good nights - last night you slept my whole "school" night (you didn't get up until after 5), which I definitely appreciate. Although I would love love love a full night of sleep, I know you'll get there eventually. I will say that you sleep much better at home. You nap better, sleep late, and just seem happier when you can relax in your crib.

Eating: It's so funny how different parenting experiences are for each child. While I definitely worried about what Andrew ate (and I still worry about what he eats), I don't remember him ever refusing to drink. You LOVE to eat solids, but now we are having trouble getting you to take bottles. Again, it could be a number of things disrupting your eating - sickness, teething, new skills, but it still has me concerned. You have only been taking around 6-8 ounces of milk at daycare! While I know you will gradually take less as you eat more food, you still need to be getting the majority of your nutrition from breastmilk. (Got that Benny?!) But on the flip side, you LOVE finger foods. We haven't really given you a food you didn't like - you seem fond of meats, vegetables, pasta, and fruits. You also love pancakes! I keep hoping that you will not be a picky eater like your brother (who grows pickier by the day), but I know that he ate most anything at this age also. I think we will just keep offering you a variety and hope that you don't start refusing things!

Milestones: Benny, you're doing just about everything now! You've been cruising (standing and walking on furniture) for the past week or two, and in the last week you've gotten good at pulling up on things on your own. We had to lower the crib mattress last weekend, when Daddy came in to get you from a nap and you were standing up in your crib! Like I said earlier, you seem uninterested in crawling. But just yesterday you seemed to realize that crawling could get you to places you wanted to be, and started actually crawling! You had been army crawling, rocking back and forth, and practicing getting from sitting to laying and vice versa. But yesterday it seemed to click, and you were stomach-off-the-ground, hands-and-knees crawling! I think you still only crawl to get places you can stand, but I'm still happy about it! You are starting to get more confident at transferring from different things while cruising, and I know you'll be walking soon! But not too soon, please!

Oh, sweet Benjamin - what a joy you are! You are so sweet and cuddly and smiley and happy, and we are so blessed to have you. I am trying to soak up as many baby cuddles as I can get, because I know that you are growing so fast. I can't believe in a month and a half, you'll be a one-year-old! We love you so much sweet Benny, and can't wait to see what the next month (er, two weeks) has in store!