Run, Forrest, run!

We've been in a playgroup since Ben was about 2 months old. All the kids are between 1 and 2 years old now and it's been so fun watching them grow up together. Only recently have they started to actually play together, though. Until now their fellow playgroup members have merely been obstacles to crawl over, or people to steal toys from.

Currently Ben's favorite game is Chase. At home he wants Heath or me to chase him, but at playgroup he likes being the chaser. Last Tuesday we visited a bakery called yummy & co. which has a playroom with tons of toys and makes delicious cupcakes to boot. They were extremely tolerant of the kids running around and I can't hype them enough, so if you're near the St. Louis area check them out!*

Anyway, while there Ben started chasing one of the other kids, Joey. He and Joey were running back and forth across the store giggling like crazy. Ben never tires of that game, but occasionally Joey would stop and take a break. However, then Ben would come up and nudge Joey's arm a little, like,"Come on dude, keep running!" It was completely adorable.


*I was in no way compensated for that endorsement. I paid for all my cupcakes! :)

Conversations with a Toddler - Part 2

Scene: Ben was finishing up lunch when we had this conversation:

Me: Do you want any more food?
Ben: No! *shakes head vigorously*
Me: So, you're all done?
Ben: No! *shakes head vigorously*
Me: Do you have any idea what you're talking about?
Ben: No! *shakes head vigorously*

Taking a sip of life

Ben has been successfully using a sippy cup since last summer. It actually came pretty easy to him. It took some practice to coordinate tipping his head back while putting the cup into his mouth, but we didn't have any trouble getting him to try it. On Sunday we went out to breakfast and Ben really wanted to try using a regular cup. Well, it was glass so at first Heath was helping him but eventually Ben got fed up and just wanted to do it for himself (imagine a toddler doing that!). So while Heath's hands hovered very nearby, Ben picked up the glass, took a sip and put it back on the table without spilling a drop. He was soooo proud of himself. He grinned from ear to ear and was obviously thinking, "I did it!" It was so cute. Every week he learns something new and it's nice he can finally take pride in his accomplishments.

Hopefully he'll be cooking me dinner soon

Screw Jack Frost

Though I enjoyed snow as a child, I've long since accepted that as an adult, snow sucks. It just makes life harder. My newest lesson is that as a parent, winter sucks! Save a few blessed weeks, Ben's had a runny nose since October. That was also the last time he slept through the night with any regularity. We still get a few nights here and there, but once he hits three in a row then he gets a cold or an ear infection or he just feels like inflicting some torture. He's going to graduate to water boarding soon.

This will all get better once spring hits, right? Right?

RIGHT?!

Literary observations - Part 3

Ben has a book called Funny Mother Goose which features illustrated nursery rhymes. The last page is one that goes:

Diddle diddle dumpling, my son John
went to bed with his stockings on.
One shoe off and one shoe on.
Diddle diddle dumpling, my son John.

What this rhyme fails to tell us is that - at least according to the illustration - John went to bed in such a state because he was completely wasted. In the picture he also has his pants on, but no shirt, and he's sprawled on the bed with his arms hanging over the sides and his tongue lolling out. And though there are no spilled rum bottles lying about, it's pretty obvious what was happening.

This is what happens when you let a toddler feed himself

Ewwwww! Ew! ew!

For parents, the first year of a baby's life is an exercise in not being grossed out by someone else's bodily functions. I've been peed on, pooped on and thrown up on so many times I don't think modern mathematics can determine the number. My gross out armor is pretty thick. But this morning something sliced through it like butter.

We have two cats and one of them is a big, fat tub of lard. She loooooves to eat, so every meal she wolfs down her food like she's been living on a desert island for two weeks with no food. This means that every few days she eats just a little too fast and then pukes it up again. The beauty of having two cats is that usually by the time I can check on the puke, it's been taken care of. I know that sounds disgusting - and it is -  but if you have two cats you probably know what I'm talking about.

Normally big, fat cat pukes in a place inaccessible to Ben. I'm sure you can see where this is going... I was doing dishes and Ben was being very quiet, which is never a good sign. So I walked toward the living room and there I saw him, kneeling over the cat puke and chewing. Words cannot adequately describe how disgusted I was. It makes me shudder to think about it. I promptly shoved some juice in his face to distract him while I cleaned up the remaining puke and then there was some very vigorous tooth brushing.

Oh god that was so gross. But it's going to be a wonderful story to torture him with for the rest of his life! Silver lining.

TEETH!

After five months of no progress on the teething front, Ben finally has some new teeth! Three molars have popped through his gums and I can see another one under there getting ready. I cannot wait for all his teeth to be in. Teething SUCKS and don't let anyone tell you different.

The pajama rituals

Last month I posted about Ben's love of playing with his pajamas. Well, he's taken it to a new level. First of all, the play sessions are getting longer. I've seen him entertained by his pajamas for 30-40 minutes. Second, he's incorporating more pairs. Now he gets out three or four at a time.

However, the ultimate was last week. He had three pairs out and was playing with them like usual. Then he piled them all in the middle of the room. He gathered a few toys and placed them around the pile. Finally he ran around them in a circle a few times. I was expecting a portal to open up and suck us into another world!