7 Months!

So Ben has reached his seven month birthday. Well, actually he reached it on the 9th--we're a little late, sorry. It was quite an exciting month for the little guy.

The most noteworthy event in the past month was that Ben celebrated his first Christmas! He enjoyed singing during the posada at Dolores Mission, was a squirmy, aggravated worm during Christmas Eve mass, enjoyed being the center of attention at lunch on Christmas day and then slept on the flight to Denver. The next morning we celebrated Christmas in Denver and Ben was horribly spoiled. It was a great trip highlighted by snuggling with great-grandparents, grandparents, uncles and friends, meeting a children's music rock star, sledding in the snow and riding a (toy) pony!

Ben's menu has increased dramatically. Every weekend Kristina turns the kitchen into a laboratory and steams veggies--sweet potatoes are his favorite--purees fruit--he devours blueberries--and even blends turkey or chicken. We've also added Cheerios and these toasted puff things that he is crazy about. With all that nutrition in him, I know I'm going to find him busting out of his pajamas one morning.

The weeks of pain and aggravation associated with teething came to fruition recently when, in the middle of his lower jaw, Ben's first tooth slowly emerged. Not long after, the first tooth's first mate poked through and he got his Christmas wish--his two front teeth. 2 down, 18 more to go. To help with the pain, we've given him these teething biscuits and frozen mini bagels to gnaw on--both of which make an enormous mess.

A very exciting development is that he can now army crawl. In the past month Ben went from rolling and flopping from side to side to crawling on his elbows in a straight line. When he started, Kristina and I looked at one another and said, "Uh, oh!" We've always thought that once he could move independently, we were in big trouble because he would never stop. And, thus far, we've been proven right. But it's really special to see a big smile of pride on Ben's face when he finally makes it across the carpet to get the toy he wanted.

Enjoy the pictures. We promise he has a ton of hair--it's just so blonde that you can't see it very well. Thanks for the continued love and support. More later.

A Very Merry Un-Birthday to Ben!

We've reached Ben's 6th month half birthday. He's .5 years old! We've had a pretty eventful month. Now Ben can sit up on his own and stand up when he leans against something. It might be hard to tell, but he is growing hair like crazy. He talks and talks by rolling his tongue and blowing through his lips. He even makes farting on my arm and laughs about it--such a boy.

Uncle Casey and his girlfriend Brooke came down to LA for Thanksgiving. We all had a lot of fun playing together. Ben rode in a backpack while we took a walk through a botanical garden. He loved playing in the grass and laughing at his uncle.

Recently we went to a couple of Christmas parties and Ben was a hit with everyone. You can see that a couple of older ladies took a shine to Ben. Later he had a chance to play with 6 month old twins. The three of them had so much fun talking together and comparing fingers. When he tired of the twins Ben and I went to the bounce house. Obviously he isn't quite ready for that action. Maybe next year.

We'll post more in a month. Have a great Christmas and New Year!

5 Months!

Today marks Ben's fifth month with us. This past month has seen some of the most significant developmental jumps yet. He can roll over--and does so all the time. He can find a loose pacifier and bring it back to his mouth. He devours solid food. But most importantly, Ben is sturdier. He is heavier and stronger and likes to rough house to a degree.

Ben celebrated his first Halloween. We couldn't put him in just one costume, so we spread the holiday out over three days. Ben was a 1950s era Mousekateer at his day care parade. The next day he was Jake Blues of The Blues Brothers. On the actual holiday, Ben was my teddy bear. Kristina and I dressed in our PJs and he was our teddy bear. It was pretty cute.

Enjoy the pictures. We watched Sportscenter in our underwear, took head shots in the car seat, and cheered for the Broncos tonight.

1/3 of a Year

Ben has been with us for 4 months and it almost doesn't seem real. He has changed so much since we first met him and every day brings something new and exciting. He has become so much more responsive. He can smile and laugh with his whole body. He can play with toys, pull a blanket over his face and pull our faces together. As parents, we have worked into a nice routine. Kristina and I compliment one another well and it's really fun to watch us grow along with Ben.

Ben had a doctor's appointment recently and everything checked out without any problem. The big news, though, was that we can start feeding him rice cereal and even vegetables. We started on the rice cereal and it's pretty hilarious. When Kristina holds the spoon 3 inches from his mouth, he dive bombs onto it and inhales the whole thing. He loves food. Kristina said, "Well, he is your son!"

Tonight, he reached for his bottle and, after a couple of minutes of assisting, he held it on his own. He just held it and ate the rest of the thing. It made my life a bit easier and was completely freaking adorable.

I've included a few pictures from the past month. If you compare them to when he was first born, you won't be able to recognize him.

Ben's Baptism

Last weekend, Kristina and I had Benjamin baptized. We organized a late afternoon ceremony and reception at the school where Kristina teaches. Friends from LA joined our family from afar and the turnout truly humbled us. Our siblings--the same people we used to give wet willies and knuckle tacos to--honored us by being Benjamin's Godparents. The location was beautiful and Kristina did a wonderful job with the ceremony. A personal highlight had to be when everyone came forward and tied a ribbon of prayer to Benjamin's cross. The reception afterward was so special. I was so busy talking to friends and family that I hardly had a moment to eat.

I've included a link to the pictures of the evening. Feel free to look through all the pictures and marvel at what a beautiful child we've got on our hands. Through the website you can order prints sent to your house for a very reasonable price. You can also download them to your computer and email them to your entire contact list. You can find the pictures here.

I've included a few of our favorite pictures to enjoy now.

3 Months

In the last month, Ben has really grown! He continues to fill out--I didn't think that was possible--and get longer and longer. While he has physically changed quite a lot, his mental changes have been even more amazing. He can laugh and smile at our silliness. He can reach for things. He can even articulate noises. He mimics me and I mimic him and we can talk and talk all day. Here's a summary of today's conversation about the neighbors:

"zzzzzppptgaaah." Ben stated.

"zzzzzpppptgaaAH!" I exclaimed.

"WWWaaaaaHHHHH!" Ben wondered with his fist firmly in his mouth.

"glaaagleeeglobglob." I agreed.

This week Ben even started school. He goes to see Miss Beverly three times a week and seems to love the company. He talks all day and smiles with her also. Miss Beverly, however, doesn't believe that Ben is only three months old. She thinks he is too big to be just 13 weeks old. I keep telling him that it's all that old European blood and he should be proud. Here's a picture of him all dressed up and ready to go to his first day of school.

In the three months Ben's been to three weddings. He was so bored by the most recent one that he actually fell asleep. He's got another one in two weeks and requested a seersucker suit. We'll see. This weekend Ben was baptized. It was a beautiful evening with friends and family and we'll post those pictures as soon as we can. He really loved the cards he got in the mail from his great-grandma in Nebraska and great-aunt in Seattle.

Anyway, enjoy the video. It's just some silliness we recorded during the crazy heat wave and all we did was enjoy the air conditioning. Thanks for all your support and love. More next month!

2 Months!

In Ben's second month there have been many changes. He has grown so much! He's nearing 15 pounds, is much longer and is putting on chubby rolls all over the place. He can smile, reach for objects and even kind of sing along to songs he knows.

But the biggest event of his past month was his Midwest Tour. We visited friends, grandparents and great grandparents over the course of 2 and a half weeks. It looked a little like this:

LA>Denver, CO>Fremont, NE>Denver, CO>Chicago, IL>South Bend, IN>Grand Rapids, MI>Chicago, IL>Denver, CO>LA

or by time zone, it looked like this:

Pacific>Mountain>Central>Mountain>Central>Central -DST>Eastern>Central>Mountain>Pacific

So any routine that we had worked out with Ben has been thrown out the window.

The best part to come out of the trip was that Ben went on his first college visits. Our tour of the University of Colorado was shortened by rain, but the little guy seemed to like campus. Later we visited my alma mater, Lake Forest College, and he slept through my engaging tour. Lastly we visited Notre Dame and talked with an admissions counselor about Ben's admittance to the class of 2031.

Enjoy the pictures!