No naps make Benjamin a grumpy boy

Yesterday Benjamin took zero naps, unless you count the two times he fell asleep in the car for short times. Oh my.

One of my lofty, idealistic(?) parenting goals is to have a flexible child. I would like to train him to function, in general, on a basic routine--which is going well--but I would also like to be able to deviate from that, when need be. Sometimes errands and the rare times when I have the car don't coincide directly with naptime. And it would be nice if that were ok once in awhile. But, the flexible part isn't going so well, at least not in the napping area.

I left Benjamin at a friend's house at naptime yesterday because I needed to do some errands in her area. He refused to sleep. He was exhausted, but he just wouldn't go to sleep. We put him to bed early, but he cried for an hour and a half until it was after his regular bedtime, and then woke up early this morning to boot!

Now he's refusing his morning nap (maybe because I put him back to bed this morning after feeding him). It's a vicious cycle. He won't sleep because he's overtired, but he MUST. He's SO GROUCHY! So if you read this today and want to pray for me, I could use some extra patience today.

You who are experienced parents are probably laughing at me. I know, it's all part of babyhood/parenthood. And I'm probably way too stressed out about something that will just sort itself out eventually. I guess it's that even in the "little" things there is such a responsibility in parenting. The training that needs to be done is my responsibility. And not having the benefit of hindsight, it's often hard to discern the important issues from the trivial.

But I am struck, even now, with the privilege it is to raise this sweet, precious little boy. I wouldn't give him up for the world. I am filled with compassion for him as he learns about the world and himself in it. And more than anything I desperately want him to learn to love and obey and honor God. And all this is toward that end. I embrace the challenge!

Thoughts from Dad

Hello, all. Thanks for stopping by. And thanks to Kiersten for working so hard to keep up with all the milestones and moments in Benjamin's life. Between work, getting ready for Israel, and everything else, I haven't had time to put in my two cents, but I've been reading every word.

What do I like about being a new dad? I think the biggest thing is having a "buddy" to laugh and play with. Seeing his face light up when he sees me brings a smile to my lips; hearing him giggle and squeal with joy makes me laugh out loud. Benjamin and I have a lot of fun together. I love to see him open his mouth wide with an expression of pure delight as I lift him over my head and do "weight lifting" with his 16 pound body. I also love it when he's on my lap looking at everything except me, and then snapping his attention on me as I start singing "Zaccheus was a wee little man..." I love to make him laugh by blowing raspberries or playing peek-a-boo.

Tonight he was laying on our bed and I was sitting with my back to him and was falling next to him, landing a couple inches from his face and making him laugh out loud. Then I stopped, turned away, and then looked at him out of the corner of my eye with a devious smile on my lips. That was all it took to get a belly laugh out of him.

I know that there's a lot more to parenting than just being a big buddy. In fact, if that's all you are to your kids, then you're doing them a disservice. But the playtimes with your kids are the times when you can communicate how much you love them and how much of a treasure they are to you. I'm glad that Benjamin laughs and enjoys playing with both his mommy and his daddy. These are precious moments, and I'm glad we're not passing them by.

"Firsts," take two.

I told you they come in spurts. Yesterday we had three more milestones.

1. First fingerfood. Of course I'm not sure we can really define it that way since I've told Benjamin "no hands" (as in I don't want him to put his hands in his mouth or in the food while I'm feeding him) so often that he won't touch the stuff. Since he's allergic to wheat, which is in Cheerios, we opted for Puffed Rice (a more substantial version of Rice Crispies). He did finally reach for it, but not having mastered the "pincer grasp" yet, he grabbed it with his fist and then apparently couldn't figure out where it had gone. I think it was stuck to his palm. So I put one in his mouth. He hesitatingly went about mashing it with his gums then swallowed and smacked his lips. "Mmmm...ummm ummMMM." I think he likes it! :)

2. Related to #1, Benjamin started doing a new sign yesterday: "More." I wasn't sure how much cereal to give him so I made the sign for more and asked him, "Do you want more?" I didn't really expect him to respond, but sometimes he opens his mouth when I ask so I thought it was worth a try. He put his hands together in what was unmistakably his version of the sign. Just like he had always been doing it. It is so exciting to be able to communicate with him! Now we just have to get him to understand that he can sign for more instead of whinning. :)

3. This one's not so exciting, more of a rite of passage, I guess: first bump on the head. He was sitting in front of his crib gym--the kind they are supposed to lay on their backs and kick, except now that he's discovered he can sit up and reach more he is NOT interested in laying on his back and kicking. That's kid stuff. Anyway, I put him in the doorway to the kitchen so he could see me doing dishes. All of a sudden I heard a big SMACK! I whirled around and he had fallen forward onto the linoleum. I knew he had really whacked it hard because he did the "silent cry," the kind where they are open-mouthed, red-faced, and shaking, but no sound is comes out for about 30 seconds. Sure enough, he had a pretty good bump, about the size of a penny on his forehead. Poor baby. After about 30 more seconds he was fine, though. I guess he's a tough boy after all.

Oh! and the pictures are just random...because he looked so cute yesterday.

"Firsts"

Benjamin's "firsts" always seem to come in spurts. Here are several that happened recently:

Saturday, June 3- First time drinking out of a straw.

Sunday, June 4- Started scooting forward (a little bit) and "rocking" on hands & knees, and started making his first sign (as in sign language), "all done." He's not consistent with the sign yet, but he always makes some kind of related motion now when he is done eating.

Monday, June 5- Rolled from back to front for the first time (this has been weeks in coming!), and first time in his wading pool here at home (he loved it!)

Seth's upcoming trip

I can't believe Seth will be leaving in just 2 weeks (from yesterday)! This has come far too quickly.

Some of you probably have no idea what I am talking about. Let me fill you in. Seth has the amazing opportunity this summer to participate in an archaeological dig in Israel. As an Old Testament Archaeology and History student, this will be an invaluable experience in his academic career. He will be digging for 3 weeks at the biblical city of Hazor. For more information on this site see this page from BiblePlaces.com (one of our favorite sites--and not just because Seth works for its creator) :) or the official excavation page.

In addition to the dig, Seth will also be participating in a study tour, teaching at several sites! This is such an exciting opportunity for him as it combines so many of his talents (esp. teaching), passions (esp. Israel), and ambitions (esp. to teach in Israel). The group will be lead by one of our professors from the IBEX program--with which Seth and I both studied in college and Seth would like to teach. As an added bonus, the group leader is none other than Pastor Darrell Beddoe, the father of my college roommate. We have had so many connections with their family since Anna and I became roommates our freshman year at TMC (Sarah became a roommate in our apartment our senior year, Seth and I worked with Dave and Deb in the youth group at Santa Clarita Baptist Church, I "nannied" for 3 of Dave & Deb's 4 kids [Katie, Calvin, and George]). So to be honest we were not all that surprised to find out who Seth would be touring with. After all, why not?!

So this is the trip Seth will be embarking on in just 2 short weeks. Although the opportunities are golden and the events are exciting, we are both approaching June 18 with some sadness and anxiety. Seth is obviously dreading missing 5 weeks of Benjamin's rapid development. We are hoping he will start crawling in the next 2 weeks (he's close!) But in the scheme of things this is like the first big step (aside from school) toward our dream. It is so rewarding to see Seth making a real "career move." Gratification has been so delayed as he works "any ol' job" to get us through school. So I am excited for the boost to his morale that this trip will provide. It is so satisfying to see my husband doing that at which he excels.

I suppose I should mention that I, too, will be traveling during this time. I will spend 3 of the 5 weeks in California. Benjamin and I will spend most of this time in Orange County with the grandparents, but I am also thrilled for the opportunity to attend the 5th annual campout organized and attended by some of our very closest friends (mostly fellow music alumni from TMC).

We would cherish your prayers: for preparation, for Seth as he travels far and wide, for me as I travel not-so-far but alone with a baby, for our continued communication as a family despite the distance, and for our happy reunion mid-July.

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