Boys' Night Out

Due to a girls-only baby shower that Kiersten went to last Friday, Benjamin and I were able to enjoy our first Boys Night Out!

(A little family history: My dad used to take my brother and I out on a regular basis for "Boys Night Out," which usually included going to the mall or the miniture golf course or a movie. It's a family tradition I plan on continuing.)

We ended up at the local Toys 'R Us. They have a little indoor playground that I thought Benjamin would enjoy. As it turned out, Benjamin mostly wanted to explore and stretch his walking legs (while holding onto Dada's fingers, of course). We walked around half the store! (You could tell that Benjamin had been couped up in our tiny house all day.) Along the way, we checked out other children, enjoyed spinning some wheels in the Hot Wheels aisle, and played with various things that caught our fancy.

Eventually, we made it to the back of the store where all of the bikes, scooters, and wagons are on display. Benjamin really enjoyed trying out a rocking horse. He loved leaning back and forth, making it move on his own. As you can see from the picture, it was just his size. We also had a good time giving Benjamin his first taste of an ATV (all-terrain vehicle). The battery in it was mostly dead, so we had to use "Daddy Power" (which was fine since Daddy had to steer anyway). We went round and round the area several times, and Benjamin enjoyed looking at the scenery on the back of a big, bad machine.

We had a great time, but unfor- tunately the evening wasn't painless. After Toys R Us, we went to Mr. Jamie's house where I was going to hang out with some guy friends. While Jamie and I were hanging out, I started chasing Benjamin around the coffee table. This is a game that has developed recently in which Benjamin runs away from you while holding onto something for support. The best thing in the room for us to play around was a coffee table. Unfortunately, he got too excited at one point, lost his balace, and hit his mouth on the edge of the table. It is commonly known that baby teeth are exceptionally sharp, so naturally Benjamin got a bloody lip out of the deal. (Kiersten says she was glad she wasn't around for that "first".) He cried while I dressed his wound, and was finally consoled when we gave him his bedtime bottle. His lip's a little swollen, but he's going to be fine. I guess it wouldn't have been a genuine "Boys Night Out" without the spilling of some blood. Way to be a trooper, Benjamin!

Party!

Well, I was waiting to see if I could sneak some of my father-in-law's pictures in with mine, to fill in some of our gaps, but I think it's high time to post some birthday party pictures! So, without further ado....

Benjamin Trivia...answers

Benjamin Trivia Answers

1. What date is Benjamin’s actual birthday?
c. Oct. 11

2. What time was Benjamin born?
b. 1:07 pm

3. What did Benjamin dress up as when he was just 3 weeks old?
d. a pea-in-a-pod

4. When did Benjamin start sleeping through the night?
a. 9 wks.

5. Where did Benjamin spend his first Christmas?
d. in California, with his grandparents

6. When he is in a new place, Benjamin looks up. What is he looking for?
c. a ceiling fan

7. On March 10, 2006 Benjamin sat up for the first time. If you caught him sitting on his own what would his position be?
b. ankles crossed in front of him

8. By 6 months old, Benjamin was miserable. What was the problem?
d. he had severe eczema

9. At 6 months old, Benjamin was diagnosed with several allergies. What is Benjamin NOT allergic to?
a. cats

10. On Memorial Day Benjamin took his first trip to…
a. the pool

11. When Benjamin is eating he can often be heard making the following sound:
b. saying “mmm”

12. In June, Daddy took a long trip to Israel to help lead a study tour and participate in an archaeological dig. How long was he gone?
c. 5 weeks

13. One week before Daddy left on his trip, Benjamin’s life changed. How?
b. he found out he is going to be a big brother

14. How did Benjamin “keep in touch” with Daddy while he was gone?
c. a video of Daddy reading & singing

15. While Daddy was in Israel, Benjamin said his first word. What was it?
d. Da-Da

16. Benjamin started crawling…
a. within an hour of Daddy’s return from Israel

17. Two days after he started crawling, Benjamin lost his “best friend.” What was the identity of this special item?
d. his “paci”

18. When he was 9 months old, Benjamin received an “extreme makeover.” What made the significant difference?
b. he got his first haircut

19. What is Benjamin’s “name” for his Mama?
a. “Da-Da”

20. What word does Benjamin NOT say?
c. Baby (“Ba Ba”)

21. What is Benjamin’s latest “trick”?
a. clapping

And no, it does not make anyone a bad friend if you didn't know the answers. It makes you not nearly as obsessed with Benjamin's life as we are--which is perfectly fine and normal! Now if you're a family member, that's a different story! (kidding, I'm kidding!!)

Benjamin Trivia

We played this game at Benjamin's party on Saturday. I thought it would be fun to post it here for those who might want to try! Think of it as a blog test :) I'll post answers in a couple of days.

Benjamin Trivia
(a celebration of Benjamin’s milestones over the first year of his life)

1. What date is Benjamin’s actual birthday?
a. Oct. 2
b. Oct. 10
c. Oct. 11
d. Oct. 14

2. What time was Benjamin born?
a. 11:07 am
b. 1:07 pm
c. 7:07 pm
d. 11:07 pm

3. What did Benjamin dress up as when he was just 3 weeks old?
a. a giraffe
b. a chili pepper
c. a bumble bee
d. a pea-in-a-pod

4. When did Benjamin start sleeping through the night?
a. 9 wks.
b. 11 wks.
c. 6 mo.
d. 9 mo.

5. Where did Benjamin spend his first Christmas?
a. at home, with just Daddy & Mommy
b. in Nashville, with Uncle Phil & Aunt Vicki
c. in Arizona, with Uncle Kevin & Aunt Erin
d. in California, with his grandparents

6. When he is in a new place, Benjamin looks up. What is he looking for?
a. a TV
b. a mirror
c. a ceiling fan
d. the moon

7. On March 10, 2006 Benjamin sat up for the first time. If you caught him sitting on his own what would his position be?
a. slouching
b. ankles crossed in front of him
c. legs spread wide apart
d. squatting

8. By 6 months old, Benjamin was miserable. What was the problem?
a. he wasn’t eating enough
b. he was colicky
c. his ears hurt
d. he had severe eczema

9. At 6 months old, Benjamin was diagnosed with several allergies. What is Benjamin NOT allergic to?
a. cats
b. dogs
c. milk
d. eggs
e. wheat
f. peanuts
g. dust mites

10. On Memorial Day Benjamin took his first trip to…
a. the pool
b. the park
c. the emergency room
d. the zoo

11. When Benjamin is eating he can often be heard making the following sound:
a. gagging
b. saying “mmm”
c. blowing raspberries
d. crying

12. In June, Daddy took a long trip to Israel to help lead a study tour and participate in an archaeological dig. How long was he gone?
a. 10 days
b. 2 weeks
c. 5 weeks
d. 2 months

13. One week before Daddy left on his trip, Benjamin’s life changed. How?
a. he lost his blankie
b. he found out he is going to be a big brother
c. he moved to a new house
d. he got his first tooth

14. How did Benjamin “keep in touch” with Daddy while he was gone?
a. a photograph in his crib
b. email
c. a video of Daddy reading & singing
d. he forgot all about him

15. While Daddy was in Israel, Benjamin said his first word. What was it?
a. bye-bye
b. no-no
c. Ma-Ma
d. Da-Da

16. Benjamin started crawling…
a. within an hour of Daddy’s return from Israel
b. the day before Daddy returned from Israel
c. while we were visiting his grandparents in California
d. one Saturday morning

17. Two days after he started crawling, Benjamin lost his “best friend.” What was the identity of this special item?
a. his giraffe
b. his “little green man”
c. his teddy bear
d. his “paci”

18. When he was 9 months old, Benjamin received an “extreme makeover.” What made the significant difference?
a. his eczema went away
b. he got his first haircut
c. he fell down and got all scraped up
d. he got new clothes

19. What is Benjamin’s “name” for his Mama?
a. “Da-Da”
b. “Ki-Ki”
c. “Ba-Ba”
d. “Mother Dearest”

20. What word does Benjamin NOT say?
a. Da-Da
b. Down (“Dah”)
c. Baby (“Ba Ba”)
d. All Done (“Ah Dah”)

21. What is Benjamin’s latest “trick”?
a. clapping
b. walking
c. dancing
d. getting out of his crib

October 11, 2006...

...Benjamin's first birthday!

Wednesday morning, when we heard the first sounds of a little boy waking up, Seth and I both went into his room singing "Happy Birthday." We had a very happy little audience of one!

For breakfast I made Benjamin special wheat-free,
egg-free, milk-free pancakes. As a side note, allergen- free batter doesn't make the best letters or shapes. Benjamin didn't seem to mind.

After breakfast we got ready to go to Bible Study at church. Benjamin got to play with some of his favorite church toys while Mama was in her Bible Study. His teachers wished him Happy Birthday!

Unfortunately, the big day included an unplanned but necessary trip to the dentist's office for Mama (story in another post), but Benjamin was well-behaved and happy during the appointment. He continued to be in a great mood even though a trip to the pharmacy further delayed his now long-overdue afternoon nap. What a good boy!

We had to wake him to go to dinner at our church. Benjamin ate part of Mama & Daddy's chicken and green beans. He is starting to eat more and more table food.

After dinner we went home and played in the living room together. Benjamin has the greatest time tumbling around on the floor and playing silly games with Daddy. Mama got in on the action too!

Benjamin's First Pumpkin

Saturday we took a trip up into Indiana to Huber's Family Farm where Benjamin got his first pumpkin!

We took a picnic lunch and ate by a little lake. Benjamin loved watching the ducks play in the water. He even shared his peas with them. When we finished lunch we got on a trailer pulled by a big tractor, which took us to the pumpkin patch. We looked around for the perfect "Benjamin-sized" pumpkin, but couldn't find any small ones. He had a good time climbing around amongst the pumkins, though. We took the ride back to the market and finally found the little ones in a bin outside.

On the way home we stopped by another little family market and picked out (less pricey) pumpkins for the rest of the family. Seth got a taller, skinny one; Kiersten got a really round one:); and we even got a little teeny tiny baby pumkin for Baby Girl. We'll wait to post the pictures of our "pumpkin family" until we get them carved!

Happy Boy!

Benjamin discovered clapping today. (He has been able to make the clapping sound for several months, with help; he would hold his hands "stiff" and we would hit them together for him.) But today he decided to do it himself. He is quite pleased.

Another recent development is the never-tiresome game of peek-a-boo. It's hard to say when he started playing. It was a gradual thing, really, but we have several different versions:

1) blankie/pants/any available fabric version- Benjamin pulls the blankie/pants/fabric over his head, then yanks it off and laughs hysterically.

2) hands over his face version- Benjamin puts his tiny hands over his eyes (sometimes not quite covering them) , then yanks them off and laughs hysterically.

3) mama's hands over her face version- Mama puts her hands over her eyes (always covering thoroughly), then Benjamin yanks them off and laughs hysterically. (The addendum to this one is that he usually puts them back over my eyes for me.)

4) mama or Benjamin or both hiding behind something version- Mama or Benjamin (or both!) hide just out of sight then "pop out" (Benjamin leans). Then Benjamin laughs hysterically.

And he never gets tired of it. And it never ceases to be hysterically funny. He makes me laugh!