Burbs!

Ben's latest phrase is: "Oh! Hear dem."

He says it about everything he hears: the door closing, the radio, my squeaky rocking chair, the baby crying, everything.

And every phrase now starts with "Oh!" - "Oh Mommy, Ben hungry", "Oh, Otis barking!" "Oh, whoopie!" (My personal favorite) It is a little word, said with such excitement, in a sweet little tone you can't help but smile.

Today the rain stopped just enough we could go outside for a walk.

Ben kept stopping, pointing and saying, "Oh, Mommy! Hear dem?"

It took me a minute to realize he was hearing birds squawking.

As one flew by I pointed out (with tears in my eyes) and said, "Those are birds. You hear the birds!"

His response: "Oh Mommy! Hear dem burbs!"

and again: "Oh! Burbs!"

.

"Oh! More burbs!"

.

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I think Addilyn heard dem burbs too!

Snow Day

We had a snow day today. No school for mommy and lots of time to play.

Ben wasn't quite sure about all this white stuff. Walking in it was super tricky
and a little frustrating.

Frank tried to help.

Daddy made a sled out of a garbage can lid.

I know, we are terrible parents. We live on a hill, with a toddler, get a forecast for snow, and don't buy a sled!The lid didn't work so well.

Even with Frank trying to push.

Throwing sticks and snowballs for Otis was fun.

Sitting on top of Daddy's snowman and watching Daddy throw snowballs at Mommy was even more fun!

Mommy's Helper

Ben loves his baby sister and loves to help mommy.

Lately he has wanted to hold and feed Addilyn.

He's a hard to understand so I'll translate:

He says: Hi Addilyn, asks for a bottle, then a pacifier.

When neither of those work he asks for help.

Love this kid!

Valentine's Day Mommy's Way

Valentines Day, to me, is like a Mommy's birthday and Mother's day: She should have whatever she wants without anyone else complaining.

I'm not picky. I just want my family and my choice of food.

This year I chose Sushi (not Adam's favorite food) or, "Doo-di" if you ask Ben.

Ben loved making his own sushi rolls.

First he sampled the rice.

Then, he put the rice on the nori and smashed it down.

A bit more sampling the ingredients and he was ready to roll.

This was difficult because he insisted on lots of carrots in his roll.



The final result:

he picked off the rice, pulled out the carrots and salmon and ate each piece one at a time.

Then he sang Happy Birthday Mommy!

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I couldn't have been happier.

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Happy Valentine's Day

Gilbert House

We went to the Gilbert House with Maddie and Auntie Sarah this weekend.

Ben tried milking a cow and picking vegetables.

We had fantastic tea party. Ben served us all "hot tea and moo moos (noodles)".

The grocery shopping was a hit.

He had his thinking tounge out as he filled his cart.

He loved checking out his groceries, but couldn't reach the cash register or scale.

Why does a place designed for children not have any stools?

We knew Ben would love the Bubble Room so we saved it for last.

He made a bubble wall

and almost stood still long enough to make a big bubble all the way around his body.

Addilyn enjoyed this room too!

The highlight of the Bubble Room, however, was the automatic sink

and the doo-dyer (blow dryer) on the wall.

Daddy had to pull him out kicking and screaming, "Doo-dyer. Doo-dyer."

And then he found

the

playground!He went down every slide at least five times!

I had just read an article about the static from plastic slides wiping out the MAPs on kids implants. We hesitated for about 4 seconds and sent him on down. We have back ups for a reason :)

No problems and he had a blast!

Even all by himself!

This playground even had a truck for Ben to drive.
He said, "Ben driving. Wan ice cream cone."

So we went to get ice cream. A perfect way to end a fun day.

About that time Addilyn woke up.

Ben's Baby

Ben has become quite determined to be "Mommy's hepper (helper)" and make "Annalyn heppy (Addilyn happy)"

Although he is not quite ready to tend to Addilyn, he has taken over full care of "Ben's Baby".

He does all the feedings on his own.

He can even multitask. Tonight Ben decided Baby was ready for her first bath

She got a careful scrub with the washcloth and a rinse.

Baby waited patiently while Ben played with his toys. So nice of her!



Baby needed a warm towel,

clean teeth,

and the "bome" in her hair.

Then, Baby was ready for a story.

A happy Baby and wild Ben were FINALLY ready for bed.

This was quite the process. Although it was super cute, Baby may need to go to bed a little early tomorrow.

"Oh no, Baby's sleeping. Shh."

:)

Two!!!

Last Thursday Ben turned two. It's hard to believe he is so old already!

Ben's biggest obsession is the phone. He loves to 'talk' on the phone. He walks around chatting, pushing the buttons, taking pictures, and accidentally racking up large Internet fees. He'll beg for your phone, find it in your purse or pocket, and climb on counters, tables and chairs to get a phone. We've even seen him have lengthy conversations on a fork, a banana, and the strap on his car seat.

So, naturally the theme for Ben's birthday party was phones.
I made him a cake shaped like Daddy's phone.

All the work was worth it when Ben pointed and said, "Daddy's pone (phone)!"It didn't taste too bad either.

Ben loved being having Happy Birthday sung to him and requested it be sung again and again.




We re-lit the candles he sang to himself. Super cute!



Ben's friend Aaron helped inspect and try out each of the gifts.


Aunt Jean gave Ben a bubble machine. This really got the party going!


Ben and Aaron showed off their cooking skills in Ben's new kitchen.


We have eaten imaginary cake and lemonade ever since. Ben brings us cups and bowls asking, "Want some?" or "Bite?" And apparently chocolate milk now comes out of the corner of our couch. Who knew? He also insists on washing his hands in 'Ben's sink' before eating.


What a year this has been for Big Ben! He learned to walk, talk, hear, and had a baby sister. He's gained 18 pounds since birth and grown nine inches. I can't wait to see what the next twelve months will bring!


Happy Birthday Big Guy!