Wordless Wednesday...

We can eat EVERYTHING...

...well theoretically anyway.

Adam was the -best dad ever- and took Ben to his 1 year doctor's appointment (I had to work -- it was the first ever appointment that I missed,... ever.). Ben was an awesome little man (pooping a good one for his daddy too!). He had 2 needles (in his arms!) and seems to be a happy, healthy toddler. I guess we're doing something right. Dr. G. gave us the okay to feed him anything and everything... peanuts, egg whites, strawberries! Yikes! A whole new world of food...

Here are the latest stats: birth vs 1 year...

• weight: @birth - 6lbs, 11oz @1 year - 20lbs, 15oz
• height: @birth - 22 inches @1 year - 30.5 inches
• head circumference: @birth - 15 inches @1 year - 18.5 inches

The only slight concern right now is his walking... he turns his left foot in when he walks. Seems he sits on his left leg a wee bit too much. So if you see him sitting on his left foot,... promptly show him the "right" way to sit. Hopefully, this will correct his foot-turning-in problem. {He tends to trip over his left foot when he's walking... silly guy}.

Here are some pictures...for your viewing enjoyment...

Ben -- poking his cake.

The aftermath... he chucked it off his tray and onto the floor... (I then, ate it off the floor!)

Showing off his birthday-Earth day shirt!
Happy Birthday ...to him!

Silly boy...


My boys... sharing a quiet moment at the window.

Ben and his cake...

Our first week back to reality...

Ben, Adam and I all survived (and thrived!) this past week. The transition back to work went better than I ever anticipated. I didn't really get nervous until 5pm the night before -- that's when reality finally set in {with the -- oh crap, what am I going to wear?? --}.

I set off for school at 645am. Ben trained me well and so we were all up at 6am. It wasn't like coming back after summer vacation when I'm used to waking up at 9am. I was the first teacher in the parking lot. 2 bandaids and a cup of tea later and I was totally ready to start my day. I'm teaching 7b, 7c, 7e, 7i, 7f and 8a... so needless to say I still don't know all of the kids' names after a week (I am proud to say that I do know my entire core class though... 7c and I know most of 8a because I taught 90% of them last year). They all seem very nice and given the fact that I'm teacher #4 this year,... they were quite accepting of the fact that they have a new face telling them what to do. I do have big shoes to fill though -- my replacement while on leave was a 6'4 guy. =)

Ben was awesome with his grandmas/dad. Every day he ate his whole lunch, and took 2 naps {2 naps without complaints too!}. The weather was nice, so he got in a walk to the park every day. He was pretty sucky/clingy when I showed up at 345pm each day... but I was okay with that. I missed him a lot.

Wednesday was also Ben's 1st birthday and he was home with Adam. Adam baked him a really yummy carrot cake (complete with cream cheese frosting), which he absolutely hated. (FIGURES... only our kid would hate their birthday cake). He didn't like the icing on his fingers. He didn't like the texture of the cake. After 2 bites, he chucked it off the side of his tray {yes,...we do have pictures}. Sigh. We tried again at my mom's house on Friday with some vanilla cake, and got the same reaction. He does love pancakes and waffles though... =)

On a positive note, Adam says I seem happier,...I have my old self back,... he noticed a difference right away. Maybe it's also because I have more to talk to him about other than how many poops Ben did today. It's like my life has more meaning... it's more balanced... more well rounded. I have Ben AND teaching... and it's awesome.

I'll post pictures soon ... once I get some free time... (free time? what's free time?).

... the time has come ...

...the day I've been dreading for a while. Back To Work. Yuck. I'm basically as ready as I'll ever be at this point. I'm ready. I think. I gave Ben lots of extra hugs and smooches tonight so hopefully that will last him the whole day tomorrow =) My clothes are ready. My lunch is packed...(Ben's lunch is ready in the fridge for Grandma Linda). I'm showered. My bag is packed...my day book has been filled in. Pictures of my family and Ben are in my bag, ready to find a special place on my desk. I'm ready, right?

Fingers crossed that Ben takes 2 good naps...eats his lunch and behaves himself.

Fingers crossed that my classes are nice... and well behaved... (ya right). I hope teaching is like riding a bike... have I forgotten what to do? I hope not. Thankfully,...it's only until June 26th. Let the countdown to summer begin!

sure... I'm almost 30.

But why should that mean that 7-11 Coke slurpees are off limits?

Yesterday, Ben and I headed out for a walk. I stopped in at the corner store to get a coke "froster" (ie. slurpee but more ghetto). Seems reasonable... sure. However, I had a pre-teen boy open the door for me... (very sweet, I might add)... and then I ended up beating his slow butt to the drink froster area. (it's every man/woman for themselves!) I filled up my drink in record time and sprinted over to the cash (banging the stroller into the chocolate bar stand... dumb). The kid looks at me... like, 'are you seriously buying one of those for yourself?' (yes, duh). The cashier then asks if we're "paying together". Haha... nope, he's not my kid. I have my own, thank you very much. Sigh. I enjoyed my coke froster in peace... while Ben drank his milk from his sippy cup. Everything was right in the world again.

Ben's sense of humour...

I know I've talked about this before... but Ben has an awesome sense of humour. He's just a really sweet, funny kid. I'd totally want to be his friend...(if I was 1).

...he's also his father's son. Always the inquisitive engineer-in-training.

Here he is ... checking out the shovel on his truck.
...and now checking his inventory. Seems to be all there.

Time for a nice fake smile...(to humour his mom)...
But this is how he usually smiles...what a ham.I included this picture because I just think it's so sweet. Adam and Ben -- watching the Easter parade. It looks like they're having a whole conversation about the floats. So cute.

Where did my daddy go?

Scenario this morning:

Adam puts on his jacket. Picks Ben up... kisses him. Says goodbye. ~I think nothing of it~

Adam heads down the stairs...shuts the door.

Ben -- suddenly realizes that Adam is no longer in the apartment...-- scurries over to the baby gate... puts his face on the mesh and starts yelling, "dada dada dada". Oh dear.

By far the cutest trick Ben has done... (but I say that every time he does a new trick). I walked over to him and told him that daddy had gone to work and that he would be back to see him later. Ben seemed content with this answer, turned away from the baby gate, and resumed playing with his ball. Does he understand? Who knows...but it was certainly very cute to watch.

Walking...err.. I mean RUNNING...with his truck.

A birthday tradition...

We're starting a birthday tradition with Ben this week... taking him to Toys R Us to "pick" out a toy. He really doesn't NEED more toys...but birthdays should never be about something you need. Obviously this year, Ben won't be doing the "picking"... we will. But I'm sure we'll have fun anyway. I'll post later on what Ben decided he wanted...

1 week until Ben's 1st birthday! Can you believe it???

I promised myself that I would never buy...

...pre-made baby food in a jar. I do buy the pureed fruits (only because the ones that I want to give Ben weren't really in season until recently). I never wanted to buy him 8mo-jarred baby food MEALS ~ complete with veggies, meats, and tomatoes!

But ...alas. I did. I bought 5 different jars. I felt kinda guilty but I honestly don't have time right now to devote to learning how to cook (mind you -- I guess I have time to type this post so technically, I guess I have time to roast up a leg of chicken, chop up some veggies and throw it all in a big pot). The problem is that I'm technically challenged in the kitchen. My mom was a great cook and baker. When I moved out, my dad started making food too. They always made sure my sister and I had nutritious food on our plates. Adam is the cook in our house. Not me.

I honestly hate cooking. Like HATE hate. I hate the shopping, the food prep,... the cutting and chopping... the cooking and waiting... the cleaning up. I enjoy eating (don't get me wrong),...but I hate the whole cooking process. Adam finds it relaxing. I find it to be such a chore. I'd rather clean toilets. (For some strange reason, I find cleaning bathrooms very therapeutic. That, and washing the stairs... I guess that's a whole other post though).

Anyway,...back to cooking. Given that I'm back to work one week today (*insert a scream of horror here*), I figured I should try these baby food meal jars on Ben. I hope they're healthy because they totally simplified my life!

I lay the 5 jars on the floor. He picked one. Chicken and veggies with some tomatoes, onions and garlic. Oh Boy. I figured - worst case scenario ... I take the jars back if he absolutely hates them.

I dump half the jar in a bowl. Set the microwave to 15 seconds on high.

Put some on a spoon and hold my breath. Here we go.

Ben eats it... kicks his legs... and wants more?! He eats the whole bowl (half a jar -- let's not get ahead of ourselves)... without batting an eye. Sigh. I finish his lunch off with some yogurt, milk, and some chicken from last night's dinner.

Before I head back to work I need to prep the freezer. I bought lentils (green and red), barley, 2 different kinds of squash, broccoli and carrots. Oh and cantaloupe. I'm determined to get him to like fruit that doesn't come in a jar.

I make food for him... but by "making food", I mean -- wash it, put it in the steamer, steam, and freeze. No real cooking required. I'm stuck in a food rut and these baby food meal jars might have just saved my sanity.

Oh... Uncle Jesse!?!?

Leigh and Jesse are engaged!!!! Yipppeeeee...

So not only do I gain a brother (in law - but whatever),... Ben also gains AN UNCLE JESSE! How cool is that?

(He popped the question after an extensive Easter egg hunt... (complete with clues!)... the last egg had the ring! Diamonds are better than chocolate!) Congrats guys!

Let the wedding planning begin!!!

as if being sick wasn't good enough...

So on top of this oh-so-wicked cold that I've developed... I woke up this morning to be greeted by an old friend that I haven't seen in almost 2 years. AF (aunt flo) finally decided to show up. Yuck. Since it's been almost 2 years (10 months of pregnancy + a year postpartum), it's kicking me in the butt. Cramps, headaches, ice cream cravings, popcorn cravings, yelling at Adam, crying at Adam, crying with Ben. At one point, Adam asked me this week if I was pregnant. Sigh. It's all too much to handle right now.

I guess it makes sense. Ben is slowly weaning... (before he got sick, we were down to 2 feedings per day ~ we're now back up to feeding on demand because of his nose). Stupid hormones. Sucks.

...and gosh darn it. For the record. I can complain all I want...it's my blog. so there. =P

I'm sick...Ben's sick... Yay for Adam!

Ben got sick on Monday. I got sick on Tuesday. Adam is playing nurse -- or is it doctor? Either way, he's doing an amazing job of taking care of us. Ben and I are big snotty messes =)

I'm too tired to go on and on about what's happening in the lives of Ben+Adam+Me...so here are some pictures. Enjoy!

Us watching the Leaf Game...



At the Toronto Zoo... for the 2nd time in 2 months...


Ben's hair... isn't it sweet?!

His pretty eyelashes...

The aftermath from the zoo... his first sunburn =(

Sick... with the kleenex box...
Pointing...


Busted for climbing up on the printer =(

Caught reading =)


His first grilled cheese!

Sneaky face.



More pointing...

Baby Discussion Board...

BABY DISCUSSION BOARD
Mothers STTN Discussion Thread:
Posted Feb 13 2008

OK, here's my situation. My Mummy has had me for almost 7 months. The
first few months were great - I cried, she picked me up and fed
me, anytime, day or night. Then something happened. Over the last few
weeks, she has been trying to STTN (sleep thru the night). At first, I
thought it was just a phase, but it is only getting worse. I've talked
to other babies, and it seems like it's pretty common after Mummies
have had us for around 6 months.

Here's the thing: these Mummies don't really need to sleep. It's just
a habit. Many of them have had some 30 years to sleep--they just don't
need it anymore. So I am implementing a plan. I call it the Crybaby
Shuffle. It goes like this:

Night 1--cry every 3 hours until you get fed. I know, it's hard. It's
hard to see your Mummy upset over your crying. Just keep reminding
yourself, it's for her own good.
Night 2--cry every 2 hours until you get fed.
Night 3--every hour.

Most Mummies will start to respond more quickly after about 3 nights.
Some Mummies are more alert, and may resist the change longer. These
Mummies may stand in your doorway for hours, shhhh-ing. Don't give in.
I cannot stress this enough: CONSISTENCY IS KEY!!

If you let her STTN (sleep through the night), just once, she will
expect it every night. I KNOW IT'S HARD! But she really does not need
the sleep, she is just resisting the change. If you have an
especially alert Mummy, you can stop crying for about 10 minutes, just
long enough for her to go back to bed and start to fall asleep. Then
cry again. It WILL eventually work. My Mummy once stayed awake for 10
hours straight, so I know she can do it. Last night, I cried every
hour. You just have to decide to stick to it and just go for it.

BE CONSISTENT! I cried for any reason I could come up with:
My sleeping bag tickled my foot.
I felt a wrinkle under the sheet.
My mobile made a shadow on the wall.
I burped, and it tasted like pears (I hadn't eaten pears since lunch -
what's up with that?)
The dog said 'woof' (I should know. My Mummy reminds me of this about
20 times a day. LOL.)
Once I cried just because I liked how it sounded when it echoed on the
monitor in the other room.
Too hot, too cold, just right--doesn't matter! Keep crying!!

It took awhile, but it worked. She fed me at 4am. Tomorrow night, my
goal is 3:30am. You need to slowly shorten the interval between
feedings in order to reset your M u mmies' internal clocks.

P.S. Don't let those rubber things fool you, no matter how long you
suck on them, NO milk will come out! Trust me.

~author unknown~

Ben's new cousin!!!

Ben has a brand new cousin! Jacob Maurice Claude was born on March 30th. We can't wait to meet him!

Here are couple of pictures pre- and post-Jake... (some are stolen from my aunt's facebook page!). What a cutie!!! Yay Jill + Marc!

Jill at her shower!
Us at the shower...

The new parents to be...

Ben and Jill...


Jacob!!!! (on his way home from the hospital! Isn't he just perfect?)

Such a cutie!

Jill and her new man...

Smartie pants...

Ben is such a smartie pants... every day we are constantly amazed at how quickly he's picking up on things.

12 'smartie pants' things that Ben understands...

1. "light" (and he knows to point to it)
2. "wave" (simply by asking him to "wave"... we don't need to do the wave action anymore)
3. "book" (we say "book" and Ben comes running -- or more specifically, crawling really fast (this is excellent for getting him down off the book case/television/printer))
4. "daddy is sleeeeping" (he pats Adam on his head to ...wake him up?)
5. "no" (doesn't always listen ...but will always look back)
6. "outside" (knows to look out the window and will point out squirrels and birds)
7. "bath time for Benjamin" (squeals of delight!)
8. "yogurt" + "toast"... he gets excited. LOL. (He recognizes the yogurt container and the beep on the toaster oven! )
9. "bluey" (his night time bear)
10. "brush teeth" -- specifically in the 'The Going to Bed Book"... at the point in the story where the animals are brushing their teeth... Ben does his teeth brushing action. It's so freaking funny.
11. "I'm gonna get you"... =)
12. "more?" (he opens his mouth if he wants more OR turns the other way in his chair if he doesn't)

Most of these end with Adam and I looking at each other as if to say, " there's no way he actually understands that?"... guess he does. Sigh. Such a smartie pants.

Playing with Ben...

Yay for my techy-husband.

Adam hates the fact that although he has a brain full of crazy computer knowledge (and words/computer languages/telecommunication-jargon that I could never understand if I spent the rest of my life trying learn)... he's often asked to fix the simplest of computer problems.

Our recent conversation:

L - ah... Ad? The computer keeps freezing. What do I do?

A - what did you do this time?

L - nothing!!! I swear. I didn't do anything.

A - what did you download? did you get a virus from something you downloaded?

L - as if! I haven't downloaded anything (except for the million and one files that I've been downloading to make photoshop pictures with...oops). I'm sure it's not those. I scanned them for viruses!

**at this point,... Adam has now taken apart the computer case... cleaned it all out (wow -- dusty!)... and put it back together **

L - is it fixed? Can I use it now?

A - No... it's not done yet. I need to -insert computer terminology here... something about drives, drivers? -

Our computer sat for 3 solid days ... alone. Adam tried for hours (and I mean HOURS) to recover as much as he could from our D drive. (It had pictures and videos from every waking moment of Ben's life + my teaching work... eep!). Adam then went out and bought an external hard drive (we learned our lesson!).

So I'm back online. Able to use my own computer. We're not good at sharing at all. I can only imagine when Ben starts doing computer stuff -- he's going to need his own. His parents don't share their computers nicely.

Thanks Ad, for fixing my computer. Just in time to go back to work too... yay.

And FYI -- he was able to recover all of the pictures, videos + teaching stuff. Such an awesome computer-savvy man. Anyone want to offer him a job?