Wednesday Randoms

Happiest baby on the block.

And his silly sister

Rob and I got a night out on Saturday.  We had a late Valentine's dinner and then out for a while with friends.
Sunday we went to Elijah's birthday party.

We've just been plugging along this week.  Some things of note:

Ben snatched some kale out of my hand and started (trying to) eat it.  He looked like a little turtle.

He got a new car seat.  The infant carrier was getting way too heavy to lug around (for me anyway). He hasn't outgrown it, so we're still using it in one car, and got another seat for my car.  Avery also got a new seat for Rob's car.

Ben also had a tooth break through on the top. This kind of makes me sad.  I really love his little two-tooth grin.  He's getting too big.

Who eats their green beans before their spaghetti.  Who does that?
Actually, I do it too.

Surprised shark.

Snowy morning.  It only took until February to get any accumulation of snow.

It is hard to find a hood that will fully cover that head.

Sister Mommy

That's what she calls herself.

I saw Rob standing outside of Avery's room.

She wanted to read to Ben.

And she wanted to do it by herself so she asked Rob to leave.

This is a new thing. She asks you-usually politely-to please leave her room.  I wasn't really expecting that for a few more years.

It was a fleeting moment. Soon Ben grabbed the book and started eating it, then he fell over.  Avery lost interest and left to play elsewhere.

But it was a sweet moment.

Ledge Shelves, Kites, Sunshine, & Valentines

What is going on with the weather?! Saturday was rainy and freezing.  I ran some errands but I don't think the kids left the house all day.

Rob finished up a project I found on Pinterest.  Rob just loves that I find things on Pinterest for him to make!  He even came up with a t-shirt idea:

Pinterest: Ruining Men's Free Time Since 2010.

I think he might be on to something.

Anyway, I found these shelves on Pinterest and thought, hey, Rob could make those (never I could make those)!  Tutorial found here http://ana-white.com/2010/10/plans/ten-dollar-ledges.

And just as I planned, he did a great job.  More pictures later.  But Avery helped paint.

Ben and I stayed inside where it was warm.

It was a hot chocolate kind of day.

Saturday night we made pizza and Aunt Lynn came over.

Sunday morning the shelves were dry and Rob hung them.   I think they turned out so well!  I love them and I think they're a great way to display books that otherwise get shoved in the toy/bookcase.

I took Avery to Target to pick out some Valentine cards for her friends.  We got special treats at Starbucks (mental note: put juice box from home in purse next time so as to avoid the $2 juice box at Starbucks).

She wanted to address all the cards herself.  She did such a good job.  I told her how to spell all the kids' names (obviously) except for Coen (she already knew how to spell his name somehow).

It was pretty nice on Sunday although windy.  Avery and Rob got the kite out and had fun with that for a while.

Ben napped and looked very sweet doing so.

I took the kids to Riverparks since it was so nice.  Rob had to stay close to home since he was on call but my mom met us there.  It was pretty chilly and windy by the river but Avery had a great time running around.

Hands chilly? Just put them in your pocket.
My mom put them in there and he kept them like that.

A super nice, quiet weekend!

Boot, Ballet Slippers, & the Super Bowl

Wednesday already?! Guess I should be thankful it's one day closer to the weekend:)

Catching up from the weekend:

Avery and I went to a wedding shower on Saturday. 

Looking cute in her boots

She was excited to go and I like getting out of the house and getting some one on one time with her.

As usual we did some lounging around.  

Sunday we went to a friend's house that was getting rid of some kids' clothing.  She happens to have a 4 year old girl and a 1 year old boy so I found some things for both A and B!  She kindly passed on her daughter's old leotards and ballet slippers.  The leotards fit her pretty well if not a tiny bit big but the slippers fit like a glove.  

I'm thinking someone needs to get into a dance class, asap.

She added another dress to her collection a la Mimi.

We went to a Super Bowl party Sunday evening.  Ben wore his Team USA outfit.  I still couldn't tell you who was in the Super Bowl BUT we had fun.  Avery enjoyed playing with the kids-Olivia is almost 3, Grayson is 3, Claire and Koen are 1 so Ben is the youngest.

Ben 7 Months

I'm 7 months old already? Are you kidding me??

Sweet Ben.  He is such a lovey.

He loves to hug and cuddle and be held.  He is very happy being carried around.  He is getting better about sitting on the floor and playing.  He sits unassisted quite well.  He can pick up toys, pass them from hand to hand, and of course put them in his mouth.   He is nowhere near crawling because he won't stay on his stomach (more on that later).

He has slept great the past two nights.  I'm not particularly superstitious but I hate to speak of it...

He is eating a variety of food, mostly purees.  So far he seems to like everything and isn't too picky.

I am 99% done nursing.  I'm happy to have made it 7 months.  I really wish I could have made it a little bit longer but my body seemed to be finished.  It's a little bittersweet.  Part of me is fine being done and part of me is a little sad.  He is getting about six 5 ounce bottles a day plus two servings of solids.  He should be growing into that head at a good pace now.

I'm not sure exactly how much he weighs...probably about 16 pounds.  He wears mostly 6 month clothes.

He thinks Avery is about the funniest person on the planet.  Avery can't stand for him to cry or fuss.  She yells "GUYS! Pick up my baby brother, please!"

We absolutely adore our sweet Benny.  I kind of wish he wasn't growing so fast though.

 Also, this is what Ben does when you put him on his stomach.  He can roll over by himself but he doesn't because why would he do that when he doesn't want to be there???

Weekend

Is there anything cuter than a baby in a towel?

Didn't think so.

Ben is getting pretty good about playing on the floor by himself for a bit.  Of course he prefers his big sister to sit by him.

We went to Chick Fil A on Saturday.  And Ben sat in a high chair for the first time ever.  No nuggets for him just yet, though.

Avery likes to trade her meal toy in for ice cream.  Who wouldn't?!  It's also a nice incentive to leave the play area (which smells like feet).























Of course we had to hit up Target while we were out.  We found a few treasures at the Dollar Spot,  namely some Jack and the Neverland Pirates tattoos.

She is a very good mommy to her doll.  Although she tried to give her "shots" (which I was assured the doll likes) with a marker.  I caught that in time, thankfully.

Ben now sits in his high chair like a big guy.    

And that was our weekend in a nutshell!  Tomorrow Ben will be 7 months!