Does the outfit look familiar? Compare to Ben at 4 weeks: http://watchbennygrow.blogspot.com/2007/09/4-weeks.html
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Oliver at four weeks
Does the outfit look familiar? Compare to Ben at 4 weeks: http://watchbennygrow.blogspot.com/2007/09/4-weeks.html
Monday, May 18, 2009
Ben's latest antics
Having a newborn in the house has renewed my distaste for Flynn (his hair is everywhere, his meows wake everyone, he needs too much attention, he wants to sit on top of the baby to get attention from me, etc), but I decided not to try to get rid of him because of his friendship with Ben. He and Ben love exploring the yard together, and they actually stick together for a long time.
His pull dog, Snoopy, is also a good friend and companion.
I love his little boy stance - squatting down to examine something fascinating on the ground. Lately he loves to kill bugs ("buggies") which isn't good. He also loves to turn rocks over to see who is living underneath and look for worms.
His first lie? One of Ben's favorite activities these days is getting in our cars and pretending to drive, etc. He found my secret stash of Fiddle Faddle in my car and dove into it. I saw him chewing and when I shook my head "no" he stopped chewing. Then when I got in the car with him, he tried to hide the Fiddle Faddle box from me. Was this his first attempt at lying?? I'm not sure, but I thought it was pretty funny.
His pull dog, Snoopy, is also a good friend and companion.
I love his little boy stance - squatting down to examine something fascinating on the ground. Lately he loves to kill bugs ("buggies") which isn't good. He also loves to turn rocks over to see who is living underneath and look for worms.
His first lie? One of Ben's favorite activities these days is getting in our cars and pretending to drive, etc. He found my secret stash of Fiddle Faddle in my car and dove into it. I saw him chewing and when I shook my head "no" he stopped chewing. Then when I got in the car with him, he tried to hide the Fiddle Faddle box from me. Was this his first attempt at lying?? I'm not sure, but I thought it was pretty funny.
Oma and Opa visit
Oma and Opa (Donna and Al) came from Alabama to visit for a week and it was so nice to have them here. After they left, Ben asked for them just like he asked for Grammy Pat after she left. That always breaks my heart.
They did lots of projects around the house and Ben "helped." While Opa painted the windows, Ben painted everything else (with water). While Opa and Oma did some digging, Ben used his shovel to fling some dirt around. He digs really well and then flings the dirt over his shoulder. Oma cleaned out my car and Ben sat in the car with her and exclaimed "Mess!"
We went to the zoo on a weekday when we thought it would be quiet, but apparently it was a day when every school in Colorado was there. Amidst the chaos of children, Ben enjoyed looking at some animals.
Ben had some pretty spectacular tantrums while they were here, but they said they saw plenty of "sweet Ben" too, and we hoped most of the problem was that his routine was all messed up (not going to daycare, new baby, grandparents visiting, etc).
Ben assumes everyone wants to share food with him (I guess we've taught him that). Below he is assuming Opa will share his ice cream.
Pippi and Flynn are really feeling the extra body in the house that needs attention. Pippi tried to get loving from the visiting nurse, from several guests, and from Oma while she was holding Oliver. Ugh!
Oliver was just sweet. :-)
They did lots of projects around the house and Ben "helped." While Opa painted the windows, Ben painted everything else (with water). While Opa and Oma did some digging, Ben used his shovel to fling some dirt around. He digs really well and then flings the dirt over his shoulder. Oma cleaned out my car and Ben sat in the car with her and exclaimed "Mess!"
We went to the zoo on a weekday when we thought it would be quiet, but apparently it was a day when every school in Colorado was there. Amidst the chaos of children, Ben enjoyed looking at some animals.
Ben had some pretty spectacular tantrums while they were here, but they said they saw plenty of "sweet Ben" too, and we hoped most of the problem was that his routine was all messed up (not going to daycare, new baby, grandparents visiting, etc).
Ben assumes everyone wants to share food with him (I guess we've taught him that). Below he is assuming Opa will share his ice cream.
Pippi and Flynn are really feeling the extra body in the house that needs attention. Pippi tried to get loving from the visiting nurse, from several guests, and from Oma while she was holding Oliver. Ugh!
Oliver was just sweet. :-)
And more Benglish!
Crocodile = gottadile
Bathtub = taybub
Joseph (the teddy bear) = Jowoff
Pacifier = wire
Marbles = mahmels
Ragamuffin = raga [pause] mummin
Hummingbirds = hummin [pause] birds
Stroller = roder
Chocolate = chocate
Lilac = yacket
Picnic = picket
Baseball = baball
Elephant = ehment
Zebra = yebah
Bathtub = taybub
Joseph (the teddy bear) = Jowoff
Pacifier = wire
Marbles = mahmels
Ragamuffin = raga [pause] mummin
Hummingbirds = hummin [pause] birds
Stroller = roder
Chocolate = chocate
Lilac = yacket
Picnic = picket
Baseball = baball
Elephant = ehment
Zebra = yebah
Oliver's homecoming
You can see Oliver's homecoming in one of the videos. Ben was a little scared of him at first. Since then Ben has been really sweet to Oliver most of the time. He wants to hold him quite often, he brings him his pacifier ("wire") and tells me it is time for him to eat and does other sweet helpful things. He likes to kiss him too.
So we haven't seen any conscious or outright jealousy. We have seen an increase in behavior problems though. Ben has just been having extra tantrums or bad spells, as if he is really tired, which must be unconscious reactions to the baby. With my hormones doing crazy things to me, I usually end up crying with Ben. If he is having one of his "heartbroken" tantrums, it breaks my heart too. Otherwise, I feel hopeless about how to deal with him or how to help him, and sad that we've changed his life so much. I guess we're all saying goodbye to our old life that revolved around Ben, and that is hard.
Oliver is doing well. He seemed to catch onto breastfeeding a lot easier than Ben did and eats well. At his 2-week appointment he had gained a pound exactly, which is great news. He seems a little more easy-going than Ben was. He does cry when he is left alone, but at times he'll sit alone and awake and content without crying. He loves being in the wrap or sling and moving around with me. Colic tends to start at three weeks and end at 12 weeks, so we'll see what happens this week! In retrospect, Ben was pretty colicky - he cried a lot.
So far Oliver has been in the newborn stage of sleeping a ton, so we're not too tired (except for the continued attempt to catch up from the first all-nighter). Ben was a pretty good night sleeper until later months. I'd really love to do my part to prevent sleep problems with Oliver, so I'm more conscious of trying other ways to soothe him besides comfort nursing, and I want to try to avoid nursing to sleep. Wish us luck!
So we haven't seen any conscious or outright jealousy. We have seen an increase in behavior problems though. Ben has just been having extra tantrums or bad spells, as if he is really tired, which must be unconscious reactions to the baby. With my hormones doing crazy things to me, I usually end up crying with Ben. If he is having one of his "heartbroken" tantrums, it breaks my heart too. Otherwise, I feel hopeless about how to deal with him or how to help him, and sad that we've changed his life so much. I guess we're all saying goodbye to our old life that revolved around Ben, and that is hard.
Oliver is doing well. He seemed to catch onto breastfeeding a lot easier than Ben did and eats well. At his 2-week appointment he had gained a pound exactly, which is great news. He seems a little more easy-going than Ben was. He does cry when he is left alone, but at times he'll sit alone and awake and content without crying. He loves being in the wrap or sling and moving around with me. Colic tends to start at three weeks and end at 12 weeks, so we'll see what happens this week! In retrospect, Ben was pretty colicky - he cried a lot.
So far Oliver has been in the newborn stage of sleeping a ton, so we're not too tired (except for the continued attempt to catch up from the first all-nighter). Ben was a pretty good night sleeper until later months. I'd really love to do my part to prevent sleep problems with Oliver, so I'm more conscious of trying other ways to soothe him besides comfort nursing, and I want to try to avoid nursing to sleep. Wish us luck!
Saturday, May 16, 2009
New pictures of the boys and Donna and Al's visit.
Donna, Al and Ben having a picnic in the yard.
Ben wanted to take a nap on the bench out front. He didn't actually nap, but lay there comfortably for a long time.
Kisses!
Friday, May 1, 2009
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