My Little Angel...

Best Big Brother Ever!!

Super Heroes

Lately Benjamin has really really been into all the Super Heroes. You know the ones...Superman, Spiderman, Batman, etc. He has also been completely addicted to anything Star Wars. This was not my doing of course but Nate's...now he finally has someone to watch all those Star Wars episodes with! So there we were the other night, watching The Empire Strikes Back, Benjamin recreating the epic battle between Darth Vadar and Luke Skywalker. He was wearing his pink Superhero cape (yes...it's pink...he created it out of one of Maggie's blankets.) So Benjamin is "Hya...Hya"-ing his way around the living room (for some reason his battles involve some sort of hybrid martial arts!) and he comes over to me and touches me on the arm. With a very sincere look on his face he says "Mommy, some day you will be a Superhero too." He was so serious!!! I had to stop myself from laughing because I was afraid I would offend him! Benjamin...my little Jedi Knight!

Time For A Change!

Frankly, I'm not sure anyone is actually reading this blog any longer, but it was looked sad, worn and outdated so I figured it was time for a change. The biggest change of course (in the blog and in life) is the newest addition to the Huff Family. Maggie Rose was born Oct. 29th in New Haven, Connecticut. She is a little love with the chubbiest kissable cheeks you've ever seen! She keeps us busy but we wouldn't trade it for anything! Benjamin is about the best big brother in the whole world. He was in love with Maggie from the first second he saw her and he's already so protective! He refers to her as his baby and let's me know that he's just sharing her with me. He's the resident expert on all things Maggie, "Mommy, Baby Maggie is hungry" "Mommy, Baby Maggie spit up" "Mommy, I think Baby Maggie wants her binky." Oh yea...if you ask Benjamin what her name is he says "Baby Maggie." He did not like any of the cute nicknames we had begun to call her but did finally say it was okay to call her "Squeeky" since she actually squeeks! So now we are a family of four! Now it's time for me to sign off...Baby Maggie is hungry!

Heard Around Our House Recently

I saw this on another blog but kept forgetting all the cute things Benjamin was saying. Well, lately there has been a plethora of cute and not-so-cute stuff!! Sometimes I wonder...am I the mother of a preschooler or a teenager? Here are some of the recent "gems" out of Benjamin's mouth.

• "Jerkhead!" (This we heard once....and never since!)
• "I don't want to be your friend anymore."
• "I'm not talking to you!"
• "YOU'RE MEAN!" (while sobbing uncontrollably on a time-out)
• "I'm putting YOU on a time out!"
• "You're giving me a headache!" (I SWEAR...neither Nate nor I have EVER said this!"
• (Big breath in through the nose) "All I smell is bugers!"
• "Why does that boy talk like a girl?" (Said loudly in front of a young man with an unfortunately high pitched voice.)

There are probably a million more that I can't think of right now. I am convinced that some of these are things he has learned from Preschool....especially the "Jerkhead" one....he told me his friend taught him that! Do you recognize any of these from your childrens' mouths?

***Update-I was feeling sort of bad after I posted these recent phrases from Benjamin. I do find them amusing (you should have seen me trying to stiffle a laugh when I heard them!) but they don't exactly paint an accurate picture of Benjamin. I was reminded of this recently when, while shopping at Target, Benjamin leaned over to give me a hug and said SO sweetly "Mommy...I love your heart!" He also followed it up with "And I love your big brain!" I swear...I didn't coach him to say that....he's just very intuitive! But these are the kinds of phrases that are more commonplace in my house. Although Benjamin has his moments...he is really a very sweet boy!

One of Two Cool Ideas (that I stole from other people!)

I meant to blog about this awhile ago....but better late than never!! As many of you know we have turned what was once our office into the official play room now. All the toys have been taken out of Benjamin's room and now there is actually room for another baby...yea! So while we were making this transformation (office to play room) we decided to put some kid friendly art on the walls. We ordered some prints online and framed them but I also made something that I think is pretty cool! It's a place to hang Benjamin's artwork. I have to give credit to my cousin Stacy (thanks Stacy!) whom I ripped the idea off from, but I added a few things to make it my own. Here is a picture...

The whole thing was really quite easy! I took an extra piece of baseboard that we had, painted it white, mailed some picture hangers to the front and hung the large claw clips to them. It's sort of hard to see how cute it really is....and I probably could have used a brighter color, but I like it! And the really important thing is that Benjamin LOVES it...he can't wait to hang his artwork on it.

Here are some photos of the new play room area and the new artwork...

It's so nice to have all of Benjamin's toys out and accessible instead of being tucked away in his closet or on shelves in his room. And it's great that everything has a place to go...so Benjamin knows how to put them all away too! All of his books are in the bookcase to the right so he can get them out to read whenever he likes. He is very happy about the new play room! Okay...stayed tuned for info on the other great idea I stole!

The Funky Funky Ball Triple Lip!

Ever since his Grandpa's retirement party Benjamin has been quite the dancer! He was trying to stall going to bed tonight and said he just wanted to "listen to music and do a funky dance." I wasn't sure what a "funky dance" was so I had to check it out! At the end of the video when I asked him what he called his dance, he said it was the "Funky, Funky Ball Triple Lip!" I have NO idea what that is....but hope you enjoy watching it! And in case you were wondering....yes, that's me, telling my 3 year old son to shake his money maker!

A Time To Give!

Nate and I have been readying the house recently for a very special visitor. We figured it would be a good time to go through our cabinets and closets and begin to make room for another baby! Our house is fairly small (Nate likes to call it "cozy") and we don't have a lot of storage space, so it's important we don't hang on to stuff we don't need for too long. I cannot tell you how good it felt to purge our stuff and donate the items to charity. Here is what we gave recently.....

• 235 books donated to the library (you should see all the books we kept!)
• 75 shirts (dress, casual, t-shirts and blouses)
• 24 pairs of pants (slacks, jeans)
• 8 suits
• 5 sweaters (who needs sweaters in San Diego?)
• 5 Jackets/Coats
• 8 skirts
• 3 dresses
• 10 hats (have we every worn hats?)
• 4 belts
• 35 pairs of shoes (yes...33 pairs were mine, and I STILL have a closet full of shoes!)
• 2 GIANTS bags of boy's clothes
• 2 King Sizes comforters/Bedding Sets
• Various kitchen items
• countless knick knack type items

WHEW!! How can we have gotten rid of that much stuff and still have a whole house full of stuff?!? Some of the clothing items were my dressy/work clothes from when I had a job. Since I've decided that when/if I go back to work someday I will NEVER wear pantyhose again...I felt it was safe to give away all the dressy clothes I'll never wear again. I feel so much lighter now!! I think I will make this a twice yearly event so it doesn't take so much work next time!

Diana

I apologize in advance for the somber mood of this post. Generally I try to post stories and events that are uplifting, but I just needed to express myself today.

My cousin Diana was killed on June 26, 2006, just a few months after her 40th birthday. She was the first born of my mother's twin sister and I spent a lot of time with her when we were children. As a child I idolized Diana, she was so cool! I'll always remember her baby blue satin jacket with matching satin cap(it was the '70's!) and her Dorothy Hamill haircut. My hair was always too curly for that look!

Diana always seemed a little larger than life to me growing up. She was fun and exciting with lots of friends. She had a fiery personality, lots of opinions and she was just a tad stubborn at times. As an adult Diana was audacious, loved a great party, enjoyed being a hostess and craved the attention of her loved ones. She also had big dreams. After her death I discovered that Diana had been planning, collecting and making purchases for her future. She desperately wanted to move from her apartment into a house...a home. She was buying things for this future home, dishes, an outside barbecue, red flower pots. She had plans. Diana was shattered by the death of her brother in a random act of violence. I travelled to the Bay Area to help Diana and her sister make funeral arrangements for Darren. Little did we know that only 11 months later her sister and I would be grieving her death and making her funeral arrangements.

Yesterday morning a jury of 12 convicted Diana's "husband" of 2nd degree murder. Was it justice? It seems that both sides are a little disappointed. The defense was hoping for manslaughter, 6 years in jail, then starting his life over. I won't talk about him though...he's already received too much attention. The prosecution was hoping for 1st degree murder, minimum of 25 years until his first chance at parole. In the end we'll all have to be satisfied with the 15 years he'll serve before he's eligible for parole, and hope the parole board hears our pleas when we request that he not be released at that time. Diana's two boys will be 29 and 31 years old then. They will have lived out the remaining of their teenage years and catapulted into adulthood without a mother by their side.

I was able to travel to Martinez to attend a good portion of the trial. I only wish I could have been there to hear the verdict. I'm still struggling to forget the brutal details of her murder that came out during the trial. I don't want to remember the autopsy photo I accidentally glimpsed as the jurors were passing it around. I don't want to recall the details of the crime. I just want to remember Diana, in that baby blue satin jacket, with her Dorothy Hamill haircut. She was larger than life and she will be greatly missed!

Goofy Guys

The last weekend in July our "Adoptive Friends" playgroup had our annual Family BBQ. Once again this event was graciously hosted by the Mayes' family at their beautiful home in Point Loma. We enjoyed our usual menu of carne asada with all the trimmings. This is always one of my favorite events, and since Benjamin and I hadn't made it to playgroup for a few months, I was really looking forward to catching up with all our friends!

The kids played for hours in the backyard, making bubbles with the giant bubble wands, doing "yard work" with the Home Depot yard tools, and playing in the jumpy house. When the party moved inside Benjamin had a blast playing with Ethan and all of his toys. Benjamin especially loved playing with Ethan's trash trucks! They were having so much fun and acting to goofy together! I took this photo (during one of the rare moments they would hold still) of their "Funny Noses."

Lazy Summer Afternoon

I just love watching Benjamin in this position. He's there often...crouched down close to the ground examing some bit of nature. Usually it is a leaf or a stick but often it is some kind of bug. I love how he has to get so close to look at the thing. I usually don't have a camera around when he is in this position but I got lucky this particular afternoon. The weather was perfect and we were just hanging out in the backyard together....a lazy Summer afternoon!

Earth to Benjamin....

After his nap today Benjamin was talking about being an astronaut (one of his many favorite things to play at being.) Nate jumped up and said "We've got to get your space suit on!" and took him to his room. A few minutes later this is what emerged....

He looks like a pretty serious astronaut doesn't he? He's got on his "space suit", his "jet pack" on his back (otherwise known as his Thomas the Train backpack) and his "space helmet" (which I think makes him look a little more like a coal miner!) I guess the horse flashlight comes in handy in space....it's dark out there! I tried to get him to smile for the photos but Benjamin doesn't seem to think astronauts smile!

Guess What.......Chicken Butt!

I totally forgot to post about this earlier. Benjamin has become quite the jokster lately and somehow learned this new joke (okay...it's was me that taught it to him!)

Benjamin: "Guess What!"
You: "What?"
Benjamin: "Chicken Butt!"

Then Benjamin proceeds to roll around on the floor laughing his behind off! It was funny for the first...50 times! Now it has gotten a little old....it's difficult to summon up the same level of amusement that he has! After we taught him the joke Benjamin really wanted Nate to tell HIM the joke so he said "Daddy....speak to me about the chicken butt!" Now THAT was funny!

Happy 4th of July!

Okay...I know...it's been a month since I posted. Life has been sort of busy in the Huff household. Here are a few updates....

• Benjamin finished soccer on June 21st and was awarded a medal (probably for best grass picking!)


• I believe we have just about finished potty training...I'm keeping my fingers crossed! He has had only a couple of accidents in about 4 weeks. He still wears a pull up when he is sleeping though.


• Nate and I FINALLY found the PERFECT Preschool for Benjamin..yea! We looked high and low and so many schools and just weren't feeling comfortable with any of them. We had one last school to look at last week and it is the one!! He will start going 8:30-3:30 on Tues. and Thurs. beginning Sept. 2. I bought him a new backpack from Pottery Barn with his name on it...so cute!


• Nate survived his 21 hour plane trip to Malaysia!! I can't believe he was SO far away from us for 6 days (I think it was like 17,000 miles!) Malaysia is 15 hours ahead so Nate experienced some serious jet lag when he returned.


• I organized a MAJOR event at our church (a Summer BBQ) the weekend after Nate returned from Malaysia. It was a lot of work and a lot of fun! It was the first event I have organized at church so now I really feel like I know how to do things.

I hope you all had a fabulous, fun and safe 4th of July holiday! We decided to stick close to home and just hung out in our backyard. We put the tent up so Benjamin could "camp" (although we opted to sleep in our comfy beds!) We had some friends over and listened to music, made s'mores and enjoyed the warm evening. It was a fun holiday! Here's a photo of Nate reading Benjamin one of his favorite books in the tent. It's called "P.J. Funny Bunny Camps Out!"

Happy Memorial Day!

This year for Memorial Day we were invited to a BBQ at our friends' The Foley's house. We have all been so busy lately that it's been awhile since Benjamin has been able to play with his friend Gracie...so he was really excited! Gracie's cousins Tristan and Hayley were all in attendance and the kids has SO much fun playing together. Since the kids are all 2 or 3 years old there were a few hairy moments when someone (Benjamin) was stealing someone else's toys, or when everyone wanted to jump on the trampoline at the same time. The kids were amazing though and were able to work things out with just a tiny bit of prompting from the moms. It's always fun for Benjamin to play with other children his age, but this was especially poignant since all of the children had been adopted. It's so nice to be able to talk with Benjamin about other children that were adopted like he was! Benjamin really got a kick out of this apron and chef's hat. He was "cooking" up dinners left and right for everyone! He loved it so much that I had to get him his own...now he can dress up and cook whenever he wants at home!

Not A Post About Benjamin!

I know....my blog enteries are all about Benjamin...but I just had to share one tidbit about Nate and I! On May 25th we celebrated our anniversary. Nate planned a really SUPER romantic evening that involved a babysitter!! Cousin Brita was nice enough to entertain Benjamin while we went to a real grown up dinner.

Nate chose a restaurant in Hillcrest (Downtown San Diego) called "California Cuisine." It's a restaurant he remembers his parent frequenting when he was a kid. It's still around and it's still getting great reviews so we made the journey downtown. The restaurant is really cute with a seating area up front in front of picture windows that contains an art gallery. Then they have the sweetest little patio seating out back that reminded me of the restaurants we ate at while visiting Manhatten. Since the weather had just been rainy and was still fairly chilly (by San Diego standards!) and very windy we opted to sit at a little area in between the main dining room and the patio. We definitely had the best of both worlds.

The restaurant is known for a changing menu that offers only the freshest foods. The food was just fabulous...one of the best meals we've had in San Diego! They also make their desserts on the premises and we opted for a chocolate....yummy melty cake thingy (I've forgotten the name!) with a side of homemade rocky road ice cream....YUM!!! I also had the pleasure of drinking a couple of VERY good Lemon Drop Martinis and a glass of fantastic Tawny Port with my dessert. The meal was simply wonderful!

Since we are both pretty practical Nate and I opted to not buy gifts for each other but we did have a card for one another. Turns out...we bought each other the same card!! I could NOT believe it...of all the cards in the whole Hallmark store we bought the same one. I guess that's what happens when you've been married for 11 years! Anyhow, a couple of days later Nate and I were browsing at a mattress store (we've been talking about getting a new bed forever!) We found a mattress that was so heavenly we didn't want to leave. Nate decided to buy the mattress and the bed frame for me...a sort of anniversary gift. Now I wake up EVERY morning feeling divine and well rested...thanks to my wonderful husband!

Let The Games Begin!

This is the first day of soccer for Benjamin. He is playing on a team through the YMCA with other 3 and 4 year old kids. The experience was...hilarious! I heard someone compare soccer with 3 and 4 year olds to herding cats....sounds about right!! Benjamin's team is called the "Blue Dolphins" which seemed the best choice out of the "Blue Giraffes" and the "Blue Glasses." The kids got to pick their name!

Benjamin had been pretty excited to be playing soccer on a team. He loves to play "soccer ball" in the backyard with the net he got for Christmas. I was excited to buy him shin guards and dress him in a soccer outfit (compliments of Aunt Vicki and Uncle Gene...thanks!) You might notice that, rookie that I am, I didn't realize he would need long socks to COVER the shin guards...oh well!

Benjamin pooped out of his first game pretty quickly once he realized that all the other kids were "playing with that ball" and that he couldn't just add his own ball to the game. As I write this Benjamin has his third game this past Saturday and he did really well. He stayed on the field almost the whole time, although he spent a lot of time kicking over the cones and picking grass to put in his pockets!

I Dressed Myself All By Myself!

Okay...so I've been a bad blogger lately...again!! I'm trying to get back on track. Here are some fun events that have been happening over the last couple of months.

These photos were taken about a month ago. One lazy Sunday afternoon while Nate and I were relaxing Benjamin was playing quietly in his room. Next thing I know he comes out yelling "Mommy! Mommy! I dressed myself all by myself!" When I turned around to look at him I almost burst out laughing! WHAT an ensemble!! The cowboy hat is obvious...but can you see the boots? They are rain boots...dinosaur rain boots! And his "cowboy gloves" are actually gloves with a snowboarding Diego on them. And don't even ask about the pants...I don't know where he left them! After he did his fashion show he began to gallop around the house with his usual "Yee Haw Cowboy!"

ROAR! Benjamin Turns 3!

Okay, so I know it was awhile ago (about two weeks ago actually!) but Benjamin turned 3 years old! I just loaded the photos onto my computer today. Sorry it took so long! We all had a great time at the party! It was a dinosaur theme. There were about 40 guests that enjoyed some of the best pizza in the whole world, and a fantastically wonderful ice cream cake decorated with dinosaurs. Benjamin could hardly hold still for 5 minutes he was so excited! I think his favorite part was riding on the "motorcycle" (a ride on video game) at the pizza parlor. For days afterwards he kept asking, "Can I please go to my birthday party?"

Fastman

The other evening I was laying on the bed and Benjamin climbed in beside me. He asked, "Will you play "Fastman" with me Mommy?" Fastman?? I asked him how it was played and he showed me. Basically you take a hanger in each hand and shake them back and forth...really....fast (hence the name?) Benjamin said I was really good at the game and I think I might have won! So this got me to thinking about all the other games Benjamin has invented.

The first game we realized he'd made up is called "Scary Turtles." We couldn't fingure this one out for the longest time! He kept asking us to play "Scary Turtles" but when we asked how to play he couldn't explain it. Eventually we discovered the game involves these two plastic Teenaged Mutant Ninja Turtles (where did those come from?!?) I think the object of the game is to make them fly around the room.

About 4 or 5 months ago Benjamin started asking us to play "Crash." Each participant has some sort of vehicle and then you push them really fast towards each other so they...crash! The only problem is that Benjamin is in charge of telling everyone which vehicle they can play with....and he always gets the biggest one!

I posted previously about the giant box from Costco and how Benjamin turned it into a "spaceship." Well, that became the centerpiece for the game "Space Monsters." Benjamin and I played this game for over 1/2 hour the other day. We each don "space helmets" (his was a plastic backpack and mine was a purple t-shirt) Then you stand really tall with your arms straight at your side and prepare for "Lift Off." Benjamin counts off....5....4.....6....5.....3......Blast Off!! Then we run around the house "flying" through space. Benjamin is referred to as "Captain Benjamin" and I am (of course) "Captain Mommy." The object of the game is to avoid being caught by the "Space Monsters." (which ended up being Nate when he came home and found us!)

It is just amazing to me how much creativity Benjamin has. I have recently decided to try and do some more structured education with him at home. I bought some "learning" books to help teach him to recognize the letters of the alphabet and numbers. It's a lot of fun and he's doing really well with them. But my priority right now is to help him express his creative side in whatever way he wants.

My Favorite Part of the Day

Mealtime around our house can sometimes be rather hectic. We don't always get to eat all 3 meals together. Awhile ago I decided to emphasis dinner as the "family" meal where we would all sit down at the table and eat together. I heard somewhere that it really helps to foster communication with your children, and I was feeling tired of eating dinner in front of the t.v. (yes...I'm ashamed to admit it....Nate and I used to eat dinner in front of the t.v.) I try to make it a really nice event with calming music and dim lights and I begin the meal by asking, "What was the favorite part of your day?" We usually start with Benjamin and then go around the table. I didn't really feel it was making any sort of impact with him, although it was great for Nate and I to talk about our favorite parts of our day. But tonight we went to a restaurant for dinner with my mom and step-dad (who were in town for Benjamin's birthday party!) Obviously we didn't talk about our favorite part of the day at the restaurant. So while I'm sitting here surfing the internet I can hear Benjamin in the bathtub with Nate asking "What was the favorite part of my day Dad?" I guess something is sticking!? By the way....THAT was the favorite part of my day!

Houston...We Have a Problem!

Benjamin is obsessed with spaceships...it rivals his obsession with pirates, although I'm not sure anything could ever surpass his love of all things Pirate! So yesterday we went to Costco and they loaded all our groceries into two gigantic boxes (so convenient!) After we unloaded everything we put the boxes on the kitchen floor to break them down and put them in the recycling. Before we could ever get to it Benjamin had climbed inside the box and declared "I'm in my Spaceship!" And then he says "1...2...3....BLASTOFF!!!" Maybe some day he'll work for NASA!

Now With Photos

Okay...hopefully you read the previous post about our family trip to the beach. Well, about a week later we went back...and this time I brought my camera!

Picture Perfect

The weather here has just been perfect lately...mid to upper 60's...the sun shining....so we decided to go to the beach the other day. We went to a new spot that we'd never been to before...we arrived around 5:00pm to see the sun beginning it's descent and the wide expanse of sand flat and compact making it very easy to walk. It was gorgeous! It's funny, I've lived in Oceanside for over 10 years now and I never cease to be amazed by the beauty of the ocean.

I purposely didn't bring my camera on this family excursion. Sometimes I think that I'm so concentrated on getting the perfect "shot" that I'm not really seeing everything....not really participating in the experience. Of course the second I saw how beautiful it was I was wishing I'd brought the camera...to capture the moment. We walked along the beach for awhile, Benjamin running and stopping periodically to look at rocks and shells. He likes to play "monster" now so I had to periodically chase him down the beach making monster sounds. Then he would turn the tables and chase me down the beach making his monster roar.

Eventually Benjamin found a good stick (he finds sticks everywhere we go!) and began to dig around in the sand. We wrote our names in the sand and dug up "treasure" (rocks) to put in our pockets. I swear, Benjamin actually found a rock that has a smiling face etched on the face. Nate and Benjamin decided to bury some "treasure" and mark it with an "X" in order to discover it later. We watched the sun drop slowly in the sky until it was pulled all the way down as if weighted on the bottom.

So here are the "photos" I'm left with from this little adventure. I'm walking down the wide flat beach...the water is so blue it is almost electric. The sand is glistening...a little wet with these little gold flecks glittering up from it. In the distance I see the Oceanside Pier and a light fog is just beginning to roll onto shore. I turn around and see Benjamin laughing, running, trying to catch up with me. Nate is walking behind Benjamin, looking at me and smiling with true joy and love.

On our way back to the car. Benjamin is running down the beach with a stick in his hand. He turns around to make sure I'm following him. The setting sun casts a golden glow on his face. His smile is wide and luminous and he's laughing with pure joy. His jeans are rolled up and the bottoms of his feet are black with wet sand clinging to them.

I can see the images so clearly in my mind but the words seem so inadequate in their description. Even now I wish that I had brought my camera and caught the moment with a photo. I could post it here and say "look...it really happened just the way I told you!" But I do wonder...had I brought the camera would I have noticed the moments at all?

I'm A Rocket Ship!!

I think the picture tells the story here!

Happy Valentine's Day!!!

I decided to make a special treat for Valentine's Day (which is actually tomorrow!) I hope no one reads this before they get their treat!! Of course...I'm not sure ANYONE is reading this blog these days! Anyhow, I made heart shaped cookies on a stick in peanut butter and chocolate chip. They came out really cute! A few of them didn't have the stick all the way covered by the cookie so I just frosted them and put these sprinkles all over them. I put them all in Valentine's Day themed cellophane bags with a twist tie. I hope everyone likes them!

A Rude Awakening

I must have jinxed myself by bragging about how well Benjamin was napping in his new bed finally. Or maybe it was just a figment of my imagination....wishful thinking?? Today he finally took a two hour nap in his bed but he didn't nap at all the 3 days prior. And on top of that...he's been waking up an hour earlier each day...fun for us!!

Saturday was a particularly rude awakening. Usually Benjamin wakes around 7:30 (I know...we're very lucky!) So imagine my surprise when I was laying in bed Saturday morning and the door opened at 6:15am! Benjamin thought he was so funny...he snuck over to Nate's side of the bed and declared "I'm awake!" while turning on the light. Nate asked him to turn the light off and go back to bed...and he seemed to comply.

A few minutes later I heard a noise from the living room...."SZZZZSSSSH" "SZZZSSSSHHH" I thought that he must be playing with his "welding" toy. He came into the bedroom and went to Nate's side of the bed again "SZZZSSSSHHHH" and I hear Nate saying...."What?? What the...Oh...No....MY EYES!!!! MY EYES!!!" Benjamin wasn't playing with his welding toy...he had reached a bottle of Febreze air freshner...and he had sprayed it into Nate's face just as he'd opened his eyes!" Luckily there was no permanent damage....and now I have to store the chemicals even higher so Benjamin can't reach them!!

Rock On!

The other night we went ot dinner with our friend Elizabeth ("Auntie Eli".) Since it was a weekend (and everything would be SO crowded) we decided to try a new pizza place near our house called "Rolling Stone Pizza." I had seen it before when I patronized the nail salong next door. It looked clean and decent. The other great thing was that they have locally brewed beer on tap (Oceanside Ale Works!)

We arrived at the restaurant to find a group of teenagers and...a band! We sat as far away from the mayhem as we could get in the tiny establishment and ordered our food. While we waited the band began doing a sound check with the drums and microphones. Benjamin didn't like that at ALL! He kept complaining that it was too loud. I thought uh oh...we're going to have to take our food home to eat!

Eventually a pimply faced teenager with long curly hair and a Guns N' Roses t-shirt stepped up to the microphone. "Our band is called Schizophrenic...and this is our first gig!" GREAT....and teenage band that has never played in public before....just what I wanted to hear! Then they started playing...speed metal. It was a song that Nate recognized from the band "Slayer." I'm not a huge fan of speed metal...but they really weren't half bad! I was pleasantly surprised. I was however worried about Benjamin. I didn't need to worry though...when I looked over at him Benjamin had a HUGE smile on his face, he coloring book quickly became his "guitar" and he started rocking out. He was banging his head like he was in the mosh pit at a Metallica concert! He was having so much fun! I wonder if Benjamin is over his love of disco now?

Dream Weaver

So Benjamin made a pretty big transition last week....he went from sleeping in his crib to sleeping in a "big boy" bed. Actually..it's a toddler bed that used the same mattress and, because it is SO low to the ground, actually appears smaller than his crib. But it is definitely a bed for a "big boy!"

Last Saturday we dragged the big box into the living room and Benjamin "helped" his Daddy build his new bed. He was actually doing very well...I had expected him to balk at the idea of a new bed...he was VERY attached to his crib. After the bed was put together we dismantled the crib and took it out to the garage. Again...no protest from Benjamin. We made the new bed with the new bedding I had purchased (Matching sheets, quilt and pillow shams with a train theme from Pottery Barn Kids.) and put all of his "babies" in their place. He brought over his "pillow bear" and placed it just where his head would lay at night. He was so excited he couldn't wait to climb in the bed! I thought, "Wow...this is going better than I expected!" But little did I know!!

Nap time the first day did NOT go well. He could not stay in the bed. We tried everything...talking to him, praising him for his efforts, threatening time outs if he got up....nothing worked. He didn't nap at all that first day but luckily, since he was so exhausted, he slept well that night. The next day was worse than the first. Not only would he NOT stay in bed but now he was taking all of the little toys he could find (airplanes, little people, cards, etc.) and DUMPING them in the middle of his bed. So each time he came out of his bedroom I had to clean everything off the bed before I could put him back in it...UGH!! I realized then that the transition was going to be just a little bit tougher and longer than I expected, but I was committed to helping him through it!

A few days into the "big boy bed" experience he began asking for his crib back. He said "I'm not a big boy Mommy...I'm a baby!" He told me he wanted his crib back or that he wanted to sleep in his Pack n' Play...one night he threatened to sleep on the floor. He told me his big boy bed was "scary" one day and I tried to explain how sometimes new things (or change) can be scary, but that after awhile we can get used to it. It's been just over a week and I am SO proud to announce that Benjamin has slept in his new bed for two naps in a row!! He IS such a big boy!!

During this whole transition Benjamin seemed to sleep just fine at night (thank goodness!) But one thing I did notice was that he seemed to be having very vivid dreams at night. A few morning he woke up and began talking about them...in one dream there was a lot of "traffic" but Diego helped us. In another dream there were pumpkins that were both scared AND scary and still another dream had a "monster" and a snake at church. It's so interesting that he would remember these dreams so well in the morning! It's also a great opportunity to talk about the difference between what is real and what is not real. The other day he asked me is he could have more "bad dreams." I asked him what he meant...he wanted to see the pumpkins again! I guess scary and scared pumpkins aren't that frightening after all!

I have photos (of course) of the whole experience....I'll post them as soon as they are uploaded to my computer!