Tag Archives: Benjamin

Ben is 3 1/2!

More and more each day this sweet boy is becoming a big kid. He’s growing so tall and he’s so confident and so articulate. Sometimes I’m taken aback by how big he seems. We’re having such a blast with so much about three and love the boy Ben is turning into.

Ben’s stats:

  • Weight: about 31 pounds {as of about a month ago}
  • Height: over 40 inches {75th++ percentile!!!}
  • Clothing size: mostly still 3T except 4T in PJs and some tops
  • Shoe size: size 8 toddler
  • Favorite foods: crackers, pasta, any type of cheese, yogurt, smoothies, cottage cheese, spaghetti and meatballs, most meats – especially slow cooked, roasted chickpeas
  • Favorite activities: make believing, pushing his cars/trucks around, lining his cars up, doing puzzles, listening to music, playing outside, riding his bike, reading books together or looking at books independently

As a 3 1/2 year old Ben is still super sweet. Sometimes I find my heart swelling because of his sweetness. He is a world class cuddler and loves to get cozy on the couch with his stuffies and a blanket. He is so thoughtful, typically quick to apologize or check on someone and so genuine in his random notions of appreciation. “Thank you for building this house for our family, dada!”

One of my favorite moments with Ben this last quarter was taking him for a bike ride while I ran around the 2.2 mile loop at Seward Park. Seward Park is a peninsula that juts out into Lake Washington. The day of our activity was very chilly but it was a picture-perfect fall day. Ben kept stopping every 25 feet, it felt like, either to wait for me or to take in his surroundings. He kept pointing things out and saying “look, mama! It’s so beautiful!” Ben sure loves nature and he is extremely observant.

Ben started a new preschool this quarter and I’ve seen some remarkable growth in his independence and willingness to help and take on responsibility. Ben loves being in charge of feeding Jackson, especially at the mountain house. He’s careful to properly measure Jackson’s food for him and also loves to throw Jackson’s ball. Ben has been very interested in selecting and serving himself a snack and pouring anything he can get his hands on.

Fairly recently Ben figured out how to ride his pedal bike. This was an unexpected challenge for us all. It took a lot of practice and ultimately finding a tricycle at the park helped him put the pieces together. He’s definitely ready for the training wheels to come off, but now that winter is coming we have decided to hold off on that {we’re keeping that bike at our mountain house}.

Ben has so much confidence on his balance bike. He’s been going back and forth between his two bikes and it’s so impressive watching him at the pump track as a little 3-year old skirting past the big kids and flying over the little hills. Parents and older kids are quick to comment how comfortable he is there.

Very recently Ben had the opportunity to try skateboarding. He was very insistent upon giving it a shot and he loved it!

Puzzles, playing games and looking at books have become big parts of Ben’s life these days. He loves to sit down on the floor and put together a puzzle all by himself. We’ve really gotten into some games, particularly at the mountain house, and Ben loves to play Sequence for Kids.

This fall Ben had his first experience with soccer. I signed him up for a soccer program for 3-5 year olds at the park in our neighborhood. It was adorable but in my experience and in talking to the other parents it seems like 4-5 would be a more appropriate age. Ben had a very difficult time becoming engaged in the drills the coach put together. He absolutely LOVES to kick the soccer ball, and he’s really good at it, but when it came time to listen and follow directions he was off doing his own thing. We’ll try again next year…

As a 3-1/2 year old Ben is very inquisitive, observant and curious about his surroundings. He’s such a terrific car rider because he loves to look out the window and take it all in. He is now typically awake for most of our drive through the mountains and he does so well entertaining himself with his surroundings or reading a book in his car seat.

Ben asks a lot of questions and makes a lot of connections. He comes up with the sweetest things to say, like “mama, I think I want to bring Elephant with me just in case I need something to hold” when he was getting ready to go to the park with a babysitter. Or “dada, you look great!” It makes me smile every time he says something is “great!” – his typical response to our inquiries about how he slept or how his day at school was.

Ben’s teacher at school mentioned he is one of the happiest kids in the class. She found it fascinating and sweet that he regularly comments on how beautiful the day is or that it’s so nice the sun is shining. He has a very positive attitude. It is rare to hear him complain about anything.

The challenges we see Ben facing these days are fairly minimal. He is quite a sensitive kid and he feels his emotions very strongly. Depending on his mood, this can be tough and he can have a harder time calming down when upset. He also is very compassionate and empathetic. When we came upon a homeless person one day {I had always wondered when he’d start to ask…} and I told him about homelessness his response was “that is so terrible! Can we go say hello to him?”

Lately Ben’s friendships are starting to really take shape. He will talk more and more about friends and he has started asking to have friends over. At the park he loves to ride bikes with friends and it seems like that’s a really great tool for him to connect with other kids.

We’ve had a lot of friends come to stay with us at The Lodge and most/all of them have kids near Ben’s age. It was especially fun seeing him with Liam, the only other boy who came up, who is slightly older than Ben. Those two hit it off and had a blast running around, riding bikes and playing cars together. For whatever reason he seems to gravitate towards girls, but he relates to and plays better with slightly older boys.

As we officially round the corner towards four I’m so curious what this next quarter will look like – what will the major developmental milestones be? What challenges will come with it? What is on the horizon for Mr. Ben? All good things I expect.

Preschool Update

We’re about six weeks into the school year here and Ben couldn’t be happier in his new Montessori school. He is so calm and comfortable there and he absolutely loves it. I’m blown away by some of the things he is doing and learning about there. He is picking up so many life skills and I’ve been so pleased with his enhanced “I can do it” attitude.

Ben is going to school three mornings a week. This schedule is perfect for us right now. It allows me some extra time with him during the week while still providing a bit of structure.

{I love making Ben’s school lunches. It’s so fun to come up with creative ideas on how to make a cold lunch more fun.}

The Montessori mantra is “teach me to do it myself” and I have seen that ringing loudly through Ben’s attitude these days. He wants to do everything himself and he is starting to take on more responsibility at home. He has been enjoying feeding Jackson, clearing his plate after meals, serving himself snack, getting Jackson water and helping make dinner most nights. While I think some of that is his age and personality, I do attribute an increase in independence to the start of his new school.

Every day when I put Ben to bed I always ask him two questions: what the best part of his day was and what he was most proud of himself for doing. On school days his answer to the former question is “school” or something he did at school. Recently he started taking piano lessons once a week at school and that is now at the top of the “best” list.

Since I don’t attend school with Ben I can’t really comment on all of the things that he does while he’s there, but I can say I know he’s well-cared for and happy. It is so reassuring to me to see how confident and comfortable he is there.

Walking to school in the mornings is such a pleasure. I love strapping Hannah to my back and either walking with Ben or pushing him in the stroller, walking through the neighborhood on our way to school. Urban life at its finest! We are so grateful to have this fantastic school so closeby.

Ben is 3 1/4!

It is so much fun to do quarterly updates for my oldest toddler, but SO much happens and changes in a quarter it is so hard to keep up with. My goodness gracious, though, my Benjamin has never been sweeter or more fun. That said, with the exception of Ben’s first quarter of life, this last quarter has undoubtedly been the most challenging. Three is no joke.

Ben’s stats:

  • Weight: 29 pounds 12 ounces {25th percentile}
  • Height: 37 1/4 inches {35th percentile}
  • Clothing size: 3T except for pants and shorts – he’s still 18m, 24m or 2T in bottoms!
  • Shoe size: size 7 toddler
  • Favorite foods: crackers, pasta, any type of cheese, yogurt, smoothies, cottage cheese, spaghetti and meatballs, most meats – especially slow cooked
  • Favorite activities: make believing, playing independently, pushing his cars/trucks around, painting, listening to music, playing outside, watching Daniel Tiger, riding his bike, the pump track, gymnastics, swimming, reading books together or looking at books independently

Two weeks before Ben turned three we started to see some major changes. The tantrums were mounting, the defiance was abundant, the screaming was persistent, the mischief was constant and the simplest tasks took an eternity and was like pulling teeth to just get Ben to brush his teeth. Every part of every day was extremely taxing. We knew “three” had arrived!

These unpleasant changes lasted a solid two months and then one day we had this mature little three-year old. I’m well aware that misbehavior is a sign either of needing/wanting attention, another need not being met {i.e. tired/hungry, etc.} or a big period of brain development. I’m pretty sure with this particular season it was largely a developmental milestone, but also a major transition – Ben’s routine and schedule totally changed and we began our summer schedule right around this time, too.

Our little threenager is just that – a mini teenager. He wants to do his own thing, But at least he still likes us!

Even as a very young toddler Ben has always been quite independent. He loves getting himself dressed, helping in the kitchen, playing on his own, reading books to himself and doing things for himself.

Ben is extremely curious right now. Alex and I are doing whatever we can to foster that. I love when he asks “why” or for more information about what something is or how it works. He amazes me sometimes with his ability to recall or repeat what I say.

Alex and I have been loving the progression that our conversations with Ben are taking these days. He asks such thoughtful and insightful questions. He’s starting to understand the concept of time a little more, though this has been a tough one to get.

As a 3 1/4 year old, Ben is sleeping around 10-10.5 hours overnight and most days takes a 2-3 hour nap. He usually goes to sleep around 8 or 8:30 and wakes up somewhere around 6:30. About once a week he’ll wake in the night – usually because he dropped a stuffie or pillow and can’t find it, though he does have the occasional bad dream.

Socially Ben has made some big changes in the last quarter or so. He has several friends and there are some friendships that seem to be stronger than others. There are some kids from his school last year who he seems to miss and asks about often. At this point he prefers playing on his own. We’ve had some friends up to The Lodge and it’s been really neat to see him playing so well with the other kids.

One of Ben’s favorite activities has been riding his balance bike. He LOVED his week of bike camp with his balance bike in early July. He really mastered the balance bike and it brought him tremendous confidence.

Because he mastered the balance bike we felt he was ready for a pedal bike. While we still feel like he’s ready – he is having a really hard time figuring out how to actually pedal. We popped the training wheels on so it would be a little easier, but this has been a source of tremendous frustration for him. He had a terrible time in his second week of bike camp with the pedal bike and I ended up pulling him out halfway through the session because he was so upset about it. He’s just not getting how to pedal. We’re going to lay off of this for a bit and pick it back up after he has the opportunity to ride a tricycle or just take a break.

Ben has always had a natural athleticism and has become very interested in soccer and baseball {well, t-ball} recently. It’s impressive watching him hit the ball on the tee, play catch and kick a soccer ball. He is really looking forward to his first experience playing soccer this fall.

At home, Ben loves to be helpful, particularly in the kitchen. He really enjoys cooking with me and will often come put his step stool next to me and ask to help make dinner or if we can bake something together.

Ben’s personality is staying mostly constant at this point. He is as sweet as they come. He loves to be surrounded by family and people who care about him. Close relationships are very important to him. Ben is compassionate, sensitive and empathetic and is very, very loving. He is really impacted by how other people feel. His sense of humor continues to emerge and he loves to make people laugh.

It’s really timely that my quarterly updates seem to largely coincide with the changing of the seasons. We are rounding the corner to fall and Ben has some really big transitions ahead. He’s starting a Montessori preschool after Labor Day where he’ll go 3 days per week, he’ll be joining a soccer team and getting back into gymnastics. We always have so much to look forward to and this fall is no different.

Ben & Hannah

Now that Hannah is one I thought it would be fun to do a little comparison of Ben and Hannah. In my month-by-month or quarterly update posts I try to keep it focused on each kiddo and avoid comparing the two kids. They have a ton of similarities in their personalities but there are some really big differences in how they have developed.

One of the biggest similarities in Ben and Hannah is that they are both extremely loud. They crave being the center of attention. Neither one is afraid to make their presence known or request additional attention if they’re not getting enough.

If you spend much time with Ben you’ll notice how naturally athletic he is. As a baby and early toddler he really excelled in gross motor development. When he was learning a new skill he would really challenge himself and try things maybe a little before he was ready, then he’d practice his new skill over and over again.

{Ben – 13 months old – days away from walking}

Hannah, on the other hand, has really excelled in her fine motor skills. She’s been slower to hit her gross motor skills milestones, but when she does hit them she’s mastered them. She waits until she knows she’s nailed it.

{Hannah – 12 months old and standing up unsupported.}

As a baby, Ben was a sympathy crier. If there was another baby crying he would start crying too. Hannah did not get that gene. If Ben is doing something inappropriate she thinks it’s hilarious. If someone gets hurt and is crying she is the first to laugh.

Both of our sweet kids absolutely love music. They both enjoy playing musical instruments and they love listening to music.

When Ben was a baby it took him a while to really get into solid foods, especially feeding himself finger foods. He was fine with purees – still loves them in fact – but when it came to finger foods it took until about 10 months for him to get comfortable and show an interest. We started Hannah on solid foods when she was 5 months old and she couldn’t get enough! She took to solid foods immediately and hasn’t looked back. She’s been known to scoop up a handful of fruit and shovel it into her mouth.

{Ben – almost 11 months}

{Hannah – 11 months}

Ben and Hannah are both pretty easy-going kids. They’re able to go with the flow and adjust well in new surroundings. Ben in particular is so happy to spend time and connect with anyone who he feels comfortable with and who shows him love and care. Hannah is a little slower to warm up to new people and is more connected to me as a baby than Ben was.

In terms of energy and activity levels, we’ll have to see how this goes as Hannah gets a little older. I think Ben will have her beat a bit here. She’s super wiggly but in a different way than Ben was, I think. He just seems like he needs to burn off excess energy by running and climbing and jumping. Hannah just doesn’t like to be confined it seems.

{Ben – 22 months – ever the athlete}

{Hannah – 11 months}

A big physical difference is their size. Ben has always been very thin and Hannah has been on the opposite end of the spectrum. Currently both of them can fit into the same size shorts – 18-month! Ben is hard to buy pants for because they won’t stay up on his waist, whereas I have to pay attention to pants for Hannah to make sure the legs aren’t too tight!

{Legs for days!}

Both kiddos are very independent and prefer to do things themselves without help. Some of Ben’s latest phrases include “No mama! I can do it myself!” Once Hannah has the vocabulary I’m sure I’ll hear that from her too. From an early age with both of them, though, they are content playing on their own and don’t always need to be entertained.

As an itty bitty infant Ben was not into cuddling but now is an all-star cuddle bug. Hannah has always been into snuggles. I can’t wait to see the two of them curled up on the couch sharing a blanket, snuggling up with their stuffies one day in the not-too-distant future.

Lately the consensus seems to be that Hannah looks just like her brother. I definitely agree they have some significant similarities in their appearances, especially their mouths. It’s tough because Ben was so bald at the age Hannah is now, so it makes it harder to compare.

{Hannah – 6 months}

{Ben – 6 months}

I’m not sure how Alex and I turned out two blonde hair, blue eyed cuties, but we managed! Ben and Hannah both have blue eyes but the color of their eyes are completely different and SO beautiful. Ben’s eyes are stunning – they are so captivating. Strangers will occasionally stop to comment on his eyes. They are a deep blue/gray with an incredible luster to them. Almost like broken glass. And Hannah’s eyes look like an alpine lake – a beautiful, rich tealy blue that pulls out the colors of whatever is surrounding her.

It has been really fun when I’ve done my monthly Hannah updates to look back on my Ben posts from that same age. I always wait until I’ve written Hannah’s update to re-read Ben’s update from that time and it’s uncanny sometimes how similar the updates are. These two littles have so much in common but their personalities are definitely their own. It will be so fun to see their personas continue to come out as they get older.

Summer in the City

We’ve spent a couple weekends at home in Seattle over the last month. It’s been really tricky keeping up with two houses in the spring. There is so much to do on both houses and not nearly enough time. This last weekend was spent in Seattle and we had the best time!

Ben is out of school now for the summer and we’ve been loving the warmer weather and our late afternoon park trips, popsicles and trips to the ice cream shop {thanks for the ice cream money, Nana!}.

During the week Ben will mostly spend the first half of the day at summer camp. He’s doing camp sessions at the preschool he went to this last school year, as well as a bike camp called Pedalheads. We also have some weeks with nothing planned – can’t wait to get to the beach once the water warms up a bit more – and we’re planning on spending an extended period out in the mountains.

For now, though, we’ve been enjoying the first tastes of the sunny summer weather we are blessed with here in Seattle. And, I have to say, I’m crossing my fingers we don’t get another smoky summer from nearby wildfires.

{Ben made whipped cream to go along with our farmers market strawberries!}

Last weekend, in honor of Father’s Day, Alex and Ben did a big bike ride down on Lake Washington. The street that parallels Lake Washington near us closes every once in a while for Bike Sundays. It was the perfect day to take advantage of the road closure to get out and cruise. We wrapped up the afternoon with a trip to Madison Beach near our house.

We pulled out the grill, Alex and Ben did some weeding and hosed off Ben’s outdoor toys and gear and had a really nice time in the backyard.

Seattle is a gorgeous city year-round but there is nowhere quite like it in the summer. I swear the sky is a different color blue here – it is so deep and the sun is so bright. We absolutely love living here, especially with kids. There’s so much to look forward to — the beach, al fresco dining, our Friday afternoon farmers markets, the amazing food we have here and the glorious sunshine. It’s going to be a great summer!

Swimming Lessons

Ben recently completed an intense two-week swimming lessons program. His lessons were Monday through Thursday for two weeks. Spoiler alert: he loved it and made tremendous progress from start to finish.

Teacher Susie has her own pool at her house and has made quite the business of teaching swimming lessons to area kids. I believe her business is completely word of mouth and all of her classes fill up completely. She has quite a reputation and everyone seems to know about her program and the results she gets.

Her approach is a bit different than anything I’ve seen before, and it works. She has it all down pat. Her class sizes are unusually large and mixed age and ability but she’s got it figured out. Her pool shape has this little one-foot deep section and a two-and-a-half-foot shallow end so it’s great for tots.

Teacher Susie is no-nonsense and has very, very high expectations of the kids, which I appreciate. Her approach worked very well for Ben and I appreciated her firm boundaries and how much she pushed him. He responded really well to her style and progressed significantly.

By the second week Ben was jumping off the diving board and swimming {struggling!} to the side of the pool. Honestly, I don’t need Ben to be a beautiful swimmer – I need to feel confident that if when he jumps in without anyone there to catch him {oh wait – that happened on day one of swimming lessons} that he can safely make it to the side. And he can! He is capable.

At this point Ben needs to practice, practice, practice more to build up strength in the water but goodness gracious he’s getting there! He’s so comfortable and confident in the water and he is really starting to learn how to swim.

It was SO fun to watch him at swimming lessons these last two weeks. He loved it so much and it was undeniably the highlight of every single day for both of us. We’re signed up for another session later on this summer, so hopefully we’ll get a lot of practice in in the meantime.

Ben is Three

The toddler years are in full force over here — our little Benjamin Ames is THREE! He sure is acting like a bigger kid these days – he is becoming so independent, opinionated and chatty. Ben is so much fun to be around and dang, he is the sweetest.

Ben’s stats:

  • Weight: 29 pounds 12 ounces {25th percentile}
  • Height: 37 1/4 inches {35th percentile}
  • Clothing size: 3T except for pants and shorts – he’s still 18m, 24m or 2T in bottoms!
  • Shoe size: size 7 toddler
  • Favorite foods: crackers, pasta, any type of cheese, yogurt, smoothies, cottage cheese, apple sauce, olives, tomato soup {don’t worry, he eats veggies too, these are just his faves!}
  • Favorite activities: make believing, playing independently, pushing his cars/trucks around, painting, listening to music, playing outside, watching Daniel Tiger, riding his bike, the pump track, gymnastics, swimming, reading books together or looking at books independently

So many of the little nuances we’ve seen along the way in Ben’s personality are really starting to shine. Ben is a blast! He is such a fun kid and I feel like his personality is really infectious. He is just the absolute sweetest boy – I just love his innocence and his confidence – the combination is so endearing. Ben is both extremely goofy and gets a kick out of making people laugh and he’s also really serious.

Ben has a lot of leadership qualities and loves to be in charge. He likes to tell us the exact order of how and when we do things or where to put things – fair warning: don’t put something in the wrong spot or you’ll have to answer to Mr. Ben!

As a three year old, Ben is still extremely active, as he has been his entire life. He is very, very physical and needs big body movements every day. He loves to run, ride his bike and climb on things. While he’s super active he is very capable and happy playing quietly pushing his cars and trucks around the house, reading books and coloring. Following directions; however, is not currently one of Ben’s strong suits. I find he has very selective hearing these days.

One of my favorite things about Ben is how athletic he is. His confidence has been beaming lately because he has been so successful in new physical activities. Now that he’s a little older I love watching him climb at the park, challenge his body at gymnastics and fly around the sidewalk on his bike. He got a scooter for his birthday and that has been a source of tremendous pride for him and joy for me. Swimming lessons started recently and that, in addition to the scooter, has been so heartwarming to watch. I so enjoy sitting back and watching him learn a new skill.

Ben is very friendly and rarely seems shy. He is quick to offer a greeting to an adult we pass by, tell a story to his teacher at the start of the day or go introduce himself to a kid of any age at the park. He is quite the chatty Cathy! Sadly, though, he’s started to notice when adults don’t say “hi” back – so, if you’re reading this, pay attention to the little ones waving at you and don’t crush their spirit by not saying hello – or better yet, just be friendly and say hi to everyone you pass along the way – be like Ben.

As with most toddlers, Ben’s emotions run strong and can change at the drop of a hat, especially when tired or hungry. We’ve been so impressed with how well Ben does most of the time at regulating his emotions if they’re getting out of control {unless of course he’s hungry or tired}. He loves reading books by himself or pushing his cars around and finds these activities very calming. Thanks to the show Daniel Tiger, he has learned some songs that he can sing when he needs to settle down, or even when he needs to remember how to be patient while waiting.

Lately we’ve noticed a big uptick in Ben’s emotional intelligence. He has been labeling his feelings so much recently. It is so, so cool to hear him say “I’m SO FRUSTRATED!” or tell us when he’s feeling a little upset because of something that happened, or nervous about something that’s about to happen.

Very recently we noticed a change with his compassion and empathy. Instead of jumping to say “sorry” after an offense, we’ve been coaching Ben to come over, pat the person on the shoulder and ask if they are ok and if there’s anything he can do to help/make them feel better. It actually is so much better than a quick “sorry” {or worse, “sorry, not sorry”} then back to playing and it truly creates a special moment. He’s begun to do this on his own and also in situations he’s not even involved in.

The other day Jackson ate some of Hannah’s food while we were having a picnic and I was trying to model for Ben how I would deal with that. I told Jackson that I was really upset with him for eating Hannah’s pasta and very frustrated that happened. Ben came over and gave me a kiss and asked if he could help. It’s the sweetest darn thing!

Speaking of Jackson, oh my goodness, Ben and Jackson are becoming such great pals! Ben is SO good with Jackson. He’s learning how to use our commands and hand signals with Jackson and when we’re out at The Lodge he will throw the ball for Jackson. A few weeks ago Jackson ran out the front door in our Seattle house and Ben was the one who got him to come inside, easy peasy.

In addition to being a super sweet brother to his dog, Ben is nailing it in the big brother department to his baby sister. He’s starting to figure out how to play independently near her without her trying to grab his toys and he’s also beginning to engage with her in a toy he’s playing with.

I continue to be amazed that most often he can hold it together and stay patient and calm when Hannah is driving him crazy and trying to steal his toys. The moments when he comes up and tickles her, makes her laugh or helps her absolutely melt my heart. I’m so excited about the sibling dynamic and I coach him a lot about how to help Hannah and teach her how to do things and how to talk to her or give her a different toy to play with when she wants to play with what he has. Sometimes I’ll catch him say “Hannah, you’re still learning! I know it’s frustrating!” and gosh that makes me feel like I’m doing something right!

One of Ben’s biggest recent accomplishments is that he has become potty trained! It was a long road getting to that point and we are so proud of him for figuring it out. We spent 8 months trying to rely on intrinsic motivators with limited success and honestly within the first few days of using gummy bears as a motivator he nailed it. We haven’t started tackling overnight potty training but recently Ben has started to protest wearing a diaper at night so I think we’re probably close…

The other day I asked Ben if he could help me and he stared blankly at me and said “No, I can’t. I’m too busy standing here.” There are days when I swear he’s training to be a stand-up comedian with a dry sense of humor – he keeps me on my toes with the things that come out of his mouth. He’s really starting to understand one-liners and more mature responses. “Yeah right, I don’t think so!”

Favorite phrases:

  • “what the heck?”
  • “what’s going on with….?”
  • “I sure can!”
  • “No. I can’t.”

Ben is becoming so independent. Sometimes it’s hard to remember to let him do things on his own since I’m so accustomed to doing them for him or for Hannah. Recently Ben has started to say “please don’t” when we’re providing help unnecessarily. Just the other day he unwrapped a little Babybel package of cheese completely on his own from start to finish, and the day before that he grabbed a little cup and filled it up with water from a big Gatorade water jug at a mountain resort after a hike. These little reminders keep me in check with how big he’s becoming.

{Practicing getting dressed on his own}

Somewhere around 2 1/2 we noticed how dang observant Ben is – holy cow, the things he notices are shocking sometimes. While on a walk he noticed a Tesla and asked how you open the doors because the handles were different. Ben is very detail-oriented and he appreciates things in order, always knows where things belong and, not surprisingly, appreciates some predictability and routine.

We have absolutely entered the “why?” phase and I LOVE it. Sometimes I’m at a loss for words as to how to explain why something is the way it is and it makes me really have to think. It is so much fun seeing how curious he is and hearing him engage in something enough to ask questions. Sometimes Ben will ask me to “say that again” I think because he is cataloging it in his little brain. His memory also blows me away – some of the experiences or minute details he can recall are so surprising for someone so little.

Ben is about to finish out his first year of preschool {he already finished co-op}. It’s been a big deal having him comfortable being dropped off at school without us, after having spent nearly his first two and a half years at home during the day. Ben loved his two schools and has made some really nice friends and become a part of two sweet communities. It brings me so much joy hearing him talk about his friends from school.

From preschool to gymnastics to swimming lessons to riding his balance bike, Ben has been working really hard at becoming a big, independent kid. He’s had such a confidence boost recently and seems to be starting to figure out who he is.

It’s been so heartwarming to see the transformation from playing alongside other kids to playing with them. This really has started happening over the last three months or so. Occasionally at the park he’ll go up to some other kids and they’ll play together – he’s usually comfortable going up, unprompted, and introducing himself to them. He seems to prefer to play by himself most days at the park. He loves push around the dump trucks or ride his bike. He loves the days when I coordinate with his friend Olive’s mama and Olive can come ride her scooter with Ben.

Ben loves his new big boy room – he even calls it “my big boy room.” The transition to his new room and bed has {so far} been much easier than I expected. I think that’s also been a big confidence boost for him to have that space that is *just* his. He also had the opportunity to weigh in on the room – he helped pick some of the decor and the furniture and it seems like he appreciated that we went with a car theme for his bedroom.

I could go on for a really long time about what Ben is up to these days. He is a ball of fun and energy and he’s just an all-around great kid. Three hit him like a ton of bricks – we’ve seen so many changes in the last week or two and it’s been really fun to see the development.  Ben is acting like such a big kid these days. I am so excited for summer with a three-year old!

Ben is Two

Ben is One

Ben’s Birth Story

Ben’s Third Birthday Celebration

As with most birthdays in our family, Ben’s celebration lasted several days. This year we decided to introduce him to the concept of a friends birthday party – previously we had only had family birthdays.

Ben’s birthday celebration kicked off on Thursday, the day before his actual birthday. He got to celebrate at school with his friends. When asked what special treat he wanted to bring he picked the Late July cheese sandwich crackers. That is totally Ben – crackers are undeniably his favorite food.

Friday was Ben’s actual birthday. We decorated the house a bit for Ben and had him open up his family gifts right away that morning. Alex’s and my gift to Ben was a scooter, which is what he had been asking for.

I took Ben and Hannah to the zoo that morning, then after nap time we went to Madison Park to test out the new scooter. He’s a natural! All it took was one lap around and he had basically mastered it. He had an absolute BLAST. Alex met us at the park and then we had dinner at Cactus, Ben’s favorite restaurant, before heading back to the park for some more scootering.

On Sunday we had Ben’s birthday party! It was so much fun – he had a camping-themed party and invited all of his buddies from his two schools. We asked his friends to bring their favorite set of wheels, so Ben got to scoot around with his pals. He and his friend Olive love to toot around together and a few other friends joined in. He and Olive are quite the pair – they are on the same page energy-wise and they have so much fun together.

I just loved celebrating this sweet boy and all of his accomplishments in his three short years. Alex and I are over the moon about this kid and we were so delighted to have such a lovely celebration for Ben.

Ben’s New Bedroom

We made it a whole three months with Ben and Hannah sharing a room. It just wasn’t working – no one was sleeping well and it was causing unnecessarily early wake ups in the morning so we decided to separate the kids and give them both their own rooms.

Now that we no longer have live-in childcare our guest room goes largely unused. It’s a funny long and skinny space, but it’s cozy and it makes for a great bedroom for an almost three-year old.

Alex worked really hard to pull this room together and make it special for Ben. Naturally, we opted for a car-themed bedroom. Alex painted the walls, built the cool shelves behind Ben’s bed, assembled all of the furniture and hung the curtains and frames. The furniture looks black in photos but it’s actually navy blue. We still need to decide what we’re going to do for toy storage so the room isn’t quite 100% complete, but it’ll do for now.

We’re about 10 days into Ben’s new “big kid” bedroom and he loves it! He’s so proud to have his own space and a big boy bed.

At the time of the move downstairs we re-instituted the “green light” policy where Ben has to stay in his room until his light turns green. This had been forgotten and he was waking for the day around 5 a.m. so we clearly needed a re-set. I’m happy to report that so far we’re on the right track. This week Ben has been waking up a little early, coming upstairs to get a snack and then going back down to his bed to read his new big kid books. He’s really comfortable in his new space and now both kids are sleeping better.

 

The Happenings

Gosh – it’s late March. Spring is here. We’ve been super sick. Our life is in four and three-day increments as we’re sharing our time between The Lodge. Ok – you’re caught up! Here are some photos to better tell the story…

{We’ve been loving sitting out on the stairs on our deck while we watch Ben play in the yard/driveway at The Lodge. He is such an outdoor kid!}

{Our friends Carrie and Patrick and their daughter Roslyn joined us up at The Lodge a few weeks ago. We loved seeing the two tots play together and sharing our home with our friends.}

{I didn’t get a single day of downhill skiing in this year, unfortunately. It feels less disappointing since we’ve been able to get so much cross county skiing in. I have really, really grown to love it! This is Ben and Roslyn.}

{The days have been sunny and glorious lately! My big helper is an expert at watering our new plants.}

{Time to pull out the picnic blankets! I am dreaming of summer right now and of all the fun things I can do with my littles. We’re going to have a blast!}

{These two! Loving life in Leavenworth.}

{Ben just jumped up to size 3T clothes! Loving his new dinosaur jammies!}

{Thanks for the ice cream cone, Nana! It was delicious!}

{We’ve had a rough March with illnesses plaguing our household. While Alex was out of town Ben got croup. He’s had it twice before and it wasn’t a big deal. This time it was and we ended up having a 911 call and a hospital visit because Ben was gasping for breath. It was a scary experience and we’re glad it’s behind us.}

{Once Ben seemed on the mend from Croup we all came down with the flu. Thank you, Emergency Room, for spreading your germs!}

{I’m not used to having Ben nap anymore but he’d go and climb into my bed and curl up with his choice of stuffed animal and fall asleep!}

{Sweet Hannah has entered the age of frustration. She wants to do so much more than she’s physically ready to do. I’m sure it’s especially hard having an older brother. She wants to do everything he is doing.}

{The Lodge is finally DONE. We have received the certificate of occupancy and it’s done!! Check out the new deck railings. I think they complete the look of the house so well. We have been up here basically every weekend and are really feeling settled.}