Ben's vocabulary

Ben has been saying a few words here and there for awhile but lately, he has really taken off. He is really trying to imitate words that we say. Here are the words that he has said (some he says a lot, some of them you just hear every once in awhile)...

Daddy

Mum-Mum

hi

bye bye

doggie

puppy

woof woof

up

thank you (he has started saying this after we give him something)

uh-oh (anytime he drops something, he says uh-oh)

light

cracker

beep beep

duck

what's that (yes, he really did say this)

Little Peanut

Ben had a check-up with the doctor yesterday and it went very well. This was his last time meeting with Dr. Maynard who has been seeing Ben since he was still in the nicu. After watching Ben grow and develop for the last 16 months, he is very pleased with everything. Ben is still a little peanut though...

weight: 21 pounds and 9 ounces - 5th percentile for his age

length: 30.5 inches - 10th percentile

head circumference: 20 inches - 95th percentile (this is actually starting to level off which is very good sign)

A perfect day for the zoo

It was another day of great weather here. After a long winter, we are loving these days and spending lots of time outside. We have been to the Cheyenne Mountain zoo here multiple times and wanted to go one more time before we move. The three of us along with my dad made the trip down there and had a really good time.

Giraffes have really long tongues.

A little skeptical at first.

This is the first time that Ben took an interest in the animals.

He spent most of the time in his stroller but enjoyed being able to walk around on his own.

There was a baby wallaby (it was albino) and we wanted to get a picture of Ben next to him.

All of a sudden, he reached over and tried to pet him.

Finally some nice weather

We had some wonderful weather today and we enjoyed every moment of it. My dad is visiting for a few days and we spent the afternoon with the rest of the family here, outside.

Ben and Lewey

These were taken last Sunday and I forgot they were on the camera until I uploaded some pictures from the camera today and these were on there.

Ben and Lewey are starting to have a new appreciation for each other and every once in awhile, we catch them having a moment together.

We have moving dates!

We have been waiting for weeks to find out what days the movers were coming. It is very exciting for us to know definite dates and a relief to know that it is all going to work out the way we wanted.

Because Drew is getting out of the military, they are going to pay for us to move back to our home of record. This means that they send in people to pack up everything in our house and then drive it to California for us. Once there, they will put it in storage for us until we know where we are moving to. There will be inventory taken of everything that is packed and if anything doesn't make it or is broken, they will be responsible for replacing it.

The movers will be coming on Tuesday, May 26 to pack up everything in the house and then will be back the next day to load it all up in the car. We will spend Thursday cleaning and get the house ready for the renters and then we will head out on Friday morning. We should be arriving in California on May 31. That is only 17 days away! Oh my goodness, we have a lot to do before then. 

Everything that happens after we get there is still up in the air. We won't know where we are going to be living until Drew gets a job. Our first choice is to be in San Diego but we are open to other parts in California and ultimately just want Drew to get a good job. We really want to be as consistent as possible throughout all of this for Ben's sake. There is going to be a lot of change happening and while I think he will do a great job at handling it, there is only so much a 17 month old can take. There will be lots of unfamiliar faces around (don't worry, they will become familiar) and different places we will be staying at. Until we know where we are moving to, we will be spending a lot of our time in Fresno with Drew's parents with the occasional trip down south to see my family. After a lot of consideration, we have decided that this will be the best set-up for us. We are very lucky to have supportive families who are all willing to do whatever they can to help us out. It doesn't hurt that we have a Benjamin that will be going wherever we go so of course everyone wants us to come spend time with them.

Everyone out in California, we will be seeing all of you in the next month or so...

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to our Moms, Grandmothers and anyone else who is a mom. Being a mom is a tough job (especially if you are my mom and had to deal with me when I was younger). I can honestly say that Drew and I both now have a whole new appreciation for our moms. We are both so fortunate to have great moms who have given us so much throughout our lives. Now they are also wonderful Grandmothers and Ben is very lucky to have them in his life. 

My two favorite boys

I know it's cheesy but he really is the best mother's day gift

Being cute as always

I step away for a minute and he goes to the computer

I don't know what he is doing here but it's pretty funny

A gift from my two boys. Click on it to make it bigger so you can 

see all of the little pictures that make up the big picture. 

Like Father Like Son...

Chocolate Cake...