Climbing to New Heights

Our little mountain climber is getting the hang of the stairs. (and yes, I am right there behind him for safety, I just moved for a second so that I wouldn't be in the picture) :)

Landscape Update

This past week, we have decided on a walkway (which was a lot harder than I thought it was going to be), we laid it out, we dug the trench for the drain along the side of the house, and we dug the trench along the side of the driveway to makes both sides symmetric. Well, I guess I shouldn't say "we", I personally did not dig, but I am the babysitter and water girl for my hunk of a hubby who rocked at getting all this done :)

Tomorrow "we" will be digging and laying forms and hopefully pouring cement this weekend :) That will really change the way it looks and I am excited! :)

READY TO POUR


NEW BRICKS


NOW BOTH SIDES OF THE DRIVEWAY ARE LINED WITH BRICKS

Just Plain Cute

Here are some random but cute pics of Ben from this past week:

CLAPPING


SNEEZING


STRETCHING

Just Kickin Back

I am pretty sure that Ben will be spending most of his time this summer at his Grandma Donna's and Grandpa Dave's house. He just loves swimming, he is so relaxed in the water. We went last weekend and played for a little and Ben just loved it.

Ben and Mommy


You've heard of flying fish . . . here is Ben flying!


Just kicking back


Ben and Aunt Staci

Movin and Groovin

HAVE YOU HEARD THE NEWS????


THAT'S RIGHT! BEN'S CRAWLING!!! Well, actually he's been crawling all week, but I waited till he got better at it to take this video. This being said, we have spent the week baby proofing the house. There is no stopping this kid now! It is so weird to go do something and come back and realize that he is not in the same place where I left him. I think this new stage is so cute, but at the same time it makes me a little sad, realizing that he is growing up!


Oh, the messes we can make now for mommy to clean up :)


PS stay tuned, he also started pulling himself up and walking around things. That video to come soon :)

Daddy Comes to Swimming Lessons!

Today was the last day of Ben's swimming class so Daddy wanted to go and spend time with Ben which I thought was the cutest thing and Ben was super excited because Daddy has been working so hard in the yard lately that they haven't been getting to play as much; so this was a fun treat for them both :)

This week's lesson was really helpful. They gave a parent meeting on life vests and how to make sure you get a good one, what to look for, how to make sure you have the right fit and size, etc. I thought there was tons of helpful info since we plan on being in the water a lot this summer. Then they did a review of what the kids had learned the past weeks and then at the end, they turned on all the water toys and let the kids play :)
(*remember to click on the pics if you want to see them bigger)

BEN AND DADDY AT THE POOL


GETTING IN


A "BEN" SIZED KICKBOARD


BEN LOVES HIS SWIM TEACHER


TRIES TO BLOW BUBBLES


SWIMMING


SPLASHING


PLAYING WITH DADDY




TRYING ON THE LIFE VEST


IT WORKS . . . OUR LITTLE OTTER!


TIRED BABY

9 months old!

Can you believe that Ben turned 9 months old yesterday? Being Ben's mom is just so much fun and I feel like it is what I was put here to do. He is the biggest blessing in my life, along with my hubby, and I love them both SO much!!!

All in a day's work

Today Bryan worked, with the help of our neighbor who is a mason, to build the block wall that seperates us from our other neighbor. They worked really hard and I am proud of them! The wall is not done yet because the concrete has to dry but it sure is a lot of prep work and they did a great job! Cadence and I were the refreshment girls, but I think Cadence was also having fun playing in the dirt!
BEFORE


DIGGING


CEMENT COMES


POURING CONCRETE


BLOCKS ARRIVE


SMOOTH IT ALL OUT


IS THIS WHAT PEOPLE IN THE MIDWEST DO WHEN THEY PRETEND THEY ARE AT THE BEACH?

Friday with Friends

Today was a great day! Daddy worked on the yard while Ben and I and our friend Cadence went to Ben's 9 month dr appt for his check up. He is doing great! He weighs in at 21 lbs 4 oz, 29.5 inches long, and his head is 18 inches long. So basically, he weighs just what he should, he is taller than most kids his age and he has a big head, which I like to think means he just has lots of smarts :) The dr was very happy with the things that he is doing right now and we are able to start giving him yogurt and table foods which is exciting! Cadence was the best helper at the dr and is the best behaved little girl. When we got home, the kids got to play in Ben's new pool from his great grandma which was really fun!

Will the cutest little boy please stand up!?!?

I was in the kitchen on Monday making lunch just talking away with Ben and all the sudden I heard him laughing . . .and so I looked over to see what he was laughing about and this is what I saw :)



He had pulled himself up on this toy and was just standing there smiling and laughing. By that night he was also walking his way around the toy by himself.

I can't believe that he is standing up and moving places already! Wasn't he just a little turtle that laid on his back and couldn't move anywhere? Time to baby proof the house :)

Rub-a-dub-dub . . .

. . . one cute boy in the tub!!! This is the new swimming pool and bath toys Ben got from his great grandma Emiko! He just loves it and can't wait to use it with his friends. He also got a new swim outfit complete with baby water shoes from his grandma Mary. This little water boy is all set for the summer :)

New water shoes in his new pool


New swim gear


New hat


New bath toys


Here is a fun video of Ben clapping for his Uncle Kevin who makes the best train noises! He just got the hang of clapping this week :)

He Has Risen!!!

Happy Easter everybody!
This morning our family got up bright and early and went to the sunrise service our church had at the cross. Grandma Mary was there, along with our friends Sheryl and Tony! It was a beautiful morning and a wonderful time to worshiping our Lord who does amazing miracles and brought His son back from the dead so that we can have life in Him!!! Thank you Lord for that miracle and thank you for the miracles that you do in our lives each and every day!
(*you can click on the pics to enlarge them)

The reason we celebrate


Our view at 6:30 this morning

Bryan: The Weekend Warrior

I just have to say that I am one of the luckiest women: I have the greatest hubby in the whole world. Bryan has given up every evening after work and all of his weekends to work on our front and backyards so that Ben can have nice places to play this summer. What an a amazing daddy and hubby!!! So far he has removed roots, killed the grass, removed the grass, removed more roots, dug up sprinklers, removed sprinklers, and tilled the dirt. He is working so hard and Ben and I are so proud of him! Stay tuned: next weekend, we should be laying forms for the new walkway and patio in the front, getting materials to make posts in the front, and maybe demo-ing the patio cover in the back or tilling in amendments.

On another note Ben had another swimming lesson today and learned how to scoot his hands along the edge of the pool, put his face in the water, more kicking and moving arms, and we attempted to blow bubbles (LOL)! He had a great time and just loved showing off for Grandma Donna and Grandpa Dave :) I think he is going to be a water boy like his grandpa Dave!



The supervisor


Ben found Daddy's hat


Till time


The old sprinkler mess