So many stories, so little time...

I am having a hard time keeping up with all the cute/interesting/touching things that Ben has been doing lately. Even if I was able to blog every day I don't think I could get them all. Here are a few...

We had a few friends over Saturday night. Ben had a blast playing with his buddies. He got great enjoyment from teaching Michael to jump from the bottom step of our stairs onto the floor!


Yesterday when I got home from work with Ben, he initially went outside to play. When I went out to check on him (ah, the luxuries of an enclosed backyard!), this is how I found him:






He's in the "garage" under the deck -- space built for toy storage that is just the right size for Ben to stand up in! He wasn't at all concerned that he couldn't get his car out until I asked if he wanted to get it out -- up until that he was content to just sit there!Then he came inside. He went upstairs and came down with his pillow. He told us he was tired, and laid down on the dining room floor with the pillow. Then he got up and went back upstairs, coming down this time with his blankie. Then he laid down on the floor at the foot of the stairs. I encouraged him to lay down on the couch where he'd be more comfortable. Through all of this he continued to tell us how tired he was and how he just needed a nap. When Andy took his photo he feigned sleep. He ultimately moved from the love seat over to the couch where he bummed with Andy. Then he decided to play, after all. After dinner he was bummy with me too -- such a nice thing for him to do.

Andy had a great story from this morning. Ben asked him, "Do you see those drawers over there?" Andy asked, "Which ones? The gree ones or the wood ones?" His reply:
"The wood ones. And the green ones. If Milo was here he would come out of them. He would come out of the TV and say 'boo' at us. But he doesn't say 'boo,' he says 'meow' to say 'hello.'"
Profound thoughts from our little man!

He also says somethings that tend to give you pause. As I was putting his sandals on this morning, he threw his arms around my neck, squeezed, and said, "Mommy, I love you." I returned the sentiment. Then he said, "Mommy, do you remember Jake?" I told him, "Yes, I do Ben." He then told me, "We miss Jake. And sometimes, we cry about it." He sounded very forlorn. I reassured him that it's okay to do that, but that we also need to remember the happy times we had with Jake. Then he said, "Yeah, and soon I'll have a new baby brother, and he can teach Max all kinds of things." Of course, I told him he and Max would probably be teaching his brother things, not the other way around.

It is both comforting and heartbreaking to know how often Ben still thinks of his brother, and misses him. He truly is an amazing boy, especially for having been just shy of two when his brother was lost to us, and for over ten months having past since. He truly is a little hero.

Completely Quotable

One of Ben's favorite parts in "Milo and Otis" is when they first meet. Milo tells Otis he's a strange looking cat, and Otis informs him that he's not a cat, he's a dog. Milo says, "But deep down, we're really all cats." And Otis replies, "Deep down inside, I'm a dog." This last is one of those quotable lines that Ben constantly repeats. The other day we prompted him to say it. But he said, "Deep down inside, I'm a god."

It still makes me laugh. He has no idea what he said, but it's very funny to us!

Happy Birthday, Max!

Today Max, our friends Mike and Amy's son, turns one year old (he was quite the Father's Day gift for Mike last year). Max was positively adorable at his party. I just had to post some photos!

"Yay for cake!!"

He started out tentatively...

...while Ben licked all the frosting off his cupcake.

Clearly, Max understands how to destroy a cake! Ben thought this was very funny. Then Max reached over and smeared cake and frosting in Ben's hair. Sadly, the photographer was caught unawares and missed this moment. I do have evidence of the aftermath...


It was funny when a short while later Ben climbed back up to Max and said, "You really shouldn't do that, Max!" My bossy little man. They also had a fantastic time chasing each other around the party. Max's mom is going to watch Ben and the baby (who still needs a name!) next year, so Ben will have a great time with him!! They're adorable together. It chokes me up sometimes to see them. Max is only about 3 weeks younger than Jake should be. It's nice to know that Ben has a buddy that age, though. They were definitely keeping us on our toes!

One more photo...
Ben and Daddy had some fun together tonight while I chatted w/ a friend and picked up in the kitchen. Ben asked me to come in the tent too -- haha! It was just big enough for the two of them. Note the boo boos on Ben's knee -- he has made several acquaintances with the driveway since we moved in, practicing his tricycling! Still, such a happy boy. Thanks to Grandma Crystal for the tent!

Newest "Benisms"

~ Ben likes to say, "Will ya?" Tonight at Toys R Us it he handed the little toy I was getting him to the cashier and said, "Take care of this, will ya?"

~ The little toy is one of those tiny pull back cars that looks like a monster truck. He and Andy are playing with it as I type. Every time he does something with it he'll proclaim, "Hooray, Monster Truck!"

~ He is obsessed with the movie "Milo and Otis." He quotes it constantly. His favorite lines are, "Come back here Milo!," "Cat's in the can!," I've told you again and again and again, please don't walk on the chickens!!" The last one is particularly funny, because he affects Dudley Moore's (the narrator) British accent, so he pronounces it "a-gain," rather than the way we Americans say again. He also has been stating, "Deep down inside, I'm a dog" (something Otis tells Milo when Milo asks if he's a cat). It's priceless. See video:

~ Last night we were out somewhere and heard a woman say, "It's too darn hot." So I briefly sang the chorus of the song "It's too darn hot." Well, now he knows that entire chorus. He learned it after I sang it once. See video:

And Ben certainly knows about being "too darn hot." The second floor of this cape cod gets extremely warm during the day. We have central air, but it has taken about a week to really get settled in, and the second floor can still be extremely. I'd bet there are days it has been 78 on the first floor but nearly 90 on the second. Well, this is how Ben has been sleeping:


He might not look comfortable (or well fed!) but he was out like a light! And sweating profusely. Here are some more recent photos...

Clockwise from top left: 1. Ben driving the lawn tractor with Daddy -- he really is steering! And Andy can tell him which way to steer, or give him a landmark to steer toward, and Ben knows what to do! 2. Ben is discovering the joys of being naked! 3. This was taken on the back part of our property, and Ben is fascinated by the tall grass. I love this photo! 4. He has tough little feet! He'll run barefoot on the driveway and pedal his little tricycle around. He loves to play in his pool for awhile, then run and ride his tricycle (hence the swimmy diaper!)

Baby Boy Campbell

That's our little boy! The one on the left is hard to see, he has his face all smushed, but on the right you can probably see his face in profile. He has his hands near his face, partially obscuring it. These were taken at my last ultrasound w/ the "high risk" specialist two weeks ago. He was mainly checking on growth (the anatomy still looked great). He weighed 2.5 pounds then, with 11 weeks to go. I think I'm in for another big boy like Ben. If you follow the rule that babies typically gain a half pound a week in the last trimester, that puts our little guy around 8 pounds at birth. I'd love to see him weigh no more than 8, but I probably should start exercising and eating better!! I passed my glucose test this time, so no ridiculous low-carb diet has been ordered like it was with Jake. I just can't wait to hold him in my arms and know that everything is okay. And Ben keeps asking if "baby brother" can come out so they can play. I love it!

Video from Easter

Here's a video we took waaaaaaaaaaaaay back at Easter. It's a little long, but you really have to watch until the end. That's the best part. Honestly. I took some photos that are really great too, but I'll have to upload them another day. It's late and I'm tired. I'll try back again as soon as I can. :)

Ben's last haircut

Took these pictures back in April during our internet down time. Greta did some fabulous styling for Ben. He loved it!

Finally!!!

Well, after a definite lack of updates, we finally are a) in our new house and b) on the internet!

We moved on Saturday, May 24th, in perfect moving weather (high 60s, sunny, breezy). We busted our butts to get Ben's room (eventually Ben and baby's room), the living room and the guest bedroom painted over the Memorial Day weekend, and met our goal! By now the kitchen is (more or less settled), and our bedroom is painted as well. The guest room is still in relative chaos. The new living room furniture is here, we got new end tables/coffee table/entertainment center, and hope to buy an area rug soon. The current curtains clash pretty badly with the new color scheme, so I'm hoping to get new ones. Andy has gotten some good use out of our new grill, too. So we're getting pretty well settled. Here are some photos!

The living room (complete with Ben toys)

Ben enjoys tricycling in the backyard (he learned how while we were living in Pine City)
Ben's room... The first time he saw it, he declared that it was "Deutz Allis green" (that would be a kind of tractor). That's all him -- we just picked out a shade of green we thought looked good!

Our bedroom. I know, a very crooked photo. It's hard to get the entire room in the shot! Hard to tell, but the walls are sort of a reddish-burgandy color. Now we just need to get new nightstands that actually match. Our room also has built in dressers, like Ben's, but only on the one side.






Clockwise: Ben's reaction when he saw his new room on the first day (pre-green paint) was to curl up in his bed. He also discovered the joy of a box full of paper, and managed to place his little palms fully in the fresh paint of our living room!

More updates to come, including some of the fun things that happened leading up to and during our time at my mother-in-law's, when blogging was not so feasible. Check back soon!