Little of This & That...

First trike ride on the "open road." We went to the elementary school near our house and Ben had the entire blacktop to explore with his bike. He loved it and kept telling us how FAST he was riding.

Trying out his new goggles in the bathtub.

Ben and Joe had some quality time together while I was in Columbia for a conference. Joe took Ben to the Museum of Transportation as a daddy-son outing (Ben's first time going). They seemed to have a great time together. Ben keeps telling me "Mommy, you're back from Columbia!" I guess he had a little separation anxiety. I had a great time, but definitely missed my boys.

We're excited the weather is beautiful and it's light at dinner - finally feels like we're getting out of the winter funk! AND, spring means Ben's new baby cousin should be here soon - we can't wait!!

Old Friends & New Friends!

Good friends are hard to find! But, I guess, I wasn't surprised to learn that Arlo and Ben were great pals right from the start - that's how it worked when Kristina and I met at KCAI our freshman year. We were instantly old friends! It meant the world to us that Kristina and Arlo made the long journey to join us for Ben's third birthday so the boys could finally meet.

They had a blast playing together. Ben got Arlo laughing pretty good and he definitely loved having THAT attention!! You could tell he really felt like the BIG BOY all weekend. Arlo is such a sweet, smiley, easy-going guy - you just gotta love him!

We may live far away - but we're definitely grateful to have such wonderful friends in our lives!

"Truly great friends are hard to find, difficult to leave and impossible to forget."

-Barry Spilchuk (at least I think that's who said it, KAK - is that right :)

The Big Three

Where has the time gone? My baby suddenly turned three! Ben had a great birthday this year - we had a train-themed party at Bubba and Grampy's with family and friends (all four grandparents; Auntie and Uncle Tim; our good friends Connor and "Ms. Melody;" and our very special out-of-town friends Kristina and Arlo (more on their visit later). Ben got a lot of special gifts at his party - his first trike, Star Wars Clone Trooper costume, Train conductor outfit, AquaDoodle, a WOW! dump truck, Magna-Tiles (I'm loving these), his very own water bottle - a big deal to him AND his own personalized firefighter bath towel, washcloth and bubble bath - also a big deal since he STILL wears his firefighter costume from Halloween.

We went to the doctor and Ben is 38-5/8 inches and weighs 36 pounds. He's about an inch taller than other kids his age. He's really into dressing up, playing with trucks/cars, building with blocks, painting, cutting random scraps of paper with scissors and playing outside. Some of his favorite shows are Max & Ruby, Caillou and he still loves the Baby Einsteins DVDs. He's talking a lot and is starting to ask "Why?" so I think we're getting into that stage. Ben still LOVES to climb and pretty much always has! He's becoming sweet and thoughtful - asking daddy "how was your day?" when he gets home from work and he tells me things like he likes my hair and that I make good lunch ("you're a good maker, mommy").

Be Mine-

February proves to be a busy time for us -- Valentine's Day, quickly followed by daddy's birthday, rounded out with Ben's birthday. On Valentine's Day we enjoyed some homemade ice cream sandwiches (made with love by mommy) that SOMEONE devoured...

Yesterday on daddy's birthday Joe didn't get to open any of his own presents. I don't think he minded... Ben's just getting ready for the big THREE!!

Just another Wednesday...

We love our Wednesdays! In the morning we had a Valentine's playgroup with Ben's friends. I think Ben was in heaven eating a million cookies with friends. Then in the afternoon we went to the movies with his buddy Connor. It was our first trip to the theater and Ben loved it. We saw "Alvin and the Chipmunks" and he can't stop talking about the chipmunks.

"Mommy, Where's My Stool?"

There's something spooky about me saying "it's where you left it!!!" I can hear these same words creeping out of my parents mouths from my own childhood. Hmmm... could I be turning into my parents? Nah, but NOT THAT THERE'S ANYTHING WRONG WITH THAT...

I hear "where's my stool?" about 500 times each day, and the answer is always the same - "WHERE YOU LEFT IT." Ben literally spends a good portion of his day with his stool. He eats breakfast sitting on it, brushes his teeth on it, "washes" dishes on it, uses it to reach his light switch, etc. He even likes to make sure it's at the foot of his bed when he goes to sleep. I guess that extra boost gives him the freedom to do just about anything he wants!

If you ask him about his stool he'll be sure to tell you in a very serious manner - "Its my very special stool. Grandad made it for me. It's very fragile. We need to keep it on all four legs and we don't bang it."

An Unexpected, Super-Fun Day-

I went to bed early last night feeling totally blah - sore throat, runny nose - bummed to be coming down with a cold. I knew it was going to snow and I was dreading today. I knew I wasn't going to be feeling well and that Ben would most likely be staying home with me. I have lots of work to do (and less time to get it done with him home) and we have NO FOOD in the house...

Well, I woke up this morning feeling MUCH better - all "chesty" - but no more sore throat, the worst part if you ask me. AND we've actually had a great day! 

We played for a long time in the snow. Ben finally got to wear his boots and Joe's snow pants from when he was a kid (really cute)! We were able to use Ben's new sled from Christmas and he had a blast. AND we somehow had all the right ingredients for our favorite cheesy-broccoli soup to warm up from the cold.

Also, when we came in from outside I had a message on my machine from one of my clients... she's offering to pay my registration fee for a conference she knew I wanted to go to! Just as a "thank you" for the work I've done... wow!

So, today I'm thankful for the snow day, great clients and an unexpected fun day with Ben. 

Now I better get to work!