My Little Super Hero!

If you don't know already, Ben got fitted with some super cool duds last week- a helmet!  Ben was born with congenital muscular torticollis- scary name for not a scary thing, that developed in utero due to some cramped quarters inside.  Basically, Ben was a little large for my uterus and so if you ever saw any of his ultrasound pictures you probably noticed that he always had his head tilted to one side.  That is the torticollis.  Torticollis is a tightened SCM muscle (the muscle in the side of your neck)  and torticollis is actually the fancy name for a stiff neck when you sleep wrong.  It is the same thing, except Ben doesn't know how to stretch it out on his own, so Matt and I stretch it out for him.  His torticollis has improved greatly and you can see this because he no longer tilts his head to the side anymore.  However, because of the tightened neck muscle Ben developed a preference for sleeping on his right side.  This developed a flat spot on the side of his head so after months of repositioning, Ben's doctors and Matt and I decided that the helmet would be the best thing.  I mean, life is tough enough, noone wants to go through it with a flat spot on their head.  So now, my precious little punkin has a super cool new helmet to wear for the next 3 months.  We are a week and a half into the therapy, but hey, who's counting?!  Mr. Jim (Ben's orthotist) assured me that the babies don't even mind the helmet but I was a little skeptical.  I have to say though, Ben REALLY doesn't seem to mind.  His disposition and attitude has not changed one bit.  He is still the happiest baby with the happiest disposition.  Anyway, here are a few pictures of my sweet boy who looks absolutely adorable in his new helmet!

GiGi took Ben to see Mr. Jim on Tuesday (thank you so so so much again GiGi, Ben had a blast and you don't know how much we appreciate it!) and he said that the helmet is already working!  I am keeping my fingers crossed that he is in it for less than 3 months. 

Clean Baby

I love snuggling my little baby burrito right after his bath.  It is one of my favorite moments. 



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ben loves his bath time, too.  We are just about to switch him over to a big boy tub.  The bath tub that he has now is an infant to toddler tub but I think he would enjoy a roomier tub so I think I am going to try this inflatable bath tub .  I seriously need to find a way to stop time because he is becoming such a big boy way too fast!

Blue Eyed Boy

My little blue eyed sweet boy. 

Ben is having a MUCH better week at school.  His teachers say that he hardly cries (thank goodness because that was killing me) and that he is napping on his own and eating like a champ.  I knew he just needed some time to adjust.  It definitely makes my days at work a whole lot easier.  

New School!

As you know, I started Ben at a new school this year.  It was a hard decision because he really loved his old school, but his new school is very close to my work and is a part of Houston ISD so yes, I do get an employee discount, but more importantly it is a lab school and if you know anything about lab schools, they really are great.  I found when looking at daycares that most of them had this elaborate lesson plan written for the infants, but come on, did I really believe that at 9:00 they would be in group reading and at 10:00 they would be creating their art projects.  These are babies we are talking about.  So I really liked the fact that their lesson plan was more true to a babies actual day- babies will play with large foam blocks on Mondays, arts and crafts on Tuesday, etc.   Anyway, we started Ben's new school last Monday and it was definitely an adjustment for BOTH of us!  Ben cried.  A lot.  His teachers said as the week went on that he cried less and less but it still breaks my heart.  I know it is just a little separation anxiety that is normal at his age but I am hoping that we both get over it, and quickly! 



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yes, I am that Mom taking 100 pictures of their child at school and I will be that Mom until he tells me to stop.  And then I'll just be hiding around the corner taking the pictures!  =)  Hope you have a restful Sunday!

T.G.I.F.!

And I am shouting that today!  I started back to work this week (hence the reason I haven't posted as much this week) and am definitely having to get used to the routine again!  I promise weekend posts to update everyone on how Benjamin's first days back at school went, too, but first I want to share a few pictures that my friend took this summer of Ben that she shared with me on Monday at work.  They are from June but are oh so cute that I can't help but post them.

I love love love this picture.  Hope everyone has a great weekend!

7 Months!

Today I have something very serious to discuss. My baby is 7 months old. SEVEN months old. What!? Where did the time go? I have to say though, 7 months might be the most perfect age ever.  Ben is SO fun. He babbles, woo-woo’s, grunts and shrieks all day long. He’s the happiest, smiliest little guy and loves going out on adventures around town. He definitely knows who his favorite people are but isn't stingy with the smiles if you’re not one of them!  He is eating lots of food these days!  He usually gets fruit in the morning and veggies in the afternoon. He likes pretty much everything we’ve given him except for meats. Sweet potatoes and squash are big hits! He takes a nap at 9:00 and 1:00 and sometimes still needs a little short one around 4:45.  Ben has really mastered the art of rolling over. He can go from back to front and front to back over and over again with no problem! This is his main mode of transportation these days.  This little guy is going to be on the move soon! My little buddy just makes me happier than I could ever imagine!  He is trying to say mama and recently started waving bye bye.  I am definitely not ready to see him wave bye bye and say mama at the same time.  Oh man, today was definitely a hard day because it was his first day back at school and my first day back to work.  I know he loves every minute with his new friends and the best part is seeing his smiling face with his arms reaching out when I go to pick him up.  Ben has seriously stolen my heart. 

6 Month Doctor Report

Do you know what today is?!  Ben is 7 months old!  I can't believe it, either!  I promise 7 month pictures tomorrow, but first I wanted to give an update since I took Ben for his 6 month (even though he is 7) checkup on Wednesday.  Dr. Pope was on vacation for most of the month of July so I wasn't able to get Ben in until Wednesday.

We got a great report all around!  Ben is 17 lbs 8 oz. and 26.5 inches tall!  Dr. Pope said that everything looked great!  Ben had to get a few shots and it just broke my heart!  Ben is the happiest baby who is ALWAYS smiling and laughing (I am seriously thankful for this because he honestly never cries unless I am not giving him his bottle fast enough!) and he of course was smiling and laughing at nurse Dori and then came the pricks!  It was a delayed reaction but he was crying so hard there were tears just flowing down his little red cheeks without any sound coming out of his mouth.  We are always thankful for good doctor reports, though!  Here are some pictures of Ben while we were waiting for Dr. Pope.  He was loving tearing up the paper on the table. 

Poppin' Dino Fun!

These days I love to watch my little buddy play with his toys.  He has really started to explore and play with them and I love to see his expressions as he discovers new things. 

Playing with GiGi

First- lots of birthday love to send out!  We are sending out lots of birthday hugs to Ben's Uncle Steve (Gringo Earl) and Auntie Natalie!  Hope the year ahead is the best one yet!

We had a pretty exciting weekend around here.  On Saturday we had a garage sale to clear things out of the garage and make more space.  It was a success and we can now fit 2 cars in the garage!  We also got to spend time with MawMaw and Aunt Matt on Saturday and Ben loved all of the excitement.  I have never seen him jump so high in his jumperoo!   On Sunday Poppy and GiGi came back over to play. 

No GiGi, you are supposed to put the orange ring around the stand, not use it for a face rest. 

 

 Don't worry GiGi, I'll show you how to play with the ring stacker. 

See GiGi, you take the rings and you put them around the stand like this.  

We had lots of fun playing with GiGi and Poppy on Sunday and can't wait to see them again soon! 

 

p.s.- I do keep pillow cases on our pillows but it was Sunday and that is sheet washing day! 

Spoons!

Ben is growing up so fast, I can't even believe it.  Each day he amazes me with something new and exciting that he does. We have been working on using the sippy cup for juice for a few weeks now and he has recently become interested in trying to feed himself.

 

I'm not sure how much food actually goes in his mouth, but he sure does have fun trying to get it in there!