Pictures

First Birthday

Ben's first birthday experience:

Birthday boy ...


Birthday cake (made by mommy -- daddy helped with the smoke stack) ...


Playing with cousins Anne and Grace ...


Blowing out the candle and first bite of cake ...


Aftermath ...


A very special THANK YOU to everyone who helped us celebrate Ben's first birthday!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BEN

And the WALKER is ...

BEN!
Can you believe that in just a matter of a couple of days he decided he wanted to start walking all over the place?! Up until a day or so ago, Ben would only walk with the assistance of a hand from someone he loved - now all of a sudden he's walking from the kitchen to the living room. The best is when he's carrying something in his mouth (often times his favorite toy Mr. Monkey) and decides to go for a walk. Pictures to come, so stay tuned.

It's been a while ...

Sorry! We haven't updated this in a couple of months, what's wrong with us? Beans is SO much fun right now ... he's still trying to walk and taking lots of spills in the process. He's awfully happy and getting bigger and bigger every day!

A trip downtown with Grandma Pat

Grandma Pat took Ben downtown yesterday to go to a garden show she wanted to see at Grant Park. Here are some of the cute pictures she took of Ben while they were on their mini-trip.




Ben is now crawling more than he is scooting on his belly, and so we are still waiting until he decides he wants to walk. He will stand with help and is still too uncertain to do it himself, but he's gaining confidence every day. For the time being, he pulls himself up using the coffee table and then makes his way around the room by holding onto the couch, an end table, the other couch, and whatever else he can find.

Ben is surrounded by so many people that love him, and love to have fun with him. Enoy some more pics! :)

A day at the zoo

We took Ben to the zoo for the first time a couple of weeks ago ... we aren't sure if he enjoyed the animals or the kids more, but we got some good pictures. Ben pulled himself to the front of the stroller the whole time we walked around, so he must have been happy.

Look Mom and Dad!

Steve and I were waiting for one of Ben's onesies to pull from the dryer, so we decided to put him in his crib so he wouldn't get into too much trouble while we waited. We both left the room for a minute, and when we came back in, Ben was standing in his crib! Look how proud of himself he was!! I have to admit, I was pretty impressed as well, and I would have told him "good job" if it weren't for the fact that I don't want him to do it again. The crib is already at one of the lowest positions and he could easily flop right over the rail as it is now ... guess we have to move it down another notch. This poor kid is going to be in a toddler-bed before he's 2!


Ben is still working on crawling as well, although you probably have guessed that he far-prefers to be standing. He still hasn't figured out that if there is an object in his way, he can simply go AROUND it, rather than trying to go THROUGH it. The exersaucer was in his way so he took about 10 minutes to navigate through it. He didn't seem to mind the extra work, so Steve and I figured we'd let him continue on his merry way rather than helping him out. :)

Next doctor appointment (9-month check-up) is at the end of this month, but unofficially he is almost 25 pounds. Not sure how long he is yet, but we'll know in a couple of weeks. 

Just for fun ...

 

I went on a business trip for a week and when I came back Ben got his 5th tooth and was working on getting his 6th. I was worried he'd change a lot while I was gone, and thankfully, that was the only "major" change that I could tell. He still loves to stand and he's becoming more stable, but he still doesn't seem to want to crawl. I wonder if he is focusing more on getting teeth than crawling or being mobile. Of course, he continues to grow and he is always so much fun!

When can I be a big kid??

Steve and I have increasingly been noticing that Ben really wants to be able to get up and interact with the "big kids". This was even more evident when we were in Savoy this past weekend celebrating cousin Anne's 1st birthday. Ben was on the floor while Anne and Anne's cousin Ella were walking about - I swear that if Ben knew what jealousy was, he'd be feeling it! He continues to try to schooch forward when he's on his tummy, but no crawling yet. He also likes to stand whenever he can, particularly if you prop him next to a chair or some other sturdy item he can hold on to.

As sweet as a Valentine

Ok, so it's a bit past Valentine's Day, but I couldn't help but put these cute pictures up of Ben-bear. I sure hope he stays this happy!

What do you think?

Does Ben look like a Schultz? Or does he look like an Iammartino? More photos coming soon ... Here are some photos of Me when I was younger. I'll post some pictures of Steve when he was a wee-one once I get them scanned.

Stand up & grin and bear-it

I think I have mentioned before how Steve thinks Ben will skip crawling and go right into walking. It's true that Ben shows more interest in standing than sitting. Grandma/Grandpa Schultz have been standing him up in his pack-n-play and he just holds on and has a good ol' time. Steve and I have also noticed that Ben will do the same in the crib if you help him stand and grab on the rails. Although Ben sure likes to stand, I'm still not sure walking will come before crawling, and it seems to me like he has not a lot of interest in doing any but rolling to get where he wants to be. I'm in no rush though, because as soon as he starts really moving we'll have to baby-proof the apartment! I'm just amazed by how much he changes every day; even if he isn't walking yet!


Ben is also testing out his new teeth. Beyond trying out new foods - he likes to give love-bites every once in a while. He'll enthusiastically grab a fist full of hair, or take his little hands and grab either side of your face, and takes a BIG BITE on your jaw or ear lobe. Sounds cute, right? One thing -- it hurts! It makes me laugh every time, but I also have to gently tell Ben that it hurts. I know he doesn't understand, but you can never start teaching right from wrong too early, right? Ben has such a goofy grin with those little teeth popping through.

You know what I love, even more than the fun little things that Ben does during the day - like rolling; the funny expressions he makes when he's concentrating on picking a piece of food up, or when he tries to make a new word or sound; how excited he gets when he knows he's going to eat - is at night when he's about to go to bed, or when he's ready for a nap, and I give him a bottle and after time his eyes finally close and his arms and legs finally relax. I love to look at his little features, and I kiss his little fingers and his forehead. I know the doctors all say we are supposed to let Ben fall asleep by himself, but how do you miss an opportunity to have him sleeping on your shoulder feeling his little chest against yours. It's really one of the greatest things in the world. We've been so lucky with our little munchkin.

Child labor ... isn't there a law against this?

Executive Ben reporting for duty ...

Anyone need some extra help getting household chores done? If so, we've got a little helper ready to go!

Thanks to Oma (that's Grandma Pat to everyone else) and Grandpa Art, Ben is already getting used to earning his keep ... :) You gotta love a man who doesn't mind doing the dishes every once in a while - even if Oma has to help! I'm sure he just thought he was going to get a quickly bubbly bath ... what a surprise he got, huh?




Our little guy is also becoming quite computer-savvy! I think this is due to all the times Daddy has sat working on the computer with Ben on his lap. Ben loves to type (ok, HIT) on the keyboard while Daddy is reading articles to him. Even if you give Ben a new toy to play with, he'll almost immediately throw it on the ground and reach for the keyboard instead. Maybe Ben will grow up and do stuff with computers like his Uncle Charles!! I guess we'll all have to wait and see ... stay tuned.