my year-and-a-half.......year old

{let me preface this by saying i am in a serious blogging rut. serious. i have things to say but then i write it and think its blah. saddening right? so, i might not be as "posty" as natalie usually is. i need to revamp and save up. cause this economy is draining more than all our life's savings...i think i can officially say it is now draining at my creative stream of consciousness as well. so i might stick to soaking up everyone else's creativity and stick to the areas im still loving....sewing and cooking and designing. blog, you will have to wait...}






we might have been saying bennett was "a year and a half" when asked for the past couple months, but now it is official. i guess since we've been saying it for so long that it doesnt come as quite the shock.

words:
in addition to the ones mentioned in the last "things bennett is doing" post: bubble::boat::lawnmower::bird::berries (straw-, blue-, black-) ::more::help::please::no::mimi::doc::water::bobo::this::key::bath::boots::pop::hi::elmo::aune


ive just now realized that the word listing thing is going to get harder and more pointless(?) as time goes on, since eventually he will just TALK straight out. which is crazy to me. its already crazy how much we can communicate with him, and he with us.


overall, bennett seems to be a well adjusted, stubborn, bull-in-a-china-shop, funny, ACTIVE, well fed {no, really natalie? i highly doubt it. i mean just look at him. he definitely regularly passes by a few meals} {i hope he doesnt read this at age fifteen and think i was an extremely rude and ridiculous mom for, um, finding funny in his eighteen month, um, stature. but then again, he most likely would think that i was that way whether i wrote any of this or not}, extremely loving, personable, independent, goofy, bouncy, quick learning, very BOY little big eighteen month old.


he is right under 30 lbs...already bigger and taller than most my friend's two year olds.


he had a 15 month check up, but the doctor said he didnt have to come for the 18 month one since all his verbal and cognitive skills were checking out at two year old levels. {again...MY mute child?? crazy}. PLUS, he already had all his shots, so really no reason to come back!


bennett is still sleeping around 12-13 hours a night, with an afternoon nap averaging 2.5 hours. sometimes he surprises us and sleeps 4 hours; sometimes he wakes up after 1.5 hrs.

he loves to sit at a window and listen to us point to things and say what they are or ask him "where is ___". he will crawl up or walk over to a window and say "more" if he wants to do this.

he gives incredible hugs and kisses...spontaneous and very much welcomed.

he kisses bo bo's.

if he has food, he is happy. and he will continue eating until you stop giving him food. this is why we do NOT keep giving him food, unless we are in a restaurant and WE want to eat. we {the entire family} have been saying recently how thankful we are he is a boy, bc the belly, linebacker stance, and overall human trash compactor status would NOT be that becoming on a little girl.


{saying quick prayer for any future children of ours who may or may not just possibly happen to be girls}


we laugh all the time at what a BOY he is...there is nothing delicate or dainty or clean about him.


he is very much loved by his church nursery, mother's day out, and gym nursery "teachers". we are so thankful that, not counting the few separation anxiety-ridden times, he is so easy to take to these places. i tell him we are either "going to school" or "going to play with the babies" and he runs to the carport door in utter excitement and keeps saying "baybeees!!!!" over and over again. while it may be relatively easy to "give him away," the second he sees/hears stephen or me or someone he recognizes {friend, family, etc} at the door to pick him up, he screams with joy and runs to us with a HUGE hug waiting.


he plays well by himself. im always curious if he really plays well with other babies. i mean, he likes them and seems to get along fine with all that i see...but since he is an only child {so far} i always wonder if he interacts with other children at these places or if he just lets them be. ive asked his teachers recently and they all say a little of both. i do know that he is not aggressive or possessive. which is good, but i know its only bc right now he has no reason to be. :) we will just wait and see what happens when sibling comes along one day...


my extremely good car-rider is still good on everyday outings, but we are finding it a little more difficult to keep him entertained on drives to the beach {or other places that may take over an hour}. his favorite car toys are still his steering wheels {he has two}. now we've started taking the back roads to the beach and he is able to look out the window and see the cows and horses, which greatly excites him {and apparently stephen and me...be glad you arent in the car with us}.


i cant imagine my life without this crazy booger, and we feel so blessed to have this healthy happy child.


i absolutely LOVE reading friends/blog friends blogs and reading how they all feel each one of their children is absolutely PERFECT. it makes me smile. bc i, too, look at this little face

everyday and thank the Lord for blessing us with the PERFECT child {for us}.


thats just how its meant to be, isnt it? :)

happy half bday bman! youre the bomb diggity