Our dog is depressed...

Ben and I are enjoying a rainy day at home. He is in SUCH a good mood, as you can see. He's talking (loudly) and I swear he just tried to have a conversation with Abby.

New developments this week: Ben is on the move!! As I said last week, he has started to roll from tummy to back. He did great with this for a couple of days, and now is just kind of fussing with it again. He's also trying to roll from back to tummy though he is only making it to his side. I think what may be holding him back is his roundness. Now, I love that boy, but he is a little round! The doctor said he is very healthy, though, and his weight continues to be proportional to his length (just both in the 99%). So anyway, back to Ben being on the move. The big thing is that he is no longer where we leave him in his crib or when we put him on the floor. It has been two mornings in a row now where I've woken up to look at our baby video monitor and he is no longer visible on the screen. This morning he woke up way up at the head of the crib and turned 90degrees. I then brought him downstairs and put him on his tummy on the floor and within a few minutes he had pulled himself around to face the other way to get at other toys. Although I am very pleased as a Mom and a therapist that he is right on developmentally, I am terrified that our lives as we know them are over. It only gets worse from here. Soon, I will have to keep my coffee tables clear, we'll need real end table (not just the tv trays we still use in the upstairs family room) as Ben will discover they are easy to pull over.

Abby also seems to know the end is near. She is already a little depressed. She recently spent two weeks at my parents "Lab Ranch." There she had two other labs to play with all the time (and they did), acres upon acres of land, and no baby taking all the attention away from her. There are times she seems concerned about Ben. When he cries she'll come sniff at his crib or where ever he is and lay near us until he calms down. She greets him now when we come home by sniffing, and sometimes offering a lick. But all in all, she seems to wish things were the way they used to be! I always say, she doesn't realize that she has gone from spoiled rotten, to just plain spoiled and there is no explaining this to her!

Traveling With a Four Month Old!

So much to write about! It has been a CRAZY busy 2 weeks. As most of you know, we traveled to Richmond last weekend to introduce Ben to a ton of family! It went so much better than I could ever imagine! Flying with a four month old is an overwhelming thought and I was in panic mode the week leading up to it but it went well. I think four months old is the perfect time to travel. He's on somewhat of a schedule, but doesn't want to get down and move around yet. Actually, there were aspects that were easier! We did take advantage of getting on the plane first. This was nice so we could stow all our gear and be sitting when others were getting on. I can see how later when he'll want to be on the move getting on the plane first will only elongate the amount of time sitting in those small seats. One thing is for sure, you get A LOT of dirty looks when you are traveling with a baby. But, Ben settled in, ate a little, and fell asleep for take off and landing of all our flights. He would wake up ever so often, smile and laugh at people and then cuddle in and fall asleep again. He cried maybe twice and only for a few seconds. He did great! The trickiest part of traveling was feeding Ben at the airports! On the plane, not so bad. I would just sit in at the window seat, have Brian outside, cover up and go for it. At the airport, there is NO good place. Especially in Atlanta. That airport is always packed, there are no seats, no place private. I just covered as best I could, what are you going to do? One thing I didn't do which I wish I would have was wear a button down shirt. That may have helped.

The visit went well. Ben charmed everyone, of course! He dazzled them with his eyes, smile and laugh. Everyone just ate him up! How wonderful it is for him to have so many Great Grandparents! We took a ton of pictures and I wish I would have gotten more video (I'm having trouble uploading videos lately, we'll work on it). Thursday we spent the evening with Grandma and Grandpa Bishop as well as Aunt Debbie and Uncle David. We got to visit with all the Great Grandparents one at a time and then on Saturday Karen and Barry had everyone over at once. Ben got to be with all the Great Grandparents, aunts and uncles and close friends. It got just a little noisy, and by that I mean you couldn't hear yourself think! Ben (and myself) got just a little overstimulated and we needed to catch some quiet time here and there but it was so nice to see everyone. We got back Sunday night and Ben almost immediately passed out.

The week went well. We were busy back to work and daycare by Monday. I got to go to a Cubs Rooftop game on Tuesday night for Occupational Therapy Month. It was a ton of fun but I got home around midnight and then off to work again on Wednesday. Thursday morning we got up and my Dad was here bright and early to return our Abby!!! It was so good to see her again! Dad and I spent the next two days working hard around the house and cleaning up the yard. We DID get the railing up on our stairs which has been a big concern for everyone! It looks really good! The weather cooperated for us to get outside. It was 80 degrees yesterday! Ben even sat out on the back porch playing while we worked for a while. It was fun.

Thrown into all this was Ben's 4month checkup on Thursday. He got a couple BIG shots! He handled them well, he's been a bit sleepy since then. He was weighed and measured and true to Bishop form, he is on the top of the chart. He is ON the four month chart, though. He is 18lbs, and 27.75 inches long. This puts him around the 99%. Like I said, though, he is at least on the chart again.

In other big news, Ben is rolling over from his stomach to his back! It literally just started this morning. He's done it once or twice by accident over the past week, or so, but this morning he is doing it on purpose! It was so cool to see! He was so happy. Of course, it already means I can't keep him on his tummy. He's still not totally sold on tummy time and now he knows how to get out of it.

So, for the first time in two weeks, Brian, Ben and I are spending a day at home recovering, playing, just having fun!

Ben's First Easter

Hey y'all! I'm just warming up for our return, and Ben's introduction to the South. We're leaving tomorrow morning for Richmond to finally introduce Ben to the rest of his family! I've sought out and gotten a lot of advice on how to manage a 4 month old on the plane. Wish me luck! Fun stories to follow, I'm sure! I'm hoping to have lots of cute video and pictures after this weekend to share.

For now, here are shots from Ben's first Easter. The Easter Bunny came! He brought Ben a Bumpo tray, a stuffed bunny, some alphabet blocks, and even some chocolate for Mommy and Daddy! He LOVES his Bumpo Tray! His favorite thing is bumping his toys off the tray so Mommy can pick them up again. I thought I'd add some pictures of Ben and his new toys!

That's it for now. I'm exhausted from my work week and furiously packing so we can head to Midway in the morning to catch our flight! Pray for sleep tonight!!!!

The Three Day Cycle

True to Michigan form we had a cold and windy day at the beach. Thursday=beautiful. Saturday=beautiful. Friday=cold, windy. As you can see from the picture, that's about as close to the beach as Ben and I got. We jumped out of the car. I wrapped him up in his Snugli. Mom snatched our picture, and we jumped back in the car. We didn't even go over the dunes to see the lake. So, we will have to wait for Ben's first trip to the beach. We'll have plenty more opportunities. In just one short month, the boat will be in the water. I helped Dad put up the canvas yesterday while we were there. It's always so sad to see the boat up on the parking lot. I guess it's more sad to see the boat up on the parking lot in the fall. At least now, we know it will be floating very soon.

And now on to Ben. There is a little something here I am calling the 3 day cycle. Let's break it down a little.

Day 1: Happy Ben. Laughing, playing. Wet diapers throughout the day, but that's it. I take off the same outfit that night that I put on him that morning. A pretty good night sleep.

Day 2: Fairly Happy Ben. Laughing, talking, playing. Wet diapers throughout the day. Still only one outfit that day. Not the best sleep that night.

Day 3: A touchier Ben to start. A little sensitive. Cranking his legs up. Then, you hear it. Change diaper and generally change his outfit. Ben is now a bit less cranky. A few hours later, you hear it again and he looks like he's thinking really hard. Change his clothes again. Now he's feeling pretty good. We play a bit. Then a few hours later, you hear it again. Now it's just time to get a bath and more new clothes. Ben sleeps like a baby that night (pardon the pun).

Now, cycle back to Day 1.

It may vary slightly. For example, we may need more than one bath on Day 3.

In case you haven't figured it out, I am referring to his poopy diapers. Yesterday and today he has had a little bit everyday, but in general we are now following the 3 day cycle. I plan on talking to his doctor about this at his 4 month check up which is coming up. I'm wondering if I have just gotten too lax on my diet so I'm going to get strict about that again.

Happy Easter to everyone! We're planning on the Easter Bunny tonight along with my little sister who is spending the night with us.

Count down to Virginia, Ben's first plane ride, as well as meeting the rest of his Great Grandparents: 5 days!

Ben painted us a picture!

It feels like spring! Again! We're just hoping this will stick. There were 2 days or so where we had snow on the ground this week. But, today is upper 50's and I'm Spring cleaning! Ben has been sleeping a bit today. I keep telling Abby that we'll go for a walk when he wakes up, but he's been out for almost 3 hours now! I'll take it, though. Like I said, I got a lot of cleaning done.

We're getting ready for our trip coming up in one week. Tomorrow, Ben, Abby and I are heading to the beach to meet my parents for the day and hand off Abby. I'm going to miss her so much! They'll have her for almost 2 weeks! Then we're having my little sister over for Easter weekend which will be very nice. We leave Thursday for Virginia. Ben's first plane ride! I'm a little nervous as to how this will go. I just hope he sleeps. At least he's not old enough to want to get down and move around.

He's been good this week! Very happy and laughing a lot. He is so good with his hands and grabbing at his toys and bringing them right to his mouth. He's also discovered the fun in bouncing up and down in his activity chair. He thinks that is hysterical! He also thinks waking up at 4 am is hysterical! He just wakes up, happy, and laughing, and wants to play. Luckily, he's perfectly happy doing all this in his crib and eventually falls asleep again. I just wish I could sleep through it. It's so hard to be mad at him when I go in there and peak in his crib and he looks up at me with this huge smile! So cute!!

I thought I would attach a picture of Ben's first gift to Mom and Dad. At daycare this week he painted us an Easter egg! They were doing hand prints of all the kids and Ben wouldn't open his hand so they just smashed his fist around on the paper. I never thought little green splatches on a piece of paper could be so cute! It's up on the fridge, of course!

Ben in Kalamazoo

Ben and I had a great time in Kalamazoo with his Grandma and Grandpa Huling and all of his cousins! We had a little photo shoot and all. It's so fun getting all the kids together. We just went for a quick overnighter, then back to Chicago. Saturday I had a course all day and Ben got to spend his first day with his Dad. I should say, his first full day with it just being him and Dad. They both seemed to handle it well.

He's been doing great lately. He's a very happy, big boy. Sleeping is still going pretty well. He's asleep by 8pm and is still getting up once throughout the night (typically) for a quick feeding and then back to sleep until about 8am. Unless he has to go to daycare, that is, and I have to wake him earlier.

This weeks plans include his first trip to the beach! Ben and I are going to meet my parents in St. Joseph for lunch on Good Friday. We are handing over our little Abby so they can watch her while we go to Virginia. I hope the weather cooperates and we can get some good pictures of Ben at the beach for the first time. Then, my sister Maggie is coming Saturday for an overnighter. We'll have Easter breakfast together and she can get some quality time with Ben. I am just so excited to get to show him off! I feel like I'm the only one that really knows him along with the daycare people. Even Brian, who works so much that Ben is often asleep when he gets home. He's getting such a cute little personality, I want to share it with everyone! So, in 2 weeks we will be in Virginia to do just that!