Possibly even better than that is his new love for "jumping." Joel was jumping at him the other day, and Benjamin decided he wanted to jump back. His jump involves bending at the knee as far as he can, grunting and getting NO AIR. But this also makes him crack up, every time. I love it!
His stories have gotten longer and much more expressive. They are VERY detailed for not involving any real words. They always involve pointing and often include some crazy eyebrows. If and when my attention fades and I stop answering/responding to his comments, he gets louder and usually squeals/screams.
I didn't think it was possible for him to love books any more, but it seems I stand corrected. Now that he can crawl up on the couch by himself, it isn't uncommon to come into the living room and find him sitting like a big boy on the couch with a book on his lap. Seriously. This morning we had staff mtg at our house, and he just read books to himself alone in his room from 8:40- 9:30ish...then I heard him trying to open the door, so I brought in his computer, and blocks, but most of the time I peeked in to check on him, he was sitting in the corner flipping pages. :) (Around 10, he was all done being alone, so I left the mtg to take him on a walk, but I was very impressed nonetheless.) His favorites are:
- Eloise Wilken Stories - a little golden book collection - he can sit through one of the nine beloved classics while I read, but he also loves to just flip through the book and point to pictures while babbling. I'm still not sure if he's reading to me, or asking what the pictures is, but I usually identify the object.
- The Very Hungry Caterpillar
- Hop on Pop
- One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish
- Usborne "That's not my..." Series
- Monster at the End of the Book (we don't own this one yet, but he loves it from the library)
- Sandra Boynton books. Red Hat Blue Hat, Lets Dance Little Pookie, ect)
- And anything with animals that he can identify...
He has gone through a crazy growth spurt and I can't wait for his 18 month sats. I think he's going to be inches taller than 12 months. Oh, and his feet grew...in length and chunkiness. We bought shoes 2 months ago, and they are now in storage...At the time of purchase I thought they would last through the winter...haha
Benjamin has gotten a little naughtier lately. He isn't doing well with the "no standing on the couch" rule, and is struggling with the command to "come here Benjamin". Over all, he is pretty obedient, and definitely knows the consequence that is coming should he decide to disobey, but his curiosity gets the best of him, and sometimes he decides its worth the risk. He's also gotten very independent and can't stand being held or holding my hand while we walk through the church foyer, or most any where else that looks fun to explore. Pretty soon I'm going to have to get serious and not give in to just letting him run wild. But thats one area I haven't been a stickler on.
I know I'm so fortunate to have such a content little guy. The other day we visited a church and were asked out to lunch afterward. Benjamin has been going down for naps at 12:30 or 1:00, and in the two minutes from the church to the restaurant he was OUT! Well, we woke him up to go inside, and he made it an hour and a half, only getting whiny the last 10 minutes. I'm really trying to appreciate this character trait before it changes or before his little sister comes and rocks our world. Until then, we hope the next 3 months continue to be GREAT...
FYI - as much as I went on and on about our disrupted sleep schedule it seems the sole issue was letting him stay up too late. We now have the routine of reading some books at 7:45, going to his room, singing a song and he goes down FANTASTIC. Once in a while he whimpers or cries for a minute, but never longer, and sleep ensues! Although those 12 nights were pretty miserable, I think they served the purpose of making me thankful for schedule and ease...I am NOT a good guesser!
Well here's some recent pictures of Mr Benjamin. Enjoy!
telling me stories!
reading to himself
taking a break from dancing to daddy's guitar playing, to give him a smootch!
Well, happy September to all!
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