Chairs

I'm not sure if anyone else dealt with this prior to the walking phase, but chairs are fascinating apparently.  Either that or Ben will end up being an interior designer or home stager.  Here's some footage of what takes place everyday in our kitchen around dinner.

The Great Outdoors & Hot Dogs

It's been so nice out lately that we've been trying to make the most of the great outdoors plus Ben LOVES being outside.  Here's some pics of him walking in the grass.  That didn't last long becuase he hates the grass so we can't put him down in it - once he fell he didn't want to keep walking anymore. 

Ben's first experience with a hot dog (turkey dog) and he could not put it down.  He thought it was the greatest food invention ever and would only eat it whole which made me nervous, but he gnawed on it until peices fell off and didn't choke once.

As for the walking status - he's getting a ton better with balance and will stand on his own for a while without wobbling too much.  He's taken about 5 steps on his own so far and will walk with you if you hold his hands.  Seems like we're getting closer to the milestone which is exciting and sad all at once.

One last note - the pancakes I made last weekend were amazing!!!  I highly recommend them if you've got the ingredients and the time.  It doesn't take long to make and they're pretty healthy for you as well.  Here's the recipe - I hope you enjoy as much as we did!

Banana, Raisin, Oatmeal Pancakes
1cup old fashioned oats
1 cup all purpose flour
1/4cup (packed) brown sugar
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 cup plain yogurt
3/4 cup whole milk (can substitute skim)
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 bananas - mashed (we only used one and it gave it just enough flavor)
1 cup raisins (optional)
1/4 cup unsalted butter

Whisk first 6 ingredients in medium bowl.  Whisk yogurt, milk, eggs, and vanilla in another medium bowl to blend.  Whisk dry ingredients into yogurt mixture just until blended.  Fold in mashed bananas, raisins and butter.

Brush nonstick skillet with additional melted butter; heat over medium heat.  Pour by 1/3 cupfuls onto skillet.  Cook until bubbles form on top and bottoms are golden brown (about 2 minutes) - flip and cook another 2 minutes.  (Medium heat is as high as you want it.  they may take a little longer, but will brown up quicker so the lower heat is better.)

Happy Birthday Dada!!

It's Brian's B-day so Ben and I decided to take some early pics to wish him a happy birthday.  Ben wasn't so sure about more pieces of paper since we did this just yesterday for his grandpa, but he still seemed to humor me through the process.  Brian smoked ribs yesterday which were very good - he's finally learned the tenderness aspect of smoking the ribs, now if he'd only try pork instead of ribs everytime!  Well, off to make homemade pancakes!

Happy B-day Grandpa!

Opening Day

Too bad he didn't bring the Royals any good luck - although he is wearing a Greinke shirt so at least he did well.  I'm also pretty sure Brian was more excited than Ben about the blue shirt....

Easter Egg Hunt

On saturday my company had an Easter egg hunt and Ben was the lucky finder of the 'golden egg' (with a little help from Mommy). Oddly enough it was the only egg he wanted to hold onto.  That entitled him to a $10 gift card to Toys R Us which we proceded to spend on our way back for diapers and food - good times.

He was a little terrified of the Easter bunny but we made sure he got a pic with him anyway even though it's stranger danger stage for him.

Grandparents visit

This past weekend my parents visited us and since Ben has just recently started the stranger danger it took a while before he warmed up to them, but after a little while he seemed to have a blast. Here are some pics of him enjoying his time with them.

Deebo pushing Ben in his truck


Papa playing with Ben in his new Italian soccer jersey


Ben was fortunate enough to get to eat out and some nice places while they were in town also - how can a 10 month old beat Capital Grille? He loved it and the people watching of course! He also received some extremely cute outfits direct from Italy - thanks Papa! (pics of that to follow this weekend)

10 Months Old!

Ben has finally hit double digits - 10 months! The past month has been pretty good.

For a quick recap on some things he's doing - he loves to use his walker (he does laps everyday in our house with it) and is becoming very good with balance. No steps yet, but he has taken steps while only holding on with one hand so getting much better and steady. He loves most all food especially turkey. He has started pointing and occasionally will wave bye bye, but he still needs more work on that piece.

Apparently he's also becoming a bit of a troublemaker at school. They have to baraccade him in a small space because one day he was back moving cribs (yes, he is much stronger than you would think for his size). He has also been known to bang toys on everything because he likes to hear the noises they make even if that object is another kid. Guess we need to keep an eye on that. Otherwise he's just a handful and ball of energy. He never, and I mean NEVER, stops moving....

Click here for a slideshow from the past month.