Cousins

Sorry for the long delay in posting! Life has been very hectic since going back to my kindergarten job. That a few other obligations have kept us very busy. But not too busy to enjoy Ben!

A few weeks ago at his ped. appointment, Ben weighed in at 9 lbs. 9 oz. and 23 inches long. We were shocked that he had skipped right past 8 lbs. without us even knowing it! He also got his first shots. He was terribly shocked but recovered quickly. My reaction to his crying was to cry myself. I don't know what came over me!

This post is titled cousins because Ben's cousin, Attica, is with him in the first two pics. We went to Sullivan, IN (south of Terre Haute) last weekend to visit my brother, Rob, and sister-in-law, Veronica and Attica. It was a wonderful visit and Attica is very clearly excited about her new baby cousin. I also had the interesting experience of trying to explain breast feeding to a 4-year-old. "Does juice come out of one and water out of the other?"

Looking at this pictures reminds me very much of me and Rob. I was just a little older than Attica is now when Rob was born and many of our pictures from his first year look similar. It makes me wonder how mom and dad handled a 5-year-old and a newborn.

Everyone tells us that a baby's personality is evident from birth. Based on Ben's personality recently, we're hoping he's a very happy and contented person. He smiles constantly and is just beginning to learn to laugh - what a delight!

Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms who are reading this, especially my friends who share this first Mother's Day with me and friends who are going through difficult times with their own families.

I had a delightful weekend. Saturday, got to walk to the first Berwyn Farmer's market of the year with William, Ben and Rudy (the dog). This has been a tradition for William and me for years, going back to when we lived in Chicago. Went to visit mom and Bruce with Ben in the early afternoon for lunch and a quick photo session. This was the first drive Ben and I took by ourselves that was a good distance (45 minutes). As a church musician, William had to work Saturday afternoon. The day ended with a going-away party for my cousin Kevin who has enlisted in the marines. It was fun to introduce Ben to family members who hadn't met him yet. Also fun to see both parents in one day (a rare treat).

Mother's Day itself included church this morning, lots of relaxing on the couch, and the three of us are about to go out to dinner. We're very lucky that Ben is good in the car and so far has slept through every restaurant outing.

I've begun to realize in the last few days that I'm getting in a groove taking care of Ben. I have little to compare it to but he is a very easy-going baby. Going back to my kindergarten job last week made me tired, but got us on a schedule. I now have a regular time to take a shower and get myself going and Ben's feeding schedule feels more structured as he gets fed every morning at 6:30 since I have to leave right after that. It also provides additional daddy/Ben bonding time. They spend the morning together while I'm at work. Most of the time when he's crying, I'm able to figure out what's going on. It used to seem impossible before. I'm sure things will change, but I'm enjoying it for now!

Visitors!

Although the subject is visitors, I can't resist starting this post with a picture of Ben's newfound smile! His favorite subjects to smile at are William and me and then his Rainforest Safari mobile. Many smiles happen at a time, but I'm always too mesmerized to get the camera. William is smarter than me though and snapped this one today after church. Stretching is his other big move, so we're lucky to have gotten both at once!



We have been very blessed with visitors over the last 6 weeks. After the fact that we have this little bundle of joy, the best thing about being stuck in the house for me has been the visitors and all the kindness we've been shown. Thank you to all who have sent cards, made meals and stopped by for a short visit. William and I continue to be amazed by the generosity and love in our lives. For those of you who we haven't gotten to visit with, we're getting out more and hoping to pay visits of our own soon. I'm well on the road back to normal, starting to make dinner again and actually going back to my kindergarten job tomorrow morning (3.5 hours in the morning). William will be taking care of Ben in the morning while I work and then we'll switch.



Among the visitors we've had were my friend Kim and her little guy, Ian. Ian is 5.5 months old and was born almost 4 lbs. bigger than Ben. The size difference is amusing and even more amusing is there interest in each other. Of course being older, Ian is more social and curious than Ben is. As soon as we laid them down together, Ian reached out to touch Ben's head and then Ben responded by sticking his arm out. Very sweet! "Hey, there's someone around that's my size."




Grandparents have been our main visitors and they've all been more helpful than I can say. (meals, cleaning, photos, fixing our sink and electrical work among other things) Cousins and church friends have brought meals and friendly visits that have been lifesavers.


Here's Grandma Nelson with Ben a week ago.






And Nana Lietzau 2 weeks ago.

And Grandpa Lietzau...Ben's hair tends towards reddish and my dad is who it comes from. (also Ben's middle name) I think they like each other.

I'll end with one more of Ben by himself. He is one long and skinny baby! He doesn't fill out newborn clothes in width, but he sure does in length.