Alto Cinco!

Hooray! We made it to 5 months old already! I can't believe how quickly time is passing by! Ben celebrated his 5 month birthday just after Thanksgiving (and I'm only now getting to write about it!) while we were visiting family in Chicago. We were with my side of the family for the first time as a group in over a year so it was great to meet some new additions as well as wise-crack with the regulars. It was a great time and I'm sad it's over...and that everyone lives so far away. Dang.

Ben laughing!

If you were on the edge of your seat waiting for an update on the life of Benjamin, I do apologize. Now that the holiday season is officially upon us, I have been getting caught up in decorating, cleaning, feeding, and the usual commotion that comes around this time of year. We are hosting Christmas at our house for Aaron's side of the family again, which will be a good time and an interesting one now that we have tons of baby junk to hide somewhere in the house. Trying to find such places and keep on top of regular housework has been occupying most of my time these days.

This summer baby does not like hats. Or clothes....

Ben's really blossoming in so many ways. He's finally a real joy to be around when he's awake (yay!) even if he has his classic stoic look, which is common. He's teased us once with a ridiculously cute laugh that is suppressed most of the time and he's a dream child in the car. No more hours of listening to hysterics from the back seat. I am so glad those days are over...for now. Ben is recognizing people's faces and absolutely loves when daddy comes home! He's already a football fan, and will sit watching it with Aaron whenever a game is on. Even if I'm facing him away from the TV, he will strain his head around to try and catch some of the action. I'm hoping that being born into a Bills family, he will learn the virtue of being a good loser.

Some other things that have been happening in his life include starting some solids and grabbing things, especially his best buddy, Zig the cat. I wanted to wait until 6 months to give him some food but after a few weeks of him being a "brat at the boob" as I call it, I succumbed and gave in. Turns out, he was hungry, which explains why he was kind of a grump for a while. He wasn't always crying like he used to, but he was whiny and had a very short attention span. Now, we stuff his face until he starts blowing raspberries with his mouth full (what a mess) and he is happy as a clam for hours. It's also nice because now Aaron can feed him at least once a day and they can bond while I get a short break. Zig, still thinking that he's the baby of the family, loves everything that has to do with Ben. Often times, I will find the two of them cuddling after nap time and a pile of dirty baby clothes is like heaven for this cat. Now that Ben is learning to grab things better, he is enjoying petting his buddy and punching him in the face (at my encouragement). He also likes daddy's beard and mommy's hair or earrings (ouch), as well as spoons and his toes. Pretty much anything he can get his hands on, he will, and it'll probably end up in his mouth. He still loves being naked, which will be a problem now that it's snowing, but I'm sure he'll learn quickly that being naked in winter is no fun.

First attempts at crawling!

Lastly, with Christmas approaching, I put Ben through his first photoshoot done by his Aunt Val. I really wanted to do some sort of Christmas card this year and had to take advantage of this kid's cuteness while it lasts. Enjoy the pictures and video clips. He's a real ham and I love him.

Blowing out candles for daddy!

Sweet potato lipstick totally brings out his eyes.

Watching a movie with daddy and Zig.

Hard to tell, but very upset with mommy at this moment.

I could look at this picture all day!