Like Fudge

A quote from my good friend Amy-

"I think non- parents don't quite grasp the 24/7ness of small children. Like fudge, ignoring them for mere seconds can result in disaster."

If you've ever made fudge or had a small child, I'm sure you're chuckling and can relate to the above statement. It really does sum up our lives right now with a very active almost 14 month old little boy with a growing curiosity for all things....well actually for all things he's not allowed to have. Ben has more toys in our house than most daycare centers have in rooms containing multiple children. Toys everywhere you look....under tables and couches, taking over the living room, invading every bedroom, in the bath tub, on the changing tables....everywhere. You'd think this would keep him busy as a bee but no. Ben wants to play with the broom and swiffer. He wants to see how many of my things he can shove in his barn. He wants to take every shoe out of our shoe rack and strategically place them in secret locations all over the house. He wants to take all our remotes and point them at the TV and push buttons until something happens. He wants to try with all his might to take Brina's collar off her neck and remove the tags.

So our dilemma this year....what to do about a Christmas tree??? Brian loves the smell of fresh cut tree and really wanted a real tree. Especially since we aren't going anywhere for Christmas and will actually spend the holiday in our house, it would be nice to be festive rather than waking up Christmas morning to a Christmas-less house. But in the back of my mind i'm thinking "Ben+tree= DISASTER" So our solution for Christmas this year.....we have a 3 foot mini tree (cut off the top 3 feet of a larger tree) strategically placed on top of a card table in our living room. Out of reach but definitely still visible. I'll post pictures later of Ben attempting to help us "decorate" the tree.

Neat and Tidy

I admit......Ben was born to a woman who has many things higher on the priority list than having a squeaky clean house. Every New Years I resolve to do better and my house is always cleaner for the first few months but as the pace of life picks up, cleaning is the first thing to go.

Well...I gave birth to a cleaner. Ben is a boy who likes things neat and tidy and has taken it on himself to keep our house picked up. His favorite toy.....a broom. One of his favorite activities....taking wipes out of his wipe box and scrubbing the floor. The above video shows him neatly stacking the Christmas presents. This boy is neat and tidy.

Giving Thanks

This post is a bit late....but here's a list of things I'm especially thankful for this year (2010)

- Ben. I have a healthy 13 month old who brings me unbelievable joy every single day. Yes there are challenges and it's a lot of hard work but it is absolutely worth it.

- Ben has more or less been a very healthy kid. No major illnesses or injuries! Not to say we haven't gone through boxes of kleenex to wipe snotty noses or done loads of laundry after other unfortunate reversals of fortune, but he has been for the most part healthy. Blessing.

- Ben is sleeping. At least 50% of the time, he sleeps through the night without any wakings. After going 13 months without a night of uninterrupted sleep, we'll take it when we can get it.

- Ben is happy. He smiles and laughs at anyone and everyone hoping that they'll return the smile and give him an excuse to wave his pudgy hand in excitement.

- Brian. I have a wonderful husband who I've been married to for 4 years. He is working so hard to get his PhD and I admire his persistence in the important work he is doing. He is a wonderful father who sacrifices time and time again for his son and is setting an example of what it means to be a Christian man of integrity.

- Family. We have wonderful family who have been so supportive and loving. We could not make it without them. Our awesome parents are amazing grandparents to Ben. What a blessing.

- Health. We made it through 2010 without any health problems! 2006- Katie misdiagnosed with a terminal heart disease. 2007- Brian diagnosed with epilepsy after 2 seizures. 2008- Katie diagnosed with fibrous dysplasia after docs found bone tumors. 2009- Ben was born totally blue and not breathing. 2010- HEALTHY YEAR. Praise the Lord.

- Community. We love our church family. We love our neighbors. We love our friends.

We have lots to be thankful for this year. At the close of a crazy, hectic day, I'm sitting here drinking tea, looking through the pictures on my computer of the past year and giving thanks to God for all his blessings.

Busy Bee

I realized I never posted pictures from Ben's first Halloween! Well actually....it wasn't his first Halloween but last year he was only a day old and still in the hospital. So here's a picture from last year and a few from this year.

BIRTHDAY

Hi everyone....long time no blog. It's been a crazy crazy last few weeks! So rather than overwhelm you with a really long post, I'll give you a few short highlights with some pictures. It's official.....Ben is 1 year old!! On October 30th he officially turned 1 and celebrate we did!

Birthday fun started with a visit from Grandma and Grandpa Roelofs who were in Greece on his birthday. They came to visit a few weeks before the big day and kicked off the festivities with an awesome fire engine truck that Ben quickly learned how to ride and sound the alarm.

Then over birthday weekend we had several visitors- Grandma and Grandpa Ritsema flew back to Maryland to celebrate and one of my best friends in the whole world and "Aunt" to Ben came up from Florida as well. Ben loves Aunt Jo.

We threw Ben a party on Saturday afternoon and lots of friends came to enjoy the festivities. A few highlights...

The cake....our neighbor should quit her day job and make cakes for a living. She made Ben a duplo birthday cake which was the most amazing thing I've ever seen. For those who don't know, duplos are basically giant legos....made large enough so they aren't a choking hazard. She made the duplos and lego man out of rice crispie treats and covered them in fondant. AMAZING.

We had 7 kids under 3 years old running around our house

People were way too generous and got Ben some amazing gifts- Thanks to everyone who came!

Then Ben and I took off with the Ritsema grandparents for Denver for a few days. The flight there went really well much to my amazement. We had an awesome time in Denver seeing lots of family and friends and having yet another birthday celebration with cousins Makenna and Levi and other family. Thanks to everyone there for a wonderful week! Then Ben and I flew back alone yesterday. Again the flight went well all things considered....travel is just not easy with a one year old no matter the circumstances. But we're home and doing well and looking forward to settling into a normal routine again.

There's just a brief overview of the past few weeks.....crazy busy but tons of fun. Happy Birthday to the coolest kid ever :)

A Little Sunshine

I wish I could say everyone in our household is happy and healthy but that's not the case. Sick Mom....possibly sick Dad. Finally a healthy baby.

So as a ray of sunshine for everyone...here's a video of Ben in his Halloween costume. Enjoy!

All Out

Well.....apologizes again for blog silence but there's good reason for it this time.

Ben's personality is starting to shine through and we're starting to get glimpses of what he'll be like when he's older. His obsession with pesto makes me think he'll have a refined palate. His constant wave to everyone he sees and the giant grin he gives them makes me think he'll be super social. The fact that in the last few weeks we've found all manner of items hidden in his toy barn (shoes, various toys, Brian's American Express.........) makes me think he'll be clean and organized. Another thing that's shining through is Ben's desire to go "all out." When he commits to something he commits and does it 100%. For example, when he was younger, he didn't just poop like a normal baby......he exploded and destroyed outfits. When he decides he wants to eat....down goes 2 pieces of pizza. Well...another example in our household. When Ben finally decided to get sick.....he went all out.

Ben hasn't been sick until now. We made it 11 months with no illness but he finally succumbed. It started about 10 days ago when daycare called saying he was running a fever. Then the nose started running. Fussiness set in. Saturday morning consisted of several rounds of vomiting. Sunday it was coming out the other end. Monday we developed a cough. Tuesday we went to the pediatrician and walked away with amoxicillin for double ear infections. Misery all around. No sleep for anyone. Blaaaaah.

So we've had our hands full with sickness....both Ben and Mommy. Luckily Daddy avoided it and was a wonderful caregiver to us both. Also, Grandma and Grandpa Roelofs were in town for the weekend and not only played nurse but also cleaned the house from top to bottom. Thank you!

We're disinfected and on the mend.....we're hoping for some decent sleep tonight :)