A Shout Out to Gammy

Ben's Gammy has been there for Ben (and his Mom and Dad) since before he was born. So we wanted to take a moment to send a shout out to Gammy!!!!

Gammy was kind enough to come to Chicagoland to wait it out with us while we counted the days until Ben arrived. Wisely, she chose to fly in the day after my due date, knowing that in this family kids are stubborn even in utero.

We waited, and waited, and waited...

Here she is "hiding" behind my ample pregnant stomach. (Hey, there is not much else to do in February in Chicago when 9 1/2 months pregnant...)

Finally, after 2 weeks of waiting, I went into labor. Mom stayed by my side the entire time, cheering me on and giving moral support (and physical support as she held my head and neck during contractions).



She even danced a little for us to keep the mood light when we thought labor would never end!


And when Ben did decide to greet the world, Gammy was among the first to hold him and love him.

When it was time to bring Ben home from the hospital, she stayed with us until we got the hang of it. We were clueless first time parents, and I truly do not know what we would have done without her help and advice. I know for sure we would have starved and ripped our hair out.

She grocery shopped, she cooked, she helped with midnight feedings, she cuddled and loved Ben (when Dee gave her a chance); and most helpful of all, she talked me down when I freaked out about all sorts of things that a first time mom worries about because she just doesn't know any better.

Sadly, she eventually had to head home. (Thanks Bill for lending us to her for a month!) Fast forward 5 months, and Gammy was back to see her baby Ben. This time she did more than cuddle and love him. This time Ben was ready to party!

The two of them enjoyed many wrestling matches. It was a close call, but I think Ben took her a few times!



They had tummy time together. One of them fell asleep during tummy time. I'll give you one guess who. (Hint: It wasn't the 5 month old.)


Gammy and Gampy helped with feedings. Ben's not much of a cuddler, so they had to take their snuggles where they could get them.


Gammy introduced Ben to new and exciting games, which of course he loved.

Ben is now quite smitten with his Gammy. It might have something to do with all the love and attention he got from her. When I picked him up from his first day back to daycare, his teacher asked me if Grandma had been visiting. When I said yes, she told me she knew it because Ben just wanted to be held all day, so she just knew Grandma must have been spoiling him!


You are welcome to come spoil him any time. We miss you and love you both!

Modern Man

Mike is a modern, multi-tasking man!!! He managed to vacuum the entire house and take care of Ben at the same time.

We did not hear a peep out of Ben the entire time Mike vacuumed. He was enthralled with the vacuum, as you can see here, where he is staring at it and trying to grab it. Let's hope he learns from Dad that real men do housework!

Bed Head

Ben woke up from a nap this afternoon with a bad case of bed head. Check out this look!

From the front, it's a little better. Just the typical combover with hair curling around the ears. But, since he gets it from me, I guess I can't make too much fun.

Fun Times with Rice Cereal

Today marked two milestones in Ben's short life -- he turned 5 months old and he tried his first rice cereal. Here he is getting ready for his first "meal."

Ready for the first delicious bite!

Hmm, he's not sure what to make of this stuff. But he's game to try anything.

But after a few bites, he decides he's given it enough of a try and is pretty sure he's not buying what I'm selling.

I think this face says "What the hell is this crap, Mom?"

At this point, he decides to take matters into his own hands and grabs the bowl to get a closer look at what we're trying to feed him.

Once he's examined it, we try some more. Nope, still not liking it.

Enough already!

The rice cereal is apparently so gross, he'd rather eat his bib.

The aftermath...

Ben's very into grabbing everything and anything these days. Here, he grabs Dad's face.

Next, he grabs my hair -- a real favorite of his. Unfortunately, he loves to shove my hair in his mouth. Not so pleasant for me when that mouth is covered in rice cereal.

Thinking he's really funny after grabbing my hair, he gives a triumphant face.

All in all, it wasn't so bad. He is not sure what to make of it, but he is really interested in the spoon, and he didn't cry or fuss. He just didn't actually swallow much of it. Better luck next time...

Tech Savvy

Okay Mom and Dad, let me take a look and see if I can troubleshoot the problem.

I think I see where you went wrong. Give me one more minute...

There, all done. Try not to mess it up again guys.

Here Dad, let me show you what I did so you can fix it yourself next time.

No, no, no. You're not getting it.

Sorry Mom, there's no hope for him.

Our Other Wild Card - Soups On

Most of my posts are about Ben the Wild Card, but we have another wild card by the name of Dee. She is always stirring things up. And she loves to eat! Tonight she combined both loves.

She was quite interested in my Cheddar Broccoli soup from Panera Bread. I let her lick the bowl at the end of my meal, but I was not paying attention to her while she did so. All of the sudden I felt something wet hitting my arm. I looked over to find Dee's vigorous licking causing soup to fly all over the place.



She was unphased by the mess she was making, and licked her lips to let me know it was good stuff!

First School Project

For Father's Day, Creative World, Ben's daycare, helped Ben make his first homemade gift. His first Arts & Crafts project was super cute and is prominently displayed on the fridge:




I can't decide if my favorite part is that he is wearing a shirt and tie, that the tie is M&Ms themed, or that the shirt is so big on him that he has no discernable neck in this photo. Very fitting for a Chub Chubs!

Swimming

Ben went swimming for the first time. We headed over to Grandma and Grandpa Tammaro's house for a dip in the pool. Mike slowly lowered him in to see how he'd do. I expected some tears and crying, but no. He was pretty content in the pool.


We tried out a float, and he enjoyed laying back and taking in all the sights.


Dee kept a watchful eye on her baby but kept out of the water herself, preferring to stay dry and alert in case Mom and Dad took their eye of him and he needed her assistance.

Grandpa pushed Ben all around the pool. Ben got so comfy he practically fell asleep in that float!

But then Mom got her hands on him and took him for a lap. He was pretty happy to cruise around a little more. But after about 30 minutes, we decided he'd had enough for the day.

Once he was out of the water and snuggled up in his towel, he had a bottle and went to sleep for a bit. Swimming is hard work for such a little guy!

Here is a quick video of him enjoying the pool while his paparazzi swarms.