Happy Birthday, Meo!

Happy Birthday, Meo!  Thanks for being a great mother and grandmother.  We're lucky to have you in our lives!

Best Meo ever!

-Kim

I lost: A Halloween Story

I really enjoy Halloween.  I don't go nuts and decorate a ton or anything, but I really enjoy getting a chance to put on a costume and have a day of fun.  And having a little kid to dress up?  That is awesome.  I know the time period when I can dictate his costume is extremely short, so I want to take advantage while I still can.

Ben's first Halloween we kept it simple.  Ben was only two months old, and we didn't want to spend a ton of money.  (That is a theme in our Halloween choices.)  We got a sweet little sleeper with a skeleton on it.  He was able to use it as jammies as well.  Ben was comfortable and super cute.  Perfect.

 For Ben's second Halloween, I got a little more into it. I no longer had a newborn, so I was able to put a little more thought into it.  Ben was super into, well, destroying things at this point.  One of his favorite games was to have Pat build towers just so he could knock them down.  He was a perfect little Wreck-It Ralph.  We were able to easily put together costumes for Pat and myself as Fix-It Felix and Vanellope respectively.  We weren't perfect matches, but I think it came together pretty well.  Ben was able to re wear all his items.  And I only had to buy the tights and the hat for Pat and myself.  Pretty good win there.  I adored having a family costume.  It was so fun and I at least thought we looked super cute.

Fast forward to this year.  I'll admit I didn't put as much time into costumes this year.  I did want to try to put together a family theme, but I hate spending a ton of money on costumes.  I usually try to build off an idea where we can use stuff we already have.  Well with my ever expanding belly, I have a limited selection of what fits.  Pat had a great idea to have Ben be Batman, and we could be other characters.  Ben has several Batman shirts, and we recently got him a cape and mask to dress up as Batman.  Done.  I was easy.  I could just be a go-to for women- Catwoman. I already had cat ears and could reasonably get away with just wearing black.  Score for an easy costume while pregnant.  Pat was harder.  There are so many people Pat could be.  There's the Joker, the Riddler, Penguin, Scarecrow.  And that is just a few.  (And yes, I know those are the ones from the movies.  That is where all my Batman knowledge comes from.:) )  The only problem with a lot of them is sadly Pat doesn't have to wardrobe of a crazed villain.  Most of the time I am happy about that, but this was not one of them.  We decided to aim for the Riddler, as we thought we could pull that off the best.  I was able to get Pat a green shirt, and we were going to put question marks all over it.  It wasn't perfect by any means, but it would get the job done.

We just didn't think about one thing- the toddler.  Ben's cape came.  It looked so good.  He has black clothes we could dress him in, and he would look awesome.  The mask came with the cape.  It would have looked great, but I wasn't counting on him wearing it.  Our little threesome would be pretty cute.  We'd take Ben to a couple of neighbors to show him off a bit, get some cute pictures, and call it good.  That is not happening.  Why?  The toddler refuses to wear the cape.  Flat out, doesn't want it on, cries if you try, won't wear it.  No one else can wear it either.  Ben doesn't like that.  This includes stuffed animals.  

As he won't wear the cape, I didn't dress Ben in the rest of his outfit.  The all black doesn't do much without the Batman accessories.  He did agree to wear his t-shirt that says I'm Batman.

I'm choosing to believe he is taking a Jim Halpert from the Office approach- less is more on Halloween.  At least next year I'll have the girls to dress up, but they will probably reject my ideas soon enough.  Sigh, I fully admit I lost.  The toddler won the battle of the Halloween Costumes.

I win!

-Kim

Happy Birthday, Charlotte!

I feel so old.  My oldest niece is turning 7 today.  Seven!  How did that happen?  Charlotte is such a sweetheart.  She is fun and spirited and I love hanging out with her.  She is so sweet to her little cousin Ben, and I know she is going to be an awesome big cousin to the new babies.  We love you so much, Charlotte!  We wish we could be with you more often.  Have a very happy birthday!

Always looking out for Ben!

7!  Wow!

-Kim

Weekend move...

This past weekend was a busy one, but not one with a lot of pictures.  Meo and Omi came over to help us move the furniture between what will now be the kids' room and the parent room.  Fortunately Pat's and my room is basically finished.  It's a lot easier since we have less stuff and I was able to work on it while Ben napped.  The kids' room still needs a bit of work before I can take some cute pictures.  Ben did a great job spending his first night in his new room.  I know it will take some time before he is fully used to it, but he is happy to have his bed and his bed time buddies with him, which helps at bed time.  Overall he loves the idea of having more room to run around in.  I think when everything is all finished he will adore it.

As I said I don't have any pictures of it yet, but I do have one of Ben and Pat from this weekend.  I came home from tutoring to find this:

Ben was nice enough to let them watching Toy Story instead of Mickey.  But you can see who is in charge when I'm not around. ;)  I love these boys!

-Kim

Growing a reader-BFBN

Reading is very important to Pat and me.  We both love to read, think it is important to read to learn and for fun, and we want our kids to love to read.  Ben loves to play with books, and I hope this love of books continues throughout his life.  Here are a few ways we are actively trying to encourage Ben to be a reader.

1)  We read to Ben as a baby.  We've been reading to him since he was born.  When he was little and would just need to be held and rocked, I would read aloud whatever I was reading at the time.  Sure, I skipped over anything I felt a baby shouldn't hear, but I'm not sure that was really necessary.  What helped Ben was hearing my voice.  Reading allowed me to find a soothing rhythm to speak to him with.  It also gave me something else to focus on a little bit, which can really help at the end of a long day.  I can honestly say the girls won't get as much time listening to grown up books, but I fully plan to have them around when I read to Ben.  I will also read to them.  I think it is never to early to learn to enjoy a good story.

2)  We read to Ben now.  This seems like an easy one.  Toddlers love to be read to.  Ben brings us books all the time.  Sometimes we sit and read them all the way through.  Sometimes he gets bored and wanders off and we let him.  There is no need to force him to finish a book at this age.  Other times we just sit and look at the pictures.  We talk about what we see and point out things like colors and shapes.  We read new books and old books.  Oh, I fully admit sometimes books 'go missing' when Pat and I just can't take them another time.  But overall we make it a point to read to Ben when he wants to read.

3)  We have books out.  Okay, we probably have too many books out.  Our entire coffee table, top and shelf, is usually covered in Ben books.  Mainly we keep out board books and the paper books we are comfortable with getting beat up.  But they are always out and ready for Ben when he wants them.  How can you learn to love books if you don't have access to them?  Funny though, Ben does not like it when we leave our books out.  He brings them to us and we have to put them away.  He's cool with his books being out looks at them frequently throughout the day.

4)  We take Ben to the library.  Often we look at the books and check some out.  But just as often we just play.  We are so fortunate that we have a library system that really encourages bringing in small children to play.  They have toys out and activities throughout the year for them to participate in.  I have been taking Ben to library programs since he was 12 weeks old.  Most of them have a portion where the librarians read to the children, but a big part of them is just playing.  I think this helps kids grow to love the library and see it as a fun, friendly place.  Ben is always thrilled when we go to the library.  We participate in the reading challenges during the year too.  No, I don't think Ben cares that we read books based on the theme of the season, but it forces me to find new books for him and remember to read together.

5)  Pat and I read.  I am a voracious reader.  I always have at least one book going, usually more than that.  We have these books out where Ben can see them.  (Just not mixed in with his books of course.  He doesn't like that.;) )  We let him see us reading too.  I know it might make me sound like a bad mom to read in front of my son.  But really, he does not need me playing with him 24/7.  He can be content and doing his thing and I can be doing mine.  I'm still with him, but we don't need to be doing the same thing.  Sometimes he sits on the couch and reads his book while I read mine.  I have also pulled out my book when we watch yet another showing of Frozen or Mickey.  I think it is good for Ben to see his parents read.  It is also good for him to see what we can be around, but don't have to be interacting with him non stop.  My reading gives him a chance to have some independent time to do his own thing while still being around and supervising him.

6)  We don't force it.  Okay, we kind of do.  We read and always have books out.  But if Ben isn't feeling it, we don't force him to read.  If he wants to stop in the middle of a book we let him.  If he would rather put the books away and play with his toys, that's fine.  If I am reading and Ben comes over and wants my attention, I give it to him.  At this age forcing Ben to read won't do anything.  My mom likes to remind me that I didn't like to read until I was in first grade.  Oh, I liked being read to.  I just didn't see the point in learning how to do it myself.  Well, apparently I got over that because now reading is one of my favorite things to do.  So I'm not worried about how much Ben reads now.  All I can do as a parent is give plenty of opportunities and access to books.  It's up to Ben from there.

I hope this helps other people in their goals to foster a love of reading in their children.  Of course I am not expert.  I mean, Ben is 2.  But so far he enjoys his books, and I think by giving him the chance to continue that enjoyment without pressure he will be set up for a life of reading.  At least I hope so!

-Kim

Be sure to check out the other BFBN ladies to get more tips on reading and learning.  Check out the pinterest page as well!

Firemen visit

Last week we had a little unplanned fire drill here at Omi & Associates.  Wednesday, just after lunch, the fire alarms started going off.  Our office was fine, but we are one suite in a much larger building.  I grabbed Ben and we all headed outside.  Fortunately our building is not heavily occupied, and we could quickly see everyone was outside safely.  Unfortunately, no one had seen any sign of a fire or had any idea what was going on.  So we waited for the fire department.  By the time they made it, it was pretty clear there was no actual fire.  We didn't know completely for sure, so we all stayed outside.  But there were no signs that anything was wrong.  Well, other than the blaring alarms of course.  It turns out it was a false alarm.  A sprinkler valve got bumped and set everything off.  Everything was safe.

Ben thought this whole process was super exciting.  Three fire trucks came.  You can imagine the excitement of that for a two year old.  Three big fire trucks!  The firemen had their full gear on!  One of the firemen brought out hats for Ben and me.  Add to this it was a nice day and he was hanging out outside with his mommy and omi.  It was a pretty good day to be Ben.

Despite there being no real fire, the fire department couldn't turn all the alarms off.  We ended up leaving early for the day so Ben could still get his nap in.  A visit from firemen, free hats, and getting to leave early?  I'd say it was a pretty good day. :)

Fire truck!

So exciting

As per usual, not paying attention when I try to get a picture together.

Cute little junior fireman!

The firemen did apologize for only having pink hats.  Ben of course did not care.  He's two, pink is just a color to him.  Pat and I are pretty pleased though.  We actually have a black fire hat from Touch-a-Truck.  Two little pink hats will be perfect for two little girls. ;)  We're thankful for all the firemen that work so hard to keep us all safe, and we're happy it was a false alarm!

-Kim

Wild thing

A wonderful thing about the weather cooling off is Ben can finally wear the adorable new hoodie Gramma and Grampa got him for his birthday.  Oh yes, it is a Where the Wild Things Are hoodie.  No story here, just pictures of how adorable Ben looks in it.  The inside of the hood is so soft, Ben actually likes to have it on his head.  I am jealous of how cool my kid is. :)

And yes, the tiny blue thing he is holding is an Easter Bunny.  He probably got that a year and half ago at his first Easter.  I think Aunt Lindsay included it in a box she sent us.  For some reason, this bunny is Ben's current best friend.  It goes everywhere with us.  He sleeps with it.  We need to know where bunny is at all times.  I have no idea why he has become so attached to this bunny.  I am happy that he is attached to something reasonably small that is easy to take everywhere, and it is super easy to clean.  Of course when he tosses it around with his toys and subsequently can't find it I wish it was a bit bigger.  Overall though, I can't complain over the current must have at all times toy.  Thank you for the amazing Easter Bunny, Aunt Lindsay.

And thank you Gramma and Grampa for the adorable hoodie!  I am loving it!

-Kim