Hidden Baby #2 Blog: December 12, 2010

Yes, the title really says Hidden Baby #2 Blog.
Yes, we are expecting our second baby.
Yes, Ben is going to be a big brother.
No, we are not kidding.
No, we are not crazy.
No, we did not plan this.
Yes, we were trying to prevent this.
Yes, we are excited.

Here's our story for Baby #2. As we were driving home this afternoon from doing Advent ("Joy") with our small group friends, I told Landon that I felt nauseated and had a metal taste in my mouth, and it seemed identical to when we found out we were pregnant with Ben. I just said that in passing, totally not thinking I was actually pregnant. When we got home, Landon told me to go take a pregnancy test, just because he was curious. I took the test and thought it was negative, but went ahead and brought it into the kitchen to show Landon. We played with Ben for about 30 minutes before I remembered to show Landon the test, and when I looked at it again, I noticed a faint line. My first response..."Oh no!" Ha!

Obviously, we are thrilled with this gift of life. It certainly wasn't in our plans to have another baby this soon after having Benton, but we are more grateful than we can ever express. Right now, Ben is 6 1/2 months old. By the time baby comes, he should be about 15 months old.

ETA for Baby #2: August 21, 2011. That is based solely on the fact that the pregnancy test line was faint (thus assuming we weren't very far along)...we really have no idea!

Benton Update: 6 Months Continued

Ben had his well child check-up on Tuesday. He is no longer hanging out at the very top of the charts for weight. The nurse said that they had seen all 4 and 6 month well child checks that morning, and that they had all been boys...and she said that he was the smallest 6 month old boy! Ha! That is hard for me to imagine. Seriously, when she put him on the table she said "Hey little guy." :)

Stats from 6 month Pediatrician appointment:
-Weight: 19 pounds, 7 ounces (75th percentile)
-Height: 26 3/4 inches (60th percentile)
-Head Circumference: 17 inches

Prayers Please!

One of our dearest friends, Courtney Cartwright, was recently diagnosed with recurrent thyroid cancer. Today, she and her husband, Matt, headed down to MD Anderson in Houston to begin treatment. They have been faithful and honest and have an eternal outlook on the whole situation. Hopefully she will keep the blog up-to-date (hint, hint), and we promise that you will be inspired by their journey. Please read their story and add them to your prayers.

http://mattncourtcartwright.blogspot.com

And This Is Why We Are Different...

Funny story. A week or so ago, I was giving Benton a bath and I grabbed the "F" and "L" out of his foam alphabet letters...to teach him about his feet and legs, of course. Benton totally didn't care and was trying to eat the letters or throw them out of the bathtub. :)

A few days later, Landon is giving Benton a bath, and I hear all kinds of crazy noises coming from the bathroom. Apparently, Landon was teaching him about guns...the single shot and automatic. Ha! Benton was much more interested in Landon's lesson, which came with sound effects.

The difference between males and females is just too funny sometimes!

Shutterfly!

I've seen so many blogs that are basically advertising Shutterfly and getting FREE Christmas cards. Ummm, yes please. For our past 3 Christmas cards, Landon and I have set up the tripod and taken a picture of ourselves. They haven't exactly been fancy, but they served their purpose. Now that we have Benton, we are wanting to something different. We are having family pictures taken tomorrow, and then we plan on sending out a Christmas card using this promotion! Thanks Shutterfly!

We already have our cards picked out, so I won't be revealing them until they arrive in your mailbox. :)

(Click on the photos below for a link to the Shutterfly website!)

The card below is a Christmas photo card (5 X 7).

The card below is a Christmas invitation. So fun!

The card below is a Holiday card. A sweet family we know sent out a similar card a few days before Thanksgiving. It was SO fun to get a holiday card early!!!

Benton Update: 6 Months

Holy Moly. Our sweet baby is half of a year old. Six months old! It is so hard to believe that he has been with us for six whole months, but at the same time it feels like he has been a part of our little family forever.

Some facts from Benton's sixth month of life:

-Wearing 6-12 month clothes. He is wearing 12-18 month jeans.

-Mainly wearing cloth diapers with no snaps! In disposables, he is wearing a size 3 diaper.

-Eating 4 times per day for about 10 minutes! We were in the process of dropping a feeding during his last update, and he has done really well with the new routine. When it is convenient, he has a bottle with 8 ounces. He has also been eating 2 tablespoons of solids with one meal per day. We think he is about ready to eat solids for two meals per day!

-He is quite the little sleeper! He goes down at about 7:30pm and we wake him up at 7am. He is also taking 3 naps per day.

-The eat/play/sleep routine has worked out so well for Benton. He thrives on the routine and loves it!

Random things we don't want to forget:

-We have teeth! Benton has been teething for a couple of months, so we were really excited to see his bottom 2 teeth pop through earlier this month. He also has one tooth slowly coming in on the top.

-After his evening feeding, we have been giving him a sippy cup (with a little bit of water) to play with. At first he chewed on the handles or threw it off his high chair tray, but now he is starting to understand what to do with it. So cute!

-He has a passion for jumping...in your lap, in the jumper, anywhere.

-Benton is such a content and laid-back little guy, and I'm not sure he has much motivation to roll over. He is seriously happy just staring at his toy that is out of reach, instead of rolling over to get it. The only time he rolls is when he is in bed at night. :)

-He has added a few new foods to his pallet. He is eating avocados, green beans, peas, sweet potatoes, butternut squash, carrots, pears, bananas, and plums. He has tried oatmeal and rice cereal, but is much more interested in the fruit and vegetables, so we have only given the oatmeal and rice cereal to him a couple of times.

-Last night, when we were putting to bed and reminiscing about the past 6 months, he spit out his pacifier and gave us kisses. So sweet. He knew his mommy was a little bit sentimental.

-He has always been very interested in books, but he has loved trying to help turn the pages and he is definitely starting to pay attention to the pictures.

-One of his favorite things to do is the airplane. He gives us HUGE smiles and lots of "ahhhs" and screams.

-He has started some of the beginning motions of crawling. When he is on his belly, he kicks his legs and slaps the ground. Also, in the last few days, he has begun putting his legs underneath him and lifting himself off the ground with his arms.

Benton, thank you for the most wonderful 6 months. You are an incredible blessing to us, and we are so very grateful!!!

Thankful

What a wonderful year this has been. Today, we celebrate Thanksgiving with family, along with the six month birthday of our sweet baby Benton! Six months!!!! It's hard to believe that this time last year (see here) we were revealing our pregnancy to family and friends, and now we have a precious six month old.

Enjoy this day, and make sure to take some time to count your blessings! We are grateful for all of you. Happy Thanksgiving!!!