Ha, ha! I just discovered a very useful use of Ben's name.....so clever, I know! Ah, Ben. What can I say. Babies are joy and exhaustion and wonder and confusion all wrapped into one package. Ben is starting to get the hang of his days and nights. He is still eating once or twice in the middle of the night, but that's to be expected for a few more weeks. Ben is a pacifier lover so far. Matt would never take one, so its a change to make sure to always have one on hand.
Speaking of Matt, he is a FABULOUS big brother. I was prepared for total mutiny against Mommy, Daddy, and possibly baby brother. However, Matt just wants to pet Ben and kiss him. Every time Ben starts to cry, Matt is calling for the pacifier. He's pretty good at getting it in Ben's mouth too. Its been especially great in the car to have eyes in the back seat - and extra hands when we are stopped in the drive through and Ben spits out the pacifier. Matt just hops out of his seat and pops the paci back in. He was so amazed in the first weeks every time Ben would actually be awake. "Mommy, his eyes are open!" "Look at him, he has eyes!" What a great kid!!!
Matt is doing great at school. Today some other kid hit him and he didn't hit back! I'm so proud! His teachers think he's very smart. He's really getting his alphabet and numbers solidified now. Matt was so confused in the first few days of school because there were several kids who were crying for their moms all day long. He couldn't understand why someone wouldn't want to be at school. Also, Matt has done really well with having Daddy as his principal. He makes sure the other kids know that his Daddy is in charge and they better keep it in line!
And now, a "Mommy needs to vent" saga: Tuesday we all went to Pampa for David's first orthodontic appt. with a new Dr. When it came time for David to get his new wires, the assistant thought it would be about 30-45 min. So, I decided to take the kids to McDonald's so Matt could play. When we arrived I was talking on the phone while trying to get Ben out, and Matt opened his door and fell out of the car. He starting screaming (I should mention here that I was previously upset before we got to McD's so I really wasn't in the mood!) and crying. I pretty much hung up on Dave and checked on Matt with less than much compassion. We finally made it inside. I didn't want to spend much $$, so I just ordered a happy meal for me since Matt had already had lunch at school. Matt immediately started whining about how hungry he was and how he needed to eat again (and etc...) Not in the mood! So I send him to the playground while I wait for my food. (He doesn't stay.) In the process of corralling Matt back to the playground, toting diaper bag and car seat, and carrying my tray, I sent my Sprite crashing to the floor in front of everyone. Noone steps up to say they will get it or clean it up or anything, so I take the boys to the playground - put Matt on "watch Ben" duty, and return to start cleaning up the Sprite. After getting all of the ice picked up, finally an employee steps up to say she will have someone clean it up and she'll get me a new drink. AAAH - 3 minutes ago would have helped my attitude! Finally I sit down to eat. No other kids to play with, so Matt is hanging out at my table ogling my food and whining.... It's also time for Ben to eat and I want to get him fed before its time to get Daddy. Ben is not interested in eating, just sleeping. I was kind enough to share my meager lunch with my "starving" son. I got about 1/2 an oz. of Ben's usual 4 oz. down him before Daddy called. By then, Ben was ready to eat, so removing the bottle caused angry screaming as did re-buckling the car seat. Matt was kind enough to open doors for us as we attempted to get to the car quickly. The only problem was when we got to the outside door, he pushed, but didn't move his feet. So down on his booty he went, the door jammed him in the back and scraped his arm. So, you guessed it, screaming and crying. (Did I mention that at this particular moment, we are in the small hallway between the outside and inside doors where every sound is amplified by at least 5000 decibels?) So, Ben is angry crying, Matt is slightly hurt and dramatically crying and Mommy is just about to totally lose it. I just put my head in my hands and considered collapsing in the floor and breaking into tears myself. But for the sake of the people at McDonalds I picked up my children and herded them to the car to go get Daddy. There, now you know my story. In the end, Matt was fine, Ben got fed (at walmart!) and Daddy was rescued from the orthodontist's office. And I ended up crying anyway, but not, to David's great relief, while the kids were crying too. And, I got ice cream out of the deal.......
Speaking of Ben eating, its about that time. So, goodbye for now blogging. Maybe it will be less than a month before I appear here again with more great stories to tell.......
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| This is Matt's idea of entertaining Ben for a few minutes..... |
I'm proud to say that our kitchen redo is finally done! David "got" me this for Valentines Day. He asked our benevolent landlord if she would purchase the materials and we would provide the labor to repaint the kitchen. She, obviously, said yes, and we began the process the second weekend of February. (I told David: "This may be free, but it's not coming cheap!") Here are before pics....
If you will please take note of the wallpapered soffit above the cabinets....little did we know it would be our nemesis... We tried many methods of wallpaper removal.....the ultimate answer is...removing wallpaper is HARD!!!!! (and messy!) 
After wallpaper removal, comes texturing and painting of the soffit.
Add new hardware and start rehanging doors.....oops! The new hinges are barely bigger than the old ones, so it was a job for Dad. We had to enlist the help of my Dad with a hammer and chisel to make room on the inset doors for the new hinges. NOW try hanging again....
Kitchen pics after:
(Side note: amidst much distress of constantly dropping screws and struggling to twist wires together - hang a new light fixture over the sink...)
