1st Halloween!

Our little astronaut almost missed his 1st trick-or-treating mission due to an unscheduled nap 5 minutes before we were about to Blast Off!!!  Mr. Ben the Astronaut decided to have a mini meltdown once in his costume, followed by a much needed 20 minute power nap.  Mommy & Daddy thought Mr. Ben was going to miss going door-to-door to show off his very, very, very, special rocket that daddy made him AND of course, showing off his adorable astronaut costume.

Ben woke up from his nap 20 minutes before his last feeding, I quickly put him back in his costume, and we were able to go to 2 houses before our astronaut wanted his ba-ba.   Oh, to be 7 months old! :)

I know that Benjamin will have no memory of last night– but I’ll be sure to remind him how awesome his 1st Halloween was!  Best Halloween ever :)  Can’t wait for next year.

Here’s a little slideshow of the Halloween Happenings…

October- Ben Show update!

October was Ben’s 1/2 birthday month!  Before Ben turns 7 months old (which will be tomorrow), I’d better get the 6 month old update posted!  Here’s a run down of the Ben Show this past month:

First… an adorable pic of Ben taking a bath… how cute is this?

• Ben’s most favorite activity right now is jumping in his Jumper! He LOVES this toy!  Really, really, really LOVES this toy!  Oh the giggles, squeals, and high-pitched screams of JOY while he’s in this thing; I love to see him soooo happy :)  I really do.  But I have to admit that sometimes I feel like a need to put my headphones on to cancel the noise…like when I haven’t had my coffee yet.  Is that so wrong???

• We all went out to Gentry’s Farm one lovely Sunday afternoon for Ben’s 1st pumpkin picking adventure!  This place is great & very convenient to get to.  It’s maybe 10 minutes away from our house.  Great time spent hanging out at Gentry’s picking out pumpkins & taking pictures on the farm.

• Ben has started the solid food eating adventure.  And what an adventure it’s been so far trying to teach someone how to eat.  In the beginning, I felt like a needed to put on goggles, hat, & a smock to dodge all of the food coming my direction; thankfully, this week Ben is really getting the hang of this eating thing.  So much that he’s now diving towards the spoon before I put it in his mouth.  I’m really happy about this!  Oh, and, his most favorite food to eat right now is bananas.

• Ben is  s l o w l y starting to get the hang of rolling from his back to his tummy.  He’s only done it a few times on his own; I know it’s only a matter of time before he really starts moving.  I guess I’d better start thinking about the baby proofing– starting with our stairs :)  Also to mention… when he’s on his tummy, he loves to push himself backward.  This is pretty funny to watch.

• Ben’s favorite book right now to laugh & smack at is Where Is Baby’s Belly Button? He especially loves the last page when we say… Where is baby? He smacks that page the most :)

• Ben loves Bumbo time.  His favorite ‘game’ to play while in Bumbo is… I put toys on the tray and he knocks them off.  I put toys on the tray and he knocks them off.  I put toys on the tray and he knocks them off.  Get it?

• Ben has the sweetest smile, I love-love-love his laugh, and I love playing a good game of peek-a-boo with him :)  It’s so cute!

• And… the last thing I’ll mention is that Ben does this really funny thing when the TODAY show & the Nightly News starts.  He immediately stops what he’s doing & turns his head towards the t.v. to listen to the theme music.  Just the theme music.  Then, he’ll go back to whatever activity he was going.  It’s so weird & funny!  I need to get this on video to show y’all!  I guess Ben likes to watch NBC like mommy & daddy :)

• Oh, and I have to mention this… Ben had his very first babysitter experience this month.  Thank you Miss Tracy for watching Ben while mommy & daddy went to the Keith Urban & Friends concert!

Wow!  I can’t believe it was 6 months (almost 7) that Ben made his entrance into the world!  Wow.  Ben is so awesome.  Happy 1/2 birthday Ben!!!

products the Ben & Jen Show love- #1

If you didn’t see the original post regarding the list, check it out to get the background on the amazing Top 11 products we have loved over the last 4 months!

Wow!  Made it to the #1 product that the Ben & Jen Show have really, really loved during these first 4 months.  Now for the post y’all have been waiting for… Drumroll please…

In the entertainment category… (a.k.a. things that keep baby entertained while mommy can:  eat breakfast, eat lunch, use the restroom, brush her teeth, talk on the phone, update her blog…etc.)

#1. Swing- I love this swing!  And Ben does too!  It’s one of those amazing 2-fer type products.  We’ve used it pretty much everyday since we brought him home.  What I love, love, love, about this Swing is that you can remove the seat from the base and carry it anywhere.  Perfect for letting Ben be part of all of the action going on downstairs.  He helps (watches) me do stuff in the kitchen, he can be part of watching us eat and listen to conversation at the dinner table, and in the morning, I’ll usually park the swing base next to the couch while we have breakfast.  I really love that he can have a place to sit and be part of all of the exciting activities going on.

And, of course, I love the swing function.  What’s cool is that you can turn the seat so it can go back and forth or side to side.  It also has this little mobile that hangs from it; when Ben was really little this would entertain him for a long time!  So funny to watch!  And, I can’t mention the Swing without saying that Ben loves to take long, long naps in it!

I can’t imagine the last 4 months without the Swing.  Awesome product!

products the Ben & Jen Show love- #2

If you didn’t see the original post regarding the list, check it out to get the background on the amazing Top 11 products we have loved over the last 4 months!

In the very helpful items category… (and we all need a little help every now and then, right?)

#2.  Boppy- What an amazing multi-functional thing this is!  Makes you wonder… why the heck didn’t I think of creating this? A pillow, shaped like a ‘U’… so simple, yet so effective.  We’ve used Boppy from the moment we brought Ben home.  You can find Ben chillin’ on his Boppy after feedings, lounging on it during storytime, and he loves to be up on his tummy on it.  And, when he was really little, I would wrap Boppy around me, using it to support him during feedings.

Ben also loves to take the occasional nap on Boppy.  And, I admit,  I have also been known to put my head next to Ben’s and catch a few zzzzz’s with him:)  We love Boppy!

Tomorrow, make sure to tune in for our #1 product choice! :)

products the Ben & Jen Show love- #3

If you didn’t see the original post regarding the list, check it out to get the background on the amazing Top 11 products we have loved over the last 4 months!

In the entertainment category… (a.k.a. things that keep baby entertained while mommy can:  eat breakfast, eat lunch, use the restroom, brush her teeth, talk on the phone, update her blog…etc.)

#3. Books- a few of his faves:  Dr. Seuss’s ABC Book, Brown Bear, Brown Bear, Farm Tails, and First 100 Words— this one is probably his most fave right now.  He loves rhyming stories, bright, colorful images, & books that have things that he can pull and tug at.  He does this funny bam-bam thing when reaching out and touching the pictures; so cute, of course! :)   And when he’s really engaged in a story, he’ll do his little baby talk thing.  Again, so cute!  I must admit, I love reading to Ben; sharing old books that I grew up with and discovering new stories too!

We heart books! :)

products the Ben & Jen Show love- #4

If you didn’t see the original post regarding the list, check it out to get the background on the amazing Top 11 products we have loved over the last 4 months!

In the entertainment category… (a.k.a. things that keep baby entertained while mommy can:  eat breakfast, eat lunch, use the restroom, brush her teeth, talk on the phone, update her blog…etc.)

#4. Ziggles- This thing looks so weird, I’ve even heard some people say it looks like road guts.  Despite its looks, Ben loves this toy!  He’s really into trying to grab stuff right now and I rather him grab & tug at ziggles instead of grabbing my hair!  This is probably his second favorite toy right now; activity mat being #1.

Oh, and, Ben loves it when daddy plays the 3-2-1 Blast Off game with it.  I love to watch this– just the pure joy in Ben’s face when hubby is counting 3-2-1 Blast Off!!! Launching ziggles in the air!

Here’s a video that Raise the Barn did while holding ziggles. Now, you can’t see ziggles in the video but it’s what he is holding to get Ben to look up in the air.

products the Ben & Jen Show love- #5

If you didn’t see the original post regarding the list, check it out to get the background on the amazing Top 11 products we have loved over the last 4 months!

In the how can I help my baby get to sleep category… (and we all know how important this is!)

#5. Woombie- I wish we had one of these the day we brought Ben home from the hospital.  Awesome product!!!  After a couple of times of waking up & seeing that Ben had somehow busted out of his SleepSack & covered his face with it, I knew we needed something better to put him in.  Something that could really contain those wiggly arms!  The Woombie was the answer!  Really easy to get him in & out of, sleeps fantastic in it, and the fabric is very lightweight; no worries about baby overheating.

We have two of these- newborn & big baby.  I’ll say it again, I really wish I had the newborn one from the start.  I loved this thing, and when Ben grew out of that one, we bought the next size up.  A few weeks ago, we retired the Woombie for when we put him to sleep at night.  He officially graduated to big boy jammies :)  But I’ll admit (and I know that I’m probably breaking some sort of parenting rules), I still use the Woombie for naps during the day.  Yes, I know that he’s getting a little old for swaddling, but when your baby is really, really, spazzy and is fighting the whole nap idea, woombie-ing him up is the only answer!  I know the day is coming on when I’ll have to stop using the Woombie, but sometimes really good products are hard to let go.  I really can’t say enough about how much I love this thing!

For more about the Woombie… check out Raise the Barn’s review about it!

products the Ben & Jen Show love- #6

If you didn’t see the original post regarding the list, check it out to get the background on the amazing Top 11 products we have loved over the last 4 months!

In the very helpful items category… (and we all need a little help every now and then, right?)

#6.  Bottle Warmer- Also falling in the… do I really need one of these things? I thought I didn’t.  Picture this… your little bundle crying for food in the middle of night.  You go downstairs pulling a cold bottle out of the fridge, trying to quickly warm it up in the sink with hot water, meanwhile baby is starting to go into the I sound possessed cry. You are trying to move as fast as you can.  Finally, with what seems like an eternity, the bottle is warm and baby is fed.  Everyone goes back to sleep for a couple of hours and then we all go through this again.  And this happens multiple times during the night!

Doing this 2-3 times in the middle of the night can drive a mommy (and a daddy) crazy!  This scene played out in our house for a couple of weeks until we realized we really, really, really, needed a better solution.  Our prayers were answered when we discovered the amazing Night & Day Bottle Warmer System.  Perfect idea for feeding baby upstairs!  We could keep it in our bathroom, a few steps away from our bed, with two prepared bottles in the cooler section for those middle of the night feedings.  Yes, I said cooler section!  It’s pure genius.  It truly made things soooo much easier for those blurry-eyed, middle of the night feedings; everything just seemed so much more quick and efficient with this warmer.  We loved it sooo much that we bought this one for downstairs (and we still use it everyday).

Save yourself from hearing the crazy, baby possessed cry (ok, I really can’t promise that!) and get yourself one of these warmers.  Especially if you have a 2-story house like me.  You’ll be glad you did!

products the Ben & Jen Show love- #7

If you didn’t see the original post regarding the list, check it out to get the background on the amazing Top 11 products we have loved over the last 4 months!

In the very helpful items category… (and we all need a little help every now and then, right?)  This item also falls in the how can I help my baby get to sleep!

#7.  Glider & Ottoman- This is another one of those products I wasn’t really sure we needed.  I have to say, after using this glider everyday for last 4 months, I can’t believe I thought I didn’t need one.  When Ben is on the edge of fighting going to sleep, I hop in the glider and within minutes he’s counting those sheep.  We read books in the glider and do some of his feedings in it too.  It’s VERY comfortable to sit in, has arm pockets for things like mags, books, & burpies, and when I was in my last few weeks of being preggers, it was the only chair in the house my butt & my aching back could find comfort in.  I can’t imagine not having it!

products the Ben & Jen Show love- #8

If you didn’t see the original post regarding the list, check it out to get the background on the amazing Top 11 products we have loved over the last 4 months!

In the entertainment category… (a.k.a. things that keep baby entertained while mommy can:  eat breakfast, eat lunch, use the restroom, brush her teeth, talk on the phone, update her blog…etc.)

#8.  Bouncer- This was one of those items I wasn’t sure we really needed.  But once I realized we needed a place to put Ben while we were doing chores & hanging out upstairs, the bouncer was purchased.  It is the perfect solution for having a place for Ben to be entertained.  It has 3 levels of vibrate mode and plays music.  I don’t really turn on the music; please check out my review about the Activity Mat for reasons why… :) I can say that Ben really loves how the seat vibrates.  Makes me wish I had a vibrating chair too :)  One of the best things about the bouncer is that I can easily carry it around from room to room so Ben can be part of all of the exciting action going on upstairs.  I hope he’s soaking in all of the how-to’s on how to wash & fold laundry; hoping he’ll be able to help me soon! :)