During the last 10 seconds of this video, Ben inserts his cup into his boot and then takes a drink. Our very own hobo!
Category Archives: Baby development
The cutest things Ben says…
Now that Ben’s vocabulary and phrase construction are expanding at lightspeed, we must establish a list of the “cutest things Ben says”:
- “I love you”
- “I miss you”
- “Rubber ducky”
- “No, thank you”
- “I hold you”
Video of Ben saying “rubber ducky”:
Ben snoring!
Ben’s 2nd birthday
Ben turned 2 on November 16. We celebrated on November 17 with a small group of friends and family that Ben was well acquainted with and who would deluge him with attention since he doesn’t really have any birthday-celebrating friends his own age. Thanks to all who attended and made Ben feel like the special birthday boy that he was.
We were a month late in taking Ben to his 2-year checkup, but better late than never. Stats:
- Height: 36.75″ (98th percentile) – he’s tall!
- Weight: 32 lbs.(ish) (75th percentile) – he’s big, but ok compared to his height!
- He’s at or above all milestones – woo!
Birthday Party Photos:
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- We had activity center set up around the house. This one: Join Ben in the circus tent.
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- We had activity center set up around the house. This one: Show Ben your disguise.
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- Ben delegated the opening of his gifts. Bebe opens a Mr. Potato Head toy.
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- Lunch The white cards on the counter were the various activities for guests to do with Ben.
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- Ben wore his Halloween costume – a sock monkey!
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- No Buck party is complete without Wii bowling.
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- Ben latched on to Jenna, as always.
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- The party setup
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- Ben got sick of the circus tent activity…
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- Seasame Street cake
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- Cake time
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- Playing with the huge Hot Wheels set he got for his birthday
Belated birthday gift – Braille/sign language wooden blocks:
Legoland 10/21/12
Today we went to Legoland in Winter Haven. Ben loved it because it’s geared to youngsters, with a special part of the park just for playing with duplos (the blocks for those Ben’s age) plus a bunch of rides Ben could go on. Included in the photos below are photos of various Lego creations, like cities in Miniland constructed with Legos, animals on the safari ride. Also included are pretty photos of what remains of Cypress Gardens (Legoland was built on Cypress Gardens property, converting Florida’s oldest theme park to Florida’s newest). Enjoy – we did!
Ben sings Elvis
Swinging at Wooten Park
On this day at the park, not only did Ben let me put him in a swing, he actually enjoyed swinging!
Fun with a bubble gun
Toddlers sleep in the strangest places
Ben doesn’t have a regular nap schedule, or even a regular nap location! This hyperactive kid will fall asleep wherever he crashes.
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- Sitting up reading a book
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- On the coffee table
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- On the coffee table
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- On the coffee table
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- On the floor in between the couch and coffee table
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- On the floor in between the couch and coffee table
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- On the floor in between the couch and coffee table
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- On half a couch cushion after he removed a few cushions
The boy can talk!
He’s catching up on all those months of no talking. Doctor’s visit after doctor’s visit, he would be behind on the speech portion of his developmental milestones checklists. It was bad enough that the doctor recommended he be screened for Early Steps, a program that evaluates kids who are developmentally behind and provides free supplemental training/therapy to boost their skills. Ben went through the evaluation and was found to be ok. But we were still worried. All the checklists quantified how many words he could say. For a while he didn’t have any words he consistently said.
Well, now he has lots of words! Let’s start a list:
- Mommy
- Daddy
- Up
- Please
- More
- Cat/kitty
- Dora (Dora the Explorer)
- Gabba (Yo Gabba Gabba TV show)
- Milk
- Water
- Cup
- Ball
- Key
- Car
- Click
- Conk (a word we say when you “conk” your head/foot/etc. on something)
- Ow
- No
- Yes
- Chip
- Dip
- Ben
- Thank you
- Apple
- Orange
- Juice
- On
- Dog
- Puppy
- Shoe
- Hair
- Head
- Belly/belly button
- Bubbles
- Pop
- Cover
- Kiss
And I’m probably forgetting some but he’s catching up!
Chart of milestones from BabyCenter.com:
| Child’s Age |  Mastered Skills (most kids can do) |
Emerging Skills (half of kids can do) |
Advanced Skills (a few kids can do) |
| 19 months | Uses a spoon and fork Runs Throws a ball underhand Enjoys helping around the house |
Understands as many as 200 words Recognizes when something is wrong (e.g., calling a dog a cat) |
Washes and dries own hands with help Points to picture or object when you call it by name May know when she needs to pee |
| 20 months | Feeds doll Takes off own clothes Dumps an object in imitation, such as throwing garbage away |
Learns words at a rate of ten or more a day Can walk up stairs (but probably not down) |
May start exploring genitals Draws a straight line Names several body parts |
| 21 months | Can walk up stairs Able to set simple goals (e.g., deciding to put a toy in a certain place) |
Throws a ball overhand Kicks ball forward Stacks six blocks |
Names simple picture in a book Can walk down stairs |
| 22 months | Kicks ball forward Follows two-step requests(e.g., “Get your doll and bring it here”) |
Does simple puzzles Draws a straight line Names several body parts |
Puts on loose-fitting clothes Might be ready for a big bed Understands opposites (e.g., tall vs. short) |
| 23 months | Names simple picture in a book Uses 50 to 70 words |
Opens doors Sings simple tunes Takes more of an interest in playing with other kids |
Talks about self (likes, dislikes) Asks “why?” |
| 24 months | Names at least six body parts Half of speech is understandable Makes two- to three-word sentences |
Talks about self Arranges things in categories Can walk down stairs |
Begins to understand abstract concepts (e.g., sooner and later) Becomes attuned to gender differences Learns to jump |