Lucy - 4 Months

We are loving our little Lucy!  She gets cuter every day!  Here are her 4 month stats:
-11.5 lbs
-23 in long
-15.5 in head
She's in the 8th-ish percentile.  The dr. said that she's not digressing on the chart, but barely progressing :)  But she's healthy and has reached all the 4 month mile stones.
She...
-loves to sleep (I think this will be a common theme throughout her life)
-hates tummy time
-can roll from her tummy to her back
-grabs stuff in front of her
-can stand up when being held
-loves to watch Benson
-loves the bumbo
-loves to suck on her hands and blanket/burp cloth
-we've had a couple really deep belly laughs and lots of little giggles
-loves to be bounced on an exercise ball when eating or being put to sleep (Benson loved that too)
-loves to talk/yell at us

We can't imagine our lives without her and we are grateful for everyday she's ours!

Happy Halloween

It just gets more and more fun as Benson gets older!  The holidays are just so magical with children.  Benson was the dog Bingo. (Yes he was a dog last year but he was Toto, totally different.)  And someone gave us a lamb costume so Lucy was the cutest lamb around!  We don't have a picture but I was Mary (get it, Mary had a little lamb) and Anthony was a farmer (There was a farmer, had a dog  and BING-O was his name O).  In the days leading up to Halloween I taught Bens to smile and say "Trick-or-Treat" and then "Thank you." I wish I had gotten it on video.  We had a ward party with a trunk or treat on the Friday before Halloween. Benson loved getting all the candy and of course wanted to eat each piece as it was put in his basket.  On Halloween we went to a story time at Barnes and Noble were he got to wear his costume and then we took him trick-or-treating around our neighborhood.  After the people would drop a piece of candy in this basket he'd point to another piece and say "I need that one".  It was a bit embarrassing (thank goodness he's only two and not 10). He loved it and now after each meal asks for a trick-or-treat.

October FHE

We got some pumpkins from Anthony's work party and since then have not heard the end of Benson wanting to carve them.  (He even says hello and goodbye to them each time he sees them.) So the activity for FHE tonight was carving them. 

Benson all ready to start carving

 Lucy was also very excited about the pumpkins

 Just starting...

 Benson not sure if he wanted to get all slimy but enjoyed it in the end

 Loving the cut out of the hammer

 Dads' mad carving skills

 The finished products: a hammer and saw and a smiley face (yes I have mad carving and totally original idea skills too)

Family Fun

Anthony's work had a Family Fun Day a couple weekends ago.  It was a lot of fun!  They had bounce houses, yummy food, a photo booth, free flu shoots :), a fire engine and truck, and a little pumpkin patch.  It was also fun to meet some of the people he works with, to put faces to names. Thanks Celanese for a fun day!

 Benson loved pushing the horn

 Lucy just hung out in the stroller

 The photo both had some fun props: Benson and Dad

 Mom and Lucy

And now we know where Benson got his hair from

Birthday Festivities

We had such a fun time celebrating Benson's birthday all week long!  From the birthday sign on Monday to the family go-carting on Friday, I think it was his best birthday ever!

His BIG Cookie for a cake

 Picking out "Winnie" the Penguin at Build a Bear

 He LOVES to jump!

 Birthday Cookie

 Opening presents

 Go-Carting with Dad

 Go-Carting with Mom

 He requested Pizza for his birthday dinner

Happy Birthday Benson!

Benson is 2!!!

How did this

Turn into this??!?!

I can't believe he's 2! Two years ago today we were headed up to Houston to see a little boy who would soon become ours!  It was such an exciting and crazy day!  Adoption is incredible!  We can't say "thank you" enough to Benson's amazing birth mom.  We love her dearly!  We know Benson is supposed to be apart of our family and we couldn't live without him!  He is so much fun!  Really such a riot!  He's at such a fun age where he mimics everything we say and wants to be apart of everything!
Somethings I want to remember...
-He loves to mow the lawn, which means he loves to ride on Dad's shoulders while he's mowing.  He also loves trimmers and blowers.
-He loves kitchen utensils!  He's tall enough to open the utensil drawer and grab everything out.  Some of his favorites are the tongs, funnel, rolling pin and can openers.
-He loves music.  Both to listen to and to sing.  His current favorites are "I am a Child of God" and "This Little Light of Mine." He knows all the words to quite a few songs and if we start singing one, he'll finish it; I love it!! 
-He loves the kitchen sink.  Every night while I'm making dinner Benson will push a chair over to the sink, turn on the water, grab the scrub brush and ask me to hand him some dish soap (lotion).  He will usually play with whatever is in the sink for a long time and usually ends up drenched. 
-He loves to grab the mustard bottle. We have a lock on our fridge because once he learned to open it he would pull everything out.  So now if I leave it unlocked he will open it and grab the mustard.  He actually hates the taste of it but will ask to hold it while waiting for dinner.
-Always want to watch football or tackle Dad.  This really started when I was out of town one weekend and Anthony watched a couple games with him.  Now whenever he sees the computer open he rushes over and begs to watch football.
-Love his nursery leader, Brother Arnold.  He will ask for him about 10 times a week. When I ask him who he wants to play with he'll yell "Brother Arnold"!
-Still loves to jump.  When he was a baby I'd have to bounce him on an exercise ball to get him to go to sleep or just for fun.  He got a little trampoline for his birthday and he won't get off it, he loves to jump!
-Loves cookies.  Every time I ask him what he wants for lunch or dinner he always says cookies.  And we don't have cookies all that often so it's pretty funny.  Plus he knows he'll get a laugh out of me :)
We can't get enough of this little boy and are excited for him to be 2!!!

3 Months

We are loving this little girl and can't believe she's 3 months old already!
Here's the latest and greatest info on our little miss: 
Not sure how much she weighs but I think it's around 10-11 lbs. 
Still loves to sleep, at night we're getting 4-5 hrs at a time and anytime I let her during the day
Hates tummy time
Loves to lay on her back and kick her hands and feet
Loves watching the ceiling fan
Loves watching Benson and will follow him around the room with her eyes
Loves eating her hands
Still doesn't really like to eat
Loves to be held, by mom the most
Loves baths and getting her diaper changed
Talks (coos and goos) a lot
Has beautiful blue eyes
Has curly blond hair

Here's some recent pictures:

Leaving the hospital

2 Months