New Knit Hat!

Mommy had knit Bennett an awesome hat today! She later added a fuzzy tassel to the end of it. But this is probably the only hat Bennett has not tried to pull off his head! So cute!!!

Swenson Thanksgiving

 

With the weeks counting down to thanksgiving, I had heard people talking about traditions. The previous Thursday night at kid class, one of the discussion topics was "Which thanksgiving day traditions are you most excited to share with your child?" I had trouble thinking of what traditions us Swensons had been following, and I could not think of any right away. I could only think of wrestling with my cousins, meatballs and pumpkin pie. Since I no longer wrestle with my cousins, I guess the only traditions we continue are meatballs and pumpkin pie. So Vanessa and I were excited to continue the Swenson tradition of enjoying meatballs and pumpkin pie with Bennett. Unfortunately, I did not take any pictures, but I can say that Bennett enjoyed both (at least the little bits we have him). 

So we had Swenson Thanksgiving the day before Thanksgiving at Grandma and Grandpa's this year. Here is a photo of Grandpa trying to coax a smile from Bennett. 

The cute baby talk didn't do the trick so grandpa tried a basketball... And that only confused Bennett even more.

As you can see, we had Bennett ready in his PJs for the car ride back so he would go to sleep transitioning from the car easily. When we got to grandma and grandpas in Fridley around 11:15pm, Bennett was wide awake an playful... Only for another 30 more minutes and he went back to sleep. 

40 weeks

This one happens to fall on Thanksgiving!  We spent the day at grandma and grandpa's. Uncle Kevin came over for a while too and we had hot pot for lunch on a cold day-it was really good!

In the evening, grandpa made noodle soup with duck. Here is a picture of Bennett enjoying the soup.

After dinner, Bennett and Grandpa played around!

First they stared each other down...

Them Bennett went in feeling grandpas cheeks!

Then a look at grandpas glasses!

After lots of giggling and checking out grandpa, Bennett stood up (with help) and smiled for a picture. 

9 Months / 39 Weeks

We took Bennett's 9 month photos a while ago but haven't had time to post them. It was a challenging shoot, to say the least. Someone was not a willing take pictures. He was wiggly, squirmy, and most importantly, happy.

 

 

 

 

 

Leftovers

Bennett had had his first Thanksgiving party already and today got to enjoy some leftover turkey and mashed potato balls. 

Sippy Cup

Today was an awesome parenting day. I've been trying to get Bennett to drink from a sippy cup for a few weeks now. He mostly chews on the end but doesn't drink from it. But finally today I had a epiphany. Clearly he has no idea what I wanted him to do with he cup, so I showed him. 

I put that in his mouth and he immediately started sucking, so then I took the nipple off and voilà, drinking from a sippy cup. Go me!

Saturday Afternoon

9 Month Checkup

Bennett had his 9 month checkup yesterday.

He is too long for the scale now and must hold onto his feet to get an accurate weight.

His head size is catching up to the rest of him. 

While we were waiting for the doctor Bennett looked out the window. 

Then played with Daddy. 

All is well!

Mount Everest

Bennett climbed Mount Everest today, with daddy as his safety line, just in case... 

Cold walk

Still happy though!

Squash Hair

Squash hair: when someone is eating squash with their hands and simultaneously runs their hands through their hair. 

After Work

Bennett loves to read. Yes he actually holds the book, flips it open and stare at the page. 

 

He is also super snuggly, especially on days where he didn't get a long nap (like today).

Chubby

Here's our chubby little guy. He's all slicked up from lotion and getting ready for bed. 

Diaper Changes Are Fun

So this is how diaper changes go lately. I can't wait to show this to his friends when he is a teenager. 

38 Weeks

Today Joel and I were discussing what our favorite age has been of Bennett, and we both agreed that we love where he is right now. He's interactive, moving around, can sit and stand, and is getting increasingly opinionated. When he is happy he claps, when he wants something he crawls to it (and he crawls REALLY quickly), he is so much fun!

We've been giving him more finger foods for the past week now, and he loves the freedom of feeding himself. It is amazing to see how quickly his skills are progressing. For the first few days, less than 50% of the food was making it into his mouth and now food is making it in there 75% of the time.

This past week he also started shaking his head like he was saying no. We were eating dinner one night and I was asking him if he wanted more to eat and he shook his head. So I asked him if he was sure he didn't want more to eat and again he shook his head. Then it finally dawned on me that we were having a conversation and he was shaking his head. We're not sure if he knows what it means yet, but when he doesn't want to eat something he'll shake his head no, so maybe he does.

Bennett is climbing up stairs really well now but has yet to master climbing down. He is very mischievous and likes getting into everything. He likes to read books, and will often flip through books when he is playing by himself. Bennett obviously loves swim classes and is kicking his legs from the second they touch the water. He is ticklish and is always smiling.

The two biggest issues we're dealing with  are putting him down for naps and to bed, and his dry itchy skin. The worst part of the day is putting Bennett down for bed. He is dealing with some separation anxiety, so it is impossible to put him in his crib if he is not dead asleep. Even after he is asleep, if he wakes, there are times he only wants me and it is frustrating! Then sometimes when he wakes in the middle of the night, it is because he is itchy. He cries and screams because he is so itchy, it is horrible to witness. He has his nine month checkup on Friday, so hopefully we get some more advice on how to deal with it. We're just lucky that his skin doesn't bother him much during the day, and he is happy 97% of the time he is awake.

Transferring from one hand to the other. He has been doing this for a while, but it is an important developmental milestone!