The King of Snoozles

Bennett takes a lot of naps. But naps don't sound very exciting. I prefer to call them snoozles. If I could, I would take three snoozles a day, just like Bennett. I have yet another cold (what the heck?), and my brain isn't working quite as efficiently as I might like it to today. So, in lieu of some long, interesting ramblings about important things, I'm keeping this short and sweet. Behold, a collection of snoozles for your viewing enjoyment.

Happy Friday!

T.G.F.S.T.

Thank goodness for snow tires. The commute the last couple of days has been nearly intolerable. Without my trusty snow tires, I likely would have ended up in at least one ditch. However, as I was reminded this morning, it is difficult (if not impossible) to get into an accident going 3 miles per hour. Over a foot of snow in less than 24 hours means much more time in my car, and much less time with my Bennett. Ten minutes of snuggle time in the morning is just not enough. But he enjoys sleeping in, and who am I to wake a sleeping Green Bean?



I have been tired lately. I'm sure the combination of full-time work, mommyhood, married life and being in the middle of a big move has something to do with it. These are all such good things, and I wish the simple goodness of it all could magically dig up hidden energy reserves and send me on some sort of productivity spree. I want to make a shift from simply getting through the day to rising to the occasion each day. Perhaps some positive thinking might be enough to nudge me in the right direction. We'll see.

An update on our new (old) house: I call it the new (old) house because though it is new to us, it was built in 1937. It has lots of character, which will be a great fit for our family. There are a ton of projects (big and small) to be done, and we started with a complete overhaul of the kitchen. Pictures to come. We will be making our official move sometime in the next few weeks. One of the best parts of being at the new place - it only takes 10 minutes for me to drive to work. 10 minutes!! That means roughly an extra 4-5 hours with Bennett and Nic every week. Serious bonus.

Until then, I'll be stuck in the car and cursing the snow. Thinking positive, though - melted snow on the windshield is kind of pretty.

Throwback

And by throwback, I mean some photos from way back when the Green Bean was a mere six weeks old. (Ok, that wasn't that long ago). We happen to have a great friend who is also an amazing photographer. Benny Moreno of Helios Photography is the best of the best. Thank you, Benny, for giving me the green light to share some of your work here. I just love these shots - I feel like they marked the beginning of Bennett's funny, sweet little personality coming through.

Eye candy, right? I can't believe how fast he's growing. Sigh. I hope I can always remember what it feels like to have a small bundle of baby Bennett curled up in my arms. I will continue to enjoy every itty bit of little-ness while it lasts.

Will You Be My Valentine?

Being that Valentine's Day is on a Monday this year, I thought it was going to be un-fun, at best. I usually get really excited about holidays, but my brain feels like it has been stretched in too many directions lately, and candy hearts were unfortunately on the bottom of my list of important things to worry about.

Enter Nic and Bennett - Valentine's Day has been saved! A surprise visit to work was all I needed to get into the lovey-dovey spirit. They dressed in coordinating Valentine-y outfits, and came bearing flowers, cards and Milk Duds.



There's nothing like a vase of fresh flowers at the ol' desk to perk me right up. I lean over every few minutes and take a whiff of the roses. Nic is always so thoughtful. He coordinated today's efforts despite coming down with a case of the sniffles. Roses are red, violets are blue, Nic is awesome, and Bennett is too.



Bennett picked out a fantastic Valentine for his Mommy. Apparently I remind him of a Super-Kitty. Love it! Bennett helped me open the card, and then he tried to eat it. He tries to eat everything these days.



My sweet, sweet Valentines stayed for a little while, and after they left, I ate the whole box of Milk Duds.

Some Smiles for Friday

My beautiful baby boy gets cuter every day. I'm not sure how this is possible. If you had asked me yesterday, "Could he possibly get any cuter?", I would have said, "No way, man. He's so freakin' cute it makes me crazy!" But here we are, today, and the cuteness factor has multiplied yet again. His eyes sparkle, and his smile fills me right up with pure joy. Try not to grin when you look at him - I dare you.



His latest mini adventure is eating delicious, mushy, sloppy rice cereal. And yes, I bought a silly box of fancy organic stuff with weird pictures of babies harvesting rice on the front. Whatever. He loves sitting in his little red high chair... it makes him feel all big and important. I love that we can sit together at the table and do stuff. We play, we eat, we laugh. Daddy is in charge of most of the cereal meals, but I get to take a turn on the weekends.



In other news, our house looks as though some sort of theiving bandit ripped through attempting to destroy any semblance of cleanliness, order, or organization that may ever have existed. Nic and I were actually pushed to the point of uncontrolled laughter last night when, in a moment of mess-induced insanity, I got up off the couch to revel in the chaos... flinging socks and blankies and activity gyms and kleenex and French bulldogs (well, I didn't really fling Suggie) into the air. Why not? It couldn't get any worse. We'll get it under control eventually - I promise.

One more smile before I go. A funny one staged by Daddy. "Ha ha, Dad, I've got your remote!"

We Shipped Up to Boston...

We have friends scattered all over the country, and oh, how we miss them. In fact, I was just thinking today about how great it would be if I could come up with some crazy reason for all of our best friends to move back to Minnesota for good. Until that happens, we'll have to settle for fun-filled vacations!

Boston holds a special place in our hearts. Rain, more rain, chowder, Harvard, traffic, North End, more rain. Nic and I agree that living there for a year (July 2008 - June 2009) with some of our best buddies was really a once-in-a-lifetime experience. This past November, we wanted to take advantage of the fabulous time off we had together with our Green Bean. So we packed up the car, and road-tripped our way out East. Bennett was a little champ. He slept most of the time while we were driving, and enjoyed visiting random travel plazas for snacks and diaper changes.


We stopped off in Palatine, IL and Erie, PA on the way there. (Thanks Angela and Seth, and Meghan and Brandon!) An early evening walk by Lake Erie was just what we needed after two days of driving. We even caught a beautiful sunset. And then Bennett was so sleepy.



When we rolled into Boston, more fun ensued. Fun, food and friends! Woo hoo! It was so great to show Bennett all of our favorite places. He was totally an urban baby - snuggled up in his carrier on the T, strolling down Newbury Street, and soaking up knowledge at Harvard. Oh, and a little sleeping in, too.



We were told by some of our friends that we're super cool because we aren't "baby hermits". I guess some parents kind of worry about taking their little ones on big adventures. Yes, staying at home is the easiest and most comfortable option, but with a little planning, some patience, and a good sense of humor, traveling with a baby is no big deal. Hopefully there will be many more exciting travel adventures to share. In the meantime, our daily adventures will have to do.