Grandparents, Aunts, and Uncles! Oh my!

Benjamin Robert is over 3 months now!  Time is just flying by!  He is a happy, smiling, giggling, bouncing, bubbling little boy!  Lately, he has been practicing "making eyes" and "bashful smiling."  I have no doubt it is practice to win over the ladies when we are out in public.

Hey ladies!  Yeah, I'm lookin' at you.  Check out my bubbles.

In true Moeller fashion, we have been busy with visitors since Ben was born.  Let's recap (really, I just want to look at all his 3+ months of cuteness and disguise it as a blog post!)

Birth - 1 month

We had lots and lots of visitors in the first month of Benjamin's life!  All 6 of his grandparents were able to see him in the hospital and one aunt and one uncle.  Even Ms. Kelly stopped by for a visit before we left the hospital!

I was born a ladies' man!

I had a ton of help getting started as a mom!

I <3 my Mommy

My hat is too big, I can't find my hands, and I'm stuck in some torture machine.
Things are not looking good.  At least I have my Soothie.

Grandma Linda and Grandpa Mike stayed the first few days we were home

I love my Grandma and Grandpa

Daddy got a whole week to stay at home and play...I mean work, lots of work!

Daddy snuggles are the best!

Grandma Linda came back for a week and Grandpa Mike visited on the weekend.

We're having fun on my mat, Grandma!

Grandma Ellen and Aunt Tia came for a week and Grandpa Bob was able to visit on the weekends.

I love my Grammy and Grandpa

1 month old

Aunt Cece came to play!  She was amazing, especially for having no baby experience!  Grandpa Jim, Grandma Jen, and Uncle Calvin came in for the weekend.

We'll call her "the baby whisperer"

I love my Grandma and Grandpa

I like to hang out with my Aunt Cece and Uncle Cal

Grandma Linda came back again to help.  She was the last week long visitor and Grandpa Mike visited on the weekend.

Grandma said we would have fun and snuggles when she came back.  She made me do Tummy Time!
Mommy got to her before I could stop her.

Whew!  That's a lot of people to come through the house to shower Ben with love and smiles and hugs!

Then it was on to weekend visitors!

Grammy Ellen and Grandpa Bob couldn't get enough of Ben so they came out for a weekend.

I am a cuddling extraordinaire!

2 Months old

Great-Grandma Judy flew in from Texas and Uncle Erich and Aunt Michelle drove in from Michigan to get some Ben time.

I love Great-Grandma.  Can we keep her?

This guy is pretty comfy.  I could get used to this.

Aunt Michelle was teaching me some new moves

Grandpa Jim came back for another visit with Aunt Cece and Uncle Calvin.

Uncle Cal is so funny!

What!?  You're leaving!?  Don't look at me.  I don't want you to see me cry!

Grandma Linda brought her friends, Aunt Amy and Aunt Melissa, for a girls' weekend (plus Benjamin and Aaron, of course).

I'm so cute, even I can hardly stand it.

Aaron's friends, Matt and Bob came out to meet Benjamin.  Unfortunately, we didn't get any pictures with them but we did take Benjamin to his first German restaurant/pub.

Gettin' back to my roots.

3 Months old

Grandma Linda and Grandpa Mike came out for another weekend visit after Easter.  Grandpa was thrilled to see how much I have grown!

I could get used to all this attention!

Wow!  That is a lot of people to come to Pittsburgh to shower Benjamin with love.  Thank you to those who stayed to help and those that made the trip to visit!  We have had so much fun!

That review really wore me out!

A diaper?!?

I don't have a full post prepared yet but I felt that I needed to share my day thus far.

Benjamin woke up at 7 with coos and smiles. After having his head washed and eating breakfast, Benjamin spit up on outfit 1 and Mommy, leading to both getting a wardrobe change. Outfit 1 went in to the hamper.  Perhaps it was too similar to what he wore yesterday. He is quite a fashionable boy!

I gave new meaning to the "Rootin' Tootin'" outfit

Now in outfit 2, Benjamin accompanied me downstairs so I could eat breakfast. It is only 8:15. As I am enjoying my breakfast and Ben is playing, he decides he doesn't like outfit 2 (I think he was upset that it sort of made him look like he was wearing flood pants. Not cool, Mom!) and spits up on it. As I clean my cereal bowl before changing him, he decides that I am not listening well enough.  That is when I hear THE sound. The sound that makes you panic at the thought that you may have run out of Shout and rubber gloves. It was not as bad as it sounded but I think he made his point quite clear.

Really?  Flood pants!?  How embarrassing!  And now it's on the internet!

Mommy is learning.  Sometimes she just needs a little motivation.

We sang some songs and played in outfit 3 and then it is time to eat again. Oh! What is that I hear? Another diaper change? No sweat!  This one sounds easy.  Wrong!  This one didn't have the horrible sound but it had fury! Fury that ran all the way up his back to his shoulder blades and got all over as I peeled outfit 3 from his body. Emergency bath! Yay! I look at the clock just to see it change to...11:30.

Oh yeah!  I'm the Master Pooper!

After such an eventful morning, Benjamin was all pooped out (pun intended!). At 11:50, he was down for a nap in outfit 4.

Look at this face! Are you really going to believe Mommy that I did all this?

Needless to say, I have been doing some unexpected laundry.

As I went to move the wet, clean laundry from the wash machine, what do I find? A diaper!! Not a new diaper but a wrapped up diaper indicating previous usage!! I fear it may have been THE POOPY diaper. At least all the laundry was still in the wash! Bonus: I got to really see the absorbency of the diaper in action!

I am hoping the afternoon will be a bit less eventful!

From Newborn to Baby

I'm a smart kid.  Wise beyond my months.

How did two whole months pass by so quickly!?  Benjamin had a wonderful 2 month check up this past Thursday with great reviews.  Here are the stats:

Weight: 11 pounds, 4 ounces (+3 pounds, 3 ounces from birth)
Length: 23 3/4 inches (+3 1/4 inches from birth)
Head circumference: 39 1/2 centimeters (1 1/2 centimeters from last appointment)

They call me chubs.

He is growing like it's his job!  Well, I guess that is his job at this point.

The poor little guy had to get his vaccinations on Thursday.  As our pediatrician said, "three shots and a beer."  He did really good with the oral vaccination that he could drink and DID NOT like the shots.  Once they were over and he had a little cuddle time and meal time with Mommy, he passed out in the car and all was right with the world again.   That is until Daddy took off the band-aids - ouch!  Needless to say, it was a rough day for him.

Something is going on here...and I don't think I'm going to like it.

Benjamin and Mommy have started to get nap time under control.  (And the whole Moeller household rejoiced!  YAY!)  Turns out that Mr. I don't want to take a nap actually likes routine.  Hmmm...I wonder where he gets that from...perhaps his mommy.  Once I figured that out, this have been much smoother and I feel like I might not completely lose my mind.

Mission accomplished!

Tummy time has also improved.  Mommy figured out not to do it before nap time.  As you can see, Benjamin is not happy about this change in schedule.

I stayed awake through all of tummy time and it was awful!

Benjamin has really started to grow up and become more "baby" rather than "newborn."

He likes to look out the car window and at his monkey mirror (if he is able to resist the strong urge to fall asleep).

Wow!  I never realized a car could be so interesting.

He has discovered that his hands are pretty tasty.

Look Mom! I found my thumb!

He gets excited when we sing songs he recognizes.

If you're happy and you know it, then you face will surely show it!

He is also smiling!!!  He has been doing this for a few weeks but I was just recently able to catch him in the act.  We are trying to figure out if he smiles like Daddy or Mommy.  Please observe the pictures below.

Mommy: Squinty eyes

Daddy: Open mouth

He is such a joy and so much fun!

Happy boy!

Naps are so 5 weeks ago!

Yo!  Thanks for reading my blog.

So, we have discovered that our little 7 week old Benjamin does not like naps.  Could it be that Mommy is so interesting that he just does not want to miss any exciting thing she does?  Probably.  Could it be that there is so much to see and learn?  Likely.  Could it be that he really does not like the state between awake and sleep?  More likely than the first option.   Poor little Ben cries every nap during that in between state.

Well, since he has not really been napping, we have been doing a lot of playing (Mommy's attempt to tire him out!).  Benjamin has discovered the Noah's ark decals on his wall by his crib, the monkey mirror in the car so Mommy and Daddy can spy on him while they drive, and is beginning to follow the animals on his mobile as they go around.  He particularly seems to like the panda bear.  Daddy gave him his first horsey ride on his knee, which he loved!

We have been making sure to have our 15 minutes of tummy time a day.  Since Benjamin sleeps on his back, it is important for him to have time on his belly.  He is not a fan but he is getting so much stronger!  He complains the entire time (video to come) and, as you can see, he has figured out that if he goes to sleep, tummy time ends!  He is one smart boy.  Mommy still has to figure out her counter attack.

This stinks.

This sleeping thing works pretty well!

Benjamin has decided 20 minutes of napping was enough so here ends today's post.

Hmm, would I rather take a nap or do tummy time.  That's a tough question.

Bonus post!

Benjamin did so good getting pictures taken yesterday evening with Ms. Pam.  A total natural! We had so much fun. 

I could not wait to post these pictures!

Answer to the important question: Who did Benjamin cheer for in the Super Bowl?
He's a cheesehead!
Thanks for my Packer stuff Grandpa Jim and Grandma Jen!

This is "The Ben face"

I love outfits with stuff on the butt!  It's the best part of tummy time!

"This is what handsome looks like"  So true my little man!

One Month!

Time has been flying by!  My Little Peanut is already 5 weeks and not so little anymore!  He had his one month appointment last Thursday and we found out that he is growing like a weed!

Ben's stats:
weight: 9 pounds 11 ounces (+2 pounds 4 ounces from his birth weight)
length: 22 1/4 inches (+1 3/4 inches from his birth length)
head circumference: 38 inches

No wonder he does not fit in his newborn clothes anymore! 

One tired boy!

Benjamin has been spending a lot more time exploring his world and exercising.  He is doing a great job at holding his head up to look around and is really alert.  He loves to play (and sleep) on his exercise mat and look in the mirror.

One of his favorite things to do is to sit in Daddy's arms while he bounces.  He loves his Daddy!

He already wants to be just like his daddy

Naps on Mommy are also at the top of the list.

Out like a light

Ben also loves music!  As you can guess, Mommy is very happy about this new discovery!  He likes to listen to his CD from Grammy Ellen and Grandpa Bob and went to Mommy's ladies' choir rehearsal yesterday with Grandma Linda. The mobile in his crib is also a favorite with the bright colors and fun music.

There have been a couple "firsts" that have happened since our last post.

We went for our first walk outside and discovered how bad our sidewalks are!

Out to explore the neighborhood.  "This is how I roll"

Ben attended his first wedding!  He looked very handsome and was a hit with all the ladies!

"Oh yeah.  I'm cute."

Benjamin also had his first tub bath.  It was awkward for everyone involved but I think it will get better with practice.

"Mommy, please don't make me be clean!  I'm a boy!"

We have a big day scheduled!  First time grocery shopping with Grandma and Mommy and having one month pictures taken (naked baby!) with Ms. Pam.

 

Grandpa Mike's Lil' Wrangler
Giddy up!

First three weeks

He is finally here!!!  Benjamin Robert Moeller was born on Sunday, January 23, 2011 at 4:27 pm.  He was 7 pounds and 7 ounces and was 20.5 inches long.  He was born with a full head of jet black hair, just like his mommy and has a handsome round face like his daddy.  His eyes are still a beautiful dark cobalt blue.  Daddy thinks they will be brown and Mommy thinks they will be blue.  Benjamin decided that he did not want to wait for his mommy to go through labor and was born C-section.  Both Mommy and Ben are doing just fine!

Three weeks and one day have gone by since Benjamin was born!  I cannot believe it has been three weeks already!  He is the most beautiful thing we have ever seen and we love just watching him change and grow as time goes on.  Aaron and I are still in awe that he is ours forever!

Benjamin is a great baby!  He is sleeping well at night and only fusses when he is tired or hungry.  He has been working hard on training Mommy and Daddy.  Unfortunately, Mommy had to be sent through diaper bootcamp.  After Ben did a "sneaky pee" on 4 outfits by mid-afternoon, Mommy finally caught on. 

I am doing good.  The healing process after the c-section has gone very smoothly without any complications! I am able to be up and moving around and able to be taking care of Ben.  Fortunately, Ben is sleeping in large chunks at night already so exhaustion is not as bad as it could be!  On my list of favorite ways to spend my day are snuggling with Ben, kissing Ben, watching Ben explore his new world, memorizing the shape of his features, and watching him grow.  My little Peanut is already in 0-3 months clothing! 

Daddy is so proud of his little boy!  Aaron was able to take 2 weeks of paternity leave to be with us in the hospital and the first week at home.  It was a blessing for all of us.  His first week back was a little rough as we were still trying to figure out what we were doing with this new little wonder.  Benjamin has already watched some basketball and football with Daddy!

Personally, we think Benjamin is the most adorable baby ever!  It helps that he is a really good baby as well.  At this point, his favorite things are staring at the ceiling, snuggling, pooing now more than 20 minutes after a diaper change, and sleeping. 

Yesterday was a big day for little Benjamin!  His umbilical cord fell off and revealed a cute little belly button!! 

Just one more thing for Mommy to kiss and oodle over.