1-2-3-4

Almost exactly four years ago Benjamin joined my life. (I think it was like 2:20 am. Most moms probably remember exactly what time their kids were born, but after three hours of pushing and complications I was kind of out of it and the time he was born just hasn't 'stuck' in my head. I need to look it up again.)

Here's a picture of Ben the day we brought him home from the hospital. He was tiny like that for about ten seconds. He weighed 8 lbs 4 oz when he was born and three weeks later he was 12 lbs 12 oz. One year old-Two years old-Three years old-

And four year old pictures to come (hopefully sometime this week.)

I can't remember what life was like before Ben was born. Except that I slept a whole lot more :) This morning we woke up, but I was still tired, so I let Ben watch a show while I laid on the couch with him. He wrapped his arms around my neck, played with my hair, and told me that he loves me. I love those quiet moments with him. He can be such a sweet boy sometimes.

And other times he is just a silly little boy

-having fun, getting into trouble, and learning about life. I have a new found respect for first borns. Even though every child is different, the learning curve with a first born is steep. First borns have it pretty rough while parents are trying to figuring things out for the first time. I just feel so much more relaxed with Jack.

I love Ben so much and although I often complain about how difficult it is to be a parent I feel so lucky to have the opportunity to be a mom. Ben teaches me so much about life.

Here's a little poem I wrote for his birthday-

It’s March again, and it’s time to add one more,
Year to Benjamin’s age because he is turning four.
His third year started out big when just three days after he turned three,
He figured out the potty training thing and was finally diaper free.
Every night his little toddler bed he happily gets to share,
As he still falls asleep playing with his mommy’s hair.
Recently Ben figured out that not only is his mom cool, but so is his dad.
They play and laugh together and sometimes he’ll even to go to his daddy when he’s sad.
Ben adores his cousins and wants to play with them all day every day,
He’s gonna be sad when we move because across the street from them he would rather stay.
Although Ben would never pass up candy or any other kind of treat,
Broccoli, edamame and all kinds of fruit are his favorite things to eat.
Ben’s silly, sweet, and smart, his personality we simply just adore.
We are excited to see what fun and adventures his next year has in store.

Last year I made Ben this cake-

It was a lot of work, but it was awesome. Ben still talks about it. Because of that I wanted to make him an awesome cake this year. He wants a Shark Boy and Lava Girl cake. I kind of started, but I'm just not figuring it out. I think I'll go buy a cake from the store or maybe just frosting, since that's what kids only really like to eat anyway.

Well, it's almost 2:20am, I'm gonna go give Ben a kiss and try to fall back to sleep.