All I Want for...Christmas?

Well, it's a month late for the song, but Gracie is two-front-teethless.  (Toothless?)  She even has a cute little lisp to go along with it.

I always wanted mine to come out like that, but they came out one at a time.  Boring.

Benson, we have a problem...

Historically, my children are slow to become mobile.  They roll around for months, but actual crawling starts around 11 months, and walking from 12 to 17 months.  Sweet boy Benson got a head start and taught himself to get into sitting position at the beginning of the month, as he reached 9 months old.  (On a related note, naps this month have been rather sketchy, since he sits up and cries, forgetting that he is allowed to lay down and relax.)

I was not ready for this:

Real crawling, on hands and knees, about a week after the sitting trick.  Not as fast as the blurry pictures make it seem, but with a determination to get exactly where he wants to go, including over bean bags and siblings.

So, I REALLY wasn't ready to see this another week later: 

 WHAT IS THIS?  Why is he already standing?  I know many 9-month-olds are doing it, but not MY nine- month-olds.  (But doesn't he look pleased with himself?) We have to step it up in the "keep little toys off the floor and, goodness, even the table" department around here.  And Ben said he found him trying to stick his finger into an outlet.  Thank goodness his fingers are too chubby, but I guess I need to dig out our outlet covers again.

His tongue is always out lately.  My kids also teethe late, historically, with the earliest (Caytie was the winner) at 12 months.  I'd say the tongue and drool and runny nose are not teething related, but Benson seems ready to prove me wrong.

Any guesses on when the first tooth is going to push out?

Guess who?

Guess who finally learned how to make hats on our hat loom, and made this adorable one for Benson?

Answer:  Not me.  It was Scott!  He watched some girls do them during his play practices, and thought he could do it.  He could!  (Though I did make the pom pom for the top.)

Guess who almost didn't get the classic picture as a baby in the doll stroller, because he is almost too big?

Answer: Baby Boy Benson, who, at 9 months and 18 pounds 12 ounces, is a pound and a half heavier than 9 month old Scott, the previous "biggest baby of the family" record holder.  That stroller is straining.

Guess who likes to take pictures of their little girls in front of World War Two aircraft and bombs?

Answer: Ben.  I am truly surprised at how many pictures we have just like this.

Guess who has a new favorite word to say anytime things go wrong?

Answer: Caytie.  And her new word is "Barns."  Any guesses as to what that means?  It is short for "Barnacles," which is what Spongebob Squarepants says whenever anything goes wrong.  It took me some time to figure that one out.  We have not watched that show for AGES, but I guess its influence will never go away...

Guess who really needed to feed some kids some healthy food in a house full of Christmas goodies?

Answer: me.  I cut up all the veggies in the house, added some peaches, tuna salad, cheese, ranch dressing, and goldfish crackers, and told them to make faces.  They had a great time, but I had to take pictures of the masterpieces before they would agree to eat them up.

Guess who needs to stop blogging?

Picture a Christmas Morning

First gifts

First Christmas!

For all the girls--a favorite, for sure.

Before his second bath of the day, thanks to frosted gingerbread cookies

Sadly, the only picture I got of the SNOW we got, barely visible through the windows.  A White Christmas is a Texas miracle.

Yes, every picture with Scott involves his new toy.  Ben is playing with mine :)

A Tale of Two Gerbils

Once we had a cat, who was loved by a boy and by no one else.  Then that boy wanted a hamster.  "Not with a cat," was the rule.  The cat got sick, was put to sleep, and the boy was sad.  He remembered the rule, and said, "We don't have a cat--how about that hamster?"  He had to buy it by himself, and the cage, and promise to take care of it all by himself.  Promises were made, as was a trip to the pet store.

Gerbils are cheaper than hamsters.

Once we had two gerbils.  The first was purchased by a boy and was named Lucky.  After reading about gerbil habits and needs, her sister (Dusty) was purchased for companionship and to appease the boy's sisters' need for holding a pet.  They were loved...

Some gerbils like to be held.  These didn't.  Some gerbils like to run around in plastic balls.  These cowered in fear and relieved themselves and refused to move when put into their balls.  Some gerbils squeak in delight and stand up on their hind feet in greeting when they see their owners.  These would run into their tubes to get away from any grabbing hands.  They were stinky.  They were noisy.  Their cage was a pain to clean.  Still, they were loved.  And kind of cute.  And wouldn't really run away very far if the cage was left open by visiting children.  And only chewed up one electrical cord.

Gerbils live from two to three years.  We got them in March of 2010, and figure they were born around January.  That's almost exactly three years ago.

Once we were putting the children to bed.  The smallest girl looked at the gerbils as we went by and said, "I think the gerbil is dead."  What does a three year old know about what a dead gerbil looks like?  A lot.  She was right.  Lucky was in her favorite tube, but her spirit was not.  There were tears from the girls, and a burial was promised.  The boy and his dad were at a Scout meeting, but a phone call prepared them, and they removed Lucky's body when they returned, and said good night to Dusty.

The following morning, the oldest girl went to check on the remaining gerbil.  "Daddy!"  she called.  "I think Dusty is dead!"  "No, she's fine--she must still be sleeping," was the reply.  "But Daddy, she's on her back, and her feet are like this..."

Once we buried two gerbils that died within hours of each other.  They were loved.  But they are not being replaced.