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We’ve switched themes here on the site to something we hope will grant us a little more flexibility in posting stuff as it happens. It won’t help much with photos or anything, but for quick notes and observations, etc, it should make things a little easier. Let us know if you see anything wildly broken.
Update: Just in case you can’t see the embedded Vimeo video below, here’s the direct link to it on the Vimeo website:
Our apologies to anyone that had trouble!
So I cracked this joke at dinner last night, and Benjamin thought it was pretty funny, so he kept repeating it. And of course, I made him repeat it again for a quick little video. His fake-laughing really is super-funny, though maybe you have to be there to appreciate it. ;)
The joke, in case the audio’s as poor as the video (recorded with my crappy cellphone camera), is “Is your nose running?” “Yes.” “Better go catch it!” followed by his classic fake-laughing and a request to watch the recording we’d just made. Enjoy!
So hard to believe it, but Benjamin’s three already. It’s just insane how fast time is flying!
He really is a fantastic kid. We’re so very proud of him and how nice a job he’s doing growing up, even if it seems like it’s all moving way too fast. He’s a great son and an awesome big brother.
If you’re at all interested in a shot from his past, here’s a post from his very first birthday that includes a pretty cute picture of him:
We’ll have some three-year portraits here to look at, soon, so keep an eye out for those.
Benjamin’s transformation so far has been amazing, and continues to be amazing. And not just the changes in him, but also the changes in us as adults and parents; Stacey and I have also really grown tremendously since he was born; it seems like he teaches us as much as we teach him. And it all feels very, very right.
Love you, buddy!
Zachary went in earlier this afternoon to get his cast removed and have another x-ray to verify his arm has indeed healed correctly.
Bone growth was excellent, and he’s well on his way to full recovery. No second cast needed. All clear, he’s OK, and we can go home and be normal again!
Though his radius still looks crooked in the x-ray, we’re told that it will straighten back out fully on its own, growing and shedding bone as necessary to adjust to the correct positioning. At his age, we’re told that takes 3-4 months or so. The bone growth is very obvious in the x-ray; you can see a large mass of new growth covering the areas where the break occurred.
The skin on his arm is a little bit chapped and dry, but that will resolve itself in no time as well with a bath and some lotion.
One other thing we’ll be watching is whether he goes back to being a right-handed eater like he was before the cast; he’s gotten pretty used to eating as a lefty lately, with both his hands and with utensils.
We went out to eat after his cast removal, and he kept raising both arms and dancing to the music. I think he’s happy to have his arm back. He’s still being a little bit guarded with it, but it’s just become habit these last few weeks from not using it fully; he’ll get over that quickly. He was giving high-fives and scratching his head and ear at dinner… and quite pleased with himself. Yay!
Benjamin wrote his first-ever letter to Santa to put out with the cookies and milk last night on Christmas Eve. Or, rather, Dad asked Benjamin what he wanted to say to Santa, Benjamin told Dad, and Dad wrote most of it, except for a couple of bits Benjamin insisted he write himself; he focused so very hard writing the bits he did, and it was incredibly cute…
Dear Santa,
Merry Christmas!
Hi. I’ve been a good boy this year. My brother Zachary was a good boy this year, too.
[Benjamin scribbles, saying each word out loud as he slowly, carefully writes...] (”It’s a good cookie.”)
Mommy has been a good girl, and Daddy was a good guy. Owen and Ollie and Laura and Lydia were good, too. Nana and Papa were good, too.
Merry Christmas.
[Benjamin scribbles, saying each word out loud as he slowly, carefully writes...] (”I was a good boy.”)
Santa, thank you for the presents.
We love you, Santa.
– Benjamin, Zachary, Mommy, Daddy and Yoda… (and [long list of cousins, aunts and uncles here])
Bye!
Awesome, right? :)
We hope you had a great 2008…and we hope you have an even better 2009. Take care, everyone–we love you all.
Benjamin’s first snow angel, created 20 December 2008, in our front yard.
Image manipulated slightly to enhance the imprint.
Stacey and Alex 4:47 am on June 11, 2009 Permalink
And yes, this is the unadorned stock theme, and no, it’s not exactly screaming “awesome!”, nor is it feeling entirely graphically appropriate for the subjects and subject matter. In due time, or maybe never, we’ll fix it or we won’t. ;)