Two months old!

Benjamin turned 2 months old yesterday! Please excuse the extreme number of fairly samey photos, but in my defense I am completely besotted with my tiny boo and can't decide on any to leave out of this post! :) He's such a precious, smiley little man, and I love all his different expressions. He is getting so big!

















I took a photo of Arthur's writing yesterday (his first proper example that I've photographed since he started recently) and Benjamin was right there in the photo so I've included it here too! :) Arthur wanted to write all our names and I spelled them out to him and he wrote the letters. Occasionally I had to write a letter to show him how to write it first, but otherwise he did great - and he held his pencil really well. He has had the correct hold for a good 6 months but never seemed so natural with it till this week. Anyway, on with the photos! :)





Benjamin is so big and strong for his age! The doctor commented that his head control was excellent for sitting up supported. I don't support his head sitting upright on my lap, for example, because he just holds it up fine himself and looks around. He can turn his head about to see things, and it's a little wobbly but he doesn't keep dropping it forwards or backwards or anything like that any more. He is a back sleeper (my first since Arthur!) and thus doesn't get much time on his tummy compared with my last two babies, to practise using his neck muscles, but he's doing fine I think. Most days I remember to do tummy time with him at least once, but it's never for very long. He gets tired quickly and makes slightly frantic noises! He can lift his head right up and look ahead of him even, but only for snatches of a second or two. He can lift his chin and try to turn his head to the side quite well.

When the doctor was checking him (thanks ever so much for the sweet and reassuring comments on my last post about the appointment, by the way!), she put him on his tummy and he looked like he was shoving himself about with his arms and legs all at once, trying to propel himself in some way. She said, "Early crawler, maybe?!" :) I am guessing he'll crawl between 6 and 8 months old, since everyone else has here! Arthur was the latest at 8.5 months. The other two were 6 months old. I feel like Benjamin will be more like the younger two, but we'll have to see!

He loves to "talk"! It's his favourite activity. He will coo and talk earnestly complete with ever such serious and intent expressions, for as long as you can sit there and talk back with him before you get a sore muscle somewhere or other in your face from smiling for too long or holding your head in a funny position or something like that! He doesn't get tired from talking easily. He gets hiccups when he tries something new with his vocal sounds. He is on the BRINK of laughing, and every time he does that precious little "pre-laugh" - the one with the chin lifting suddenly and a "heh!" sound from the big wide open smiley mouth - he gets hiccups immediately and that distracts him. It was the same with all my other boys. I can't WAIT to hear his precious little laugh. I love his voice, it's so soft and slightly husky. A bit like Matthew's was as a baby (his is still slightly lower and huskier than Arthur or Nathan's), but not quite as much so.

I've tried the things that made each of my other babies laugh (they all laughed for the first time at me doing different things each time) but he's not that amused by any of those things! So I will have to find something that's unique to Benjamin's sense of humour! ;) So far, he does his pre-laugh for me doing percussion sounds with my mouth and throat (!) and also gurgling at the back of my throat when we coo back and forth to each other. I am incredibly besotted. I can't even describe it! He's sooooooooo precious.

Benjaminny, is his most-used nickname at the moment. Matthew started it right after he was born, except that he pronounces his name "Benjamim" anyway, so it's Benjamimmy. He calls him "that funny Benjamimmy" for some reason! For example, "Mummy, can I see that funny Benjamimmy again?" when I have just picked him up from where Matthew was looking at him. Matthew loves to spend time sitting with Benjamin, and talk to him. He is the only one who will sit still long enough and focus on Benjamin's face consistently enough to attract Benjamin's attention to get him talking and cooing and smiling. So Benjamin loves Matthew! He loves all of the boys, except he isn't crazily thrilled about Nathan just yet! Nathan LOVES Benjamin. Adores him, I think. He is nothing but gentle with him, and constantly wants to see him or interact with him. He gives Benjamin his own lovey blanket and Monkey, and tries to cover him up if he has fallen asleep in the bouncy chair. He also will bounce the chair if Benjamin is crying, with SUCH a concerned furrowed brow, and strokes his head. He constantly kisses him, mostly on his head, but anywhere he can reach really. He calls him "Beh!" (though, he calls Matthew "Meh!" right now, so it's just a first letter thing!).

Arthur still loves Benjamin so much. He is a good boy with him, very responsible. If I am bouncing the chair with my feet while I gather things to tidy up quickly before I make lunch, and Benjamin is crying, then instead of having to delay making lunch or just have Benjamin cry and cry while I do it, Arthur appears by my side, saying, "I'll take over bouncing Benjamin, Mummy, while you make lunch." He sits just where I was on the sofa, and plants his feet squarely on the two "legs" of the bouncy chair, and starts rocking. He keeps this up for a long time, and once or twice has been sooooo proud of his efforts when Benjamin went from crying to fast asleep on one of his watches! :) He still asks to hold Benjamin all the time, and nuzzles his face with his nose, making little "aww" sounds as he does so! He's very sweet with him and says he really loves him. He looks forward to when Benjamin is bigger and can talk or walk or play games with the boys. He's big brother to three at the tender age of four, but it has not been bad for him at all (contrary to what some may think!). Instead he is delighted with new siblings and is very mushy with them, wanting to spend time holding them, talking to them, and cuddling with them every day. He loves to help with nappy changes, baths, teaching new skills, and settling and soothing. Loves it. He is pretty eager for God to bless us again with more babies. He makes me so proud! :)

But this is supposed to be about Benjamin! Oops! :)

So, Benjaminny. I reverse this sometimes to call him "mini-Benji". Benjaminny is a nickname we all call him (except Neil, I think?), and a close second is Benji.

Well, I could write endlessly about my sweet little lovely baby boy, but he's stirring right now and has been sleeping all evening, so I think it's time for me to go and nurse him, before going to bed myself. I will update again soon - I took a lot of photos of the other boys too yesterday, and will post those soon!