Benjamin Matthew

Time for a little update on our Benny boy.  He's 3 1/2 years old this month.  He's growing too fast!  I love hearing him talk and talk.  I love his little voice.  The world through his eyes is so funny and so simple.  

I love this picture.  He got invited to Jonah's birthday party and he was so excited to be going alone.  It was a super hero theme.  He LOVES all things superhero.  Here's some more things I want to remember about 3 year old Ben-O.  

• He doesn't quite understand how to use the phrase, "I promise".  He'll say something like, "Mom, can I have another string cheese?"  I'll tell him no and then he'll say, "Pleeeeeaaaaaase!  I promise!"  
• Benny is still our early riser.  He has been since he was tiny.  He's usually up by 6:00-6:30.  I'll hear his door open, followed by his little footsteps coming down the hall.  He walks over to the bed and says in his tired voice, "Can I watch sometheen?" or "Can I have breakduss?"  I've gotten into the bad habit of letting him watch a show on Netflix before I get up and face the day.  
• Speaking of shows.  Some of his favorites:  Sonic, Super Hero Squad, Power Rangers, Super Mario Bros.  During the day he talks about them and shows me their moves.  
• Just now he came up to me with one of his Ninja toys and said, "I'm just a Ninja."  I asked what a ninja does and he said, "They do backfwips in the yair and acshuawy (actually) they do backfwips in the sky."  Benny is always doing jumps and somersaults complete with sound effects and arm moves.  
• Benny loves the color green.  He points it out everywhere we go.  I love that he points out all of our favorite colors, too.  Trees, cars, store signs.  
• Whenever Jason tells Ben no to something, Ben will say, "Mom says no?"  If it's me that told him no, he'll say, "Daddy says no?"  It's nice because he automatically give you an out :) 
• Benny has to have a couple little "guys" in his hands everywhere we go.  They are usually a Power Ranger and one of his Imaginext people.  Sometimes it's one of his Lego Super Mario guys.  He most especially has to have them when we go to the gym or store.  
• We go to the gym most mornings and without fail, every time I pick him up from the childcare center, he says, "Can I have a granola bar when I get home?"  It's just part of the routine.  I recently started a new system where the kids have to have a fruit or veggie before a treat (granola bar, goldfish, PB crackers).  Benny was not a happy camper when I started telling him he had to have a cutie or some carrots before his granola bar.  He has adjusted, though.  
• Instead of asking, "What did you say?"  when he doesn't hear me, he says, "What you said?"  It makes me laugh every time.  
• Instead of "there" or "here", he says, "theren" or "heren".  I wasn't sure how to spell it.  They sound like he's saying it the right way, just with an N sound at the end.  
• Naps ended about 6 months ago for Ben.  He still gets super tired, but if he takes a nap, he has a really hard time going to bed at a reasonable hour.  So, on the days that he has crashed in the car at 4:30 pm or sat still on the couch for too long in the late afternoon, bedtime is a little hairy.  He comes out of his room multiple times and says, "Will you sweep wiff me?" Even when I'm super tired from a long day and I'm done with being mom for a while, those words always make me smile.  I usually tell him no, and he says, "Will you sing me a song?"  So, we go sing a couple songs and hope for the best.  (Sometimes I say yes and lay down with him for a while.  I get to hear more of his sound effects as he lays next to me playing with his little Batman or Power Ranger.)

We love our sweet Ben-O.