The road to recovery

We are slowly recovering from our illnesses at the Hilty household. I have a voice after eight days of whispering. Jeremy and I are both still coughing and Benjamin has come down with another stuffy nose after he seemed to recover from his ear infection.

Just a recap of our drama, here is our precious baby covered in a rash from his antibiotic.

And here he is practicing his sitting. He has become quite good at sitting while propped.

 

This is his new favorite toy, given to him by Grandma Jan. It is a set of three cloth blocks with cool pictures on them. He loves to squeeze them and shove them in his mouth.

Jeremy and I have crazy work schedules right now, with Jeremy’s rotations and the upcoming elections (always a crazy time for reporters). So, I have typically been taking care of Benjamin. But, when Daddy comes home, Benjamin lights up!

Here they are making faces at each other.

And here is our happy boy!

 

Look Mommy! We’re watching the football draft!

 

I am including this photo, because this expression looks so much like Benjamin’s cousin Logan. Mike, my twin brother, just so happens to look a little like me. ;) So, it is kind of fun to see how our kids resemble each other at times.

GERMS!

So, Benjamin has brought him more than his fair share of bugs for us, and not the kind with legs.

We are enjoying out latest bout with illness, and it probably is the worst we’ve seen yet. I have been without a voice for four days. The first day or so, people thought it was kind of funny. I took it in stride. But, by day four, I am miserable and don’t know how I am going to survive if it doesn’t come back by Monday. I am coughing, have a sinus infection, have pink eye and a sore throat. I shout whisper into the phone trying to do interviews, and it isn’t working well. No one can hear me, and I can’t even vent my frustrations.

Benjamin went in to get his vaccines yesterday, and I told them he had cried all day at day care. They checked him for a fever at my request, and it turns out he was at 101.8. So, out of the “shot” room and into the doctor’s room we went. It appears he has an ear infection, so they gave him antibiotics. However, after his second dose today, he started turning an alarming red. It started by his ear, and this patch of splotchiness spread across both sides of his face and around the back of his neck!  We called the doctor and will be back in the office tomorrow morning to decide what our next drug will be and make sure it isn’t anything more serious. In the meantime, Jeremy is forcing me to eat, and I took two Benadryl in hopes that I can entice Benjamin to eat and possibly feel better.

 

So, it has been a rough few days… but it has to get better, right?

 

I have to end with a cute photo, so here is one of Benjamin chilling with Jeremy this past Thursday.

 

Mommy can’t get sick

As  I cough and cough today, I keep thinking that I would just feel awful if Benjamin catches the bug that Jeremy gave to me. It started with a sore throat and aches all over. Now, I am coughing and can’t stop. So, it makes getting up in the middle of the night with Benjamin quite a challenge. But, the silver lining… he thinks it is hilarious when I cough. it is like I am doing it just for his amusement.. I cough, he giggles. I cough again, he laughs harder. I think just about everything we do makes him laugh these days.

Here is a picture of Jeremy and Benjamin watering the grass. Benjamin thought the idea of riding along with daddy was the funniest thing ever, and talked for a good ten minutes about it. The two spent the evening together and had a blast until it was bedtime and mommy was not home. Benjamin cried for 30 minutes while Jeremy tried to get him to eat from his bottle. Of course, this breaks my heart, but he will have to adjust on the nights I have school board meetings. Poor little guy.

 

 

So, here are some things Benjamin has been up to:

1. Drooling. Benjamin drools like someone forgot to shut off the faucet. He soaks through bib after bib. And, if he isn’t drooling on the bib, he is shoving it in his mouth to teethe on it.

2. Rolling: We are still working on this, but he has figured out how to get to his side and back. He won’t roll without us helping him, though.

3. Scooting. I have yet to see him do this, but I know he is scooting, because when I place him in his crib at night, I often find him facing the opposite way in the morning. Sometimes he is even on the opposite end of his crib. The nurse at his doctor’s office told me to take down his bumpers so he doesn’t suffocate, but I don’t think she realizes that he would be covered in bruises or would get his limbs stuck in the crib if I did that.

4. Talking: We LOVE to hear Benjamin talk, talk, talk, talk, talk. He seriously gets on such a roll, he barely pauses for a breath. Sometimes, he sticks his hand in his mouth and continues. It is hilarious. His repertoire of noises is increasing.

5. Grabbing: This boy has a grip. When he grabs something, he doesn’t want to let it go. He is learning to put objects in his mouth and pick up or drop toys. It is very cute to watch his mind process this. He also loves to pull at material. Whatever I am wearing seems to fascinate him for several minutes while he is taking a break from eating. I especially love how he holds on to me when I pick him up. It is like I get baby hugs!

6. Watching: Benjamin LOVES to watch other kiddos. At daycare, he sits and watches them with rapt attention. They serve as constant entertainment. I don’t even need to send toys for him, because he just keeps an eye on them all day.

So, that’s about it for now.  We just love him to pieces!

May flowers

Benjamin and I went home this weekend to attend a baby shower. We got to spend lots of quality time with Nana and Papa and even got a few quick minutes to see Uncle Brian and Aunt Keri. Benjamin thought they were especially entertaining.

 

Here is Benjamin in his car seat getting ready to go. Isn’t he so cute? Lately, he has been hauling around a Tigger stuffed animal and a Taggie blanket. He loves to shove both in his mouth.

 

And here he is before church Sunday wearing a shirt made for him by Aunt Christy. Isn’t he precious? Everyone at church thought so!

And, I had to include this one, because I can’t tell you how many people asked me in the past week if I have given Benjamin a hair cut. Nope. His hair is just that precious and even.

 

 

Oh…one more… or maybe a few extra. :)  Benjamin and I just took a walk, and our trees outside are so beautiful.

 

And here he is showing how big he is sitting by himself…propped of course.

Post Easter

So, I didn’t have time to post many Easter photos and I wanted to catch up. We spent Easter Saturday at the Hilty’’s gathering, and Benjamin loved all the attention from doting relatives. Here he is with his cousin Toby. They are four days apart, and we know they will be good buddies! I put their hands together, but isn’t it sweet that they held on!

 

Here are some photos at Nana and Papas house after Benjamin opened his Easter basket…actually a bucket with a shovel to play with this summer.  We had dinner with Great Grandma Sue and Great Grandpa Bob, but I put my camera away and forgot to get more photos.

Don’t you just love his Easter outfit? I got it at Gymborie and had so much fun playing dress up with Benjamin! Papa got him the State Farm doggy.

 

 

 

Here he is with Nana and Papa. I am posting their picture, because they one we took of me and Jeremy is VERY windblown! ;)

 

And here is a tag-team effort to change Benjamin’s diaper and get him dressed.

 

Easter bunny, rice cereal and family photos

   Does that sum it all up? Well, I haven’t had much time to post photos, so I am going to pile them all into one blog! First, we went home for Easter and had a wonderful time. I am not sure what I did with those photos, so I will add more later. They are on Facebook for those of you who have an account.

 

We took Benjamin for his four-month appointment a week early, because he has been having problems with his eyes. He gets clogged ducts and lots of gunk. Anyway, he measured in at 26 inches long and 16 pounds. He is our big baby!

They told us to start him on cereal, so we gave it a try tonight. And, since Grandma Jan and Grandpa Joe are staying with us this week, we got lots of photos (along with a family photo!). Benjamin’s baby sitter is out of town, so he has been loving the constant attention and adoration.

 

Benjamin smiles all day long, but we had quite a challenge trying to get him to smile for our family photos. Still, they turned out pretty well. 

 

I still have to decide which ones to print, but I am sure I will be sending you all copies, so have no fear. You don’t have to print them from here. If you have requests, e-mail me. ;)

 

And to end this post, we have to include bath shots, because they are too darn cute!

80 degrees and sunny!

I was so excited to put Benjamin in his summer clothes today. This outfit is a combination of a gift from his great grandma Sue and shorts from the consignment store. Both are 12 months! It is crazy how fast he is growing!
We just love to see him smile! He also is talking up a storm. Sometimes he doesn't even pause for a breath as he tells us about his day.


Here he is in his car seat. We had to remove the bottom part, because his feet were sticking out so far!