Eleven months! =)

Benji is eleven months today. We are very amazed by everything that he has learned and what he has taught us. We are very proud and happy parents! Benji has taught us to look at the good side of things - especially the mischievous things that he does.
He will soon be one year old and he will have his doctor's appointments. He currently wears size 12-18 month clothes. He uses size 3 diapers. He wears size 3 shoes. He doesn't like to wear hats. He likes fruit baby food - except the banana flavor.  He loves all snacks, but his favorite are Goldfish, probably because Daddy always has them in his hands to feed Benji, and to eat them too :) 

Benji has learned some new things lately. Two days ago, when we started asking him what a doggy says, he started sticking out his tongue and panting like a dog. He loves to dance. Whenever he hears a song or music, he starts to jump and move around. He hasn't learned to clap putting his hands together yet, but his way of clapping is lying down flat on his stomach and pounding on the floor like a drum. (Dad gets all the credit, because he always knows how to teach Benji these things) We are currently trying to get him to tell us how old he will be turning by asking him how old he is going to turn, and having him raise one finger, but he still hasn't mastered it yet.  He loves to make cheesy smiles by closing his eyes, showing his teeth and scrunching up his forehead and then laughing.   

He doesn't like pictures very much. Or at least he doesn't like to sit still for pictures. It is almost impossible to take a picture of him without him moving around.  He loves his formula in his bottle, but he refuses to drink it from a cup.  He has started to take steps, but he has to be holding on to one of mom or dad's fingers.  One of his favorite past times is to open up the cupboards in the kitchen and take out all of the pots, pans, and tupperware and then leave them all over the house.  

He is a great climber. There is nothing that stops him from trying to climb on, or over things. He loves to be on the couch, but not to sit down, rather so that he can go crazy throwing the pillows on the ground, try to grab the computers when we are using them, and to jump up and down all over the place. He knows how to get off the couch by himself now too by crawling backwards to the edge of the couch and then putting his legs on the ground. 


Dad spent two days at orientation for law school and was gone all day, and when he got home, Benji greeted him by crawling up, getting on his knees waving his arms around, and then he wanted to be in dad's arms and was smiling a lot.  Benji also knows how to give kisses. He opens his mouth up really wide, and gives big wet kisses .. but if you aren't careful, he also might chomp down on your fingers.

One of the biggest changes that we have seen in him is that his hair is very curly. Even when we comb it and straighten it, after a few minutes it gets curly again. He still doesn't say mama :(, but he does say Da da. He loves to play and he loves to eat when mom and dad are eating, even if he already ate.Even though this time is very tiring and difficult for all of us, it is also very fun!

 Happy 11 months Benji! :)