Saturday, February 25, 2012

Name That Tune

We like music in this house and recently Benton has started singing along with real words instead of just gibberish. He is getting pretty good at the first and last words of each line, but we're still working on filling in the middle. See if you can follow along...the last two songs are tricky.

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Greatest Show on Earth

Even though we've been undergoing circus training for a while now (remember this?), we had never personally experienced anything quite like the Greatest Show on Earth. We were excited to be able to take Benton to the circus in Atlanta yesterday. We'd been talking it up for a few days so I was nervous we would all be disappointed. But the Ringling Brothers delivered.

We decided to save a few bucks on parking and take Marta up to Atlanta. Benton loved riding the "train" and hopefully didn't annoy too many fellow passengers with his "choo-choo" sounds.


We got there just in time for the pre-show where everyone gets to go on the floor and see the performers up close. I think Benton was a little overwhelmed at first and didn't quite know where to look. He saw clowns, horses, acrobats, a man on stilts, tightrope walkers and an elephant. Lots to take in.





When the show was about to start, we made the hike up to our cheap seats a mile high and got settled in. For reference on how high we were, when the regular-sized horses came in Benton thought they were doggies. But the show was really great and it was actually nice to be able to see the entire arena at once. Benton was captivated right away by the lights, music, animals, sounds and stunts. I was very impressed with his attention span. He clapped after every performance.



We really had a great time. I think the circus was about 30 minutes too long for a nearly-two-year-old, but that was probably just because he had missed his nap. We've always said that Benton is a trooper and yesterday was no exception. Thanks to Barnum and Bailey for putting on a great show!

Saturday, February 18, 2012

Family updates

Our almost-two-year-old is in for a rude awakening in 4 months when he's no longer an only child. We're trying to help him understand that he's going to be a big brother, but turns out that's a hard concept for a toddler brain to grasp. In the meantime, we're focusing on lots of quality time with Mom and Dad.

A few weeks ago, we went to a friend's wedding and did some dancing. We usually only have dance parties in the privacy of our own home, so Benton was excited to share his moves with the world for once.



When the weather isn't quite warm enough to enjoy playing outside, we have baseball practice in the living room. Benton thinks it's funny to use Dad as a tee.


Speaking of Dad, Brack's school did a Jump Rope for Heart fundraiser this month. The class that raised the most money won the privilege of shaving his head and beard. Before then, Brack hadn't shaved since October. It was getting pretty ridiculous. Benton and I are both pleased with the results. Check it out.

Before

After

In Baby #2 news, we have decided not to find out if this one's a boy or a girl. Bring on the suspense. We did have an ultrasound a couple of weeks ago and we're happy to report that all limbs and necessary body parts are present and functioning. Benton is noticing my expanding mid-section and most days he rubs my stomach and says hi to the baby. I often ask him what that baby's name should be and he usually suggests Elmo or Nami (I have no idea where that last one came from).

Looking forward to a new blog post soon after our visit to the circus on Monday!