‘Twas the night before Easter, and Ben decided that it was important to leave a carrot for the Easter Bunny. He also said that we should leave a “good note” for the Bunny. We had heard from Ben about “good notes” being written at school vs. “bad notes,” which we were told were a consequence of someone’s poor behavior.
The thing is, I’m not sure that Ben ever has seen one of these notes. Yes, that’s an eighth note below “BB”, which he told us was a very good note. For the Easter Bunny.
Yesterday Ben tried his hand at photographic composition while poor, sick Mocha was tethered to the kitchen table (I did not want to have to clean up after him again). This composition using our flexible cutting boards was entirely Ben’s idea.
And here’s the best shot, straight off of the camera that Grandpa Steve gave to him!
Today we had a lot of fun at the roller rink. Ben was pretty good! We went onto the rink for awhile, but spent most of our time on the carpet. By the time we left, we was getting around completely by himself.
We discovered that roller skates and roller rinks haven’t changed a bit in thirty years. This brought back a lot of memories for both of us! The rink was complete with arcade, skee ball, air hockey, and a snack bar (with pizza!). I spent so many, many hours playing Jungle Hunt at Skate Estate…
Ben has always eaten a lot of food. Tonight he requested…a bowl full of noodles! The first bowl was too small, so I had to swap it out for the biggest pasta bowl we own.
Last year, my father gave Ben a camera as a present. I just downloaded everything on it…here’s a selection of what he’s been shooting.
The view from the car seat.
Daddy is often found cooking in the kitchen.
Maddie and Emily. And Ben’s arm.
Robb, Aunt Ris, and Grandpa Traill. What a crew!
Gradma at Aunt Ris’
Daddy in the backyard.
We picked this up one day at the children’s museum in Bloomington-Normal. It’s become a staple of all play.
Trains and Maddie on her DS.
This might be good footage for a horror flick. Shades of the clown in Poltergeist. Why did my sister and I watch that alone when our parents were out one night?
Emily shows up an awful lot on Ben’s camera…
Ben has graduated from Dora to Curious George.
The scab is from a sidewalk faceplant over the summer.
Neat photo against the trees at Carle Park.
No explanation necessary. A pretty lady. Ben and I agree on this.
Carle Park, before remodeling.
Sideways shot of Mommy from this summer.
Ben pretty much insists on drinking some of the water beside Mommy’s bed every night.
Ben has really been objecting lately to photos. So, this was an all out war.
About half of the photos on Ben’s camera are of Mocha. Who he has decided is very “fluffy.”
Now, I have to say that when I was a kid none of my friends nor I could imagine someone so lucky as to get a car that you could actually drive. Thanks to the Traills, Ben didn’t just get a car, he got a tractor! With a trailer! When we started around the block, steering was dicey. But, by the time we got home, he was a champ. He even parked it (expertly) in the garage with a heap of leaves (from Nate and Giselle’s yard) in the trailer.
Every time Ben has wanted to drive, we told him that he had to wait until he’s 16. Who would have thought that we’d be teaching a 3 1/2-year-old to keep his foot on the gas pedal while steering and to look straight ahead!
I hope that you like the new look for the blog. Look for a bunch of Christmas posts shortly…