Ben 2 3/4 Update

I know I have a ton to update on, but before I get into things like PRESCHOOL, I am going to give an update on what Ben's up to at 2 3/4.....

- Ben's favorite "characters"/TV shows are Sid the Science Kid, Curious George and Mr. Steve (Steve Songs from PBS).

- Ben's favorite songs are "Opposite Day" by Steve Songs and "Guitar Player" (i.e., Peaches & Cream) by John Butler Trio.

- Ben's favorite food is ketchup (on anything), peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, yogurt, lots of fruit, hamburgers and pizza. His favorite snacks are cinnamon sticks, z bars, raisins and cereal (golden grahams and "nana's cereal" (i.e., Basic 4)).

- The activity that keeps Ben's attention for a LONG time involves pouring, sorting and moving things from container to container. These "things" include water, sand, change, shells, acorns, etc. He also loves puzzles and trains. (As I read back through this out load, Ben keeps telling me to add that he "loves packages!!!"

- Ben's daily phrases continue to improve and amaze me with his memory, his thought process and his humor. He says things like "Ben show you what I'm talkin' about" when he wants something that he doesn't know what it's called. Similarly, he'll say, "I want what you're talkin' about." When visiting my Mom he says he wants to "soft cookie" - which means he wants to pet the cat softly. He speaks in very long sentences and eventually gets his point across if you pay attention long enough. Often he is referring to something that I have forgotten about and more often than not, his references are right on. He's starting to sing more and we sometimes catch him singing songs to himself. Hopefully, he'll learn even more songs in preschool. He's also really working on words like "you, our, your, her, his, etc."

- He LOVES his little brother and is so good with him! I couldn't be happier about that!

- Ben started PRESCHOOL last week! I am optimistic to say that he's going to love it. Too soon to tell. He's had two days....the first day, I stayed with him the whole time and he had a great time. The second day, I left him and that "leaving" was quite difficult on both of us, but it seems like he still had fun. His favorite thing that he has learned is the "Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear" song/dance.

- No child is perfect, so I want to make sure I remember some of the things that are not-so-good at this challenging "terrible twos" stage. Ben has developed a consistent "temper tantrum"...how do you say it...bodily motion? He jumps up and down and flaps his wings like a bird. From experience with my younger sister, I'm sure this will be something we tease him about when he gets older. So.....of course I don't want to forget it.

Additionally, I've written about it before, but Ben is not consistently sleeping through the night. He seems to almost sleep walk to the door and yell to us. Fortunately, it's easy to get him back to bed. I hope I can report by the time he turns 3 that we get this under control.

After our 2nd solid potty training attempt, we have concluded that Ben isn't ready. Maybe in a few months. Everyone keeps saying that it will be easy when they are ready...so we are still waiting.

Can't believe Ben is getting close to THREE YEARS OLD! Crazy. He's a little kid now and I love it!