Field Trip!
Ben's class went to WonderWorks in Oak Park last week. He got to ride a no-foolin' school bus. This was very exciting. Mom tagged along and took pics.
firsts Archives
January 31, 2009
April 12, 2008
Another Fine Day
We spent another great Saturday morning with Val and Jeff, this time hitting the Shedd Aquarium, and then breakfast at Eleven City Diner. Ben had an early morning snack—breakfast of champions, really—of a chocolate glazed donut.
March 9, 2008
Conversation
It's one thing to have Ben start calling the dog "doggy" or the cat "kiddy" or pat Lisa and say, "Mama, mama, mama..."
It's an entirely other thing when he points at something and asks, "whadisdis?"
"That's a car seat."
"Oh."
"Whadisdis?"
"That's a humidifier."
"Oh."
"Whadisdis?"
"Those are your shoes."
"Oh."
Freaking. Us. Out.
February 20, 2008
Aloha
Yeah, this pretty much rules.
Update: I'm just going to keep adding photos and stuff to this post. The weather is here, wish you were great.
One final Hawaii update. We're back home in cold snowy Chicago. What have we learned?
1) Our child is freakishly adaptable to large time changes, so much so that we have seen no ill effects from jetlag in either direction. A great flyer (no baby Benadryl needed!), but not a fan of being belted in to an airplane seat. We purchased a CARES harness, but he's on the small end of its usefulness, so I'm sure it'll still come in handy. It couldn't be easier to use, and installs in seconds. Highly recommended.
2) We would like to move to Maui, effective immediately.
We finally got off our keisters and explored a bit on Wednesday, venturing north of Kapalua, up to Honokohau Bay and Honolua Bay. Photos can't begin to describe. Here's a quick video of surfers at Honolua.
January 29, 2008
Cheeeese!
Ben's got a lot of new tricks up his sleeves these days. Today he suddenly began saying "cheese!" in anticipation of having his picture taken. I can't imagine where he learned that...
January 27, 2008
Snowsuit!
We've got a relative heat wave goin' on here in Chicago (currently a whopping 29°) the sun's shining, and little to no wind. So we decided to take Ben outside, blow the stink off, throw him in a snow bank and see what happened. He loved it, of course. Wasn't quite sure what to make of sitting down in the snow, but seemed to enjoy supervising the wagon-pulling.
December 27, 2007
Get A Haircut, Ya Hippie!
Ben woke up a bit early this morning, so by the time we left for his haircut appointment, he naturally conked out in the car. I think he was still half-asleep when we put him in the chair and didn't really know what to make of the whole situation.
December 16, 2007
Yep, We're Still Here
It's been a busy holiday season, and Ben's ever-increasing Jekyll and Hyde impersonation keeps us on our toes. As I type this, he is alternating between belly laughter and omigod the world is ending tears.
A couple of firsts this week, including a trip to the dentist, where Dr. Roggi tried to count his teeth, but mostly just wanted him to come in so he'd get comfortable being in a dentist chair. Ben also got to go to Toys R Us and pick a few things out to unwrap at Christmas. We joked about letting him loose for a "15 Second Shopping Spree." Ooops! Times up! Better luck next time!
He was really into the Sesame Street Sing-A-Long guys, groovin' to Cookie Monster.
October 27, 2007
Ben's First Soccer Match
Today Ben went to his first soccer match, an IHSA boys soccer state semi-final between Winnebago (where I grew up and went to high school) and Chicago Francis Parker. Winnebago won 5-1, advancing to their first state final ever, where they'll play two-time defending state champions Waterloo Gibault later tonight.
This is the 20th year of soccer at Winnebago HS, and this semi-final win was Coach Mary Beth Elsen's 200th career victory. Mrs. Elsen has been there from the beginning, and one of my class- and team-mates Larry Southard—now an assistant coach—was part of that first team way back in '87 as well. Congrats guys, and good luck tonight!
Update: Well, it sounds like Winnebago controlled much of the game, only to eventually lose 3-2 after 4 scoreless overtimes and a shoot-out.
October 7, 2007
Ben's First Birthday Party
Wow. What a day. A big thank you from all of us for making Ben's first birthday and dol such a great time. Of the items we placed on the dol sang (bundle of string, pen, stethoscope, $100 bill, and a soccer ball) Ben chose, without hesitation, well... the Benjamin. Suhweet!
It's been an incredible year, and so many great friends and family have helped make it better than we ever could have imagined. A very special thank you to Halmoni for whippin' up some incredible Korean fare, and just being a great help for the past week.
Tons more photos here.
September 4, 2007
"Hiya!"
So it's pretty much been confirmed that Ben's first word is "Hi!" He's been saying it with regularity and purpose for the past week or so. This morning after he woke up, Lisa went in to get him. As she walked into his room, Ben said, "Hiya!" Then he played his latest game, "pretend to go back to sleep."
He's also getting pretty confident in the standing department, fooling himself into standing unassisted for 5-10 seconds at a time, as well as climbing stairs like crazy. Multiple gate-containment systems have been deployed.
Ben's got a new ride, too. Kickstart, suicide shifter, hardtail.
July 1, 2007
Blueberry Pancakes and LA Ladies
It's been a weekend filled with friends and family at Chez Falconer. Grandma and Grandpa are here from Ohio, Lisa's cousin Anna is here visiting from LA with some friends (and instant honorary aunts to Ben). On Friday night, Val, Jeff, Karen, Ethan and Sammy Davis Jr. Jr. (the French Bulldog) came over to take advantage of the perfect "hanging out in a backyard with a fire" weather.
Ben continues to expand his culinary horizons. This morning he got to try mom's world famous blueberry pancakes. Yum!
June 27, 2007
Circle Cereal
Lisa introduced Ben to the wonders of Cheerios-esque cereal. He, of course, loves it. Other skill acquisitions this week include much improved transitions between standing and kneeling/scrambling, extended periods of holding on to our TV cabinet and alternately sucking on the edge or attempting to play with the DVD player, and free weight rolling.
Oh yeah, Mom and Dad have been married 9 years today. Yay us! Apparently the 9th anniversary is the "Leather" anniversary. Take that for what it's worth.
June 17, 2007
Happy First Father's Day, Dad!
Ben wanted to chew his dad's Father's Day card, but eventually agreed to hand it over. I got Andrew a much needed new grill, which seemed an appropriate dad gift. Not to be outdone, Ben got Andrew tickets to tour Wrigley Field. How thoughtful, Ben!
As you can see, Ben's all about chewing whatever he can get his hands on. Greeting card, Dunkin' Donuts bag, etc...so we finally started giving him some teething biscuits. They're a big hit, even if they make me a little nervous as he bites off hunks and tries to swallow them without chewing. He's only got two teeth, after all!
June 16, 2007
Check Out My Moves
Ben had his first gym class yesterday, and it appears it has given him some ideas.
June 11, 2007
Adventures In Fooooood!
Ben is becoming more and more adventurous and curious about what goes into his maw, and not just random edges of furniture. He wants what we're eating, a trend that has been confirmed at day care. When the older kids eat, Ben wants to eat.
Here Ben is enjoying some beef mushroom broth at JMK Nippon, an excellent teppanyaki institution in Rockford. This past weekend was chock full of new tastes. Lots of pictures after the jump.
June 7, 2007
PIZZA!!!
AJ told us they were having pizza for dinner, and that sounded good to us.
Ben seems to like it, too. Sauce anyway...
May 19, 2007
School of Rock - Get The Led Out
Today Ben went to his first rock concert, the Chicago School of Rock Led Zeppelin show at the Abbey Pub. Notice his makeshift mom earplugs. We went all MacGyver on him and ended up taping them to his ears. That's right: I taped wadded up tissue to my son's ears.
Here's the kids busting out "Over the Hills and Far Away"
May 9, 2007
Swing!
May 1, 2007
Ben Does Impressions
This past weekend Ben had his first swimming class (Perch classes at the local Y) and did his best little fish impression. He dug every moment of it, as we'd suspected he would. Afterwards, we went home and he crawled around on our bed, carrying a toy in his mouth, doing a pretty decent impression of our dog, Dexter. The next day, Grandma and Grandpa Graf came to visit us from Ohio for a few days. Halmoni carried Ben around, marsupial-like. Note his grip on her shirt.
April 21, 2007
Go Cubs Go!
What a day! Ben spent the morning scramblin' around on his belly. Mom thought it was a little chilly when we first woke up, so she decided Ben needed to wear his robe. Yes, this is the same robe from photos from his first week. ("30 Rock" fans: Shorty Robe!)
This afternoon was Ben's first Cubs game. We got there a bit late, but Ben was a total trooper and stayed right to the end. He was particularly fascinated with the flags on the foul poles and on the scoreboard, and of course he was charming the pants off everyone around him.
Randi, Steve and Lily were there, and a bit later the entire Marchese clan showed up, and Kim noted that she thought this was the first time all the seats in our group had kids with them. The Cubs beat the Cardinals 6-0. I told Ben he probably shouldn't get too used to that.
April 14, 2007
New Stuff
Ben's been trying all sorts of new things lately. He seems to really like avocado, and loves sucking on mashed bananas through a strainer. Graf even gave him a sippy cup the other day.
He's also beginning to figure out the whole sleep thing. The past few days have found us sleeping the longest stretches since, oh, last September?
April 2, 2007
Happy Opening Day!
Go Cubs!
March 16, 2007
Wow, What A Week!
Firedog fans, do not despair, your long awaited update has arrived. We spent the last week in Florida with the Falconer/Luna clan, enjoying the sunshine and warm breezes, eating far too much Peanut Butter Capt'n Crunch (hey, we were on vacation), swimming, playing mini-putt, and generally just taking it easy™. So go to the bathroom, grab a beverage, and flex that mouse finger.
March 3, 2007
Look What I Can Do
(Rollover for a rollover!)
February 11, 2007
A Trifecta of New Seating
With ever-developing back and neck muskles comes a whole new world of activities for Ben. He's not so sure about the Johnny Jump-Up yet. I think he's still a bit too short. He's still getting used to the activity center, but man, he's lovin' high chairs!
December 25, 2006
Ben Made The Good List
Santa came and surprised all the kids with a spot check on Christmas Eve.
Right click to download a high res. version of this video (70 MB mpeg) and save to your computer.
December 24, 2006
Bumbo!
Ben seems to really enjoy chillin' in his Bumbo seat.
December 9, 2006
Skanksgiving
Usually the greatest of the eating holidays is observed the Saturday before Thanksgiving, but we still managed to eat too much and enjoy meats wrapped in other meats, a Skanksgiving must.
December 7, 2006
Manchester Derby
Ben had his two month check-up today, all systems go. He's not quite as heavy as we thought, only 13 lbs, 5 oz. He's a tall drink of water at 24.5 inches. His head, in professional pediatrician parlance, is "fabulously round."
To celebrate, Ben's gettin' all fired up for his first Manchester Derby this Saturday.
Mmmm...delicious bear forehead...
November 23, 2006
Happy Thanksgiving!
We're spending Thanksgiving in Mentor, Ohio with Lisa's family. Last night Ben had his first overnight sleepover without Mom and Dad. Grandma and Grandpa Graf took care of Ben while we got to go to a movie and also got much needed sleep at the hotel. Thanks Grandma and Grandpa!
November 12, 2006
New State: Indiana!
We took Ben to see his Great Grandma Kate for the first time yesterday. She had no idea we were coming, so it was a pretty good belated birthday present. We took him on a quick tour of Grandma and Grandpa's old college stomping grounds, the wild and crazy party school of Manchester College*, but he seemed to be most interested in the ceiling fans at the Main View Tavern.
*It's quite possible that this is the first time those two terms have been uttered in the same breath without a negative qualifier involved. Did you know that in the early 60s, if you were a Manchester College student and were caught in the Main View Tavern, you could get expelled from school? Well, you could. Those were some wild times, man.
October 15, 2006
Ben Digs Brunch
It's not quite breakfast, it's not quite lunch, but it comes with a slice of cantaloupe at the end. You don't get completely what you would at breakfast, but you get a good meal!
— Jacques, The Simpsons - Life On The Fast Lane
You know, I was noticing that there aren't a lot of pictures of mom here, but she spends quite a bit of time with ol Firedog. It's just that he's usually eating, and Graf doesn't really appreciate photo sessions at those particular moments.
October 14, 2006
Ben's First Week
October 10, 2006
Home Sweet Home
Ben got to come home today. We turned onto our street exactly 48 hours after he was born. That's the sort of silly sappy stuff that turns dads into goo. Well, that and havin' your little dude fall asleep on your chest while you're watching soccer with him for the first time, and you have EXPLAIN what soccer even is. I should probably stop now. Here, look how ridiculously cute my son is.
October 8, 2006
Happy Birthday, Benjamin Rhys
You're finally here, dude! And what an awesome job your mom did. Holy crap!
10:37am, 7 pounds, 8 ounces, 21 inches long, and feet ready to barefoot ski on.
Clearly, much more to come.
