Bowling Bliss: 14 Months Old and Ear Tubes

Out by the pool...catching some rays!

Hello All! I'll start with this...Bentley is HILARIOUS!!! He jibber jabbers like he's having an all out conversation with us. Every now and then, he'll throw in a word in that we can make out, but most of the time is sounds a little like this, "Laaabandnhdndanllaalaannaamdnanamama." Usually, he's pointing at something and leaning over as if to put lots of emphasis on what he's saying. I've tried to get a good video of him doing this, but I haven't yet succeeded. I'll post one as soon as I do, though. :)

Bentley is still not even 19 pounds, but I think he's gotten taller. He's able to reach things he couldn't used to reach, and he bumps his head on drawers now. He must be taller! He's talking up a storm with even more words. He's still saying most of the words from the previous posts, but some of them have changed. Here's the latest list:

Mama
Dada
Titi - Sissy (Porsche)
Ba - Ball
Ba Baw - Golf ball
Mmmm - Moo (When asked, "What does a cow say?"
Baaa - Cup (for playing with in the bathtub)
Ba ba - Paci
Ma ma - Bunny (Sleepy Bunny)
Mmmmm - Milk
Nana - Banana
Bea bea - Brown Bear
Boo - Book
Ba (with a short /a/) - Bath
Do do - Toothbrush (with the same intonation that I use to say "toothbrush")
Ri Ri - Ride Ride (wagon, car, rocking chair...anything that moves)
All Done - Sounds a lot like ride ride, but only says it when he's done eating.
Bye Bye - He usually waves when he says it, too. Also stands at the door, saying "bye" when he wants to go outside.
Hi - As he waves to everyone we pass in the grocery store.
Lie - Light
Dat - That
Baba - Vaccuum
No - Nose
Eye - with a great country accent
Bite bite - food
Uh Uh - Uh Oh
Bebe - Baby
Wawa - water (So cute to hear him say, "Bye Bye, Wawa" in the bathtub as the water runs out.)
Kitty Kitty - He doesn't actually say "kitty kitty," but he sticks his tongue in and out trying to.
Bo - Bird (He says it really loud when he sees birds outside.)
Dududududu - doggie (really high pitched, like he's calling it) Just today he started panting like a dog with his tongue out to tell me he saw a picture of a dog. TOO CUTE!
Bubbo - Bubbles (This has to be the sweetest thing he says.)
Bo - Blow (It sounds just like "bird," but he says it with the bubbles.)
Ewww - Trash, as he takes paper to the trash can.
LaLa - Hello, as he holds a phone to his ear.
Bu - Button, as he tries to press anything that even resembles a button.
Brrrr - This is what he says when he holds a water bottle or touches one of Mommy or Daddy's drinks. (We told him "Brrrr, it's cold," the first time he picked up Daniel's cold bottle of water.)
u u - Open (as he hands me his bubbles or any container that needs to be opened.
a (short /a/ sound) - This could be "up" or "out" depending on the situation.

That's all I can think of for now, but I'm sure I forgot a couple.

You may notice that some of the words he uses are the same for more than one thing. You have to take them in context to know what he's talking about. Mommy knows what he's saying! :) To go along with all these words, he is making some pretty silly sounds, too. He's a little ham and loves being around people. When I take him to Daniel's work, he goes around to everyone's office to say "hi." Yesterday, Daniel came home for lunch, and as he told Bentley "bye bye," Bentley hurried over to him raising his arms up. I said, tell Daddy "bye bye." He wouldn't say it, so we went about our routine. I took him up to his room for his nap, and as we closed the curtains and blinds, as plain as day, Bentley said, "Dada, bye bye," as he waved his little hand toward the door. It was sooooo precious.

Bentley is SO close to running. He's walking really quickly, and he loves to play chase. I'll run or crawl after him, and he laughs hysterically. He backs himself into a corner and just waits for me to tickle him. His laugh is so sweet, and SUPER contagious.

Here's a couple of videos that help to see just how funny he is.

Bentley is sleeping like a champ these days. He went through a short spell last month where he started crying every time I laid him down again. (He's developed a major attachment to Mommy, so I think that's why.) We got through it though, and he's back to sleeping SO good. He's usually in bed between 7:30 and 8:00, and he's been sleeping past 8:00 in the morning. He's been taking one long nap right after lunch, but if he needs an early nap, we get another quick one in before dinner. He still loves his bedtime routine, and he's starting to take part in it a little more. He chooses his bedtime book now with the following choices: Love You Forever, Brown Bear, Brown Bear What Do You See?, I Love My Mom, and Time For Bed. For about the last month, he chose I Love My Mom, but just in the last week, we've been reading Brown Bear. It's sweet to see that he has a preference. Sometimes when reading Brown Bear, he makes the animal sounds for the bear, cat, and dog, but not consistently. When I get to the teacher, I say, "Shhh," and Bentley sometimes makes the "s" sound. So cute!

Bentley eats pretty good. He's funny about trying some new foods, and of all things not to eat...he won't touch fried chicken (which is Daniel's favorite). He LOVES pizza and the Gerber Graduates Ravioli. His new favorite thing is fruit cocktail fruit cups, and he also really likes Jell-O. He eats most of what we eat, but I keep the ravioli on hand for when he's not too excited about our meals.

Enjoying a yummy lunch at home!

To top off all of Bentley's updates, his 14 month birthday was a BIG day. He got tubes in his ears...Poor baby! We had to be at the Surgery Center at 6:00 a.m., which was early enough for him to not really miss breakfast. He doesn't usually eat until 8:00 or later. He was in a great mood, and didn't even cry when they took him back. He whined a little as they took him from Daddy, but overall, he did great.

Mommy and Bentley up bright and early....waiting

Snuggling with Daddy before the procedure.

Wow...what's this??

Such a big boy, and so cure in his hospital gown.

Hmmm...what's that I see?

What's up doc?

Look, Mommy!!

The procedure took all of about five minutes, so we were only away from him for about fifteen or twenty minutes. They used gas to make him sleep, but intubation and IV's were NOT required...thank goodness. When he woke up, he was GRUMPY! They said the anesthesia makes babies that way. He was pitiful. He just sobbed and huffed and puffed for about 30 minutes. he finally went to sleep on the way home and slept for 2 1/2 hours. When he woke up, it was as if nothing happened.

Surgery? What surgery?

Sweet baby boy...huhum, I mean, big boy looking out the window.

We took Bentley to Mellow Mushroom since he was so good because he usually loves the pizza there. He didn't have much of an appetite because he was still tired.

So sleepy!

He started coughing yesterday and running a fever, so I called the doctor this morning. He said that the coughing could be from the gas/anesthesia and the fever could be his body's way of coping with all they did to his ears. Apparently, there was a lot of "nasty gunk" on his eardrums that required a lot of cleaning. The doc said that tubes will be the only cure for ear issues that bad. He's been a little cranky with the fever, but nothing major, so we are just thankful it's over. Ahhhh!

Overall, this has been a SUPER fun month. I'm off of school for the summer, and Bentley and I are getting to spend LOTS of time together. We play, snuggle, go outside, swim, slide, swing, dance, sing, eat, paint and just have fun! We've been going to the public library for story time, too. It's so much fun! Last summer I got to stay home with him when he was tiny. This summer he has a personality, has preferences, tries to talk to me, and shows me every day that he loves me. I am cherishing each moment.