Neck muscles

Ben is getting really good at holding his head up. He figured out a few weeks ago how to turn over from front to back, but hasn't been doing it much since. He's also getting really good at rolling from his back to his side, but hasn't made that last move onto his tummy. He will spend several minutes in front of a mirror seeing

Getting ready for Jessica to go to work

Jessica will be going back to work in January, and Ben is getting ready. He's been spending more time with his Daddy while his Mommy does Christmas shopping and goes to meetings. He is very good about taking a bottle from his Daddy and they have a nice time together. One day Jessica had a meeting she had to go to at work and Andy was working, so we arranged for Ben to spend the hour with the administrator of the American Studies Department, and lots of grad students also pitched in to play with him. He had a wonderful time being the center of attention.

Reading

Ben likes being read to, and he also likes reading his (cloth) books himself. It's fun to turn the pages, and sometimes to suck on them.

More adventures in Pennsylvania

Ben's Aunt Greta decided that he was a dirty baby and that he should have a bath in the big bathtub for the first time, using a special sponge to sit on that he was given by his Grandma Roberta. The first bath involved a great deal of screaming, but the second time, with the help of a pacifier, things were much more pleasant. He has since decided that baths are probably fun, but he's not quite sure. While in Pennsylvania he also got a wonderful great big red wagon from his Grandpa Roy, which he is looking forward to years of playing with.

More relatives

At 5 pm on Thanksgiving Day, the Johnstons came in force and Ben got a chance to meet his great aunts and great uncles, his first cousins once removed, and especially his second cousins, who, being closer to the age of a baby, were particularly taken by him (not that his older relations weren't too, especially his great aunt Patsy). He also met his great grandmother, Grandma Bea, who thought he was great, even if she did call him Joseph half the time. It was so exciting having all these people around that the only way he could sleep was being held, or in a sling on his mom. On Friday, he met another very important relation, his great-Aunt Joanne.

Cousins!

Very soon after we got to Roy and Roberta's, Ben's Aunt Greta and Uncle Mike came, with his cousins Dean and Katie Mae. They loved to hold him and to play with him. Ben thinks they are about as much fun as anyone could be.

Roy and Roberta

We stayed with Ben's Grandpa Roy and Grandma Roberta. Ben had a wonderful time with them. He especially liked sitting on Grandpa Roy's lap (especially in the special rocker in front of the fire, which bears an uncanny resemblance to his rocker at home). For Thanksgiving dinner, he sat in his carseat and read his book about pigs while everyone had their first plate, then he was very happy to sit on Grandpa's lap at the head of the table. Grandma Roberta was also wonderful to sit on and be held by, but she was particularly fun when she played with Ben's feet, which made him laugh and laugh.