9 Months Old

Dear Benny,

You are 9 months old! As always, I can't believe my sweet boy is another month older.

Where has the time gone?

I have so much to tell you. You have grown up so much in the last month. I can't get over how quickly you're moving through milestones and learning new things.


9 months old, December 14, 2011



We met with Dr. Canner this month for your 9 month well check.  You weighed 18 lbs. 10 oz. (20th  %tile), you were 28 in. long (45th %tile) and your head circumference was 17 3/4 (40th %tile).   She was very impressed with everything your doing already!  You crawled all over the place in the room, pulling yourself up on everything.  Dr. Canner thinks you may be an early walker.  Dad and I think so too!  It seems like you're so close!  The only immunization you had was your flu shot booster.  Dr. Canner told me that you can start eating more table foods.  So, we're excited to start giving you "real" food. 

You're wearing 9 month clothes and size 3 diapers. 

You are the sweetest boy I know.  You love your family, but you especially love your sister.  You want to be with her all the time.  You don't like it when she walks away from you or leaves you behind.  You love your puppy too.  You like to crawl up to Trippy and lay on her.



You learned how to crawl up the stairs this month!  You don't yet know how to go down, but you love it when we chase you up the stairs.  You laugh so hard.


look at all of that handsome hair!



You love when Brayden comes over to play.  You, Brayden & Kenna love to play in the basement together.  I think you'll be even happier when you have an easier time keeping up with them, though.  It's hard when they run around and you can't catch up! 



You learned how to do SO BIG! this month too!  You do it all the time.  Sometimes you hold your hands together, sometimes you put both arms up straight, and sometimes you just put one arm up...we always wonder which one you're going to do!  You usually use SO BIG! to get our attention.  You'll just all of a sudden put your arms up, waiting for some one to say SO BIG!  You love it!


you are so photogenic!

One of your favorite things to do is jump.  You and Kenna love to jump together on everything, but you especially love to jump on beds.  The two of you would jump in your cribs together all day long if we let you!  You also love to jump on Mommy & Daddy's bed while holding our hands.  You giggle the whole time.
 


You're now saying dadadada all the time!  You're always talking and making sounds.  Daddy was very excited that you said dada first!  I always say mamamama to you and you just look at me and say dadadada!  You're so funny :)



You love playing in the basement with all of the toys.   You like jumping on the couch with Kenna, playing with the Fisher Price Learning Home Door, the slide, the animals, and just following McKenna around. 







Lots of teeth popped out this month!  You now have two on the top and three on the bottom. 



You're starting to get into everything!  Here you are looking for a specific book to read...probably the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse book.



Just know you are the most perfect little boy in the world.

I love you sweet boy.

Love, Mommy

Joe & Erin

We were really excited to welcome my cousin, Joe & his fiance, Erin, to Chicago.  Joe & Erin live in West Palm Beach, Florida.  Erin is a Physical Therapist and came to Chicago seeking another certification.  They came out to Plainfield on Friday night to hang out and see everyone.  It's been quite awhile since we've seen them, so the Illinois Milazzo's came out to celebrate.


pizza, salad, conversation...
my dad, my sister, Kristen, my cousin, Mikey, Aunt Lynn, Uncle Rick, and my mom


Beanie & Big Guy


Grandpa's favorites....me & Joe


Dudek Family Christmas Card Photo Shoot...#1


Key & D (atleast that's what Kenna calls them!)  Mikey & Danny


#2


6 of the 16 Milazzo cousins


funny




Joe & Danny



Dad getting in the holiday spirit with some egg nog


Godson & Godfather



Trip doesn't get the joke


As always, we had an awesome visit.  If only we could have spent more time together. 


Joe & Erin will become one on May 5, 2012.  We'll be heading to Florida to party the night away!  Can't wait!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

I've never been a cold weather gal, give me summer, give me spring, even give me fall...but winter...no thanks.  I'm pretty sure our couple of years living in Schnecksville, Pennsylvania did me in.  We lived there two years and I've never shoveled so much snow.  Snow piled so high it reached the bottom of the stop sign...Bisquit, our dog, could step right over the fence...school was closed so often we went until June 30...if I wouldn't have met some of my most treasured friends, I would have truly hated it. With winter comes Christmas...and who hates Christmas?
Christmas memories.  Winter memories.  They are some of the best.

So...maybe winter isn't my least favorite season...   

The 2011 Christmas season has begun and I couldn't be more excited to introduce holiday cheer to McKenna and Benson. 

Nothing says Christmas like a visit to see Santa. 

Grandma & Grandpa Witkowski and Granmom & GP met us at the mall to see the big man.




checking out the snowman mirror with Granmom


I can't wait to tell Santa everything I want for Christmas!


having fun in line


saying hi to Santa before sitting down


no tears!  They loved him!

We took a holiday lights walk around our neighborhood one night.  It was fun to get out of the house for a little bit and the lights were so pretty! 

Making memories every chance we get. 


making some finishing touches to our parkway tree





I'm not sure why they each needed to bring a shovel...were they hoping we were stopping off at the sandbox?...but it made them happy :)


of course you didn't think she would actually ride the whole time!  "walk!" was requested about 3/4 of the way through.

8 months old

Dear Benny,

You are 8 months old and I can't even believe it!  You've become such a big boy.


8 months old, November 14, 2011



You are wearing 9 months clothes and size 3 diapers. 

You don't stay still for very long, you're usually off and crawling after a toy, or following Trippy & McKenna around.  You pull yourself up on everything and anything. 

You always want to be with everyone; you don't ever want to be left alone.  Sometimes when I think you're content playing with a toy by yourself, I'll get up and leave the family room to let Trippy out or do something in the kitchen...as soon as you notice I'm no longer in the room you start crying and you try to find me.  You want to be with your sister all the time too.  When Daddy comes home for work, the two of you love going down in the basement to play with him.  You don't like it one bit when you feel like they're leaving you behind!  You want to be part of everything. 



You've been pulling yourself up in your crib for a couple of months now, it sure didn't take us long to get your crib lowered.  I just can't get over how quickly you're gross motor skills have developed.



You're still a great sleeper.  You go to around around 7:30pm every night and you get up around 7:00am.  You take two naps a day, one at 9:00am and another at 1:00pm.  Your naps usually last about 1 1/2 - 2 hours. 



You've started babbling more and more.  You don't say anything too specific - no ma, pa, da, yet, but you are making lots of sounds.  It definitely seems as though you're trying to say something to us or respond to us when we talk to you.

You love to look at books and slap the pages.  When you go over to the bookcase you always pull down the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse book.  You love that it has sound effect buttons. 



You have a total of 4 teeth, two on the top and two on the bottom.  They help you to chomp on the Cheerios you love so much! 

You still love to eat.  But, you're definitely a much bigger fan of fruits rather than veggies.  Oh, you'll still eat them, but the face you make when you're eating them says it all!  We've tried to let you knaw on whole foods, like apples, but you're sooo good and biting into them that we can't let you - just too much of a choking hazard! 



You learned to clap this month!  You start clapping when you see someone else clapping or if we say, "clap, clap, clap!"  You clap when you're eating too! 

You love to slap your hands on everything...on your high chair tray, your drum, the table, the couch...everything!



This month you learned how to use the walker and when you're in it you walk all over the place.  You love when Daddy holds your hands to walk around.  We keep waiting for you to let go and just start walking on your own.  You seem so close!

You love to jump.  You jump when someone is holding your hands and you love to jump with your sister in your crib and on the basement couch.  The two of you will stand together jumping like crazy.

It sure has been one amazing month!  I can't wait to see what the next will bring.

Just know you are the most special little boy in the whole world.

I love you, my sweet BooBoo!

Love, Mommy