A Toad in the Road

Benjamin and I went to the Fontenelle Forest Nature Center this morning with the Bradley Girls. I had to take a photo of Benjamin with the frog statue in the entry area because it looks just like an illustration in one of his Thomas books (A Crack in the Track). The proportions are even correct.

The book is rather silly (and not one of my favorites) because the passengers on "Bertie Bus" have to unload because there's a toad in the road. Why don't they just boot the toad off the road? Anyway, as you can see from the photo, Benjamin is quite the climber.
This is what happens when Benjamin refuses to take a nap. He falls asleep like clock-work around 6 p.m. at the dinner table with fork in hand. He's trying to give up naps completely and I haven't found a good solution yet. Yesterday he fell asleep "reading" to himself. It didn't work today.

Thomas Train!

"Uncle Matt, Aunt Marla sent Benjamin BIG surprise". Benjamin is quite the parrot and repeated that phrase for the 2 hours he played with Thomas when we pulled the set out. He still occasionally repeats it.

Matt and Marla were so awesome and sent us Maxwell's Thomas set on permanent loan. It's crazy how expensive Thomas pieces are. We are so grateful!!!

Originally we were going to give Benjamin the set piecemeal, but it was raining and Benjamin had a cold so I couldn't take him to the Early Childhood Center where they have a big Thomas set as promised, so I decided to pull it all out.

He loves it. Like I said, he played for 2 hours straight ALL by himself. (I do think it would be a problem if he weren't solo b/c I don't foresee him sharing Thomas well with another 2 year old... it has been a problem at the ECC and He doesn't even share it with Daddy too well).

Thanks again M&M&M&M!

Benjamin Discovers the Ice Cream Truck

Benjamin can always count on Good ol' Gram. We were having our weekly dinner with the Lewis Family when Benjamin wanted to go outside and "drive" Gram's car. The ice cream truck just happened to drive by and guess who got an ice cream cone?

I'm not sure if I had been the one outside Benjamin would have gotten the ice cream. Well okay, he probably would have, but I did read a good idea in the "Tightwad Gazette" the other night. When the ice cream truck shows up, have drum sticks or ice cream sandwiches on hand in the freezer. Pull one out and let them eat it outside. It's just as good and 2-3 times cheaper. The only problem is I don't think we could keep that stuff "on hand".
Benjamin enjoyed his treat immensely. Thanks Gram!

Grandma has Arrived

My parents brought Grandma Hoffman (my dad's mom) to live here. Once she gets settled in, I think it will be a good move for her. The place is in Council Bluffs, IA about 25 minutes from where we live. It is called Bethany Lutheran Home (she was surprised to be living in a place associated with Lutherans... I don't think they've tried to "save" her yet.) The staff seems really nice and it is clean. Grandma did try to work the system. They didn't know she could walk for the first 2 days she was there. They hid her wheel chair for a day or two and now she's walking again.

Benjamin especially liked the fountain in the courtyard and got soaked. Fall is already in the air, so we probably won't be spending much time outside. I plan to visit her at least twice a week.