Tag: 17 Days of Benny

Day 7 – Month 7

Benny turned 7 months right before Christmas 2012.  He had lost most of his mohawk at this point and his hair was starting to grow longer and longer.  He was all smiles all the time and loved spending time with his family.

We did lot’s of fun stuff that December, including riding on the Polar Express at the Ecotarium and picking out and decorating our Christmas tree.  Benny was really getting into the baby toys and he and Darcy would spend a lot of time on the floor playing.  He also started to sit at night with Darcy and I to read a book.  That’s not to say that he was interested, it was more to get him into the routine.  We were so excited for Christmas that year!

Day 7 – Month 7

By the time Benny was was 7 months old, we had celebrated his first Thanksgiving, Darcy’s 4th birthday and we were getting ready for Christmas.  Parker and I had finally finished splitting the bedrooms upstairs and Benny finally had his own bedroom!

He loved spending time in his johnny jumper and would get the thing going at a good clip while he watched Darcy play.  He also loved his exersaucer at this age, pretty much any situation in which he could jump, he was happy.  Around this time he was a drooling fiend as we waited for those first teeth to poke out.  He went from being the best sleeper to getting up at night from teething pain.  I think this is around the time that he really began crying and let us know when he was unhappy.

Day 6 – Month 6

By the time Benny was 6 months old, he was eating solids and we had to add meat to his diet because he was so big!  He was constantly hungry and off the charts at the doctors office.  At around this time he was starting to sit up on his own and becoming more interactive.  He was definitely a cuddler and would snuggle in every night before bed.

In October, we also had to say good-bye to our Mason cow.  He was such an amazing dog with both kiddos and so patient.  This was Darcy’s first encounter with death and there were lots of questions from her 3 year old mouth.  I was so thankful (it sounds awful) that she had this experience before Benny died.  She was able to wrap her head around death being final and understood somewhat what to expect.  Thank goodness for our Macy cow to teach her one of life’s biggest lessons.

We got to celebrate our first Halloween as a family of 4 and enjoyed pumpkin picking with Tara and family and his first Trick or Treat with the Hoey’s.  Darcy was Dorothy and Benny was the Lion from the Wizard of Oz.  They were quite the pair!

Day 5 – Month 5

By the time that Benny was 5 months old I was back at work while trying to juggle Parker’s company and the kids.  Things were stressful.  The seasons had just started to turn to Fall, what used to be my favorite time of the year.

Benny had started with Sandy part time and I was adjusting to our new schedule.  We visited the Topsfield Fair with the kids like we did every year, only this year I forgot to bring a hat for Benny, so he rocked a bandana all day long.  We really began to see the dudes personality come out about this time.  He was still super laid back, but all smiles and happiness.  He was interested in everything Darcy did.  At around 2 months Benny had figured out how to inch worm across the room on his back.  By 5 months he was rolling and inching all over the place.  He and Darcy was best buds at this point.  Life was good.

Day 3 – Month 3

By 3 months we were calling Benny ‘the dude’.  He was still smiling non stop, not really crying and stunned me by rolling over at his 10 week appointment in the doctors office.  We had some set backs too though.  He had been found to have a slight torticolus (where his neck is stronger on one side than the other) and twitch to his foot that sent us to UMASS for an EEG.  All turned out well, but Sandy always said that Benny was the one that would keep us guessing.

He spent lots of time outdoors with Darcy and I that summer and logged many miles in the stroller as I got ready for the 3 Day.  Parker followed me along the 60 mile route with both kids.  Benny was around 10 weeks old and thank goodness that he was a good nurser because I was able to make through the walk with quick nursing breaks.

During this time we also took our first (as a family of 4) camping trip with Tara and her family.  Yes, we slept in a tent and it was like hedonism with all of the naked kids running around.  We went swimming in the lake and brought Benny in, who didn’t protest, but seemed to enjoy the cooler water.  He was still our super chill dude.

At about this time his mohawk was in full effect too.  Both of our children seemed to have the most unruly hair!

Day 2:  Month 2

Benny was born at the perfect part of the summer.  I was so lucky to be able to enjoy time off with both children and be able to be outdoors.  In Benny’s second month of life he was able to enjoy his first circus, Fourth of July and his first Father’s Day.  For Father’s Day we traveled down to Long Island with my sister’s family so that Benny could meet my father and my other sister.

At that point, Benny was putting on the weight and was a fantastic sleeper.  We hit some record heat days in his second month of life, but he was still as chill as ever.  Darcy was born with so much piss and vinegar that Benny was a breath of fresh air.

Similar to my ‘Capture your Grief’ project back in October, I’ve decided to spend 17 days focusing on Benny’s life instead of his death.  When he passed he was 17 months old and his birthday is May 17th, so how fitting.  Each day will chronicle a month of his life.  It’s time to write this down before it becomes all muddled with my pregnancy brain.

Day 1:

Benny was born in the early morning hours of May 17th, 2012.  I’m not sure who was more surprised, Parker or I at the fact that we had a little boy.  I think I was more surprised at his wispy blond hair and how much he looked like his sister and me.  He weighed in at 7lbs. 13oz. and was 21.5″ long.

Benny was a disaster in the hospital.  He had a really tough time with colostrum and was spitting it up as soon as I was able to give it to him.  We had to change him almost hourly.  It was a little frightening, but once my milk came in he ate like a champ and had no problems putting on weight.

Darcy was the first to meet him and was only 3 1/2 at the time.  I can’t even wrap my head around her being so young.  She held him like a champ and was super excited once we came home.  That all changed pretty quickly once she realized that she wasn’t the ‘main event’ anymore.  She had some jealousy, but never took it out on Bennett, but rather me.  I did prefer this, but goodness it was tough.

I remember most about those first few days was Benny’s smile.  The night we came home from the hospital the little guy gave me his first smile.  And this wasn’t just a partial, but a full on smile with dimples.  I was shocked.  Darcy made us wait 10 whole weeks and here was Bennett just giving them away!  He also never cried.  When he was hungry he would make what we lovingly called ‘baby noises.’

He was possibly the most laid back baby.  Maybe it was because I was more of a laid back momma and this was child #2.  We just felt so lucky to have such a chill little dude.