Vroom!! Vroom!!.... Mush!! Mush!!

Jill & I enjoy taking Ben for walks around the neighborhood, especially on nice cool spring evenings like tonight.  We usually put Ben in his big stroller and take him out for a lap or two around the block, but Ben hasn't been enjoying his time in his stroller so much lately.  We think its because he feels that he's outgrown them already.   So I bought him a new car today.

A few weeks ago we saw just how serious Ben was about his new wagon.  Well, he was just as serious about his new car.  Of course he had to check it out very carefully first....

And look under the hood to see what kind of power it had...

All checked out well, so we were on the road shortly after...

Lybbie came with us for a walk this evening.  Jill figured that we would be going slow enough with Ben in his new car so she would be able to keep up.   Well, something very unexpected happened...  Ben wanted to help walk Lybbie, so we handed him the reins....

At first neither Ben or Lybbie really knew what to do... but then all of the sudden, it was like they were both on a mission! 

Mush!!  Lybbie!!  Mush!! 

(That's Eskimo for Let's Go, Lybbie!  Let's Go!!)

I don't know what you all think, but is a 10 1/2 month old kid supposed to be doing things like this?   We laughed and laughed all around the block just watching the two of them.  Lybbie even got a charge out of it.  She was moving a lot faster than normal.  And sometimes she would stop to sniff, but Ben would give a tug and off she would go again. 

We got half way around the block and we ran into an obstacle...  another dog!  Its Ashley! 

(We know the names of all the dogs in our neighborhood)

Hmm... Ashley is a lot bigger than Lybbie, but that didn't stop Ben! 

He's not afraid of no dog!

Shortly after, we were on the move again.   Walking dogs is serious business.

We made it all the way around the block and when we got back to the house, Ben decided that it was time for him to push the car around himself.   But he's just not quite tall enough yet...

But with a little help from Mom was all he needed!

I have a feeling that we're all going to have lots of fun playing with Ben's new car.  And Lybbie will probably get lots more walks now too! 

Always on the Move...

This is a very rare photo of Ben.

Yes, I know exactly what you're thinking.  Photos of Ben have never been considered rare - we have thousands of them and they're all cute!  And we can just keep taking more!  But what makes this photo so rare is that Ben is actually sitting still for a few moments long enough for us to take this picture.  Most of the time these days, Ben is on the move and exploring the world around him. 

(Oh and yes, that is my iPod that he's holding... I downloaded an Elmo app that he likes and keeps him occupied for about 20 seconds.  Long enough to keep him seated for this picture.)

One new thing Ben discovered is how to navigate our back steps. 

That first step is a long way down...

And he soon discovered that turning around and going down the step forward is much easier...

And soon after... he made it to the botteom to give Daddy a big hug!!

And then turned around and headed back in the house to go work on a new project.

And its not just crawling that Ben is up to lately...

He's now walking around the house and yard (with the help of furniture and 'walkers')

Here he is out on the patio pushing around his little aligator walker that his Uncle Dan sent him.

When he hits a wall, or the house, we just turn him around and he's off again!

And sometimes he even tries walking without the walker, but he still needs some help from Mommy

This new found mobility makes Ben very happy..  

And it also seems to make him want to stick his tongue out...