Back from our first family vacation in Playa del Carmen, and Ben was an absolute champ! He loved all the stimulation - From regular strolls on 5th Avenue, to all the attention given by the locals, we loved watching him giggle and interact with everyone (maybe he picked up some Spanish?)! Even more so, it was like he grew so much in the past week alone and suddenly instead of a baby, we have a little boy on our hands - He is able to sit on his own (graduating from the Bumbo/bouncy chair to a high chair) and stand up by leaning on something. He wants to reach for everything (resulting in a mommy wearing a vanilla soy latte on one occasion) and has definitely learnt the advantage of his opposing thumb to nimbly handle objects. After some convincing, he loved being in the water and I can’t wait to take him for his first swimming lesson in a couple of weeks.

The introduction of solids in his diet is going well and he readily opens his mouth for approaching food. He managed to grab a slice of lime one day and for some reason, really enjoyed sucking on it! Maybe it’s because Mexican limes are sweeter or it soothed his 2 new teeth? I’m sure there is something in a rule book about having your baby’s first food be citrus, but there hasn’t seemed to be any reaction to it since (phew!). Unfortunately, the work of getting him used to his potty has become a distant memory and I’ll give it a try again once things have settled down back home.

It really is amazing that once you think your baby has learnt everything they can for their age, you’ll blink and suddenly there is something new! Here is a video from this morning of Ben in his high chair, handling a mandarin and almost understanding what I was saying:

…Almost a whole different kid from a video taken just 3 months ago!