Mother's Day

This was my very first Mother's Day and it turned out to be great! We celebrated in Andalusia. The day started as normal with me making bottles, feeding Asher, changing poopy diapers, etc. Sunday morning Bob was a wonderful husband and gave me a pendent with the December birthstone, blue topaz, since our entire family has a birthday in December. I LOVE my gift. Thanks Bob! It would have been nice to have Bob around the entire day but he had to go to work so Asher and I hung out together all day. We went to church with Bob's family and then had lunch at the club. The rest of the day we spent driving back to Daphne and preparing for the week ahead. It may not sound like much but it really was a nice relaxing weekend.

Asher and Aunt Susan.
Asher and his Grandma Jane.

We also got to meet Ollie Pearl for the first time. Hi Ollie! She is a sweetie pie and just as beautiful as her mommy. She's just so tiny. It was hard for me to remember Asher being that small. I've included a picture of Ollie for you all. What an angel!

I walked down to Lynsey's house from Bob's parents house with Asher in his stroller. I thought this picture was too cute so I have to include it.

I've been a TERRIBLE blogger lately. Sorry! Asher has done so much since I last blogged. We had our 4 month visit on April 3 and Asher weighed 15# 8 ounces and was 26 inches long. He also began officially eating food at 4 months. So far he's had apple sauce, bananas, peaches, sweet potatoes, and carrots. His favorite food is bananas. And as for carrots and peaches...he gags every time he has to take a bite so I don't give him those anymore. Some people say start with veggies and then add fruit, but I don't think he would ever start eating if I did that. Have you ever tasted baby food? It's totally gross. But, the bananas actually taste really good so I don't blame Asher for only wanting to eat them.

Another big milestone this past month is that Asher can now sit up by himself. He started sitting by himself at 41/2 months. When he first started this he would sit with his arms straight out to keep his balance. Then he progressed to the tripod where he would sit propped on one arm. And now he is sitting somewhat more normally. One habit he's picked up on since learning to sit is leaning all the way over and trying to put his toes in his mouth. He's never tried to eat his feet before now. Here's a few pics of Asher.

Cute stuff!!

I love the picture above. Asher's doing whatever he wants as my mother "babysits" in the background while snoring really loudly.

Asher on his bouncer almost in tears.

Also this month we have graduated from size 2 diapers to size 3 diapers. Big accomplishment! I have also started teaching him to drink from a sippy cup. He has 2 cups that he plays with in order to learn how to hold them. I generally put water in them and I teach him to drink while he's eating his baby food. Surprisingly though he can drink better if I remove the sippy cup top and just let him drink normally. He feels like a big boy when Mommy lets him drink from a cup!

Well, there's a short update of what's going on in my world. Hopefully I'll be blogging again sooner rather than later.

One more thing...

CONGRATULATIONS LYNSEY ON A BEAUTIFUL HEALTHY BABY GIRL!

Splish Splash

I asked Bob to give Asher a bath one evening, and I walked into this father-son moment.

Asher was covered in bubbles from head to toe.

My Little Bunny

I haven't blogged in quite a while so there's alot to catch up on. Asher is continuing to grow up so fast. I look at him sometimes and I still can't believe that I just brought him home almost 4 months ago. He's learning new things everyday and becoming stronger each moment. It's unreal how smart babies are; they are little sponges that literally absorb everything that is going on around them. He has excellent head control so I don't have to worry about his wabbling around any more. He has started babbling and cooing more within the last month. It sounds like he says "mama" when he cries sometimes. He likes to have "conversations" with his stuffed animals. His favorite stuffed animal to talk to is his kangaroo which is about his size. Otherwise, it's just sounds and squeels that he makes. He's a happy little boy in the morning time. He generally wakes up smiling and laughing. It's the cutest thing. He enjoys cuddling with his stuffed animals in the morning. He'll hold them close to him and rub his face against them, although his favorite thing to cuddle with is a cloth diaper. I suppose he likes the softness of the material against his skin. His new favorite toy is his jungle gym bouncer. This is him on his bouncer in the bunny ears that I bought him. I don't think his daddy is too crazy about the bunny ears, but I think they are adorable. Who can resist a man in bunny ears?

Asher has also recently acquired a bumbo chair that he enjoys sitting in. This is a picture of him talking to his kangaroo while snuggling with his cloth diaper. Asher likes to have lots of entertainment at all times. It's a full time job to keep him satisfied. I'm sure this chatting session only lasted for about ten minutes before he was ready to move on to the next activity.

This is a picture of Asher after he woke up and engorged himself with a bottle. Eating is probably his most favorite activity of the day. I believe the saying, "The best way to a man's heart is through his stomach" is very true. He eats all the time. As you can see, he's already beginning to grow a tummy similar to his daddy's. He is definitely ready to start adding rice cereal to his diet daily. I've practiced giving him rice cereal a few times already, but of course more ends up on his chin and bib than in his mouth.

Asher has also started growing more hair. At first it looked blonde, but I think it's going to be brown. On the back of his head he has a bald spot from where he likes to rub his head on his bed sheets. He's also started rolling over some. He can't roll all the way over, but he can roll from his back to his side. Sometimes I find him asleep in his crib on his side because he's rolled over in the middle of the night. He's becoming much more mobile. Within the last week he's discovered that it makes a really cool loud noise if he puts his feet in the air and then slams them down on the mattress. He does this over and over. I'm sure it amuses him.

This picture is more evidence of Asher's eating habit. As you can see, he's grown a double chin that could rival that of any really obese person. He's definitely a healthy baby boy. I'm not sure how much he weighs now, but we go to the pediatrician in a week for a check-up. It's been a blessing that he hasn't been sick at all since he's been born. I'm sure it will be a different story once he starts daycare. Asher has also been learning hand and eye coordination within the last month. He can now grasp for objects and actually hold them. This is a big difference from when he just simply flailed his arms about putting them wherever they landed. He's started pulling on my hair and anything else he can grab hold of. Of course, whatever he grabs instantly goes in his mouth. I've been wondering if he has starting teething because he drools constantly and he enjoys chewing on everything.

Well, time is flying by and my baby is growing up. Bob and I are loving every minute of watching him grow. Being parents has been a wonderful experience for us so far. It's so much better than anything I could ever imagine. You don't know what you're missing until you have a child! God bless to everyone!

Congratulations!

I've got so many friends who are blessed to be expecting little one's of their own in the near future. It seems that we've all decided to start families at the same time. Lynsey Dubose is expecting a girl in May. Lindsey Ankersen is expecting in June, but we are going to have to wait and see what she's having. I happen to think it may be a girl. Lynsey Neighbors and Kim Giles are both expecting boys in July. So, "Congraulations" to all of you. Motherhood is a blast! You are all going to have so much fun.
Also, Asher's cousin Claire Elizabeth who lives in Louisville, Kentucky is going to turn 1 year old on April 15. We've never met Claire Elizabeth but we hope that we will be able to meet her soon. She's absolutely adorable in her pictures. I've attached one below that was taken in November of 2008. Hi Claire!

Growing, Growing.....Grown?

My baby is growing up right in front of my eyes and it makes me happy and sad at the same time. I can't believe how big he's getting. I took him to see Dr. Burns on Monday for his 2 month check-up. I was shocked when he weighed in at 13 # 2 ounces and 24 inches long. He's more than doubled his weight since birth and has grown 4 inches. How amazing is that! Pretty soon he won't be my tiny baby and that sometimes makes me sad. I love being able to just hold him and rock him and sing to him. In a few months he'll be crawling then walking and exploring the world for himself.

His latest feat is holding his head up by himself. His doctor says he has excellent head control for his age. For the past 3 weeks his new thing is trying to sit up and stand up. He gets extremely mad when you lay him on his back because he wants to sit up ALL THE TIME! It's been difficult for Bob and I because we have to constantly hold him in a sitting or standing position so that he won't cry. I think (I hope) he'll be sitting up on his own in a few months.

I started back to work 2 weeks ago so we've all had to adapt to me not being home all the time. Thanks to my mom and Bob's parents we won't have to enroll Asher into daycare until he's 6 months old. Lucky for us, they are keeping Asher during the week while Bob and I work. I couldn't have asked for better grandparents. I've included a few of our latest pictures with this blog. Maybe I'll learn to take better pictures one day.

Daddy taught me how to stick out my tongue.

I"ve got my puppy dog slippers on and Mime is teaching me to walk.

Bath time is great! I love splashing in the water....until Mom tries to wash my face.

This is my play gym. I finally figured out that I can make the animals move if I hit them with my hand.

Just a sweet smile!