Asher's 2nd Birthday!

This weekend was Asher's 2nd birthday. Needless to say, I'm still tired! We had a lot of fun activities planned. First, we went to the zoo with all of our friends from church. Asher always loves going to the zoo. We have only been 3 times and every time we make a list of things not to do. We no longer bring the stroller (waste of time since he is way too busy running around) and I don't bring my purse (just one more thing to keep up with). This time Asher wore he monkey harness and he ran all over the place. He also insisted on wearing his sunglasses that squeeze his head off and he will not let you readjust them at all! We saw all the animals but I think Asher's favorite part was riding the "choo-choo train". He kept yelling "All Aboard! Choo-Choo!" He also had to ride the merry-go-round. He picks out what animal to ride on and it's usually between the shark or the chomp-chomp (alligator). Since it was his birthday, he got to ride them both. After the zoo, we ran home for a quick nap and then it was off to the park. We all had a great time at the park. A lot of friends came and some family that lives in town. Aunt Sis always came which made Asher very happy! I had a bakery make Asher a Lightning McQueen birthday cake since that was the theme. Asher loves that movie. Then though the party was a lot of fun, it was a little stressful for me. Two year olds have time limits to everything and guessing those time limits is impossible. I tried to move him from one thing to the next without causing a fit. I had to move fast to let the kids play, then pizza, then cake, then presents, then time to go home. I'm just impressed that I made it home with everything. Asher even brought home a gallon of sand that was either in his hair, diaper, or shoes. He had to be taken straight to the bathtub! He had a ring of dirt and sweat around the top part of his diaper. SO as I was trying to wash the dirt out of all the hidden areas, Asher leaned back against the back of the tub and put his hands behind his head and said, "Whew! I tired!" I laughed and said, "Me too buddy!"

(pictures from top: 1.)where all the dirt came from, 2.) why dirt and sweat dont mix, 3.) blowing out the candles, 4.) helping mommy open the presents as I said before the attention span was wearing down, 5.) the final product of the day notice the dirty face, 6.) the monkey harness, 7.) trying to capture all the kids in one picture, 8.) Asher, Bryson, and Gavin. I dont know why Asher thought he needed to hold on to Gavin but it was very cute! 9.) Asher and Kennedi at the park

Yeah for Cousins!!

Adam's sister Lindsey just gave birth to a beautiful baby girl named Dagny Louise. It means a "bright beautiful day" and she IS a bright beautiful day! We can't wait to meet her! For the last two years Asher has been the only grandchild on both sides of the family so he is super excited to finally have a cousin. (He may not realize it yet but he is!) We are also waiting on Asher's second counsin to get here. Adam's other sister, Amanda, is having a baby in January. They decided to keep the sex of the baby a surprise so Adam calls the baby his "neicephew"! The family is really growing now and we are so excited! Life with all my cousins was interesting and fun to say the least! I'm really glad that Asher can have that same experience. Adam is already starting to plan family vacations with all the cousins!

Lake Trip

Our friends, Becky and Kevin and their boys, Carter and Bryson, got a boat over the summer and they invited out to the lake with them a few Fridays ago. It was so much fun! Asher loved it! He was real still and quiet at first but by the end he was running all over the boat. I had to hold on to the back of his life jacket to make sure he would sit down while we were going. As soon as he noticed my hand, he would push it away and say, "No Mom! I do it!" Oh boys!!! Are they always so rebellious? He even innertube with Adam. It was kind of funny though because we went real slow and Adam was definitely weighing down the back part. We could never get them to flatten out. We needed to go faster but I'm not so sure what Asher would have thought of that so we just pulled them along with the front part of the tube in the air. Adam and I finally got to wakeboard which is something we havent done in years. It was fun but neither one of us could walk the next day. We both wore Icy-hot to bed that night! After boating, we all had dinner out on the lake. The boys loved it. I dont think any of them ate their food. They were too busy throwing it to the ducks. I'm pretty sure the ducks were good and full by the time we left!

(picture from top: Kevin and Carter- Carter was very smart and wore goggles so the water wouldnt splash in his eyes, Asher chillin on the boat, Bryson with his cruly blonde hair and bright blue eyes, Adam and Asher getting ready for a ride, The boys feeding their supper to the ducks - noticed the grip Adam has on Asher. This is all the temptation he needs to jump right in!)

Preschool Rules!

Asher started preschool 2 weeks ago. It is an awesome school and his teachers are amazing. They do a lot of fun activities and Asher always comes home with a craft he made. However, this change has been a little hard on him. I think he is starting to have a little bit of separation anxiety which makes his school days really hard on both of us. BUT we finally had a break through! He did not cry yesterday! He did cry when I left him but I told him if he didnt cry for the rest of the day, I would bring him a sucker when I picked him up. I guess the bribing worked! I know now that I will probably be bringing a sucker with me to school for the next year! His teacher told me that he is making friends. She told me about one conversation between Asher and a little girl. Asher said, "I drive to Wal-Mart or Target." The little girl said, "Wal-Mart!" which then Asher replied, "Target! OH YEAH!" (jumping up and down and waving his hands in the air) I guess maybe I go to those places way too much. It's sad when he can recognize the parking lots of each one!

The lessons of being a mom...

I feel like there is so much to talk about that I don't really know where to start. Asher is so funny now. Everyday he is doing new things that makes us laugh. But with each new day comes more worries. I don't feel like I was prepared for this part of being a mom. The worries seem endless and sometimes very overwhelming. Asher is very adventerous and I love that about him. I try not to be too overproctective with him because I feel that I would crush the spirit of who he is. This is not an easy thing to do! Especially for a first time mom. I want to protect him from everything and that is impossible. Anyone who knows me knows that I am a big "What if..." person. I constantly tell Adam that something might be wrong with Asher. He might need to go to the doctor. "What if he has another ear infection?" "What if he has bad headaches and can't tell me?" "What if he is allergic to that type of food?" The questions go on and on. Adam tells me I worry to much but I just don't know how to stop.

So the lesson I learned today is that I can stop worrying because as much as I love Asher there is someone who loves him more than I can possibly imagine. Handing my little boy over to God is a struggle everyday. I know that in God's hands, Asher is protected in ways that I would never be able to. I believe this is the best thing I can ever do for Asher. I can place him in God's hands and watch the wonderful things that God will do in his life.

As for me, I daily stand on the promise that I can come to Jesus with my worries. "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." Matthew 11:28

Here is where I find rest from the worries of being a mom!

To blog or not to blog?

I'm sure you are all farely aware of the fact that I am horrible about emailing people pictures. This is something that I feel horrible about. It's always a frustrating process to me. I never have anyone's correct email and trying to get email addresses from Adam is just as frustrating. So...to blog!! I decided that I would set up this blog. This will be a great way to post pictures of Asher and to also let you know what's going on in our ever-changing life.