Four things about my four month old...

It is so hard for me to believe that Asher is almost five months old already. He is growing and changing so much. I realized the other day that the newborn days are long gone and I now have a happy, sweet, playful baby who is eating solids, grabbing for toys, rolling, trying to sit and talking all the time. With that said, here are four things about my four month old:

1. Asher thinks Braden is HILARIOUS. It is so funny to watch because Braden will just walk in the room or smile and Asher will start cackling and squealing in laughter. For some reason, Asher gets the most tickled when Braden is eating or when I'm getting Asher changed before his naps. There is perhaps no greater sound then a baby laughing so hard he can hardly breathe.

2. Asher loves hands...his hands, my hands, Austin's hands. It doesn't matter...the boy always has someone's hands in his mouth. If not hands, then something has to be in his mouth. He really is not content unless he has something to chew on.

3. He's not too fond of his carseat. Now this is not a fun thing when you have to be in the car various times each day. He'll sit for a few minutes (if he has something to chew on), but if the car is stopped for even a few seconds he starts fussing. In fact Braden will now tell me when I'm stopped at a stoplight, "Momma, Asher doesn't like it when the car stops." Braden eventually outgrew his hatred for the carseat so I'm hoping Asher will too.

4. This kid loves to be held. Now I'm sure I bring this upon myself some because I like to hold my kids, but still since birth, Asher has liked being held. I mean sure he'll tolerate his activity mat for like 15-20 minutes and he'll sit in the swing a bit or lay on a blanket and look at his toys (if he has something to chew on), but let's just be honest...the guy wold much rather sit on my lap then any other thing. When I find myself frustrated about this (because it is hard to hold your baby when you are trying to get stuff done), I try to remind myself that he is only little once and that soon he will be too big to hold and I will want these moments back.

Oh and here are his 4 month stats: height - 25 1/4 inches (75%), weight - 13lbs 6 oz (25%)

Little man -

Braden telling Asher how great the color yellow is and Asher not seeming to care -

Love this smile...it makes my hardest day worth it -

Why does Braden still look like a giant?
Trying solids -
This picture just makes me laugh...in case you are wondering, we don't usually just leave Asher laying on the ground for his big brother to step on -
Okay and I can't post without saying something about sweet Braden. So here are four things about my 2.5 year old:

1. He still LOVES books. I mean we probably spend a few hours a day reading. The guy has also a ridiculous memory and can pretty much pull any book off of our shelf and read it from cover to cover. One of my favorite things about reading with Braden is that he wants to snuggle so close when we read. He has always been this way and I love how affectionate my little boy is.
Speaking of affection...Braden will just out of nowhere come running up to you and say "a hug...a kiss" and wrap his little arms around you and give you big wet kisses. I love it!

2. Potty training is not going so well. Little Braden has one strong will and the potty is one thing that he has COMPLETE control over. I am trying to be patient, but at the rate we are going, I am fearful that we will be in diapers till he is 5. My pediatrician assures me that we will have more success when Braden is closer to 3, but I'm so ready for him to be out of diapers that I'm not sure I can wait that long.

3. Braden is talking in full sentences and I love it. The conversations we have everyday are hilarious. I treasure his sweet words and it's so fun to hear how the mind of a 2 yr old works.

4. Braden has a huge imagination. He spends most of his days driving cars around on the floor...the funny thing is that he makes his cars have conversations and the things he thinks of are hilarious. It's so fun to watch him play make believe with his toys.

And with that, I'll leave you with a picture of my sweet 2.5 yr old -

okay well, since I wrote this post, my computer crashed so unfortunately, I don't have pictures of Braden at the moment...but will post some once they have transferred the pictures from my old hardrive.

H1N1 has hit...

Braden and I both have H1N1...not a fun thing let me just tell you. Just praying that God will protect Asher and Austin from it.

Let the potty training begin...

Here goes nothing...wish us luck!

Braden looking for his pee-wee -

Love this little bottom in big boy underwear -
When all else fails and you've had more accidents then you ever cared to clean up, just sit back and drink milk -
Braden started throwing a fit here when I told him it was time to go tee tee on the potty and so I started throwing one with him and he thought it was so funny that it quickly turned his mood around -
And here is my sweet Asher doing what he does best these days...smiling! Oh how his little smiles melt my heart. 3 months is such a sweet age for the little guy and he is growing way too fast!

Asher's Second Month

Sweet Asher is about to turn 3 months old next week and I can hardly believe time has gone so quickly. In just a few weeks we will be out of the newborn stage and as glad as I am to be seeing some longer stretches of sleep at night and more consistent naps, I find myself missing certain things about him when he was so tiny. These days Asher's so busy looking around and watching his big brother Braden that he hardly has time to sit quietly on my chest after nursing sessions or rarely does he fall asleep on me in the afternoons like he used to back in his newborn days. He is a sweet, sweet baby, full of smiles, laughs and coos. He is definitely social, more so than I remember Braden being at this age...if you just talk to him, his face lights up with a smile, he starts frantically kicking and will talk back at you. He laughs at almost any song you sing him and we've found that he is quite ticklish on his tummy. His sweet voice and gentle spirit makes the hardest day of being a mom more than worth the work. I know these days are passing quickly and I know my times of holding and protecting this tiny child in my arms are precious moments that will be gone before I know it. I pray I remember every detail of the sweetness of my baby boy. Here are some pictures of our second month with baby Asher:


Oh how I miss these moments -

Smiling on the changing table -
Meeting Mimaw, his Great Grandmother on Thanksgiving Day -
Just relaxing at lunch this past Sunday -
An attempt at a family shot...don't mind the trashcan behind us -
Playing with Austin -
My other sweet boy being silly -
Love this little guy -
Happy 2 Months Sweet Asher! I'll leave you with his stats:

Weight - 11 lbs 8 oz - 50%
Length - 23.5 inches - 75%

Brothers

"To the outside world, we all grow old. But not to brothers. We know each other as we always were. We know each other's hearts..." ~Clara Ortega

Sharing tummy time together -

And giving Asher one of many kisses each day -
Bath time together -

And sharing mommy and daddy's bed -

Having deep conversations about trains and such -

Every morning when I go to get Braden out of bed, he asks if Asher can get in bed with him...so sweet -
Spending time together on the activity mat -
Decorating the Christmas tree together -
"Your my best buddy, my favorite friend. We'll always be pals, from now until the end." ~ Unknown

Halloween

Okay, so better late than never right....here are some pictures from all the Halloween festivities. Braden went as a spider and Asher went as well....himself!

The only picture I got of our visit to Gentry's Pumpkin farm...of course my batteries died just after we got there -
My Itsy Bitsy Spider at the Ghouls at Grassmere party at the Nashville Zoo -
In costumer, enjoying dinner at the zoo with his friends, Graham and Mac...each of these boys have younger brothers, so there were actually 4 baby boys in tow in the strollers behind the kids -
Stopping long enough for a picture -
So we decided to start a new Halloween tradition in our house...on the Friday before Halloween, we carve pumpkins, make pumpkin pizzas and then watch the Charley Brown Halloween movie (can't remember what it is called...the Great Pumpkin Swap...maybe). Anyway, here are some pictures from our fun night...

All the boys carving pumpkins -
Asher, 5 weeks old and wide awake for all the festivities -
The finished product -
Braden and his pumpkin pizza -
On Halloween night, we went trick or treating with our friends Mac and Devon and Parkes and Rebecca and their kids and ended the night by eating pizza, chocolate and wine for the adults! The countdown is on for Thanksgiving now and then on to Christmas...can't believe how fast time is flying these days!

Our first month

Our first month as a family of four has come and gone and I honestly can't believe it's already over. On one hand, it seems like time is sitting still (especially on frustrating nights like tonight...it's 2:30am mind you and yes I'm up...why...ask little Asher), but on other days, days when both of my babies curl up in my lap for stories or days when Braden flashes his big smile and says "hold Asher," days when I look at Braden and realize that he too used to be as small as Asher...it's in those moments that I realize that life is passing so quickly. To say that I want to freeze time at this exact stage of craziness that we are in would be a lie...Asher had his days and nights confused since day one, so that has meant lots of hours sitting, rocking, bouncing, popping the pacifier back in all in the wee hours of the morning. So...we are tired, my house looks like a wreck and I'm lucky if I get showered or eat lunch myself. Meanwhile, we are operating on a non-stop 3 hour schedule of nursing, playing and napping, nursing, playing and napping...however, if I can step back from the chaos and the exhaustion and realize that this too is but for a moment, I realize that my babies are growing up so fast. All that to say, we survived the first month. I will say, it's funny how quickly you forget how hard the newborn stage is, how exhausting, how demanding, how unpredictable and how frustrating it all is. Let's just be honest, despite my many prayers, Asher has not been a good sleeper from day one. He had his days and nights confused for about the first 10 days he was alive which meant one of us was up with him every night from midnight to 5am...boo...especially considering little Braden is up at 7:30 the next morning. Thankfully, we for the most part, have come through that, however he is not so great about naps (some days only 30 minute catnaps all day long). Oh and then there are the random nights like tonight where he will just wake at 2:30am needing his pacifier...BUT...if I can look past the frustration of a sleepless baby, little Asher is a very sweet boy. He seems generally very laid back, calm and quiet. He is extremely cuddly and loves being held. My favorite moments with him are after I nurse him, when he lays so quietly on my chest, with his little legs curled up like a frog and his head nestled in my neck. It's in those sweet moments that I love him being a newborn, so small, so needy, so innocent. All that to say, we are surviving and trying to enjoy these first few weeks as a family of four. Asher's stats for this month are: weight-9lb 10 oz, length - 21 inches. Oh and the best news is that he started smiling for us this past week...such a sweet reward to all the labor of caring for this tiny little guy.

Here are Braden and Asher sharing the boppy for tummy time -
There is nothing sweeter than a sleeping baby...

Braden holding Asher -
Asher, wide awake (probably after his 10th catnap of the day) -
Braden, kissing Asher -