Kisses from Nana

In just a few short hours (less than 3 to be exact) Asher is going to be inundated with hugs and kisses from Nana, Uncle Jesse and Aunt Bethie! I can't wait for quite a few myself! It is going to be great! And though Asher doesn't realize it yet, he is going to LOVE life with constant playmates, especially older ones, since he is very enamored of "big" kids these days!

We haven't seen my siblings since the beginning of June and my Mom since July.

WAY TOO LONG!

I CANT WAIT! I CANT WAIT!

Goodbye kisses from Nana when she was here in July

Reading with Uncle Jesse at the beach last June

Hanging out with Aunt Bethie at the beach last June

Did I mention my Mom is the greatest and I can't wait for her and the sibs to be here! :) Well, she is and time can't go fast enough these next 3 hrs!

How to get looks in Vegas....

And I don't mean the "Hey Baby" looks, I mean the judging looks....

Walk through the casino by yourself in a cocktail dress, pushing a baby in a stroller with a Trader Joe's bag hanging off one handle and a blue bumbo sticking out the back of the stroller and a puppet book on your hand!

I thought I had gotten weird looks when I would nurse in public. You should have seen the looks I got pushing Asher to meet everyone for the birthday dinner! Too Funny!

Although I couldn't be annoyed, because on previous trips I had been one of those judging faces.....Inside my head I was always like "Come on, I know it's Vegas, but what the heck are you doing wearing a cocktail dress, pushing a kid? Are you seriously going out to eat, just to have the kid get food all over you!?!?" And then of course God makes me eat my own judging thoughts!

The TJ bag was carrying clothes for me to change into for the drive home. Since I have NO REASON to dress up here at Edwards, I decided to put on the dress even though I was only going to the party for an hr. I wish I could have stayed as my cousin had gotten a live band to play for everyone and then they all went to TAO afterwards, but I had very important plans for Sunday I was not willing to miss out on! Any more guesses what plans those were??

Vegas x 4

So Asher has now been to Vegas 4 TIMES since October. I can't even believe my child will possibly think of Vegas as our "vacation" spot over the 4 years while we are stationed here! I still don't love Vegas, but I have figured out to make the best of it. (a great hotel room, awesome pool, 1 good drink a night and 1 morning to sleep in = Happy Momma!)

You definitely do not have fun in Vegas in the traditional sense when you bring kids along! Which is okay because the last time I partied like a rock star it was only at home and I payed for it dearly. I can only imagine how much of a "hot mess train wreck" I would be partying like a real rock star in Vegas! (the line h.m.t.w. is a favorite of my friend Laci!)

Anyway, Friday morning Asher and I headed to Vegas to meet up with my sister, 2 cousins and an Aunt and Uncle. We only stayed Friday night, but you can do a lot in Vegas in less than 36hrs! One of my cousin's (Megan) lives in Dallas and her husband(Bennett) was turning 40, so she threw him a weekend bash in Vegas. Britt (my sis) lives in NM and decided to drive up with Megan's brother, Scott and his fiancee. The Aunt and Uncle that my sister lives with in Taos were also there. My sister had never been to Vegas and we hadn't seen each other since June, so it was a great time on all fronts!

We had an awesome suite in the Venetian - picture step down living room area, king size bed, 3 flat screens, including 1 in the giant bathroom! She kindly shared her shoes (I now want a pair of Ed Hardy Converse shoes!!) and dresses (so jealous of her fab clothes!) and she actually wore one of my tops out to party in (don't laugh, it was a pre-baby/marriage top, back when I had some sort of non-mommy style!) I did not get enough time hanging out with her since I didn't have a babysitter for Asher - ie, I was in the room by 9pm watching Ironman, eating a food court dinner, while she enjoyed great sushi with everyone but it was still great to be together for the time we had. Asher loved playing with her and was, of course a hit everywhere we went!

If only I could chase Asher all day in such fabulous shoes without killing myself or my back!

This was just one of the wonderfully heated pools!

Any guesses, why there aren't any people?!?! (this is inside the Venetian along the Grand Canal- they actually have real Gondolas that you can take a ride in with a singing gondolier rowing you a long)

Because it was 7:30AM!!! Asher decided to wake up at 5:30, so we were up and out early, wandering the empty "streets".

Do you think he was scared? Or even looked back to check that I was still there? NOPE!

Do I think he could have climbed all these steps? Yup! Did I let him try? Nope!

Trying to "pose" before going out to grab a drink with my cousin while Britt babysat Asher for a little bit...Her dress btw, which I loved! And by babysitting, I mean she did her make-up and figured out an outfit for the night while Asher slept :) He went to bed at 6pm!

Future Musician?!?!?

And yes, I bought that shirt for my son! Not appropriate everywhere, but totally funny and him! (he is still ALL about nursing!)

Sisters, Sisters, There were never such devoted sisters; Never had to have a chaperone, 'No, Sir' I'm there to keep my eye on her! Caring, Sharing, Every little thing that we are wearing..."

 Although the song says, "sharing everything we are wearing", Britt and I are actually wearing our own clothes here.  My dress I got at Goodwill for $7.99!

Asher already looks embarrassed and annoyed to be taking photos with Mom!

Friday night had been a low-key sushi dinner, but Saturday night was the big birthday dinner. Asher and I only got to stay for about an hour before we had to head back home.

7:30am to 5:45pm

Can you guess what happened today (Sunday) between those hours???

2 - 1 = 1 :(

2 naps a day made for a happy Momma. It was my saving grace considering my child does not sleep through the night (and sometimes he is up WAY more than 1 time a night!) Morning naps were often nap time for Momma too and afternoon naps were my time to get things done.

Literally, Asher decided to drop his afternoon nap overnight! Sunday of the time change, he stopped sleeping in the afternoon. He had been sleeping 90min to 2+hrs in the morning and about 60-75 min in the afternoon. Well, not anymore. Last week, he slept about 2hr -2.5hrs everyday and only once took an afternoon nap, even as he yawned his way through the afternoon and was a basket case by 5pm. Some friends suggested he would possibly sleep longer at night, with only 1 nap, but that has definitely NOT been the case. After fighting it all week, I gave up. He is 15months and the 2nd nap had to stop at some point. I have moved nap time to late morning (11ish) and try to have him in bed by 6-6:15pm.

Of course, yesterday he decided to only sleep 50min so he needed an afternoon nap which threw off his bedtime! And today he only slept an hr, although I am currently letting him hang out in his crib, hoping he will whine his way back to sleep! Schedules DRIVE ME CRAZY!

I love my Valco

*Warning, if you are not pregnant or don't have kids you might find this post very boring...Actually, even if you are preggo or have kids you might find it boring!

When I was pregnant with Asher I was obsessed with one thing....The STROLLER! I literally spent hours upon hours looking at them, talking to parents, reading reviews, and testing them out. I basically started checking them out in my first trimester and didn't finally decided on one until April after Asher was born....So that is about 8 months or so of thinking about strollers!!!! (I know, I already said I was obsessed! Thank goodness Andrew was in Iraq, or he would have gone crazy with all my stroller talk!) I knew before I got pregnant I wanted the Maclaren umbrella stroller. My mother-in-law Sharon got that for us and I love it! It was the "main" stroller that I had a hard time with.

There are SO many options and strollers are SOOOO expensive! According to one website I found there are 8 different types: umbrella, lightweight, travel systems, universal car seat carriers, prams, all-terrain, jogging, and multi-function strollers! (do you see why it is so overwhelming to decide!) I really didn't want to be one of those parents that had 4 different strollers for only 1 baby and then would need all different strollers the second we had another baby! But man, kinda of like wedding stuff, baby stores can make you feel like you need it all!!! (which you don't!)I secretly think stroller companies all have a pact together to make you have to buy different strollers the more kids you have!

After giving up my impractical desire for the $900 Bugaboo, I moved onto the Quinny. That was only $500, so things were looking better :) Then I looked at Mountain Buggy, the Orbit (Oh man, this is the most amazing stroller! If only we just wanted 1 kid!!!)Phil and Ted, the BOB, Valco and every other one that the book Baby Bargains recommends.

After hours and hours, I finally decided I couldn't buy a stroller that couldn't expand with us, since I knew we wanted more kids. That left me 2 options!! 2 out of 100's of different strollers....I am telling you it is a racket!!! (some strollers have a little foot board you can add to give the older child something to ride on, but I wanted an actual seat) My two options were the Phil and Ted and the Valco. After more hours of conversation, and testing, I went with the Valco Tri-mode and man, am I glad I did! I wanted a stroller that aside from expanding for more kids, could be used newborn to 4yrs. old+, that I could run with, go on both unpaved trails, and bumpy city sidewalks, have good storage, be light enough and fold compact enough to actually use regularly by myself (no sense having a stroller that throws your back out every time you take it in and out of the car) and not break the bank for! At our baby shower in VA, the stroller was the main gift that everyone could go in on and we were given enough to cover the whole cost of a brand new one I found on ebay! It was a huge blessing!

Asher in his stroller the day we got it

I see you! Asher loves putting toys in the storage basket

All warm and protected no matter the weather

I have used it in the Rocky Mountain National Forest, unpaved trails all over Colorado Springs, the narrow cobblestone sidewalks of Carmel, on the beach, running sprints during my Crossfit workouts and just normal walks around base.

Folds small enough to fit on the dog's crate! This was key in our little Co. Springs house

Loaded down with groceries from the commissary

That storage area holds SO much!

Just last week I walked to the commissary (military grocery store on base) and as I walked back, I started thinking about how many groceries I fit in the stroller and how even with the 2nd seat, I would still be able to. (when you add the second seat to the Phil and Ted, you lose most of your storage space)

I fit the following:

3 dozen eggs

2 boxes of stick butter (2 pds total)

1 pound tub of cottage cheese

2 pound tub of yogurt

1 box of graham crackers

a box of wax paper

6.5 pounds of sweet potato's

and 12.5 pounds of meat!

That is 24+ pds of groceries and I could have fit more! None of them were in Asher's sitting area and I could still steer the stroller with 1 hand! Yup, I made the right decision. I really love this stroller!

419th

This is the B-1b Lancer...or otherwise nicknamed "The Bone"

We finally found out where we are going after Test Pilot School!!!! There are 87 days left as of (3/17) and it was killing everyone to not know if we were moving or staying. Most of the jobs are here or FL, so we were prepared either way. Turns out they threw in MD and Vegas to the mix, so there were some surprises.....Without further suspense, we are HERE....FOR ANOTHER 3 YEARS!!!!! IN THE DESERT!!!! NEAR NOTHING!!!!!!!

Can you hear the joy in my voice?!?!? Although honestly, I am okay with staying. Everyone comes back here at least once after TPS, so I would rather get it over and just stay. Plus, I painted most of the house and this was our 4th move in 3.5years, so it will be nice to stay put for a bit. Andrew is going to be working with the Bomber Squadron (419th), which means the B-1, B-2 and B-52. He is excited because it means he will to fly a lot since there are more seats in bombers (as compared to fighters) It also means, since we are going to stay in base housing, that he has less than a 20mile commute on base (round trip). That is way better than the 19 stoplights and 35min commute each way he had in the Springs!

So plan your vacations to sunny CA now :) We are here to stay and although we are not really near anything, we are sort of near everything...90min to LA, 2hrs to skiing in Big Bear, 2hrs to Palm Springs, 3 hrs. to San Diego, 3 hrs. to Vegas, 5hrs to San Fran.....now if only it wasn't 35+miles to the next town!

All boy...

What could be better than playing in the dirt (Ahem, I meant our "xeriscaped yard") in PJ's???

"Aren't you going to sit down and play with me?"

Asher is happy as a clam digging in the dirt and playing/eating rocks. He definitely does not have issues getting dirty, sandy or yucky, as previous evidence of his eating style shows!

"Isn't this a great rock Mom? Can I eat this one?"

His face is looking a little worse for the wear these days too. He looks like he has been in a street fight! Thursday he scraped his cheek and bumped the side of his forehead, Friday afternoon he fell at the playground and gave himself a huge goose-egg in the middle of his forehead, and Sunday morning he fell on our sidewalk, smacking his face and giving himself a bloody nose. I was almost to tears when I saw his nose start bleeding (it barely bleed - thank the Lord!) I seriously asked for prayer for my heart at Bible study this week, specifically for this stage. I don't want to fear or hold him back from exploring, but it gets hard watching him get hurt as he learns. I just wish he had a smidge of caution, instead of being willing to go head first off anything and everything! I don't know how much more of these learning to walk/being a toddler, bumps and bruises I can take!

Finally!!!

I was finally able to get photos of Asher WALKING!!!!!!!! He started walking Tuesday Feb. 23rd. He and I were at Barnes & Noble, my favorite "date" place with him. (No need for a toy store for Asher, just give him a bookstore and he is a happy little bear!) Anyway, he was holding my finger to walk over to another bookshelf and I when I let go, he just kept right on walking. We have known for a while he was both coordinated and strong enough to walk, but he wasn't really into moving slow.... He is all about getting everywhere fast!

Later that day when I tried to have him walk for Andrew, he of course, sat down and cried! And that is how it went for over a week. He would walk randomly, (never when I had the camera near!) and when we asked him to walk, he would sit and cry or take 1 step and then sit down and crawl instead.

Off he goes!

And in case anyone thinks we are luckily enough to have a green yard, think again!!! These pictures were taken at the Descanso Gardens about 90min from our house. They were beautiful and when I need a break from all the brown, I will definitely be heading there again! (www.descansogardens.org)

I wasn't going to pick any flowers, I promise!

Little steps/ledges make great launching pads

Well, this week he has taken off! He can walk across the room, he can walk holding things in his hands, he can walk on uneven ground and he can stand up from anywhere and start walking without needing something to pull up on....basically he is a walking machine!

We love watching him go and still are in awe of his little 18pd body walking upright all over the place! He just still seems so tiny to be walking like a big-kid!

Teeter-totter :)

Checking out the fountain....Sadly, about a minute after I took this picture, Asher swiped the side of his face on the stones and took off a lot of his cheek skin. He looks like he has been in quite the fight! Oh the joys of walking and climbing!

All Done!

I have been working with Asher on his signs for months now. I started with just "thank you" and "all done". In January I added "please" to the equation as well. About a month ago or so, he finally started signing "all done" by himself and at the right times. I was so excited! It was his first sign! On the note of firsts, Momma was his first word. Of course not said looking at me, but said while crying pathetically in his crib not wanting to go to sleep! It almost broke my heart!

Well, Asher now thinks that "all done" is the answer for EVERYTHING...Up? All done! More? All done! Please? All done! Bye? All Done! He will readily do "all done" a thousand times a day for anything and everything! It is pretty funny and slightly frustrating at the same time. I am going to keep working on "please" and "thank you". He is not off the hook yet! :)

Boots loves food time! Asher has just started feeding any food he doesn't want directly to Boots, so we are working on that one!

All done Momma! Full-tummy = Happy Camper

"How big is Asher?" or "All Done?"

Playground time

We have a wonderful playground about 50 yds from our house. When we first moved here, Asher really couldn't do much other than sort of enjoy the swings. (and only before 9am or after 6pm because everything got too hot to touch. 115 degrees really cooks playground equipment!) Well, just a few short months later and he is now all over the playground! He would much rather play in the wood chips and crawl up and down the stairs then swing these days! He is always on the move!

Piling woodchips on the stool is so much fun!

How many dogs do you know, that climb up playground equipment?!?

Guarding the stairs to his baby! Nobody is passing! - J/K - In all honesty Boots could care less about guarding Asher and probably just liked having a better lookout for ground squirrels!

How funny is it that having Pluto on this equipment, dates it?!?! Glad I don't have to explain to him yet, why Pluto is no longer one of the planets even though this says it is!

Almost 15months old and still a squeaker! He loves to be chased!!!! (the whole video box may not show up, so just click on the play button and the video should play correctly)

Ironic

Over a month ago now, I turned the big 3-0!!! (more on that later) About a week before my big day, Andrew got a funny piece of mail. It made turning 30 so much sweeter and ironic, as I had been slightly freaked out that for the next couple of years, I would have to tell people I am in my 30's and my husband is in his 20's.....(Really, we don't have that big an age gap, but man changing decades sure makes it sound like it!)

Apparently someone out there thinks Andrew is WAY older though! I was laughing (thankfully so was he), that he got the AARP membership offer and I did not!

I wonder if we had applied for the card and gotten it, if when we tried to use it, we would have gotten in trouble like using a fake ID when you are under 21?!?!?

Home Brew

So we started making our own beer! Andrew and I had decided a long time ago, that we could almost open the perfect restaurant, specializing in wings, sweet potato fries, and gourmet pizza's. (though we are mostly organic and paleo-diet people, when we cheat, we really cheat!) The only thing we were missing was some great beer! So a little over a month ago we bought our first home brew kit. Our neighbor and TPS classmate, Adam, has been making beer for a long time now, so he has helped us with the process. It was supposed to be a joint project for Andrew and me, but it turns out making beer is sort of boring, so I let Asher, Andrew, and Adam have their "manly" time brewing and I figured I could enjoy it when it is all done!

Our first go will be a stout! We both love dark beers and bonus for me, they are good for helping milk production in nursing, so hopefully we won't mess it up!

Asher helping Daddy unpack the brew kit! (www.morebeer.com is where we got our stuff from)

Asher helping Daddy...brewing beer requires a lot of time spent stirring and watching to make sure it doesn't boil over!

Doing something important, I think this was the cooling stage.

Fermenting away....It will be in this stage for a couple weeks. Every time we walk past this closet, we can smell the yeast working. Good thing I like that smell!

Bottling, slightly time consuming, (5 gallons is a lot to bottle) but relatively easy. After bottling it still takes a few more weeks before it is drinkable.

Nothing better than a great beer in a frosty beer mug!

First batch is great! Yeah, we didn't mess it up! Can't wait for the second batch that is fermenting away...A Belgian double!

Never thought...

I had strong opinions about lots of things related to kids, pre actually having one of my own! I know this is NOT surprising to my friends or family! I had babysat and nannied so much, I was pretty sure I knew what I would do and wouldn't do when I had my own child(ren)! I should have learned by this point in my faith journey that that is when God loves to have a little fun :) Asher has helped me change my mind on bedsharing/co-sleeping, nursing on demand, letting them cry it out, and lots of other things. The one thing though that I didn't ever think I would do, I have done! (drum roll please....)

Obviously enjoying his dinner at the Freemont Casino in Vegas

I have given my child food while in a restaurant, which he proceeded to make into a huge mess all around him and I have gotten up from the table and LEFT IT! For some reason, beyond me, I never thought I would let my child make a big mess all around where we were sitting. I thought we would be the perfect family whose kids didn't have all the waiters and waitresses cleaning up after them as soon as they walk out the door. Little did I realize when you don't have a dog underneath the highchair catching every morsel, it is IMPOSSIBLE to not make a mess! I always feel horrible and slightly embarrassed that we are leaving such a mess, but unless they bring me the broom, what can I do but leave a big tip and apologize my whole way out the door?

Breakfast at the Marine Memorial Club in San Fransisco

I will clarify here and say that I do ask for a wet rag to wipe down the table with, especially after Asher eats something like a whole bowl of beans and I let him finger paint everywhere with it.

Sweet

I love this precious boy and his sweet face!

E*Trade

Asher has been mistaken for the E*trade baby more than once. (pre-this new full head of hair look they have had on the baby) We have been trying to teach him to say "shankapotomus" for months now :) These aren't his best e*trade looks, but cute none the less.

Taking care of business

Am I in trouble?

You're making me nervous, can I just work, please?!

Thankfully Andrew's government laptop has a lock feature on it, so Asher can't mess up all those graphs, charts and reports that he spends hours working on each week!