surf's up

The weather has continued to be really summer-like around here, so we had to break out some new outfits!

What's on your shirt Asher?

Surfboards! 

How fun!

You're one cool dude.

how to make a necktie onesie

A couple of you were asking how I made the necktie onesie...

well, it was super easy!

First I measured the onesie torso, so I'd know how long to make the tie,

then I made a tie template from some cardstock.

I drew the "tie shape" free hand using the onesie measurements so the tie part wouldn't be too long or short.

The easiest way to do it {in my opinion} is to make the "knot" part and the "tie" part separately.  This made cutting out the material and attaching it to the shirt much easier.

I then cut out the tie using leftover quilting fabric and attached it to the onesie with some iron-on heat bonding material.  Then I sewed around the edges to secure it better using the zig-zag setting on my sewing machine.  I'd definitely recommend doing the sewing step -- the bonding didn't hold as well as I had hoped.  Sewing did the trick to hold it on securely, I even ran this one through the washer and dryer with no problems.

Asher's Easter onesie was made with some fun Hawaiian fabric, but here's a more traditional striped one that I also made for him.

It was so easy!  I saw a lot of these onesies for sale on Etsy for $15-20 and I'm so glad I tried to make my own.  Since I used onesies I already owned and leftover fabric it only cost me a couple dollars for the heat bonding!

That's it!

I can't post without adding a photo of my little guy, so check out these baby blues.  Oh, how he's got me wrapped around his fingers.

all dressed up

Drew, Asher, and I were invited over to our friends, Carl and Karen's house for Easter dinner on Sunday.  Asher, of course, insisted on dressing up like the dapper young man that he is.

I had the hardest time finding cute dressy clothes for a baby his size, so I did what any desperate {and yearning to be crafty} mama would do...I made him something!

How cute is this little necktie onesie on him?!  I just love it.

Unfortunately, Asher decided to spit up {several times} while we were there, so he had to wear his bib the whole time and nobody got to really see it.  Ahh, shucks.  He then proceeded to cry through the entire dinner. 

We really have to work on being a better guest.  Thanks for inviting us over anyways!

hip, hip, jorge!

As it turns out, I married into a family of Yankees fans. 

I had no baseball loyalties before Drew came along, so I was happy enough to join this bandwagon.  Well, I didn't so much join as concede.  Drew grew up in New Jersey, so the Yankee runs deep.  Even if I did like another team it would mean a constant fight, which I just don't have the energy for.

Baseball always kind of bored me since the games could be slow and there were so many each season.  But, over the past 6 years I've actually started enjoying it!  Following one team is totally the way to go!  I know the players {somewhat} and can keep track of how the team is doing overall.

Plus I grew up in the hometown of Mike Mussina, so that's a bonus.

Plus I think catchers don't get enough credit overall, so I love Jorge Posada.

Naturally, Asher is a huge Yankees fan.  Since he's his Daddy's son we didn't even have to teach him -- it's already in his blood.

We're excited for the start of baseball season around here!

can you say bed head?

Asher, not me.

This baby has got some crazy awesome hair.

I love it big time.

:o)

{By the way, if someone had told me a few months ago that I'd be posting photos of myself to the internet where I'm in a bathrobe with no make-up I'd have said they were crazy.  Well, there it is.}

mommy's little monster

Last week Asher's grandparents came to visit him!  Having fun with them was another big reason why we took a blogging break.  Asher loves it when he gets visitors, but, unfortunately {for me} he also gets really used to being held and played with constantly!

While they were here we took a trip down to the outlets and Grandma Wilkinson spoiled Asher with some new summer outfits!  One thing we found that I absolutely love are these monster pants!

Those of you who have little boys can appreciate how hard it can be to find adorable clothes for little guys.  Asher is a cutey-patootie in everything {of course} but these are especially great.  Thanks Grandma and Grandpa!

happy easter

He lives!  He lives!  Christ Jesus lives today!

He walks with me and talks with me along life's narrow way.

He lives!  He lives!  Salvation to impart.

You ask me how I know He lives -- He lives within my heart.

We are so blessed.

My Easter chick agrees.

Thanks, God for the blessing of your Son - and mine.

to catch a thief

A few weeks ago I mentioned how I think having a baby is causing me to lose my mind. I love you, but it's true.

Most of the time I just accept it and go about my business.

But sometimes it affects other people. Then other times it affects other people AND me.

Other people like The Law.

Uh-oh.

Today Asher and I were shopping in Target and I may have accidentally shoplifted.

Ok, I definitely shoplifted, but it was an accident.

Nice example for a baby, huh?

I had Asher in the Snap 'N Go stroller and put a bottle of laundry detergent in the basket under his seat. The few other items I needed were in a bag I carried along, so once I checked out I just unloaded the bag and headed out of the store.

It wasn't until I was at the car and went to lift his car seat off of the stroller that I saw the detergent still in the basket.

I don't know Asher...should we take the time to go back inside, wait in line again, and pay for this detergent?

Being a baby I didn't expect Asher to know what the right decision was here, so I decided for us.

I felt pretty ridiculous, but we high-tailed it back inside to pay.

Do you think we made the right choice Ash?

Oh good! I'm glad you approve.

Moral Lesson #1: Don't steal.

Even if your clothes are dirty.

heat wave

Cleveland had a record breaking heat wave yesterday! We got up to 82, which is 30! degrees above average. Holy moly!

Asher and I took full advantage of the sudden summer like weather and got somebody {not me} stripped down to his skivvies.

This boy loves nothing more than being as close to naked as possible.

He would have appreciated being taken all the way, but as I'm not interested in cleaning baby urine off every surface of my house, the diaper stayed on.

Ash didn't mind. Look how joyful.

I hope I can always make him this happy.

We also went for 2 walks and opened all the windows in the house!

It's suppose to be near 80 again today, so we're getting ready to go out!

Happy Friday everyone!

few words

Oh,

how I love

this little boy.

exhausted

Sometimes Asher's naps get cut a little short. Often the culprit is some loud noise that wakes him up early. Typically when this happens I encourage him to go back to rest for a little while longer by rocking and singing. More times than not this doesn't work at all. I usually give up if he's wide awake and simply put him down again when he seems tired.

He pulled that trick this morning and woke up after only 20 minutes of sleep. He wanted to come downstairs to play with me instead of going back to bed, so I gave in.

I put him on his activity mat to play and Asher happily grabbed his toys and rattled them around for awhile. After about 10 minutes everything went quiet, so I looked over to him thinking he got bored and needed new stimulation only to find this:

He has never, ever fallen asleep on his own in the middle of the living room before. Poor buddy was so tired!

absence makes the heart grow fonder

Did you miss me?

Things have been pretty exciting around here the past few days, so I've been too busy having fun to post...sorry!

Let's get caught up...

This past Saturday Drew's friends from college, Ryan and Anna, came to visit and meet Asher for the first time!

I have to say, I think they were the first visitors who actually met Asher when he was in a consistent good mood. When he was brand new Asher tended to be more fussy and needy, but now Ash is so fun to play with -- he smiles and flirts with the best of them. So cute!

He smiles during play time, but we're still waiting for Asher to smile while getting his photo taken with other people. He's a little serious in group shots.

In a few weeks we'll be heading out to New Jersey for Drew's brother's wedding, so I'm hoping Asher will still be a little charmer to meet all of his great-aunts and uncles!

bumbo baby

On Tuesday I was trying to cook dinner, but Asher needed some entertainment, so I decided to try him out in his Bumbo seat.

The novelty of sitting straight up was a huge hit!

That is, it was until his big brain weighed his head down too much and it got hard to hold up. Poor guy!

After this we switched back to his reclining bouncy chair and he played happily while I finished dinner. I love that he's starting to be able to spend short periods of time playing solo so I can get things done. Not having to hold him 24/7 makes our cuddle times that much more special!

take that mr. parrot

Over the past week Asher has really mastered the art of grabbing the toys on his bouncy chair activity bar to make the lights and sound go. It still takes him a few minutes to get warmed up to it each morning, but once he gets going look out!

He gets so excited that his arms and legs start flapping out of control, which just makes the noise and lights go more frequently. It's a slippery slope, just he loves it!

little asher had a lamb

With some traveling on our horizon I wanted to introduce Asher to a little "friend" he could have of his own. I've heard that having a familiar lovey helps babies and kids transition to sleeping in strange places more easily.

Asher might be too young for this, but I figured there isn't any harm in giving it a try!

He received this little lamb blanket as a gift and it's the perfect size for him.

I don't let him sleep with it, but he does like to cuddle/suck on it while in his bouncy chair or while hanging with a sleepy Daddy.

If you can't really see him around Asher's tight grip, meet Lamb.

Little kids with their lovies are too cute! I love it!

does this onesie make me look fat?

Remember when I asked if anyone else experienced a 3 month growth spurt with their babies? I thought that Asher might be having one since he was eating much more often than normal.

Well, all doubt was erased this morning when I tried to dress him.

Drew and I got this onesie over his head and arms, then found this...situation...when we went to snap it up.

Granted, this onesie was a hand-me-down and may have shrunk a little previously, but still.

Check out the tag.

That's 13 to 18 pounds!!

I weighed Asher last week and he was 12.5 pounds.

After this little event Drew and I decided to weigh him again this morning.

Any guesses...

He's now 13.4 pounds.

Asher gained almost a full pound in 1 week.

Holy cow.

No wonder my arms are tired.

your lucky day {I need help}

Two posts from Emily in one day? Friday is great for so many reasons!

I'm back because I need some help.

If there are any experienced Moms who have gone through this before or if it's happening to you now I'd love to hear your advice {or empathy!}

First, Asher is doing so much better with his naps!

I noticed over the monitor the other night that he was awake, but quiet in his crib for almost half an hour before falling asleep, so I reasoned that he is now able to put himself to sleep if given the chance.

Enter Mommy boot camp: I soothed him for a few minutes at nap time yesterday, then gave him a kiss, laid him down and left the room. Naturally there was crying. I planned to give it 10 minutes, then go back if he was still hysterical. Amazingly he cried for only 5 minutes, then played quietly for 15 minutes, then fell asleep for 45 minutes!

I'm hoping that eventually we can skip past the inital crying, but for now I'll take it.

I'm getting to my questions...

Last week Asher decided to abandon his pacifiers. Totally and completely. He simply refuses to take one if it's offered. Mostly I'm ok with this but now I have no way to soothe him when I can't pick him up {ie - in the car seat, etc}.

Did this happen to anyone else?

How do you soothe your little one when they can't be picked up?

Ok, once you've solved this for me I have another question...

Remember earlier this week when I took the bumpers out of Asher's crib? Well, it took him less than a week to get into trouble without them. I went in to get him this morning and found his arm between the crib slats.

Awesome.

It wasn't really stuck, but he doesn't have the coordination to get it back in. I'm afraid he might twist and really hurt himself sometime. What else can I use? I don't want to put the bumpers back in because of the suffocation hazard he seems determined to try.

Ok, last one...
Has anyone else noticed a growth spurt around 3 months?
For the past few weeks Asher has been very reliably sleeping through the night, just waking up to eat once between 3-5am. Then just this week he started getting up 2x every night absolutely starving. Is he just having a growth spurt? I really hope this passes soon -- I miss my sleep!


This parenting stuff is thrilling, huh? And I thought my old job was challenging!

Thanks for your help and advice!

favorite thing friday

I've never been a big fan of winter.

Snow can be fun for a day or 2 with the sledding and hot chocolate, but for the most part we're like roommates who tolerate each other out of necessity, but aren't friends in general. Even as a child I viewed snow days with a mixture of excitement {no school!} and resignation {great. now I'll be in class in June to make up this day}.

Winter means snow boots, heavy jackets, hats, gloves, and scarves just to leave the house. All of this bugs me.

But you know what comes after a long winter...spring!

And do you know what I associate with spring more than anything else? Easter!

I love Easter! It's is easily one of my favorite holidays.

I love the meaning behind it and the reminder of what Jesus did for all of us.
I love candy.
I love hyacinths and Easter lillies.
I love seeing tiny girls in Easter dresses, hats, little purses, and patent leather shoes. {that used to be me and my sisters!}

Easter means that spring is coming along with the promise of warmer weather and flowers.

What's not to love?

Given this gushing you can imagine how excited I was to recieve some special Easter gifts for Asher in the mail the other day!

My friend Teri at Babies and Mommies, who made Asher's baby keepsake, sent him an adorable Easter basket shaped like a duck! It's super soft and has these great feet that flop about. I tried to put Asher into it, but he's a little too big. We'll have to settle for filling it with goodies!

The next day Asher got an Easter package from my parents. I love that my Mom found a board book of the true Easter story. It is rhyming and has cute illustrations -- Asher already likes to look at the pictures and I know it won't be long before he's chewing on the pages.

He also got a super soft Peter Rabbit stuffed animal. I think the fact that they are almost the same size is a little intimadating, but I know Asher will come around soon. :o)

Spring officially arrives tomorrow and Easter is only a few weeks away -- what do you do to celebrate?