farmer boy

Turns out Asher loves farming.  Last summer we took a trip to a local farm-turned-county-park, but Asher was a little too small to really understand where we were and what he was seeing.  This summer he's the perfect age!

There are these tractors the kids can play on - Ash loved it!  He clearly felt so big and important doing his critical farm work.

Asher, where are the sheep?

Oh, there they are!

{Asher loved the sheep - baaa}

We went to the farm with our good friend Miss O and her mama.  I just love how O and A are talking from their respective tractors here - too cute!  

The kids gave us a few photos ops while we were waiting for our turn on the {real} tractor tour of the farm.

Oh goodness, they are just too sweet together.  Maybe we'll dig these photos out when they are going to prom together in 17 years.  ha!

where's grandma?

I haven't posted any videos recently {it's so much harder for me to remember to take videos in the first place, let alone upload them and then post here...} so I decided a little Asher face time is in order!

When Drew's parents visited a few weeks ago Asher discovered how much fun it is to "find" his Grandma.  I just love how excited he gets!  During the second round, however, he gets a little too excited and ends up "getting" Grandma, rather than simply finding her.  Poor Grandma - she's a good sport!

{note to self: I really have to take some video of his baby belly laugh one day soon.  It won't be around forever and is just TOO cute!} 

My favorite part is that you can see him do his good-bye wave and saying "nigh" {good-night/good-bye} when Grandma is hiding.  Love, love him.  :-)

got milk?

Asher, please don't root through the recyclables.

Seriously, get out of there.

What are you doing??

Oh.  I see.  Would you like some milk?

Someone around here has a favorite beverage.  And isn't afraid to work for it.

daddy skills

Drew has been really busy this week and we miss him!  Last weekend we were lucky to have a lot of time to spend as a family and Daddy shared some of his best skills with A.

Basketball skills

Sidewalk chalk drawing skills

{finally - a shout out for mama!}

Soccer playing skills

Firetruck watching skills

Waaaay better than bowhunting skills, nunchuck skills, and computer hacking skills - in my humble opinion.  :-)

{please tell me that people still remember Napoleon Dynamite...}

wordless wednesday - staying cool

Almost every afternoon Asher enjoys a popsicle after playing outside.

It may or may not be the way I lure him inside once I get too hot.  tee-hee.  :-)

camera bag extraordinaire

My camera needs a home.

Correction:  needed a home.

For the past two months I've been toting it around in my diaper bag, cushioned by Asher's extra set of clothes.  This worked out - a little - but wasn't going to be a good long term solution, so I've been searching and searching for the perfect bag.

Found it!

Ahh, lovely.  :-)

There were a few criteria that I wanted my new bag to fill:

big enough to hold my camera and some baby stuff
must stand up on its own {I hate it when bags fall over when you set them down!}
comfortable to wear
doesn't scream "camera bag"

This bag does all that and more!  After scouring the internet and talking to some friends I realized that the Kelly Moore B-Hobo bag was the one for me.  There was only one problem...$$$.  Kelly Moore is well known for making beautiful bags - that come at a not-so-lovely price.

Solution?  My go-to deal finder, eBay!  I decided on my max price and started bidding.  It took a few tries, but eventually I won my new friend.  She is brand new and came with the tags attached inside a Kelly Moore dust bag - but for a significant discount.  Win-win!  I know a lot of people are nervous about using eBay, but I can tell you I've used it for a dozen or more purchases with no problems. 

After using this bag for a weekend I can honestly say that I'm in love.  I took it with me to the zoo and was able to carry everything we needed.  It easily holds:  my camera with lens attached, diapers/wipes, Purell, diaper disposal sacks, wallet, snack bag, and an outfit for Asher.

I need to be honest here and add in that if you're a serious photographer with multiple lenses or an external flash then you won't have room for the baby stuff.  I'm just a clickin' mom, so only carrying my camera with attached lens is enough for me.  If I get additional equipment someday then I'll probably just go back to bringing a separate diaper bag.  The hobo is one of Kelly Moore's smaller bags, which is what I wanted.  I'm a petite person and huge bags make me look even smaller.  Not to mention they kill my shoulder.

I also wanted to mention a complaint that I ran across a lot in my research.  The one negative I heard several time was that the bag is not leather, but the price seems to reflect a leather bag.  I have to agree with that.  In fact, that's one of the main reasons I refused to pay for full price and went the eBay route.

However - I have to say I LOVE that's it not leather!  We got caught in a rain storm at the zoo and I had zero concerns about the bag getting ruined.  With a toddler there is sky-high spill potential all the time, so I like having no worries regarding my bag.  I simply wiped it dry after the storm and everything was perfect.

Asher and I went to tour a model home yesterday {we're looking for a new home for us, too} but Drew was working so I took some photos to show him last night.  Can you spot my new friend?  I prefer to carry the bag cross-body, but Asher riding in the Beco put a little damper on that idea. 

We worked it, regardless.  :-) 

This ended up being really long - if you're still reading, thanks!  Guess I'm a little excited.  ha!

why do i even bother?

Foolishly, I tried to get Drew to take a photo of Asher and I before church yesterday.

First someone was waaay too thirsty to smile.

Still thirsty.

Now thirsty and distracted by a squirrel on the deck.

Then wanting {insisting} on going outside to play with aforementioned squirrel.  Mad when Mommy asked for a smile before release.

Well, now everyone is frustrated.

Oh fine.  We photograph better on our own anyway.

And he's off.

Finally - flash frozen.

thirst quenching

Asher is a huge fan of beverages - both milk and water.  We've had tons of success with these straw cups, but A has started biting down on the straws in order to carry the cup around hands-free {and work more efficiently} and the straws were splitting.  Shucks.

Since biting seems to be his new thing I decided to roll with it, rather than fight the tide, and I got him a Camelbak water bottle!

I thought it might take him a little while to get the new concept of bite-suck-swallow but he picked it up in 0.0054 seconds.  I'm hoping that since the bite valve is Camelbak's whole design this bottle should last us a really long time!

{when he saw the camera, he started saying "cheese!" - not a cute smile, but the effort is appreciated}

We're still using the Munchkin straw cups for milk since they are easy to clean {and we have 8 of them}, but I have a feeling that before long we'll be transitioned to just a regular cup and straw.  My little guy is getting so big!

a hairy situation

Yesterday I got a glimpse into what Asher might look like in 30 years.  I was giving him a hair cut and all the hair fell, well, you see where it fell.

Hairy baby backs are funny, in a creepy sort of way.  ha!

Not to worry - he went straight into the bathtub after this and got rinsed right back to his baby smooth cuteness.  :-)

so i don't forget

Asher's personality has really been blossoming lately.  He is communicating more and doing some hilarious stuff!  There are so many times when his whining drives me to think about taking out a "free to a good home" ad for him that I need to document the adorable parts too - ha!

Mr A still doesn't say too many words, but one that he's great at is "good night."  Well, he says "nigh" {no t} and he says it when he means good night, but also when he means good bye.  So when Drew leaves for work in the morning Asher sends him off with a big wave and a "nigh nigh, Dada, nigh!"

As if that wasn't cute enough, it gets better.  Asher has started saying 'nigh' to everyone and every thing.  That's right - things.  Yesterday we were taking a walk and saw a fire hydrant.  This was super interesting, so Asher gave it a good inspection from top to bottom.  We talked about what a fire hydrant is and how there is water inside that the fire fighters can use.

When it was time to move on Asher took my hand, then waved to the hydrant and said 'nigh! nigh!'

Bless his little heart - so sweet!

The other funny thing he's done recently happened on Sunday.  Asher was playing in the living room and started messing with the remote controls.  He knows very well that he isn't supposed to touch those {I tell him all. the. time.} and so I reminded him yet again and added in, "Asher, if you don't obey Mommy you will need a time out."

Guess he thought the punishment fit the crime because he put the remote down and walked right over to his time out spot and plopped down.  He sat on the 'time out' step, folded his hands in his lap, and waited patiently.

Drew and I almost burst a blood vessel trying not to laugh at him.  It was SO funny!

Our toddler just PUT HIMSELF in time out!

Sometimes this boy just cracks me up.  He really is a great kid - can't wait to see what shenanigans he gets into next!