Asher's Dedication

Last Sunday, we dedicated Asher at church.  It was as beautiful as Caden's was, but super stressful.  

We had been planning for months and I just wanted the 5 min. ceremony to be perfect.  The night before the dedication, Asher was up 6 times.  Yep, you read that right.  6 times.  Little dude was teething so badly and just hurt.  On top of that he has figured out how to roll from his back to his tummy, but forgets that he can roll back again.  He gets stuck on his tummy (which he doesn't like) and just yells.  Loudly.  Many times a night.  Caden did the same thing, so I'm hoping this will pass quickly.  Additionally, that morning Caden woke up saying he didn't feel well.  

Super.

5 min., people.  

That's all I need.

The dedication was at the beginning of the service.  We (me, JZ, Asher, Gaga, Papa, Nana, Grandpa Kim, Gram, Grandpa Clark, and Asher's Godparents, Josh, Emily, and Brianna Prehm) went up front, but we were missing someone - Caden!  CP didn't want to come up with us, and it wasn't worth a fight.  Our pastor, Mimi, said something about Asher joining our family and what a great big brother Caden is.  When Caden heard his name he came running up the aisle, right on cue!

It was a beautiful service without any meltdowns (pretty good considering one was sick and one was sleepy!) and had the added bonus of a little floor drumming by Caden.  I'm going to call that success!

We all got to hear Papa sing for Asher too!

After church we went back to our house for a party.  Really, it was just lunch, but Caden kept calling it a party.  We all had fun with the man of the hour - once he napped, that is.

We might have had fun without him too

And Caden?  By the time we got home the little booger had a temp of 101.  Poor guy spent the whole party watching movies while laying on our bed.  At least he had Brianna to keep him company (but we're really sorry to have exposed everyone to strep throat, which is what it ended up being) 

As I explained to Caden, the reason we dedicated Asher is so we could stand up in front of our friends, family, church, and God and promise that we will teach him about Jesus and that He loves him.   

Sometimes 3 year old explanations are the best.

We love you, Asher!

Choo-Choo!

Last weekend, Nana and Grandpa Kim took us to see Thomas the Train at the Colorado Railroad Museum.  Really, Thomas was there, see?

Thomas comes every year, but this was our first trip - it was ca-ra-zy!  There were a gazillion people all waiting for their turn to ride on one of the cars pulled by Thomas

Luckily, there was a lot to do while we waited.  There were lots of trains to climb on and drive

There was lots of stuff to read too

And a tent with temporary Thomas tattoos

Caden never slowed down, he ran and ran and ran!

It was all a little too much for Asher, though.  He needed a nap

At 10:45, it was our turn to board Thomas

Everyone was pretty excited - even Asher, who woke up for the occasion

Thomas took us around the museum property three times.  It was the boys' first time on a train and they loved it! Caden looked out the window the whole time (and pointed out the same things three times)...

...and Asher gave the rest of us something cute to look at!

After our ride we went to the tent FILLED with trains - Wow!

Asher was bummed that he was too little to play

CP was a little sad to leave the trains.  He quickly recovered when he realized that he was going to get to ride the bus again on the way back to the parking lot.

Afterwards we went to lunch and headed home for a nap.  Well, one of us didn't quite make it home before falling asleep.

What a fun time we had on our Day Out With Thomas - although Caden did tell us that his favorite part was riding the bus to and from the parking lot because he got to ride two buses and only one train :)  Maybe next year we'll save Nana and Grandpa some money and just ride the bus!

Handsome Half-Year-Old

After the not-so-glorious 3 month picture attempt, I was a little wary of trying again with the 6 month ones.  But, since I'm a glutton for punishment and I really like pictures, we gave it a go.

It.  Was.  Awesome.

We went back to the studio that took Caden's 9 month pictures.  They were awesome.  Asher was awesome.  Even Caden was awesome.  Yes, I dragged Caden along with us just in case I (or the photographer) couldn't get Asher to smile because Caden always can.  Caden wasn't even needed and was perfectly happy to play Legos and iPad instead.  

Asher was a rock star.  I contemplated stopping after shot number one and I realized Asher was on his "A game" because I knew I would have a tough time choosing pictures and I had already told myself I was not going to spend a million dollars there.

I ended up choosing and spending more than I wanted to, but less than a million dollars.  Win!

But seriously, who could choose among these?

This handsome guy is going to give his big brother a run for his money!

And, I realized I forgot to post the comparison between the boys at 6 months...

I still see similarities, but I think Asher looks more like Caden did at 9 months instead of 6 months.  Maybe that's because he's the size of a 9 month old?!?

Happy half birthday, handsome!

Happy Half Birthday!

Sweet Asher,

You are now 6 months old, you big dude!  Now that you're half a year, you:

• wear 6-9 month clothing (and fill them out, too!)
• weigh 19lb (75%) - 1.5lb bigger than your big brother
• are 27in long (75%) - .5in longer than that other guy
• love to eat.  So far you've had rice cereal, oatmeal, peas, carrots, and sweet potatoes.  You pretty much like it all (hence the 19lb I guess!)
• love to roll and roll and roll.  We can't leave you anywhere high!  
• are a big fan of Sophie the Giraffe, the exersaucer, doorway jumper, play gym, and books (mostly you just like to eat them), but your favorite "toy" is Caden.  You love him so much!  You  gaze at him adoringly and he always gets the best smiles out of you.  I know you two will have your share of arguments over toys and sharing, but I hope that you will always be best buddies like you are now.  
• are a great sleeper!  You sleep between 11-12 hours and night and take 2-3 naps a day, depending on what we're doing and how disrupted your naps are (poor second child!)
• are still happy, smiley, easy going, mellow, joyful, delightful, peaceful, handsome, lovable, darling... I could really go on forever, I adore you.

I can't believe you are 6 months old already!  I don't know how this is going so fast this time.  I'm loving every moment that I get to spend with you.  Your sweet smile help keep everything in perspective.  You, your brother, and your daddy are what's important to me.  Thanks for always smiling and reminding me of that.

Happy half birthday, Asher!  This time we let Caden eat your cake, but just wait 6 more months...

Jumpitty-Jump

Ok, so I know that there is some controversy about the safety of doorway jumpers.  Nevertheless, we pulled ours out.  We thought Asher would dig it as much as Caden did

We were right!

I realize he looks terrified here, but he loved it.  I promise.  He was giggling and laughing until the flash went off

 Dude had a good time!

It took him a minute to figure out how to jump - 

For the most part he just stuck one foot and swung around it.

But, his favorite part was just watching Caden play.  

It's possible that he was plotting the toys he'd like to take away in the future... 

It's fun to watch our little guy enjoy a little bit of independence

And yes, the singing in the background is Caden.  He's singing an original piece about the garbage truck.

Watch Out!

Look out, Caden

 Papa has TWO sidekicks now!

Bittersweet

I feel so happy and excited, and yet still a little sad that my baby is big enough to do this...

He's not overly solid on his new trick quite yet, but he can prop himself up for a good 10 seconds.  It won't be long before he is sitting up for as long as he'd like, just like his brother could at this age.

Who Loves the CSU Rams?

We do, we do!

In case you missed the CSU vs. CU football game, the Rammies won the annual Rocky Mountain Showdown.  

I bet it was because we were all decked out in our CSU gear, don't you think?