Asher Seth

Diggers and Dumptrucks!

2010-07-03T21:46:00.000-07:00

Asher has a book called "Diggers and Dumptrucks" and he LOVES reading it over and over again! So, you can imagine his excitement when he spotted a REAL digger (I think it's actually a backhoe--anyone? The "digger" part is cut off in these pictures.) Anyway, we went up to stay at a cabin for the weekend a couple of weeks ago (thanks, Fletchers!), and they had this AWESOME piece of machinery sitting in their yard. Once Asher saw it, he wouldn't let us forget it was out there--it was the most requested item the whole weekend!

Ha ha! I did it!

2010-06-27T22:41:00.001-07:00

Okay, for those who spoke up...here it is! I've FINALLY posted again! :-) I have a TON of pictures to choose from (as I'm sure you can guess), but here's the one I chose for now, and hope to have more follow soon. Here's Asher playing with his new water "table." It's really a big plastic sink and he LOVES it! Of course, Asher still loves pretty much all things water, so this was a pretty safe bet. So, now that I've posted, I better get some comments to know that there are still people out here who check this blog!

Jesus Loves Me!

2009-09-12T22:51:00.002-07:00

These videos are from over a month ago--actually almost 2 months ago! And like the previous post, Asher has gotten much better since then (even singing the 2nd verse, now!), but this is when Asher had just begun singing "Jesus Loves Me" with us. Such a precious little voice. :-) Don't you agree?!

And here I caught Asher singing all by himself "Yes Jesus Loves ME! The Bible tells me so! Yay!" I LOVE how he's almost shouting it, and he kept doing this over and over and over! Asher may not know who Jesus is, yet, but it makes me happy that he knows this song already and will be able to ask questions about it soon so that we can teach him about the Truth that is in it!

Hello!

2009-09-12T22:35:00.002-07:00

This video clip is almost 3 months old, but I had to start somewhere, right? I remember taking this video because Asher was playing with his "cell phone" and started saying, "hello!" He hadn't really said this word before, so it was very exciting at the time. His vocabulary has since exploded and I hopeto show more of that in future posts.

To "tide you over" until I have more time...

2009-08-16T21:17:00.000-07:00

I KNOW it has been forever since I've posted anything and I WAS gonna do a bunch of blogging tonight, but it took my computer SO LONG to upload all my pictures and videos that now I don't have time to blog! So, I'll leave you with this one picture of Asher for now, because he's just so darn CUTE in it! :-) I will try VERY hard to have more time soon!

the EXPERT spinner

2009-06-17T21:37:00.000-07:00

Here's what Asher's "spinning" looks like these days. Notice the effortless skill he uses to get the bowls going! I don't know why he's shaking his hand like that. He doesn't do that most of the time. Maybe he was just excited this day. Hope you likey!

Cruise on Canyon Lake

2009-06-16T20:55:00.000-07:00

While my parents were in town (near the end of May) we went for a cruise on the Dolly Steamboat on Canyon Lake, and this is what Asher spent some of his time doing. Crazy boy! (He looks a little drunk at the end, but I promise there was nothing but WATER in that green cup he picked up!)

Uh oh, baby!

2009-06-14T20:45:00.000-07:00

This is Asher's new phrase (as of May 17th--sorry, I'm still a little behind in my posting, but at least I'm getting them on here!)

My matching boys

2009-06-14T20:42:00.000-07:00

I just HAD to get a picture of this! Don't they make a GREAT pair?!

More pool action

2009-06-13T16:18:00.000-07:00

Here's Asher splashing away in his pool again--he just LOVES the water! (Have I said that, yet?) This time, it's really warm outside, so he didn't get cold! :-)

Playing with the laundry basket

2009-06-10T21:46:00.000-07:00

'Nuf said

Play Date

2009-06-10T21:44:00.000-07:00

Asher and I had a play date with our friends Melissa and Aaron at the beginning of May and these are just a few pictures we took that day. This first one is of us trying to get the 2 boys to smile at the same time. (if you look closely you can see the reflection in the window of Melissa's attempt to get them to smile--good job Aaron! You think Mommy is funny! Asher just looks like he doesn't know WHAT is going on!)

These next 2 are of us telling the boys to give hugs (or maybe kisses, I can't remember). And they just never quite got there....

The AFTER pictures...

2009-06-07T13:35:00.000-07:00

After Asher was in the pool, I decided that he needed a haircut BADLY!! (actually I had known for WEEKS that he needed one, but just didn't have the time!) So, I decided spur of the moment to take him over to a children's hair salon that several friends had GREAT experiences with their kids at. And when I got there, I found out they were closed...for GOOD! Oh, boy, now what was I going to do?! So, I decided, "here goes nothing!" and I sat him in his booster seat and put his favorite video on (which was only 30 minutes long so I had to work quickly!), gave him a PILE of Goldfish crackers and went to work. I really didn't have any idea what I was doing and as I got partway into the haircut, it really LOOKED like I had no idea what I was doing. But, the more I cut, the more I seemed to get the hang of it, and in the end I was really PROUD of the outcome! I thought I did a darn good job! :-) Yay! I was so scared that I was gonna have a very funny looking little boy when I was done. But what a relief that I didn't! So, here are the pictures I took immediately afterwards. Asher did surprisingly well! The only thing he had trouble with was when the scissors got close to his ears. He didn't like the sound of them. (and now it's actually time to do it all over again!)

In the pool...a little early

2009-06-07T13:18:00.000-07:00

I know how much Asher loves being in water, so I waited as long as I could before putting him in the pool, but it really wasn't quite warm enough, yet...at least not at 5:45pm when the sun was already starting to go down. This was from April 29th and the air temp was pretty warm to just be sitting out in, but the water was cold, and the air just wasn't THAT warm. So, Asher ended up with chattering teeth at the end, but he sure loved his time while he was IN the pool! And as I was deciding what part of the video to post I realized that Asher is trying to spin that bowl IN THE POOL! :-) He sure is a crazy boy! And, yes, says "puppy" at the end. I don't think you can hear it in the video, but we heard a dog bark, and Asher used one of his very few words to identify it!! Go Asher! (oh, and by the way, this is the BEFORE picture of his haircut!)

The REAL beginning

2009-05-31T21:10:00.002-07:00

These are the culprits that started the whole "spinning" thing. Every time we went over to Nana and Papa's house he would go straight to these wooden rings and drop them on the floor, I guess because he liked the sound of them. Then as they started spinning, he just kept doing that and the rest is history....

Crazy bed head hair!

2009-05-31T20:59:00.000-07:00

I had to take a picture of this crazy hair! He was sweating during his nap and I guess he must have been sleeping on his head because he had this crazy hair going on when I got him up! And this is even a little more tame than when I saw him in his crib!

The beginning

2009-05-31T20:48:00.004-07:00

This is Asher when he first started Tupperware spinning. I will post (hopefully soon) what it looks like these days! This video was taken on April 12th. It's amazing how much time he spends doing this. Paeter thinks that when Asher grows up he will be a plate spinner! :-)

Easter Pic

2009-05-31T20:24:00.000-07:00

I know this is definitely late, but for those of you who didn't get to see this, it's Asher's Easter picture. Adorable, huh?! ;-)

oh boy

2009-05-03T21:12:00.002-07:00

Wow, here it is, another month has gone by since I posted last. Where does the time go? Well, hopefully I'll get something up here again, soon! I do have pictures and video, but they're still on my camera. You can forget about me getting any blogging done during the week, and on Saturdays, too, for that matter, so that leaves me just with Sundays. And here it is Sunday evening again, and nothing to show you all. Please check back soon, and I will try my hardest to have something new for you to look at!! Thanks for hanging in there for me with my BUSY life! Love you all! :)

Checking email

2009-04-04T21:11:00.001-07:00

I guess Asher needed to check his email.

Just can't get enough of that smile!

2009-03-29T21:10:00.000-07:00

More pics at the park

2009-03-29T21:08:00.000-07:00

Here's another stuffed animal that Asher loves!

Running around in the grass.

Overjoyed at being shown another stuffed animal.

Ducks at the park

2009-03-29T21:02:00.000-07:00

We went to the park a few weeks ago so Aunt Karyne could take some 18month pictures of Asher. She got lots of good ones, but I only wanted to use one for the actual 18 month pic, so I thought I'd share some of the other pictures here!

What a smile!! I think this is where Uncle Jon pulled out one of Asher's favorite stuffed animals and was showing it to Asher so that he would look at the camera. :-)

And here is where Asher got a hold of that little bear and is giving it a kiss.

The "time out" spot

2009-03-22T20:39:00.000-07:00

Yup, Asher's "old enough" now to start getting disciplined. :-( It's hard because he's such a sweet boy, but it's amazing how he knows when he's doing something he's not supposed to. I wasn't home the first time Asher got sent to the "time out" spot, but from Paeter's account, I'm GLAD! It was rough on both of them! But, Daddy must have done it right because Asher knows to just sit there and wait for one of us to come get him up when it's time (and he cries the whole time he's sitting there--so heartbreaking!). *Sigh* how many years until he stops doing things he's not supposed to??! ;-)

Singing the ABCs

2009-03-22T19:57:00.006-07:00

We have sung the ABC song to Asher since he was born, so he's probably heard the song at least 1000 times! And now he has 2 toys that at the push of a button will play the ABC song FOR him! How fun it was for him to discover that his toys play a song that he knows! So, I guess it was inevitable that he would start to sing along. Well, here's a video of him singing some of it, (as you can see, he get's distracted)but in this clip you don't ever get to hear him finish it. I'll have to capture that another time!

Ahhh, they start so young.

2009-03-22T19:47:00.000-07:00

Paeter has found out that Asher really likes watching him play his pc game. He can really spend a long time sitting in Daddy's lap just watching what he is doing! So, I thought I'd share the moment, too!

Our Little Reader

2009-02-21T23:33:00.004-07:00

So, I got a new digital camera--FINALLY, and now I'm just trying to figure out all the bells and whistles on it. But one thing I HAVE discovered is that it takes VIDEO, too! What an AWESOME bonus! Now, I don't have to drag out the big ol' video camera and then put the whole tape on the computer, then edit the clip I want to post, etc, etc. This is MUCH simpler! So, here is a little clip of our precious boy who just loves to read. ENJOY!

Mommy's helper?

2009-01-25T21:57:00.000-07:00

I guess Asher decided that he wanted to help "fold" the diapers. It usually takes me at least twice as long when he "helps" me!

Playing at the park

2009-01-25T21:54:00.000-07:00

It's been a couple weeks since these picture were taken, but we've been trying to take trips to the park these days since the weather is SO NICE! Asher loves the slide, but he's not sure what he thinks of the sand, just yet. And he always finds ONE rock to bring back home.

Update

2009-01-25T21:50:00.001-07:00

So, Asher just got done teething again, and now he's sleeping better at night, which is really nice for Mommy and Daddy! That makes 8 teeth total now, and I don't think it will be long before the molars start to give him problems!
Asher still LOVES books and would have you read to him all day long, if you'd let him! And when someone else isn't reading to him, he "reads" to himself! It's just so precious! I've captured just a little of it on film, and hope to get some more before he grows out of this stage! He's also starting to say a few words--finally! :-) So far I've heard "Hi!", "uh, oh", "daddy/dada", "doe!(no!)", and just yesterday, "baby" when he saw himself in the mirror, and then again when he saw a baby on TV.
He loves to have music, too, and has been "singing" off and on for a while, but just in the last few days I actually heard him sing a few letters when he was singing along with one of his toys that was playing the ABCs! And I SWEAR I heard him sing "Jesus loves you..." (just those words, but the song continued in "Asher speak" after that). The ABC song and Jesus Loves Me (Actually I sing it to him Jesus loves YOU) are the 2 songs that Paeter and I have been singing to him since birth, because those are 2 BIG things that we want for Asher...to READ, and to KNOW JESUS! Yay! He's getting it! :-)

Art Show

2009-01-25T21:50:00.000-07:00

On January 7th, we went to an art show fund-raising event that a friend of ours had. She had a professional photographer there who took this picture. I didn't even know it was taken! But, anyway, I just thought it was amazing and wanted to share it with all of you!

Well, there you have it.

2009-01-01T15:55:00.001-07:00

Okay, so I've updated my blog from the last 2 months. Sorry it took me so long, everyone! I hope you enjoy all the pics, and I hope it doesn't take me that long again! Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year!

One more time.

2009-01-01T15:54:00.001-07:00

Here's that swing and slide again, and Asher just can't wipe that smile off his face!

Reading, already?

2009-01-01T15:52:00.000-07:00

Well, as I said before, Asher loves books, and I just had to snap a couple pictures when I saw this. It looks like he's reading! And at one point he was even talking as he was looking at the pages. It was so precious! :-)

Christmas Morning

2009-01-01T15:50:00.000-07:00

Here's Asher playing with one of his fun new toys from Grandma and Papa Corbett!

And new books, too! Ohhhh, Asher LOVES books!

Here's a close-up! See that yellow spot on his left cheek? It's a bruise that's healing and I have no idea how he got that bruise! (crib, maybe?)

Christmas Eve

2009-01-01T15:46:00.000-07:00

Paeter's sister, Jhannea and her family have been in town from Grand Forks, ND, so we got to spend Christmas with them and the rest of Paeter's family. Here are a couple pics of the kids opening presents on Christmas Eve (that's when the Frandsen family opens most of their presents). This first one is cousin Brylan who just turned 3!

And here is cousin Lanae opening her Disney princess car (she's just 2 months younger than Asher).

Crazy Daddy!

Aren't "Ocean Wonders" soothing?!

2009-01-01T15:36:00.000-07:00

This is how I found Asher at the end of his "crib time." He definitely loves his Ocean Wonders!
("crib time" is what happens because Asher stopped taking morning naps a couple of months ago. But, Mommy (and Daddy!) still needs her time in the morning, so Asher gets to be in his crib to play with his Ocean Wonders for an hour. And this seems to be much needed alone time for Asher, as well! All in all, it's a good arrangement for everyone!)

There's that swing again!

2009-01-01T15:32:00.000-07:00

Playing piano with Daddy

2009-01-01T15:30:00.000-07:00

What'd I tell you?! Asher loves being with his Daddy!

Rain!

2009-01-01T15:28:00.000-07:00

I think this boy might love the rain almost as much as his Daddy!

But, it sure was cold, so we had to throw a towel on him...

...and cuddle with Daddy.

Asher doesn't look so happy to be back inside.

A few of my favorite things

2009-01-01T15:23:00.000-07:00

Puzzle pieces

Door stops

I'm not sure what he's doing, here...

Remotes!

Little Spiderman!

2009-01-01T15:20:00.000-07:00

Is he about to climb the wall?

Cute Pics

2009-01-01T15:18:00.000-07:00

Here are a few more random pics that I took. Just wanted to share.
I know this first one is a little blurry, but I still like it because Asher is so CUTE in it!

He likes to play with milk jugs--and anything else he can get out of the recycling bin!

Big smile!

Bump on the head!

2009-01-01T15:15:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure why I took this picture, but I think it's because I wanted to show the bump that Asher got after hitting his head on the tub. You see, Asher LOVES to take a bath (water, of course), so when he's walking around upstairs in the house, he likes to visit the bathroom, I think in hopes that there might be some water in the tub (he hasn't yet discovered that there's ALWAYS water in the toilet, probably because the lid is always closed. Whew!). This time he got really excited as he headed for the tub and wasn't quite steady on his feet, and fell forward just as he was approaching the tub. Well, he was just far enough away that his hands couldn't catch him, and just close enough that his head COULD--OUCH! So his head hit FIRST on the side of the tub, and I think my intake of breathe scared Paeter more than the bang of Asher's head. It sure was a scary event to watch, though. Well, Asher turned out just fine, execpt for this new red patch and slight bump on his forehead. But, I think I still gave him a treat because I felt so bad that I wasn't able to keep him from falling. Okay, so here's my deep thought (how many of you knew THIS was coming!)...I guess this is a metaphor for life. No matter how much I want to keep him safe from everything harmful, I won't always be there to catch him when he falls. But, that's good for him, because how else will he learn to stand on his own two feet?

More fun in Nana and Papa's backyard

2009-01-01T15:02:00.000-07:00

Nana Dee and Papa Tim got a swing and a sliding board for their backyard for grandkids to play on when they come to visit. They sure are a big hit with Asher!!

Ahhhhh, water!

2009-01-01T14:54:00.000-07:00

Asher has discovered the fountain in Nana Dee and Papa Tim's backyard and LOVES to play in the water--but that water sure is COLD, so it's hard to love it and play in it for a very long time. :-(

A New Toy!

2009-01-01T14:51:00.000-07:00

New toys are always fun, and here, Asher is playing with his Little People Noah's Ark that he got from Grandma and Papa Corbett for his birthday. He already knows the elephant and the zebra! And Daddy can blow through his lips to make this AWESOME elephant sound, so when you ask Asher what an elephant says, he gives a quick little blow (it's so quick and quiet sometimes, that you almost miss it!).

My, what a change!

2009-01-01T14:48:00.000-07:00

What a difference 14 months can make!! But, one thing is for SURE! This little boy still loves his Daddy VERY MUCH! He always wants Daddy's attention, and tries to make sure when Daddy is around that he has his full attention. When he see's Daddy, he always says "hi!" in this sweet little voice that implies, "I know you, and I'm VERY happy that you are here!"

Random pics

2009-01-01T14:43:00.000-07:00

I don't remember why I took these pictures back in November, but probably just because this boy is so darn cute, and is getting so BIG!

More Westernfest

2009-01-01T14:40:00.000-07:00

Here are Daddy and Asher enjoying the good food, and GREAT music at Westernfest!

It's about time!

2009-01-01T14:37:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I FINALLY have some time to get caught up on blogging! I'm sorry it has taken me this long! But, hardly a day has gone by that I haven't thought about it! So, anyway, these pictures are from way back in October. We were having a fun event at church called "Westernfest" where there are huge inflated slides for kids, and balls to jump and play in, and food and AWESOME music, and lots of friends! We hadn't gone in a couple of years, so it was fun to be able to take Asher and experience it again! So, that brings me to these pictures...this is what happens when you ask Dada to put sunscreen on the boy, and try to get some on his head somehow since Asher's hair is still very thin. What a crazy do!

New posts coming soon...hopefully!

2008-11-22T15:36:00.002-07:00

Wow, I just can't believe how long it has been since I last posted. This month has FLOWN by! Please be patient with me--I'll have new pics of Asher up soon! He continues to bring a TON of joy to our lives and is LOTS of fun. He has started playing games with us and still smiles and laughs all the time. He is such a happy little boy with a very tender heart. We love him lots and can't wait to share more with all of you soon.

Water, water, everywhere!

2008-10-20T20:38:00.000-07:00

Oh, how Asher loves water! At the play area they have a place where kids (or anyone) can play in the water spouts. They take turns coming out of different grates in the ground. Asher loved playing in the water. If you look closely at the progression of the pictures, you can see him getting wetter, and wetter, and wetter! He doesn't care if the water comes down on his head or his face as long as it's not too hard. He only got upset if he got too cold, or if the spout of water went so high that it was coming down too hard for him. Otherwise he had LOTS AND LOTS OF FUN!

Fun playing

2008-10-20T20:33:00.000-07:00

Also on the 8th Asher and I went to a play area at the San Tan Village Mall (we met friends there, too, though I didn't get pictures of them!) Asher had such fun playing, but the best part was the WATER! (see above)

Daddy's socks

2008-10-20T20:29:00.000-07:00

Yes, I'm way behind on blogging, but I've just been so busy this last month that it's hard to get the time in! Well, this picture was from the 8th, but it's still very cute! Paeter put his socks on Asher's arms, and Asher had fun walking around with them on!

Oh, I almost forgot.

2008-10-05T14:54:00.000-07:00

This one's for my family in PA. Here's a picture of a real live roadrunner. I think it even said, "Meep, meep!"

Trip to the Zoo

2008-10-05T14:44:00.003-07:00

We took our first trip to the Phoenix zoo on Friday with some other moms with kids Asher's age. We had lots of fun...well, after Asher got some food and a little snuggle time, we had fun. He didn't eat a very good breakfast, so he was hungry and sleepy (because he wasn't getting a morning nap) and hot (it was at least 90 degrees, I think!), and at one point, poopy, too! But, after we got all that out of the way, Asher did much better!

So, here he is BEFORE the breakdown, at the very beginning of the day.

And here's all the moms and babies that came!

And here's Asher getting some snuggle time because...well, he just needed it, I guess! (thanks for letting us borrow your sling, Susan!)

And here's Asher MUCH happier being able to play in the dirt...

...and with a tractor (his first time)!

Cousins!

2008-10-05T14:40:00.000-07:00

Early on in the week out in PA we were able to get all the cousins together to take a picture! Yes, we had a similar one taken last Christmas, as well. But, this time there's a new addition! Little Alliyah is the newest cousin---but not for long!

Family Reunion

2008-10-05T14:37:00.000-07:00

While we were in PA we went to our Corbett Family Reunion. It was great to see so many people we haven't seen in A WHILE, and catch up at least a little bit! Here's my Dad (Papa) with all his sisters and his mom (his brother couldn't make it that day).

My Dad got a good picture of Asher playing in the grass!

Ooooh! A puppy! This is the first time Asher's been around a BIG dog and I was wondering how he would react. But, have no fear because he loved this dog just as much as the cute little ones he gets to play with at Nana and Papa's and Aunt Karyne's and Uncle Jon's! He has such a GREAT time with this puppy!

Trip to PA

2008-10-05T14:31:00.000-07:00

So, we did take a trip out to PA to visit my family, and I didn't take very many pictures, so all of the ones below are from Papa Corbett (thanks, Dad!). I got sick halfway through the visit with THE SOREST throat I've EVER had, and was down for the count for several days. So, I don't have any pictures of half of our family!! :-( Well, here are the ones I DO have.

Here's Asher looking uncertain while Uncle Jeff (my older brother) is holding him.

And here's Asher looking even MORE uncertain while Uncle Sean (my younger brother) is holding him!

The four of us are enjoying something online (maybe comedians? I can't remember exactly). By the way, that's a VERY pregnant (7 1/2 months--child #5!!!) sister-in-law, Mandy, sitting beside me.

And here's Asher enjoying his 2 new toys from Grandma and Papa Corbett.

Twins!

2008-10-05T14:17:00.000-07:00

Melissa Stephenson, this post is especially for you! I asked Nana Dee and Papa Tim if they would be able to get a picture of Asher in this outfit sitting in their walker, because Aaron Stephenson has the SAME outfit and access to the SAME walker and Melissa posted it on their blog a while back, so I thought I would do the same! :-)

LOTS of blogging to do!

2008-10-05T14:12:00.002-07:00

Well, since it has been almost A MONTH (Yikes!) since I last blogged, I figured I had a lot of catching up to do! I hope I can remember what all went on this past month! I last posted 3 days before we left for our trip to PA, so we'll start back there....

What's up with THAT?!

2008-09-11T15:40:00.001-07:00

So, Asher got this Superman basketball bath set from Aunt Karyne and Uncle Jon for his birthday. It came with this little red foam basketball, and for some reason Asher likes to carry it around in his mouth like a little puppy! It's SO funny! I don't know where he picked up that idea from, but it sure is fun to watch. :-)

One-Year Photos

2008-09-09T14:52:00.004-07:00

Aunt Karyne (Paeter's sister) was at it again! She took us into our backyard as well as down to the park near our house and snapped some AWESOME pictures of our little family! So, enjoy a few of the MANY that she took! Thanks, Karyne--if it weren't for you, we'd be paying out the wazoo for pictures like these!!!

We'll Miss You.

2008-09-05T16:25:00.006-07:00

My Papa (my Mom's Dad) passed away yesterday at 93 years old. He was a very loving and giving man. He loved to sing and had a deep, rich, bass voice. He was always a member of at least one choir, and that lasted until I think even a year ago! He was a hard worker--first on their farm, and then after moving from there he would do outside work as much as possible--that is, until his body would no longer permit him to do that. He was definitely a family man--with one wife, 9 children, 42 grandchildren, and 13 great-grandchildren, he would have to be!! He was good-natured, and always had a smile to give away. He lived a good long life, and is now at home with Jesus. It will be strange going home without him there, but I know he is no longer suffering in his temporary body. We love you and will miss you, Papa, but we will see you again!

Asher's Party

2008-09-02T19:36:00.005-07:00

We had a birthday party for Asher on over a week ago on Sunday, August 24th (I bet you were wondering if we actually DID anything for his birthday!)--incidentally, that was my due date! Anyway, here are a few pictures of Asher enjoying his first (cup)cake, and opening some presents. He knew what to do right away and tore into his dessert!! I think he MUST be his mother's son! :-)

One Year Stats

2008-09-02T19:20:00.001-07:00

Asher went for his 12 month appointment at the doctor's office last week, and I just wanted to include his stats. He is now 20 lbs, 10 oz, and 30 inches long/high! What a big boy!! And, yes, he is standing up all by himself without holding on to anything in this picture. :-) He's not walking, yet, but he can take about 3-5 steps at a time, and he sure LOVES to practice!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

2008-08-26T14:44:00.001-07:00

I don't have much time to post, but I did want to acknowledge that TODAY is my precious little boy's FIRST birthday! What a wonderful (and trying) year it has been. As I look back to when this little one was born, I just can't believe how the time has flown by. Hopefully I'll have the time soon to post a short video, but if not, at least here are a couple of pictures so you, too, can marvel in the change! Happy Birthday, Asher!!!

Asher Seth 8/26/07

Asher Seth 8/26/08

Does he like the toy or the tag?

2008-08-24T21:26:00.000-07:00

There have been many times that I catch Asher actually playing with the TAGS on his toys instead of the toys themselves. He will flick them with his fingers and suck on them. And he can keep himself entertained like that for quite a long time! It's so funny!

New Toy

2008-08-24T21:21:00.000-07:00

Asher likes to get things out of our recycle bin to play with. I've seen him with a 2-Liter Pepsi bottle, a 20 oz coke bottle, and here he is with a gallon OJ container. I guess it's true that you don't have to spend a lot of money to keep a baby happy!!

Our Trip to Indianapolis

2008-08-24T21:16:00.001-07:00

Well, if I wondered before, I definitely know now, that I just don't take the volume of pictures that I need to get some good ones. Paeter, Asher and I went to Indianapolis for 5 1/2 days and I have only a few pictures from the zoo to show for it (see below). You may ask, "why Indianapolis?" Well, because it's the location of the largest gaming convention in the world, of course!! :-) Paeter got a nice gift for his 30th birthday (which was back in April) from his wife, and that was to go to Gencon! So, while Paeter was at the Indianapolis Convention Center and various surrounding hotels for different types of gaming sessions (this is fantasy board games and role playing games, NOT video games), Asher and I mostly bummed around the hotel we were staying at. We stayed in a suite, so there were 2 rooms to play around in (made it nice when Asher was taking his naps!). And they had a pool, so that gave us something to do as well. AND as you can see from the pictures below, we got to go to the zoo one afternoon. I think it was probably a more memorable experience for me than Asher because he just looked around at all the people, while I was looking at the animals. All in all, it was a nice and relaxing trip, but it always takes so long to recover from vacations when we get back home!!

Just Playing

2008-08-12T23:32:00.000-07:00

Well, nothing much has been going on around our house. Each day looks pretty much the same as the next. So, I decided to snap some pictures of Asher playing so that I can post SOMETHING for those of you who need an "Asher fix." :-) Oh, and by the way, he HAS taken a step or 2 without holding on to anything, but he still loses his balance pretty easily. We'll keep practicing, though, and I'm sure he'll be walking in no time!

Dada!

2008-08-02T12:22:00.002-07:00

I don't have a picture for this post (and boy I wish I had a video of it!), but I just had to share this story. Once a day, almost everyday, when Asher gets up from a nap or is about to go down for one I take him in to see Paeter who is working on Spirit Blade in his "office." We like to call this event "The Presentation of the Child." Well, yesterday when it was time for the event, I let Asher crawl into the room. He needed a little coaxing from Paeter so he wouldn't get distracted by all the neat things in Paeter's room, but once Paeter got a hold of him, Asher stood up (or sat up, I can't remember which) and looked at me and said "Dada" like he was telling me who that was! It was SO precious! I'm not positive that Asher knew what he was saying, but I think it's possible that he did, because when I ask Asher where Dada is, he looks for him. Anyway, I just had to share.

More Scritching

2008-08-01T22:25:00.001-07:00

I just wanted to show more pictures of Asher "scritching" different things.

Even though he's not actually scritching in this picture, I posted it anyway because this pillow is one of the things he likes to scritch the most (besides the carpet, of course)! I think because of the type of fabric it's made from, it makes a GREAT sound!

He's not camera shy!

2008-08-01T22:18:00.001-07:00

Most of the time these days when Asher sees that I have the camera ready, he starts crawling right towards me! I don't know if he wants me to get a close-up, or what? So, I just decided to take the pictures when I could, even if I didn't get the one I originally wanted.

New Perspective

2008-08-01T22:12:00.001-07:00

Now that Asher is getting around more, he doesn't get IN his exersaucer so much anymore, but he does like to "walk" around the outside of it and still play with the toys on it!

Carpet Scritching

2008-07-26T22:32:00.000-07:00

If you spend much time around Asher you'll soon discover that he likes to "scritch" things (he's been doing this for months and months!). He feels the different textures and listens to the different sounds. Sometimes he'll even have one hand on one thing (like the carpet) and one hand on something else (like the couch) and he'll compare the two! It's so cute, he'll look back and forth as he scritches like he's trying to figure out which one he likes better, or like he's listening to the different sounds he's making. So, here is a picture of him scritching the carpet. He does this one the most. He must really like our carpet!

Oh, I almost forgot...

2008-07-19T21:20:00.003-07:00

...to include our time whitewater rafting! It was so much fun! We had 3 rafts full (18 people total) of Frandsens and we rafted down the Gallatin river. I had to laugh at these pictures the company took because they make it look like we were getting clobbered! When in reality, these rapids weren't really all that hard. :-) We did have fun, but were a little disappointed that it wasn't more challenging. So...anyone up for a rafting trip on the Colorado?! :-)
(Oh, and we got to do this all because Nana D GRACIOUSLY babysat all 3 grandkids (Asher and Lanae as well as cousin Brylan who is 2 1/2!) while us parents along with Papa Tim went to play. She definitely had her hands full. Thanks Nana D!!)

In case you couldn't tell, Paeter and I are the people occupying the 2 middle seats on the raft.

Frandsen Reunion

2008-07-19T21:10:00.001-07:00

This post is actually a continuation of the previous post about our vacation to Montana.... So, after we spent about a day (one afternoon, and the next morning) in Yellowstone, we drove over to near Big Sky, Montana to go to our family reunion! It was really nice to see everybody (most of whom I'd met 6 years ago at the last reunion) and get reaquainted a bit. But, it was especially great to see Paeter's sister, Jhannea and her family as well as Nana D and Papa Tim! (They've been gone for the past 6-7 weeks up north, visiting family.)

I just had to include this picture because this is what Asher does when he sees I'm about to take a picture. He's anticipating the flash. He'll see the little red light turn on and then he closes his eyes. I forgot to wait for that this time, and accidentally took the picture while his eyes were closed. Normally, I remember to wait until he opens his eyes again.

And here are the members of the "Tim Frandsen Family" who were there (Jon and Karyne couldn't make it because they were in Italy!! We missed you!). Yes, I have my eyes closed. What can I say, like mother like son??

Here are Asher and cousin Lanae. They are about 9 1/2 weeks apart, and they had fun "playing" together (that's in quotes because they didn't really play WITH each other, they just mostly played NEAR each other).

We all had a fun time, but isn't it funny how you have to recover from a vacation? I think I get to sleep more at home when I'm not on vacation, than I did while on our trip (and I don't get to sleep much at home between work and Asher!). Oh well, it was still very fun and very much needed to have time away from work!! Oh, and in case you're wondering Asher did VERY well on the the plane and all the driving around we did. (he had his moments, of course, but don't we all?) I'm so proud of him!

Yellowstone National Park

2008-07-19T20:55:00.003-07:00

I haven't had a chance to post in a while because we were out of town on VACATION! It was much needed, and as has been the case with our previous 3 vacations, I got sick! So, I'm now finally recovered from our vacation. We flew up to Billings, Montana and rented a vehicle to drive to Gardiner, MT to stay for 2 nights while we visited Yellowstone National Park. It was my first time there, and since Paeter's not much of an outdoorsman or sightseer (as most of you know!) I thought this might be my only chance to see the place! :-) It was HUGE and BEAUTIFUL! We didn't have the time to stop at very many of the attractions, but just driving around inside the park was amazing. There were snowcapped mountains, and rolling hills with trees and a river running near the road most of the time. It was so nice to be somewhere cool and green! Here are a few pictures that we took along the way (in no particular order).

Here's Paeter and Asher at Mammoth Hot Springs. I was a little confused at the name, because there really weren't very many "springs." It was mostly this white ground built up in terraces with a tiny steaming trickle of water here and there. Maybe we didn't go to the right place. It was still nice to see, but confusing to me. I didn't do a whole lot of research before we went, so there are probably a lot of things that I missed and history that I could have learned, but we just didn't have the time to go into all that stuff.

Here we are at "Lower Falls" (you can see the waterfall waaaaaay in the background). It was very beautiful, but at the end of the day, Asher was VERY tired and half asleep when we took this picture. This was our last stop of the day so we could get Asher home to bed. (And, Mandy, that's my ERGO carrier!)

Here is the view from the deck of our hotel. Each room had a door out to it's own deck, where you can take in the beautiful view and hear the rushing river below.

Of course one of our stops HAD to be "Old Faithful." And it was just that! It went off very close to the predicted time that it would. It erupts approximately every 92 minutes. Very fun to see in person!

Yumm! Spaghetti!

2008-07-02T14:18:00.000-07:00

Asher has finally widened his food choices. So far he likes spaghetti (which he is eating in the pictures below)--it took him a few tries to keep the noodles in his mouth (we use macaroni noodles in our spaghetti) but he does eat them now--, sloppy joe, cheerios, vanilla yogurt (peach flavored is still questionable at this point), bread/toast, smoothies, apple juice...oh, I can't forget, those Gerber sweet potato puffs! He LOVES those! We tried some cheese today, and so far that's hit and miss--we'll see....

What a cutie!

2008-06-30T15:41:00.000-07:00

I think this picture speaks for itself! ;-)

Standing up all over the place

2008-06-30T15:35:00.000-07:00

Well, Asher has definitely learned to pull himself up to a standing position. And now he likes to do that whenever he can! He can stand for long periods of time, too, and I have also caught him taking a step or two to the side while holding on to something. He is still very tentative, but it's only a matter of time before he starts walking now!

More Swimming

2008-06-25T15:59:00.005-07:00

We didn't go swimming again, but this is some of the video taken at Asher's very last swimming lesson! (finally got it put together!)--sorry the quality of the video is kinda bad. I'm not sure what happened this time! Hope you enjoy it anyway.

Swim Lessons

2008-06-18T15:03:00.005-07:00

During the first 2 weeks of June, Asher had his first swimming lessons! He did so well and loved to splash and kick around in the water. And it was really nice for me afterwards when he would take 2 to 3 hour naps! I don't have any pictures of him actually in the water (because I didn't have anyone to take them!), but I do have some video that Paeter took, so hopefully I'll have a chance to post some of that soon. Of course I had to have him in a whole coordinating outfit definitely with a hat because his fine hair doesn't do much protecting, yet. In this first picture I don't think he's making a face on purpose...it was just so bright out in that sunshine!

Here, I let him play with a plastic bag for just a little bit because he loved the sound of it so much!

And here is a picture taken after the lesson. As you can see he's getting all dried off in his towel (and keeping warm. Yes, even in 100 degree weather you have to get warm after coming out of the swimming pool).

TOYS!

2008-06-18T14:58:00.001-07:00

We got a "cage" for Asher to play in when we want to get some things done and need to put him somewhere safe. When I put him in it this last time, I came back a few minutes later and found a PILE of toys on his lap! I guess he just couldn't decide which one to play with!

I forgot to mention...

2008-06-06T22:36:00.002-07:00

In my last post, I forgot to mention that you may not know what Asher is wearing! It's his cloth diaper (not a Speedo)! Some of you may know that we use cloth, but now all of you know! Isn't it a handsome dark crimson color?! I just love them and if anyone ever wants to know about using cloth diapers, just let me know. I'm happy to share any information I have!

Future Model?

2008-06-02T15:36:00.000-07:00

So, Asher had another photo shoot with Aunt Karyne the other day, and he seemed to be a natural...!

A New Arrival

2008-05-29T23:03:00.004-07:00

Asher has a new cousin! Alliyah Mae VanZandt was born last Saturday (May 24th). Both mama and baby are doing well(at least the last time I talked to them, they were). They were just waiting to get the okay to go home from the hospital. This makes cousin #11 for Asher, but every single one of them lives far, far away! Hopefully Asher (and Paeter and I) will get to meet Alliyah this fall! Welcome, precious girl!

Stats

2008-05-29T16:12:00.003-07:00

Just wanted to give the update on Asher's stats, since he had his NINE MONTH appointment yesterday. He's now 18lbs 4oz, and 29 1/2 inches long! The pediatrician said he's in good health and everything looks great! Yay!

Asher's Progress

2008-05-29T15:52:00.004-07:00

I tried to show a little of the progression of Asher learning to crawl. The 2 halves of the video are about a week to a week-and-a-half apart. In the first half you'll see that he's not very steady and he can't quite sit up. He'll stay leaning on one hand (or just fall over). And he can't quite crawl, but he can push himself backwards! In the second half it is Memorial Day at Uncle Jon and Aunt Karyne's house. He's doing much better now! (For extra credit, can anyone name the movie that's playing in the background??)

Busy...with nothing to show for it

2008-05-29T15:48:00.002-07:00

I can't believe it's been 20 days since I last posted on Asher's blog! I took some video (as you can see above), but not really any pictures. So, until I got that video done, there was nothing to post! I would come home from work and look at all the other blogs that the mommies are faithfully posting on, and poor Asher had no updates! Well, here he is, moving around more than ever. He's still not a speed demon (and that's okay by me!), but he gets around just fine.

All wrapped up

2008-05-09T15:55:00.001-07:00

As Asher is learning to move around, I caught him getting all wound up in his blanket that was on the floor.
Isn't he such a cute little burrito?

Moving around

2008-05-09T15:33:00.004-07:00

I took some photos of Asher moving around the other day and wanted to share them. No, he's not crawling, yet, but he is getting close!
He can kind of push himself backwards a little bit, but then usually gets stuck on something. If you look closely you can see that he's kind of giving the same face in each picture.
This is the face that he would make as soon as he saw the camera. I don't know if it's his current version of a smile, or if he just doesn't like the camera right now, or what. I don't say "smile" before I take a picture,
but I swear he would be happy until he saw that I was going to take a picture and then he would make this face! He wasn't whining or fussing, just making the face! Crazy boy!

Sleeping like a baby

2008-05-01T10:52:00.000-07:00

Ever since Asher started rolling around and "exploring" in his crib before naps and bedtime I've enjoyed peeking in from time to time just to see what position he ended up in. This one I had to capture "on film" and share with everyone. (Yes, his feet are resting on top of the crib bumper!)

Bath time

2008-04-27T22:40:00.000-07:00

Well, now that Asher is 8 months old (!), I thought it was high time we took some pictures of him in the tub. He really likes his baths, and LOVES to splash in the water. He doesn't care how much water lands on his face, he just keeps going! It's so fun to watch!

Morning at the park

2008-04-23T15:59:00.000-07:00

Asher and I went to the park this morning. It was nice and warm (probably low-mid 80s) and sunny! We saw people and plants and some baby ducks, too! You can see in this first picture that Asher is crossing his ankles. He just started doing that this past weekend and now he does it all the time!

I think Asher's excited to be outdoors!

Asher's first ride in the swing. He had a good time. :-)

Incidentally, near the end of our time at the park we had a minor incident. Everyone's fine, but I put Asher on top of one of the picnic tables to change his diaper and when I was done, I put the dirty one back in the diaper bag. I took my eyes off of him for no more than a few seconds and he chose to roll over. I was sitting right beside him, but he rolled right off the table and I caught him by his leg as he was falling. I don't think he even hit any of his body parts on the bench, but he was sure scared! (as was I!) I've been thanking God ever since for teaching me a lesson without letting little Asher get hurt in the process. I'm very thankful that Asher chose to roll TOWARDS me instead of away, and that I looked back at him at the moment I did, and that I was able to catch him before he hit the ground (cement!). I'm sure all parents can relate to something scary like that happening, and I've heard that babies can move quickly, but now I know from experience just HOW quickly! YIKES!

How do you choose just one?

2008-04-23T15:43:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I feel bad about the number of pictures I include in a single post, but I can't seem to choose just one! Our little boy is just so darn cute (no bias here!), I have to show him off to everyone! :-)

Daddy's "Little Stinker"

2008-04-12T22:07:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was Paeter's 30th birthday, so I thought I would take a picture of him and Asher together. Well, I did take several (it was hard to get Asher to look at the camera!) but this is the only one that came out nicely. All the other ones were blurry! And wouldn't you know it, but this is the one where Asher has the expression of "Mom, would you hurry up already?!" (all said in a whiney tone, of course!) As a side note, Asher's shirt says "little stinker" on it. I bought it because Paeter calls him 'stinker' all the time!

Sitting up all by himself

2008-04-09T21:53:00.000-07:00

Okay, so maybe this is cheating a little bit, but I was very proud of Asher when he sat up all by himself from this semi-lying position (and he seems proud of himself, too).

Here he is, trying hard to sit up and...

...he does it!

Yay, Asher!