big boy

I still look at Asher and think 'WOW!!! A year ago this amazing little boy was inside of me!' Well, I guess it's been over a year now. My little boy is a year and almost 3 weeks! Crazy.

He's gone from this little baby to a rambunctious walking and talking toddler! It's been such an amazing year to watch his growth. I know I've been lax lately about posting pictures and updates...seeing his birthday was 3 weeks ago and still no pictures have been uploaded! I'll work on that this weekend! Until then, I think there are a few things I need to post before Asher stops doing them and I forget. So here's a new list of some things he now does:

• When he bumps into something or falls, instead of crying he now looks at me, scrunches up his face to pout and squint his eyes and then growls. It's hilarious! I try not to laugh, but most times I fail.
• He has found his wonder down under. And whenever he's diaperless he has to explore, which usually means jamming a toy into it. This morning as he was pushing his sun down there so I tried to distract him with some water. He instantly grabbed his sippy and stuck the straw down there. He will also feel himself and then stand up, turn around, and sit back down to instantly look down to see if 'it's' followed him. Too funny.
• He is the master of taking his diaper off. He'll un-velcro one side and step out of it. When I tell him to come over to get a new diaper, he runs the other way. I've started putting his diaper on backwards to keep him from the act.
• He hides behind corners and slowly looks around them to see if you're looking. If he sees you, he'll run away laughing.
• He likes to crawl on top of me or Steve to wrestle.
  
• He signs more and all done. When we wants to nurse he's dropped the sign and instead just runs up to the chair we nurse in and starts banging on it and screaming.
• When I ask him if he wants to take a bath or nap, he walks to the stairs ad starts climbing them.
  
• He loves to dance and when he gets excited he stomps around like a Russian dancer....must be my Russian roots coming through!
• He'll kiss any inanimate object...a book, his plastic puppy, a stuffed animal...even his own shoe, but he has yet to give us a real kiss. Though he will touch his forehead to ours or push his nose into ours. That's his kiss for us.
  
• He crawls and climbs up anything he can. He climbs up the barricade that 'keeps' him away from the TV. Which talking about the TV, he likes to stand in front of it with his face pressed against the screen. I try to keep him away but he's drawn to it.
  
• He has learned that if he drops his puff container, all the puffs will explode out of it. This is a daily happening.
  
• He thinks that every car ride includes snacks. I can't go anywhere without him screaming or clapping his hands for a snack.
• He's VERY particular about his snacks and if you give him something he doesn't want, he'll chuck it and ask for another snack. He'll do this with any food. Last night he was enjoying some meatballs when all of a sudden he must have decided he'd had his fill, so he started throwing them on the floor.
• If you offer him something he doesn't want he'll slap your hand or the spoon away and food will go flying.
• When he's nursing, sometimes my let down isn't fast enough for him and he gets impatient, so he starts slapping or pinching my girls...which of course isn't pleasant for me so I place my hand on them to stop him. This of course only frustrates him more and he starts trying to pry my hand away and scream with my nipple in his mouth. It's quite amusing.
• If I sing or hum, he'll join in.
• He loves to bring us books to read, but he never lets us finish more than 2 pages before he grabs the book, walks away and sits down to flip through the pages himself. Within a minute or so, he brings the book back to us and the whole process starts over. Although if we read him either Peek-a-zoo or Barnyard Dance, he laughs and sits through the entire book.
  
• He loves dogs and whenever he sees one he points and makes a little squeal.
  
• As soon as Steve walks in the door, he runs over for a hug and then gets down and walks to the door to go outside. He knows Steve will play with him all day outside and he has papa trained!
• He is getting better, but still likes to draw water up his sippy straw, swallow a little and spit the rest back out. It's annoying. I've tried a normal sippy that he has to tip up, but he never remembers to tip it and so he gets mad and start sscreaming when nothing comes out.
• Every time I go in to get him from a nap or in the morning, all of his toys, and if used, his blanket has been thrown out of the crib.
  
• He loves the hose and runs to it as soon as we get outside. He'll just play with it in it's roller but he loves to hold it when watering the plants.
• He has started to push air out and into his nostrils really fast and then starts laughing.
• He can click his tongue and he thinks he's so cool when he does it.
• He plays patty-cake and when asked how big he is, he throws his hands way up in the air.
• He gives high 5's.
• He got his 7th tooth on Sunday. It's the tooth next to the front bottom right one.
  
• He loves the water whether it's his pool or a bath or the lake...but the waves totally freak him out and he starts screaming.
• He loves sand and dirt and will dig in it for hours.
  

I think that's about it for now. I'll try to post pictures, especially his b-day pics, this weekend.