Happy Thanksgiving

When asked this year what a turkey says, Asher has creatively answered:

GOCKEY GOCKEY!

We believe this is a combination of "turkey" & "gobble!"

Asher, Musician: Age 2.5

He's a boy of many talents.

Musical talents, that is.

Here he is rocking the harmonica.

For his 2nd Christmas, he received a drum set from my parents. He played with it for 2 hours straight that night! Since that time it has had lots of use. Many people think this is a terrible gift, but actually it's very helpful. Having a 3 story house, I often know where to find him. I just have to listen!

He has since dismantled his high hat cymbals, and walks around the house, with a finger through each hole in the middle, using them as crash cymbals like a marching band. What can I say? He was born with it!

On a recent trip to Chicago, Aunt Ash picked him up his first set of bongos. I sometimes have to remind him that no sticks are allowed on the bongo drums, only fingers, but he adores them! One day he walked up to me holding his bongo drums, kissed each drum head & said, "I love bongos."

And just last night, he saw a large paper clip sitting on the desktop when we went to the YMCA to swim. He looked at me and said, "I want the trombone, Mama!"

This kid never ceases to amaze me!

Eiffel Tower...in Iowa.

The other day Asher & I were driving over to our friends' house, but we took a different route than usual. Up ahead, a large radio tower stood with many blinking lights and some satellite dishes attached.

From the backseat I hear from Asher, "It's the Eippel Tower!"

Guest Blog: We're going to the zoo...zoo...zoo...

This is Aunt Ash…I was asked to guest blog, since I got the privilege of going to the zoo with Asher. I am a teacher so I have the summers off. HOORAY!

I told Julaine, Asher’s babysitter, if she ever wanted to go on an outing I would go with her since two 2-year olds out in public is a bit of a handful. So today we went to the zoo for “Z Week”...Julaine, Bryce, Asher and Aunt Ash.

The excitement began as soon as we hit the parking lot. There were school buses and tractors that were working! We missed the train when we first arrived so we headed to the elephants, with Asher making elephant noises. He checked them out, but was pretty quiet. We then heard the whistle of the train and so we headed back to catch it. Asher was very excited as we boarded. He stomped his feet then bent over to drum on the floor. As the train started he squealed and made choo-choo noises. He looked at me and said, “It’s noisy.” He saw the elephants, the dinosaurs and the pond. He waved to the pond and said, “Bye water!” He also asked me if I heard the bell, while he continued to choo-choo. We passed the giraffes and I tried to point them out...he didn’t see them, but Bryce yelled “Giraffes!” Then Asher saw them saying, “Happy Birthday, giraffes!” Not really sure why! We ended the train ride going through the tunnel. We then set off on foot to see all the animals. We had to stop every time the train went by so we could wave. He also wanted to stand on the tracks. We had to explain that it was not a safe choice and we could only cross the tracks. He also wanted to ride every “tractor” we passed. They were John Deere Gators for the zoo staff. When we went over to the pond he was ready to get of the stroller because he wanted to jump in! He settled for feeding the fish and ducks with a few screams and giggles.

At the petting zoo part he was let out to pet the goat. He wanted to put his hand in the goat's mouth…again not sure why. He also wanted to climb the fence. Oh little monkey. The boys also sat on a cement hippopotamus for a photo op. Asher said, “It’s like a hippo Thomas. It’s like a motorcycle.” Asher wanted to swing on the monkey’s swing and share his juice with the zebras.

Both boys spotted every basketball there was in the zoo. “Do you see the camel?” I asked pointing to the huge camel standing in front of us. Asher says, “I see a basketball.” It was behind the camel. They found one in the bear’s cage and the panther’s cage. As we looked at the sleeping lions Asher began snoring. Since it was lunchtime and he began to get grouchy, we headed out stopping at McDonald’s for lunch. As we are sitting eating our lunch Asher was being squirmy, because there were no highchairs, so we sat in a both. He told the people behind us, “Hello ladies” and then proceeded to play peek- a -boo and flirt. He pointed to the nugget box saying, “It’s purple.” I said, “My favorite!” So he kissed it. Then he was studying the cup and pointed to Ronald saying, “He’s a super guy!” and kissed that! I don’t know where he comes up with these things. I told him it was Ronald McDonald. So he began singing Old MacDonald Had a Farm. He stared getting in the zone. He actually began to fake snore again and laid down saying he was going to bed asking for his blanket. Julaine was stunned since that never happens! We headed home from our fun filled day with 2 sleepy kids in the backseat. So happy that I got to go. Thanks, Julaine!

Asher Meets an Ant

The other night we were grilling out at our dear friends' house. We were enjoying beautiful weather and each other's company on a gorgeous spring evening. Asher was highly entertained by Erin & Justin's two dogs, Tuffy, a Jack Russel Terrier, and Diesel, a Dogo. He tried out the hammock in the back yard, tried climbing the fence, and wanted to scale the chicken wire to get into their garden. During one of his more quiet, reflective moments, he was on the stairs of their deck and noticed an ant crawling along. I could see his little brow furrow as he studied this busy little bug making it's way across the wood.

"What is it?" I asked Asher.

"It's like a TURTLE...." Asher told me! "It's going in the bucket," he noted as the ant crawled into a planter.

Although a turtle is far different from an ant, I LOVED that he tried to figure out what this new creature was and to put a name to it!

Swinging

Oh, to be so carefree.

To let your head hang back, eyes closed...trusting, believing, not worrying.

To let the air carry you, to let your spirits fly.

Oh, to be young again.

First Trip the ER

Chicks dig a guy with scars, right?

Well...Asher is certainly on his way to being a ladies' man...

We made our first trip the ER about 2 weeks ago. We had finished dinner & I had just changed Asher's diaper. We were planning on taking a walk to meet Aunt Ash & some playtime at the park before bedtime. I stood Asher up, and ever-on-the-move he went running away...only he tripped on my tennis shoe...and fell face-first, right into the train table.

Of course, someone invented this train table to have lovely, rounded edges...however, when hurtling toward it with your face, as only a two year old can do...it does tend to "leave it's mark." At first I thought it was just crying & drama....but then I saw this:


This is about two hours post-injury. At the time it happened, it immediately swelled up & it was difficult to tell how close to his eye the cut was. So we rushed off to the hospital...our first ever trip the ER with baby.

Asher was at least amused through his crying at the "ambeebooblance" that was parked just outside of the emergency room doors. They took us into a triage room and asked questions, took his vitals, etc. Then they put us on the "fast track." Needless to say, it wasn't very "fast."

After trying to contain our little bruiser in another waiting room and then a private room for over an hour, he was tired of it all. A nurse came in at one point to put on some numbing gel, and that was a horrible experience trying to hold him down. Talk about traumatizing for all of us! At one point a nurse did bring in a popsicle, which he devoured. At about that time, we could tell he was fine, and we wanted to just leave, but we didn't want to cast undue suspcion upon ourselves if we asked to just leave. So...we waited...Asher the least patiently, but daddy & myself almost just as much. Once the nurse practitioner came in, we were all ready to go...knowing full well that he'd recover just fine. She offered to put a stitch in it or glue it, but with all the trauma of the evening, we didn't think holding him down for that was a good idea. Then she said, "Well you know him best...is he always like this? Crying?" I was livid. We had tried to contain our injured son in a small room for almost an hour in a half with no toys but a truck we grabbed from home. You offered us a popsicle almost an hour into our "visit." He didn't want to be there...he wanted to be at the park...and oh, by the way....HE'S TWO! Is he ALWAYS like this?! *SIGH*

So...once we knew he would recover, albeit possibly with a scar, we quickly left...and headed home. No signs of concussion, one pretty worn out little guy, and a bit of his favorite "cuckoo bird movie" & he was ready for bed.

Of course, his injury was not complete without completing the "trifecta." He already had one scratch on his noggin from running in the backyard with his sand bucket, and a fall at daycare the day after the trip to the ER completed the 3 facial lacerations. This was about 36 hours after the injury.

See....he's still smiling? He's SUCH a boy!

Boys!

My 2 best boys!

Birthparents: 2 year old interpretation

I love that Asher's birthparents have a regular place in our lives, in our homes, in our vocabulary.

Asher's birthdad, A, has a very distinct winter hat that he wears. It has the long tassles that hang down in front, and framing the face is a big furry "mane!" The last few times Asher has seen A, he was wearing his fuzzy, hat.

Last Saturday morning at Stroller Strides, the kids & moms were pretty bundled up, as it was not quite a warm, spring day. One of the little girls sat bundled in her stroller behind me and wearing a puffy brown coat. As I buckled Asher into his stroller he announced, "A....A!" I said to him, "No, A isn't here, sweetie..." as I continued to situate him for class. When I turned around and saw the little girl snuggled under a blanket with just her head visible I had to laugh. Around the hood of her coat was a big, furry "mane," which looked just like Asher's birthdad's very distinct hat!

Oftentimes in the evening as we wind Asher down for bed, part of the pajamas routine is playing with the Magna-Doodle. He enjoys when we draw shapes for him to identify (diamond, rectangle, star, and even octagon!)but he especially loves when we write a word letter by letter so that he can spell them out. We often do Asher, Mommy, Daddy, taxi, and happy. Tonight I spelled out A & K's names letter by letter on the Magna-Doodle. I did A, and said, "A is your birthdad." Asher repeated, "A is birthdad." Then I did K and told him, "K is your birthmom." And again Asher repeated. Then I did Asher's name...and he responded, "Birth Asher." He certainly doesn't miss much, does he?

Ducks, Bears & Flowers...oh my!

Spring has sprung!

The rain is here, the flowers are blooming, and there are lots of "birdies" outside to listen to!

Asher & his Grandma get to share about a 5 minute drive to the babysitter's each day. They talk about all the different things they see, from John Deere tractors, to school buses & city buses, as well as dump trucks, big trucks, and chip trucks. He even tells me about yogurt trucks, but I have yet to see one of those for myself!
They love to listen to the birdies on their walk from our house to the car....

One of Asher's favorite books to read (and one of my favorite's to read to him!) is Brown Bear, Brown Bear. It was one of the gifts that I received in the very perfect "book shower" that my best friend ERin hosted for me when we brought Asher home. Shocking as it is, I had never read this book prior to being a mommy. However, now I can probably recite it back to front without error! When we drive in the car together, I sometimes say to Asher, "Brown bear, brown bear, what do YOU see?" And now, my boy replies, "I see a yellow duck....looking at me!"

So, why should I have been surprised, when at the park the other day, a robin was jumping across the grass and Asher, chasing after it began calling to it "Here ducky...come here ducky!"

At the park

Yesterday was a gorgeous spring day. After work, Asher, Jake & I met K & her cousin at the park. The playground was flooded with children, and Asher was wanting to make a break for the lagoon, but we got him interested in climbing & sliding and "driving" and he was a happy kid.

Once down the slide he looked at me and said, "Mommy....hear it?" He cupped his little hand to his ear. "Listen!" he said so seriously. I did listen....to the squeaky metal swings making funny groaning noises.

"Hear it, Mommy? Elephants!" he proclaimed!

I can't keep the smile off my face.

The Velveeta Box

I got one of the best presents ever last night.

From my best sister. Well, she's my only sister. But I bet if I had more than one, she'd still be the best.

This is what was wrapped up, under the tree, just for me!

You're probably wondering why a loaf of processed "cheese" product is one of the best Christmas presents ever. Actually, there wasn't even a loaf of Velveeta IN the box, so perhaps some of you would think I got stiffed. But no.

Our family, especially dad, is big into recycling. Here in Iowa, beverage cans and bottles are recyclable, and each comes with a 5 cent refund if you turn them in. For people like my dad, he just cannot contain himself. He doesn't see cans on the side of the road, he sees nickles! When I was about 8 or 9 years old, they began construction on new houses just behind our house, and so every night we'd take a walk with a bag and pick up the nickel cans and turn them in for cash. We took our first trip to Disney World on the funds we raised from picking up pop bottles & cans!

Sometimes it would get embarassing. As in, when my dad would actually pull the car over & make Jake, who was "new" to the family, jump out and pick up a bottle laying on the side of the road. But seriously, my dad just cannot pass that sort of thing up. He used to ride his bike and pick up more, and my mom takes a bag when she jogs or walks the dog. But, it's mostly just become a way of life. Those cans and bottles look like nickels now, and knowing that they add up quickly, it's easy to just reach down & pick it up.

In high school, my dad made donations to Show Choir kids' funds, so that they could be a part of the program and take the trips, too, and he's also funded numerous trips to the National Catholic Youth Conference as well. This past summer, some of the money went to my mom & sister making a pilgrimage to Medjugorjie. He puts a lot of work into his "labor of love" and I'm sure if he ever retires, he'll become a full-time recycler.

When the cans and bottles get turned in, the store gives you cash. That money usually goes toward whatever the next trip or project is at my parents' house, and for whatever reason, it's stored in a Velveeta box.

So this year, when I opened up my very own Velveeta box, I was touched. Inside there was no processed cheese product, but a starter kitty from my dear sister.

And I know JUST what we're going to save our pennies and nickels for....a new baby brother or sister for Asher! Thanks, Sissy!

Notice anything strange here?

If you answered, there's a large pink pig in the middle of the nativity, you would be incorrect.

The correct answer is: the drummer boy is missing.

Good Little Catholic Boy

Since Asher was just two weeks old, we began taking him to Mass. Often people comment on his good behavior when we attend weddings at different churches, but he's used to being a good boy in church, so we nod and say "mmmm hmmm!" as if to say "of course!"

At 22 months now, he will say "Father, Son, AMEN!" and do the sign of the cross. One of these days, I'm sure he'll recognize the importance of the Holy Spirit, too...for instance, whom I credit to him running headlong into tables only 1 out of 10 times. If only he wouldn't "feel the spirit" to do the sign of the cross when his fingers are covered in applesauce or yogurt!

He enjoys holding hands and praying before we eat, and he participates in the sign of peace during Mass by saying "Peace, mommy," "Peace, daddy," "Peace, grandma..."

There is a picture collage of our church in our office, made up of hundreds of smaller photos of the parishioners who are in the last church photo directory. Oftentimes adults will come into our office and not be able to recognize what the picture is of, or they are very intrigued by how the photo collage was made. One day Asher was in the office and looking at the picture, he pointed out to my colleague, "Church!" She was stunned that he could recognize our beautiful church!

When the priest was walking up the aisle one day on his way to the back of the church to begin Mass, I asked Asher "Who is that?" and he replied, "Father!"

He also recently began participating in the children's offertory of Time, Talent & Treasure as his gift to God. We will out his envelope weekly with "good deeds" such as "Helped pick up my toys" or "Was a good listener for Nana & Pop." He gets let out of the pew to approach the priest when he invites the children up to the altar, but I just can't get over it when every time he drops his envelope in the basket, he looks up at the priest, claps his hands & says "Yeah!" so proud of himself!

As we approach our church, Asher knows where we are, and he will say "Hi, Jesus!" And now that Christmas is approaching, he enjoys looking at and playing with our nativity scene. He especially loves the little drummer boy! He can point out Baby Jesus, and now identifies Mary & Joseph by name, too. However, since he can say Joseph, we tried to explain to him that his name is Asher Joseph Leo. Only problem is....now he identifies, "Jesus, Mary, and Joseph Leo!"

Hindsight.

Tonight I left my house around 5:30....with the mere intention of picking up a $5 Little Caesar's pizza.

I wish I had done more.

I picked up the pizza, and remembered we needed milk, so I stopped off at the Walgreens on the corner. As I was paying for the milk, a young woman came inside, visibly upset. Soon following her was a...loser....who was screaming at her. She mentioned loud enough for others to hear that the cops had been called. She was frightened, and was loudly telling him to get away from her and to leave her alone. Some patrons and employees sort of made a "circle" around the woman and after he yelled and cursed at her some more, he did leave the store...only bothering to say he was going to "kick in her window."

She asked if we, the folks standing near her, would come outside to be witnesses for her, so that when he did kick in her window, we could all say that we had seen him do it.

Dear God...

I walked outside and I stood at her side while this...loser...kicked at her window four times.

By now a crowd has gathered...she is nervous and shaking. Others begin to ask "What's going on? Did someone call the police?" I am sure her shame and embarassment are growing. I urge her to stay....I ask her if he has any weapons on him. Another woman asks if she has someone safe and that she trusts to talk to when she gets home. She says she just wants to get to her car...but it's in the middle of the parking lot.

The...loser...has since walked out of our sight, but she is still afraid to walk to her vehicle no more than 100 yards away.

A kind man offers to walk her there when he is done making his purchases. I tell her the police will be on their way. I stand there with her for minutes...talking and trying to help her stay calm and rational. I imagine that she just wants to get away at this point, because the police are not responding as quickly as she'd like and this has now "made a scene."

Soon the kind man is ready to walk her to her vehicle. And she walks away with him.

* * *

We just had a woman speak to our bible study group about her domestic violence shelter for women and children. I wrote her a $50 check for her cause.

And yet, out of all the things I could have said and done tonight, why didn't I just tell this woman "You're worth it"?

Team Stroller Strides: Marathon (Relay) Mamas!

Well....we survived!

Sorry to leave you all hanging with the results...it's been crazy around here...teething 20 month old, husband going to drill, working full time, yadda yadda...

So, here it is! The Stroller Strides Marathon Relay Mamas DID IT! Our 26.2 was done in 4 hours and 43 minutes. Not bad for a couple novices and a few who knew what they were doing!


This is Heather, Julaine & I of Team Stroller Strides. Heather had just finished 7.3 miles and it was about 8:20 AM. And, did I mention, she was running with a "Baby on board?"! Doesn't she look so gorgeous & perky for having just done that?! Julaine hopped all around, since she was the 5th leg, to cheer on not only our team, but her husband who did his first full marathon! My mom & sister created the signs (such as this) that they held to support us along the way! (By the way, that's my sister in the background on "Asher duty!")


Here I am...leg 4 of the relay...coming off the bridge. This course is so beautiful and this is one of 3 bridges that the marathoners run on (or off in this case!) This was the first time my "cheering squad" had seen me running! While on the island, I passed a man, probably in his upper 60's, whose shirt said "Completed a marathon in each of the 50 states, including D.C." I told him, "What an accomplishment!" and he thanked me...to which I pointed at my shirt that said "Rookie" & told him, "This is my first race!" He replied with, "Way to go!"


Here's me & my main man....I couldn't have done it without his help & encouragement. He got me through many of my training runs, and he got me through about 2 miles that day! Love you, baby...couldn't have done it without you!


As we were running out to make the final hand-off to my teammate, we saw Sara, my training rock, who was the one who invited and inspired me to join the relay team in the first place! She was amazing and she qualified for the Boston Marathon in this race! Isn't she beautiful?! GOOOOOO, Sara!



Here's our team, sprinting toward the finish line together....it was an awesome ending to a very exciting day!

And here are the happy Mamas post-race...flashing our smiles and our Team Stroller Strides t-shirts, which delightfully matched our medals!


Abbie, me, Susan, Heather & Julaine
Way to go, beautiful, fabulous Moms!
(Photos courtesy of the talented Abbie from Team SS and her husband Conrad, also a relay-er!)

Happy Almostiversary

Today I wished my husband a "Happy Almostiversary."

5 years ago today we would have been married. 9.25.04 was our original wedding date. But today we've been married for 5 years and almost 8 months.

We chose the 25th as our special day for somewhat sentimental reasons. As kids, we began dating on November 25, 1997, less than a week from when we first met each other. So, the 25th seemed like a perfect date for us. Furthermore, we chose September as I have always loved Fall and figured that an autumn themed wedding would be even more beautiful.

We were engaged shortly after 9.11 happened, but we had planned to wait until after I graduated in 2004 before we took the long walk down the aisle. Still, I searched and planned and prepared for one of the biggest days of our lives. What a dreamer I was! I found the perfect dress for me, a beautiful shade of aubergine (eggplant for those of you "regular" folks out there!) for the bridesmaids to pick out their own style, and wished for some gorgeous oranges and golds in the floral creations to compliment the purple hues already selected. The dresses were ordered in late fall 2003 and we expected it would take some time for their arrival.

And then a huge wrench was thrown in our "plans." I laugh to even say that now.

Jake was called up to be deployed to Afghanistan. He got the call on Friday, January 30th, just a few days after my final semester in college had begun. We had plans to go to a wrestling meet that night with friends, and I had forgotten a few things back at home, so called him in hopes that he could swing by my parents' house and pick them up for me. When I called him he told me he was already on his way...and I could just tell that something was wrong. Jake never just showed up without calling to let me know he was on his way. I knew something was up, and I just had a feeling it wasn't good. In fact, I think I knew what he was going to say before he even arrived and shut my ever-open RA dorm room door.

He made me come sit on his lap, and he held me tight while he delivered the blow that he was being deployed. All our "plans" were shattered! After we sobbed, we had to make a new plan...we made phone calls to our parents, siblings, the church, and finally to our friends. We met up at with a bunch of those friends at a bar that afternoon for what we called our "last supper" as we chided that we would not eat the rest of the week to fit into our dresses. The priest had given us some options and we agreed to be married in a week, on the 7th of February at 7 PM. After a blustery week of winter, and preparations amid doctors visits for Billy the Kid(ney), college classes, work, etc. we were married amongst our closest family and friends.

Now I have been married to my best friend for almost 6 years. And every day of that has been an adventure. Not always good, but never constantly awful, the years have brought us to our highest peaks and lowest valleys together...even when we were apart. This man who has brought me so much joy still makes my heart flutter. I tell him constantly how sad that it makes me that we only get just this one lifetime together. But it's my ever-present reminder to seize each day and love without abandon.

Happy almostiversary, baby.

Final Countdown

Well...the marathon relay is in less than a week. At this point I am thinking, "What was I thinking?!"

I was so naively agreeable to this when it was presented to me.

"Who wants to run the marathon relay?"
"Oh...me! Oh wait, I don't run. I probably don't even know how to start...Can I learn how to run 3.2 miles in 9 weeks?"
"Sure."
"OK!"

Seriously. What was I thinking?

Last week Jake & I ran 2.75 miles...before that my longest run was 2 miles. So, the natural progression was to go for 3, which I attempted on Saturday.

It was AWFUL. Let me repeat. AWFUL.

I've considered why it was such a horrible experience. Here are some of the reasons I've come up with:

~ I had just done my hour-long Stroller Strides workout prior.
~ I was alone...usually I run with a partner (a friend or Jake, the baby & the dog).
~ TMI: I had my period.
~ I had only ingested coffee and water that day.

OK...so I feel lke I have some pretty valid "excuses," but this time I don't want excuses. I want results. I want success. And that "run" was a colossal failure. It put me in a really bad mood, too, for much fo the rest of the day.

So...I need to move past that. And...run 3.2 miles on Sunday! I don't think I'm going to make any sort of great time...in fact, I've had nightmarish moments where I believe that the actual marathoners are going to scream things at me, such as "Get out of my marathon!" Let's just hope that doesn't happen!

I did it!

So, the Couch to 5K program is kind of changing my life.

When I started, I just began. On a whim I said "yes" to being on a marathon relay team, and I had to figure out how I could go from basically the couch to running on this team! Yeah...crazy, I know!

I began the first day with a 5 minute "warm-up" walk, and then alternated 60 seconds jogging to 90 second walking for 20 minutes. That was the most running I had done in probably 13 years!

And today, I just ran 2 miles. That's what it said to do today...a 5 minute "warm-up" walk, then "run 2 miles, or 20 minutes." Hmmm....well, apparently it was more like 12 minute miles...but I DID IT! I DID IT!

Marketing Genius?

I seriously saw this today and just had to share with all of you...

I was driving on a busy street and stopped at the intersection where a large grocery store sits. As I pull to a stop, I notice one of those motorized carts that folks can use inside the store...being driven by a large chicken. Well...not a chicken, per say, but a person in a chicken costume. Oddly enough, it was a well-made, non- freaky chicken costume, if I might say so myself. So, the chicken is driving the "hover-round" and waving at passing vehicles. Upon closer inspection, there are cooked rotisserie chickens just chillin in the basket of the hover-round, and on the basket is a sign for $3.99 rotisserie chickens.

Seriously. Marketing genius?!

I had to shake my head and laugh. I actually saw a woman, mid-turn who was talking on her cell phone, pause to wave at the hover-round rotisserie chicken. It was hilarious.

In other news, our fun tonight included wearing a collander on our heads with a very-pregnant friend. Guess whose idea it was to put a collander on our heads?