asher's new most favorite thing to say

asher spazes out sometimes. you can see it coming. he gets that crazy look in his eye and starts shaking with excitement. all of his energy just builds and builds and then he's just gotta get it out. i've been told he takes after a certain someone who also enjoyed partaking in spastic episodes. sometimes i look at him when he's shaking with so much excitement and just can't contain himself and i think, "i remember that feeling!" sometimes i still get that way. usually if there's a tiny, adorable, furry animal around that just neeeeeeds to be squeezed...or a sweet, new baby that's ripe for the cuddling...

anyway, bryan told me that this happened this morning while i was out yardsaleing.

*asher stands up on the couch beside bryan. he's looking a little spastic...

bryan: asher, you better not jump on the couch!
*asher slumps back down beside bryan and lets out a disappointed
asher: aaaaaaaawwwwwwwww...

nowadays, whenever asher gets in trouble or told not to do something his response is ALWAYS, "awwwww..." it's so dang cute it almost makes you want to retract your rebuke.

almost.

a day in the life

asher: i want some cooooooookies!
me: we don't have any cookies right now.
asher: coooookies, mama! cookies!
me: we don't have any, bud. how bout some graham crackers?
asher: nooooo! no want gwaham cwackers! how bout cookies?
me: ok, if you don't want graham crackers then you can't have anything because that's all we have right now.
*pause
asher: i want some gwaaaaaaaham cwaaaaaaaackers!!!

this conversation happens about 23489739756 times a day.

mamadaddy

bryan: family tickle!!!

me: yeahhhhh!

*we both tickle asher

asher: noooooo! stop it, mamadaddy! 

*laughs hyserically

asher does this thing where he tries to be really grumpy and pretend like something's not funny, but he also can't help himself from laughing hysterically. 

and i'm like, "whatever, dude. it's funny." 

and he's like, "i know, mom. i'm just trying to maintain my cool guy exterior." 

and i'm like, "what cool guy exterior? you're only two."

and he's like, "exactly." 

and i'm like, "what?"

ok, so none of that last part really happened. 

anyway, i was trying to write this post so that i could discuss how when bryan and i are together asher refers to us as "mamadaddy." we're one unit in his little, toddler head.

and i love it. because i mean, biblically speaking, we are one and all. even the little stinker is wise enough to observe that.

late night stinker

so after getting asher and nate to bed, (can i just say that it's tough having 2 little ones in the same room? i never know when one is going to wake the other. it forces me to be the lightest sleeper of any one who's ever slept. no, seriously. anyone. ever.) i came out and was trying to get some things tidied up before bed. it makes me feel better if things are picked up and neat before i go to bed because then i can wake up to a relatively clean house (the only time my house is relatively neat is when asher's asleep)...(have i overwhelmed you with too many parenthetical statements yet? what has it been so far? like 4038247? have i mentioned that i'm fond of number exaggeration?) ok, so where were we? oh yeah, so i come out of their room and as i'm cleaning up the kitchen i hear this:

bryan: asher? what are you doing awake, bud?
asher: i just come sit on couch wit you, daddy.
me: he's awake?!
bryan: yep.
*i come into the living room
asher: hey, mama. i jus need to see you for jus a minute.
me: it's time for bed, bud.
asher: i wanna watch word world.
me: no, we have to go back to bed.
asher: i needa play twucks.
me: nope. we can't play trucks right now.
asher: i wanna see you for jus onnnnnnne second.
me: ok, just one second...but then it's time for bed.

after i came back from putting asher to bed a second time, bryan smiled and said, "you know, one day we're going to miss stuff like this."

he's probably right. the stinker was looking pretty cute with his sleepy eyes and bed head and a little toy truck tucked up under each arm. did i mention he had a truck under each arm? that makes this whole transaction cuter, doesn't it? now go back a read it and imagine him having a truck under each arm...cuter, huh?

i'm sorry. i keep getting distracted from the point...which is:

my babies are growing up too fast already. the husb is right. i'm gonna miss these sweet times when all my stinker wants to do is spend time with his mamadaddy.

even if it's for just one second.

spring has sprung!

me: look, asher! there's a birdie in a nest in this tree!

asher: yeah.

me: do you see her in her nest?

asher: yeah, mama. dat birdie make a mess. 

my most favorite thing about spring is baby animals. i just love that we're going to have some tiny, baby birdies right outside of our door this spring! 

and some 'nother Jesus

me: did you make this cross today at church, asher?

asher: yeah, i make a cwoss.

me: what's on here? (he got to put different stickers on the cross)

asher: der's a camel and some twees and der's Jesus...and some 'nother Jesus. 

i think the nother Jesus is supposed to be a disciple, but he has a beard and brown hair too so i can see where it could get confusing. let me just clarify that the sticker of Jesus is Him in a white robe and shining in all His resurrected glory. it's not one of Him actually hanging on the cross. i'm not sure why there's trees and a camel. i guess because those are Bible things too? apparently the stinker got a little too rough with the camel because he's missing a leg. 

Later we were talking about what he learned in church...

me: did you learn about Jesus at church today?

asher: yep

me: and the cross?

asher: yes, and the cwoss.

me: and how Jesus died on the cross, but then God brought Him back to life so He's not dead anymore!

asher: yep. now he's not in bed anymore. 

it's fun talking about the Resurrection with a 2 year old. 

confession #8: i love harry potter...and Jesus

bryan and i really love harry potter. in fact, we spent a big chunk of our honeymoon reading harry potter out loud to each other. it was lovely. i know a lot of christians don't like harry potter because of the witchcraft and wizardry part, but most of the ones that i hear say that have never actually read a single page of the books so i can't help but not take their uneducated opinion very seriously. the main reason i like harry potter is not because it makes me want to be a witch when i grow up, but because the overarching theme of these books is the battle of good versus evil. when i think of harry potter my first thought isn't one of sorcery, but of sacrifice. so many good, noble characters risk their lives, their families, and everything they know to try to fight the good fight against the evil that is steadily taking over their world. in some of the books, it seems like all hope is lost. it looks like good doesn't stand a chance against the ever-present and ever-growing evil.  in the end, the characters' sacrifices are worth it because good kicks evil's booty in an epic last battle that brings tears to one's harry-potter-reading eyes.

good wins.

whether we realize it or not, i think this is the reason so many of us love good ol' HP. we long for good to kick some booty. we want to know that it's worth the fight. we want to believe that in the end our sacrifices to make things better meant something. we need to know that despite how things may seem and no matter how strong of a foothold evil seems to have, it will be defeated eventually.

i think the reason that some people have a problem with believing in God is because most of the time, it seems like evil has won in our world. if God is really good, if He is who He claims to be, then why do such bad, awful things still happen?

what those people need to understand is that we are still living in the midst of a beautiful, ongoing story where evil seems to be the victor, but PRAISE GOD that as the author of this story He has already let us know how it's really going to end.

He has assured us that our sacrifices do indeed mean something.
He has encouraged us to continue to fight the good fight.
He has promised us that Good wins.

because of the death and resurrection of JESUS CHRIST, we have absolutely nothing to fear when making these sacrifices while fighting this fight because CHRIST has conquered death once and for all. if we die while fighting for the good of CHRIST, then we gain life eternally and never really taste death at all. THANK OUR SAVIOR that because of His sacrifice the world and all it's evil has been conquered. PRAISE THE LORD that because of His beautiful resurrection, CHRIST will be returning to kick evil's booty one final epic time and every single sorrow and hardship and nasty evil thing will be vanquished and wiped away from this earth.

let us not forget that the battle is not over, even though the war was won when CHRIST died and rose again. let us not forget that we are still in the midst of our story and even when it seems like evil has won we will continue to sacrifice, we will continue to fight, we will continue to hope because we know in the end, because of our sweet SAVIOR and all that He is and all that He did and all the He does and all that He will do-

GOOD WINS.

quick update on the big boy pottying

i'll sit down this weekend and write a real blog about the entire potty experience, but until then here's a synopsis. potty training experience thus far:

scary
i was terrified to get started. i was really terrified to leave my stinker in plain undawears (that's right i said undawears) with no padding or absorbency whatsoever. then i was scared that i would have pee and maybe even poop on every surface of my house. so i bought some puppy pee pads and spread them out on the couch. it helped a lot. i highly recommend purchasing a big ol' pack of the pee pads. we call them "big boy sheets" so that he'll want to sit on them. despite my fears, i do not have pee or poop on every surface. most of the accidents have happened on the pee pads and i just scooped them up and tossed them in the trash. a few have happened in the carpet, but i just cleaned it up. i've washed his undawears a lot since yesterday morning. i'm glad i bought a ton of them. it has not been scary at all since we actually started.


frustrating
i feel like i've said, "let mommy know when you need to go peepee in the big boy potty" and, "peepee goes in the potty, not in big boy underwear" about 598q3749756428p8349750 times (so many times that i had to use lower case letters to describe it.) it's frustrating after saying it that many times and he still has accidents. he did not use the potty a single time yesterday. and then despite making him sit on the potty twice before bed, he peed in the bed a few minutes after i laid him down. frustrating. however, i keep reminding myself that this is tough for him too. he's having to make a whole new brain to body connection. he's never had to think about what it feels like to go pee before so why should he just know how to do it? that's why it's called training, i believe. i'm helping him train his little body to use the potty (it makes me feel better about it if i rhyme.) just so you know, no matter how frustrated i have gotten, i have not said a single negative thing to him this entire time. i haven't yelled or huffed or puffed or rolled my eyes. i've never said, "NO" or "BAD." i just keep gently reminding him that peepee goes in the potty. and i think that's helped both of us tremendously.

oh, and he peed in the potty THREE times with only two accidents this morning. that's a winning record so far, people.


fun
wait a minute. was that a typo?? no, it was not. part of this process requires you to be with your child every moment he's awake. it's been so much fun to get to play with asher and pay this much attention to him. we make up fun potty songs and do excited potty dances. he helps me check his undawears to make sure they're still dry and we jump and shout and waaaahooooooo when they are. i'm so, so stinkin' proud of my stinker for trying so hard to use the big boy potty. like i said, this is a whole new world for him and he is adjusting so well. it's fun to see him succeed. it's fun to see how happy he is when he makes it to the potty. it's fun to know i'm helping him. it's fun to see his little undaweared booty running around the house. it's fun to just be with him. even if he pees in my lap.

ok, so he hasn't peed in my lap yet, BUT he did pee on bryan because he forgot to hold his diddle down so his peepee would go in the potty. i think we've mastered the diddle down position now though.

in conclusion, potty training is not as bad as i thought it would be...so far. did i mention he hasn't pooped yet?

confession #7: i'm guilty too

earlier today i posted this facebook status:
"it bothers me when christians post youtube videos of socially awkward people singing and then make fun of them. don't get me wrong, i know they shouldn't have put ridiculous videos of themselves up for all the world to see, but how do you brutally make fun of those types of people on facebook and then go and minister to those same types of people in your life and church? it just seems a little twisted to me..."

it's an issue that has bothered me for a while now as i've been noticing that it's become quite a trend in facebook world even among my christian friends. i probably should've just kept my thoughts to myself. i now realize that this probably wasn't something to be discussed on facebook. i've been stewing over the issue all day since i posted it and i feel the need to apologize...

because i'm guilty too.

i think the same reason that people laugh at those videos is the same reason that people laugh at awkward people who fail miserably on those american idol try-outs because they can't sing but think they can. i need to confess that i have laughed plenty of times at those poor people. i have also been convicted of this because when i really think about why it feels so good to laugh at those people's expense i realize it's because i'm a sinner. i like to watch others fail because it makes me feel better about myself. i like to laugh at people who are weirder than me or uglier than me or more socially awkward than me because it makes me feel pretty dang good thinking that i'm not so bad after all. i have a filthy, self-absorbed sinner's heart and laughing at other's expense is just one way in which i let the whole world see it.

however, the Lord has been convicting me of these things and now when i see others on facebook or wherever making fun of these types of people, it hurts my heart. i get upset. i think, "what if that were my sweet asher? or my little buddy, nate? i would be heartbroken if i saw the awful comments people were making about them." and i think, "those poor people probably get made fun of every day by jerks like me. am i accurately representing Christ by teasing them??" like my mama always said: just 'cause every body else is doing it, don't mean it's right.

i know that it's the work of the Holy Spirit in my life that has transformed my heart and that is why i stand staunchly by these convictions. BUT just because He has changed my thoughts doesn't mean i have the right to press my convictions on others...and it certainly doesn't me that i am not guilty of very similar things in other areas of my life.

so, all that to say this: i apologize. i am guilty too.

playin' possum

me: ok, let's get that diaper changed and then you can watch your movie.

asher: nope.

me: yes. if you want to watch cars, then we need to change your poop first.

*he lays down on the couch, closes his eyes, and makes ridiculously exaggerated snoring noises.

asher: zzzzzzz (i don't know how to spell the aforementioned ridiculously exaggerated snoring noises)

me: asher, i know you're not sleeping. you still have to get your diaper changed.

*with his eyes still closed he says-

asher: nope. 

although he plays a pretty convincing possum, he still got his diaper changed. i didn't fall for it.