Day out with Thomas & Friends

If you have a 2.5 year old boy, chances are he loves Thomas the train. Chase is no exception; we have about 4 different sets of train track and so many trains I can't keep track. We took Chase to meet Thomas the Train last fall for his birthday and he enjoyed it so much he has been asking to go back since. Trying to explain to a 2 year old that he had to wait 7 months to do so was not easy, but finally the big day arrived and Chase woke up ready to go. Not only was he itching to get out the door, he also kept telling Asher, "we are going to go and meet Thomas today, and Percy, and you will love it." Cuteness overload I tell you!

The first thing we did was take out train ride on Thomas, of course! Not only did Mom-Mom and Pop Berry join us for the day but Chase's friend Declan (and parents) came too. The boys got to experience the train ride together which made it even better. They were beyond excited but in such awe they were speechless. It was a beautiful day out so the windows on the train were open, guess which kid stuck his head out the window immediately and left it there for the entire ride? If you guess Chase you are wrong. If you guess Asher, you are correct, our little dare devil is he! He thought feeling the wind in his face was hysterical. After the actual train ride you get to go sit up front of Thomas and have your photo taken.

There is a whole day worth of stuff to at a Day out with Thomas. Percy now also comes to the Strasburg Railroad so we got to take a ride on him also. We got to meet Sir Topham Hat; Asher was mesmerized and Chase was not so sure. We played with train tables and motorized ride on Thomas toys. Of course there was a gift shop that we HAD to go in and each of the boys scored a souvenir. There were a couple of other trains that you could take a ride on which we wanted to do but by that time Chase could barely keep his eyes open as he was walking so we decided to end the day with everyone happy and zero tantrums being thrown.

Forward to the next morning. I go into Chase's room to say good morning once I've heard him stir:
ME: "Morning Chase!"
CHASE: "Let's go baaacccckkk!!!!" (as he jumps out of bed)
ME: "where?"
CHASE: "to Thomas!!!!!"

Giving your child a memorable day that they have been waiting for, for the past 7 months?? Mission completed!!!!!

Father's Day: Third Edition

A day to spoil James? We are all over that!

Our Father's day weekend got off to a bit of a rocky start but we salvaged it and had a blast. We had decided to head down to Lewes, De (James favorite local beach) for the weekend. We were supposed to leave Saturday, stay over and come home on Sunday. Well James got stuck at work longer than anticipated and we had to ditch the plan to go down on Saturday, and instead got up early on Sunday and headed right there.

We have found a new favorite beach; one that is quiet (no boardwalk), parking right on the beach, (no lugging all the beach gear for a half a mile), family friendly and barely any waves, aka perfect for our family with two little ones. We arrived at lunch time and stayed until just before 4pm. We dug holes, jumped waves, built hills for Chase's trucks, snacked on fruit, went swimming, it was a really great day enjoying each others company. Even though there was a nice breeze, it was a hot day and so we decided to grab some ice cream/ snow cones to cool us down and they were yummy.

Once we were all changed we decided to drive down to Fenwick and let the boys take a much needed nap after they played hard on the beach. James and I scouted out some future beach homes and took advantage of a quiet car and actually got to have conversation without being interrupted with crying, or 'mummy, mummy, daddy' every two seconds.

We had wanted to eat at Harpoon Hanna's but with it being Father's Day the placed was mobbed and we knew nobody would handle the way. We stumbled upon BJs on the Water in OC, MD and we really enjoyed the food and the atmosphere. We got to sit overlooking the bay, watch ducks swimming by and see the sun set. It was the perfect ending to a great day.

Even though we had some kinks in our plans the main goal was accomplished and that was to spoil James and have him relax for the day. He works so hard day in, day out for us, to make sure we have everything we could ever need, and then some, that he was deserving to have a day based around him.

Dedication

Today we dedicated our Asher James to the Lord. In front of our family, godparents and church we promised to raise Asher to know God and to believe in God's ways. We pray that Asher grows to have a kind heart that loves all, and treats everyone with respect. We pray he realizes how blessed he is and wants to serve and help others. Most of all we pray he loves and follows God, when things are good and especially when they are bad.

Back on the Island

This past weekend we headed up to Long Island, NY for a good friends baby shower. Though our time on the island was brief it was a great little get away the four of us.

We decided to leave on the Friday evening around the boys bedtime figuring they would sleep the entire time and we would just transfer them to the hotel room. Nope that didn't happen, both boys were wide awake and hyper as anything. Asher 'yelled' at us the first half of the ride so I hopped in the back with the boys and that seemed to help Asher out a little and eventually he fell asleep. Chase however was too excited going over so many bridges (that were lit up) and seeing the NYC sky line. I have to admit it was fun showing him all the sights along the way. We made it to the hotel around 10pm, both boys went down to sleep perfectly in the room, that was until 2:30am when Chase decided the pack n play was not the place he wanted to sleep. By 6am I had both boys snuggled up with me, sleep I did not get, but seeing the boys cuddled up next to each other was just the cutest thing ever.

Saturday was baby shower day for my friend Kim who is expecting her second child but first girl. I couldn't be more excite for her and can't wait to see her tiny bundle - and yes I will be living vicariously through her and buying all the girl clothes that Target stocks. I took Asher to the shower with me, I was a little hesitant because I wasn't sure how he would do with sitting around but he was amazing; completely pigged out on all the yummy NY food, didn't fuss and flirted with all of the women at the party. Chase stayed with James and the two of them went on adventure to watch the boats in the harbor - with Swedish fish in tow. They had a great time walking around, eating donuts and watching the ferry come into port and the cars unload. Chase called the ferry a transformer, I love how his mind works.

We had decided to only stay on the island for a night as we have so much else going on this summer but before we drove home we decided to grab some dinner and take the boys to the beach seeing we were right there. We ate at E.R. Singletons Seafood Shack on the beach and it was awesome, well you know as much as a non seafood eating girl can say that about a seafood restaurant lol. The best part was the restaurant was located on the beach so as soon we were done eating we headed down onto the sand. Chase takes after his mummy in that he loves the beach and seems so at home there. Immediately he was digging holes in the sand and had his boats in the water and declared he was going to sit in the water; fully clothed. Luckily neither I or James freak out about the boys getting messy, its part of being a child and having fun. Also, we carry spare clothes everywhere we go so it wasn't a big deal.

My brain was not operating at full capacity due to the lack of sleep so I completely forgot to take photos of the shower but I did manage to snap some photos of the boys at the beach and figured I would share a few.

Asher James: Eight Months

With each month that passes I think its not possible to love this little boy anymore, but then it happens and I love him even more so.

Let me tell ya, this kid is strong-willed, like full on knows what he wants and won't give in until he gets it, kind of strong-willed. It will serve him well in life as he grows but for now it means he 'yells' at me when his highchair tray is empty or he can't get to a toy he desperately wants. I will take it though because as much as he is strong-willed he is the biggest sweetheart around. There is nothing more he loves than to cuddle and has started nuzzling down into your neck when he wants a hug from you. I die every time he does it and squeeze him ever so tightly and think how lucky I am to have this little boy. He loves cuddling so much that he is still waking at 6am looking for my arms to snuggle into, so we cuddle under the blankets until he wakes around 8am to eat.

With the weather having been beautiful this past month we have spent every waking moment outside and Asher is perfectly fine with that. When he sees us heading out to the garage he starts bouncing around in excitement. We have used the water table and the pool a bunch already and he loves to splash around in both. We have also been making the most of the swingset out back.

As you can all tell this our Ashey loooooves his food. He has decided he only wants to eat table food now, that's fine by me, makes my life easier. This past month some of the new foods he has tried are; ribs, bbq chicken, ice cream and turkey burger.

How I love life with this cute guy around. He is so laid back and he is completely and utterly amazed by his big brother and I am so thankful I get to spend my days raising them to be the most kind hearted, selfless loving boys they can be.

Mothers Day 3rd Edition

While this year was my third Mothers Day, it was my first with Asher and two children. Two more children is twice the fun, twice the love and twice the reward. I've said it before and I know I'll say it again; there is nothing I love more than being a Mum. Sure, there are the hard days, especially with a newborn and a 2 year old who likes to throw around his new found attitude from time to time, but nothing worth having comes easy right? And the good days far out weigh the bad.

It seems heading to the beach is our Mothers Day tradition. There is nothing I love more than having my toes in the sand and being surrounded by my favorite people. This year we headed to Lewes, DE. It's a smaller beach, very family friendly and has zero waves which is perfect for Chase and his love of paddling in the water. We couldn't have asked for a better beach day, 80 degrees and very few clouds in the sky. We have been to a lake by our house a few times where there is a bit of sand, which Asher has played with, but this was his first time on an actual beach and dipping his little toes into the ocean. Just like big brother, Asher was a fan of the sand (he would have eaten the beach if we had let him) and the water. It was so relaxing to sit there and watch Chase run back and forth filling his bucket with water and pour it into other buckets and sand toys for Asher to splash in. Two brothers playing together ever so nicely..a moment I won't forget.

After the beach we drove around Lewes picking out beach houses while the boys took a little snooze. Once everyone was feeling refreshed we headed to Go Brit, the English fish and chip shop. This town was made for me, beach and English food all in one spot! The battered sausage and chips never disappoints. We ended the day walking around the marina watching the boats come in and out and let Chase run out the last of his energy before the drive home.

I am so fortunate to have these 2 little boys in my life. They are a gift I have been given and never take them for granted. There is so much to worry about when raising children; are they eating enough, did they get the right number of naps, should they know the alphabet by now, is it ok that they watched tv for more than an hour today and its very easy to forget what matters most when raising and teaching these little souls and that is to make sure they truly know how so very loved and special they are. 

Asher James: Seven Months

Our little A man, munchkin, lovebug, our Ashie is growing up far too fast but it's such a joy to see him developing new skills and his personality.

We don't have a doctors appointment this month so I'm not sure of his weight but I'm guessing he's around 22lbs by now. Height, he is looooong, very official I know lol. Now that the weather is changing I've pulled out Chase's old summer clothes and Asher is fitting in the 12 month size things, however another month or two and we will have to go and buy 18 month stuff. This kid is not going to be a slouch. When Chase steals a toy from Asher I always warn him that Asher will be bigger than him one day and will beat him up. Chase just laughs at me, well he got to witness what I have been telling him first hand the other day. The boys were sitting next to each other and Chase had a toy that Asher wanted to play with, so Asher decide to grab Chase's tshirt and try with all of his might to pull Chase other. Granted he didn't pull Chase over but Chase's tshirt was half way off of him. Since then Chase has been ever so nice to his 'little' brother.

With each of Asher's meals I have started giving him pieces of food so that he can practice eating that style of food vs. puree and so he can also perfect his pincher grip. So far he has had, bagel with cream cheese, puffs, blueberries, and mixed veggies. I'm really going to push this harder over the next month. Chase was on whole pieces of food only by 9 months and I would love for Asher to do the same.

Asher has been sitting for a few months now but one of the new things he has been trying to do is the sit n scoot. If he is on his play mat or in the tub he can get movement because they are slicker surfaces. In general he is trying to move so badly but just isn't quite there. When he is on his tummy his arms and legs are going so fast but stays in one spot. If I help him up onto all fours he cant stay in that position so I'm really hoping he can figure out crawling within the next month as he will be less frustrated. He wants to keep up with his big brother in the worst way. Asher has also gotten down onto his tummy from sitting a few times now to get to a toy he wants.

We have spent so much time outside this past month which has been great. As soon as we step foot outside Asher starts to babble and bounces around in my arms with excitement. He has gotten to feel grass and sand. Chase's swingset is up in our yard so Asher got to try out his infant swing and it's a hit. Asher has also gotten to see sheep, cows, monkeys and other animals at the farm and zoo.

One of my favorite moments with Asher is in the evening post bath time. He is so happy on his changing table and loves doing 'nosey-nosey' and me blowing raspberries on his tummy as I'm getting him dressed. His new game to play is as I'm putting a shirt over his head, he rips it away and laughs at me, we do this numerous times until he is giggling so hard he is crying tears.

Each day I spend with our lovebug is a blessing. I love that I wake up to his face next to mine every morning.  He really is such a happy baby and I'm so excited to see what new things he does this next month.