Rebecca and Ethan

Our friend Rebecca came over with her son, Ethan, on Thursday. We went for a walk with the kids and then came back to my place to eat lunch. It was nice to visit with her again and to meet little Ethan for the first time. There are a few more pictures (albeit quite similar to the ones below!) on Rebecca's blog.

Ethan and Judah...

Ethan and Asher...

Ethan was born 5 days after Asher, but Ethan was born at term (on his due date, in fact!), so we were curious to see how the two compared in size. As you can see in the pictures, Asher is about as chubby as Ethan, but not quite as tall. Asher definitely still looks younger and has not hit all the same milestones as Ethan, but that's because his corrected age is only four months. Nonetheless, it was neat to compare. Notice the colour difference? Asher is naturally darker-skinned, and Ethan is quite fair, so it was funny to see them beside eachother.

summer fun

June 25, 2007

on the playground

who, me?

getting chubby, you say?

are you calling me fat?!

i'm not sure how i feel about that...

my new addiction....

...digital scrapbooking with Photoshop Elements 5.0 (a new toy that Rob let me buy after several months of me asking him every time we saw it at Costco!) What do you think?

Making these layouts is so much fun! I love learning new techniques and experimenting with different layers and elements. I'm definitely still learning, though. I'm thinking of downloading a trial of Photoshop CS3, which is a much more advanced program, but am afraid I'll get hooked...and don't want to fork over the $500 (isn't that crazy?!?!) that the program costs.

My love for photography also continues to grow. We would love to buy a digital SLR one of these days. Alas, nice cameras cost big money, too...

recently...

Asher decided that he hates his carseat. He screams not only when we put him in it (which used to be the case), but when we are driving. Even if it's a 20 minute drive, Asher will scream the ENTIRE time. He will scream like the world is coming to an end. And it will sound like he might stop breathing. And it will sound like he is going to burst out of his skin. And it is SO stressful to listen to, especially if you are the driver.

I remember Judah going through this stage at around this age, so I'm hoping it's something he will outgrow...hopefully sooner than later. We are taking a family vacation in North Carolina this September, and will be driving. Somehow, 12 hours in a confined space with a screaming baby is not my idea of a good time...

Happy 6 Months, Asher!

it's happening again...

This little one is growing up just as fast as Judah did. Perhaps even faster...

Tomorrow (in just over an hour, in fact; he was born at 12:59 am...), Asher will be 6 months old. 6 months!! I can hardly believe that half a year has passed since his dramatic entrance into this world! He truly is a miracle baby, and we thank the Lord for Him (as well as for Judah, of course!) each and every day. Each day has lunged into another, though, and time has snuck up on me once again. I try to make myself cherish each moment with my children; the time we get to spend with them while they are young is so fleeting.

update on our family

Wow, it's been some time since our last update! There's nothing too thrilling going on around here...we've just been enjoying the warmer weather and feeling blessed to spend some quality time with our two beautiful children. I want to keep this blog up-to-date, but time on the computer is (a) hard to come by with two little ones (b) not nearly as desirable as chilling outside in the summertime.

Judah is so much fun at this age. He is a very sweet and intelligent little boy (I'm not biased at all)! He knows his alphabet, numbers, colours, and shapes. He is speaking quite well for his age, especially for a boy. He is even starting to use tenses appropriately! Moreover, he continues to be an awesome big brother to Asher and a great helper for mommy.

Asher is 5 1/2 months now! Isn't that unbelievable?! He is getting big, too...and we're talking chubby; you would never know that he was a skinny little premie! At his most recent appointment, he weighed 12 1/2 lbs. The pediatrician thinks that by six months, he will have caught up to the growth curve of an actual six-month-old. Obviously, he will be in a lower percentile, but it's still quite amazing that he's catching up so fast! He is also doing well developmentally. He is getting better at lifting his head when he's on his tummy, he rolled over for the first time a few weeks ago, and he laughed (a real laugh, instead of just a little giggle) last Sunday! He has also discovered his hands and has started to reach for and grab objects.

The boys are still getting along great. Asher absolutely adores his big brother. He watches Judah all the time, and smiles and giggles whenever Judah looks his way or talks to him. Judah seems to enjoy the attention, and brings Asher toys and books and tries to get Asher to play with him. Obviously, Asher's not quite at that stage yet. He does, however, try to converse with Judah by cooing. It is so fun to watch them together! I am excited to see how the boys' relationship develops over time; I really am thrilled that we had two boys so close in age.

I have planted a vegetable garden at my parents' house. I'm excited to experiment with it this year. It will definitely be a learning process, since I've never had a vegetable garden before. I am trying to keep it organic, so I may have to get creative to keep the pests away. We'll see how it goes!

That's all for now!

hi, mom!