39 Weeks: Deck the Halls!

Dear Asher,

You are really starting to cruise now! You love to be on the ground crawling and it is getting tougher and tougher to keep up with you! You definitely blaze your own path in the family room, making everything in your way a potential toy or teething item. Your latest fascination is the dog food dishes. We are trying to find a new place for those things quickly! You'll crawl over to them and I'll pick you up and move you to the other side of the room and you'll quickly crawl back over to the dishes- it's pretty cute.

This week your daddy took Friday off from work and we had a special Christmas weekend! First thing on Friday morning we got up and took you to University Village to see Santa Claus. It was a very cold morning, but thankfully we were first in line and didn't have to wait long to meet him. You weren't too thrilled with having to sit in his lap, but considering you had never seen him before you didn't get too upset. There were a few tears, but they were quickly gone once we picked you up from his lap. Then we came home, you had a nap and after you woke up we took you to the pool for some swimming. You love the water and can't get enough of it! On Saturday Daddy put up the Christmas lights on the house and then we went to Garden D'Lights at the Bellevue Botanical Gardens. That was so much fun. We took Grandpa Don and Grandma Mary. You loved looking at the lights. It was a great way to get in the holiday spirit! Christmas is even more fun when we see it through your eyes!

Garden D'Lights

Garden D'Lights

Shocked Santa and Upset Baby

Who is this big bearded fellow?

Get me off of this guy!

Crawling for the dog food

38 Weeks: Crawling in a Winter Wonderland

Dear Asher,

You are the funniest person in our lives. It's amazing that a baby who doesn't have words yet can be so comedic with just facial expressions, sounds, and gestures. It's true though, you crack us up everyday and sometimes you think we're pretty funny too. Maybe you're just laughing at us though and not with us?

We are in the full on Christmas season around here- lots of Christmas music, Christmas smells and sights. You seem to love it all, especially the Christmas music. You have started to dance, which cracks us up. First you start hitting your hip with your hand and then you start swinging your arms around. Adorable to see. Although strangely the music you have most responded to with dancing was a hip-hop parody video from the Funny or Die website that one of my friend's sent me to watch. This sort of disturbed mommy.

You are also getting better and better at crawling, which is so fun to see. You crawled over to the dog food in record time this morning and tipped the bowl over. It used to be we could put you on the rug and walk away for a minute and you wouldn't get far, but those days are over!

This past week we did a lot of Christmas decorating and have been going on morning walks in the cold, cold weather. You seem to enjoy them. We love you so much, Asher!

Looking cute and bundled up on a morning walk.

You poor kid, your mommy is posting a video of you "doing your business!"

 Spending time with your friend Lila Rose

Resource Recs: "I Can Teach My Child"

I found this great blog "I Can Teach My Child" via Pinterest and wanted to share it with my other mommy friends/grandparents. It's a great website with learning activities for all ages. It's tough to find good activities for babies and this blog makes an effort to do so and definitely succeeds!

37 Weeks: Thanksgiving

Dear Asher,

You had a wonderful first Thanksgiving! We hosted it at our new house and had a great group of family- Grandma Jane, Grandpa Jerry, Uncle Patrick, Uncle John, Aunt Alyssa, yours cousins Gavin and Kyler, your Great Aunt Kathy, and cousin Heidi all came over to celebrate. You seem to really enjoy having a full house, but when you are done, you are done!

Unfortunately since Daddy and I were busy hosting the dinner we didn't get any pictures. I do have a cute video of you from the day before Thanksgiving. I was reading you one of your favorite books by Sandra Boynton and you started cracking up. You seem to really like her books. When Daddy got home from work I read it to you again and you laughed even harder.

It was really fun having Daddy home for a four day weekend. On Friday we put the Christmas tree up and decorated it. On Saturday we went out to dinner with Peter and Maria. They are about to have their first baby and we can't wait to meet him/her!

Oops!

With Peter and Maria

O' Christmas Tree

36 Weeks: Everything is fun with you!

Dear Ashbee,

Everything is fun with you! You are so interested in the world around you. Watching you react to new things and new people brings us so much joy. You are so mobile now- I can see how this development is going to make for two tired parents quickly! You want to be on the ground crawling and playing all of the time and you want mommy to be there with you all of the time!

This week was pretty low key. You made a new friend at the gym. She was born five days before you were, she cries at day care the entire time just like you, she has the same pacifier as you, and she even goes to the same pediatrician that you do. We couldn't believe all of the things you two have in common. When you first met her she could wave hello and you couldn't quite do it yet. Within two days of meeting her you were waving at everything- I think you wanted to keep up with her and so you quickly figured out how to wave! I'll have to get some video footage of you doing it. You like to wave at your stuffed bear first thing when you wake up from a nap. It's so cute!

This week while you were taking a bath you started trying to crawl around the bath and kept trying to lay down in it. I went to take your picture and you started to lay down and went under water. I went into Mama Bear mode and threw my phone on the floor and grabbed you and flipped you over on your tummy and started hitting your back to get you to cough up the water. You proceed to do so and then started crying so hard, it just broke my heart. I held you for a few minutes and then when you calmed down I forced myself to put you back in the bathtub, because I didn't want you to be scared of it. I was so nervous as to how you'd react, but once you were back in you were so happy to be there. You are quite a resilient little guy and I'm so proud of you!

Wondering why I'm making you wear this silly hood!

Visiting your Auntie Sue

Lounging in the bathtub, just seconds before "the bath incident"

Your new friend patting you on the head

Family Trip Time: More Pictures of Washington, D.C. / Virginia Trip

I'm such a bad blogger and have more pictures to update from our Washington, D.C. / Virginia trip-

First time touching the sand 

You loved squealing at the waves

With mommy at Virginia Beach, Virginia

More squealing at the waves!

McCaslins at the beach

Daddy putting your feet in the ocean

You loved the water touching your feet!

So excited to be in the ocean!

35 Weeks: More Crawling and Growing!

Dear Asher,

You are getting so unbelievably big! Some days we just look at you playing on the floor and just shake our heads. We can't believe how almost overnight you have grown into such a big baby and are almost toddler size! You have been wearing 12 month footie pajamas since you were seven months old and I think you will have fully outgrown them in the next two months.

It's amazing to us how much you are changing everyday, especially since you started crawling. You have more personality than your daddy and I combined! You are definitely a bundle of energy and ALL BOY. You are strong and always trying to grab stuff that's in your path. You love your puppies Bella and Lucy and when we ask you where Bella is you look around the room until you find her. They are very patient with you considering your idea of petting them is grabbing their ears and pulling them towards you. We are working on teaching you gentle. We've been trying to practice that since we would hold you little hands and practice petting them. Let's just say we have a long ways to go! 

This past week was a quiet fall week. Daddy was out of town for part of the week and then he came home to a sick Mommy. You and Daddy took great care of me and had a lot of fun while I slept and got better. You went to Costco and happened to meet Jeopardy champion Ken Jennings. He tried to guess your age. Unfortunately Daddy didn't get a picture, but you two did bring back and signed copy of one of his books.

We love you so much sweetheart. You are such a joy to us!

 Your Favorite Time of Day!

Pacifier Hoarding During Nap Time

Ken Jennings Autographed Book

34 Weeks: Crawling!

Dear Asher,

You are continue to amaze us daily. We can't believe how much you grow and learn and change every single day. You are the joy of our little family and your grandparents, great grandparents, uncles, aunts, and cousins love you so much. We haven't had a baby in our family for years and it's so fun to watch everyone enjoy being around you.

This past week you really started to get crawling down. It's been amazing to watch you practice and work so hard at it. While we were in Washington, D.C. you would try so hard to scoot yourself around the bed when we'd sit there with you and your toys. We didn't put you on the ground in the hotels, because the floors are yucky, but we knew that once you got back home you'd be all over the place. Sure enough you are all over the place. I had my first "whoa, crawling will be a new game" moment the other day when you crawled over to a draw and proceed to open and close the drawer. I was simultaneously so proud of you and scared for me! How will I keep up with you? I have no clue, but I know it will be so much fun. It's been a blast to put toys out a few feet in front of you and watch you work your way over to them so quickly. You seem extra motivated by things you shouldn't play with, especially the puppies Bella and Lucy.

You have been talking and singing up a storm. You say Da da da da da all of the time and hearing you sing is the most adorable thing in the world. I try to record it, but usually end up missing it.

We love you so much, Ashbee. You are the biggest blessing that has ever happened to us!

You and Daddy wearing your Arsenal Uniforms

With Daddy at Daddy's Work Halloween Costume Contest 

The cutest puppy in the world!

Wearing your bear hat!

Video of you "singing" after you ate

White House and Medals Gala Pictures

Pictures from Grandpa's Medal Ceremony at the White House and The Medals Foundation Gala:

White House Program

The President Welcomes Us

 

My Dad and President Obama Hanging Out

The President Sharing a Joke About His Third Grade Science Fair Project

  

The President Addressing the Guests

 

Me with a Personal Hero- John Adams

My Brother Patrick, My Dad, and Me

  

First Lady Jackie Kennedy in the Ladies Room

Asher in his tuxedo bib wearing the Medal of Technology and Innovation

 

Me telling Jeremy to shhhhh after we put the baby to sleep

Getting ready to hit up the gala

My dad's display at the gala

The Newlyweds- My Brother Greg and new Sister in Law Sue

My Brother Patrick and Beautiful Sister Wendy

Sister Wendy with Dad

 Grandparents with Asher

Jeremy and me at the awards dinner

Patrick and Wendy looking gorgeous

Asher wants Grandpa's Medal

The Whole Family, of course my dad and I are distracted!

Thirty Two/Thirty Three Weeks: Family Trip Time!

Dear Asher,

This post will cover two weeks, because we were gone for large parts of both thirty two and thirty three weeks. What an incredible time we had in Washington, D.C. and Virginia. The trip was very last minute as we found out in late September that your Grandpa Don would be receiving the National Medal of Technology and Innovation from President Obama. Grandpa Don and Grandma Mary wanted everyone to come to Washington, D.C. for the event and so the entire Bateman family flew out together. It was so much fun to all be in the same place together and we even got to stay on the same floor of the hotel. Your grandparents are so incredibly generous and they treated us and your aunts and uncles to a stay at the Ritz-Cartlon hotel. What a hotel it was! You seemed to really enjoy being in the city with all of the sights and sounds. You especially loved having your Auntie Wendy staying just across the hall. She would come and play with you before bedtime and you loved laughing and smiling at her. On Friday, October 21st your mommy went to the White House with Grandma Mary, Auntie Wendy, Uncle Patrick, and Uncle Greg, while daddy baby-sat you. Then later that evening there was a big exciting gala that Mommy and Daddy got dressed up and attended. You were baby-sat by David Ziegler (your grandparents' "adopted" son and Uncle Patrick's "brother from another mother."). By baby-sat I mean he sat in Uncle Patrick's room and watched you sleep on the video monitor and texted us to let us know you were okay. The gala was at the Ritz-Carlton so it definitely made it easier for us to leave you with a baby-sitter. Once the events on Friday were over we had the rest of the trip to enjoy time together as a family. What fun you had! On Saturday evening we all took Grandpa Don and Grandma Mary out to a nice dinner at a restaurant in Georgetown and you did wonderfully there. You sat at the head of the table and played with your toys and enjoyed watching everyone eat and talk. You did so many firsts on this trip- we are so proud of you! You had your first taxi ride, your first cross country plane ride, your first fancy meal out, your first tour of a big city, and most incredible of all- your first trip to the ocean. All throughout the trip you made so many friends along the way. You loved all of the new faces. Some of the sights you saw include:

• The Washington Monument
• The Lincoln Memorial
• The Jefferson Memorial
• The Martin Luther King Memorial
• The Vietnam War Memorial
• The World War II Memorial
• The Capitol Building
• The White House
• The Washington Mall
• The Museum of American History at The Smithsonian
• Arlington National Cemetery
• Jamestown
• Colonial Williamsburg
• Virginia Beach
• Cracker Barrel Restaurant

Traveling with you was so much fun. Everything we saw was all the more exciting, because you were seeing it with us. You were so great at adapting to the craziness of travel and to the new time zone we were in. You slept great in your hotel room cribs and were the best baby on the airplane trips. You got a lot of kind compliments from strangers on how well behaved you were. You thanked them with lots of smiles and you even let some of the Southern ladies in Virginia kiss you on your head.

We have a lot of pictures from this trip to share!

Playing on the airplane

 

Eating on a tour bus

Looking out the tour bus

Washington Mounument

 The Lincoln Memorial with Daddy

 

With Mommy at The Lincoln Memorial

He saved the Union

With Daddy in front of a hero

The McCaslins with Lincoln

The new Martin Luther King Memorial