Lessons Learned...

I walked into the living room today to see Asher trying to get some toys out from under the couch. He can't quite get his little arms to reach... so he grabs both corners (from underneath) and attempts to pick up the couch. Huh.
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Graham crackers don't fit in ears - or at least not full graham crackers.
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Stunts are every where. The newest... Asher can stand in the front bucket (which is not very large) on the front of his little tykes bike. Crashes happen - he just gets back up and does it again.

Okay, they are not lessons learned - they are lessons ... and than you just keep right on doing what you do best ... being a little boy. :)

All in a Matter of Minutes...

It was bath time at the Tuttle Household... The tp was invited... We took the diaper off and pee'd on the rug... And we finally made it into the bath...

The Face ...

of someone who doesn't like carrots...

The Question of the Day...

Where's the sippy cup?

On the Asher Front...

• Today Asher signaled me that he wanted "more" using sign-language - I was pretty excited about this new way of communicating.


• Asher is starting to follow directions. This is super fun to watch him put two and two together. A few things he is able to do when asked... find his blankie, 'sit' (when we are taking a bath), put objects over the gate (he does this on command and on his own;)), put a ball in his tower, put a car on the ramp, bring ____ to _____ , hands up (when pushing in his tray), etc...


• He is trying to jump and it is hilarious. He can't get off the ground but you can see that he believes he is getting some major air. Such a goof.


• He's learned the technique of pushing objects over to the couch so he can climb up easier and faster.


• Stairs are going to be an issues - as well as - anything that has wheels. If it moves, you can ride it.


• He's starting to do things that could be classified as 'naughty'... as a matter of fact, they are naughty and yet we find ourselves unable to stop laughing. Not good. We are doing our best to stop behaviors before they start but when you have that smile and giggle to follow - not easy. So, last night when he was giving us the 'good 'ole dump truck' with his food at the table I had to look the other way. Thinking to myself, my parents had to of been so proud - I did that when I was WAY to old to know better!


• He's starting to help with clothing. Okay, it's not like that. He isn't dressing himself. He's just randomly taking off his pants and handing them to you when you're doing the dishes.


• Toilet paper is fascinating, flushing is amazing and throwing everything into the tub is the best!


• He enjoys a good game of hide-n-seek as long as you hide in the same spots, loves being chased and has a few super tickle-ish spots on him!


• He's starting to enjoy evening books. He'll sit for a few minutes and than he's off and running. Maybe some day we'll enjoy this activity together?


• I believe that his vocabulary is growing (Damon is more skeptical)... "itty et own" translation: Kitty Get Down ... ya, that's about the only thing he puts together - I guess he hears it quite a bit. :)


• His vocabulary does include: Dada (all the time), ed (Ned), itty (Kitty), mama (see how far down this is on the list? It is very few and far between - but it has been said!) ... I guess that's about it.


• Today I was explaining to Asher "No, you cannot touch this"... he reaches out and grabs my Nose... I said, "No." He grabs my nose... a little more work to do with these two words. :)


• Following that last one... he can find my nose, ears and lips. :)


• He thinks it's funny when the kitty 'nibbles' on him. Good - at least he doesn't freak out about the cat. He entices the kitty into 'nibbling' on him - not good.


• He doesn't play with toys - he just relocates them around the house.


• Ah, yes... I love this child. He is going to be a handful - ha, who am I kidding - he already is but I wouldn't want it any other way! :)

The Law Report...

Why there are some things I just don't want to know... An adult female and a juvenile female were cited for theft at 2:01 pm after they were caught shoplifting at a business on 29th Street Southeast in Grand Rapids. One was caught with hair coloring valued at $8.52 and the other was caught with two small bottles of "male endurance formula" valued at $5.32.

That was a mean thing to do... A resident on Monte Avenue in LaPrairie reported someone listed her home for rent on Craigslist. It wasn't for rent.

Random Thoughts....

• Our favorite Uncle Airwick and brotha turns 36 today! Wowsers, where does the time go? I'm not going to say that I remember him when he was just a little tike - ha! I hardly remember when I was a little tike; however, if he's 36 that means that I'm pushing closer to that '30' mark... yikes. We better slow down this yearly birthday stuff...
• Asher giggles a lot now. He'll be in his car seat, cruisin' along and something will just make him laugh. He brings a smile to my face every time. I love that kid.
• "The real test in life is not in keeping out of the rough, but in getting out after you are in." This was one of the fortunes tonight at Chinese. Our tradition is to add 'in bed' after every fortune because 1) it just makes us laugh and 2) they typically sound better that way. This fortune though really makes me think... it made me put the paper in my pocket to remember it later. So, here I am sharing this with you... do with it as you wish.
• Okay... one more. "The ultimate test of a relationship is to disagree but to hold hands." Again, this one doesn't seem as funny when you put 'in bed' behind it - rather it really made me think for some reason. Yep, relationships are not always a walk in the park but the ability to hold hands through it all - okay, and still actually like each other when the storm has pass. ;)
• I removed ice from my roof today. I found this to be rather fun. Don't worry, Asher was with Uncle Airwick - not on the roof with me. What type of parent do you take me for? ;)
• I love warm weather. I only filled the stove twice today - twice. That's a miracle and it also means that I was able to sleep through the evening without having to get up to stoke the stove. I like that.
• I had a Margarita with a friend today - we needed it. I love my friend.
• Damon was in the ER last night, for those of you who know D, this is not a surprising. The best part of this story is that he is out of town working nights. I get the call at 2am, from D to let me know. It goes down like this: I believe that my alarm (of which I do not have set) is going off - so I'm randomly pushing buttons on my phone, I push buttons and of course the phone is answered, I go back to sleep because the noise has stopped (this is a normal reaction right!?) and from my phone I hear my husband saying, "Hello? Manda? Heeelllllo? Manda, pick up."... He's so understanding. To make a long random thought short - coal, eye, torn 'something or another', pirate patch, heal time: 24-48 hours...

Silence has taken over the house - Asher is giving the baby monitor a break in action. Which reminds me... Damon says that Asher will be 10 and I'll still have a baby monitor in his room... husbands, so silly. :)

The Law Report...

Okay, I threw away the paper before I was able to copy this report word for word; however, it is too good to pass up!

Should have thought this one through... a gentleman drove to the Grand Rapids Police Department on Monday to report a crime in progress. The problem was - he'd been drinking, couldn't remember what the crime was and DROVE to the police station. Hmmm... he was arrested for drunk driving.

I heard this one on the radio...

A male in St. Louise County was sentenced to 6 years/6 months in prison for burning down an auto body shop (of which he worked at). You see, he didn't intentionally burn down his place of employment, he was stealing loot out of the cars and couldn't see. So he used a lighter to provide the light which in return started a car on fire.... seriously!? That's quality help...

1 Year Pictures....

Better late than never...

Random Thoughts From a Wednesday...

Oh, wait it's Tuesday...

• Asher smells like Tuna and I can't figure out why?
• I was reading in a magazine (one of my mama's) that you can get a shower cap for your butt. Okay, it wasn't exactly that but it looked similar and the title was "Stop embarrassing leaks"... bwaaaah. So, it's like a shower cap but instead of not letting an outside subsatance in - you're attempting to keep inside substance in. Same difference. I wonder if you sound like plastic bag when you walk?
• Same magazine... "Padded Underwear"... really? I mean, seriously? I don't know of too many people who are interested in making their butts appear larger? I'm always attempting to make mine look smaller... interesting.
• Oh, one more from the magazine... pressure point rings that help you lose weight. Really? I'll take 10... that should do me - no more treadmill for this Chicky. I'm just going to wear a fashionable ring and watch the pounds fall off. Whew, I wish I would have known how easy this was going to be!
• Ned runs in his sleep - rather annoying.
• Asher is teething .... again. I wish I could just get him a set of false teeth and call it good. This teething is ridiculous! They have to hurt so bad - I wish I could make it all stop ... for the sake of us sleeping at night and his comfort. :)
• The last time I polled my viewers (two of you to be exact) as to which you run out of first: shampoo or conditioner. So, from that post and a few others that I've talked with we have... Shampoo: 2 Conditioner: 4 ... not the landslide I was looking for but none-the-less it proves my point. Conditioner is more popular than shampoo AND the two shampoo 'over users' are over the age of 50. What we have to look forward to in our older years - over usage of shampoo. Interesting.
• We went to a water park this last weekend - I love the lazy river. My favorite part about it would be the 'lazy' part. Kickin' back, floating around, bumping into people you don't know and pretending like you weren't playing bumper boats... ya, it was a great weekend of being lazy. :)
• I wanna be a Billionaire ... (new song on the ipod - love it)
• My computer is being stupid and I can't figure out what the issue is besides that it doesn't agree with my itunes. Kinda sucks. It's like my computer ate my itunes and has acid reflex from it because every once in a while my computer just burps and shuts off. And my itunes is non-existent... double suck.
• Morning nap was necessary; hoping that afternoon nap will follow. I love my babe but MAN is he crabby! Point, grunt and scream - what is the deal-ie-o!?

Enough random thoughts for one day... nap time is in session and I gotta get some stuff done! :)

Midnights...

Damon works 4 days of day shifts - has 4 days off - than 4 days of night shifts and 4 days off. Not super confusing but it certainly messes with his internal clock. He's always trying to catch up on sleep or trying to get used to the idea of staying up all night.

So today, he got home after his night shift and had to watch baby for an hour or two. When I got home he was in a hurry to get out the door and drop off some paper work he had scheduled to do in the a.m.

He walks in the door, after his errand, takes off his shoes and realizes he is only wearing one sock. Interesting.

Random Thoughts from a Tuesday...

Oh, wait - it's Wednesday.

• I really love Guacamole Chips - like made a special trip to another store to find a bag - love them.
  
• It's fun to watch Asher on slippery floors and socks without traction.
  
• Nap time sounds like a good idea today.
  
• There was a super cute older man walking into Target at the same time as me today. I can't help but say 'Good Morning' because he is just so dang cute. I couldn't help but add in there 'Good Morning Sir - Can I open the door for you?'... it was fun to make an old man laugh that hard. He says, 'Well isn't that sweet of you to open a door for an old man." Bwaaah. I crack me up.
  
• Only weeks left before I head back to work - dislike button.
  
• I dropped Asher off at 'work' this morning because I had an appointment I needed to attend without him. I realize that just 12 months ago I was inconsolable about the thought of leaving my baby at daycare. I cried when I dropped him off but knew it was the best thing for the both of us. This year, I think Asher is going to be the one crying while I leave him. Pretty sure there will still be tears from mommy - only because I'm the biggest baby of them all when it comes to my babe.
  
• I bought a funny birthday card for my brother today - the only thing I can think of is: I hope I haven't purchased this same card for him in the past. I know I did that one year and it was kinda embarrassing. Anyone else have that problem? Which card did you give to whom and how the heck do you keep that straight?
  
• Realized as I was shopping with my mama that she uses more shampoo than she does conditioner - I was shocked. I was under the impression that everyone used more conditioner in their hair than shampoo. So the question is - do you run out of shampoo or condition first OR are you one of those 'use them equally' type of girls? I really would love to know!
  
• I haven't taken Asher's 1 year pictures yet... ya, might wanna get on that.
  
• I learned today that 'rolling boil' means to stir without losing the boil- interesting. Did I mention that I learned this after I put the noodles in. Stupid. However, I'm always so happy my brother has all the answer to lives questions. He's like google on speed dial. Love it.

And the baby monitor has finally stopped talking to itself - I'm gonna go and take a nap. For some odd reason I was up at 3:30am ... for what you ask? I have not a clue and I could not get back to sleep. Double stupid. Nap time is in session. :)

YMCA Basketball

For the month of January I was able to help out with youth (ages 5-7) basketball. The kiddos are super fun and excited about learning to play. Ok, for the most part all of them are super fun and excited.
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Me: To child on first day of practice - "So and so, I'm so glad that you decided to play basketball, you are doing an awesome job with your dribbling!"

So and So Child: "Ya, the only reason I'm here is because my mom thinks I need to be more involved. I don't even like basketball."
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Envision: There are two teams of 10, which equals 20 kids (ages 5-7 :)), two coaches, only 10 playing at a time and ten sitting on the sidelines at a time. We are playing a 'game' which really means that we are running the kids back and forth up the court and reminding them to DRIBBLE!

Me: I'm attempting to put everyone back in their 'positions' after coming down the court from previously being on offense. I'm trying to explain to 5 kids (ages 5-7 :)) that they are no longer trying to shoot the ball but rather get the ball back - hence, they are on defense. I'm also trying to get the other teams players lined up to be on offense because the other coach is on the other end of the court explaining how to pass the ball in and get it down the court.

So and So Child: (This is a different 'so and so child' from the previous 'so and so child' in the last story) "Coach"

Me: "Yes, 'so and so' - no... you're on defense - oh, pay atttention when they're passing."

So and So Child: "The other kids won't let me hold the mascot (which is a stuffed animal that was suppose to bring team spirit but has rather become a pain in my butt.)

Me: "Hey, guys (yelling to side-line as I'm attempting to keep from getting hit in the head by a 'shot' ball) you need to take turns holding the stuffed animal - pleae let 'so and so' have a turn.

Minutes have passed...

So and So Child: "Coach"

Me: "Yes?" - "No, you can't run outta bounds with the ball, Remember you always have to dribble, Oh, we need to stand up so we can be ready for the ball."

So and So Child: Holding two fingers up his nose holes... "Someone over there is farting and it stinks real bad - I can hardly breathe."
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I love basketball but more than that I love that we, as insane adults, are trying to teach 5 YEAR OLDS how to play basketball when they are much more interested in sitting on the floor, throwing the mascot and farting in public. :)