Asher turns 4!

How can another year have gone by so fast? Asher turned four years old, and he is thrilled about it. He's been talking about turning four for a couple of months at least, and his request that night was to have a '4' on his hat. He was just so proud. We celebrated with the family while we were visiting up there for the holiday. With a birthday that's three days after Christmas, its nice to have some family around to help make it extra special. I know he loves it. The cake process was a little last minute since we'd only been in town day or two. He picked a Blue's Clues cake, which surprised me since he's been so into trains, animals, etc. But, Blue it was and it was perfect! It was the first year he's really anticipated his birthday, which made it more exciting. Happy 4th Birthday Ash! We love you SO much.

A few fun things about Asher:

We are so proud of him. He's an amazing older brother to Beckett, and has lately even started building towers for him to knock down. It's so great to see them interact well together, and I know that Asher is the key to making that happen. They already seem to have 'inside' jokes!

He is a sentimental kid. When people give him things, he often remembers, and those things mean something to him. He sleeps with a slew of "buddies" now, and they have all been given to him by someone special. The buddies currently include a flashlight, 6 or 7 stuffed animals, a little Santa in an airplane with a fan for a propeller and sometimes a book or two...and he takes inventory every night, if one is missing, he knows it.

He is a friend to all. He loves people. And he calls everyone a friend. There was a period when he literally called any kid he saw a "friend" (ie....we were at the mall, and another kid walks by...Asher says, "look mom, there's a friend!"). He'll still fight for a coveted toy, just like any other kid his age, but he really does seem to be accepting of others.

He can be very sweet. Other moms (my own included) have told me how little boys love their moms and will say the sweetest things. Until recently, I hadn't experienced it for myself. He will compliment me on everything from my glasses to my shirt. "Mommy", he says, "your eyes are beautiful." Wow, keep em' coming, I think to myself!


He is an excellent negotiator. He can be convincingly clever with his words when he wants something. He won't come right out and ask if he can have something, but if YOU would like something, and that he'd like to share. For example, if he wants some M&M's he'll ask if you want some first, then if you want to share some. He smooths over his demands with words that make you think he's doing you a favor. Are they supposed to be so clever at 4?

He loves to learn. He's always building things, killing me with questions on how things work and loves to learn words (to read). He masters puzzles, and loves to play games. Don't get me started on his obsession with replacing batteries in toys, and finding out where all the dead lightbulbs in the universe are (because he sees them all). He pays attention to little things, which I find fascinating since I don't always do that myself! Everything is a chance to learn something, and I am constantly impressed with how little minds work in such a big way.

We are so proud of our big boy, and love him so much. Happy Birthday A-Man!