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Asher sits up really steadily now, so he has fun playing with his toys in that position. It's a new view on the world!


Sitting up also makes bath time easier and more fun. I got this soft-side inflatable tub, which feel more secure, so I don't have to get in the tub with him anymore. We'll probably bathe him more often now!


Easter morning we attended the "sunrise" service our church held at a local park. It was a nice, warm day. A little windy, but enjoyable nonetheless.


Ken decided the little man needed a little hat. :o)

The Lord's Prayer

6-month pictures

We did Asher's six-month pics today. Here's a preview. CLICK HERE for a link to the album at the Costco Photo Center.

Please KIIS My Baby!

Fricassee

Tuesday Asher and I went to the Santa Barbara Zoo with Christye and Lucy and Christye's parents. Here are her parents, pushing the two strollers.


I decided to get ambitious tonight and made a fancier dinner than I usually have time for (Granny Nanny was here to babysit while I cooked).

Chicken Thigh Fricassee with Mushrooms and Rosemary

INGREDIENTS

• 4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 5 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced
• 4 cloves garlic, peeled and halved
• 2 tablespoons fresh rosemary, chopped
• 1 pound chicken thighs
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 3/4 cup dry white wine
• 12 cherry tomatoes
• 12 Nicoise olives
  

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Stir in mushrooms, and cook until soft. Remove to a plate.
2. Wipe out skillet, and heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium-high heat. Place garlic, rosemary, and chicken thighs in hot oil. Season with salt and pepper. Cook, turning chicken, until chicken and garlic are well browned.
3. Return mushrooms to skillet, and sprinkle red pepper flakes over chicken. Pour in white wine, scraping the bottom of the skillet with a wooden spoon. Cook about 3 minutes.
4. Reduce heat to low; cover, and simmer gently for 1 hour.
5. Sprinkle tomatoes and olives over chicken, return cover, and cook about 5 minutes more.

Night vision

We got a night vision baby monitor and found that Asher's favorite sleeping position is the Downward Facing Dog.

Credit Card Fees

Here's a link to a form you should fill out to support legislations that protects consumers from bad credit card companies.

Granny Nanny

My mom takes care of Asher on days I work or have errands, as well as plenty of other random times. He loves his Grandma! (I suspect the feeling is mutual...)

Exploring Edibles

Last night we introduced carrots. Asher didn't seem to care too much for them. He ate a few bites and that was it. Tonight I tried a carrot and rice casserole. Again, he ate a few bites but lost interest. (I'll give him that it was a little bitter...) So, I thought perhaps exploring the feel of the food, the container, the spoon, etc., would at least provide a little fun and encouragement. We had a LOT of "fun" to wash off after the exercise!

Asher's been posting...

Be sure to check his blog.

Lunar Eclipse

We had a lunar eclipse last night. This is the view from my parking lot. Neato!

Asher - 5 Months

A few pics...

Quilts

My best friend, who has three and a half kids and no spare time, made two gorgeous quilts for us. This first one is a cowboy theme, and the second is one she did before I changed my mind on Asher's bedding set. can you believe how beautiful they are?

Miscellaneous stuff

Mmm, rice cereal. Bitter? Bland? Delicious and squishy? Not sure yet...


For those still experiencing winter, here's a balcony shot from about 5 minutes ago. Sunny and 70. Sweet.

Who to vote for?

HERE is a neat survey that tells you which candidate most closely matches your beliefs.

THE handsomest boy in the world!

Snow and stuff

Our friends just bought a new home. Here they are at the doorstep on the day of their final walk-through. Lucy was born one week after Asher.


We had lots of rain last week, which was great for greening our pastures and capping the distant peaks with white. Seems paradoxical for the snow caps and the palm trees to be in the same frame, eh? Gotta love California!


Just couldn't resist a little bit of my sweetheart.

Scarface

Asher keeps digging chunks out of his face with his sharp little nails! He didn't really do this as a newborn, which is when most people worry about it. Why now? It happens when he gets tired or mad and starts rubbing his eyes and grabbing his nose. Hope he quits this soon! He's got five marks now, all from different incidents.

New arrangement

I came into Asher's room this morning at 3:30 and found him playing with the circles of the mobile, which means I needed to move it up so he doesn't pull it down on his little head. So, since our mobile attachment is a clip variety, I just stuck it up on the quilt rack. Perfect!

We made a trip to Toys R Us this afternoon and bought one of those Fisher Price soother aquarium things for the crib. It plays soothing music, has soft lights and little floating fishies. He likes it. I put him down in the crib fully awake tonight, turned on the aquarium, and he was asleep within 5-7 minutes with no crying. Yay!

Gotta go; Asher wants to blog.

4-month scrapbook

4 Months

Had Asher's 4-month pics at Sears today. It went pretty well. The link is HERE.

Rogaine

Instead of going to bed like I should, I decided to play with PhotoShop a bit. Here's Asher with hair!

Ergo

I got a new baby carrier, the Ergo. It can be worn on the front, hip or back. I haven't tried the alternate positions yet, but Asher seems to like the front OK. He didn't like it at first because he can't face out, but he's adapting. Here we are after walking the dog tonight. Asher fell asleep mid-walk. The Ergo has a sleeping hood that supports baby's head that seems to work great. It folds up from the pocket and snaps onto my shoulders.

Update

For those who have been following for news on Asher's enlarged spleen, we had him rechecked yesterday. The doc says it's back to normal and no longer a concern. He said that it's uncommon for colds to cause enlargement, but not unheard of. So, no more testing. Phew! We go back in two weeks for his 4-month visit (even tho he's actually 4 months this Friday), so we'll get another recheck then, too. Anyway, PTL!

Cat nappin'

Caught my boys kickin' back a few minutes ago. This is a new position for Asher. He always sleeps like this in his crib, but not on the Boppy (at least not facing out). I couldn't resist a picture!

Movin' on up

Grandma got Asher a highchair yesterday; Peg Perego's Prima Pappa. It's super cool. Seven different chair heights, three reclining positions, a five-point harness, two trays (one for play and one pop-off one for easy cleaning), and wheels. Asher doesn't seem to mind it. It's not as quick to drop him in as the Bumbo or the bouncy seat, but it's so much better, because he can be at human height rather than on the floor. He's a big fan of seeing what's going on, so this way, he can eat at the table or hang out with the grown ups like a civilized gentleman. :o)

Asher's new post

Asher had some time today to play with scrapping. Check out his blog.

Rollin' on a river (of pee)...

So, Asher rolled over for the first time last night!! He started crying at 3 a.m., so I went into his room and found him face down and MAD about it. (He'd also peed through his diaper and was wet and cold, so that made him all the madder.) Anyway, that was exciting. He hates being on his tummy, so I'm sure it was an accident that he got there, then couldn't get himself back over. Hehehe...