Early Spring?

The weather has been incredible here, especially for February. We really haven't seen much rain the last couple of weeks and the highs have ranged in the mid 50's to an occasional 60! So of course we have been spending as much time as possible outside- going to the park, playing in the backyard, and going on walks. The rain is supposed to return tomorrow, but in the meantime, I'll continue to daydream that Spring is here.

Party Video

Here is a video from Asher's party.

Birthday Party

We had Asher's birthday party last Saturday at our house. We kept it pretty small; we invited close friends, including Asher's two best friends Mishko and Olivia. We didn't know how Asher would react to all the attention, noise, sugar, and people. But he had a great time! He was very social, silly, and playful. He seemed so excited to have his buddies there, and, of course, the cupcakes, ice cream, balloons, and new toys didn't hurt.

Our Birthday Boy

Thursday was Asher's birthday. Jeff and I can't believe our little baby is now a 2 year old boy. We are having a party for him on Saturday the 16th, but of course we still celebrated his birthday on the actual day.

In the morning I took Asher to a big toy store in downtown portland and we spent about an hour and a half there. Asher picked out a few toys and puzzles and we got some information on train tables and train sets (the big present that we will be giving him at his party).

We then went to meet Jeff for lunch (pizza). In the evening, we had cake and ice cream (Asher's favorite food of all time), sang happy birthday, and opened the birtday cards and gifts that we got in the mail (thanks everyone).

Random Pics

Hello. It's been a pretty good week around here. I'm in between projects (work-wise) so I've been able to fully focus on Asher and to get some stuff done around the house. Here are a few random shots that we took this week.

Bedtime

Asher and I are always on our own on Tuesday nights because Jeff travels to Bellevue, Washington for work. It's hard having Jeff gone every week, but we try to make the best of it. Sometimes we just stay home and play, other times we get invited to friends' houses for dinner, and occasionally we go out to shop or to eat or to have some kind of "date".

I try to take pictures every Tuesday so that Jeff doesn't feel like he's missing out on too much. These pictures were taken last week after Asher's bath. Asher and I were getting ready to read books in his room before bedtime. I am sure any parent would agree with me that their child is especially cute right after bathtime, when they're all snugly, warm, and smell fresh of baby shampoo.

Hoop Dreams

My brother Sherif sent Asher a Ben Wallace Chicago Bulls jersey, and Asher absolutely loves it. He keeps insisting on wearing it, whether it's to go out, have dinner, play, or go to sleep. He usually insists that Jeff wear his basketball jersey too (a Ben Wallace Detroit Pistons jersey).

Jeff, of course, is very happy that Asher is already showing signs of loving basketball; I'm sure that pretty soon he'll start teaching him all about the NBA teams and players (he's already been teaching him how to pass the ball and shoot baskets).

And by the way, Asher also loves the hat that he's wearing in these pictures (his Aunt Colleen gave it to him). He chooses it over his other hats almost every time.