What a great Memorial Day Weekend!!!!!

I think it is easy to get caught up in the joy of a long weekend full of sunshine and forget to recognize the reason we celebrate Memorial Day. I want to start by thanking all of those in the military and the families who support them. Thank you for all you do and the sacrifices you make!

We enjoyed the weekend with an action packed schedule. On Friday Milo and I spent the day with Candace and Sloane. We even got the babies on the same napping schedule so Candace and I could have some time to chat. It has not only been a huge support, but so much fun to have babies together! On Saturday Scott and I went out with our friends Mike and Shannon while Milo had a date with Nana and Papa. We had dinner reservations in downtown Denver at 8:00 and had drinks before hand. That is right, this Mama and Papa weren't eating with the early birds a 5:00 and we actually got to enjoy our food instead of shoveling it in. Thank you, Janet and John! On Sunday we went to a barbecue at the Ward's house. Tons of kiddos and tons of fun. Finally on Monday we all did the Bolder Boulder. Scott and I ran it and then met Nana, the Smith crew and Milo to walk it. Between running it, walking it and all the hustle to and from the car Scott and I ended up traveling over 15 miles. Luckily, Milo took an awesome afternoon nap and so did Mom and Dad. It was a quiet Monday afternoon at the Aschermann house. Not only was Milo an excellent baby all weekend he was a very good sleeper. We got three nights in a row of sleeping through the night. He is able to get his pacifier in all by himself which saves us from helping him in the middle of the night. Last night he insisted on nursing at 2 am. I think the best thing about nursing is the middle of the night feedings. They are rare, but when they do happen we can both snooze during the feeding. After our date at 2 Milo slept until 8 this morning. Go figure, the one morning I have plans he sleeps in. I guess I can't bank on him being my alarm clock any more. Ooooh....Babies.....Gotta love them!

Milo with his pal, Sloane. Aren't they getting so big? I could just eat them up!

We also made it to Stanley Lake this weekend. Milo loved watching Bosco chase the stick in the water. I have promised to take him back to a real beach (ocean included) soon. I don't think he remembers his recent Hawaii trip. And yes, he will have to wear his dorky hat!

Milo all geared up for the Bolder Boulder! He loved all the people watching!

Milo's new squishy face. Believe it or not he is actually happy in this picture. It is his new face. He has been sporting it a lot lately. It always gets a giggle out of me.

Speaking of dorky hats...this is Scott at 7 months. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree. This bodes well for Milo, seeing as Scott is by no means chubby anymore. I love those boys!!!

One of my favorite pictures!

The tubes are in

Milo had surgery on Friday to get his ear tubes. We had to be at Children's Hospital at 5:30am. I was hoping to sneak him into his car seat without waking him up, but as soon as that little boy saw his Mama he was ready to party. He was up until his surgery at 7:30am. The actual surgery was very fast. From the time that we left Milo with the nurse to when we were able to go back to see him was less than 15 minutes. I was glad that it was so fast because I was very anxious. The nurse said that he was one of the happiest babies she has seen coming off of anesthesia. I am sure they say that to all moms, but it still made me feel better. The surgery was a success and Milo seems to be doing great.

Milo also attended his Great Grandma Aschermann's 90th birthday party. She seemed to really enjoy herself and it was fun to introduce Milo to some of his family members on his Papa's side. I think he might have been a bit overstimulated because he was a terrible sleeper that night, but at the party he was a perfect baby.

Milo's diet (along with his waist line) is expanding daily. He is currently working on finger food. His fine motor skills still need a lot of practice. Milo is willing to spend the necessary time in the highchair practicing.

Milo gives the best kisses!!!!!

Milo and his Uncle Matthew. The two MJs

We try to make it to the swings once a day. Our evening routine has consisted of getting home from work, feeding Milo dinner, then to the swings and home for bed. Life is good!

Grocery shopping has become one of Milo's favorite adventures.

This is Milo in his backpack. The first time he rode in it he screamed with joy the entire walk.

Where to start?

It has been a little while since I have had time to blog. We have had a busy couple of weeks. The highlight was most definitely the arrival of our niece, Joslyn Jane Kennedy. She was born April 26th, 2011 and weighed in at 8lbs 12oz.

Miranda, Brendan and beautiful baby girl Joslyn. Doesn't Miranda look fantastic? You can't even tell she just had a baby.

As for our little guy, He has had one of those weeks where I swear he changes every time I look at him. His diet has expanded to rice cereal, squash, sweet potatoes, avocado, bananas and homemade teething cookies.

SQUASH, YUM!

AVOCADO, YUMMIER!

TEETHING COOKIES, YUMMIEST!

Milo's eating skills are not the only things he has been working on. He is now officially rolling from his tummy to his back. He is very good at it when he is naked and does pretty good when he has his diaper on. The cloth diapers are a bit bulky and he struggles to get his legs twisted over his booty, but with enough concentration he can do it. He has also been working on his posture while sitting. His core is getting stronger and stronger. He no longer immediately topples over if he looks up. Besides all of his physical triumphs he has also been working on his hand eye coordination. Everything goes straight to his mouth. We took advantage of this and introduced a sippy cup. He does a great job of getting the top to his mouth. As of now he just gnaws on it and hasn't figured out how to suck on it and get some water. He still has no teeth, but is really chewing on things. I am thinking that they aren't too far away. The last bit of news is that we have gotten Milo scheduled to get ear tubes. He has had an ear infection since he was in the hospital in February. He is currently scheduled for May 20, but if there is a cancellation prior to that then we are in. I can't wait. Poor little guy is such a happy boy that I can't imagine what he will be like when his ears aren't bothering him.

Milo and his sippy cup. Doesn't he look like such a big boy?

Milo in his new bathtub seat.

My boys and me on my first Mother's Day. It was a beautiful weekend. We were up in Glenwood for a wedding. Jennica and Chris got married in a breath taking location at Missouri Heights. It was great party and so much fun to catch up with some good friends. The rest of the weekend was spent with my mom, Grammy. I can't think of a better way to spend my first Mother's Day weekend than sharing it with my mom. I love you Mom!

Humpty Dumpty

Well Milo still doesn't roll but he is well on his way to sitting on his own. His "hefty" size is more conducive to sitting, not rolling. He stacks well and it is hard to push all that body weight over :). He will sit for a minute or two on his own until he eventually slowly topples over. He looks a bit like Humpty Dumpty. We had a great Easter with our families. Grammy (my mom) is in Denver helping my sister and eagerly awaiting the arrival of her granddaughter. She, Miranda, Brendan and Connor came to the Aschermanns, then we celebrated Milo's first Easter with the Smith Family. It was a great day. I will be sure to post some pictures soon. Milo was a great baby and full of smiles, but Connor was the hit of the party. He has so much to say these days and he has a wonderful imagination.

Daddo reading to Milo. Nana hooked us up with some great Dr. Seuss books. These were Scott's favorite and he has enjoyed reading them to our little guy! Side note: When you read to Milo he spends most of his time looking at you and not the book.

Squishy Face! Milo was an excellent napper this weekend. He even took one 3 hour nap. We have notice that he scratches his fingers on the bed to put himself to sleep. If you give him blanket or a lovey he rubs with his fingers and puts it up to his face until he falls asleep. He is a big fan of textures.

Happy Boy. Note that those pants are 18 month size and the shirt is 12 month. This kiddo is going to borrowing Dads clothes soon.

Milo and his cousin Connor.

Look at our little boy sitting all by himself.

They're Back...plus some fun stuff

Arg...Milo has two more ear infections. I took Milo back to the doctor this week because he wasn't acting like his normal happy self and my suspicions were confirmed...the ear infections are back. We are going to a specialists as soon as possible. We have been referred to Children's Hospital and the referral should go through by next week so I can call by Thursday. I think that tubes are in our future. Hopefully the near future so that Milo can start feeling better as soon as possible. Poor little guys hasn't gone longer than 5 days without an ear infection and off of antibiotics since February. On a happier note, Milo has spent his week playing with his favorite toy, a mylar balloon and working on his hand/eye coordination. He has started to reach for things. Yesterday Milo had his first serving of rice cereal. He has started to show a lot of interest in our food during dinner lately, so I figured it is time. Plus, I don't want him to wither away to nothing. :) He has to maintain his figure. He weighed in at 22lbs 3oz at the doctors this week.

I believe that we will always have to have mylar balloons around the house. He has enjoyed playing with them since he was 3 months. He can really grab them and they make fantastic noises.

Milo wasn't sure what he thought of his first big boy meal. Saturday night he was not terribly interested, but tonight he gobbled down his dinner. We only give him about a tablespoon of rice cereal mixed with breast milk around 5:30. I am going to give him a week to get use to the new textures and method of eating (ie spoon) associated with his new diet and then start to introduce more tasty food.

Milo took a bath in Nana's sink tonight. He thought the running water was pretty cool!

Milo is getting more and more active and his hand eye coordination is improving daily.

What a worry wart!

Good News...as of Friday Milo does not have any ear infections!! Woohoo!! He did wake up this morning with a little cough and running nose. Fingers crossed that he doesn't get another cold because it seems that colds inevitably result in ear infections. Since he doesn't usually give me any signs I am worried I won't know when to take him into the doctor. One of the many things that I was not prepared for in motherhood was my increased level of worry. I had no idea I would be such a worry wart. I am really working on trying to go with the flow, but what can I say I am an engineer. I like structure and schedules. Babies are a lot of thing but structured and scheduled they are not.

Milo is busy working his abs and giggling up a storm these days. You put him on his back and he goes to town on crunches. He so wants to be sitting up and is working really hard at it. After his workouts he generally enjoys a good belly laugh. If he isn't laughing on his own a good tickle usually does to job. He is one ticklish little boy, his back, his neck, his feet, under his chins (note plural) and his sides. We have been so lucky to have our evenings full of baby giggles. I swear there is nothing better!

Today we had a baby shower for my sister and her new arrival, Baby Girl Kennedy. We had it at Janet's, my mother-in-law's. It was a beautiful day full of adorable pink outfits and great company. Miranda is due the first of May and looks fantastic. We can't wait to meet our niece.

One day I may start posting pictures of something other than my little boy, but for now here is more Milo...

Full of smiles!

Check out those cheeks!!!!

April 1, 20111

It was 75 degrees out today and I loved every minute of it. I have enjoyed the winter, but am ready for summer. Scott got home on Wednesday night. All three of us road our bikes (Milo in his charriot behind Scott) to the pool today. Milo is definitely getting very comfortable in the water. I am excited for our neighborhood outdoor pool to open up. It will be nice to just walk the couple blocks for some fun in the sun. We are still working on the tummy time. It was Nana Janet's spring break this week and she spent a lot of time with Milo on their tummies. The "little" man is kicking and twisting but still no rolling. I have a feeling he will be sitting before he rolls. Let's give him a break, 21 pounds is a lot of weight to lift :). We have now introduced the jumper, the exersaucer and the walker into Milo's world. He loves being upright and whenever he is in his swing or carseat he spends most of his time doing sit ups trying to get upright. I have discovered that he is very flirtatious when playing on the ground. If you lay down next to Mr. Casanova he will grab both your cheeks and go in for smooches. Mostly trying to gnaw on your chin or nose, but I like to think of them as kisses. I keep thinking that he is going to wake up with a tooth. Everything within Milo's reach goes straight into his mouth and is fiercely chewed on. I don't see any changes in his gums so I suppose it could be a while still. I have to laugh at the fact that it is not even 9:00 on a Friday night, I am blogging and my son, dog and husband are fast asleep. A pretty mellow night on Flora Street! Boy oh boy has my life changed....and I wouldn't trade it for anything!

Not a fan of tummy time

Who...me?

The sun wipes me out!

Check out my shades!