lessons from a boo bear.

We are teaching our son a lot of things these days, as it's obvious he can comprehend what we say.

He knows how to ask for more chippies (chips)... "Chippies! Ppp-llllease! (if you have heard him talk, you probably know that he rolls his "l's")
He knows that if he spills something to grab a rag from the kitchen & wipe it up. (i usually have to go behind him & actually wipe it up.)
He knows how to throw things away. (yes, we have lost a remote & recovered a cell phone from the trash.)
He always says "THANK YOU. BYE." to the kind grocers at stores.
He can clean up his toys & loves to sing that Barney clean-up song while he does it. (he's really slow. one toy at a time, out of 30 toys. so, i help him a lot. because i'm not patient.)
He knows to be gentle with puppy dogs & little babies.
He knows how to count to 5 & the color green. (yeah, we have a long way to go in this area.)

And some more things in-between all that cuteness. Teaching most of these things has had it's challenging moments, of course... he's a little human.

 I share all of this not to boast that we have some super-awesome-quick learning-go getter of a child. Or to boast that we are super-awesome-hard-working-diligent parents. There is perhaps some truth in both of those. He is an amazing little boy. We do try really hard as parents. 

I share this because, of all the things we are trying to teach him... he is daily teaching us so much more. 

Truly, the gift of parenthood is never-ending.

Here are a few things that Asher has taught us about life... I hope to never move past & always allow to enlighten my soul. Your kid will challenge you, test your limits, push buttons you didn't know existed, & in moments make you think you're going insane. They will be demanding, rude, irrational, & sometimes hit you in the face, causing your nose to bleed (three times. one week. it happened. [he hit my piercing. yowza!]).

But. They will also teach you to smell the roses. To literally stop. And smell those God-made, deliciously red, wild roses.

Here's to my boy & the things his heart of 20 months has taught me thus far:

To spend real, unplugged, side by side time with his Daddy. To be fully present when I'm with my husband. To get excited when he comes home from work-- I mean, drop all I am doing, rush to the door & greet him. My husband walking through the door every single night IS something to be celebrated. 

To run wild & free. To yearn for the outdoors. To show up at every new or old place with curiosity, enthusiasm, & gratuity.... for, every place holds either God's nature, which is to be adored, appreciated, & explored;  or holds God's people, which are also to be adored, appreciated, & explored! 

He reminds me of how sweet it feels to be loved, unconditionally loved. This boy has empathy as a gift, running deep through his blood. If I am ever crying, he is quick to console me. Drop all he is doing, come to my side, & console me. If he hears a baby crying, he always becomes very worried saying, "Mama. Mama. Mama. Cry. Baby cry. Oh, Mama." The picture above is at our first mid-wife appointment, as she was listening for baby's heart... Asher had never seen anything like this & grew concerned. He came right next to me & cuddled up. We should all do that, you know....drop what we are doing to hold someone. 

Friends. He LOVES his friends. He talks about them, first thing most mornings. "Jovies! Kenleys!" He talks about his friends in the car. "MAC AND REECE. Mama. Mama. Mama. Mama. MAC AND REECE." If we are driving close by a friend's house, he recognizes the area shouting their name, "Mama... Mama... Hey, Mama... Ruuuufie!". It's sweet & super obvious that his little buddies mean a lot to him. He's thinking of them all the time & telling me about them...all the time. Cherishing the GIFT that is friendship; he does that so well. 

 (he even loves friends that aren't real.  something to learn there, too... we all have people that aren't a real friend to us. we should love them. scoop them up, embrace them, & invite them to watch Finding Nemo. love those who don't love you.) 

He is never afraid to try something new.  He saw a group of kids hula hooping at the Creative Discovery Museum, & without hesitation, ran up & began to try. The hoop was way too big. He is not near coordinated enough. But, none of those facts stopped him from trying. It didn't phase him that he would potentially fail in front of older kiddos, he just went for it! And, when he did fail at hula hooping, he just started dancing! He danced & danced & eventually, they all joined in his dancing. Try new things. Don't worry about failing or what others will think of your failing. Truly, you don't know what you can or cannot do until you try. A tad cliche, but a whole lotta truth, my friend.

He's a good steward of this earth. At the park, he will spend a lot of time picking up & throwing away trash. It is important. We should all take care of this earth & find the joy in doing it. 

This blue eyed, messy haired, non-stop talking, running everywhere, loud singing, empathetic, belly laugher of a little boy is SUCH pure joy to his daddy & me. 

I knew when I first held him that the love was deep, unconditional, & a gift... so much so that you feel as if your heart may explode. And that love, that explosive, heart throbbing til it aches kind of love fills my heart with so much gratitude that God would allow us to have something so precious. A gift. This boy is such a gift.  

Asher boy, Boo Bear, Bugsy, Ash, Turkey, The Boo, Asher Bryant, thank YOU for how you are shaping your Daddy & me to be better versions of ourselves. Thank YOU for your patience as we make mistakes along the way. Thank YOU for loving us unconditionally even when we fail you. Thank YOU for reminding us that it's okay & really rather lovely to walk a little slower. Thank YOU for making us laugh on the harder days. Thank YOU for reminding us that it really isn't about us. Thank YOU for revealing the handprints of God to us in a way that only you can, sweet boy. 

 I truly hope you learn as much from us, through God's mercy, about the beauty in this life as we are learning from you.