O.M.Geee. I absolutely cannot believe I have a 4 year old. Like, cannot believe it. These four years have absolutely flown by, and while they certainly haven’t always been easy, they have been wonderful and full of so much laughter and fun. And love. So.much.love. Lately I have really been reflecting on how much is about to change when Baby Boy #2 arrives, and I’m not going to lie, it’s been emotional for me. I just think about how for four years now it’s been just the three of us…the three musketeers. Mine and Matt’s world is about to be rocked for sure, but I don’t think it will be rocked as much as Asher Wade’s. Our family dynamic is about to experience a huge shift, and while this new baby boy is such an incredible blessing and addition to our family, and I know God’s timing is ALWAYS perfect, I can’t help but feel a little sad for what we are going to lose, or what I feel like Asher Wade is going to lose. I hope that doesn’t sound terrible, and bear with me as I’m sure I’m riding a hormonal and emotional roller coaster right now thanks to pregnancy and my first born turning another year older. I guess I’m just mourning the impending loss of my first “baby” in more ways than one. Anywho. That’s probably another hormonal post for another day; one that I’m sure I will write as we get even closer to BB2’s arrival. Right now it’s all about our big 4 year old!

Asher Wade, at 4 years old, here’s what’s going on with you…

 I’ve been saying this since the day you were born, but lawd you are still ALL BOY. You never slow down and I’m convinced you’d survive off 6 hours of sleep, although we do our best to make you get 10’ish. Like your mama, you are NOT a morning person and are very crabby until you have fully woken up and had your milk. You like to just chill and watch TV and not talk to anyone for at least 15 minutes. Once you fully wake-up though, you are going 90 miles per minute, all day long. You love to climb and jump and are quite the daredevil. You aren’t scared of much other than bugs. You are completely terrified of all creepy crawlers. Otherwise you love pretty much all animals. Cody gets on your nerves and we are constantly separating the two of you. He just loves you so much and always wants to play, but you are generally annoyed by him. You like Maddux since he pretty much just lays in his bed all day. You love Annie as well, and I swear she is the most patient cat on the planet considering how she lets you carry her around, often upside down or by the neck. I’m glad you have a soft spot for animals because you will likely always have them around you.

You can be somewhat of a homebody and you love to play with your toys up in your room. You love all of your toys, especially your Roadster Racer Mickey, Paw Patrol Mission RV and Patroller and Blaze Monster Truck. You’ve gotten into board games lately like Chutes and Ladders (although you do not like it when you don’t win), and you still love to read books. You love to play hide n’ seek and tag. Your favorite color is still blue. Favorite TV shows are Mickey and the Roadster Racers (this is the kind of birthday cake you requested this year), The Lion Guard, Blaze and the Monster Machines, Paw Patrol and Bubble Guppies. You loves movies, and lately it has been Toy Story (all of them) and Moana. Oh, and you will ALWAYS watch Cars given the opportunity. You cannot WAIT for Cars 3 to come out this summer. You also love to be outside, much like your mama. Whenever it’s raining you look forlornly out the window and comment how sad you are that you won’t be able to play outside today. You love to ride your bike and scooter, or just investigate around the yard. You like to dig in the dirt, jump in puddles and get muddy. I hate when it rains because I know you will inevitably come home with muddy shoes and pants. You love to go to the playground or any sort of park. You are so inquisitive and you love to investigate. Lately you are really into “fixing things” and “working” as you call it. You use your little tool box and tools that PawPaw got you for Christmas and “fix” your bike and your toys. You always want to help, which I have to remember to be patient about.

Your favorite foods are hot dogs, mac n’ cheese, yogurt, Clif Bars (the kid sized versions), string cheese, grilled cheese, bagels with cream cheese, Chikfila, fruit, pretzels, scrambled eggs, waffles and PB&J. For treats you like marshmallows, popsicles, pieces of chocolate and vanilla ice cream with M&M’s. You pretty much just drink milk and water, and the occasional apple juice or Sprite if we’re at a restaurant. You’re still pretty picky, although it has gotten better. Basically we make you sit at the table until you finish, and at least try new foods. You have slimmed down so much and hardly have any of that cute baby fat anymore. You used to always wear a full size up in clothing, but now you are right on par. For the most part you are in a size 4t, with some 5t’s mixed in. You weigh around 45 pounds and are about 3-1/2 feet tall. You are still incredibly healthy and it is very unusual for you to get sick. You actually came down with some nasty croup like symptoms over the weekend and had to miss school yesterday, I honestly think that is the first day you have missed due to sickness this entire school year. Even if you come down with a cold, you get over it really fast. I am so thankful you are so healthy, especially considering how much I stress about you not eating enough veggies or getting enough vitamins.

You can be a little shy at first, but you warm up within minutes. You aren’t crazy about grown-ups, but you adore your little friends. You say your best friends from school are Scout and Porter (although you guys fight like cats and dogs sometimes) and your best friends at church are Heidi, Harlow and Hudson. You love to have friends over and Thursday night small group is one of the highlights of your week since some of your friends come over to play while the grown-ups do their lesson. You are constantly asking if your teacher, Mrs. Dunmore, can come over to play;) You like to pray for your friends and teachers every night, and usually you throw in one other random request. Last night you wanted to pray that your birthday cake arrived safely from Kentucky, lol! Daddy or I usually help you say your prayers, but lately you have done it all by yourself a couple of times and I always have to hold back tears as I listen to your heartfelt requests. You have such a sweet and genuine heart, and that is a trait I am so proud of and hope you never lose. You are still very loving and will regularly bury your head in my chest and say “I love you SO MUCH mommy.” You like for me to tell you that “you’re my favorite little boy.” Not sure how I am going to handle this when your baby brother gets here;) Overall, you seem excited about getting a baby brother. You are always patting my belly and asking me if I feel OK. Your buddies are fascinated by my big belly and you proudly inform them that your baby brother is in there, getting big and strong, and he’s going to pop out real soon:-)

Some of your biggest strengths are your intelligence, your leadership, your athleticism, your desire to help others (especially kids that are smaller than you), your empathy, your persistency, your energy and your excitement about life in general. Your teachers are always commenting how you have so much passion and just generally love really big. They also comment on your intelligence a lot. You’re the type that completely surprises us with what you know and recall. You’ll do things out of nowhere that we didn’t even know you could do. You have a crazy good memory and don’t forget anything. Some of the struggles we have with you are also related to your persistency, high energy and leadership. You don’t like to sit still, ever, which is obviously problematic when you’re in situations where you have to sit still, like preschool or Sunday school. Your persistency means you are often hard headed and defiant when you don’t get your way. You don’t give in easily. Your leadership means you are very competitive and you want to be in charge, or as you call it, be the “leader.” You always want to win and get pretty upset when you don’t. Your competitiveness has gotten you in trouble a few times at school. Just last week you punched a kid after he told you that you weren’t as fast as him. Aye aye aye. A common goal of mine and your dad’s is to reign in some of those qualities without squashing them, since we know they can have some benefits, especially as you get older. You have a little bit of a temper, and while you don’t have a lot of temper tantrums per se, you get really upset if you don’t get your way, or if things don’t go how you had planned. We are working on how to get you to control your emotions and not act out. We haven’t quite figured out the best discipline for you yet, but it seems to be taking things away, like favorite toys, or removing you from situations. You don’t like to miss out on fun things. Usually a threat to call Daddy works too;) For rewards you LOVE to go to Target and pick out a toy. We have a “good behavior sticker chart” on the fridge and whenever the chart is filled, you get to pick out a new toy. Before the first sticker even goes on the chart you’ve already decided what you want, and it’s all you talk about until your chart is filled and you get your prize.

Asher Wade, I am so proud to be your mama. I thank God everyday for entrusting your daddy and I with you, and I only hope we help shape you into the person God has designed you to be. You are an amazing little boy, and you can go on to do amazing things. You just have to trust God, listen closely and walk the path that He has laid out for you. I want you to know God, trust God, and love Him with all your heart. If you do those three things, you will always be fulfilled, and I will consider my job as a parent successful. I know how much you like to lead and win, but remember, following God is how you will ultimately win. “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”