5 on Friday

1.  Asa had his check up on Wednesday.  We tried a new pediatrician here in town (we went to one when we *first* moved here and Asa had croup.  He was nice but just not the right fit for me).... and the verdict is GOOD!  I think she's as close as we'll find to Dr. Kelly up here in Ohio without actually visiting every pediatrician in town. :)  She had a great bedside manner with Asa, completing her exam with him in my lap the whole time (check!), she did not make me feel rushed at all or stupid (check!), she was receptive to how we've handled vaccines (check!), and she was super complimentary about Asa (check check! ;) ).

2.  Speaking of which, Asa is doing GREAT!  He is up to 22 lbs. 2 oz. (he has gained exactly 10 lbs. since we found out about his tongue tie the end of January/beginning February!  So 10 lbs. in 8 months vs. gaining 5 lbs. his first 7 months!  Improvement?  I think yes!  He's also gained just shy of 4 lbs. (3 lbs. 14 oz.) in the last 3 months!  I love the math!  Praise the Lord!).  His height has taken longer to get on the upswing with his increased intake, but it's finally catching up as well (just short of 30").  He is more the size of your average 12 month old, but ever since he fell off the curves his size has been about 3 months "behind" his age.  He is chipping away at that difference though and slowly closing the gap.  We are SOOOO thankful!  The doctor commented on how talkative he is and said his vocabulary is already what she'd see in an 18 month old, and she noted how developed his fine motor skills are.  That was fun because every doctor has commented on that from the very beginning. :)  They gave me an infant gown to put on him while we waited.  Asa looked at me like I was crazy when I was putting it on him, and he kept tripping on it as he tried to walk around the exam room.  I couldn't help but take a picture!

3.  We also had a big morning in Wednesday (the doctor appointment was in the afternoon).  We went to our first Bible study here in Ohio!  The women's study at the church we've been attending started last week when we were visiting family out of town, so this week was our first chance to go.  We are studying Cynthia Heald's Becoming a Woman of Simplicity.  Asa was in the nursery with 3 other "under 2s."  He did GREAT!  He cried when I left (to be expected), but he was already calming when I left the nursery corridor AND he played happily the whole 2 hours!!  During church he's only in the nursery for 1 hour max (we keep him in with us for worship until the sermon begins), so this Bible study nursery was a huge step (and praise!).  I love the head nursery lady at the church.  She already knows us by name and could not be sweeter to Asa.  She even told me on Sunday that she missed him not coming last Wednesday!  The first hour of Bible study is a whole group "teaching" time, and the second hour is broken down into small, consistent (yea for getting to know people!) discussion groups.  My group had 3 other ladies in addition to the leader.  I'm definitely the youngest person in the study, and most of the ladies are old enough to be grandmothers, but that's okay!  I'm just so thankful to be there and have the opportunity to learn and make friends!

3.  I have been on a roll with dinners this week.  On Monday I made the teriyaki burgers, Tuesday was the oriental chicken salad, Wednesday was a yummy pot roast with loads left over for another dinner in the freezer, Thursday was not mind-blowing but ham and veggies is turning into an extra freezer dinner of scalloped potatoes and ham from the leftovers--yum!, tonight was homemade pepperoni and artichoke heart pizza, tomorrow is peachy pork chops, and Sunday is chicken tortilla soup.  I am racking up lots of meals for the freezer which I love. I'm hoping to always have a week's worth of dinners in the freezer this winter in case a snow storm keeps me homebound when I'm low on groceries.

4.  Matt's new video game (Halo Reach) was released this week.  He's excited to say the least. ;)

5.  I broke out my serger today!  I wanted to make some little cloth bags for storing some of Asa's toys when he's not playing with them (namely some awesome alphabet blocks Holli & Todd gave us and Asa's toy cars), and I figured the serger would make strong reinforced seams that would withstand the tugging of an active toddler. :)  Thankfully, my grandmother left the serger completely threaded for me, so all I had to do was plug it in, turn it on, and refresh myself on a couple levers and buttons.  The I was off and running (thanks for the lesson, Grandma!).  I have a dedicated craft space in our room now (I used to sew in the dining room in FL which was easy enough to keep Asa out of when needed.  Now we have a medium-sized great room Asa is in all day long... not conducive to sewing with all the needles and scissors and such spread out, much less that my sewing mess isn't great for the dinner table ambiance ;)).  Our bedrooms is huge and I have taken over the far side with Matt's blessing and encouragement. I have a bookshelf of sewing books, 2 sets of cubbies--one for sewing materials and one for misc. craft items, a desk for sewing, and a table for cutting, the serger, whatever else have you.  I am LOVING it. :)

So this is not the crafting center in our room, but it IS our new bed frame, as promised :)