all of the random things I've been meaning to tell you.

* Someone recently asked us if we ever miss Asher being a newborn. We nearly laughed out loud. NO. Emphatically, absolutely no. It's such a sweet time, but it was just as stressful as it was fun. What I do miss, though, when I think about it, is six, seven, eight months old. Six months old is GOLDEN. He could smile, he could eat, he could SLEEP THROUGH THE NIGHT, he could laugh out loud and enjoy new things. He was also stationary (briefly, because Asher could roll around the house like a champ pretty young), slept for a good portion of the day, and was easily amused. Six months old is the age when moms foolishly begin to think, gosh, if this is what life as a mom is going to be like, I can handle another one. I could handle being pregnant and doing this, even. And then, about the time you get pregnant, they they begin to move. Anyway, I LOVED last summer. I love this one too, for different reasons, and as you all know, I absolutely love watching him learn to talk and do new things. But I do kind of miss six months old, and I'm excited that I'm about to get to do it again. We have a lot to look forward to.

* Macaroni and cheese. That's what I've been eating lately. Also, fresh peaches. Aside from grandparents, fresh local peaches are the best thing about living in Alabama again. Canned peaches, while tasty in their own right, have been so loaded down with sugar they should really be called The Candy Formerly Known as Peaches, and grocery store peaches taste like cardboard. But local peaches, after a rainy spring, are the best fruit ever. Asher and I together can easily put away four in a sitting (they're small, okay?). Brian has been gone more evenings than usual lately, and our dinner de jour has been macaroni and cheese, (fresh) green beans, and peaches. YUM.

* My niece flies in this weekend to spend her summer in town. Can you believe she is 13 years old and going into the 8th grade? Me neither. She is really excited to be here for Silas' birth, and she and Asher love each other (Asher talks about her all the time). I love her too, and can't wait to see her.

* Last night I woke up to contractions. I had them consistently for one hour before they stopped. They were significant enough to make me feel nauseous, but clearly they were not actual labor contractions or I would be holding a newborn right now. I didn't have false labor with Asher until the weekend before he was born, so the idea of doing that for the next month is new to me. I really wish I could call a meeting with my uterus, and explain that this child will need to be surgically removed, so there is absolutely no reason to be rehearsing for the big day. My muscles can just relax, already. Also, while the idea of no longer being pregnant is appealing, Silas needs to stay put at least another week or so. So, seriously, back off with the contractions.

* Speaking of - little boys and aggression, I swear. I have such a mild-mannered child, but that does not prevent us from having to address hitting, pushing, biting, and general aggression pretty regularly. He started hitting Taylor (and pulling his tail) a few weeks ago, so we told him to tell Taylor to "back off" if he's too close. I mean, the dog is still significantly larger than Asher and gets excited enough to wag his entire back end when we come home, and that back end can take Asher out. So. We were at our neighbor's house, and the other little boy was attempting to share a toy with Asher, and Asher started to hit him. I corrected him, of course, so he looks at the little boy and says, "Back off!" Yeah, I'm not sure how I feel about that. On one hand, an 18-month-old using language instead of aggression is definitely progress. On the other, perhaps we should have chosen a more appropriate phrase ...

* Brian, through no fault of his own, got to spend a night at the beach with one of his good friends yesterday for free. He was absolutely apologetic about it, as well he should be. He doesn't even LIKE the beach. I love it, and wanted so badly to go this spring (I've missed my window now), but it just didn't come together. At least if he liked it I could be happy for him to get to do something fun. Alas. Maybe we'll go this fall.

* I won a book about clowns, written by Diane Keaton, from a blog contest. And that, my friends, is the MOST random thing that has happened to me in a long time. I am pretty excited about the book, mostly because it's a good conversation starter. "Yes, I won it in a blog contest. Isn't that funny?"

What about you? What's the strangest thing you've ever won? What age do you miss? What fun trip is your spouse taking that you're missing this summer? What's your favorite fresh food? Pick a question, any question. It's time for All Things Random.