Merry Christmas!

I know I haven't been around the blogging world lately...life has just been keeping me so busy these days; I can't imagine why!

I did want to stop in and say hi and wish everyone a very Merry Christmas! Oh, and share some photos of the kids with Santa...as you can obviously see, Mason was not all that thrilled with visiting the man in the red suit. Come to think of it, Mason is like that with most people these days, until he warms up...unfortunately, there was no warming up to Santa.

David gave in and decided to try to get a quick shot of Mason not screaming...didn't work too well, either. Oh well, every kid needs a shot like this in their baby book!

At least my older two kids enjoyed their visit!

I hope you are enjoying your holiday season and promise that I will be back around soon (for the 3 people that still read this)...


See you soon!

Ten Months

I know I say this every month, but I cannot believe it has been another month. Mason, you are now 10 months old! I just can't believe how fast time is flying lately.

Let's see what you've been up to; you've had a very big month.

• You weigh 21 pounds, 2 ounces and are 28 inches long; 50th percentile for both areas now.



• You are still wearing 12 month clothes. I have even been buying some 18 month onesies because of how long you seem to be.


• Mason, you have 2 teeth now!! They both came through on the same day; which explains why were so cranky for awhile and had a horrible diaper rash...all is better now.


• You are walking now; and I don't mean taking steps, you are walking from room to room and now that you are vertical, you can see more of what is on top of tables and desks. That means, that you are into even more now; you can see more so you get into it. It seems like I am always telling you no.


• Again, now that you are vertical, you figured out how to open the kitchen cabinets. Luckily, I don't put anything dangerous in the bottom cabinets, so I just let you get into them when I am in the kitchen. You love to play in the cabinet with all of the Tupperware. When I am doing dishes, you pull out a bunch of containers and stack them inside each other...mental note, Santa is looking for stackable cups for you for Christmas!


• We have upgraded you from your infant carrier to a big boy car seat! (Especially since the infant carrier only held up to 22 pounds)! You seem to enjoy the big car seat because you can sit up and see more, and see Allison and Preston in the back seat better now. Lately, though, you haven't wanted to be in your car seat, mostly because you don't like to sit still!


• We have also started giving you baths in the big bath tub; no more baby bath tub. It was getting too difficult with you trying to pull yourself up and reaching for anything around the kitchen sink...so I tried the big bath tub and you love it. Of course, you are pulling yourself up constantly and are always standing up when I am trying to wash you, which does make it easier for me, but I am so worried you are going to slip and hurt yourself.


• You did not like stage 3 baby food. Maybe because of the texture, but maybe because 9 times out of 10 you want to feed yourself. Because you don't have a lot of teeth, I have been very careful of trying new foods; we are so afraid you are going to choke. I can give you stage 2 food now and then, and you like yogurt and pudding (sugar-free of course) so you are getting something in your stomach. You will still let me feed you mashed potatoes because those are your favorite. Yesterday, you even ate a grilled cheese sandwich! I cut the pieces into tiny bites and you fed yourself. Oh, and you love scrambled eggs, too. Pretty soon you will be eating what the rest of us are eating every night.



• We have finally gotten you into a more normal bed routine. It's been hard because daddy is still laid off so he's home with you most days and you are not on a regular schedule for feedings and naps. But, you seem to be going to bed around the same time every night, between 8:30 - 9:00 pm and are sleeping through the night, sometimes until 8:00 or 8:30 in the morning. You take the best naps when you are sleeping on mommy or daddy's chest. Yes, I know that is not the most desirable place for getting you into a normal routine, but we love it and it makes us take the time to sit and cuddle with you. But, you are a very hot baby and sweat horribly...ha!



• This week you will celebrate your first Christmas; I am so excited! Not that I think you will even want to open gifts, but just by being there with us as we go through our holiday traditions, and most importantly by completing our family.

We all love you so much. We love watching you learn every day and grow up to be such a wonderful little boy. Happy 10 month birthday baby boy!

Nine Months

Wow, another month has flown by. Mason you have been alive in this world outside of my womb as long as you were inside. Before we know it, you will be a year old already.

For now, let's see what you've been up to.

• You are still wearing 12 month clothes. You still have some 9 month clothes that fit you, but not the pants, you are going to be a tall boy!


• You are still in size 3 diapers, they fit you great


• I'm guessing you are about 20 pounds now; you go for your next check-up in two weeks.


• You love food! You eat anything that we give you. You are becoming way too independent though, you like to feed yourself, so we are having a hard time feeding you baby food these days



• You still don't have any teeth, but that is not stopping you at all


• You can drink out of a sippy cup now and love orange juice (even though I water it down).


• You walk along furniture all the time and stand unassisted for long periods of time now



• You can take 2-3 steps now before you fall down and love walking from the foot stool to the couch; you will be walking by next month, I know it.


• You are sleeping through the night again, hallelujah!


• You say da-da very well and say it ALL the time; I've been trying to get you to say ma-ma, but you laugh and say da-da instead. However, you do call me da-da, too, so I forgive you. Ha!


• You can crawl up the stairs now! And, you move quick. We have learned that we have to block off the stairs because you will not stay down if you are in a room with stairs, even though no one is usually upstairs.


• You love to play with Legos, although I think you like to eat them more than play, you always crawl towards the Lego table (unless the stairs are not blocked off!)


• Mason, you are getting into EVERYTHING! Nothing is safe if it is in your reach and you put everything in your mouth. It is definitely an incentive for me to keep the house clean.

Mason, I thank God for you all the time. You and your siblings are the best thing that ever happened to me and I can't wait to see the kid you turn out to be. I love you sweet baby boy!

Eight Months

Oh my, I can't believe another month has gone by. My sweet baby Mason is now 8 months old.

Let's see what you are doing this month, Mason!

• You are now wearing 12 month clothes; I can still get you into a few 6-12 month outfits, but they are getting short. 9 month clothes fit you, but are stretched, you are definitely getting taller by the day.


• You have been moved up to size 3 diapers now, which fit you much better than the 2's.


• You are drinking formula exclusively now as you just finished off the last of the frozen milk I had stored for you. But, you don't seem to mind, as long as you are eating, you are happy.


• You enjoy food very much. You eat cereal with fruit twice a day and then a 2 jars of food for dinner. You LOVE mashed potatoes and gravy. I've even let you try spaghetti with meat sauce and you ate every bite; I couldn't feed you fast enough. Even though you still don't have any teeth, you are getting along just fine. Oh, and you love yogurt, too!


• You are still crawling and getting into everything, you are just faster now.



• You are starting to walk along furniture more and are even getting brave enough to let go and stand for a few quick seconds every now and then. This weekend we put you in a walker for the first time and you can move very fast!



• You can throw your arms up when someone says "BIG BOY" and you laugh and smile. You get bored though if we do it too many times in a row.


• You still like to clap to patty-cake and wave when we say "bye-bye".


• You went to your first wedding this week (cousin Kelly) and were such a well-behaved baby. You were quiet during the ceremony and happy at the reception (in said walker). Oh, and you looked SO cute in your shirt, tie and vest; everyone kept calling you "little Baby Capone".


• You have been sleeping better at night this week, despite the fact that you have another cold. You sleep better during the day when you are being held or in your jumperoo at the sitter's house, yes, you fall asleep in the upright position; it's way too cute!


• You are starting to talk and make noises more; even "singing" as we call it.


• You are very laid back and easily adapt to any situation or environment, as long as you are with mom or dad. We can take you anywhere and you are content. You are great even at restaurants, as long as we have Cheerios, puffs, or crackers for you to gnaw on while we wait for our food.


• You love to follow your sister and brother anywhere you can; as long as they don't touch you and try to hold you or keep you from getting into something. They make you laugh out loud all the time; we love the sound of your laughter.

Mason, the past 8 months have been a joy with you in our lives. I didn't realize our family was missing something until you came into this world. We all love you so much and enjoy watching you grow every day. You truly are a blessed little boy and we are blessed because of you.

Back to Blogging

I promise...I am going to try to make a real effort to get back to blogging on a more regular basis. I've been so busy and had so many things to blog about, but not had the time to do the typing. I want to. I just can't seem to fit it into the day anymore.

It's taken me quite awhile, but my brain has found it's way back to work while I'm sitting at my desk. I used to start my blogs at work and then add pictures and post them when I got home. But, lately, I've found myself more focused while at work and doing the things I'm actually supposed to be doing.

Rest assured, we are all healthy and well. We are just a busy family of five. Summer has ended, school has started, soccer began and Mason is crawling, just to name a few of thing things that have been occupying our time.

Please stay tuned, I will be posting many pictures from things we have done in the past two months that have been keeping us so busy.

Thanks for your patience.

7 Months

Mason...I can't believe another month has flown by. You are now 7 months old! (for those of you who read my blog, ignore the fact that I haven't posted in a long, long time)!

Let's see what you are doing now; you have learned a lot this month:

• You weighed in at 17 pounds 13 ounces at your 6 month check-up, and were 26 1/2 inches long. You are longer than you are heavy...so you look very skinny.
  
• You now eat 3 or 4 jars of baby food every day and cereal once or twice; you are a great eater!



• You are crawling for real now, not just the army crawl or scooting, but actually crawling everywhere.



• You are getting into everything now, and crawl faster when someone is after you!



• You are pulling yourself up already; trying to walk along furniture and trying to grab everything on every table; we are in so much trouble.




• You have been camping for the first time this past month. For Labor Day weekend, we went camping, in a pop-up camper and you had a blast.



• Mason, you are a great baby, very happy and always smiling or laughing.

• You can say 'da-da' now, and say it all the time.
• You started waving and clapping (patty-cake) this month, too.


• You have been sick for the first time this past week and are now on antibiotics for the first time ever, but you love the Amoxicillin, take it like a champ.


• You play and interact with us so much more nowadays; Allison and Preston just adore you!

Mason, you have brought so much joy into our lives and make everyone around you happy. You are an easy-going happy baby whom we all love so very much. Before we know it, you will be running around the house and tearing everything apart; I can't believe how fast you are growing! We love you so much.

Six Months

Mason, as I type these words, I cannot believe you are 6 months old already. You have been in this world for half a year already; time is flying by!

Let's see what you have been up to these days.

• You are getting so big; you seem bigger every day. You go for your 6 month check-up next week, but my guess is that you are about 18 or 19 pounds. Almost too big for your baby carrier!
• You are in the middle of a package of size 2 diapers. I am thinking we will be moving you up to size 3 the next time we buy diapers.
• You are still wearing size 6 months and 6-9 months clothes. I can squeeze you into a few 3-6 month onesies for bedtime.
• We just introduced formula for the first time; mixing it in with your usual breast-milk bottles and you drink it just as quickly and quietly as ever. You haven't even acted like anything has changed! Next we will be introducing a sippy cup!
• You are a great eater. You eat baby cereal with fruit for breakfast and follow-up with a bottle and then eat a half of a jar (step 2) of fruit for lunch and then follow that up with a bottle. You have an entire jar of step 2 baby food for dinner (You love Apples & Chicken or Chicken Noodle) and then usually follow it with nursing afterwards. You also love trying new things in your mesh-feeder. Your favorite so far is a freezer-pop. You love to suck all the juice out of it, but it keeps you quiet while the rest of us eat dinner.
• You don't have any teeth yet, but you are drooling and chewing like crazy. We can see the teeth under your gums...any day one is going to pop through.
• You started waking up in the middle of the night to eat, so I think you have just gone through a growth spurt. I now nurse you and then follow-up with a bottle at night, just to be sure you are full and content; you started sleeping through the night again. Yay!
• You are sitting up now! You can't get into a sitting position on your own, yet. But, if I sit you down, you do sit and play for a few minutes before falling over and flipping over to your tummy.

• You are trying to crawl so badly. You get up on your hands and knees and rock back and forth. You haven't mastered the art of moving your hands or knees just yet, but each day you get braver!



• You are getting better about having other people hold you now. Usually, as long as you can see mommy or daddy you are ok, but this past Saturday we went to a wedding and you stayed home with a new babysitter (and Allison and Preston) and were fine. You didn't cry and had no issues for the sitter, I was so relieved!
• You love to bounce. You have a jumperoo at the every-day babysitter's house and you love to be in it and jump. You jump in your exersaucer and when I am holding you; and you laugh, you are so funny.
• You laugh out loud all the time now and have said "ma" once or twice...just a matter of time! But, I still think you say "Hi" all the time.
• You started waving last week, too! We have to say "Hi" about 1,000 times but eventually you start waving, with your right hand, and usually in your own direction, but it is the cutest thing.
• You love to go for walks in your stroller. You love to sit up and check out the scenery, it doesn't matter where we go, as long as you can sit up and look around.


• Everyone in our house loves you so much. You bring so much joy into our lives.



• You love watching your big sister and brother and laugh at them all the time.

Before I know it, you will be a year old already...I can't wait to see what kind of child you turn out to be, but I do love every minute with you as a baby!