Another busy Saturday

We were on the go non-stop this weekend!  Friday night, we went to dinner with the Scotts - Casa Ole!  Yummy!  We haven't been out together in a while, so it was nice to catch up!  It turns out that Mason prefers the red sauce...

while Lewis prefers the green sauce.

On Saturday, we hung out at Grammy and Grandpa's house.  Mason watched some TV...

...played some piano with Uncle Steven...

...and just looked darn adorable in his new Old Navy shirt!

After a nice long nap, we went to Mamma's for Cailey's birthday party.  We didn't get any pictures with Cailey, but we did get to see cousin Tennie, looking very stylish in her pretty purple top!

After the party, we made a quick trip to the park because it was SO gorgeous outside!  Mason liked the swing much better this time, and he cracked me up when he flung himself forward in the seat.

Look how gorgeous it is outside!  Love it!  And of course, we have to get the shot with mom.  You can even see my arm in my sunglasses!  =)

What a lovely weekend!  There's another one coming up in T - 5 days!

SNOW DAY!

Today, something very unexpected happened!  The weathermen have been saying it for a few days, but no one believes the weathermen around here anymore, at least not when it comes to. . .

SNOW!

Now some of my friends who live in or have visited other parts of the country probably think we're all silly down here...we get a couple inches of snow, and we all freak out!  But when you grow up and never see it like this, it's amazing.  It's beautiful.  And fortunately, we don't experience it enough for it to become a nuisance. 

It started this morning while I was doing car duty at school.  That's right...I had duty. Outside.  While it was sleeting and snowing and oh-so-cold.  I thought it would be awful, but it was actually really fun to watch the kids faces as they got out of their cars, seeing something that many of them have never seen before.  At least not like this!

My fourth graders were out of their minds all day.  My classroom doesn't have windows, which turned out to be a blessing today, but any time they got a peek outside, they lost it!  Finally, around 10:30, I took them outside.  They loved it. 

They dismissed school early because, well, Central Texans don't really know how to drive in snow, and I'm sure everyone figured the snow would be more enjoyable from the safety of their own yard. 

I am one of the few that will admit that driving in this kind of weather scares me.  My wonderful husband knew I was worried, and he came to my school, cleaned off and started my car, and waited almost an hour for me to dismiss my kids.

(Side note, Parents:  PLEASE pick up your kids on time.  Especially on a SNOW day when I can't wait to get home to my boys!)

We went and picked Mason up from Alisha's and came home for a nice long nap.  Then we got all bundled up

And we ventured outside for some snow fun!

Mason wasn't sure what to think of the snowflakes falling on his face...

He may have been wondering why we got him all bundled up just for this...

But I'm certain

that if he has the opportunity...

he will grow to love snow days...

just like his Daddy. 

Marvelous Monday!

And why, you ask, is it a marvelous Monday?  I don't really know!  Nothing huge has happened, I just feel like today is one of those days that is just flowing! 

• Mason slept until 5:00 this morning, took a bottle and went right back to sleep.  It's AMAZING how much better one feels with adequate sleep!
• My hair didn't do the funky flip out thing when I fixed it this morning.  AND I've gotten tons of complements on my new do.  Call me vain but I LOVE that people notice!
• My dear husband made me LOL, literally (that's right, I said LOL).  When asked how Mason's diaper rash looked this morning, he replied (through text) that it looked "partially baboonified."  Now mind you, it is not at all funny that my precious boy has such a terrible diaper rash, but I love that my husband can turn it around and make me giggle!
• My first class was unusually calm...strange how one less student can make that happen!
• I learned a new way to teach elapsed time to my 4th graders, and I think they got it!
• Leftover homemade mac & cheese for lunch, need I say more?
• Cupcakes in the teacher's lounge and juuuuust enough iced tea left for me!
• And best of all...in TWO hours I get to leave this place and go see my baby boy and my baby daddy! 

Oh my goodness...did I really just say baby daddy?  I wonder what they put in those cupcakes...

Hair Cut!!

No silly, not Mason!  I won't cut those beautiful blond locks until his daddy makes me! 

It was Mama who got a hair cut!  It has been SOOO long since my last hair cut (August!) and it felt so good to be pampered for a few minutes.  I just have to say that Becky at Sanjazl's is my hero!!  I wish she would come to my house every morning to fix my hair!

Anyway, here's my before picture:

And here's the after!

And I always feel amazingly photogenic for a few hours after Becky works her magic, so here are some pictures of me and Mason goofing around!

What is up with that tongue?!?

I think my uvula is showing.

Uh oh!

There's that tongue again!

Thank you Becky for making me feel pretty!

Cute Cousins!

Mason's BFF and favorite cousin is Miss Tennie Belle.  She is one of the cutest darn things ever (second only to my bouncing [crawling, almost walking] bundle of joy.)  =)  She is very photogenic and is so very adorable.  I am certain that she will spend much of her young life tormenting little Mason, but I'm sure he will always be the perfect gentleman in return.  (Insert sarcasm font.)  I do hope that they are always good friends and I am so glad that they have each other to grow up with!

The oh-so-affectionate headbutt.  (It really is affectionate, and very cute!)

Mason is getting kisses...he looks reeeaal excited about it too, dontcha think?

"See Tennie, what you do is stick your finger nail in it real hard, and it makes the coolest sound!"

"Uh...Mason...you're on my FOOT!"

Ahhh, I heart babies.  <3

Happy Valentine's Day

Roses and candy are nothing compared to my Valentine's Day present.  Who could ask for anything more?

Happy Valentine's Day!

Bad Mommy Moment #6,188

I let my kid play with plastic bags:

They make the coolest sound, and they taste pretty good too...

And Bad Mommy Moment #6,189:

I let my kid chew on sneakers.

He has alllll these toys (and many more)

But all he wants is a nice, rubbery tennis shoe. 

There are worse things, right?

2010 Handbook

I got this in an email today and thought it was great!  These are definitely some words to remember!

1. Drink plenty of water.
2. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a beggar.

3. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and less food that is manufactured in plants..

4. Live with the 3 E's -- Energy, Enthusiasm and Empathy

5. Make time to pray.

6. Play more games

7. Read more books than you did in 2009 .

8. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day

9. Sleep for 7 hours.

10. Take a 10-30 minutes’ walk daily. And while you walk, smile.

11. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

12. Don't have negative thoughts or things you cannot control. Instead invest your energy in the positive present moment.

13. Don't overdo. Keep your limits.

14. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

15. Don't waste your precious energy on gossip.

16. Dream more while you are awake

17. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need..

18. Forget issues of the past. Don't remind your partner with His/her mistakes of the past. That will ruin your present happiness.

19. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone. Don't hate others.

20. Make peace with your past so it won't spoil the present.

21. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.

22. Realize that life is a school and you are here to learn. Problems are simply part of the curriculum that appear and fade away like algebra class but the lessons you learn will last a lifetime.

23. Smile and laugh more.

24. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree...

25. Call your family often.

26. Each day give something good to others.

27. Forgive everyone for everything.

28. Spend time w/ people over the age of 70 & under the age of 6.

29. Try to make at least three people smile each day.

30. What other people think of you is none of your business.

31. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch.

32. Do the right thing!

33. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.

34. GOD heals everything.

35. However good or bad a situation is, it will change..

36. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.

37. The best is yet to come..

38. When you awake alive in the morning, thank GOD for it.

39. Your Inner most is always happy. So, be happy.

40. Tell the ones you love how you feel.

Have I mentioned?

Have I mentioned how awesome our babysitters are?  Have I mentioned how very lucky we are to be able to leave our little boy and know he is with people who love him?  Allow me to mention it now.  We have the best babysitters!  (Although babysitter sounds like a 16 year old girl...maybe I should say child care provider?)  My grandma keeps Mason on Mondays and Wednesdays.  Mason loves her so much, and I know the feeling is mutual.  Mamma's not a big fan of taking pictures, but here's one I have of them together:

How precious!  He was just a sweet little bundle then!

Our other "child care provider" is Alisha, my cousin Josh's wife.  She is so great with Mason!  He loves being with her and her 5 year old, Jared.  They do lots of fun stuff, like going for walks, spending time with other kids, and going shopping.  Here are a few pictures of Mason having fun at Alisha's house!

Playing with the dishes!  How fun!

Mason with his little friend Drew.

Looks like he's eating a cheeseburger!

Stickin' out that tongue!

All tuckered out after a long day!

We are so blessed to have such an awesome family that is so willing to keep and love our sweet little man!

What a Beautiful Saturday!

The weather around here has been crummy lately!  It's been cold and rainy and miserable, and we've all be wishing for a little bit o' sunshine.  Well today we finally got it!  It was so pretty outside, we decided we needed to go to the park! 

Mason enjoyed the swing a little bit more this time.

After some fun on the swing, we went through the tunnel!

Then we basked in the warm sunshine.

Thank goodness Uncle Steven was there with his camera to capture every moment of the fun!  (Seriously, he's good.  You should hire him.)

Next Mason got to go down the slide for the first time.  At first, he wasn't quite sure what to think about it...

But with a little help, he warmed up pretty fast...

After the slide, we just goofed around a little bit...

And had some more fun...

We are so thankful for beautiful days and fun times! 

10 Months!

Dear Mason,
Yesterday you turned 10 months old.  You were sick with a cold on your "birthday", so we didn't do anything except stay at home and relax.  I say it all the time, and I know people tire of my lamentations, but I just cannot believe that you are already 10 months old.  In just two short months, we will be celebrating your first birthday!  Part of me is sad that you are growing up so fast - those days of napping together on the couch for hours are over, and I always wonder if I cherished those moments enough.

But while I have sad moments, they are far outweighed by the happy moments.  You are becoming your own little person with your own little personality, and I love watching you grow up.  Sometimes you are shy - for a long time people wondered if you ever smiled or "talked", but just give them a few minutes to know you, and they fall in love too.  Once you know someone, you are able to wrap them around your little finger so fast.  You talk like crazy - "mama" "dada" "baba" "uh-oh" and lots of other things that you still have to teach us, and you even wave at people you love when we leave them.  Alisha is teaching you how to blow kisses, and (Mr.) Steven is teaching you how to high-five.  You learn so fast that we can barely keep up with you! 

You pull up on furniture now, and cruise all over the place.  Nothing in our little house is safe anymore, especially little Molly!  Sometimes she's not quite sure what to think of your mobility and your ear-pulling, but she loves you anyway.  I think she wishes you would cuddle with her sometimes, but you're too busy for cuddling!  Your daddy and I have joked about having everything taken out of the living room except maybe a padded wall to keep you from bumping your head so many times, but I'm pretty sure your head is hard enough to handle it!  We definitely see a stubborn streak in you from time to time, but you come by it honestly - with the family you have, we would expect nothing less!  When you grow up, I hope you use that stubborness to stand up for what is good and right, I pray that I am up for the task of teaching you to do that.

Your favorite foods are cheerios and Mum-mums, and we're giving you lots of other tastes too - pancakes, malto-meal, eggs, pretty much anything we're eating.  Your favorite toys are the things you can't or shouldn't have - power cords, laptops, remote controls, grandpa's cell phone (which he lets you have because he just can't resist!)

We think you're getting ready for another tooth or two...sometimes in the evening you're just not happy, and we don't always know how to make it better, but I hope you know that we're trying.  Being a mommy or a daddy is hard, but you are worth every hard moment.  We love you so very much, and I hope that you remember that forever.

Here are some pictures of you on your 10 month birthday (and the day before.)  Even though you didn't feel good, you were a trooper and tolerated mama's flash yet again!

Alisha got you this adorable lion hat!  You are so scary!  RAWR!!

I know you're a scary lion, but don't eat your finger!

My sweet drooly boy! You're all smiles, even though you don't feel good!

Kid, Mommy definitely thinks you're cool!  You are the coolest kid I know!

Love,
Mama