We have wheels

Mason has a new found freedom...he has wheels. He's learned that the world is great in motion. We've taken him outside and that is where he prefers to go wheeling. But he will take any time he gets in his walker. He's also getting crazy good at chasing us.


Mason is also very curious about what lies behind closed doors, but isn't so curious to start pulling open those cabinet doors. He just rolls up and taps them with his finger. He will however run across the kitchen when we open the fridge. He is quite mesmerized by what's behind that door.


Along with Mason's wheeling-freedom has also come the painful realization that I have a shadow and I must where shoes when I have that shadow. I've been in the kitchen and had Mason bang into my bare heels several times. He is so proud of himself to arrive at his intended target, but my heels are taking a beating. These actions have lead me to apologize to my mother once again for my own behavior as a child. You see, I was famous for running into her heels with the shopping cart. She's received many apologies since I've become a parent.

Double trip to Choke Canyon

We have been having some amazing weather the past few days, so we decided to capitalize on it. This past Sunday (Valentine's Day) we had a visit from Grandmommy and Cranky in the afternoon. I use the word we VERY LOOSELY, the main attraction of every visit is Mason. JP called them before they drove down and told Bill to bring his camera and be ready to drive to Choke Canyon for an afternoon drive. We had a great time. Mason loved being outside and even sat on Mommy's lap while driving in the park. We saw lots of birds and a few deer that were bedded down for the afternoon.

When Monday rolled around, I dropped Mason off at Granny Leigh's and got a call from Mom. Long story short, she called for a "Girl Day." A Girl Day is a day when Mom, Maureen and I skip our usual routine and enjoy some outdoor time and each other's company. When we finally gathered together, we decided to head down to Choke Canyon for a day in the wilderness. Again, the weather was gorgeous and we were looked forward to a great time together.
We had the best time. We laughed so hard and probably scared some wildlife if not some of the other people in the state park. We took just about every trail we could find. I ran the numbers in my head (because that is what I do) and we walked over 3.5 miles that afternoon. And we had several opportunities to take some great pictures of the deer and turkey.

Both trips to Choke Canyon were so rejuvenating. After Monday, I felt like life was in balance again. It's amazing how healing nature can be.

Making progress

It's been a while since I've commented on Mason's progress...is that any indication as to how we are doing?!?! We are still working on his crawling skills. He's figured out how to wiggle backwards. As a matter of fact, he's gotten real good at finding his way under the furniture.


He's still such a content child...he can play with his toys on the floors for hours and be happy as a clam. His curiosity dial hasn't been cranked up, which may be keeping him stationery. He's also doing better with his balance. He squeals when offered the opportunity to walk. He gets the biggest smile on his face and walks with great purpose.


He is getting to spend the day with his cousin Layton twice a week. Granny Leigh gets the boys on Monday and Grammy D gets the boys on Thursday. Every time Mason sees Layton, he squeals with delight...someone different to play with that is his size and caliber.

And he is loosing his baby-looks. I've had so many comment on that fact the past few weeks. We are really starting to see the little boy he will become in his face and body now. He clearly has his daddy's sense of humor...loves to make you laugh. He's picked up on the fact that laughter begets laughter, so he's started to do a "fake" laugh and look at JP or I to see how we will respond. Those wheels in his brain are forever turning.

And a funny side note. I watch the morning news when feeding him in the morning. When the local news comes on, they have a little jingle that signals when the weather forecast is coming on. When he hears that, Mason stops whatever he is doing and looks directly at the TV from his highchair and "watches" the weather forecast. He won't break his gaze until the weather discussion is over...amazing!

Wedding Cake

My step-sister Tamara got married this past weekend. As a wedding gift to the couple, I volunteered to tackle the wedding cake. It's been a few years since I've done such a large baking project, but I really did have fun doing it.

At one point when I was baking cake after cake, JP thought he'd come home to a crazy baker, but he was a great help. And as with any project I tackle, there was a bit of drama as I'm finishing it off. Icing always throws you a curve ball when you aren't looking. After working some baking magic, I got the icing to cooperate and I'm really proud of the end product.

A sea of spice cake. This was the point of no return!!

The layers assembled and dirty iced. The largest layer (16") required my baking assistant. Thank God he is a calming force in my life because me man-handled that top layer to get it sandwiched.

The bride LOVES purple, so I went on a mad hunt for purple cake decorations. I found the coolest M&M's that fit the bill. These are the premium M&M's that are called Triple Chocolate. They had the prettiest finish and the variations of color made for a beautiful border around the cakes. While lovely, it was a tedious task.

Finished layers. And I couldn't have done it without JP. He served as bartender (notice the beer stein in the picture...he kept it full) and "holiday" finder. Let me explain. He'd survey the finished cake and alert me to any "holidays" in the icing coverage (man-speak for "the cake is still showing"). I think he was amazed to watch the process unfold in his kitchen.

FINAL ASSEMBLY!!! I was so glad to have it finished and looking great. And it was moist and tasted great as well...BONUS!!

9 months old

January 15th marked the 9 month mark for Mason. He now has two teeth, although he is suffering from lock-jaw, when mom sticks a finger in to check the progress of their growth or try to take a picture. I will say he loves the clicking sound they make on a plastic cup when he drinks, but he has suffered horribly from several tongue-biting sessions.

We are starting, in earnest, the oh-so-messy process of letting him feed himself. And know that I use that term loosely. It's more an act of wearing his food rather than consuming, but we are trudging through. Momma does a little trick of giving him a baby spoon full of food, place it on his tray to work with and then sneak in a larger spoon full of food to eat while he connects his spoon to his mouth. And just like both parents, he is oh-so stubborn...he can do it himself, thank you very much.

We are also mastering the sippy cup. He has totally figured out how to suck the liquid through the mouth piece and is a HUGE fan of ice water and cold milk. But he is thoroughly convinced that he shouldn't hold the cup himself. Screams in fact when we try to make him hold the handles and drink. I left the cup on his high-chair tray the other day and he leaned over, put his mouth on the cup and sucked air. Like I said, he knows what to do, he's just stubborn to try what mom and dad suggest...is this telling of our future with this little big man?!?!

Mason is also enjoying, and benefiting, from additional time with Layton. The boys get two days a week together. As a matter of fact, he squeals when Clifton brings Layton in the room, offering baby hugs/kisses when Layton is set beside him. And he's learning to move around much more after watching Layton. Mason is just so layed back that crawling is just not on his radar. He'd rather have us walk him around the room. We are still working on the crawling (knowing that each kid will do what they choose to do, WHEN they choose to do it), but after some time with Layton, he has renewed interest in getting around on his hands and knees.

And speaking of Little Big Man, we continues to grow. After his recent 9 month well-check visit, his stats are:
Weight: 24 pounds (90% of his age bracket)
Height: 30.25 inches (95% of his age bracket)
Shoes: size 5 (far bigger than his counterparts)
Clothes: 12-18 months

Here are some recent photos of our little peanut.

Taste test

I don't know how else to introduce this video clip. This is hands-down the funniest video you will see today, and it's not just because I'm partial to the participants.

Mom's helper

So it's only natural that Mason would want to "help" me throughout the day since we have a lot of time together. But as I work on the laptop, he is so eager to tap the keys like mom. I was on the floor the other day doing double-duty...bookkeeping and playing with Mason. He scooted in my direction started whacking the keyboard. Let's just say it's a good thing QuickBooks has a feature that registers an entry with an audible ding...I was able to reverse what Mr. Helper entered.

Later in the week, JP caught Mason and I checking email while on the loveseat. He's such a ham when it comes a camera.

He's going up so fast. He'll be 9 months old tomorrow. He's cut his first tooth, is repeating all kinds of sounds and syllables that we throw at him and he's decided to bypass crawling for walking. About two weeks ago, he'd fuss like crazy when he was sitting down. So I'd offer my hands and he'd pull himself up and start taking steps. So now we are wrapping a towel around his chest and holding that to guide and balance him as he steps. He's still not sure what to do with his arms but he'd rather we walking than playing on the floor...life as we know it is changing daily. We are still working on the crawling but he is certainly taking after his momma in this department.