No Longer The Baby

We've had so many friends that have had babies lately, and it's been really fun. The weird thing is that it doesn't seem that long ago that Mason was a baby, now he's a little boy and growing so fast. This week we had a fun visit from one of Jonathan's best friends Chad, his wife Missy, and their sweet baby Peyton. Chad had to work so Missy and I got to hang out and have fun. Mason and I loved spending time with them and especially getting to love on baby Peyton. She was pretty close to perfect the whole time she was here! I was proud of Mason because he was sweet to Peyton and didn't really act that jealous. I feel blessed that I have such a good friend because of one of Jonathan's friends. Last week I got to keep my friend Sarah's baby Riley for the day. He's a good baby, and Mason and I had lots of fun with him. Mason even got to read to him a little bit--so sweet!

What A Day

OH, MY GOODNESS!!! This is definitely a long post with no pictures, but I just have to vent for a minute. I seriously think I just had the worst experience I have ever had with my child. Mason is by no means perfect, but he is a very happy and easy going child. The main exceptions are when he doesn't feel well or is really tired. Well, today I pushed the tired exception a little too far. Mason really needed a haircut, and I decided to take him today. I wanted to take him before his nap because I knew it would be a lot less busy. The only problem was that I tried to do too many things this morning before I took him, and we ended up at the hair place around his nap time. I semi-questioned it but didn't think it would be that big of a deal because he has never had issues with getting a haircut before. I could not have been more wrong! Mason started off sitting in the car chair, but he kept reaching for me and trying to climb out. I asked the lady if he could sit on my lap while she cut his hair and thought this would work. So she put a cape on me to, and I put Mason in my lap. I thought this would definitely be the solution--wrong again. She took one swipe of his hair with the clippers and Mason started screaming. I should have just gotten up right then and told her we would come back later, but I kept thinking it wouldn't be that bad. Wrong again--I guess I don't catch on very quickly. I seriously had to restrain Mason's hands and arms with most of my strength while holding him in a headlock for the entire haircut. To say the least, it was absolutely horrible! Fortunately there were no other people in there (maybe that should have been a hint that it was not a good time for a haircut). When it was over I profusely apologized to the lady, gave her a big tip, and ran out of the store. To make matters worse, I stuck to my guns and wouldn't let Mason have the sucker that he got when he first got there. He was crying so hard he couldn't catch his breath. I was so frustrated, but I also felt horrible. Mason had definitely misbehaved, but he was so tired it was like he could not help himself. I brought him straight home, put him to bed, and I am now trying to catch my breath and recover. The worst part is that I feel like I have set myself up for many more bad haircut experiences. I fear that even if I go at an appropriate time next time Mason will still be traumatized from his last experience, which was mainly my fault. I feel like such a wonderful mother right now. I guess you live, you learn. Oh, and by the way, after all of the drama I'm sure Mason probably has the worst haircut ever!

Our Little Monster

Halloween was great this year! Jonathan, Mason, and I went to Brad and Catherine's in Frisco for the night. Jonathan's parents were there, as well as Catherine's friend Melissa. We had pizza, then went trick or treating in their neighborhood. Mason loved it and kept saying "next house." He also wanted to knock on every door--even the ones that weren't home. He paid no attention to scary decorations or noises--he would still run right up there and say "trick or treat". At one house imparticular I thought he might be scared, but he kept trying to play with the talking skeleton. The impossible task once again was trying to capture at least a few good pictures. Fortuately I got a few. Now the impossible task is trying to hide the candy (as I am typing this he is standing by me saying, "I want my candy! I want my sucker!).

Amelia getting in some dancing before we left. She looked so cute!

Mason and Amelia walking to the door together--so sweet!

If you asked Mason what the blue monster says he would say "Roarrr!"--thanks for teaching him that, Aunt Julie, it was really cute!

Mason was so excited to get back to the house and shed his costume! Not exactly the coolest Halloween night and not exactly the coolest costume.

Overnight To Oklahoma

Mason and I left on Thursday to go to Oklahoma City to see my best friend Olivia's baby. She had baby Benjamin on Wednesday, and I was so anxious to see him. I got to spend some quality time with Liv and Benjamin, and my short trip was completely worth it. I can't wait to hold him again! Another bonus of the trip was that my mom and dad were there on Thursday so we got to eat dinner with them, Julie, Josh, and my aunt and uncle. My mom and dad drove up just for the day to see Mason and Josh--I think they miss them both just a little! My Aunt Holly also watched Mason for me so I could go to the hospital alone. Mason had a good time, and I got to hold the baby all I wanted. Thanks, Aunt Holly!

Halloween Pregame

We've already been to 2 church festivals and a school Halloween party, and Halloween is still 4 days away. Oh, and we have a small group Halloween party on Wednesday night. By the time Friday night comes Mason is going to be a pro at eating a bunch of candy and wearing his costume. Here are some pictures after school today. He is wearing a pair of sunglasses he got in his treat bag. He has taken good care of them by keeping them in Jonathan's glasses case.a

Arboreteum

Mason and I went to the Dallas Arboreteum with Aunt Catherine and Cousin Amelia (pronounced Amima by Mason because he can't say his "L's" very well) on Friday. We had a picnic and let the kids run around while we tried to get a few good pics. It was a fun day!

Climbing and jumping on the hay was Mason's favorite part of the day.

Fall Break and a Weekend Full of Zoos

My parents and my sister came last week during their Fall Break to visit us. I had to teach on Thursday so they kept Mason for me. I felt bad leaving them, but I don't think I was the main reason for their visit anyway! They took Mason to lunch and then to the park to play. By the time I got home Mason was completely worn out and asleep.

My mom let Mason put mascara on while she was putting her make-up on. He loved it and now he throws a fit because I won't let him do the same thing. Thanks, Mom!
Zoo #1: On Friday my family and I decided to go the the Fort Worth Zoo. It was great, and we had such a good time! I think the thing I was most impressed with was the Primate Exhibit. Usually you go into a stinky, cramped room and look through the glass in order to get an akward glance at a gorilla and that is if you are lucky. This was just the opposite. There was tons of trees, waterfalls, and rocks and you could see all of the monkeys and gorillas so easily. There were also so many of them, and you could watch them play and interact with each other. So cool! Anyway it was a great day and we left completely worn out.

Mason's favorite was the penguins. He loved watching them swim.

Zoo #2: Jonathan did not go with us on Friday so when we were discussing what we wanted to do on Saturday he suggesting riding the train to the Dallas Zoo. He has a pass that he uses to go to work and it only cost $3 for my ticket. Anyway, I thought Mason would really like the train ride so I was all for it. Why not go the zoo twice in one weekend? Mason loved the train, and he also had fun at the children's zoo which they don't have at the zoo in Fort Worth. Okay, so we are on our way home, worn out and anxious to put Mason down for a nap. We are almost to our stop when we realize that both sets of our keys are in my purse which is locked in the trunk. Eventhough I was soooo frustrated and tired, everything ended up working out okay. We checked the bus schedule and it was coming in fifteen minutes. This was perfect considering it only comes once an hour on the weekends. We waited and rode it home then Jonathan had to ride the bus back to get my car (We didn't have an extra key to his car). The buses are a tad skanky, but it wasn't too bad. Jonathan said I got the full DART experience--I'm so glad! Crazy day, but it could have been a lot worse!

Kissing the gorilla on the lips. No germs I'm sure.