Celebrating the 4th of July!

I am back in the game with this blogging stuff. As you know by now, I am not as dedicated with this as some of you are, but I will do my best to keep up. Mason is 19 months now and so much fun! He is such a big helper in many different ways, even when he is not really helping. It is amazing to see his mind at work. It seems that each day he is saying a new word. This age is lots of fun, but I know it keeps getting better.

This morning we were in a 4th of July parade that Mike's parents' neighborhood put on. We decorated Mason's red car up with streamers, flags, wire stars, and coke cans dragging behind the car. Unfortunately, it was so windy that my dad (Pops) had to cut the coke cans off because they got wrapped around the back right tire as soon as the parade got underway. It was the thought that counted. There was no prize for the most decorated car, but if there was, Mason would have won! It was pretty hot and Mason's allergies just started acting up yesterday, so he was not in the best of moods. In fact, he did not even want to ride in his car, which is a first. So we all took turns carrying him down the various streets of the sub-division. Mallory (Mason's cousin) decided that she should sit in his car because she was tired of walking and he was not about to use it. Towards the end of the parade, Mason decided that he had had enough of the sun, so Nonny (Mike's mom) took him back to Poppy's (Mike's dad) truck in the air conditioning. If you noticed, that is the only picture that Mason is smiling in. Poppy was never too far away because we were not sure how any of the grandkids would do for the length of the parade. All in all, we had fun and this will go down in the scrapbook as one of our many memories we make as a family!

I hope today was as memorable for you as it was for us. Happy 4th of July and I hope you enjoy the fireworks!

Rachel

Happy Birthday Daddy!

What a SWEET boy!

Pictures are in the wrong order...this is the aftermath! Look at those spikes!

Mason's 1st haircut! He is such a big boy.

Mason's 1st Wylie football game! He even has a jersey to wear with his daddy's old number.

"Sister's Trip '08" Mason was happy to be along for the ride. He likes new adventures!

Alexis, me, and Estee in Flordia together.

Mike turned the BIG 3-0 today! Mason and I sang to him as soon as he got up this morning. We are celebrating with our families this weekend, but the three of us are going to Buffalo Wild Wings tonight for dinner and then to Cold Stone ice cream for dessert. That is going to be a treat for us becuase we have been doing so good eating at home.

The big fair came to town in September, so had to take Mason! He did really well! We ate there first, then we bought some overpriced tickets and Mason rode a few rides with Mike or myself. Mason smiled almost the entire time we were there!

A few weeks later, Aunt Alexis (my oldest sister), Mason, and I went to Florida to visit Aunt Estee (my other sister) and Uncle Taris for a few days. It was Mason's first experince at the beach and I think he liked it. We really did not get in the water, just sat on the edge and let the water come to us. I forgot how sandy it gets and I could tell it was bothering Mason, so we got in the bathtub as soon as we got home.

As for Mason...he is almost 11 months old and doing so much! The biggest thing is that he is "cruising" or walking all around the house. He loves to hold on to something (couch, chair, table, dresser, bed, crib, etc.) with one hand and walk along beside it. I can't believe this first year has gone by so fast. He has really slowed down in his weight gain, but I can't say the same thing about his height. He is weighing 26.8 pounds and measuring 31 1/2 inches long. He has 5 teeth now and working on more.

I just wanted to give a little update and I'll be back later with some Halloween pictures soon! Until then...take care!

Destination: New York

This display is in a 4 story Toys R Us in Times Square. I know, we can't help it! Mason needed some souveniors. This is made completely of legos!

Can you guess what movie this flatiron building is from? You guessed it...Spiderman!

We ate dinner at Pier 17 where the view of the Brooklyn Bridge is unbeatable!

We were riding the Staten Island Ferry when this shot was taken.

This is Rockafeller Center where the skating rink and beautiful Christmas tree will be in just a few months.

To make a long story short, Mike had to fly to New York city for a last minute flight and I got to go with him. It was our 6th year anniversary weekend and we had already made plans to do something else, so we cancelled ours and headed to the "Big Apple"! We left Friday morning and returned Sunday night. We were only in New York for aproximately 48 hours, but it was enough for now.

You see, it was the first time I have ever left Mason to head out of town. He stayed with Nonny and Poppy (Mike's parents) on Friday and part of Saturday, then Grams and Pops (my parents) picked him up and kept him until our return on Sunday night. We thought about him a lot, got him souveniors, and prayed for him each night. When he is alittle older, I'll be able to leave him and not worry as much.

Times Square reminded me of The Strip in Las Vegas...people everywehere! We did lots of walking in Times Square on Friday night. Then Saturday was our big adventure. We took a sightseeing tour, which I highly recommend. I knew this would be such a short trip, but I wanted to see everything. The tour company was "On Board Tours". Our tour guide was Awesome!

Some of the sights: Macy's, World Trade Center Site, New York Stock Exchange/Wall Street, St. Paul's Chapel, Trinity Church, World Financial Center, Madison Square Park, Flatiron Building, South Street Seaport (Pier 17), 5th Avenue, Rockefeller Center, NBC's Today Show set, St. Patrick's Cathedral, Plaza Hotel, Tiffany's, David Letterman, Rupert from Hello Deli,Brooklym Bridge, Strawberry Fields, we even rode the Staten Island Ferry to the Statue of Liberty, and our tour ended at the Empire State Building, so Mike and I went up to the observatuion deck. Take this little suggestion: Buy your observation deck tickets online and print them off (http://www.esbnyc.com/). We bypassed about a 2 hour wait to buy tickets because I already had printed them off.

I can now say that I have been to New York, but I still want to see it at Christmas time! So, I know eventually, we will go back for a longer stay and do more shopping, sight seeing, and Broadway shows. For now...I'm happy!

It's Teething Time!

Isn't he so precious?!

This is the day we found his 1st tooth!

It's official! Mason has had 1 of his botom front teeth pop through the gum and the 1 beside it is not far behind. Mike and I discovered it at 12:28p.m. yesterday (Wednesday)! He is getting to be such a BIG BOY! At 7 1/2 months, he is now respectably weighing in at 24 lbs. and 29 inches long. That is exactly proportional and in the 95% of other boys his age. This is to be expected seeing as Mike and I are both in the 95% in height with other adults. He has done so much these past few weeks: he can sit up well, feed himself puffs at mealtime, drink from his sippy cup with minimal assistance, laugh a lot out loud, pick up dropped objects from floor, stand up on legs with little support, waved bye-bye to Nonny and Poppy (Mike's parents), scoot up while on his belly reaching for a toy, now getting his teeth in, and the list would go on and on if I had more time. It is amazing to me how much they change each week! He is a little fussy latelty with his teeth and double ear infection, but every once in a while he will smile at me that melts my heart everytime. Mike and I are so blessed to have him in our lives! He truly is the most precious gift from God!

Mike heads to Vancouver this weekend for 2-day trip. He has several more trips coming up before the summer ends but, his mind is already past summer and into the fall season where you know what happens: football! The big news in Abilene is that Wylie is getting artificial safe turf on their field and we have already taken a trip over to the high school to see the progress. Someone has even gone so far as to post updates with pictures on 3ADownlow.com so others can see the progress. This town is serious about football! Enough about the fall, I am sure I will post more about that once the season starts. I did go to Wal-Mart a few days ago and noticed that there was already an isle full of school supplies. I kinda of got sad for a minute because I usually buy some supplies for the kids in my classroom each year, but then I realized that there was a little boy at home who needed me, and all was better! Until next time...

Tragedy

I hate to begin such a long time away from you with such a sad story, but the family needs your prayers. One of the corporate pilots that Mike flew with at Frac Tech was killed in a tragic car accident driving to the airport on Friday afternoon. He was on his way to fly and a semi truck rear-ended him. He was killed instantly, but it just makes me wonder "why?". Out of all the cars that drove on 820 in Ft. Worth that day, it had to be his that the truck hit. He was only 25 years old; he leaves behind a wife and 5 month old baby boy.

He was hired in April and Mike a I laughingly talked about all their similarities with us. His wife also teaches kindergarten, he was around Mike's age (a little younger), and their baby boy was just 2 months behind ours. I can't imagine what the family is going through right now, but I do know that all the pilots are having a very difficult time. Even though they did not know him for long, they only had good things to say about his attitude on life and his love for his family.


I would not let Mike leave for his 2-day trip to Alaska until I told him repeatedly, through my tears, what he means to me and Mason. Isn't it sad that it takes a tradegy like this one for me to really sit down with Mike and make sure he knows how I feel? It has been so hard juggling being a mom and a wife. Mason is so much more needy, so I really have to work at it to give Mike my attention sometimes. I thank God every night for my family and friends, but I wonder if THEY really know. Of course they do, but it doesn't hurt to remind them each day!

I just wanted to ask you to pray for Jason Powell's family and friends right now as they are mourning the loss of a loved one. We are headed to Coppell tomorrow for the funeral. Can you add a sentence about safe travel for us in your prayer? I want to give this time to Jason, so I will write about how great Mason is doing another day.

4 months, gull stones, 7 weeks, and lots of flying

Mason is just hanging out!

He is sitting up all by himself!

Wherever Mason is, that is where you will find Sassy. She insists on being by him at all times.

With a little bit of Mike's help, Mason is practicing sitting up.

He likes to hold on to whatever you give him....hair, clothes, burp clothes, toys, etc.

Mason's FIRST meal with cereal!

He is on top of the world.

It just took a few days, but Mason is starting to like the cereal after all.

Please forgive me for the length of time between the last post and this one. Since I started back to teaching, life has really gotten hectic. I will start with Mason's latest news. He is now 4 months old and is in the 95% of all boys his age. He weighs 20 lbs. and is 27 inches long. Dr. Wiley just assured us that he is very proportional in his weight and height, he is just going to be a big kid. I am anxious for him to really start sitting up and crawling because I know the more active he is the more he will tone up. These last few weeks have really been fun. He is so close to rolling over, but has not mastered it completely. He does however, turn over onto his side a lot now and you will see him move to the left and do a complete circle on his little playmat all by himself. He is brilliant! We started him on rice cereal and that has been a hoot! He did not know what to think of it for a few days, but now I really think he is starting to like it. He talks to us and smiles while we feed him. We will start a fruit or vegetable in a few more weeks. He loves to carry on a conversation with you at any time, just talk in his language and you will see. He is growing so fast; our house is so much fun now with him here. He is the star of the show!

After the privilege of giving birth to our wonderful son, I was so lucky to get gull stones. I have had several "episodes" since Mason came along, but I just thought it might be heartburn or something less serious like that. My first episode happened 6 days after Mason was born and I thought I was having a heart attack. It is the most excruciating pain I have ever felt. I mean hello, I had an epidural when I gave birth. The emergency room physician assured me after the sonogram was taken that I do indeed have several gull stones in my gull bladder and would need to be on a strict diet until I could see a surgeon. I am basically not allowed to eat anything sweet, spicy, greasy, or anything else delicious. No, it really is okay and I am losing weight, so that is one upside to this situation. The e.r. physician also informed Mike and I that it is fairly common for ladies to get gull stones after having a baby. I happen to be one of the lucky ones that did! We are meeting with the surgeon on May 7th to discuss our options, but we are pretty certain I will need to have my gull bladder removed. We will keep you updated as we know more.

There are less than 7 weeks of school left, but who is counting? I can hardly wait. It feels like I have 2 full-time jobs. Which I know is true. I teach my lovely kindergartners during the day, then I come home to a baby who I have missed all day and all I want to do is hold him and play with him. It just seems like nothing is more important than Mason, which I know that mom's out there will agree. Children are the most important thing we have, but right now I am trying to juggle teaching, which I love and being a mom which I LOVE! There are only 5 Mondays left, then hello Summer!

Mike has started in on his busiest time to fly. He has several 4 and 5 day trips on the calendar before school is even out, then they have plans to go to Alaska 3 different times this summer. They are also talking about Peru, Hawaii, and Europe. I am sure Alaska will be enough for this summer, but Mike and Randy (the other pilot for this corporate jet) are going next week for training on the procedures for flying internationally. Our house has been lots of fun lately and I know this is only the beginning! We hope you guys are all doing well too!

3 Months Old!

Estee, my sister, drove all the way from Florida to visit her only nephew!

Like father, like son! Mason was too hungry to wait for mom to take the picture.

Mason likes to hang out with Pops.

Look at that sweet face. Mason had one last smile to give before getting in the bathtub.

Sassy, the family dog, takes every opportunity to get some attention from any parent who is willing to love on her.

Mason loves to smile!

He likes to play on his mat. Notice he is holding his favorite toy!

The whole family is about to go on a walk together. I don't think Sassy likes being in Mason's seat. She would prefer to walk.

I can't believe it! 3 months have already gone and went so quickly. I hear people say, "before you know it, he'll be out of your house and in college." Now I am starting to believe them. Mason is doing fabulous! We hit several milestones last week. He started sleeping in his crib on Wednesday (Feb. 27th), slept all night from 10:00p.m. to 7:10a.m. on Friday (March 1), he can lock his knees for a bit and stand on your lap, he can hold his head up pretty good (still alitttle tipsy), he has gotten really good at using his neck and arm muscles during tummy time, and he now "grabs" for his favorite toy if we are holding it and he likes us to put it in his hand so he can hold it. I tell you...he is just brilliant! It sure is fun seeing his personality starting to form. When Mike gets home from flying all day, Mason just looks at him with the biggest smile! It absolutely melts our hearts. That's all to report for now. We hope you all are doing well. Have a good week!