Just Me And My Mason

I can remember when Mason was born.  I can remember the few weeks leading up to his birth and the few weeks following his birth.

I would cry.

Even though I would be giving Makayla a friend forever in her brother, I felt like I was taking her mommy away.  I would be changing her life, bringing a baby into her world, and taking away the only life that she knew. 

I would cry.

Even though I would be giving Mason a friend forever in his sister, I desperately worried that he would never know the undivided adoration of first-time parents.

Once Mason arrived, I realized that sharing my love between my babies wasn't difficult.  It was easy. It just came natural.  Mason quickly and easily slid into his place in our family and Makayla instantly fell in love with him which made the transition from being an only child amazingly easy. 

But because I wanted Makayla involved in every aspect of our new life, I never separated her and Mason.  I wanted her to know that we were a family, they were brother and sister, and he wasn't replacing anything that she and I had before.  She was there for feedings, diaper changes, baths, and everything in between. 

On the rare occasion that I had a minute alone with Mason, I would hold onto that minute with everything I had.  I would even shed a few tears as I held him, thinking to myself how special our time alone would be from here on out.  

Well, finally, 9 months later...

I started something that I really like.  I started something that Mason really likes.  We started this last week and I hope that it is something that continues for awhile. 

A few nights a week, I will give Mason his bath...all by himself.  It's just me and him. 

We play.  We splash.  We sing. 

After a good bath, I wrap him up in his towel that's been warming up on the heater and we go to his room and rock in his rocking chair. 

We rock.  We talk.  We stare at each other. 

Then when he's dry and warm we'll lay on the floor. 

We diaper.  We lotion.  We powder.

We talk.  We play.  We sing.

It's our time.  Our alone time.  Time that I cherish.  Time that I hold onto. 

...because I know it won't be long that big sister Makayla will be skipping into Mason's room, merrily saying "Hiiiii buddy!!" and a magnificent smile will sweep across Mason's face. 
...And I can sit back and smile at the fact that I am Makayla's and Mason's mommy.

Good Life, This Has Gotta Be A Good Life

A life lived in love will never be dull. 

We've been busy having fun.

Picking strawberries from the garden...

Blowing bubbles,

 Playing in the sprinkler and drinking from the hose,

Watching baseball on a grassy knoll and eating popcorn,

And of course - Fireworks never cease to amaze me.  Booming and Blazing.

Going to the Turkey Festival and eating turkey,

Playing games,

Riding rides - ducks, pumpkins, and cars.

Screaming and squealing.

Walking around the Lagoon,

Smelling the flowers,

Swinging and sliding,

Calling baby ducks, watching kids fish, and running free.

Being at the park.

This is a good life.

And I'm so thankful. 

This One Is For You, Daddy

Dear Daddy,

While you were away in Indiana, mommy took us over to Maw-maw and Paw-paw Allen's house. We ate a really good dinner that included strawberries and corn on the cob and we played outside all night long.  We played soccer and took a walk around the neighborhood.

We swam in the pool...

 and read books together!

We also got to do two things that we had never done before -

Swing on a hammock...

 ...and take a bath in the swimming pool!!

We miss you!

Love,

Makayla and Mason



Family, Friends, And I Love You

What did we do this weekend? We spent time with family and friends! What else?!

Makayla and Great Grandma showing off their green tongues!



Mason and his girlfriend.  Wonder what they're talking about...?

We had a couple of cookouts to enjoy the beautiful summer evenings, hung out in the backyard, and spent a day at Wildlife Prairie Park with our favorite duo - Kyleigh and Kole.

4 of 'em - Kole, Kyleigh, Mason, and Makayla

I said "Show me your teeth" - Grandmda is definitely showing her teeth!

I must not have rubbed the lotion in all the way!

I must have gotten a little lotion in his eye because this little man had red splotches and blotches all along the left side of his face, a watery eye that was almost swollen shut, and he was still smiling. 

Our Safari Ride!! 

When I think of Wildlife Prairie Park, I am taken back to my childhood.  My Grandma Ryan was a volunteer there and I can remember spending time with her there, making memories with her.  My favorite part was the school house, the log cabin, the gift shop, and of course...the big slide!  Knowing the memories I have of Wildlife Praire Park as a child, I know that my kids had a great day there and will have memories similar to mine that they can one day look back on and enjoy.

　

　After a long, fun day, at the park we were quietly settled in the van on our way home...

 and Makayla softly said “Mommy, I love you” I turned around with a massive smile on my face and told her that I loved her, too and that she makes mommy so happy. She smiled and cheerfully said “Daddy, I love you. I love you, Mason”.

My heart melted.

My baby girl tells me, Kevin, and Mason that she loves us - at least 10 times a day - and it never gets old. It makes my heart skip a couple beats every time. It‘s one of those feelings that I will never get tired of. Ever. She loves to tell people that she loves them. It makes her happy, so happy, when she tells people that she loves them.

She smiles, they smile, I smile. It’s special.

…and then I have this baby boy. He can’t tell me that he loves me, but I know he does.

It’s little things like this.

It’s big wet kisses, cuddles, hugs, face burried in my chest, the glimmer in his eye, that special smile.

We fall more and more in love with each other every day.

I am thankful everyday for these miracles in my life...and I love them more than words can say.

　

Flowers And Popcorn

The night started by shopping for flowers. 

We were at Ace picking out what we were going to plant when Makayla's eyes got wide and she started to get really excited.  She has a new found love for the ice cream truck and she thought she heard the music that we have recently become so familiar with.  I couldn't help but laugh out loud when I realized what she thought was the ice cream truck was really church bells.  When I told her that she was hearing church bells and not the ice cream truck, she just kind of stared at me - like she thought I was trying to make up an excuse to not seek out the ice cream and popcicles!  She didn't say a word, finished her stare, and went on shopping for her flowers.

The night ended by planting flowers.

A child’s world is fresh and new and beautiful, full of wonder and excitement. It is our misfortune that for most of us that clear-eyed vision, that true instinct for what is beautiful, is dimmed and even lost  before we reach adulthood.

-Rachel Carson

Dirt.  Grass.  Weeds. 

How many adults do you see holding up a clump of dirt, high above their head, gazing at it in complete awe?

 Children learn best through their everyday experiences, with the people they love and trust - and when the learning is fun.

The best place for these experiences is outdoors, in the natural world.

*******************************************************

Our weekly ritual - popping popcorn in the Stir Crazy.  Makayla loves it and Mason is a little scared of it - especially towards the end when it starts popping like crazy. 

Sometimes, on special nights, we get to put M&Ms in our popcorn.  The top picture is Makayla using her M&M package to fan away the smoke and the bottom picture is of Mason reaching for the popcorn.  He wanted it so bad!

 



What A Wonderful World

Think of the mother who lost her son in the battlefield. Think of the wife whose husband has gone to war. Think of the children who do not know whether they will see their father next Christmas.

When you think of the selfless souls who sacrifice their happiness for our security, you realize how much you have to be grateful for.

On this Memorial Day weekend, I spent it with my family playing in the backyard.  Making memories.  Living life to the fullest.  Enjoying the simple things. 
Being Free.
...and I won't forget the men who died who gave that right to me.

It's a wonderful world!

I see trees of green, red roses too

I see them bloom, for me and you

And I think to myself
What a wonderful world

I see skies of blue, and clouds of white
The bright blessed day, dark sacred night

And I think to myself
What a wonderful world

The colors of the rainbow, so pretty in the sky

Are also on the faces, of people going by

I see friends shaking hands, sayin', "How do you do?"
They're really sayin', "I love you"

I hear babies cryin', I watch them grow

They'll learn much more, than I'll ever know

And I think to myself
What a wonderful world

Yes, I think to myself
What a wonderful world

Bladder

As we were playing today, I told Makayla that I had to pee so bad that my bladder hurt.

She immediately showed concern.  Her brows furrowed in sympathy and she took in a deep breath through her clenched teeth.  She slowly and tenderly asked if she could see.

I asked her what she wanted to see. 

She said she wanted to see my bladder. 

MMmmm MMmmm MMmmm

I love her to pieces.

I love everything about her.

She's real.  She's fresh.  She's honest.  She cares.  She loves.

She's simply the best.

Whistling

Almost everyday, Kevin will whistle at Makayla. It’s one of the little things that he does to let her know that she’s beautiful.

 Well, tonight, the kids and I were home alone because Kevin had to DJ a graduation party. Makayla and I were upstairs in the bathroom washing her hands and as she was drying her hands on the towel, I whistled at her. She thought it was daddy whistling and got soooooo excited. She dropped the towel, her eyes got wide, and she exclaimed that daddy was home!! She couldn’t get out of the bathroom fast enough. I laughed and told her daddy wasn’t home and that it was mommy who whistled at her.

She was devastated.

So was I.

(kind of)

I was sad that she didn’t get excited by my whistling, but at the same time I was filled with so much joy at the love that she has for her daddy.

Don't you love the outfit?!  But hey - at least it's all stripes!

Eating sweet corn and Lucky Charms on the living room floor.

Nintendo DS

Yesterday Mason was crying and Makayla was saying "Buddy! It's okay! Buddy! Buddy! Where's your DS? It's okay! Let's find your DS!". She kept talking about his DS. I'm assuming she was talking about a Nintendo DS, but how in the world she knows what that is, I have no idea! She's only 2! She FINALLY found his DS and this is what she gave him.

What Keeps Makayla Busy?

FIVE things that can provide hours of entertainment at our house:

1. Letting the cats in and out.

One minute, Makayla thinks they need to go out and get some fresh air and the next minute, she thinks they need to come back inside. She spends her time calling for the cats, that eventually turns into a yell because they are either tired of going in and out or are very confused and they just end up sitting outside staring at her. When she’s standing at the door, beating her legs and doing all she can to persuade the cats to come back in for the 5^th time, I can’t help but grin at her persistence and big girl behavior taking care of her babies. There’s nothing - absolutely nothing - I can do to get her to stop tending to the cats. She’ll stop when she’s ready to stop.

2.  Sneakily feeding us bugs.

Makayla puts a fake bug in our popcorn bowl and we pretend to eat it. Then we dramatically spit it out and she falls to the floor laughing so hard she can’t breathe. We can do that over and over again and it’s as funny the 100^th time as it was the 1^st time.

3.  Rolling play dough into snakes.

The other day, Aunt Nina made a heart out of play dough and asked Makayla to guess what it was. Makayla guessed pretzel. I can totally see how a heart looks like a pretzel! I wish it was as easy for me as it is for her to think outside the box! 



4.  Cleaning the countertops.

 Makayla will pull a chair up to the kitchen counter and she will scrub away ‘til her hands are tired. She’ll scrub with a paper towel (wet or dry), a bib, Kleenex…anything she can find - but her favorite thing to clean with is a baby wipe. What’s really cute, although it makes a bigger mess for me, is when she really gets into. She’ll grab her bottled water, pour water on the counter, and clean clean clean.  Every once in awhile, she'll add her shampoo to the mix.  She’ll wipe and scrub for as long as I’ll let her. …and it’s not just the countertops. She also loves to clean the wood floor. Sometimes I’ll see a pile of baby wipes in the corner and I can’t help but smile because I know exactly what she has been doing.

These are the piles of wipes I find strategically placed throughout the house.  Most of the time, she's pretty good about throwing her dirty wipes away...

5.  Building cages.

Makayla will open up books and carefully place them on their side . She lines up to 15 books in a circle and calls it her cage. Sometimes, she likes to cage herself in, but most of the time, it’s her baby brother that she’s caging in. THEN, when he grabs for a book and knocks it down, she gets upset and has to start all over again. She’ll lecture him and tell him not to touch her books or knock down her cage…but poor babies…Mason doesn’t understand and Makayla doesn’t understand that Mason doesn’t know what she is talking about. This can go on for a good 30 minutes. The other day, Makayla caged her grandma in. I think she had maybe 20 books all lined up on their side. Eventually, grandma got too claustrophobic and, sadly, had to end the game.