#20/20 Experience

Back in November 2013 I bought two tickets to the hottest, most anticipated concert of the year for my girlfriend Jilly & I - Justin Timberlake. It was painful having to wait 10 months to see him in person while my friends & family got to see him earlier on his tour throughout the country. But finally the day has come & it was WELL worth the wait!

I ended up getting stuck at work late so my happy hour plans with Jilly didn't pan out but luckily we made it to the concert just in time with 30 minutes to spare before the show got started. 

Since we missed happy hour we were thirsty & starving so we grabbed a quick beverage & a bite to eat before we got seated:

 

Then we heard word that our friend Melissa was at the concert also so we met up & grabbed a quick hug & a picture with her before the concert began:

Ugh - it's been a LONG time since I have seen this girl - miss those "game night" girls oh so much :(

After hugs, cheers & a potty break we made our way to our seats - which were pretty amazing & enjoyed watching JT do his thing.

He sang, danced & entertained the sold out crowd for almost 3 hours & after it was all said & done I could have sat there for 3 more hours watching him. He was THAT good!

He ended the show with his present hit "Mirrors" & it was awesome the way he paid tribute to the crowd towards the end. Here - see for yourself:

It was a GREAT concert with one of dearest friends & a much deserved girls night out! Definitely well worth the 10 month wait!

DS Awareness Walk

Dear friends,

As your friend I don't ever ask for much, but today I am begging asking for your help. Help for this little sweetie who is very near & dear to my heart:

 

As most of you know, this sweet baby girl is my niece Dana. Not only is she super special because she is my niece, but she has something special that you & I don't - one extra chromosome.

Dana has Down Syndrome & since her arrival last November she has not only blessed us all with her presence, but she has made us all want to become more educated & more aware of children who have Down Syndrome.

On Saturday, October 4th, my family is traveling to Wisconsin to join my sister & her family as "Dana's Daisies" by helping raise awareness for Down Syndrome by participating in the Down Syndrome Association of Wisconsin 5th Annual Awareness Walk.

The DSAW-Fox Cities has provided my sisters' family with so much support, education, information, many resources, & opportunities in the short time they have been a part of this amazing group.

Won't you please consider joining me in supporting this wonderful organization? This walk is fully funded by your participation &/or by your monetary donation. It is also a charitable tax-deduction! 

Please follow the link: https://secure.qgiv.com/hobnob/account/225934 to sign up & join us or to make a donation! No matter how big or how small, remember that every little bit helps these amazing kids!

Miss Dana & our family thanks you for your support!

18 months old

Six months have seemed to go by in a blink since we had Mason's 1 year birthday bash & I can officially say we have an 18 month old in the house! 
Wow has a lot changed in 6 months!!

Have you all seen this video that has gone viral this week? Watch it. It is the sweetest thing ever & pretty much sums up how I am feeling at the moment:
 

Weight: At your 15 month appointment you weighed 28 lbs & were 31 inches tall - both in the 98th percentile! You are taller than most of the kids in your classroom at daycare & ever since you started walking you have been slimming way down. Gone are your scrumptious chunky arms & leg rolls :( I swear each week you look taller & leaner. You are now wearing size 5 diapers & are getting close to growing out of your 18 mos clothes. This fall I am pretty sure you will be moving on up to 24 mos/2T sized clothing. You are also wearing a size 6.5 W shoe & will be moving on up to the 7's by fall. Ugh - I wish you would slow down & stop growing so fast!

Eating: Like your Mama, you have a love for food! There isn't much you don't like except for hamburger/red meat, eggs & green vegetables - they are not your favorites. You of course love all the foods that are considered "bad" for you like mac-n-cheese, chicken nuggets, corn dogs, pasta, & french fries. Some of the good foods you like are: cooked turkey or pork, sweet potatoes, carrots, strawberries, pears, cheese & yogurt. You LOVE the little fruit/applesauce grabbers & do a pretty good job not squirting them all over the front of your shirt...or all over the furniture :) You are still getting a 6-7oz bottle of milk before bed & again when you wake up in the morning. Probably need to start weaning you from at least one of those bottles soon? 

Sleeping: Speaking of bed-time I am happy ecstatic to report that you are fully sleeping through the night. AKA: sleeping 10 hours straight with NO waking up! After you cut all 4 of your molars - all within 6 weeks of each other & one last CIO session you just magically starting sleeping all night through. Pure heaven. You also fall asleep on your own now without the 30-45 minute rocking session with Mama. I am kind of sad that we no longer have that snuggle time but am thrilled that I can rock you with a bottle, put you in your crib & 5 minutes later you are asleep without making a peep. I feel sleep habits have been our biggest challenge with you & I finally feel like we have it finally conquered! 

Milestones:
- you have excelled in walking running everywhere & keep this Mama (& Daddy) on our toes!!
- you can say "mama", "dada", "uh-oh", "huh", "bubba" & what I think is "doggy" & spend all day jibber jabbering. You can sign for please, all done & more & like to mimic sounds that we say.
- love to stack your cups/blocks & then knock them down, scribble with crayons, play with play-doh, throw the ball & love to fill/empty containers. 

- you now have 12 teeth & cut 4 molars all within 6 weeks of each other. Talk about a rough few weeks!
- you like to help dress yourself by trying to put your own socks & shoes on, lifts both your arms to take your shirt off/on, etc.
- at around 14 months we got your 1st haircut & I feel like you aged a couple years when it was all said & done.

 

- you like to go on walks through the neighborhood but much prefer pushing your little lawn mower rather than sitting in your stroller

- you are great at feeding yourself & are starting to use a fork/spoon to eat your food
- can follow simple instructions & commands
- playing outside is your absolute favorite thing to do. Not sure what we will do this winter when you are stuck inside?!

- mood swings & temper tantrums are making an appearance & it makes me cringe to think what the "terrible 2's" will be like.

- you have mastered crawling up & sliding down the stairs & are beginning to "walk" up & down the stairs
- you have become quite the little dare-devil & are fearless - which makes this Mama a nervous wreck. You have no fear when it comes to climbing on the furniture, playing in the pool, or running for the street. I already have gray hair so I can't imagine how many more I will have in a few years!?

- can point to your ears, eyes, nose, belly button, teeth, head & feet when asked
- can pick out animals like dog, cow, horse, sheep, pig, rooster when asked & imitate the sound from a dog & cow which is so cute.
- you love to sit in our lap, read books, help turn the pages & point to things of interest to you

- you like to help with household activities like sweeping & still have a fascination with the vacuum

Fun at daycare

 Infatuated by the animals @ Deanna Rose Farmstead

I have said before that each phase of this little guy's life is the most fun but honestly these past 6 months have been the best. To see all the developmental changes that have occurred, watch your little personality develop & to hear you start to talk is so much fun.

I love this little man more than I ever imagined I could & thank God everyday for blessing us with him & for giving us the opportunity to be his Mama & Daddy!

Sunday Funday

We have been having some beautiful weather here lately with the high's being in the low 80's & almost no humidity. So after a couple of crazy, busy weeks around here, I wanted to spend some time outside doing something fun with the family. 

Shane's mom - Grandma "Mountain" is here visiting so we decided to take her to Mason's favorite place - Deanna Rose Farmstead. I get such a kick out of seeing his excitement & hearing his little squeals when he sees the animals. We always stop to see the roosters/chickens first & then make our way over to pet the Pygmy goats. I love those little goats - every time I see them it makes me want to get a couple as pets.

Mason also loves to see the cows & says "mooooo" over & over whenever he sees them. We ventured around the farm & this time we made sure to stop & feed the ducks/swans. We all fell in love with the baby ducks & Mason was so infatuated by them.

We came across the beautiful draft horses & Mase & mommy stopped for a picture. We got to pet their long faces & Mase loved petting their noses.

Towards the end of our visit we all decided to sit for a bit so Mase could eat his snack. I managed to snap this great pic of Shane & his mom with Mason:

It was another great afternoon spent at the "farm" & I see many more visits to this place in the future!

July 4th Weekend

Hellooooo - is anyone still there??

So very sorry my blog has been slacking lately. Between working full-time, taking extra weekend call, being a mommy, wife, domestic diva, etc there hasn't been much time to devote to this blog or to much of anything else I love to do lately. Besides, we haven't really done anything too exciting or blog-worthy to share with you all so that is another reason why I haven't posted an update lately.

We did do something pretty fun this past weekend though! We spent the 4th of July holiday with my family in Minnesota. We had all pitched in money to rent a house in downtown Minneapolis (thanks to vrbo.com) & ended up having a great time! 

We left super early Friday morning which bought us 3+ hours of sleep time from Mase. After a couple of pit-stops & some breakfast we ended up getting up to MN around 1230pm. Everyone else had gotten there Thursday but due to Shane's work schedule we had to leave Friday morning. We all ate lunch when we got there & then we spent the rest of the afternoon at Lake Harriet. 

Lake Harriet was a great place for families & children. There was a huge park for the kids to play at, walking trails, bicycle rentals & trails, nearby gardens, a variety of water activities like canoe & paddleboat rentals, a bird sanctuary & a huge amphitheater for outdoor concerts. It was a great place to spend the afternoon & the entire family had fun participating in different excursions throughout the day.

 

Later that evening we celebrated the 4th holiday by grilling hamburgers & hot dogs along with all the sides & had us a feast. Conveniently, the house we rented had a park right across the street where the whole family was able to watch the spectacular fireworks show downtown Minneapolis put on for the public. It was 30 minutes of amazing, huge, loud fireworks & Mason somehow managed to sleep soundly through the entire thing. 

Saturday we spent the day at Como Park & all the kids had so much fun. This place was awesome for the little kids & the big kids as well! Half of the park was a zoo & the other half was an amusement park with rides, games, fair food, etc. The best part about this place was that admission was based on "donation" only so you gave whatever you thought was reasonable to enter the park. The price of the pass to ride the rides was very reasonable also. We also had brought a small cooler in with us & packed lunches for everyone so the day spent there was super inexpensive for all.

 

We spent the first half of our day there riding the rides. Mason had tons of fun on the toddler rides & his cousin Joslyn was such a huge help keeping him safely inside the rides. 

  

Shane & I even got in on the fun & went on the zip line ride:

Once the amount on our ride pass ran out, we all sat down, ate lunch & then made our way over to the zoo. As soon as we crossed over into the zoo entrance Mason fell asleep & missed the majority of the animals.

 
Grandpa Farm (my dad) spent most of the day hanging out with Dana so that my sister & her husband could take their other 3 kids on all the rides. I just love these pictures of them two:

After our day at Como Park everyone was pretty exhausted. We got back to the house, made our family favorite Tater Tot Casserole & grilled up some chislic - a South Dakota favorite as well! 

The rest of the evening was spent hanging around the house relaxing while the kids played across the street at the park & went for a late swim in the pool. 

While the littles were away, I got to spend some one on one time with this little cutie - my niece Dana:

Ahhh - don't you just LOVE all those chunky little rolls? 

Sunday morning it was time to pack up & get back on the road to head home. Everyone had such a great time & hopefully we can make this an annual event!?

We tried to get a nice picture of all the cousins sitting together before everyone left but there were two meltdowns - my nephew Tanner & my kid:

This was the best we could get! LOL - so much for that idea :( Should have tried to take this photo on day 1?!


I hope everyone had a fun & safe 4th of July holiday weekend!

Father's Day

Fathers Day: a date that occurs on the third Sunday in June, observed in the United States in honor of fathers. So we honor & we celebrate our fathers, our husbands who are dads, our brothers, uncles & cousins who too are dads on this very special day! 

I wish I could have spent this day with my own dad making him feel special & honored but unfortunately he lives 3 states away. I wasn't able to talk to him today as he was out when I called but am hoping he got the message I had left for him. 

After I left that message I almost asked my husband if he had called his dad to wish him a Happy Fathers Day - as I have reminded him of for the last 13 years - & then it hit me. This is the first Fathers Day that my husband has to spend without his own dad :( He didn't seem to be bothered by that fact but I am sure it was weighing heavily in the back of his mind.

I tried to make it a good day Fathers Day for him to keep his mind off of the sadness I am sure he was feeling. When we woke up Mason presented Daddy with this adorable picture that he had made at daycare on Friday:

That one is going into the "keeper" box for sure! Love his little hand as a fish :)

We then had breakfast, got ready for the day, went to church together, then I treated Shane to his favorite BBQ place - Fiorella's Jack Stack for lunch. We then made our way back home for the annual Fathers Day picture with Daddy:

The rest of the day was spent doing things around the house as the weather was being too unpredictable to do anything outside so we opted to stay inside. It was a fairly low-key kind of day but one that was spent together - all three of us :)

Hoping you all had a wonderful Fathers Day with your own families!!

Deanna Rose outing

Today our little family ventured out to Deanna Rose Farmstead for the afternoon & Mason had SO much fun. It was almost a year ago when we took Mase for the 1st time to Deanna Rose back when he was only 6 months old & this was the 1st time we have been back since then. Mason enjoyed it SO much more this time around now that he is mobile & so into farm animals.

We started out by checking out the roosters which he was fascinated by:

Then we made our way over to pet the calves & the baby goats:

Next stop was the horses & Mase got SO excited seeing them. Can't wait until he is a little bit older so he can actually ride one!

From there we moved on to ride the tractors:

After the tractor ride we stopped by to feed the baby goats. Mason wasn't too crazy about all the baby goats surrounding him & got kind of freaked out so feeding the goats was pretty short lived. 

Next we stopped to burn some energy by playing on the playground & slides while Daddy chased him all around: 

I just love this place & we had such a fun afternoon all together! I look forward to spending many more days here this summer & as Mase gets older!

Tubes

A couple of weeks ago we had an appointment to see the ENT after Mason got his sixth ear infection since January. The ENT was super nice, explained the procedure to us & I loved how he was not "pushing" us to get tubes but rather asked how we felt about it & how we wanted to proceed. After being on antibiotics every 3 weeks for 6 months we decided it was finally time for little man to have the procedure.

Yesterday was the big day. We walked into Children's Mercy around 6am & during the next hour we were checked in, obtained Mason's vital signs with the nurse - who was blowing him bubbles the entire time which he loved. We then got put into a room where I was asked to change him into a patient gown & await further instructions. While we were waiting, we read several books & even did some coloring to pass the time.

He looked so little & cute in his tiny patient gown:

We then had a visit by the nurse who was going to be in Mason's procedure & she verified his name with us & then put his ID band on his little ankle:

Next the anesthesiologist & the ENT performing the procedure came to talk to us & went over all kinds of questions. Then it was time to hand my son over to a complete stranger. I was doing just fine - up until this point.

I walked to the waiting room, went to the bathroom, got some coffee, ate a granola bar, sat down to browse Facebook & not 5 minutes later the ENT was talking to me letting me know the procedure went just fine & I would be seeing Mason soon. It had to have been less than 15 minutes since I handed him over - pretty quick.

I was reunited with him in the recovery unit & he was one pissed off little dude. Crying, thrashing around, dazed, confused - there was no consoling him. They had warned me he might be like this coming out of anesthesia & it hurt my heart seeing him like that. 

Finally after about 15 minutes I was able to console him & we were getting ready to be discharged. He fell asleep shortly after we got into the car & slept for another 2 hours once we got home. He was a MUCH happier boy when he awoke from his nap & chowed down his chicken nuggets & biscuit from Chick-Fil-A: 

Later that afternoon we got a surprise delivery from our friend Jen & Miss Ava:

Mase loved the balloons & kept dragging them all over the house! Definitely made him feel better! Thanks SO much Jen & Miss Ava!

Hoping this little guy has a speedy recovery & is feeling much better with his new tubes!

Lunch Surprise

Last week on Memorial Day, Mason & I had plans to meet my girlfriends at The Cheesecake Factory for some catching up & a yummy lunch. It was supposed to be just the 4 of us but shortly after we sat down a familiar face was serving us bread & butter :) Our friend Heather (aka: HK) had flown in from Florida for the week & had surprised all of us - except Jen (on the far left) who knew all about it - stinker!

Mason & Ava Jean hung out with the girls & did SO good for sitting there almost 3 hours!

Before we all left, we had to get a picture of the Heather's - HK & HT :) 

And of course one last pic with Mommies & babies - which you can see Mason is clearly ready to go!!

It was such a good time seeing all these girls & getting to visit & catch up with our surprise HK! Looking forward to celebrating HK's 40th birthday in a few weeks with these lovely ladies!