The largest sandbox EVER!!!!

For Labor Day we traveled way south to Port Aransas for a little get away before school got too hectic! As you can well see from the picture, it was alot more play and get worn smooth out, than rest and relaxation!!!

Mason had a blast! He really enjoyed digging on the beach and playing in the sand. He also really loved going out in the ocean a bit and "jumping" the waves. He would laugh and laugh as we jumped millions of them it seemed!

We were blessed to get to stay with our good friends Steven, Trisha and Matt Jones. I regret this is the only good picture I have of them together. :-( They are up to something out there on the balcony...you can see it all over Matt's face! Ha! Matt and Mason played so good together sharing their cars and tractors. The Jones' were very hospitable putting up with our son who is stubborn at times and always anti-sleep! Matt was so laid back and sweet, it was fun for me to get to know him a bit.

Mason made many new friends including Isa, short for Isabella. We snapped this one of him holding her hand...ooooohhhhhh!!! He also played with Ava and Joshua Brown. Here he is practicing saying "TOUCHDOWN!!!"

Monday it was back to reality as we drove the 7 1/2 hours home. Mason did great there also. He rode the whole way with no movie, no nap, no nothing....except for a bunch of questions! We had a good week last week, nothing exciting. This weekend, we took Gigi out for her birthday Saturday night...her birthday was in July...we are a little behind schedule around here. Mason enjoyed eating out as ususal...especially dessert! Sunday we had church and then played at Gigi's house most of the afternoon since we didn't get to go on Saturday due to falling asleep in the care on the way home!

Well, we are into week three of school and Mason is beginning to really like his day care. We are so happy about that. I know I have been a slacker on this blogging thing... I will try harder! Hope you all have a good week.

Back to School!!!

If you wondered why I missed my blog last week...the title says it all. If you are, married to, or mom was a teacher...you understand. Mason started daycare at First Baptist Church Whitehouse last Monday and is doing great! That is a real answer to prayer. Amber started school also and still has hair...that is an answer to prayer also! Ha!


That about sums up our week also. School, home, eat, sleep. Mason has not quite adjusted his sleeping schedule yet either. He is going to bed really late and getting up really early...go figure.
The last day or two he has done better. 6:15 on a Saturday morning is twice as early as the same time on a Tuesday!!!


Aunt Jaime was here for the weekend. She is leaving for Ireland this Saturday for a week. Hopefully she won't come home with some funny talking Irish dude like on "P.S. I Love You." I can't believe I just admitted to watching that girly mess. Anyway, we hope you have a blast aunt Jaime!!!


That is about all I know. We are heading for the beach Wed. afternoon. Many jokes have been made at our expense about getting sunburned and what not. I will definately have my sun screen on...SPF 250! Mason tans like his mother...but will still be sporting some. I will be back next week with lots of beach pictures and stories!

Bedtime...AAAGGGHHHH!!!!

All the sudden this week, Mason does not want to go to bed. He doesn't want to take a nap. Nothing...and I mean nothing can get through to him either. We've tried diciplinary actions, rewards, taking toys away, and others...nothing works. We are considering the no-nap option, but don't want to. UGH! I suppose one could see his stubborn streak from the picture above?

I guess he gets it from his mother! Haha!!!

Steven, Trisha, and Matthew Jones came over for a long overdue visit Saturday! We really enjoyed getting caught up. They are going to be our roomies when we go to the beach in a few weeks...we are so excited! I took several blurry pictures of the boys together...blurry because they were always moving when I was trying to take a picture! I did get this good one of Matt. He was about midway through his lecture on casting. He was making the point that Bill Dance does not flick his wrist correctly thus causing backlash, which leads to lost time while fishing. Very informative if I must say so myself!

Later Saturday evening, we went to Gigi and Granddad's for dinner. Mason had a heart to heart talk with a grasshopper. I don't know what they discussed, but Mason sure was listening.

Well, starting Monday, Amber and Mason will be back to school. Things will be back to normal around the house. No more dog days of summer. No more long naps and trips to the mall. Maybe the routine will make our little man tired in the evenings and want to go to bed!

Mason loves to cook...or pretend cook, so mama took a picture of us while we were "grilling" on the back porch. I know these times won't last forever, so I'm trying to stick as many of these good memories in the permanent memory bank as possible. Next time you are near Jacksonville, run on by the house for one of Mason's delicious hotdogs and hamburgers. You'll be glad you did!!!

2,200 miles ago

I posted our last blog 20 days and 2,200 miles ago. Sorry it has been so long. It is just so easy to watch some tv or go to bed, rather than this...but I tell myself it is worth it!!! Ha!

Just look at this guy! He has grown about a foot since I last talked to you all. Notice the Dustbuster...his mother is a firm believer in child labor. I lobby for more playtime, but she makes him clean, clean, clean! Ha!!!

So, we have been off to Colorado to see Nana and Gramps since we last spoke. We had lots of fun, played outside lots and soaked up as much cool air as we could before returning to the firey inferno we call Texas. We went to a chuckwagon dinner and singing one night. Mason loved all the fast songs and during the slow one's asked, "Daddy, when's it going to be over. Can you make it stop?" I don't think he is going to like "easy listening" music! Ha! Also, we played in a creek one day. Mason had a big time with that. Water was too cold for me!

He also got to ride the tractor with Gramps a time or two. He always loves that. We tried and tried to have a fire in the fire pit in the back yard and cook some hot dogs and marshmellows, but it rained us out each time. :-( Maybe next year.

Mason was a real trooper on the drive up and back. He didn't whine or moan, ask how much farther or could we stop. We actually promised him a stop at a playground, twice, and were not able to follow through and he understood. I am thankful that his reasoning skills are beginning to kick in! Makes things so much easier.

Since we have been home, things have been really hectic. It is tough taking off work for 1 1/2 weeks when you have a list a mile long of people waiting for things. Amber has been busy with getting Mason's daycare organized for this school year and planning for her school work. It doesn't help the temperature has been averaging 100 degrees and Mason doesn't get to play outside much. It rained the other evening and he had a blast playing in the cool rain.

Now that summer is almost over, Amber and Mason will have to leave their lives of luxury and come back to the working mans world. Ha! They have really enjoyed their summer. We have one more jaunt to the beach on Labor Day with some good friends and we are really looking forward to that!!!! I have lots more pictures from Colorado and the past 20 days, so I'll share them in the coming weeks!!!

Not much has happened this week at Mason's house. We have pretty much been recuperating from last week with the birthday and all! This is pretty much what we have felt like in the aftermath! Haha!

I figure I will show a few more pictures of his birthday party since we have a million of them! This was his Lightning McQueen cake. He wanted the car off that cake so bad...

and he got it. Note to parents...black icing is messy and hard to get off of your child. I repeat, messy and hard to get off your child.

This may be one of my all time favorites. It needs no explaination.

We are headed for Colorado to see Nana and Gramps on Monday morning. This will probably be the last post for two weeks or so. I'm sorry I don't have alot to report this week. I'm sure we will be full of stories and pictures when we return to Texas a week from Tuesday!

A long time ago...

This was definatly not a slow week at Mason's house. Friday was the 4th and Mason made the most of it! Our camera was on the blink that day, so no pictures of him flailing around in the lake. He has figured out how to move his arms and legs and get around in his life jacket. He had a ton of fun this year. He stayed late to watch the fireworks, but was disappointed because he didn't like the music while the fireworks were going off. Quirky kid, huh? He kept saying, "Daddy, when's the music gonna stop. Can you make it stop?" Of course I couldn't, it was just patriotic music playing on the public P.A. system. He did like the "bang" the fireworks made. He would echo them with a "bang....bang" when he wasn't complaining about the music.

Saturday, we spent the day at the lake again. The men all pitched in and cooked a feast of meat and corn for the Womack's and Remy's wedding anniversaries. I believe they are both celebrating 40 years this year. All the women decorated the lake house and both couples were surprised. It was fun, but a fairly long day.

Sunday, we went to church, skipped nap, and went to Gigi and Granddad's house to celebrate birthday a day early!!! Boy was he excited about birthday this year. Since Jaime had to go back to Dallas Sunday afternoon, Mason got to stretch his birthday out over two days...I try that every year and it doesn't work.

Mom and dad got Mason a motorized John Deere Gator for his birthday. Dad and I were totally against it. I never had a motorized car and he needs to run and play...but here you go. Gigi brought one home. He loves it. It was worth getting him one, just to see the smile.

He took right to it. He drives like his mama though, wide open and not watching were he is going! Haha! His favorite thing to do is put it in reverse and back up. He will have lots of years of fun on this thing...if Granddad can keep the battery charged up!

Monday was Mason's actual birthday!!! We loaded everything up and went to the Splashpark in Tyler. It is just a small area in one of Tyler's parks that has fountains coming out of the concrete and some neat water features. Mason loved it. He had eight of his friends there and he had a blast!




We had "Cars" cake, ice cream, and juice boxes until we couldn't walk...then we played more. One of the other kids told his mom and dad, "This is the best birthday party ever." That made Amber feel really good after all her planning and efforts. Mason got many gifts and he loved them all. His favorite upon first opening them all was a chain saw. No tree at the park was safe! Thank you to everyone who came, we hope you had as good a time as we did!!!

It seems like a long time ago we were looking at our son through a glass box with a feeding tube in his nose, praying his premature stomach would digest the milk he was given. Three years ago tomorrow he was rushed to Dallas in an ambulance to get better care than was available in Tyler (from Alison...of course ;-)), for nearly a month. As I watch him learn, as I watch him play, as I watch him sleep...I am thankful. Three glorious years we have been blessed with Mason. Do I remember what it was like before him...no. Does it seem like it has been three years...no. Could I imagine life without him...no. We give God all the praise and honor for the time he has given us with Mason...he is truely a gift from God.

The Clubhouse!!!

Another fun week here at Mason's house. We are still going to gymnastics...tumbling class every week, sleeping very little, and playing a whole lot. The boy just doesn't know how much he will miss these naps when it is July, 100 degrees and he is 32 years old! Ha!

Saturday, we went to the hardware store and loaded up a goody bag full of lumber and stuff to build a clubhouse. This was understood by Mason that it is an early birthday prize, and boy was he excited. He spent the morning outside helping me...beating my level against the trailer, tumping out the box of screws in the dirt, hitting the level with the speed square. He is my favorite helper and I wouldn't trade him for the whole world!!!

When lunch and nap time rolled around, he reluctantly went inside and I struggled to finish before he woke up. All I lacked were some handles when he and him mama came out. I wish I could have paused the smile on his face when he first saw it. We have it on video, so I guess I can!!!

You can see the first place he went...underneath it! He loves to keep his tractors and dump trucks under there. I suppose it is as good a play place as any. He took his first nose dive off the stairs a few hours into the afternoon. While whiping the sand off his forehead he said, "It just hurt a wittle bit mama." He also complemented my work by saying, "Dis is a pwetty good swing daddy." That is good enough for me!!! What a joy he is...and I can't believe he is almost three.

Finally, Sunday we went to worship and celebrate with Paul, Trina, Parker, Greg, Liz, and Lauren at First United Methodist Church. Parker and Lauren were baptised. We had a nice lunch and then everyone came home for a nap!

We want to wish everyone a happy and safe 4th of July. We thank all the ones who serve and have served our great nation so that we are and continue to be free. And we pray that America will honor God and God bless America.