Weepy

I've written before about my sweet primary class that I teach at church. Today one of my darling little girls Caroline gave me a necklace she made and two pictures that she drew for me. One says "You are the best teacher ever!" Obviously I cried. They were also practicing their Mother's Day program for next week and I kept crying during that too. There is just nothing sweeter than those little children singing. We'll see if I can keep it together next week, which isn't likely since I'll already be on the verge of tears all day because it's my first Mother's Day. Ugh, why am I such a baby?

Big Red Truck

Today we went somewhere that Mason felt right at home...the pet store!! He was so entranced by the fish, but he loved the puppies. He kept trying to pet them through the glass and talking to them. There's also a cat that lives at the store that just roams the aisles and Mason was going nuts trying to get to it. He was yelling and trying to get out of my arms and chase it. It was so fun to watch him so overwhelmed by all the newness of it. Austin also had a big day today. He finally had his dearest wish granted...we bought a truck. We put the Jeep up for sale with the intention of buying one, but we didn't expect it to sell so fast. Austin took that as a "sign" that it was all meant to be! We bought a red Chevy Silverado from a super nice guy that owns a local dealership. Austin has been on cloud nine all day.

Out of bed sleepyhead

Babies wake up early.

Sometimes it makes you tired.

That's all.

{but waking up to that face will never be a bad thing}

Super Coop

Austin's cousin Cooper is an incredibly talented artist. Go here to see some of his amazing work. His senior project has to do with Art Therapy, a concept that I find so powerful. I believe in all forms of alternative learning and that every child deserves to learn through a method that speaks to them personally. He created this wonderful video as part of his project. I hope you enjoy it! I'm excited that he's chosen to focus his project on something that means so much to him!

Bathing Babe

Tonight we did a full on bubble bath for Mason. He of course lost his mind over it. Who doesn't love bubble baths?! Bathtime is my favorite time of day with him. It's so nice for me to just sit and watch him play and relax and get calmed down for the evening. Although he's not always calm...he loves to splash like a crazy man. And there's nothing more delicious than clean baby smell!

Walker

Mason had a big day today!

First, he climbed up the entire flight of stairs all by himself this morning. Of course I spotted him so he didn't tumble to his doom, but he was cruising up the steps like it was no problem! Just a couple of days ago he was terrified of the stairs and wouldn't go near them, now he sprints toward them every chance he gets. We need a gate.

Then he ate strawberries for the first time and LOVED them of course. I also gave him cucumbers and hummus which he chomped down. I don't think we give him anything that he doesn't like. He loves spicy food too. He was going nuts over the Massaman Curry we had tonight that was SUPER spicy.

And then this evening, he took his first steps!!!  He has been standing on his own for several minutes at a time for the last couple of weeks, and has been cruising the furniture and walls for about a month. Most of the time we use little snacks to bribe him to stand for longer or try to take a step. I was giving him bites of strawberry with whipped cream (real healthy, I know, especially for a kid with dairy issues) and he kept taking a step and then sitting down. But then all of a sudden he just hauled off and walked from the ottoman to the couch where I was sitting. We got super excited of course and freaked out, and it kind of scared him. He didn't really see what the big deal was. He was more excited about being able to crawl up the stairs. =)  Needless to say, our weekend will be spent baby proofing.

Daily Joy, Day 9

Mason has been in hog heaven since we sold the Jeep because all of his car toys are now sitting in the living room, waiting for me to stop being lazy and put it all in the Corolla. He's been loving his little car mirror in particular. Every time I walked in the room he was sitting with his face super close to it and talking or singing. And a couple of times I saw him sticking his mouth on it. He really loves himself.

Austin is also driving the Corolla to work still until we get his truck this weekend, so we've been house bound for the day. There's plenty of days when I don't go anywhere, but suddenly now that I can't, I'm thinking of all these places that I just have to go. We have just been so spoiled with two cars, this makes me feel extra blessed that we've had them.

Tonight I went out with the group of girls that have befriended me here. It was a double birthday celebration and was so much fun, as always. I adore these girls. I feel like meeting them has been a huge reason why we were supposed to move here specifically. They are all such sweet women and wonderful wives and mothers, it's just such a positive group of women to be around. When I was leaving the house I told Austin I wouldn't be longer than a couple of hours, and he said "yeah okay, see you at 1". I was glad he was asleep when I walked in the door at half past midnight so I didn't have to give him the satisfaction of being right. I'm going to be verrrrry tired tomorrow.