Mason went to the lake.

Mason liked the lake.

More Mason pictures to come from the lake.

Mason is growing.

Lately...

Mason is crawling - yay! He's really getting around good! He, of course, goes after everything that is dangerous to him - just like all good boys do! He has a funny little crawl that he uses in case he wants to sit back up where he keeps one leg underneath him. I have to admit that this worried me at first, but since I know he knows how to do it right, I'm ok now :)

He still has no teeth! :( There is one that has been trying to come in for MONTHS and has not and we have good days and bad days with it. Hopefully it will break through soon and he'll have something to show for all of his suffering!

He is nine months old now (can I get a collective "WOW"? or is that just how I feel?) We had his nine month pictures taken at Portait Innovations again yesterday and they came out really good! On the same day that we did this , we also went for Mason's first visit to the zoo. He had a great time, though mom and dad were a little warm (Mason had the shade from the stroller constantly :) He slept through the new tiger exhibit and didn't get to see the lion b/c it was sleeping, but he really seemed to enjoy the other animals, namely the Gorillas, Giraffes, Penguins, and Alligators.

In other news, we believe that Mason has allergies and that he might be allergic to the dogs. We are having him tested and will see what comes of this!

And the biggest news of all: Mason is going to be a big brother! He had the enjoyment of announcing this to the whole family a few weeks ago after his Dedication to the Lord. He wore an "I'm the Big Brother" shirt and Grandma Sue was the first to figure it out (quickly, I might add!) I'm due December 22nd and we are all very excited! We figured it out a couple of weeks before we told everyone - I had been working out to try and get in better shape for the lake and lose some of my Mason belly, but my clothes kept getting tighter instead of looser, which was a little disheartening! Then one night I realized that I was really uncomfortable lying on my back, so I told Randal I thought I might be pregnant, not serious at all. We decided I'd take a test, and the rest is history! I have my first OB appt on Tuesday, so we'll make sure everything is A-OK before the lake. Now I have lots to blog about with two kids - let's hope that I can keep up! :) Ha!

Latest and Greatest

Mason is REALLY trying to crawl! He can only go backwards, but he's figuring it out! :) He is also quite the talker lately - saying Mama & Dada & Baba a lot!! He hasn't quite figured out that I am Mama or that Randal is Dada, but we're working on that! He is also trying to wave when someone says "Bye Bye" and he seems to be getting close to getting that down...

I've attached a picture of Mason on Easter morning in his 3-piece suit. He was quite the ladies' man in the nursery! He also got a new hat for the summer and he seems to enjoy wearing that too!

Lots to report...

Ok, so it's been forever again -sorry! Life has been hectic - lots of comings and goings! And lots of big news to report :)

First of all, we're eating a lot of "big boy" food - trying all kinds of exciting things like sweet potatoes (Grammy Denise, tell that guy that lives with you that he loved them!!), bananas, applesauce, and pears. Some days he takes them better than others, but over all I think it's been a success! He loves to sit up in his high chair and see the world!

Still no teeth - but he has several that have been trying to come in for a really long time! It seems like forever ago that they started looking like they would break through any day - but they don't seem to be bothering Mason at all, so I guess I won't let it bother me!

Mason is also really trying hard to crawl - he's doing great pushups and has been able to get one leg underneath him really well, but can't quite get the whole thing down yet - he still doesn't like being on his stomach for very long, and would rather play sitting up, but I think we'll get there soon :)

The biggest thing (I think anyway!) is that he is now saying Da-da really clearly! I don't think he quite knows who he is referring to, but it's fun to hear it anyway :) I'm working on getting Mama out of him and we're getting close!

He loves to clap and it makes him crack up every time. He's playing with all the toys that he's big enough for now and really likes that. The last couple of days, we've been giving him baths out of the little infant tub and he really likes sitting up in there by himself - he likes to play with all of his bath toys and likes to stay in there a lot longer now that he can entertain himself!

We hit the 6 month mark in February, so we took some pictures at Portait Innovations - and if I do say so myself, I think we have quite a handsome little red-head on our hands!!!

My little Rock Star :)

Mason is sitting up now - all by himself! He can sit up for a really long time without any help now and is really enjoying it! These are some pictures of him playing his drum toy while I was icing a cake - i let the dogs in after a while and they were very interested in helping! He got a little excited when they wanted to play with him!