On the move!

Mason (finally) started crawling on Father's Day. It's actually more like a 3-legged crab walk looking thing, but he's mobile! For some reason, he does not want his knees touching the floor. My mom said that Lamar did something similar when he was a baby, so maybe it is hereditary? And in case you're wondering, he does alternate which back leg to use as the 'walking' leg. See the attached video below - he's actually much faster after a week of practice.

Happy Father's Day!

Remember this picture of Chris with Mason last year right after he came home (about 2 months old)? As you can see, my boys still enjoy napping together :-). What a perfect way to spend Father's Day weekend.

Chris and I had a nice date night last weekend at Rathbun steak, which was his early father's day present (thanks Margie and James for babysitting!). We're having a pretty low key weekend at home and don't have much planned for the actual day. Happy Father's day to all the great dads out there! Especially the two special ones in our lives - we hope Grandpa and Dee are enjoying a day on the golf course!

Here is a cute card that Mason made for Chris at school. Happy Father's day, Chris! You're a great daddy and Mason loves you very much!

And another card that he made in the church nursery this morning. What can I say, my child makes great (and for some reason always green?) hand prints!

Riding toys

Mason is definitely all boy. He already chooses to play with cars, blocks, balls (his FAVORITE) and other 'boy' type toys. And especially riding toys! He got several new ones for his birthday and he's having a blast trying them all out. Unfortunately, his 'playroom' (aka our former living room) is out of space, so we have to rotate the big stuff in and out so we still have room to walk!

This is his 'Cozy Coupe' that Mimi gave him for his birthday. He likes to climb in it, but he's not quite big enough to move it yet.

Another birthday gift from Nana. He LOVES rocking on his horse. He can really make this thing move!
And his rocker/push toy from mom and dad. He loves to sit on it in front of the TV.
Here he is watching NASCAR with daddy last weekend.

First Year Stats

Mason had his official 12 month check-up today. It's amazing how far he's come in just one year. From that tiny little baby in the NICU that couldn't even breath on his own to a very healthy and active 'wobbler'. His pediatrician was very pleased with his progress and development. He got a few icky shots and we were on our way!

12 month stats:

• Weight - 21.6 lbs (30%); Height - 29.75" (50%); Pretty good considering he was in the 10th% in height at 9 mos!
• Eating 3 solid meals, plus 1-2 snacks and lots of formula. We got the go ahead to switch to whole milk, so we'll be transitioning soon. We're still struggling with table food. He just isn't interested and usually makes himself throw up if we force it. The doctor said to be patient and keep trying and he'll eventually get it. I'm a little worried we're going to have a picky eater...
  
• He currently has 5 teeth (2 top and 3 bottom) and we're on the lookout for more any time. I feel like he's been teething constantly for 3 months with no end in sight!
  
• His sleeping has regressed a little since he started teething. He generally sleeps 8pm-6:30am (sometimes earlier - any tips on how we can get him to sleep a little later PLEASE??) and he occasionally wakes up overnight.
• He's VERY vocal - definitely saying 'mama' and 'dada' (and means it). No other 'real' words yet, but almost constant baby jibberish. He thinks he is really having a conversation with you, which is very cute.
• He never sits still and gets around pretty well by scooting and pulling up on anything. We can't take our eyes off of him for a minute. Thankfully, we're almost done baby-proofing!
  

His likes and dislikes haven't changed much since 9 months. He's very social and is happiest when he's with people and other babies. And he LOVES his 'school', especially since moving to the wobbler's class. They have so many daily activities and he is always exhausted when I pick him up (even with 2 hour naps). He adores his teachers and I am so thankful we found such a wonderful daycare!

Mason's First Birthday Party

We celebrated Mason's first birthday this past Saturday with a little cookout at our house. We were very blessed to have Mason's grandparents and several friends with us for the momentous occasion. It was a fun day and, as expected, our very social child loved every second of it. Well, he wasn't too crazy about the smash cake after he got icing in his eye. We have so many great pictures thanks to Misty (my unofficial photographer), so I created a slideshow.

My baby is a year old!

One year ago today, I woke up in my hospital bed at 3am with pains that I knew weren't normal. I tried to ignore it for a few hours, convinced that this baby was NOT coming for another 2 weeks as planned. But Mason had his own plan and made his (8 week early) debut later that day. It was love at first sight for me and Chris, followed by a few rough months until my baby boy was finally home. Even through all the ups and downs, it has been the best year ever. I can't believe how much he has grown and changed and we're looking forward to the adventures that lie ahead!

Happy Birthday to my sweet Mason!! We waited so long for you and all of my prayers were answered the day you were born! Stay tuned for birthday party pictures - I'm still sorting through them all.

Kickoff to summertime!

We've had a very busy spring/summer and it's not going to slow down for the next month or so. Mason spent Memorial Day weekend at the lake with Mimi, Grandpa Dee and Lamar. Chris and I had a function in Atlanta and then met everyone at the lake on Sunday. We spent some time in the pool and Mason continues to be our little water baby. He even practiced dunking under water a few times (and he didn't freak out!). Here are a few pictures from our long weekend and a new milestone!

Daddy and Mason goofing off in the pool. He loves to splash around!
My happy water baby!
We took a walk down to the dock to check out the water.
Daddy and Mason being silly (again).
And a significant milestone this week - Mason is officially 'cruising'! He's been pulling himself up for a while with a help, but now he can pull up on just about anything and take a few steps.

Of course, now all he wants to do is stand up and he gets very fussy if he's stuck sitting somewhere with nothing to pull up on. Still not crawling, but oh so close...
Next up - Mason's First Birthday party this weekend! We're happy to have some family and close friends coming over to help us celebrate with a cookout. I can't believe it's been (almost) a year!