Extra Thankful

Finally, my Thanksgiving post. What, it's only a month late?!?! This year Adam and I had something extra special to be thankful for. Just a few weeks earlier, we figured out we were expecting baby number 2. A month later, I can honestly say that being pregnant with Mason was a complete breeze compared to this time around, but as I keep saying, it's for a good cause.

We spent Thanksgiving Day with Adam's family. I must apologize profusely, as I failed miserably to take any pictures of this day. It was probably the worst day of morning (and afternoon) sickness I've encountered, so while I was present at Thanksgiving, I wasn't much there. Hopefully my poor spirits didn't dampen the otherwise good vibes associated with the day.

While I normally go Black Friday shopping with my mom and sister, this year it just wasn't going to work out. Instead, I took Mason up to Bridgeport on Saturday and we tried our luck at Bronner's. Mason loved the outdoor giant Santa (look at that grin!) but didn't seem too excited about being inside Bronner's. Probably because he was forced to sit in his stroller and be pushed around at a snail's pace when all he wanted to do was run around and touch everything. We made it out without breaking anything, which was a surprise given how busy and cramped it was in there.

After that it was time for some quality grandparent time at home. Mason loves going to the "Ding Dong House" as he calls it. (In reference to the Grandfather clock that goes "ding dong" every 15 minutes.) I'm sure it has a lot to do with all the attention he gets when he's there, and all the fun stuff that he doesn't get to do at home. (Like scrub the microwave with a bowl full of bubbles, what could be more fun for a toddler right?) This was also the trip that grandpa introduced Mason to his trains. What a hit! While I know grandpa felt a little trepidation letting Mason get so close to his prized possessions, I think they had an equally fun time playing in the basement.

In spite of not feeling well, it was a great weekend. I have a feeling next year will be even better!

Little Pumpkin Shower

And now it's time for something you've all been waiting for - a blog post not about Mason! ;) My mom and I threw a baby shower for Megan last weekend, and I think it went beautifully. Megan wanted one big shower for both sides of her family and all her friends, and thankfully she was able to find a location in Midland that would fit everyone - the Dow Gardens Whiting Forest Visitors Center. It was the perfect location for a "little pumpkin" themed shower. And being in early November, the place was decked out with pumpkins so we didn't have much to decorate.

We had a ton of snacks and treats, thanks to mom, Dan's mom, and Megan's friend Emily. I think we could all say our sweet teeth were satisfied. Of course there were a couple shower games to be played after the snacks. I put together a little games booklet for each guest (and failed to take a picture of them, but they are under the envelopes on the table picture below). The first game was Guess My Size, where guests had to guess the circumference of two pumpkins and Megan's belly. Surprisingly, the largest pumpkin was only 3 inches smaller than Megan! Though she probably doesn't think so at this point, she looks great. The second game was the good ol' Animal Babies game, where guests are given the adult animal name and need to write down the animal baby name. The answer that drew the most comments was for monkey, which is an infant.

Then it was on to gifts! I must say, Megan has some generous friends and family. I'm not sure where she's going to put it all, even with her new larger house. Only two months to go before Baby Burr arrives. I'm sure Megan wants nothing more than for the baby to come already, but I hope she enjoys these remaining few weeks of peace and quiet. Before long, she have her very own little banshee running around. ;)

Trick or Treating

We had quite an 'emotional' Halloween, and by that I mean a tired little boy hell bent on getting his way. To start the night, we tried to get him back into his Buzz costume. This led to tears and "No Buzz!!! No Buzz!!!" So I hunted down his monkey costume from last year and he seemed okay with that. It was quite snug, but it worked.

Now Mason still doesn't quite grasp the concept of Trick or Treating, but after the Zoo Boo he learned that holding out his pumpkin bag leads to candy being tossed into it. So we took him next door to the Stanley's house. He has been eyeing their house all October. They put on quite the display, complete with lights and blow up pumpkins and grim reapers. Mason loves all of these things, so was his usual excited self when we headed over. We were so proud of the little guy, when Lisa plopped the candy in his bag he actually thanked her.

We figured one house and the night for him would be done. But Mason was no where near done with Trick or Treating. Instead of continuing on to other houses, he wanted to sit with Lisa on their front porch and pass out their candy. Just so he could hang out with all the decorations a little longer. A couple of times we tried to get him back to our house, and each time kids would come to our door he'd follow them next door again.

When it was finally dark out, and time for a bath, we managed to get him back in the house after a bit of kicking and screaming. I doubt he'll remember this first experience Trick or Treating, but I'm sure we will!

Bumpkeens!

Mason loves "Bumpkeens" so we had to take him over to Gull Meadows in Richland. Adam grew up just a few short miles from the farm, so it was kind of a full circle thing. But the farm was nothing like Adam remembered it! With zip lines and haystack obstacle courses and corn mazes - this was certainly different than the hay rides and apple picking Adam remembered. Don't worry, they still had that stuff too.

Mason was pretty overwhelmed by the crowds and flurry of activities. He was a little too young to do most of the stuff and just old enough to understand he wanted to do it. All in all, we had a lovely afternoon. The highlight was watching Mason play in the pumpkin patch. He adored each and every pumpkin, from the "Beeg, beeg, bumpkeens" to the "iss evvie bumpkeens." I hope going to the pumpkin farm is a tradition that we'll continue.

The End of an Era

Adam and I have been talking about weening Mason off his pacifier for some time. It had become like a bad habit for him. He'd be fine without it all day at the sitter and in daycare (even for naps!), but at home he'd always cry for it. It's been a struggle trying to coordinate this, mostly because of our crazy schedules, but we finally took the plunge a week and a half ago and put it out of its misery.

We'd heard all kinds of theories on how best to do it and still did the exact opposite. We forced him to give it up cold turkey. There was a moment when I tried to explain to Mason that this would be the last time he had it, but I'm sure he didn't understand. All he cared about was that he didn't have it and he wanted it back now. Lots of tears ensued, not all from Mason.

A week and a half in and we're surviving. It's been tough - he's been sick during this and I know it would make him feel so much better. We had people suggest we give it back to him but only when he's in his crib. We almost caved a couple times during some of the rougher nights, but somehow have held on. This too shall pass right? :)

Below are some of my favorite pictures of Mason with his pacifier from the past two years. When he sees pictures like these in his photo albums, he points at the pacifier and asks "whas thees?" It's the end of an era Little Boo.

Playing Catch Up

It's been a whirlwind couple of weeks around these parts. Adam and I have been stressed to the max with work (okay, it's mostly been me stressed) plus we've had so much going on at home. To start of the month, Adam's brother and his family were visiting from Washington. Mason has so much fun with his cousins, especially Abby who is just his size.


The next week, Mason began going to day care. I think this was harder for me than it was for him, but I'm feeling better about it these days. Thankfully Adam drops him off and picks him up both days Mason is there. I know it's hard for him too, but I really don't think I could do it.

A week after daycare began, Adam and I went on a trip to Chicago to celebrate our 30th birthdays. Mason stayed with Nana and Papa while we were gone for two whole nights. I feel like all we did was eat on this trip (Quartino's, Harry Carey's, David Burke's Primehouse, Giordano's), but we did do some non-food related things. We went shopping, toured the aquarium and went to Navy Pier (picture below on a very windy day).


Of course we know it's good to get away just the two of us, but we missed Mason so much. I spent much of our final day holding back tears, and when I saw his little face at the train station and he saw us we both started crying.

When we returned it was time to finish off the birthday plans. The theme this year was Elmo, whom Mason adores. (Seriously, when we watch Sesame Street, he cries when Elmo's World is over.)


I can't believe my little baby is 2 already. He looks like a toddler now. I'm hoping for some calmer days ahead where I can enjoy these moments before they rush by.

I ♥ Nana

Mason sure does love his Nana. We have been so fortunate to have her watch him one day a week, and it has built such a bond between them. Nana is the 4th most common word out of Mason's mouth - behind only mama, dada and no.

Not only does he have fun with Nana, but Mason learns a lot from her too. Every once in a while Adam and I will stumble upon something he's learned that we didn't teach him. It always surprises us (and usually makes me cry with pride) even though we wouldn't expect anything less with her teaching background. I hope Mason will appreciate all this time he has with his Nana - it's priceless.