Update on the kids!

Kaleb has been really into Transformers lately. Tim finally talked me into watching the new Transformers Movie and it was to my delight a VERY good movie. So now Kaleb watches the movie all the time. Tim is especially thrilled with this new passion of Kaleb's because Transformers have been around since Tim was a kid. So he gets to relive his childhood through Kaleb. There for a while Tim was coming home with a new Transformer action figure every couple days. I finally had to tell Tim to quit buying himself new toys, because clearly he was enjoying them as much or more than Kaleb was! So my world is now a hodge bodge of transformer parts. Autobot (good guys) and Decepticon (bad guys) pieces and parts for me to find and try not to suck up into the vacuum! Kaleb also has recently become a fan of my Zucinni bread. My recipe isn't anything special, just straight outta the Betty crocker cook book, but Kaleb loves it! I love that he will eat a green veggie, however it is prepared. LOL!

Jasmyn is in Preschool this year. Last year she was in the same class but Future was in their with her. I really thought that she would be the queen of the classroom as a returning student. And for the most part her teacher says she is. But she is sometimes having a difficult time when we drop her off. SO we have been working hard on trying to make her comfortable in the mornings. We read a book called "The Kissing Hand" about a Raccoon that is afraid to go to school. His mother kisses the palm of his hand and he carries the kissing hand with him all day long. When he is feeling sad he presses his kissing hand to his cheek and it is like his Momma is there kissing him and telling him he is loved. So our tradition in the mornings when I drop her off is to give each other a kissing hand. It usually works, although sometimes she still is a bit clingy. It will get better as she gets more confident in her place in her classroom.

Mason is just talking up a storm. When Mason was born Jasmyn was 2, the same age Mason is now. After Mason was born it just seemed like overnight that Jasmyn's vocabulary boomed and she was speaking so much more clearly. I always assumed she did that out of survival since Mason had essentially taken her place. But now that Mason is the same age, his speech is so much better and gets more advanced everyday. I have to admit that it really does ease my mind about Jasmyn when Mason was born. She was just ready to speak, kinda like Mason is now. The coolest thing is now Mason is saying our names. He has always said Momma and Daddy, but it is so cool to hear him say Taybub (Kaleb) and Ja man (Jasmyn)and Utchur (Future) and Davit (David) and Gamma (grandma). I also love to hear Peez (please) Tank ou (thank you) Er Elcome (your Welcome). And when he is upset at you he also has been know to say "awp awuking" (stop talking). LOL! It took him saying "Awp Awuking" a few times before I finally understood what he was saying. I had to laugh, but then realized he was basically telling me to "shut up"! LOL!

Now I have 2 little stories to tell......

Kaleb & I were sitting next to each other at dinner. I held up a piece of zucinni on his fork and tried to feed it to him. "See Kaleb, this zuccinni is just like the stuff I put in the zucinni bread yo love so much." He looked at me and shook his head. "No Mom that is Decepticon Zuccini" LOL!!! He didn't eat it.

Jasmyn and I were on our way to her school. Parking around the school is a nightmare, so I was circling the block trying to find a place to park. Jasmyn asked me if we were going to the school. I said, " Yes Honey, we are just trying to find a parking spot and then I will drop you off. Are you ready for school?" "yes Mom, and I won't even cry or Nuthin' " I say " Oh good Jasmyn. You will have a good day and you will be with your teachers. They are very nice teachers, right?" Jasmyn says, " Yes Mom they are very nice teachers, and they WON'T even KILL me" LOL! Yes Jasmyn they won't even kill you!

Kids say the darnedest things!

Mason Turns 2!

On July 19th Mason turned 2 years old. We celebrated the day after his birthday due to Tim's work schedule. But since Mason can't read a calendar yet.... it was no big deal to him when as long as we did it!
We started out the day with Blueberry Pancakes. This time the kids actually did eat them! After breakfast I finished decorating Mason's Birthday cake. Then we just hung out at home for a while and packed up a bag and the presents to head over to my Mom's house for his B-day Party. When we got there we opened up presents. He got a few things but the most mentionable are the Life Jacket and the Camp Chair. Both were needed for (all the kids needed them) our upcoming camp trip.

Big Smiles in his new Camp Chair!

They LOVE their new chairs!
Opening Presents and playing with his new puzzle

Next was Life Jackets for all.
After we gave them the life jackets we put on our swimsuits and went to Grandma pool to try them out. Mason doesn't really like his that much. Jasmyn LOVES hers and was swimming around the pool like a fish in no time. Kaleb was a bit more hesitant but got the hang of it pretty fast as well.

After swimming we came back upstairs and ate lunch. We had 2 of Mason's Favorites: Pizza and Cantaloupe. He wanted to sit in his new chair so we set him and Jasmyn up at the coffee table.

He REALLY likes Melon!

After Pizza and melon we had Cake. I decorated it using a Monkey from Mason's favorite book as a guide. I think it turned out very cute, even if my Mom wasn't sure what kind of animal was actually hanging from the tree. @@
I somehow forgot to grab the birthday candles off the counter at home when I packed our bag so I had to use some tea lights that Mom had handy. Good thing he is only turning 2!

We sang Happy Birthday to him and then he blew the candles out all by himself!!!!

Jasmyn & Kaleb were very proud of him for blowing them out!

Then we dished up cake. Kaleb likes the end pieces! More frosting!

Mason LOVES chocolate cake! He ate it by the fist fulls!

I can still remember the highly anticipated birth of Mason. I was overdue by 6 days and so sick of being pregnant. We were also planning our first home birth. It was a very highly anticipated birth. But once labor started and everyone arrived that was supposed to attend the birth it went very fast. Only 3 short painful hours until my little man was squirming in my arms instead of in my tummy. I feel as blessed today as I did the day he was born into that pool of water. He is such a sweet boy with such a great little personality. I am so proud to be his mommy.

Happy 2nd Birthday Mason Alexander. We love you!

First Haircuts

After Jasmyn's self haircut, I needed to find someone to cut her hair and even it up. Because she has naturally curly hair I wanted to take her to someone who knew how to care for curls. My friend Sarah has curly hair and only trusts our old high school friend Kristi to cut or color her naturally curly hair. I called Kristi as soon as I could after discovering Jasmyn's hair and made an appointment! So here are a few pictures documenting Jasmyn's 1st Haircut and style! Jasmyn did great. She just sat there on the chair with a half pouty lip and waited for Kristi to be done. She even allowed Kristie to blow her hair dry and style it!
I guess if it has to be a short hair cut at least she looks cute in it!

Here is a picture of her the next day after I styled it. She looks cute. I wish her hair was still long, but she still looks like a cute little girl and she still has her curls! For about 2 months now Tim has been bugging me to cut Mason's hair. It was getting a bit long in the back and covering his ears. I was hesitant because I did not want to just buzz cut it like I do Kaleb's. Kaleb's hair is much thicker and darker, so even with a fresh buzz cut he still looks like a healthy little boy. I was honestly afraid that if I just buzzed Mason's hair that he would look bald or like a child receiving cancer treatments. LOL!

After Kristi and Jasmyn did so well getting Jasmyn's hair cut, Tim & I figured we should at least give Mason a try. I wasn't gonna force him to do it, but I figured we could at least try. Much to our delight he sat very still in my lap and did not cry at all! Even Kristi was impressed! Here are a few pictures of Mason and I getting his 1st hair cut!

He even got brave enough to stand and let her do the back! Such a Big Boy!

Handsome boy!

Mason

If there is one thing I could say about Mason it is that he is All Boy! He likes to play in the dirt, get dirty, explore his world with hands on enthusiasm, and he's also a bit of a Momma's boy! I blame the latter on my breastfeeding him for 19 months! LOL! He loves to go for rides in Daddy's truck and go to Home Depot with Dad. He is usually the first to give Dad a hug when he walks through the door after being gone for 5 or more days at a time. Mason also has a close relationship with his Grandma Mary.

He is talking up a storm although you still have to have a "Degree" in Mason-ese to fully understand him. He adds new words to his vocabulary everyday. But his favorite words are still: Momma, Dad, No, Yeah, Want that, and MINE! And as with all our kids we teach them, "please" and "thank you" long before they understand the importance of such words. He will say his version of Thank you and then beam the biggest smile at you! The smile gets his point across even if the words are not quite clear yet.

Here are a few pictures of our little man being: All Boy!

This is at Future's B-day Party and he has traces of Chocolate from the M&Ms he snatched from the pinata treat bowl!

This is one taken after he was done playing outside. Yup all that brown is DIRT! He seems quite pleased with himself!

Here is his partner in crime, Jasmyn. But notice how clean she looks compared to him?!?!? I think she helps get him dirty! The cup in his hand is also full of dirt!

I swear we bathe him every other day whether he needs it or not!