Weekend Fun

Story time at the library

Christmas shopping

Mommy feeds the ducks while Mason snacks on the bread

Watching the squirrels

Hanging out with Jaime and Vinny

Saturday Smile

Mason is so proud that he can put the pacifier in his mouth all by himself.

Don't bother telling him it is upside down.

Just laugh, and enjoy. :)

10 Months: A Day in the Life

If it doesn't already feel like Christmas

It will now!

For a girl who has a big giant cup of green tea every morning,

Trader Joe's Candy Cane Green Tea

is like heaven in a cup.

Try some, you'll thank me.

(Sorry Suzy, there is no TJ's in Spokane yet.)

I should be...

Cleaning.

Napping.
Sewing curtains for my kitchen.

But no.

I got sucked into this.


You can too!

Julie makes it very, very easy.

Plus I'll end up with 9 festive scarves I actually plan to use as gift wrap (killing two birds with one stone with being environmentally responsible and including something handmade with each gift.)

So here you go...



And if you're up for more of a challenge, check out Heather's scarf along!

Saturday Smile

I know this day will come all too soon!

Until then I'm content with letting him honk the horn at dad while we're sitting in the parking lot of our umpteenth gas station in as many hours.

Minnesota

Our vacation ended in "Pleasantville", Minnesota (as Roseanne calls it) which was just a short drive from Riceville. We got to see Roseanne and Larry's new house...

...and meet their newest family member, Daniel!

Daniel is the sweetest puppy! And very laid back, except for when he is being chased by babies...

See Daniel hiding behind Larry? He barked at Mason every time Mase started to crawl toward him.

Thank you for letting us stay with you guys Rose! We are already looking forward to next year-- and staying for more than one night. :)

Welcome to Riceville

Why would anyone vacation in Iowa, you ask?

Tage's mom (Grandma Dee) was born and raised in Iowa (actually, just across the border in LeRoy, MN) and his aunt Von and uncle Dean live there now. Tage spent a summer with them in high school and they made quite an impact on the person he is today.

Looks like any other house, right?

Until you look past the house back to the barn and silo's...

...and past the barn and silo's to the corn fields...

...and past the corn fields to the enormous windmills!

I've always wanted to see one of those things up close. They are huge!

We always plan our trip around pheasant season. Sadly, the last two seasons have been awful for hunting but it doesn't stop the boys from going out. Here is Tage and his cousin Jay getting ready to head out to the tree stand for deer hunting.

Of course if the hunting is slow there is always golf to pass the time.

Mason and I had fun running (er, crawling) around the farm while the boys were out.

"Town" is 5 miles away from the farm and is basically a gas station, library, and the grocery store above. How cute is Peachey's Family Market?!

Last week's grocery deals-- this sign cracked me up.

Mason's favorite part of the trip was the target-practice buck.

Mommy's favorite part of the trip was lots of time with my boys-- and plenty of naps!

Even more from vacation tomorrow!

Home Sweet Home

4000 miles + 60 hours in the car + taking 9 days to travel across 7 states and back = happy to be home!

We left at 8PM on Friday night and arrived at 1:30AM (3:30AM local time) on Sunday morning.

More to come this week on our vacation to Iowa. Did I mention we are happy to be home???

Road trip!

View Larger Map

Looks like fun, doesn't it?

9 days. 7 states. A couple "Diners, Drive In's and Dives" stops. Approximately 60 hours of driving.

With a 9 month old.

Not so much...

BUT I'm sure many years from now we'll look back on this trip with fond memories... and priceless photos of Mason with this side of Tage's family.

At least that's what I keep telling myself.

Wish us luck!

9 Months

Every time I thought about this post over the last few days in my head I've thought of it as Mason's "6 month post"-- then I have to correct myself. He is 9 months now.

Nine.

How is that even possible?

We visited the doctor last week and here are the vitals: 20 lbs. 14 oz. and 27 1/2 inches. Three pounds heavier and about the same height as his 6 month check up. I'm not sure how accurate the height measurement ever is, Mason is so squirmy!

"Please no shots!"

(His expression in that picture cracks me up. In reality he's trying to stuff that tissue paper into his mouth like a little squirrel while I am distracted by snapping pictures.)

Mason is cruising all over the place these days and gravitates toward anything with a button he can push or a wire he can pull. His new favorite thing is to point at everything and ask, "That?" He will point at an object and ask over and over (and over) just to hear you say the name and make sure it's still the same as the last time. His arm is constantly pointing!

We are absolutely loving watching him grow and learn.
This whole parenting thing? Awesome.