Arizona Trip

Mason is the BEST traveler. We left Friday morning at 4AM, riding with my dad, Deanna, and Hunter. Despite a freeway closure in L.A. we made it to Phoenix in 13.5 hours and Mason was content all but the last half hour. He spent the L.A. traffic time on mom's lap, lucky kid.

Saturday we got to meet Josh and Kim's newest addition, Ella Grace! She is 7 pounds of adorable and Kim looks fantastic. Ella is just a little peanut, it's hard to believe Mason has grown so much since being that little.

Mason and Ella spent a little time getting to know each other. They were supposed to only be 3 weeks apart and turned out being nearly 8!

Ella is her daddy's girl for sure. I love this picture, not only Ella's beautiful eyes but Mason in the corner sleeping away.

Saturday night was the big party for my dad's 50th birthday. The festivities included barbecued rib roast, lots of Land Shark, a few games of beer pong and darts, and some Irish Car Bombs.

I'm not sure who won, although if you're drinking cold beer on a warm night doesn't everybody win?

There were plenty of arms to hold Mason. This is my handsome boy with his second cousin Lauren.

Sunday was Mason's first baseball game! Dad and Deanna got him an adorable All-Star outfit to wear. It was a gorgeous day and Mason slept through most of the game.

My Aunt Melissa got Mase at play mat which we set up at the game and covered with a blanket for shade. He was digging the tummy time!

Grandpa Flint and Mason are old buddies after all the time they've already spent in the car together. I'd say Dad is looking good for 50. :)

We flew home this morning and Mason (excellent traveler that he is) slept through most of the flight, woke up to eat, and then was happy and flirting with the flight attendants. He is responding to smiles now and is a lot of fun to play with when he is awake. The hardest part of the trip was missing Tage. On Sunday Mason was hearing male voices and turning to see where they were coming from. As I type, Mason is enjoying some Daddy-time and is sound asleep on his chest in the living room. There is no place like home.

Free Time

It turns out such a thing does exist from time to time, even with an 8-week old. I saw these lavender and baking soda filled sachets in Parents magazine (a free subscription came with our Boppy) and thought I would make one to put in my diaper bag... then I figured Kim might use one in her diaper bag... then it occurred to me that the rest of the girls might use one for their cars...

So one thing lead to another and I ended up making 7 of these (the first one didn't turn out so well) lavender sachets. Don't be surprised if one of these finds its way to you. :)

Mason and I leave for Arizona tomorrow morning with my dad, Deanna, and her two sons. My dad turns 50 on Tuesday so our annual Spring Training trip will include a big party in celebration. We'll be back on Monday and by then I'm hoping to have a new charger for my laptop and access to the rest of my "before" pictures of the house. Just the hallways and bedrooms left and we're getting Mason's crib today so the nursery will be just about complete.

Say a prayer for us if you think of it on Friday morning as we drive down to Phoenix and on Monday morning as we fly home!

Welcome Baby Ella!

Ella Grace Reitz made her entrance into the world yesterday, March 22nd, at 12:24PM. She is 20 inches long and weighs 7 pounds and 14 ounces. Mommy and baby are both doing great. Congratulations Josh and Kim!

Saturday Smile

The real smile is on my face today in anticipation of tonight. I get some adult time with Lindsey and a few of her girlfriends. Yay! Here is a smile, or more of a smirk, from Mason too...

Luck 'O the Irish

Exactly how DOES a small child get poop to come out of the front of their diaper and all over their onesie?You'd think we would know better than to put Mason in an outfit in the morning that we intended him to still be wearing that evening.

You'd think.

He made it all day in this cute white and green ensemble until (just my luck) the LAST diaper change before leaving for Grandma Pete's for St. Patrick's Day dinner. The thought did cross mind mind to just wipe it down and leave him in it since his pants would cover the spot. Thankfully that thought crossed my mind out loud and Tage quickly vetoed it. We hope you had a joyful St. Patrick's Day! "May the road rise to meet you, may the wind be ever at your back. May the sun shine warm upon your face and the rain fall softly on your fields. And until we meet again, may God hold you in the hollow of His hand."

Extreme Home Makeover: Dining Room

Before

After

Tage and I reupholstered the dining set ourselves and the red in the fabric (which Tage chose) became the inspiration for the room. We still have some tweaking to do and candle holders to add but are content with how the room looks for now. I've neglected to mention that all of the ceilings in the house were painted by my mom and Elaine when we were home in January. The rooms we are painting now would not look nearly as good had they not worked so hard on them.

6 Weeks

Mason is 6 weeks old as of yesterday! I can't believe how quickly the time has flown and how much he is growing each day. His newborn clothes are fitting him and I know it will be no time before he grows out of them. He is smiling more and is alert for longer periods of time. Now if only he would sleep for longer periods of time.

How adorable is this cake?! We are fortunate to have Tessa, of The Frosted Cake Shop, living next door. She dropped off this sweet treat for Mason (and his parents) and we can't wait to enjoy it. Check out her amazing creations! I'm already brainstorming cake ideas for Tessa to create for Mason's first birthday.

We're In

Last Monday, one day after arriving in town, the following conversation took place...

Tage: "We've been invited over to Libby and Kevin's on
Saturday."

Tegan: "I don't know who Libby and Kevin are."

Tage: "You've met them a couple of times, they're friends of JR and
Cate."

Tegan: "Why are they inviting us over?"

Tage: "We're in the club now, we have a kid."

I'm always up for meeting people (and seeing the inside of their homes) so Saturday night the three of us got all spiffed up (Heidi, you're going to hate this but I went in my Converse- I'm a new mom, it's allowed) and drove the few blocks between our house and the Sanchez' (I learned from Facebook the next day that that was their last name.) We brought a bottle of wine, one couple brought a home made lemon meringue pie, another couple arrived bearing a small silver and gold shiny box (ladies, you know the one... these people brought a hostess gift from Nordstrom!) There were quite a few people there, all but one couple had children and many of them brought them.

As I stood there in the dining room that was painted in designer colors and grounded by stunning original hardwood floors, in front of an table scape of cheese and wines and even pizza for the kids, I thought to myself, "This is just the beginning." It won't be long before I have a moms group, play dates, and will be taking walks with Mason in the jogger stroller, Starbucks in in the cup holder, along with the other neighborhood moms.

These people, who hadn't been interested in carrying on a conversation with me the few other times we've been at social gatherings together, now wanted to know how the nursing was going, how much Mason is sleeping, and offered to help out any time I needed a break. It was quite surreal.

It's official. Mason was our ticket in. We are now members of the "Secret Parents Club" of our neighborhood.

Extreme Home Makeover: Living Room

Before

After

Playing Catch Up

It has been a hectic week of cleaning, painting, unpacking, and visiting so I'm a little behind on the blogging. Mason has met so many friends and family members!

Roommate Dave

Great Grandpa Saner and Great Grandma Barbara

Cousin Katherine (and Aunt Taina)

Great Grandpa Carroll and Great Grandma Mikki

Aunties Heidi, Lindsey, Jaime, Laura, and Roseanne

Both Mason and Astro have adjusted to the "new" house; Astro is particularly enjoying having a yard to play in without being constrained by a 15' chain. We are working on the house one room at a time and hope to be finished this week. It feels good to be home!

Moving Day

Saturday morning we packed up the U-Haul and waved goodbye to the house and city we've called home for the last year. Dad and I left at 12:22PM with Mason in the back seat and Astro in the bed of my brother's truck, U-Haul in tow.
Dad and I arrived in Klamath Falls around 12:22AM exhausted and a little cranky. Although both Mason and Astro were great travellers, there is only so much one can take in a day. The four of us checked into the Motel 6, got a few hours of sleep, refueled our bodies at the Black Bear Diner, and made like Willie Nelson. Incidentally, if you ever have the opportunity to eat at Black Bear Diner I highly recommend it. Excellent food and tons of it. Not to mention they make their own orange juice to order, it was delicious and I seriously thought about that orange juice almost the entire rest of our trip.
Our mini-caravan rolled into town around 5PM on Sunday, welcomed by Tage (who had left at 8:30PM the night before and driven straight through), Deanna, Hunter, and Jared. They unloaded the truck in no time and got to spend a little quality time with Mase. As you can see above, Jared and his new nephew already look like they belong together.
Melanie and Lindsey stopped by and Mason got some quality Auntie Lindsey time after all the commotion ended. She stayed until late Sunday night holding Mason so Tage and I could at least get the boxes placed near where they belonged. It will be a long week but we're happy to be home and Mason and Astro seem to be adjusting well.