Halloween with Mason the Monkey

This year was fun-- Mason was finally old enough to understand what was going on, what we were doing, and why we were out. He was dressed up like a monkey, he would make the monkey sounds, and crawl on the floor. There wasn't a doubt in his mind as to what he was. It was so much fun. After we would get candy from a house, he would say, "Tank You", and as we walked away, he would say, "More?". It sure is fun to see your kids grow up. We also went to a Halloween Birthday party for cousin Emily, who turned one. What a fun birthday! I always wanted a Halloween baby, I will love Camille's instead :)

He climbed up to doors, and politely knocked. I am pretty sure every lady on the block loved his little voice saying "treat". Trick-or-treat was too many words, but the treat he seemed to get in there every time ;)

Mason and the banana bucket. "More. More. More?".

Papa the trick-or-treating knight. Pretty much Mason's hero.

The monkey and his pumpkins. He loved "punkins" all season long.

The eyes that change from green to brown. And the monkey that stole my heart.

Trying to get a picture of six wiggly kids is always interesting. Here is the best one I got!

This was the monkey crawl. He did it frequently.
The sweetest kid ever.

Thanks to Papa who snagged up this monkey costume for Mason last year. He loved it.

Bowling anyone?

Anyone else have a kid who loves to bowl? Mason thought it was his turn every time the pins were set up-- we let him believe it. He loved pushing the ball down the ramp, and running to watching it come back up through the hole. It was fun, he loved it, and so did we.

Lagoon!

Mason had his first trip to Lagoon on Friday-- and he had way more fun than I thought he would! He was able to ride a few rides with cousin Collin, and he got to eat his favorite for lunch. Hot dogs! It was a good day, so good, we bought season passes so we could go back all summer long. It's going to be fun!

The Whickerds

Quite the cute collection of cute kids if I do say so myself. And yes, mine would be the one giving someone a dirty look at the bottom of the shot. Ahh, boy after my own heart there.
These two cuties, are quite possibly the most darling brother/sister team on the planet. I mean look at them. Does it get any sweeter than that?

Sweet Collin is oh, so handsome.
Miss Emily, the littlest cousin. She is super sweet, and oh, so precious.
And a blooper. No family picture would be complete without one. Bree is such a good sister, holding that little Emily. And Buddy gives the best cheeses. Mason is apparently leaving the building, and it looks like Collin isn't far behind. Easter was so fun! I wish we could get all these kiddlets together for pictures more often :)

Easter -- Mason the Hunt Master

Easter was SO MUCH fun this year. Mason was old enough, to like the hunt concept of things-- and to really LIKE it. Last year, all we could do was sit him in his basket, and he being a tiny tot, had no complaints. He was really quiet in the olden days ;)

THEN:

NOW:

This year, that cute little bug basket got some action :) He loved collecting all the eggs, and running around with his dad. Mase got to attend Four Easter Egg Hunts, two which were directly coordinated for his pure enjoyment-- NAH, not spoiled at all. Here are some pics from the hunt at Grandma and Grandpa Rich's house. All the other cousins were there, and it was a ton of fun!

Play Time

Mason loves to play-- why did no one ever tell me how busy a toddler was going to be? I swear he could run around in circles all day, and still have endless amounts of energy. He may be exhausting, but man is he fun. If the weather would warm up (Come on, it's APRIL! Time for some sunshine!) we would take him to the park every single day. He LOVES it. He would live on the swing if I'd let him, just starring at the people with those beautiful hazel eyes, wordlessly begging to be pushed. It's pretty much the cutest thing ever. The only thing that's cuter? Seeing these two buds walking down the sidewalk hand in hand. *heart melter*

Oh, man.

I love this little man. He gets bigger, and bigger every day. You can catch him busting a move any time music comes on-- the kid loves to dance. I will catch a video for your viewing pleasure, it's seriously that cute. Instead, for now, I will share a picture of how naughty he has been lately. The baby powder was the victim this time, and that face, yeah, that's his "how can you resist how cute I am" face.

Aunt Kallyn shared her old stuffed Barney with him, and he loves it. Carries the purple dinosaur around yelling at it, and kissing his face. Ask him, "What does a dinosaur say?", and you will get a quiet "...rrraaawwwrrr" in return every time. We watch Sprout. all. day. long. The Wiggles, Barney, Thomas; seriously, Sprout is Mason's dream come true.

He has turned into the chattiest kid, he babbles constantly. I wish I knew what he was saying, because I have this feeling, the majority of it would be hilarious. He can brighten anyone's day. Seriously, if you are needing a pick me up, come on over, my sweet kiddo can turn that frown upside down. And this was his latest modeling gig, cloth diapers. Yep, future Abercrombie model right here ;)

Valentines Day- at the Hospital

Poor Mason, he just hasn't been able to stay well this winter. His first ear infection was in January, and he has had one every month since. In February, he got really sick one weekend-- really sleepy, congested, and just not acting like himself. Long story short, the InstaCare had him admitted to McKay Dee. We spent two nights at the hospital, and Mason went home feeling much better after. It turns out he just had a bad case of the common cold, but they took great care of him there, and I am so grateful for sweet nurses that have enough compassion to suck boogers out of my kids nose so he can breathe.

Nana spent the night with us his first night at the hospital. She is so good to Mason, lots of snuggles, and loves helped get him better super quick.

Papa came too-- he even took a day off to spend with Mason in the hospital (Valentine's Day no less!) Mason sure loves this guy.

By this time, he was feeling much better. I thought for sure he would start picking at his IV's, but he didn't. Not even once, he's a good boy.

He loved peeking out the side of his "cage". Once he got feeling better, it was hard to keep him contained in here. All he wanted to do was walk and play, but with all the cords, that was a no go.

Don't you worry, the kid stayed plenty happy with his favorite movie, Despicable Me, on constant loop. Even the doctor knew it would be on every time he stopped by.

This is one of the reasons I love this kid so very much. Tied up to lots of cords, things strapped to his feet, confined to a small crib space to play, and still not feeling the best-- but you still get smiles. He truely is a happy go-lucky kid. We are sure happy he is feeling better.

Pondering...

the meaning of life. And Shrek three. What? The kid loves his cartoons. Yeah, we kinda like him.

The Belle and the Beau

This site, makes the CUTEST bows, and ties for little ones. We are in love with their ties. Mason has several neck, and bow ties- he wore the Black Damask at his 1st Birthday Party! They are just so darn handsome! Both the neck, and bow ties have been featured on www.BabySteals.com for outrageous deals... but they are having a sweet sale on their own site too! Here's the info:

Now, through January 23rd, you can save 35% off your entire order! Enter the following codes to redeem the deal!

DCHAPPY2011 on their website- www.thebelleandthebeau.com

HAPPY2011 on their Etsy site- www.thebelleandthebeau.etsy.com

While you are shopping their ridiculously cute items in the shops- fan their Facebook fan page, and tell them I sent you.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Belle-The-Beau/117086354990346

They sell some of the cutest kiddo stuff around- and they do fun contests! You seriously can't find a better company around... Though I am partial to BabySteals :)

we kinda like him.

Mason is such a little character. He never ceases to find some new way, to crack me up. Right now, he loves Despicable Me. We can turn it on, and he will cuddle up in the Love Sac, and watch the entire flick. (Which makes it pretty much our daily morning movie, so Mason stays happy while the parents get ready for work. It's bliss.) We think the Minions are his favorite. He gets the biggest grin whenever they come on.

He also LOVES to play. And, he thinks everyone around him is his personal jungle gym. He climbs, crawls, jumps, dives-- everywhere. Once he finds his way to your lap, don't be surprised if he is dragging a book around with him. A Sparkly Christmas Eve is his favorite at Nana's house. He will dig to the bottom of the pile to find it- every time. He's a smart cookie- and we don't mind having him develop a reading habit early :)

This kid is a ton of fun-- and a total handful. But after a year of having him around, I think it's official. We'll keep him.