Not a lot going on this week.  My parents along with my brother, Jeremy, and his family are in Cabo this week for a wedding of a good friend of Jeremy's.  He's been sending me pictures all day, rubbing it in that they are in paradise and we are in, well, the opposite of paradise.  Someday I will get him back, in the meantime here's some pictures of the past week.

Lady A's parents went to the Dominican and brought back these cool t-shirts for the boys.  I'm getting the feeling that everybody but us got the memo to go somewhere warm this winter.  Trust me, we will be rectifying this situation next year.

Just a cute picture of the Mason Man in his new Under Armour outfit that he got for Christmas.

We can't go near a hoop without having to lift Mason up to shoot.  It appears we have 2 little basketball stars in the making!

This is what Mason thinks about being stuck inside all winter.

The temperature got up to about 12 degrees on Wednesday!  It was downright balmy, so we took advantage.

Kade Man loves his construction!

I mentioned in a previous post that Mason screams his head off between bites of food.  I think he's concerned he may starve to death?

Whew.  It appears that Mason's cheeks will stay deliciously full for at least one more meal, thanks to big brother Kade stepping in to save the day!  

And, yes, Kade is wearing Erik's high school football jersey because that's normal, right?

Cabin fever is at an all time high these days.  Cold weather is one thing, I can handle cold.  We can play outside in cold.  It's when the daily high is 0 degrees or less that's the issue.  That's not just cold weather, that is ridiculous-tell-me-again-why-we-live-here-wait-did-my-nose-hairs-just-freeze? frigid weather.

Kade's been playing A LOT of basketball in the basement, you know, since he can't play it in the driveway.  He and Erik have also been going to the high school boy's basketball games.  Kade is pumped to become a "Dover Eagle" as he calls them.  He told Erik that he can't wait to go to school with a bunch of other Dover Eagles his age.  We're a little concerned that he thinks school consists of playing basketball all day, every day.

Our little basketball player in a ginormous Gopher jersey.  Yep, he still has to dress appropriately for whatever activity he's playing.  It's the cutest thing ever to see this giant jersey tucked into his little basketball shorts :-)

Mason had his 12 month check up last week.  He's still healthy, happy, and BIG!  And, like always, pretty much the exact same size as Kade.  It still blows my mind...

Mason's stats:

Height:  2 ft 6.5 inches  (81%)

Weight:  26 pounds (96%)

Kade's 12 month stats:
Height:  2 ft 6.5 inches (81%)
Weight:  25.5 pounds (83%)

Yep, a half pound difference.  That's it.

This kid LOVES food.  He literally cries between bites if you don't get the next spoonful in his mouth fast enough.  Hey, you don't get into the 96th percentile by skipping meals!  

Construction Man Mason

We had Mason's birthday party last Saturday.  I'm happy to say that he was not spoiled with presents!  We requested that people not bring him a gift, since there is absolutely nothing that he needs, and instead put money in his savings if they just couldn't show up empty handed.  I would feel guilty except he won't remember and he'll appreciate the money when he heads off to college.  I think Kade had a harder time grasping the concept of a birthday party with no gifts.  He'll get over it too :-)  I'm thinking next year we won't be able to get away with the same request!

I tried to get a picture of Mason with his cake but I couldn't get him to look away from the deliciousness.

He was able to sneak a little taste, this is him signing "more" after we put a stop to the cake destruction.

The Birthday Boy!

When he finally was able to have a piece of cake all to himself it took him a minute or two to wrap his head around the fact that it was all his!  And no one was going to stop him from devouring it!

A fist full of cake and…

…a face full of frosting.  That's more like it!

The boys got to finally meet their cousin, Isaac.

Kade couldn't get enough of him and followed around whoever was holding him.

Mason wasn't quite as gentle.  Mason also has a history of sitting on babies so a close eye had to be kept on the big boy once he discovered the little man.  Hard to believe these 2 are only 50 weeks apart!

Kade started soccer this past Thursday.  Last year was part success, part disaster depending on the week. We thought with another year under his belt he wouldn't be quite as shy and hoped there wouldn't be any tears.  We were wrong.  We prepared him, we talked to him about being brave, we discussed that we wouldn't be on the field with him and he seemed pretty confident.  Then, the coach started the class and…..tears.  I ended up doing a few of the drills with them and when he finally warmed up I slowly made my way to the exit.  I never did get off the field though, every time I tried he caught me and I quickly took my place on the sidelines.  Maybe next week I'll actually be able to sit on the bleachers with the other parents, instead of being the creeper sitting on the sidelines :-)

The kids weren't supposed to play goalie since it's just supposed to be about fun and not winning or losing.  However, our little competitor cannot stand the thought of someone scoring on him so he took it upon himself to play goalie almost the entire time.  He even dove on the ground to block the other net at one point.  

The good news:  the red team never did score.  The bad news:  the orange team never scored either.  Although, Kade thinks he scored because after the time ran out and everyone stopped playing he kicked the ball down the field and into the opponents net.  He was pretty proud of himself so we let him think his team won the game :-)

Happy 1st Birthday, Mason!

Sweet Baby Mason,
Exactly one year ago today we got the phone call of a lifetime.  There was a brand new baby boy waiting at the hospital in Mankato and we were the lucky couple that got to take you home.  We were in shock, disbelief, and more than a little nervous that you were too good to be true.  You were all cheeks and hair and we couldn't get enough of you.  We still can't.  You are the final piece of our family puzzle.  You completed us.  You made our long awaited dream of being a family of 4 come true.  The answer to our prayers.

This past year has been a blur, I think back and I can't remember much of anything.  You've gone from being "Mild Mannered Mason" to a busy, inquisitive and vocal "Bear Cub"!  You finally started sleeping through the night at 11 months (which might have something to do with my fuzzy memory of your first year).

You still aren't walking, not even close, but if there was an Olympic event for crawling, you would be the Gold Medal favorite.  Bob Costas would do an in-depth piece about you because you are the fastest crawler this side of the Mississippi and everybody loves a cute face in the Olympics.  "Why Walk When You Can Crawl?" seems to be your motto.

I see the makings of a Master Chef in your future.  When I'm in the kitchen you cry, cry, cry until I pick you up and then you are absolutely mesmerized by whatever is on the stove.  And, you haven't met a spoonful of food you don't like.  Your favorite upstairs toys are the kitchen utensils.  Your favorite downstairs toy is a toy spatula.  It's the first thing you look for when you get down there and then you carry it around in your mouth or hand the entire time while you explore.

You are also definitely showing signs of a basketball player.  You LOVE watching Kade and Dad play and you cry, cry, cry until Dad picks you up so you can play defense on Kade or shoot the ball yourself.  Once you get the ball in your hands you look around to make sure everyone is watching, then you put the ball through the hoop and immediately start smiling and clapping for yourself.  We're going to have to work on that because nobody likes a Show Boater :-)

You are the perfect little brother.  And by that I mean, you are amazing at driving your big brother crazy.  You get into everything of his and you frustrate him to no end.  I also have a big brother so I am very proud of you for following in my annoying-younger-sibling footsteps :-)  Even though you can drive Kade mad, he loves you more than words can say.  He watches you like a hawk and says all the time, "Mason is my best brother and friend in the whole wide world".  I know the feeling is mutual because you can't take your eyes off of Kade and you aren't happy unless Kade is in your sights.  If it wasn't so cute how obsessed you are with him, it would be a little creepy :-)  I hope you two are always as in love with each other as you are now.

Happy Birthday to my favorite Littlest Big Boy!!  We love you so very, very much and can't wait to watch you grow and change in the next 12 months (and the many, many, many years to follow!).

P.S. Please start walking soon because our arms and back can't take it for much longer!

February 9, 2014

March 2014

April 2014

May 2014

June 2014

July 2014

August 2014

September 2014

October 2014

November 2014

December 2014

January 2015

February 5th, 2015

In Sickness...

As I said in the last post, we got hit pretty hard with some sort of bug last week.  It definitely wiped me and Mason out for the entire weekend.  Luckily, there were a few points in the 2 days where we felt sort-of-okay so we tried to take advantage and went outside for some fresh air.  Nothing heals better than a blast of fresh air, at least that's what we think!

Working hard at building a bonfire!

S'mores?  At 10:00 am??  In the middle of winter???  Why not!!!

Mason wasn't quite sure he felt good enough to be sitting outside, until….

…we hit up the swing set!  Then he decided outdoor play might be just what the doctor ordered.

Sunday was my worst day, as far my health was concerned.  Erik took the boys to his parent's house for a bit so I could lay on the couch in peace.  Poor Mason just had to watch from the inside while Grandpa had all the fun.  

These pictures break my heart.  You can tell he doesn't feel good and Grandpa is just rubbing it in!!

I actually called in sick to work on Monday.  All I wanted to do was lay on the couch, take a hot bath and recover while the boys were at daycare.  Those plans flew out the window at 6:00 am when our daycare lady canceled because she was sick too.  Erik ended up staying home as well because there was no way I could handle the boys by myself.  It actually worked out pretty well because we all started feeling better about half way through the day so it ended up being a fun day of playing!

Next up, somebody is turning ONE and a party is to be had!!!