{I AM that Mom}

Ya know, the one that's so proud and wants to show off her baby boy every single chance she gets.

The one madly in love with her son

The one in love with his name, his personality, the way he looks, the way he smells, the way he smiles, his chubby cheeks and his tiny little toes

The one who can't stop kissing him, or taking his picture, and always saying things like, "I swear he's the cutest kid in the world"

The one that doesn't remember life before him

The one that eats, sleeps, and breathes her son

The one that misses him when he's in his bassinet inches from her side of the bed

The one that takes 15 minutes just to pick out what he's going to wear that day

The one who would rather skip parties, dates and such instead of getting a babysitter

...


Can you blame me??

{Music to a Momma's Ears}



{22 weeks}

Our sweet baby boy is now 22 weeks!!!


That's 154 days, 3696 hours, 221,760 minutes that you have been with us Mason!! Most wonderful 221,760 minutes of my life!!

Oh my love!!! Each day I love you more and more. You make my heart do somersalts. You make my smile bigger than it's ever been. You make me so happy I feel like I'm busting at the seams. You make me love your Daddy even more. You make me so excited for our future. You make me so proud to be your mommy!! Thank you Mason, for giving a new meaning to EVERYTHING!!!!  

Lets see, at 22 weeks...

- You still love to stand up! Which means it's hard to get you sitting on your own, because you never want to sit. You always have to be standing or have the person holding you stand. Not sure when we're ever gonna get you to crawl or sit on your own. ha!
 
- You love bright colors, especially red.

- Some of your favorite shows are Backyardigans, Clifford and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Those seem to keep your attention the most.

- You love to go places, but you are getting tired of your car seat. You want mommy to hold you so that you can look out the window. We are going to get you a new car seat soon so that you can see out of the windows better. And so that you face forward. You are close to the weight limit to do that.

- Can hardly get you to eat any veggies except sweet potatoes, still.

- You love to talk and be talked to!!

- You're starting to show a little interest in toys, but you get over them within a few minutes.

- You are eating 4-6 ounces every 2 -2 1/2 hours and usually get 1 juice bottle a day

- You are mostly in 6 -9 month clothes. Most of your pajamas are 12 mths and 18 mths and you are STILL ridiculously cute in pajamas!!

- Teething, oh teething!! You are drooling like crazy and always want something in your mouth. Sometimes they hurt so bad that you get really fussy. Nighttime orajel seems to be working good for you. They recalled the teething tablets we were using.

- Besides the teething you are normally pretty happy! You almost always wake up with a smile on your face. Mommy and Daddy love this!!

- Still in size 3 diapers

- We are guessing you are around 18.5 lbs right now. Oh my chunky goodness!

- You love to talk on the phone with Mommy and Daddy. You get so solemn and smile really big. You just can't figure out out to yank Mommy and Daddy out of the cell phone yet!

- Sleeping is pretty much the same each night. Mommy feeds you a cereal bottle around 7:30-8:00 each night and then you go to sleep in your bassinet. Around 1:00ish you start fussing and Mommy puts you in the bed with us. You get a 4oz bottle then. Sometimes you only drink 2oz, enough to go back to sleep, but sometimes you finish the full 4oz. Then you fidget again around 4:30 for another bottle, same thing here.

- You are crying a lot less and talking, smiling, laughing more!!

- You definitely know Mommy & Daddy's voice.

- Getting more and more coordinated with your arms and hands.
Now.....for your 22 week pictures....












We love you, Masonbug!!

{21 Weeks}

Our sweet baby boy is now 21 weeks!!!
 
That's 147 days, 3528 hours, 211,680 minutes that you have been with us Mason!! Most Precious 211,680 minutes of my life!!
Mason, you are growing up right before our very eyes. Daddy and I think you are at a major development stage right now. You are advancing with each passing moment. At this time you are communicating with us more, getting better with your movements and reaching for and grabbing things, and you're showing a lot more interest in things. Daddy will say, "Where's Mommy" and you will look around for me and then grin, then I will hold you and say "Where's Daddy" and you do the same for him! It's awesome and makes our hearts melt. You are so loving and sweet. Your smile turns my world around and your laughter is music to my ears. Thank you Mason for making life so GRAND!!!

Lets see, at 21 weeks...

- You love to stand up; on anyone, anything and anywhere! You think you are so big. And if you don't feel like standing you make whoever is holding you stand. :)

- You love bright colors, especially red.

- Some of your favorite shows are Backyardigans, Clifford and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Those seem to keep your attention the most.
- You love to go places, but you are getting tired of your car seat. You want mommy to hold you so that you can look out the window.

- You love your baths, love to splash mommy and daddy. You stare at the bubbles in the tub. And now you are trying to figure out how to eat them!

- Oh yes, everything goes to the mouth!

- Can hardly get you to eat any veggies except sweet potatoes, still.

- You love to talk and be talked to!!

- You're starting to show a little interest in toys, but you get over them within a few minutes. Last night you sat in your jumper for about 20 minutes and loved it. You were playing with all of the gadgets and pushing the button to play the songs. You would laugh and laugh.

- You are eating 4-6 ounces every 2 -2 1/2 hours and usually get 1 juice bottle a day

- You are mostly in 6 -9 month clothes. Most of your pajamas are 12 mths and 18 mths and you are STILL ridiculously cute in pajamas!!

- Teething, oh teething!! You are drooling like crazy and always want something in your mouth. Sometimes they hurt so bad that you get really fussy. You have a vibrating teething ring that you love.


- Mommy and Daddy also think you are having growing pains. It's hard for you to get comfortable enough to sleep/rest. You are constantly kicking, twisting, swinging your arms and moving. - We recently learned that babies your age do this to strenghthen your stomach muscles; getting you ready for crawling and walking!!

- Besides the teething you are normally pretty happy! You almost always wake up with a smile on your face. Mommy and Daddy love this!!

- Still in size 3 diapers

- We are guessing you are around 18+ lbs right now. Oh my chunky goodness!

- You love to talk on the phone with Mommy and Daddy. You get so solemn and smile really big. You just can't figure out out to yank Mommy and Daddy out of the cell phone yet!

- Sleeping is pretty much the same each night. Mommy feeds you a cereal bottle around 7:30-8:00 each night and then you go to sleep in your bassinet. Around 1:00ish you start fussing and Mommy puts you in the bed with us. You get a 4oz bottle then. Sometimes you only drink 2oz, enough to go back to sleep, but sometimes you finish the full 4oz. Then you fidget again around 4:30 for another bottle, same thing here.

- You are crying a lot less and talking, smiling, laughing more!!

- You definitely know Mommy & Daddy's voice.
 
- Getting more and more coordinated with your arms and hands.
Now.....for your 21 week pictures....






























We love you Masonbug!



{Weekend Wrap-Up}

(Catching up!)

We had such a wonderful weekend!! Friday we ran our weekly Target run and then grabbed tacos and headed home for the Ranger game! Nathan, Mason and I just hung out and watched the game. It was a nice time. Saturday morning we got up and headed to Oklahoma for Mason's Great Grandfather's 80th bday!! Mason got to meet all of his Papa's side of the family for the first time. Sunday we hung out and watched the Ranger game on Nana & Papa's new 55" flat screen tv.


Meeting Papa Johnny & Lawanna for the first time!







The Hall Boys:






Family Pics:

This one breaks my heart and makes me laugh at the same time. Mason was woken up for this pic and was not happy:






Much better:










{The first year: Practicality}

Saw this post here and wanted to share. I added my tidbits in turquoise

The first year: Practicality

Don't be afraid to say that being a mom is hard because it is. Saying it is easy is a load of crock and no mom will believe you. Not even if you sound convincing! - I agree 100%!! It's the hardest thing I have ever done, but hands down the most rewarding! I wouldn't trade this job for the world!



Cover baby private parts at all times. Pee can go the distance and in anything that is near, including your mouth. - OMGosh! I laugh out loud at this one because I have a great story! We were giving Mason a bath one evening and he pee'd all the way up our wall, down our mirrors and in our Scentsy plug in! Nate laughs and says Mason was trying to make a new scent. Ewww. But it was hilarious. We couldn't stop laughing long enough to clean it up. Good thing Mason was only weeks old or he would have thought it was a game the way we were laughing.



Take a lot of pictures. Seems kinda self-explanatory but with working full-time, I would forget to do this and sometimes I just chase him around with the camera. He grew so fast and changed so much, I'm glad I did! I am so so so mad at myself on this one. I am a total picture freak, but I lagged in the first couple months. I wish I would have started my weekly "diaper series" of pictures at week 1. *Sigh* We try to take a lot of video...just takes so long to upload since our video camera is HD.



Take a lot of videos. We try to take a lot of video...just takes so long to upload since our video camera is HD. Reminds me that I have a lot I need to post!


It's okay for grandma to spoil even though some of the things they do make you cringe. - Spoil definitely, cringe - only time this happened so far is when Nana fed Mason refried beans and queso! ha! I was so scared he would have a belly ache that evening and not sleep..but he did just fine. Just the Mommy in me! Not to mention I am a worry wart by nature anyway.


You're not a bad mom if you do not feel like being a mom is awesome all the time. - not sure I have felt this way yet. Inadequate, yes!


Keep extra supplies in your trunk you never know when there will be a poop disaster. - Nice advice!

It's okay to leave the dishes in the sink. - oh yeah!!! Always! ha! Sorry Leslie!


Babies really do grow up so fast so try not to take a second for granted. - Too fast! My sweet Mason is 5 months old. He totally skipped the "baby" stage. He grew up too fast. He's now an 18+ pound teething, drooling, talking, moving laughing big boy!

Really...blink and your child will be walking across the room! - won't be long!

Write down what your child is doing each month, on a scrap piece of paper, blog, something. You will forget little things before the next month and the first few months years are very hazy from lack of sleep. - I do this weekly on the blog :)

Those first few months truly are about survival mode. Do what you can do get some sleep. - totally agree. "I'm a Survivor" totally gives new meaning to that Destiny's Child song. :) Although, I would like to say that Nate and I truly pulled through together (along with some awesome help) and did a wonderful job for first time parents!! Nathan amazes me everyday with how wonderful he is with Mason.

Stock up on saline, gas drops and wine. The latter is for mom, of course! - definitely have the gas drops and saline...no wine for this nursing momma!


Don't be afraid to ask for help. - we were at first. We totally wanted rock this parenting thing on our own...but nothing wrong with asking for help and advice on things!!

Get Dad involved. - Nate is a very hands-on daddy!! I didn't change one diaper while we were in the hospital. Nate wanted to and I sat back and watched! It was nice. I couldn't ask for him to be more involved than he already is.

Eating dog food, dirt, or even licking trees (yes, my child has done all 3) really won't hurt them. Unless that tree is covered in psychedelic shrooms. - ahh, what's to come :)

Craigslist and ebay are gold mines for baby stuff. - we didn't go this route...we were very fortunate to be gifted most of Mason's big stuff!

Shopping consignment store and sales are awesome ways to save money on clothes that they get little wear out of. No matter how cute a piece of clothing is, it might only get worn once. You'll feel much better after a giant blowout that the outfit didn't cost much! - We have a consignment shop in Hachie that we LOVE!!!! We are also very blessed in that we have a couple friends with boys a little older than us that handed us down some great clothes!

Don't worry, you're not doing it wrong, and no, you will not scar your child for life. - I know I've asked myself this a few times!!

Worrying is part of being a mom. - Good, now I have an excuse for being a worry wart! Thanks!

Somehow you find the energy to get through the day, no matter how little you slept the night before. Coffee helps. - so true! I've managed without the help of coffee so far. I just look at Mason, he keeps me going. He's my energy booster!

Doing it the way you feel is right is always the right way no matter what other people tell you. - we are learning this day by day! But I love to ask my favorite Mommys how they did things with their babies.

Be prepared for your life to never be the same again. No matter how much you try not to that little being that you carried for nine months and watch grow each day will change you in ways you never thought were possible. - so true! Mason has changed every aspect of our lives and I wouldn't have it any other way. I never knew my heart could love so much. I cry in amazement watching him grow.

 
Plus, you will not be able to remember what it was like before that baby came into your life! - hubby and I say this all the time!!!

This was such a great post, I had to share and comment how it portrays to the Hall life!!



{20 Weeks}

Our sweet baby boy is now 20 weeks!!!


That's 140 days, 3360 hours, 201,600 minutes that you have been with us Mason!! Sweetest 201,600 minutes of my life!!

 Mason, what can I say?? I love you more than I did yesterday, tomorrow I will love you even more I just know it. My love for you grows by the second!! You make my heart do backflips and want to jump right out of my chest. You are the most amazing little boy ever!! You are so smart, so inquisitive, so handsome, so sweet and so loving. I can't get enough of you. God has really outdone himself by giving you to Mommy and Daddy and we are forever thankful!!
Lets see, at 20 weeks...

- You love to stand up. Your new favorite thing is to stand on the grass or concrete outside. You get the hugest kick out of that. You think you're "big" and you just grin from ear to ear.

- You love to go places, but you are getting tired of your car seat. You want mommy to hold you so that you can look out the window.

- You love your baths, love to splash mommy and daddy

- Loving your solids. You like most fruits, but hardly any veggies. Who can blame you?? You basically only like sweet potatoes.

- You love to talk and be talked to!!

- You're starting to show a little interest in toys, but you get over them within a few minutes.

- You are eating 4-6 ounces every 2 -2 1/2 hours and usually get 1 juice bottle a day

- You are mostly in 6 -9 month clothes. Most of your pajamas are 12 mths and 18 mths and you are STILL ridiculously cute in pajamas!! Nana took you shopping last Friday and you have a bunch of new Fall outfits! Mostly pajamas, and they are SO CUTE!

- Teething, oh teething!! Mommy gets so sad to see you in teething pain. We recently discovered the teething tablets and they seem to work good for you. Here's to praying that continues. You are drooling like crazy and always want something in your mouth.

- Mommy and Daddy also think you are having growing pains. It's hard for you to get comfortable enough to sleep/rest. You are constantly kicking, twisting, swinging your arms and moving.

- Besides the teething you are normally pretty happy! You almost always wake up with a smile on your face. Mommy and Daddy love this!!

- You're in size 3 diapers!!!

- Over the weekend you started reaching for things with your arms. You were just leaning towards what you wanted, now you're reaching and grabbing!!! You are especially interested in Diesel. You grab his beard with a tight grip. Diesel doesn't think it's very funny, but he just sits there and lets you do it!

- You love for Mommy to call Diesel, "Diesel, oh Diesel, where are you?" you grin so big and look around for him to come running.

Now.....for your 20 week pictures....

Now feast your eyes with MAJOR cuteness!!






















We love you MasonBug!!

{Weekend Wrap-up}



Another great weekend for the Halls!!

Friday night we went to dinner at our favorite lil Ferris restaurant, Javiers. It was great!! After dinner we went driving around looking at vehicles. Ya know, after they are closed so that we aren't hounded by salespeople!! Saturday morning we got up and went to breakfast at Chisolm Trail on the square. They recently started serving breakfast, so we wanted to try it. It was pretty good. After breakfast we took Mason to a pumpkin patch (Larken Farms) for the first time! It was so much fun. We just love experiencing 'firsts' with him!! He so graciously let mommy and daddy snap over 150 pictures, sticking him in all kinds of places on the farm. He was so inquisitive and wasn't sure about the hay. We also got to go on a hayride. Mason didn't make a sound the whole time. He just soaked it all in. It was awesome. At one point Nate's mom said, "Well, here yall are" and it was just awesome. Nate and I are all the time saying, "This is our life now" and it makes both of us grin from ear to ear. We just love having our own little family and going on little excursions as such! Mason picked out his very first pumpkin (with a little help from Daddy) and it is absolutely perfect!! That evening we watched the Ranger game. BOO! They disappointed...and again on Sunday :( They have to WIN tonight. HAVE.TO. Sunday was a lazy day spent cleaning and watching sad game of baseball and football. Definitely not a DFW winning weekend for our teams. Grr! But hey, the family time was still spectacular!!