Surgery for Mason

We have had a busy week due to multiple MD appointments for Mason. On Thanksgiving night we noticed a "bulge" in his genitals which prompted a visit to the pediatrician Monday morning and to Dr. Greenfeld, a pediatric surgeon, today. Dr. Greenfeld has us scheduled tomorrow for a surgical repair of Mason's inguinal hernia. Luckily it will be an outpatient procedure. Unfortunately, Mason will have to be NPO except clears (water and pedialyte) for 4 hours prior to the surgery...that should make for a fun morning.
Wish us luck in the morning...we are scheduled for surgery at 10 am!!!

Oh Christmas Lights

Super excited to see the lights, up close and personal! Hopefully we can get Brandon to understand a little of the holiday season, or at least teach him a few Christmas carols...
The E*TRADE Baby is back! See what he does next @ www.etrade.com/tv.

We love this commercial, pretty soon the kiddos will be riding Jake like a small horse!

Kweiser Thanksgiving

Still fascinated with candles!


Aunt Teddie, Uncle Lou, and my Mom (respectively). Another great Thanksgiving dinner with the Kweiser family. We missed those who were unable to attend.

More pic's at Grandpa's

Got to love toddler attitude!


Grandpa and Mason

Thanksgiving at Grandpa's

We decided to spend this Thanksgiving in Pinetop with my Dad. I usually don't get to have a four day weekend over this holiday, so since I am on maternity leave, we took advantage of it. I even got my wish for snow, which fell early Thanksgiving morning. Brandon liked the snow this year, the cold didn't really seem to bother him. By cold, I mean the high was in the 20's! Thanks to my dad for all the warm clothes he got for the kids, espcially the matching snow suits!!! Too cute. Mason's outfit reminded me of my favorite holiday movie, A Christmas Story, in the scene where the mother is dressing Ralphie's little brother before school.
Brandon and my Dad spent lots of time making worms with the Play-doh. What is it about Play-doh that can keep a toddler occupied for hours???
The kids did really well on the trip, even the car ride wasn't too bad. Mason was extra cuddly and really seemed to notice his new envoirnment.

Delicious dinners

Nothing better than a big bowl of pasta!
Thanks to all of my friends for offering and providing us with a few meals these past couple weeks! They were all delicious and now I have a few new menu items to add into the mix!!! Here is our second round of chicken pot pie.

6 weeks old already

Mason is getting much better at tummy time...I can't wait until he can control his neck, it will make carrying him around that much easier!
Mason has started smiling back and cooing at us....it's just too cute. Time is just flying by.

Another week!

Mason & monkey at 1 month.
We had our first bout with a stomach bug...poor Brandon really felt under the weather for several days. Here he is just relaxing on the couch. After all, it's hard being sick. Now, how to avoid passing it on to the rest of the family?
Ah, sleeping at last!
Is there anything more delicious then a baby's skin? Did you notice the thigh rolls?
We ventured out to Rick Engineering (Kevin's work) to have a Thanksgiving feast today. It took me over an hour to get us ready to go. Between outfit changes, diaper changes (it doesn't help that Brandon has been quite "spirited" this week thanks to being sick), and nursing, I felt exhausted by the time I finally loaded us into the car for the thirty minute drive across town. Brandon (of course) refused to eat and Mason (of course) demanded to eat while there. As always, Brandon was quite the ladies man, keeping Susan and Connie entertained.

Memories

Not quite ready for the bumbo seat, still needs a bit more head/neck control!



Brandon insisted he needed to be with Mason (in Mason's crib).

Memories:
*Brandon sitting on the couch with his legs crossed, just like Daddy
*Brandon cuddling with me when he doesn't feel good (this weekend we had another bout of temps)
*Mason getting comfortable with his hand on his chin, like he's posing for a nap
*Mason's hair after his bath, only the right side stands on end

Development update:
Brandon's vocabulary is expanding each week. Over the past month or two he has been using 3-4 word phrases, he knows some colors and shapes, he loves to sing along to songs (the wheels on the bus), his is getting more adventuresome, he definitely has his own opinions of what he wants and is not afraid to express himself.

Bath time

1st official bath, long over due but still just as cute. It is so funny to me how eager we were to give Brandon all his firsts (bath, infant cereal, etc) and with Mason we are taking it a little more slowly.

one month old

Brandon-1 month old.

Mason-1 month old

I can't get over how similar they look at one month! Mason is definitely eating well these days, he has thigh rolls and neck rolls! Mason is still getting up 2-3 times a night.

A day with the boys

Mason is not overly fond of tummy time but he puts up with it (not like I give him much choice)!!!
This is how I found Brandon yesterday when I went in to check on him during his nap. Notice all the "comfort" items he insists on taking to bed??? Yes, there is a pillow, two blankets, multiple stuffed animals, and at least 2-3 wubby's. There's barely any space for him. We may be investing in a regular bed soon.
Mason and I hung out on the porch while Brandon played in his sandbox. Mason really likes to be outdoors, he even hung out in his bouncy seat while we cleaned up the garage this past weekend. Thank goodness for the bouncy seat. Brandon loves to scoop sand into the fountain, much to Kevin's dismay....since he gets to clean it out!

Mastering utensils

Kevin has decided that Brandon likes to eat yogurt because he thinks it is a condiment, since Brandon usually licks the condiment off the food item. This morning he surprised me by actually spooning the yogurt into his mouth instead of scooping it out with his fingers!!!! Too bad he'll only use a utensil half of the time.

Oh bumbo seat....

We had a photo session at JCPenny's today with both kids. Brandon was a ham for the girl taking the pictures, of course. Mason did pretty good, he was a little fussy but we were able to get a few good pictures. Be on the look out for our pictures next week (I hate having to wait over a week for our pictures!)
Just adorable!
Brandon has been getting so much use out of the infant items that keep making their way in from the garage....here he is sitting in the bumbo seat. I can't believe he fits into the seat, especially since he barely fit into when he was an infant....thanks to those thighs! I wonder if he will let Mason use it, when he gets a little better head control?

The grunter

What do we hear at midnight, 2:30, and 3:30 am??? This cute grunting sound that resembles the sounds of a penguin found on the Discovery channel. Unlike Brandon, we are finding that Mason is quite needy at night. Or was Brandon this needy at night but I choose to block it out??? I'm not really sure what we are doing wrong (or differently) this time. I know, each baby is unique and different but he seems to need something every two hours at night. At this rate, I might as well not go to bed!!!! One thing is certain, Mason LOVES to cuddle with mommy in bed, he seems most content snuggled right up to my chest.
He also makes his old man face, so I have dubbed him "Mr. Furly" from the eighty's sitcom, "Three's Company". This sitcom also happens to be one of my favorite memories from childhood (to note, one of the few memories I have of my parents still married and us being a "family" watching the show).

On a positive note, no more elastic waist clothes for me...now I just need to remember to zip and button my pants (I can't be the first mom to have to retrain herself for this task). Any takers on gently used maternity clothes (possibly Cathy or Stefanie???).

Dinner with Nama Thomas

Why is it that kids always seem to eat better when Grandma is around?

Brandon and I look forward to our Wednesday evening visits with my mom....she has been coming over every Wednesday since Brandon was born, we love the company!!!