Summer Fun

We had such an awesome Summer! I am having a really hard time saying goodbye to the sunny warm days and moving on to fall. Here are some pics of what we have been up to:


We went to Lake Powell the 2nd week of July. We found the most beautiful canyon with a waterfall at the end of it. My dad, Pete and I hiked back about a mile into the canyon. We followed the stream and found a ton of tadpoles, crayfish, and other animals and bugs.

Mason is a water baby to the max! He loves splashing around and collecting things to put in his bucket.

We had to take the traditional pic at Rainbow Bridge.

We have had a blast in the kiddie pool (mommy and baby!) I admit, I have read a good book or two laying out by the pool while Mason naps. I have to take advantage of the perks of being a stay at home mom with only 1 kid while it lasts!

There is only 1 volleyball tournament left this Summer in St.George on Oct 17th. I will miss those Saturdays hanging out in the sun!!

Mason and Aunt Jobie =p

One weekend at the cabin, we hiked up to Fish Lake. It was beautiful, but WAY too long of a hike for me (6 miles each way.)

Mason put rocks in and out of this waterbottle for about an hour! Sometimes I wonder why I even buy toys..

Update

It's been a while since I've blogged... big surprise =) Life is so crazy. I really thought when I became a stay at home mom, I would have more time. People that don't have kids won't understand, like my little sister (bless her heart) who said the other day "why can't you come visit me- it's not like you have anything to do." HAHA- She will understand one day.

Mason has been doing so great. He just turned 14 months, and gets cuter every day! I love watching him learn and grow. He seriously makes me laugh about a hundred times a day. Here are some pics of what we have been up to

My Mom is the sweetest lady ever and helped me make this frog cake for Mason's 1st Birthday. It took us the better part of an afternoon..

He loved it! Mission accomplished!

Mace and I spent the day at Red Butte Gardens with his cousins Maddy and Kelsey. They had a blast

This is Greta, my dad's new puppy. We have been babysitting her. She is adorable!

Pete and Ben play Volleyball most Saturdays. Sibling rivalry at its best!

One night it was way too quiet-- so I ran around the house looking for Mason and found him splashing a dog bone in the toilet. I know it's gross but I couldn't help laughing and grabbing the camera. (I swear I stripped and bathed him after =p )

My girlfriends and I try to meet once a month for lunch. It is so great to have some girl time! We all can't wait until our kids are old enough to play with each other.

First Haircut!!

Aunt Jessie and I took Mason to get his first haircut the other day at Cookie Cutters in Bountiful. My friend Jessica recommended the salon and I have to say, we were not disappointed!! They have giant toys for the kids to sit in, and there is a TV at every station. Mason watched Elmo while rollin' in his blue car. It was the cutest thing I think I've ever seen. I forgot my camera (argh) but took some pics with my phone. Grandma Linda saved the day and brought the video camera along! What a priceless video it will be!

Christmas in California

First of all, thank you to all of you for your great advice regarding my mommy meltdown. Your words of comfort were greatly appreciated. It's so nice to have friends and family who have been through some of the ups and downs of parenthood!!

So I'm always a little behind on the blogging, but we had the best vacation over Christmas break. Instead of doing the whole present thing we decided to go on a trip instead. We were originally going to stay in a hotel, but decided it would be hard not to have a microwave to make Mason's food and a separate room for him to sleep in. Since it was last minute, we got a great deal on a little 2 bedroom vacation rental on the beach. The complex was called North Coast Village in Oceanside. We left the day after Christmas and drove to Primm, NV. I was afraid Mason would get fussy in the car but he did so great! We put on some movies for him and he was a little champ.

Mason's first time in a hotel room!

The condo was so cute! And it had the perfect sink for bath time!

The first night there we bundled up Mason and took him to the tide pools at Cardiff State Beach.

Pete found some new role models (65 year-old volleyball playing beach bums..) I think he finally found out what he wants to be when he grows up =p


We took Mason to the beach for the first time. He ate his first sand!! I thought it was hilarious but Pete was a little concerned (see video below)

We had the best New Year's Eve ever!! We BBQ'd some steaks, threw together a salad and ate it while listening to the ocean on our little balcony.

Afterwards, we tried our hand at chocolate dipped strawberries. It was kind of a disaster. Apparently you're not supposed to get the melted chocolate wet-- Wish we would have known that before we washed the strawberries!!

Pete's friend Chris took him surfing for the day.

We built an awesome sand castle- complete with a moat! I added our initials to the castle and then realized they spell PMS. Go figure...

I never wanted to be the mom who never lets her kid get dirty- but I'm so that mom. In an effort to be less anal, I gave Mason a little teething biscuit and let him go for it!!

It was such a great trip. It was especially awesome because it was our first vacation as a little family. We were so sad to come home! I think I was meant to be a California girl!!