Tuesday, October 27, 2015
My little dinosaur
Happy Fall Yall
Today I got more items in the mail from the Cotton pickin fair. I love, love, love them! So glad they came in so I could put them up before the season was over. Happy Fall Yall!
And so it begins
We got our very first Christmas toy book in the mail today. It makes me excited and scared all at the same time. I am trying not to go overboard this year but it is so hard not to. I want everyone Christmas to be magical and special. Of course toys are not the important thing but it's the smiles we will share, fun we will have, and memories we will make playing with them. Oh I can't wait to make special memories with this little guy.
Sunday, October 25, 2015
Bath Time
I rarely get pictures of Mason in the bath since I am usually the one bathing him. It's also hard to get pictures without certain parts showing. So since Doug was home and available to help I grabbed the camera and took a couple. This little man loves baths! He loves playing in the water and splashing all around. He has so outgrown the baby tub but I am not ready to put him in the big tub. He needs to be more steady sitting up before I can. Too scared he will flop over and suck in water. Plus he likes to scoot and roll around. I can barely keep him steady in the small tub. I will break my back trying to keep him steady and upright. Maybe in another month we can upgrade. It's not like I am looking forward to being on my knees and elbows over the side of the tub.
Trick or Treat
Boy does having a kid change your life! Doug and I do not celebrate Halloween. We don't dress up, we don't go out, and we turn all the lights in the house off so kids will think we are not home. Now we have bought a costume (only for Mason, still not going that far yet), made plans to take him to a few houses around the neighborhood, AND bought candy to hand out. I really hope he has fun. I am already exhausted from just thinking about it. I know he won't have a clue on what we are doing so I only plan on going out for a few just to say we did it. Part of the reason I bought candy was for us to eat and the other is to hand out if anyone does come by after our short trip out. Stay tuned for pictures and videos of Mason's first trick or treating adventure.
Sunday, October 18, 2015
The final decision
After a month of research and lots of deliberation, I finally made the decision last night.
I have wanted an SUV for some time but I was determined to get a BMW sedan next. Then Mason happened. He changed everything of course. So my thoughts went back to an SUV. Now the Accord (aka Bessie ) has been and still is a great car. It's an 09 with 70k miles and paid for. But I wanted something safer for Mason to ride in and easier to put a car seat in and out of. The Accord had two major issues: 1) The sun beams directly in his eyes every day coming home from work. I can't quite get a sun shade for the back window. 2) And most importantly, his car seat didn't stay upright when making a turn. The back seat has a slight hump in the middle (I prefer him in the middle in case someone T'bones us) which causes his car seat to lean to the side every time we take a turn. So I drove with one hand on the wheel and one in the backseat holding his car seat.
So the search began for an SUV. It was exhausting! There are so many good looking, high tech, and safe vehicles out there. It was very hard to narrow down. Doug and I spent sooo many hours building them online, checking safety ratings, and price shopping. It literally made me see cross eyed. I had a list of stuff it had to have. Nav, cold weather package (heated seats, heated side mirrors, and windshield wiper de-icer), AWD with all weather tires, backup camera, no hump in the backseat, and safety features like blind spot warning.
I think I owe my coworkers a big apology for obsessing over the cars and talking their ears off about it. This decision literally consumed me. I thought about it non stop. Driving anywhere was torture because all I did was compare cars I saw. I was a mad woman. I was in no hurry to get a new car but I had to decide soon for everyone's sanity.
I finally narrowed it down to three cars. They all had exactly what i wanted and passed the carseat test. The Subaru Forrester, the Nissan Rogue, and the Acura RDX. The Acura was my favorite but we couldn't find what I wanted within the price I was willing to pay. It will be my next car unless something else comes along. The Rogue and Forrester were almost the exact same on paper (yeah my pro con Excel document was used). Nissan was able to get me a brand new 2015 (nothing that I cared about was added to the 2016 and the car itself, inside and out didn't change at all) for a really good price so we said yes.
We had the price and car before we got to the dealership. I wouldn't have went on a Saturday with two really good games coming home if that wasn't the case. So we left the house thinking two hours max. Three and a half hours later we were home. My brain was drained. I should have went in pre approved but I have never had issues with getting a good rate. We got an good rate but it changed three times. I was so upset about that. How do you get approved for one rate and then end up with a higher one? Their finance people messed up big. But I couldn't let that keep me from the great price we were getting the car for. So lesson learned and refinancing in the very near future!
I really like the new SUV. It will be hard not driving Bessie. I used the Civic Memaw and Pops got me to get the Accord. I wanted to keep the trade in going so that her gift kept on giving but one car payment versus two was the more financially smart plan. So Doug is selling his Civic and will be driving Bessie. I guess I could swap him and drive her from time to time.
I have wanted an SUV for some time but I was determined to get a BMW sedan next. Then Mason happened. He changed everything of course. So my thoughts went back to an SUV. Now the Accord (aka Bessie ) has been and still is a great car. It's an 09 with 70k miles and paid for. But I wanted something safer for Mason to ride in and easier to put a car seat in and out of. The Accord had two major issues: 1) The sun beams directly in his eyes every day coming home from work. I can't quite get a sun shade for the back window. 2) And most importantly, his car seat didn't stay upright when making a turn. The back seat has a slight hump in the middle (I prefer him in the middle in case someone T'bones us) which causes his car seat to lean to the side every time we take a turn. So I drove with one hand on the wheel and one in the backseat holding his car seat.
So the search began for an SUV. It was exhausting! There are so many good looking, high tech, and safe vehicles out there. It was very hard to narrow down. Doug and I spent sooo many hours building them online, checking safety ratings, and price shopping. It literally made me see cross eyed. I had a list of stuff it had to have. Nav, cold weather package (heated seats, heated side mirrors, and windshield wiper de-icer), AWD with all weather tires, backup camera, no hump in the backseat, and safety features like blind spot warning.
I think I owe my coworkers a big apology for obsessing over the cars and talking their ears off about it. This decision literally consumed me. I thought about it non stop. Driving anywhere was torture because all I did was compare cars I saw. I was a mad woman. I was in no hurry to get a new car but I had to decide soon for everyone's sanity.
I finally narrowed it down to three cars. They all had exactly what i wanted and passed the carseat test. The Subaru Forrester, the Nissan Rogue, and the Acura RDX. The Acura was my favorite but we couldn't find what I wanted within the price I was willing to pay. It will be my next car unless something else comes along. The Rogue and Forrester were almost the exact same on paper (yeah my pro con Excel document was used). Nissan was able to get me a brand new 2015 (nothing that I cared about was added to the 2016 and the car itself, inside and out didn't change at all) for a really good price so we said yes.
We had the price and car before we got to the dealership. I wouldn't have went on a Saturday with two really good games coming home if that wasn't the case. So we left the house thinking two hours max. Three and a half hours later we were home. My brain was drained. I should have went in pre approved but I have never had issues with getting a good rate. We got an good rate but it changed three times. I was so upset about that. How do you get approved for one rate and then end up with a higher one? Their finance people messed up big. But I couldn't let that keep me from the great price we were getting the car for. So lesson learned and refinancing in the very near future!
I really like the new SUV. It will be hard not driving Bessie. I used the Civic Memaw and Pops got me to get the Accord. I wanted to keep the trade in going so that her gift kept on giving but one car payment versus two was the more financially smart plan. So Doug is selling his Civic and will be driving Bessie. I guess I could swap him and drive her from time to time.
Wednesday, October 14, 2015
Mason trying to crawl
Mason is starting to get the motion of scooting. Half his body works and the other doesn't. Eventually everything will get in sync and we will be chasing him everywhere!
Enjoying the Fall air
We have had some really nice weather these past few weeks. I have been trying to get out and enjoy these beautiful days as much as I can. All four of us like going for walks but it is not always the easiest with a crazy ass dog and a baby. I prefer to take Mason in the stroller but he will sometimes get a little fussy. I think he prefers to see more of what is going on and where we are going. So this past week I popped him in the Bjorn carrier, facing forward, and walked with him and Auburn by myself. It was easier having both hands to control Auburn's "excitement" (seriously, every time she goes outside she acts like it is her first time). Lets just say she will never be my running buddy and I think she is very far from being trained. I am very thankful a majority of my neighbors have or like dogs.
Anyways, Mason was quite content being in the carrier. He could watch Auburn run around and see everything around him. Since last week, we have walked anywhere from half an hour to an hour each night. It is really great with helping him hold out a bit longer for his bedtime feeding. This kid would go to sleep at 7 every night if you let him. Bad part, he wakes up at 2 am hungry. Not cool.
The hard part is beating the setting sun. Sometimes we do not make it back until after sunset. I am fine with it but it gets cool. I am not sure how covered Mason should be if it is 60 degrees out. When we start off with the sun shinning in the low 70's, socks, pants, and a short sleeve onesie is fine. But when the sun sets I am scared his little head and arms will get too cold. I don't want to be that Mom that is secretly being ridiculed by passerby's for not having her child more wrapped up. I don't want him to get sick but he also needs to get a little adjusted to the cold. We don't live in the hot, humid south.
Here are a few pictures from one of our walks. Yeah, a family selfie with a dog and infant is pretty much impossible. Best part, at some point during this walk I dropped the burp cloth. Unfortunately, it was a good, one of my favorite, burp cloths. Of course I didn't realize it until we got back home and it was dark out. Mason was ready to eat but I had to find the burp cloth. Luckily, it was not too far from the house. I am sure I looked funny with him on my belly and me canvasing the neighborhood with a flashlight. Nope, nothing to see here. Just a normal night walk with my baby... :)
Anyways, Mason was quite content being in the carrier. He could watch Auburn run around and see everything around him. Since last week, we have walked anywhere from half an hour to an hour each night. It is really great with helping him hold out a bit longer for his bedtime feeding. This kid would go to sleep at 7 every night if you let him. Bad part, he wakes up at 2 am hungry. Not cool.
The hard part is beating the setting sun. Sometimes we do not make it back until after sunset. I am fine with it but it gets cool. I am not sure how covered Mason should be if it is 60 degrees out. When we start off with the sun shinning in the low 70's, socks, pants, and a short sleeve onesie is fine. But when the sun sets I am scared his little head and arms will get too cold. I don't want to be that Mom that is secretly being ridiculed by passerby's for not having her child more wrapped up. I don't want him to get sick but he also needs to get a little adjusted to the cold. We don't live in the hot, humid south.
Here are a few pictures from one of our walks. Yeah, a family selfie with a dog and infant is pretty much impossible. Best part, at some point during this walk I dropped the burp cloth. Unfortunately, it was a good, one of my favorite, burp cloths. Of course I didn't realize it until we got back home and it was dark out. Mason was ready to eat but I had to find the burp cloth. Luckily, it was not too far from the house. I am sure I looked funny with him on my belly and me canvasing the neighborhood with a flashlight. Nope, nothing to see here. Just a normal night walk with my baby... :)
Cotton Pickin Fair
Here are a few items I got at the fair a couple weeks ago. I have ordered more with vendors that were there and am awaiting their delivery. I will post those when they come in. I still have a list of things I want to buy though. Maybe I will make it to the spring one! :)
Lunch date
Monday I was off and Mason's daycare was closed. He usually does better when he is out and about rather than stuck inside all day. I am not sure if we bore him or what but he gets fussy a lot quicker when we are at home. He can run errands with us all day and be just fine as long as a bottle is involved every so often. So, for my sanity and enjoyment of the day off I planned to run all my errands that day. Since it was so nice outside I planned to eat lunch somewhere outside so we could enjoy the afternoon. He did really good for me. Just hung out in his carseat and people watched. I had plenty of time so we lingered for about 45 minutes but I could have been out of there within 20 easy. I really think he is going to be an outside boy. He much prefers the outdoors. Even when he was itty bitty taking him outside was the easiest way to get him to stop crying. We are going to try and take him and Auburn to a park this weekend. I know they would both enjoy that.
Another milestone
Yep, that is right. We have graduated from rice and oatmeal cereal and embarking on a new adventure... mushed food! Yum! I bought a pack of carrots, sweet potato, and pears to try. The carrots were a hit. It took a bit longer with the sweet potato but he eventually came around and ate all that I had poured out for him.
I think I may have to upgrade him to the 2nd level though. The 1st level is a bit too pureed for him. His cereal is much thicker and has more texture so I think he will like the more chunky kind better.
I think I may have to upgrade him to the 2nd level though. The 1st level is a bit too pureed for him. His cereal is much thicker and has more texture so I think he will like the more chunky kind better.
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