Ch-ch-changes!

Well one thing is for certain, I am not so great at updating my blog lately. I cant believe my last post was Mason's 6 month update and now here i am with his 7 month update already. I think part of the problem with keeping my blog updated is the fact that there is just so much going on right now in the Greene house.We got a new SUV (to have more room for mason), we rennovated our office, our house was vandalized (someone attempted to breakin) so we had to change our locks, and one of the biggest developments is that I am getting ready to return to school next week, to try to finish up my degree and for the last several months i have been back and forth between three different schools and three different degree options, but i have finally decided that the best thing for me is to finish the quickest degree route possible. I did a lot of praying, asking God to show me the right path because I was having trouble deciding what to do and was running out of time. I had one path open up very clearly and I felt like it was my best option, it leaves me going to school two full days and one half day a week for 3 semesters, maybe less, and that gives me the most time with Mason because raising him and watching him grow is the absolute most important thing. Mason is my number one priority in life, but i also want him to have a mom he is proud of. I want him to grow up in a home where not only is his father a college graduate but his mother is as well. I have worked hard for 3 and half years on completing a degree and i have a huge amount of student loan debt to not have a degree in my hand, so i am determined to finish now, before something else gets in my way and delays me further. If i stay on track i could graduate by next December which would be a huge accomplishment and isn't very long from now.

One of our other big challenges in the Greene house has been Mason's constant need for his momma. He is becoming attached at my hip and literally wants me to hold him, play with him, and talk to him, every second of the day. When my mom holds him or Landon holds him, he will reach out for me to take him. He throws terrible tantrums if i set him down to get things done. I've tried letting him "cry it out" but needless to say it does nothing but get him hysterical and accomplishes nothing. he doesn't want to nap on his own, will only sleep if i am holding him, and as a result we get nothing accomplished these days. I read that babies this age can start to have separation anxiety and i think that is what we are dealing with. I hope that staying with Landon and my sister in law two days a week this fall will help him some.

Now that my baby boy is 7 months old, things are changing daily. He is growing so much and although i don't have his 7 month stats i can tell that he is getting taller, heavier, and stronger. In the last month Mason can sit totally unassisted without fear of a face plant, he can crawl up on all fours, he is pulling up to standing, he can stand holding onto things/people, he has two teeth, he eats all kinds of fruit and vegetable baby food twice a day and gets four bottles a day every 4 hours, he loves to play on the floor now, and can crawl, roll, and sit on his own. He has learned how to go from laying and crawling to sitting up on his own and we had to lower his crib this past month because when you go to get him up in the mornings he is sitting up in his crib. He can crawl from one side of his room to the hallway in what seems like less than 2 seconds and can no longer be trusted to stay put. he is a mover and shaker and the biggest wiggle worm. He has learned to anticipate the flash of the camera and will cheese really big and blink his eyes if you hold up a camera or phone, he is such a ham. The other day he was laying in the floor crying and having a tantrum and i pulled out the camera phone to take his picture and he stopped his crying and smiled real big, once i took the picture and set the phone down he resumed his crying. He is such a mess. He has attempted to say the word eyeball, we got "eye-ba-ba" and looked at Landon the other day and said "Dada" very plain but has never said it again. He knows he is mason, i am mama, and Landon is Dada, and he knows ling-ling by name, but still just babbles random sounds and i wouldn't say he is talking yet. As far as favorite toys this month he is loving his walker which we have been leaving at my moms house so he has something to play with and he loves anything you put on the floor for him to get, and his new favorite thing is balls. He loves balls and so does ling-ling, so she takes most of them away from him, which he thinks is so funny and laughs hysterically. We are still using the paci but he also likes to put his hands and anything else he can get into his mouth which is a constant challenge for me, because yes i am a germaphobe. We are trying to teach him to wave bye and of course to say mama, Dada, and Nani (my mom) but so far he is stubborn and won't say them for you, even though i know he can. Mason has had a busy month, he went to his cousin Leah's 1st birthday party, which was a pool party and he had a big time, he went to Jill's baby shower, he went to our friends Erica and Maclarens pool with Riley Grace to swim and play, and he also attended his very first story time at the library (which unfortunately ended up being their last class till Sept) he did amazing at story time, it was for babies up to 14 months and he was the youngest but he was so outgoing and played so well with other babies, i was surprised that he took off and crawled across the room and was so sociable with the others. I cant wait to take him back once they resume classes. It will be a special thing for us to enjoy on our days together this semester. Here are some pics of Mason this past month!

Mason loves coupons

Playing with dad before bed

Mason at the pool

Playing with his ball

Pool time with Erica and Riley Grace


Leah's Birthday Party

Mason at the YMCA

Playing with toys

6 Months already?

My baby boy Mason is 6 months old today!! I am flabergasted at where the time has gone!?!?! It really seems as though that rainy day in January when we brought him home from the hospital just happend a few short weeks ago, not months, not half a year!! Half of a year??? Really?? The thought of "half of a year" having already passed, feels as though someone is playing a trick on me!! Time is playing a trick on me!! My baby is still a newborn right?? It feels like he should be, we just got him home and figured out what to do with him...... how to be parents, how to change diapers, breastfeed him, bottle feed him, burp him, swaddle him, get him to sleep through the night, fasten his car seat, carry him, and learn his likes and dislikes. But i guess it's true, he is 6 months old today, i've checked the calendar atleast twice, and done the math myself, My 8lbs 11 0z baby boy who came into this world and into my arms on January 13th at 4:04 pm, is no longer a newborn, he is a happy, healthy, energetic, bubbly 6 month old, who is crawling, babbling, eating baby food, and figuring things out for his self at a rapid pace. Here are some things you may or may not know about 6 month old Mason:

• he loves to laugh (especially at ling-ling and landon, and his great grandma greene)
• he loves to crawl, wiggle, bounce, jump, and roll around (he's never still)
• he can sit up on his own but don't be suprised if he goes over face first into the ground so he can crawl
• he likes to babble when he's tired or very excited and has been saying baba and mama routinely for about a month
• he has a tooth (on the bottom in the middle) it is the cutest thing ever
• he eats fruit in the morning and veggies in the evening and has just switched to four 6.5 oz bottles a day
• he eats only organic foods, and i make mostly all of his baby food (and he likes the homemade the best)
• he's definitely a mommas boy but has a very independent nature and is totally obsessed with his daddy
• he has the bluest eyes, dimples on both cheeks, the longest eye lashes ever, thin light red hair that loves to get wavy/curly when wet, and invisible eyebrows
• he is extremely sociable, he loves people, anyone and everyone, he smiles and flirts and opens his mouth so wide and big, he giggles and squeels in delight when someone pays him attention
• he is amazingly strong
• he is super smart and quick to learn and pick things up, he has an amazing little mind that is constantly working on figuring out this world
• he sleeps from 9:30 pm to 7:30 am and rarely ever wakes durring the night
• he is a morning person
• he likes things that light up in the dark
• he likes to play in his jumper and walker, he likes to play on the floor now too, and loves crawling and rolling around on our big bed with us
• he has started riding in his big stroller
• he can hold his own bottle when he wants to, but still likes for us to hold it sometimes too
• he seems to love all fruits but i would say mangos and pears have been a favorite so far
• he naps best on his side, face to face with you, and patting on the bottom helps, he tends to fight his naps and when he is fussy you know its because he is either tired or hungry
• he still loves his baby einstein movies
• he has a great affection for ling ling and loves to touch her when she lets him
• he loves his cousins and other kids
• he gets super excited about the toy isle
• he likes to suck and gnaw on his thumb
• he still loves his paci but prefers to take it out and gnaw on the sides of it often
• he has an obsession with faces and enjoys clawing, scratching, and whacking people in thier mouths, eyes, and noses (be warned he will claw your gums, and stick his fingers so far up your nose you will never have sinus trouble again) he also likes to pull hair
• his new found talent is slapping his hands on table tops (thank daddy for that one)
• he is overly dramatic (like his momma) and knows if he cries he will get held.

He is amazing! He's perfect! We are so blessed, we really are!! I thank God for him everyday!! I will update later with pics, and height and weight stats!!

Happy 4th of July!

I just can't believe the 4th of July is here already. Almost every single year since i started middle school, i can remember going to fireworks on the 4th at pinelake country club in mint hill. Sitting on the green and watching all the kids of every age and size, running, playing, laughing and giggling, chasing each other around, dancing in the grass and playing with sparklers. It has always been my idea of the perfect family 4th of July and i always hoped that one day when i had children of my own, that we would be there too, watching them run and play on the soft green grass waiting for the fireworks. And last summer i remember being pregnant and thinking that it wouldn't be long before that was us with our children on the 4th. And now I'm sitting here shocked and amazed that today is my baby boys first Independence day. Mason is almost 6 months old, and he is crawling, babbling, eating baby food, holding his own bottle, laughing, sleeping through the night, sitting on his own, and getting his first tooth and i am truly amazed when i look back at how much has changed since i gave birth to my precious baby in January. I wonder what next years 4th of July will be like for us in the Greene house. I can safely assume that Mason will be walking, talking, eating big boy foods, and have changed so much it will make me want to cry. Who knows by next summer we may even be planning another baby Greene to add to the family. All i know for certain is that Landon and I's life has totally changed in the last year and it has changed for the better, and by next year i am sure it will have changed even more, but we are living our dream, having a family of our own and raising our son, which is the most precious gift. I am so thrilled to get to share in Mason's life all his joys and accomplishments, growth and milestones, it makes my life feel so much more rich and full. So today on the 4th i am so thankful for all the men and women who have served and are currently serving our country to protect our freedoms, it is because of them that i am able to live the kind of life that i do with my husband and son. And i am so thankful to them for protecting the future of our nation, for it is Mason's future as well. And I'm also thankful today to my Lord for blessing me with this wonderful life and wonderful family.

These are pictures from July 3rd when we decorated Mason's stroller and walked in the "peoples parade" in dowtown Matthews!

Boys Night In, Mommas Night Out

Last night my two boys had a night in together. They had the house to themselves just the two of them, while my mom and i went out and enjoyed the new Eclipse movie. A friend gave me two free tickets to an early screening the day before it came out, it was such a nice thing for him to do for me and all because he knows how much i love the twilight books and the movies too. It was absolutely wonderful to go to the early screening, we went at 9 pm and were out by 11 pm, on our way out we noticed the hoards of people sitting in a roped off section of the theatre lobby waiting for the midnight showing. I was glad that i didn't have to wait in that kind of chaotic mess just to see it. And i was so thankful that the majority of the movie goers in the early screening were adults, or were accompanied by adults and were very quiet and respectful, which meant we were really able to enjoy the movie to its fullest. Now, if i could just find the time to read my new book "the short second life of Bree tanner" an eclipse novella.

Peas and Carrots

This morning I put Mason in his room for a little play time, i spread a small blanket out on the floor for him and laid him down to play. He immediately rolled over and started trying to crawl. He has been working on this for several weeks now, and i really think he has about got the hang of crawling, no joke. He has been army crawling for a good two weeks or more, and he really is becoming a mobile little creature. if you put him down he can travel at least 10 feet, by army crawling, scooting on his tummy, and rolling. I am becoming aware of how much this is going to rock our world around the house, once he is on the go for real. There are just so many changes now that he is 5 months old. He has started eating solids, organic only. At 4 months we started him on rice cereal with applesauce mixed in, and now he is eating carrots, peas, pumpkin, and is about to add sweet potatoes and bananas to the menu. He gets his usual 5 bottles a day (he is able to hold them his self but i still help) plus applesauce with cereal in the mornings and a veggie in the pm. He is a great eater and the only thing we've not had a liking for thus far is the peas, but he loves his carrots. lol. Fingers crossed he will be a veggie lover for life. I'm about to take on the new adventure of making his baby food myself, this should be an interesting experience, I'll let you know how it goes. He is starting to babble a lot and will say BABABA. If you say it to him he will repeat it back. We are working on teaching him to associate it with his bottle, and are encouraging mama and dada but no luck so far. He LOVES baby einstein videos still, he likes to nap on his side on the bed facing me and cuddled up, he loves to scratch at your face, especially mouth and eyes, and even more so when he's sleepy. He is no longer too interested in his mobile. He is waking around 6:30 or 7 am now which is brutal, But Landon did however just install some new dark curtains in his room and I'm pleased to report that the last two morning we have slept till 8 ish and 9 ish which i am praying will be the new trend. He laughs a lot now, he thinks ling-ling is hilarious especially when she fetches with Landon and when she hacks up a hair ball he will just giggle away. He also finds Landon pretty funny, but me not so much. He is very smiley and sociable and really tries to ham it up when other people talk to him or pay him attention, he loves strangers. He is also loving his jumperoo and we just purchased a new walker which he also loves to play in. Everything under the sun is sure enough going straight to his mouth and he is still drooling buckets, and gnawing on his fist, tonight Landon and i both thought we felt something hard starting to poke through his bottom gums, we are hoping it is a tooth and not our imaginations playing tricks on us. Mason is still obsessed with our pooch ling-ling and she is still not entirely sure if she wants him around or not, most days she is a little playful and a little grouchy towards him all in the same day. We are still struggling with napping at home, he gets fussy and has to be rocked or held until he gives in, out of sheer exhaustion. He naps beautifully when we are out shopping, so we shop a lot.... pretty much daily. He is growing so fast, at our last check he was 14 lbs and 26.5 in long. We graduated from the baby tub to a bath seat in the big bath tub, tonight was our first time trying it and I'm happy to report it was a great success and so much easier than using the baby tub in the sink. He is just too much of a wiggler now and also loves to kick and splash in the water which has been soaking our counters, ourselves, and our floors. So i highly recommend the aquababy bath ring if you need a new option, it's a plastic seat that suctions to the bottom of the bath tub and you just sit them in it and wash them. It along with our new rinse cup with a rubber side that you press against their foreheads to keep the water from going into their eyes while you rinse their hair, have both been absolute life savers, and well worth the money. Well that pretty much wraps up my update on all of Masons big changes now that he is a 5 month old!! I'll let you know if we have any news on the possible tooth!

God is Good!

My little boy is growing so fast, and sometimes i look around at our house and our life now that mason is here and it's almost hard to remember what it was like before, you know before every baby gadget under the sun was in my living room, before buying organic was important, before the hours of washing bottles each day, before when our bedtime wasn't 9 pm, before my lower stomach lost all feeling in it, before the stretchmarks and extra pounds, before someone needed me every second of my day, back when my life was my own. I'm not quite sure what we did with ourselves and our time back then. My days now seem packed full of one activity/problem/cry session/feeding/diaper change after another, after another, and so on until my head hits the pillow for a few short hours of blissful peace, quiet and stillness, that i so dearly treasure. And even though i have never felt so tired, busy, needed, and forgetful in all my life, it all seems so worth while when i look at my little boys sweet loving face! He is such an amazing gift, yes, GIFT, he is a blessing from God, and i am thankful every single day that we have him in our lives. God truly answered all of my prayers when he blessed us with Mason, a happy, healthy, loving, funny, sweet, and beautiful baby. Mason has really given my life a sense of meaning and purpose that i didn't have before. He has made me feel more loved and more complete as a person. Landon and I truly feel that sense of being our own family now, now that we have Mason in our lives. We also really want to have another child, Mason has shown us just how incredible it is to be parents and just how special having a child truly is. I know we will not quite feel complete in our hearts until we have another baby, and it is something we really look forward to in the future, but for now we are very happy enjoying Mason and watching him grow. He really is growing and changing so quickly and Landon and i are both trying to take in and absorb every moment of it. I want to remember everything, every smile, every laugh, every "first", every experience. These last 5 months have really been some of the best in my life!! I am so lucky to have such an amazing husband, and Mason couldn't have asked for a better or brighter father than Landon. The two of them are my whole world and I am so excited to see what is in store for us, as long as we are all together i know it will be an amazing life!! God is good!

And I'll leave you with a picture of my hubby and my sweet boy the day after he was born!!

First Family Vacation

I promised i would post about our first family vacation, once we returned home and i have been very slack about posting lately. We really had a great trip when we took Mason to the beach for the first time. We left thursday night and got to the house in time to feed mason and unpack and get in the bed. It was hard to sleep away from home and with mason in his pack n play versus his own crib in his own room at home, but we made the best of it, we got up early and went to breakfast friday and then we went to the beach for a just a little bit and took mason in his front carrier for a little walk along the beach, while we were walking we saw a big 4-5 foot shark about 10 feet from the shore right in front of us, it scared me half to death and landon took off to inform the parents of a boy who was swimming very close to us. I have never seen anything like that before and it really made me apprehensive about mason ever stepping foot into the water. lol. After we left the beach we went to broadway on the beach and went to the Ripleys aquarium. Mason had an amazing time and landon and i loved it too. We were able to escape the terrible heat and Mason was just fascinated by the different aquariums and fish. I loved watching my little boys face light up with awe as he carefully studied all the beauty within each tank. I cant wait to take him back again one day. That night we took ling ling down on the beach with us and she really had a great time running in the wet sand but the waves and the dry sand were a little scary for her. She wanted to be held a lot but finally became really interested in chasing a flying seagull around and chasing the water as it washed in on the shore. The next day we headed to barefoot landing for a few hours in north myrtle and then stopped by good ol ocean drive (shag capital of the world) my home away from home for a large portion of my youth. We ate lunch at the blvd grill and then stopped by our friends nancy and ron alexanders condo to visit them and for them to meet mason for the first time. It was a nice visit, and afterward we headed back to holden and enjoyed the rest of the day with mason on the beach. He lloked absolutley adorable in his swimsuit, sunglasses, and hat. He was not too happy about the cold water on his feet and he let us know real quick, so landon held him and stood in the water with him and he was happy as a tick watching the waves roll in and out. After a little bit in the water we laid him in his tent and he had some apple juce and water and then he zonked out and napped for several hours while landon and i laid out and enjoyed the sun and sand!! It was a really great day and the most relaxing time we had. That night we got baths all around including ling-ling and then the 3 humans went to dinner, came home and put mason to bed and landon and i enjoyed ice cream sundaes at home on the couch while watching the stepford wives. sunday we woke up and decided we missed our beds, the heat was killing us, and our ymca waterpark was calling our names, so we headed home to charlotte, unpacked our car, put our swimsuits on and went to the waterpark at the ymca to swim. Landon had never seen mason in the pool until then and mason really had the best time he has ever had at the pool, that day with landon there with him.

We really had a wonderful first vacation as a family!! It was a much needed getaway and although it was short, it was a really nice trip. But we were definitly happy to come home to our own house and our own beds!! We are really looking forward to our next vacation and i'm sure the older mason gets the more fun he will have but i know, as his parents, we will always remember taking our son to the beach for the very first time together and just how special it was. I will upload pics soon!!