Sick sick sick

Life is not fun here at the Mason house. Both myself and Buster are sick and poor Jim is left to care for us both (not an easy task, I assure you.) Buster actually seems to be faring pretty well except for the fact that his nose is so plugged he can't breathe. This wouldn't be such a big deal, but he doesn't quite get that you have to breathe through your mouth. And further compounding the problem is that he can' t fall asleep without a pacifier. So he demands a paci only to find he can't breathe, making him spit out the pacifier and thus he begins to cry. The good thing about both of us being sick at the same time? We both need much cuddle time so we cuddle each other. Together we will make it through this!

But a new "first" to add to the list - first cold 11/25/07

Happy Thanksgiving!

How fast the time has flown - I can't believe Buster is already almost 5 months old! We've almost survived a half a year! It's so fun to watch him learn and become more and more aware of the world around him. As I type this he is intently watching me - "what is mommy doing with her fingers? How does she make that noise?" He even stopped playing to watch me. I can see the wheels turning in his mind.

This year we have much to be thankful for - it was such a hectic, stressful year I'm just thankful we survived it! So in honor of Thanksgiving here is my list of 20 things I'm thankful for (in case you couldn't tell, I really like making lists :) )

1. I am thankful for our house. It's more than I ever dreamed we would get.


2. I am thankful that Buster is healthy.


3. I am thankful that Buster is happy!


4. I am thankful for Buster's goofy red mohawk.


5. I am thankful that I finally finished my thesis!


6. I am thankful for Saturday mornings (I get to sleep in).


7. I am thankful for Big Jimmy.


8. I am thankful for the Nintendo Wii - quite possibly the best gaming platform ever.


9. I am thankful that Buster is beginning to be able to entertain himself so I can take these 5 minutes and blog about him.


10. I am thankful that my cats have stopped pooping on the couch.


11. I am thankful for all the help we received right after Buster was born.


12. I am thankful for anesthesiologists.


13. I am thankful for Buster's laugh.


14. I am thankful that Classic Slice pizza is right by my house and oh so yummy! (I am also thankful that Chris told us about Classic Slice).


15. I am thankful for my friends who have stood by us during this crazy crazy time.


16. I am thankful for Buster's smile - it lights up a room.


17. I am thankful that Buster smiles when he sees me. I think it's his way of communicating that he loves me


18. I am thankful for pacifiers and swings


19. I am thankful for my cats.


20. I am thankful for my family without whose help we woudl surely be lost.

Now I challenge all of you to make your own Thanksgiving lists!

Gratuitous Buster picture:

Just a couple of guys

Watching some football.

Santa ridiculousness

I know this is supposed to be a blog about my son and my life as a new mom. But I just read something that I feel compelled to comment on. Apparently, in Australia Santa's can no longer say "ho ho ho" but must say "ha ha ha" instead (article located here http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20071115/wl_asia_afp/lifestyleaustraliachristmasoffbeat). The reasoning is that "ho ho ho" may be seen as degrading to women since "ho" is a derogatory slang term for a prostitute in the US. Why Australia is worried about what the US says, I'll never know. Especially since Santa's here are still free to say the dreaded "ho" word. As a liberal and a feminist I'm usually all for political correctness to make sure that no one is inadvertantly offended. But this is going too far. "Ho ho ho" has always been what Santa said. He did not say it originally to be offensive to women. Therefore, I think it should stay. Censorship/political correctness should be used to right past wrongs and past derogatories. It should not be used for imaginative things. I've never heard a woman complain that Santa's calling her a "ho". But that's just me. Maybe I'm not liberal or sensitive enough.

4 month well check-up!

Well, that time has come yet again. Vaccine time! We saw the doctor this morning. Little Jimmy was in a stellar mood, which was totally awesome. He was smiling and laughing at the doctor and the physician's assistant. It made me feel really good. He has a little cradle cap, but that's it. Otherwise he's the picture of perfect health! He's progressing exactly where she should be and he even showed off his tummy time skills. The doctor was quite impressed with his strength. Now that he's 4 months old (4 months! Where did the time go!?) we can start solids if we so choose. There's no reason to and no reason not to. So, as long as he's happy we're going to wait it out. Maybe after Christmas we'll start...
The shots themselves went well, too. Hardly any crying - he was a little upset but then Big Jimmy held him and he seemed to calm down. And now the moment you're all waiting for - the 4 month stats!

Head = 16 inches (50th percentile)
weight = 14.1 pounds (50th percentile)
height = 26.5 inches (90th percentile)

He definitely takes after his dad - long and lean!

Poll: Who drools more

Poll: Who drools more, Little Jimmy or Slimer from Ghostbusters???

Too close to call. :)

Things I never thought I'd say

Inspired by a recent parents.com article I read (http://www.parents.com/parents/story.jsp?sssdmh=dm17.282585&storyid=/templatedata/ab/story/data/AB0904MomQuotes_09172004.xml&esrc=nwaspo&email=1079394494 if you're interested) here is my own list of sentences I'd never dream I would say:

1. That's a nice looking penis!
2. I think I like Huggies diapers the best
3. This is my son, James.
4. Did you make sure to wipe under his scrotum?
5. Who's the baby??? You're the baby! Yes, you are! You're the cutest little baby! (said in a ridiculous babyspeak voice)
6. I can't believe he peed in his ear.
7. Ben was right, breastmilk is really sweet! Like honey milk!
8. We should get a family photo taken.
9. What type of bottle do you like best?
10. Come here you little shit.
11. I wish you were a girl. Girl clothes are so much cuter.

I'm sure there will be plenty more where that came from!

Sad days

Why is that whenever we have company James decides to act like a yahoo? (Aside - note I said James and not Buster. Here's the problem - he thinks Buster is his real name. Whoops! No more nicknames for a while!) Our friends Kyle and Molly came over on Sunday for a day of football (yea Packers! Boo Colts!) All morning James was in a solid mood - we napped on the sofa for a while, we played, we laughed, we cooed. Then at 11:00 all hell broke loose. I'm not kidding. It's like a switch was flipped. One minute he was laughing and playing in his exersaucer, the next he was determined never to be happy again. So...Jimmy and I spent the rest of the day (all 8 hours of it) trying to get him to stop crying for more than 10 minutes and simultaneously trying to convince Kyle and Molly that parenthood is indeed fun. I'm pretty sure we failed on both accounts...