Mason's newborn photos

thanks to my mom for suffering it out in the crazy 86 degree room & helping me do these almost impossible photos of mr. ornery bum mason.

we were so lucky to get what we did. mason HATED this pretty much. i would have liked to get lots more, but he was the WORST newborn i've ever photographed! ahhh imagine that..

well , we got quite a few anyway..enjoy :)

Update

i know i need to update this thing..

but you wouldn't believe how crazy busy i've been now that i have 2 kids!

seriously, wow!

i am so used to having lots of spare time  to myself, doing what i want. not now, between the 2 boys and the neverending housework, i'm busy ALL. THE. TIME.

Mason has changed a bit since my last post.

He acts like he wants to occasionally have colic.

some days he seems fine.

he can't make up his mind.

i've been scared crapless for when andrew starts up school again. he'll be going to school full time AND working full time. he'll have something EVERY DAY. so guess who takes care of the kids mostly 24/7? yeah, that would be ME. only me. like a single mom. except luckily, when andrew is home, i get to sneak in a nap sometimes, and that is fabulous. I also have a wonderful neighbor who is willing to help me out however she can. she said she'll watch the boys whenever i need it. and i might take her up on that, seriously.

tonight i took both of the boys grocery shopping. yeah yeah i know that doesn't sound too bad. but i was terrified. with mason's history of undecided colic, and jaxon's crazy energy, combined with my natural love for grocery shopping (not!), it was sure to be a good time. turns out, mason slept through it all, jax was okay, and i got all my WIC stuff RIGHT! (i didn't have to go back and change something for something else) . That right there was amazing & i thought, hey, maybe i can do this after all.

my back hurts.

after the shopping, i had to give mason a bath. then get jax to bed. then feed mason. i know i sound like a baby, but i'm not used to this! i'm not used to two little people needing SO MUCH ALL THE TIME. when i get done with one of them, its time for the other to need something. luckily, mason doesn't poop every 5 minutes like he used to.

We told the Dr. about the "colic" and he gave us an anti reflux medication for mason. i think maybe it has helped a bit. i also bought some "gripe water" last night and have used it once. i've yet to come to a conclusion about that stuff. any advice on colicky babies is welcomed, although i'll bet i've tried it all!

Mason now weighs 7lbs 10oz and is 19 and a half inches long. still not as big as jax at birth! this baby is SO LITTLE. i love that though. he is still wearing newborn, and most newborn things still drown him! his little head is well...perfect! they measured it and they said it's perfect. jax's head was always so big it was completely off of the charts. Mason  likes to cuddle, jaxon wouldn't. this makes getting him to sleep a bit easier. he likes to lay on me on his belly and have his bum spanked hard. that seems to make his belly feel better. he'll fall asleep on me, then i put him in his bassinet. this is the routine so far. i'm okay with it.

Jaxon is the best big brother we could ask for. seriously, we lucked out. somehow, he comprehends that mason is little and helpless and needs attention from mom and dad all the time. jaxon doesn't get jealous or mad, or act different. yet.  instead, he loves mason, kisses him, hugs him, tickles him, "pets" him, talks to him. he LOVES mason. its really the cutest thing ever. he also helps out so much. he loves to feed mason, and he'll go do favors for me all the time. he is very defensive and protective of him too. i'll say things like "mason is being an ornery baby" and he'll say "mom, please don't say that about him, its makes my feelings feel bad"

haha. i love him

well that's all you're getting from me right now, mason is crying.

here are a few pics!

i have about a bazillion more to share!

He's Here!

Mason Mckay Talbot

Born 8/1/2011 at 8:58am

7lbs, 1oz & 19 in.

we love him...

& Jax loves him...

He's a precious, sweet baby. He's such a GOOD baby.

& He's SO little compared to Jax as a baby.

Birth story to come soon.

I'm a little too busy lovin' on him now.

this is for Mom & Dad (and whoever else thinks that my 3 yr old is hilarious)

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I've added a "the funny things he says" collection on my sidebar. scroll to the bottom of everything you see on my sidebar. you'll laugh.
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Every married person NEEDS to read this!

 Marriage is SO hard. Even when people brag about having the perfect marriage, you know they are lying or just trying to show off. I've often wondered what we can do to get back to "how things were" . these are some great, SIMPLE tips. and hey-- lots of them i've tried to make happen in our marriage! this must be written by a woman. I found this on The Idea Room.


SERIOUSLY, read it!






Thank you for all the great comments on last week’s post about “How to Date Your Husband”. It was exciting to hear that the questions helped get the conversation between you and your spouse started. Since I started guest posting here on The Idea Room, I have received some great questions from readers. Believe it or not, at least a third of them have come from wives who want to know how to “put the spark back in their marriages”.
The complaint is that things are not like they “used to be”, and at the end of the day when their spouses are looking forward to spending time together, they are tired, exhausted, and “not in the mood”. The questions have been honest and straightforward. With so many women wondering the same thing, I thought we would address the topic. Don’t worry, it’s family friendly.
First, realize that to women, subconsciously everything is related to how we feel about being intimate. Dishes aren’t done, intimate. Kids were hard to handle today, intimate. The house is a mess, intimate. Husband helped with the laundry, In.tim.ate Sometimes men don’t understand this. Tell them. Explain how difficult it can be to “relax”, when there are so many things that need to be done, and so many things on your mind. For women a bad day means they are “not interested”. Men do not usually view things this same way. Women need to be shown love and attention. For women, having our husbands help shoulder our responsibilities is much more likely to get us in the “mood”.
So given that everything in our day affects how we feel about the bedroom, we can make some changes in different aspects of our day that will help us more easily find the “temperature” we have been looking for. Struggles in the bedroom are not necessarily bed room problems, but all the other problems in life tend to affect the bedroom.

Here are some suggestions….

• Life in general can make us tired, but sometimes we are trying to do too much and that makes us really tired. When we are really tired we don’t have the energy to “be together”. Assess your families life. Are there some things that you could cut out so you have more energy to be together.  Be sure your family isn’t over scheduled. Activities are good, for you and your kids, but too many will mean your family is not getting stronger, instead you get weaker because there is no energy to spend with one another.

• Establish a bed time for your children, and stick with it. Not only will it be better for your children, but it will give you and your husband time to be together everyday. This alone time is very important when you are trying to establish “similar temperatures”.

• When you have time together at night because the kids have a bed time you stick with, spend that time talking. Turn off the television, turn off the computer and any other technological distractions and Talk. Remember when you were courting, when things were “how they used to be”. Remember when you fell in love? You probably talked a lot together. Try it again, only listen and learn as if it’s the first time, and don’t interrupt. You have to make time to do this on a daily basis. 15 minutes of talking daily is one of the surest ways to keep the two of you from “drifting apart”. 15 minutes doesn’t sound like much, but most (like 80%) of couples, don’t talk to one another for 15 minutes a day. Pay attention to one another the way you used to.

• Along these same lines, if you have a television in your bedroom, take it out. Let your bedroom be open to connection through words and touch.

• Go on dates. Weekly. Or at least every other week. Baby sitters are much less expensive than therapists. It is okay to leave the kids and go do something together. This sends a message to your children that your marriage is important. Hold hands, walk slow and enjoy being together. Treat each other with kindness and respect and you will feel the temperature rise as you spend time just the two of you. This can include a night away with one another. You can’t expect to retain feelings of love when you neglect your companionship.

• Find things you like to do together and do them. Don’t give up the things that made you so happy at the earlier phase of your marriage. Be intentional and do things together.

• Say hello and goodbye to one another. When your husband leaves for work, don’t just holler “bye” from the kitchen. Go to him, give him a kiss, an I Love You, and say goodbye. Connect the same way when he comes home. When you were dating I bet you wrapped your arms around him and wouldn’t let go. Do that again.

• Go to bed at the same time. Establish a nightly routine that allows you and your husband to climb into bed at the same time. Laugh and chat while you brush your teeth. This routine should happen every night if possible.

• This one is direct. For the next three months, you and your husband each commit to being intimate twice a week. You are responsible for initiating once, and your husband the other. When it’s your turn, set the mood, the place and the time, the agenda. When it’s your husbands turn, be a willing participant. You will quickly see that those two days of the week you may treat each other better than you did when you were first married. Set aside time and make it a priority.

• Don’t be so judgmental and hard on yourself. Let go of the thought that you don’t look like you did before you had kids, or when you were younger. Be comfortable and confident in your own skin. We are always hardest on ourselves. Relax and learn to love yourself.

• Make your bedroom a safe haven. I am so guilty of this one. If I am not careful, our bedroom becomes the dumping ground for everything undone. Especially unfolded laundry. I always think by putting it on the bed, it will force me to fold it before I go to sleep. Yeah, doesn’t always work. It is the last place in the house to get vacuumed and dusted. Our bedrooms should be a safe and comfortable place for our relationships. Make the bed everyday, don’t let it become the laundry room, and attend to it just like you do the rest of your house. It will make a big difference when you climb in to bed with your spouse each night.

You will start to find that as you and your husband put more effort into finding time to be together, you will feel better about yourself also. Use your alone time to compliment one another and express gratitude for all your spouse does. Thank him for all the ways he supports your family. Tell your husband how you feel when he acknowledges all the hard work you do for him and for your children.

Rekindle the flame you once had and you will see that “things will be more like they used to be”.

How do you keep the sparks flying in your relationship?

Our 4th of July!

the 4th of july has to be one of my fave holidays.

i love summer.

(this year not so much considering i was 8+ months pregnant)

i love the smell of fireworks.

i love the parade.

i love slushies and snocones.

i love the enthusiasm of a hometown 4th of july celebration!

 

here are jax & my creepy brother tanner on my grandpa's pentawheel that he made.

i really should have gotten a better picture so you could see what it is..

mom's flowers

jax riding grandpa hansen's tractor. andrew actually took him on a ride, but i think i was taking a nap, so i missed out on that photo op.

zeussy (dad's dog) and jax.

my dad driving the famous train that my grandpa hansen also made.

the neighbor kids  love it.

on the 4th of july, my grandpa gives rides to kids at the park.

yeah, didn't get a pic of that either..

jax and second cousin jakob.

(jax loves him too much for words)

jax & family friend claire

the parade!

the best part of the parade as a kid is trying to collect the candy they throw at you as fast as you can.

my grandpa on one of his tractors.

he's the sweetest , happiest guy you'll see in the parade.

...and some adults try to get the candy too..

some of the fam at that parade.

this little fan that sprayed water was wonderful during the parade.

thank you walmart $9.

these cherry photos are for my dad to see.

see dad?

they're cool right?

he was making fun of me for taking them.

my mom has some of the best kitchen window light ever!

YES- we did go on a 4 wheeler ride. YES- i drove.

the stinky dog even came with..

our last 4th of July being a family of 3!

(my eyes look creepy. so does my body. don't even look at me, look at jaxon.)

a scared and concerned jaxon holding a sparkler

(they freak the crap out of me. i won't hold one)

almost every year, there is plenty of tanner/andy/alecia love on the blanket when we watch fireworks.

mom and dad making a lovely dutch oven chicken dinner.

yep, he IS letting jaxon, 3 years old, light fireworks.

i wasn't exactly happy about this.

i love america.

and i love the 4th of July!