Ride Like the Wind: Part I

Tonight was the first time Madison rode Steve's mini motorcycle and she did AWESOME! I'm entitling this entry as Part I because I did a very stupid thing. Every video I captured of Madison, I wasn't really recording until I thought I hit "stop". When in reality, I hit "stop" to film Madison thinking I hit "record" and then "record" when I was finished filming Madison when I thought I hit "stop". Sound confusing? It does to me and I didn't realize my mixup until all the videos were of my dress and feet. So I will post Part II Tuesday night after I film Madison again.

Below is Steve riding the mini motorcycle. It was the only successful video of the evening.

Instead of watching his Papa and Sissy ride the mini motorcycle, Mason is watching the back of his eyelids.

Take Time to Smell the Roses

Aren't these roses gorgeous? My sister, Jackie, sent me 2 bunches of them. I didn't have a big enough vase so I must keep the bunches separate so the vase stays balanced. I believe each bunch has 24 roses. I don't care about the quantity, but I wanted to give the credit that is due to Jackie for sending them. THANK YOU!

On August 29, 2006, Jackie received a kidney from me. Each year of the anniversary, she sends me flowers to thank me. It should be me thanking her because I was able to be a part of something wonderful. Why did I do it besides the fact that she is one of my big sisters whom I love? It's simple. Jackie deserved what we all got to do everyday. For most of us we do it sometimes without thinking and sometimes over thinking. What am I talking about? Making decisions. Jackie's life was limited which meant her decisions were limited. Her life was based around her kidney disease. Simple pleasures such as sleeping in, drinking milk, and vacationing were made difficult. It wasn't fair. She didn't deserve to live that way. Jackie deserved to make smart decisions, along with the careless ones, just like the rest of us.

If I had the option to undo history having gone through it, I wouldn't have changed my decision to donate a kidney. She is a wonderful person and truly one of a kind. I am blessed to have her as a sister.

What have I learned from the transplant experience? To live my life. To love the simple moments because they are the ones that bring the greatest joy. The world teaches us it's all about your clothing label, how fast your vehicle can go from 0 to 60 MPH in 30 seconds, bra size, and that it's not what you know that will get you ahead, it's who you can sabotage to get there. Love teaches us how to joyfully sacrifice ourselves for another's happiness whether it's to give into an argument, allow some else to win the race, or donate your last dollar. God loved us so much he sacrificed his son.

It shouldn't be how many people you know, but how many people you actually love. It shouldn't be how smart a child is at 1, but how many times he runs to you for a hug. It shouldn't be the bigger the diamond, the more he loves you. It should be about his simple gestures and him always wanting to be in your presence. It shouldn't be about fighting time, but about loving yourself enough to be okay with all the flaws.

Mason's 1 Month Checkup

Here is a picture of Mason at a little over 1 month:

Steve and I took Mason to the pediatrician today. He now weighs 9 lbs and 4.8 ounces and measures 22 inches in length. We must start forcing Mason's head to turn to his left and while it's turned in this direction, massage his neck muscles. The pediatrician said it's common in infants to favor only one side. If an infant would continue to turn his or her head to one side, the muscles could stiffen. The pediatrician said the name of the condition (is it really even a condition?) so quickly, I did not understand what she had said. I'm thinking the name is "tortacolitis", but I have not had the time to research anything. On a funnier note, Mason peed all over the pediatrician. Boy, she reacted with lightning speed. Me, I just always sit and watch Mason spray everywhere because it's hilarious and I can never stop laughing. Mason received his 2nd dose of the Hepatitis B vaccine. He was a good baby and only cried for a few seconds.

The pediatrician gave us a few tips on how to prepare Mason to sleep through the night:

-Make evenings as boring as possible so he doesn't make himself excited (he's only 1 month old; he's not doing that much!)

-Don't feed Mason to sleep (then he would never get fed in the evening because he can look at the bottle and fall asleep!)

-When he awakes at night, don't turn on any lights (I would break a bone stumbling around in the dark half asleep trying to prepare a bottle!)

-Nightime should only be for feeding; do not change the diaper (Goodness, even when Mason's diaper is changed twice a night, he still pees everywhere. If his diaper wasn't changed during the night, he would flood the house!)

-When Mason is done feeding in the middle of the night, put him back into his crib even if he's awake. This means no rocking, swinging, or talking (I should have asked the pediatrician how long do I allow Mason to scream before picking him up!)

It's Back to School Time

GOOD LUCK BUBBLES AT NORTH HILLS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
You are going to do wonderful in the 4th grade. You are going to make so many friends and your teacher, Mrs. Monday, will absolutely love you. Daddy and I love you to fruity bits and juicy pieces!

When the Going Gets Tough, the Tough Get Growing

The pictures above are veggies that will soon to be ready for picking, with the exception of the tomato. We have a few tomatoes which we need to pull now. We planted the garden with the intent to eliminate the extra money being spent to buy some veggies at the grocery store. Needless to say, our garden is a late bloomer so we've had to buy our veggies. Except for spaghetti squash; I refuse to pay the high prices which I've seen to be up to 3.99 a lb. Don't get me started on cucumbers; they are 85 cents now which is ridiculous compared to the 50 cents I only paid during spring time.

The pictures below are tomatoes that Steve picked. The mystery has been solved...the veggie sliced in half was a spaghetti squash and not a watermelon. It did not have a chance to mature. It appeared the pesky animals chewed it off from it's vine.

Not bad for a garden which everyone ignores, never gets watered, and it is littered with weeds.

My Sleeping Babies

Steve was the one who got up with Mason throughout the night. It was the first time I did not have to get up for feedings or diaper changes. Mason woke at 4:30 AM this morning and did not go back to sleep. Look what has happened to the early birds by mid afternoon. What a bunch of sissies!

Let's Go Bandits, Let's Go!

Isn't she a cutie patootie? Bubbles is playing outside soccer on an all girls team for the first time. Earlier this year, she played for YMCA on a co-ed team and I have to say that I thought the boys were too aggressive for the girls. Now normally I do not like to sound sexist, but it was true. There was one boy in particular that you just wanted to punch in the face because he kept hogging the ball from his own teammates. He must have missed the Barney episode on sharing.

Bubbles is playing for the Bandits and she is number 77. Mason and I was not in attendance due to the heat, but Bubbles said she had a great time. As an over planning stepmom, I made sure to pack the allergy medicine, tissues, allergy eye drops, water bottle, soccer attire, and the umbrella in case she needed shade. Yes, I will be the first to admit I go overboard with the preparation phase of any event or trip. However, in my defense; have you seen the Discovery channel show, "I Shouldn't be Alive"? After watching that show, I'm glad I overpack. My overpacking will help save us if we ever get stranded and must survive without rescue for 10 days.

Bubbles really likes playing offense. Steve captured Bubbles team, which only consists of 11 girls in the pictures below:

Our First Family Photo

Here is the first Fowler Family photo. I can't seem to size the picture correctly. I made several attempts to upload this picture as a gadget in our profile. However whenever it uploaded, Bubbles was caught off along with half of Steve's body. Does anyone know how to size the photo so it will fit in our profile section? I would like to shave off the left side, but not the right.

Rub-a-Dub-Dub

Mason can now get a real bath and he actually likes it.

Indiana or Bust

Steve, Mason, and I left early Friday morning to drive to Greenfield, IN. What's there you ask? A whole lot of nothing except for a little girl named Bubbles who missed her Daddy and was ready to come home. For the past 2 weeks, she has been in MO visiting Oma along with cousin Blaize. Mason did very well and was only cranky for the last hours driving to IN and driving back home. As a side note, I was greatly dissatisfied with nursery water, which is advertised as being able to be mixed with formula for infants. We did not have a way to boil water while at the hotel. All it did was cause a lot of gas and a belly ache for Mason. I dumped most of the gallon out as soon as we arrived home. We arrived in Greenfield on Friday evening and had dinner with the kids and Oma and Don, Steve's stepdad. Greenfield served as a halfway point for everyone and it's also only 20 or so miles away from Indianapolis, which is where we spent our day on Saturday at the zoo. Steve and I did not take many pictures. It's weird because going to attractions like a zoo in the past, I would always have my camera out and ready for those photo moments. On Saturday, the camera never entered my mind unless Steve asked for it. I was too concerned about Mason staying cool and also whether or not Bubbles or Blaize were running anyone over with the stroller. There were a few close encounters with other zoo visitors, but no one was injured. The weekend was fun, but I was extremely glad to arrive home last night even if it took another 2.5 hours to unpack and put everything back into its place. I'm finding that as I get older, my favorite place to be is home.

No, this is not a picture of the Loch Ness Monster. We could not get any good pictures at the dolphin show, but if you squint you can recognize that they are indeed dolphins.

Blaize was scared of the ostrich exhibit.

This bear was chewing on a bone which seemed as big as my leg. What did they feed him; a dinosaur from Jurassic Park?

This was my favorite exhibit of all at the zoo. He was such a good boy even though it was sweltering outside.

Everyone was able to pet the elephants after the show. All I wanted to do was get inside an air conditioned building. Thank goodness we saved the aquarium for last. It was very refreshing.

The dog sharks had eyeballs like humans. It was so weird looking.

In a Land Far, Far Away

Okay, so the U.K. is not that far away, but it makes for a catchy title. My work's international representatives from the U.K. sent Mason a care package. They sent Mason a t-shirt that reads "I'm the little brother" and a chimeball. For me, I was sent some hand lotion which smells very nicely. I was debating whether or not I should keep the wrapping paper since it did come from a foreign land. Then I realized I was being a dork and only I thought it would be a funny gesture so I did not keep it.

The picture of the package was later used to send to Bubbles since she is in MO.

Now I know that I'm not the only one who wraps like this!

No translation required!

The presents are greatly appreciated by Steve and I.

We Miss You, Bubbles!

Bubbles is currently in Mexico, Missouri visiting Steve's Mom, Oma. Steve, Mason, and I will be venturing to Indiana next weekend to meet Oma halfway to pick up Bubbles and Blaize (Steve's nephew). It's a 10 hour drive of quality time (one way) for Steve and I. I desperately pray that Mason does well during the drive. We will have plenty of stops along the way so he can stretch his legs.

Here is some history I found on the world wide web with regards to Mexico:

Mexico, Missouri was laid out as "New Mexico" in 1836 and was a major stop for settlers heading to the Republic of Texas. The Republic of Texas was a sovereignty nation in North America between the United States and Mexico that existed from 1836 to 1846.Formed as a break-away republic from Mexico by the Texas Revolution, the nation claimed borders that encompassed an area that included all of the present U.S.... (thus the name New Mexico), and became the county seat. A county seat or parish seat is a term for an administrative center for a county or civil parish, primarily used in the United States. In the Northeast United States, the statutory term often is shire town, but colloquially county seat is the term in use there.... under its present name in 1837. The word "New" was dropped after the Mexican-American War that saw Texas as a U.S. state located in the South Central United States.

There is an apocryphal story concerning the name. When a University of Missouri student, questioned on radio, was unable to give an account of her hometown's name, the question was put to L. Mitchell White, editor of the Mexico Ledger: "'The first settlers found a wooden sign allong the trail. It pointed southwest, and on it had been painted Mexico.'" To avoid unnecessary labor, the sign was left in place. "It was easier to call their town 'Mexico' than to take down the old sign."

Mexico was incorporated as a town in 1855, was entered by the Wabash road in 1858 and by the Alton in 1872, and was first chartered as a city in 1874. The city is situated in the blue grass region of Missouri, and was a shipping-point for horses and mules. Mexico was a one-time major source for the nation's fire brick. A fire brick or refractory brick is a block of Refraction ceramic material used in lining furnaces, kilns, firebox , and fireplaces.... production, so much so, that it adopted the moniker "Fire Brick Capital of the World". However, the industry fell on hard times and both major refractories in the area closed around 2000. There is currently no active fire brick quarrying or production in the area.The historic downtown square, with the typical court house as the focal point, is surrounded by dozens of multi-story brick buildings--some dating to the founding of the community. In the late 70s, Mexico began ripping up crumbling sidewalks and installing red paver bricks accented with turn-of-the-century lamp posts and park benches. In the 1980s Mexico was one of six nationwide finalists for Nissan's new U.S. auto plant. Mexico lost out to winner Smyrna, Tennessee.

Formerly known as the "Saddle Horse Capitol of the World," Mexico still hosts Hollywood celebrities and other visitors from around the world who come to purchase riding horses. The Simmons Stables are now listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation.

You May Enter, But You Can Never Leave!

A BIG thank you to Mom and Aunt Donna for purchasing the Crib Tent II for Mason. As Steve was putting it together, some of our cats surrounded the tent and wanted so desperately to get inside of it, but couldn't. THAT'S THE POINT! You can't my furry four legged friends. Saige and Jasmine demonstrates the purpose of the tent above. Look how well it keeps out the stuffed animal. Mason will be able to sleep in peace as the cats are bouncing off the tent. HAHAHAHA!

Amusing

Mason only wore this outfit for about 5 minutes before he decided to pee in it. Sadly, the blanket was claimed as a victim with his urination as well.

Look closely at the picture below. No, your eyes have not fooled you. It is baby cologne and courtesy of Steve's sister-in-law, Jen. Can you believe this? I'm envisioning an Axe commercial and now fear for my life everytime I take Mason out in public. I don't want all the female babies attacking me or him.

Play on playa!