Tricia

I LOVE Mason's baby sitter. I found her on Craigs List. Creepy, I know, but when you're moving to a city where you literally know one person, you really don't have much of a choice. So before I moved, I put an ad online. Within twenty-four hours, I recieved probably fifty emails from women who wanted to watch Mason. I eliminated more than half of them based on spelling and grammar errors alone. I emailed twenty or so back, eliminated some more, and set up meetings with eight of them.

When I got here, Mason and I met Tricia first because she was the one I was most drawn to, based on her email. She's thirty years old, a mom of a three-year-old and a nine-month-old, and one of the friendliest, nicest peple I've ever met. I was wasting my time meeting the other moms/daycare providers, because I knew no one else could compare to Tricia. I felt so comfortable during our first meeting that I could have left my baby with her right then and there. So, even though she's about ten minutes in the oposite direction of the restaurant I work in, I drop Mason off with her and her boys four times a week and gladly (or, almost gladly) fork over five dollars an hour. I LOVE Tricia.

Every day, when I pick Mason up, Tricia has a note for me detailing what went on while I was gone.


They don't watch TV, she doesn't give Mason sugary crap or junk food, and I'm confident she treats him like one of her own boys. I'm also convinced she has an incredible amount of patience, because Mason's always coming home with crafts like this:


I never wanted Mason to have to go to a daycare, but being at Tricia's isn't like being at a daycare at all. He loves her like she was family. Sometimes, Mason jumps out of my arms into her's when we get to her house. Actually, my only complaint about Tricia is that I think my kid likes her more than he likes me.

Maseloaf

This kid loves being my little helper. His most recent cooking attempt was meatloaf and baked potatoes.

The face of concentration:



It gets a little messy - especially egg cracking and seasoning sprinkling - but it's definitely worth it. Nothing tastes better than a baked potato rolled all over the kitchen floor before it's cooked.

I Knew I Kept Him Around for a Reason

The other afternoon, while I was getting ready for work, I put Mason on the sink while I got ready. It's really the only way I can do my makeup in peace. It's how I've been getting ready for weeks now... genius. Anyway, he's standing up there, looking in the mirror, brushing his teeth, and splashing in the sink when the following conversation ensues:

Me: Hey Mase, who's that? [while pointing to Mason in the mirror]
Mason: May-May!
Me: Yep! And who's that? [pointing to myself]
Mason: Mama!
Me: Right again, smarty. You're so cute. Who's cute?
Mason: Cute? Mama cute!

Yep. I taught him well.

Not-So-Weepy Willow

I almost forgot... the coolest part of the park from the other day: the giant Weeping Willow tree. My neighbor and childhood best friend had two of them in his yard and I remember climbing them and hiding in the long, droopy branches allll the time as a kid. Of course, I couldn't resist sticking Mason up in this one's branches, even though it's barely spring so it was a little naked.

Park Surprise

The past few days, I've been setting the GPS to "parks" and just following it to wherever. We've found some good ones, and we've found some not so good ones. This was one of the best so far... and lucky for us, we found it on a beautiful eighty degree afternoon.

I love taking Mason out and not knowing what we're going to find when we get wherever we're going. It's a surprise every time.

I Panicked the First Time

But now I know that when I can't find Mason, I just have to look here:

Rainy Day Painting

My mom sent Mason a $25 gift card for Easter. When it rained the other day, I used that $25 to buy everything I needed to turn my baby into a mini-Picaso.

He's quite the painter. And hey, anything that can occupy Mason for half and hour is totally worth twenty-five bucks.

True Mom Confession Part Five

Mason hasn't been sleeping well at all. Maybe it's because we're in the same room and his separation anxiety is in full force. It could be his teeth hurting or that he's too hot or too cold or too tired or not tired enough. I tried him without a night light and then with one, with and without a fan, and with and without a space heater. I tried leaving the window open, closing it, opening the door, closing it.. The truth is, I really have no idea what's working and what isn't because it's truly and completely random. Sometimes he wakes up at 3AM and stays awake for a few hours before finally passing out again. Sometimes he just decides to wake up at 5AM for the day. And naps... what naps?

Point being: we're exhausted. And yesterday was one of Mason's 5AM wakeup days, so by 9:15 he was a wreck. I know, I said I'd never do it. Mason wasn't watching TV until he could ask to watch it, and really, I still believe that. Except yesterday. Yesterday I cracked. But if I had to endure thirty more seconds of whining and clinging I was going to put my head through the television. So I turned it on


and I layed Mason down.

It was called Handy Mandy or some crap like that and it was as bad as I always imagined cartoons in 2010 would be. Fortunately, I only had to indure four minutes of Mandy's adventures.


Trust me, I'm still anti-tv. But I've gotta admit.. sometimes I wish I wasn't. That was way too easy.

Everybody Jump

The other day, when I was doing a little googling, I realized that we live practically right next door to a HUGE bounce house. Desperately needing to tire out Mase (who's been awake for weeks), I took him over. Ten dollars for two hours. Knowing Mason wouldn't last more than forty-five minutes, I talked the girl at the counter down to five bucks. Yes, I bargained at the bounce house.

It was worth every penny.

Egg Hunt

After hearing stories of crazy parents and fights over Easter eggs, I decided to have a little egg hunt for Mase at home again this year. Last year, it took about two hours for him to find them all. This year, he found all eight eggs in about ten minutes (with a only a liiiiittle help).

And man, look how BIG his hair he is. Crazy.

Happy Easter!

It may have been a small, sad looking basket, but hey, I'm pretty much unemployed for another week.

Anyway, Mason's like me: it takes next to nothing to make him happy. He loved it. :)