Gran C came to visit

On Tuesday evening Gran C, my mother, came to visit. She and Jordan left Friday morning, so I took the opportunity to get some pics of my mom and Mason together.

Neighbors

I just had to write about my neighbors. Broken Arrow has been ranked "Safest City In Oklahoma" and one of the "Best Places to Live in America", and with neighbors like ours I can understand why! Tuesday, I was out front trying to mow the front yard before it started raining (Drew has had numerous meetings in the evenings and we were on the go all weekend so the yard was beginning to look a bit like a jungle!), and one of my neighbors came over and told me to get back inside - he would do it for me! And he did - he even edged for me as well! I walked out to take him some water later, and another neighbor was checking her mail, and she asked about Mason so I took him out so that she could see him. She immediately picked him up and started playing with him - had him laughing out loud! Later that same evening while I was trying to cook dinner I realized I was missing one ingredient so I borrowed it from a neighbor as well. Yesterday, Drew was really sick - experiencing dizziness and nausea so another neighbor watched him while I took him to the doctor and picked up his prescriptions. (He was diagnosed with an inner ear problem, and has been lying in bed pretty much since - the phenegran has helped a great deal!)

The point is these aren't isolated incidences. This is the way things are in our neighborhood - we look after each other. While I was pregnant neighbors would continually call or stop by just to check on me, especially if Drew was out of town. They bring us cookies when they have extras - especially when they make sugar cookies because they know they're Drew's favorites. They offer to babysit all the time! They are always loaning us tools! They remind us when the garage door is left open! They refer us to their doctors! They watch our house while we're out of town and get our mail for us or water our plants, and we reciprocate. It's really great having neighbors that care so much! It's like living in Mayberry! I love our neighborhood!

First Trip to the Pool

Jordan has been pleading to go to the pool for the past several days so I promised her we would go today (weather permitting). It was raining this morning and I thought I might be able to get out of the obligation for another day, but no such luck. It was crystal clear by the afternoon. After squeezing into a pre-pregnancy swimsuit (which was somewhat difficult since I'm not back down to my pre-pregnancy weight) we decided to go to the Family Aquatic Center here in Broken Arrow. This was Mason's first trip to the pool, and we think he enjoyed it. He didn't fuss, anyway. He was a little blase about it initially, but it didn't take long for him to start splashing. He would slap the water, splashing himself in the face, he would then squint his eyes shut but never stopped splashing. I got him out of the water when he started to rub his eyes, and he quickly fell asleep wrapped in a towel. Jordan had fun on the slides, and Drew and I even managed to get in a few trips down them. Before we realized it we had spent almost three hours there! It was another good day.

2007 Pecan Festival

Today we decided to take the short drive to the Okmulgee, Oklahoma for their Annual Pecan Festival. Each year the city hosts the pecan festival and they make something giant using pecans (cookies, brownies, etc.) - they hold the Guinness World Record for the largest pecan pie measuring over 40 feet in diameter. That's a big pie! Anyway, they "bake" their product overnight and then sell pieces the next day. By the time we got there this years pie was already gone (it probably measured 8 feet in diameter). What a difference a day can make in the weather - it was soooo hot and humid but we made the best of it. Jordan took in a couple carnival rides on the midway while we tried to find some shade. We did see the most interesting game of tug of war I believe I've ever witnessed. It was between area fire departments and they were using fire hoses to move an empty keg along a cable. The team that moved the keg the farthest in the opposite direction won. It was interesting to watch to say the least, and the mist coming from the fire hoses wasn't that bad either!

Empty pie tin!

Jordan waiting for the ride to begin

Fireman's Tug-of-War

Mason & Mommy

After spending a couple hours at the pecan festival we decided to call it quits and head home. We rested at the house for a bit and were still feeling adventurous so we decided to try to take in a movie. Since we would have Mason with us we opted on a child friendly flick, Shrek 3, at the local theater (cheap seats). Not quite as funny as the previous Shreks, but we weren't repulsed by it. It was a good laugh. I mean, this is the first time Drew and I have been to the movies in nearly 9 months - seriously, Taladega Nights was the last movie we saw in the theater! We got to the theater early so that we could get a seat on the end of the isle at the back of the theater in the event one of us would have to make a hasty exit with a screaming infant. We didn't want to be those people at the movie! Mason was a champ - he was a little "talkative" during the previews jabbering away, but he fell asleep as soon as the movie started and slept through the entire thing. He woke up a little confused when we were leaving, but never cried. Thank God!

Lions, Tigers, and Bears . . .

Because the weather was so nice today (the high was 85) I decided to take Mason and Jordan to the Tulsa Zoo. Jordan's been several times, but this was Mason's first trip, and I think he had a pretty good time. He was in a great mood all day - even before we got there he was "singing" along to the Gorillaz in the car - Ahahahahahahaa! Anyway, when we got the zoo it was totally crowded; there were several day camps of kiddos running amock but we managed.

Because it was so sunny, Mason spent a good part of the day confined to the shade of his stroller but he made the best of it with his toys, and I got him out as much as possible in the shady areas. Our first stop was the new Elephant Encounter exhibit. We got to see Sneezy, the zoo's 35-year-old male Asian elephant. He came right up to us, but we heeded the Zookeeper's warnings (see the note below - it was the etc. that concerned me most!)!

Next we stopped by the giraffe exhibit, but Mason was much more interested in his own giraffe than the live ones.

Later in the day we went to the sea lion demonstration - I really thought Mason would get a kick out of it, but he could have cared less. He was much more enthralled with the squawking flamingoes behind us. He was getting so excited watching them. He kept flailing his arms and laughing - wish I could have caught that on tape!

We saw many animals, but my personal favorite was the last exhibit. The zoo has a new baby chimp named Vindi; she's only 3 months old. I tried to get some pics of her with her mother but I kept getting the glare from the glass of their enclosure. They were so sweet nestled up together, and the mother had a sense of serenity on her face as she pet her baby girl. I wonder if she has to get up in the middle of night to nurse her babe!

Overall, I think we had a great first trip to the zoo - no catastrophic meltdowns this time! I can't wait for the many more firsts he's gonna experience.

I didn't do anything

Well it wasn't a squirrel, but Dixie managed to destroy an elephant! Her stuffed elephant that is. I don't know why I even bother to get her new stuffed toys she guts them so quickly. Here are a few pics of her being caught in the act. It always happens the same way:

She'll nurse them for a while - EXHIBIT A

Then she'll get a little rough, slinging them about - EXHIBIT B

Then there's the total denial about what just transpired (as she unwittingly parades around the house with the evidence hanging from her mouth!) - EXHIBIT C

Sorry it has been so long since my last post. We went home to East Texas for a whirlwind trip. Mason, Jordan (she's staying a couple of weeks with us during her summer break), and I drove back in on Monday. Drew had to stay over for a business meeting in Tyler - he got home late last night. Unfortunately, I left my camera at Drew's parents' home but he brought it home.

We spent all day Saturday at Drew's parents' home. Here are a few pics of Mason with his PopPop and his Big Unc. Once again I somehow managed not to get any pics of the girls or Grammy!
Sunday we spent the day with my parents. We went to Shreveport to visit Nana. I was hoping to see our relatives from Florida but there had postponed their arrival until Monday (of course!). I got to briefly see Dad, Miles, and Mitchell - and again managed not to get any photos of them. But here are a couple with Grandpa Joe and Jordan.