Introducing...

We'd like to introduce the newest member of our family, Tanner Kimball Mecham.  Although our lives have completely changed since he has been here, we couldn't feel more blessed and grateful that he is part of our family. 

I want to remember Tanner's birth so here it is.
At about 35 weeks, baby started measuring a little small.  Along with the fact that he had a small amount of fluid in his kidney's and he was measuring small, my doctor decided to send me to a perinatologist.  After visiting with the perinatologist, he said everything looked good and he had no concerns about the health of this baby.  So I continued with my weekly appointments with my doctor.  At my 38 week appointment, my doctor surprised me with the news that he, along with the perinatologist, had decided to induce me at 39 weeks, which would be Tuesday, March 25th.  I was full of emotions:  shocked, scared, excited, and worried.  I didn't want to be induced.  I knew if there was anything wrong with this baby, it would rest on my shoulders for the rest of my life that maybe I should of waited to go into labor and the baby would of been fine.  I trusted my doctor though and we set up an induction date for that following Tuesday.   
That next week, we spent the time getting ready.  It's kind of nice knowing when you'll be induced because it gives you a chance to get everything done.  Monday night I was a complete wreck.  I wasn't ready for this baby to come, I wasn't ready to have to spend the next 2-3 days in the hospital away from my little Mason.  Casey gave me and Mason a blessing, which calmed my worries and I was able to get a little bit of rest that night. 

At about 3 in the morning, I started feeling some back pain.  It was enough to keep me up throughout the rest of the night, but not enough to really think much more of it (my back was constantly hurting me throughout the whole pregnancy).  I tried to relax and get as comfortable as possible. 
6 in the morning came soon enough.  I went and kissed my little Mason good-bye then Casey and I were off to the hospital.  Mom came and stayed with Mason that morning, I knew he would be in good hands while I was away.
Mom sent me these pictures while I was in labor.  I was so happy that she kept me updated, I was missing my little guy so much!

We got to the hospital and waited to be checked in.  A group of UVU nursing students walked by.  All of them were girls, except one boy.  I thought to myself I hope he's not one of my nurses today. 
We got checked in and they took me to a room.  I got dressed in a gown, then they hooked me up to a monitor.  Come to find out the back pain I had been feeling earlier, were actually contractions.  They were coming about every 2 min. apart.  I couldn't believe it, they wouldn't have to induce me after all, it was such a relief and one of the many answered prayers that we offered that morning. 
My nurse came in, it was the same nurse that helped deliver Mason.  Along with her came the UVU student boy nurse,  You lose all privacy when having a baby, so I guess it wasn't that big of a deal, just a little embarrassing. 
After inserting the IV, hooking me up to all the monitors, they decided to see how far along I was.  I was at a 5.  The nurse said that her other patient was ready for delivery, so she'd be back in a little while. 
Meanwhile, my contractions were becoming a little unbearable.  I kept asking Casey to go find the nurse so we could get an epidural and he said just wait for 10 more minutes.  Finally, at about 9, I got the epidural.  I felt so much better and was even able to relax a bit while Casey ran to McDonald's for some breakfast. 
The nurse came in to see where I was at, I was at a 7.  My doctor came in around 11:20 and broke my water.  I went from a 7 to a 10 in about 2 minutes.  We waited for the doctor to come back so he could deliver our baby.  At 11:51 I was ready and at 11:52 our little Tanner was born.  Everything happened so fast.  Casey was very nervous about cutting the umbilical cord.  When Tanner was here, the cord was too short for Casey to cut.  Just another answer to prayers.   
Our little Tanner was 6lbs. 9oz. and 18" long.  After cleaning him off and wrapping him in blankets, I got to hold our little guy for the first time.  For about an hour, it was just me, Casey, and the newest member of our family.

 

Casey and Tanner went to the nursery, for Tanner's first bath, while I got settled in my room.  Mom and dad came to see how I was doing and to meet Tanner. 
Throughout our hospital stay we had many family members come visit us.  We are so grateful for the love and support that family and friends have shown to us in this special time in our lives. 

Tuesday night, my sister Merilee brought our little Mason down to the hospital.  For the first time our little family was together.  Although Mason showed very little interest in me or our new little Tanner, I know that he loves his new brother.  Adjusting to this new change in our family has definitely been a little challenging for our little Mason, but everyday Mason will do some small act of love and kindness towards our little Tanner.  Mason loves sitting on the bed while I change Tanner's diaper or while he is being bathed.  Mason loves to give Tanner his binkey when he is sad and crying.  The other day Mason even covered Tanner with Mason's blanket and for those of you who know Mason well enough, know Mason loves his blankets.  I know Mason will be able to teach Tanner his loving, kind, and happy personality and I know Mason will be a great brother and always watch out for Tanner.  I'm excited to watch them grow together and become BEST friends!
We got to bring Tanner home from the hospital on Thursday, March 27th.  I was so ready to go home and be together with our new little family. 

We couldn't be more grateful at this time for this new little addition to our family.  We are so grateful that he is here healthy and safe.  I was constantly worrying over how I was going to love Tanner as much as I love my little Mason.  Everyone told me it just comes naturally.  They were right!  The moment I saw him I was totally smitten.  I love my little family.    

Mason at 18 Months

Mason is 18 months already.  I can't believe our little guy is already a year and half.  The time has seemed to fly by.  I wish I could freeze Mason is this stage, he's gotten quite the personality and I love every minute I get to spend with him.

Here is an update of Mason at 18 months old. 
Weight:  Mason weighs 22lbs., which is in the 26th percentile.

Height:  Mason is 32 inches tall, which is in the 48th percentile.

Head circumference:  Mason's head is now 19 inches, which is in the 73rd percentile.

Teeth:  Mason has a mouthful of teeth.

Sleeping:  Mason is sleeping through the night like a champ.  He also continues to take 2 naps a day. 

Talking:  I think Mason is saying things, but sometimes I think it's just my imagination.  I think I've heard him say:  "uck" for truck, "hi", "arf" for a doggy barking, "look", "uh oh",  and a few others.  This past month Mason has really started talking more.  He talks to me like were having a really important conversation.  I love hearing this little guy talk, even though most of the time I have no idea what he is saying. 

Eating:  Mason continues to be a great eater.  I have finally gotten Mason to drink plain milk, as long as he's drinking it from a sippy.  If you try to feed him milk with his cereal, he'll just spit it out.  Mason loves the shapes chicken noodle soup, grapes, apples, yogurt, pizza, toast and jam, pickles, and cheese.  These few things seem to by my go-to meal if he won't eat anything else. 
A big shocker is that Mason doesn't seem to really like ice cream.  He'll eat about 2 bites then he's done.  This is a shocker because Casey and I are both ice cream-aholics!  In a way it kind of works out nicely, because we don't have to share our ice cream or get a bigger size so Mason can have some.  This past month Mason has learned to like soda pop.  He takes a drink of it, then makes a funny face, like he doesn't really like it, then he'll drink some more.  I love watching him drink soda. 

Movement:  Mason has really gotten good and fast at walking.  He's pretty much faster than me sometimes.  Mason loves to walk ahead of you a few feet, then he loves to hear you say, "I'm gonna get you."  He takes off walking a little faster and laughs and laughs.
Mason has gotten really good at climbing up and down our stairs.  He pretty much just slides right down them on his tummy. 

Other:  Mason loves being outside.  With the mild weather, we've gotten to already go to the park, Riverwoods, and outside in the yard many times.  Mason will usually cry when it's time to come back inside.  The park has become a Sunday ritual for us, after church, morning nap, and lunch we usually head to the park.  Mason loves climbing up the stairs to the slide then sliding down the slide, all by himself, on his tummy.  While at the park, Mason also loves to chase after the dogs that come to the park each Sunday afternoon.   

This past month Casey took Mason to get his first Harley trike.  Mason loves riding it up and down the driveway.

By the time Mason is 19 months old, we will have a new little addition to our little family.  We know Mason is going to make a great older brother.  We are so grateful Mason is part of our family.  Not a day goes by that this little guy of ours doesn't make us happy, smile, and laugh.  We feel so blessed to call Mason "ours." 

 

Happy half birthday little guy, we love you!

February Happenings

February is over and I can't believe it's already March.  Here is a few things we had been up to in the month of February. 

1.  We started February off by celebrating Ry's birthday.  Meg planned a little birthday party for Ry at Bajios in the Riverwoods.  Everyone was able to attend, except Casey and Mason.  Mason was not feeling well and we thought it best for him to stay home that night.  So, Casey watched Mason at home while I went to Ry's party.  At the birthday party, Ry and Meg announced that they are having a baby BOY!  That's 4 baby boys in my family in less then 6 months.  We are so excited for all these baby boy cousins to be great friends. 

2.  Mason found a new toy.  He loved sitting in his laundry hamper while Casey pulled him around the kitchen. 

3.  I took Mason to Toys R Us where he loved riding in their little display cars.  Mason was so sad when it was time to leave.  It seems to be the simple things that makes our little Mason so happy. 

4.  Our neighbors across the street are redoing their backyard.  One day they had a dump truck and a tractor that was hauling dirt to the back of the dump truck.  Mason could of sat by the window all day watching the tractor dump the dirt. 

5.  Amy, Lin, and I took the kids to the park.  We went to McDonald's for lunch then took it to the park and ate it then let the kids play around.  Mason had so much fun swinging and going down the slides, but his favorite seemed to be climbing up and down the stairs to the different slides. 

6.  Mason got Hand, Foot, and Mouth disease this past month.  It seems like our little guy was sick most of the month of February.  He was one miserable little guy for a couple of days, we are so glad he is feeling better. 

7.  After Mason started feeling better, we took him to the PBR to ride the carousel.  He showed absolutely no emotion while riding it, but as soon as it was time to get off he walked right back onto the carousal and wanted to ride it again. 

8.  We've had fun listening to and making our little Mason laugh. 

9.  I did some major cleaning this past month to get ready for baby #2 to come.  I washed Mason's car seat.  He loved sitting in it in the house.  I also threw away all Mason's binkies that he had when he was just a newborn baby.  It was a little sad, but probably about time. 

10.  I took Mason down to the shop to eat lunch.  Mason loved riding the 4-wheeler with grandpa.  Mason also loved helping grandpa run some of the machines. 

11. Casey brought us home donuts one morning after he got done at the gym.  Mason loved his chocolate covered donut. 

We had such a great February.  We are looking forward to March and warmer weather.   

17 Months

Mason turned 17 months on February 17th.  Our little guy is such a joy to have in our family and we love him more and more everyday!!  Here is a little update of Mason at 17 months old. 

Teeth:  More and more teeth just keep coming.  I keep hoping he'll get a break of no new teeth, but this past month brought on more and more teeth.  The more teeth he gets, the worse he seems to handle it.  Usually Mason will get a small temperature and be pretty sleepy when new teeth are coming in. 

Sleeping:  Mason is doing great sleeping through the night, except when he is sick.  Mason still has 2 naps a day.  Mason loves to snuggle with his blanket(s) when he is sleeping.  Mason will usually dig through the hamper, find all his blankets then snuggle up to them on the floor-this is when I know he is ready for a nap or for bed.  I usually find Mason sleeping on his tummy.  Sometimes I find him wrapped into a little ball when he is sleeping, I love watching our little guy sleep!

Talking:  I'm still not understanding a lot of what Mason says, but I know he tries to talk to me.  He says words like look, what, and wow.  I feel like he's trying to say more, but I just can't tell what he is saying.  It seems like Mason is understanding what we are saying to him.  The other day I told him to find his bink and blank so he could lay down for a nap and he went and found it. 
Mason loves when you talk to him, play games with him, play in his toy room with him, and read stories to him. 

Eating:  Mason is still a great eater!  He'll usually try anything I give to him.  Lately I can't get Mason to drink plain milk.  He likes chocolate milk, but when it comes to just regular milk he won't even touch it.  He loves cereal, but you have to drain off all the milk before you give it to him, otherwise he'll spit it out.  We found out this month that Mason loves my mom's famous meat pie.  She only makes it once a year for Ry's birthday.  I was surprised when he ate an entire piece of meat pie.  We also found out that Mason loves the shapes chicken noodle soup, he'll eat almost an entire can in one sitting. 

Movement:  Watching Mason walk is one of the cutest things ever.  He's getting pretty fast at it.  Lately, we've been taking him outside, thanks to the mild February weather, for walks.  Our neighbors have some dogs.  He loves to walk by their house and peek through the backyard fence to find the dogs.  He also loves to walk by the motorcycle that has a permanent residence (no one ever drives it.  It sits in this one spot even during a mega snowstorm.) across the street. 

Other:  It has been so fun to watch Mason grow and learn new things.  When we took Mason to the doctor this past month because he was sick, Mason weighed 21lbs. 9 oz.  He seems to be growing more and more everyday.  Mason loves to play peek-a-boo.  He loves to hide behind you.  When you say "Where is Mason?"  he likes to peek around you.  Mason loves to play with the drapes that cover the kitchen sliding door.
Mason is very ticklish especially in his armpits, feet, and thighs.  I love to tickle him, he gets so squirmy, but he laughs so hard at the same time. 

We love our little Mason, more then we ever imagined we would!  We are so grateful for a happy, healthy boy!

Valentine's Day and Weekend

For some reason I love Valentine's Day.  Casey always plans a fun Valentine's date and this year was no exception.  Since Valentine's Day was on a Friday this year, Casey decided to plan our Valentine's date on Thursday instead.  He arranged for his parents to come and sit with Mason while we went to Outback Steakhouse for dinner. 
I guess we weren't the only ones that had the idea to celebrate Valentine's Day on Thursday, because the wait was about 45 min.  We used this time to go to the Baby Depot, just a few stores down from Outback, and pick out a few things for our new baby. 
When our name was finally called, Case and I enjoyed a Valentine's steak dinner.  Complete with an entree and a cheesecake dessert. 
We finally got home around 8:30.  We apologized for taking so long to grandma and grandpa Mecham, but they didn't seem to mind spending a little extra time with our little Mason. 

On Friday, Valentine's Day, Mason woke up with a small temperature.  I didn't think much of it and continued with our morning routine of eating breakfast-heart shaped waffles that Mason wouldn't even eat, getting ready for the day, and heading over to Amy's to work. 
By the time we got done working, Mase was a total wreck.  I took him home thinking a nap would help him feel better. 
Mase only napped for about 30 min.  By this time I knew that he was probably getting a little touch of the flu.  Mase spent the rest of the day resting in my arms and watching Barney, Bob the Builder, and Sesame Street. 

Casey got home around 4:30.  We exchanged our Valentine gifts to each other and to Mason.  Casey gave me a gift certificate to get a pedicure before our new baby comes.  I gave Casey a movie called Captain Phillips, and we gave Mason some Monster trucks. 

After Mason woke up from his afternoon nap we decided to go handout our Valentine's.  We always have so much fun making and decorating cookies, then doorbell ditching them to family.  When we got home we had been doorbell ditched with lots of Valentine's from family--see why I love Valentine's Day!!  Even our little Mason was totally spoiled on Valentine's Day.  He got a Valentine in the mail from grandma and grandpa Furr and a Valentine from grandma and grandpa Mecham too. 

The rest of our Valentine weekend wasn't quite as exciting.  Friday night to Saturday morning Mason didn't sleep at all.  Our poor little guy was definitely feeling under the weather.  Nothing we did was helping Mason.  Finally at about 4:30am we took a little drive in the car.  We were finally able to get him calmed down and he fell asleep until 6:00. 
When Mason woke up at 6:00 we found these little soars/rash all over his little body.  They were all over his little face, hands, feet, legs, and his little bottom.  I wasn't quite sure what it was, but I had a pretty good idea it was hand, foot, and mouth disease. 

 

Throughout the day, Mason was pretty sad and seemed to be in a lot of pain.  We took endless drives, which seemed like the only thing we could do to help him calm down and fall asleep.  On one of our drives we drove down to Springville to have Casey's dad help give our little guy a blessing. 

By about 7:00 Saturday night, neither Case nor I could get our little Mason to calm down.  We hadn't been able to get him to eat or drink anything all day and his crying had come to the point where he was inconsolable.  By this time I finally decided to call the doctor.  I called my mom and she came with me while Casey and my dad stayed home and watched a movie.  We found out that Mason did have hand, foot, and mouth disease and the soars in his little mouth were the ones that were probably causing him so much pain.  There is nothing you can really do for this virus except giving them Tylenol and Ibuprofen and trying to keep them hydrated.  I'm so grateful to my mom and dad for helping us out so much on Saturday night. 

After taking Mason to the doctor on Saturday night, things seemed to go uphill from there.  Mason slept through most of the night, only waking up about 5 times.  Sunday he was finally smiling and laughing again and we were able to finally get him to drink a little and eat a little.  The doctor said that giving Mason Benadryl might help Mason's mouth to feel better.  He said that Benadryl numbs the mouth.  Sunday night we decided to give Mason some Benadryl to see if it would help with his mouth pain.  Instead, it made Mason really loopy.  Mason was running into furniture, running into walls, he couldn't walk, and when he pointed to go downstairs and Case opened the baby gate to help him crawl down the stairs, Mason forgot there were stairs and face planted.  I think it's safe to say, NO more Benadryl for Mason for awhile.  By Monday it seemed like our little Mason was almost back to normal.  Besides the rash and being a little sleeper than usual, our little Mason looked and acted almost 100%. 

 

Besides the fact that our weekend ended with our little guy getting sick, we still had a great Valentine's Day and weekend.  We are so grateful that our little Mason is feeling much better!

 

Happy Valentine's Day!

January Happenings

January has seemed to go by so slow.  I guess that's how I feel about every January, it's cold, gloomy, and not much going on.  Although this January seemed to go by very slow, it was full of fun and exciting events. 

We started the month out by Casey taking me on a date.  It was the first date we had been on since Casey went to Front Sight in the beginning of November.  I have anxiety issues about having to leave my little Mason.  When I leave him, I just miss him too much.  This results in us going no where without Mason.  So when my sister called me up and said she was going to babysit Mason no matter what, I guess I had no choice.  Casey planned a fun date night out.  We went and saw the second Hunger Games movie, went to dinner at Kneaders, then out for ice cream at Cold Stone.  We had a fun night and we are so grateful to Myrn and Garrett who took such good care of our little Mason Man while we were gone.   

January is a month full of birthdays for Casey's family.  His dad's birthday is the 6th of January.  We celebrated by going over to Casey's mom and dad's for Sunday dinner.  On Monday, January 6th, Casey and Mason drove down to Springville to give Casey's dad this cake I had made him and his birthday present. 
Casey's mom's birthday was on the 27th of January.  We celebrated her birthday by inviting everyone over to our house for Sunday dinner and making her favorite meal...homemade lasagna. 

During Roz's birthday party Mason shared his train with his cousin Parker.

Now that January is here, we decided it was time to start doing a few things around our house that I wanted to get done before our baby is here.  We started in our bedroom with a little bedroom makeover.  We removed the mirror that was on the dresser.  The mirror had shelves on the side of it which usually collected dust and junk, so we took it off for now and replaced it with these flower pictures.  I also made the dresser runner and added a few decorations. 

On January 9th at 7:00 in the morning a new member of the Hess household was born.  Weighing in at 8lbs. 2 oz. and measuring 20 1/2" long, Weston John Hess is absolutely perfect.  During Amy's stay at the hospital, we got to watch Lydia, Landon, Parks, and Ash.  Mason had so much fun playing with them all day long.  He would even cry when it was time to leave their house at nights.  We are so grateful for such a healthy, handsome, baby boy to join the Hess family. 

Landon and Parks had been asking my mom to make them super hero capes.  She went and bought the fabric and I sewed them.  I made a Batman cape for Bud and a Green Lantern cape (even though he doesn't wear a cape) for Parks.  I modeled the capes on Mason.  He loved walking around in them and cried when I finally took it off of him.  I guess I need to make a superhero cape for Mason now too. 

Casey decided not to go to school this semester.  We qualified for some financial aid, but only if Casey went full time.  With our new baby coming and Casey working three jobs, we decided now would not be the best time for Case to go to school full time.  It has been fun having Casey home at nights and not at school.  Mason loves playing with his dad. 

 

We've been cleaning out closets and I found this beauty of Case when he was a Sophomore.  Casey wanted to throw it away, but I'm determined to keep it, along with many others, so I can show our kids someday.  Oh the High School days...so glad they are in the past. 

Our month ended with our little Mason getting sick.  I'm not sure if it's his teeth or a flu virus, but he had a temperature for about 4 days and was totally miserable.  I spent most of my days watching movies and snuggling this little guy of ours. 

 One day, Casey took Mason for a little car ride so I could get a few things done at home.  They came back with this note and ice cream.  I love my little family!!

January was a busy month for us.  We're looking forward to what February brings.