The Rat

When I was little my favorite book of all time was Charlotte's Web. I think I held on to the copy from the school library my entire 3rd grade year. When you looked in the back at the checkout slip it was "Stephanie Mc., Stephanie Mc. Stephanie Mc. Stephanie Mc."...well you get the point. I do remember the librarian making me leave it in the library for two weeks in case anyone else wanted to read it...after the two weeks was up, I grabbed my beloved book back off of the shelf and checked it out again. Three years ago my mom gave me a limited edition hardback copy of the book for Christmas...I simply cannot wait to read it to Mason when he gets bigger!

Speaking of Mason brings me to "The Rat". Aunt Mel and Uncle Sean got Mason the Charlotte's Web movie for his birthday and he could not be more thrilled. He loves the 'pig movie'. He has taken on the role of Templeton the Rat...he's pretty serious about his role. He crawls around on the floor, sniffs things and recites lines from the movie. "The rat had no idea!", "Templeton, Templeton, TEMPLETON!", "Rotten eggs?"...

When I introduce him to someone while we are out and about I'll say: "This is my son, Mason." to which he replies "I'm not Mason, I'm Templeton, the rat." What a silly boy. He talks about himself in third person, he says: "The rat is hungry." or "The rat hit his head and needs a popsicle." If we ask him to do something and accidentally call him Mason, he'll remind us that he is the rat and will not complete said action until addressed as "Templeton".

He also has given Nick and I names. Nick is Wilbur the pig and I am Charlotte the spider. We are rarely allowed to act out of character. I pretended to be a spider once and scared him so now every morning he asks me to "pwease be a nice spider today." So we oblige and play along with his role playing. After all, it is a great story!

Fun with Baby Peter!

John, Tristan and Baby Peter were in the states for a visit and stopped by, we had so much fun with them! We took a trip to the zoo so Mase could show Peter his favorite animals, good times. :) Here are a few pictures from our trip. ENJOY!

Baby Peter carries on the tradition of crazy hair!


Aww, Peter and Tristan, such a sweet picture.

Uncle John and Mason play pillow fight.

Hungry Peter and I pose for a picture.


Mase opens his birthday present from Uncle John, Aunt Tristan and Cousin Peter...lots of fun OSU gear!!!

Mason says "Come on Baby Peter, get on the turtle!"

Theo Nicko has another cute subject to photograph. :)


Mase and Peter check out the turtles.

Why so serious at the zoo?

Mase poses with the T. family. :)

Seems like there are two of us interested in the picture and two of us uninterested in the picture. :) Silly kids...

The Expert Mother

Natural conception or doctor-assisted?
Medicines during pregnancy or not?
Ultrasounds or not?
Midwife or doctor?
Home birth or hospital?
Vaginal or c-section?
Epidural or natural?
Breast milk or formula?
Cloth diapers or paper?
Natural baby products or chemicals?
Circumcision or not?
Baby sling or stroller?
Immunizations early or delay them?
Rear facing or forward facing?
Expensive car seat or mid range?
Starting cereal at a young or waiting?
Pacifier or not?
Co-sleeping or sleep training?
Veggies then fruits or fruits then veggies?
Whole milk or skim?
Stay-at-home or work-out-of-home?
Sign language or not?
To spank or not to spank?
Underwear or trainers?
Public school or private?

My sister-in-law, Tristan, and I were talking about mothering today. We shared laughs and agreed that everyone seems to think they are an expert on being pregnant, birth and raising a child. I've been thinking about that conversation since then and come to the conclusion that maybe everyone, in their own right, is an expert about something.

The amount of decisions you're faced with in the first three years of your child's life can be daunting. Although I now have an opinion on everything on the list, there was a time that I had no clue what to do or even that some of the options on the list existed. Some things on that list I have VERY strong opinions on, some of the things I now feel that I'm an expert on, other things not so much. Some things I've learned through my own research, some through trial and error and (if I'm being honest) some of the things I've learned from other expert mothers.

I still think it's true that everyone thinks they know the best way to raise a child...and perhaps that is true of their child...but their advice might not be right for my child. There are things that I innately know are best for Mason just because I'm his mom. I know how he's going to react to you before you even talk to him. I know if the tickle you're about to give him will turn into a fit of laughter or if he's going to come up swinging. These things I know about him, these things cannot be taught.

One could honestly go crazy listening to all of the advice out there, but there are things that I've learned from other gracious moms. I think the key is deciding what kind of parent you want to be then learning from those types of moms. Gain from the useful advice and let the rest go. I can say that I'm a better mom today because of the things I've learned from wonderful mothers. Old, young, hippy and mainstream. Every good mother has something useful to share.

Today I learned from a mom with two months of experience...our conversation made me think long and hard about the different types of moms in the world. Yes we are all very different and yes we all think we know best...but we are also part of the same sacred sorority called motherhood. We love our children and want the best for them.

My challenge to the moms reading this: Reach out to mothers that you admire and learn something from them...in exchange share your expert skills/knowledge with other moms and be receptive to learn expert skills/advice from them. We all have something useful to share.

Happy Birthday Mason!!!!

Dear Mason:
A little more than three years ago I remember wishing you out of my belly so that we could 1) meet you and 2) so that you would stop kicking me in the bladder. How would we have ever known at that moment how you would change our lives?

You've grown so much over the past three years...we're not really sure where the time has gone. Three was a big year for you, since your last birthday you've grown four inches taller and gained 3.2 pounds...you learned how to use the potty like a big boy and now randomly recite movie lines. You like for your dad to read books to you before bedtime and you enjoy sitting by me every morning when I'm putting on my makeup...we talk about all kinds of things during that special time. Popsicles are your favorite food and red is your 'best' color and thankfully milk is your most-called-upon drink. Often times we find you sorting your toys by color and/or shape. You need for things to be in order and get really cranky when you venture from your routine. If we would let you rot your brain by watching back-to-back-to-back-to-back movies all day long you would be so happy. You are a very sweet soul, extremely caring. You ask how our day was and hug us when we aren't feeling well. You have a well-sized collection of stuffed animals that you call your 'guys' and you take very good care of them...they are your good friends. You have an active imagination and we often find you playing by yourself happy as can be.



You like to throw fits on occasion if things aren't going as you think they should. You are very opinionated and I still can't figure out who you got that from. :) You can be talked down from your tantrums most days, other days you do things like strip down naked in the milk aisle of the local grocery store. You've been known to dump an entire bag of Cheetos on the coffee table because you wanted "lotses" of them. If we are in a store...any store...and we go to leave you will participate in a one-man sit-in....you plop down in the middle of everything and refuse to leave. You can be bribed...which is sometimes our only ammunition.



We love you from your curls to your skinned up knees. We love your dimples, your infectious laugh and your sweet, sweet, soul...we love your passion for all things furry and appreciate your love of books. We cannot wait to see what you will be when you grow up. You are our favorite person in the world, we're so lucky to be your parents.

Love,
Mom and Dad

___________________________________________




Mason's third birthday went off without a hitch - lots of fun was had, lots of water balloons were tossed and lots of cake was eaten!!!!!

Thank you to EVERYONE that came and helped to make his birthday so special!! Thanks to everyone that couldn't make it but helped us celebrate from afar!!

The party started with each kiddo putting an animal on the jungle wall. We then ate lunch and cut the cake. Presents were next followed by fun outside play. We had a water balloon toss, a sprinkler, a bubble tub, kiddie pool and Mason's new clubhouse to play on. Halfway through we even took the hose to the top of the slide to make a water slide!

CLICK HERE TO SEE PARTY PICS!!

Birthday Week Day #4

Today Mason had his cookie & juice party at school. He was happy to see us but sort of freaked out when his friends sang "Happy Birthday" to him...he's a gracious birthday boy. He eventually warmed up and joined the other preschoolers to pump up the jams on the dance floor.

Mason battles the birthday hat:


Mason giving his friend Pierce a hug:


Mason holding up a basket of eggs. Ms. Nicole knitted the eggs for him for his birthday. He loves them so much!! And it's a fun earth-friendly gift to boot. :) If you ask him though they are 'cranberries' not eggs. Please don't ask why he says that because we aren't sure other than three-year-olds are a little insane.


What a fun gift!! Uncle Willy and Aunt Sanja gave Mason a Raptor's jersey!! Nick couldn't be happier. :)


Sanja, Steph and Mason pose during more gift opening. Sanja and I both share a birthday, how fun is that? We also had a mini birthday gift ceremony for Sanja and I.


Mase cheeses at school once he finally warms up to the idea of a party.


His reaction to his friends singing "Happy Birthday"...funny stuff.


Sanja and I got the jungle wall finished last night and it's really too cute!! It'll be great for the party festivities we have planned. :)

My family gets in this afternoon and I'm super excited!!!!

xoxo,
Steph

Birthday Weekend Day #3

The temps dropped a whopping ten degrees today!! We enjoyed most of the day in the low 90's instead of the 100's...whew!

We went off to the zoo today, it was quite fun. Mason got hurt though...multiple times. Poor guy. He said "Mom, I had a bad day. I broke everything."

Willy and Sanja being silly:


Willy, Sanja and Mase posing by the lions:


Mason's first ever black eye (one of his many injuries of the day)


Mason's skinned elbow:


And knee:


Mason, Steph and Nick by the waterfall:


Steph hugs the Canadian goose:


Sanja and I also started on some wall art that will be used as a photo background for the party. We'll take pics when we're done. We put off Pop's but will be going tonight. :)

xoxo,
Steph

Birthday Week Day #2

Day #2 proved to be a scorcher! Temps that hovered around 105 kept us from enjoying Bricktown like we would have liked, but that's how it goes in August here, right?

Nick, Willy and Sanja enjoyed a day at the mall then went to pick up Mase. They stopped off at my work and then we all headed downtown for what ended up as sub-par Mexican food.
We had a great time though!!

Mason sure loves Willy and Sanja!

Sanja, Mase and Willy in front of the Bricktown Canal


Steph, Mason, Sanja and Willy in front of the Bricktown Ballpark


Sanja and Mase pose for a picture


The stone-faced brothers enjoy an iced coffee beverage


Mason is happy that Dad picked him up from school!


Aww, aren't they cute? :)


The gang at Chelinos...Cheers!


Mason enjoying a very rare treat....orange soda.


Countdown to the big party has begun...

xoxo,
Steph

Birthday Week Day #1

It's finally here, Mason's birthday week!!

What fun stuff we have going on all week too. He has people coming to see him from Toronto to Dallas, Broken Bow to Nebraska!!

Willy and Sanja got in last night and we're so happy to have them here! They had some flight trouble yesterday but finally made it in late last night. Nick is so excited! We hope to cram a bunch of fun stuff in a few short days.

Most of you know that I'm a freak about planning Mason's parties...it's just so much fun!! This year he's having an animal theme and the preparations have already started.

Here is the invite that went out:


This year I decided to make my own envelopes for the event:

I finished them all off with a fun mailing label complete with a monkey and a snake:


What could be more fun than homemade animal crackers? I found the cutest cookie cutters and animal cracker recipe at Williams Sonoma. Mase, Nick and I got all of the animals cooked and in the freezer in preparation for the party:


Mason is having a big snake cake!! How fun! This is the board that it will sit on. It's going to be a long snake. He can't wait until Friday when Grandma gets here and helps us make it green!


Today the travelers are resting up a bit, I'm sure they are exhausted from the long day. Tonight we're taking Sanja out to eat Mexican food, a staple around here. I think we're going downtown which is really nice. Too bad it's going to be 105 today. I hope the Canadians don't melt.

Tomorrow we're all going to the zoo and to Pops for dinner...will post pictures.

xoxo,
Steph

Mr. and Mrs. Frantz

Shelly and Travis are now Mr. & Mrs and it all went off without a hitch!!!!! She looked absolutely amazing and the ceremony was beautiful!! Now she's soon to be on a beach relaxing and enjoying life.

Here are a few pics from the night and yes I realize that there are more of me than the bride but 1) you guys come here and expect pictures of the Trougakos clan not people you don't know and 2) it is my blog, right? :)

These pictures are not in sequential order...just happened to land on the page how they are. ENJOY!!

Steph & Shelly
A fun pic of Shelly and I, she was soooooooo beautiful!!!


Nicole and I
If we look hot, we were. The temperature outside was close to 105 (not kidding) and due to a faulty air conditioning system the temperature inside was a balmy 100...lets just say that things were a little damp. :)
Nicole was Shelly's day-of coordinator. SHE WORKED HER TAIL OFF!!!!!!!! Many kudos to Nicole!


Nick and Andy
The boys are enjoying (or just did according to Nicks empty glass) some beverages.


Nick and I
Thanks to whomever took this picture...Nicole was it? Anyway, we always have crappy or no pics of us because we're normally doing the photography. So we have hold the camera out and take a picture of ourselves if we want one. But, Nicole was gracious enough to offer to take one and it's cute!
On another note I think my hubby is smokin' hot. :)


The Classic Head Tilt
I'm known among friends/family for tilting my head to the side in just about every picture I take. This just further proves the point.


The Self Portrait
Here is an example of the hold-the-camera-out-to-get-a-shot-of-ourselves picture.


Stealing a Drink
Here are a couple of the bridesmaids and the bride stopping for a picture. I'm sneaking in the back to steal a sip of a drink.


ODA Girls!
Past and present ODA staff stop to pose for a pic.


T is FUNNY!
This is "T", Nicole's husband. He sure is a funny guy. :) He was a good man and came early with Nicole to assist her in the coordinating. He worked his tail off too. I heard that he got two gallons of margaritas and sipped them all down before the show started...not sure if that's true or not. He did have the bartender make me a cool blue drink...not sure what it was called but it was yummy. It's so ironic though that he is the one to encourage a blue drink because Nicole won't touch blue stuff with a ten foot pole.


Portrait
Shelly and I


The Bride


Cheers!
Bridesmaids stop to toast the camera.


Nicole, T and "The Case"
Take a look at the case Nicole is carrying. She needed to know a three-digit code to unlock the lock...for the black case...that has their name printed on the outside...
I know you're wondering what in the world could have been so important that it had it's own carrying case.
Well, it housed the wineglasses that the couple toasted with. I'm pretty sure my wineglasses are in the bottom of a box somewhere...probably in the attic. This is hands down one of my fave pics of the night!!


Head Tilt Number Two
Maybe it's a genetic condition?


Now we look forward to the birthday boys birthday week. We have SOO much planned this week! Willy and Sanja will be here tomorrow night and we're doing all kinds of fun stuff with Mase. Sanja hopes to get some shopping in too. WOOT!
We have plans for two birthday parties, a trip to the zoo, dinner on Route 66 and much more!
At the end of the week we'll have a full house. My mom and dad are coming up for the occasion and Tim, Summer and Livee will be here too!! I'm so excited to have everyone here and can't wait for Mase's Animal Party!!!!

Steph