Friday, August 29, 2008

Ready For Some Football

Sports have been the rule in the Mercier House lately (always, really) and here's some proof that our little Mason Man is ready for the start of football season:



That, my friends, is Mason's YouTube debut, and here's what it looked like today on SI.com, where Mommy's friend Mallory included it in her daily Campus Clicks.



Go Buffs! Beat the Rams. We'll be watching on TV for now...but Mommy, for one, is looking forward to the West Virginia game in a couple of weeks.

Saturday, August 23, 2008

Tennis, Anyone?

A few years ago -- four to be exact -- Dad-O and Mommy stumbled upon the U.S. Open grounds on Arthur Ashe Kids Day, and had a great time just walking around the facility, despite not having a kid. So, we've had this day marked on our calendar for quite a while, as we looked forward to taking Mason out to Queens to participate in the fun.



Our first stop was the Nike SPARQ training court, where Mason was given a GIANT T-shirt (we're talking only feet visible if it wasn't tucked in!) and the chance to run through some drills.



Here's the highlight, hitting balls with a real, live tennis pro!



Later, we met up with our friends Aimee, Rob, Nick and Maddy. We mommies are already plotting to mold a doubles team out of this duo. Pretty cute, don't ya think?



This lady was Mason's biggest fan. He gave her a huge hug at the end of the drill.




This was Mommy's favorite drill to watch, and in case you're wondering why they're all shoeless, they're a little prickly about dark-colored soles on the nice Billie Jean King National Tennis Center courts!



After fighting (almost literally) for a table and the crowded food court, and refueling with some lunch we went to hunt for some big-name pros, and found none other than the two biggest.

First, we watched Rafael Nadal through the bushes. He's not one for the crowds, and was practicing on the very end practice court.

Later, we moved to the stands of an adjoining court and peered over the top of the fence.



As we were leaving, who did we see conducting interviews? None other than Rafa's chief competitor newly dethroned top player, Roger Federer.



Overall, not bad for a (free) day at the courts!

Thursday, August 21, 2008

Firefighters Rule (Yet Again!)

Last Sunday morning, Mason and I were on one of our usual adventures -- as he likes to call any jaunt into the city. After all, you're never sure what you'll encounter in this great city, and this particular morning was a perfect example.

We were heading back uptown after one of our early morning treks to Trader Joes (So worth the trek, and the best time to be out 'n about!) when we saw a firetruck parked on a curb at Union Square Park.

I pushed Macey over to it, and was explaining that it was the No. 14 engine, and a hose car, as opposed the the hook 'n ladder truck that's been a (unfortunately) frequent visitor to our 'hood lately. Our bold little Mason waited patiently until he saw the firemen, and then yelled "Hello Firemen!" to them.

Besides a friendly hello, you know what else they offered? To let him sit in the truck.



Then to push the horn! He did this three times. The first time with a big, scared jump. The second time a little less of a startle, and by the third time, he was an old pro.



Alas, after about 15 minutes (seriously, they let him sit there that long and he got lots of passersby cooing about how cool he was!), he had to climb back down to reality and let the brave firemen go on their way, but he was beaming all day about his latest adventure.



He even regaled the old church lady who sat next to us on the bus with his tale. She asked him what he wanted to be when he grew up ... he answered "A garbage-truck man!" We were both expecting him to say fireman, but, you know garbage truck men do have some pretty cool rides themselves!

(Editor's note: Inspired by this, a few too many hours of Olympic coverage in our house and his swimming lessons, Mason has declared a new career goal: "I want to be a swimmer," he tells me this morning.)

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Harlem Day and More

Saturday marked the highlight of Harlem Week (which is really actually a month, but who's counting?) -- at least for our family as Mason and Mommy took a stroll down to 135th Street for the Harlem Children's Festival.

There we found a pony to ride, an obstacle course to conquer and plenty of free food, gadgets, fliers, coupons and other street fair staples. Not to mention, we were able to spend some quality time with our pals Kya, Fiona and their Mommy, Sandra!



After the street fair, and a futile attempt at getting Mason to nap in his stroller, we met up with Dad-O to head to the Bronx for our friend Dionna's birthday party.

There, we met this clown:



Who later morphed into Dora:



Aside from his decidedly interesting taste in costumes, the clown could do it all. Paint faces; a pirate-boy, matey!



Mold balloon creations ...



Not to mention an array of *magic tricks.*

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Cousins and Friends

Auntie Nay and the boys came to visit us last week! Here are some of our adventures with the boys: Visiting our favorite playground for a run through the sprinklers ... or an hour of running through the sprinklers!

Mason and Asani


Eli


The video evidence ... yep, the screams belong to Mason!


After that, we met up with Dad-O and trekked through Times Square (with two strollers, and three toddlers, this should be an Olympic event!) to have dinner at Bubba Gump. Mmmmm!


The next day was filled with a photo shoot for the trio.


A ride on the Staten Island Ferry.


And a trip to Toys R Us to ride on the Ferris wheel.


We washed all the fun down with a trip to Koronets, our favorite pizza place!

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Kodak Moment


I love this photo, snapped last Thursday on a ride on the Staten Island Ferry -- which Mason, by the way, hadn't ridden since he was a mere two months old. We were on board to give Auntie Nay and cousins Asani and Eli a unique view of the city (more catching up and stories of their trip to come, I promise!)

It was at the very moment I snapped this picture that Mason recognized the Statue of Liberty out in the distance. I just LOVE the pure joy reflected in his eyes, not to mention the way his hair is perfectly disheveled by the breeze in the harbor.

We've read a lot about the Statue of Liberty in our books (like this one and that one), but it wasn't until this second that he actually saw it in person.

Pretty cool, me thinks...

Monday, August 4, 2008

Jersey Day

We took a jaunt across the river last weekend to attend our friend Nick's birthday party at the Little Gym in Jersey City (Mom and Dad-O's old stomping grounds!)

Boy, did we have fun.

As you can see, Mason LOVED the gym. All that wide-open space was almost too much to handle. Unfortunately, most of Mommy's pictures turned out like this (we call him the streak!)





So, you'll have to settle for the video highlights instead:


After the party, we headed back to the Crawford-Peterson residence for some more pizza and cake, as well as present opening and perhaps most important, a dip in their swimming pool.

Here are Nick and Mason showing off their matching swimming costumes (as Nick would say!) Aimee's got good taste...she bought them both. We love our hand-me-downs.

The two boys got along famously. It was soooooo cool watching Mason follow Nick around and learn all the wise 4-year-old tricks he had to teach!