You'll get a ticket

After Easter, Mason and I visited the Clayton Police Department with our group.  We were able to take a tour of their new building and see what they do every day.  Their office building is beautiful with lots of Energy Saving qualities.   They showed us the offices, the cafe (where they eat lunch), the conference room, the gym, and of course all of their neat equipment, including their cars and motorcycles.

Mason was a good boy, for the most part.  I think sometimes, I expect to much.  The officers talked to us for about 30 minutes before the tour and Mason pretty much sat through the speech.  I was pleased.

The wall art below was so neat.  I can't remember what it was called, but this is a tribute to those officers whom they have lost in the line of fire.  This picture really doesn't do it justice.  It was an officer leaving the building made out of some sort of rock or brick.  Very neat and very touching to have a memorial in their building.

Once we started the tour around the inside and outside of the building, Mason became a bit 'antsy'.  I kept telling him to be good or he would get a ticket.  HA!  So of course, he kept asking me, "Are they giving me a ticket Mommy"?

 

I'm so thankful for our group.  We may not have these type activities with out them.  Mason has enjoyed himself so much.  He looks forward to the days where he sees his friends.  He gets so excited and I couldn't be happier.

Tuesday's Tip ~ Cleaning

~Cleaning....Let me explain myself

It has been a couple weeks since I've given you a tip. I'm still catching up from my Lasik surgery or maybe it's because I'm always behind. HA! Either way, here you go.

I've had several people ask me recently, "how do you keep your house so clean"? First of all, thank you for the compliment. Secondly, I don't have a secret to cleaning, but I will give you ideas on what I do every day or week.

First let me explain myself. I am OCD. No, have not been diagnosed as such, but I know it can't be normal to constantly clean or organize. It is actually unsettling at times. I feel very anxious and can not relax until I'm finished. Sometimes, I never feel finished, which is not good. So, you see it is not always great to have your house spotless (which mine is not). There have been times that I have missed with Mason because the dirty dishes can't wait. Isn't that terrible?!

There is a reason I feel this way. Actually, I was just talking to my Mom about this the other day. I don't feel either one of my parents are OCD so for me, it wasn't inherited. I honestly think this is the reason why....

As a child, I frequently visited a house that was FILTHY!! I mean NASTY. Never vacuumed, never dusted, mouse droppings, roaches, etc. Plain and simple....disgusting. I'm giving you a generic story because of my privacy, but you get the point.

Seeing this house made me think, "I will not live like that". "My house will be clean". I truly believe seeing these things made me who I am now. It could be worse right?

So....on with my tips on cleaning. Because I am the way I am, I try to limit my cleaning. You have to find out works for you.

For example, I generally do 1 load of laundry per day. Clean 1 room per day. It doesn't always happen this way, but I would like it to. If I try to do more, I get overwhelmed. The kitchen is pretty much everyday because I'm in there so much. Go into the room, dust, organize, pick up, etc. The master bedroom is really 2 rooms because I clean the bathroom on the same day. I'll admit the dusting doesn't get done because I despise it.

As far as products, I use the basics. I don't buy into the everything has it's on product. I like Pine Sol. I use it to clean my toilets and my floors. I also like Multi Purpose Windex. I use it on my counter tops, stove top, windows, mirrors...Just like it says, Multi-Purpose. I do use a separate cleaner for the showers and tubs. I really like Scrubbing Bubbles. It works great on soap scum. For dusting, I use a swiffer and swiffer dust and shine for polish. The polish is great because it cleans, shines, and smells great with the febreze freshness. I sound like a commercial. HA!

I guess that's it. Don't overwhelm yourself. 1 room per day and 1 load of laundry per day. Sound's easy right? So why do I always feel like I'm cleaning. Of course there are messes that come in between the other daily duties.

I am really trying to relax a bit more, enjoy Mason while he is still little, and take some time out for myself too. Easier said than done, right?

So Funny!

I am a bit reluctant in posting these pictures, but I couldn't resist. I'm sorry Mason. I just think these are so cute.






Grammy and PawPaw gave him an Easter basket and in the basket were 'big boy undies'. Mason couldn't wait to try them on. Well, maybe Mommy couldn't wait for him to try them on. Oh My! He looks so cute.




Is this not the funniest thing?!

Mason knows he can only wear these when he goes to the potty. Maybe this will help encourage him a bit more.

Poor little fella. He was so upset when we took them off. He said, "I want to be a big boy Mommy". You are Mommy's big boy and my baby at the same time.

The Same Bunny with a different baby

For the past 3 years, we have gone to the same Easter bunny, well, at the same place. Next year, this mall will be closed. Where will we go? Will Mason want to go?

You never know when is the last time your child will want to visit the Easter Bunny or Santa, so I am cherishing these moments.

Here is Mason and his cousin Caity Easter 2010. Mason was 10 months old.


Easter 2011, Mason was 1 year and 10 months.


And this year, Easter 2012, Mason is 2 years and 9 months.

I just realized he is wearing blue in every picture. HA! He looks good in blue.

When I look back at these pictures, I can really see how he has changed from a baby, to a toddler, and now, to a little boy. I will cherish the pictures and memories forever and to me, he will always be my baby.

Will the Easter Bunny visit Papa's house?

We had a nice Easter in Greensboro this year. We got there on Saturday and went to see the Easter Bunny. I was curious to see how Mason would do when he saw him. He was great! He walked right up to the bunny, sat on his lap, and started talking. I should have known. He never meets a stranger. We took a few pictures and he was ready to go.



Of course, seeing the Easter Bunny isn't enough. You have to have ice cream too!


I don't think Mason left his Papa's side the whole weekend. Poor Papa. He couldn't leave the room with out his little shadow. Something tells me, he didn't mind at all! HA!


Saturday night, we left carrots out for the Easter Bunny. Mason said, he will be hungry.




He's such a sweet boy. He wanted to feed the 'pretend' bunnies too.



Mason woke up Sunday morning and noticed most of the carrots were gone. He wasn't sure what to think at first. He walked around and looked around the corners to see if the Easter Bunny was still at Papa's house. How cute?!


He wasn't sure at first, if he was allowed to touch his basket or even if the basket was for him. We said, "Go ahead, Mason. The Easter Bunny left you a gift".




Once he found out the basket was for him, he started looking through everything. He opened the eggs and ate his fruit snack.


He got another surprise too! Nina and Papa gave him a dump truck full of goodies. He and Papa had fun looking at everything.


After we looked at all of our Easter goodies. We were ready to head outside. Mason wanted to walk.

Mason saw the eggs in Nina and Papa's yard and got so excited. "Look Papa. I see eggs" "There's another one and another one". So excited. The Easter Bunny left him fruit snacks and airplanes in his eggs.




We walked and looked for eggs. Mason and Papa had to look at the pond too.



Mason was so excited. He had to open each egg as soon as he found it.




After he hunted his eggs, he was done. No more pictures Mommy. This is the best one I could get. He looks thrilled, doesn't he?


Nina and Papa had a house full of grandbabies. Mason, Ali, Spencer, Caity, and Jake.


We all had a good time and good food. It's nice to be with family and we are thankful ours are close enough to us.

HAPPY EASTER FROM THE KRANZ FAMILY!

Surgery Day

Here I am. The day of surgery. The last day wearing my glasses. I apologize for not posting earlier. My recovery has taken longer than I thought and some days are better than others.

Several of you, who may be contemplating lasik, have asked the details of the surgery. I promise I will give you the details in a later post.

For now, I'm doing much better. Some of the haze is gone, and I'm seeing more clear. At my last check up, my vision was 20/20 and he said that I may go back to 20/15. I'll take either.

Thanks to all who have helped through the process and who have asked about me. I really appreciate it!