Mason Goes to the Beach

Well, the end of the summer just flew by for us- thus the long gap between this and our last post. However, it was full of great summertime fun. Mason seemed to really enjoy his first trips to the beach. In August we went to Destin, Florida for Mark's family's annual Gulf Coast rendezvous. Although traveling with an infant is quite the adventure (and aggrevation when trying to get through airport security), the trip was very worthwhile. Mason did a lot of swimming in the pool and got his first taste of the beach - sand and the beautiful water of the Emerald Coast of Florida. Then for Labor Day weekend, we traveled out to the Jersey Shore for a Bucknell Water Polo girls get together (significant others and babies included :) We had such a wonderful time. Mason splashed in the Atlantic Ocean for the first time - and with the help of the polo ladies, he flirted with a few little baby girls, too :) Mason worked on his water polo skills a bunch while we all played in the pool - he just loves the water! He also liked hanging out with his buddy, Tripp - another water polo baby. It was so great to see everyone at the beach and Mason loved meeting so many special people!
On the evening we returned from our Jersey Shore trip, Mason reached another major milestone - sitting on his own!!! He does it so well and loves every minute. He still doesn't seem very interested in crawling, but really likes to be on his feet. He's getting really strong on his legs, so we think he will just bypass crawling and go straight to standing and walking. He is becoming such a big boy so quickly - very bittersweet.
Now that Fall is here, Mason accompanies his Mom to lots of water polo practices as she coaches a local high school girls team, North Allegheny. He is officially their mascot - looking too cute for words in his little tiger outfit. Mason is also looking simply precious in his jersey as the Steelers' newest fan. Please check out pictures of him in his outfits, and of all the beach fun at http://picasaweb.google.com/fyockm