The Bridal Shower Weekend that Started with the Cops Arresting Someone on my Plane.

Also known as, the longest blog post title. Ever.

So, let me explain. I'm a bridesmaid in a wedding in May and this weekend was the bridal shower in Sacramento. I had to work all day Friday so I took the late flight. My mother in law went up early on Wednesday and my sister in law and nieces went up earlier in the day on Friday (thank GOODNESS, but I'll get to that later).

My flight was at 8:35pm. Everything was fine until we started pulling away from the gate. I got to the airport and through security quickly. I stopped to get some snacks and a water just fine. Boarding the plane went smoothly. We started to pull away from the gate and then... someone in the front decided to stand up. As we were moving. He was probably in row 3 or 4 and literally got up, started texting on his phone, and walked to the front of the plane, right outside the cock pit. Since we were moving, we hit a small bump in the ground, and he fell backwards and hit the little cubbies they store the snacks in. I guess the flight attendants were at the back of the plane because the people at the front started yelling at him to sit down.... which severely agitated him. He started cussing and yelling. People told him to sit down again and some lady started yelling "he's clearly not ok!!!". I had NO IDEA WHAT WAS GOING ON and to be honest, I was getting scared.

Someone else yelled to the flight attendants that we needed help. They slowly sauntered toward the front and kind of... did nothing. Various other people started yelling and cussing and I don't even know what was happening but he started yelling at some guy saying "I make 4 million dollars a year and am 28 years old, what do you do with your life?" At this point I was still confused and scared but I was also thinking... if you make $4 million a year... why are you on a Jet Blue flight and not in your own private plane? But you know, whatever. Maybe he's frugal?

At this point the flight attendants made their way to the phone and called the pilot to head back to the airport BUT at the same time, the guy decided that he wanted off the plane NOW so he ran down the aisle to the emergency exit row (right behind me!!!) and literally jumped in the lap of the guy sitting by the exit. The guy was clearly pissed and yelled at the guy to get off of him, which pissed him off even more. He threw himself against the emergency exit door and tried to open it. I, again, was terrified. He was RIGHT BEHIND me and I thought he was going to start throwing punches. Also at this point, I swear every person in the plane (at least within my immediate sight range) was taping it. I'm sure Twitter and snapchat and Facebook were blowing up with videos of this guy. Me? I was texting Seth and my sister in law but was NO WAY taking a video or trying to get anywhere near this guys radar. The cops FINALLY came on board and took the guy away as he yelled "don't touch me!" and the cops yelled "I'll touch you wherever I want" (awkward). As the cops are taking him off the plane, there are people literally sticking their phones IN HIS FACE. I think to myself that these people have got to be crazy, but whatever floats your boat. People yelled for the cops to take the guy's backpack. They do.

THEN they proceed to kick off various other people, probably 2-3 more, who talked back to the cops and were causing major disturbance. Then, before they leave, they ask if anyone else wants to leave. Everyone remains quiet. The cops leave and people literally start cheering and clapping. I swear I have NEVER EVER experienced anything like that in my life nor do I want to EVER. AGAIN.

FINALLY. We were on our way. And surprisingly, only 10 minutes late!

I arrived in Sacramento around 10:05pm and boy did I have a story to tell! I think the guy that got kicked off (oh, and taken away in a cop car straight off the tar mack) must have been super drunk or on some thing because he was acting crazy. I mean, who just gets up as the plane is getting ready to take off? I thank my lucky stars that this happened BEFORE we were in the air because I don't even want to think about what would have happened. I honestly think the flight attendants did not know what to do because the lady next to me told one of them that they handled the situation very professionally and he said "thank you, I literally didn't know what to do." #ifeelsosafe

The rest of the weekend was thankfully a LOT less eventful, but we did have a beautiful bridal shower on Saturday afternoon and lots of girl time! I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.

Also, I'd like to note that we rented a van for the weekend. We joked all weekend about it being a minivan since I feel like minivan's typically get a bad wrap. BUT I will say this. The minivan had SO MUCH LEG ROOM in the middle row that I was literally so amazed. I texted Seth this picture and told him how impressed I was and how much leg room and trunk space there was. He said we can't get one. For the record, I don't want one BUT I do have a new respect for them!

Saturday night we went out to dinner at a mexican place and I had an amazing pomegranate margarita.

And Sunday we had brunch and lots of girl time before we headed back to the airport for our extremely uneventful (all the praise hand emojis) flight home.

The highlights of my night were Mason running to me at the airport and reading books to him at night. As much fun as I had this weekend celebrating bride to be Ally, coming home to my boys felt pretty dang good too.

[Thoughts on Thursday] Confessions.

Time for another confession session!

I must confess...

... that I did not turn on one post notification during that whole Instagram algorithm fiasco. Ain't nobody got time for that.

... that I don't understand how people snapchat WHILE driving. I mean, that can't be safe!

... that sometimes I park further away from the store that I'm going to so I can get more "exercise". I use that term loosely but it's pretty much the only exercise that I get during the day (#keepingitreal), so at least I feel slightly better about myself for getting a few extra steps in.

... that I cut up a fresh pineapple a couple weeks ago and we didn't eat it as fast as we should have, so I threw it in the freezer in a plastic bag. BUT what I didn't think about is that fresh pineapple is juicy and they froze into one large ice block of pineapple. I've been making smoothies in the morning and had to use an ice chisel (aka a butter knife LOL) to break it apart to eat.

... that the only brand of ranch dressing that I like is Hidden Valley Ranch. I don't know why, but I've tried other kinds and they just don't measure up. 

... that a couple weeks ago Seth and I (honestly, mostly Seth!) realized that the back up weather man on our local news station was the "weather man" from Ali's season of the bachelorette!

... that if I don't know who you are, I probably won't answer the phone. I've been getting a lot of random numbers calling me lately and I just don't answer. If it's important, I figure that they'll leave a message and I can call them back.

and last but not least...

... that yesterday at the post office, I had my first rude encounter. Most people comment on how cute Mason is helping with the mail, but not this lady. I was minding my own business, having Mason put the letters into the slot when an older (maybe 80's?) woman walked up behind me. I didn't even hear her at first and then she said "can we hurry up? some of us have places to be." I was so shocked that I just said "there's another slot right here" and pointed to the right - there are 3 slots and I was using the middle one. She so politely said "I ONLY use the middle one." Well ok lady. So I told Mason to scoot over and we moved out of the way so she could put her letter in the middle slot. She then said "you know, he shouldn't be up there. it's not safe." It was then that I was even MORE shocked. I didn't correct you on your attitude problem, you don't need to correct me on my parenting, thank you very much. I didn't even know what to say so I didn't say anything to her and just prompted Mason to continue putting the letters in the slot. Had she come in a few minutes earlier when I had stepped away to take a picture of Mason, mayyyyyybe I could understand her suggestion. BUT when she saw me I was literally thisclose to Mason while he was putting the letters in. He was fine. And should he have lost his balance, I would have caught him.

Thanks but no thanks for your unsolicited advice lady.

Rant over.

And that's all I've got for today! Can you relate to any of my confessions?

Foodie for a Year : April [a brunch recipe]

The recipe I want to share with you today is not really much of a recipe at all. It's more of a bunch of ingredients that you put together on top of a bagel to create a delicious breakfast/brunch meal. It also makes for a great, quick, weeknight dinner if you have leftovers!

Lox and bagels!

But first things first. What really makes a brunch a brunch is the drinks. We celebrated brunch on this particular day on Easter Sunday with my dad and step mom, who were visiting for the weekend. A couple weeks prior, we had had mimosas and bloody Mary's for a brunch celebration for Seth's birthday and I knew we needed them again on this day. I'm not picky with my champagne for the mimosas (hence the Andre), but you could definitely spend a little more money and get something a little classier.

I personally don't really like tomato juice, so I stuck to my mimosa, but the other adults opted for the bloody Mary's and weren't sorry.

As much as I would have loved to just have a variety of mimosas for brunch, we did have food too! We stuck to a simple spread of lox and bagels. We got all of the ingredients at Costco and loved that we picked up everything we needed at one stop. These lox were some of the best I've ever had (isn't everything at Costco just the best??). I love to pair it with an everything bagel, topped with cream cheese and tomato and on this particular day... avocado as well! Avocado is one of my very favorite things so I don't know why it took me so long to pair it with lox and bagels. Needless to say, I helped myself to seconds.

This is a simple, easy brunch recipe sure to satisfy all of your guests! It was even toddler tested and toddler approved. #winning.

While lox and bagels is one of my all time favorite brunch meals, I also love to have challah french toast (THE best), pancakes or waffles, or even just a good omelet on occasion for brunch. We don't really do "fancy" very often, but when we do, it's always one of my favorites! I also have TONS of ideas pinned to one of my various Pinterest boards that I'd love to try one day, but that requires a bit more thought and preparation. Maybe one day!

Don't forget to mark your calendars... our next Foodie for a Year link up is on June 7th! On June 7th, we'll be sharing a favorite summer recipe!

And in case you forgot to mark your calendars for the rest of the link ups :

Courtney, Jamie, Jamie, Sarah, Whitney, and I are excited that you wanted to share a brunch related recipe with us! Don't forget to add your link below so we can check it out!

An InLinkz Link-up

Hooray, it's Opening Day! [Go Angels!]

Hooray!!! It's baseball's opening day! 

Well, technically, if you're being precise, I think yesterday was the official opening day, but really? Who's counting? All I know is that today is the official opening day for the Angels and in my house, that's all that matters. And also, if you're house is anything like my house, from today forward, your TV will be permanently stuck on any channel that has baseball on it. Am I right?

Before I met Seth, I could take baseball or leave baseball. My dad was more of a football fan (Go 49ers!) than a baseball fan, so I definitely didn't grow up watching baseball on TV. But then I met Seth and my love of baseball grew. As did my knowledge of anything baseball. And while I do like baseball now, I'm definitely not as hard core as he is (i.e. following them on Twitter for updates and trader rumors and stats and whatever else he looks up on a daily basis) but I do enjoy watching the games on TV as well as going to the games in person too. And now that we have Mason, it makes it that much more fun. I truly think he enjoys going to the games (even if it is only for the food) but regardless, he's so much fun to take and he gets SO excited when a good play happens and that makes me enjoy the game even more.

So, now enough talk. Let's get to some pictures. Because as a mom, you KNOW I love a good photo op of my little Angels fan wearing his favorite team's apparel.

And for old times sake... here are a few photos from the past. Believe it or not, these were my favorites. There are more.  Lots more. #bloggerproblems

When Mason was a baby, we had professional pictures taken of him. We happened to bring Seth's Angels hat and it started a tradition...

First Angels game -- September 2012. Clearly happy about it!

I mostly only wear my Angels shirts to the games, but as you can tell, Mason sports the Angels apparel anywhere he goes from Lowe's for a Kids Workshop to the park to Disneyland... as does Seth (who wears his Angels hat almost everyday to work)!

Do you have pictures of your little fan wearing their favorite teams apparel? Or your pet? Or you or your husband? Link up with us below, share your team pride, and show us who you'll be rooting for this season! And don't forget to share your photos on Instagram with #hoorayitsopeningday .

Jen @ And Hattie Makes Three

Elizabeth @ Chasin' Mason

Liz @ Ellie and Addie

Crystal @ Hall Around Texas

Leah @ Leah with Love

Desiree @ Macke Monologues

Sara @ Running from the Law

Sarah @ Seeing All Sides

Vanessa @ Sunflower State of Mind

Meghan @ The Adventure Starts Here

An InLinkz Link-up

Five on Friday!

Hello Friday! I'm so happy to see you again. This week seemed abnormally long since last week was only a four day work week for me, so I'm pretty happy that it's finally Friday! We have absolutely no plans this weekend (as of right now - famous last words) and I, for one, am pretty excited. This is the only weekend in the whole month of April that we don't have something going on so I am going to relish in the relaxation!

ONE.
Little shopping carts.

I used to avoid these carts like the plague. I thought Mason would cause havoc in the store and knock down every display they had. But then, one day, my mother in law let Mason use one at the grocery store and she said he did great and all my dreams of getting him to use one came alive. Dramatic, I know. But for some reason, I love these little carts and always wanted Mason to use one... without destroying the store. I attempted to let him use one a couple months ago and then again earlier this week and I have to say - happy kid, happy mom. Mason LOVES being in charge of the cart and putting things in the cart. I love how cute it is. The only thing I don't love is how he walks as if he is sight seeing and totally almost hits people and walks crooked. Baby steps.


TWO.
World Autism Awareness Day.

Tomorrow, April 2nd, is World Autism Awareness Day. As most of you know, Mason was diagnosed with autism almost a year ago exactly. I'm planning to share an update in a week or so on how he's doing and what we've done since he was diagnosed, but for now, I'd like to share how you can help shine a light on autism by lighting it up blue.

(If you're not familiar with our story, you can read more in A Letter to my Son with Autism and [Autism Diagnosis] Thoughts and Feelings from a Mother with a Child with Autism.)

Join me in pledging to wear blue tomorrow in honor of World Autism Awareness Day by clicking here! Don't forget to share your pictures on social media and use #LIUB.


THREE.
Link Up Reminders.

Apparently it's link up central around here next week and I wanted to remind you of a few, in case you were interested in joining in on the fun.

Hooray it's Opening Day! link up is next week Monday, April 4th -- share photos of your kids (or pets! or anyone!) in your favorite baseball team apparel.

Foodie for a Year link up is next Tuesday, April 5th -- share a brunch related recipe.

FOUR.
Mother's Day Mom Exchange.

Don't forget! If you're interested in signing up for the Mother's Day Mom Exchange, please make sure to send me an email to chasinmasonblog@gmail.com by tomorrow, April 2nd, at 11:59pm Pacific Time! You can find all the details here.


FIVE.
This video.

Jim Breuer on "Why Mother's Need Their Sleep."

And I'm just going to leave this right here. It's pretty dang funny and pretty dang accurate. Enjoy!


Have a great weekend!

The Guys Behind the Blog // March Edition.

Last year, I found out through Crystal that Betsy from Heavens to Betsy had this super cool series called The Guys Behind the Blog. Unfortunately it was a little too late to join for March 2015 but I joined in April and have been ever since! While I do talk about Seth often, I don't really know if you all know him very well. Enter : this series. Every month Betsy has different prompts that the guys behind the blog answer.

For March, Laura Jean and Betsy let us come up with our own questions for our guys! Since it's baseball's opening day next week and since you all already know how much Seth likes baseball, I decided to keep my questions to the baseball theme.

Here are the questions that I came up with for Seth :

1 // We all know that baseball is your favorite sport. Who is your all time favorite baseball player and why?
Growing up, one of my favorite baseball players was (and still is) Cal Ripkin, Jr. In my opinion, he's one of the best short stops of all times. He holds the record for the most number of consecutive games played (2,632 games) which, in my opinion, will never be broken. But one of the main reasons I like him as a player is that every game he played in, he played hard on both offense and defense. He always gave 100%.

2 // What are the top three baseball stadiums that you want to visit?
Wrigley Field in Chicago. Fenway Park in Boston. Busch Stadium in St. Louis.

3 // Have you always been an Angels fan? Or did you like a different team when you were younger and then grew to like the Angels?
I've always been in Angels fan. For a short period of time, I really liked the Chicago White Sox but that was because I was on that team for four years straight in little league.

4 // When you go to a baseball stadium, is your go-to meal the standard hot dog and beer or do you venture out and get something different?
I tend to venture out to something different. But beer is always a must.

5 // Besides Angels stadium, which stadium that you've been to is your favorite?
AT&T Park in San Francisco (Giants stadium).

And there you have it! Thanks for playing along again Seth!