Lordy, its been awhile :/

Weekend of August 14, 2010

We took a trip up to my moms, which I think we have maybe decided she should be called Glam-ma. Cute huh. Fits her I think. Anyhoots, we had a wonderful visit and enjoyed our time as always. I went with mom and Sonorah to Becca's wedding shower in Big Sandy, it was so sweet and I just get so excited when people get married. It is such an amazing time in your life. Anyways the fun part was my moms best friend Angie that I never see came down with her daughter Holly to visit with mom and us. Her son Cole, had just left for the Army. So she was needing some love :) The scary thing is, I used to babysit for Cole and Holly when Holly was Jacksons age. Talk about making me feel old. And scared bc if its gone by this fast for some other kiddo, how much faster is it going to go for us with Jack Jack. AGHHH. Im hyperventilating just thinking of it all.

I just love this face he is making. Too funny.

Pa was nice enough to let Jackson have a taste of some Mayhaw Jelly with his biscuits. Lets just say it was such a hit that the next morning, Jack (after eating a huge breakfast already) saw Pa having a biscuit on the couch and he climbed himself up there, snuggled up all sleuth like, and reached in for the biscuit and jelly when James was least expecting it. I think its safe to say the kid likes jelly on his biscuits.

We were in the kitchen and Jackson and Dixie came in and spent some time snuggling on the floor. It was so super cute. I love that these two truly are best friends already. Would it be weird to have her cloned? Dont answer that.

Anybody else's kids bite on the feet of their lovey? Weird.

We had such a good time this weekend that on Sunday while we were waiting for Becca to come by and visit he just couldnt stay up any longer and crashed on my shoulder. Poor buddy. Ignore my scary/crazy eyes. I look like freak huh? Yikes.

And last but not least, we will leave you with new tricks Jack has learned:

Balancing on the ball..I think he might be trying to kick a leg up too :)

And channeling the seals from the zoo. He's good huh?

You should see him leap through a flaming ring and swallow knives.

Kidding, so please don't call CPS.

Happy 16 Months and Whats Been Going On!

Jackson you are 16 Months OLD!!!

Where has the time gone? Here you were a year ago:

My little guy, you are turning into quite a verbal, funny, temperamental person.

AND I LOVE EVERY SECOND OF IT!!!

You are:

~Working through a cold as we speak (bleh).

~You weigh 24.8 lbs

~You eat any and everything. STILL! I gave you chicken salad sandwiches last week and you gobbled those up.

~You are drinking your milk plain now too, still make it flavored every once in a while though, just bc I love you! :)

~Talking a mile a minute. You repeat ALOT of sounds and words we say. Its funny and cute. The other morning you said what sounded like "What do you.. babble babble babble". It was so funny and your dad and I just looked at each other like "did he just say what I think he did?"

~You are really starting to get the hang of directing your lawn mower around and trains too. You know how to put them on the track and turn them on.

~You play with lots of cars, trucks, planes, anything that moves or goes vroom. You make the sound a car makes as you drive them around. Soooo funny.

~We have started putting you in time out, not sure that you quite grasp the concept but hopefully you will soon. Or you just start not needing it altogether! HA!

~You have started to mildly hit and bite (if you can, that is, you do most of the time, stop yourself before you do it, but the thought is still there). The one time you bit me, well, it didnt end so well for you. You got very upset. Ill leave it at that.

Your just growing and learning every day, and I cannot wait to see how much more you will learn being in a classroom setting at MDO.

LOVE YOU BUDDY!!!

The last few weeks have just zoomed past so quickly. I cant believe that in just another few short weeks Jackson will be headed into Mothers Day Out. :( and :) . Mixed emotions on that one. So excited for him, but sad for me. Im gonna miss my buddy those two days a week!

A few weeks ago we spent the night in Galveston with Grandma and Pa, Aunt Nora and her BFF Megan. We met them at the Rainforest Cafe and I think that is now where we will go ANYTIME we are meeting friends for dinner. Jackson was mesmorized to say the least. Every time it rained he would stare at the rain dripping on the perimeter of the room, he STARED at the fish forEVER and everytime a monkey caught his eye he would say "ooh ooh aah aah". Funny kiddo. It was nice for Taylor and I to not have to roll out our circus tricks to entertain the kid at lunch. We spent most of the time out at the pool, where my mom (grandma) showed off how much cooler she was to play with in the water than his own parents. Jackson wanted to play with grandma more than mom or dad :( Oh well, Ill be okay, pride wasnt too damaged! LOL. We did hit up the beach for just a little bit, Jackson was interested in the wet sand sucking his feet down, and really interested in trying to make the sand go down his little water toy. Not so much luck on that one.

We had a great dinner that night at Fisherman's Wharf,

until Jackson decided he would much rather be outside playing on the deck than hanging out inside with all the adults. Sigh. What made it fun (HA) was that our nursery director from church, Bridgette was in the same room we were upstairs and we said hi and all that stuff and when I came back into the room from a little outside walking with Jackson, Jackson screamed, LOUDLY, and EVERYONE in the room (like 5 large families, including someone we actually KNEW) turned and stared. She laughed. I turned red, and sweated, Taylor scooted down in his chair like "who, me? With that screaming, obviously needs to be spanked more, child? Nope, not me. Dont know 'em." It was lovely. The rest of the family was MIA also, so I just clamped my hand over his mouth and yes, I took him back outside. GASP. Whatever, dont judge. He HAD been there 2 hours. And I was sweating. And red. And alone. So alone in that moment. We had a blast and maybe we can do a family get away with grandma again soon.

She can take over Jackson in the pool and anywhere else all she wants!! LOL.

Lets see, we had some playdates and lunch with some friends Can I say how much I HEART Chick Fil A, BIG? They are the best place to take a kiddo for lunch. So accommodating. We also had a fabulous dinner at Nick and Jennifers and Taylor and Nick got to see their boys really playing for the first time. These two dads dont really get to see that interaction too much bc they arent around for the playdates so it was so cute to see how excited and funny they thought it was. It helps that Bryson and Jackson play so well and are so super darn cute together. Jennifer is supposed to send me some pics she took, but she is in Jamaica right now. (Just for being able to go there on vacation, I may not be her friend when she gets back. LOL) By the way HUGE thanks to Jenn and Lori for watching Jack while I went to the doctor.

Last weekend we wanted to do something kinda fun but didnt want to leave the house (ever have those days?) So we filled up the splash pad, dog everyone pool, and water table and we had a nice few hours outside. No need for a swim suit, just swim diaper and sunglasses and lots of sunscreen. Oh yes, this picture WILL be used in the future as bait/ammo/whatever I need it for.

Then, I made my momma proud. Taylor and I bathed both the dog and Jack outside with the water hose. It was awesome and so super quick. Plus I might add that an extra set of hands (Jack Jacks) to help scrub the doggie was nice too. Dixie L-O-V-E-D it. Too bad for Bosco, he missed out on the bath. Im sure he was crushed.

Speaking of Bosco, he likes to curl up in baskets.

But see, no where is safe anymore in this house except places of high altitudes. So he jumped in a laundry basket to get away from the stalker, aka, Jackson, and Jack decided well, Ill push him around instead.

Dont let Bosco fool you, he loved it. I mean, it took him like 5 minutes before he decided to jump out AND the only reason he jumped out is that Jackson went in for the touch/pat/hit/abuse.

That is love for the B cat. On a sweet note, Jackson did walk up to Bosco, who was all cutely curled up, on the sofa and he put his head on Boscos and just softley pet him. Bosco didnt move. Again, I think there is some real love happening here. Ahh, happy wife, happy animals, happy kid, happy hubs, happy life! We are taking a trip to the big T, Tyler that is, tomorrow. Hope everyone enjoys their last few weekends of summer!

A Tribute To A Small Angel.

I have been following the Caring Bridge blog of a little boy named Walker. Walker is one month older than Jackson. I choose to follow their blog bc his parents are examples of Gods work. In everything they do and say, they do it through HIS glory and in HIS name. Walker was diagnosed with a Malignant Rhabdoid Tumor on September 11, 2009. He fought a long and hard battle with the terrible disease that took over his body and this morning, he is sitting on Gods lap. My heart is breaking for his family. I cannot even imagine how they feel, knowing I have Jackson and how much I love him. How much it would hurt to loose him. They have their faith to lean on, and I am inspired by their steadfast devotion to Christ. In the past year I feel like I have gotten to know Walker and his family (though they don't even know I exist!) I always left reading their blog with a renewed faithfulness in our Savior. I was going to post today about Jackson being 16 months old, but instead, please take some time and visit Walkers site. Sign their guest book and send them a message of Gods love. Keep them in your prayers. Then hold your little ones if you have them, or call your big ones if they are gone and tell them you love them.

Isaiah 40:18-31
Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

Matthew 5:4

Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

Under The Weather....

Jackson had an ear infection this last weekend and was feeling "under the weather" as they say. Who "they" are, I am not sure, but I thought how appropriate, since this was the weather for the weekend:

Thanks Janice for the picture!

Yep, that was our neighborhood. It started Sat and kept on going through Sunday evening. It rained yesterday and part of today. The rest of the week looks like this:

Which means, if we dont start praying for mother nature to back off a bit, our 24 hour stint in Galveston Friday/Saturday with Grandma and Pa, wont be so swimmy. :( You can never rely too fully on the weather men (sorry, but true) so, who knows, it could be gorgeous and sunny!

Now on to what I really want to write about, I swear Im not so desperate I bore you with weather. HA! Plus I think you all know me a little to well to know that I would NEVER run out of things to talk/blog about. So, on with the rundown*.

*(Disclosure: I go into Lindsey detail over the ear infection proceedings, Im doing this for scrapbooking purposes since its his first ear infection AND he has only gotten sick, now, 3 x since he was born. I figure his future wife might be interested in this stuff....or is it just me? So don't read it if you already know, or know you don't care. LOL!)

Friday morning Jackson woke up in a B-A-D mood. (Ok so you all know that I realize now it was bc he was sick, but for the sake of the story staying 'real', Im writing as it happened.) He was super whiney, and grabbing at his mouth and when he cried his nose would run, so I thought he must just be getting the rest of the eye teeth in. I checked and it did feel like the top right one was about to poke through, the other three were already there. So we had already planned a swim date at Lauren's, and I thought it would make him happy. On the way, I had to stop at Toys R Us and get some things and he had a crying fit in the car, that only happens on long car rides, didnt stop screaming till we got to the store and I pulled him out of the car. Got what I needed there, quickly, and we went on to Lauren's. He played, and swam and had a great time. Until it got close to lunchtime. I offered him food. He was absolutely not interested in ANYTHING. He got whinier and whinier, I sat on the couch thinking he just needed to veg a bit. I realized he felt a bit warm, so I gave him some teething tablets, Lauren took his temp and it was 99.5. No biggie, we both thought, its gotta be teething. I had a nagging thought in the back of my head that he has never shown this much symptoms teething, he has been off and fussy but not like this. So we started to eat lunch and he had a MELTDOWN. Like screaming, needing to get the heck outta there meltdown. I left. Quickly. I did, however, manage to see the shocked faces of Riley and Cole at Jackson's sudden onslaught of emotions. Priceless. So he slept for like 20 minutes in the car, woke up and screamed the rest of the way home. Again. I thought "This must REALLY be bad teeth to get in." Then I brought him inside and he felt super warm. I took his temp and it was 100.6. He has NEVER had a fever above 99 degrees so for this to happen, I felt must be something else too, but wasnt completely sure. I gave him some Motrin (the off brand, not the recalled!), and tried to put him down, he screamed again, so we rocked and I sang to him and read him books and kept letting him have his sippy cup. He calmed down and was very sleepy so I put him in the crib again and this time he fell asleep. He woke up 2 1/2 hours later much happier, so I thought, lets try lunch. I offered him a PB & J and he ate half of his sandwich, and some fruit.

Here he is looking all pitiful and sad:

He was playing and happy and acting like his good ol self again. A few hours later he started melting down again. I felt his forehead and he felt HOT, so we took his temp and it was 101.6. I called the doctor, bc I just knew that it couldn't be teething at this point, they agreed and luckily they had an an opening at 8:10 that night. (Our doctor has an after hours office). We got him in and he had an ear infection in his right ear :( Poor baby. It was just the beginnings though, so we caught it at the perfect time. The good, no, great news, is that they gave him numbing ear drops. Who knew? I grew up with seriously bad ear infections and I KNOW my momma would have LOVED those drops, as well as me! So we have/had him on Amoxycilin (sp?), the Ear drops, Tylenol/Motrin, and lots of TLC and he is now fully recovered. And completely spoiled. So we are back to "Your not sick anymore" boot-camp. LOL. Today we had no Motrin or Tylenol and ear drops 1x before Bible study, just in case.

Since the weekend was one of pretty much relaxation and laying low for us here, we have had a chance to get a few pictures.

Jackson decided that he wanted his train to actually take a trip on Dixie's back. Which, she liked, bc its attention and back scratching. Her favorite combo. Yes, we bought him a new train bc he was sick. Its sort of something our parents did for us and we want to do for our kids. Makes a kid feel special :) So see Jackson, (If your reading this way down the line in the future, in a scrapbook) We do love you and we did do stuff for you too!!!

And today as a snack (late lunch) he choose a banana over a nectarine and I gave it to him whole. I think the pictures speak volumes on how awesome/awkward he thinks this was.

I swear this kid is so friggin cute :)

We have a play date tomorrow with Grant and Bryson and his 15 month check up and shots Thursday. SOOO not looking forward to that. Then Galveston on Friday!!! Have a great rest of the week friends!

Where do I begin????

So I am soo sorry for this long post. Not because I think you have been fretting and worrying and just downright upset that you dont know whats been going on in our life (HA) BUT mainly bc now, you will have to read (if you choose to do so) through the post that might not ever end. Oh yes. I am sorry. But I wont cut it short, just bc I feel sorry for your soon to be flat as pancakes, from sitting in chair, in front of the computer, heineys. Sorry. So now that I have wasted about oh one minute or so, depending on your reading speed, of your time, Ill get on with the show, well post. Or short story, well novel maybe. Lets just be honest.

I will start in a particular order just for the sheer scrapbook part of this blog. It makes it easier to read when its chronological I think. Wow, I am so digressing here, its bc Im dreading this long post. Im mad at myself for waiting so long. Geesh, there is all this pressure to make sure I get it all in. WOAH. Deep breaths Lindsey, deep breaths. Focus.

We left off with Fathers day right? (See its already turning into a book "Where did I leave off???") The weekend after Fathers Day we went to Crystal Lake in Palestine with Taylors family. It was gorgeous weather and such a great time. The main event however was Camille's 60th Birthday! Aunt Livvie and I had so much fun getting ready for it and making it special for Cami. We are so lucky to have her as our mother in law and I hope she knows how much we all love her :) Cami and Papa J bought Jackson this awesome splash pad and he LOVED it. I think he would have played in it way more if the water hadnt been QUITE so cold! Well, and also if he hadnt seen me take off in the boat (he is very momma clingy right now). We had such a nice visit and Taylor and Uncle Jack of course had a great time watching soccer together (Back in the day memories for them I think! LOL) Here are some pictures from the weekend. Some from me, some from Livvie. She also did a nice post on her blog for Cami's bday and the trip so feel free to take a look at her stuff. She gets some amazing pictures of nature!

Then the next weekend was my BIRTHDAY!!! And of course the fourth of July! We picked Matt and Jordan up from the airport (don't even ask me about how that went down with all the rain delays here), and headed to Port Aransas to my dads condo. What a fantastic weekend. It was awesome. I am not sure what I enjoyed more...the fact that the weather was perfect, my child was perfectly behaved (except for one night at dinner, which got us a few dirty looks and Aunt Chels ready to throw down on behalf of her nephew HA),

or that my child slept amazingly once we put him in the closet (oh, pick your jaw back up, it was a big walk in and very dark and had a door and a fan, believe me, he had the best set up. You'd do it too if you spent the first night with not so much sleep bc of waking child) or that I had so many family members young and old(ish), and in between helping out, entertaining and letting me take the breaks I oh so needed! Well now that I have written it all out I definitely think the last one takes the cake. That was the best. Hey speaking of cakes, check out my yummy b-day cake from Frosted Bakery.

They did Jackson's b-day cake too and I HEART THEM BIG! Of course no offense to them (thank goodness they probably don't know who I am, let alone read my blog), my momma took the cake (no pun intended) and sent me a Janie's Cake from East Texas. Oh. My. God. It was sooo good. Taylor and I ate half of it before we even left for the coast. I wont tell you how long we had it before we left either, nope, that secret is staying with me. Well, and face-book too I guess. Dang it. So much for secrets. But what we did take with us to the coast, was quickly devoured by the sweet-a-holics in our family. I wont name names. You know who you are. :) Thanks Mom!!!

So on with the weekend recap; Jackson went on a boat ride that almost never ended on Saturday morning. Seriously. It was 5 hours long. Something about going down the intercoastal waterway to see some coast guard sailboats, and then a stop at a water side hamburger place (YUM). It was fun, except for the part when Jackson fell asleep in my arms, which were awkwardly placed and the water was spraying soaking us like crazy, so I was holding up a towel to keep Jackson from getting wet drenched. Aside from wet outfit, and aching arms, it was a great trip. The best part was Jackson loved it. He wanted to stand at the inside edge of the boat and let the water spray his hands. Oh and chase the dogs tails (yes the dogs went with us too!). I sadly forgot my camera at home so I am relying on pictures from Lesley, Chelsea and Jordan. Here is what Ive got:

For the fourth the kids got to smack open a pinata and it was so funny bc Jackson just got in there when the kids went nuts and started picking up the candy. He helped his cousin Isabella sort her candy. Much to her frustration he felt she should keep the candy she kept taking out of her bag that she didnt want. Was pretty cute.

Family Picture:

The girls!:

That night for fireworks he was up to see them. He had a late afternoon nap and was rearing to go! I honestly didnt know what to expect, but was quite tickled at his reaction. He kept pointing at them and saying "Woah, Wow, No, Oh" and pacing back and forth on the balcony. He loved it. So glad he got to experience it!

We had such a great time, but it was sad to see Matt and Jordan head on back to Florida. We do miss them quite a bit, and are looking forward to seeing them in September for the family weddings we have coming up!

So what's happened since then?

Well, Im doing an amazing Angela Thomas bible study at church and LOVING it. I really feel like God is doing some work inside me these days, and as scary honest as some of it is, it is powerful and uplifting. I especially love that I am doing it with some close girl friends and we are walking this walk together. I like having the accountability and knowing that your raw emotions are felt by someone else too. Its a blessing to be at a church with such amazing women and leaders.

We have had several play-dates with friends and I love watching Jackson grow and watching him learn how to play with other kiddos.

JACKSON TURNED 15 MONTHS!!!

(Ill get his couch picture on here tomorrow! :))

Such a big boy :) He is doing so much these days, we literally think he is the smartest kid alive. Okay, no we dont, but he is smart. Not weird, anti social, high IQ smart, but real life smart. LOL! So he is saying ALOT. Mainly mimicking us.

~He says balloon, backpack, Dora, blue, PawPaw, bahh for sheep, moo for cow, sometimes meow for cat (thanks Cassidy for inspiring us!), bath, ooh ahh ooh for Monkey, He said purple today which was funny.

~We go in for his 15 month check up next week so we ill know his stats then.

~He drinks his milk now, on one condition, it must have some flavor to it. So we are now proud owners of packs of carnation instant breakfast.

~He eats eggs now, finally. Salsa too, hot dogs, corn dogs (He tore some of those up today like crazy), you name it, he eats it. We had a few weeks of dinner time meltdowns where he wouldnt eat dinner, but we finally figured out, late afternoon snack+ dinner at 6:30/7= Meltdown. So the last few nights we have had a MUCH earlier light snack, and then dinner around 5/5:30 and we have had a gobbling up the food, happy child.

~Oh this sweet boy who loves his momma and loves to cuddle has found his temper tantrum button and he likes to press it!

I will say this week he has been pretty good, but there were a few weeks there where I was am praying HARD for the Lords guidance in this. Or a prescription for Zantax. Whatever gets to me faster. Just sayin. At home, I don't tolerate it (mostly, bc face it, Im not perfect, I know, gasp...), I generally walk away or give him something else to distract him throw down. I can walk away from his LOUD screaming. Im not kidding about the loudness. I have NEVER heard a child this loud. Yes for all of you laughing, I realize its some payback for my voice volume. Anyways, I can tolerate it at home, but when we are out in public or at someone's house. It is SO embarrassing and I know that they are cringing. And judging. I know I shouldn't care but I do. I don't want to be the mom that gives in to the tantrum, but find it so difficult to submit innocent people to his fury. I will never judge another mother in a store/church/restaurant again. Wow, such a humbling experience. For instance (Hey lets document these, they will be funny one day....right?) We were at Coles 2nd Bday party last Saturday and it came cake time. Yes my child loves sugar. No surprise there, Taylor practically force fed brownies down my throat while I was pregnant. So I get this huge piece (thanks Lauren, I appreciate your thoughtfulness on wanting to expand my thigh/rear end size), and I share it with Jackson. Well he had quite a bit, but I guess its like crack and when it was done, he was NOT happy. So he screamed. Loudly. I didn't give in, yay me, but then the kid decides to pick the crumbs off the floor. Oh yes. He was that desperate. Then took off whining and moaning toward the kitchen and Taylor caught him right before he stuck his hand in what was left of the cake that was on the cake table. Not kidding. Then he screamed when Taylor picked him up and removed him from attempted cake murder scene. Yeah, I was the mom hiding in the corner of the playroom thinking please don't bring him to me, please don't bring him to me. Cue our exit shortly after that to avoid another cake upset. Oh yeah and that was after his swim diaper had had enough and he peed, out the diaper onto Lauren's floor. Lovely times I tell yah. The party was great though and Jackson had a great time playing in the water and eating cake.

Want another story. Oh yes, I have some more:

Next day, Sunday, Birthday dinner at my grandparents house. Were sitting at the table eating pot roast, potatoes, carrots, bread, enjoying the food and company. Jackson is eating pretty well, then he starts to deteriorate. Fast. Ended up with screaming child in seat. Grandparents a little amused but mildly annoyed at the loudness of the child. I take him out of his seat. He melts down on the floor. I offer bread (he loved starches, it should help right?) No can do. Finally manages to make his way to their bar/wall, has a fit on the floor there. Then FINALLY he rubs a few brain cells together and points and reaches for something...AHA!!! He wants the small gong they have that he is allowed to play with. He must have turned around in his seat and saw it, wanted it, and got mad bc no one could read his thoughts. We got down the gong and oh boy was he happy after that. But Lord help me, he had my blood pressure going.

~Anyways back to 15 month updates. He is running all over the place and has figured out how to ride his ride on toys around. He likes to back up the most, but he does know how to go forward.

~Even though he has his moments (hey we all do) He is still an absolute joy to be around. He makes me laugh, and I love when he brings me his books and sits in my lap for me to read them to him.

~He is SUCH a helper. I swear if you say "Help me Jackson" He is there. If we are coming in from outside and he is starting to get upset, if I say "Oh help me shut the door Jack Jack, be a big boy" He shuts the door and claps for himself and then there is no meltdown! Its the funniest thing. Im not kidding though, he will do anything you ask if you say "Help me".

~I love that when we are in the car, I will give him his monkey book and he flips through it and makes monkey noises.

~I love that ANYTIME he hears music, a beat, a rhythym, he starts dancing. Its so cute. He starts swaying that head and shoulders.

Happy 15 Months Jack Jack! It just keeps getting better and better!

Hope all of you have endured the post that has finally come to an end. We have had a great month and I will be better about updating again :)