Big Boy

Because I am backdating posts, here is an update on my little man, Jackson. I didn't realize how big he was getting until Samuel was born. Now he seems so grown up!

Here is Jackson the day Samuel was born.



When Jackson and my mom came to pick Samuel and me up from the hospital, Jackson had on a Santa hat. I felt like Jackson Claus had come to take me home.



Jackson made a gingerbread house at daycare before the Christmas break. I was so proud of him! Miss Brandy said he would put on a candy, then eat one, put one on, then eat one... that's Nana's grandson!



Jackson has proven to be quite the little musician. He loves to sit at the piano and play - not banging with a full hand like toddlers usually do, but one finger at a time.

He also sings and dances constantly. He will dance to anything. And by anything, I literally mean an-y-thing. Of course, it makes my heart glad that he likes music and the arts!


Despite the devastating losses the Colts have endured this season, we still love them. Have you seen a cuter Colts fan?



Since Dada has been gone, Jackson misses him and he loves talking to Dada on Skype (me, too)! Jackson found this old picture of us and carried it around all morning!



Jackson loves his trains. It's the first thing he plays with in the morning and the last thing at night. He uses the shopping cart he got for Christmas to tote all his trains and cars around.



Jackson loves to read. He reads to himself, to other people, and loves being read to. See how he reads this book and imitates the pictures?



Exciting news: we are in the beginning stages of potty training! I can't wait to only have to worry about changing one diapered bottom. We got him a new Elmo potty and potty book. He practices sitting on his new potty, but only fully clothed. He does go in to the bathroom on occasion to potty in his diaper... at least he knows that that room is where that is suppose to happen! Progress...



For a while, Jackson's eating habits had become somewhat picky. At one point, he would only eat grilled cheese, macaroni and cheese, pizza, french fries, occasionally chicken, string cheese, waffles, and yogurt. Fortunately, he has been expanding his tastes and will now eat a wider variety of foods including Almond Butter, Mandarin Oranges, Dave's Mom's Chicken, Toasted Ham and Turkey Sandwiches and pretty much anything else as long as he can dip it in Ketchup or Cheese Sauce. On the day on which the following pictures was taken, I made Jackson grilled cheese, pretzels, and mandarin oranges for lunch. He ate the oranges first, then the pretzels, then asked for more oranges. He proceeded to eat half the tin of mandarin oranges and say "all done". He didn't touch one piece of the grilled cheese. Be still my heart...



Jackson has also taken up the activity of running. Fast. Everywhere. And it's even better if he can push something while he's running.



Jackson's vocabulary has just blossomed. To the already extensive list, he's added:
In
Out
Off
On
Yogurt
Bo Bo Balls (Donut Balls)
Oel (Noel)
Please
Thank you
Baby
Sam/Samuel
Abby (you know...Elmo's friend)
One
Two
Read
Eat
Yummy
Snow
Let's Go
Brush Teeth
All Done
Orange
Thomas (now actually sounds like Thomas)
Percy (you know...Thomas's friend)
Fish
Ready
See Ya
Coat
Hi Sweet Pea
It's okay
Go Colts!
Gross
Wow (most commonly said when we turn on his constellation night light)
Sing

And I am sure there are some that I've forgotten.

He can sing his ABC's up to "lmnop" and count to two.

But you have to be careful what you say around him because he will repeat it. He is a little parrot!

Some of my favorite Jackson stories from the past couple of weeks:
I went to pick him up from daycare last week and Brandy had on AOL radio tuned to the kid's channel. It was the Chipmunks singing "I Gotta Feeling" by the Black Eyed Peas and all of the kids were dancing including Jackson. They were having so much fun!
You'll notice in the word list that Jackson says "Hi Sweet Pea". I call him Sweet Pea and he has started calling me Sweet Pea as well. It is adorable.
And in the mornings when we go in his room to wake him up, he greets us with an enthusiastic "hi"!
Jackson has an Old MacDonald farmer with his new farm set. He refers to Old MacDonald as "EIEIO".


Luckily, the sickness seems to have left our household for the time being (knocking on wood as we speak). David started giving him Vitamin C and Immunity Boosting Vitamins while he was here which I've kept up in his absence, and I haven't so much as wiped his nose since before Christmas. YAY!!


Jackson is such a good big brother. He throws away dirty diapers and helps me burp Samuel. He hasn't had any real moments of jealousy and remains a good natured, easy child. He is growing up before my eyes and in just a few short months, he'll be two.

I love you Sweet Pea!



Almost 21 months old

My Way

It has literally been 2 action packed months since I've posted anything on this blog. I think when we left off my sister had just gotten engaged, I was 17 weeks pregnant, David was still in Australia, and Jackson had recently started walking and had about 13 words in his vocabulary.

Some things are still the same.

Holly is still engaged. She has ordered her wedding dress (which is beautiful) and I blindly picked a bridesmaids dress. I say blindly because it is hard to try on a dress with a pregnant belly and know what is going to look like in a year's time. Keep your fingers crossed!

David is still in Australia. Not really "still", but has had to return to Australia. He was here with us for 5 weeks and then we had to make the tough decision for him to go back. It appears there is a backlog at the Immigration Department and processing the visa in Sydney is a tad quicker. At least, we're hoping. So back he went and Jackson and I are, again, sans daddy/husband. But we had a good time while he was here and some good father-son bonding time was able to take place. Jackson sure loves his daddy!








I am still pregnant. Now I am 26 weeks pregnant (last week of the 2nd trimester).

I feel bigger than I was with Jackson at 26 weeks. I keep asking my doctor if he is sure that I am ONLY 26 weeks along...and he keeps reassuring me that I am right on track! I am not as short of breath as I was with Jackson. I seem to be carrying the baby higher and a bit more evenly spread. With Jackson he was all up there and over to the right. I have maaaaaassive heartburn and am already struggling with Restless Leg Syndrome and the constant urinating of a pregnant woman. Other than that I feel great! I hope I continue to feel great as I am working up until the 12th of December (what am I thinking?!). We are scheduled for a Cesarean on December 15. David was able to be here for our 20 week ultrasound where we got to see some great pictures of the little one being all precious and little. We even got to see a bit of 4D footage. I thought it was amazing...David thought the baby looked like a tree knot.




We found out the baby was healthy, head down, and A BOY!
I won't lie... At first I was a tad disappointed that the girl gene has yet to spring itself in the new generation of our family (my grandparents have 5 great grandsons and 0 great granddaughters). But I quickly started thinking about how cool it is going to be for Jackson and baby brother to be 20 months apart and the potential relationship that will bloom. Plus, little boys are great (and they don't grow into teenage girls)! We have zeroed in on a name we like, but I don't think I will announce it quite yet. As you may or may not recall, Jackson's name was "Hunter" up until 2 days before he was born.

And some things change...or grow..

Thanks to my good friend Vanessa from Upstairs who recently showed me the ins and outs, we have decided to use cloth diapers with this new one (yes, mom...unless he is at Nana's house)... I'm looking forward to the new experience! We are looking at double strollers and with that comes the need for a minivan...which I recently purchased. Bye bye tiny Ford Festiva; hello people moving Toyota Sienna!

Jackson is, as before, mobile as ever. He can climb up the stairs and go down the stairs. He spins in circles. He even can walk backwards. He can climb onto chairs. He can slide off the bed. He is amazing. Every day is something new. I really feel he isn't a baby anymore. He is a little toddler!

He LOVES being outside. He loves throwing a ball. He loves jumping in a pile of warm freshly laundered towels.

He loves singing and dancing. He loves riding on the lawn mower with Bapa. His best friend is his Cousin Myles. He LOOOOOOVES his cousin Myles!




And he is such a good helper. He loves to help Nana vacuum.


And he throws away his dirty diapers in the trash (useful big brother job).

Things we have done in the past two months:
Vanderburgh County Fair


(Going down the slide with Uncle Noel - I couldn't go. There was a sign that said "No Pregnant Women". Seriously.)









Indiana State Fair





I turned the big 3-0 (not as scary as I thought)



(Yes, there are 30 holes in that cake!)


Visited our friends Elias, Colin and Baby Owen in Indianapolis





Saw the Horsies at the Race Track



Visited our new American Pediatrician (22lbs/10kg, 30.5in/77.5cm) and got our finger pricked so our blood could be tested for lead and iron (no tears - what a brave boy!)



And have generally been the Happiest Almost 17 Month Old Alive!






He is talking up a storm. His new list of understandable words is quite extensive:
Mama
Dada
Nana
Ho-ee (Holly)
Dut (Duck)
Shoe
Achoo
Ocean
Hello
What's this/that
Who is it
Juice
Clock
Dog
Outside
Up
Wa-wa (water)
Snack
Horsey
Car-car
Golf-golf
Truck
Elmo
Ernie
Ball
A-shon (Jackson - he calls all babies in photos Jackson)
More
Cheese
Tree
Ouch
Ought Oh
Ice Cream

He can pair animals with their sounds:
Neigh
Oosh (that's what a dog says...)
Moo
Oink (he snorts)
Meow
Baa
Choo Choo (train)
Ah-ah (Monkey)
Roar (Lion or Dinosaur)
Quack Quack

He can point to body parts:
Eyes
Ears
Nose
Mouth
Hair
Belly/Belly Button
Diaper
Feet
Hands

We have recently started enjoying coloring (I have been waiting for this stage!!).


He LOVES books. We got a library card yesterday and when we went in I thought I was going to have to read every book in the kid's area. I let him bring home three books in the end and they have already been read to death! His favorite book is Elmo's Counting Book. He loves anything that has to do with Elmo. We bought a book called Elmo's Piano and it has a keyboard on it with 6 or 7 different songs you can play. The keys light up red to show you which one to play for the songs. He knows to follow the red keys and when I heard "Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes" coming from my 16 month old, I about died!

Jackson is officially exclusively on table food. Of course, with the arrival of teeth 11 and 12 (he now has all 4 1-year molars) eating is a lot easier! Up until about a week ago, he would eat pretty much anything you gave to him. Recently though he has been asserting his independence and won't eat unless he can do it himself. And then sometimes he still won't eat. Mr Independence must have the last say (definitely a son of David's and mine)!
I officially stopped nursing Jackson on August 20, his 16 month birthday. He was only nursing before bed and sometimes wasn't even interested in that. It was more traumatic for me than him. I cried. He didn't. But I am proud of myself that we were able to continue that special relationship for so long. I have hidden his yellow feeding pillow (will have to buy a new one for the new baby), and am enjoying having my breasts back to myself if only for another 3 months. We decided not to start Jackson on milk or formula. Instead he drinks mainly water (with ice...he'll only drink it if it is ice cold) with the occasional glass of American lemonade or diluted juice (he loves apple cider). And then we give him a multivitamin daily. He makes a horrible face when he takes it (via dropper), but is a champ and sucks it down anyway.



Because David is back in Australia and my work hours fall during daytime hours, we have had to find Jackson a day care 3 days a week. After interviewing 3 in-home carers we finally decided on one not too far from us with a lady who happened to go to middle school with me! His first day was Wednesday, and he did pretty well. Brandy said he didn't eat great (to be expected - see statement above...independence), but he slept for 2 hours (which I was nervous about as he isn't used to taking a nap with other little kids). He didn't have any problems making friends. In fact, he already has a little girlfriend who gives him a hug and a kiss when he comes in. I am glad he is able to spend some time around other children. It also gives me a chance to get some "me time" in. On Wednesdays and Fridays, I have 3 hours in the morning to myself when I drop him off. I plan on using the time to make headway into my Masters before the new baby comes along. I honestly can't remember the last time I had that much "me time" in one block of time. I have opened the windows, turned on my Scentsy and Pandora, and am catching up with some much needed (and much missed) blogging this morning. Thank you, Brandy, for taking such good care of my baby boy 3 days a week!

Overall, we are very happy. I love each one of my jobs (all 4 of them) and feel so lucky to be surrounded by a supportive and loving family. Hopefully this newly founded "me time" will mean more regular blog posts and updates! Thanks for sharing my "me time" with me...I'm off to work now!