13th Month - Week 2 - Christmas

We had a wonderful Christmas! We travelled to Tennessee to see Ashleigh's family. Jackson got to play with his cousin Emma-Catherine. They both love to eat! We spent Christmas Eve and Christmas Day at home. Jackson did not really open any of his presents. He loved playing with them once they were open. We stayed in our pjs all day and Jackson took two long naps. He was so tired from playing with all his new things.

We got snow on Christmas night and played in it the next day. We do not have a sled so we used a kayak. Jackson did not know what to think of the snow. He stayed glued to our side.

We used part of our Christmas money to join Discovery Place, a children's museum. Jackson had a wonerful time exploring. He sat in a Jackson kayak. Then, he played at the water table for 30 minutes and did not want to leave. He also loved the puppet show, driving the airplane, harvesting the corn and gathering the chicken eggs. He was so tired on the way home he was chewing his Cheezits with his eyes closed. Mission accomplished!

13th Month - Week 1

Jackson hung out with Amelia (2 years old) and Travis (3 years old) on Sunday. When he got home, he was walking all over the house. He has also started holding his sippy cup by himself. He turns it with the spout on the upper side instead of down but it seems to work.

He also figured out that his snacks are in his diaper bag so this morning I found him going through the bag looking for them. All the kids at the gym love Jackson's snacks. There is nothing special about them except that they are Jackson's. We take plenty to share.

Jackson got his first sugar cookie last Saturday and he also loves that magic cookie bars. (I can't blame him. Mommy and Daddy love them too!)

Jackson loves to unroll the toilet tissue while I am tyring to get ready in the bathroom. He has also figured out how to use his shape sorter. It is so neat to see him learn all these new things!

12th Month Week 4 - Santa

Jackson got to hang out with Nana and Papaw this weekend while Mommy and Daddy went to birthday and holiday parties. They took Jackson to a birthday party at The Little Gym. Jackson enjoyed seeing all the other kids.

This morning, Mommy and Jackson went to have coca and cookies with Santa. Jackson loved looking at Santa from a distance but did not like sitting on Santa's lap. I think part of the problem was the separation anxiety he is currently experiencing.

Jackson is cutting all 4 molars at one time. He is walking big distances but would still prefer to hold your hand. He has not been messing with the Christmas tree since we put it up. Jackson has been a big help in the kitchen with all the holiday baking. He loves playing with his magnets on the refrigerator and stirring an empty pot on the floor.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Jackson battled another cold the week after his birthday. He is also trying to cut his molars which makes him cranky. Jackson is experiencing separation anxiety so anytime Mommy leaves the room he screams. I am sure I will miss this stage one day. He is walking pretty large distances. It is so cute to see him toddle around but he takes some tumbles that worry us.

We spent Thanksgiving at Grammy and Grandpa's in Savannah. Then, we went to Tennessee to see Nana and Papaw and help them light the Advent wreath at church. Jackson kept the crowd entertained by tapping on the microphone. We stopped in western North Carolina to pick out and cut our Christmas tree this year. Jackson was a big help decorating the Christmas tree! The lights went on and he took them off. The ornaments went up and he took them down.

1st Birthday

We had a greet time with Jackson on his first birthday. We took him to the Lazy 5 Ranch with Grammy and Grandpa. Emus and lamas tried to get in our car as we were feeding them. (You drive through the zoo and feed all the different animals.) We laughed the whole time. We got to see zebra, giraffes and a rhino too. Jackson loves animals so he thought it was a lot of fun. For dinner, we had baked spaghetti and Nana and Papaw joined us.

Saturday, we had a frog themed party. The cake had two eyeballs that were cupcakes. We let Jackson have his own personal cupcake to destroy. The pour baby was exhausted after the party. He went to sleep at 3:30 in the afternoon, woke up in the middle of the night to eat and then slept until 8AM.

Jackson is in the 75th percentile in his height, weight and head measurements. The doctor thinks that he will be about 6'3" when he is fully grown.

This year has flown by!

11th Month Week 4 - Travelling North

This week we got to visit with a lot of people we had not seen in a while. First, we stopped in Pittsburgh to see Noah - Jackson's friend from our old neighborhood. Then, we got to see Uncle Nick and Aunt Shannon at their baby shower. Jackson kept all the women entertained and then took a nap in the church sanctuary. After the shower, we drove to Buffalo to see Nana. Daddy needed a haircut so we stopped at the barber shop Grandpa went to when he was little. Jackson's hair was long at the ears and back so we let him get it cut as well. Nana and Great aunt Judy throw Jackson a birthday party to start his birthday week off right!

11th Month Week 3 - Halloween

This week we hosted our first play date at the house. We fished for jack-o-lanterns in a cauldron, made ghosts out of our feet, and cut cheese with pumpkin cookie cutters. Jackson's cold turned into pneumonia and he got the croup. He did not sleep very well for several nights so neither did his parents.

Grandpa and Grammy got Jackson a wagon for his birthday. Drew put it together with Jackson's help so that we could use it for Halloween.
On Halloween, we all dressed up as the Auburn Tigers. We went to a costume party for the little ones and then trick-or-treated with our workout friends, Henry and Bennet. Jackson knew how to take the candy out of the bowl and put it in his bucket. He was not scared of the spooks at all!

11 Month Week 2

We had a follow-up with the plastic surgeon this week. He said Jackson's hand was healing perfectly. There are no more stitches and the swelling has gone down a lot. While we were at the doctor's, Jackson took his first unassisted steps. We will be chasing him in no time.

Jackson opened his first birthday present from Nana and Papaw. He enjoyed it!

11 Month Week 1

Jackson's hand is healing really well. All the stitches are gone now and the swelling is much better. We go see the surgeon again tomorrow.

Jackson had a horrible cold last week so we had to stay home. He is doing much better but still has the cough and I can here congestion in his chest. We may have to go to the doctor to get an antibiotic to get rid of it. The doctor said we still have to be very careful with him this year since he was a preemie and his lungs had trouble developing.

We went to a pumpkin patch with Amelia, Travis and Lillie this weekend. It was a lot of fun to have all the kids together. Jackson kept trying to eat the gourds. He was a sweet boy and shared his animal crackers with everyone on the hayride.

Aunt Tanisha and Uncle Zack are here to see us. They are driving across country from Alaska to Florida.

10th Month Week 4

Jackson has done really well with his hand this week. He still waked up in the middle of the night from the pain I think but he uses the hand all the time. When we went to the doctor on Thursday, he said "I can see Jackson has been outside," because his bandage was so dirty. I had to tell him that it was cookies. The hand does not look as good as Drew and I had hoped but the doctor said it was perfect. We will trust him since he is the plastic surgeon. The sticks will be gone this coming week and the swelling will be gone the following week.

Jackson started standing by himself while holding onto something this week. He loves to look out the door. He is crawling everywhere and getting into things. Thank goodness we babyproofed. He wants to see how everything works. I am just hoping he does not figure out how to open the drawers and doors and undo the hinges on the baby gate.

He said "bye-bye" to his buddies as we were leaving our gym class. That was a first and he has not done it since.

We took him to the farm today to pick out a pumpkin. He loved the animals at the petting zoo. He kept saying "da" which is his version of dog

10th Month Week 3

Jackson's surgery went well on Wednesday. Before surgery, he loved looking at the pretty fish in the tank and playing with all the new toys. As he went to the operating room, the kind nurse let him take his Froggie with him.

The doctor said his fingers were just joined by a small piece of skin. No nerves or ligaments were involved. We saw on the x-ray that all the bones were fine. The doctor did a "small" skin graft in his groin area for the skin at the bottom of the fingers where they connect to your hand. The graft is about 3 inches long which is not "small" in Drew's and my eyes. I think the whole thing was a lot harder on us as parents than Jackson.

His first night at home was awful. He was in so much pain he could not sleep. At 4AM, I called the doctor and he called in hydrocodon to the 24 hour pharmacy for me. Since then, we have been able to keep Jackson more comfortable. He is in good spirits overall. His hand is in a little blue bandage that looks a lot like a cast. We will get to see his fingers next Thursday at 3:45PM. We are praying that the skin graft took and they will not have to do that portion over again.

10th Month Week 2

This week was we made it to a playdate with one of the local mommie groups. We listened to a story and ate snacks with the other kids.

Jackson is getting more mobile each day so we finally got the babyproofing in the house done. I am sure he will show us what we missed.

10th Month Week 1 Continued

We finally got Jackson's outside swing up. We only had one limb in the whole yard that would work and it is way up in the tree so the swing goes really high. Jackson loves it!

Jackson got invited to his first birthday party this weekend. Emmy, his snack buddy from gym class, turned 2. Jackson got to eat pizza, popcorn and a cupcake for the first time.

Jackson finally got his knees under him and tried to crawl. He is rolling and pulling himself everywhere he wants to go but has not mastered crawling. He also walks from the ottoman to the coffee table while holding on.

10 Months Week 1 - Apple Pickin'

This weekend Nana, Papaw and Aimee came to the lake to help us make applesauce. It is Jackson's favorite food group.

Today, Jackson and I went with a the Playground Divas to an apple orchard in Mooresville, NC. We got to see bee hives, ride on a wagon pulled by a tractor, pet farm animals, pick apples and drink apple cider. We may have a little farmer on our hands.

9 Months Week 4

Jackson is starting to pull himself to where he wants to go on his belly. He has been rolling to whatever he wants for some time. Maybe he will crawl after all.

Jackson loves holding your hands and walking/running. He cries when you set him down. This week he started taking one or two wobbly steps between me and Drew.

We spent Labor Day weekend playing on the lake. We went to Nate and Jen's for a BBQ on Labor Day. Jackson got to play with Lillie and Asher.

Auburn is playing well so far. Our quarterback looks great. Let's hope he can keep it up against Mississippi State tonight!

8 Months - Week 4

We had a great time in Tennessee this weekend. Baby Emma and Amber came in from Texas. Jackson loved playing with Emma. He even tried to bop her on the head while she was sleeping during church.

We went to the Ocoee River to watch Drew kayak. Aunt Aimee graduated from college! Jackson walks holding our hands now. He loves to eat anything off our plates. Nana gave Jackson his first haircut this weekend.

8 Months Old

Jackson got his first cold which turned into an ear infection and then he cut his seventh tooth. Needless to say, we have had several sleepless nights over the past 3 weeks. He is now eating more solid food. He loves toast and we started meat in the baby food. We are working on learning to use a sippy cup. Everyone has a different opinion on which one is best.

Jackson learned to wave this week. He was sitting in a highchair waving at his shadow on the floor. We got him to look at us and wave. Later that evening, Drew was keeping him and Jackson saw Cameron Diaz on the TV. He started waving at her thinking it was Mommy. I am excited to be mistaken for Cameron.

Nana got Jackson a riding/walking toy at Christmas. We got it out this week for him to sit on. He loves all the things that make noise and move on it. We went shopping at Nicole's. Jackson is wearing 18 month old clothes now.

Weeks 33 and 34

We had a great 4th of July on the lake. Mommy tried water skiing for the first time and was able to finally get up but only for a minute. Jackson loves riding on the boat. He usually falls asleep.

Erin and Mike let us borrow a float that keeps Jackson upright. The life jacket makes him lean backwards and the floating bathing suit makes him lean forward. Mommy uses Jackson and his float as a kick board to swim out to the buoy and back.

Jackson shows a few signs of maybe crawling. He is really good at sitting up by himself.

Jackson has 6 teeth now so we figured it was time to start brushing them instead of just using a washcloth to clean them.

We bought a bike trailer so that Jackson can go with us on bike rides. The first day the inter tube blew in the trailer tire. The second day Mommy's peddle fell off her bike and Daddy had to ride home with Jackson while Mommy caught a ride with a friendly neighbor.

Weeks 30, 31, and 32

Wow, what a whirlwind! Last week we got an offer on our house on Monday and we were moving out on Saturday. Jackson is cutting 4 teeth on top. He is sitting up all by himself. He is eating food off Mommy's plate. He can swap items between his hands and reaches when we wants you to hold him. I cannot believe how fast he is growing!

Weeks 28 and 29

Jackson has had a respiratory virus for a week now. Thanks for sharing, Daddy! Jackson is doing fine. He is just cranky because his head is so stuffy. He sleeps better sitting up.

We got to meet Aubie last week. Jackson loved touching his whiskers.

Jackson reaches for everything these days - Mommy, Daddy, jewelry, his puppies and your food. He has figured out how to bang things on the table and even tried to kick his bottle off the table. He takes a step when he is standing up. He sits by himself for quite a while before slumping over.

We bought a hiking backpack so that Daddy and Jackson can practice before we get to Alaska.

Week 27 - Playing Hard

Jackson can touch his toes. He has found his voice. He makes a sound and if you make it, he will repeat it. He can sit up pretty well by himself. He loves drinking out of Mommy's water glass. It makes such a mess but it cools him and Mommy off.

This morning he played so hard he fell asleep on his mat.

Jackson has his first cousin. Baby Emma was born on May 27. She weighs 8 lbs 13 oz. Aunt Amber is doing well. Uncle Christopher has his hands full!

Week 26 - Baptism

Jackson was baptized at Trinity United Methodist Church in Athens, TN on May 16, 2010. Aunt Amber smocked the outfit that Nana made.

Jackson took his first bath in the big bathtub at Nana and Papaw's this weekend.

We stayed with Grammy and Grandpa in Sevierville for a few days. We went to Cades Cove on Tuesday. I saw my first black bear. In fact, we saw three big bears and one baby!