Month 14 Week 4

What a week! Jackson had a cold that turned into pneumonia and an ear infection and he caught an additional virus called RSV, which is a respiratory virus. We spent Monday through Wednesday in the hospital and every other day at home trying to keep him away from the germs.

Let's just say the hospital was zero fun. The nurses woke Jackson up 9 times the first night he was there. Drew and I were loosing our patience since he is so hard to get back to sleep. The second night I slept with Jackson on my chest on a cot. He had a crib but would have nothing to do with napping or sleeping in it by himself. I was very tempted to climb into the crib with him so that we could all get some sleep. It is about impossible to contain a 14 month old with two 6 foot wires attached to him. He was setting off monitors left and right. I got really good at clearing occlusions on the IV. Drew learned very quickly how to silence the alarms.

Jackson is doing much better. He still has fluid in his ears so we have to go to the ear, nose and throat doctor this week. He is still taking breathing treatments twice a day and will until April 1. We cannot take him to child watch of any kind until April 1 so I hope the weather is nice so we can go outside!

Thank you for all the thoughts and prayers. We needed each one of them!

14th Month Week 3 - Big Brother

We found out last week that Jackson will be a big brother on October 5th. He has no idea what that means right now.

Jackson loves playing with bubbles from Gymboree. They are neat because they stay for a long time. Look in his hair.

Drew had a birthday this month. Jackson helped him open his presents.

Both sets of grandparents helped keep Jackson while Drew and I went to Lake Tahoe on vacation. Jackson did not seem to miss us at all but we missed him terribly. We flew standby home so that we would be here in time to put him to bed. While we were gone, Jackson changed so much. He learned how to bang the balls into his boat and climb all over the couch. He also started taking a later nap.

It has been cold this month so Jackson and I have enjoyed playing at Discovery Place Kids and the mall has an indoor playground. I taught him how to crawl through a tunnel but I had to do it first to show him. He has also learned how to finger paint with shaving cream in the bathtub.

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!