New Jackson Pics!

I haven't been too diligent on updating the website so here are some recent pics of Baby J! :) He just got a new toy - His walker... So far, he doesn't really like it but he will grow accustumed to it with time.... He's become quite the little sweetheart - really actually hugging me and Ryan now with both arms... Talk about melting your heart! :) I can't believe 6 months have come and gone by so fast and I'm so saddened to think we can never get those days back. But! Jackson is more and more fun and cute and sweet every day and we fall more and more in love every single day! Enjoy!

Almost 6 months old!

Jackson had his 6 month appt today and the doc gave him a big seal of approval! Jackson weighs 17 pounds, 11 oz which is WAY smaller than Ryan and I thought he was, but he is "around" the 50th percentile again.... (he had creeped up to the 75th percentile last visit!). Dr. Rodgers is AMAZING so anyone looking for pediatrician in Little Rock - he's HIGHLY recommended! My poor baby did get 4 nice size shots to the leg and screamed bloody murder. He is so sweet how he wants his momma when he's upset like that.... Ryan and I took these pictures from the doc visit. Some of them were too precious to not post.

Jackson Giggles with Aunt Connie!

Jackson is laughing all the time now... This is from the cabin trip 2 weekends ago and Aunt Connie really got Jackson giggling!

Everything goes in the mouth...

Jackson is at that stage where he thinks that everything he touches must be tasted! Whether it is a toy, one of his books, his burp cloths, my hand, or one of the cats, eventually everything he gets his hands on takes a brief tour of the inside of his mouth. Right now he is playing in his "exer-saucer," and this is no exception to the 'mouth' rule!

Great Weekend in the 'Ville!

On Thursday, Ryan, Jackson and I left for Fayetteville. I had some appointments and Ryan took the day off on Friday to hang w/ Jackson.... We had a great weekend! On Friday morning - it was Daddy/Jackson day and they went all around! Ryan took him to see Grandma at work and show him off there (J was a HIT!) and then to the U of A and Jackson met some faculty at the grad school and then to Mimi's work.... After that, we took the long drive to our friends Connie and Kraig's parents' cabin out past Jasper (about a 2 hour drive from Springdale). We spent the night w/ them and their GORGEOUS little girl Lauren who is a year older than the J-man. Then we drove back and hung w/ Grandma and Uncle Dave/Aunt Carla.... Then Sunday we chilled out and hung w/ my fam.... It was a busy but fun weekend! I wish we lived in NWA so we didn't have to drive... J-man did not like the driving part of this weekend and we decided we will not be doing that again where he has to be in the car so long... He screamed (and I mean SCREAMED) for the last 45 minutes of the drive back on Sunday. Fortunately, he has gotten back into his routine well and seems glad to be back "home."

Giants Need Jackson's Help!

Sunday, New York plays Philadelphia at Philadelphia.... Well, Jackson told me that he wanted to go ahead and start his support of the Giants early since it will undoubtedly be a difficult game. Giants only have 1 loss so we're going to try to keep it that way.... I want the Giants to win for more than 1 reason this time - In my fantasy football game coming up this week, I'm playing Ryan's cousin Jason who has a LOT of Philadelphia's starting lineup - so I need them to LOSE LOSE LOSE for that reason too! Not only to lose - but I need them to do HORRIBLE!! So lucky for me, my little man is on board supporting his momma! :) Too cute for words!

Don't forget to VOTE!

Jackson wore his Red, White, Blue today in honor of Election Day!

Don't forget to go out and vote!!!!

Jackson's 5 Month Pictures!

Pièce de résistance

Last night was Halloween, and we actually got quite a few Trick-or-Treaters. Overall, I would say that about 30 kids visited our doorstep - which is a far cry from how many kids were "out on the town" when I was in my Trick-or-Treating prime. Most of my Halloween memories come out of Plano, TX, and I can remember what seemed to be thousands of kids roaming the streets in search of candy! There were some adults in the mix back then, too, but for the most part us kids were free to roam the streets of our neighborhood by ourselelves. Needless to say, that has all changed now... Every single group of kids that came to my door last night had some sort of adult supervision, which is undoubtedly a sign of the changing times...

In honor of the holiday last night and all of our Halloween visitors, I carved what I believe to be my pièce de résistance! Here is what I am talking about:

Although Keisha is still partial to the pumpkin I carved with the two little kids on it (Pumpkin #2 of 4 this year), this one has taken over the top spot on my favorites list!

In case you missed it, we dressed Jackson up as a pumpkin for halloween! I know what you are saying - tons of babies get dressed up as pumpkins for their first halloween, but we did it a little bit different. Keisha saw this on TV so we decided to try it:

Although he looks super cute in this picture, this scene didn't last very long! Jackson was not too excited about being stuck into a cold, wet pumpkin wearing nothing but his diaper... We managed to hold off his crying just long enough to snap this picture, though, which I think came out pretty good! =)

Survivor Update

Everyone will be glad to know that the weisel Ace is gone on Survivor! So be it! Sadly, my boy Dan is gone too.... He was just a bit too intense for Survivor! I suggest he consider the Amazing Race! Oh well..... My new person to root on is Sugar (even though I think her days are limited...). I think she's tougher and she proved last night - smarter - than people give her credit for!! I also like Marcus on the other team... The previews for next week look really good! It's not too late to start tuning in to Survivor!!!! It's the greatest show on TV!!!

Pumpkin #3...

The first two pumpkins that I carved this year have officially made their way to the trash can, and since tomorrow is Halloween I figured I should at least have something to present to our potential Trick-or-Treaters... I introduce you to, The Spooky House:

Did You Vote Yet!?

Ryan, Jackson and I did!! We voted yesterday and Jackson was an angel - even though, you could tell he wanted to cast a vote too and they just wouldn't let him! :) He slept about 45 minutes on his daddy while we were in line waiting.... It took about an hour and a half of waiting and then about 2 minutes to vote. Oh well - we did our civic duty! Even though Ryan and I agree that we would like to toss back both candidates and get 2 more, we are proud to live in a country where we are given the right to a vote, and we decided to make the most of it! We're proud to be Americans and proud our baby boy will get to grow up in this AWESOME country!!! :)

We're Rolling!

Baby J has officially rolled from belly to back and back to belly.... We did a lot of practice yesterday, so apparently it paid off... I watched him and he flipped back and forth about 4 times in a row! Guess he likes his new trick!

Last night was pretty funny - Ryan was on "duty" and said he woke up to some unusual noise on the monitor (I tune OUT when I'm not on duty - I just zonk!).... So he looked and noticed that Jackson was all the way at the end of his crib.... So he went upstairs to investigate and Jackson had reached up and turned on his mobile! He was just sitting there staring at all the lights on the ceiling.... Too funny! He's growing up sooooooo fast!

Visit from Mimi and Grandma!

Last weekend, my mom and my grandma came down to visit and it was wonderful! Ryan had his 10 year high school reunion, so my mom watched Jackson for that and we just spent some great time together. My grandma (Jackson's great grandma) is having a hip replacement surgery on my birthday here in Little Rock, so we will get to see her soon again! Jackson LOVES when his Mimi is here and my grandma being here was an awesome bonus!

He's really trying to sit up on his own, so here is a pic of what he can do... DON'T WORRY - we were right next to him, so he won't fall!

For some reason, I couldn't get anyone to smile for the camera.... ESPECIALLY my mom! Maybe now, she'll actually let me take photos of her and she'll smile!

Another day, another pumpkin...

Here is pumpkin #2 of 2008. The picture of this one came out really cool!

Here is what it looks like in the light:

And here is what it looks like all lit up:

I think that this is my favorite one of all time! Stay tuned for my next creation...