Jackson: another photo shoot

Jackson is 4 months old now. He loves everyone and everything. He loves his Daddy, Mommy, his dog - Duke, anyone else who gives him attention, getting his diaper changed, taking a bath, playing with his toys, eating cereal and peaches, the Wiggles, etc, etc, etc.

Jackson Eating Peaches!

Jackson loves peaches! Still a little messy, but we're learning.

Jackson: A few more pictures

A few more pictures from this week. Jackson is an extremely happy baby. As you can see, he is typically "all smiles"!! The comments we usually receive are: his eyes are beautiful/big/blue/bright, etc., he has an angelic face, he has such a friendly personality, he has beautiful/long, black eyelashes, one of my favorites directed at Jackson "are they starving you?" (obviously sarcastically - referring mostly to his cheeks!), he has a beautiful/big smile, etc. One I heard for the first time today was, "He has such a perfectly shaped head." Oh, yeah, and my entire doctors' office (doctors, nurses, etc.) decided that "he's so pretty, he could be a girl!" I think I'll keep that one a secret from him... we think he's adorable, but he's ours; so, it's fun to hear other people confirm our opinions. ;-)

One more step forward

Jackson tried his first "solid" food this week. He LOVED it! To be completely honest, I tried rice cereal almost 3 weeks ago, but didn't mix it with any "good" flavors, so he just let it all run out of his mouth, down his chin, and onto his very wet bib. However, I got a little bit smarter and bought a bunch of baby food - since he is no longer satisfied for more than 3 hours with his 6-7oz. bottles. Well, he loves peaches! They make a little bit of a mess since he is still trying to learn how to wait and let me put the spoon into his mouth BEFORE he starts to suck and slurp. But... we are learning together. It's pretty fun to watch him.

Jackson is getting so big! He continues to try to pull himself up on things, moves himself around in his "around-we-go" (usually while watching the Wiggles), and loves to be standing!! He is super strong. I have thought that for a while now, but don't all moms? However, so many people comment on it, including his doctor and nurses, that I am convinced it's true. Jackson is also very strong-willed! I can't imagine where he gets this from. ;-) He is usually very "well-behaved", has been sleeping through the night (for 8-10 hours) for about 6 weeks, and is pretty low maintenance. However, when he needs something and we take what he feels is "too long", he lets us know.

Other news from Jackson... he is teething! Boy, is this miserable. We feel so terrible when he cries the painful cry because there isn't a whole lot we can do for him. I just wish they'd hurry up and come through so that he didn't have to feel the pain anymore. Even still, he has been a little trooper. (Thank goodness for teething tablets and Orajel swabs!)

Finally, today he rolled over on his own from back to tummy (go figure that he would do it "backwards"). I was fixing dinner in the other room and heard him start to fuss. When I went in to see what he needed, he had rolled over from his back (which is the position I had left him in) to his stomach and was not a happy camper! He probably thought I was a nut for being so excited.

We are so grateful to have Jackson in our family! He is such a blessing and we are enjoying every minute with him.

A message from Dad...

I started school last Monday again. I gave a talk on Sunday about Easter and our Savior. I feel like I did a pretty good job. I was a little nervous, but quite a few people came up to me afterward, so it must have been alright. I was relieved to send off our taxes yesterday... one less thing to stress about.

I can hardly wait to move into the new house. Well, it's not "new", but it's new for us. Brooklynn's parents are in the process of buying it right now and we are so anxious to move in and have triple the space we have now and have our own yard!

I am going to start working for the University (probably this week) and will be building stages and sets for the theater department. I am grateful to have a job, even though I am not super excited about theater. At least I don't have to get up on stage or sing... ha, ha, ha! I will also resume my "odd jobs" that I pick up during the spring and summer time. The first will be for the mother of some friends of ours, the Greenfields. She wants me to plant & lay sod in her backyard.

Jackson is getting so big! He's really getting to where I can interact with him, so it's a lot more fun than just holding him. We eat together, take naps together, talk with each other, watch TV together, go for walks (with him in the stroller), and play together.

I love my wife more than anything. Our marriage is better than ever.

That's about it... there's nothing else going on in my life at this point.

Oh, yeah... Happy Birthday to my parents April 9th!!

Happy Easter!

I realize that Easter was two days ago, but I'm just figuring this thing out... and I thought Jackson's snapshots with his Easter basket turned out really cute! (He is now 14 weeks old!) Anyway, I hope everyone had a happy Easter. Considering we weren't able to spend it with either of our families, we had a wonderful Easter.

Parker gave an outstanding talk in Church that really helped to put Easter and Christ's Resurrection in perspective. Apparently, there were many in the congregation who were touched by his words. I am so grateful to be married to such a wonderful man.

After Church, we came home and took pictures of Jackson and his Easter basket. We opened up his toy and realized that it required 3 'C' batteries that we didn't have. Oh, well, I will learn to plan better as time goes on. (Luckily for me, he is still young enough that he didn't even know the difference.)

Then we all went for a walk (for 2 hours around town). After our walk, we went over to the Greenfields' home, who are some very good friends of ours. Jenna made a wonderful lunch/dinner for all of us to enjoy. We sure appreciate them and their generosity!

We are grateful for the gift of the Resurrection and of the chance we have to live with our Heavenly Father and our Savior again some day... Happy Easter!

Road Trips...

We visit family every chance we get, usually just for the weekend. We love living close enough to be able to do this. Parker and I are beginning to think that they really just want to see Jackson, but somebody has to drive him there, right?




Here are some pictures of Jackson from our latest road trip. He is such a good boy in the car! I hope all of our kids are as easy-going as he is. Jackson is such a blessing!