2009: A Year of Firsts

    Much like everyone else, I spent New Year's day reflecting on the past year and planning for the next. I feel, however, that 2009 was one of the biggest and best years I've had so far. While I had many hurdles to overcome throughout the year, I overcame them and am better for it. I love being able to look back and see personal growth!

    Jackson's arrival, of course, was the best part of 2009. I can't even put into words the mix of emotions I felt that day- the strongest of which was joy and pride. I'll never forget seeing him for the first time or that first night in the hospital. Our trip home was scary; our first month of sleepless nights was rough; his first smile was so incredibly precious. With each first he got closer and closer to the loveable, joyful, easy-going, always hungry, slightly mischievious, beautiful little baby boy he is now. I can't wait to see what he'll become in 2010.

Our first road trip was in March when Jackson was only 5 weeks old. We drove the 10+ hour drive to Jackson Hole, WY to visit friends and Jackson's dad. That tiny baby was a trooper. He slept most of the way and put up with mommy's singing in the car. And speaking of trooper; on the way back I was pulled over for speeding. As soon as the officer walked up to my car window Jackson started screaming. I promptly got out of a speeding ticket and as we pulled away Jackson stopped. Thank you, Jackson.

Jackson's first tooth- his lower, front, left tooth- came in September with it's next door neighbor soon following. About a week ago he started getting his upper front teeth so pretty soon he'll look a little bit like a beaver, but they'll be good for chomping on more advanced foods.

Thanksgiving, Christmas, New years were all firsts, of course, and pretty soon he'll have his first birthday (February 9th). I swore I'd never be that person who throws their child a themed birthday party, but don't you think a little monkey birthday would be the cutest?

In summary, 2009 was great. I have a new and perfect little human in my life, a new job that doesn't involve coffee and does involve my expensive degree and family and friends who I appreciate more than ever.

Here are a few snapshots of the end of the year:

Blueberry pancakes!

Papa's hat.

Jackson's first birthday party attendance.             Sippy Cup!!

We weren't thrilled about our first snowsuit.

Toophs!

Our first Fall...er, few falls

It is one of the most heartbreaking things when I see Jackson get hurt. I will be that mom that runs out onto the field and embarrasses herself -and her child- when they get hit in the face with a baseball. My mom was. Even though I was embarrassed, I loved it.

Jackson is pulling himself up and exploring his mobility options. With that comes the inevitability of falling. All I know to do is to scoop him up and let him know he is safe when that happens. It's a helpless and yet fulfilling feeling.

As I mentioned before, Jackson is becoming mobile. He's even starting to walk with assistance. We also have two teeth and more coming... the drool is unstoppable! His noises are becoming a little more organized and he's learned that if he uses his miserable cry at 5am that mommy will come put him in bed with her. Nearly every morning this happens and as soon as I open the door to his room he starts grinning. I know it's a game, but I love cuddling with him.

October is my favorite month. I loved sharing it with Jackson for the first time. We went to Greenbluff and picked out pumpkins, played with leaves, carved pumpkins, dressed up for Halloween (well, he did), made pumpkin-apple teething biscuits... I enjoyed my favorite month more than I have in a long time. Jackson seemed to enjoy it too!

August 2009 = Craziness

So Jackson's sixth month flew by. We had so much going on that I barely had time to appreciate all his new developments. The one I'm especially excited about is that he now sleeps through the night! Every time those words come out of my mouth I want to dance in place really hard.

Jackson is so close to crawling that it could literally happen any day. He scoots himself around the floor and can pretty much get to whatever seems the most appealing to him. Confession time: One day I was in the kitchen cooking harvest dinner (one of the things that made our month so crazy) and Jackson was in the living room playing with cousin Kaitlynne. I could hear him playing and talking and could see them around the corner, but since I'm not the greatest cook in the world, I have to admit that I was focusing mostly on the pot roast. Kaitlynne toddled around the corner looking a little suspicious so I decided to go to the living room to check things out. I could still hear Jackson, but when I looked around I didn't see him anywhere! I instantly panicked and felt guilty for not keeping a closer eye on him. After a couple more playful squeaks from Jackson I located him under the couch. Completely under the couch. He was content to be under there, but I still felt guilty...

I'm proud (and relieved) to say that we FINALLY bought a new (to me) car. After touring what seems like every car lot in Spokane I found the perfect car for us- a Mazda Tribute. It's not too big, but big enough to hold all of Jackson's stuff (for being so little he has a lot of stuff). It gets good gas mileage for an SUV (around 25), it was very well taken care, doesn't have too many miles on it and was in our price range. Yay!!! I officially hate car shopping.

Good Times, Great Friends

So Jackson's 5-months-old now. He's starting to sit up and pushes his legs like he wants to crawl. I don't know what I'll do when he can get around by himself! The next milestone? His Half-Birthday!! All the aunties want to have a party. :)

Speaking of Aunties... we went to Auntie Holly's house for dinner last night and I was reminded (again) of how great my friends are and how happy I am that Jackson gets to grow up around all of them. And... Holly makes great veggie pasta!

Today we're headed out to look for a new car. The ol' Jetta is getting a bit unreliable and we need a little more space- Jackson won't know what to do with all the space in the back of his new car!We're looking at a Chevy Envoy, a Ford Escape, a Mercury Mariner and a Toyota Highlander. I don't know how I feel about driving around in an SUV, but as long as it's smaller in size- so I don't feel like I'm truckin'- I think I'll be okay.

Jackson had his pictures taken a week ago with his dad. Here are some of the results:

I know what you're thinking so I'll just say it for you. Soooo cute...

Working Up to Running

Jackson is now a roll-over pro. He has mastered rolling over from his back to his tummy on his right side and is working on the left. At four months he looks like a little man and he's soooo much fun to be around! Since I went back to work full-time (about a month ago) he's been spending the day with Aunt Farren and Cousin Kaitlynne. It's so hard to be away from him during the day, but he's also very expensive... :)
This past weekend we walked in a 5k with Grandma Lynne, Great-Aunt Cindy and Cousin Kasi. Hopefully, this is the first of many races to come! We're working up to actually running them, but I'll have to get a jogger for Jackson first. (That's my excuse for not running yet...) A parade followed the race and Jackson loved it! There were so many things to look at!

*I'm working on accessing this from my Blackberry so I can post more often!

Look How I've Grown!

Just thought I'd prove to everyone how much Jackson has changed in the past 11 weeks.

Starting with the most recent pictures...

First Easter. Slept right through it...

April 12, 2009

Relaxing on the dryer.

April 9, 2009

Our first walk outside at Grandma Lynne's house. He loooooves the Snugli!

April 7, 2009

Uncle Curtis left for Iraq the next day. We miss you Curty!

March 30, 2009

Bath Time!

Old Man River catchin' a snooze.

February 24, 2009

Panda was upset that we didn't tell her she was going to be responsible for more than just Kaitlynne. As soon as she figured out there was another baby around she dutifully did her job as the protector.

February 16, 2009

Great Grandpa John and Jackson

April 17, 2009

Great Grandpa Crayton and Jackson.
February 16, 2009

This lucky kid has a great, great Grandpa, three great Grandpas, a great Grandma, two Grandpas and two Grandmas.

Happy First Valentine's Day!

February 14, 2009

At first, Jackson was a little small for his swing. Look at those eyes!

On the way home from the hospital.

He grew out of that outfit by the end of the week.

February 11, 2009

A little more sleep...

Jackson has become so much more interactive over the past week! He started smiling around 5 weeks, but his coos and smiles are now in reaction to things he likes and he can practically carry on a "conversation" with me. I love it!

For the past four nights Jackson has been falling asleep around 8:30... and staying asleep for at least a few hours! It's marvelous!! When he does wake up throughout the night it's just to be fed or changed and then rocked back to sleep. Last night I watched Celbrity Apprentice and I actually got to see who was fired! (Poor Herschel... I think I'd marry him if given the chance.) I feel incredibly rested for someone who hasn't slept through the night since February 9th. I wouldn't trade those sleepless nights for anything though!!