Monday, June 29, 2009

Weekend fun

Friday night Kenny and I left Jack with Grandma and we went out with the Pearsons to celebrate Uncle Eddie's 30th birthday! What a great night! So sorry we didn't get a birthday post up in time (this working thing sure gets in the way of my blogging time) Uncle Eddie but you know Jack loves you and can't wait to celebrate with you soon!

Patti and Tommy also came to town this weekend and we got to spend Saturday evening enjoying their company and picking crabs!

Jack quickly figured out how crazy Tommy Weaver really is!



We sure did enjoy seeing them and hope that we'll get to do it again soon!



One of our local outdoor malls has a "splash pad" (a large concrete area with below ground water spouts that squirt on and off at various times) for the kiddies. It's something I've waited a long time for Jack to be ready for and we finally gave it a whirl Sunday afternoon.



It was full of kids even though it wasn't the nicest of days! Jack wasn't so sure about it...at all. This picture completely sums it up!



After a while, he did warm up to it a bit...



but mostly he liked getting to walk around the mall instead of having to ride in his stroller!



Hope you guys had a great weekend too! Next weekend we're headed to see the rest of the Lion clan in NoVA and really looking forward to it!!

Sunday, June 28, 2009

Summer kick-off cookout

Thursday night, Jack's school had their annual summer kick-off cookout. We didn't go last year since Jack was only a few months old and not really into such things but this year, he had a blast!

It was the first time he'd seen a "mascot" up close and personal and he was a bit fascinated with Howill the Owl.



He even tried to do the Macarena!



He also tried his first snow cone - it was a hit! In fact...he had 2!





Several folks asked if this little girl was Jack's sister and were shocked when we said no. Their hair was the EXACT same color. We can only hope we have a little girl with such beautiful curly locks!



We stayed until way past Jack's bedtime and even then, he kicked and screamed when it was time to go!



It was so comforting to see how much he loves being there. He helped himself up into the laps of teachers, and even ate from their plates. His former teachers admitted to stealing him from the toddler playground to take him to the baby playground for a bit just to spend a little time with them. One of the other Dads in Jack's room came up to me to tell me how neat it has been to watch Jack open up over the past few weeks. He said he was so apprehensive those first few days and now just smiles to greet everyone when they come in the room. It's more expensive than I might like but after a night like that one, I sometimes wonder if we pay enough. There's nothing more important than trusting the folks with whom you leave your child all day and nothing more wonderful than feeling the love between those folks and your child.

Thank you to our Tuckaway family for a great night and for all you do for Jack every day. We hear there's a montage video coming and if we can update with that later, we will!

Sunday, June 21, 2009

Fun, fun, fun!

We had another busy weekend packed with fun! Saturday we went to Lila Grace's 1st birthday party and what fun that was! Look how sweet the birthday girl looks!



And check out her ballerina skirt on her high chair! Too cute!



She and Jack followed one another around a lot. It was really cute!



Lila's party was in a large gym full of balls and ride on toys and a bounce house and bubbles and snow cone machines! It was quite an extravaganza and I'm not sure Jack has ever had more fun! He ran around the entire time playing with all the balls and toys and just grinning from ear to ear!



He liked this little bike so much that Lila's most generous grandmother gave it to him to take home!



It was his first foray in a bounce house and while he wasn't quite sure what to do with it to start with, he figured it out and did not want to get out. At all.



He also tried cake again - after his 1st birthday when he wanted nothing to do with it - and LOVED it! Perhaps he just wanted hot pink icing on his birthday cake!?!



He had so much fun - thanks so much for inviting us Lila! We hope to see you again soon!

Sunday we spent the day playing with some of our favorite Dads! It was a beautiful day in our neighborhood so we took a walk down by the river.



and Jack even got to go out on the rocks for the first time!



He loves being outside in general and really loves the water.



He wanted to get in really bad and threw a bit of a tantrum when we wouldn't allow it.



That night Grams and Gramps came over for a cookout and Jack loved getting to sit squarely between them in his own big chair. Look at those smiles!





He helped Gramps open his cards and of course liked the one that was from him the best!



Hope that all of you had a great Father's Day with your Dad and we can't wait to see the Dads we didn't get to see here in a few weeks! We love you all!

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Water baby

It seems swimming lessons paid off! Jay was nice enough to invite us to the pool this weekend and Jack LOVED it!




6.5 more weeks until we head to the beach - we can't wait!

Saturday, June 13, 2009

Happy Retirement Grams!

Wishing you days filled with time to play in the dirt,



grow lots of pretty flowers,



read great books,



and enjoy walks by the water and time in the sun.



We sure do love you and are so proud of the difference you made in the lives of so many children.

Can't wait to enjoy this next phase of life with you...

Wednesday, June 3, 2009

15 months old!

Month 15 was full of excitement and changes. The biggest of course was the transition from this:



to this:



He's not looked back since he took off last week. He's cruising very quickly, kicking balls, picking up toys along the way and in general, much happier on 2 feet!



He got 3 new teeth this month and according to the doctor has 4 more coming very soon. That's a grand total of 12 so far! All those teeth caused him to wake, more often than not, at least once a night. I've gotten kind of used to it again, just like when he was 3-4 months old. His smile gets cuter and cuter though with each new tooth (if that's even possible!).



His 15 month checkup went well! It was the 1st appointment I've had to miss but Kenny gave me a great recap of it all!
weight: 21 lbs 4 ounces (10th percentile)
height: 31" (50th percentile)
head circumference: 20" (off the charts)
His head, while still very large, seems to have come a little closer to the curve instead of continuing to grow farther from it. He's still on Zantac and she thought it best to leave that alone for now and let him outgrow the dosage in time. She suggested that we cut back on his milk intake so that he'd eat a little more, which seems to be working. He got a few more vaccinations but apparently took them rather well and they were on their way, cleared for another 3 months!



Jack developed a love of rocks this month. We have a farmer's market in the park near our house every Saturday morning and we often go and let Jack walk a bit. He always stops to pick up a rock and then stops again every few feet after that to trade in that rock for a new one. Most of the time the rocks grow in size with each exchange. He gives his choice a fair bit of consideration too, it isn't just a quick pick up and run!



When his teeth weren't bothering him and he didn't have hand, foot and mouth hurting his throat, he loved playing lots of peekaboo and having fun with any household items he could get his hands on.





He learned how to say ball and night-night this month though he definitely saves them for special occasions and won't just say them on demand!

The transition back to work and school is still underway, though I think we are finally getting a little closer to it feeling normal. I miss Jack so much during the day and count down the minutes until I get to see him after work. He's fussing every morning when his Daddy drops him off though his teacher tells us he's ok once Kenny's gone. I think it's more an age/stage thing than anything else and expect it will last a while. Jack's apparently gotten very attached to Miss Amanda and cries when she leaves the room too. I can't blame him. She's so cute and sweet and I know she takes excellent care of him! He's always happy when I arrive to get him and while he smiles and comes right to me, it's nice to see him playing nicely before he sees me. He's napping fairly consistently there for 2 hours on his cot (no cribs!) and loves playing outside on the playground. Water play starts this week (after being rained out last week) and I know he's going to enjoy that!



I wonder every month how I can possibly ever love him more or think he's any cuter than he is right now...and somehow every month I fall a little more in love and a lot more in awe. Oh how I love being Jack's mom and can't wait to see what fun we have in month 16!

And he's off...

and walking!!

Tuesday, June 2, 2009

Not exactly off to the best start

Last week was a bit rough. Jack didn't exactly take to school like I hoped he would. Kenny took him every morning but after the 1st day Jack cried when they got there every day and most of the day after that.

My job got off to a slow start which made for long days with a lot of time to sit and worry about how upset Jack might be at any moment and how much I missed him.

Just as we got off to a fresh start on a new week, he got sent home first thing yesterday morning with a fever of 102. The doctor said his throat looked really bad but his strep test came back negative so there was nothing we could do but give him some pain relievers and hope it passed soon. It's been a long couple of days (and nights) but hopefully we are on the mend!

Jack did get to try out his very first popsicle last night as we tried to soothe him and cool him off a bit...



He liked it once he got over how cold it was! Look how sad his little eyes are though. Poor little guy didn't feel good at all!



Hopefully we'll all be better by the weekend when Mandi and Grace come to see us!! We can't wait!