Christmas

I had a great day today. I am kind of sad that Christmas is over. Jackson played really hard today. Now I have all week to straighten the house and play with our new toys.

Christmas on the Cumberland

Present from Santa

Present from MeMe and Poppa

My present from Jeff. A wonderful scrapbooking area.

I finally got to have a girls night. I went out with some friends that I haven't seen in so long. It was so much fun. I didn't get home until 2:30 a.m. which I haven't done in years. I hope that I am able to do this more often. I miss these women so much.

Me, Jennifer & Nikki

Me and Nikki

I was taking some random pictures with Jackson tonight and realized how much he has grown up. He looks like a boy now, not like a baby anymore. Below are some of those pictures along with some from a Halloween birthday party and Jackson's kitty cats. Jeff came home with two girl kittens a couple of weeks ago. Before we named them I was calling both of them "sister". Jackson immediately picked up on this, so now whenever we are out he tells everyone he wants to go home and play with his sisters. They now have names (Sherbert & Lola) but he still calls them his sisters.

My sister says I have a cow tongue.

I like this picture of us.

Here is my little man. He is no longer a baby.

The pirate at a Halloween birthday party.

The sisters.

A picture from the family reunion.

Zoo

This weekend we took Jackson to the zoo. This was his first visit. It was a perfect day. The temperature was in the 70's and it wasn't crowded at all. I am glad it was a good experience instead of the headache I was imaging.

His reaction to the first animal we saw

He petted the goats.

He rode the carousel

We saw a yawning snake. He really was yawning!

Jackson and Daddy were able to get in the meerkat cage to get a ground view.

A picture in the garden with Daddy.

In the garden with Momma.

It was a long day and he was tired.

New Home

I know I have updated anything in a while but we have been busy. We just bought a new house. We are officially in Dover for good! YAY! I love the life down here. I will have pictures to post soon. It is perfect for us. It has a finished basement which provides us with a guest room, Jackson has his own playroom, and I have my own office. I love it. Once we get everything where we want it, it will be much better. It is not a lake view but it is within walking distance to the water. Now Jeff wants a boat. It is really peaceful. I don't hear sirens or traffic. I don't hear neighbors. I do have neighbors but they are surprisingly quiet.

But we have moved so hopefully things will calm down now.

Mr. Manners

I realized today that my son is very polite. Just out of habit I make him say thank you when someone gives him something. And I try to remind him to cover his mouth when he coughs. He has picked up on these and I am glad. But today I saw all the polite manners come out. He has one of those old fishing games like I had when I was a kid. The one where the fish spin around and open and close their mouths while you try to catch them with a plastic little fishing pole. Well, he dropped the game in the floor and some of the fish heads came off. He brought them over to me one by one and I fixed them. After I handed each one back to him he said "Thank you". I didn't have to remind him. Then later in the day he did something that I didn't teach him. I sneezed and he said "Bless you". This is a manner that he picked up on from just watching us. It made me so proud. I really have a great kid. Even though he is into EVERYTHING, he really isn't a bad child. He went to church today with my parents and the nursery teacher (who is a Nurse Practitioner) told them that Jackson is the most well-adjusted child she has ever seen. She was impressed with him. That means a lot because she has seen lots of children over the span of her career in health services. I just hope that I continue to be a good influence to him.

We're Back

Well, vacation was fun but I didn't take a single picture. I can't believe it but every time we went somewhere I forgot my camera. We had fun and Jackson really enjoyed himself. I am going to post a few pictures from his 2nd birthday (Feb. 21st) since I haven't been able to do that yet.

Here are some pictures from today. He went to the park with his Nana and Papaw (Jeff's parents).

Vacation Is Coming!

I know I haven't posted any pictures of Jackson's birthday, but things have been a little busy. I am taking 3 classes this semester, raising a 2 year old, working full time and getting ready to go on VACATION!! This will be our first vacation since Jackson was born. Boy do we need it. We have gotten away on our anniversary but nothing longer than overnight. We will be spending one full week in Gatlinburg with my entire family. This includes my mom, dad, sister, brother-in-law, nephew, neice, husband, and son. It is going to be so great. We have done this once before about 3 years ago and it worked out pretty well. Everyone got along and there wasn't any fighting that I could remember. Once we get back I will try to post some pictures of Jackson's birthday and our vacation. I can't wait to see how he acts at the aquarium. I just know that I am soooo ready to relax and not think about anything. My professor is going to let me take my midterm late so I won't have to stress about anything while I am gone. I might even be able to read a non-school book. If you can't tell I am really excited.

2 Years Ago...

This time 2 years ago I was on early maternity leave, sitting at the house waiting to have my baby. It is hard to believe, but my little boy will be 2 years old in exactly two weeks. These past two years have been very different but wonderful. When he entered my life everything changed. I have forgotten what silence sounds like. I can't leave a room without hearing crying or having someone cling to my leg. I can't go to Walmart without coming home with a new bouncy ball (Jackson's favorite toy - I have about 45 balls lying around the house). Until recently I haven't been able to sleep in my bed without his feet sticking into my back. Thankfully this past week he started sleeping in his own bed. There are a lot of things I miss but there are also a lot of things that I am thankful for. I love his smile and the way he calls me "Momma". I like to watch how excited he gets when he sees a dog. I love how he wants to hold my hand when he walks outside. I like how he wants to wear his hat just like his daddy. There are so many good things that have come from having him. He has really made my life better. I wouldn't trade him for anything in the world.

2 weeks old

23 months

Christmas is Over

Well it was a good Christmas. Everyone was good this year and we all got presents from Santa. Jackson was very excited.

Everyone else was "plum tuckered out".