Daddy Joins Us At Gymboree!

It’s Saturday and that means another fun day at Gymboree!!! Daddy joined us today as we practiced developing our core muscles. It was good having Jarvis there so I could take pictures and video for the blog.:-) Luckily there was another fun couple there as well vs. just moms, so the dads didn’t feel alone. Jackson really loves Gymboree and gets more verbal with every class… it’s as if he’s trying to sing the songs now too.

Is There a Window Open?

As you remember, when Jackson was born he had a head full of hair. Well slowly but surely that full head of hair has continued to grow in some spots and others, well let’s just say not so much. Jackson has managed to brush away all of his hair in the back of his head due mostly to the fact that when he tosses nd turns during his sleep, he constantly moves his head back and forth. One of the moms at Gymboree said her daughter had the same problem but at 6 months it grew back in, fast. Well Jackson is just short of 6 months and I don’t see a stub, in fact when you rub your hand against the spot all you feel is peach fuzz, literally. Here’s to hoping hair is just around the corner…Cheers!

Awake in Good Spirits

Jackson has truly taken after his mom...he is an early bird. He came into the world early and he is as happy as can be when he wakes in the morning. His normal wake time these days is around 6 am. When he wakes up he talks non-stop until I come into his room and then as soon as he sees me he smiles. Since he is so happy when he wakes up, I usually let him talk and play in his crib for a little while before I get him. Those of you who know Jarvis well, know he is not a morning person so unless I am out of town, I am the first face Jackson sees in the morning. Which is fine by me because Jackson is my ray of sunshine.:-)

Jackson Celebrates 5 Months!!!

Today was Jackson’s 5 month birthday!!! His daddy decided they would celebrate by dressing like twinkies.:-) We had an off schedule doctor visit today to get Jackson’s 2nd round of Hep B shots which went very well. Jackson is starting to get the hang of this shot thing, he didn’t even cry this time…let’s keep our fingers crossed that he is over shots, next month it’s 2 big ones.

So as you know we usually celebrate with a cake, cookies or cupcakes for his month birthday, but this month mommy didn’t have anything for him.:-( Unfortunately work was super crazy so I’ll just have to make it up to him next month!

Jackson continues to come into his own personality. This month has been filled with more unique noises that become repetitious. He started the month spitting (see the video from the blog entry “Welcome Cameron Alexander”) and now he does this fake cough as if he thinks coughing is speaking. He is still on the verge of sitting up. He can sit straight up on his own for about 20-30 seconds then he’ll either fall to the side or lean forward using his beach ball belly as support.:-) He is also soooo soo nosey! I’m finding it harder for him to concentrate on eating or whatever else because he needs to see what’s going on behind him or with whoever just walked in the room. He loves to stand and when he does he pushes his but out so his body looks like a “V.” We’ve also tried to introduce a few vegetables and those have been unsuccessful so far. Zucchini was somewhat tolerable but sweet potatoes will make him purse his lips closed so we can’t get the spoon in. Of course mommy’s not giving up, we’ll try again next month.:-)

More Hangin' With Daddy

These are just some random photos Jarvis took of Jackson this week as they went out for a few outings. As you can see from the photos, when Jackson and Daddy go out Daddy dresses him from head to toe...including accessories...check out the wristband that you'll remember you saw from the birthday party a few weeks back.

Looks like he likes this pose:-)

Welcome Cameron Alexander

One of my best friends, Kim Glenn welcomed her new baby boy, Mr. Cameron Alexander. If you recall earlier in the blog she came to visit when Jackson was 3 weeks old. At that time we were hoping for a girl, Jackson's first girlfriend, but now he has a running buddy instead.:-) Here is Jackson saying hello to his new little friend.

Easter

Easter baskets, no, but Easter gifts yes. Today was a great day! We got Jackson dressed up, very cute I must say, in his Easter gear, hat, shoes and all and headed to church. He had fun in church as he usually does. He is in awe of all the people (he must think we live a sheltered life:-), especially the little babies. There is one cutie who is in the baby room sometimes that he stares at. After church we went to meet my mom for Brunch at Brio. Jackson was sleep most of the time but he did wake up toward the end to give everyone a few smiles. He did not get an Easter basket but I did pick up a few bunny themed Easter toys. Next year his basket will be full of goodies!

Another Birthday Party

Sunday we went down the street to our neighbor's house for their son's 5th birthday. As you can see from the pictures it was an army themed party. Although Jackson couldn't play "crash the cans," potato sack race or tug of war he could still dress the party of an army soldier. He was so amazed at all the kids. I believe that was the first time he was around that many kids now that he has become more aware of his environment. He definitely enjoyed himself. This gets mommy thinking already about his 1st birthday party. It will be a huge celebration...I can't wait!

More Fun at Gymboree!!

Jackson is loving his Gymboree class! He is starting to get the hang of things now. He is much better about tummy time and loves when I pull him up and down on his blanket on the slide. Jackson is still in awe of the other babies in the class but he is now starting to pay attention to his mommy more.:-)

Who's Your Momma

Well there has been contention in the household on who baby J looks like. Everyone swears he is looking just like his daddy. Well I finally got my hand on my baby pictures and I think you will be surprised. Looks like a slam dunk for mommy!!


Daddy

Jackson 1 day old...

Momma

Daddy + Humming = Squeals from Jackson

One of the things Jackson loves to do is squeal at the top of his lungs. Once he starts squealing all you have to do is talk to him and give him kisses and he gets more excited each time. Here is Jackson in action triggered by Daddy's humming.

Daddy Day Care

Jarvis is at home with Jackson for a few weeks so I told him to update the blog...as you can see I am updating it but at least he has provided fun pics for me to post. Jarvis has more of a schedule and routine than I did when I was at home with Jackson. Jackson's day includes storytime, exercies and playtime. See the great pics Daddy captured below...

Jackson's 4 Months!!!

Jackson turned 4 months today! We celebrated with a yummy Easter themed cupcake, which this time he tried to grab as he does with everything in his path.:-)

He is getting more fun each day! He is so aware of his surroundings that he is now Mr. Nosybody. He's well on his way to becoming buddies with Spaulding (our Silky Terrier) as he now sees him scurrying across the floor and occassionally will smile. Jackson has grown tired of some of his old favorite positions since he is on the verge of sitting up on his own. Now he wants to be upright or completely lying down. Tummy time is still not his favorite thing but he is getting more used to it, he especially likes it when he gets to do it on your chest vs. on the floor or the bed. He also loves to stand on your legs and attemps to flex his muscles in his legs when doing so. We are playing with a variety of toys now and he is showing more acute hand eye coordination.

Well this marks the end of an era....mommy now has to return to work this week, back to the real world.:-( I will still be keeping up with the blog of course, however there will probably be less pictures and updates over the coming months.

Cereal & Gymboree Class!

Today was a big day for Jackson. He surpassed a milestone, he ate his first meal from a spoon (rice cereal) and he attended a class at Gymboree where we sang songs and explored textures to help with auditory and tactile stimulation.

The first meal was a bit of a shocker. Am I the only mother out there that actually thought when you sit a 4 month up in a chair (Bumbo) and feed them with a spoon they would instantly get it? When Jackson started immediately spitting out the little bit of food I put in his mouth I was confused...I mean isn't this what he had been waiting for... some substance with his milk?:-) Then it dawned on me...he never drank milk sitting up so why would he know how to swallow anything sitting up. So I held in him in his "bottle feeding" position and interchanged the spoon with his pacifier for him to get the swallowing idea and he caught on.

Gymboree Class was fun for him. He was more engaged with the two little girls to my right and left vs. his mom who was singing and caressing him. The other moms said their babies were the same way on the first class, more interested in what was going on then the woman who birthed them.:-)He was really enjoyed the teacher as if he had to keep an eye on her so that in the future he could tell mommy if she was doing something wrong. The only thing he wasn't too fond on the tummy time on the slide, but tummy time in general is something he is still getting used too. We'll see how next Saturday goes.

Finally, Jackson's Sleeping in His Crib!!!

It's been a long time coming,but change has come.:-) Since March 12th Jarvis and I have moved up to the guest bedroom and Jackson has moved into his crib!!!! We've had some good night and some not so good nights but all in all he is doing better than he ever did in the pack-n-play.

So because he is down the hall in the next room, we bought this handy dandy color video monitor. For those who have yet to purchase a video monitor save some $$$ and go with black and white. The color feature was truly a waste of money since 90% of the sleeping happens at night, nightvision is not in color!

4 Month Dr. Visit

Jackson had his 4 month check up today. All is good...he's still packing on the lbs, weighing in at 14 lbs and 1/2 oz. He's just in the 25th percentile now for his height and weight and the 10th percentile for his head. Jackson had to show Dr. Michaels his strength...he grabbed her instrumentation when she was checking his eyes and would not let go! His shots weren't as bad for him this month, crying was minimal...before we left the room he was smiling again...thank goodness.:-)

Visit With Great-Grandma

Jackson and I went to visit my Grandma today. Grandma's staff became smitten with him, however all he could do was stare. Jackson often gets a bit shy when he's around a group of people and just stares in amazement. After the excitement calmed down, I gave Jackson his bottle and he was like an old man...he snuggled up in Grandma's arm and watched her TV!

Jackson Can Hold His Bottle

Jackson started holding his own bottle last week at 13 weeks! We can tell already that he is going to be an overacheiver. These days he has gotten very bossy, much like his mom. At his last feeding of the night we always give him a bottle so that we can try and fill him up to sleep through the night:-). Because he drinks a lot of milk at his last feeding I typically try and take the bottle away halfway through to burp him and once he realizes I have propped him on my shoulder he fusses like crazy ...it's as if he is saying, "lady, I thought I told you I want to finish my bottle completely before you burp me, got it, now give it back or else it's gonna get ugly."

Sunday Afternoon Stroll

The Boyd family sans Spaulding, had a wonderful Sunday outing. We grabbed some lunch down at Chuys in the more trendy, hip section of Dallas and then strolled the streets looking at furniture. The weather was absolutely gorgeous and Jackson was so happy and talkative strolling in his stroller. Interestingly, he loves to go for walks in his car seat stroller concotion but hates being in his car seat in the car...hmmm. We even did a little shopping and bought part of Jackson's Easter outfit, you will see the pictures soon they are going to be too cute!!!








Two Peas in a Pod:-)

Visit to San Antonio

This past weekend we took our first road trip down to San Antonio with Grandma and Great-Grandma. Jackson is not the best car rider unless he is asleep. If he is awake it takes someone riding in the back, which doesn't always help, to keep his mind off the fact that he is constrained. On the way down he was sleep most of the way until we were about 30 min from San Antonio then he told us very clearly he was tired of the seat and this whole road trip thing.

We had a great time visiting with my nephews, bother and sister-in-law. My middle nephew loves to call Jackson by his full name which he says is " Jackson Wiley":-)