happy thanksgiving

We had a busy weekend filled with many fun family activities. On Wednesday we hung around the house with Aunt Keri and Aunt Lori and helped Grandma prep for our Thanksgiving feast. Of course and as karma would have it, Jackson came down with a cold for the holiday. We decided to not spend the night at my parent's house, but drove back down to Toms River on Thanksgiving day. It was a good thing too-Jackson was up all night! We helped Grandma prepare the food and celebrated with the family and Aunt Peggy and Uncle Leighton. Later in the evening we got to see Nana and PopPop. On Saturday, Aunt Keri & Aunt Lori, Grandma, & Grandpa took Jackson to pick out their family Christmas tree. Aunt Lori made sure to teach Jackson that the best Christmas tree is one with lots of room underneath for presents :)

my baby is ONE!

I CANNOT believe that a whole year has gone by and Jackson is now ONE! CRAZY, CRAZY, CRAZY!!! He's gotten so big and is soo active. It makes me sad when I go through his clothes and know that he'll never wear them again.

For his birthday party we went with a sock monkey theme, and I even went as far as dressing Jackson accordingly....in a sock monkey hat and color coordinating clothes, of course! ha! We invited family and friends over to celebrate Jackson's first year, and boy was our house crowded. Thankfully I was wise and arranged to have a bounce house in the backyward for the kids and they all LOVED playing outside & jumping around. And by kids I mean Keri, Lori, Bill, and Becky :)

where did october go??!!

So October was kind of a crazy month, and was over before I knew it! Between celebrating my birthday (glad that one quickly passed by!), going to Disney for Meghan & Mark's wedding, and then heading out to California, we spent the majority of the month on an airplane. Of course, we had the camera with us, but didn't take many pictures. So here's a verbal highlight of the month :) We had a blast spending a long weekend in Disney with my girlfriends from high school. It was fun to get away and be in warm, sunny weather. We never made it to the Magic Kingdom, but we figured Jackson, one, doesn't even know what it is, and two, wouldn't even remember it. We'll take a trip to Disney when he's older and it's worth it. From there, we headed out to California. While Bill attended a conference in LA, Jackson and I hung out in Santa Monica. We spent the day(s) running and walking/strolling around an outdoor shopping mall. We then had the opportunity to visit Bill's aunt & uncle's house in Malibu. What a beautiful house right on the ocean! It was amazing to be able to sleep with the windows/doors open and hear the waves crashing on the beach. It was great to be able to spend some quality family time with just the 3 of us. Once we landed back in NJ, it was back to reality and prepping for.....JACKSON'S FIRST BIRTHDAY!!!

hartshorne woods

This past weekend we spent a lot of time outdoors since it was so nice out, and especially since it's supposed to rain almost the entire week! I was soaking up the sun because I hate being inside! Anyway, on Saturday, we drove down to Seaside Park and took Jackson for a run (hmmm...I'm pretty sure that was more for us than him...). Since he took a decent nap while we were running we then met our friends on the beach and he enjoyed playing with all the toys in the sand. After his nap, we decided to go for a bike ride before making the drive back up to Red Bank. It was a gorgeous beach day with lots of sunshine :) Then, on Sunday, we decided to go to Hartshorne Woods and go hiking. Normally, Bill and I like to run there, but I think it's going to be awhile before we get the chance to go running there again. Close friends of ours kindly donated their backpack to us since their boys had outgrown in and we put it to good use. Jackson loved it! He had so much fun looking around at all the trees, plants, and animals. He LOVES being outside! Then, before dinner, we ventured over to Dorbrook Park, and spent some time at the playground...I think that one is his favorite...well, if I were a kid, it would be my favorite so I'm sure it's his too :)

Rock-n-Roll philly half marathon

This past weekend, Keri, Lori, Bill and I ran a half marathon in Philly. Jackson got to spend the night with Grandma & Grandpa. Bill & I left late Saturday and after checking out the expo & picking up our race packets, we went to visit our friends-Brooke, Carl, and baby Claire. She was born 6 weeks early and is still in the NICU, but getting better each day! On Sunday, we woke very early to drive to Philly and run the race. It was a beautiful day and the course was perfect...except for the hill right before the finish!! I was very surprised to see Jackson cheering us on right at that moment, but it was the perfect spot! Unfortunately, it was too loud for him and he was hysterically crying when we got to him. After settling down, we enjoyed a great lunch. A fun weekend was had by all :)

i just wanna swing II

So Jackson is finally big enough to go on the swings at the playground, and he LOVES them!! Since the weather has been beautiful the past few days, I've taken him to a local park on Monday, Tuesday, AND Wednesday. Monday I met a few newly-made friends at Dorbrook Park, and they have an awesome playground for kids...they even have a SPRAYGROUND!! (Ha.. I never knew what it was either until I checked it out :) It's basically a playground water park/playground for kids. Very neat. I'll definitely take Jackson back there again when he can walk/run around! Tuesday afternoon Grandma (Jane) and I took him to the park at Sickles and pushed him in the swing for a bit. I think he had more fun flirting with the little girl next to him! And Wednesday evening we drove to Fair Haven fields and went on the swings there. Once again, he was more interested in the older girl swinging next to him. Ah, my little flirt ;) Who knows where we'll go today?!

In honor of the touch-a-truck event, I went out and bought Jackson his first toy truck. He had so much fun playing with it that I could hardly capture a picture. Sorry for the blurry images but he wouldn't stop & smile!

touch-a-truck

While on our way home from running in Long Branch yesterday, we decided to stop in Fair Haven at the touch-a-truck event for little kids. We weren't sure how Jackson would do because as we were approaching the parking lot, we could hear all the loud sirens and horns ringing, and boy, was it loud! They had all different types of trucks on hand for kids to sit in, beep & honk, and play on. There was a fire engine, a UPS truck, a Comcast truck, a dump truck, a police car, an ambulance, etc...you name it, they had it!

Jackson had fun & loved it, but he's still a too young to enjoy it :( He did have fun looking around at all the different trucks and watching all the other kids, but we think next year is his year to play!

labor day weekend

Jackson came down with a cold a couple of days ago, so we were only able to spend Monday of Labor Day weekend on the beach. It was a great beach day though! Since Bill spent most of Saturday & Sunday surfing, he was able to spend some time playing with Jackson. The two of them played in the water & the waves with Aunt Keri & Aunt Lori. I'm not quite sure what they did the rest of the time because I took advantage of Bill being on "daddy duty" and chatted away with friends....until I had to come back to reality and help with naptime. Ahhhh....well, it was fun while it lasted :)

GRRRR...my phone stinks!!!

So, once again, I appear negligent in staying up-t0-date with my blog, but I swear, it's because of my phone! I suppose I could carry my camera with me at all times in order to take pictures, but it's more likely that I have my cell phone on me and end up using that instead. Who doesn't these days??! Anyway, for some unknown reason, it takes my phone FOREVER to email the pictures to my account. So, I apologize for the delay but these photos are from August...

Bill happened to be feeding Jackson breakfast, and somehow, he got ahold of the spoon...here's what happens. Looks like we have to work on his hand-mouth coordination :) At least he's happy about it!

who's that cutie???

I just had to post these. I think Jackson looks so cute with his hood up! He's obsessed with this activity table that Rachael picked up at the Seaside Park garage sales. It was the right price too so that makes me very happy.

say it ain't so....

So the past couple of days have been a bit crazy with all that has been happening, but i'm thankful because we've been able to spend some quality time together as a family. Bill also happens to have off this week so it's been great to see him spending lots of time playing with Jackson. We've been enjoying waking up late and just laying in bed with Jackson...actually, he's constantly trying to crawl all over us, and we have to make sure he doesn't accidentally fall off the edge of the bed. Since it was a rainy day this afternoon, we spent lots of time inside and playing with some of Jackson's new toys. It just so happens that today, he learned a new trick...take a look for yourself. Bill swears it won't be long....I certainly hope it is! I'm not ready for this!!!!

bike ride

Now that Jackson is getting bigger we're able to take him on more "adventures." I'm so excited to be able to take him for bike rides because truthfully, I miss them! When we first put him in the seat he wasn't quite sure of what to do with himself or make of it, but once we started pedaling, he absolutely loved the ride! He had such a great time and was looking at everything! As usual! He's not exactly fond of wearing a helmet, but too bad...he has too! We took a bike ride all around Seaside Park and even stopped to see great grandma & great poppop. Jackson had lots of fun and I'm sure we'll go for another bike ride soon :)

naptime is over!

The other morning I heard Jackson stirring in his crib. I figured I would wait a while to see if he would fall back asleep, but it wasn't happening. After about 10-15 minutes I went upstairs and found this:

needless to say, clearly naptime was over!

family fun

A couple of weeks ago some of the family gathered out at Rachael & Greg's house for a bbq. It was a long drive (Bill likes to joke that we were headed to Kentucky :) and SUPER hoT, but it was fun to get everyone together. We had the chance to meet baby Gabriel for the first time; he's a cutie! And so tiny! Was Jackson really that small at one time???!!! I can barely remember!!

it's all downhill from here

Now that Jackson is officially crawling he's working on mastering his next step...literally! He's been pulling himself up on to everything. The funny part is he's not exactly sure of what he is supposed to do after that. He gets stuck! But, I have NO DOUBT he's well on to his way of figuring it out.

finger foods

So in order to help Jackson develop his fine motor skills and to encourage him to independently eat, I've been trying to give him finger foods. Unfortunately we've been encountering some difficulty and he hasn't quite mastered this skill. First, he struggled to pick up the piece of food. Next, he couldn't quite find his mouth and get the piece of food in. Lastly, sometimes he wasn't quite sure what to do with it and it just sat in the cheeks of his mouth. As the weeks have gone by, he's finally figured it out....or so he thinks. He either, one, attacks my hand and pulls it toward his face, or two, he stuffs as much as he can in his mouth with his paw. Guess we still have some work to do :)

who needs toys???

I'm not exactly sure why I even bother spending money on all these toys for Jackson especially when I spend time on researching and finding the best "educational" toys out there to help him grow & develop. I've looked through them all: Leap Frog, vtech, Fisher Price Laugh & Learn, etc. You name it, I've checked it out! Out of all the toys I've purchased for him...which ones does he like the best??? Oh, how about all the hangers in my closet and an empty shoe box!! Truthfully, I shouldn't be surprised. Many great moms ahead of me have come to realize this and I certainly have not made a profound discovery. If that's what entertains you Jackson, then I have no problem buying more shoes ;)

this kid has talent

The other morning I decided to take Jackson for a walk downtown so I could grab a cup of coffee. Lately he's been waking up at 6am (YUCK!) so I stuck him in the stroller and headed out for my morning caffeine fix. Thankfully I was smart enough to prepare a bottle and was planning on feeding him breakfast upon our return home. Little did I know he had other plans. He was completely passed out by the time we got home with bottle in mouth, no hands!

eIgHt MoNtHs

Yes, I know...ONCE AGAIN I've been slacking with the posts. I was so crazed in trying to prepare for Jackson's baptism (which was June 20th!!!! Almost a month ago!!!) that I finally forced myself to sit down & blog! And it's about time as Jackson is OFFICIALLY CRAWLING!! My life is forever over but I have to be happy & cherish it...my baby is growing up :) Check out the video:

Ha...I sound like an idiot in it...clearly I need to get back to work as I don't even know the date!!!

Additionally, we had our 8month well visit. Jackson weighed in at 19.5lbs and was ....hmmm..it's been so long that I've gotta look it up & get back to you :)

grandma's birthday

A couple of weeks ago we celebrated Grandma's birthday! We went to Grandma & Grandpa's house and helped her blow out her candles on some sugary, blob looking mess called strawberry shortcake...where's aunt keri when you really need her?!!! But hey, it's the thought that counts and Grandpa made up for it by taking Grandma to Rich's II!! Now that sounds better :) Since Jackson can't exactly talk yet, we brought Grandma a balloon which read 'happy birthday.'

happy mother's day

We had a busy day on mother's day! Since it was my first mother's day, I received a bunch of thoughtful cards and flowers. After going to church, we headed to Toms River to have lunch with grandma, grandpa, aunt keri and her friend zach, and aunt lori and ben. Jackson napped through most of this meal...as usual :) Next, it was over to Seaside to have dinner with nana and poppop and aunt becky and aunt sarah. Here he spent most of the evening in his jumper while we took pictures and the dogs licked him. Good times!

somebody stop him!

Just today I noticed Jackson attempting to crawl! While his movements are still in the early stages, he's definitely trying!! He has started to arch his back and lift his butt up, and as the day progressed, he began to move his one leg forward.

Once I knew he could roll over I was trying to prevent any further developments because I knew it would lead to crawling which only leads to another thing....WALKING!!! I'm not ready for that!!! Here's a brief video of his attempts. It's not the best, but it's what I was able to capture.

we love to run

We spent this past weekend participating in two races. On Saturday, Bill & I ran in the River-to-Bay 5k. It was a beautiful day and we enjoyed racing through Island Heights while Jackson hung out with Nana & PopPop. We even ran into old neighbors & friends! It was a great time!

On Sunday, we ran in the Long Branch half marathon. It was brutally hot with temperatures supposedly reaching in the mid-90s. I'm glad I made it out alive. It was by far the hardest race I've run. That said, I swore to Bill it was to be the LAST half marathon for me and I was done racing in them. A few hours later, I began to search for my next one ;) I can't help it! I love to run! Jackson got to spend some more time with Aunt Keri and cheered on mommy & daddy, and Vanessa & Jodi. Aunt Keri even made a cute t-shirt for him!

swing swing swing away

Aunt Keri came home for the weekend and since the weather was so nice, we decided to attempt going to a park again. This time Jackson was able to enjoy the features of the park! He was able to go in the swing since they had a baby swing, and he LOVED it. I think he thought he was flying. He also had the chance to go down the slide. We will definitely be back again!!

new noises

Jackson is beginning to discover a whole new world of sounds & noises which he can produce. It used to be the simple giggle, squeak, brrrrrrr (complete with drool coming out of the mouth). Recently, he has taken to screeching and squealing. Thankfully I was at the gym upon this discovery, but poor grandma...she got an earful! Here's a brief clip of him in action. Enjoy :)

beach house

Just a few images of Jackson hanging out back at Nana & PopPop's beach house on D street in Seaside. We can't wait to be there full time for the summer! We love the beach!!!

"bring your child to work" day

Thursday was "bring your child to work" day so I brought Jackson to visit Bill at Innovative Engineering. We hung out for about a half hour, just long enough for Jackson to christen Bill's desk and stink up his office :)

feed me lady

Jackson's practicing how to eat with a spoon. He's still extremely clumsy and can't exactly find his mouth, but he does know one thing: when I break out the bowl & spoon it means food for him and he can't wait to gobble it up!! He acts as if he's never eaten before and is constantly starving. Boys will be boys? Maybe??