Baptism

Today was a special day for Jackson. He was baptized!

It was a beautiful sunny morning spent with family at First Immanuel Lutheran Church in downtown San Jose. Afterwards, we hosted a family brunch at our home. Here are a few pictures in front of the church after Jackson's baptism:


Godparent Aunt Cathy and Uncle Mike with Jason, Jackson, and me.


Jackson's Godmother and Godfather.


Isn't Jackson's outfit too cute?!

It was a nice service and we were happy so many family members were able to join us for his special day. Especially considering several people returned from a trip across the country just the day before!

Also, last but not least, Jackson turned 9 months yesterday - Happy 9th Months Little Guy!!

Happy 4th of July!

Hope you all had a wonderful 4th of July. We had a fun time at Amerivespa. This is an annual scooter rally that is held in a different place around the U.S. each year. This year it was in our own backyard - Los Gatos. So, we HAD to go! It began on Thursday night with a meet & greet event at The Agenda in downtown San Jose and ended Sunday with a goodbye BBQ in Santa Cruz. On Saturday, we took Jackson with us to the 4th of July BBQ at Saratoga Springs. It was so much fun! Here are some pics from the day:

Can you spot Jason and Jackson? (if you double click on the photo, you may be able to spot them) Kinda like Where's Waldo...



Some cool vespas:






Mommy & Baby Vespa Set:




Vintage Baby Vespas (some are push-peddle trikes!)



Jackson liked this one:



Jackson also likes the cool hats:



Whew! What a day! Time to go home.



At the end of the BBQ, they announced where Amerivespa is going to be held next year. And, it will be in San Antonio, Texas! We may just have to go check it out. : )

Oh my!

I can't believe it has been over a month since I last posted. I do apologize, faithful readers! But, I have bad news for you...

I have so many cute pictures to share with you taken over the past month - including Jason's first Father's Day and our trip down to Long Beach to visit our soon-to-be-parent-buddies Heather & Greg. But, I left our camera in Long Beach. *sigh* And probably won't get it back until end of August. *double sigh*. So, maybe by Labor Day, I'll update you on our early Summer pictures.

In the meantime, since we returned this weekend, it has been HOT. Today is cooler (thankfully!), but it was very hot on Sunday. We took out the baby pool so Jackson could splash around and cool off. Here are some pictures (taken with our other camera) for you to enjoy!








After playing in the pool, he was famished. (All that fun takes makes you hungry, you know!) He devoured his favorite veggie - carrots. Someday, I think meal times will be less messy, but for now, Jackson thinks its fun just getting it everywhere. : )

Awesome Set of Wheels!

Okay, I'm totally gaga over this bike. Can you imagine how much fun Jackson would have riding in the back? The cargo bucket has a seat and seatbelt. Too cool! Click on the link below to help me win one.

MADSEN Cargo Bikes

Naked Time!

Yesterday, Jackson had some naked time outdoors. He's got a bit of a diaper rash due to the *ahem* frequent changes that have had to occur recently. So, what better thing to do than to enjoy the warm weather outside naked, right?!

Pool Time!

Poor Jackson is STILL sick. Its been a week now. I am so ready for this bug to leave! I am sure Jackson is, too. We took him to the doctor on Tuesday and it looks like it is the stomach flu. He did well on pedialyte for a day, but threw up this morning. And, I won't even go into detail about the "other end". Ugh. We are hoping for a speedy recovery!

On to better times...here are some pictures from Jackson's first trip to the pool at Uncle Mike and Aunt Cathy's a few weekends ago. He wasn't too sure what to make of all the water and fussed for a little bit. I think it will take a few more visits to get him used to the pool. He's sure to like it - especially on those hot summer days coming up!





Hanging out in the pool makes me sleeeepy......

Barfy Baby

Jackson had his first stomach bug last night.

He was cranky and fussy all day yesterday - I thought it may have to do with his shots that he received the day before. He didn't finish lunch, but he ate his dinner. Then, at 12:15am, he woke up. I went in thinking he just needed his binky, but found the poor little guy in a pool of white, pasty barf (sorry if TMI!). Barf in his hair, on his pjs, and a pool of it on his mattress. Yuck. Poor guy.

After I got him all changed, he threw up all over himself again (and on me) -- this time with me on the big kid bed in his room. After about 1/2 and hour of changing sheets (his crib, the bed) and clothing (his, again, and mine) he fell asleep quickly in the glider. I slept in his room with him to be sure he was okay the rest of the night, although it was difficult for me to get back to sleep since I'm such a worry-wart.

Then, at 3:30am he lost his cookies (or formula) again. Through out it all he was all smiles and seemed to be feeling okay - probably because it made him feel better. He woke up at 6:30am and has been sleeping for a little over an hour in his swing. Poor little guy. I'm hoping this is the end to his first stomach bug!

I may need to get him this bib if this continues:

Mother's Day

Hello there! Its taken me forever to get these pictures posted! We ran out of memory on one of our computer drives and after some file swicharoo, I finally was able to upload pictures from the weekend.

I had a great 1st Mother's Day! Jason and Jackson took me out for a surprise brunch at La Pastaia at The De Anza Hotel downtown. Delicious!! I also received a nice card, flowers, and a necklace with a "J" and birthstone for Jackson. The necklace has been ordered and is on its way, and here is a pic of what it will look like with a heart instead of the birthstone:



It is from bella button designs on etsy.com. I love etsy!

They really made sure I had a great Mother's Day. One of my favorite things we did was relax in the yard in our new hammock. Jackson enjoyed swinging in the hammock, too! Here are some pictures of our afternoon:

Me relaxing with my feet up while Jackson gets a snack


Daddy and Jackson relaxing


Jackson loves being on his tummy!


Lounging outside


Time for funny faces


Peekaboo in the hammock



Here is an extra picture of Jackson swinging in his swing. Gotta love that smile!

Lesson of the Week

Prunes and yogurt do not mix.

I have learned this lesson this week. In a baaaaaaad way....

Don't give babies (or any human that has a normal digestive system) these 2 food items together. The results are disastrous! And odoriferous! ugh.

I'm still trying to recover from it all.

These are the culprits:



I'll write more later when I am of sound mind (and nose)...

Scooter

hey guys - it's me, jackson.

shh...mommy doesn't know i'm on the 'puter.

i have to make this quick. she'll be back soon. i'm getting more mobile. check out what i did today. i was on my playmat, and next thing ya know, i was at the wall. i can only scoot backwards now, but soon i'll be crawling...and then, my plans to take over the world will begin.

you've been warned....

Baby Teeth

Chomp, chomp, chomp...





That's right folks - Jackson is getting his first baby teeth! I discovered this yesterday as he was biting my finger (as he usually does several times a day). Instead of his drooly gums, I felt a little poke from a tooth that is breaking through. It was like a little saw. I think both of his bottom teeth are coming in - we'll be able to tell better in the coming days.

We gave him a carrot to chew on - he laughed hysterically when we rubbed it against his bottom teeth, but after about 5 minutes, he didn't seem to like the taste (we haven't progressed to carrots as a food yet - we'll see if he likes 'em!), so he threw it down. I think he just liked the coolness on his gums.

Of course he is biting everything now...favorite teething items of note: the BOTTOM of his bottle (?) and human shoulders. Yes, shoulders. Go figure! He's not into the teething rings, chilled or unchilled, right now. Maybe later? If you have any other suggestions for teething items, do let me know!

In the meantime, stay tuned for more updates on the little biter.






"Teething" in the 21st Century:

Family Pictures

We had our first family pictures taken a few weeks ago and I just picked up the photos! Here are a few (okay...alot!) for your viewing pleasure:


Jason and Jack look so cute! I have the goofiest "I'm taking my first family pictures" grin. lol.

Jackson being too cute on his homemade blanket:







Daddy and Mommy kissy-poo pictures:




I just love this one:


Happy family!


Don't worry--- we have extras for you and will give them to you next time we see ya! NY and AZ folks - I'll be mailing them to you.

6 Month Check-up

Today Jackson had his 6 month doctor visit!

Unfortunately, I scheduled the visit in the afternoon apparently right in the middle of his nap. He slept the whole way there, in the waiting room, and into the exam room. How was I supposed to know this 2 months ago? Well, Jackson let me know, in no uncertain way, that he does NOT like afternoon appointments. When we rolled into the exam room, the surly nurse told me to undress him. So, I tried to gently wake the sleeping beau up and he totally freaked out and started crying like crazy, looking around like "Where am I??! What is this place??!". I tried to soothe him, but the nurse gave me a "hurry up" look. So, he cried when he got weighed, and during all of the other measurements. I, stupidly, said "Oh, he really doesn't cry much!" and she gave me a look like "Yeah, right!". No, but really, Nurse Ratchet, he doesn't!

We'll our little nugget is still over 95% in length (28 1/2 in.) and is 75% in weight (18lbs 8oz). The doc wrote a prescription to start flouride drops for his teef. "But, he doesn't have any..." I say. Still, he wants him to start. Okaaay. Apparently, he will continue to take the drops for years! I had no idea - Mommy learned something new today. : ) We can also expand his foods to yogurt, cottage cheese, and table food (mashed potatoes, overcooked broccoli, etc.). Last, but not least, he got one shot today. Only cried for a minute, and then was fine.

On the way out, I made his next appointment...in the morning next time.

How Does Your Garden Grow?

We've been working on getting our garden together this past week over Jason's Spring Break. We've planted 8 tomato plants [Hillbilly, Pineapple, Green Zebra, Black Cherries, Early Girl, Yellow Pears, Beefsteak, and a white variety that I can't remember the name of] and a few sweet pea sprouts. We have broccoli, red leaf lettuce, swiss chard, little pumpkins, moon & star watermelons started and will transplant them once they have sprouted. We're thinking of adding some spinach, too.

Here is a picture of the tomato bed. Since we always have such a problem with squirrels, we decided to squirrel-proof the bed by making a frame and placing fine bird netting over it. The front panel rolls up so the plants can be accessed. Its an experiment - we'll see how it turns out!

Jackson was next to us every step of the way! He'll be able to taste some of the veggies (sweet peas and pumpkins at least) over the summer. Yum yum! Hopefully, our tomatoes will turn out as good as Opas and Millies! They are our tomato inspiration. : )

You can click on the photos to enlarge. There are 2 plants missing as we planted them after the picture was taken (they had to be revived a bit due to the heat) but they're all in there now.

Spring Time

Spring is definitely here! Jason is on Spring Break this week and we've been keeping busy. The week started off with Easter. We went to church, then brunch at Mima and Poppa Stull's, afternoon visit with Erik and family, and home for our first Easter family dinner with lil' Jackson. Unfortunately, we didn't take too many pictures on Easter, but here are a few.

Jason's cousins, Matthew and Raechel, with Jackson:



Jackson's cousins, Sir Caleb and Princess Hailey, hunting for eggs:



The next day, we decided to drive up the coast to Mendocino for our first overnight away from home with Jackson. On the way up, we stopped off at the vista point after we crossed the Golden Gate Bridge:

San Francisco in the background




We also stopped off at Anderson Valley Brewing Company on HWY 253. As you can see below, mayhem ensued...



Jackson did very well on his first night away from home. He slept in his pack-n-play and enjoyed the sights around town from his backpack. It was SUPER windy, though (50 mph winds!), and we were glad he did not blow away.



Today the weather was much nicer (close to 80) and we decided to have lunch at the beach in Capitola. Here are some pics:









AND - I'd also like to mention that a very special family friend paid a visit during Lala's 90th birthday party from New York State - Webby! Here is a picture of Jason, Jackson, and Webby. He is a dear family friend and we were so happy we were able to introduce him to Jackson. : )