We start 'em young!

Jackson had his first piano lesson this week. I think he's a natural!!

I think I have black eye...

The past few weeks, I've been recording funny things Adam says at different times. They always seem to happen on Sunday. Today wasn't a disappointment! This morning, we were getting ready for church and Adam was having a hard time because he wanted to play Lego Star Wars on the Wii (he had played Saturday night with Uncle Daris). After telling him no and lots of tears, we finally had a semi-happy boy and he start teasing his dad - he's become very good at teasing (he learned it all from his dad!). Anyway - after one silly comment Scott said "you better watch out, I'm gonna get you after church" - Adam's reply was "Oh, we'll see about that"! It was hilarious!
The other funny thing happened while we were reading bedtime stories with the boys. Adam's eye was really itching, so I got some eye drops and put them in his eye. He looked at me with a very concerned look on his face and said, "Mom, I think I have black eye again!" We'll have to watch out for that one!

Has it really been 8 months?

Can someone please tell me how to slow time down a little bit? The past 8 months have gone by so fast - especially this month! I haven't been very good about taking pictures. So, there are very few pictures to go with this post.

Jackson did not have a very happy 8 month birthday. He is working on popping out his second tooth (the bottom right). His poor gum is bulging, and he spent the day with a slight fever and runny nose. He was just not happy unless he was being held, and he spent a lot of time just laying his head on my shoulder and tugging at his ear. Hopefully the tooth will pop out during the night. He was so tired at dinner tonight, I got these great 8 month pictures of him sleeping in the high chair. Poor baby!! Zoned out!

So, since there aren't many pictures highlights this month, I'll just tell you what he's been doing. Jackson is still not interested in crawling. Adam has tried several times to show how to crawl, and he's pulled him around the room on his belly. Jackson just thinks it's a game and laughs hysterically at his brother. He has been working on his reach - he can pretty much fold his body in half to try and reach for something. It's pretty amazing what he can get at without moving!
Jackson has started giving the best hugs and kisses! I love getting him out of bed in the morning! First of all - he is SO happy! Then, as soon as you pick him up he wraps his little arms around your neck and snuggles in. He will then lean back and come straight at you with his mouth wide open. Basically, he just sucks on your check and even gets his tongue in on the action! I love it! Sometimes when he's sitting on my lap, he'll grab my face and start heading in for the open mouth kiss. It's so adorable!!
He's also become fascinated with hair. If I don't pull my hair back when I'm holding him, he constantly has his fingers in it, and is always trying to get it into his mouth. It's pretty funny - he'll just sit there with a mouth full of hair and a big smile on his face. I also have to be careful in church - he will grab for the hair of anyone sitting in front of us. One little girl last week was not very happy with him!!
Scott will tell you that Jackson has decided that mom is his favorite person. I have to say that I am loving it! He gets so excited when I walk into a room, and a few times when I've tried to leave, he's become very upset. Adam never did that, so I'm enjoying having a little momma's boy - at least at the moment! I'm sure it won't last forever!
I stood on the scale with Jackson tonight to see how much he weighs at 8 months. I can't believe that he weighed in at 25.5 pounds! (with diaper and pajamas) No wonder those size three diapers are seeming a bit small!
Here are the other pictures I took this month. Jackson loves this little activity center. I teach a couple of piano lessons Monday afternoons, so Jackson gets to spend some time playing in this, and he loves it! He starts chattering so loud, and has become quite the bouncer! It keeps him entertained during those lessons!

Love my little Jackson! Can't believe he is growing so fast!!

I love you all the way to the moon and back!

So last night Tammy decided to go to a hot yoga class that started around 8:00 PM. No big deal cause I don't mind putting the boys to bed. Especially since they go to bed so easy. We are truely blessed in those regards. However no mom did mess up the routine and Jackson did not approve! Mom passed him on to me to give him his bottle and as soon as he realized that dad was taking over and mom was actually leaving he threw a fit! This is the first time I have actually had a hard time with him when his mom is not at home. He cried a little as she was leaving but mostly he yelled. He never really clamed down in my room so I took him into his room where he usually finishes his bottle. He kept giving me dirty little looks and I know he was thinking "Dad, how could you let mom leave like that!" Well finally he had enough of me and before his bottle was all gone (which is rare) he sat up and grabbed his crib. So I put him in bed, got one more dirty look and he closed his eyes and went to sleep. Adam was great going to bed but made me promise to give his mom a hug and kiss and to tell her "I love you all the way to the moon and back, from Adam" The boys truely love their mom and I don't blame them! She's great!

Why I don't want a dog

I think that picture is self explanatory!!!

Don't get me wrong! I love dogs! Most of my childhood memories include a dog in one way or another. I don't really remember a time growing up when we didn't have a dog. However, this past week reminded me why I don't want a dog. We've been dog sitting a very nice dog named Dixie. Dixie is a remarkable dog - very well behaved, and very good with kids (she comes from a family with 6 kids). Dixie is a big black dog with long black hair. That is number two reason I don't want a dog. Dog Hair! But, getting back to number one reason - Dog Poop! We actually had some nice sunny days while Dixie was at our house, which means that Adam wanted to play in the backyard. Everytime he would go outside, he would almost immediately come back inside and ask me to clean up the dog poop, which I would do because who wants a kids with dog poop on his shoes! Well - Monday morning, Adam went outside to play and about two minutes after going out, he came back in to ask me to clean up the dog poop. I was in the laundry room folding towel, so he walked in the house, thru the dining area and kitchen and down the hall. As I'm telling him I'll be out in just a minutes a sudden smell hit my nose... you guessed it - both of Adam's shoes were covered in dog poop! Oh, the horror!! Needless to say, the floor got a mopping, and the shoes got a nice cleaning! I'm just glad he didn't walk onto the carpet!


After all that - here is the reason I do want a dog:

These are pictures of Adam with our dog Ashley and Ashley's boyfriend Spencer. Adam was about 2 years old in these pictures. I love the joy on his face in the first picture. Both Ashley and Spencer have passed away, and there are some days I miss our sweet Ashley. She was the perfect dog for us!! I'm glad that Adam got to spend a little bit of time with her.

Boys and dogs just go together! Jackson has LOVED having Dixie at our house. His face lights up everytime he sees her. Adam has loved it as well (except for the poop part). He has feed her every morning and night, wants to take her on walks and plays with her all the time.

So, maybe one day we'll get a dog again. Maybe in a few years....

Bedtimes Stories

Every night Scott is home for bedtime, he ends up reading stories to Adam and Jackson, and then, while I put Jackson to bed, he reads a book with Adam. I love to sit in Jackson's room and listen to them read together. Adam has several books that he loves to "read" with his dad. I video taped it tonight because Jackson went to bed early. It's a long video (over 2 minutes) - but I know a couple of Grandma's that will enjoy it!!

Video - Hard Hugs

Here's an example of Adam and Daddy's "hard hugs".