buddies

Jackson is still annoying, but getting a lot wiser in his old age. Sometimes you just have to let him do what he wants; play in my water bowl, pull my nub, 'pet' my eyeballs, mess with my feet (he is the only person I will let do this, so don't even try!), and even take a lick of my treat when mom is not looking. He is a quick learner! I have already taught him how to lift up the toilet seat incase we need some water, open the laundry door where my food is stored (we are working on getting the actual bag open- tricky), get mom to leave the back door open so we can walk in and out as we please, throw any food he does not want onto the floor for me, point and throw a tantrum if mom does not stop at the park on our walks (it usually works, he gets whatever he wants), the list goes on and on. I think I have decided to keep him. luv, greta

Soooo what can we do???

cool dad

My sister, Natalie says Charlie is a lot like Phil from Modern Family. This little video may seal the deal. (on a side note, I am not turning into Claire am I, so what if we both enjoy making lists...)

11 months!

That was a quick 11 months. It is funny how time flies yet some afternoons it drags. Jackson is doing so many things these days. It seems like the more stuff he does the less time I have to capture it. I love watching him discover new things everyday. The grin on his face when he figures something out is priceless. I will post more on what he is up to later, but right now I should get him out of Greta's water bowl for the 12th time this morning.

Easter Blessings

Then sings my soul,

My Savior God to Thee,

How great Thou art,

How great Thou art!

Easter Bunny!

Here come's Peter Cottontail

Hoppin' down the bunny trail,

Hippity Hoppity,

Easter's on its way

Wait a minute, I have been tricked, who the heck is this?

Hmm, weird big furry guy that talks?

Ok, he's cool, check out my new shoes!

Here we go go go...

Are you looking for a catchy song to get stuck in your head alll-dayyyy-longggg? Well, this is a pretty good one. Jackson has as good of an attention span as his mom and is not too interested in tv. I feel bad having the Today show blaring in the background all morning, so we have switched over to PBS. We could all learn a thing or two from the Cat in the Hat anyways.

tongue

It amazes me how quickly babies pick up on things. Jackson's new trick is sticking out his tongue. I say 'Where's your tongue?' and he sticks that bad boy out with a huge grin on his face. I admittedly use it as a distraction tool. 'You can't put that in your mouth, but where's your tongue? We have to change your diaper, where's your tongue? Let's get in your car seat, where's your tongue? You can't play in the toilet, where's your tongue?' Whatever works is my motto.

hand in mouth...

Everything goes in Jackson's mouth for a taste test. Everything including the apparently delicious butt cream, Desitin. Did you know boys start playing with their balls as early as 9 months? Well they do, especially if they are nice and rash-tastic. I was trying to help Jackson and let him air out for a while but he had other plans. Anyways, he got some Desitin in his mouth and better safe than sorry, I called poison control. Unless they down the entire container it is usually not a problem. Here is the number incase you ever need it. Other moms have had to call before right... right??

1-800-222-1222 American Association of Poison Control Centers

dadadada

Happy Birthday to my best friend. Who, lucky me, is also my husband, a perfect father to our little boy and super hot. I cannot wait to spend today and many more birthdays with this sweet man.

Someone is starting to look a lot like their dad!

Shrek!

Charlie's favorite movie of all time is Shrek. For his birthday he got tickets to see Shrek the Musical at the DPAC this past weekend from his parents. Lucky for me Jackson is still a little young to tag along so he picked me to go! I went in with low expectations because I didn't see how it could live up to the movie, but we both thought it was hilarious and recommend going to see it. I have a feeling Jackson and his dad are going to like a lot of the same movies and tv shows! And we just had to get him a gingerbread onesie...

Not my gumdrop buttons!

baby visitors

Know of anyone who is on the way to having a baby? I do! Check out this blog post, I think it is spot on - How to be the Best Post Partum Visitor in 15 Minutes or Less. I definitly like how she added to come back and visit when the baby is a few months old - say 10 1/2 months... :) But really, they are more fun at this time and the mom will actually remember that you visited. Jackson was especially lucky in that we have family close by that helped out alot. Aka - did everything.

I will be glad to help out with some cleaning. I specialize in opening and closing the washing machine and dishwasher but can do just about anything. I will also be glad to turn your lights on and off for hours if needed.

happy boy

Jackson, you are such a sweet happy little joy. If I am ever having a long frustrating day you already know just what to do to make me smile. You get this from your dad. It reminds of the song me and my dad (your pops?) used to blare out on road trips. That's What Friends Are For.

Keep smilin', keep shinin'

Knowin' you can always count on me, for sure

That's what friends are for

For good times and bad times

I'll be on your side forever more

That's what friends are for

Jackson and Pops practicing jumping into the pool.

formula

Warning: You may not be interested in these details. (hint- guys don't read)

Formula stinks. I don't know which is worse leaky achy boobs or making and cleaning out bottles. I have successfully 'weened' Jackson off of breast feeding. He still bangs his head in my chest every now and then and I am still pumping at night but the well is drying up and I am pretty excited about it. A time comes when one gets a little too big and has just a little too many teeth. I also did not think it would be to kind to leave him with my parents for the weekend without a little prep work. My experience with breastfeeding was good for the 10 plus months that is lasted and I hope to do it with all my other children. I did get a case of mastitis from trying to ween Jackson off too quickly. It felt like I had the flu but then I noticed one of my boobs was not doing so hot. The doc hooked me up with some meds and I was feeling like new within 2 days. I know I am one of the lucky mamas. So long big boobies, they were fun while it lasted.

And Jackson, he loves the bottle. It is kind of ridiculous. I guess it is just that steady flow of milk but he takes it back like a Dairy Queen Blizzard.

Courtesy of the Joan McCartney Gallery

running...

What a weekend! We made it over the bridge, it wasn't the fastest time, but it wasn't the slowest either. (Thanks to the extra 40 lbs I was rockin last year.) We stayed at theAnchorage Inn, which is in the middle of downtown and nice walking distance to our delicious eating spots; Fleet Landing, Magnolias and Blossom. I recomend them all! And to my surprise I don't think Jackson missed his parents very much. He was nice and busy getting fitted for his new shoes, going shopping, swimming and sleeping through the night?! Yep he slept through the night for my parents both nights - don't worry he was back on schedule last night for me with his 2:30am wake up call...

Mister Cheese-a-roni!

big bro

Looks like I won't be able to drink in Charleston again this year... We are a little overwhelmed but obviously very excited - cause ya'll are a bunch of fools.