Icee QuikTrip

Sometimes you just need an icee, you know? So even though it was past Jackson's bedtime, we went to the nearest QuikTrip (QT) Station to get one.

Sam and Heather Ashby came too.

Jackson learned to drink out of a straw. He found it thrilling. I don't think all the sugar hurt either ;) It seemed like he knew he was up late, eating a treat, and living the high life. He was so excited. Sometimes a break from routine is nice, don't you think?

Phoenix Zoo Rendevous

On Saturday, Stacy, Jackson and I went to the zoo. It costs $16 a person to enter the Phoenix Zoo. I personally think that is outrageous. Luckily I was able to get free tickets from the public library. Thank you Glendale city! Too bad the Culture Pass program can't continue forever ;)

The weather was beautiful and we had such a nice time strolling. Jackson seemed more interested in the other children than he was the animals, but he loved being outside and riding in the stroller. We saw all sorts of fun animals...

The giraffes,

The tigers,

The monkeys,

The lions, (Troy would have been sad if we hadn't visited his high school mascot ;)

and the flamingos.

Jackson thought these were especially cool. He was SO excited to be out of his stroller so he could take a better look.

At one point Jackson got a little restless. I gave him a piece of red bell pepper to keep him entertained. Later I saw this:

Can you tell how red his face is?

His brand new shirt, stained red. I think that's the last time he'll get a red pepper, until he has molars that is. Gotta love boys :) Hopefully Oxy Clean will come to the rescue.

Jackson fell asleep during the last part of the day. We did a lot of walking and he was worn out! I was worn out too. There were quite a few hills and the place was huge.

I asked someone to take our picture on the way out... Here it is, finger in the corner and only the top of Jackson's head in the frame. I guess beggars can't be choosers, right? Hooray for the zoo. We had such a nice time.

Lately

During the last few weeks I've been kind of blogged-out. Do you know the feeling? When you feel like you've spent enough time uploading pictures and narrating your life and you just can't make yourself do one more post? After a little break, I'm ready to update on what we've been up to lately.

The Park

Jackson and I have been loving the park. These pictures are from a few weeks ago when we met some moms and kids in the ward at the Sierra Verde Park. (Yes, the one where the gang fight occurred... it was much less adventurous on this visit. :)

Here is our friend Wilson Thomas. He's in our ward and he is quite possibly the cutest 2 year old in the land. We love him. Jackson and Wilson played on the swings for a good while together.

When not in the swing Jackson was constantly trying to run away from his mom. On one of his attempted breakaways, he fell into a dried up bush and cut his cheek and eyebrow. He got stuck in the branches. It was sad, he had thorns on his face. Luckily, he recovered quickly and we still had a good time.

Reading Books

In the last few weeks Jackson has decided books are more than just objects for target practice and chew toys. He will now sit on my lap and let me read an entire book to him. This is big people. A few months ago he would only sit through a book if forced and most of the time I was pulling the book out of his mouth.

Some of his favorites are 5 Silly Monkeys Jumping on the Bed, The Wheels on the Bus, and any book that has pop-ups or flaps. He LOVES playing with them. Now Jackson and I read every day. And his dad gets in a book when he can as well.

Crystal Light

A couple weeks ago I was trying to get my coupons organized to go grocery shopping. Jackson had just woken up from his nap and had LOTS of energy. I let him run around the kitchen and living room while I finished my task. At some point he started entertaining himself very well going through the kitchen cupboards and I was thinking to myself how great it was that I was getting so much done while he was awake. Then I glanced up from my project and saw the most happy red-stained face I've ever seen. He had gotten into the Crystal Light packets again, (one of his favorite pantry items) and this time he'd bitten through the foil and gotten the powder all over himself. Note the teeth marks in the picture above. I cleaned him up, and then realized I should have taken a picture of his work. The powder stained his face for the rest of the day, you can see the remnants of Crystal Light on his mouth below. Funny kid.

Salon Estique

A few weeks ago a girl in our ward, Lanie Whiting, called me to be her hair model. Now don't get excited, that makes me sound like I'm pursuing a career in modeling, which I'm not. She is training at a salon in Phoenix and every couple of months she needs a hair model so she can pass off a certain hair cut. Her mom Robyn who is in Young Women's with me offered to watch Jackson. Can I tell you, it was SO much fun? This salon is quality. A hair cut by a master stylist costs $65. Incredible. Lanie and her teacher were checking my hair line and my ears to make sure every hair was in just the right place. Basically, I got the best hair cut of my life, and the best part? It was free. What could be better? I thoroughly enjoyed myself. This pic doesn't highlight the cut really, as it was taken at the end of the day, but you get the idea. (Thanks Lanie and Robyn! I had so much fun.)

Consider yourself updated. :)

Stacy's Spring Break

Last week was Stacy Serafine's spring break. She didn't have to teach for a whole week which meant we were able to get together almost every day. It was fantastic. I feel very fortunate to get TWO spring breaks, one with Troy and one with Stacy ;) Here are pictures of some of our Spring break adventures...

Sahuaro Ranch Park

We had a picnic lunch at Sahuaro Ranch Park here in Glendale. It's a pretty cool place-- huge as far as parks go. It has everything from Pioneer buildings to barbecues to playgrounds and soccer fields. All sorts of birds walk around the premises. Chickens, roosters, pigeons and even peacocks. Jackson loved that. He also loved picking up trash around the park and trying to eat it. Sick. The old buildings were fun to walk around, but they were all locked up. I kept expecting to see a senior missionary couple dressed in Pioneer clothes at one of the doors welcoming us inside for a tour. No such luck. I guess I'm used to church history sites and not city parks ;) I didn't get any pictures of the scenery, but I'm sure we'll visit again someday.

After lunch we bought took some Frosties to campus to visit Troy and Matt. As usual, Jackson was super excited to see his dad.

Wheat Bread

One day we made wheat bread together. Stacy had this new recipe she wanted to try. It was the real deal kind you have to let rise for a few hours. Stacy's loaves are on the right (the smooth pretty ones that look like bakery material.) Mine are on the left and in the back... not so smooth. Stacy said she liked it because they had "character." At least they tasted good no matter how they looked. Delicious! I think I might have to make more soon.

Arizona Science Center

Our library offers free passes to various museums around the valley. You check them out with your library card. Great idea right? Yes it is, and because everyone thinks it's so great, you have to show up super early and wait in line to get one. I wanted a tickets to the Phoenix zoo I showed up 45 minutes early and was the fourth one in line, so no zoo tickets for me! Oh well. I did get tickets to the Arizona Science Center in downtown Phoenix. It was a pretty fun place. There were hundreds of kids (due to spring break) so we walked around and checked out the exhibits. Most of it was too old for Jackson to do, but he loved watching all the other kids run around and play.

This was some example of how the inner ear keeps your balance while you walk. I put Jackson up there thinking he would try to walk across. Nope. He seemed nervous about it. He stayed firmly rooted to this spot until I took him down.

Jackson next to a HUGE model of human skin. Those black things on top are hairs.

This platform simulated various weather. Hurricanes, Tornadoes, even earthquakes. The wind blew and it rained on the people and everything. If it weren't for the getting wet part, I totally would have been game.

Afterward, we walked around the block outside. You never know what you'll see in downtown Phoenix. We were in one of the safer parts or we wouldn't have been there in the first place, but you always see an array of interesting people.

Case in point. When we got out to our car, this church was broadcasting some kind of Friday Noon Mass (this is a Roman Catholic cathedral) on a P.A. system. You could hear them praying and singing through the speakers. Hmmm. Maybe so you could have drive by church? Pretty interesting.

Stacy saving Jackson from running into the road. He was SO excited to be out of his stroller.

And of course an outdoor adventure wouldn't be complete if Jackson didn't eat a few rocks. It's a full time job keeping Jackson away from rocks when everything in Arizona is landscaped with them.

And this is my attempt to take a picture of the three of us. First try, no Jackson...

The best I could do. Good enough.

March Madness and Haircuts

Spring break activities culminated in watching the Cougars play against Kansas State at Matt and Stacy's house. While we were there Stacy graciously agreed to give Jackson a haircut. Earlier that evening I tried to trim around Jackson's ears and ruined his hair. (Too bad I didn't take a picture of that.) It looked awful. I did two snips and Troy suggested we wait until Stacy could help. Ha! Stacy has real trimmers so that worked

much better.

Before the haircut...

And after. SO cute right? I love it. I think the length makes his cheeks look bigger, it's adorable. He looks more like a little boy than a baby. His head feels like a baby calf, all smooth and soft. (When have I felt one you ask? 7 words (and a comma): Dalling Cattle Ranch in Sugar City, Idaho. But that's a story for another day.)

Too bad the cougars lost. Oh well, it was still fun to watch the game (especially on DVR-- best thing to happen to sports ;) Spring break #2 was great. Thanks Stacy!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

It feels too warm to be St. Patrick's Day... I think it is going to be 80 degrees today. Nonetheless, here is Jackson wearing his green. We just got these baby high tops for him. We had a gift card to the Children's Place so they were free. Aren't they adorable? Jackson didn't know what to think about them. He couldn't really walk (they're too big) and eventually kicked them off. Oh well, he'll fit into them soon enough I suppose and then he'll be stylin' all  the time ;)

These pictures aren't the greatest, but our little boy rarely holds still for a picture these days.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!