Jackson Stats and a Bushman Update

Jackson had his 12 month check up last week. Here are the new stats: 21.2 lbs. (25%), 29 inches long (25%) and a head circumference of 18.5 inches (which is a percentile I don't know.) So in the last three months he has gained 1.2 lbs and grown 1 3/4 inches in height. The little guy's weight gain has hit quite the decline. I'm convinced it's because he never ever stops running. Most nights, Jackson and I are way ready for bed ;)

The check up meant he needed shots. He was not very happy about it at all. It didn't help that he needed his iron levels checked which meant he had to have blood drawn as well. (never mind that they didn't get enough blood so we had to go back a few days later for another blood draw only to hear results today that his iron levels were "fine." How silly-- two blown veins, bruises and a lot of trauma for nothing.) Oh well, at least he's healthy! He got these sweet band-aids for his shots. I thought they looked funny with his sleeveless shirt. It was like he got two new tattoos on each arm. Once Jackson discovered them he tried to reach them to take them off and ended up spinning himself in circles. It was hilarious. I wish I could have got it on video.

And while we're at it, we'll post a few pictures of what the little man has been up to lately.

He recently discovered that Troy's baseball bat is the coolest thing to drag around. He also discovered it makes quite the cool noise when you bang it on the tile. Usually he decides it would be a fun thing to do at 6 a.m. Sorry neighbors! I try to stop him as soon as possible, but Jackson is sneaky. (I love this cheesy grin he's been doing lately.)

Jackson has decided that climbing into things is a great idea. He hasn't fully mastered climbing on the furniture yet (although he did try to climb on top of the piano from my lap yesterday while I was playing... bad idea), but he especially likes climbing into the dishwasher and the kitchen drawer seen below.

I love the chubby cheeks photo-- I took it laying on the ground while he leaned over me to see what I was doing. Gravity makes his cheeks look even bigger than normal. So cute! Also above, Troy is bench pressing Jackson and Jackson seems pretty uninterested in the practice.

We love breakfast for dinner. Troy always makes the pancakes. Last time, he make Jackson a teddy bear.

Troy with his work.

Jackson eating his dad's work. (Pancakes and grated cheese, quite the combo, right? :)

And here are some funny pictures of us at one of Troy's intramural football games last week.  His team won the championship last night. (Troy had to skip the game to study, but he was with them in spirit.) 

Jackson wearing my sunglasses. He thinks it is SO funny when he does this. I love his toothy smile.

So that's the update. That's what's been going on at our house. I'll let you know when Jackson officially climbs the piano on his own ;)

Hiking Date

Last Friday, we went on a hiking date at Thunderbird Reservation Park. It's about 5 minutes from our house and we should take advantage of that fact more than we do. This time we tried a different hike on another side of the park. The wildflowers were in full bloom. It was SO pretty. My visiting teacher told me the hills in Arizona only get green like this every 5 years. (You people not from the desert see, will say, "That isn't green." But for here it is. These pictures probably aren't the best at capturing it, but trust me it was even greener 3 weeks ago.)

Jackson was so excited to be outside. He tried to jump out of Troy's arms on several occasions. He wanted to play in the rocks SO bad.

See how happy now that he has rocks? :)

 Spring happens, even in Arizona! (sort-of anyway :)

View from the almost top... the sun was setting so we had to turn back. I love the sunsets here.

See that big field in the middle next to the church building? That's our temple site. Hopefully they'll break ground soon and we can come up here and take pictures of its progress.

Jackson trying to get down again. Way to be Troy for carrying him the whole way!

Being outside is the greatest. We're trying to take every advantage we can before the oven temperatures reappear. Hooray for hiking dates.

Genetic Proof

I have discovered official evidence to prove Jackson has my genes. A couple weeks ago, I found this baby picture of me.

Brooke, late 1986, early 1987 (... I'd have to look through my baby books again to find the exact date.)

 Jackson Troy, January 2010

When I showed Troy my picture, he asked me why the lighting looked so funny. He thought the picture was of Jackson and was wondering why he looked so pale... (Yes, I know I was a whitey from day one. Somehow Jackson was blessed with an olive skin tone even though that gene wasn't expressed in either of his parents.) I guess he didn't notice the pink and purple striped shirt I was wearing... But the point is, I have proof Jackson is my son! And the proof even convinced Troy. I know at first glance Jackson does look like his dad's clone, but my genes are definitely in there somewhere.

This one isn't as obvious, but you can see a little of Jackson there in the face, and perhaps the chunky thighs as well ;) I'm fairly certain this is Christmas 1986. (Isn't this the coolest 80s dress you've ever seen??)

With that said, I feel I need more evidence to support my side of the story. I either need more evidence, or I might have to start hiding Troy's baby pictures because this certainly doesn't help my case...

 Troy and his big brother Matt, June 1981

Genetics. You just never know what might happen. Maybe someday everyone will tell Jackson he looks just like his mother... I'm not going to count on that. He's definitely got his dad's look and I like that. I know I'm biased but I think they are both pretty cute. :)

Look Who's One!

I can't believe our little guy is one year old. I know I say this about every month when I announce Jackson's age and progress, but seriously, where does the time go? To celebrate Jackson's birthday (which was Saturday April 10th) we went to the zoo! Pictures of that will come later. In the evening we had a little party for him. Pizza, pop, cake and ice cream. Typical birthday party food with lots of sugar! (The picture above shows a few of the cupcakes and the sign I made to hang on the wall that wouldn't stay up.) It was so fun to have family in town to help celebrate and to have friends over too.

The Presents

This is Jackson opening his very first present. Tissue paper and gift sack-- easy to handle right? (On a side note-- Troy was our dedicated photographer. He said he was more excited for Jackson's birthday than his own. What a cute dad.)

A lovely blue ball from Dave, Danielle and little Ava Ashby. Jackson loved the ball so much, he was completely uninterested in opening any other gifts. He carried it around the room throwing it and kicking it (he just learned how to kick balls last week.) I had to drag him back to the task at hand so we could finish opening presents. I was able to get him interested in other gifts, but notice how the ball is never far from his side the rest of the party. Ha!

This is Jackson with his present from mom and dad. It's an V-tech book that sings nursery rhymes.

Adorable wooden block train from the Serafines.

Ava Ashby helping Jackson open his presents. She turned one a few weeks ago, so she knew how it was done.

Isn't Ava the cutest? Jackson is in the background checking out the ball popper from Grandma and Grandpa Barneck. Both Jackson and Ava thought it was a cool box to climb on. ;) You know what they say about kids and presents. That they play with the box and not the toy? It's true.

Oh, there's that ball again!

The ball popper in action.

Jackson is officially SOoo spoiled. He got so many toys and outfits. He's set for the rest of the year. He's been playing non-stop with his new toys. They keep him very entertained which makes both Jackson and I very happy!

The Guests

Jackson's Great Grandpa Mabey, Aunt Ashley, Grandpa Barneck.

Great Grandma Mabey, Grandma Barneck.

Stacy and Matt Serafine, Danielle and Dave Ashby.

Heather and Sam Ashby.
 (Our friends the Gladdens came too, but I forgot to take pictures until they had already left.)

Our little family. So much has changed in one year!

The Cake

 When we first brought out the cake, Jackson wasn't sure what to do with it. He seems wary of us giving him such a messy, tasty food. As soon as I helped him understand he could touch it, we were in business. He was hilarious. He dug his fingers through both layers of the cake and just sat there with his hands in the stickiness feeling around. He took it slow, taking a lick every now and again, but mostly just enjoying the feel of it. So funny.

Cutest frosting smile ever.

Post-Cake Playtime

Jackson and Ava had the greatest time playing with the balloons I scattered around the room. Jackson didn't seem the least bit concerned that he was free of clothing. (I took his shirt off so I wouldn't have to scrub it, and then his shorts were covered in frosting so I had to scrub those anyway. Oh well ;)

Jackson got these CUTE baby crocs from Sam and Heather Ashby. We tried them on. They're a little big right now so he wasn't sure what to think. He walked around staring at his feet. You would have thought he was wearing deep sea flippers the way he was waddling. So funny!

It was such a fun birthday celebration! Jackson is officially a one year old. He's getting so big. I can't believe how much he's changed. Look at those calves in the picture above. Now look at this:

I could easily wrap my fingers twice around his little calves the day he was born! So much has changed. We're so glad Jackson was born. Happy Birthday buddy!

Sleeping

I hate to jinx anything by making a public announcement, but lately Jackson has been the best sleeper. Because of this, I decided to take a picture of him sleeping. (On Sundays, we usually have to wake him up to get to church on time, so I took these a few Sundays back.) He likes to sleep with his head squished into the corner of the crib. Funny huh? Note the teeth marks on the front of the crib and the piles of blankets trying to protect the side rails... we still haven't overcome the chewing varnish obstacle. Oh well. My mom suggested a brown sharpie marker, which I just might try.

Jackson isn't the happiest when he first wakes up. It takes him a minute to come to terms with being awake. I don't blame him, as I feel the same way most days. Here's a video for your enjoyment.  If we were late for anything other than Church, we would have just been late and waited for him to wake up on his own... He was SO mad we woke him up.

General Conference and Easter Weekend

Oh what a wonderful weekend. Conference, Easter and lots of Family time, can't beat that. As it turns out Troy has 4 tests this week, so Saturday he had to hit the books. However, Sunday we reveled in lots of Troy/Daddy time. I think Jackson was in heaven, and I was too ;)

Conference was taken off our local t.v. station, so we got to watch it solely on the computer this time. We rearranged our furniture to accommodate our small computer screen (which had to be placed out of the reach of little fingers.) Jackson thought moving the couch was the coolest thing. He kept running behind it an playing in his new little spot.

Troy is an expert smoothie maker. He made us an Orange Julius, delicious. Jackson couldn't get enough. He kind of has a thing for citrus fruits lately. He also loves grapefruit. Once he had his first taste he was hooked. He couldn't get enough. He kept trying to steal the glass.

Julius mustaches.

Diving in...

Getting some more any way he can...

Moving to mom's glass...

It ended up being quite the Conference distraction. Silly Jackson. Watching Conference with kids is a whole new ball game.

Conference Egg Hunt. During the afternoon session, we had a very small Easter egg hunt. It consisted of me opening a package of plastic eggs setting them around the room, and Jackson giggling as he picked them up and threw them. He also liked to chew them. I think he thought they were balls. He's been scattering them around the house ever since. It's been fun to watch.

For Easter dinner we went to the Serafines' house. We ate with Matt and Stacy and Sam and Heather Ashby. We had a yummy ham, cheesy potatoes and homemade rolls. Delicious! I forgot to take pictures until the Ashbys had already left, but Jackson was being funny. He wanted to climb on the table and try to get the light fixture.

Jackson helping dad take a picture of me and Stacy... see his little thumbnail?

That's better. :)

The boys resisting a picture as usual ;)

Our first family Easter was pretty fun. Jackson always keeps things exciting.