04.23.08 - We have a walker

Check out the new video I posted today - Jackson is walking! He is taking several steps at a time, all on his own. He's so funny with it, because he wants no assistance. If we try to stand him up, he buckles his knees and cries. He just wants to take off on his own terms. That's mommy's stubborn gene kicking in already, yikes! The video was the best we could get from him. It figures that he was doing a lot more steps off-camera, than on-camera.

04.21.08 - Lots of firsts

Jackson has experienced a lot of "firsts" in the past week. Last Thursday, he went swimming for the first time at the indoor pool here in Strasburg. The water was really cold, but he didn't seem to mind a bit. He had a blast splashing and bouncing up and down in the water. We'll definitely be doing this again soon. His little swim trunks were so cute on him too! On Friday, he went to his first picnic in the park. It was the one year anniversary for our playgroup, so we had a big celebration. Jackson got to have his first taste of cake, complete with icing. He was very upset when it was all gone. On Friday night, we went out for ice cream and he also got to taste that. Cake and ice cream in one day! On Saturday, we went hiking with the young adult group from our church at Sky Meadows state park. It was a gorgeous day and Jackson seemed to enjoy being carried in his Baby Bjorn through the trails. We had a picnic lunch after the hike and Jackson got to play a little bit in the grass. Yesterday, we went to my parents' house for dinner and Jackson climbed all the way up the steps for the first time! He also got to swing in the swing they hung up for him on the screened porch, even though it was so cold and rainy outside. That kid loves to swing! He'd start fussing the moment it stopped and was all smiles and giggles when it was moving.

04.15.08 - Jungle Buddies!

I'm so excited! I finally picked out Jackson's 1st birthday theme and ordered everything today. I had been searching for something monkey-related, but everything I found just didn't seem to fit. I was about to settle on a "lil prince" theme, when I finally stumbled upon the perfect monkey theme: jungle buddies! It's not completely monkey, but it's perfect. I think I've got one of the moms from the playgroup to make him a monkey cake. She makes incredible cakes, so I know it'll be fabulous. I can't believe Jackson's birthday is right around the corner. I'm slacking on the video I'm making for him. I'm more than halfway done, but there's still a lot more to do.

04.14.08 - A few first steps

Jackson took a few unassisted steps on Friday night! I was holding him under his arms as he walked and I let go and the momentum took him to the ottoman. He did a good three or four steps by himself. He repeated it a few times, but hasn't been able to match it since. Oh well, it's definitely the start of something coming soon! Jackson has gotten a lot of spring and summer clothing in the last few days. We hit the Gymboree outlet while we were in Hershey last week and got him some pajamas, outfits, and sandals. We also picked up some more pajamas and shoes over the weekend. Baby feet grow fast! Jackson has been quite the goofball lately...his new thing is that he stands on all fours, then bends down and puts his head on the ground and looks through his legs. What a silly monkey! Tomorrow, we're hosting a playgroup here and I know Jackson is looking forward to showing all his little friends his cool toys. We're going swimming on Thursday for the first time. Jackson loves water, so I'm hoping it'll be a fun experience for him. We're hoping for warm weather to round out the week - a playgroup in the park on Friday and a hike over the weekend.

04.08.08 - two new teeth

Jackson has two new teeth on the top now. He was pretty cranky while they were cutting through, but he seems to be back to his normal self for the time being. We've been keeping busy with our playgroups lately. Last week, we went to the park for a little bit to swing for the first time. It was so cold though, so we didn't stay long, but I think Jackson enjoyed it. Yesterday, we visited with Nan-Nan and Pop-Pop for a while. They hadn't seen Jackson since Christmas, so needless to say they were thrilled to see him again after such a long time. Jackson is learning how to stand up unassisted now. He will do it for second or two before he realizes he's not holding on to anything and plops down. He'll get the hang of it. He is also waving a lot now and finally moving on to other sounds besides "da". Most of the time he'll say "mama" if I say it first. He carries on deep conversations with his toys. I am always wondering what he is saying. He likes rolling a ball back and forth with us and has got an incredible arm for an almost-10-month-old! I think he might grow up to pitch for the Yankees :)