Spring has sprung!

We've been having a blast enjoying Jackson's precious & curious personality. This age (8-9 months) is simply amazing and Jackson is such a joyful, happy baby. Here are a few pics of what we've been up to the past couple weeks!

John (Ben's college roomie), Shannon & Felicia came to visit last weekend. Times sure have changed -- they've traded in bar-hopping for babies on bikes!

Peeking over the tub -- he's going to KILL me
for this one when he's older!

Rockin' the bongos at the Bonini's baby shower.

Enjoying his new swing -- Thanks Daddy!

Letting Maddie ride shotgun...but only around the deck!

9 Months Old & Crawling!

Just 1 week past his 9-month bday, Jackson has started crawling! He's no speed demon, but he's definitely able to fetch his paci, books, etc and it won't be long until he's cruising around the house. He still prefers to stand up to play with his toys and is babbling like crazy, with lots of "da-das" and "ba-bas"...but still no "mamas". I found him sitting up in his crib last night & caught him pulling up this morning. Looks like our freedom as parents is coming to an end!
His new favorite "trick" is to share his paci, i.e. move it from his mouth to your mouth. Gross, I know! He also loves to hug us really tightly, its the most precious thing. Jackson loves his books and will happily play with the box basket over his other toys.

We are up to 3 hearty meals of homemade baby food a day and thankfully he's finally eating his veggies. This apparently helps with his sleep habits, as he goes down around 7:30pm and sleeps in until 9:30 most mornings (after a little nip from a 6am bottle). No complaints from me, I'll trade a 6am bottle for an extra 3 hours of sleep any day of the week. After nursing Jackson for 6 months & pumping for 3 more (after his terminal nursing strike), I've guiltily hung up the Medela and weaned him to formula.

At his 9-month check-up last week, Jackson weighed in at 19lb 1 oz (25%tile) and 28.5" long (50%tile). He seems to be developing very well & it right in line with his actual age rather than his corrected age (of 7 1/2 months). We are so thankful for our happy, healthy little boy.

Weekend in Browntown

Last weekend, Jackson & I headed to Columbia to hang out with Sally & her two kids while our respective hubbies got a weekend off. Jay (3 1/2) & Betsy (2) were great entertainment for Jackson and also gave me a little sampling of what it will be like to have two wee ones.

I have not been around a ton of pre-schoolers, but these are two extremely sweet, loving children who are well-behaved and obedient...and I was still exhausted just watching Sally! I thought I had my hands full with one almost-9-month-old but, boy, do I have something coming when Jackson a) gets fully mobile, b) gets a younger brother or sister, or c) starts talking in complete sentences and asking lots of questions. ("What is that thing on your boobies?" - Jay inquiring about my breast pump. "Can I marry Baby Jackson when I grow up?" - Jay)

Jackson & Jay are holding hands -- how sweet is that?

Jackson's Baby Dedication

This past Saturday was Jackson's Baby Dedication. Our church does not do infant baptisms since it is our belief that according to the New Testament, the gospel must be believed prior to baptism . Through the Baby Dedication, we, as parents, are dedicating our child to the Lord and publicly committing to raising Jackson as a child of God. We also ask friends & family to hold us accountable & pray for us as we take on this awesome responsibility. Jackson was dedicated along with Ella, the precious daughter of our friends Ben & Tara Baab. Here are a few pictures from the weekend.

Our little family of 3

The Talberts & the Baabs

Uncle Mikey & Aunt Jenn -- J's Godparents :)

Bebe & PopPaw

Poppy & Nanny

(the first good picture of J in his tie & seersucker!)

Some of our wonderful friends & family

"Lovee" -- we are blessed to have such a fabulous nanny to care for Jackson!

Tuckered out from all the fun & snuggling with Oma

Little Rascal

Last week I was staging a "photo shoot" to take Jackson's 8 month old pictures in his numbered onesie...and boy does he make it difficult these days. This little rascal is getting mobile & is truly a handful lately (but also definitely my favorite age so far!)

Playing his escape...


Making his get-away...


Doing a celebratory dance...

You caught me, Mommy!

Birthday Party!

Last Saturday, we made a quick trip to Columbia for Sally's little girl Betsy's birthday party. We have not attended many kids birthday festivities since most of our friends are just now starting to procreate. Jackson is not around a ton of other children, so he especially enjoyed making new friends. He was quite content vegging out on the grass while various other children came up to talk/touch/kiss him. He particularly enjoyed the girls :)




He also had his first bite of ice cream & frosting. Too bad he is anti-veggies -- if he has weight problems later in life, its definitely my doing.

But hands-down, the highlight of the party was the 4-wheeler. As soon as we arrived at Justin & Sally's, Jackson set his sights on a green mini 4-wheeler & spent the good part of the afternoon "driving" it around. He even managed to push the gas button and make it go on his own. He is truly all boy!

Flashback to February 2008: Sally was 38 weeks pregnant with Betsy & we were throwing our good friend Charlotte a shower & bachelorette party in Hickory. Sally, being the one to never miss a shower or party, was determined to attend, but her doctor (and JB) told her it was a bad idea to leave Cola so close to her due date. Sally called to give me the bad news and made a point of saying "My luck I'd go into labor at the bar & have Betsy at Catawba Memorial." And that was that...we had the shower & bach party without our beloved Mama Sal. BUT... about midnight the that very night, I get a text from Sally, saying that Betsy had been born about 10 minutes earlier...and good thing she didn't come to Conover. And just as Sal had predicted, little Bet would have been a product of Catawba County had Sally come to the shower.

The girls at Char's bachelorette party the night of Betsy's birth

Thanks, Mystery Paci!

Ben and I are participating in a 13-week financial course at our church that meets for several hours every Tuesday night until May. Against our better judgement, we decided to enroll Jackson in the nursery at church during this course, since it would be nearly impossible, not to mention expensive, to get a babysitter once a week. When I signed him in this week, I made sure to tell the caregiver that Jackson was very susceptible to germs/bugs/everything and to please try to keep him away from other babies & their toys. It seemed like a reasonable request -- it's a big playroom with plenty of toys to go around. Or so I thought...

When we returned to pick Jackson up 2 hours later, he was tucked away in a crib, sleeping like a little angel. Ben picked him up out of the crib and immediately called me over -- Jackson was sucking on the wrong paci!! Jackson will only take NUK pacis...or so we thought. Apparently, he will also suck on the clear Avent ones as well (but only if they belong to another child.) The caregiver was very apologetic, saying that after he ate his bottle, she just reached in his bag and pulled out his paci...oops, must have been the wrong bag. So my wheels started turning...if the paci came from the wrong bag, I wonder if the bottle did, too? Mystery Paci is one thing, but Mystery Nu-Nu? GROSS! I'd just rather not know.

And true to form, Jackson now has a runny nose & is sneezing. Thanks, Mystery Paci!