December & January

If you're wondering where I've been... the answer is not feeling so hot. I'm tired and nauseous most hours of the day, most days of the week. Yup, I'm about 14 weeks pregnant! Baby #2 is due August 12th and we are all so excited! So here is a massive post of December and January. Enjoy! (if you can make it through)

CHRISTMAS 09

We had such a great trip back to UT to see both of our families! We travelled all over Utah going from Highland to see my family, to Ephraim to see Jordan's, up to Heber to the Thompson's cabin, and lastly to Park City to my family's ski condo. It was a busy but wonderful trip! We especially loved getting to play in the snow a ton from skiing to sledding to riding the snow mobile, that is why I love Utah so much! Jackson also got to share our big news with everyone in person:) He loves babies, he will be a great big brother!

Jackson wasn't too sure about Santa until he gave him a lollipop, then they were friends.

Jackson did not want to get off this thing!

Oh yeah, I died my hair brown back in November. It was a fun change, I liked it, but Jord and most of my family did not! So I am already back to blonde:)

The last month or so Jackson has decided he loves to give kisses and snuggle which makes mommy very happy:) For awhile there he was too busy to hold still for some loves. Now he kisses me with such vigor it is sometimes scary!

After watching one night of everyone playing rock band, Jackson surprised us the next day by picking up the microphone and putting on a show. It was so funny, I have tons of videos of him singing.

Christmas eve and day at the Thompson's. I didn't get too many pics though. Not even one of the nativity or that afternoon when everyone else arrived. It was crazy and fun though! I think one of Jackson's favorite gifts were those monkey pajamas. He carries them around the house hugging them and making monkey noises:)

My 14 year old sister has been talking to Jordan about becoming a nurse. She didn't know if she could "poke" people though, so Jordan brought out all sorts of needles and things to let her try. He taught her how to draw blood and put in an IV, and even let her do it all on him! It was super sweet of him because while Jordan thinks nothing of sticking needles into other people, he is a big baby getting them himself! What a good big brother!

We also celebrated Jordan's 28th birthday while we were in Utah. I surprised him with a little party with some of his good friends from high school that he doesn't get to see very often. Jackson got to see his girlfriend at the party, so of course he planted one on her! Then on Jordan's actual bday he got to go skiing all day with my dad and sister; I was too sick to join him:( And a special thanks to my mom and other sister who made a wonderful rib dinner and 2 amazing birthday cakes for him that night! Happy birthday love!

JANUARY

We had a great trip, but were excited to get home to the burgh. This January marked one year of living here in Pittsburgh! It has gone by so fast and has been so much fun! We love the area, the people, even school has been busy but good. It makes me sad to think we only have a little over a year left. I know we will miss our friends and the city a ton!

That being said, our first week back was awful! All three of us ended up getting strep throat. Jackson dealt with it along with 2 molars popping through, I dealt with it along with my pregnancy sickness (try throwing up with strep, not fun!), and Jordan dealt with it as well as a very grumpy wife and toddler:( Thank goodness for antibiotics!

The rest of the month has been filled with playing in the snow, lots of trips to local museums, play dates, and business as usual! I celebrated my 26th birthday, which was so fun thanks to my family and friends! Jordan took me to dinner and a movie on Saturday night (thanks to Kimi and Jeff for watching Jackson!). On Sunday our friends had us over for dinner and afterwards we got a group together to celebrate both mine and Kimi's bdays together. It was so fun! Jordan even made me a cake, the first time he has ever made my bday cake! The next day one of my good friends took me to lunch to celebrate, so basically my birthday turned into a whole weekend of fun! Thanks everyone!

What a stud! He would not get out of this car at the children's museum, he thought he was so big!

Loving the new basketball hoop! Thanks Grandma & Grandpa!

We were super bored one morning so I decided to see if Jackson was ready to make cookies with me yet. Wow, what a mess! He struggled dumping in the ingredients so the floor was covered! Despite my best efforts, he ate lumps of brown sugar and plenty of cookie dough! When I tried scooping the dough onto a cookie sheet he would grab the balls and throw them back into the bowl and give me a look like, "what are you doing?". It was a huge mess and he probably ate more sugar than he does in a month, but we had a blast! Jackson now knows what a cookie is and asks for them all the time! Oops, what did I teach him!

JACKSON UPDATE

My little boy is 15 months! He had his doctors appointment a few weeks ago and he weighed in at 25lbs (60%) and was 32in (75%). He has 11 teeth now so we decided when we got home to take away the binki. There were 2 nights of a little crying to sleep and then he was over it. He even saw his binki on the counter a few days later and said "ba (binki), no no". I was so relieved at how easy it was, I just wish I could still give it to him during sacrament meeting! Jackson is such a typical boy! He still loves balls (he even knows which kind they all are!), books, trucks, and playing outside or in water. I'm amazed at how smart he is! He says so many words now and will repeat most things we say to him. He understands so much and has become a little helper around the house. He loves throwing things in the trash for me:) Jackson is very independent and thinks he can do everything by himself! He even goes into the cupboards and pulls out snacks for himself that he then brings to me and says "please!". He is also stubborn and gets mad when he doesn't get his way... I hope these fits don't last too long. But at the same time he is so sweet and happy! He is very friendly and not shy at all. He waves to every person he sees and usually doesn't stop until they wave back:) He has been feeding himself with utensils the last month or so and is finally getting pretty good at it. He even eats his cereal by himself! Messy, yes, but I guess he has to learn some way! I think Jackson's favorite part of the day is when daddy comes home. No matter what we are doing when he hears Jordan's keys at the door he drops everything and runs to greet his daddy! Today, for example, we were upstairs and Jackson was in the tub. I had been asking him for a few minutes if he was ready to get out but he kept telling me no. As soon as we heard Jordan at the door Jackson stood up and yelled, "dada, out, out, dada!". I could not get that kid out of there fast enough! It was so sweet! He also talks about "dada" all day and says he is at "school":) Jackson you are such a joy in my life, I love you with all of my heart! Thanks for making me smile:)