Jacks these days...

In the words of Kyle Silvio, "Jackson is way behind on his batting skills."

I wanted to share a few fun pics with you, and I started thinking about how much he's changed just here recently. Each stage comes and goes soooo fast...I can hardly keep up! I know I have not been good about writing about what's going on with our little J-man, so I thought I'd do a quick post while it was on my mind...

He absolutely LOVES:
-writing with pens on paper (He feels so big!)
-sitting in Daddy's chair by himself...or with Daddy
-playing with any remote, phone, or the computer mouse (The other day I found him sitting in the computer chair looking at the screen and moving the mouse around...what?)
-going "bye-bye"...(I have to be careful not to mention we are going "bye-bye" until right before I'm ready to walk out the door because he runs to the garage door, starts waving, and proceeds to lose his marbles if we don't make a quick exit. The boy likes to be on the go--like his mama!)
-looking at ANY animals...on TV, in books, stuffed, in real life...he loves them all. (He shrieks and makes animal noises any time he sees a duck, bird, dog, or cat specifically.)
-pointing at airplanes in the sky (such a boy)...He says "that" and points to the airplane
-music/dancing...(The other day, he was standing in front of the TV watching Barney and dancing along when the kids were singing.)
-CLIMBING...on everything. (Yesterday, the little dude climbed up the outside of his high chair and was dangling from the tray...true story.)
-his sippy cups (He doesn't necessarily finish every drink but sure gets excited when I go to give him one.
-being outside (Lately, we've been playing with side walk chalk, his mower, his t-ball set, and various balls. He also just loves running around in the grass and trying to escape on the side of the house.)
-reading books...by himself or with us...mostly by himself
-talking, talking, talking
-watching big kids play...(SO fascinated)
-playing with his friends and going to church/school
-His BEAR (Bear is a pretty big deal...When we are at home, Bear pretty much comes from room to room with us, sits by us when we eat our meals, and is always there when J-man is upset. He eats Bear's ear and pets his face when he holds him. Kind of gross but sweet at the same time. My little guy has such a tender heart, I can tell.)
-Holding Kyle's and my hand when we are walking...sometimes even through the house...haha
-"driving" behind ANY steering wheel (He's kind of obsessed with Cozy Coupe's at the moment, although he doesn't have one of his own.)
-wearing MY big white sunglasses...He puts them on and does this silly fake laugh...Hahaha!!!
-Barney, Backyardigans, and Little Bear
-eating by HIMSELF...does not want help with spoon or fork. He actually does really well feeding himself. Go figure.
-when people watch him doing silly things or chase him or make funny faces at him

Riding in the Cozy Coupe at the Indoor Playground at church during play group about a month ago...he stays in there the WHOLE time!! Well, actually, he moves from car to car and occasionally tries to kick another kid out of one he'd like to play in. I get to do lots of teaching about sharing...hehe. Occasionally, he is willing to share his car at home. Anything for older buddy Latham. ;)

Eating at Boston Market for Daddy's birthday--July 13th

Waiting by the door to go "bye-bye"

Playing with a kitty that followed us home from our walk...we're just so fun to be around ;)

Lovin' that sippy cup

Favorite Foods:
-ice cream
-yogurt
-cheese toast
-fruit of ANY kind...He is a fruit ENTHUSIAST
-PB & J
-broccoli
-peas/beans of any kind
-fish
-eggs
-chicken (sometimes)
-not a huge fan of beef...I don't blame him. He does like it in things like spaghetti, lasagna, shepherd's pie, but he still isn't too crazy about it even in those.
-JUICE
-smoothies...lol...yes I spoil my baby boy and make him smoothies a lot (He's only mine to spoil for a little while.)

Not a big fan of:
-being confined
-NOT being able to do/have any of the above said "LOVES" or "Favorite foods"...yes, he is stubborn
-putting clothes on
-having his diaper changed
-leaving somewhere when he is having a good time
-He's not too worried when we leave him places...He's pretty social and typically hits the ground running into the nursery or his class or play group.
-His "dislike" list is pretty short, but he can get pretty sideways when any of these things happen. I mean he can pour on the drama THICK. Flailing about on the floor, banging his head on things, screaming, gagging, putting his finger down his throat and vomitting...um YEAH.

Words he's saying:
Juice ("joosh")
Bye-Bye ("ba-ba")
Daddy ("Da-deeeee")
Mama
Dog ("Da")
All done ("Ah doh")
Diaper ("Di-duh")
Up
I Love You (doesn't say on his own...only repeats after us..."Da Doe")
Geaux Tigers! (da..da da da)
Uh-huh (Says this for every "yes" answer...this has started this week...priceless. It's also accompanied by a head nod (up and down.) Really does help when I'm trying to figure out what he wants/needs.)
Uh-Uh (Says this for no answers...also accompanied by a head shake left and right. Hilarious.)
Yum (Says quite often, usually with ice cream or yogurt, haha.)
Ball (Bawwwll)
And the all time favorite...UH-OH!!!!!!! Hahaha. Everything is an "Uh-oh." I'm always saying, "No, that was ON PURPOSE."
Signs: "All done", "please", "help", "yes", "no", "dog", "more", "want" (OK now, honestly, I am probably the ONLY person that can distinguish between the different signs J does b/c they pretty much all look like "more", but he does little slight variations that I can pick up on usually. What can I say, he's not very coordinated. Haha. Bless his heart. He sure tries, and as long as I know what he's saying, that's all that matters I guess. It's only been these past couple days this week that I've noticed him using "help" and "please" appropriately. It really does help with the whining.)

Our biggest struggle in this phase:
Right now, the biggest struggle for us is eating at restaurants. Sometimes J's amazing; sometimes he's very "insistent" on not being in a high chair...if you know what I mean. We just never know which way it will go right now. We've had a few stressful restaurant situations, one by myself this week that almost had me in tears. I know that I need to stay OUT of restaurants if it is anywhere NEAR his nap time. It's just too risky. And totally not enjoyable! And when it comes down to it, not entirely fair to him. That's probably the biggest struggle of the moment. When J-man can explore and roam around his environment, he is the happiest kid on the planet. Strap him into a stroller or buggy or high chair, and it could go either way. Haha.

This challenge is only for a season (it will be replaced with different ones--ha!), and although it's difficult at times, this stage is a BLAST!!! We laugh so hard at the little guy each and every day. He is so much fun, and I love the fact that I always have a little person to keep me company running errands or just eating my lunch. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy (AND NEED) down time and dates with the hubby for sure! :) It's just good to have the little guy around. He's a huge blessing in our lives, and it's hard to imagine life without him.

Sometimes when J-man has been asleep for awhile, Kyle and I go in his room and just watch him sleep. We cannot believe he is OURS...we get to keep him, love on him, play with him, provide for him, and teach him about Jesus, and show him so many new and fun things.

What an amazing blessing this little guy is in our lives!