The Archibalds

I Love Not Doing Dishes

2012-02-17T21:10:00.001-07:00

I know I just posted a couple days ago about how much I love to cook, but I also love those nights when I make the decision that I don't want to do any cooking at all, and we are going out. That is what we did tonight and man I sure do love those nights every once in a while. On those days I get to focus on playing with the kids during their most attention craving time of day, and they are so fun to play with when they want it so bad. But I would have to admit that the best part of not cooking is not having to do any dishes or kitchen cleaning. After putting the boys to bed we get to go straight to relaxing ourselves. It is a wonderful thing. I love not doing dishes.

I Love Exercising

2012-02-17T21:01:00.000-07:00

I started this last night, but got distracted before I could even write a sentence. Pretend I wasn't really lazy and this was posted last night.

As previously mentioned, I am currently training for a half marathon. Since the beginning of January I have now been running and exercising regularly, and I love it. I love the energy that it gives me and the feelings of accomplishment it brings. I am training with a friend (cause we all know I wouldn't have the motivation to go through with it otherwise), and coordinating our schedules isn't always the easiest. Between late nights with kiddos not sleeping, colds, and husbands' leaving early for work we have had to do all of our runs this week in the afternoon, after kiddos' nap times, with strollers in tow. This has made the runs harder, but I have still found myself looking forward to the run each day. Until I get out and run I have felt so sluggish both physically and emotionally. After the runs I am instantly energized and over all happier. I have been amazed and happy to realize how much good exercising is doing for me. Thanks Whitney for going with me and keeping me motivated, and thanks to my little boys for being so good as I drag them along each afternoon, cause I love exercising.

I Love Cooking, Happy Faces, and a Mess. . . I guess

2012-02-15T20:05:00.000-07:00

My love for cooking is something that came when I became an Archibald. Archibald's love their food, especially when it is home cooked. My mom is a wonderful cook, but doesn't really enjoy doing it, so I didn't learn much more than the basics from her (not that I am complaining. She taught a lot of other wonderful things). Thom has taught me most of what I know about cooking and the joys of a home cooked meal. Lucky for me, he doesn't expect me to cook big meals all the time, but he sure does appreciate them when I do, which is less of an occurrence now with two kiddos around the house. I am hoping that most of you mothers can relate to the following pictures because they are why nicer meals aren't a more frequent occurrence. I know I could use nap time to do some meal preparation, but who really knows that far in advance what they want to make that night?

Please tell me I am not the only one that turns around from the stove to find their house looking like this.

If I want to cook AND keep my house clean, then Thom usually comes home to a cranky family. Jackson still doesn't care much for watching TV or movies, so that type of distraction is out, and he finds cooking very fun and fascinating himself. Therefore, on days like today when I really feel like cooking (which I didn't really even do that much) and have a happy child I let him have free reign of all safe items in the house. The result: a yummy meal, a huge smile on mommy and Jackson's face, and one messy house when Thom gets home. I think the mess is totally worth it, cause I really Love cooking AND happy faces!

I Love Feeling Loved

2012-02-14T13:44:00.002-07:00

There is just not much that can compare with the warm fuzzies that come when I know someone loves me.

I have so many memories of friends making me laugh when I needed it most, and making me feel like I fit in with them. I have so many memories of late night therapy sessions in college after a bad test or break up, even though they had an early morning class. I have so many memories of late night parties to celebrate an aced test or to find out about all the details of superb date. I have so many memories of friends helping me out with kids when life gets crazy. I have so many memories of feeling loved by my friends.

I have so many memories as a young child being comforted by my mom in times of despair brought on by growing up and trying to find my place in the world. I remember the feeling of comfort that came when my mom would hold me in her arms and hug me as I cried about so-and-so not wanting to be my friend. I remember feeling in that moment that my mom loved me and nothing else mattered. I have so many memories of calling my mom and her instantly knowing with just my hello that something is wrong. I have so many memories of my mom showing more excitement for big events in my life than I was showing. I have so many memories of feeling loved by my mom.

I have so many memories of going on special dates with my dad (usually to a Texas Rangers game) and now, looking back, I wonder how he could listen to me talk non-stop for nine straight innings about who knows what and not fall asleep. But I remember thinking at the time that he truly cared about every word I said. I remember him asking me questions and showing interest in the bazaar topics I brought up, and I remember the feeling that I knew my dad loved me, I was special to him, and that there was no where else he would have rather been at those moments. I have so many memories of calling my dad for advice, him being at work, and insisting that I wasn't interrupting him. I have so many memories of feeling loved by my dad.

I have so many memories of my siblings dropping everything to listen to me vent, cry, or rejoice. I have so many memories of them coming to my volleyball games, dance recitals, or choir concerts growing up and cheering me on, and doing their homework during intermission or time outs. I have so many memories of them dropping everything and being willing to watch my children when I need it. I have so many memories of them making me feel as though no other friend or life event was more important than me, and knowing that they truly loved me because they wanted to and not because familial ties obligated them to. I have so many memories of feeling loved by my siblings.

I have so many memories of my in-laws helping me and my family out whenever my family comes in town. I still remember the first time my mother and father in-law gave me a hug, welcomed me to the family, and told me that they loved me. I remember the sincerity I felt, and the happiness that came from feeling that love and acceptance. I have so many memories spending time with Thom's siblings and them wanting to do what I wanted, and being sure I felt included and listened to. I have so many memories of feeling loved by my in-laws.

I have so many memories of feeling my kids' love for me. When Jackson asks for just one more kiss goodnight, or clings to my neck when he just fell down, or gives me the biggest smile when he knows he has done something I wanted him to fills me with so many warm fuzzies. The way Graham smiles anytime I come into his view, or nestles into my arm and falls right to sleep helps me feel how much he loves me. I have so many memories of feeling my kids love for me.

I have so many memories of my dear husband's love. The deep, forgiving, understanding, and faithful love he shares with me each and every day is something I could never hope to put in words. He works hard every day to be sure I feel his love. There have been so many times that his tender hug and kiss have wiped away the woes of the worst of days. The love I feel when he holds me in his arms gives me so much strength. I have so many memories of feeling my husband's love for me.

As great as all of these other people's love is the greatest feeling of love comes from my oh so many memories of being all alone and reaching out to my Father in Heaven and feeling him reaching back to me. It comes from the feelings I get when kneeling to pray and knowing I am being heard. It comes from the seemingly random calls I get from family or friends and they just so happen to say the exact thing I needed to hear. It comes from the renewed strength I feel each time I share with someone else my love for Him and His love for me. I have so many memories of feeling lost and confused, but comforted at the same time. I have so many memories of not knowing the answer and then suddenly it's there. I have so many memories of not knowing I needed an answer and yet one came. I have so many memories of feeling his love encircle me as I pour out my heart in prayer. I have so many memories of feeling my Heavenly Father's love for me.

I Love Music

2012-02-13T19:45:00.000-07:00

Jackson has always been very receptive to music. When he is having a rough time and a little behavior issues we can almost always get him calmed down and in a good mood if we sing songs with him. For the last couple of months, every Monday morning we go to a music play group. I LOVE this play group. Better yet, Jackson LOVES this play group. There is a theme for each month and the kids learn different songs relating to the theme all month long. I always have to pay close attention because Jackson will request for me to sing one of the songs to him later. I think that this play group can take a lot of the credit for how good his talking is coming along. Jackson always gets excited when I tell him we are going to go sing with our friends. I think it has even become one of my favorite hours of the week. I get to chat with other moms and I get to sing and play with my little boy. It is a great bonding time for us.

I love how much music means to Jackson. It is something that he gets from his dad, and I love how much it has become such an influence in my life because of them.

I Love Primary

2012-02-12T20:11:00.000-07:00

When our ward split in October and a new one was created Thom and I were instantly put into the primary. Between still being somewhat new to the area and having just had Graham we still didn't feel like we had fully settled into everything and had just recently made some goals to try and get to know more people and make friends. I hate to admit it, but I was less than pleased with the calling. I felt like it would keep us from fulfilling our goal of meeting more people, and I felt as though that meant we would never be able to get any spiritual uplift out of church again (a toddler and newborn do a better job of keeping our attention during sacrament than the speakers).

I am so happy to report that I was very wrong. We are having to put a lot more effort into meeting new people, but we are still able to do it. As for feeling the spirit, I feel it every Sunday in our lessons. There is so much power that comes from focusing on the basics of the gospel. There is so much I can still learn from trying to perfect those simple basics. And there is so much to be learned from 6 and 7-year olds when you hear about the simple truths of the gospel from their perspective. Those kids are so willing to love and trust. It is amazing to watch and learn from them.

Some other great things about being in primary
-There are always a couple wiggle breaks in sharing time, so you never have to worry about falling asleep after a late night or early morning with the kids.
-Little girls this age think you are so cool and draw pictures of you as a princess. Its a great self esteem boost for those Sundays that your hair or outfit just didn't come together like you thought it would.
-If you don't know the answer to something the kids will be completely shocked and make you feel guilty for not knowing. They will call you out on everything. It keeps you rather humble.
-Just in case you need some extra cash, the kids provide you with great blackmail material. They don't always understand that some things mommy and daddy say at home should not be repeated anywhere else. :)

I miss getting to go to Relief Society, but I truly feel like the primary is exactly what I need in my life right now. So I am very happy to be able to say that I LOVE Primary

Just Like Dad

2012-02-11T13:23:00.000-07:00

This kid wants so bad to be just like his dada. He tries to do EVERYTHING his dada does, exactly the way his dada does it.

The other morning while I was getting ready Jackson was in our closet playing. He usually just plays with our shoes so that is what I assumed he was doing. I was in the middle of my makeup when I hear a sweet voice say "mama, elpa" (mama, help). I turn around to see Jackson with Thom's golf shoes on, tie around his neck, and trying desperately to put Thom's dress shirt on. When I asked him what he was doing he gave me a huge smile and just said "dada".

EVERY morning when I go into his room to get him up he asks if dada is home, and he cries EVERY morning when I tell him dada is at work. Every afternoon when I get him up from his nap he asks about dada, and EVERY afternoon he cries when I tell him dada isn't home yet.

I Love Homemade Bread

2012-02-11T13:13:00.001-07:00

I am still pretty new at this homemade bread thing, so the fact that the loaves I made today turned out PERFECT made me so amazingly happy. All of my earlier attempts have turned out pretty good, but there has always been a loaf or two that didn't rise right. So when my loaves came out of the oven all looking so beautiful I literally did a happy dance.

I must mention as well how much I love the taste of homemade bread, especially fresh out of the oven. So tasty, so warm, and so satisfying knowing that I made it. I just tried a piece with nutella on it, and holy cow it was so good. It is taking all of my self control to not go and finish of the whole loaf right now. Thom is out golfing and the boys are sleeping, so who is going to know if I curl up on the couch with a good book, nutella, and a whole loaf of bread all to myself?

I Love This Sound

2012-02-10T21:56:00.000-07:00

Jackson mumbles this sound to himself quite often and we don't really know what it means. When we ask him about it he says "gaga", aka Graham, but he never seems to do it in reference to Graham. Well, whatever it means it makes me smile and laugh whenever I hear him do it and means that he is in a really good mood, so I love this sound.

I Love a Clean House

2012-02-09T21:02:00.000-07:00

There are few things that can make me more simply happy than a clean house. As nice as it would be to have someone always do the job for me (that would probably ensure that it got done on a little bit more of a regular schedule), it just wouldn't be as enjoyable if I hadn't done it myself. Call me crazy, but I actually enjoy the act of cleaning my house. Cleaning other people's homes was my job all through high school, so I like to think that I have perfected my methods. With two small boys helping me out my methods have had to change a little and I can't always get it all done in one day, but I still love the smell, look, and feel of a clean home . . . or at least a mostly clean home.

I Love Early Mornings

2012-02-08T22:26:00.002-07:00

I am in the middle of training for a half marathon with a friend. Unfortunately, most of our runs have had to be done while pushing strollers. In order to save our kiddos from the colder weather we have actually had this week we have done a few early morning (5:30am) runs. As hard as it has been to get up then (especially since Graham was still sleeping at that time) I have loved how much I have been able to get done when my day starts that early.

This morning's schedule:
Exercise - done
Shower - done
Graham fed - done
Breakfast - done
Laundry started - done (eventually five loads done throughout the day. Most I have ever gotten done in one day)
A little mommy time of poking around on pinterest - done
Be in a happy mood when boys wake up - done

And that was all before 8am. The rest of the day was packed with more productiveness.

Feeling that productive makes the feelings of being tired so worth it.

I LOVE MOTHERHOOD

2012-02-07T14:21:00.001-07:00

You know how sometimes the things in life that just aren't going your way tend to drowned out the massive amounts everything that is so great in your life? I feel like I am going through one of those stages right now where it is so hard to notice all my blessings, and things aren't really going that bad either. It is just one of those things I am trying desperately to shake from my life. So in an effort to notice the great things more, and in staying with the theme of the month of February I just made a goal to blog each day for the rest of the month about something in my life that I love.

So here we go - I truly and deeply love being a mother. Even though Graham spends more time awake than asleep between the hours of 1am and 5am, and even though Jackson sometimes thinks he can tell me what to do instead of the other way around I love these little boys so much.

I love the way Graham's entire face lights up when he smiles, and I love how no one can cuddle him to sleep better than me.

I love Jackson's energy and his love of music, and I love how all he wants when he gets hurt is to be held by his mommy

I know that not all mom's can say this, so I love that Thom has a great job and I am able to make motherhood my full time job.

Best. Decision. Ever.

2012-02-03T13:34:00.001-07:00

February 2, 2008

February 2, 2012

Yesterday was the four year anniversary of Thom proposing and the day we like to celebrate valentines (the day means more to us, no crowds going out to dinner, and no inflated pricing). We got to go out on a nice date last night and all day yesterday I was so giddy with excitement. I love that I get just as excited to go on a date with my hubby as I did four years ago before he was my hubby.

We got a babysitter for Jackson and since Graham had a cold he got to tag along with mommy and daddy. Luckily, he is so chill and doesn't mind hanging out in his car seat for extended periods of time (something Jackson NEVER cared for), so it often seemed like he wasn't even there. Plus we enjoyed the looks and comments from people assuming we were first time parents. Little did they know, we are old pros at the parenting thing (right?).

I picked Thom up from work, made a quick stop at Costco where he bought me some beautiful flowers, and then went to an amazing mexican restaurant referred to us by some friends. It was seriously so yummy! But the best part was just sitting and talking and having fun being together (thanks to a well behaved Grahammer). Dessert was waiting at home. It was something I had never made before and I must say turned out better than I expected. It was so tasty!

We'll just pretend mine turned out looking this pretty too. You can find the recipe here.

With my excitement for our date last night I kept thinking about how in love I am with Thom and how happy I am with him and parts of one of my favorite quotes on marriage kept coming to my mind; so much that I went in search of it this morning so I could read it again. It is a little lengthy, but I sure do love the truthfulness of it.

"Love in marriage is deep, inclusive, comprehensive. . . The love of which the Lord speaks is not only physical attraction, but spiritual attraction as well. It is faith and confidence in, and understanding of, one another. It is a total partnership. It is companionship with common ideals and standards. It is unselfishness toward and sacrifice for one another. It is cleanliness of thought and action and faith in God and his program. It is parenthood in mortality ever looking toward godhood and creationship, and parenthood of spirits. It is vast, all-inclusive, and limitless. This kind of love never tires or wanes. it lives on through sickness and sorrow, through prosperity and privation, through accomplishment and disappointment, through time and eternity." -Spencer W. Kimball

Hooray for happy marriages, hooray for much needed date nights (even if one of the kiddos is in tow), and hooray to making the best decision ever four years ago.

The Zoo, Jimmer, and Momo and Papa

2012-01-25T13:29:00.001-07:00

We recently got ourselves a zoo pass for the year. Friday me and the boys decided to try it out and go with some friends. We loved it! We loved it so much and talked about it so much that night when Momo and Papa got in town that we decided to take them and daddy back the next day and show them just how fun it was. Jackson thought the animals were so cool. He is still talking about the HUGE snake, screaming monkeys, lots and lots of birds, and the eating elephant he saw.

Jackson saw some girls getting their pictures taken on this elephant, so he wanted to get his picture taken on it as well. He even said his version "cheese". So cute!

Graham enjoyed getting out in the fresh air and actually stayed awake most of the time. His face looks like he isn't enjoying himself, but I promise he was completely content being pushed around for a few hours, especially because we just switched our stroller around so he can see out and sit up a little.

This was Jackson pretending like he was the various animals he saw at the zoo. If you find his elephant confusing, it is because we watched the elephant eat his lunch by picking up the food with his trunk, and that is what he is attempting to imitate, and what he imitates any time you ask him what an elephant does.

As previously mentioned, my parents came in town Friday night just in time to let Thom and I go out with some friends to the Spurs game. No, we haven't become Spur's fans yet. They were playing the Kings and you know what that means. . . JIMMER! Jimmer didn't have that great of a game, but we did have a lot of fun getting out with friends and pretending we were back in the Marriott Center cheering on Jimmer and the Cougars. We also enjoyed the confused looks we got from the people sitting around us as we chanted "we want Jimmer".

Our view from the very top row. . . he's the white guy

Unfortunately, Papa had to leave Sunday because of work. Jackson has a very special relationship with his Papa and literally makes him do EVERYTHING with him when he is around (and papa actually does EVERYTHING Jackson asks him to). He cried when papa left and continues to ask about him. We were lucky that Momo got to stay until this morning and were happy for the spoiling we got from her the last couple of days. My parents don't really have one place they call home because they travel around so much (my dad for work, and my mom to be with my dad and her grandbabies), but we sure are grateful that San Antonio gets to be one of those homes. I know the traveling life gets hard and tiring, but we hope you know how grateful your kiddos and grandbabies are that those sacrifices are made for us.

I Love 5am!

2012-01-23T14:42:00.000-07:00

After a couple people suggesting that Graham's sleeping problems might mean that he is ready for solid food we decided to try it out. So last week Graham got his first tastes of oatmeal cereal.

Here is a video of his first try at eating (I know Graham is a chubby little boy, but holy cow the camera sure does add on the pounds)

He was a little unsure of how to do it at first, but now that he has done it a couple times he eats it right up and loves it.

Between the solid food and a little adjusting of his bedtime I think we have him sleeping mostly through the night (knock on wood). At least for the last two nights he has slept from 9pm-ish until about 5am. After almost a month of sleepless nights I have never been so happy to see the clock read 5am.

4 Months Young

2012-01-16T20:22:00.000-07:00

Graham is now four months old and is continuing to grow like a champ. He now weighs in at a grand ole 18 lbs. I sure do get some back aches from carrying him around but we continue to love more and more all over those adorable chubs.

Graham continues to be such a laid back, chill baby. He is great playing on his own, (as long as he can see people in the room with him) but he LOVES getting someones undivided attention. He gets so excited anytime anyone looks directly at him and talks to him. One of my favorite things is to sit down by his chair and start playing with him. When he realizes that he is getting all of my attention his whole face lights up with a huge smile (I LOVE his smile) and he starts talking and moving his arms and legs energetically about. It is so cute, and gives me a great self esteem boost every time.

Graham is also one tough little boy. Jackson tries so hard to be gentle with him, but doesn't quite understand what is gentle and what isn't sometimes. Recently Jackson has tried playing catch with Graham. I want to encourage Jackson to play with Graham and share his toys so I try not to tell Jackson no very often when he tries to include Graham in his play. So I just watch closely so I can quickly intervene if something could potentially hurt Graham. Unfortunately, I am not always as fast as I think will be. Because of this Graham gets "beat up" every once in a while. He gets fingers and toys shoved in his mouth, he gets high five slaps, poked in the belly, hit in the stomach and head with balls, and gets laid on a lot. And through all of this Graham rarely gets upset or bothered by it. He actually enjoys most of it and gives Jackson the biggest smiles. He is a great little brother.

Graham does great with tummy time and is now officially rolling over. He started making the efforts when we first got back from our Christmas adventures and rolled over once or twice last week. Then last night he got it all figured out and he is a rolling over machine!

Graham has an adorable laugh, but doesn't bust it out very often. He makes you work for it. Tickle spots under his chin and on his ribs are the most likely way of getting a giggle out of him. However, just because a tickle spot worked five seconds ago doesn't mean it will work now when we try to show grandparents on skype or when we get out the video camera Here is my most successful attempt at getting his laugh on film.

As perfect as our little Graham-er is there have been some issues we have been working through with him lately. He has some stomach issues (very similar to the ones Jackson had at this age) that we are trying to get a hold of. Mainly just fussiness while eating, LOTS of spitting up, diarrhea, and now some constipation. We think it might be some reflux issues, but are still working on a cure. We have an appointment with a pediatric GI doc set up. I made the appointment a month ago and we still won't be seen until the end of February. . . gotta love trying to get in to see specialists.

The other thing we are trying to work through with our little bud is sleeping through the night. He had just started sleeping consistently through the night (til about 7am) before our Christmas vacation and we were planning on moving him to the crib up in Jackson's room soon after we got back, but Christmas eve night he started waking up in the middle of the night again. We are talking multiple times waking up in the middle of the night. Last night it was 4 times. Mommy and Daddy do not feel very good about this. We can't figure out what is going on with him and how to fix it. I feel like we have tried everything, and are now just too sleep deprived to think straight. We originally thought it was just a stage (Jackson did something along the same lines at this age, but it did not last this long) and he would work through it, but are now wondering if it is something more. . . hmm. Who really knows? Parenting is just a big guessing game anyway, right?

Well Grahamer, you continue to be such a blessing in our family and so much fun to watch grow up. Love you sweet baby boy!

Terrific Two

2012-01-14T13:58:00.003-07:00

January 1, 2012 our little "big" boy turned the big 2. When it comes to birthday celebrations this little boy sure did get spoiled.

Spoilage #1: Before we left for Canada my family did some celebrating by taking him to Dave & Busters where Jacks got to "play" as many and which ever game he wanted. He loved the car racing games and anything with flashing lights and lots of buttons (... almost everything there). Needless to say, he LOVED it.

Spoilage #2: Then while we were in Canada, Jackson got to celebrate a shared birthday cake and party with Alec.

Spoilage #3: Since we were driving from Dallas to San Antonio on his actual birthday we did our own small family celebration on the 2nd. We had his birthday presents and some more christmas presents to open that morning (mainly because we couldn't take very much with us) and then we just let Jackson decide what he wanted to do all day long. So the day consisted of playing with his many new toys. I tried making his favorite dinner (at least what we think is his favorite because of the quantity he eats every time I make it): wrapped hot dogs. But mommy made a mistake and it turned out that we didn't actually have any hot dogs. So Jackson and I ran to get McDonalds while daddy came to the rescue and made a delicious birthday cake. (Since Jackson wouldn't really care what kind of cake he got I let Thom decide what kind he wanted in an attempt to make up for not making him one on his birthday. He chose a lemon coconut layer cake. But seeing that Thom ended up having to make it, I don't think it actually counts as making it up to him.) We had a few friends over that night to help us eat the cake and Jackson loved having all the attention.

Spoilage #4: His favorite birthday present was his golf clubs (actually given to us from my aunt several months ago, but we were waiting for Jackson to be able to use them, so we brought them out a few days later when the "newness" of his other toys had started to wear off). After asking where dada and gaga (Graham) are, the first thing Jackson asks to do in the mornings is to go outside and play golf. I usually take him out once in the afternoon and I think Thom has gone out back to golf with him as soon he has gotten home every day this week except for one. Jackson is quickly learning that dada will never say no to golfing with one of his boys.

Spoilage #5: We just remembered that we still have a present or two in our closet that were for his birthday, that I guess we'll reveal when the his excitement for golf wears off. Oh, wait - we better not wait that long.

Here are some more interesting things about our Jackson at Two.

-loves trying to do things all by himself, especially dressing himself and putting his shoes on
-loves to help mama cook

-loves music and dancing to it
-has learned that he can make people laugh and has turned into quite the clown just trying to make us laugh; which isn't very hard cause he is so dang cute

-Cars and trucks are his absolute favorite things! He still screams with joy every time he sees a truck when we are in the car, and he loves to play with toy ones and his car books are about the only ones he will let us read to him right now.
-balls of all shapes and sizes come in a close second to cars and trucks
-he loves discovering what new things he can do with his body (ex: jumping, standing on one foot, somersaults, and climbing all over daddy)

-The one thing I would say best describes Jackson at 2 would be that he is a copy-cat. He does EVERYTHING he sees us or other big kids do. Anything from the way we walk, talk, dress, laugh, and smile.
-jacks is beginning to figure out that he doesn't always have to do what mommy and daddy tell him, but is still really well behaved and responds well to time out.
-he LOVES being a big brother and will give help and kisses to his baby brother without me ever having to ask him to.

-his talking is finally starting to pick up and he loves being able to communicate his needs and wants more clearly. Some of his favorite words to use include mama (finally!), dada (been doing that one for a while), more, car, water, milk, all done, go, and ball.

(By the way, you aren't seeing things, he really is sucking the juice out of a lemon)

Jackson is a terrific two year old and brings us so much joy!

Canadian Christmas Part 4/the last one

2012-01-06T14:40:00.000-07:00

SIMPLE FUN AND CRAZY TRAVELING

The majority of our trip to Canada actually took place after Christmas, so there is still a lot to catch everyone up on.

The day after Christmas was our nephew, Alec's birthday. He was such a sweetie and let Jackson join in on some of his birthday celebration since his own birthday was just a couple days away. Grandma and Grandpa had to leave that day so we opened birthday presents that morning.

During lunch the kids got to watch a movie (this picture shows how Jackson wanted to do everything that Alec and Charlie did and do it exactly like they did. Adorable!).

Later that afternoon we bundled up and went for a walk by the river, or what used to be a river, and is now a giant sheet of ice. Jackson loved getting out and running around, but was a little unsure of walking on ice. Mom and dad really enjoyed watching him try to walk on the snow and in snow boots. Graham had fallen asleep on the car ride there so we chose to just put him in the stroller. For future reference, strollers don't roll very well on ice and packed snow. It made for a very bumpy ride and a not so happy occupant.

Later that night we had a superman cake, a product of Brittney's creative genius. I paid close attention to her efforts in making the exact cake Alec asked for since I probably don't have much longer before Jackson can start making the same demands. Once again, Alec was such a sweetie and let Jackson share his cake, and even gave Jackson some lessons in candle blowing.

On Tuesday Chris had a Chemo treatment. Thom and I watched the kids at home so Brittney could go with Chris and keep him company. You'd think it would be hard to watch five kids under the age of five for several hours, but Thom kept them entertained most of the time building a sweet marble track for them.

Some of our other daily activities included visiting a HUGE mall with a mini golf course, amusement park, wave pool, and a pirate ship inside. We played outside, went on a train ride, had lunch at McDonalds, and just played around the house.

Graham spent most of his time just chillin and being super cute.

The "big" boys were a little too busy running and jumping around to notice him too much, and the adults were a little too busy trying to keep the big boys from hurting themselves to give him too much play time as well. Luckily, Gwen was there to take care of him. It was the sweetest thing to see her take toys to him and sit and "talk" to him. You can tell she has a heart of gold. Thanks for taking care of my little boy for me Gweners!

No matter how much fun we were having the trip did eventually have to end, and we had to make the trek home. Even though our boys continued to be angels, it was not quite the smooth sailing experience we had going up there. Warning: Long story that is more for my journaling and you should not feel obligated to read, but it could make you feel better about your holiday travels.

We woke up at 4am (after going to bed about 1am) to get to the air port for our 6:30am flight. There was something going on with a lack of personnel and faulty computers at the check in desk so we waited over an hour in line just to check in and get our boarding passes. Jackson was such a trooper with it being so early and not being able to wander anywhere. His main complaint was that I didn't have anything for him to drink (my plan was to get him some milk or juice once we made it through security). Lucky for us, half our flight was in the same check in line so they delayed the plane for us, and they didn't bother weighing our bags or charging us for them since they were so far behind.

By the time we made it through the never ending line customs was a nightmare. Again we were lucky enough to have the airport workers push all of those on our flight as far to the front of the line as possible. At this point, Thom and I and our two kids and a stroller were doing pretty well keeping up with the rest of those headed to Houston. Then we hit security. At this point Jackson had had just about enough of his share of standing in lines and being dragged behind mom and dad and he still hadn't gotten something to drink. Therefore, a very understandable breakdown ensued and clings to my leg balling while we try to get ourselves through security. At this point our luck ran out and Thom gets selected for a random screening. Are you kidding me?! Can we not take pity on the couple that has two crying children, a stroller, three bags, and a flight that is waiting on just them? Once we get all our stuff put together we take off running through the terminal, I find a water fountain to fill up Jackson's sippy cup, and get to our gate sweaty, shakey, and out of breath. As soon as Jackson gets his drink of water he is instantly as happy as can be and continues to be that way the rest of the day.

here is a picture of my cute boys. . . just because they are cute and this story needs to have some joy in it.

Landing in Houston we quickly notice the massive amounts of people camped out along the walls and looking anything but chipper. We still don't know what happened to cause the air port to get so backed up but there were flights delayed and canceled all over. Our 4 1/2 hour layover was long and annoying, but relatively uneventful. We just took turns taking Jackson for a walk. The only story worth mentioning is when Thom went to find a plug for his phone that was completely dead (how a phone's battery goes dead while being turned off for a week and a half beats me). Jackson was playing nicely climbing on the chairs we were lucky to find. Graham decides he is ready to eat just before Jackson falls backwards off the chair and hits his head with a loud thump and very loud screams. So I held Jackson while he calmed down and rocked a whining Graham in the stroller with my foot. It was just about ten minutes of craziness and awkward stares before Thom returned.

Thank heaven's the flight to Dallas was just 40 minutes long because we were completely exhausted at this point and ready for the yummy dinner waiting for us at my parents house. We thought we were home free. WRONG-O! As we were waiting for our baggage Thom turns to me and says, "the only thing that could make this day worse is if they lost our bags." Well, they didn't lose all of our bags, but they did lose one of them and Graham's car seat. Since the airport was determined to test our patience this day there were no airport workers to be found for about twenty minutes. Long story short, with Graham in Jackson's carseat turned backwards, Jackson buckled up like a big kid with no car seat, and me keeping an arm over both of them we finally pull up to my parent's house around 7:30pm. Needless to say, we were long asleep when the new year came along and ready for our five hour drive home the next day.

Holy cow, that was stressful just recounting it. But all that matters is that we are now home, our lost bags showed up yesterday, and we have lots of fun memories spending time with Chris, Brittney, and their three cuties. We had so much fun in Canada with yall. Thanks for letting us come!

Canadian Christmas Part 3

2011-12-29T15:45:00.000-07:00

CHRISTMAS DAY

The first part of Christmas morning Jackson spent in a sleepy daze. He didn't wake up as early as the other kids so he had to be woken up to open presents. Once he realized the purpose of the morning he really didn't mind be dragged out of his warm bed.

Because of our traveling we had to get creative with the presents we gave our kids. They all had to be small and light weight, so they could be packed easily.

Santa brought Jackson a cool garbage truck that makes lots of noises (one of those gifts you later regret because of how annoying it can be to adults). In my family growing up the Santa gifts were always the biggest or coolest, so I was feeling somewhat guilty that I didn't have a grander looking gift for him, but Jackson didn't seem to mind at all. He loved it!

Just the act of unwrapping the presents was enough to entertain Jacks. He got excited every time I told him he had a new one to unwrap.

For the second tyear in a row Thom and I attempted giving each other gifts for little to no money. After me mentioning several times that I really want to start building up our disney movie collection, and knowing that Cars is my favorite one he got me Cars 2 (haven't watched it yet, but can't wait to see it). I got my inspiration for his gift from his love of music and the piano we got a month or so ago. I told him he could give me piano lessons (something I promise he will enjoy doing), and to prove my dedication I spent the last month having a friend teach me how to play Silent Night. It took more practice than I thought, and took up most of the nap times over the last month. It was probably the hardest thing I have ever had to keep from Thomas, and the cleanliness of my house suffered greatly because of it. However, it was so fun to do and even better to see how grateful he was for it.

When Chris and Brittney heard of our small gift situation and that we wouldn't be able to bring hardly any of them with us they worked with their boys to come up with a fabulous solution. Alec and Charlie picked out a couple of their own toys that they would be willing to let Jackson "have for the week" and wrapped them up for him to open. His favorite week long toys were the tractors.

After present opening we had an amazing breakfast of French bread casserole, and then it was time to get ready for church. Thanks to the help of my mom I found these adorable matching sweaters for the boys the night before we left for Canada. I know it is cheesy but I love matching the boys like this.

We got to skype with my family after church and we got ready a fabulous Christmas dinner complete with turkey, homemade stuffing, sweet potatoes, homemade rolls, mashed potatoes, gravy, and raspberry jello. And the table looked so beautiful and festive with the table runner and napkins Brittney made with a little bit of help from me.

And to top the day off we had my favorite dessert ever - Raspberry Trifle! Oh my, it was so tasty.

When Jackson was born Thom's mom found the pj's Thom wore his first Christmas. We never had a chance for Jackson to wear them, but they actually fit Graham pretty good. How cute?!

Canadian Christmas Part 2

2011-12-29T14:47:00.002-07:00

CHRISTMAS EVE

We are here visiting Thom's brother, Chris, and his family and were so happy that Grandma and Grandpa were also able to be here with us.

Jackson loves all the time he is getting to spend with his cousins. He wants to do everything they do, and has even been inspired to add more words to his repertoire, some being two syllable. Unfortunately, their funnest time of day seems to be when all three boys (Jackson, Alec, and Charlie) go to bed at night. We have them all in the same room and most nights can hear laughter echoing down the hall up to an hour after bed time (being experienced as I type). It is great that they all get along so well and have so much fun together, but it sure has made for some sleep deprived crankiness.

I always love spending time with Brittney because she is such a creative person. She is always working on some homemade project and is especially creative in the things she comes up with for her kids to play. I loved her idea for the kids to make their own Rudolphs.

There is an entire street around here that almost all the houses decorate with christmas light. We drove to it one night, braved the cold, and got out and walked around looking at all the pretty lights. Christmas lights is one of my favorite things to do around Christmas, and Jackson has really loved looking at them too. It gave him the chance to practice one of his new words - Deer. Every time he saw a deer in someones yard he would point it out and say the word. Jackson, and all the other kids, enjoyed the lights so much that they never even complain about the cold.

Christmas eve was spent getting excited for the day to come. That evening we unwrapped the kids' christmas pjs.

Attempted a reenactment of the Nativity. Five kids under the age of 5 are not the best candidates for these reenactments. It was a little more rowdy than it was spiritual, but they sure did look cute attempting it, and did a pretty good job standing where we told them to.

Joseph

Mary and baby Jesus on the donkey

a wise man riding a camel coming to see baby jesus

We did some caroling around the piano

And we made cookies for Santa

Of course you have to taste the cookies and be sure you're not giving Santa something yucky.

With that all done it was off to bed. As to be expected, the kids took a particularly long time falling asleep that night, but how could you blame them for being so excited for what the next day would bring? I don't really think Jackson understood why there was so much excitement, but he sure did feel it and had fun getting into it with the other kids.

Canadian Christmas Part 1

2011-12-26T23:30:00.000-07:00

TRAVELING PROS

We have been here in Canada for several days now, and are loving it. If I had to give my boys a grade on how well they behaved during the much traveling we did last week to get here, I would give them an A+. They were absolutely amazing. We began our travels Tuesday morning when we drove the five hours to Dallas. Jackson usually does not like his car seat and has a hard time being physically restrained for such a long period of time, but he is really beginning to grow up and mature and this trip up to Dallas he did so good at entertaining himself and enjoying my attempts at entertaining him. He even took a nap in the car ride there.

We spent a day and a half in Dallas with my family. The events included a little Christmas celebration, and a birthday celebration for Jacks with a trip to Dave & Busters. Unfortunately, our camera was packed so well for Canada that we forgot to get it out and get any pictures of the fun we had there. Thursday we woke up at 3am in order to make a 6am flight. "How did our boys do going on so little sleep and confined to such a small space?" you might ask. . . AMAZING!

Towards the end of the traveling it actually made me a little emotional as I realized how amazing they had been the whole morning. Not that we don't think we have amazing children, but we did prepare ourselves for the worst. We had movies, books, toys, a magna doodle, stickers, coloring stuff, tons of Jackson's favorite snacks, candy canes, and two sippy cups full of yummy juice. Most of which were actually his christmas presents and things he had never seen before. We were determined to not let things get out of control and being that we would both have a child in lap, sleep deprived ourselves, and would be in a very small space with lots of strangers we considered spoiling Jackson with whatever he wanted in times of difficulty a viable option.

Lucky for us, Jacks was on his best behavior and no spoiling had to be done. We only had to bust out one of the new gifts for him. Which turned out to be lucky for him because then he had more presents to open on Christmas morning. Even when we had to sit on the runway for more than half an hour in Denver waiting for our plane to get de-iced. He entertained himself by watching the sprayers out the window spray down all the planes around us. He would get a little frustrated when he couldn't find a sprayer and at those times would yell out "go, go, go," wanting the plane to take off because he was then bored of looking out the window. His "go, go, go" yelling seemed to be more entertaining for the people around us than annoying. . . phew.

Graham pretty much slept the entire time and Jackson slept a little bit on both flights and played nicely on our laps the rest of the time. We did have on minor diaper leakage problem with no spare clothes, but the power hand dryers in the airport bathroom made for a quick fix. By the time we had landed and were giving our family hugs we felt pretty silly for worrying so much ahead of time.

Traveling out of the country with two small children. . . piece of cake! Hopefully traveling back into the country will be as uneventful on Saturday.

A little Christmas Cheer (should have been more)

2011-12-19T13:24:00.000-07:00

I have struggled getting into the Christmas mind set this year. I would like to blame it on the fact that I am still trying to get used to being a mother of two and that we have had several visitors the past month or so, but really I am just making excuses. I have felt really guilty about this, so here are some of our attempts lately at making the most of our holiday season.

To get in the Christmas spirit we went down to the river walk the other night for some dinner out and to see the christmas lights. Honestly, we were a little disappointed that there weren't more lights down there, but Jackson thought it was the coolest thing. Mainly because we let him walk everywhere while we clung to his hand for dear life, and to a toddler bright lights are super cool even if they are all the same thing. Towards the end of dinner we realized it was our first time out to eat and doing an outing of that sort as a family of four. We couldn't believe that we hadn't thought twice about doing it and that it was a huge success with no melt downs. Hooray for our well behaved children and fun family times!

We have also done some Holiday baking lately. For a sunday night treat (that lasted the whole next week) we made some sugar spice cookies. And this weekend we spent almost two whole days baking and delivering 36 loaves of Challah bread. It was rather tiring but so exciting to see them turn out so successfully (baking success is still a new thing for me). Too bad I didn't get any pictures of the beautiful loaves or of the mess it turned my kitchen into.

Jackson's "Ho HO Ho" hat. He can't say Merry Christmas or anything like that yet, so we taught him to say "ho ho ho" when we delivered our bread to neighbors and friends. He was so great at doing it right on cue. I must say he is the most adorable ho ho ho-er I have ever seen.

For a little update on Grahamer, he is continuing to grow bigger and bigger (currently weighing in at 16 lbs). We decided to get some pictures of his adorable chubs the other night when he was super excited to not have any clothes on. He just might be an aspiring Santa Clause. All he needs is a little facial hair.

That's right - don't you wish you baby was fat like mine?

And his new trick is sucking his thumb. He LOVES sucking on his thumb. He will still take the pacifier, but he much prefers his thumb. He struggled at first always finding his thumb. But after just two days of intense practicing he can get it almost right off every time. I don't really want my kid to be a thumb sucker, but at this age it sure is cute.

Tomorrow we take of for Dallas for a few days and then on to a Canadian Christmas, so I should probably get back to packing.

Tender

2011-12-14T12:18:00.001-07:00

I just had to share a cute brother moment I just witnessed my boys have.

We were driving home from Wal-Mart (a successful shopping trip with no break downs!) and Graham started to get a little fussy because it was getting close to eating time. We pull into the garage and I hop out to take the bags in before I get the boys out. Walking back to the car I realize that Graham is no longer crying and figure he probably fell asleep. I open the door and see that Graham hadn't fallen asleep. Jackson was holding Graham's hand and the two were staring at each other smiling. As if that wasn't cute enough - I had the hardest time getting Jackson out of his car seat because he refused to let go of Graham's hand convinced he would start crying if he let go.

I am continually surprised with the love and tenderness Jackson shows towards his little brother and how Graham reacts to it. Love those boys!

Double Trouble

2011-12-10T13:42:00.000-07:00

Jen and I have literally been friends our entire lives. We grew up together, and when her family moved away we still got together once our twice a year for a week. We even wound up being college roommates. But I would have to say that my favorite part of our friendship is that our first borns are just two weeks apart. We often call each other with funny stories, or asking the other for advice. There's nothing like the advice or support from a friend that is going through pretty much the same things you are with her son.

Last week Jen and her little Jacob came for a visit. It was SOOOOO FUN! We've gotten together several times in the almost two years of our little boys' lives, but never got to spend more than a couple hours at a time together. Watching our boys play together made Jen and I nothing short of giddy. Of course we had a few issues characteristic of toddlers playing together, but they actually played amazingly well without much drama at all. I don't see any problems with them being college roommates in eight-teen years or so.

Most of the week was spent playing around the house.

On Tuesday we went to Chick-fil-a for lunch and let the boys play at their play place.

After nap time we let the boys do some finger painting (first time for both). They started off a little timid . . .

But quickly caught the spirit of the thing and dug right in.

Wednesday we went to mini town and let the boys play for a couple hours. There weren't many kids there so the boys loved being free to wander where they wanted.

No matter how cute they are, trying to corral two toddlers and an infant all week does get pretty tiring. Thom was absolutely amazing and took the three boys on Wednesday night and let Jen and I have a girls night out - Jamba Juice, Pedicures, and a little shopping.

Jackson had a little bit of a hard time not having my constant attention, but we both enjoyed having a friend around for the week. Thanks Jen and Jacob! We loved having you here. When can you come back?

Dancing King

2011-12-05T07:22:00.001-07:00

Jackson LOVES to dance. It started with simple dance parties in our game room where, according to Jackson, participation was not an option and mainly consisted of Jackson running circles around you. Dance parties began as a way to help Jackson stay still in Sacrament meeting on Sundays. We would get him up from his nap and have a dance party right before we left for church in an attempt to get most of his wiggles out before he had to be confined to a bench for an hour (the strategy was somewhat successful). It quickly turned into an every day occurrence.

Then he discovered the beauty of jamming out in the car.

And now he is actually trying to learn dance steps and mimic what he sees others doing. Last week I had the Ellen DeGeneres Show (best day time show ever!) on while trying to get some things done. Usher and David Guetta were singing their song on the show and Jackson was attempting to copy their dance steps. I couldn't believe it when I looked over and saw him trying so hard to dance just like them. I missed the sweet arm moves, but I did get him trying to do the fancy footwork. You can't really see what the dancers on the TV are doing, but trust me, he is getting it pretty close. I can't believe how much he is growing up.

Brotherly Love

2011-12-01T21:16:00.002-07:00

Jackson is an amazing big brother. All of my worries as to how Jackson would react to Graham in the house were for absolutely nothing. He has had a few moments of getting upset when I have to be taking care of Graham and can't do what he wants me to do, but never actually gets upset at Graham.

One of Graham's first days home from the hospital

Jackson is so loving towards his little brother. He loves to give him kisses, hugs, and hold his hand, usually without being prompted to do so. He often sits or lies down next to Graham and will position himself in a way that when Graham flaps his arms about they will hit Jackson. He thinks it is SOOOO funny when Graham touches him.

Jackson has to know Graham's whereabouts at all times. He can't say Graham's name yet (he still can't really say most words yet), but he has assigned the single sound "ba" to mean Graham. If he doesn't know where Graham is he will walk from room to room saying "ba?, ba?" until he finds him. When we eat meals Jackson will refuse to eat until we bring Graham by the table and make sure he is facing Jackson. Jackson also loves for me to put Graham in bed with him. I often have Graham in tow when I go and get Jackson out of bed in the morning and the first thing he does (after asking about dada, of course) is motion for me to set Graham down next to him. So cute!

Graham's first bath in a tub

Jackson also loves to help change Graham's diapers and put his binky in his mouth when Graham gets upset. We may be horribly manipulative parents but if there is something that we want Jackson to do and he is having a hard time being persuaded he will almost always do it if we tell him that Graham wants to see him do it. Judge us if you want, but we like to think of it as smart parenting because it leaves us all happy.

His new favorite thing to do is help me tickle Graham's lips, which usually produces a big smile out of Graham. Jackson doesn't really have the whole "tickling" thing down yet, but it is cute to watch him try.

Now that Graham is more aware of his surroundings he doesn't like to be left alone. He is usually happy as can be hanging out in his chair as long as he can see us. Jackson LOVES to help me cook, so last night while making dinner I had both boys up on the counter "helping" me. Jackson was stirring while I chopped and added those things to his bowl, and Graham was an angel watching the whole thing. At one point Graham made some really cute noises and I told Jackson that Graham was saying that he was doing a really good job cooking. Jackson got the biggest smile on his face and giggled like a school girl. He would then stir only once and then look to Graham for more praise and then to me to interpret what Graham was saying. Luckily, Graham was in a particularly talkative mood. Jackson even lifted the bowl a few times to show Graham his work and once tried to shove the spoon in Graham's mouth for a little taste of his masterpiece.

Graham is always happy to accept the attention from his big brother. He is really starting to smile now and react to his interaction with others. Jackson is usually very gentle with Graham but even when his hand holding or mouth tickling gets a little too rough Graham rarely complains.

The boys' first bath together - all smiles

I know I have said this before but I am so grateful for my two little boys (and my one older bigger boy), and I am so grateful that Jackson is such a loving and tender big brother. It has made our transition to two go so much smoother than we anticipated.

Thanksgiving and a Birthday

2011-11-30T13:44:00.001-07:00

Because of school, working, a new hubby, and being pregnant it has been five years or so since I have been with my family on Thanksgiving. So coming up to Thanksgiving I was extra excited because we were going to be staying in Texas and spending it with my fam. Thom's grandma's are always so good at preparing delicious Thanksgiving feasts, so we have never been able to participate in the massive amount of cooking ourselves. Being able to contribute to the cooking was another reason we were so excited to stick around here. I can't believe I didn't get any pictures of our amazing Thanksgiving feast. We had about 25 people crammed into my parent's house. I contributed 4 pies (pumpkin, pecan, blackberry, and banana cream) and 3 batches of rolls. Unfortunately, I was only able to taste the blackberry pie because of my dairy free diet for Graham, but everyone told me it all turned out great. Hopefully they were telling the truth cause next year I will probably use the same recipes.

We had so much fun spending time with my family, but to be quite honest, it was anything but a relaxing week. The whole family came down here to San Antonio for a few days first for Graham's blessing. We got in some pedicures, kids christmas craft time, and even a craft for the mamas.

Jakey really wanted mommy to paint his toes too, so we told him that sometimes boys can be silly and paint their toes too. He went around the rest of the night saying "I'm a silly boy." Adorable!

The rest of the family took off Tuesday morning to head up to Dallas (my mom was sweet and took Jacks with her, so I could be more free to do my cooking and packing), and then me, Thom, and Graham headed up there later on Tuesday (we may have tried to take a short cut to avoid traffic in the big cities and wound up getting lost and not getting in until one in the morning. . . oops). We stayed busy the rest of the week cooking, shopping (not on black friday), and just spending time together that we got worn out and a little sleep deprived. Luckily, I had the best little babysitter to help me out with the boys.

Since we won't be together for Christmas, after the extended family took off Thursday night we all got into our matching Christmas pjs and let the kiddos open Christmas presents. Graham got lots of cute clothes.

Jacks got some clothes as well and a sweet tool set.

Thom's birthday was the day after Thanksgiving. Happy Birthday Sweetie! Even though he refused to sleep in when I gave him the option he did a great job of relaxing all day and letting me serve him. We took him out to dinner at Fuddruckers and he opened presents including a family hymn book, childrens song book, John Schmidt piano books, and a golf travel bag. From me and the boys he got peanut M&Ms and several coupons for a family date to the driving range, unlimited piano and video game playing time, and cuddle time with Graham while I clean up dinner dishes. Because of being away from home and so much going on I completely forgot about a birthday cake and taking any pictures. I know. . . how could I drop the ball like that? Hopefully he still had a great birthday even if there wasn't a cake or pictures to document the day. Sorry sweetie.

A Blessing to be Grateful For

2011-11-21T14:58:00.001-07:00

Graham was blessed in church yesterday. With it being so close to Thanksgiving we were lucky to have most of my family here for it (we missed you Chase). Thom and I were asked to speak in sacrament meeting as well, so it made for a rather hectic morning. Lucky for us, my family stepped in and helped get us all ready. Graham did a great job of preparing for his big day by sleeping in and not waking up until almost 8am. The blessing was great and we had a fabulous day celebrating the great blessing Graham has been in our family.

Unfortunately, we weren't able to bless Graham in the same outfit that Thomas and Jackson were blessed in. Our little boy is just a bit too big for it. The outfit we ordered for him made it just in the nick of time - delivered 5:30 Saturday night. So glad it made it in time because I think he looked so handsome.

Go Bald or Go Home

2011-11-20T19:55:00.000-07:00

We all got hair cuts this week in support of Thom's brother, Chris, and in hopes of being inducted into the Hall of Baldness.

Before:

After:

We love you Chris and all others fighting cancer!

Four-point-Five Fortnights Young

2011-11-20T19:35:00.001-07:00

Graham had his two month appointment this last week, and at no surprise to anyone who has seen him he is at the top of the growth curve. He now weighs a whopping 14 lbs 13oz, and we just love all over every single one of his chubs.

Graham is such an easy going baby. His favorite way to be held is upright looking over your shoulder when he is awake. He still loves being swaddled and is an excellent cuddler (we are trying to talk him into giving his older brother some lessons). We recently discovered he has one handsome smile, and he gives it rather generously now, especially if you tickle his lips. Graham has also started talking lately. He doesn't do it very often, but when he does it is the sweetest little sound.

Graham is a great sleeper. If he is being held he is almost sure to fall asleep. He loves being rocked to sleep, but also does a great job at falling asleep on his own (a great talent I take advantage of when he wakes up in the middle of the night). He isn't consistently sleeping through the night, but he does make it about six hours each night. Friday night he actually made it about 8 hours for the first time, and then last night he went about 8.5! Thom and I couldn't believe it when we woke up at 7:30am and Graham was still soundly sleeping.

The only problem with our baby boy (more like my problem than his) is a lot of spitting up and fussiness. For those of you that have been long time followers you might remember that Jackson had the same problem. Graham hasn't gotten as bad as Jackson did, but he seems to be on the road there. In hopes that Graham won't wind up with chronic diarrhea, and that I won't have to stop nursing him early like I did Jackson we are beginning our search for a solution to the problem. The game plan right now is trying a dairy free diet. We tried it with Jackson and it didn't work for him, but are crossing our fingers that it will do the trick for Graham. I have only been doing it for a couple days now, and I have seen a little bit of progress. Not very much progress, but there has been a little.

Style

2011-11-14T14:13:00.000-07:00

A couple days ago when I mentioned to Jackson that I was going to his drawers to find him something to wear that day he jumped out of bed, practically pushed me out of the way and insisted on picking out his own outfit. We were just cleaning house all day and didn't have anywhere to go so I figured why not. This is what he picked out (he was very particular about the order of the shirts). . . Sweat pants, blue collared button up shirt, zip up jacket (zipped half way of course), orange collared button up shirt (buttoned as much as it could). He even wanted a fourth shirt but there was just no fitting it over the others. He wore the outfit all day long. He even napped in it. Man, he has some kind of sense of style.

Big Boy Bed and a Sleep Over

2011-11-14T14:04:00.000-07:00

I found this post I wrote a little over a week ago and forgot to post. Ooops!

Jackson has officially transitioned into a "big boy" bed. I wish I had an amazing story of how we were rock star parents and through patience and persistence over many days we were finally able to get him to stay in the bed and fall asleep calmly. But, alas, Jackson is the rock star and never had one issue moving to a new bed. I watched intently on the video monitor the first night while Thom was putting him down anxious to see what Jacks would do when Thom left the room. Much to my surprise he just laid down and went to sleep. I was so proud of him, and yet there was also a hint of disappointment. We had prepared ourselves for a long night, and expected there would be stories to tell of him wandering around the room or even coming out trying to find us, but no, he was great. Then, I even woke up early the next morning and laid in bed staring at the monitor once again wondering what Jacks would do when he woke up. Would he get up and pull all the clothes out of his drawers (one of his favorite things to do when I am trying to put laundry away), would he freak out and not know where he was, or would he attempt opening his door and coming out on his own? Nothing. He acted like nothing was different. Once again, I felt proud for my well behaved child that stayed in the bed like we told him to, but also just a little disappointment that he didn't do something more "exciting". Way to go Jackson on being such a big boy!

Jackson has always been an amazing sleeper. The only problem is that he is particular on how he falls asleep. Well, really only particular on two things. One - He must have Kermie. Two - There can not be anyone else in the room with him. Number two creates a problem when we travel and have to all sleep in the same room. Seeing as we will be going to visit family for Thanksgiving and Christmas we thought it would be a great idea to try and break him of this horrible habit. Moving Jackson to a big boy bed was the first step. The second step was to actually practice all sleeping in the same room. So Friday night we had a family sleep over in our guest room. It did not go well.

Jacks had a little bit of a hard time falling asleep when we first put him to bed because we had told him we were all going to sleep in the same room and he didn't understand why mom, dad, and Graham weren't going to bed at the same time he was. His whining only lasted a couple minutes and then in true Jackson fashion he was out in no time. A couple hours later when the rest of us went in to go to bed we accidentally woke Jackson up. We half wanted this to happen because this is what we needed to figure out how to handle if it happened during one of our holiday vacations. It was a disaster! At first Jackson was just curious. He laid on his bed just staring at us in our bed, then he started pointing at us, then pointing at things around the room, then he tried talking to us. We kept telling him to just close his eyes and go back to sleep, but the more time went on the more awake and the more curious he became. We tried ignoring him and pretending we were asleep, but this made him very upset and crying and screaming ensued. We tried calming the crying, we tried ignoring the crying. We finally started taking turns lying in bed with him. He would lay there for a while and just when we thought he was asleep he would pop his head up and start laughing and playing with our faces (cute. . . yes, but hard to keep your patience in the middle of the night). At one in the morning we were beyond tired and our frustration was at the breaking point so we threw in the towel and put him back in his own room. He cried for a little while (more out of confusion than anything), but was asleep in ten minutes tops. What?!

A White Christmas

2011-11-03T13:37:00.001-06:00

Since there will most definitely not be snow here in San Antone this Christmas we decided to go to a place we would be sure to have a white Christmas. . . Canada! Okay, so the fact that Canada is also where Thom's brother and family live might have been more of a deciding factor than the snow. Chris and his family won't be able to make it down to Utah for the holidays because of his chemo treatments, so we decided it would be fun to go to them. This means we have to secure passports for the whole family. To save on money we decided to take our own pictures, which is harder than it looks. Jackson was obviously the hardest to get. We did it at bedtime (bad idea) and he had a major case of the wiggles. We ended up having to make a game out of it. He would run from the wall we had set up for the photo and let daddy take a picture, then he could race mommy to the wall on the other side of the room, stand there for a second, and then go back to the wall where daddy was waiting to snap another quick photo. We usually have the hardest time getting him to smile on demand, but last night he kept smiling when he wasn't supposed to. Anyway, we just wanted to share some of the great pictures that came out of this.

Chris and Brittney, we are getting ready. Hope yall are too.

Hundred Acre Woods

2011-11-02T20:47:00.000-06:00

Our ward trunk or treat was Saturday night and that is when we all got dressed up. I must admit that I have never cared that much for Halloween. The pressure to dress up in a great costume was always way more stressful than fun for me. Growing up I was always the kid that wore the sports uniform from the city league because she could never think of the perfect costume and felt embarrassed the whole night. Sad, but true. Luckily this year, I didn't have to choose what we should be. Since my mom had found those amazing furry costumes for the boys (Eeyore and lil Roo), and my sister had a Winnie the Pooh costume she had made for a previous year I could borrow, it only made since that Thom put on his boyish charm and go as the ring leader of the Hundred Acre Woods, Christopher Robin.

Jackson was both excited and somewhat passive towards the whole thing. He loved that we let him walk around the whole time and pretty much guide us where he wanted to go, but he really didn't get the whole stopping at each trunk and asking for candy thing; he did keep doing it nonetheless. After each trunk he would ask to eat the candy he had just been given, and surprisingly didn't get upset with us when we told him he would have to wait til later to eat it.

His favorite thing to do was point and laugh at the other people dressed up. For some reason he thought most costumes were absolutely hilarious. His favorite was a teen dressed up as Darth Maul from Star Wars. He followed the kid for a little while and kept pointing and laughing.

We didn't really do much celebrating on actual Halloween day. We stayed at home and passed out the candy we had gotten at the trunk or treat (except for the suckers cause those are Jackson's favorites) to the trick or treaters. Jackson really enjoyed our door bell ringing more than normal. During his bed time routine we turned our porch light off so he wouldn't be distracted. However, after each step (teeth brushing, scripture reading, changing into pjs, etc.) he had to run to a window up stairs and look out at the trick or treaters walking around one more time. It was really quite adorable. Anywho, hope everyone had a very happy Halloween, and thanks again mom for deciding our costumes for us, feel free to do it again next year.

Family Pictures

2011-11-01T14:36:00.000-06:00

This is mainly for the benefit of our parents but here are some of the pictures from our family shoot last week. Considering what it takes to get a toddler and a new born look happy and natural on demand we are so pleased with how they turned out. Enjoy!

Halloween Preview

2011-10-26T20:03:00.004-06:00

One of the perks of going to Dallas this last weekend was to get the Halloween costumes my mom and sister had found for the boys. We couldn't resist getting some pictures of all the kids together in their costumes since they all had the same theme (Jacks - Eeyore, Graham - Roo, Elly - Kanga, Jake - Pooh). What is it about kids in furry costumes that is so dang cute?

Anyone who has small children knows the effort it takes to get even a couple of the kids looking in the general direction of the camera and somewhat happy. Luckily, my dad realized the crazy potential in our idea to get these pictures and decided to take videos to document it. I can't get the video to work right now. Hopefully I can get it going later.

FYI: This week has been so much better than last! Graham's blood work and Jackson's x-rays both came back completely normal, and Jack is almost done limping now.

Craziness continued

2011-10-24T15:24:00.000-06:00

I appreciate everyone's comments following my last post that things could only get better. Unfortunately, things had to get even crazier before they could get better. Thursday was a no good very bad bad day. The weekend threw us a couple hoops, but yesterday and today have been back to normal, so there is hope on the horizon. I don't mean to sound like a "debbie downer", but with all that went wrong Thursday and this weekend I just have to document it (more for my journaling purposes, so don't feel obligated to read). It is just one of those things you feel like should be only enjoyed while watching a fictitional character go through it in a movie while you sit back and eat way too much pop corn.

Thursday - Both boys wake up in the morning with major diaper blowouts that takes more than half an hour to clean up both messes. Jackson's foot is still hurting him and he refuses to walk on it, so I make an appointment to take him into the doctor at 11:45. With his stomach still upset and his foot bothering him Jackson is not in the best of moods. With the craziness of the week already and Graham not sleeping as well through the night for the third night in row, I am not in the best of moods either. We go for a long walk in the stroller to ward off melt downs before we make it to the doctor's appointment. Five minutes before leaving for the doctor's office I am on my knees in my room praying for help to make it through the day while both boys are screaming in the back ground - Jackson because he is in time out for the third time that morning, and Graham because he wants to be rocked to sleep.

Graham falls asleep in the first five minutes at the doc office and stays asleep through the rest of our adventure (major blessing!). Besides the nurse yanking on Jackson's hurt foot and him screaming bloody murder for ten minutes things go rather smoothly for the next little while. The doc examines jacks and thinks that all is well with him, but orders an x-ray just to be sure. We have to travel to their other office in order to get the x-ray done. I notice that it is almost one o'clock and we haven't had lunch, so I swing by sonic to get me a vanilla root beer, jackson an ice water, and an order of tots. Just as we are pulling into the parking lot of the doc office jackson takes the top off of his water and spills the ice cold water all over him - cue screaming now. His shorts are completely soaked. With no shorts or shoes (Jacks said the shoes were hurting his foot and since he refused to walk anyway the shoes never left the house) on Jackson I walk in attempting to hold a thirty pound toddler in one hand and a thirteen pound infant in his carseat in the other. We head straight for the bathroom where we become the center of attention as I struggle to get all three of us in to change Jackson's diarrhea diaper.

Jackson's mood has taken a turn for the better at this point and he is being an absolute angel. Everyone can't help but talk to him and make comments about how great he is. I am feeling pretty awesome as a mom until I notice jackson playing with some type of liquid substance on his chair. I go into panic mode when I realize it is diarrhea that is continually oozing out of the back of the last diaper I had with me. As I am asking the receptionist if they have any diapers I could have tears are silently rolling down my cheek. Luckily, they find me a few diapers. Then I have to figure out how I am going to get me, Graham, and diarrhea covered Jackson into the bathroom. A nice couple noticing me mulling over my dilemma offer to watch Graham for me while I clean Jackson up. I offer a quick silent prayer that these folks aren't vicious child snatchers and leave my precious infant with the strangers. Walking out of the bathroom with Jackson now only wearing a diaper I see one nurse spraying the packed full waiting room with air freshener and another nurse cleaning up the mess on the chair. All I can think to myself as all eyes are on me is "don't cry". I contemplated just going home at this point, but I had already paid for the x-ray and we had already waited fifteen minutes of what was supposed to be a twenty minute wait.

The wait turned out to be an hour and fifteen minutes. I counted myself lucky that Jackson only threw a fit once that whole time, even though hitting and kicking mommy was part of it (a type of tantrum he discovered only the day before, and I had no idea how to react to it).
x-ray tech: (looking at Graham's car seat) "is there a baby in there?"
me: "yes"
x-ray tech: "is there somebody else here with you?"
me: "no"
x-ray tech: "well the baby can't come back with us"
me: (after a long pause and tears silently falling down my cheeks) "I don't know what to do then"
the x-ray tech disappears and comes back with a nurse who is prepared to sit with Graham while I go with Jackson. I offer another quick, silent prayer that this woman is not a vicious child snatcher either and leave my soundly sleeping Graham with a complete stranger for the second time that day. At that moment Jackson fills his diaper with diarrhea again. The tech tells me I can change his diaper on the x-ray table so I grab the last diaper the kind receptionist gave me earlier. However, I used up all of my wipes on the giant mess in the waiting room. The tech grabs a box of some type of wipes and tells me I can use them. After finishing cleaning up Jackson I actually look at the box and read "for hard surfaces only. Not for direct contact with skin." What?! Another quick, silent prayer that Jackson's skin doesn't fall off (it hasn't), and pretend like nothing had happened.
Three hours after beginning our adventure I am driving home and sobbing to Thom on the phone and realize that somewhere in all of that mess I developed a horrible headache that was now pounding in my head. Luckily Jackson was practically begging to take a nap, so I lay him down and begin feeding Graham (who went an amazing 4 and a half hours without food) when Thom walks in the back door. What a perfect surprise! Cue more sobbing (this time out of joy). He had come home to finish working so he could watch Graham while I got a nap as well. What an amazing hubby!

Thom surprised me again Friday morning and works from home the whole day so he could help me out with the boys so we could get ready for our drive to Dallas for the weekend. We got started on our drive a little late and got caught in traffic, which turned a five our drive into six and a half. Thom started feeling sick half way through the drive. Luckily he was able to ward the sickness off until we made it to my family's house. He spent all day saturday in bed and on the couch not being able to eat or even interact much. About lunch time I started feeling sick myself and that lasted through the night. We woke up feeling great Sunday morning just in time to drive home. We feel bad that my family spent most of the time taking care of our kids for us, but we did enjoy getting to see them, and Graham loved meeting his aunt, uncle, and cousins for the first time.

Just Not Our Week

2011-10-19T21:12:00.000-06:00

Monday - Marathon doctors appointment where Jackson received his Flu shot resulting in crankiness the rest of the day. I discovered at 6pm that I had misread the recipe for dinner so it wasn't going to be done in ten minutes like I had thought just five minutes after I had received the phone call from the doc saying there were some issues with Graham's blood work and we will have to test him again later this week. Scrambled eggs and toast become the substitute for dinner.

Tuesday - Jackson woke up in a pool of his own vomit. Threw up two more times that morning, so we went back to the doc to be sure it wasn't a reaction to the flu shots (it wasn't). Not understanding why I wouldn't let him eat very much the rest of the day made for another afternoon of understandable crankiness. Since Jackson couldn't eat anything but pedialite and toast for dinner, mommy and daddy's dinner wasn't made until after he was in bed. 9pm we sat down to homemade pizza in a home that hadn't been picked up and cleaned all day

Wednesday - No more throwing up, but Jackson continued to complain of stomach pains and had diarrhea. 10:30am Jackson does something to his foot/leg while getting down from rocking chair foot rest, and won't walk on it the rest of the day. There isn't any swelling or bruising anywhere and he doesn't really seem to be in much pain with it so we decide to hold off and see how he treats it tomorrow before we do anything to get it checked out. After rubbing onion juice in his eye while helping me attempt dinner Jackson goes into complete meltdown mode. In order to prevent a mommy melt down I instantly strap both boys into the stroller and go for a walk in this beautiful weather and watch for daddy to get home. Dinner? . . . a bowl of the cereal of your choice. And there has still only been minimal cleaning around the house.

Luckily, on days like this we are still able to find humor in the small things. Like the matching pjs my mom just sent for the boys. They were obviously made for skinny children, and my boys aren't that body shape. I love being able to laugh at my kids. Hopefully we didn't give them a complex.

Notice the pulling of the buttons

We thought he looked like a gymnast in the tight pjs trying to balance on the truck so taught him to say "tada", or as Jackson said "daaa"

Even though they are a little snug they are super cute. Thanks Momo!

Graham at one month

2011-10-18T13:50:00.000-06:00

Our "little" brother is now a month old, and it turns out he isn't quite so little after all. As of his one month check up yesterday morning he now weighs 13 lbs and is 23 inches long. Anyone could have guessed he isn't on the small side just by looking at his adorable chubs, but who would have guessed he would grow three and a half inches and gain just over three pounds in the first month?

At one month our Grahammer is a champion eater (as evidenced by his size), a rock star sleeper (6 hours straight at night!), still loves to be swaddled, actually enjoys tummy time, and could take anyone in a staring contest. When awake he is content hanging out by himself, but prefers to be held and cuddled. After eating he is quite stingy with his burps and makes you work to get them out of him, but when he does let one go Jacks is sure to give his approval with a hearty laugh. We can't believe Graham is already a month old, but then, we also can't believe that it has only been a little more than four weeks that we have had him around. We are so grateful to have been blessed with such a sweet little boy, and it is getting hard to remember what our family was like without our Grahamikyns.

Story time:
At Graham's appointment yesterday morning we decided to get mine and Jackson's flu shots done. Graham had to get some blood work done as well (doc thought that he looked a little Jaundice), so it seemed like a good idea to get it all done at once. Wrong-o! By the time we got to the second location for the shots to be done it had been almost two hours since the start of the appointment and was meal time for Graham and nap time for Jackson. Thanks heavens Thom had been willing to come to the appointment with me. It would have been impossible to juggle both boys at this long of an appointment on my own and when I started feeling frustrated with how long things were taking he reminded me of our goal to always laugh off potentially stressful situations that may arise with two kids with thoughts of how humorous our situation could look from the outside. I tell you, that strategy has seriously worked so well.

Jacks was understandably traumatized by his own shot, and became increasingly traumatized by Graham's screaming as the nurses continually squeezed his poor little heal over and over again, trying to get enough blood for the tests to be done. Thom was in the corner with Jackson on his lap doing everything short of a circus show trying to get Jackson to calm down while I attempted to keep Graham calm by gently stroking his face (which was really more for me than him since there was no calming the poor kid down). Jackson would be laughing at Thom one second and then crying and screaming the next with concern for Graham and me. It was actually a really adorable sight, but not so pleasant on the ears. Just as we had both boys calm and thought we would be cleared to go the nurses came back and said they hadn't gotten enough blood from Graham and had to do it all over again. We had mercy on Jackson's tender feelings for his brother and his uncontrollable need to move about and discover all things around him, so I took Jackson outside while Thom stayed with Graham. An hour past nap and eating time we finally made it home.

FYI: Graham's blood tests showed he is a little jaundice and had some other irregularities that the doc thinks was the fault of the lab. He says not to worry (like that is possible), but we'll go back and do the blood work again next week just to be sure all is well (fingers crossed).

On Our Own Again

2011-10-09T20:45:00.000-06:00

The first morning I was on my own I woke up feeling a little nervous, but all in all pretty confident. I think the biggest lesson we've learned is that even in moments of craziness and feeling out of control if we focus on the humor or cuteness of the situation it really isn't that hard. The boys haven't really taken it easy on us and yet it still doesn't seem too bad. I think we might actually be able to do this two kid thing.

Jackson is having some behavioral issues right now, but it isn't anything he wouldn't be doing if Graham wasn't here. I think it is all due to his age and teething. Remembering that helps me to not get too worked up over it. We are so lucky that Jackson absolutely loves and adores Graham (I will post more on their special relationship later). Nursing is the hardest times of the day. Jacks has realized already that I won't get up and physically stop him from doing something he isn't supposed to, so he will sometimes just not look at me and ignore me when I try to get him to stop doing something. He doesn't pull that trick very often but when he does it is quite frustrating. A couple times he has even put himself in timeout for me. . . quite handy. Graham has become more opinionated in when and how he wants to eat, sleep, and be held, but mainly continues to be a pretty easy baby.

Day one on our own brought my first situation of dealing with two screaming children at one time and Jackson wanting to be held while nursing. And that evening Thom got his first dose of putting Jacks to bed with Graham's help and no help from me (I was picking up a babysitter so we could go meet our new bishopric). It was one of those moments you would see in a movie or something, as far as what he told me at least.

Graham was doing great on his own while they were reading books, but then started fussing while they were brushing Jackson's teeth. Graham soon got to needing much more attention and thus was getting increasingly vocal during nighttime prayer. Thom took a few seconds to try to calm him down in his bouncer chair, and Jackson started running around the room. Thom and Jackson barely made it to the chair to sing some songs (Jackson always sits on his lap while they sing) and Graham was losing it again in the other corner- and it was really bothering Jackson. Thom decided he'd try to make both of them happy, so he went and grabbed Graham and started calming him down. Meanwhile, Jackson was getting even more wound up. Thom sat down in the chair with Graham and waited for Jackson to finish playing hide-and-seek in the closet, then pulled him onto the edge of his lap, with Graham between him and Thom. Singing time was full of distractions, but at least both boys were happy. Well, Jackson loved it, and Graham was only slightly whining. I think Thom's arms were a little tired after it all (especially after lifting each boy with one arm to get Jackson into his crib) but why else would he work out?

A couple other successes from the first few days on our own
-five loads of laundry done (washed one day and folded the next)
-dinner made at a reasonable time. They were quick and easy dinners, but considering my attitude towards making dinner lately I consider this a huge success
-an exercise walk for me with both boys in the stroller
-an exploring walk for Jackson with him walking and Graham in the backpack
-three hours of church at our new ward and new building with both Thom and I teaching primary
-Me and both boys showered and ready for the day before 10am

All in all life in the Archibald home continues to run rather smooth and well, and each day just gets better.

Movie Night

2011-10-08T21:50:00.000-06:00

Last night we had our very first family movie night. It is something we have talked about doing with Jackson for a long time. One of our favorite things to do is pop popcorn and cuddle up and watch a movie, so we have looked forward to the time we can do it with our own children. We haven't tried it with Jackson before because, frankly, he couldn't care less for watching TV. I have tried several times to get him to watch a cartoon here and there (the idea of having that as a go to at times of making dinner or something like that sounds quite nice), but he really doesn't like it. He will last maybe five minutes before he tries to turn the TV off himself. It is nice that I don't have to worry about regulating his TV time, but come on kiddo. . . are you normal?

So last night we decided to try our luck. We let him help us pop the popcorn. To say the least, he thought that was pretty cool. His facial expressions were priceless.

Cars was the movie of choice. We figured he would really like it since cars and trucks are his favorite things. Plus, it is one of my all time favorites (it is so clever). It was a huge success. He sat there eating his pop corn and pointing out every big car and truck that came on the screen and dancing to the music for about half an hour. After that the need to move around was too overwhelming for him to resist. However, it was the first thing he started "talking" about when he woke up this morning and has mentioned it several times today, so that means it was a success.

This was our little Graham the whole time. Thanks for sleeping so good little brother and letting us all enjoy the movie.

Here's to more family movie nights!

Moms are the Best

2011-10-08T11:41:00.000-06:00

Life with two kiddos is a little bit busier than life with just one (duh!), so I have gotten a little behind on posting and documenting the first three weeks of our Grahamikins' life. Here is post one of many for today.

Momo (my mom) came to stay with us about a week before Graham was born and stayed about a week and a half after his arrival. Boy oh boy were we happy to have her here. About the time she came I was having some intense muscle pains that made walking at times rather difficult. Jackson especially liked having someone that was up for being a little more playful than his big bellied mama or his sleepy post prego mama. And I thoroughly enjoyed getting in some naps, shopping time on my own, help keeping the house clean, and eating out. Jackson even got in on the cleaning action (he is now obsessed with the vacuum).

After momo left we had two days before Grandma (Thom's mom) came to lend her helping hand. Thom was a sweetie and took those two days off so we could have some great family time, and so I wouldn't have to brave it on my own just yet. It had been way too long since we had seen Grandma and Jackson was very anxious to make up for lost time. He made her do/watch everything he did. What a trooper she was. Once again, I loved getting in the extra naps, the help with grocery shopping, and the famous Dixie cooking. After all of the baking lessons I hope I will now be able to now replicate the recipes that have given me trouble in the past.

So now that we have been properly fed, rested, pampered, spoiled, and our freezer is packed full I think we are ready to make it a go on our own. Thank you so much to our mothers who were so willing to leave their hubbies and other grandkids behind so they could come take care of me and my boys. We truly appreciate all your help and love. Thanks to our fathers for selflessly giving up your wives for a week or so, we realize life without them is easier said than done.

Graham's First Bath

2011-09-27T20:23:00.000-06:00

Jackson was the perfect big boy helper

One of the only times Graham cries is when he is cold. Needless to say, he does not enjoy being bathed

Precious Boy!

Intensive Care

2011-09-27T19:57:00.002-06:00

As I mentioned before Graham had problems with his blood sugar level from the very beginning. It was so low right after birth that we had to give him formula right away. Problems with low blood sugar aren't anything new to us - Jackson had the same problem when he was first born as well, just not as bad. Going through the same issues with Jackson helped Thom and I to keep from getting worried when Graham consistently failed the blood tests. It was heart breaking to see him poked in the heel so many times (we counted between 20 and 25 scabs all together on his heels), especially when he stopped crying when they would do it because he was so used to it.

Between feedings and the blood sugar testing before and after the feedings there wasn't much sleep to be had those first two nights while in the hospital. And as most parents of a newborn know, sleep deprivation only adds to the already emotionally vulnerable state child birth puts you in. Because of our experience with Jackson we knew that there wasn't a lot to worry about with Graham, but rather it was just a matter of how long it would take for his body to level out his blood sugar levels. Most of our frustrations came with the feelings that things were happening without consulting us or being very well explained.

We were so lucky that Graham didn't have to stay in the NICU very long, but it still didn't make it very easy when I had to come home Saturday without a baby in tow. We thought he wouldn't be coming home until Monday or Tuesday, but just was we were walking out the door Sunday afternoon to go visit Graham we got a surprise call from the Doctor saying that he was ready to come home. We were so excited! The only bad part about it all was that my sister and her family had driven down from Dallas late Friday night to see our little boy. They got into town just after visiting hours that night and then Graham went in to the NICU about 5am Saturday morning. The NICU only allows parents and grandparents in to see the babies, so my sister and her husband weren't able to see him there. Just an hour after they left on Sunday to go back to Dallas was when we got the call that he could come home. They just barely missed him. Sorry guys, Graham can't wait til he gets to meet you.

Graham's Homecoming

2011-09-20T20:39:00.000-06:00

Because of low blood sugar Graham had a brief stay in the NICU (we'll post more on that adventure later) and wasn't able to come home with me on Saturday. We thought he would be there until Monday or Tuesday, but we got a surprising call on Sunday, just before we were leaving to go visit Graham, from the NICU doc saying we could bring our Graham-er home in a couple hours. We were ecstatic, to say the least.

Luckily we had just enough time for my dad and sister to see him one last time before they had to leave town.

Being adored is tiring work

Jackson loves having baby brother around the house. He is so fascinated with Graham and loves to just sit and watch him and try to mimic what Graham is doing.

We had to take advantage of his eyes being open. It is a rare occasion we get to see them.

Graham Foster Archibald

2011-09-15T18:49:00.000-06:00

He's Here!

We arrived at the hospital right at 5 this morning, and Brittany was able to get in a room and get started quickly. The doctor was supposed to come between 8 and 9 to check on her and break her water, but that didn't happen until about 10:30. Once her water was broken, things started progressing a little quicker, and the nurse was so determined to have him born before her shift ended at 2:00 - she barely snuck him in.

Brittany was ready to start pushing a little before 1:00, but the nurse then found out that the warmer in the room wasn't working right. We waited another 15 minutes or so as they figured out what was wrong with it. She pushed for one contraction, and his head started poking out. They waited for the doctor to arrive to continue, and two pushes later he was born!

Graham Foster Archibald

1:41 pm, 15 September 2011

9 lbs. 10 oz.

19.5 inches

He had pretty low blood sugar right off, so they had us feed him a bottle of formula within the first hour - he knew exactly what to do with it and it was gone pretty quick. He's already started breastfeeding well, so we'll keep our fingers crossed that that continues. Brittany is feeling great, and his blood sugar is back up to par already, so everything looks great! We're so excited to have him join our family, and can't wait to see how our lives continue to change for the better.

Ready or Not. . .

2011-09-14T07:32:00.000-06:00

. . . Here He Comes!

Even though I have been rather determined to go into labor on my own with this little boy we made the decision earlier this week to go ahead and induce labor. So unless he decides to get things going today, the plan is to go in at 5:00 in the morning and get the party started.

My mom has been here with us for about a week now, so I feel as prepared as I can be. Some friends threw me a "Pamper the Mom" shower (fabulous idea!) last night, so I feel properly pampered. If only we had been able to get fully caught up on sleep. . . oh well.

We are so excited to finally meet this little boy and add to our already amazing family. We will keep you all updated.

An Eventful Long Birthday Weekend

2011-09-07T12:24:00.001-06:00

Our Labor Day weekend was very busy and eventful, unlike most of our weekends. I just have to start off by saying that my two boys made it such a wonderful birthday weekend. They took such good care of me, and pampered me all weekend long.

Can you tell that belly is ready to pop?

We kicked the long weekend off early Friday afternoon when Jackson and I decided to have car trouble and breakdown while we were out running errands. Luckily we were still on the access road when the car stopped accelerating, power steering went out, and brakes locked up. I was able to get it pulled in to the entrance of a car dealership where the men there were very helpful. They told me Jackson and I could wait inside for Thom to show up (luckily we were pretty close to his work), but with an unprotected $100,000 old school Corvette sitting in the middle of their show room I figured it would be better for my patience, Jackson's arm, and the blood pressure of those working at the dealership that me and the energetic 20 month old wait outside. It was rather warm, and we were a sweaty mess when Thom/our knight in shining armor arrived to save us, but being outside was much more enjoyable than the alternative.

Saturday morning we woke up bright and early so Thom could run in a "race". He gets healthy points at his work for each community run he does, so this was the first he tried. Thom did fabulous (especially for not training for it) and Jackson loved exploring the great out doors. Hopefully it won't be too long before I can join in on the fun.

The rest of the day was filled with a little garage saling (we found a great bouncy chair for lil roo and an old school toy lawn mower was given to Jackson for free - SCORE!), a house warming party, and a wedding reception where Jackson was able to get his groove on and took over the dance floor. It was so cute watching him work the dance floor that it made it hard to get upset at him when he pushed people out of his way. If only I had had my camera with us. When I told my sister about our busy day she said, "I didn't know you had enough friends for that many social events in one day." Well, apparently we have deceived two people into thinking they could be our friends, or at least that we would be good service projects.

Sunday made for a relaxing morning and church in the afternoon. That evening we had another social event (I know, that means more friends - feel free to gasp in shock along with us), a BBQ at our next door neighbors. I guess that bread we made and took to all our neighbors last weekend really did help us in jump starting a relationship with those that live on our street. But before we made to the BBQ, where Jackson was perfectly behaved, my boys made a small dinner for us (we weren't for sure what would be at the BBQ or how Jackson would do there, so it was a back up plan) and a birthday cake we got to start on a day early (somehow I missed getting a picture of it).

I loved how Jacks insisted on wearing an apron just like daddy

Monday was another great and relaxing day. It started with strawberries and waffles for breakfast. Made, of course, by my boys. Then we did a little Labor day shopping in the morning for a much needed household item, a guest bed. During Jackson's nap Thom was a sweetie and did some cleaning up around the house while I took a bubble bath and attempted to take a nap. We had some good play time after Jacks' nap and even made it to the pool for some splashing about. While at the pool I only had one fellow swimmer stop me "tactfully" mention how I was going to have a baby soon. When I said something jokingly back about how I was beginning to get that feeling, she said "No, I mean you are gonna have that thing REALLY soon." Wow, the things some people say without thinking sometimes.

After a fabulous dinner, once again made by the boys (BBQ pulled pork sandwiches - yum!), we went outside to let Jackson play with his new lawn mower. Jackson even let daddy get out his own lawn mower out and "play" with it along with Jackson. We had an amazing "cool" front come through that day so I enjoyed sitting on the porch not having sweat dripping down my face and watching my boys work so hard. It was so cute to see Jackson try to do the exact same thing he saw Thom do. I may be a little bias, but I think the yard looks great, even if it is a little drought stricken.

It was so hard letting Thomas go to work yesterday. I really loved having him around three days in a row, and I guess the pampering I received all weekend didn't hurt much either. Thanks boys for the best birthday ever!

To Do Before I'm Due

2011-09-01T11:53:00.000-06:00

To do list before the baby comes

-New Born diapers (can you believe how tiny they look compared to Jackson's?)- check

-Bassinet set up and sheets washed - check
-Hospital bag packed - check
-Mama's belly stretched to the absolute limit - check
-Swaddling practice - Check

-Sewing projects - almost check
-Tour of the hospital - check
-perfectly clean house - wishful thinking
-name chosen - check (we think)
-excited big brother ready to welcome and help take care of a little brother - check

Just two weeks left until the due date. I think we are about as ready as we could be, you can come whenever you like, baby boy. Your family is anxiously awaiting your arrival!

Family Golf Outing

2011-08-20T13:13:00.000-06:00

We decided to brave the heat last night and have a family date night at a cute driving range we found. When we told Jackson we were going to go golfing with daddy I thought his head would explode with excitement, or that he would at least run into a wall as a frantically ran for the closet he knows daddy keeps his golf clubs in. We went out to dinner first in hopes that the 100 degree weather would cool off a bit, and so we wouldn't have to fight the weekend dinner crowds at peak time. All through dinner Jackson didn't want to eat and kept pointing to our car outside (pointing to his and daddy's golf clubs he knew were in the back of the car) and making the motion like he was swinging a golf club. We had to coax him to eat his own dinner and tried, to no avail, to get him to wait patiently for us to finish our meals. When he almost got himself out of the high chair we decided to pack up what was left of our meals and head out. Who could blame the kid for being so excited to go golfing? . . . He is an Archibald.

Trying to find the perfect spot

Daddy explaining the rules of where we can and cannot go

Lessons from the pro

Picking out the perfect ball

Taking a shot

Watching the master at work

Wanting so bad to be able to use daddy's clubs

It's hard work playing golf and being so cute. A water break and some rest time

Don't tell Jacks, but my aunt got him some "real" golf clubs that are almost his size. But we aren't giving them to him until he can control his swing a little better (he just rapidly swings back and forth until he hits the ball or something else, usually us, gets in his way), or until he could understand why we wouldn't let him play with them in the house. We can't wait to see the excitement on his face when we reveal them to him, but until then, I think plastic works just fine.

Prayers for Chris

2011-08-16T21:18:00.001-06:00

My older brother and great friend Chris was recently diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma. He and his sweet family can use all the prayers we can give as he fights this.

You Might Be Pregnant If. . .

2011-08-12T19:39:00.001-06:00

You decide to take a night off from cooking because the hubby is out golfing with friends, so dinner for you and the kiddo consists of whatever sounds good to you and the unborn child in the moment - a sonic vanilla root beer (a rare splurge for mama, but only water for Jacks), graham crackers, a bowl of watermelon (4 bowls if your Jacks), and a bowl of green beans. Yummmm. . . It was extremely satisfying and so nice not to cook.

Our Little Big Boy

2011-08-12T12:27:00.000-06:00

What a fun, tiring stage Jackson is in right now. We keep thinking that there is no way this kid could have any more energy, and yet it seems to just keep growing. He surely keeps us moving and on our toes. He is trying so hard to be a big boy and do as much as he can by himself. He also wants to do almost everything Thom and I are doing and gets pretty frustrated when it doesn't work for him the way it does for us. He has found that he can assert his own opinions when we ask him to do something, and is better at being able to communicate his exact wants and needs. We love seeing him grow up so much, but aren't particularly enjoying trying to figure out how to discipline our way through this stage.

Jackson continues to be our champion sleeper. We switched him from two naps to one when we first got to San Antonio. I dreaded the process and thought it would be long and horrible. It was actually pretty easy and didn't take that long, maybe a week. He currently sleeps between 12 and 13 hours a night and takes around a two to three hour nap in the afternoons. If he has had a rough morning or if we are late putting him down he will occasionally whine for a couple minutes when I first put him down. But except for our first week in the house (he really didn't know what to think about life at that time) he will always give into sleep. We are seriously crossing our fingers that Jackson's little brother will follow his example and be as good of a sleeper.

A little before leaving Utah at Jackson's 15 month check up his pediatrician expressed concern for Jackson's lack of talking. Thom and I knew that he was a little behind, considering he didn't have any words yet, and had noticed that most other kids his age had several by then, but didn't think too much about it. Jacks was developing just fine in every other aspect, so we figured it was more because he didn't want to talk rather than he couldn't. However, the pediatrician suggested we get him evaluated for speech therapy as soon as we got to Texas. We did that and Jackson actually qualified. We still don't think there is too much of a concern and assume Jacks will start talking when he wants to, but since the therapy is free and done in our own home with me, we decided to go for it. A speech therapist has been coming for "play" time every other week for a little over two months now and we are finally seeing improvement. Jackson's first real and consistent word came at 18 months and is Dada (no surprise there). Even though they are not as consistent or pronounced that great he has several other words as well - Jesus, help, up, dirty, hat, water, and very seldom mama. In an effort to make the "ruff ruff" sound for a dog he always coughs, and for almost all other animals he does a short yell when we ask him what they say. I think it is because we talked a lot about bears, lions, and tigers in a couple day period and I told him they all said roar. So I think yelling is "roar" to him. My personal favorite is the sound he makes for a bee. This was his first animal sound to make and when he tries to buzz it comes out more like a snake's "ssssssss". It is so adorable to see him do it. His hole face gets into it, and it makes us laugh so hard. The therapy has been for the most part helpful. Mainly we feel that it has helped to give us ideas as to what we can do better to help him see how words should be said. Aside from all of this, we think the biggest help has been Nursery where he sees other kids his age talking.

That is right, our little boy is in Nursery now. I can't believe it myself. We took him for the first time the week before he turned 18 months and took turns staying in there with him the first two Sundays. If he had gone to nursery before we moved from Utah I am pretty sure it would have been a smooth transition, but since the move Jacks still hasn't gotten over his fear of us leaving him. Therefore, nursery has been kind of traumatic for him. He does this absolutely heartbreaking cry when we turn to walk away - so heart breaking that I may have shed some tears myself. Luckily, the nursery leaders say that he is still pretty good and easy to console when he re-realizes that mommy and daddy aren't there. This last Sunday was the first that he didn't look like he had been crying when we picked him up, so I think it is getting better.

Outside of trucks and airplanes Jackson's entire world revolves around dada. He talks about his daddy all day long. Any picture he passes he has to point out where daddy is in it, and even likes to carry some of the pictures around with him. One of the craziest things is that he always knows about the time that Thom should be getting home from work, and just at that time he will just babble dada over and over and will continually go to the front door and knock on it to see if daddy is home yet. It is so cute, but the poor kid gets so sad when I tell him dada is not home yet. Then, when we do hear daddy unlocking the door Jacks drops everything and goes running for the door. As soon as he gets to Thom though he stops dead in his tracks and will start pointing at what he wants dada to do with him. We are working on teaching him that the way we show daddy that we missed him during the day is giving him hugs and kisses before we ask him to do things for us. It is definitely a work in progress. When daddy is at home Jackson wants to be doing everything his daddy is doing, or wants daddy to be playing with whatever he is playing with. He still prefers to come to me when he gets hurt, but other than that it is all about dad. Honestly, who could blame him? Daddy is my favorite too.

Tunnel Fun and a Hair Cut

2011-08-02T13:17:00.002-06:00

With all of the unpacking we have had a lot of boxes laying around. Thom decided to make a tunnel out of them all. Since these pictures were taken the tunnel has grown bigger and even has some twits and turns. I don't know which Jackson loves more; playing in the tunnel, or helping daddy build the tunnel.

On Sunday we made a spur of the moment decision to cut Jackson's hair. I have always done it myself with scissors, and it is was definitely not something Jackson enjoyed. Therefore, his hair has never been even. In an effort to make it a little more of an enjoyable process for Jacks and in hopes that the hair cut would actually be all one length we decided to go with the clippers for the first time. Jackson did amazing and didn't mind daddy "combing" his hair that much. It looks great, but is so much shorter than we have ever had his hair before. It has taken some getting used to for all three of us and we sure do miss those blonde, curly locks, but we think he is just as handsome as before.

Before

After

A Few Disappointments with a Lot of Good

2011-07-30T14:25:00.000-06:00

Weekend Trip:
This last weekend we officially became a mini van family, and we couldn't be happier with the decision. The back story is that before we left Utah my car broke down, several different times. With the last one being the day before we left to move to Texas. Thom's parents offered to take the car off our hands, and we decided to leave it behind in order to minimize the stress and craziness of moving. We chose to try the one car thing, and even though it was difficult at times, we really felt like we could make it work for a while. So we weren't really in the market for a second car, but when my mom told me about one of our dearest family friends that were going on a mission and selling their van it seemed like a great opportunity we had to jump on. The only thing was that we had go up to Dallas to pick it up. We planned our weekend trip for the past weekend and just a couple days before Thom found out that he had to work all day Saturday and couldn't come with us. We decided Jacks and I would still make the trip considering the fact that it was the last chance I had to travel up there and visit my family before lil Roo comes. It was such a fun trip and time with my family, and we are so glad to now have the van (thanks Miners!). Jackson absolutely loves it. His favorite part is how he can see out of every window; therefore, not missing one big truck that drives by. The only disappointing part is that Thom's boss called him Friday night and told him he didn't have to go into work on Saturday after all, but he made the best of his free Saturday by doing lots of little projects around the house. The biggest one being organizing the garage, so we can fit both cars inside. It was so sweet and selfless of him to work so hard all day considering the fact that I told him he should go golfing. What a sweet hubby!

Baby Update:
I am now 33 weeks, and all is going great. This little boy continues to be quite the mover, and seems to be quite the big boy. Just within the last week or so I have had three different people ask me if I was sure there was only one in there when they found out I wasn't within a week or two of delivering. I am beginning to get that "I don't think my belly can stretch any further" feeling, my feet have started swelling just a bit. But considering that at this point with Jackson I couldn't wear most shoes or my wedding ring, it doesn't bother me that much. The restless nights, and hot flashes are settling in, but still not too much to complain about. My biggest complaint is that I am afraid I am going to have to stop exercising. With Jacks I stopped exercising about half way through the pregnancy and swore I wouldn't do that again. I have done some kind of exercise the whole time with this one, but recently have been having lots of pain after. All I have been doing is walking in the mornings, but only five minutes into the walk my hip joints begin aching so much that it makes walking difficult, and it lasts all day. My back also gets in on the action and makes picking up Jackson the rest of the day very painful. If I am going to be able to keep up with Jackson throughout the day and not fall asleep on Thomas at 7:30 at night I fear I am going to have to give up exercising all together. I really don't want to give up on it yet because the physical benefits it has, but the main reason I want to keep it up is how it much it helps me emotionally. However, I don't want my boys to suffer for my selfishness. Any one have any suggestions? Is there something I can do, or do I really just need to realize that I am very pregnant and it is a small price to pay for a precious new baby?

Catch up - California Trip

2011-07-20T20:02:00.000-06:00

As I mentioned a few posts ago (the one of Jackson falling asleep during dinner), we took a quick weekend trip to California several weeks ago. Thom's brother graduated with his PhD and we were more than willing to go spend some time with family and in great California weather to help them celebrate.

Chris with his wife (the other Brittney Archibald), and his advisor

We decided to fly out and back late at night so that Thom wouldn't have to take off more than one day of work . We were also taking into consideration Jackson's inability to sit still for longer than two minutes and thought that this would be the perfect way to get him to sleep on the plane. WRONG-O! Jackson actually did fabulous on the flights, but he made it clear from the beginning that planes were way too cool for him to waste much time sleeping. The flight to California he slept about 30 min. at the very end, and the flight back to San Antonio he didn't sleep one minute (each flight was 3 hours, and took off at least an hour after his normal bedtime). He was too busy making friends with everyone around us and flirting with the flight attendants. By the end of both flights all within a few rows of us knew our little charmer by name.

Jackson at the airport going crazy over all the air planes he could see.

In California we finally made it to our hotel about 2am Texas time. Jackson was beyond tired, but completely freaked out by the new sleeping location. The hotel didn't have a crib available, so we made a pallet for him on the floor. Jackson was sooo not okay with this sleeping arrangement. Thom and I were completely clueless as to how to help him, because he has always been a rock star at falling asleep where ever we lay him down. He has never allowed us to lay down and cuddle with him, or help him fall asleep in any way. That night, however, Jackson was so terrified of his new surroundings that I ended up laying on the floor for a couple hours, stroking his arm and singing in his ear while he curled up right next to me and finally fell asleep. Before that Thom had tried rocking him in his arms in the pitch black bathroom for over an hour. It was rough on my pregnant body to lay on the floor for so long (My back hurt so bad for the next two days that I couldn't hold Jackson or stand still for very long), but so worth it. I had never before been able to cuddle and reassuringly calm my son in such a loving, tender way. And for that reason, it is a night I hope I never forget. The next two nights we had a crib, which provided only a little more comfort for Jacks. He fell asleep those nights to the sweet sound of his daddy singing him hymns and primary songs and gently stroking his hand.

One of the highlights of the weekend was the AGA Tour's Inaugural Bay Area Championship (IBC). With the move and starting a new job Thom didn't get as much practice time as he had hoped before this major, but he didn't let that keep him from finishing in 3rd. Congrats to Chris for not letting his graduation distract him from taking home the trophy. If your interested in more info on the build up to and the outcome of the tournament you can find it on the AGA Tour's official site by clicking here.

Jackson even got to go to the beach for the first time. He wasn't as excited about it as I had hoped, but he did enjoy himself. He honestly cared about what his cousins, Alec and Charlie, were doing more than anything else. It was so fun to watch him try to copy everything they did.

Asking Jacks to smile usually produces a face like this

and finally his natural smile

Tummy Time

2011-07-12T20:26:00.000-06:00

There has been so much new and exciting things going on in our family this year. It has been so busy, but so wonderful at the same time. The best change of all will definitely be the addition of a new little boy in a couple months. As excited as we are to have him I must admit that I feel like I just haven't had the time to focus on him like I did Jackson. I have enjoyed this pregnancy a lot more than Jackson's, but I have felt so much guilt over this one as well. I know he really doesn't know the difference, but I still can't help but feel like a horrible mother some times when I think of how little focus he gets. There have even been times I have forgotten I was pregnant until Jackson asks me to pick him up, and I realize my physical limitations with a large belly and no stomach muscles.

Even though there have been legitimate "complications" with this pregnancy, it has been a lot less stressful. Some of it might be that I haven't had time to sit around and focus on the strange things that are changing with my body, but the fact that I know what to expect this time around is what makes it more of a walk in the park. Around 20 weeks along we found out that I had partial placenta previa. Had this lasted throughout the pregnancy it would have meant a definite c-section and could have caused preterm labor complications. Luckily, at our 30 week appointment yesterday we found out that placenta previa is no more. Hooray! So we are now in the clear for a normal birth (as long as the breech little boy turns around in the next month or so).

One of the positives about having "complications" is that you get sonograms each appointment. So we have had plenty of opportunities to see our little guy moving around and posing for pictures. Yesterday we even got a 3-D view of our rooster (his "in the womb" nickname).

ADORABLE. . . we know!

At 30 weeks he weighs 3 lbs 13 oz, about the 80th percentile all around. The doc is keeping the due date at Sep. 15th, but he is already measuring about ten days ahead of schedule. He is right on track to follow in Jackson's footsteps. I think I am destined to have big babies.

Lil' Roo sleeps a lot during the days, but when he is awake he makes sure I am fully aware of it. He is a lot more violent with his movements than Jacks was, and he reacts to our poking and proddings a lot quicker than his big brother did. Jackson would just move out of the way when we would poke at him, but rooster just pokes right back. Daddy thinks its pretty funny, but it's not always my favorite game.

Once again, boy names are not our favorite. We have such a hard time finding ones we don't hate, or that ten other kids in his kindergarten class won't answer "here" to. So, there is no name picked out for him yet. Maybe we'll just stick with Roo.

Welcome Home!

2011-07-11T20:36:00.000-06:00

I know it has been a long time since we have posted, but the last month or so has been crazy. . . to say the least. The biggest event of all is that we have finally moved into our HOUSE! It only took three years and seven different moves for us to find a place we could settle into for longer than eight months (that's the plan, at least). It still seems like a dream to have something so nice (and so big) to call our own. But I think the part that gets me the most excited is knowing that we won't be leaving in the foreseeable future and we can start planting roots and making friends and picturing what our family will do and be like in this town. As stressful as this process has been, and continues to be, we are loving everything about it!

Without further ado, here is the story. . .

When looking for an apartment in San Antonio we found out that some of our friends that had moved here the summer before were looking for someone to take over their contract because they had just bought a home. It turned out to be a perfect situation for both of us. Their contract was up at the end of June, so we came to San Antonio a couple weeks before Thom started working for the purpose of devoting as much time as possible to finding a home. We figured if we found one in time then great, but it wouldn't be a big deal to stay in the apartment longer if we couldn't find a house we liked.

We took Jackson to our first meeting with the real estate agent, and even though he was as good as could be expected, it was very difficult and we realized that house shopping with a toddler was going to be very difficult. Luckily, my mom swooped in to the rescue and stayed with our precious Jacks while Thom and I devoted two straight days, morning til evening, of looking at house after house. The first day we didn't see one thing we liked and went home feeling very discouraged and wondering if we would ever find the house we wanted, even if we looked for another year. Thank heavens our real estate agent was a genius and new how to tweak our search, so the second day was much better and produced our perfect home in a fabulous neighborhood. It was the only house we saw that had space exactly where we wanted it. We did have to give up our dream of a big back yard (apparently no one in San Antonio believes in big back yards), but the part that sold us on it was that it just had that feeling we couldn't explain; the feeling that it was exactly where we were supposed to be. Hooray!

Then began the shopping and all the sales people. Most of our evenings have been spent shopping (in stores and online) and discussing what is a need vs. a want, what would look good vs. bad, and should it go down here vs. up there. We have learned a valuable lesson though: do not give your phone number to any sales person because they will keep calling wondering if you have made a decision, or give suggestions of what else we could use in our new home . . . definitely not our favorite. We miss our evenings with nothing to do but lay around and watch a movie.

living room

kitchen

Game Room

So we aren't anywhere close to filling it or having everything where we want it, but we are getting somewhat settled and feeling at home. Jackson especially loves it. He has so much space to explore and run around, and having his own back yard is a dream come true. I think our favorite family moment so far is hand watering the yard (water restrictions won't let us use our sprinkler system more than once a week, so we have to take matters into our own hands to be sure the sod takes root) and letting Jacks play in the water. He loves it!

Some people think it might be bad to have so much construction going on around you, but Jackson absolutely loves it. He will sit and stare out the windows and watch the trucks go by and the workers pound away. He has viewing rooms both downstairs and upstairs. And when he hears a really big truck go by he will beg me to take him outside, so he can wave at it as it goes by. He is going to be so sad when they get all the houses built and all the trucks pack up and move out of here.

We are so grateful Thom found a great job with such a wonderful company, and that we have been able to find such a great home with so many great people around us. Things have really fallen perfectly into place for us lately and we couldn't be happier.

The Look of Exhaustion

2011-06-14T19:04:00.000-06:00

This weekend we had a quick vacation to San Francisco for Thom's brother's graduation. We had such a great time, but I think the 3 1/2 hour plane ride after his bed time (he stayed awake and happy the entire time) did him in. This was him at dinner tonight . . .

I know that you may think we are horrible parents for laughing at him, but you have to admit that was adorably hilarious. Yes, we did let him go to bed right after dinner.

More info on the trip to come.

These are a Few of My Favorite Things

2011-06-05T21:53:00.003-06:00

We just wanted to document some of the things Jackson really loves to do, eat, and see.

Eating
This is nothing new for this kid (as evidenced by his adorable chubs). Some of his favorites include broccoli, green beans, string cheese, and grapes. I snagged a few photos of him eating his favorite breakfast this week - yogurt and strawberries.

Golf
Last week we found this little set of golf clubs for only $5. I don't think I have seen Jackson ever be so excited for something in his life. They are the first thing he goes for when he wakes, and he wants to take them everywhere with us. He just can't get enough of them.

Outside

No matter how hot it gets outside Jackson wants to play outside all the time. I try to keep him from wanting to go out in the afternoons, but we do go out every morning for some play time. The maintenance guys and the dog walkers have gotten to know our little guy very well. He knows his way around the complex quite well and usually refuses to use the sidewalks. For some reason the grass is better.

Airplanes
Since we are near a couple military bases, every once in a while there are really loud helicopters and airplanes that fly over. Jackson thinks they are the coolest! He often points to the sky and looks for them. If there aren't any he will just shake his head no and move on to the next activity. He also enjoys flying around the apartment like an airplane. Thom and I will join in and Jackson's favorite part is when we crash into him.

(this is the face he makes when he gets excited about something. He had just heard a plane fly over)

Balls
The great Jacksonian is all boy. Including his love for balls and throwing them around. Balls aren't the only things he likes to throw. He will really throw anything he can lift. Balls are the best to throw because they keep rolling after they hit the ground. One of Jackson's favorite games is to throw the ball where I tell him not to and watch as I go running after it. I have such a hard time being stern with him when his laugh is so darn cute.
As you can tell from the previous pictures we went out tonight for a little bit of play time with his new ball. It was so fun to watch him throw it as far as he could and then figure out how to kick it. What a kid!

Some other of his favorites include - giving hugs and kisses, drinking out of mommy and daddy's water bottles, "attacking" kermie, putting his shoes on by himself, doing anything all by himself, sticking his finger in your mouth, nose, or ear while singing him to sleep, shaking his head no when he knows he is not aloud to do something, dancing, praying, and cooking.

Routines

2011-05-31T11:37:00.001-06:00

Since moving to San Antonio Jackson has been through a lot of ups and downs. The first couple days were a little rough because of the car ride. Then after the initial shock he did fabulous for a week or so, and every since has been off and on. Poor kid doesn't really know what to think about what is going on around here. We both really enjoyed having Thomas around for the first two weeks we were down here, and we have both really missed him these past two weeks he has been going to work. I really feel it has hit Jackson the hardest.

Silly Faces

Attempting to be cute

Ever since Thom started working Jackson has been EXTRA clingy to me. I sure do love my little boy, but I am really needing some space throughout the day. We think that he is just afraid that I am going to start leaving him too. . . or something like that. He wants me everywhere he is, and focused on whatever he is doing. It is slowly getting better, but it has been a struggle for us. Amongst the neediness Jackson has also decided to change his napping schedule. He was taking two naps a day, totaling about three to four hours between the two (I know that was super lucky). And now he suddenly only wants one that will maybe last an hour, and the time that he wants to take it changes day to day. He continues to be my playful, happy little boy, but we are struggling to just get in the groove of things.

The one thing that is helping us along is ROUTINES. We had a set routine each day back in Provo, but it was a routine forced on us by my crossing guard job and Jackson honestly hated most things about it. That job was such a blessing to us at the time, but I am so glad that I don't have to do it any more. It was so hard for Jackson to be strapped into a car seat so much during the day. We didn't have as much mommy/jackson play time back then either. So now that I have my whole days back to do whatever we need whenever it works best for us, I am trying to establish daily routines Jacks can count on, and I have to say that I am noticing such a happy response from him. He really seems to be embracing the routines and gets excited for them each day. Just a couple of examples: play on your own time while mommy cleans right after breakfast (still working on getting this one down, but have seen so much improvement); water, snacks, and book time after playing outside; rocking chair and songs right before naps; and having drawing time each day. As much as I can I try to do the same activities around the same time each day, and it really seems to be working well. I must say though, that my most favorite routine, and I think Jackson's favorite as well, is his night time routine before bed. We get PJs on and brush teeth, and then daddy reads him his scriptures while I sit near by listening and Jackson drinks some milk. Then it is prayer time (which he automatically knows. He folds his arms before we even tell him to), and then he cutely waves byebye to me because he knows that daddy rocks him in the rocking chair and sings him songs right before he lies down in bed. It is adorable to see how excited he gets for his and his daddy's special time right before bed. It is the only time of the day that he wants me to leave his side.

So even though things have been a little rough, I can definitely see improvement. . . all thanks to routines!

Settling In

2011-05-15T20:52:00.000-06:00

Here is the last bit of the updates before we left Utah. Sorry this has taken me so long to get to, but I promise I have a good reason.

The day after graduation we went on a hike to the Y with my family. We thought it was a great idea, but it turned out to be a little bit of a bust. The adults enjoyed it, for the most part, but the kiddos really didn't care too much for it. When we got done Elly (my neice) asked that we never do that again. They sure were troopers though.

Since this was the spot where Thomas proposed hiking the Y was one of the items on our "Things To Do Before We Leave Utah" list. Thomas carried Jacks in the carrier/backpack and he did pretty good as long as Thomas didn't stop moving. He didn't really care for the amazing view at the top, but we made him take a picture anyway.

No wonder he wasn't so happy, the poor kid was asleep in no time on the way down.

The next day Thomas and I went on a fabulous getaway to Park City for a couple of days. Unfortunately, a romantic getaway meant that the Great Jacksonian was not invited. Leaving our little boy for the first time ever was SO HARD! We greatly appreciated Thom's parents for watching him for us and taking such great care of him, but for some reason it didn't make the feelings of guilt much better as drove away. It took me some time of getting the tears out, and then we were able to focus on how great it would be to have some time to ourselves for the next four days. I highly recommend a getaway for all parents. Even though Jackson (and baby boy #2) was the subject of much of our conversations ("what do you think Jackson is doing right now?" was the most frequently asked question that week), it was so great to just focus on each other and do whatever we wanted, and SLEEP as long as we wanted. We really didn't do much - mainly because we didn't plan well for the freezing weather, but we did have a blast together. Being able to get away from school, kids, responsibility, etc. really showed me how great our friendship still is. It was a much needed vacation after a long semester with little "us" time.

The only down side to coming back was that we were both sick with killer colds and we had two days of packing up and then two days of driving directly ahead of us. However, we couldn't have been more excited to see our little boy again. How could you not miss this cutie more than anything?

So now we are here in San Antonio and we have spent most of the last two weeks intensely looking for a house. And just this week we FOUND IT!!!! More info on that adventure to come.

Graduation

2011-05-06T22:27:00.000-06:00

Thomas graduated with his Bachelors and Masters in Information Systems from BYU and we couldn't be more proud of him. Here are some pictures of the two days.

Our graduate in his seat amongst the other masters graduates

Walking across the stage

All of his admiring fans

Some cute ones with the Great Jacksonian

They were a couple of stressful days, and 8:00am graduation is a little too early for little kids, but all in all, everything was great. Jackson did pretty good through it all, and we only tired him out a little. We weren't even out of the parking lot when we looked back and saw him dead asleep, and falling asleep in his carseat is NOT a common occurrence with him.

"Me and My Boys"

2011-05-04T21:28:00.000-06:00

Well, we have finally made it to the great city of San Antonio and are somewhat settled. So I guess that it is now time to start with the updating.

So here is the most exciting and important of the updates - We found out about two weeks ago that baby #2 will be a BOY, and we couldn't be more excited. When people asked us what we were hoping for we honestly couldn't decide.

The idea of two little boys running around being rough and tough and destroying everything in sight honestly makes me want to cry ... with joy (I could be crazy or it just might be the pregnancy hormones). I have a tendency to be over protective and timid when it comes to climbing on and jumping off of things, but Jackson is already working hard to cure me of it. I can't wait to see baby boy #2 want to be just like and do everything just like Jackson. And I can't wait to see Jackson take his little brother under his wing and try to teach him all that he can do. The picture of two little boys following their daddy outside to work in the yard, practice their golf swing, or just throw some balls around is a sight I can't wait to see. Being so close in age we hope that Jackson and boy #2 will be best friends.

Besides, now I can keep saying my favorite phrase: "Me and my boys."

Wait for it. . .

2011-04-29T22:01:00.001-06:00

The last couple weeks for us three have been CRAZY. I have so much to update on. Unfortunately, that won't be happening now. We take off bright and early in the morning for our big move to Texas (bitter sweet). But once we finally get settled we will have some great posts including: the gender of baby #2, graduation, a trip to the dino museum, hiking, a romantic get away, being away from Jacks for the first time, and I am sure we will have some stories to tell about our drive and moving in (especially since all three of us currently have killer colds). So this is just a teaser, and a reminder to myself, letting you know that you will just have to wait for it. I know the anticipation must be killing you. :)

How do you deal with stress?

2011-04-14T00:47:00.000-06:00

This week has been a crazy week. Even though we still have a couple weeks before the actual move, this week I am completely focused on packing, organizing, and finishing small projects. Between family coming, graduation, and a vacation, this week is the only time I have to get most of it done. Thom has been completely focused on finishing up his last projects with school. He takes an hour or two each evening to spend time with Jacks and the rest of his days (which usually start before eight and end around one or two in the morning) are full of school. To say the least, we are a little tired and are looking forward to the end of the semester. However, in spite of the craziness we are doing great, and hanging in there quite nicely remaining upbeat and positive. . . or so I thought.

I have noticed many times before how in tune Jackson is to mine and Thom's emotions and moods. It seems as though he can feel any type of change or tension, no matter where it is directed. This week it seems like Jackson is sensing our stress. He is going through some teething right now, but that has never affected him like this. One minute he upbeat and happy, the next he is clingy and needy. He sleeps perfect at night time, but during the day naps have come close to non-existent. He is easily frustrated, and activities he usually enjoys he isn't wanting to do. I am running out of ideas of what to do to help him stay happy throughout the day. Could the stress be causing this sudden change? Or is it just the teething and stage of life he is in? I am so confused. If it is the stress, how do we fix it? We can't change the fact that there is a lot going on in our lives right now, and with the mine and Thom's vacation and our move to Texas right around the corner (and who knows how long it will take for life to settle down and regulate once we get there) I am worried that I won't have the same ole' Jackson back for a while. I honestly thought we were handling everything on our plate (really its not that much) rather well, but if it is affecting Jacks like this, maybe I am wrong. Any advice?

Best Stage Ever!

2011-04-11T22:51:00.000-06:00

Warning: this is going to be a long post that is more for our journaling purposes than anything else, so if you would like to just skim the text and look at the adorable pictures feel free; we will never know. But you should still feel obligated to leave a comment about how cute Jackson is :)

Can I just say that 15 months is my favorite stage so far? I literally just can't get enough of this cute boy right now. It really seems that the last couple months he has grown up so fast. All of the sudden things have just started clicking for him and he can do and understand so much more. It is so great to be able to tell him something and have him understand and do it. There are even times that we don't explain something to him, but we see him trying to do it because he has seen or heard us. For example: Just tonight he took Thom's wallet and was playing with it. When he was done he closed it up and then tried to put it in his back pocket. Even if he had a back pocket it wouldn't have come close to fitting, but he kept on sticking it back there and was confused when it didn't stay put. We are blown away at how much this kid observes and knows.

To go along with his amazing perceptiveness mentioned above, it is obvious that Jackson is wanting to be just like us. He wants to see, do, "say", and eat anything we do. He still doesn't have any words yet (even mama and dada are off and on). The pediatrician isn't too worried because he is still amazing at listening and responding back in his own way. We figure it will be like walking; he will do it when he is ready, and when that time comes he will just take off without any hesitation. Even though the actual words aren't there he tries to copy us with his babbling, which often comes surprisingly close to what we say. He has also tried to copy us with dress. He tries to put our shoes on, Thom's ties, and other random clothing. The other day Jackson found my maternity clothes I had been unpacking and came out wearing my swimsuit. He was so proud to have gotten it around his neck with only a little help from mommy that he wore it around, tripping and all, for about fifteen minutes.

Jackson's favorite place in the apartment is the kitchen. He knows what drawers and cabinets he is allowed to get in, and does so frequently. Especially while I am cooking. He is absolutely fascinated with cooking. The only way I can get him to play by himself while I am in there (usually he wants to be up on the counter "helping" me with whatever I am doing) is to give him his own bowl/pot/pan, some spatulas or spoons, and some spice containers for him to do his own cooking. He even gives us tastes if we ask for it.

My brother was over the other morning and we got caught up in a conversation about his dating life. About twenty minutes went by and I remembered Jackson was behind me playing. I was amazed that he hadn't come and asked for my attention yet so I turned around to see what he was up to. He was completely focused on stacking some of our cans on top of one another (we have only briefly worked with him on stacking things, but it hasn't been that successful because all he wants to do is knock whatever we are attempting to build down). He had gotten four cans balanced and stacked (hard even for me) and then topped it off with a potato he had found. Still not noticing that Chase and I were now watching him he sat back, admired his work, and then proceeded to clap for himself. By the time I got the camera out he had knocked that tower down, but I got the beginning of this one minutes later.

Jackson continues to enjoy his freedom of movement, even more than most other kids I have noticed (I swear all the kids his age at church are freakishly low key). He still doesn't like anything that will restrict him from moving where he wants, and absolutely does not like to sit still for very long. Church and changing diapers is where we find some of our most intense power struggles, but church is getting so much better each week. However, his new found love of reading books is becoming one of our greatest allies. He loves to point at the pictures, especially when he knows where the objects are. He is great at pointing to the object we ask him to find. For a while he did great at sitting and listening to us read the books, but just the last week or so he has begun getting bored with the a book rather quickly. We can usually get a couple pages into it before he closes it and grabs a new book for us to read. Luckily, we have quite a few books for him to cycle through. During the day, I do find him sitting in the middle of his books "reading" to himself, pointing to pictures and "talking" about it. Mommy and Daddy's favorite thing about his new love for books is that he will cuddle (somewhat) with us while we read. His way of asking us to read to him is to grab a book and then come over and climb into our lap. LOVE IT!

Eating also continues to be one of Jackson's favorite things to do. There isn't a food we have encountered yet that he refuses to eat. Some of his favorites are green beans, teddy grahams, popcorn, pasta, strawberries, and popsicles (though this list could go on...). He very rarely tells us he is done eating. He will usually just keep going if we keep putting food in front of him. We are struggling a bit with throwing food (advice will be much welcomed). We can't seem to make him realize that it isn't a fun game. When we tell him to not throw his food on the ground he usually laughs and thinks we are playing with him. Apparently we need some work on our stern voices.

The hibernation of winter time didn't break Jackson of his love of the outside. This off and on spring we are having here in Utah is killing him. He doesn't understand why some days we can go for walks outside, and other days we can't. On the cold days he spends much of his time standing by the door whining, or longingly looking out the window. While outside he wants to see and touch and point out everything; including dirt, bugs, cars, dogs, bikes, rocks, and cracks in the side walk. There is no such thing as a leisurely stroll with this kid. He has you going in every direction, pulling him off of doorsteps, parked bikes, mud, and the street. Jackson loves watching cars drive by, especially if they honk. Even when we are in the apartment and he hears a car honk, he runs to the window to see if he can see it. Better than cars though are buses and semis (so big and lots louder). But Jackson's absolute favorites are bikes and motorcycles, especially motorcycles that make a lot of noise. We think he likes the fact that he can see the person as they zoom past him. He loves it when we push him really fast and make the noise of a car when he is in his stroller or on his toy fire engine. He can give us quite the workout.

This kid brings us so much joy and so many laughs into our home. I love this stage of discovery, independence and understanding so much. This is absolutely, without a doubt, my favorite so far!

Conference with a Toddler

2011-04-03T20:18:00.000-06:00

General Conference with a very active 15 month old is a very different experience (as most of you out there probably know). Thom and I weren't able to get as much out of the talks as we usually do, but last night we worked out a great plan of taking turns being completely in charge of playing with Jackson while the other took notes they could share with the other later. Overall, I think the plan was a huge success. We both came away feeling spiritually fed. There is just no way you can walk away from conference not feeling uplifted and motivated to be a better wife, mother, friend, and all around person. I love the simple truths shared and testimonies born in such a loving and meaningful way.

There was a lot about conference that Jackson loved as well. First off, he loved all of the "prayers" said. Recently we have been teaching Jackson about praying and how we fold our arms when we pray. So at the first session yesterday when the opening prayer started we instructed Jackson to fold his arms for the prayer, and he did. But then he got a little confused, and thought that every speaker was praying (it didn't help that everyone said Amen at the end of the talk). Whenever he would notice the TV, or heard an amen, he would instantly fold his arms and look to us with a strange look almost to say, "why aren't you folding your arms?" We told him repeatedly that the speakers weren't praying, but there was just no convincing him. At least we know he really is learning the things we are trying to teach him. What a kid!

I know it sounds crazy, but our little guy is obsessed with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. Really, he loves all music, but he is especially taken with church and classical music. This was something that started in the womb. He definitely got this from Thomas who listens to the MoTab louder than any other music. Whenever the conference singers came on Jacks would run to the TV and just stare in awe. He would also try to lead them - just like he sees his daddy do with our ward choir. We thought it was so cute that we had to get a picture.

Looking to September

2011-03-17T21:34:00.000-06:00

Silly Jackson, there's no baby in your tummy ...

Hooray! You found the BABY!

Grandpa's Caddy

2011-03-14T21:22:00.000-06:00

Because of the amazing spring-ish weather we have been having lately, we were able to take Thom to the driving range last week and let him get in his first swings of season. Naturally, he felt right at home, and I think it really helped to lift some of the stress load he has been feeling from the semester. Jackson was fascinated by the whole thing and loved all the open space. Plus, he hasn't stopped asking to play with daddy's clubs ever since.

Who would have guessed (wink, wink) we would run into Grandpa while we were there? I couldn't help but take some pictures of these Archibald boys as we walked back to our cars. Now when Jackson wins The Masters several years down the road, Grandpa has a picture to prove that it all started with Jackson caddying for him.

Good thing I have learned to like golf, because I think that my first born isn't far from falling in love. Like Grandfather, like Father, like son.

Thanks for the Jimmeries!

2011-03-07T22:31:00.000-07:00

For Christmas my parents gave the boys here in Utah tickets to all of the BYU basketball games that landed on a Saturday (4 total). Luckily, there was a ticket there for the wives, and in Chase's case, a date of his choice (my mom made it clear that it had to be a DATE).

I don't think my parents understood how amazing this gift was. They don't really follow BYU basketball too much, and therefore had no idea they were giving us much sought after tickets to the "Jimmer Show".

Needless to say, we have enjoyed being able to go to the games and spend time with my siblings at the same time. We took Jackson to the first game just to see how he would react; fully expecting to have to leave before half time with a traumatized child that would never hear again. However, he did surprisingly well and earned his way to all of following games.

For most of the first halves he would cling to us and let out a few whines when the crowd went wild. This tended to be the look on his face.

But definitely by the second half he was cheering along and would hop from one lap to the next taking in the full atmosphere. I think he was genuinely enjoying himself. Especially when they played music. This kid loves to dance.

All of the games interfered with nap time in some way, so for the truly stressful times we brought Kermie along for comfort.

Saturday was our last game, and I think it ended up being the best. Not only was it Jimmer's last game in the Marriott Center (and for the other seniors - Jackson Emery and Logan Magnusson, lest they be forgotten) ... Not only did we see the regular season conference championship clinching game (or a "share of it", officially) ... Not only did we get to see the student section do a sweet flash mob dance (you can see it here). . . BUT the Cougars scored over 80 points (102 to be exact), and that meant FREE CAKE!

Tonight for FHE we went and got our cake. We came home to enjoy it so Jackson would have no limitations. I think the last time he had cake was his birthday, and I hope you all remember how much he loved it then. He didn't get quite as messy this time, but I would still have to say that it looks like cake is a big hit. He even licked/ate his plate clean.

Thanks mom and dad for such a great gift. I don't think any of us could have guessed how much we would enjoy those tickets and the benefits that came with them. As one sign we saw at the game said, "Thanks for the Jimmeries."

Walking Success!

2011-02-24T20:20:00.002-07:00

Jackson has been a little slow and going when it comes to walking. He has been walking around with the help of furniture and our hands since October. But our attempts to get him to go solo always resulted in frustration on both sides. As soon as he realized he was no longer being supported by something he would just collapse, and if you tried to hold him up he would just go limp on you. (if you want to get to the point of the post go straight to the videos now. The rest of the words are just for our own journaling purposes)

We have had small bits of progress the last couple of months. His first official steps on his own were in early January. There have been a couple of times he has taken two or three steps in a row, but would always refuse to do a repeat. When my mom (Momo) first got in town a couple weeks ago Jackson randomly took a few steps to her without any probing and got us really excited, but never did it again. Everyone we have expressed our frustration to about the matter has just told us to be patient and that he will do it when he is ready, and only when HE is ready.

Well, tonight he was ready. Without any prompting he let go of his crib that he was holding on to and walked the three steps to his rocking chair so he could rock Kermie (his blanket/stuffed animal/favorite thing in the world). Upon hearing the commotion I was making Thom quickly came into the room and we decided to see if he would do it again. He did it again, and again, and again, and again. He walked from me to Thom for almost the next hour and a half, and he loved it. He thought it was such a fun game and especially enjoyed the part where we all clapped as soon as he made it to one of us. He even lasted through us skypeing with grandparents and aunts and uncles. What a great little show off! Too bad the videos don't really catch the excitement on his part as much. Hopefully he will remember how fun it is to walk when he wakes up in the morning.

Magical Berries

2011-02-23T10:49:00.000-07:00

Jackson has been sick for the past week. He has a cold, horrible cough, and an ear infection in BOTH ears. With all that going on, I am surprised at how much he is still his old self. We have had to take him to the doctor twice in the past five days and both times he is the only child up moving around. All the other sick kids are sitting on their parents lap breaking your heart with how sick they look, but not our Jacks. He has snot dripping into his mouth, coughing constantly, and doing that labored breathing thing out of his mouth in between coughs, and still he can't be kept still. He wants to move around everywhere, see and touch everything, and wave hi to everyone. He would stop every few seconds to catch his breath and then be off again. I felt like I needed to sign some type of contract ensuring everyone that he really was sick, and that I wasn't just there to make their already over an hour wait time longer. I actually found the situation quite humorous. Nothing can slow our energetic kid down.

The one area that confirmed to Thomas and I that Jackson really wasn't feeling well is that Saturday he decided to stop eating all solid food. Ever since we first started this kid on solid food he hasn't been able to get enough of it. Most meals we have to just stop giving him food because he will eat almost anything we put in front of him. It broke our hearts to see him throw everything we offered on the floor. But then, this morning I had a genious idea - yogurt and costco triple berries. I was hoping that the yogurt would be easy to swallow and the cold would feel good on his throat. I threw the berries in as a long shot that he might eat them since they were cold too. He couldn't have cared less about the yogurt and couldn't get enough of the tripple berries. He even signed more when he finished his first bowl full. I almost started crying I was so excited to see him devouring his food again. But instead of shedding tears I got the camera out so his daddy could see that he really did eat food.

I love you costco tripple berries!

Best Investment Ever!

2011-02-07T21:14:00.001-07:00

I knew I would be a very paranoid mother and would need to see why Jackson was making every little sound, especially at the beginning, so we were lucky to have family pitch in and buy us a sweet video monitor when we first had Jackson. Needless to say, we put it to great use.

When our precious video monitor was damaged beyond repair (remember this post?) we contemplated saving the money it would take to replace it and just go with a regular sound one. Its moments like the one we caught last night (see image below) that makes me extremely happy we decided to take the financial plunge (really not that bad) and get another video monitor.We laughed for a good while when we saw Jacks asleep like this. Sorry for the poor quality, but it is a picture of the monitor.

Legs crossed, hands behind his head, totally relaxed. I wonder if he was dreaming about sitting in a lazy boy watching some cartoons.

We have long outgrown the stage of jumping at every sound he makes in his sleep, but we have yet to outgrow our love for watching him sleep. There have been nights where we have spent half an hour or so cuddled around the monitor, or even quietly next to his crib just watching as he adjusts into different sleeping positions and talks himself to sleep. I hope it's a stage we never grow out of.

Rantings of a School Crossing Guard

2011-02-02T14:29:00.002-07:00

Dear Provo Drivers,

I have lived in Provo for quite some time now, and have always thought you were a quirky bunch, but we never had too many problems, until now. I am sorry I am going to have to say some of these things, but I have been pushed to my limits and now fear that it has become a matter of life and death.

I would much appreciate it if we could take some time to discuss those drivers that go by the elementary schools with a blatant disregard for the changed speed limit, the many small children lost in their own little worlds, and a single crossing guard standing in the middle of the street defenseless against their large cars. I must say that I am very grateful for the police force that does their best to hang around the area catching offenders and serving as a warning sign to those tempted to ignore the law, but they can only stay so long and can come only a few days a week. So for those other times when the cops are not around I have a little something to say to those that happen to drive by.

To the driver that speeds up just as I take that first step into the cross walk and blows right through avoiding any eye contact: I hope you made it to the hospital in time to save that person's life or deliver that baby with only seconds to spare, because I know that that would be the only reason you would risk hitting one of these kids. We both know that there is no way you missed the warnings signs to slow down and stop - the flashing school zone lights (which I know work just fine because I turned them on myself), the bright orange cones strategically placed in the middle of the street, the giant neon yellow vest I am proudly sporting, and the red stop sign held high in the air. Please give your loved one my best and I hope they have a speedy recovery.

To the driver that so patiently waits for all the children to cross the street, but steps on it and drives right through before I have a chance to leave my position in the middle of the street: Thank you for being considerate of the children, but yes, I am still in the middle of the street and do not possess any type of super power to protect myself from speeding cars. Plus. despite popular opinion, the charges for hitting me with your car is just as serious as hitting a child, so I would think twice about waiting those extra thirty seconds to allow me to safely make it back to the curb. But again, thank you for thinking about the children.

To the driver that so patiently waits for all the children to cross the street, and me to make it just past your car before you step on it and blow my hair in my face as you speed past missing me by maybe a foot: First off, congratulations for being more patient than the previous two drivers, and thank you for revving your engine the entire 2 min (at most) it takes for me and the children to get across the street. The revving of your engine gives me a perfect warning sign that I better not linger in the road, no matter how much fun I am having. This way I know that your time is precious, and that the small children and I should feel very guilty for wasting that precious time of yours. Even though I enjoy getting out three different times during the day (most of those bringing my own small child with me and making him wait in the car all by himself) and standing out in the freezing cold I really don't mean to hold you, in your warm car, up from all that you need to get done that day. So I just have one small request - take a deep breath, count to three, and then be on your way. In that small amount of time I will be safely out of your way.

To that trashman, that car full of high school boys, and those construction workers that honked, waved, and so respectfully sent catcalls in my direction: Really?! . . . I think you need glasses. Neon yellow is NOT the new pink.

To that one lady, that one time, that rolled your window down and thanked me for what I do: THANK YOU! And I am sorry that I just blankly stared at you and did not say a thing. I was just in shock, but be assured that in my opinion you deserve a medal.

Once again, I am sorry that I had to be so harsh to some of you, but I have come the conclusion that no matter how many times I thrust the stop sign in your direction or throw my arms up in disgust you just won't get the message that way. So please, be careful out there. Those kids are precious to many people and make anyone smile everyday with their waves, thank you's, and funny stories. And maybe just a small mention of me . . . I know there are two cute boys that think I am kind of precious too.

Sincerely,

A Concerned Crossing Guard

Update

2011-01-27T22:11:00.000-07:00

Things have been pretty busy around here lately. Both Thom and I now have two jobs each (me doing crossing guard and data entry work from home, and Thom has two on campus jobs) that are keeping us from getting bored. Amazingly enough, we are still finding time to spend time with our families that live around here, and time spent as just the three of us, so we can't complain. Mainly, we just count ourselves lucky to be able to make a little extra cash this last semester of school. Yep, that is correct, this is Thom's very last semester, and starting in May, this Archibald family will be entering the real world down in San Antonio, TX. We have begun working on our bucket list of things to do in Provo while we are here full time (most of the items just being family time with the ones that live here, and eating at our favorite restaurants). But enough about Thom and I. We know that the reason this blog is visited even at all is because of the darling little boy that is nice enough to let the two of us hang out with him.

Jackson is amazing. He responds so well to us now, and is so playful. All until recently Jackson has been rather reserved with his laughter. It took A LOT to get that kid to laugh. But all of the sudden he laughs all the time and so easily, and nothing is sweeter to parents' ears than the laughter of their child (corny, but you know its true).

Jackson is eating like champ. No big change from before, but he is definitely pickier about his eating. Not so much as what he eats, but more of how the food is presented to him. He has to be able to feed himself, and the bites can't be too small, or too big, or too many on his tray at a time. And he often refuses to eat unless he has a spoon or fork in his hand. The spoon he is actually getting pretty good at, but the fork needs some serious work.

Destruction is his main form of play. He loves to just take things out of things, and hear the noise they make as they hit the floor, or as he bangs them together. I have a feeling that he is never going to grow out of this stage as this video below was taken 3 months ago.

Jackson is no longer our baby, but has become our little boy. And nothing makes him look more grown up than when he climbs up on the couch and relaxes. He usually grabs the remote control, climbs up next to us, relaxes back, points the remote at the TV, and begins pushing buttons. The crazy thing is that he notices when we take the batteries out or give him one that doesn't work cause he get really frustrated if something doesn't change on the TV. We really don't watch TV that much and when we do it is more of a back ground thing, never the main focus for Jackson. So we can't believe how quickly he picked up on what it is for. What a smarty pants!

A Boy's First Black Eye

2011-01-11T11:19:00.001-07:00

Jackson got his first, and hopefully only, black eye yesterday. It was the same kind of fall he does all the time. He was just trying to walk around the couch and got tripped up. However, this time his eye met with the corner of our end table. Needless to say, there were lots of tears from both Jackson and mommy. Jackson even stopped crying before mommy did. I freaked out mainly because his eye swelled up and got black within thirty seconds (I promise I am not exaggerating), so after some reassuring words from Thomas, my mom, and a nurse I realized he would be fine. By the time he woke up from his nap it looked a lot better. Here is what it looked like last night.

Of course, over the night it decided to get real nasty looking again though and he woke up looking like this this morning (don't mind the crazy hair. I took these during breakfast and Jacks likes to rub his fingers through his hair while still holding peaches, oatmeal, or whatever was on the menu that morning).

He is quite the trooper and seems not to even notice it. What a tough kid!

Swartz Family Pictures

2011-01-03T21:41:00.001-07:00

We had a couple new additions to the family this year (Jackson and my sister's husband, Stephen), and a long lost member finally come home (my brother, Chase, came home from his two year mission in Mexico), so we took the opportunity to get some new family pictures taken.

What is it about "make a funny face" that most feel like they have to stick their tongue out?

And as previously promised . . . The family pictures in our AMAZING matching pjs. I am still wearing them every chance I get. I am currently trying to figure out how to get away with wearing them through a Texas summer without dying of heat exhaustion; luckily, I have several months to figure it out.

Too bad they didn't have a size small enough for Jack Jack

Jackson's 1st Birthday

2010-12-31T23:18:00.000-07:00

Jackson's birthday is tomorrow, but we leave bright and early in the morning for our lovely 20 hour drive back Utah. Therefore, today we threw him a fabulous birthday bash. Remember how I said that Christmas is so much better with a child, well birthdays are even better than Christmas.

The day started with the standard Swartz family birthday breakfast - DONUTS! It was Jackson's first taste of sugary deliciousness, and he loved it.

We were so glad that we had family come to our little party. It was so much fun. Hopefully Jackson had as much fun as Thomas and I did.

After the practice he got Christmas day, present opening was a huge success. He got so excited over every new thing opened.

And then it was cake time. Jacks started off a little timid, but once we convinced him he could eat the large cupcake in front of him he dove in and devoured it. He even remembered his manners and offered to share with the onlookers. It was a picture taking opportunity parents dream of.

Happy Birthday precious boy, and Happy New Year to the rest of you!

Our First Christmas As a Family of Three

2010-12-28T23:25:00.001-07:00

Christmas with a kid is so much fun! Even though Jackson didn't really know what was going on, and didn't even get that into everything, it still made things all the more magical for Thomas and I. Children just make life so much more enjoyable all around.

As soon as the kids woke up (usually my family tradition is waking up at 6 am, but luckily we have changed it since the grand kids came along) we got to see what Santa brought us.
Elly, my niece, got a hula hoop

Jacob, my nephew, got Super hero dress up clothes

But I think the adults enjoyed them more than Jakey.

And the great Jacksonian got some cool blocks. When he first saw the tower Santa had built with them his eyes got real big and his mouth was wide open; in Jackson language that means he is REALLY happy.

Jacks didn't really get the whole opening presents idea at first, but with a little help and some coaxing he got the general idea.

To be honest we were really lucky that Jackson didn't have a complete melt down during present time. He took a small nap in the middle of it and woke up just in time to open the last few of his own presents.

If we have to choose a favorite I think that the toy that took the number one spot for Jack Jack on his first Christmas was the huge fire truck from Uncle Chase.

For the rest of the adults I think that the matching pjs my mom got us would undoubtedly take the top spot. They have disney characters, our "names", and are seriously the most comfortable things you will ever wear. We have literally all worn them every day since. And don't worry, group pictures of everyone in their pjs will be coming in future posts.

Thomas and I had a budget of $0 for each other's presents this year. It was a great way to save money and we also thought it would be a fun challenge. WRONG! It was so much harder and more stressful than either of us thought it would be. After months of much contemplation over the matter we each decided on something at the very last minute. Thomas was a genius and made me homemade psych (including the altered theme songs for the themed episodes) and monk ring tones. Which I have been wanting to do for months. He even went as far as programming the ring tones to his number and each member of my family according to their hobbies or personalities (ex: my brother Chase served his mission in Mexico so his is the psych theme song in spanish, my dad is a big computer guy so his ring tone is the techno psych theme song). I just can't believe he got it all done without me finding out. What a guy! As for my present for him, I did a homemade puzzle (harder than you think to do). I painted cardboard from a diaper box and used Jackson's feet as decoration. Not as personalized as Thom's, but I know that he really likes doing puzzles with his family at Christmas time, so that is where I got my idea from. Looking back, I am glad we did it that way, but can't say for sure we'll ever try it again.

All in all, it was a great Christmas. Now we just have to get ready for Jackson's birthday and our drive back to Utah.