Well Jackson, you surprise me more and more by the day. You rolled over for the first time on your own on December 23rd; the same day you turned 4 months old! :) You've seemed to master the art of rolling over and last night practically rolled across the room. You love laying on your belly and looking around the room.
We put you in Daycare this past monday. I missed you so much. I wish I could stay at home with you. Thankfully everyone at the daycare is really nice and does a great job of taking care of you.
I love you little one!

Tis the Season

Don't you just love this time of year? I wonder what it is about this time of year that makes everything feel so special. To me it's so many things; the snow on the ground, smoke rising out of the chimney, and the remnants of burning leaves as you drive down country roads. The crisp winter air and the smell of apple cider on the stove. The seasonal drinks at Starbucks and my new favorite this year, caramel brulee latte! Mmmm! The snowmen built in the front yards all bundled up in scarves and a toboggan make me smile every time. The Christmas music on the radio and the common courtesy of others on the road, even just letting someone go in front of you in all the hustle and bustle of traffic in the shopping center. This year is an extra special year for me because it's our first Christmas as a family. I want to make it so special for Jackson. He won't remember it, but we will. And years from now we'll look back at home movies from his first Christmas and he'll laugh at how little he was. It's always made me feel lucky to have home movies from when I was younger so I can look back and see how I was as a child. Watching me play in the yard with my sister, or lay on the couch with my Dad, and even see my mom making faces at the camera. My oh my, how time changes things. In one of our Christmas movies from when I was three, my sister and I were talking about how we could swear "someone", maybe Santa, had come in and touched our nose in the middle of the night. Isn't that precious? My mom would always make us wait in the hallway in the morning so that my Dad could get set up in the den with the camcorder before we entered. We weren't allowed in the room until it was time. So we would sit in the hallway just giggling and then when she said it was time, we would run in and find our stockings, sit before them, and dig into our presents. All the presents were wonderful but the best times were just the time spent together. Usually my mom would make blueberry muffins, the best blueberry muffins by the way, and we would eat them and get ready to go to my grandmothers for lunch. Time's are certainly different now but the magic of Christmas is still the same. This year we'll be doing our Christmas at home, then going to my moms, then my in laws. I hope you all have a very merry Christmas!

Dear Jackson

I can't believe how fast you're growing up. It amazes me to watch you learn new things. It's 2 weeks away from your first Christmas. This year is definitely going to be one to remember, our first Christmas as a family.

You'll find this out soon enough that your Dad is so nosy, especially around the holidays. This year I had all his presents shipped to Nana's house so he wouldn't find out what he was getting. Just so you know, I'm getting him a mandolin. I'm sure he will be very surprised!

You love to play with your little alligator whom we affectionately named Albert. When you're crying, all we have to do is lay him on your chest and you begin smiling. We've been reading a lot lately and you love to look at the pictures and grab the pages. You also love to lay on your play mat and play with the toys that hang on it.

I've been telling your Dad that he would have to be the one to cut your fingernails because I was definitely not going to do it. Sadly I took the initiative to cut your nails and ended up cutting your finger. Please know how terrible I felt. You weren't the only one crying!

I spent 12 glorious weeks with you after you were born and since I've returned to work, Grambi comes over to watch you during the day. On Fridays since I only work four hours, I take you to Aunt Kim's. Your cousin Dylan loves having you over.

You love smiling and have recently begun laughing for long periods of time out loud. It's so funny and your laughter is easily contagious. Your Dad and I adore you!