New Hampshire

Jackson was begging me to fly on an airplane, so we went to New Hampshire to celebrate Thanksgiving and were lucky enough to spend 10 days with Nana and Grandpa. Unfortunately, Sean was only able to come up for 5 of those days, but we managed to have a great time, despite his absence. Thanksgiving was wonderful, Jackson met a lot of family from Nana's side (The Jackson's, part of his namesake) and he ate turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing and pumpkin pie. He liked the stuffing best, which tells me he doesn't have his Auntie T's aversion to soggy bread. He also got his first pair of shoes! (He has lots of shoes at home, but he's never worn them and I wasn't smart enough to pack them!) We had a couple of outings, but mostly we just stayed and played with Nana and Grandpa. Jackson learned how to pull himself up into a stand while we were there, and Nana was a BIG help to me. That boy is mobile! And now that he can stand, that's all he wants to do. When Jackson got cranky in the evenings, Grandpa was the one who seemed to calm him down best, by reading to him. I can't get the boy to sit still through "Goodnight Moon" at home, but Grandpa had no problem reading it to him again and again and again. In one sitting. Go Grandpa! We had a ball, and Jackson loved being spoiled with hugs, kisses, Nana's bathtime fun and Grandpa's Donald Duck voice. If we weren't going to see them in a few weeks, both of us would have cried the whole way home.

Toys Shmoys

Jackson's got baskets and baskets full of toys. Until yesterday, he loved them all, although he does have a strange aversion to empty water bottles. We decided to give him a frying pan and a spoon last night, since we are flying to Nana and Grandpa's on Saturday and there won't be much room in our luggage for toys.
Jackson absolutely loves them!! He's been drumming on things lately, anyway, and now that we've given him a "drum" and a "stick," he's good to go. He's also discovered the wonders and joys of coozies. What a kid!

Dancin' Dancin'!

Jackson started doing this thing, where he sort of dances in his high chair, on the changing table or in his exersaucer. We think it is so funny.

Bathtime Fun!

Jackson loves to take a bath. He takes one every night before bed, but until recently, he's always taken it in his little baby tub in the kitchen sink.
That was very convienient for us because Sean and I could both be involved, but the boy was just getting too big for that tub. We would have to force him to lay down and he discovered that he could create quite a splash with his feet and legs. When we had to put a towel on the floor so we wouldn't slip, Sean and I realized our boy was growing up and it was time for the big tub.
We waited so long and now I feel bad, because Jackson absolutely loves being surrounded by a huge tub full of water. There's also tons of toys floating around for him to chew on, and now he can chill out for as long as he likes.