Wow, what a couple of weeks it has been for Jackson as he rounds the corner on 19 months! It seems as though every day he is changing, growing, and developing in a new way! I remember last month telling Mary how frustrated I was that Jackson wasn’t able to do a puzzle. So I sat down with him once or twice and showed him how to match up the pieces, and now, the kiddo can do a puzzle! Yikes! After our horrible week of naps, suddenly he was a new boy and now he has started napping on a ‘real bed’ and taking pretty good naps! Jackson has learned how to color and loves to spend about 2 minutes at the table doing so, until he wants to throw and break crayons.  Looks like he missed out on the Robertson-Lemen family artistic ability. Bummer.

His 18 month check up was last week and the doctor was thoroughly impressed with him (what a great feeling to leave the doctor’s office with). He is a whopping 27.14 lbs (75th percentile) and 34.4 in (95th percentile). She said, and I quote “he is a very smart boy who is very advanced for his age”…and mommy and daddy were overly proud! Yay, our little guy knows more animals, animal sounds, people’s names, and can identify Target and Starbucks (and coffee) than the average 19 month old. Probably shouldn’t be proud of that, but I am!

The added excitement came last week as Jackson told daddy “pee pee” pointing to the appropriate location on his body So Chris put him on the toilet, and he went! Whoa. And did the same again later! To top it off, he and I went to Nordstrom this after to try on shoes (they are the best for shoe fittings for kiddos)…and he’s grown another full shoe size since November! He’s now a 7.5 (pretty sure the average 3 year old isn’t wearing that size). Look out Big & Tall, here we come!

All that to say, we are obviously first time parents and overly thrilled with his accomplishments and growth! Although I must admit, even for me, the shopper, it’s keep me on my toes to keep this kiddo outfitted!

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UPDATE: Here are some holiday pics!

Three months without a blog? That has got to be a record for me!! I really started to feel guilty with all the Christmas card comments about enjoying watching Jackson grow up by following my blog. Oopsies. I guess time stood still for us for awhile! So here’s a quick (no really it’s not at all quick) recap….

November was a busy month with our bi-annual trip to Hawaii. Jackson lovedit! What could be better for a little munchkin than running around in the sun and playing in the sand and water. Especially since his mommy saved him from being stung by a jellyfish by taking it for herself…we now refer to the jellyfish in our Einstein book from Great Grandma and Grandpa as “ouch”. Grandma Trautman joined us for the last week of the trip making it more fun for everyone (especially Daddy since he actually got a break from the kiddo while I was working).

We ended our month in Seattle with the whole Robertson clan (minus three!). Grandma and Papa Robertson and Uncle Joel came up to visit and we headed to Seattle for Thanksgiving. It was such a fun trip with everyone…Jackson couldn’t have had more fun!

December, hmm well I think it was just as busy as November! I don’t remember much except for Christmas, of course! We spent a week in Moses Lake with the Trautman family for Christmas. It was a very busy, fun, and exhausting week with so many people! Auntie (DR) Liz had tonselitus and Seth and Alona got engaged! What a week. Jackson loved spending time with his cousins, playing with Shadow the ‘meow, meow’, and enjoying all the rest of the animals. He determined Madison was his favorite cousin on this trip and always wanted to know what she was doing and tried sharing everything with her!

At the end of the month and for the celebration of the New Year, we headed to California. I realize I am partial to this trip since it’s my home and family. But what a great trip! Jackson did incredibly well for not being home for two weeks and did I mention his molars were coming in? He enjoyed some extra special time with Grandma Robertson and Great-Grandma Gomes allowing mom and dad to go to two movies while we were there!!

Well back to reality and rainy Portland! Jackson spent his first few days away from me and went to Moses Lake with dad while Chris had work to do. It was a little traumatic letting him go, but the freedom was great! Two weeks later he hasn’t quite gotten over the separation, so no plans for leaving again anytime in the future!

He is a complete joy in this current stage…as long as we aren’t dealing with naps, we won’t get started on that conversation. I have so much fun listening to him repeat everything I say, yes everything, it hilarious! He has been enjoying play time with all his buddies and loves to stand by the fridge and name everyone in the pictures. My favorites are when he points to the “beebee” and says “Unoool” Which in his language in “Sunol” (with a very long “unol”), my cousin Trina’s little girl. But he has all his buddies and cousins down; he even pointed to a picture of my Grandpa Gomes holding me and said “papa”.

We are loving this kid dearly and for those wanting to know, NO, we are in absolutely no hurry to add to the count! He is about all my weary soul can handle these days! For now, we pray for more sunny days to get out of the house to play and for naptimes to run smoothly again. Thank God for bedtime!

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Just to shock everyone, I’m blogging again this month! Woo hoo! Actually, I’m just adding a few of my favorite pictures from our mini-fall-photo-shoot with my friend Jessica! Those of you who don’t have facebook (really just you papa and the great-grandparents) can check out some of these cutie pics!

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It’s hard to believe fall is in full swing already! As much as I love summer, fall is a beautiful time of year with the gorgeous colors all around thanks to the changing leaves and decorative pumpkins! This is the season I try to hang on to the most since I dread winter, so stick with me fall!! We’ve already enjoyed a trip to the pumpkin patch with Auntie Mary, Gma Faye, and the boys. We visited the new Savannah exhibit at the zoo with Jessica and Avery on the perfect day! Spent an extended weekend with the fam in Moses Lake. And over the next couple of weeks, we’ll be headed to the Happy Valley and Athey Creek Harvest Parties! We can’t wait!

Over the last few months Jackson has continued to change. He has developed quite the personality, there is no doubt that he is his own person, except when he’s confused for Chris as a child! He is into everything–walking didn’t change this too much, it’s the climbing that did it! I have caught him standing on the back of his fire engine trying to open the bathroom door, pull decorations off my windowsill, and climb up the back of the couch. Oh this is just the beginning! He has taken his first tumble down our long staircase and survived without an injury and without gaining a healthy fear of the stairs! He loves to play and read books. He’s not too picky about play, but if he can throw things, he’s stoked. In fact, that’s how he fell down the stairs was by standing at the top throwing things down and losing his balance. oops. He is so good with kids his age and at his level. When we picked him up from the church nursery this morning we watched him playing and having such a blast! He’s still learning what to do with those behind him and the bigger kids who don’t like him taking his toys or don’t want to share with him!
His vocabulary is ever increasing. There isn’t much that he won’t try to say although his annunciation isn’t too developed yet. He has decided “hot”, in an exaggerated way, is his favorite word.

He loves to give hugs in kisses. In fact, if you tell him to be nice, immediately the object receives a kiss. He will follow after kids and animals (stuffed or living) to give them kisses. What a sweetie!
Mostly, he keeps me on my toes! I’ve been told by many people that my years raising him will keep me closer to the Lord than ever, continuing calling on Him for guidance with this active little one. I pray that it is true since I know the Lord is faithful and am so thankful for this precious little one! Plus, if he continues to be just like his daddy, we’ll be set!

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Not really, since unfortunately, all good things must come to and end. Who came up with that phrase anyway? I don’t like it…two things I didn’t want to end: summer and our trip to California. 12 days until Autumn, and California ended hours ago. Bummer. But, as I end this season with my 14-month-old (yikes) I realize how precious each day really is!

As I mentioned, we just came home from a week in California. Jackson and I hadn’t visit since February and that was a long time for us! This trip, Chris came along too. We celebrated Dad/Grandpa’s 60th Birthday, enjoyed the softball tournament, and hung out with family and friends. It was such a great trip!!

Oops! So I just noticed I never posted this blog since I had more work to do with it. A month later, I don’t care anymore, so here it is! What a treat for me to come back and look a the pics from family and such a fun trip! Miss you guys!

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Jackson, much like myself, was clearly born for summer! This kiddo cannot wait to get outside and crawl around (yes that’s right, crawl, back to that later). He isn’t picky about what’s beneath him. Dirt, grass, cement, sand; he’s adapted his crawl to a foot crawl to make up for not liking the feeling on knees (that’s right, he adapted his crawl rather than discontinuing it). So far, our summer has consisted of many trips to the park, swimming lessons, wading pool and splash pad fun, the beach, and lots of walks enjoying the sunshine and trips to New Seasons.

This last month has brought about so many changes in him it never ceases to amaze me! At his 12 month check up, the doctor asked if he had any words and I remember saying, “no not really; he says “mama” and “dada” but those really don’t count.” The same day, he must have been trying to prove me wrong as he reminded me he can say “oh”, “oh wow”, “uh” (for “uh-oh”), “ball”, “belly” for belly button and an attempt at balloon that sounds more like “baabaa” and “book” that also sounds much different. Even last week he pointed at the fan and made the right “faa” sound! He has recently added a real wave (rather than his hail hilter wave…if you know him, you know what I’m talking about) and says “i” for “hi” and “bye bye” and I caught him picking up the phone uttering “hello”! I’m sure there are many other words in his vocabulary that I, the bad interpreter mom, have no idea he’s attempting to say! In short, the kiddo is always babbling and it’s so fun to listen to him. Anyone who knows us well will clearly see it comes directly from Chris’ side of the family.

In addition to words, this kiddo is smart! In fact it’s very scary the concepts they know at this age. From simple things like “it’s time to eat” and he crawls to his highchair to asking him where his belly button, nose, ears, eyes, toes are and seeing him point to all of them and then point to yours too (by the way, his belly button is his all time fav). He also points to pictures of Grandma & Grandpa Robertson (my parents) when asked where they are! Yay buddy! And even pointed out buddies Lewis and Bailey in pictures last week. He knows how to put lids on containers and even helps clean up when asked! That could seriously be my favorite trait!

Jackson’s favorite action items are running around the house pushing his fire engine or his wagon with blocks; usually running into the wall/door/cabinet many times; throwing a ball back and forth to mom or dad, and when his hands are being held, he loves to kick the ball. He learned how to hit the baseball on his t-ball toy too! He also still loves to go up and down the stairs and will go crazy when he sees stairs anywhere that he can’t climb up. I caught him trying to scale my bedroom dresser using the knobs yesterday. This kiddo has energy! He also loves turning on and off lights on both light switches and the fan remote.

So now for the answer to the most commonly asked question “Is he walking yet?” NO! Is he capable? Absolutely! Does he walk a few steps everyday and has he for weeks? YEP! Just additional proof that this kiddo is mine and he will do what he wants when he wants!

To top off our summer, I am stoked that we will be headed to CA in less than three weeks! It’s been since February that Jackson saw the extended family and I can’t wait to see them either! And to make it even better, Chris is going with us this time too! I’m sure there will be plenty of updates and bad habits learned from that trip! And, this is the longest stretch (just under 4 months) of Jackson’s life without flying somewhere, so he’s probably getting antsy too!

I hope you are enjoying summer as much as we are…although for those of us in the Northwest it doesn’t look like summer now, it didn’t stop us from enjoying the park with Marlene and Charlie today! We look forward to many more summer memories~

As a bonus, I added pictures of Jackson in a retro 1977 sailor’s outfit that was Uncle Joel’s when he was younger! Jackson obviously wasn’t too found of the photo shoot! This is especially for the people who ask if Jackson is always smiling. The answer is no. And especially no when mommy is exploiting him!

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No matter how you count it, my little guy is ONE year old today. I remember this time last year, laying in that hospital bed thinking nothing will ever be the same again. Boy was I right…and I wouldn’t trade a minute of it (I don’t want to relive much of it either, ). In preparing for writing this blog, I decided to go back and look at my pregnancy blogs and what I’ve written in the first year of little Jackson’s life. How fun it was to see how we anticipated and planned for him to join us and how we handled what came at us over those first few insane weeks. It is so hard to imagine the little guy we first met a year ago compared to mr. personality of today!

I have been so lucky this year to have so many friends to share Jackson’s firsts with and ask for advice from…I won’t even pretend to name everyone I rely on, but I think my top 4 go-tos who I access on a weekly basis (without including my mom, of course!)are McKenzie Mary, Jessica, and Liz. Thanks ladies for always being on the other end of facebook, text, im, cell phone, home phone, iphone, coffee…you name it!

We kicked off the 1st Birthday with a party on the 4th of July…what better way to celebrate than with fireworks, right? Well maybe another year since this year the party was in the am and Jackson was fast asleep during the fireworks that night! We had such a great time with family and friends at a local park…this is the way to celebrate! It was extra special that my mom was in town and my Grandparents came down from Seattle! I have tons of pictures of the event and all the gifts, so enjoy and know this will not be a new habit!

Jackson received the motherload of gifts…an extra thank you to everyone for thinking of him! Pretty sure we counted four ride on/pull toys, books, dvd’s, pb kids chair, leap frog and little people toys, clothes…so much great stuff. My house, which was looking under control has officially been taken over!

As life proves a year of experience with a little one means nothing! Jackson keeps us on our toes daily by pushing every limit and boundary already. I truly believe the word “no” is a challenge for him (thanks Chris for passing along that trait). He loves to push/drive cars, trucks, buses, firetrucks, tractors…all of his toys with wheels are pushed around our house and rammed into walls. He recently found his belly button and loves lifting his shirt to find it and poke at it. Mostly he is one big ball of energy, excitement, smiles, and screams (and tantrums when he doesn’t get his way). We love never having to worry about being bored. Poor little guy caught his first cold this week (it was obvious when he just wanted to cuddle and not run around–crawl that is, playing). Just one more sign of him growing up! So, that meant we had to cancel his 1st bday pics and plans with the cousins today; but I’m confident there will be plenty of time for both once he’s better. I felt bad for the kiddo with no celebration (and Chris is at a wedding rehearsal tonight), so we did sneak out and met up with Avery and fam for gelato in the Pearl to celebrate together! Jackson loved it and I’m sure it will heal him.

A year later I am so thankful for a full nights sleep (nevermind the waking at 6am) and breaks at naptime…but mostly for a beautiful, healthy (most of the time), little boy! Happy Birthday buddy, we love you Jackson!

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I can hardly believe Jackson is already 11 months old! It seems like every mom we meet out-and-about will tell us, “Oh it goes by so fast! Enjoy every moment!” and I nod my head and say, “I’m sure it does, and I will”! As I was looking at Jackson in his high chair at dinner tonight, I had one of those mommy-moments where I couldn’t believe how fast this past year has gone by! There were definitely moments in those first few weeks, during intense times of teething (oh wait we’re there again), a plane/car ride or two, when I was hopeful that time would sneak past us. But in the moments when my little guy first smiled, or giggled at me, or looked around for Chris when I asked “Where’s daddy?” or when his little face lit up with recognition when he saw Grandpa and Grandma after a few months, I beg for time to slow down!

Last week the party supplies for his 1st Birthday party arrived and with excitement and a bit of sadness at the “loss” of my baby, I begin to plan the big day! I think about my sister-in-law Kim who spent the end of may preparing for her daughter Mariah’s high school graduation and am so thankful for perspective that I have years left until that milestone! For now, I continue to remind “Father time” to be generous to us!
What a month it has been! Jackson visited the East coast for the first time (daddy’s first time too) as we celebrated Chris’ 30th Birthday! We had a fantastic trip visiting our old friends Erik & Kari Brink and their boys Quinton and Ethan. We are so grateful to them for taking so much time off to show us around Pennsylvania and hang out with us in Washington D.C. In PA we spent time seeing Gettysburg and the Amish Country. In DC we focused on the biggies, Smithsonian’s, Capital, Monuments,etc. We loved everything about the East Coast and can’t wait for our next trip back (mostly because now Chris knows just how much else there is to see!).

We also took another trip to Moses Lake for Mariah’s graduation (mentioned above) and will be heading back this weekend for Uncle Seth’s college graduation and Air Force commissioning before he heads off to Pilot School in FL! Last weekend Grandma Robertson came to visit (while dad was hanging out with buddies in L.V.) and we had tons of fun! Don’t we always??  She had first hand experience of how crazy life is for us with Jackson on the move! Grandma worked hard on getting Jackson to wave bye-bye and teaching him sounds like “la la la” instead of his loud yells he’s been working on. It was bittersweet to see his reaction after waking from his first nap without her around. He immediately looked for Grandma I’m sure he was wondering where she was. Only 3 weeks until she’s here again!!

We continue to have lots of fun with our friends, trips to the park, farmers markets, of course the mall and everything else the summer has to enjoy! For now, I’m off to sleep while I can to be refreshed for tomorrow with the little guy! Time is precious!

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I made it just in time with my promised-monthly-update! Jackson is 10 months old this Sunday (Mother’s Day). It’s hard to believe I’m already starting to plan his 1st birthday party (mark your calendars it’s going to be on the 4thof July)!! This has been a busy month for Jackson. We had an Easter egg hunt in ML with the cousins. We visited the tulip festival with Jessica and Avery and met up with Auntie Kenzie and the cousins for a few minutes. He took his second trip to Hawaii (or 4th if you include time in utero! ) and did great. He loved wearing shorts and not having to wear socks gave him complete access to his toes! He only tasted the sand a few times on Waikiki beach!! And have had lots of other friends visit!

New milestones this month– He mastered crawling and is all over the place! He just started screeching and laughing as he crawls after me where ever I’m walking around the house. He loves opening and closing doors and in order to entertain him in the kitchen, I showed him a cupboard safe for him with plastic bowls. He loves it! Thankfully, he hasn’t attempted to open any of the other cabinets! (the babyproofing of the kitchen will hopefully be completed tomorrow just in case). This kiddo loves to pull himself up on anything at least temporarily stationary; a large candle holder, the ottoman, his jumperoo, your legs, whatever. This must be the stage of life where a mom starts to lose weight, always running after the child trying to get into something he’s not supposed to! No sign of walking yet, and I am so okay with that!!

This week has been fun for Jackson since Grandpa Robertson (my dad) is in town. It’s fun to see how Jackson remembers him and immediately crawls to him when he’s in the room. Poor grandpa caught a stomach bug while visiting and was sick for a few days; Jackson seemed confused at why grandpa wasn’t picking him up when he crawled up to him! So cute!

Jackson is a world class eater! In Hawaii last week, he continued to chow down on papaya and mango (two of his favorites) and tried my fav Ahi tuna one day and liked it! I made a new round of chunky baby food for Jackson this week so he is now enjoying: Chicken, tomatoes, & rice; turkey bolognese; and beef curry. So far he has eaten them all! We had dinner with Randy & Ann and kids this weekend and Jackson was introduced to kiwi, cantaloupe, honeydew, and watermelon and unfortunately for me, he liked them all to (I hate melon–yuck)! Today he had black, pinto, and butter beans and again was thrilled! I attempted to give him peas again today and he only made it to the third bite before realizing what he was eating! Haha! Cheerios and freeze-dried fruit snacks are another fav and a totally lifesaver in cranky times. Great, I’m teaching my kid to find comfort in food. I am so thankful for such a good eater…

Today for Mother’s Day, Jackson and Dad and Grandpa made me a yummy crepe brunch followed by a card and tulips (picked out by Jackson)! We’re enjoying a lazy Sunday afternoon together…shopping may be in our future! But, for now, that’s enough detail on the kiddo! I’m off to finish planning our trip East to Pennsylvania and DC next weekend! So many details! By the way, for those of you just wanting pictures, my dad has an insane website with a gallery of Jackson and family photos you can check out! Let me know if you want the link!

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For those of you lucky enough to live in California (or Hawaii), Spring may not be a big deal. But for those of us in the land of rain and gloom, Spring is a glorious time of year! We took full advantage of it these last few days and have traveled across the Pacific Northwest to enjoy the sun. Chris and Jackson and I took a road trip last weekend to visit Great Grandma & Grandpa Robertson in Seattle.
Dinner with the crazy aunts, uncles, and even a couple of cousins was a bonus. Jackson loved all of them, especially his namesake, the dog Jax. We were all wishing we lived closer to each other so Grandma could babysit and Jackson could enjoy them more often. For now, we’ll settle for more frequent road trips!

We stopped off to my favorite place in Seattle, no guys, not the mall but Pike’s Market. Jackson loved it! There was so much going on and such vibrant colors of tulips and daffodils and fresh produce and smelly fish! SO much to take it, but he was happy! We met up with some Trautman’s while there and then headed off the ferry and a long drive down the coast to Long Beach (unfortunately not LB, CA but WA). The weather was incredible!
Aside from being stuck in the sand, in our car when the tide was coming in, we had a great trip. Jackson also loved watching the waves of the ocean and the countless dogs on the beach. We seriously need to get this kid a dog.

Monday, to celebrate the 77 degree weather in Portland, Jackson and I met up with friends for an outdoor adventure. We met up at the East Esplanade and walked down the Willamette River and back across on the West side. Avery and his dog Dewey were entertainment for Jackson. We stopped by the fountain and Jackson was very excited for the water…just wait until next year! Anyway, the sun finally came out and I couldn’t be happier….back to clouds tomorrow.

Milestone update…Jackson is now 9 months old…crazy!! He has learned how to pull himself up to standing and to get back into the sitting position (a lifesaver for me!). He is working on crawling, but really isn’t too interested. It’s easier to get himself around by scooting or crawling backwards on his bottom, so why bother? He has started standing on his back legs when on all fours…rumor has it this is the first step to walking. Please no! For those of you without facebook, he has graduated into a big boy car seat! He arches his back and screams everytime he’s put into it, oh yes, fun for mom, but once he’s there he enjoys being able to see more! That’s all for now…more Jackson updates to come (maybe sooner than 10 months if you’re lucky!

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