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!

Posted by Erika on 09 Jul 2009
Filed Under: Jackson | Comments Off

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!

Posted by Erika on 10 May 2009
Filed Under: Jackson | 3 Comments »

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!

Posted by Erika on 07 Apr 2009
Filed Under: Jackson | 2 Comments »

I just had to post a couple of pictures because I just can’t get over this kid! I did a mini-photo shoot yesterday since I needed some new pics. Of course I don’t know what I’m doing with photoshop and the borders, but I’m learning!

Oh and last night, Chris and I went to the Outback, without Jackson (thanks Janet & Rick for the giftcard) and McKenzie, Paige, and Carson who were dying to babysit!

Posted by Erika on 01 Feb 2009
Filed Under: Jackson | 4 Comments »

I’m convinced that nearly everyday a new product is developed that parents HAVE TO HAVE for their infants, toddlers, children, to qualify as a “good parent”.  This simply results in less money for mom’s hair, nail, or coffee fund or the kiddo’s the college fund (if you qualify as  an outstanding parent who has one of those) AND more junk in your house than you ever thought necessary or possible!

Jackson acquired a high chair a couple of weeks ago. Since he’s eating three solid meals a day and getting a bit more into it, the swing/bouncy chair/mom’s lap weren’t quite cutting it any more! As always, I did my research and settled on the one that matches the rest of his large items and our house (it’s nice when it works out that way). The good news is he likes sitting in the chair, definitely loves eating, but it also happy playing while I cook dinner (yes I’m doing that again these days). As can be seen in the pic, he loves his sippy cup!!

In addition to the high chair, Jackson received a jumperoo for Christmas from G&G Robertson and LOVES it (and of course it takes up half of our living room). It has been tons of fun for him…and shocking as it is, confirms how social he is. He jumps twice as high if you smile at him or encourage him to jump, jump! Oh the little things!

These days, we’re confronted with the fact that our 6 1/2 month old is growning out of his infant car seat. Weighing in a week ago at 18lbs 10.4 oz and 28 in long, we realized we’re 3 lbs and 2 inches away from a new seat. YIKES. Have you seen the convertable car seats lately? They are HUGE…and of course cost  a pretty penny if you buy the safest one with the best mommy ratings, which of course you’re going to do or you aren’t the “good parent” mentioned above…

Other than that, our lives are revoling around Jackson’s meal times. He has a large variety of premade organic infant foods for the times when we’re on the go, and a selection of homemade goodies that keeps increasing too. He ate fruit for the first time yesterday and it was totally a let down Since his gums are bothering him at an all time high, he ate about 3 bites of each meal yesterday and was totally uninterested! Oh well, we have lots of time left for him to love apples!

Posted by Erika on 25 Jan 2009
Filed Under: Jackson | 1 Comment »

I have a friend, Jessica, who has a little boy, Avery. He is Jackson’s buddy! He was born 5 minutes before Jackson and almost at the same hospital. The similarities are crazy, but I am so glad I met them! She is so good at sending out monthly emails to all her family and friends with updates about Avery and pictures of him. I realize part of the prob is that I am keeping up with so many people via email, facebook, myspace, text, and in person that this blog is just one more thing to do! I thought to myself, hmm, why don’t I just require monthly updates on my blog? That is pressure I can live up to!

SO, here I am (but too tired to give you pics this go round, sorry). In my last post I mentioned rice cereal entered Jackson’s life…since then, he has been introduced to Carrots, peas, sweet potatoes, green beans, broccoli, and squash. So far, he is liking most everything. To my surprise, he chowed down on peas for the first three days he was given them (I hate peas, seriously hate them)…but, since then (and it’s been weeks) he gags every time you try to give him peas. It is SO awesome!! His favorite veggie hands down are green beans. We’re going with a list from Liz so it has a bunch of random things listed so next attempt later this week will be spinach, and then I think I’m moving into the fruit. I have no doubt that he’ll love fruit, but I’m hoping he will have had enough veggies to not totally rule them out. I do have to admit that I gave in and made most of his baby food to date and it wasn’t tough. Liz got me started on the first round and I did a bunch more last weekend. For now, the fruit is all store bought, but organic so don’t worry Trautman family!

Ok, well that’s all the excitement around here for now. We’re still working on project get Jackson to sleep through the night, so feel free to pass on any suggestions!

Posted by Erika on 18 Jan 2009
Filed Under: Jackson | Comments Off