Jackson's 4 month Doctor's Appointment

Today Scott and I took Jackson to see Dr. Wagner for his 4 month check up. It was a great appointment. Jackson now weighs 12lbs 8oz and is 24'' long, so he is growing wonderfully. He has been holding at the 25th percentile since he was born. Since he has been holding here she is very pleased with his progression.

I told Dr. Wagner about his runny nose and watery eyes that he has had for the past few days and how I felt it had to do with his teething. She agreed that it definately had to do with that and to not be concerned if he even got a low grade fever or diarrhea. All of these things are very common for teethers. Good to know my instinct was correct!

The only icky part of his Doctor's appointment was that Jackson had to recieve his next set of shots. Today he received the DTaP (Diphtheria Tetanus & Pertussis), Hib (Haemophilus Influenzae Type b), Pneumococcal Polysaccharide and the Polio Vaccine. He handled it really well actually. He cried of course, but after it was all done he smiled at us- what a brave little guy! It has been a few hours and I think his legs are sore (he got two shots in each thigh). But aside from wanting to cuddle a little more then usual he is doing pretty well. I just hope it turns out better this time then it did in his last round of vaccines where he got such a terrible cold. Well, we shall see...

The Teething Has Begun.

Our little guy has started teething- poor thing. He is so uncomfortable. He is bothered mostly at night right before bedtime, but the past two days he has even started complaining during the day. Probably today has been his worst day. He has been a little drool machine and wanting to bite and chew on just about everything. He really likes the teething rings you put in the fridge, but he doesn't like to hold onto it so we have to hold it in his mouth for him; well he IS our little prince. I will definately have to pick up some infant oragel today on my way home from work.

Just think about how hard it is on adults when their wisdom teeth come in- and babies have an entire mouth of teeth to come in. I was talking to my mom today and she said that my pediatritian as a child, Dr. Kepler, said that when babies teeth they have a constant headach. How awful for them! Sophie is teething now too; she started a little while ago. I feel so bad for our little sweeties. And to think, it takes a full year for all of their teeth to come in. This is just the begining.

Jackson Had His First Laugh!

For a while now, the moment you make eye contact with Jackson his entire face lights up; he breaks into this huge grin and even more recently started cooing and doing a bit of an awkward giggle.

This morning the two of us were playing. I was using Jackson as "arm weights" raising him above my head and lowering him, each time plopping a kiss on his lips. You should have seen him- he got the biggest kick out of this! Everytime I would raise Jackson back up in the air he broke out in this big belly laugh! It was so cute! It is so much fun watching him grow and change. This milestone defiantely ranks up there with first smile as far as heart melting goes!

10 Little Piggies

Jackson found his feet today! We have been working with him for a little while introducing his feet to him; wiggling them around, putting them up to his mouth, etc. Whenever you would put them to his mouth he would get such a kick out of it, smiling and laughing. And today he finally grabbed them himself and put them right up to suck on his toes! Now that he has found them, he thinks they are so cool. He definately favors his right foot so far- maybe he will be a righty? Either that or it just tastes better :)

Today was my first day home with Jackson after leaving Emerald Performance. It was such a lovely day. We leasurly woke up and had our milky breakfast (I had coffee and cereal with mine). Then we played a while in his gym, batting toys and gazing at ourselves in the mirror. It was such a beautiful morning, I decided to strap Jackson on in his Bjorn and do a little gardening. The weeds around our house are absolutly insane, and I am so excited to finally have the time to get them all under control. I thought I would first tackle the patch of land that is by our patio so it would finally look nice while you are sitting out there. There is a little wall there which made it a perfect place to work with Jackson in tow. I sat myself down and Jackson got completely worn out watching me pull weeds and throw them in a pile, pull weeds and throw them in a pile- head going back and forth the whole time. After lots of yawning, I layed him down for his nap and headed back outside to finish what I started. There is still a lot to do, but boy what a difference it already makes! After pulling out tons of grasses and weeds I even uncovered a little strawberry patch, rosey red strawberries already forming. They are so cute!

Tomorrow my parents are coming over to help me create my herb garden. I am so excited! For the past few years I have just had a little portable herb garden since we have just been renting. This will be my first REAL garden- a true token of homeownership. It is so cool. I will post pictures to show it off once it is all finished.

Well all this fresh air has worn me out so I think I am going to hit the sack a little early. This way I will be well rested for my big gardening day tomorrow.

Have a nice night!

3 days and counting....

So I am down to three more days left at work here in Cuyahoga Falls- and I have to say I am soooooo ready to be done. As much as I like it here, and love the people I work for I am so exhausted by the end of the day! I almost feel like I did after Jackson was born! Not only do I work an 8 hour day, but I drive for 3- so that makes an 11-12 hour day for everyone. Way too long for little Jackson to be away from his mommy and daddy 5 days a week (and way too long for mommy and daddy to be away from him too!) I go into the Macaroni Grill on Thursday the 31st for my orientation and then I am guessing I will be starting work officially the following week. It will be such a nice change.


I was reading the news paper yesterday and found out some pretty cool news. The very first eaglet was born in the Cuyahoga National Park in the past 70 years! The last time one was born here FDR was on office! Here the article all about it:

Eaglet arrival 70 years in the making

Categories: Breaking News

Brecksville - The last time bald eagles hatched in Cuyahoga County, FDR ruled from the White House, the Great Depression worsened and another World War crept closer.

Now, 70 years later, a newly hatched national symbol huddles in a 1,000-pound nest in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park.

"It's a real exciting time for the park," said interpretive ranger Paul Motts, standing on the Towpath Trail, across the Cuyahoga River from the birds' home. "It just shows our great efforts in trying to preserve areas like this."

The park service is also trying to preserve the eaglet, born April 3 in the V of a big, sparse tree.

Officials have shut off pedestrian access to the railroad tracks on the west side of the river and posted signs on the Towpath urging people not to dally. Trains chugging by on the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad, though, don't bother the birds, said park spokeswoman Mary Pat Doorley.

In the mid 1970s, when the valley was made a national park, only four pairs of bald eagles lived in Ohio, Motts said.

Now, the state has 164 nests - 116 of which hatched at least one chick this year, said Carla Maxwell, volunteer eagle coordinator for the Ohio Division of Wildlife. That's the most nests since the division began keeping count in the '70s.

"It's a big deal," Motts said. "The eagles were on decline, almost wiped out."

Their return to the river, like the blue herons' move there in the 1980s, signals the Cuyahoga's clean water and abundant fish, he said.

Bruce Abbott, an amateur bird watcher, comes to the river often to look at the eagles. "It's like a once-in-a-lifetime thing," he said.

Park officials hope not. They believe the eagles may return to the spot after a successful nesting, creating an eagle colony like that of the herons.

The eagles, then, would be a fixture in Cuyahoga County, not an I-remember-when footnote in history.

**article can be found {here} 

I think I will have to go and take a walk over there and see if I can get a few pictures. A photograph was posted at cleveland.com and the baby is so cute! Maybe this will be a good field trip for Jackson and I once I am working part time- strap him in the bjorn and go for a little hike. He would love it- he absolutly loves being outside. Mommy would care more about the eagles, but he would enjoy watching the trees and feeling the breeze in his hair.

Goodness, I can't wait until I am part time! All of the fun things I will get to do with him then. I won't be just limited to Saturdays and Sundays. I am so excited!

I gave my 2 weeks notice at work!

Well Monday was my first day back to work from maternity leave. What a loooooooooong week this has been. Bonnie is our nanny, so at least I did not have to stress over Day Care. But the worst part (aside from having to leave Jackson) is that Bonnie lives a half hour away from me and then she is an hour away from my work- yup, that makes 3 hours driving a day (and that is on a good traffic day, no construction, accidents, etc). I have to wake up a 5:00am to get myself awake, and ready for work, get him up and packed up, etc. By the time I get home from picking up Jackson it is about 8:00, and it is time to get him ready for bed! I don't even get to see him really. It is so depressing!

So after much talking and thinking with Scott, I have decided to quit my job and work part time waitressing. I got a job at The Macaroni Grill, this restaurant that I used to work at many years ago. They are letting me work 3-4 days a week and do just lunches during the week (unless I want to pick up dinner shifts!) I am so excited! Plus, the restaurant is only 5 minutes away from my sisters house! So no more stress, late hours, long drives, and I get to spend 4 days a week at home with Jackson. It is all such a relief.

This part time thing will definately be better. I have been slowly telling everyone at work; and you know what, everyone has been so amazing. They are all very supportive and understanding. Which has made it so much better. I was so nervous about quitting! But most people have told me that they think I am making the right decision. many said they would have done the exact same thing. They have been very sweet telling me I will be missed, and how great it was having me back. I was definately lucky to work for such a kind company. 

My last day here will be May 30th and then I will be starting at the restaurant. I am actually really loking forward to it, suprisingly enough. Some of my friends are still working there, so I will have familiar faces. Plus it will be busy. I will be on my feet running around so hopfully it will help me loose some of this extra baby weight I haven't lost yet- I just have to be good with staying away from all that yummy pasta!!

My 1st Mother's Day

Today was my very first Mother's Day- and how special it was! First I woke up in the morning to have a lovely bonding time feeding Jackson. While rocking him I thought back to how amazing his birth was and how in just 12 weeks I have changed so much as a woman and a person. My life has a new purpose that I never could have dreamed would feel so wonderful. We have been blessed with such a gift. I will be forever thanking God for trusting us with our precious boy.

After Scott woke up we played with Jackson in his gym had lots of smiles. Then Scott gave me the most beautiful gift from Jackson. It is a pendant of a mother and child and their arms incircle to make a heart. It is so beautiful and absolutly perfect.

We spent the afternoon with Sandy going out to lunch at Clemetine's and then browsed around Grand Pacific Junction. Sandy was so sweet, she gave me these wonderful stepping stones to place in one of my new garden's (whenever it is that we finally make them!) and also two Creeping Flocks plants. They are this beautiful lavender color. I can't wait to plant them.

The evening we visited over at the Jill's and had a lovely dinner and just enjoyed eachother's company. My mom gave me my whole start to my herb garden! I know what I am doing this weekend! I hope we have nice weather so I can get it all dug up and placed. Bonnie gave me the most beautiful Orchid. It is this very pretty purple color. I hope that I can take good care of her- I have never been good with Orchids. But I will definately try! This was such a special day and i will always remember it.

Thank you Mom's- I have such amazing role model's in each of you. All I can hope is that I can become as wonderful a mother as you have all been to me, Scott and Anna and Sophie. I love you!