Christmas Break Day 7 and 8

Christmas morning Jessi and Dan were blowing on Jackson's hair and then running away laughing. Jackson wasn't very amused because he was tired.

Jon was excited about his knife sharpener

Emmy Claus

Dan and Jackson 

Day 7 was Christmas Eve and it everyone seemed to be on the mend. Mom and I went over to help Val around the house while the men stayed with Jackson. It turned out we didn't end up helping with very much. I peeled 4 potatoes before I sliced my finger open and was bleeding a lot. We hung out a bit more and then got ready to go to Valerie's in-laws home. 

We were at her in-laws with one fussyJackson who of course had not napped very well that day. We tried to put him to sleep while we got ready for dinner, but he screamed for awhile. We had a Christmas Eve dinner there and then Jon and I decided to take jackson home and skip out on the rest of the festivities. My dad who started feeling sick said he needed to come with us. On the ride home my dad asked for a bag and I kept praying he would not get sick until we made it home. And thankfully he didn't.

I gave Jackson a bit of food in the car and he never cried once. He went right to bed when we got back. Jon and I read Luke 2 and then watched A Christmas Story while my poor dad was getting sick. When my mom and Veera got back we each opened a present and then headed to bed. It was a little bit of a different Christmas Eve than normal but it was still great.

Christmas mornng we waited for Val and company to get there to open presents. They didn't come until 10 so of course I was going crazy since I woke up at 6. I am like a kid on Christmas and we always open presents right away. It was hard to wait and we eventually started a little before Val arrived. Jackson was all over the place and it was crazt but good. After that we packed up, said goodbye, and headed home. I always hate leaving but it was good to get home.

Me, Jessi, Emmy, Dan

Dad was still not feeling great but thankfully didn't throw up. Jackson was fussy on and off and had a hard time sleeping and wouldn't eat. At one point I said a prayer with him and immediately I felt prompted to change his diaper. Once we pulled over I saw that Jackson had a poopy diaper so it made sense why he was so fussy. As soon as we got back on the road he was asleep in minutes. I'm so grateful for the guidance of the Spirit. Once we got Jackson went to bed with no problem, he was so happy to be home. My parents stayed the night and headed back to their place the next morning. It was a great trip and I loved having Jackson this Christmas, it truly made it even more special than normal. I am already so excited for next year when he will understand even more. I love my little family and am so grateful we were blessed with Jackson this year. He is our light and means everything to us.

Dan being goofy!

Val showing off her tablet

Christmas Break Day 6

Tuesday we woke up and my mom was sick. She never threw up but she laid in bed or on the couch almost all day and didn't shower. For anyone who knows my mom, this is a big deal. She had a headache and was achy all over but her stomach was ok. We had Val's family come over and we just sort of hung out at the house. We originally planned to go to the zoo but with all the sickness and the forecast of rain all day we decided to take it easy. Jessi didn't want to come over because she was afraid of throwing up again so we bribed her with gifts. We let each of the kids open one present. That night we ate Pizza and watched Million Dollar Arm.

Christmas Break Day 3

Saturday we woke up, got ready, and packed up the car. We went over to grandma and grandpa's for a little bit to hang out and say goodbye. Then we headed to Memphis. We ended up only having to stop one time for lunch. Jackson is a great traveler but did especially well on this trip. We got to the house we were staying at and unpacked and settled in and then Valerie and family came over to hang out for a bit. We went to dinner at Chick-fil-A and then dad and I babysat while mom and Val went to get groceries, and Scott and Jon helped somebody from church move. It was a great first day but poor Dan ended up throwing up that night and had apparently thrown up the night before too.

 

Jackson eating snow for the first time as we left Louisville.

Dan loved this car at Chik fil-A

Christmas Break Day 4 and 5

Day 4 struck with a vengeance, but not at first. Sunday we headed to baby Emmi's baby blessing. On the way there I had some crazy stomach pain and had to run to the bathroom. I barely made it in time and will skip all the details. Then we took pictures, went to church, and stayed for the potluck afterwards, and all was well.

 After church we tried to nap but Jackson was unwilling. We went on a walk, wrapped presents, and then headed to Scott's parent's house to eat and look at Christmas lights. Before we left Jessi complained of a stomachache but she decided to ride with us because Val had to go pick up Scott and Daniel. A few minutes into the trip Jessi started screaming and my dad yelled for a plastic bag. My mom got one quick but not fast enough. Jessi threw up all over herself and on my dad and on the car. Somehow it missed me even though I was on the other side of her. My dad and I have the worst gag reflexes known to man. My dad started immediately gagging and telling Jon to pull over. I tried to hold the bag for Jessi and wipe her face off but I was laughing hysterically and was crying from laughing so hard. I then started to smell the vomit and started gagging and sticking my head out the window. My dad kept telling Jon to pull over but we were on a busy road so it took a little while to find somewhere. My dad jumped out as soon as possible and a few seconds later I realized I had to get out too. My mom was the saint who cleaned Jessi up. I called Val to tell her to bring a change of clothes and then we decided to just take Jessi home and call it a night. We did laundry, cleaned up, ate dinner, and played cards. 

That night when we went to bed we all felt a little funny. I laid down in bed and told Jon I knew I would wake up puking in the night. Sure enough at midnight, I woke up and puked for 3 hours on and off. It even came out my nose. I kept praying the whole time for it to stop. Everytime I tried to go back to sleep it came back and I couldn't keep my water down. After a while, Jackson who had been sleeping great, woke up and immediately threw up. He threw up a few more times, but luckily it wasn't tons. Jon was such a good sport and took great care of Jacksn. I was too weak to move. Dad went to give Val and family blessings in the night and Jackson and I got one too. Finally morning came and we slept in a bit. Luckily neither one of us threw up anymore but we were having other stomach issues. I slept a ton and gradually ate little by little to regain my strength. I felt bad all day and was achy with a headache but was feeling much better. I barely saw Jackson the whole day which was really hard. That night, My parents and Veera made soup which totally hit the spot. Then we watched The Giver and headed to bed early. Scott was the only one who was really sick like me and Jackson. Everyone else but Veera felt sick but so far haven't been struck with throwing up. 

Christmas Break!! Days 1 and 2

 So it is Christmas break which is the best time of year because we get 2 full weeks with Jon and Christmas! This year we are on the road. We left yesterday, Thursday afternoon and drove all night to Louisville, KY. We had a hard time getting Jackson to settle down and go to sleep but nursng did the trick and he went right to sleep afterwards. 

We have spent today with my Grandparents and my Aunt Janie. We took Grandpa to his favorite store Meijer, had lunch at Culvers, and then went to a Veteran's Memorial Park. We surprised Grandpa because there was a brick there purchased in his honor and my Uncle David's honor. Grandpa was very surprised and kept asking my dad if he knew it was there. 

The rest of the day consisted of Jackson, Jon, and I getting a long nap at the hotel and going to dinner with some of my moms family.

True Meaning of the Season

I have been struggling to get into the Christmas spirit this season. I seem to struggle more and more every year. This year I tend to blame the warm weather and school, but honestly those are superficial and have nothing to do with the true meaning of Christmas. Today Janet and I took cards and a treat to people we visit and home teach as well as some neighbors. We plan on delivering more tomorrow for FHE. It is a small thing but it has helped me to set my priorities straight. This is a video that seems to say everything I want to say. Christ is the biggest gift we have been given. If we learn to trust him and lean on him we will find more joy than through any other means.

He is the Gift – Christmas Video – #ShareTheGift:

Recent News

No, don't worry, we don't have anything exciting to announce. I just wanted to do a brief update on our lives:

Jon- is now the Primary Chorister, finished his 4th semester of grad school and is halfway to his Masters! Jon fixes computers at work, teaches full time, tutors part-time (a temporary gig), and is in grad school part-time. He is busy but always balances his time well and finds time to spend with Jackson and I. He still loves all things fly fishing and spends his free time looking at fishing blogs and videos. He even has his own fishing blog: www.talesofacrappyfisherman.blogspot.com

Janet- I'm loving being at home full-time with Jackson but I do miss working and having things to do aside from baby and the house. I get bored and lonely some days, but I wouldn't trade motherhood for anything! I am trying to get more involved now that I finally have some energy again! I am in the process of being hired part-time by the YMCA and I can bring Jackson with me and I get a free membership! My old job also called yesterday and wants me back part-time so Jon and I are in the process of figuring out if that is even something we want to pursue. I doubt I will go back because it will be too complicated, but we will see. I am also planning to start volunteering again.  Oh, and I recently went to a baby story time with Jackson and I plan on doing that regularly. It will be a great way to meet people with babies.

Jackson- you get plenty of updates on him already. He is almost 11 months and we are so excited to spend this first Christmas with him.

We are going to Memphis, Louisville, and Little Rock for Christmas so stay tuned for pictures from that!

First Haircut

I have been wanting to trim Jackson's hair for a while now. The back was so thick that it would often look matted and really crazy. But then I started seeing curls and was unsure about cutting them off. Well on Saturday Jon said he was going to cut his hair and then cut Jacksons. Of course then I had a change of mind and felt sad and unsure about it. I let Jackson watch Jon so he could see and get used to the sound of the clippers. Jackson did really well and laughed at the clippers. He was a moving target which made it difficult but he never cried. I did cry though. Seriously I had a little moment when I saw his hair piled up on the bathroom floor. I even took a picture of the hair and we saved some. Yes, I am officially one of those moms. I miss Jackson's soft crazy hair, but I LOVE his new cut. He looks so grown up and now I feel like I have a glimpse of him as a toddler. It feels weird to kiss the back and sides of his head because it is buzzed on the sides and back so it isn't soft like it was before. But we left the top long because we love it so much. Take a look:

The day before:

it was extra crazy from his bath and the static from the swing

right before the cut

posing right before the cut

see how long the back is?

the new cut from the back

after...so grown up!

side view

We Give Thanks

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend! First, we headed up to see Jon's brother Brian and his family. We love going to visit them, their home is fun, peaceful, and happy. It had been too long since we last saw them. We headed there on Tuesday and stayed until Friday afternoon. Went spent most of our time playing with the kids and the kids were so sweet and loving to Jackson. I went out one night with Mandy and Hali to Charming Charlies and Bath and Body Works and that was fun to have a girls night. Jon stayed home with Brian and the boys and did manly things like prepping the turkey. Our last day there Jon and I went on a quick date back to Charming Charlies to return something and to Bath and Body Works. Jon had snagged a coupon in our mail before we left and surprised me by getting my favorite Vanilla Bean Noel lotion and Body Spray. Then we headed to do our traditional Black Friday Target run, but we didn't find anything good this year. Jon's niece Milaya babysat Jackson for us. It is always good to have time away but we always miss that little guy. When we got back, we all went to get Frozen Yogurt which has become sort of a tradition when we visit. Jackson gobble mine up, especially the strawberries. Then, it was time to say goodbye. We had a wonderful visit and great food for Thanksgiving.

On Friday afternoon we headed for a quick stay with my cousins Jeff and Nicole who live about an hour from Brian and Mandy. My parents were there along with Uncle Otto, Aunt Susy, Uncle Jackie, Aunt, Cindy, Uncle Mark, Jeff, Nicole, Natalie, and Jack. We were there less than 24 hours but in that time I made a Thanksgiving wreath and a Christmas pot holder. All of the ladies waited on me to craft. Even though I am so terribly NOT artsy, it was fun and I did decently well on the crafts. I really enjoyed it a lot!

We got back home Saturday evening and had a nice busy Sunday and then were able to relax after church.

Hayden hijacked my phone and left me with a ton of awesome selfies

Oh Brock!

the drive to my cousins was gorgeous!

playing with Grandma

when chewing on the cup holder didn't work, it was time for a nap

reading his favorite book in the car, Brown Bear Brown Bear, What Do You See?

with Hali

I'm so grateful to have family close and to have my wonderful husband and son. This year has been full of changes and we have been so blessed!