Just counting down...

until Christmas, of course!!! It honestly feels like we're in a mode of just counting down days until Christmas. Several of our regular weekly activities aren't happening this week, so we're basically just filling time until the fun holiday festivities officially begin. Of course, we're filling time in the best ways we know how. First of all, spending time with Grandmama and Papa. My parents were here for a few days to hang out and Jake had tons of fun. Here is Papa throwing special pitches to Jake. In case you can't tell in that picture how much Jake liked my Dad's pitching skills, maybe these will give you a better idea of what he thought... Wow, he's better than Nolan Ryan!!!
Sunday night, we went out to look at Christmas lights. Of course, Jake can't see too much from his car seat, but we went to a couple places where we actually got out of the car so we could all get the full effect. There is one house on Sharon Dr. in Cedar Park that is well worth a visit. The lights are synchronized to music. It's pretty incredible...They also have "Santa" sitting out front, so of course, we had to take a picture with good ol' St. Nick.

There's also a cul-de-sac in Leander at Chinati St. where all the houses decorate with a "Twas the Night Before Christmas" theme. It's best to park your car, then walk the sidewalk of the cul-de-sac. Jake was especially intrigued by this little snow man that was blowing "snow."Over the past several weeks, we've pretty much been stuck inside due to rain or cold. Both Jake and I think this stinks!!! We were used to taking walks everyday and visiting parks as much as possible. Well, God granted us a couple days of relief, and the temperature got to the upper 60's Sunday and Monday. Here's how happy Jake is to be outside....

Hope you're having as much fun filling your time until Christmas!

The latest...

I mentioned in my last post that Mommy's shoes are one of the non-toy items Jake likes to play with. Well, I caught him red handed...

Ooohhh, I particularly like this black pump... so much, I think I'll have a taste...
Last week there was a lot of hype in the Austin area about snow coming on Friday. Some predictions said we might get 1 to 4 inches. Of course, the possible snow was the talk of the town and seemed to be all you heard on the news. I was thinking, "I'll believe it when I see it." Well, I did see it, for 10 whole minutes...

Regardless of how miniscule the actual amount of snow was, it was memorable and exciting to take Jake out in his "first snow." He didn't seem all that thrilled...
What are we doing out here? It's freezing...On Sunday night, we celebrated our friend, Anderson's 1st birthday. He and Jake are exactly 4 weeks apart, so it's fun to watch them growing up together. Jake had an awesome time. Mostly because Anderson was nice and shared his toys. How cute, we're riding together. This is pretty fun...

"Uh, oh, I'm not so sure if I want to share this ride," thinks Anderson.
"Whoo, hooo! Now I get the ride all to myself!"

It's much easier to share other toys, especially these super cool shades. Check us out...

Kevin's chillin' with the boys....

I don't mention Jake's eating habits much on the blog. Partially because it's probably boring and partially because lately it hasn't been as smooth flowing as I hoped. Jake took to nursing very well from the start, and I'm proud to stay we're still going at it; 4 times a day. I think he'll be fully weaned around 13 months--a little later than I originally thought, but I don't want to throw too much change in during our holiday travels. Anyhow, Jake did pretty good with the introduction of "solid" foods. I honestly think I had a lot of anxiety, so every time he didn't eat as well as I expected, I would get a little frustrated and a little down. We (I) somehow managed to make it through to him loving pureed food (even broccoli, but not spinach)--he was eating about 60-70% Mommy's purees, and the rest jarred food.

Now, we're at the point of eating more and more table foods, and I've sadly discovered that my baby boy has a definite opinion on what he likes and doesn't like. He has blatantly spit foods out of his mouth, dropped them down to Skylar, or simply touched it with a finger, then refused anything else. I think I had this grand dream of Jake loving all food--kind of like how I am now. My dream is definitely not shattered; it's just been slowed down a little bit. I honestly think a big part of the food resistance is a resistance to touching certain textures, but we're working on it. Over the last couple weeks, we've seen vast expansion on what he will eat. I try to offer him at least some kind of non-pureed food at every meal (not including puffs, cheerios, crackers). Here he is chowing down on some pasta and bread a few weeks ago...

Last night, we had chicken tetrazzini for dinner and Jake seemed to love it! He also did a great job with diced peaches. Green beans were not a success, although he'll eat the jarred version, so we went that route for our veggies. Yum yum, spaghetti noodles...
We're definitely making big strides in the food area, just don't judge us on our table manners ;-)...

A few of my favorite things...

As promised, here is the latest installment of Jake's favorite things.

1. Going places and seeing new things. Jake loves to go places--basically any place that's not home. I think he does like home, but he definitely does not like to stay at home all day long. Luckily, both he and I agree on that one....boring...so, in order to keep us both happy, we try to venture out somewhere everyday. He seems to be a people watcher (like his Mommy), so that's at least part of the fun everywhere we go. Yesterday, we met a friend at Extreme Fun, a place for kids. Although, he's a little too young for most of the fun, he still loved it. Here is his first experience in a foam pit...

Here's Jake's smiley friend, Anderson who joined us for the fun.

Extreme Fun is definitely a place you would expect kids to like, but a Toyota dealership?!? Earlier this week, I went to get my car maintenanced, so Jake and I spent some time in the play room and just walking around the dealership. Ooohhhh, look at all those shiny cars...can I have one of those, Mommy?

What is this thing? It seems pretty fun...Hey, what are you looking at?2. Playing with nearly anything and everything that is technically not a toy. Yes, just as I've heard from so many other parents, we are definitely at a point when I daily think, "what are all these toys for?" Of course, Jake does play with his actual toys, but there seems to be many more exciting things to play with like this pot...

Just this morning, I was unloading the dishwasher and he got hold of a plastic cup. That thing kept him entertained for 10 minutes! Some of this other "non-toy" favorites are Mommy's hair brush, keys, Mommy's books, electrical cords, paper, anything in the drawers of our desk, the remote control, and Mommy's shoes.

3. Trying to be a big boy. There are often times when I look at Jake's face, and I feel like he's thinking, "I want to do that." Even the way he just looks at older kids, it's almost with a look of awe and anticipation for all the cool stuff they are able to do. Even at Extreme Fun, he crawed right over to the bouncy entrance and tried his best to get on. "Hey, I know I can do this. All I need is a little boost..."

Before Thanksgiving, Jake and I brought Kevin dinner at school before his basketball game. Since the gym was virtually empty, Jake got to crawl all around. There was one player shooting, and Jake headed immediately toward him to join in his game...
Just look at the look in his eyes, "I'm ready to play with this basketball..."
4. Being silly. Jake is definitely a silly goose. His laugh is the best. Sometimes, he laughs for no reason. Sometimes, he laughs so hard it turns into a squeal/shout. His silly, fun moods definitely make up for his grouchy, grumpy moods. Here he is being silly at dinner...

Being silly is also something that comes with the territory of finding ways to entertain a child ALL DAY LONG. Mommy definitely pulls out all sorts of things in order to keep us happy. Here he is sporting Mommy's cool shades...
5. In my last edition of "my favorite things," I said Skylar "might" be on the list, but it's hard to really tell because she always walks away too fast. Well, I think I can officially say she is one of his favorite things. Thank goodness we have a sweet, laid-back, wonderful dog, because I'm certain Jake is NOT one of Skylar's favorite things, but only because Jake has a tendency to clench onto her and pull at her hair and collar. Regardless of Jake's annoying ways towards Skylar, it is cute to see their interactions. Sometimes Skylar will be walking by and steal kisses on Jake's face, and more often, Jake attempts to interact with Skylar. Here are our two beautiful children...

6. Toys/stuffed animals that talk or make noise, but especially sing. Jake really loves music, so he automatically perks up if he hears a song. I think he also likes the interaction that's provided by certain toys that "talk" to you. Here he is with a bear that tells you nursery rhymes...
7. This is a recent discovery in the last few days, but Jake seems to really like the Praise Baby DVDs (http://praisebaby.com/). I have been wanting the collection for a while, but the set of 4 DVDs is usually $49.99, so that just wasn't happening. Well, Family Christian had the set on sale, plus I was able to use a coupon, so I got the set for less than $20!!! I've only put one in a couple times (I generally don't want Jake watching much TV), but the times I have, he becomes fixated on the TV and will stop any fussing or crying that may have just been happening. They are very simple DVDs: they show short clips of animals, babies, people, etc. and the background sound is worship music. I took these pictures last night as I was trying to make dinner. It's REALLY hard to make dinner with Jake around. He insists on being under my feet or holding on to my legs the ENTIRE time. Well, I had enough and was picturing boiling water falling on his head, so I put in a DVD and sat him on the floor. This is how he sat for 10 solid minutes. Not an eternity, but long enough to drain boiling pasta and open up the oven...
In this one, he's actually clapping. So cute, he saw the parrot, and started clapping away...
That's about it for this edition of "my favorite things," but I thought I'd take a moment to share what OTHERS say are their favorite things about Jake. The top three things I hear the most from others are about his hair, his eyes, and his general good temperament. His hair because it's kinda crazy and sticks up in an unruly way. His eyes because they are beautiful blue with pretty eyelashes. And his temperament because he is pretty much a happy boy--especially when we are out around others (he keeps most of the fussiness for home with Mom and Dad). Here are a few pics that try to capture your "favorite things."
Cool hair...

Crazy hair+pretty blue eyes+big, bright smile= JakeI know his eyes are closed, but this pic does a great job of capturing Jake's personality...

11 months

Our sweet boy turned 11 months old yesterday. I can't believe he's only one month away from his 1 year birthday!!! In some ways the past 11 months have gone by slowly, but in many others, it's gone by super fast. Everything in the mouth...a trend that continues on...

Not walking on his own yet, but loving his toy walker...
Of course, the day wouldn't be complete without pics with his special blanket...

Stayed tuned for a post of Jake's latest favorite things...

Thanksgiving on the Lawson side of things

On Thanksgiving Day, we headed to Chad and Cassy's house to enjoy Thanksgiving with the Lawson family as well as Cassy's side of the family. The meal was delicious, but the best part was this little girl...Yes, Channing is home!!!! She came home from the hospital the Saturday before Thanksgiving, and we are so thankful the family of 4 is now officially complete at home. She is absolutely beautiful and we are definitely praising God for this special girl. We tried to keep Jake far from Channing, but Jake was happy playing with cousin Cohen...He also had fun playing peek-a-boo with Chad...
We then spent Thursday and Friday night in Gainesville. While we were there, Big T showed Jake his expertise at bubble blowing. He then showed Jake the fan's expertise at bubble blowing. It's hard to tell from the picture, but bubbles were EVERYWHERE! Jake didn't know quite what to do. There were way too many to catch...
We also got to spend time with Uncle Woody, Aunt Tanya, MeMaw and our cousins, the Watts family. Jake had lots of fun at Tanya and Woody's. He especially enjoyed playing with one of the cats' toys...

Peek-a-boo!

As usual, Jake loves being around older kids, even the teenage variety. Brittany and Ryan were great entertainment...
I especially love this picture. It's like Jake is waiting in anticipation for Ryan to share some great secret about growing up boy...
Jake did show Ryan he knows a thing or two about being a boy. Oftentimes, Kevin and I will play with Jake and "get" him, then he "gets" us back. It's super adorable to watch. He will pile on top of you, dig his head into your body and make a funny noise. Here he is working on "getting" Ryan...

Many Thanks

We had a great Thanksgiving holiday with both sides of the family. Jake and I started our holiday off early with my parents in Aledo. On Monday, we took a day trip to the Gaylord Texan in Grapevine. It's a beautiful hotel with amazing Christmas decor. Here are just a few shots of the great decorations...This is a life size gingerbread house. It's actually made with real sugar and candy. It was awesome!

Jake loves spending time with Grandmomma and Papa!
The Gaylord has an attraction called "Ice." This year's theme is "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" and is an elaborate collection of life sized ice sculptures. I've never seen anything like it before---it was really incredible. Since it's literally freezing in the exhibit, they give you big coats to wear to stay warm. They didn't exactly have Jake-sized coats, so we bundled him up with his own clothes, then got the smallest size they had and wrapped him up. He looked hilarious. He was such a trooper, and just 'chilled' out the entire time...

What are they doing to me this time?

Along with the Grinch sculptures, there was a beautiful Nativity scene. This picture definitely does not do it justice....

After finishing up coaching, Kevin joined us on Wednesday, and we had a great Thanksgiving meal with my parents. Jake got a look at his first turkey--pre-cooked. He immediately reached down for a touch...

Here's Jake at the table as we were finishing getting everything ready. He was super excited for his first Thanksgiving and did surprisingly well trying new table foods.

On Thursday, we headed to Chad and Cassy's for another great meal...more with the Lawson side of the family to come...

The season begins...

Tonight we went to our first basketball game of the season. Jake did great. He sat on my lap the entire time (except for a break during half time for dinner, then an encounter with a mouse...more on that later) taking it all in. The first half he was just looking, looking, looking all around, then finally by the time the 2nd half came, he was smiling and clapping. I took lots of pictures by holding the camera out in front of me hoping to capture something decent. This pic was near the beginning of the game. He definitely looks unsure of the situation... "OK, this is pretty cool. I guess I'll consider clapping for the Leander Lions..."

A view from our eyes...

"Oooohhhh...whatever this is, it's pretty exciting. I'm going to keep clapping..."

He also started holding his hands up in the air. It was especially cute when a player was shooting a free throw. We both held our hands up, then said, "Swiiiiish!"

"Yes! We made it, we made it!!!!"

The game was going pretty good for the "good guys" right up until the end, then it was time to look a little worried...

Unfortunately, the Leander Lions weren't able to finish through with a win this time, but we definitely had fun anyway. Just one final pic, just because I love those chubby cheeks...

Go Lions!!!!!

Oh yeah...the mouse. As Jake was sitting in his umbrella stroller on the bleachers eating dinner, I saw something move out of the corner of my eye. My first thought was, "I think that was a mouse. No, surely it wasn't a mouse. Could that be a mouse?" Well, sure enough, it was a mouse. Not being a fan of any rodents, especially the uncaged variety, and with thoughts of a mouse jumping in my baby's lap, I immediately grabbed his entire stroller and moved to the bottom of the bleachers. My reaction had caught the attention of another basketball team sitting in the bleachers, so a group of teenage boys then proceeded to chase after the little visitor. Ultimately, I think they killed it, although I don't know for sure because once I knew the little guy was at a safe distance I tried to block the entire situation from my mind. Anyway, pretty crazy, huh? Definitely not what I expected at a high school basketball game.