Animals

Last week Jake and I spent some time with my parents. The main highlight of the trip was going to Fossil Rim Wildlife Center in Glen Rose, TX. The main highlight for Jake might have also been playing with all his cool toys at Papa and Grandmama's house, but this was the highlight for me at least. It's the kind of wildlife center where you drive in your car and have feed you can toss out to them. We saw lots of animals including zebras... ostriches...

deer...

whatever these things are...

and my favorite, giraffes...

The giraffes were the only animals you were allowed to feed by hand. You were supposed to toss the food on the ground for all the others. If you look really closely at the bottom of the next picture, you will see my hand feeding him. It was so cool!

Jake got to ride in our laps since we were going along so slowly to see all the animals. He was a little apprehensive about the animals, but did seem very interested. I tried to get him to toss the food out, but he refused, and handed it back to me to toss.
Thanks Papa and Grandmama for a great week!

Fish Face

Jake randomly started making fish faces. Funny guy...

Things to remember

I thought I'd take a moment to jot down some things I don't won't to forget about this time. Here goes nothing:

1. Jake likes being a very independent eater. He is now using his own utensils, and he mostly does NOT want help. We've discovered the easiest way for him to eat and actually get enough food in his tummy is for him to have a spoon and for us to have a spoon. As long as he still gets to hold his own utensil, he's fine with getting help, but the moment you try to take his utensil out of his hand to try to help him he flips out in protest.

2. Jake continues to love music. This is my #1 favorite thing about him because it's so cute to see him dance and/or play music with his instruments. Two of our Lawson family activities are Lawson family band and dance party in Jake's room. For dance party, we play "Footloose" in his CD player and just let the music guide the rest. I know it is hilarious to watch, but so far, no one has had the opportunity to witness a Lawson dance party. In case you're wondering, song choice is very important b/c Jake does know the difference and will protest if we try a different song. That's OK with me; Kevin Bacon does seem like a pretty good guide to a dance party! Here's Jake and Kevin trying out the new instruments I brought back from my trip...

3. Jake is slowly but surely starting to say things we can understand. He DOES NOT say these recognizable things on command. I admit I'm waiting for the time when he can "parrot" us. One day I'm sure he will actually repeat something I want him to, but for now he just surprises us on his own time. This is definitely the way Jake likes to do everything--on his own time. The words he has said to date are: bubble, don't, no, doggie, Papa, stuck, up, out, uh oh, hot, Daddy, choo choo, baa (ball) and Mama. I put Mama at the end b/c much to my dismay he says this the most but it does not mean me. "Mama" really means "I want" or "give me." Basically anytime he wants something he will whine, plead, and point, "Mama, mama, mama...." Although hilarious to most others, this is not exaclty what I had in mind for my son saying Mama. Oh well, once again, I know one day he will greet me with a smile and an appropriate acknowledgement of "Mama!"

4.He's been on a one nap schedule for over a month now, and we're all really enjoying the change. We try our best to keep our mornings busy and active so Jake doesn't crash too early. As long as he's busy and entertained, he is a happy boy until 12:30 or 1:00. It's been nice to enter into the schedule of Jake's older friends with all the play groups and activities we do. He can sleep anywhere from 1 1/2 to 3 1/2 hours. The day is better for everyone if he at least hits 2, but I won't complain b/c we've been gifted with a great sleeper from 2 1/2 months old.

5. He's gotten to the point where it's more noticeable to me that he really "gets" things he's exposed to. He can respond to requests like picking something up or go getting something. He's also learning things from the books we read. He has a book that mentions several body parts, and he will point to either his or my ears, eyes, nose, toes, etc. He also has a book, "From Head to Toe," which talks about movements that animals make. Jake will "thump his chest" like a gorilla, "turn his head" like a penguin, and "wave his arms" like a monkey.

6. I'll end by saying Jake's most fun playtime is spent with Daddy. I LOVE watching them play b/c Kevin is so good at creating games and having good ol' fashioned fun with Jake. Some of the latest Daddy activities have included

---Hide-and-Seek. This is played by Kevin running off to hide, then calling out, "Jake, come find me!" Jake looks all around the house following Daddy's voice, until he ultimately "finds" him and the game starts all over.
---"Run from Skylar." This one's pretty funny b/c there is never a point in the game when Skylar is chasing them, although it would appear that way. Basically, Kevin tries to keep Skylar moving (this task in itself can be a challenge) by tossing a ball around to her. Meanwhile, he tells Jake, "Let's go, she's coming to get us!" They run around until they reach the front door floormat which is "base." Jake loves this game, and it's simply nothing more than running around.
---"Pillows" There is no real name for this one, but the main ingredient is pillows. They get the throw pillow and the cushions from the couch and dive into them, kind of making our own living room foam pit. Jake loves playing with the pillows.
---"Fort" Kevin helped Jake make his very first living room fort--an activity we both grew up doing, and one I think is a basic necessity for growing up. Kevin was awesome and had different "rooms" to the fort--one for balls, one for stuffed animals. Here's a look at Jake's first fort...

They used Jake's rocket tent for part of it, so they could peer out from a long tunnel...
Thanks for hanging in there with me as I do my best to capture these things I'm worried my memory alone will allow to fade.

Daddy's Day

So, the Lawsons have been a little off the radar lately, for some good and bad reasons. On the bad side, Kevin and I were hit with a stomach bug this past week. On the up side of the bad, it didn't hit us both at exactly the same time, so Jake still had one funcitoning parent, and Jake seems to have steered clear. On the good side (at least for me), I took a long weekend trip to Shreveport and have taken a very temporary job. More on those good things later, because this day is all about DADDY!!!

We celebrated Kevin's day yesterday with a trip to Salt Lick BBQ and a Round Rock Express game. BBQ was a popular destination b/c we arrived at 5:15 and still had a 30 minute wait, but it was well worth it. Here are the boys as we're waiting outside to be seated.
Once seated, the waiter brought bread and Jake acted like he was starving. He is quite the carbs guy (much like his mama), but even this was a bit crazy. We'd give him pieces, which he downed in an instant, then he would point and whine for more. It was really quite hilarious...

Somehow he managed to save room for the meal and still ate surprisingly well. He loved their pinto beans and potatoes!

Then it was across the parking lot we went to the game. We sat on the grass which was great b/c we weren't confined to two small seats, but the lack of confinement also brought about its own challenges. For about the first hour, Jake was interested in just about everything but the game, so Kevin and split the time taking him to play on the playground and walking him around the ballpark. All the playing was great and wore him out just enough for him to consider sitting with us on our blanket...

Or in front of us on the grass... Then it was time for our ballpark treat for the night...a sno cone...it was just a little piece of heaven as far as Jake was concerned. In case, you don't believe me, I'll let the pictures tell the tale...

The little red drip down his chin is the cutest!

Doing things like Daddy always makes it better...

Yum, Yum, Yum!

What do you do when you get to the last bit and it's in one big frozen chunk? Take it out and bite right into it, of course!

Post cone face...
Oh, and just in case you're wondering...Yes, we chopped off Jake's hair for a summer cut. It was really time. This boy loves being outside, but he sweats like crazy, so it seemed like the best thing to do. I will admit, it took some adjusting on my part, but now I'm just as in love with his cool new do!

Table Manners

The other night as we were about to get dinner on the table, Jake crawled into one of our chairs looking like he was ready to go. As we got things ready, we attempted to put him in his high chair, and he proceeded to throw a little fit. We went ahead and gave in, strapped his booster seat to the chair, then sat him down. He did very well at the table, and had that look in his eye that said, "Yeah, that's right, I'm a big boy."

He's also continuing to work on his utensil skills, which made him seem even bigger/older. I can't believe my little boy is sitting at the table, eating off a plate, and using a fork!

Of course, eating with utensils is hard and frustrating work at times, so every once in a while you must use your hands...

His "fork" is more like a spork, so most everything can be scooped into it and it's actually used more like a spoon. He surprised me even more with his big boy skills and actually used the fork as a fork to eat his watermelon.

We still have a long way to go until we reach proper table manners, but I have to say, we're definitely making headway!

Daddy's Helper

This weekend, Kevin was doing some work on the sprinkler heads. We put Jake in his swimsuit so he could have fun playing and helping Daddy. He had a great time playing in the water, but was also a very proud and eager helper...

He got REALLY dirty, and headed straight to the bathtub after the work was done. He even managed to get mud in his ear...

Austin Zoo

Our play group was all set to go to the zoo Thursday morning, and then the rain hit. We went ahead and made the 40ish minute drive to the zoo in hopes that it would soon stop (the weatherman said it was just a 30% chance and it would taper off soon). Well, there didn't seem to be an end in sight, but a few of us decided to tough it out anyhow. It ended up being a great zoo day. It was only raining very lightly, so we barely got wet. There were hardly any visitors so it felt like we had the place to ourselves. Most importantly, the rain cooled off the temperature, so it was not scorching hot outside. All in all, a great day. The Austin zoo is not your typical big city zoo; it's actually a non-profit animal sanctuary helping resue animals, so it had a different feel to it than other zoos I've been to. First of all, there were peacocks, chickens, and roosters roaming around freely. Here's one of the beautiful peacocks... We even got to see one with its tail on display. I don't think the picture does justice to how close we actually were, and of course, to how beautiful it was. God is definitely an amazing Creator!Several of the animals' "cages" were right alongside the walkway, so you could literally reach inside if you wanted. The zoo actually sells feed so you can feed them also. Very kid-friendly. Here's Jake checking out a hog dear. I'm pretty sure that's what it is, anyway...

Here are some of the kiddos checking it out...

Look at these crazy goats. They really looked like they were making an escape. Maybe it's just their way to beg for food...

We drove there with our friends, Cara and Abigail. Abigail is less than 2 months older than Jake, but much taller and about 8 pounds heavier. Despite her potential ability to take him down, they did great together and were often found like this: looking through/trying to climb the fences...

Photo op with just a few of the kids...

Then Chloe decided she was ready to join...

On the way home, Cara turned on a movie for the kids in their DVD player. Jake has never gotten to watch TV in the car and was completely intrigued. The two looked so cute watching the show and eating their goldfish. Of course, Jake passed out about 15 minutes into the drive, but he enjoyed the movie for a little while...

PS If you're ever want to go with some friends, consider calling in to make a group reservation. We got our tickets half off. Plus children under 2 are free! Good deal!

17 Months

Jake turned 17 months old day. I tried to get a cute picture of him. I did not succeed. I'm obviously not a good photographer. Oh well; nothing I didn't already know. I thought I'd post my attempts at 17 month pictures just for laughs. Part of the problem is the boy never sits/stands still, but most of the problem is me. All the pictures are either blurry (without flash), super bright, or of parts of his body other than his face.

An attempt of the action shot...

And, in case you were wondering...

Jake has...

blonde hair, since that is the only thing you can really tell about him from these three shots.
One of his newer ways of playing: talking on the phone.

Another Post Bath Do

I've blogged before about Kevin trying out new hairstyles after Jake's baths. Here's another look. Kevin calls it the "Pat Riley."Don't know who Pat Riley is? I knew it must be a sports reference...we're talking Kevin here...but otherwise I didn't know until I looked it up (sorry, honey). He is currently the president for the Miami Heat. He's also coached the Heat, L.A. Lakers and New York Knicks. Apparently, he's pretty good. Anyhow, he looks like this...

So yes, it makes sense that the slick back look is named Pat Riley.

May work for Pat, but I don't think it's a keeper for Jake...