Jack's Baptism

 

Last night we had Jack baptized at the evening service we usually attend. Both sets of grandparents, auntie Jane and Tom, and uncle Matt and auntie Joanna were all there. Jack was pretty squirrely before we headed into the sanctuary, so I didn't know how he'd do in front of so many people. He was the second of three children to be baptized. When it was his turn, Tom introduced our family and shared the verses that we had chosen for Jack (Ephesians 1:17-19). Then we handed Jack to the pastor. When the first bit of water was dropped on Jack's head, he didn't really know what to do. Then when the pastor did it again, he turned to him and gave him a huge smile. This elicited lots of laughter from the congregation.

 

   After the service everyone came back to our house for a chili dinner. Jack was completely exhausted and lasted only about an hour before crashing. He did, however, get to try some of the frosting on his cake before the night was over. We had such a wonderful time with our family and felt so blessed that they were all there to witness such a special day for Jack.

A New Best Friend

This week hasn't had any huge milestones, but it has had a lot of moments. I've begun to realize that the moments are just as precious as the "firsts" like crawling, walking, and talking. We've always loved Jack's personality, but it has really begun to shine these past few weeks. It is so incredible to watch him interact with his surroundings. Sometimes he invites Tom and I to be a part of his exploration, but increasingly more often, we are simply spectators.

Take Monty, for example. Jack is fascinated with him. Monty used to tolerate Jack's incessant attempts to pull his hair, but he eventually got annoyed and headed for another room. It has just been in the past week that Jack has figured out how to properly interact with Monty. It really began with the breakfast routine. Jack has started having dry toast as part of his morning meal. He loves being able to pick up the pieces and feed himself. When he doesn't want to eat any more toast, he shares with Monty. He casually picks up a piece of toast and drops it over the side of his highchair for Monty, who is waiting patiently below. At first I thought this was just a coincidence, but the more I've observed these two, they've worked out a deal. Jack feeds Monty, and Monty will put up with a little more of Jack's "petting."

   

Yesterday, I observed another moment between these two. It was a gorgeous sunshiny fall day outside, so I decided to take my two guys for a walk. I got Monty all harnessed up, and then left to the kitchen to fetch a plastic bag. When I returned to the front room, I saw Jack holding onto Monty's leash. They were ready for a walk together!

Mothering moments. Nothing earth-shattering. Not occurrences to be recorded in the baby book. Just little snippets of life that I've come to treasure.

Fun with Great Auntie Karen

Jack finally got to meet his great aunt Karen who lives in Colorado. He got to hang out with his Grandma Becky and Karen yesterday while I worked. He and auntie Karen had fun chasing one another around on the ground. I absolutely love the picture of the two of them with mouths wide open!

 

Weekend Getaway

This past weekend Tom and I left Jack overnight for the first time. We went to Portland with Tom's firm for a retreat. We took the train down and had fun just simply relaxing. I hadn't taken the train in a really long time, so it was fun to experience that again.  We stayed right in downtown Portland, so while Tom was in meetings, I had fun exploring the downtown with some of the other wives. We were treated to a fabulous dinner at a relatively new restaurant called East Burn. We were in a small private room at the back of the restaurant complete with our own two chefs. They let us watch as they cooked up delicious treats for us to eat. It was a really fun evening full of absolutely fabulous food!

On Saturday, after a morning of Powell's Books, coffee, and the Saturday Market, I boarded the noon train back to Seattle. Tom stayed, as the retreat went through Sunday. I had a very relaxing trip back up to Seattle, consisting mostly of reading--a luxury I rarely have time for anymore.

My parents stayed at our house and took care of Jack while we were gone. Jack had a great time! He was happy to see me when I got home, but I don't think he missed us too much!  Which is good, because it means that we can do this again! :)

Sunday Jack and I had the day to just be together and play. And play we did! My parents brought Jack his very own pumpkin fresh from the MV pumpkin patch. I just couldn't resist the opportunity to snap some pics as Jack explored the pumpkin.

   

 

Another Week Gone By

I can hardly believe that we are coming to the end of another week. Where does the time go?  I know that I've been a bit spotty in my blog entries; I'm going to try and be more consistent. Until then, here is a recap of the past week's events.

This past weekend Tom spent Saturday on a day hike with the Boy Scouts. They were up by Snoqualmie Pass and were blessed with a beautiful sunshiny day!  Jack and I hung around Seattle and went to Jack's very first birthday party. The party was for Linnea who turned four. It was a Minnie Mouse themed party (which would be why I am wearing mouse ears!) Although Jack was considerably younger than the other kids there, he was completely content to crawl around chasing after the other kids. He also discovered that when you go to a new house, there are lots of new toys. One of the favorites was the rocking horse. Here are some more pictures from the party:

 

Jack must have enjoyed himself because when we got home he immediately went down for a nap and slept for two hours!  This was perfect for me because it gave me a chance to get the house ready for a bunch of Tom's friends to come over to hang out and have dinner. I made a huge pot of chili and we had fun hanging out with the gang. We played a mean game of Trivial Pursuit, SNL edition, and we all quickly realized that we don't know that much about Saturday Night Live!  The night was super fun and easy. Since we were at our own house, Jack's normal routine wasn't interrupted, and we were able to be social.

On Sunday Tom and Jack hung out while I went and had some crafting time with Sarah and Megan. We met at Sarah's house and spent the afternoon making crafts and catching up. It was a much needed break for me and so much fun to be creative at the same time. We are definitely making this a normal occurrence.

Monday was a mini playdate for Jack and me with Karin and Caden. Caden is 2 1/2 and wasn't so sure that he liked Jack crawling all over him and following his every move. Jack, on the other hand, couldn't have been more thrilled to have someone to follow around and climb on. Caden was a good sport to put up with baby Jack.

Tuesday I worked a half day at Highland. I taught art and drama...what a blast!  I was primarily with 7th and 8th graders, which meant that I new nearly all of them. My mom was gracious enough to watch Jack. She even treated Jack and I to lunch when I got home from work!

That evening we had swim lessons. Grandma and Grandpa Rodda came to watch Jack practice his kicking, splashing, and blowing bubbles. Jack was aware that he had an audience and made sure that he gave plenty of smiles and screeches as he swam. He even delighted them with a game of peek-a-boo, as seen in the picture.

Yesterday Jack got his flu shot. I was prepared for a very sad little boy to cry uncontrollably, but the nurse poked him with the needle and he just looked at her and smiled. No tears! 

Another great week has gone into the books. Each day brings me more and more joy as I get to watch Jack's enthusiasm as he explores his world.

Fun, Fun, Fun!

It has been a while since my last post, but we've been keeping plenty busy. Unfortunately, I've come down with a pretty nasty cold, and have realized that caring for a little one when you don't feel well is no easy feat. Thankfully, Tom has been awesome and totally taken over when he gets home from work. I really hope that he and Jack don't get this stinkin' bug....

Last week we got to have dinner at Tom's parents with his Aunt Brenda and Uncle Joe. They haven't seen Jack since he was really little, so it was fun to show off all of his new skills. What would a trip to Grandma's house be without a new toy?  Jack loves to be pushed around on the truck. He has figured out how to honk the horn and does so as he is wheeled around the house. It also has a handle in the back so that he can practice his walking skills.

Speaking of walking, we've seen a decline in interest in walking this past week. This is probably due to Jack mastering the art of crawling. He still occasionally uses his army crawl, but now he mostly crawls on his hands and knees around the house. He's getting remarkably quick, so I'm sure he doesn't want to waste time taking baby steps to get somewhere when he could crawl there in an instant.

Because he is now crawling everywhere, Jack is learning the word "no". He definitely understands the meaning of it, but that doesn't in any way mean that he obeys it. The latest "no" items in our house are the automatic garbage can, which open with a sensor (I mean come on, if you were a little guy, wouldn't you want to open the magic can?) and the TV cabinet which boasts the radio that has really big knobs that are fun to turn.

He has also learned how to push buttons. His favorite button to push is the one that plays music on his toy piano. We hear those same four songs over, and over, and over, and over.....

Peek-a-boo is always a pleaser. Lately we've been crawling around and playing it between rooms. Jack loves opening and closing doors, which he has discovered is another way to play peek-a-boo. My dad always says, "Where's Jack?" to him and so we've added this element to the game. I love his hysterical giggle and wide open smile as we play.