Jackson update...

Jackson is having a blast growing up. He has had an eventful 4-5 months of live. Within this time he has rolled over onto his tummy, rolled back over onto his back, found his feet, raise his chest off the floor to play and look around, laughed for the 1st time (not at us, of course, but at his really funny Momma Z and Aunt Lisa), and cut his first 2 teeth, and had his first snow in Lake Tahoe. Now that he has a little more control over his body, he just mocks me when I put him down for tummy time by rolling back over onto his back. As you can see by the picture, he just laughs at me. Really, though, he smiles ALL the time. We are so blessed to have such a healthy, happy baby. I can even make him smile when he is crying!! Books are a new favorite. We have read to him since he was born, but now he is starting to interact with the pages...turning them himself. He loves his exersaucer ( last picture). He just plays and plays until he poops and it runs clear up to his neck...EVERY TIME!!! Sorry, you know we can't blog without bringing up the subject of poop. It just wouldn't be right. Thankfully it's not a subject that bothers Dad, so he gets to change lots of poopy diapers!! We are settling in now after traveling 5 times in 5 months. We're so glad friends and family have been able to watch him grow up. Now they will have to come here to continue that process!! Enjoy the pictures and we will continue to update all of you.

4 months

We celebrated his 5 month birthday with cheesecake....for Mom and Dad.

5 months

Lake Tahoe

What a wonderful wedding my sister and her husband hosted in Lake Tahoe!! Our families had a beautiful time of fellowship and fun together. I don't think I've ever been to a more beautiful place before in my life. I'm not that traveled, though!! Ha ha! We arrived in Reno on a Friday and made our way to our lodge. The entire group of 18 friends and family went out to eat for dinner. Then Heather, Dustin, Jonathan and I went out to spend some time together before the big day. The time I spent with my sister was truly priceless. That is one great pro to having a destination wedding. The time was much more intimate with the ones you love, rather than a huge production with lots of people and no close fellowship. Jackson spent lots of time with Gran Pat while I hung out with Heather getting ready for her ceremony. Jonathan spent a lot of time preparing for his part of the wedding and also spending time with Dustin. They have been friends since high school, so having him join the family has been extra special. We woke up Saturday morning to a beautiful snow....Jackson's first official!! It really was a perfect day since the sun came out later to make the wedding perfect. We celebrated after the festivities with more of the same. We had the best dinner at a local resturante on the second floor with private waiters and the second floor all to ourselves. And if you think we couldn't fit anymore into the weekend, we went snow skiing on Sunday. Some of the fam went snowmobiling in the afternoon. Jonathan and I continued to ski since he had never been before. We can't wait to go back. The reception in Jackson followed 3 weeks later. I waited to post this blog until I had those pictures as well, but then I didn't end up taking any. I guess keeping up with a 5 month old made keeping up with a camera near impossible!! Enjoy these from the wedding!!There had been a snow storm a week earlier, so the snow base was incredible.

This is an example of how deep the snow was. There really wasn't a true path and mom had a blast sinking into a drift!!

Hello to all. Happy Thanksgiving, Merry Christmas, Happy New Year!! We have had a wonderful last 2 months. Jackson has been so much fun. He had his first of many Holiday seasons, of course. He has also had many other first time moments. Around his 4 month birthday he rolled over from his back to his tummy, found his feet, and picked up his pacifier and put it in his mouth all for the first time. Jonathan and I were ecstatic to have been able to witness them all. The best part was the rolling over onto his tummy. Jackson hates to be on his tummy. We have to make him have "tummy time" so he can strengthen his neck muscles and he usually only lasts a few minutes before becoming pretty angry. Of course, as he headed over to his tummy I was laughing because I knew it wouldn't be pretty. It wasn't. He started crying immediately. Hilarius!! Hopefully he will figure out how to roll back over on to his back. Poor thing!! We have a few pictures to capture the past few months. Enjoy.

He is around 3 months old here just loving on his Daddy.

Hanging out with his good friend, Gerald, at our church Christmas Party.

Nothing special here, just thought this one was cute!!

Jonathan and I helped to throw a wedding shower for my sister, Heather, and her fiance', Dustin. They are getting married in Lake Tahoe on Jan. 12. Lots of fun additions to our family this year!!!

Doting Momma Z and Pappa Z.

Jonathan's brother, Jeff, couldn't help himself. He got Jonathan a onesie all his own...just like Jackson's!!

Santa brought Jackson and Jonathan a surprise!! It's called the "ride-a-Hope." It's a rocking stuffed puppy dog that looks like our cocker spaniel, Hope. Santa really brought it for Dad. He has been watching it in the store since Jackson was only a zygote!! I'm sure it will be fun in a few years for Jackson, too.

That's it for now. We are heading out for the wedding in California this Friday. I'm sure we'll have lots of fun picts of Jackson in the snow at a breathtaking ceremony for Heather and Dustin. Stay tuned!!

Jackson's Top 10 Favorite Things to Do.

10. Growing!! This was me at 3 weeks. Check out how big I am in the rest of these pictures!! Mommy feeds me all week, then Daddy gives me a bottle all weekend long while she is at work. I love eating!!9. Meeting Mommy and Daddy's friends. Mommy told me she used to babysit Aubrey when she was as little as me. I think she was practicing.

8. Getting to know my family in Tennessee. At Thanksgiving I visited great grandparents, grandparents, uncles, aunts, etc. I was quite the celebrity. They just kept flashing great big lights in my face over and over again!!

7. Even though my dog, Hope, really doesn't like me yet, Cinders does. I loved playing with Daddy's big black friend at home in Tennessee. He really wore a shiny halo in comparison to Hope. Daddy says that Hope's halo was burning to the ground as she remembered how much fun it was to bark at squirrels ALL day long. But Daddy also says that he understands. The Poor baby girl just misses having a backyard with more than a spit of grass.
6. I love to go on walks with mommy in my stroller. It was really entertaining last week because she got in trouble with a police man for walking on the street instead of the sidewalk. She told him that the sidewalk was so bumpy that it make me spit up, but he didn't care. So we finished our walk and of course....I spit up. I hope I always remember this moment, so when I get in trouble someday, I'll reminder her she did too!!!

5. Bath time!! I love any form of bath. Sometimes it's a quick shower. Other times it's a whirlpool bubble bath. When mommy sinks me into the water up to my neck, I'm reminded of another time and place.....all warm, wet, slimy. I go deep into thought trying to remember just exactly where that was and why I can't visit it again!!??

4. Even more than taking the bath, I love to spit up right after it. After I'm all fresh and smelling good, I ALWAYS have a little extra left over dinner that I really don't want. It spills down my chin and into my hair and lands in the nice , clean towel mommy is drying me off with. I think it's a nice fragrance to put on right before bed.

3. Pose for pictures while sporting designer clothes that my Tia (Aunt Heather) is always giving me. This one, for example, says that I am "fearfully and wonderfully made."

2. Play with my toy gym. I love to hit and bat and kick at all the toys. Some are hard. Some are soft. Some even make crackle noises. My Uncle Jake calls this my morning workout.This is when mommy always disappears to do something in the kitchen or laundry room. I just can't figure out why she doesn't want to sit right down beside me while I play...24 hours a day.

1. My top number one favorite thing to do....hang out and smile with mommy and daddy!!!

Jackson's Lovin' Life

Snoozing with Papa Z and Jackson's first bath!!

















Hope the wait was worth it. Jackson has had a full first 2 months of life. We traveled home to TN when he was 3 1/2 weeks old so he could visit family and friends. School and work responsibilities kept Dad in TX, so Jackson and I braved it on our own. If you consider being on our own constantly showered with love and care from the grandparents, siblings, family, and friends. I got to sleep for a 6 hour stretch for the very first time while Momma Z gave Jackson a bottle at 3am. WHoooo Hoooo!!! It was wonderful. The trend continued when we went to Gran Pat's house. God has blessed us with such loving parents!! It's a good thing Jackson is such a social baby. He was held and passed around, oh... for about 18 hours a day!! He continued to amaze me as he slept the entire trip to and from TN. Only when it was time to eat did he open those precious eyes. It's a great time to travel when their that young!! The only really hard part of the trip was not having Dad around. He makes such a great partner in this whole baby/family thing. We visited each night on the web cam, though. Technology is a great thing!! We are finally settling into a nice routine here at home. Jackson is a great sleeper and is sleeping about 5-6 hours on his own at night now. He takes great naps during the day and isn't really fussy unless he has gas or a dirty diaper. I know all good things are from our Lord. Thanks be to God!! Now that's not to say we haven't had our days. There have been the days when I haven't brushed my teeth or combed my hair until about 2pm, we've changed soiled clothes 3 times in a 1 hour stretch, and spraying poop in mommy's face is an art form. No really, he has some super force behind it, I promise. Those are the days I just have to make myself laugh instead of cry and be thankful that they are few and far between. I love having a son, and all that goes with it. Well, enjoy the pictures. Hope I didn't gross you out on the poop thing!! Ha Ha.

Halloween Fun!

Hey Everyone! Sorry it has been so long since we updated the Blog. Jackson is doing great and adjusting to life very well. Holly made this little Halloween costume for him to be a brown spotted puppy dog and we thought you all would enjoy seeing it. Love to all and can't wait to see folks back home over Thanksgiving. Love, Jonathan, Holly, and Jackson.

New Picts of Jackson!!!

Hey everyone, We had a photographer, Steve Colwill (www.poeticexposure.com), come out to the house and do some pictures of us and Jackson when he was three weeks old. Steve did a fantastic job and we are really excited about the way they turned out. To see the finished slide show, click on this link and visit www.poeticexposure.com/jackson