Four Months

Sweet Baby Jack is now four months old. I can hardly believe it, the time is passing so quickly. He has such a fun little personality. He has found his voice and loves to babble and coo  all day long. He has figured out how to grab things with his hands and holds onto his toys much better now. He will occasionally bring his toys to his mouth and chew on them. He has a blanket-monkey and blanket-bear that he absolutely loves! I would have to say that they are his favorite toys. He also has an elephant that sings "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" that he smiles each time he sees. And he goes to sleep either listening to a monkey that plays lullabies or Primary songs.

We have been taking advantage of the nice weather we still have to go on walks each day. Jackson absolutely loves to be outside. Even when it gets cold (which is supposed to happen this week), I will bundle him up and off we will go. It will keep us both sane, I think. He doesn't much care to be buckled in his stroller, but the second we start moving he starts happily kicking his legs.

Three weeks ago we were at church and I was visiting with the Relief Society President in the hall and Jackson started laughing. It was so funny! He just chuckled and giggled. My heart melted at the sound of his first laugh. That afternoon Jeff got him to laugh again. We try most days, but he his very selective with his laughter. :)

Jackson is a very easy baby. He only cries if he is exhausted or wants to be held. He generally stops crying the moment we pick him up. He fusses if he needs his diaper changed or if he is hungry. And most mornings I wake up to him talking to himself in his crib rather than crying. He loves to talk to his stuffed animals. When he is tired we can simply swaddle him tightly in a blanket and lay him in his crib and he will fall asleep. Occasionally he will cry for a bit, but he will fall asleep on his own 9 times out of 10. He usually only wakes up once during the night around 5 or 5:30 when he goes down around 9:00, then he will go back to sleep for another 2 or 3 hours. He takes 2 or 3 naps a day for about 2 hours each. And if I have things to do during the day when he is awake, he will happily lay on the floor and play with his toys. We feel so lucky to have him!

I substitute taught for the first time this past week. I had a difficult time preparing myself mentally to leave my sweet baby all day. But it was actually much easier than I thought it would be. It was good to be back in the classroom, but it did show me how terribly blessed I am that I am able to stay home with Jackson each day.

My days consist of playing with my sweet boy and trying to keep the house clean. I am also cross-stitching a Christmas stocking for Jeff (I have mine from when I was a child and my mom is making one for Jackson). I may be crazy for that project because I didn't order it until the end of September and I want to have it done by Thanksgiving so it will be done when we decorate our home for Christmas. I am also trying to get my Pampered Chef business going.

Jeff is staying busy with school and work. He is enjoying his classes. Right now he is in the process of searching for an internship for winter semester so he will be able to gain more experience. He graduates in May (only 6 more months!). He is in class all day 2 days a week and works the other 3. But he always makes sure to spend time with his boy. I love watching him interact with Jackson. On Sundays he takes Jackson for the 3 hours of church which is nice. I enjoy watching him with Jackson as I sit at the organ. He loves being a daddy.

Our little family is doing well. We are happy. We are healthy. And we are so very grateful for all that we have. We feel blessed to be where we are and to have the many opportunities we have been given here. We are excited to see what the upcoming months will bring to us and the new adventures we will have with our sweet little boy.

Four Months Old

He loves his stuffed animals

Tuckered out from playing with his toys