A lot has happened...

(Chillin' in his high chair)

Not only has Jackson grown a bunch since the last time we chatted, but he has learned a lot of new tricks! Here is an up to date list:

1. He can run!

2. He likes to brush his teeth—he would prefer I never help (to which I reply, "too bad, so sad")

3. He gives sloppy wet kisses

4. He calls his binki, his Bah.

5. He loves, loves, loves DogDog (the cat)

6. He is working very hard to so Kitty

7. He loves playing with balls

8. He is a great dancer—an he knows it

9. He loves music, especially playing it (we are hoping to enroll him in the Gymboree music class at the first of the year), he is drawn to the piano, xylophone, tambourine and Rick's guitar

10. He is starting to enter a shy stage (but it only lasts about 5 minutes)

11. When you lay him down for naps or bed time, he simply goes to bed!

12. He sleeps through the night!

13. He loves Elmo and Cookie Monster

14. He can get off the bed and couch by himself!

15. He can almost feed himself with a fork

16. He currently has at least 6 molars coming in. Yowzers! Poor guy!

Things he still can't do:

1. Dishes

2. Laundry

3. Vacuuming (however, he would love it if he could)

I'm sure I am forgetting lots of stuff, but this is a good general list!
More to come!

Love,
Steph

On a Mission

If you haven't already, check out my new site: www.dooleytnt.blogspot.com.

Great things are coming to me from this new experience and I am making good progress on both my fundraising and running goals!

Steph

Wow...

A whole month went by and no new post! Well, I hope this post leaves you all in anticipation! I have new photos, videos and stories to tell! More to come tonight! I promise!

All Hallows Eve...Halloween!

(Jackson next to my masterpiece)

Well, Halloween is here. And, it is pouring, Jackson has a bit of a runny nose and a cough! So, we didn't do much!

Last year we didn't get a single trick-or-treater, so, this year we didn't expect much! And we didn't get a single one again. We have tons of kids in our neighborhood so it is shocking that we don't get any!

(Cookie Monster inspired)

We did carve a pumpkin this year though, so I thought we might get some. Nope. No luck. Oh well! Jackson was totally uninterested in carving the pumpkin! I thought for sure he would want to get all gooey, but no. He actually freaked out when I put goo on him!

(Getting ready to visit the neighbor—we brought them some candy)

(Jackson posing in his costume!)

I felt bad for our downstairs neighbor though. They didn't live here last year, and had their front porch area all decorated. So, I put Jackson in his costume (which he still hates) and walked him down stairs. The neighbors were thrilled!

Halloween Party at Gymboree!

(Jackson & Otto getting used to their costumes)

Last Wednesday, rather than our typical Gymboree play date we participated in the Halloween Party! Otto and Jackson both came dressed in full costume and really just wanted to go about their normal play routine.

(Jackson hates his costume)

However, Jackson hates his costume. Hates it. Hence the tears.

I was able to convince him to have some fun in the pumpkin decorating station. He found stickers that looked just like Charlie (my doxie in Portland) and Dog Dog (our Cat). He put them on, and then took them off, over and over and over again. He loved the little decorating table though, I think he liked the pint sized chairs.


After a little bit, he gave up the costume fight and tried to play in it, but I felt bad, he kept slipping and he could climb around like he usually does. So, I'm positive he will have more fun at Gymboree next week.

Pumpkin Patch

(Jackson inspecting his "dirty" fingers while we try to capture a photo of us)

We rounded out our Portland weekend with a family trip to the Pumpkin Patch. All of the Portland Dooley's and the Munsell/Modderman clan came out to the patch and then my mom hosted a great dinner!

We headed over to Lake View Pumpkin Patch early to avoid both the crowds and the rain, and were successful in avoiding both!

The first thing we checked out with Jackson when we got their was the animals. They had pigs, goats and a mini-horse! Jackson seemed a little interested but wasn't too sure what to think about them.

The pumpkin patch was really neat, they have it set up so you have to take a small boat ride out to get your pumpkin and then have to ride a train back. When you are on the boat, they have hidden things that pop-up out of the water as you pass by. Jackson didn't notice, but I thought they were a nice touch! Maybe next year he will take notice.

(Jackson, slightly tentative about the orange globes all around him, and yes, his shoes are on the wrong feet, we were in a hurry!)

Once we got to the pumpkin area, we all broke up and searched for our perfect pumpkins. Jackson even got down and scampered around for a bit. He only crashed and burned once! Which is pretty impressive for someone who has only been walking for two months!

(Trying to push the pumpkins, so cute)

The best part of the pumpkin stop, was Jackson approaching the pumpkin full wheel barrow, grabbing both handles and looking at the wheel barrow like he was going to be able to move it. It was priceless!

(Jackson yawning in my face—"get the hint mom, I'm ready to go!")

Then we made our way back on the train, passing through a spooky tunnel! Nap time quickly approached as we tried to grab a couple more photos, so we gave up and headed on our way! We had a great time and hopefully we can go back next year!

The night ended perfectly, with a fabulous dinner and a Yankee win sending them to the World Series! Daddy was very happy!

Jackson's Portland Party!

(Jackson playing in the play land)

We went a different route for the Portland party, and had it at a pizza party with an indoor play structure. It was actually a lot less work (throwing a party requires a lot of planning!) and since my catalog for Brooks went to the printer the Friday before the party, the less planning the better!

(Jackson mastering the wheel in play land)

We had a huge turnout and got to see so many friends and family that we hadn't seen in sooo long! We once again had two little kiddos to play with Jackson, Link (my friend Mikey's son) is about three months older than Jackson and they seemed to have fun running around the play area.

(Elmo & Cookie Monster)

Jackson looked utterly confused as 30 people sang to him, and he was once again passed a giant cupcake, but he wasn't complaining. That is, until it was time to open presents, where he once again melted down. Charlotte tried to cheer him up, so he gave her a hug and tried to hold her hand, but then went back to letting me know he had missed his nap!

(Jackson & Grandma Kathy)

Rick's mom was able to join us all the way from Florida as well! So, we had quite the family weekend! It was nice to spend time with my family and Rick's family together, we don't get too many opportunities to share the time together and it was a good experience.

We had a very eventful weekend celebrating!
Thanks to everyone for coming!

Steph & Jackson