Ooo - it's a hand!

Jaxon recently noticed his hands and it's so fun to watch. He'll wave it around in front of his face & just stare at it. I know all kids go thru these steps, but it's so exciting to see him at each phase anyway :)

Family weekend

Jaxon finally got to meet his third set of great-grandparents this weekend. Buschie & PopPop (Jack's grandparents) came down from Baltimore to see him. They arrived on Thursday but we didn't get into Raleigh until Friday. We spent the whole day over at Jack's parents place. Brinn & Gabi brought their dog, Skye, who had the cutest (though somewhat goofy) new collar. It was pink with little ribbon roses all over it.

Jaxon & Jack stayed there while I went over to Aunt Joy's for Jerry & Shannon's joint birthday party. All the 'kids' spent the whole evening telling silly jokes. It all started after dinner when we were reading the goofy ones off the Laffy Taffy wrappers. Gotta love gems like: When does it rain money? When theres change in the weather! The best was that Sophie started making up her own (maybe she thought we were making them up?). My favorite Sophie joke: Why did the turtle exercise? To get stronger! LOL!

We invited everyone over to our house on Saturday for a big spaghetti dinner. Jack cooked a HUGE pot (think gallons) of sauce from scratch. It had meatballs, pepperoni, & sausage and was the best he's made yet! We gave his parents a huge tupperware-full, sent some back to MD for his cousin & still had tons left to freeze. All weekend we played cards (15 card rummy) and enjoyed visiting. Of course Jaxon was nearly always in someones arms, but thats okay, he didn't mind.

Smiley Face

Sorry GiGi - Mama won the smile race!

We've all been trying to get Jaxon to smile at us and this morning around 7:30 he smiled at me! I had been struggling a little with nursing him and had given up. Apparently he just needed a little food & not a full serving because he was quiet & alert once we stopped. I snapped this quick picture of him then propped him upright on a pillow (for his reflux). I reached over him to turn the light off. I guess it was funny when I leaned over him because that's the moment he decided to smile and I just caught it out of the corner of my eye. I laughed & woke up Daddy. He smiled many times while talking to us (he's been saying 'goo' and 'ahh' for a week or two already) until he got tired and needed to nap again. So much fun!!

It really is one of the most fun & rewarding things to see your child smile! I forgot all about the frustration of trying to nurse & about being exhausted. It's amazing the range of emotions such a little guy can bring!

Baby Reflux

Who knew babies could get acid reflux? Our doc said that's what is causing the wheezing sound we've heard in Jaxon's chest this week. Gastroesophageal reflux (GER) is apparently common in his age group. Doc said the wheezing sound is actually acid hitting his vocal cords (ouch). He prescribed a med that we will give him twice a day and said we need to keep him upright for 30 minutes after feedings. I was surprised to hear this was the cause of what I thought was congestion but glad that it was just something simple. And after reading about it in the baby books, it explains some of the extra spitup, gassiness & fussiness he's had the last week or so. Hopefully this will do the trick & make him feel better.

My first baseball game

Being on maternity leave has given Jaxon & I so much freedom. I am really going to hate going back to work. Most days we just hang out at home and wait for Daddy to get off work. But sometimes we have days like today where we run around and do whatever we feel like.



I had setup for GiGi to watch JP today while I went for my annual eye exam and then we were going to hit the pool. They ended up staying at home while I took Aunt Sophie & Uncle Noah up to the pool. It was a nice day, not as hot as it had been the last few weeks. Of course Noah was mostly off playing with his buddies and I stayed closer to Sophie and her friend A. Noah & I played a little ping-pong and all of us got snacks at the concession stand. Papi came home a little early so he could see JP who is apparently getting a new nickname. Both Papi & Grandpop called him 'bubba' this week. Maybe that's cause he's getting to be a little chunky monkey.

I didn't realize it, but today was also Noah's championship baseball game. The team had been in a tourney all week and obviously playing very well. I decided it would be fun to see him play and that he would appreciate us being there. We stopped by Aunt Joy's on the way to the game so we were a little late. JP was the youngest baby out there but certainly not the only one. Sophie and her friend M are always so interested when I feed him. It's a little awkward. I don't mind nursing him in public, but most people either don't notice or don't stare/comment. These two little girls watch every move when I nurse (this is not the first time they have done this so I knew what to expect). Of course Noah saw us & hollered "where's Jaxon?" from the dugout. Under the blanket, nursing. Just so everyone knows now, LOL. Anyway, Noah's team won the game (I don't remember the score, but I think it was a decisive win). The kids dogpiled on the mound after the game and then trophies were handed out. Afterwards several of us hit up the Mickey D's. It was a fun, but long day. Jaxon got a little off schedule so he was pretty unhappy in the ride home. More pics here.