Just Say Julie

Dear Jackson, Two years ago you entered this world in your own stubborn way after a couple of long, tiring days for your daddy and me.  At that moment, my life changed and it has remained that way ever since.  I never realized you were the missing piece of the puzzle I had waited 34 years to plug into my life.  Not a day goes by that I am not amazed by you.  You surprise me all the time with things you know that I didn't teach but you learned somewhere.  And I am so excited to see what is in store for you next. I will say that not every day is a picnic.  Some days you are very much 2 years old and that is the only way to describe your behavior.  Some days you are my sweet boy who gives me kisses and wants to snuggle.  Either way you are still my baby and I wouldn't trade you for the world.  I want to cherish all these moments because I know they won't last for long. Right now you love Cars and Memo but Elmo is still your buddy.  Pu...

I turned 35 on the 11th. That in and of itself may not seem like a big deal. However, 35 has always been a cut off for me. A line in the sand if you will that said my childbearing days were through. My mom had me 2 before she turned 36 and had her tubes tied during the c-section. I'm pretty sure that's where my magic number came from. 35 and it's time to stop. Chris and I talked about children a lot when we were dating. At first, we were both on the fence. He wasn't sure he wanted more kids and I wasn't sure I wanted any at all. I told him I would know if I was supposed to be a mother if I had a baby before I turned 35. If I wasn't pregnant by then, I wasn't supposed to have kids of my own. Jackson was born 9 days after I turned 34. All while I was pregnant, we talked about the next baby. I enjoyed being pregnant for the most part so the idea of having another baby wasn't a crazy one. But then the delivery was so rough that I wasn't sure I wante...

I have been asked by a couple of different people recently for suggestions on baby registries so I decided I would share some of my favorite products for those who are expecting and might want to know. Ultimate Crib Sheet - A friend suggested this to me when I was pregnant otherwise I never would have tried one and boy am I glad I did.  Having this has made changing Jackson's bed so much easier than having to remove the crib sheet and the mattress pad if we have an accident. Sleep Sacks - I know most babies like to be swaddled at the early stage but mine did not.  Almost as soon as we came home from the hospital, he wanted his arms free and, luckily, he would sleep that way.  The sleep sacks have been a lifesaver for us when a blanket just wouldn't work anymore since Jackson moved around to much.  I have bought most of the ones we have from Zulily when they have offered them at a discount rate.  The shipping takes forever but the price is usually pretty g...

Jackson turned 9 months old on Friday.  We also had his 9 month checkup that afternoon.  I now understand why everyone kept commenting on how big he was while we were in Alabama.  Little stinker weighed in at 21 lbs 5 oz (78 percentile) and 28 3/4 inches tall (68 percentile).  I guess he is on the big side although he doesn't seem that way to me since I have seen the natural progression of his growth.  I was pretty shocked at how many people said something about him being "a big boy." Someone actually said they thought he was at least a year old. The last month has brought about a lot of change around our house.  Jackson has mastered both the belly on the floor and belly off the floor crawling.  He prefers belly on the floor because he can move faster and this is his method of traveling when he is trying to run away from us.  The living room has turned into a sort of baby playpen. We block off the hall way with one of the dog gates and use the ...

I mentioned in an early post that I was going home to attend J-Day at my college since I was being installed as Treasurer of our Alumni Association.  I guess a little background might be helpful here.  My college was a Southern Baptist women's college.  Since we don't have a sports team to have a homecoming for, we have J-Day which is our reunion weekend.  It's a lot of fun to see ladies from the various years gather together to celebrate their school.  Needless to say, Jackson was a hit over the weekend with everyone thinking my sweet boy was the most adorable thing ever. Jackson sitting on the seal in Jewett Hall.   More than once I had to tell Jackson, "Let's not eat the antiques." All dressed up at the Golden Club Banquet wearing his "My Mama is a Judson Girl" bib.    We had to sneak out of the banquet since someone got a little fussy.   Mom and Jackson during the Business Meeting. He was so good until he started gr...

My trip to Alabama kept me from being able to post an update for Jackson's first Easter.  We managed to cram a ton of stuff into the weekend included 2 Easter egg hunts, a birthday party, and a stop by trade days in downtown Round Rock.  Here are a few pictures from the weekend. Meeting the Easter Bunny for the first time. I don't think he knew what to think.  "Hunting" for eggs at the baby friendly Easter egg hunt at Baby Earth.  Plastic eggs are tasty!  Checking out his Easter basket.  All dressed up for church. 

I feel like a lot of my posts have been pretty down recently so I thought I would post something more cheerful. One of the things I love the most about living in Texas is bluebonnets in the spring.  There is nothing like the first spotting of bluebonnets each year to put a smile on my face.   So of course we had to find an opportunity to take some pictures for Jackson's first spring.  Jackson really didn't seem to enjoy having his picture taken but I think we got some good shots of him.

It is no secret to those who have known me for a while that there was a time not that long ago when I didn't want children. I didn't think I had the maternal instinct and I just couldn't see myself with kids. We used to joke in college that I was going to be the favorite "aunt" of my closest friends' children. Ironically, I am the only one of us with a child now. One of the things that worked with my first husband was that he felt the same way about having children as I did. Towards the end of our marriage, my thoughts on the subject were beginning to change and that added to the problems between is. Ultimately, I realized it wasn't that I didn't want kids but that I didn't want them with him. Getting divorced at 30 led me to believe I wouldn't have a chance for motherhood. Chris even told me once that he believed I would be happy whether or not I had a baby but I knew in my heart of hearts I really wanted to experience it. I am glad that cha...

Chris and I aren't big on Valentine's Day so we decided to go the low key route this year.  That ended up being a good thing since Jackson and I were both sick with sinus infections. (What is it with us and sick on the holidays this year?) I walked into the room and Chris had left my gift with Trevor so I added his to bed so we could open them at the same time. I decided to dial in dinner since I felt so bad and opted for the Heart Baker pizza from Papa Murphy's.  We got one of these on our first Valentine's together so I think I am going to make a tradition from now on instead of going out to a fancy dinner.  Mom got Jackson this sweet bib for his first Valentine's Day so I had to make sure I sent him to school in it despite the fact he was a snotty mess. (No fever though.)  Here is Jackson's Valentine's to us.  I just love the tiny footprints at the bottom. And I love that our daycare makes sure to send home something we can keep for years...

So I thought I could make this a combination post with my photo-a-day pictures and a couple of other updates.  I'll start with the pictures. Day 15: Happiness I couldn't think of a better picture to take for happiness than one of Jackson laughing.  Chris often says that there is nothing in the world that will bring a smile to your face more than a baby's laughter and he is right.  No matter how crappy my day has been, hearing J laugh always makes me smile.  I had a hard time getting a good picture because he wiggles around so much when he is giggling. Day 16: Morning It was pretty dreary on the way to work this morning.  It was drizzling and it is supposed to be unseasonably warm today.  The morning already started out about 10 degrees warmer than when we went to bed last night.  I snapped this picture at the stop light outside of my neighborhood on the way to work and it turned out pretty cool.  I didn't realize I was getting such ...

I decided to take a pregnancy test a year ago today on a whim after watching the episode of Life Unexpected where Shiri Appleby's character found out she was pregnant.  Something about her symptoms struck a cord with me.  I had been feeling off but didn't think much about it. Imagine my shock when I took the test (alone since Chris was at work) and it was positive.  (I took 3 more before it was over it just to reassure myself.)  I read the directions about 5 times to make sure I was reading the test right and then I took a second one to make sure.  It was so hard not to be able to share my excitement with Chris once the initial shock wore off.  Trying to sleep after learning that news was awful. I could barely wait till he got home the next morning.  I called him as soon as his shift was over to see what he had to say about the numerous texts he had received over the evening. I was always on the fence about becoming a mother but I feared I would miss...

I guess it is time that I finally updated everyone on Jackson's arrival.  Baby J is 2 and a half weeks old now.  And because I have to share, here is a bit of baby cuteness for you to enjoy. As I am sure you can imagine, my life has been turned upside down.  It is amazing how quickly my focus has shifted away from budgets and invoices to dirty diapers and feeding times.  We are still trying to get adjusted and get into a routine.  Right now, Jackson seems to have no problems sleeping all day only waking up for diaper changes and bottles.  The nights are a different story.  He apparently thinks 1 AM is a great time to wake up and party for a little bit.  Fortunately for me, Chris has been taking the night shift so I am able to rest at night.  That is going to change soon though when Chris heads back to work in a couple of weeks.  For me, I am dreading going back to work.  Mostly because I don't want to put Jackson in daycare but I ...

My house is in utter chaos right now.  I have been saying since May that we needed to start clearing out the office to make way for Jackson.  Thanks to conflicting schedules and constant activity, we haven't gotten around to that until now.  So here we are 9 days away from my due date boxing stuff up for storage and rearranging furniture to make room for a crib, dresser, and glider.  Part of this move means relocating Maverick's "home" to other portions of the house. Up to this point, Maverick had a corner of the office where his bed and bowls were located.  A space to call his own.  While we are away from the house, he would hang out in there behind a baby gate and nap all day.  Since the office is now going to be the nursery, we couldn't leave him in there.  A few nights ago we moved his bed into our room at night so he could sleep in there with us.  This transition was fairly easy since he was already used to sleeping in the room with me...

I have 18 days until my due date and all I can do at this point is wait until Jackson decides to make his presence known to this world.  We had an ultrasound last week to see how big our boy is and we were surprised to find out he was only about 6 and a half pounds.  My doctor had said she would schedule a c-section if he was measuring 8 pounds or more at 36 weeks.  At this point, they are estimating he will be a nice average 8 pounds at full term. I actually started feeling some contractions a couple of nights ago.  Hopefully that means we are starting to make some progress.  I just want Jackson to be the July baby we have planned on him being this entire time.  For the most part, I am just tired, hot, and uncomfortable.  Some days I just feel down right crappy.  I am really starting to understand why some women hate being pregnant.  These last few weeks are definitely the worst part of the pregnancy.  My feet and hands are so swollen...

I hit 34 weeks yesterday which means I have 6 weeks left in this pregnancy.  It is officially drawing to a close.  In 3 weeks, I will be considered full term so Jackson's arrival could happen at anytime from this point forward.  I have felt all along he will get here before his due date at the end of July.  And now my blood pressure is doing wacky things so I keep expecting the doctor to tell me it is time. And with that all I can think about everything I still need to do to get ready.  My intent is to leave detailed instructions behind at work so my coworkers can easily pick up behind me and carry on while I am out.  We also keep putting off moving the furniture out of the office to make room for the nursery furniture that we haven't yet purchased.  Somewhere around the beginning of May, our schedules imploded.  All the sudden we were a lot busier than we had been and free time was a minimum.  I thought the end of the school year would bri...

A single pregnancy lasts a long time.  9 months, 40 weeks, 2/3 of a year.  However you want to look at it, it is still a long time.  And when you are the one who is pregnant, it seems to stretch out like an eternity before you.  Never ending or maybe that is the way you want to imagine it in your mind.  But at the same time, it goes by so fast you almost miss it.  At least that is the way it is for me.  I tell people I only have 3 months left and they tell me it will be here before I know it.  But to me, it feels like it was just yesterday that I found out Jackson was on his way. Thinking back over the last 6 months today, I realized that pregnancy is nothing but a big waiting game. After the initial thrill of finding out you are pregnant, you have to wait until you find out if the baby is a boy or a girl.  Then you have to wait again until you actually have to baby.  In between those moments, there are a lot of little moments: hearing...

Chris and I were able to go register for baby gear a couple of weeks ago.   We went into the experience with an idea of what we wanted.  I had read a lot of reviews on various brands and had a pretty good  idea of the brands I was leaning towards.  Beyond that, it was a matter of picking out a fabric I liked.  One thing I hadn't taken into consideration was the weight of some of the products we would be shopping for.  I was surprised at how heavy some of the car seats and strollers were and quickly realized that some of them I wouldn't be able to handle on my own.  We quickly scrapped our plans of registering for the travel system I had initially picked out and decided to look at the other options in the store.  After one of the clerks in the store tried to talk us into a $300 travel system, we finally settled on a separate car seat and stroller that we had looked at as a joke to begin with until we realized the weight was good and we actually lik...

After I posted the news that it's a boy, I realized I failed to mention that we had decided on a name.  Several people have asked so I thought I would share a little bit of the background on how we decided to name our son.  Chris and I struggled with names before we knew what the baby was.  We would toss at ideas that would get knocked down until we finally settled on one girl's name.  We went into the ultrasound still thinking the baby was a girl which worked out fine since we only had a girl's name picked out.  I think I was in denial that it could possibly be a boy.  After the ultrasound revealed our boy, Chris and I went to Chick Fil A for breakfast where the realization set in that our baby didn't have a name.  So it was time to start the discussion over and see if we could come up with a boy's name we both liked. Using family names is sort of a tradition in my family.  My brothers and I all have family names.  My niece and nephew have...

I flew home to Alabama last weekend to see my aunt receive an award from the college we both attended.  As is always my luck, my trip did not go as planned.  It never seems to fail that I have issues traveling when I am trying to get somewhere for something.  This trip was no exception.  And factor in being nearly 6 months pregnant and that made the day all that much more fun.  After taking Kiddo to school, Chris and I headed south towards the airport stopping for breakfast at Chick Fil A and a quick Target run on the way.  Just the day before, I had been telling him the story of my 16 hour trip to Alabama in 2007.  I guess I jinxed myself because Thursday turned out to be much the same. We arrived at the airport around 9 for my 10:20 flight and everything was going swimmingly until the plane that was supposed to take me to DFW arrived.  Apparently the plane needed maintenance and no one was certain how long that would take.  The...

One of the first things you learn when you become pregnant is all the things you can't have or can't do.  There is a list of foods to stay away from, a list of medications you can't take, a list of activities you shouldn't participate in.  Most of it is common sense.  Some of it is a bit overboard. And some things your body just simply refuses to tolerate.  I won't say that I have followed these do's and don't's to a T (for example, I cannot give up my Dr. Peppers completely) but there have been a few things that I have stayed away from.  So here are some of the things I have being missing over the last 5 months. 1. My waistline - I wasn't exactly skinny before I got pregnant but I wasn't fat either.  But it is going to be a long time before I have waistline that can be classified as anything other than round. 2. Fish - The week after I found out I was pregnant, we went out for catfish for my brother's birthday.  One bite and I was done...