Just Say Julie

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. 

• Jackson was an angel on the flights. He slept through most of each flight and only fussed a little bit right before landing in Mobile. • It's a good thing he was an angel on the planes because he was the devil yesterday. I have never seen my child so cranky. I can't help but blame the 3 teeth that are trying to cut right now. • He screamed the entire 30 minute drive from my parents' house to see my dad at work. He never does that and is normally great in the car. Only to turn into my sweet baby the second we got out of the car. • My mother apparently thinks I have forgotten how to drive around my hometown since she proceeded to give me directions to the high school I attended for 4 years and the hospital my dad has worked at since I was 9 months old. • I have not forgotten. I just don't take the routes she would therefore they must be wrong. Six years away does not erase 28 of living in the same town. • Rice cereal is magic. Call me a bad parent if you mus...

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.

Way back during the summer shortly after I had Jackson I received a phone call from my mom one night telling me that I had been nominated to be Treasurer of my college's Alumni Board for the next 2 years.  The conversation went something like this: Mom: "You are going to get a call from Carol May asking if you want to be treasurer of the Alumni Board. Tell her you'll do it." Me: "OK" Basically, I am fortunate enough to be friends with the current president of our board (I've known her most of my life) and she nominated me for the position despite the fact I live 3 states away from the school.  And since my mother will look for any excuse she can find to get Jackson me home, this was perfect for her because I would have to make at least 2 trips home a year for the next 2 years.  Over time I started to get more and more excited about the idea. My school is getting ready to celebrate it's 175th anniversary and I will be on the board for that event...

Jackson turned 8 months old on Tuesday.  With the 8 month mark, we are experiencing lots of changes around here.  First, my baby is mobile. (Words that strike fear into the hearts of mothers everywhere.)  He hasn't quite mastered the belly off the floor crawl but he has the Army low crawl down pat. (My brother would say it's actually the high crawl because his head is off the floor but who needs to be technical?) And man, can he scoot when he wants to.  I put him down with his toys in the living room and 2 seconds later he is in the kitchen.  We have started blocking the exits to the living room to still allow him to crawl but not escape.  J is not a fan of this at all and will scream bloody murder once he realizes he can't get past the ottoman that's wedged between the chair and the fireplace. Secondly, J has figured out how to push himself up into a sitting position.  This has been great because he is able to sit and play with his toys and keep h...

It's no secret to anyone that I have been in a bit of a funk for a while now.  I just seem to be in one of those places where life is getting me down.  Every time I turn around something has happened and all I've wanted is a little break.  Something good for a change.  I don't want to jinx us and say things are starting to turn around but I can say that the last couple of weeks have been an improvement over the first 2 months of this year. Yesterday, I was in a really good mood.  I can't say that there was in particular reason but I was happy for the first time in what seemed like ages.  My company was having a party at the end of the day to celebrate a major contract award and that just seemed to be making the whole day go well.  Everybody was in a good mood at work and we all seemed genuinely happy to be there.  For the first time since I started there nearly 3 years ago, they brought in tacos, margaritas, and beer for everyone to enjoy. ...