Update

Wow. I thought I was doing a little better about the blogging thing, but time really flies by and before you know it, I am a month and some change over due! As I sit here and ponder things, I feel like so much has happened in the past month but when I really look at my calendar, I find that is not the case. Just normal day-to-day happenings, that’s all.

I will say that our baby is turning into a little boy too quickly! Everyone told me, but things like that seem so surreal until it actually happens – until you actually live it yourself. All three of us have found that walking definitely turns into quite a bit of independence! We are learning so much more about Jackson’s personality and his temperament. He is a curious little fella too. It is so fun just to sit back and watch him sometimes.

He has really gotten the hang of this walking stuff. He almost never crawls anymore and he is steadily getting faster and faster. Sometimes he just non-shalauntly walks through the house just swinging his arms like he doesn't have a care in the world. Side note: I know that I have misspelled "non-shalauntly" because dictionary.com can't find it. However, I wanted to use the word so that is my phonetic spelling. Back on track: I have even caught him a couple of times standing around looking at different things with his hands on his hips! Too cute!

I have got to find a way to get some video posted to the blog because I have a few things I want to share. Guess I will have to pay a visit to Mom's so that I can borrow her wireless internet for a bit.

Speaking of that… the whole no cable/no internet thing is going good so far. We really haven't missed it too, too bad. However, the fall seasons of some of our shows are starting this month so we will just have to live without them. There have been just a few times where Wayne really wished that we had the internet. Looking at things on the internet with his little Blackberry tends to get a bit frustrating.

I did take Jackson to an ENT doctor at the end of August. He had another ear infection. I was not happy with the doctor I saw so I ended up taking him again to a different doctor and office this week. The actually checked his hearing at the second doctor's office (I really thought they should have done that the first time… hence one of the reasons why I was upset the first go-round). The second go-round, I was told that he had really good hearing and he didn't have any more fluid on his ears. However, we have to keep watch of him and if he has another ear infection within 6 to 8 weeks, we will have to go back and consult with the doctor about ear tubes.

We did have one accomplishment this month. No more pacifier! The first ENT doctor told me that the pacifier was the root of all of his ear infections and she wanted me to get rid of it. I am not sure if this was the right way to do it, but I pulled it from him "cold-turkey". He never asked for it. The first night, he cried for about and hour but once I held him for a few seconds, he went right to sleep. After that, I have been able to lay him down and he has done well with getting himself to sleep. Come to find out, the 2nd ENT doctor told me that the whole paci thing was not a valid argument. That frustrated me even more, but you know… it is done with now. I am glad we did it now and not later when he was more attached to it. There are some days when I give myself a guilty conscience and tell my self that he probably really misses it… but I try to get over that quickly because he won't remember it next year.

I guess that is all the updating for now. Maybe this will suffice for a few more days… I will try and post more this weekend … especially the video. Have a good weekend!

18 months

A co-worker of mine has just started taking pictures, so I offered up Jackson as one of her guinea pigs. He needed his 18 month pictures done anyway and wow am I pleased! These are just a small part of the pictures she took. There wasn't anyway blogger was going to let me put all of the pictures on here. I hope you enjoy though!

Sneek Peek

Just a preview to Jackson's eighteen month photoshoot! Stay tuned for more!

Finally!

Well, here is one downfall for not having the internet at my fingertips… I really would have loved to been able to post a video for you. I will try to post it for you next weekend when I can get access to the internet on my computer with someone’s wireless internet. Probably Mom’s…

However, Jackson is WALKING! Yep… on his own. Now, please know that this is still on his time table. If he doesn’t feel like standing up, he won’t! But, he walked back and forth down the hallway this past Saturday. I think he still knows that crawling is faster so, he still does that more often, but we are finally making steps forward! He is getting there. I was so hoping to be able to go to his 18 month appointment Friday knowing that he was walking. Hopefully we won’t have a regression this week.

Day 1: No cable, no internet...

Not so bad... for me.

Explanation: I guess I will just make a long story short. Wayne and I have made some silly decisions about credit since we have been together for our 10 and a half years. During this time frame, we have racked up quite a bit of debt, did a debt consolidation loan to pay it all off and racked up some more. We have gotten to the point now where we are on fire to get all this debt paid off because we really want a new (and bigger) home. So, in the spirit of things, we have decided to cut off our home phone, internet and cable. We have lived without the internet and cable before and now, cell phones are so much easier, we have just decided to cut those unnecessary expenses.

However, without internet and cable, we will definitely be able to do more things in the evening such as getting out to take walks together. So, I don’t see this as being a totally bad thing! It will be harder to get friend updates without Facebook at my fingertips, and it will be harder to get blogs posted – especially with pictures, but I will try and manage.

Now, please let me speak for my self about this transition being easy on day one. Because, Wayne has been home most of the day, I have been at work. I have had things to occupy my time. His Playstation will definitely have more use in the near future. Hopefully he won’t complain too much! After all, we have EVERY intention of turning the cable and internet back on after all of this is over with.

Our time table is to have all of our unsecured debt paid by December 2011. I know this is possible; we just have to stick to it. We have done well for the 1st two weeks. It is much easier knowing there is a light at the end of the tunnel. However, I will give you an update in about 2 months to let you know if we have pulled our hair (hmm… my hair) out!

My Mini-Me

I didn't realize how much my little guy favored me until I pulled out my scrapbook! I found some pictures like the one above where he really looks just like me. I even saw some pictures that depicted some of the same expressions Jackson does. It is almost too weird! I was actually a bit younger than Jackson when my picture was taken. However, Jackson looked more like his daddy when he was younger. Guess it goes to show that they do change their looks often as they get older.

Thinking...

Over the past few weeks, I have been trying to think about different things to blog about. Yes, I know it is always fun to read about the Little Man of the house, but musings of Wayne and I are fun too, right?! Okay, so maybe that should have been a rhetorical question...

Well, Monday, I had this idea to Google "verse of the day". I am not sure why I thought about this but after my outcome, I really believe God was telling me something. As I typed the words and clicked "search", the first result was a link that stated, "verse of the day". So, I clicked on it and this is what I found:

"Do not merely listen to the Word, and so deceive yourselves.

Do what it says." James 1:22 NIV

I read it once, then read it again. Then went to find other translations. Through my studies, I know that the New International Version does paraphrase so I wanted to make sure I had the bulk of the verse. Here it is in the King James Version:

"Be ye doers of the word and not hearers only,

deceiving your ownselves." James 1:22 KJV

Wow. I read it a fourth and fifth time. Each time I seemed to get hit with a ton of bricks. Each time I read the verse, in my mind, I seemed to put so much more emphasis on "DO WHAT IT SAYS!" All too often I find myself just going through the motions... Just listening. I seemed to have been getting my "wake up" call as I continued to read this verse. It is not all about just going to church and reading the Word, you have to put what you have learned to action. Because like the verse says, I am only hurting myself if I am only a listener. To get the bulk of what God wants me to know, hear, and understand, He wants me to live His Word as well -- in everything I do.

Its kind of funny (I am not sure if that is the proper word to use here, but that is the only one I can think of right now) how one little verse can turn into a small devotional. How God can do so much talking to me after reading one verse. Do I believe that it was a "coincidence" that was the verse I was going to find Monday. Nope, not at all. It was meant for me that day!

In closing, here is something for you to ponder. I searched "verse of the day" again today and found this:

"The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward apperance, but the Lord looks at the heart." 1 Samuel 16:7 NIV

"But the Lord said unto Samuel, look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart." 1 Samuel 16:7 KJV