GIANT Slide...and I mean GIANT!!

Our best friend Shannon was kind enough to take Jackson and me to a really unique slide in a small town called Gilbert about a half hour away. The slide is on the playground of an elementary school and I can only imagine how cool it would be to go the school there. Shannon had told us about how big the slide was but I couldn't believe my eyes when we arrived. Jackson and I climbed the stairs and decided to try the metal slide first. I had to coax Jackson at first because once we got up there he had second thoughts! I finally convinced him and we got positioned to try the slide and once we started down we started going fast....really, really fast!!! I started to panic because I couldn't slow us down and I was afraid we were going to launch into the air at the end of the slide. Luckily we just kinda fell off the end of the slide but no one got hurt. Jackson and I both decided not to try to the metal slide again. :) We agreed to try the red tube slide next and after a little coaxing again we slide down and both LOVED it! It was much slower and twisty and fun!! We did that one a few times until I told Jackson that I couldn't climb the million steps again. Shannon took awesome pics for us and I'm so happy she took us to such a fun place!

The Boyz!

Singing "Happy Birthday" to Falkor.

Falkor had his second birthday in May and Jackson was very happy to help him celebrate his special day. He kept telling him "Happy Birthday" all day and I actually snapped a pic of him singing "Happy Birthday" to him. Jackson helped me pick out a special toy for Falkor made him a birthday card. So sweet!

Snuggle Puppy

Jackson and Famke being WAY too cute together. According to Jackson, Famke is his puppy and he loves to tell anyone that will listen that Famke is a Field Spaniel. He also tells me that he loves her more than I do. :) They play together all the time and it is a blast to watch them interact. He wants so badly to be able to walk her on a leash by himself but she is still too much of a wild pup. It will be fun once she is more trained and he can handle her himself. It is going to be fun to watch them grow up together.

4 Years Old!!

THE sword!!! (....angels singing....)

Trying to wait patiently to open gifts!

Riding his super cool big boy bike.

Famke trying to help Jackson blow out his candles.

I am just amazed that Jackson turned 4 years old in March!! It certainly has been a wild ride over the past 4 years. Jackson couldn't decided what kind of birthday party he wanted and he kept wavering between a Transformers party, a helicopter party, a Star Wars party and a race car party. I finally decided on Star Wars since he couldn't seem to make the final decision. I picked up some fun Star Wars decorations from the party store and added some Star Wars goodies to his ice cream cake.

We just had a small family party but Jackson was beyond excited about celebrating his birthday. The gift that was the biggest hit was a foam sword. He has been begging for a sword for months now, ever since he started playing WOW with Marky (yeah I know).

Random Jackson Musings

I have been awful about jotting down funny things that Jackson says and I need to get back to doing that. I just assume that I will remember but I know that is not the case!

A few weeks ago Jackson told me while we were eating Pizza at Costco that he doesn't like "olivers" on his pizza. I told him I didn't like olivers on my pizza either. :)

Finally a new update!!

I have been just awful about updating Jackson's blog! Things have been a bit crazier than normal around here though so I'll use that as my excuse. ;)

So big news in Jackson's world...we got a new puppy! We brought home an adorable Field Spaniel puppy at the end of February and Jackson is head over heels in love with her. Her name is Famke and Jackson takes every opportunity to tell every person that will listen about his new puppy. They are completely adorable together and Jackson is wonderful with her.

Fun with Show and Tell

Falkor was lucky enough to go to Jackson's preschool on Wednesday for a "show and tell" of sorts to celebrate Pet Week. Jackson was simply beyond excited about bringing his dog to meet all his friends and teachers. Jackson talked about it non stop for days before Falkor was actually going to visit his class.

When we arrived in the classroom Jackson got to walk us in and introduce Falkor to everyone. The kids were wowed by Falkor's size and they were all very eager to meet him. There was one little girl there that isn't enrolled in Jackson's class (I think her parents were checking out the class) that instantly fell in love with Falkor and she was stuck to him like glue the entire time. It was so stinkin' cute. The kids were wonderful and were all great about taking turns and asking questions about Falkor. Jackson was very proud and was excited about answering questions about "his" dog.

Falkor was a rockstar! He was excited to be around so many little ones but he stood perfectly still to let all the kiddos pet him and he didn't try to drown anyone with Dane kisses. ;) Jackson told me that night at dinner that he was proud of Falkor for being such a good dog at school.

I am so thrilled that my best friend Shannon volunteered to come along so she could take some pics for us!! Thank you Shannon!

School Friends

Jackson has become good buddies with some of his lil school mates this year and it's just too cute. One of his best buds is Austin and from what I understand (from his teachers) Jackson and Austin have a love/hate relationship. One minute they are inseparable with this arms wrapped around one another, and the next minute they aren't talking and threatening to not sit next to each other during circle time. But like most boys all is forgotten the next time they see each other and they are best buds again.

Jackson is also good friends with most of the adorable lil girls in the class. Alyssa (who is calls Miss Alyssa) loves to run as much as Jackson does and in his eyes that is THE COOLEST THING EVER! They usually run together for a few minutes before class starts each day. Ragan is a sweetheart that likes to walk out to the cars with Jackson after school and misses him when he is not there. (How cute is that?!!) He also talks about Sophie, Elizabeth, and Ba-chinzee (Mackenzie) allll the time. I love hearing his stories about his friends at school!

All You Need Is...

I made a scrappy project for Grammy Cola and used these photos where Jackson spelled out "Love" with his hands. It was quite a challenge to get him to hold his fingers in the correct position and smile for the camera. But I LOVE the photos. :)

Meet Langley

This year we started the Elf on a Shelf tradition in our house for Christmas. Elf on a Shelf is genius idea where an Elf from the North Pole hangs out in your home before Christmas and reports to Santa each night to tell him how your child has been that day. Your child gets to name his or her Elf and each morning their Elf will be in a new spot in the house for that day. When we first got our Elf I explained it all to Jackson and told him that he was going to be able to name him. When I first asked him he told me he wanted to name him "Jackson". LOL I suggested he try another name and he came up with "Langley". I have no idea where that came from but it worked!

Jackson LOVED looking for Langley each morning and he would chat with him throughout the day. He would say "Hello" and "Goodbye" to Langley when we would come and go and he would blow him kisses at night. It was adorable!

We can't wait too see Langley again next year!

Gingerbread House Tradition

We started a tradition last Christmas of making a gingerbread house and Jackson LOVES it. He was so excited when I told him we were going to decorate a gingerbread house after we visited Santa in December. We used a kit last year and this year which works great because Jackson is only interested in putting the candy on anyway.

Falkor was also VERY interested in the whole process. :)

Christmas Angel (Ummm yeah)

I snapped this pic of Jackson on Christmas and I LOVE how innocent and sweet he looks because it is so very opposite of who he is usually. Well he can be VERY sweet but he's a very typical preschool boy. Mark and I tell him that it is a good thing he so cute! :)

Family Christmas Pics

Our dear friend Shannon took these family pics for us on Christmas and I am just tickled with how they turned out. It would be nice if Jackson was actually looking at the camera in the photo of the three of us but I am still happy with the pic.

Iowa Winter = Insane

Our winter has be beyond insane. We had a major snowstorm with about 14 inches to start our season and it hasn't let up since. Jackson like to play out in the snow...until he gets cold or wet and then it's the end of the world until we are back inside and warm again. We've had LOTS of snow and lovely ice storms that shut the city down. Oh and the nice warm temps with wind chills of -35 degrees. I think it's safe to say that we are all DONE with winter and ready for the spring thaw!

The pics are from our first mega storm and when snow was still new and cool....now....not so much.

Been Neglecting Jackson's Blog!

The holidays were wonderful and full of the normal holiday craziness! Jackson was SO excited about Christmas this year and it was a blast sharing with his excitement and joy on Christmas morning. This was the first year that Jackson actually sat on Santa's lap willing and chatted with him. It was adorable because he was twirling the hair at the end of Santa's beard the entire time they were together. We actually took Falkor to see the same Santa because they had a special pet visit day a few weeks before Christmas.

Jackson and I are both DONE with this insane Iowa winter and I cannot wait for warmer weather so we can be outside. We both have major cabin fever. And the days when school has been canceled due to our lovely winter wonderland are ROUGH!