March 2013

March was a big month for Jack. He finally had a few week stretch of not being sick which meant he FINALLY started sleeping through the night. Jack started walking. He never would even take half a step  until one day he stood u,p took 6 steps and then was done. He didn't take any more steps for another week. After a week he stood up again and walked across the room and has kept walking since then. He likes doing things in his own time and by himself. He's going through a very independent stage. We think it will only last the next 18-20 years. 

 Jack now likes to feed himself. This is after he ate yogurt by himself. It gets messy but he's doing better each day.

 As you can tell he is very proud of himself.

 Hanging out with daddy and his bear, Baba.

 Jack got to go his first college basketball game. We went to the NIT quarterfinals. UVA played Iowa and lost but it was tons of fun. That many people clapping constantly, what else could be more fun for a year old? Jack loved clapping, yelling, and waving his arms and legs. He was very entertained watching the players and other people around him. He didn't need a single toy or anything for the whole two hours. During the month we also went to a baseball game and had a good time playing on the grass and watching the game.

Jack is getting bigger and learning more each day. He can say Mama, Daddy, Baba, this, that, and hi. He also says Jesus, keys, and a few other words but I'm pretty sure Quincy and I are the only ones that can recognize them. He's learning to throw balls (and his food), stack things, look at books by himself sometimes, thinks burping is hilarious, makes car noises while pushing his cars around, and has started to color (when he's not trying to eat the crayons).

Spring Break 2013

At the beginning of March, Quincy had spring break so we decided since we might not be on the east coast for a while we would go the beach. So we decided to go to Myrtle Beach, SC even though the weather had been much colder than usual for most of the east coast. Luckily it turn out to be our favorite vacation ever. 

 The first day we drove most of the day to get there. We arrived in the evening and decided to go swimming at one of the indoor pools our resort had. Even though it was a heated pool, Jack did not find it an acceptable  temperature. Even though he looked cute in his swimming outfit, other people didn't find his crying in the pool quite as cute. After about a minute we got him out, wrapped him in towels, and let him put his toes in the hot tub.

There are no pictures from the next day but we spent the afternoon walking along the board walk and then in the evening tried the pool again. We do not have a little fish for a boy.

Jack still takes two naps a day so we weren't able to distance ourselves too far from the hotel but still found lots of fun things to do. He likes to cuddle for a while when he first gets up especially with daddy.

 The third day we were there we went to the aquarium. It was really interesting and Jack loved looking at the fish and sharks. We didn't even have to walk most of the time because they had a belt you could stand on it took you through the middle of the tanks. The fish were able to be on both sides and above you. Jack was fascinated.

 

We had a hard time getting Jack to look at the camera because everything was so cool.

This was by far the best aquarium either of us had been to. If you're in the area, you should definitely go. 

 Later that day we went out on the beach. We had bought a kite before we left and it was definitely windy enough to get it up high. Jack really enjoyed looking at it up high, but I think Quincy was more excited than Jack was.

 It was pretty chilly even though this was the warmest day there. Jack definitely needed a large coat but had lots of fun playing in the sand.

 Behind Quincy you can see our hotel. It was nice that it was right on the beach.

Jack and his silly faces. We spend another day there just on the beach and eating at fun local restaurants. We drove home on the 5th day so Quincy could make it to a meeting that night. We had so much fun and were so glad that we decided to go. Luckily, the cold weather kept all the college and high school spring breakers away and we could enjoy a lovely beach with very few people. Good bye Atlantic Ocean for now.

Jack's Actual Birthday and 1 Year Pictures

On Jack's actually birthday, also known as Valentine's Day, Quincy had a conference in D.C. So Jack spent a lot of his birthday in our van driving up there. He was a good sport though and enjoyed looking at the beautiful scenery. 

 Before we left we let Jack open his birthday presents. He got lots of books and a few new cars.

 He also got some blocks which he doesn't stack too high yet but loves to take the blocks off of Quincy's and I's towers one by one.

 For Jack's birthday we went to the zoo with some friends while all the husbands were at the conference. It was a tad chilly but lots of fun.

 Jack had his snacks and toys and was nice and warm in his stroller most of the day. His favorite animals were the seals and other underwater animals because he could see them the best.

You can't tell but there is a tiger behind us there. They were about to feed him so he was pacing back and forth. All the animals were lots of fun to see.

 These are Jacks year old pictures, even though they were taken a few weeks after he was a year old. He looks so grown up to me.

 This is the bear he got for Christmas and LOVES. He is constantly hugging, wrestling, and dragging his bear around. He takes good care of his bear by sharing his food with him, giving the bear his pacifier, and rocking him.

Jack has been the biggest blessing in Quincy and my life. He brings us so much joy and happiness. We can't imagine what life would be like without him and love watching him learn and grow. Parenthood is the best!

Jack's Birthday Party

I can't believe that my baby is already a year old. This year has flown by faster than I ever could imagine. February was a busy month so we had to have Jack's birthday a few days early. Once of Jack's favorite things to do is to read books. We decided to throw him a The Very Hungry Caterpillar party. 

We set up the decorations when Jack was taking a nap

As you can tell he didn't quite know what to think of everything.

However, once I let him play with the balloons he was pretty fascinated. Needless to say, the balloons were a big hit. We kept them around far after their prime. 

 Here are the cakes I made for him. They were fun to make and totally worth the time because they were yummy.

 It took Jack a while to start eating his cake. He just poked at it for about 15 minutes. Once he had adequately examined it he decided it was worth the mess to eat. I think he had a good time.

Sadly, I did not do a good job of taking photos of our friends that came to the party. We have them in video but some how I missed getting pictures of them. Jack had a great time with his little friends. Quincy and I could ask for a better group of friends we have here in Charlottesville. We're so happy they were able to celebrate Jack's birthday with us.

January 2013

Half of January was spent in Montana/Wyoming and the other half here in Virginia. While in Montana we were able to be there when my brother Jacob left on his mission. He's currently serving in the New Mexico, Farmington mission. It was great to spend some time with him before he left for 2 years. Jack had so much fun playing with him. He definitely loves his uncle Jacob and Jacob became pretty found of Jack as well.

 This is in the airport right before Jacob went through security. He'll definitely be missed but we are so proud of him and the great choices that he's made in his life. He's an awesome missionary.

Jack once again did a great job on the plane flying home. He's such a good little boy and doesn't get too fussy even if he is tired or uncomfortable. The second half of January was spent trying to get back into the swing of Quincy going back to school and getting Jack to finally sleep through the night. Overall the month flew by. 

December 2012 - Finals, Flying, Family, and Fun

Well, let's see what I can remember from December. I've meant to blog for awhile but it seems like we've been off our schedule since Christmas break. We need to get pictures from family from Christmas because we mostly relied on them.

A few highlights from December:

 My dad came to visit us for a few days. Jack enjoyed getting to play with Grandpa and even seemed to remember him when we went to my family's house for Christmas. It's always nice to get visitors here.

Jack finally started crawling quickly, pulling himself up on things and cruising around on the furniture. As you can see he enjoys it very much.

 He seems a bit tall though for some toys. He doesn't need to walk around toys to play with different parts; he just leans over.

 We had Christmas a few days early so we didn't have to take presents across the country. Here is Jack "Christmas" morning excited to have a normal day. He had no idea what was going on.

 Here are some cute headphones Grandma and Grandpa got Jack. They have tigers on the ears. You can see he matches his monkey very well.

 Here are all of Jack's presents. It took him awhile to learn to play with most of them but it's been fun to have new things for him to learn.

 Here is "Christmas" at the Hooton house a few days late so we could get all the family there. This is Jack's favorite friend. The whole bear was knit by one of my mom's co-workers. It's super cute and Jack instantly loved it.

We spent most of December just hanging out with family and getting to catch up. It was so wonderful. We survived finals, flying, and even family. We are excited to much closer next Christmas although we will miss having Quincy all day for four weeks.

November 2012

We spent most of November being sick but we still found ways to have fun at home. Even when Jack is sick he loves to laugh. He's always being silly and finds himself very amusing. One of his favorite things to do right now is to take off his socks when we are driving to the store or somewhere else. He constantly is talking to me from the back seat but when I hear giggling I know he's got his socks off. He thinks it's so funny because he knows they are supposed to be on. He also thinks putting his pacifier in backwards is hilarious. 

 Jack eating a morning snack. Jack takes 2-3 naps still so he gets to stay in his pajamas until after his first nap. He loves the ones with monkeys. 

 It's nice that Jack can feed himself things. He loves being independent. 

 Thanksgiving meant getting to hang out with daddy because mama was super sick and trying to make a turkey and several other dishes for a get together with some of our law school friends. We got to spend Thanksgiving with 8 other families. There was 35 of us total. It was fun even though Jack and I had to cut out early to rest. 

 You can tell that Jack didn't feel the best. We are now isolating ourselves so we don't get sick during finals and before Christmas. 

  Constantly admiring daddy.

 Jack coming to help mama cook on Thanksgiving. He loves playing in the kitchen while I clean and cook. He also loves trying to get into the dishwasher.

 Eat food all by himself like a big boy. He mostly just liked to feel the chili between his fingers. 

 Lots of fun to play in and even more fun for mama to clean up :)

Who doesn't love getting to play in a box? Honestly, if I could fit in I would be right there with him. 

We are very excited for the rest of December! We can't wait for finals to be over and get to see Quincy again. We are very excited to see family over Christmas break but are also definitely look forward to getting to be with Quincy all day. Be safe during the holidays!