Happy 6 Months Jackson!

I can't believe my baby is already 6 months old!  Each month, week and day I am blessed to see his amazing progress and growth.  The newborn baby phase of winter has passed and he is now a big 6 month baby!  Let the months of moving onto mobility begin.  

Jackson's Personality Shining Through

Most days Jackson is my sunshine, angel baby... always ready to greet me with a BIG smile:

But, here and there he likes to add a bit of color to that sunshine personality of his.  

Sometimes he just wants to cry: 

Other times he says, "Mom, stop feeding me!  Can't you see the blue sky outside the window...it's sooooo interesting."

Of course, Jackson has mastered his "you know I'm cute"face - and he really is good at wooing the girls.  He gave this face to his Pediatrician to convince her to hold off on his shots because he had been recently sick...and who could say no to this face?!

"What are you doing? This is just too weird.  Put the camera away already!"

Uh oh, something just feels off here:

When Jackson is completely attentive on something he finds new and unexplainable, 

he concentrates hard and makes this funny face:

Photo Shoot!

I have LOVED being a stay-at-home mom with my little guy!  Yes, we've had our rough days; but those are definitely outweighed by the happy ones.  Something I've been trying to do periodically is have a photo shoot day (or morning).  On these days I dress him all cute-like and take lots of photos.  He is growing so fast that I can't seem to get enough photos!  And each time I've looked back on them, not only have I smiled because I love seeing my baby, but I also smile for the memories of that day.  These photo shoots really have helped to cement these days as unique and memorable.  

The first photo shoot day I dressed Jackson up in his Grandpa Mark's baby outfit.  My Grandma Willey saved it for her first great-grandson. 

 I really love the second of these two and want to get a large copy of it framed :)

 For Valentine's Day, St. Patrick's Day, and Easter my Aunt Janeen bought Jackson an assortment of outfits.  Amongst them I found one that I completely fell in love with.  

Welcome Froggy Photo shoot!!!

 (And how could I not capture that cute bum!)

Off With the Photo Shoots and Onto the Trip 

 For Jackson's first day trip, we took him to the San Antonio Preserve on a short hike.  We've taken Jackson loads of places and on various trips of varying lengths, but usually he sleeps right through them. Now that Jackson is getting older it's harder for him to nap away from home so we have to go places while he is awake.  The San Antonio Preserve was one of the first "trips"(it's only 20 minutes from our home) that Jackson was awake for to enjoy - not including any grocery or shopping trips :P

Here's me and Jackson prior to the hike: 

On the way back we decided we better take some family photos before the hike was done and the moment gone. 

Jackson and Daddy (I love how attentive Jackson is here!):

Jackson and Mommy 

(Jack-Jack is going through a stick-out-your-tongue-and-blow-bubbles phase - super cute, hehe):

Things Jackson Loves To Do This Month / Accomplishments

He discovered his toes and is constantly trying to catch them:

Spot the dog is one of Jackson's favorite toys...I can't tell who is bigger :P

He LOVES to read books...especially if he gets to hold it.

Jackson takes many short-short naps a day.  Hey, playing can be exhausting.  A

nd every once in a while he doesn't make it to his crib:

"Look everyone!  Did you see it? Did you see it?  I rolled over consecutively this month!!!"

With Jackson's new mobility he feels very successful when he gets his own toys.  

Jackson loves to smile for the camera...granted this isn't something new, this photo was just too adorable not to include :)

Lately, Jackson has found that he loves to take a bath.  I've been filling the tub deeper and letting him enjoy splashing about.  He absolutely finds it thrilling to flail his arms and pull his feet way up just to slap them back down into the water.  It is so fun to play with him in the tub.  Now whenever I give Jackson a bath I get one too.  

 As Jackson has learned to roll over and scoot inches at a time (which, did I mention he can cross the living room), he has begun to strengthen his core muscles in anticipation for crawling.  To do this, he does the "Superman" move practically all day.  I think he can even do it longer than me! 

Probably one of the most exciting things that has happened this month was starting Jackson on solids!  Jordan says I enjoy feeding Jackson more than he enjoys eating, but I'm just happy it's so fun for the both of us.  He's only had rice cereal so far, but he loves to sit in his highchair and eat.  He also likes to take the spoon from me and put it in his own mouth.  

I hope you enjoyed seeing 6 month old Jackson at a glance!  I love being his mom!!!  And I am so grateful to have such a wonderful husband like Jordan.  He is a great dad and I have found watching him and Jackson interact to be a joy.  Jackson lights up when Daddy gets him in the morning (or when he gets home at night if Jackson is still awake).  My boys bring smiles to my face every day :)

Jack-Jack Attack!

Yes, Jackson has entered Jack-Jack Attack mode - the mode of Jackson taking action!  He's not having tantrum fits or being overly weepy (at least for now), rather he has discovered the wonders of motion!

 Many times after naps or in the morning we'll find him a foot or two further up in the crib than where he started, haha.  Here's a photo of him taking a nap in his crib (sorry it's dark...but I feared turning on the light would wake him):

Another matter of motion he's discovered is avoiding tummy time.  He'll be on tummy time and get frustrated with it...so he'll roll over!  YES - HE ROLLS NOW!!!  I was so tickled the first time he did it (yesterday) I started to clap and shout, "YAY JACKSON!" I think I scared him, haha.  Ever since I have been putting him on tummy time more ofter, hoping to catch it on tape. And I did!  This is documentation of roll over number 4 (please pardon my silly baby talk voice in this clip):

 Jackson is growing sooo fast!  Today I cuddled with him for a couple hours while he slept...something I know I won't be able to do much longer.  And although I realize that I'll miss these moments I am grateful to be able to witness each little achievement he makes: smiling, laughing, cooing, grabbing a rattle, rolling over, and so much more! 

Jackson in all his Cuteness!

 We have sooo many cute photos of Jackson that just don't necessarily fit with one blog post or another...and who wants to miss out on baby photos?!   So, I decided to write a quick post about Jackson and how cute, loveable, funny, and great he is!!!!

 Jackson is not a big fan of putting on his Sunday clothes, but once dressed he is a happy baby again.  And he just looks too cute in those onsie church shirts!!!  

Especially when just sporting it with a diaper :P

Sometimes Jackson doesn't want to nap, but I can tell he's just beyond tired.  So I bring him into Jordan's and my bed and cuddle with him until he falls asleep.  I LOVE cuddling and am trying to get as much cuddle time from Jackson as possible.  I know pretty soon he'll be crawling all over the place and then cuddle time will be out the window!

And I just love watching him sleep!  He just looks so peaceful and cute :)  Here are a couple photos of Jackson curled up and ready to dream sweet dreams. 

 Jordan and I are soooo grateful to have this bundle of joy in our lives.  He makes us laugh; he makes us smile!  And I am extremely grateful for them both...couldn't ask for a better, more loving husband and such a joyous angel baby!!! 

Christmasy Timey-Time!

Christmas Vaca in Cali

Although we traveled to Washington State for Christmas, Jordan, Jackson and I were excited to have our own family Christmas.  Well, Jackson was happy, but I'm not sure how much of that had to do with celebrating Christmas early or the fact that we were playing on the floor with him, haha.  

Anyhow...

For the past two Black Fridays I have made a Christmas shopping list and hit the sales.  I love shopping sales!  I can spend the same amount of money, but get many more gifts :)  This year my major goal was to buy a Christmas tree.  Last year we tried to get one after Christmas vacation, but there were only pink and white Christmas trees or "California palm" Christmas trees (both a bit on the abnormal side for me).  I wanted a tree that looked real!  And I found one at MICHAELS!!!

It may only be 4 feet tall, but it's ours and we love it!  There's something about lit Christmas trees that always speak to me!  It's that special Christmas glow of having the lights out and the tree lit that just gets me tickled about this wonderful season. 

This is Jackson "opening" his first present.  

He was having a bit of trouble and asked mommy for help :P

And I know he's a boy...but don't all kids just love sticking the bows on their head?!  It's like a 3D sticker, right?  ...Or a huge band-aid :)

Jordan headed up the "scissor required" presents:

The day after "Christmas" we headed out on our first flying trip with Jackson.
Here we are, waiting in the airport after getting through security.

I was so happy he stayed groggy till take-off.  Jackson is a pro flier!  He ate for 5 minutes at take-off and landing and slept the rest of the way.

Christmas at Grandma and Grandpa's

For the Christmas half of our vacation we visited my side of the family, the Allen's, aka Grandma and Grandpa's.

And I must say, Jackson LOVED the attention.  He was held almost every minute of every day!!!  Ok, that's an exaggeration, but you get the picture.  One of the most important visits we made was visiting my Grandma Willey!  She is soooo excited that Jackson is here!  As number one great grandson, he inherited her favorite baby outfit from when my dad was a baby! Here's great Grandma Willey holding Jackson:

My Grandma and Grandpa Martinson and Great Aunt Peggy stopped by a couple times and couldn't get enough of Jackson!




We also enjoyed spending time at my Aunt Patty's home.  We enjoyed games, dinners, and visiting.  Jackson fell in love with my cousin Jill too, haha.  Here they are:

And I can't forget cousin Tommie either!  He loved chilling with her, hehe :P

For Christmas Eve my family has a tradition of getting together at my Aunt Patty's home and having a huge Christmas dinner.  Afterwards we just hang out, sing Christmas carols, and then SANTA COMES!!! Jackson wasn't scared at all, he likes Santa.

Santa Clause also gives each child their first Christmas gift.  Jackson got a board book called "Goodnight Moon".  I love that book!  Jordan and I had so much fun showing off Jackson!!!  I call him my angel baby, hehe.

Christmas morning dawned on a Sunday.  And it was quite a busy morning.  We decided it would be best to postpone opening Santa Clause gifts and what not until after 11am church.  So, we set about getting dressed, eating, and making it to church on time!  Jackson was ready first...and I must say he is quite the looker in his Sunday outfit!

And he was quite content hanging out with Uncle "Rick"while the rest of us (my younger brother, older brother, sister-in-law, baby cousin Zoey, Grandma, Grandpa, Great Grandpa and Grandma Allen, Jordan, and I) finished prepping ourselves for church.  

After church, Jordan thought it would be a good idea to re-dawn our Moose PJs (thanks Ryan, Karin, and Hochstrasser boys!) to better relax and enjoy the Christmas festivities.  I thought it a good idea too.  Here's our little Moose family!

(...Grandma gave Jackson a moose hat which just added to the whole effect of our outfits, hehe)

The rest of the week we enjoyed spending quality time together: 

Playing with cousin Zoey! (We are all very excited to have cousins soooo close in age)

Uncle Tanner acting as book holder so that Jackson could enjoy a bit of light reading!!! 

(Yes, we have a genius baby)

Playing games!

And, of course, enjoying Jackson and the time we have together as a family!!!
 Jackson looks surprised here from the flash, but he LOVES it when Daddy plays with him :)

Overall, we had a wonderful Christmas and loved spending so much time with family.  

Blog post to come: New Years Eve with the Hochstrasser Side :)

Thanksgiving Weekend

Things have been pretty busy around here, so I'm just now getting around to blogging about Thanksgiving. My parents flew down because Jackson's blessing was that weekend. This was Christina's first time preparing an entire Thanksgiving meal and I think she did an excellent job (I helped out with some things). It looked great and tasted better!

That evening (along with most other evenings) we had fun playing games! This is a really fun one that Christina got me for my birthday--Dominion.

Christina got Jackson all dressed up in his Christmas outfit on Friday.

Christina made a yummy carrot cake to celebrate my birthday that had been on Monday, the 21st.

On Saturday we all took a trip to the Oakland temple. That evening they had a concert and lighting of the christmas lights to open the Christmas season. They have concerts almost every night leading up to Christmas at the auditorium and stake center next to the temple. We took advantage of having out parents in town and when into the temple.

Family pictures