Machu Picchu

Jackson has decided to leave the nest. Maybe he's gotten sick of us, maybe he doesn't like the idea of the new one joining the scene soon but mostly I think he was just antsy to get out of the house and told us all about it...

Jackson: "I'm leaving, BYE!!", as he heads to the front door.
Jack: "Where are you going?"
Jackson: "A Machu Picchu. En Peru"
Jack: "What about Dada? Can I come?"
Jackson: "Si, si"
Jack: "What about Momma? Can she come?"
Jackson: "Yea! Momma can come too!!! Come on Guys!", now heading out the front door.

I cut it off by explaining to him we could go to Machu Picchu (in Peru) after breakfast at a restaurant. He quickly back tracked and decided that pancakes and eggs were a WAY better idea than traveling to Peru. For the time being. Saved by breakfast, phew! Hope that's always the case ;)

Memorial Weekend=Water World

Our Memorial Day weekend was full of water fun! Friday we were hit HARD with some heavy storms that lasted through Saturday afternoon but that didn't stop us from getting outside as much as we could! 

Jackson likes to play a game called 'car wash' where he gets to bring out all of his cars and I set out different pails/buckets of water for him to put his cars into. He asks to play this game almost daily and it's an easy way for me to sit and watch him make up stories about them. He's got one crazy imagination and this last time he sat in one of the buckets for a whole 20 minutes! 

The remainder of the weekend was spent going to splash pads, pools and having a BBQ at our friend Holly and Matt's house. Holly and Matt's son, Max is one of Jackson's really good friends and they bonded REALLY well this past weekend.

 I wish I would have gotten some pictures of Max and Jackson together but I completely forgot to take pictures--we were having such a fun time! Jackson and Max swam together, danced together, played trains, and then got a good scrub down when all was said and done.

By the end of the night both boys asked to spend the night together and they didn't want to leave each other. It was really sweet and the first time Jackson bonded so well with someone his own age. Usually he only asks to sleep with momma :)

 This boy had one HECK of a water weekend and here's hoping y'alls was just as pleasant! 

Shelf Life

Well. I am now 38 weeks pregnant. Being such I am exhausted, swollen, and an overall doll to be around. I apologize for the attitude friends and family, but I'm over it and if you're brave enough to call/text/email well, that's your funeral. I feel like this comes along with the end of all pregnancies and I promise to make it up to you at some point. 

That being said--special thanks to Jack who has been feeding me frosty's like it's his job, Jackson who has been using me as his human shelf and reminding me that there really is humor in every little thing (he has been absolutely amazing recently) and my little brother, Bibi who has agreed to live with me until my mom gets here next week. 

Bibi is the perfect guest in that I don't see him unless he's hungry or needs fresh laundry. He answers his phone every time and is never more than 10 miles or so away from the house. It's fantastic. I heart him. 

Dos is just dos weeks away from being here and it's crazy to think that by this time next month we'll have another boy to fall madly in love with. I am scared, frantic, and overall excited. I can't wait. Well actually, my mom needs to get here first so I guess I can. 

Dada's Birthday

Jack turned 32 this past weekend and we celebrated all weekend long. Thankfully he wanted to keep it low key so it was nice and slow. My kind of party-ing ;)

Friday, Jackson and I took ice cream cake to Jack's work and celebrated with his people. The boy wasn't about to let us have a birthday celebration without 'pastel' or cupcakes. He's obsessed with celebrating birthdays solely for this reason. 

Jack's actual birthday was nice and easy as well. The cub started his day in his underwear in the backyard. I found him like this after not keeping an eye on him for five minutes. He put the boots on himself and told me he was collecting his toys for later. 

Such a silly boy we have...I unfortunately didn't take pictures the rest of the day but Jack's best friend was in town and they spent the day playing golf and hanging out.

We finished off the celebration with a nice dinner at Salt Lick (one of Jack's faves) with some friends. Jackson's friend Samaya came with her parents and they had a blast playing, chatting and running after each other outside.

Jack tells me he had a great birthday as well. He loves spending time with his friends and I'm really glad they were all able to make it to one place to celebrate him.

The cub (per usual) was as sweet as ever and told everyone, "Thank you for coming! Happy Birthday dada!!!" Hope you had an awesome day sweetheart :)

Mother's Day

Mother's Day started a little early this year. Jackson decided to give me my present on Saturday because he just couldn't wait. I got some pretty rad sunglasses to match his and I absolutely love them. He really likes when I wear them too because he can see himself in the 'anaranjado' (orange) part of them. I secretly think this is why he got them for me ;)

Sunday, actual Mother's Day, we all woke up a little later than usual (THANK YOU BOY!) and headed to brunch. Not before having coffee though. You know how that goes.

I may need to stop going to Starbucks so much though as our lion cub has memorized my order and now asks me in the drive through, "Mama, cafe de mocha o latte?". He even knows I switch them up! Jack just stared at me when Jackson said this today. Busted. 

 We had brunch at one of our favorite restaurants, Perla's. They have a great patio and Jackson is fond of the fish tank and marlin hanging on the wall inside. It's the little things...

 Being a ham...

 After brunch we headed to the park, fed some ducks and ended our day by grilling and eating outside. The cub specifically asked to eat 'afuera' so he got what he wanted, and I have to say, it was PERFECT.

All in all a great day. Happy Mother's Day to all the lovely moms out there--especially mine and Jack's.

Jackson--thank you for choosing me as your momma, you are by far the best thing that has ever happened to me and I thank God daily for this. Love you Gordo!

Sea World

As mentioned in the previous post, Jackson had been asking to see dolphins/delfines daily. Along with flying on a plane, these requests were getting a little old because when he wants something Jackson will mention it all day, everyday until it gets done.  

 Since we can't take him to see dolphins in real life yet Jack decided Sea World would be the next best thing. I'm not gonna lie, I was skeptical. It's hard enough for me to even get out of bed these days and spending the day at Sea World seemed so daunting. I'm really glad I went though (I was this close to not) because otherwise you all wouldn't have a blog post to read and I would've missed the elation on Jackson's face the entire time we were there. 

Once there the lion cub meant business. He was R-E-A-D-Y to hit the park. 

 Not one to lose character however, he left his shades on for almost the entirety of our time there. He's recently discovered that they do, in fact keep the sun out of his eyes, (I haven't been making this up all along after all!) so he now feels that he NEEDS them constantly.

 After playing around on the crazy huge jungle gym, Jackson asked to go on a ride. His first ride ever! We thought he'd love it...

 Turns out he hated it and was screaming/crying for momma for the whole 15 seconds he was on it. 

 It was the saddest thing in the world and gut wrenching for the people watching and the operator handling it. We got him off straight away and he was fine after I hugged him and kissed him a few dozen times. Poor baby :(

After the traumatic event we told the boy we were going to see a show with dolphins. He was confused but curious as he thought dolphins only lived in the sea. I think he thought we were going to the ocean--turns out we were walking all of 20 ft. to an amphitheatre. Thank you America.

 I have NEVER seen Jackson enjoy something so much. It was worth every mile we drove and every penny we spent to see him thoroughly LOVE this show. He paid such close attention and took in everything with such amazement and awe that it almost (almost) brought tears to my eyes to see him so happy.

He got to see dolphins, beluga whales and beautiful macaws flying right over his head. He had NO IDEA what beluga whales were and didn't even fathom that dolphins could talk, 'walk on water' or jump so high.

After the show we took him to see the penguin/puffin exhibit. While it wasn't as exciting to him as the show was, he still took it all in and told us all about it. 

 The Cub was definitely more excited to see the 'tiburones, manta rayas and Dory fish'. Jackson has watched a lot of Finding Nemo recently so his associations are fascinating. He can pinpoint all sea animals and while a movie is admittedly not the best way to teach a child about the world, Finding Nemo has shown Jackson all about life under the sea.

He can tell you all about sea turtles, angler fish, clown fish, sea horses, starfish, pelicans, angel fish, sting rays, coral reefs, etc. etc. in English and Spanish. Ok, ok, I'm done bragging--but he can!

and here I am at almost 36 weeks pregnant. Yikes huh?!?! Jackson and I were fading FAST here...

 ...and speaking of fading. It took all of 53 seconds for Jackson to crash once we got in the car. It was crazy how fast he was out. Thank you Sea World for giving this boy the time of his life!

Baby brother's room

Since big brother Jackson got a new room I thought it would be nice to get baby brother a few new items. Mainly new bedding because Jackson made a true mess of his bedding and it was only fair for the newest guest in the house to have new sheets :)

His room is now complete with fresh sheets, laundered clothes (hung and folded) and even a new suitcase because Jackson is desperate to take his little brother on an 'avion' soon. 

Everyday he tells me, "Mama, vamos en avion, vamos a {insert city here}". It varies from El Paso to Chicago to "playa con delfines". He really wants to go to the beach recently and see dolphins. I keep telling him we have to wait for hermanito so now he reminds me of that every day. 

 

And speaking of hermanito--he is doing great. We are up to weekly Dr's visits and Dr. G has now assured me that unless we evict him, she is fairly certain he won't be coming until June. Everything is going according to schedule and besides being unbelievably exhausted and feeling massive I'm doing great. 

Jack, Jackson and I are ready to meet the newest guy in the house but not before he cooks a little bit longer.