Friday, July 30, 2010

Jackson 9 weeks old

Jackson was a little camera shy today but he's learning lots of new sounds to make. His favorite is "goo" but he has plenty of other things to say.

Sunday, July 25, 2010

grandma & grandpa blankenship

Tonight Grandma & Grandpa Blankenship came to get their Jackson fix and we took a few cute photos of them with their grandson. He's getting to be pretty social now in his old age (tomorrow he'll be 2 months old already). He was awake for most of their visit, cooing and kicking and punching away.
Too much bouncing on Grandpa's knee induces spit up.
Thanks for visiting, Grandma & Grandpa! Come again soon!

Saturday, July 24, 2010

port townsend

Summer in Washington is too beautiful to let a weekend go to waste so we make the most of beautiful, sunny days around here. This past weekend we took a day trip to Port Townsend along with our sweet friend Bethany (who I used to babysit, believe it or not). Located on the Olympic Peninsula (that funky little corner in the upper left-hand corner of Washington for those of you who aren't locals), Port Townsend is home to Fort Worden State Park where we spent most of the day sunning on the beach and wandering the old fort. This is also where Officer and A Gentleman was filmed, although I have yet to see that movie myself.
The beach was absolutely perfect. Without a cloud in the sky, we enjoyed the fact that the sun was hot and the breeze was cool while we ate our picnic lunch. We tried as hard as we could to keep Jackson out of the sun but he continuously kicked his blanket off so he could feel the warmth of the sun on his chubby legs.
Here he is in Daddy's shade.
After lunch, we all took a walk down to the lighthouse. Last time we were there, we spotted a whale just off shore. This year, no such luck but it was still a beautiful walk. You can see Mt. Baker just beyond the lighthouse.
Walking up the sand dune, all we could see was blue sky.
Bethany and I dared to test the temperature of the water. Let's just say that there's NO WAY we'd be swimming in that water any time soon.
We watched cruise ships and sail boats course along the Puget Sound while the Cascade Mountains loomed in the distance.
Our walk led up the cliff at North Beach to the old army fort circa 1902. Fort Worden, along with Fort Casey and Fort Flagler, was constructed back in the day as part of what they called the "Triangle of Fire." The forts were built to protect the Puget Sound from any possible sea invasion. I'll bet the army didn't even know they had built-in changing tables in their blueprints! I like to call them "ye olde changing tables" myself.
We had fun wandering through the tunnels, staircases, and ladders of the old fort.
There was a beautiful view of the Sound from atop the fort.
Daddy & Jackson inside the fort.
Family fort photo fun. Fabulous!
Bethany and I found the old fort jailhouse.
Looking through the trees and across the Sound, we had a beautiful view of Mt. Rainier 120 plus miles away.
All of our hiking around built up our appetite so we headed into downtown Port Townsend to sample our friend Ben's favorite pizza at Waterfront Pizza. According to their menu they use 150-year-old starter to make their pizza dough. Sounds kinda weird to me, but the pizza was yummy!
It was a great day and we can't wait to go back to Port Townsend again.

Thursday, July 15, 2010

so close

Jackson is getting bigger and bigger. He's almost able to reach the toys on his bouncy chair now. Here he is trying so hard in vain to reach. CAUTION: Watch out for spit bubbles.

Thursday, July 8, 2010

baby massage class

Today Jackson had his first baby massage class. And no, for you wise guys, that doesn't mean he was learning how to give his mommy a massage! (I wish.)
Our friend Cindy is becoming certified in Infancy Massage and needed a few guinea pigs a.k.a. new moms and babies to work with. My friends Stephanie and Lindsey and I stepped up to the plate along with our little ones. For the next five weeks the girls are meeting weekly at our apartment for an hour of instruction on how to melt our babies' tiny bodies with our soothing massage skills.

Lindsey's little Kaci Jean was out with teething issues this week so our first class was a party of 2 with little Gabriel and Jackson. They pretty much loved it. (Who wouldn't?)
Gabriel was top of his class. He was fully alert and cooing throughout the entire hour.
Jackson, on the other hand, fell asleep during class and then was annoyed with me after I woke him up.
After class was over, we had two very happy and relaxed babies!

Us mommies got the royal treatment too. Cindy brought delicious homemade chocolate chip cookies that were amazing!

I can't wait for next week's class.

Tuesday, July 6, 2010

Jackson 6 weeks old

A special video made for Grandma so she can get her Jackson fix.

Monday, July 5, 2010

all dressed up

Jackson wasn't too happy once Daddy told him that he was wearing a dress to bed. It's not REALLY a dress, Jackson. Don't worry.