This is how we roll!

Luke rolled over on January 21st!  I could not believe it.  When he did it, he actually scooted like five inches and then rolled like he had been doing it everyday!  I caught it on still camera tonight when he did it again.  Here is the play by play. :-)  He is growing up so much.  I cannot blink!!!

Here he is starting to roll.

Now he is getting his leg ready to help him and he has thrown his head over to the side more.

And then the big finish!

When will it end???

The boys in the Jackson house are sick again! I am so tired of having my baby boys sick. They need to be happy and healthy! We went back to the doctor today to find out they both have bronchiolitis. Yep. They both have awful coughs and wheezing. Not fun at all. We will be doing breathing treatments on both boys for the next couple of weeks. Here are some pics of our boys being brave while doing their treatments.  They are brave boys.  I don't think Blake really minds because I let him watch one episode of whatever show he wants to watch.  That is a treat for him. :-)  Luke has his moments of crying because he is mad at me. :-(  Poor baby!

What in the world....

It has been a long road, but I think we have finally figured it out. Luke has had a lot of trouble keeping his milk down. He would projectile vomit and he was so unhappy. We have tried a lot of things from different doctors for the past two months. We thought it was just reflux and we have tried every medication. It helped a little but he was still so unhappy. We then were sent to the ER because the docs thought he had a condition called pyloric stenosis, but thankfully he did not have that. (That required surgery so I am still thanking my lucky stars!) We then were sent to a pediatric GI specialist who thought that Luke had an allergy to the protein in milk. (I was nursing so that would be me.) We had already tried two days of formula with no help and it actually made him throw up more. The GI doc thinks that Luke has a protein allergy so not even a soy milk based formula would work. He told me to stop nursing and pump and try this amino acid based formula for 5 days. We did and Luke is a completely new kid! He is so happy and hardly ever projectile vomits. He still does it every once in a while, but no more screaming after he eats and no more regurgitating either. He sleeps so much better too. He still has reflux a little but it is so much better. I am kinda bummed though because I have to dry my milk up. :-( I was so looking forward to nursing. I didn't get the chance to do it as long as I wanted with Blake because of medical complications. I am happy, but very sad about this. It also sucks because this formula is $52 a can! Yep. That is over $600 a month. Kinda makes me want to throw up. LOL I must do what every mother would do which is what is best for her baby. He is worth it. :-)

Now on to my next two hurdles... First, the insurance company. They are supposed to cover this but are making me jump through hoops with fire and won't say for sure if they will or won't. Second, helping Luke learn the difference between night and day now that we have made him more comfy. :-)

It was a love/hate relationship

Christmas at the Jackson house was so much fun this year sort of. Blake had a fever all week the week of Christmas and wasn't fever free until Christmas night. :-( The poor kid was so tired, but luckily snapped out of it in time to rip through his presents and play with them. Luke got to join in on the action this year too. Ok. He was sleeping, but he was there! LOL We got an early Christmas present this year. SNOW! I know. We live in Texas and we actually got snow on Christmas Eve! I LOVED how beautiful the snow looked. Here is a pic of the outside of our house during the day. It was during a brief lull in the snow. ;0)

This is after dark and it started snowing again! I love the way you can actually see it snowing!

The snow was SO beautiful. We didn't get to play in it though. :-( And so here is the HATE I had for the snow. Poor Blake couldn't go out in it with his fever so Mommy and Daddy decided it wouldn't be fair to go and play in it either. It was all or none. Poor Blake kept asking me to let him put his shoes and socks on and go outside in the snow. I had to look at the pitiful face and say no. :-( No fun! Another reason I had to HATE the snow is because it kept my parents from getting to come over early Christmas morning to see Blake (And Luke now I guess) open his presents. They have come over every year to see Blake wake up Christmas morning and I really really missed them this year. As much as I loved Christmas morning, I felt like something was missing. It made me sad to make Christmas morning breakfast without my Dad and Mom. We watch Blake open gifts and then Dad runs to get Mom and him coffee at 7-11 and then I make breakfast with Dad. Then Dad and Mom help Blake (and us) put together and play with all his toys. (It helps to have more hands to open all those stinkin boxes with all the twist ties, etc!) Last year there was an airplane incident which ended with Scott flying Blake's new airplane onto the neighbors roof. Dad was there 'helping' him too. LOL It made me kinda sad to not have them there. :-( I have to count my blessings though. I have Scott, Blake, and Luke and we have been very blessed this year. We went over to Scott's sisters house that afternoon after the ice cleared off the road and I made Scott take me to see my parents. I was NOT going to go all Christmas Day without seeing them. :-)

All in all, it was a great Christmas. I asked Santa for a healthy baby last year after our miscarriage and he came through for me. :-) Actually Blake asked him for me. LOL We have been blessed with two great, wonderful, handsome, brilliant boys. I am the happiest Mom on earth!

Ramblings tonight...

This past month has been so exciting with all of the changes in our house. We have been getting to know Luke and his cries, noises, and what he likes/dislikes. He is very talkative. He has his cute little coos which are just so sweet. He talks in his sleep even. I had to get used to that especially. :-) We have been bonding as a family of four and Blake is having to get used to sharing mom and dad. I think we are transitioning pretty well and Blake seems happy. Luke is just a joy to have. Blake always wants to hold him and kiss on him. It is really very cute. Blake did figure out that when Mommy is feeding Luke, he can do whatever he wants. He is too smart for his own good and mine!

We have enjoyed family time. We went to Gaylore Ice this year to see all the amazing sculptures. This years theme was Dr. Suess's How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Blake loves that movie and he loved the ice! It sure was cold. Luke stayed in the warm lobby. We had a blast at Thanksgiving as well. Blake enjoyed playing football with Daddy and his cousins. We also go to go to his first Thanksgiving Feast at his school. Last week, he had his first Christmas concert and his first Christmas party. With me and Scott being off on leave, we are both able to see all of these special moments with him. Luke gets to come too. Blake loves to show his class his brother. :-)

I actually spent all day with both boys by myself and I think it went well. I had been worried about this because I wasn't sure how I would juggle two. I have only had one for four years! I even had an outing to Babies R Us too. Blake was a great listener and stayed by my side. He even stayed with me when I had to feed Luke before we left and helped me get things when Luke threw up in the nursing room. He is really maturing right in front of my eyes. We played cars, trains, and transformers and watched a Christmas movie when we got home. He even laid down for a short rest. :-)

I am so excited for Christmas to get here. Each year it gets more and more fun and now that we have two kiddos, it is even better. If someone would have told me when I was little that Christmas was so much better when you are the parent, I would never have believed them. It really makes my heart happy to see Blake light up with the magic of the season. This year we even had him focus more on giving. I am sure he doesn't quite get all of that yet, but I figured the more we talk about it early, the better we will be when he is a teenager and wanting everything! LOL We tried to show him how much fun it is to go shopping for a friend or a family member. We let him pick out presents for Luke and some of his friends. We made a big deal about how the shopping trip was about giving and he actually got excited about it. The one thing I did not foresee is that what he picked out for his friends may not be in my budget! It was tough to explain to him that we couldn't get a $100 helmet or whatever for his friend because our budget was not that high. It is the thought that counts because the things he picked out that were too expensive, the kids would have loved. :-( If only money were no object...

Blake has really been into sports lately. He is always wanting to play football and has actually gone to a couple of his cousins basketball games and enjoyed it. He is into being a spectator. My dad and Scott took him to a couple of football games this past month as well and he LOVED it! It was a great idea too because the last one was after Luke was born and it gave him the opportunity to have his Dad and Papa's full attention as the big boy. He is such a joy. Now if only he would stop learning certain things at school like stupid and shut up. I do so hate that he speaks that way sometimes. We will continue to work with him on that but I guess those aren't 'bad' words, but I don't want them in his vocabulary.

My boys may look alike, but they are different. It is amazing how different they already are. Luke will tell you when he doesn't like something. He likes his swing, but Blake loved his swing. He would spend hours in there and fuss when you got him out. Luke not so much. He doesn't like it to move most of the time, but because of his reflux he has to sleep in it. Luke still wakes up all night long usually between 2-3 hours between feedings. Blake was already sleeping through the night. Luke is such a sweet baby though. He just likes what he likes. He likes sleeping in the rocking chair with one of us. Blake liked that too. :-) Blake loved his car seat, but Luke does not. Blake reminds me every time Luke fusses that he still likes his car seat. hehehe Luke is growing so big so fast. He changes everyday. He started rolling over from belly to back at 2 weeks and he still does it. I think it will stop when he starts getting a little chunkier. Blake did that too. I can't believe he is almost six weeks old. I am going to turn around and he is going to be 4 like Blake. I am so blessed. Both Blake and Luke are perfect. I have a wonderful husband and perfect boys. I can't ask for anything more.

Here is a pic of Blake and Luke with Santa. Blake was so funny. He had his verbal list in the car memorized, but froze when he saw Santa. He didn't remember all the things he wanted. He said, "UMMMM.. Let me think about it.... UMMMMM.... Let me think..." Then he listed a few things. He also spoke for Luke and told him what his baby brother wanted. Baby toys of course! Then we walked away and a few minutes later he said he forgot to tell Santa something. I thought he remembered something he wanted but he ran up to Santa and said, "Merry Christmas Santa!" My little boy forgot to tell him Merry Christmas. What a sweetie!

Wow! The difference!

So Luke was having some 'tummy time' in the floor this week and I got the idea to have Blake lay beside him to compare. (Yes, Luke fell asleep during this time. hehehe) I cannot believe how HUGE Blake looks next to him. I cannot remember Blake being that little. Where did the time go??? Here is my picture that compares my perfect boys.

The story of Luke's arrival

It all started on Monday, November 9th. I went to the doctor for my weekly check and had no progress. I was dilated to a two and 50 percent effaced which I had been for the previous two weeks. I was finishing dinner with Blake and Scott and decided I needed to make lunches and do all of my nightly chores. I went to the bathroom and then called my friend Lisa. I was talking to her and chatting away when I got all wet down there. I was a little flustered. I had coughed and just wet myself. I thought nothing of it and changed my clothes. I continued my conversation with Lisa and then it happened again. I told Lisa that I was wetting myself and she asked if it could be something else. It dawned on me that it could be my water, but I was expecting a huge gush. I also had just been at the doc a few hours earlier... I kept talking to her and she talked me into looking it up in my book and calling the doc. I honestly thought is was too early. I was having no contractions or anything. I called the doc and he said go and get it checked out. Scott and I called my parents and threw some stuff in a bag. I was thinking we were coming home so I didn't really think about what to pack. It was Scott's idea to pack a bag. I forgot! I went to the hospital thinking I would be giggled at and sent home and I told everyone that same thing. Blake got super excited when I told him where we were going. My parents were meeting us at the hospital just in case. I got there and they did the little test they do and sure enough it was my water breaking. It was a leak at that point and I had to stay in the hospital. I was dilated to a three and 75 percent effaced. So I was in labor! The nurse said that I would be having the baby by the next day because they won't let you go more than 24 hours after the leak starts. The contractions must have heard the nurse tell me I was in labor because that is when the contractions started. LOL Blake was so cute. He came in the room again and sat in the rocking chair and said he was sitting there until Luke was born. It took some convincing, but we finally got him to go home around 10pm with my Dad. We told him Papa really needed him to take him home so he could go to sleep. He was a little concerned about leaving me in the hospital though. He had a few tears. My Mom and Scott's Mom stayed at the hospital. At this point, I was calling everyone I needed to call. I was not expecting this yet. I had to call my sub and everything! My phone and Scott's phones were ringing off the hook and who knows how many text messages I sent! I was only 36 weeks and 5 days that day. Way early! I continued to try to sleep all night but it was no use. The contractions kept me up. The nurses told me I should get an epidural and my mom was really trying to get me get one, but I was worried it would stall my labor and progress so I said no. They told me that the doc would give me potosin if I had not progressed very far by 7am and I really didn't want to have to do that. I was induced with Blake and I was kinda excited about going into labor all on my own. I know its weird. LOL So I waited through the night. At one point, my mom tried to talk Shirley and the nurses into talking me into getting the epidural. hehehe I finally decided at 6:30 to get the epidural. I was dilated to a 7. Well. It's a good thing I went ahead and got one then because Luke Bradley Jackson was born at 7:31 on November 10, 2009! I pushed for less than five minutes! He was ready to join our family. It was such a great labor experience. I know that sounds funny, but it really was. Even with no sleep and working all day the day before, I was tired, but happy. Our Mom's got to come in right away and meet their new grandson. I wish Blake could have been there, but it was really early. He came in by the time I got to my room to meet his brother. He was still super excited! He got to hold him and kiss on him. He did ask if he could poke him in the eye though. LOL (We are watching him rather closely now. hehehe) Luke was 7 pounds and 5 ounces. He was 19 3/4 inches long. He was a big boy. The nurse said that he would have been over 9 pounds easy if he had waited. I had a feeling that he would be coming early, but I didn't even take it seriously. We are very lucky to have a beautiful healthy baby boy. He is perfect and we are so happy to add to our family. :-)