Welcome Camryn Faye!

Brittany had her little girl, Camryn Faye, on Thursday!  We are so excited for them and cannot wait to meet Jackson's beautiful little cousin.  It is hard to believe she is already here and that our little girl will be here in two months...so much can happen in just a few years. 

Brittany and Camryn are doing well and enjoying one another no doubt.  It is hard to believe Jackson was ever so small, but each stage is so special and fun, so it is nice to know that it just keeps getting better as you go.  Speaking of Jackson, he is growing fast and makes me laugh more and more. It is fun to watch him start communicating with us more and more and slowly learn knew things...I have gotten him to hold our hands when we are in the parking lot and start to at least attempt feeding himself with a spoon. I figure both of those skills will be helpful when I have another little one in tow. He also loves everything of Brandon's from his sunglasses to his tennis shoes. If he is quiet for any period of time, you can bet he is trying on something that belongs to Daddy!
We went to Austin last weekend for the day to celebrate Stephen's 18th birthday. It was really nice to visit everyone and Jackson was extremely excited by the birthday cake and candles. I guess this one was much more impressive than his with the additional 17 candles to blow out. 
Running around Paul Brian and Erin's house is always fun for Jackson. 

Other than that, we are plugging along. Brandon started his second semester and has had a long weekend of class to kick it off.  His February schedule is packed, but then it should ease up.  And I am 31 weeks pregnant and counting. I feel pretty good, but carrying our 23 pound son around can be a bit tiring at times. We have both been sleeping 10 hours or more a night the last week or so. I took Jackson to my appointment last week so my doctor could see him, and he definitely enjoyed that.  When we listened to the baby's heartbeat, Jackson started dancing to the beat...pretty much the cutest thing ever. Hopefully this is a sign of how he will handle having a little lady in the house.  

Christmas and New Years

Well, I am a bit behind with updates, so here is a recap of the holiday season.  We went to Midland the weekend before Christmas and stayed through Christmas Eve. Jackson had all kinds of fun visiting family, opening presents, and basically playing all day.  We stayed with Brittany and Bubba which gave Jackson a chance to play with their dog, Harley....pretty much made his Christmas and helped prepare Harley for the world of babies since their little girl is due in less than 3 weeks!  We had a great time celebrating with family and were able to hang out with some friends as well while we were there. 

We headed back to San Antonio on Christmas Eve and spent a couple days there with my family over at my sister's house. Then we just rested until New Year's Eve when we headed to Austin for my friend Kristen's wedding.  Jackson pretty much tore up the dance floor at the wedding to say the least. At one point he ended up in the middle of a circle of about 30 people, showing off his moves....not a shy bone in his body apparently. He also has the same love for chocolate that I do because when giving the option of the bride's or groom's cake at our table, he picked up the chocolate to stuff in his mouth completely disregarding the other. That is what I am talking about...good taste in food already. Kristen was beautiful of course, and she and Barrett rode off on their bikes from the reception which was very fitting. 

My brother's birthday is on New Year's Eve, so we stayed with them while we were up there and celebrated his birthday on Saturday with my family. They have been in Argentina for two months, so it was really nice to catch up with them. And Jackson thoroughly enjoyed the ice cream birthday cake he had as well. And now we are home recovering and jumping into the New Year! 

Jackson in his Santa outfit

Opening presents withe Uncle Brent's assistance

Aunt Brittany and baby Dobson looking very festive

Jackson and Grandmommie in their matching santa hats

Breakfast at El Burrito. Jackson ate as much as I did.

playing at Grandmother's house

Christmas Morning with daddy

Jackson's first back pack became a dancing partner.

We had a little accident on Christmas, involving Jackson and the pavement outside my sister's house. He had a big knot on his head and a bloody nose. He didn't cry, but he sure was looking rough.

A rare picture of all the Pearson counsins

Granny and Jackson before Kristen's wedding

More pictures at Kristen and Barret's wedding in Austin. 

Jackson stuffing ice cream cake in his mouth at Paul Brian's birthday party. 

Just Like Daddy

Why is Jackson grabbing his face? Well, while I was cleaning the kitchen, he apparently discovered the mini-cinnamon rolls that we had in a box by the table and decided to stuff as many in his mouth as possible before I noticed how quiet he was.  And I actually found him like this not once, but twice because he stashed some under his stroller for later. Lovely. Yet another way in which he is becoming just like Brandon, who cannot turn down a good cinnamon roll ever.  These days, if Brandon does something or has something, Jackson is right there waiting to copy him. Brandon always wears shoes in the house, so Jackson always brings me his socks and shoes in the morning. Brandon puts on aftershave and brushes his hair, so Jackson want his hair brushed and a little bit of aftershave on his neck.  And, although I was not around Brandon growing up, I can only imagine that he tested every limit out there, so of course Jackson must do the same. He climbs on things and gets into things, all the time watching to see if we notice and react.  Brandon says he is not sure whether Jackson wants to be like him more or Brandon wants to be like Jackson more. It is probably a toss up!

Posing with Uncle Tim at Emma's birthday party.

As for life in SA, we are pretty low key. I came down with a little bit of what Brandon and Jackson had the week before, so we didn't get out too much. Brandon was finishing his last week of school as well, so he was busy with papers and exams. But now we are home free until January!  I helped throw a bridal shower for my friend Kristen this weekend which turned out really well, and then Jackson and I headed back to SA for my niece's birthday party.  

Attacking Granny's glasses.

We did manage to go see Santa last week as well. Jackson was more interested in the balloons they had up everywhere, so he spent his few moments with Santa, pointing them out.  But at least he was happy because I cannot say the same for the kids in front of us...one refused to get near Santa and the other was good for 5 seconds when they gave him a candy cane and then promptly melted down once he realized who was holding him. Oh the joys of visiting Santa.

Gruene Christmas

This is a rare picture these days considering Jackson is on the go all day every day, but last week was a bit different.  Monday after Thanksgiving, both Brandon and Jackson came down with a cold and stomach bug combo, so it was a week of fevers, exhaustion, and kleenex galore. Luckily I did not catch it at the same time because Jackson wanted to be held all day and kept falling asleep on me at random. Poor baby...I am just thankful that this is not the norm. 

On Sunday, they were feeling better, so we went to Gruene to check out their market days and Christmas decor. It was beautiful weather and there was plenty of room for Jackson to run around as well. We picked up a few gifts and just enjoyed the afternoon.  Once our little girl and Brittany and Bubba's little girl are here, we will have to get a group picture with "Country Kringle"  as they call him in Gruene.  Nothing says Texas like Santa in chaps and a cowboy hat. 

Jackson relaxing and exploring the grounds.

Jackson was standing outside of Gruene Hall and dancing to the music coming from inside.  Apparently he likes live country music.