All about my little man.

I realize it's been ... forever ... since I have really posted any pictures of Jaxon and/or talked about how he's doing, his development, etc. Don't compare me to other Mom's who do monthly posts about their kids ... I admit I have done terrible on that, this summer has been insane floating from house to house for a week here and a week there and I honestly know I have missed out on so much of his 'growing up' this summer because of life circumstances. The good thing is, I have 2 months before baby #2 arrives to obsess over him and spend every moment I can with him.

Here's pictures from him over the summer and what he's up to at 18 1/2 months ...

Jax ~ you make me smile on a daily basis. Your laugh is contagious, your personality gets more and more fun each day... I simply just adore you.

You are discovering new things daily. You point at things and say "see?". You are smart and are constantly observing things, just like your Daddy. You will spend forever trying to figure a toy or device out, and will not give up on it until you figure out exactly how it works.

One of your favorite things to do is to play outside. You love bubbles, swimming, going on walks, and pushing any kind of toy around the yard, though your favorite is definitely your mower. You would spend hours upon hours outside if Mommy let you. {We do spend a lot of time out there, at least an hour or two per day between our morning walks and letting you just run around!}

When asked where your "Bebo" {belly button} is, you point to it. You also know where your eyes, nose, mouth, and ears are. We are still working on 'toes' because you point to your nose when asked where your toes are. :)

You are a fairly good eater. If I had to pick your favorite food, I would say it's any kind of fruit, which is a good thing! Some of your other favorites are: cheese hot dogs, quesadillas, turkey sandwiches, PB&J, any kind of cheese, yogurt, and little weenies. You also love desserts ... ice cream and choc chip cookies are your favorite. We are working on expanding your taste buds, right now we have to 'sneak in' most meats, especially chicken. You are definitely not a fan of anything resembling chicken and most days will not touch hamburger either.

I know every child goes through their "favorite parent" stage. Right now, without a doubt, your Daddy is the man. You light up when he walks into the room and love to play with him, or even just sit with him. I don't mind at all, the time you guys have spent apart the last 3 1/2 months while Daddy was in Denver definitely needs to be made up. I know you missed your Daddy just as much as he missed you and my heart feels full now that we are all together again.

You spent a lot of time this summer with your uncles, Mason and Cooper, and your cousins Landen, Alivia, and Brynn. You LOVE to play with other kids, mostly if they are the same age as you or older. One of your favorite playmates is your cousin, Alivia. You follow her around like a little shadow!! We are definitely missing them now that we live in Texas.

You LOVE the water... a little too much, actually! We had a couple of scares with you jumping into the deep end unattended this summer, so you have lost your chance at swimming with Mommy alone, she is too scared to take you without anyone else's help. We go to the spray park a lot (no deep end there!), and you love to run around and splash in the water. You are full of life and so full of energy.

Mommy got your haircut mid-July and it got buzzed! We definitely weren't wanting it that short, but now that we're used to it, looking at pictures with your hair long throws me off. :) One of my favorite noises to hear you make is you making truck/car noises ... you are such a big boy! And it just makes me smile to hear you doing all these 'big boy' things. Most of your toys are too "baby-ish" for you, so you get bored easily while inside, hence the reason we spend a lot of time outdoors each day. We are working on slowly building your 'big boy' toy stash.

You are such a big helper! Any time Mommy needs something picked up, or Daddy needs help fixing something (ha!) you are always there to help. You understand and listen to Mommy when she says the following things to you:

- Go get your ____ (toy, sippy, shoes, etc)
- Will you put that back please?

- Can you throw this away?

- Can Mommy have your binky? (he only gets binky while sleeping)

- Pick that up, please.

- Can you wipe that up? or Wipe your nose!

- Do you have a stinky? (then he proceeds to plug his nose and make a 'gross' face)

- Can you bring Mommy a diaper?

- (I know there's more that I'm forgetting!)

You do not speak much (other than in Japanese! haha) - so we are definitely working on expanding your vocabulary. I know you understand what we say, and you listen very well to us. We just have yet to hear you respond to us, in English anyway. :)

You LOVE being read to. You bring Mommy and Daddy books to read to you, and always pick a book at night time to read before going to bed. Your favorite kind of books are the ones that have texture or something you can touch/feel, and you also love the books that make noise. (so does Mommy... haha!)

I love how you pose for the camera and say "chhhhheeeeeee" when a camera is pointed in your direction. I love your dimples, and your eyes. I love your little toes, and your fingers. I love the way you smell, especially after bath time! Pretty much, I just love you.

I love the face you make, pictured above. It is your 'wow, did you see that!!??' face. It cracks me up... it is usually accompanied by a "wooooaahhhhhhhh"!! Mr Man, you always have us smiling. You bring pure joy into our lives.

You have a "tooth-filled" mouth, finally! Your teeth were really slow at coming in for the longest time, and now all I get is big toothy grins and smiles. Your bottom 2 molars came in at the same time, and the week after your top 2 molars came in. You point to your mouth and say "owwww", that's how I always know when your teeth are hurting you.

You love to give out Hi-5's to anyone who asks for one, and you wave at anyone who makes eye contact with you! While grocery shopping the other day, every.single.person we went past you had to wave at. Then you look at me and smile, so proud of yourself. You are also so silly, you laugh even when you have no idea what other people are laughing at. I love how outgoing you are.

I hope I am always able to show you and tell you how much I truly love you. Even through so much heartache and sadness this past year, you stayed so happy and oblivious to everything going on around you. You have given me a reason to smile each day and even through the tears and pain we've been through, you are a reminder of God's grace and a smidge of His love for us. I know you are going to be an incredible big brother to the little guy coming in a couple months ... you guys will be best friends and I know you will love him. I love seeing you grow and develop and seeing your smile each morning and your wave "na-night" before going to bed each night. I cherish my times home with you, there is no other place I'd rather be than a stay at home mommy to the best boy ever.

I promise to try and be better about updates so they aren't as long next time! :)

I love you, my Mr. Man!