The longest blog ever!

First and foremost I have to tell about Jackson's latest achievements ( I am his mom after all). At 14 months old he is walking! It was so funny how he had to decide on his time that it was time to walk. He's amazingly agile to have such a pot belly!

I have mentioned before that Jackson is all boy. These pictures tell all. Jackson and Mark were cleaning up the barn and playing on their tractors.Just a cute shot I couldn't resist throwing in.

Another first was Jackson's haircut. He wasn't crazy about it as you can tell.

And I know you won't believe it but I don't feel that I was able to capture just how wonderful our holidays were with our friends and family. It's is truly amazing how blessed we are with so many that care about us. There was also such a spirit of worship throughout the Christmas season-this also was such a blessing. Here are a few shots of family and friends. This is Mark's aunt Lyndal and uncle Glenn along with one of our family friends Ann Boswell. These are some of my most favorite people, what I want to be when I grow up! Great Christian people all with a love for travel...and having fun! Jackson with uncle Glenn-one of his favorite people.

Jackson at Beppie and Bo's house looking for the kitttttttyyyy!
Jackson, Cousin Will, Beppie, and Mark with the boys playing a duet.
Jackson and Pop-do you see a resemblance?
Jackson and Bo
The fam

Kicking off the New Year with the Dawgs and the Watkins family at the River in Blue Ridge! Thanks Mom and Dad for such a fun getaway with the Talleys. What memories we are making!
Happy New Year everyone!

So much to be thankful for!

We are so unbelievably blessed! God has added quite a few new little ones to our family this year! Our newest addition is Thomas. He was adopted by Mark's cousin Kristen and her husband Dev just a couple of months ago. He is precious. We are so happy for them! And of course I have to brag on my niece and nephew, Charlie and Will Beckler. They were chosen as two of the miracle babies to light the Christmas tree at TC Thompson's Children's hospital. God has held them in his hand over the past few months and they are thriving! You can't tell that their Beppie and Bear are proud grand parents.haha!
And I can't leave out pics of my own little one. I am so thankful for a healthy, vibrant (good word for very busy!), loving little boy. He is a constant reminder of the goodness of God. Here he is helping me put up the Christmas tree in his little blue "jommies".

I think he actually liked the tree box better. This may be a foreshadowing of Christmas!

I've never seen a kid so in love with tractors. This is his all time favorite toy, his John Deere tractor. He literally will spend hours at a time on this little tractor. I also need to mention that I am thankful for such a hardworking and loving husband. I am so incredibly proud of him. He passed his licensure exam to teach-so praise God!

First Birthday and lots of treats!

Jackson turned 1 year old on Friday October 26th! I can't believe it has been a year. We had his party at the house. Our close family and friends came to watch as Jackson devoured (actually just played) his moo-cow cake!

Here is Jackson with one of his good buddies Elli Grace peeping over his highchair stealing a dab of icing. She's a character! Jackson received many much needed age appropriate toys for his birthday...thanks everyone! His aunt Lala, Uncle Jason and cousin Jase gave him his first red wagon.

It's amazing how our small group of friends has grown. There are kiddos everywhere!
This is some special time with his dada. Jackson loves music.

Couldn't leave this out! We were playing in the bathtub. This gave us a great idea for Halloween....
Jackson was Mr. T for Halloween. He wasn't too thrilled about it at the moment.Here I am with one of my good friends, Corey. Some of our friends from church had a Halloween party for all the kids.

Speaking of kids...please be in prayer for Jackson. He has developed some food allergies. It's very frustrating (and scary!) not knowing what he can eat without having a reaction. We saw the doctor today for blood work to determine his main allergies. Which God has used this to remind me to be thankful in all things...especially in the fact that Jackson is a generally healthy little boy...what a blessing. Also please be in prayer for Jackson's cousin, Jase. He will be having dental surgery in a couple of months.

Happy fall Ya'll

Happy fall ya'll! This is absolutely my most favorite season of the year. I can't believe the changes in my life since this time last year! Jackson is growing in so many ways. He is such a talker...can't imagine where he got that from. He is a busy little bee...but he is also one of the cuddliest little kids! He is crawling and pulling up like a wild man! Here he is getting into the cabinet. He thinks it is so funny!
We went to the county fair this weekend, which Jackson loved. He and his cousins had a ball looking at all the lights and especially the animals.

One of his most favorite things to do is play in the grass. This picture was taken on Sunday after church. He literally almost jumps out of my arms to play in the grass. He looks like such a big boy. I can't believe he will be one at the end of this week. We will definately have more pictures to come from his birthday party!

Also, please continue to pray for Mark and Stacy. They will be taking their test for licensure to teach on Saturday.

A weekend getaway

Mark, Jackson, and I had our last weekend away before I start working full time (4 days a week) next week. We rented a cabin in Blue Ridge and stayed a few days. It was a great family time just to re-group.We spent lots of time in our PJ's and enjoyed swinging in the hammock.
On Friday my mom brought my grandparents and Jase up for the day. We went to our favorite orchard, had lunch, and then spent the rest of the day sitting by the river. I think it was a sweet time for Ma and Papa.
Nee had a great time with her boys too, as usual!

The scenic Blue Ridge railway was right in front of the river, in front of our cabin. Jase loved seeing the train go by, after all that is what his beloved "Pop" drives!
I am so thankful for our family and the close-knit relationships that we have. God has blessed us in so many ways!

He CRAWLS at last!

Yes, can you believe it? Jackson is finally crawling. He is slowly becoming more agile. He definitely got his coordination from his momma's side of the family. (Steph you can understand that after seeing me try to perform cheer leading cheers in college.heehee) Anyway, Jackson is still very content. He only crawls if he really really wants something..like food or the remote control.

He is such a big boy. I can't believe he is 10 1/2 months old!

He is definitely all boy. He loves anything with wheels. He comes by it honest.
Here is Jackson with his cousin Jase. They are racing...according to Jase.
I had to throw this in. This is after devouring some of his favorites, peas and sweet potatoes. Usually dinner time transitions perfectly into bath time!

Just a side note, Mark is doing really well in school. He is in his last fall semester. Please pray for his endurance as he completes his degree and for guidance in order to know what direction he should go after graduation...what grade to teach...grad school?

Labor Day, Birthday!

I realize I'm running a little bit late with this blog from the labor day weekend, but we've all been under the weather for the past week. Thankfully we are on the mend. Anyway, what a great Labor Day weekend. It started off with three new additions to our family: Salvador, Sanchez, and Sarita. Our new fainting goat additions. They are possibly the cutest baby animals ever! On Friday, my wonderful husband of 7 years took me to the Bluff View Inn for my birthday. We had italian food at Tony's on Friday night, walked across the Walnut street bridge, and then topped it off with a trip to Clumpies for ice cream of course. We stayed at the Maclellan house in the art distric which is right over the river. It was great. And then Saturday we ate an awesome breakfast and headed home (can you tell how to win me over...food!!!haha) Saturday night my family had a big meal for me at Lesli and Jason's. All of our friends and their kids were there. We watched the dawgs sitting out under the big oak trees on the farm. It was one of my most favorite nights! This is Jackson, Mark and Nolan Barton and Landen Talley on the boodin'boodin' aka four wheeler. This is our goofy friend Jeremy Talley with a much too small helmet on after the dawgs scored. we love you Jeremy.heehee And of course Jackson had to be decked out in his red and black. It suits him well. What a fun weekend!