Janis and Jason's Wedding

We attended Troy's old friend, Jason's wedding on Saturday. It took place in Pala, which we discovered is such a beautiful part of California! Orange and grapefruit groves were scattered the valleys, along with meadows of grass and oaks, and avocado trees covered the hills. Here are some pictures from the occasion.Shortly after this picture was taken of Janis and Jason, Jackson kept saying "uh-oh" and "oh, wow," so Troy and I had to take turns taking him off to the side so he couldn't be heard. We had a photo shoot to entertain ourselves!









The wedding was beautifully simple. The decor was kept simple because the nature around the ceromony and reception was so georgeous! Troy and I decided we wanted to come back to Pala sometime in the near future.

"Oh, death, where is your sting?"

Troy's grandpa passed away yesterday. He was a Christian. I say that with great joy because we can rejoice in his death. We can rejoice that because Christ died, Troy's grandpa is in the presence of our glorious God. There is no better place to be. What an immense comfort this is in such a time of grief! Please pray that Troy's family is comforted by this reality and that their grief is met by the precious comfort of Christ.

“O death, where is your victory?
O death, where is your sting?”

The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain."

1 Corinthians 15:55-58

Disneyland

The best thing about having a Disneyland pass is that you can go for a few hours, get on a few rides, and just hang out. Troy and I got to do just that on Friday night with Jenni, Kirsty, Joey, Michael, and Genevieve. We hadn't been to Disneyland since September, so it was nice to return to the happiest place on earth! The park was decorated for Christmas, so we got to feel like it was Christmastime, even though it really isn't yet!"Wave for the camera..."Jenni, Me, and Michael ---a rare sibling photo...w/o Timmy, though :(I love this photo of Michael and Genevieve!Me, Kirsty, and JenniSilly.Serious.

The Getty Villa

Last Saturday, we went to the Getty Villa. Troy and I had gone to visit this beautiful museum of antiquities before, but the rest of our group hadn't. I really enjoyed seeing it the second time around. I love to see the gardens, and the statues of Muses are quit amusing as well. After the museum, we ate at Duke's in Malibu. I was a bit disappointed because smoke surrounded the restaurant. We couldn't see the ocean and I believe it made Jackson more ill than he already was. But, the food was great and the Hula pie was AMAZING!A happy family photo....not that we have any sad ones!Jackson's favorite part of the museum was the pool that he got to cool off in!Jackson with his Nana and PoppyJackson checked out every nook and cranny of the Getty Villa!He climbed the stairs, as well, and, in his diaper, no less!The "ocean view"...a dim reminder of the weekend fires.

A smokey Malibu sunset.

Sick Boy...

My poor boy has been sick for the last two weeks. First, he came down with a cold, (runny nose, sore throat, cough, fever), and then croup, and then another fever and a rash from his MMR shot. Boy, he's been through a lot these last two weeks! Good thing he had some good reading to keep himself occupied! :)

Falling for Jackson

Last Sunday, we dressed Jackson in an outfit that Alistair brought from Ireland when Jackson was born (he finally fits into it!), so Troy took some "fall" photos. Jackson was so interested in everything outside, Troy couldn't really get him to look at the camera very often. I still think they are cute, though!

Birthday Boy (again)!

On Saturday, we threw Jackson at big birthday party. It was a Curious George theme because that is Jackson's favorite book. He are some pictures from the big event!
Curious George was an honored guest at the party.

We had some awesome, huge cupcakes!Olivia decided that Jackson needed help eating the cake. Just before this photo was taken, Jackson fed her cake. I wonder what this means for their future? :)

Jackson gets into it......and really enjoyed it.A close up of the aftermath.Jackson opens gifts.The spread. Mmmm. We also had nachos and Little Smokies. It was so good, but so bad at the same time!Juice box or water bottle...a very hard decision for a one-year-old.Jackson playing pin-the-butterfly on George....amazingly, he knew what to do right away! Smart boy!

Thank you so much to all of you who came and made this such a special day for Jackson! We were blessed to share in this celebration of Jackson first year with you!

Birthday Boy!

On Friday, Jackson turned the ripe old age of 1. The time has gone by so extremely fast! He has become such a little boy is so little time! He is walking everywhere...no crawling for him! He says a lot of words, but his favorites lately seem to be "oh, wow" and "uh-oh." He is a smart boy. I will ask him at any time if he wants to sing a song and he will start to sing "row, row, row..." It is quite possibly the cutest thing!

Jackson had his 12 month check-up yesterday. He weighed in at 23 lbs and measured at 30 " tall. He is just above the 50th percentile in both areas. That is quite an improvement from 6 months ago! I am so glad he grew! Jackson also got five shots yesterday. I think that is one of the hardest things for a parent to watch. He did have a reaction to the Chicken Pox shot he got. It was just a rash around the area that the shot was given. It was almost gone about thirty minutes after the shot was given. The doctor had never seen a reaction like that before, so he asked us to stick around, and after 30 minutes, Jackson was given a clean bill of health! Speaking of health, Jackson got his first cold. He is a bit on the miserable side right now. We suspect it was from being around so many kids----and perhaps some sick ones----at his party. The doctor agreed that was where he most likely got it from. Green, snotty noses and little coughs are no fun---for either of us!
Well, enough about that...Jackson has been such a tremendous blessing this past year to both Troy and I. Troy posted a good blog on that subject. He mentioned four things he has learned this first year of Jackson's life. I have a list of my own:

1. God is so merciful, generous, and gracious in so many ways.
2. My husband is an amazing daddy.
3. Having Jackson to care for can make me forget about my needs. My spiritual, emotional, and physical needs matter, and I need to take time to tend to those needs in order to better tend to my family's needs.
4. There is no such thing as sleeping in once you have a little one (8 hours of sleep is a privilege!)
5. There is nothing that can melt my heart more than a little child showing that he loves me (giving me a big hug and smile, while affectionately patting me on the shoulder).

So there you have it. Now, to get to the fun part of the blog...the photos! Here are some photos of Jackson's birthday weekend!

Jackson with his one of his birthday presents from his mommy and daddy...a shopping cart!"Hello?" Jackson talking on his new cell phone.Jackson's favorite present......was so kindly given to him by our neighbor, Genny, who happens to have the same birthday.Jackson had a blast with the wrapping paper in bows!Jackson's was a bit worried about the whole birthday cake situation...

...but he soon got over it!

"All done!"

Uncle David and Jackson playing Jackson's first educational video game.
On his birthday, Grandma, Grandpa, Nonna, Uncle David, Aunt Robyn, Uncle Mike, Aunt Gen, Uncle Tim, and Genny all came over to celebrate with us. He got a lot of great gifts, and even some that we can benefit from as parents...such as an amazing umbrella stroller (Thanks, Robyn!!!). Who knew who convenient those things can be??? Jackson slept hard that night and woke up the next day to another "birthday"...