First Haircut!

It's been a while since we have written a post, but as always so much has happened in the life of Jackson! The first haircut has been a debate between Bret and I...Bret wanted to wait at least until Jackson was a year old.  However, his hair was getting so long and scruffy that after watching him pull his own hair over and over Bret suggested that maybe it was time! I have to say, as cute as he was before, he's even more handsome now!

The before picture...

We took him to a kids haircut place, which was way better than anything I remember as a kid! There was a waiting area with toys, movies, and video games which Jackson loved. When he actually went back to get his haircut every kids is offered the opportunity to play video games or watch a movie during the cut. Jackson got to sit in Lightning McQueen and spent his time watching a little Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Not too bad!

Doing a great job!

He did such a great job, and only moved when he couldn't see his Mickey. When he was done, they took a picture and gave him a certificate with the picture and his baby hair attached. How cute!

All done! Handsome little man!

Also new in the life of Jackson (and the mouth of Jackson) is yet another tooth! He is up to 3...finally.  He is having a great time eating everything that Mommy and Daddy eat. His favorite is becoming cheese (good boy!) and ravioli. He seems to love everything he is given and isn't picky at all. He has also gotten really close to walking. Just today he stood on his own for a couple seconds. Not too long, but long enough that he was balancing with NO HELP! Yay little man! Uncle Johnny and Auntie Candice will be so happy if he's walking by wedding time!

2 bottom teeth

Jackson and I return to school next week, and after one random daycare day this past week he is back in the routine. He loves the other babies and exploring the room. Our social little boy! Soon it will be his birthday and I can't believe how fast this year has gone! We can't wait to see what the next month has in store for the 3 of us!

Family Travels! (Week 3)

Time to head up to the Brokish Family Reunion in St. Germain, WI!  We were so excited for Jackson to meet all his great aunts and uncles and lots of cousins! This year we had 5 little boys to play with and cuddle, and Jackson was loving it! He especially liked playing with Mac who is only 2 weeks younger. They were both relatively new to crawling around and were having a great time! We spent the week hanging out at the lake, visiting with Great Grandma, playing cards, and taking boat rides. Jackson also visited his first flea market, went on his first boat ride and spent lots of time bonding with Nana and Grandpa and Uncle Johnny and Aunt Candice.  He is quite the charmer and everyone agreed he is adorable. This week he also learned how to give kisses and say a couple more sounds, though we aren't really sure what "baba" and "ah boo" mean yet. (bye bye or bottle, maybe?)


Floating in the lake with a beverage...perfection!!

Jackson and Grandpa B

Jackson and I left the Reunion on Thursday to fly to Ft. Lauderdale, FL to meet Bret. Bret was in a wedding, and we thought it was the perfect opportunity for some family time and another state to visit for Jackson. He will have a ton of license plates on his bedroom door after this trip! After getting delayed in O'Hare (surprise, surprise) we finally made it to FL and checked in at our hotel which was right on the beach.  Jackson has never been to the ocean, so this was yet another first for him. He loved the sand and crawling in it. He also loved the tide washing up on him and going back out again. Next time we visit he will definitely be ready for sand castles!

Saturday was the day of the wedding and also Bret's birthday. We spent the morning on the beach, and got a little rain, but mostly sun! That afternoon Jackson went to his first wedding and was an angel! Rob and Karyn had an absolutely gorgeous wedding and reception and we were so glad to be a part of their weekend!

On Sunday before our flight we made a quick trip to Butterfly World where there are thousands of butterflies in mesh enclosures that fly right up to you. It was really cool to see, especially since my first graders do a big butterfly unit in the spring. Jackson was so distracted by all the butterflies flying around, he didn't know where to look! Sunday afternoon we made our way to the airport and got ready to go home. It's been an incredible trip, but we are also really excited to sleep in our own beds (Jackson especially, that pack n' play did not seem comfy!)

At the airport, ready for home!

Family Travels! (Week 2)

Our second week of vacation began in Wisconsin just in time for the 4th! We were able to take Jackson to his first Rhythm and Booms in Madison.  It was an incredibly hot day, but we loaded up the car and met my friends Julie, Tyler, Patty, Britton, and their families at the park. We were nervous about how Jackson would take the loud booms because he started crying every hour when they set one off.  Turns out by the end of the day he was used to all the noise! He had a great time playing with Julie and Tyler's daughter Ada, and even enjoyed some Culver's.  Mmmm you have to get that while you can! (Vegas definitely needs one of these!) He loved the fireworks and the planes that did a fly over. He even fell asleep half way through!

While we were still in Lodi, we made a trip to Noah's Ark. Jackson was so happy to be in the water, and even got to spend some time in the wave pool and lazy river. The highlight was going down his first waterslide with Daddy. He really liked it until they got to the pool at the bottom. That was probably a little surprising! For the 4th we made our way to Germantown to see Bret's parents. Jackson met so many more new people and was his usual charming self for the most part! He loved the baby pool that Grandma and Grandpa got him, and probably could have spent the whole day in there if it wasn't so hot and humid!

While still in Germantown, we took Jackson to the Betty Brinn Children's Museum. We weren't sure at first if he was really old enough to do anything, but he had a blast! He spent the entire time in Pocket Park crawling through logs, playing with blocks, riding a duck, drumming, picking apples, and playing the the water. He had so much fun and was exhausted! I can't wait to take him to fun places like that out here!

At the end of the week Bret flew home to go to work :( and Jackson and I got ready for week 3...Brokish Family Reunion!

Family Travels! (Week 1)

We have just returned home from a three week vacation to various places! We are happy to say that Jackson was an amazing traveler both in the car and on a plane. He amazes us with his chill attitude.

We started our vacation in Estes Park, CO where we met my parents.  The plan was to stay at our timeshare for the week and enjoy the beauty that is the Rocky Mountains.  The wildfires were concerning me a little, but they were far enough away from Estes that we thought we would be just fine. After staying a night, visiting a local winery and grabbing lunch we returned to our timeshare to see lots of smoke in close proximity. Bret found out that we were all being evacuated as a new fire had sprung up less than a mile from the timeshare. We packed up everything we had just unpacked and threw it in the car. We didn't know how long we were going to have to stay away so we made the decision to just drive back to Wisconsin instead of waiting it out.

We came from there...ick!

On our way back to Wisconsin we made a quick stop at the Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha, NE. Jackson visited with the monkeys, the fish, penguins, and got to pet a few goats too! It was HOT and HUMID but he had a lot of fun!

                                              

  After long Nebraska we headed to Decorah, IA to see Mary and John as well as Luther College where I went to school. A trip to Decorah is not complete without a stop at the chick hatchery to get your Quality Chick t-shirt (or in Jackson's case "My Mom's a Quality Chick"). You also cannot leave town without stopping at the Whippy Dip for ice cream. Or the Dippity Doo as Uncle Johnny would say!

                                               

On our way back to Wisconsin for some 4th of July fun!

Here we are!

Welcome to everything that's new with the Kressin family! Since our active little man is growing up so quickly, I am finding it hard to take time to update family and friends and facebook on the new things he is doing and saying.  This blog seems like a great way for those close to us to keep tabs on our beautiful life with an (almost) toddler.

Bret and I just celebrated our 2nd anniversary in May, and can't believe where the time went! It feels like we were just in the midst of wedding planning. Crazy what can happen in just two years!

 

Jackson Rhoads Kressin is almost 10 months old and growing up so fast! Uncle Johnny wants to groom a champion, and that he is! He held his head up at 2 weeks and rolled over at 3 weeks! He then sat up at 6 months, started crawling at 8 months, saying "dada" at 8 months, and has finally cut his first teeth and 9 1/2 months! He is the happiest baby and always has a smile for mommy and daddy. We can't imagine the days before Jackson because of all the sunshine he brings us every day!