Just as it is hard to believe that the baby is 6, it is unbelievable that Jackson is turning 8 today. This past year has been such a neat year for him. He has really matured in ways I never expected.
In addition to being a great little paddle boarder, he has gotten really good at skateboarding. he doesn’t have the greatest balance, but he works hard {and leaves more than his share of skin on the pavement} until he improves. He just got a new custom board that he is hoping to learn lots of tricks on!
He got it as an early bday present while we were in SC, and he loves it a lot! Hopefully he can learn some tricks without too much damage!
Jackson has such a fun sense of humor that has come out in the last year. In the past he has been very literal and all of a sudden he is making jokes and they are funny! We love seeing that in our boy.
Last night we were eating ice cream and Allen and the boys were finished just as I was about half way done. I was marveling at them not having ice cream headaches when he looked at his dad and said, “She’s not one with the cream.” That kind of funny.
He has also become very responsible. He is great at making his bed, taking out the trash, letting out the dog and is even starting to fold his own laundry in addition to putting it away. These are things that we have worked with him on all along, but he is becoming so responsible in his own right too.
He is such a big big brother. He bosses his brother around like a pro, but most of the time he is just trying to get Miller to stay in line. He is also such a big brother in that he has really grown to love pestering his brother.
He adores dogs. Our dog Hank isn’t as peppy as Chele’s puppy Maggie, but he still talks to him and tries to get him to play. He named her “Snugglebunches”!
We are so happy that even though Jackson gave up any public displays of affection a long time ago, he is still very affectionate. He loves to snuggle, hug and just generally be close to us. It makes him not being able to hold my hand in public a little less painful! He has gotten so big that I often have to remind him that he hurts me when he attacks/hugs me
Jackson is still in love with all kinds of creatures. He is forever bringing home crabs, lizards, fish, octopuses {octopi?) and lots of other creatures. I think he will always be looking for critters to observe and play with.
He also loves reading. It makes me so proud that he will sit down and read a book. Not really sit and read a book for a while, but he sits and reads the whole book. Front to back. I can’t wait to get to a town with a library. I love buying him books, but I can go broke doing that very quickly!
Jackson also has these opinions that are all his own. As much as I would like to dress him cute, he insists on wearing nylon sports clothes every day. I tried hiding them and then he just wore his school gym shorts. He really likes them. I’ve come to realize that he doesn’t get to choose his own clothes on a daily basis because of the uniform, so I have to let it go and let him do his own thing. I have relented but also told him I won’t complain now about it if he doesn’t complain when I tell him he needs to wear something nice. We’ll see how that goes!
Jackson has grown so much in the last year. he drinks about half a gallon of milk a day and you can tell. He has always been tall, but now he is just BIG. Sometimes I look at him and think “He’s not going to be able to fit in a twin sized bed when we get back to the U.S.!”
Jackson has so many wonderful characteristics and it is hard to put them all down here, but I know that the coming year we will get to know this amazing boy even better and we can not wait to see what he is going to show us!
Happy Birthday Bug!
Happy Birthday to such a smart, sweet boy! Can't wait to see what the next year brings!!
ReplyDeleteAunt Chele