Fall fun...

Another weekend in pictures:

Playing in the leaves


At the MN Zoo


Carving pumpkins. Jackson did not like this, when we opened up the pumpkins and started pulling the "guts" out, he started to gag!


The final product

We found cookies that Jackson can eat at Whole Foods. They are free of the top eight allergens

Slimey and Slippery...

While we were transplanting an abundance of raspberry bushes in our back yard this weekend, I gave Jackson this nightcrawler to play around with (keeping my eye on him every second, incase he got curious enough to see what worm soup tasted like). Well he never thought to eat the worm, thank goodness, he just held it in his hands for quite some time. You can kind of see in this picture that the worm was trying to make his way up Jackson's jacket sleeve. Eventually worm made it a good way up his sleeve and Jackson didn't like these tricks, but he never dropped the worm, only kept his grip and screeched!

Allergies Tested

This morning we took Jackson to an allergist. After many many days and weeks of hives from head to toe and rashes on his face, we made an appointment with a specialist.

It was obvious to the doctor that he was an "allergy kid" and she also thought that his snoring and cough were probably asthma related. While Jackson sat on my lap and ate a Nilla wafer, the nurse did a scratch test (picture) that unfortunately didn't come out with any definitive results (a small reaction to subjects 3 and 4). After already spending an hour and 45 minutes in the doctor's office it was decided that he would go in for a blood test to get some better results and to also check in on his immune system. Jackson was a real trooper and didn't complain with any of the pokes or pricks.

The doctor also found that his left ear was infected, which I had suspected. His ear was draining yellow/brown fluid over the weekend.

While he was a great little kid, all of this got him well off schedule and feeling a bit out of sorts. Which meant for a ROUGH afternoon. After FINALLY getting down for a nap after many tears, Jackson woke up thrashing in his crib from what we believe to be a nightmare. Loads of whimpering, whining and crying later, Ron and I were plum tuckered out!

We headed to Target to get all of his presciptions filled anyway. He'll be taking Singulair every day to help control the asthma, and he's on another antibiotic for the ear infection. We also have some Zyrtec for when the allergy symptoms start kicking in. At Target, we checked out hepa filters while waiting for the prescriptions to be filled. The doctor suggested a hepa filter run in his bedroom all the time to clear out any allergens, along with special pillow and mattress protectors (the filter she suggested costs $300!!). She suggested using a different detergent, but I already don't purchase anything with any dyes or perfumes, so I am not sure that a more expensive brand of the same thing will do any good, but we will discontinue use of dryer sheets in his laundry. It's all a bit overwhelming presently and we'll be digesting this over the week and deciding on how many of these precautions we'll be taking.

The blood tests will come back in a week, and we will have a follow up appointment wiht the allergist in 4-6 weeks. Whew! That's a load of information to share.

Brain cells on the loose...

There was a time not so long ago that I was pretty much on top of it. I didn't need to be reminded of doctor's appointments or work meetings. I never locked myself out of the house or my keys in the ignition while I stood outside peering in. I didn't misplace my car keys, my sunglasses or my mittens or even an entire book of stamps. I mostly knew what was on my calendar for months at a time and I didn't need to keep a daily lists.

Since having Jackson all of this has changed. Now, a day isn't started without a list made. I can tell myself to stop at the gas station on the way to work as I pull out of my driveway, but forget by the time I come upon the nearest gas station just two miles down the road.

So, this weekend's misstep was no surprise, and the thing that managed to remind me of how forgetful I am these days, was also ridiculously funny, which is why I felt the need to share.

The brisk fall has started to set in, which typically means that the hardwood floors throughout our house can be a bit chilly. While I cleaned up our bedroom during Jackson's naptime I came across my Cabela's slippers and decided to slip them on my feet to keep my toes warm. I spent the rest of naptime indoors, doing homework and a bit of picking up, then I fixed a snack for Jackson when he woke up from his nap. I thought it would be fun to take the boy to Como Zoo since the weather was so beautiful. I packed up Jackson and myself into the car and zipped down 94 to the zoo. I found a good parking spot and stepped onto the road, got Jackson's stroller out of the back and flipped it open on the sidewalk. Believe it or not, it was only then that I realized, those wonderful Cabella's slippers were still on my feet. Now what?!?

There was no way we were going to drive all the way home so that I could put on proper shoes, I can't imagine the look Jackson would have on his face after I told him that it was going to be awhile before we could go in search of lions and tigers. No one seemed to notice and they were actually relatively comfortable footwear to stroll around looking at the zebras and giraffes!

The bibs in question...

I found these bibs at a garage sale over the summer and fell in love with them. With the weather getting chilly, I thought it was a perfect opportunity to show off the cutest bibs in town. However, some folks disagreed with me. Ron for one didn't care much for them, and his childcare teacher took Ron's side as well. And just when I thought I would put the bibs to rest, on the way out of school another mother commented on how "darling" his bibs were! Yay! Now before he dons these overalls again, we need consensus, take the poll in the right column to weigh in.

This week in photos...

This is Jackson's favorite spot lately. In this picture, originally just his butt was down and his feet were up in the air, he was yelling "stuck, stuck!" and all I could do was laugh.
I found this train set over the summer at a garage sale for a dollar or two, we pulled it out this week and Jackson had fun watching Thomas make the rounds.

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