Fifteen Months

At this point we're half way to sixteen months but I wanted to get this up anyway!

At fifteen months, my favorite things are:

• when he takes my head in both hands and lays his cheek against mine
• when I say, "be gentle" and he takes his hand and strokes my face
• when I open a book and ask, "where's the doggie?" and he points to it on every page with his high pitched, "dee!"
• when I say his name, Jackson O'Hare, and he grabs his hair (no problem, kid, I can understand the confusion!)
• when he figures things out like how to put a lid on a jar
• when he "goes to work" and grabs Daddy's lunch bag, gives kisses, then walks towards the door while waving bye-bye

At fifteen months, Jackson's favorite things are:

• putting something in his mouth if I tell him, "don't put that in your mouth"
• waking up at 4:30 every morning
• opening cabinets
• chasing the dogs
• running in the backyard, at the park, or on the beach
• watching baseball or golf
• the Red Sox
• booksbooksbooksbooks

He's still nursing two or three times a day and I still have no intention of weaning him at this point. One reason is that it buys me a half hour of quiet time in the rocking chair between 4:30 - 5:00am. If you don't think that thirty minutes is gigantic then you don't get up at 4:30 every morning. Plus, he still occasionally wakes up in the middle of the night (not that often anymore, thankfully), but five minutes on the boob is an easy and quick way to calm him down and put him back to bed. Plus plus, there's really no reason to wean except convenience and since breastfeeding is pretty convenient for me I figure I'll go with it until it isn't.

I really wish we had neighbors or family close by with kids similar in age. I think he's missing out a lot there. It's going to be very weird at first, not having him at home, but I'm really excited for him to start school in the fall.

I'm so glad that he's a happy, funny, energetic kid.

April Favorite Recipe - Deconstructed Pesto Salad

All through the winter I have to force myself to eat a salad. Most of the time I don't bother - I just keep roasted vegetables on hand and mix them with whatever meat I'm in the mood for. I eat a lot of stews. A warm bowl of warmth is all I want.

In April I finally got my craving for salad back. I'd say that's the true start of Spring! When I go through a gigantic tub of greens in five days, by myself, it's a good thing.

I still roast vegetables - broccoli, baby carrots, zucchini are Jackson's and my favorites - but my meals are pretty much all salad, all the time. In fact, I usually just throw the roasted veggies on my greens, top it with some chicken/beef/sausage, drizzle with olive oil and call it a meal.

The past couple weeks, though, I've had a favorite salad. I call it a deconstructed pesto salad, which should be self explanatory in a minute.

Deconstructed Pesto Salad

Greens of choice (I like baby kale or arugula for this but you can use whatever you like)
a few basil leaves
walnuts
Parmesan or Romano cheese
lemon juice
extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
protein of choice


Fill your salad bowl with greens. (My "salad" bowl is basically a mixing bowl. I eat big salads.) Rip a few basil leaves into it. Grab a handful of walnuts and throw those in. Spoon on the cheese. Squeeze in some lemon juice. Drizzle with a generous amount of olive oil and season with salt and pepper to taste. Top with your protein and mix well.


Delicious salad!

Warm and Sunny

This is the time of year when I start to feel sappy and full of cliches. Basically I feel lucky and happy and excited because when it's warm and sunny outside I FEEL warm and sunny. I wrap up work and Jackson and I immediately head out for a walk. Sometimes we just walk for as long as he'll let me. Sometimes we stop at the park. Sometimes we stop at the beach. Then we get home and hang out on the front lawn for a bit.

Work is going well although one of my projects had its hours cut back. On the bright side I'm hardly working any nights and very little on the weekend.

I have a ton of stuff to look forward to this summer - friends visiting from across the country and across the world, family coming to town, the wedding, taking Jackson into Boston for day trips.

Jackson is so much fun with all his animation. He's running everywhere, telling wildly dramatic stories, listening intently to what we say and, of course, SPORTS.

All things sports but especially baseball and especially Red Sox. If you say Red Sox, he starts clapping, and then Boom! You're dead from the cute. Sorry my son killed you.

At least it will be warm and sunny at your funeral.

On The Go

Always!

Perfection

Worst sleeper ever. And yet, this kid is pure perfection.