and the walkin' man walks ...

jack's walking is really coming along. we can barely get him off his push toys. he wants to push those cars around even when he's so tired he can barely keep his head up!

and he is taking more steps in his "freestyle" walking. today he made it from the corner of the kitchen to the couch in the family room -- that's almost 20 steps (for jack's little legs, anyway).

mommy was able to capture a quick snippet of the walking, but in this instance jack did not get very far before falling. it's hard because every time he sees the camera, he starts crawling so he can get over to it and try to grab it as quick as he can. he is still a lot faster on four legs than on two!

and if you can't see the embedded video, you can click this link to go to youtube and watch it there.

growing up so fast

with only a week until jack's first birthday, mommy is feeling a little verklempt and nostalgic that her little baby is not a baby anymore.

i mean, we're not quite to "little jackie paper" status yet, but jack does seem to be most interested in casting off his baby ways and baby things in favor of more "grown-up" pursuits. he watches the big boys at the pool like a hawk. and, pretty soon he will be getting rid of his bottles.

but for now the morning bottle is one of our most cuddly times, when jack is willing to be a baby for just a few moments longer.

the difference between boys and girls

well ... there are several.

but one big difference occurred to me yesterday.

mommy and jack were playing in his room. he was interested in a little beanie bear that my cousin's husband had gotten for him. we were taking mr. bear on and off the shelf, walking him around, etc. then, mommy started playing a game where the bear was giving kisses to jack. he liked that.

when mommy handed the bear over to jack so he could make it give kisses to mommy, he instead put it on the ground and started whacking it with a drum stick from his band set. we went from a sweet, gentle game to a wild one in the blink of an eye.

and it was then i reaffirmed, ah yes, this is what it's like to be the mother of a boy.

hot pursuit, part 6

welcome to the season (and probably series) finale of the critically acclaimed* dramedy hot pursuit, starring john j. mershon, featuring dr. sgt. floyd boyd pepper jennings mershon, and introducing mrs. janis the panis jennings mershon.

in this episode, our hero, "jack skywalker" chases the villian, "darth floyd." somehow the dastardly obsidian feline escapes.

will our hero ever catch the villain? we may leave you hanging ... but if hot pursuit ever runs again, tune in to find out -- same jack-channel.

if you have trouble watching hot pursuit as it's embedded in this blog, you can click on this link instead to watch it on youtube.

*critics are jack's grandmothers and have not been paid for their endorsement of hot pursuit. they may, however, be compensated with jack snuggles.

waiting for hot pursuit

unlike godot ... it will eventually show up.

please stand by ...

but mommy is busy with rose garden press conferences and emergency funding bill votes, so until that's done, the season finale of hot pursuit will not be ready. i am my own aaron sorkin.

thank you for your understanding and your continued viewing of hot pursuit.

super jack

of course mommy and daddy think jack is super ... but here's proof:

more cute swim pix

jack and his daddy testing the waters:

mommy dries off her little land shark:

class photo (the little girl in green, bottom left, was jack's swim girlfriend):

jack had such a big day saturday that he fell asleep in the car and slept in the driveway for almost 1/2 an hour!

but he sure woke up happy!