Happy Valentines Day!

2.15.08

Hello Everyone,

We hope everyone is enjoying a very happy Valentines Day. The Spiess household sure did. We all hung out together and loved on our little Valentine- Mr. Jackson.

Jackson received a card from mom and dad that plays music and of course he danced to this card for probably 30 minutes. It was so much fun to watch. He of course had a gift to open which was from his Great Grandma Shepard, which was one of the toddler laptops. However, we do have to chat with our son about not using a Dell Laptop- Ha Ha!

We are happy to announce that we are still healthy. We pray we stay this way and we pray that all of you do too. As you probably know, the flu is horrible this year. We also were updated that they have seen lots of cases of RSV at the area hospitals but at our last doctor's appointment everyone was real concerned about the flu. We were informed Jackson's Synagis shots will continue into April as of right now. This is fine with us as long as long as he keeps getting them.

Well, we have lots to update everyone on as we left out the month of January so we are playing catch up once again.

Jackson was blessed to get some more visitors in January. Nana and Papa came down so we were able to do a late Christmas with them. However, we wish their visit was a relaxing one where we could all just hang out, but Dad had another trip to Taiwan and mom was 25 weeks along with Tyler so.....we utilized our resources. It was so neat though as they were in town close enough to Christmas that we were able to extend the festivities and open Nana and Papa's gifts with them.

Then we get another big surprise.....Jackson's HG's (Honorary Grandma's) were able to pay him a visit from January 10th through the 13th. Of course they received the laundry list of precautions before coming and we can't thank them enough for being soooooo very careful when they were down here. They were so good about changing clothes, showering and washing their hair, and making sure that once they touch something they wash their hands before touching Jackson! Thank you HG's! We can't wait for you to come on down again.

Jackson of course spotted some more gifts under the Christmas tree which mom still hadn't taken down yet. Jackson was lucky as most these gifts were for him from his HG's and Jackson did get his HG's some very nice Crocks to wear in the house since they can't wear their shoes in the house. The best part of this is the little prince helped HG Sara Jo put her slipper on. We like to call him prince charming now. Then Jackson received his tooth fairy pillow from HG Pam and he loved to give Pam gifts to help her open. He just kept bringing her one gift after another. We are glad he is so good about sharing especially since he doesn't get around any kiddos...to share yet.

Nana and Jackson kicking back and having a drink!

Jackson's Nana and HG's took Jackson out to Town Lake for a stroll. All four women (Nana, HG Pam, HG Sara Jo and pregno Mom) all managed Jackson rather well...or maybe we should say, he kept us under control. Then we met up with Papa who saved the day as mom left the house with bottles and diaper bag but forgot the baby food for his dinner-way to go mom..We also walked around the Domain shopping center which is a great place for us as we can stay away from people yet we get out of the house...Parks are also a big hot spot lately. We stay away from others but enjoy our little family party in a secluded area of the park.

Jackson also received the very needed 1st real haircut from Sara Jo. Sara Jo knows what she is doing and did an excellent job. In fact we are about due for another haircut and mom is going to try and tackle it herself. Last time mom and dad did this though...it wasn't a pretty site. Jackson must have just not been in the mood for a haircut when mom and dad made their attempt. Luckily he was pretty good for Sara Jo.

Jackson is big on not having anyone mess with his face. We often wonder if it isn't because he had so much stuck to his face during his NICU days for so long that he wants to keep all hands and objects off the face. I can't blame him one bit. We are glad that he loves kisses though and "fuzzy" face rubs (a daddy and papa treat to J) since they have the facial hair. He likes to brush his teeth and comb his hair and will let you help him with that, but you do not dare wash his face off without a little fight and then back to the haircut...well we need Sara Jo back down here.

Some of nana and papa's new experiences with Jackson included how much Jackson loves his Hokey Pokey-he turns himself around- and while everyone was down here Jackson loved to help them mop the floor. He also showed Nana and Papa how he likes to UNfold clothes : ) We are so thankful that nana and papa took care of Jackson for a few weeks with mom while daddy went to Taiwan for another business trip. It helps out so much.

We sure do miss having people around and enjoyed being able to get visitors. We never know if we are doing what is best for Jackson and the fact that he stayed healthy with visitors made us feel good. We know we can't relax too much but it sure was nice to not be totally isolated from people.

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Development and PROGRESS - ALL Positive! Thank you GOD!

On January 23rd, Jackson gets to visit Treehouse Pediatrics again for a Synagis shot! Although I hate to see him get the shot, I am very thankful for his shot. The poor little guy is much more alert as to what going to the office means so he does get worked up prior to the shot. Immediately following his shot- mom and Jackson cuddle and once the 1/2 juice ; 1/2 water bottle is in site we are good to go...

On January 28th, we have our 15 months visit at 16 months of age...At this visit Jackson weighs in at: 21lbs 13 oz (10% for his real age)!

His Head measures at 46 cm which is 10-25% for his "real" age.

Height: 31 1/4" which is 25/50% for his real age.

Our big boy! Can you believe this 1lb 15 oz; 14 inch long little man is now this big! Thanks to everyone's prayers...

Jackson continues to get more teeth in and is growing. He is running all over the place, riding his tricycle all around, finally eating big boy food- whatever mom and dad are eating (pasta is currently the favorite) and yes, we are getting into some uncharted territory of Jackson showing more of his wonderful personality. The most recent incident was Sunday when Jackson bit his mom after she had to take the cell phone charger away. She asked him to choose another toy and he grabbed her hand and bit it. Needless to say our little angel had to do "time out". He also started dumping of the food over the Highchair move and then laughing. We have to admit...it is so hard not to laugh when he does this. We are doing pretty good at looking away if we think we may laugh or can't keep a "stern" look when trying to discipline, but tonight well, it was a challenge.

We can't thank everyone enough for everything! We are so very thankful to be where we are today. We thank God each and everyday. We also are very thankful that baby Tyler is still happily baking inside mom at 30 weeks along. We pray for 10 more weeks but every day is a blessing.

Love,

Kyle, Erica, Jackson and Tyler