Great weekend

We had a great weekend with Jeremy's parents coming to stay with us. Unfortunately, Jeremy's sister, Amy, got sick and couldn't come. We really missed her! We ended up going to the Montgomery Zoo on Saturday and had a great time. The weather was perfect, and Jackson has definitely got his tiger sounds down. Gggrrrrrrr. The Wade's left on Sunday morning and after church and a fabulous nap, the three of us headed to the park to play for a little while. Enjoy the pics!!!

Jackson making his "cheesey" face!

That's just my baby daddy...

Gigi and Jackson

Papa and Jackson

Taking a break at the zoo

You can't catch me!!!

Just the three of them..

Isn't he the cutest thing ever...

Jeremy and Jackson at the park

New pics

Jackson before church yesterday

You know I'm cute!

Making the cheesey face with me and Jer.

Making the cheesey face with Kellyn and Jason

Walking a mile in Aunt Kellyn's shoes.

Jacksonisms continue

Our little man has added new phrases to his ever expanding animal vocabulary. Saturday, before our disasterious 18 month photo session, I had the following conversation with my adorable son.

Me: "Jackson, what does a tiger say?"
Jackson: "Roooaaarrrr"
Me: "Jackson, what does a cow say?"
Jackson: "Mmmmooooooo"
Me: "Jackson, what does a duck say?"
Jackson: "Duck Duck"
Me: "Jackson, what does a pig say?"
Jackson: "Nuk Nuk" (I guess this is his version of oink oink. We haven't quite figured it out yet)
Me: "Jackson, what does a sheep say?"
Jackson: "Baaaa"
Me: "Jackson, what does a Jackson say?"
Jackson: "Da da"

Yes, it is official. Jeremy is Jackson's favorite person. He will now repeat this anytime you ask him what a Jackson says. It is so stinking cute, but I can only imagine that if I asked him what Mama says we would get a resounding "No No."

Highlights from our weekend

• Jackson had his 18 month pictures taken. He looked adorable, but the photographer seems to have a hard time grasping that you are asking a toddler to sit still. That is expecting ALOT from a kid, especially Jackson who is always on the run.
• I won a lavender eye pillow over at the Bloggy Giveaway from Robin Lemon. Yeah!! I never win anything and so this is super exciting for me. It is really supposed to help with headaches also, so that is great.
• We watched Evan Almighty with Kellyn and Jason for the first time this weekend (I know, it's been out forever). It was wonderful. I laughed so hard. If you haven't seen it, you have to watch it. It will not disappoint, and was so much better than Bruce Almighty.

In other news, please be in prayer for my Nanny. She has a severe UTI, and is in the hospital right now in Prattville. I guess that's it. Have a great week, and don't forget to go vote tomorrow!

My Humble Opinion

Hey everyone. Our state Primaries will be this coming Tuesday and I thought I would share a few of my opinions on our Presidential contenders before I go cast my vote. Just think...my political opinions offered free of charge to you. It really must be your lucky day! Before reading this I have to include the following disclaimer:

The opinions below are the opinions of Amy only, and are not necessarily the opinions of her fabulous husband Jeremy, although he really should be agreeing with his wife about stuff like this. Amy is a Southern Baptist, Christian, conservative Republican who is very anti-Democrat. If you don't agree with her opinions, deal with it. That's why we live in America, and that's why we vote.

Hillary Rodham Clinton. What can I say about her? I can't put into words how much I detest this woman. The only leadership position she has ever held has been to be Senator from a little state up north. Being a First Lady...Puh-lease. Other than picking out a china pattern, what difference does that make. Her and her husband have snookered their way into the good graces of those unfortunate enough to live in Blue States. Let me be clear, I am not opposed to A woman running the White House, however, I am seriously opposed to THIS woman running the White House. Mark my words, if she gets elected as President, our country will go nowhere but down. I wonder how many people have gotten on her bad side, only to end up swimming with concrete shoes? If I go missing after posting this, you know the first person to start talking too...

Barack Hussein Obama. Can Americans really vote into office someone whose middle name is Hussein? I know it isn't his fault, but seriously...Hussein. I also have concerns with his religious affliliation. His Dad was a Muslim, and apparently his church is very tied to supporting Africa, which also has it's roots in Islam. Although Oprah is a huge supporter, and we all know O has tons of fans, I can't help but hope that Oprah loses some steam on this one. Hollywood is apparently in love with Obama, so that right there should tell you something. Judging by his picture, he seriously needs to hold back on bleaching his teeth. They probabably glow in the dark.

Now for my real contenders...

Mitt Romney. Probably the most moral out of all the people running. He is Morman, which may be a little hard for some to digest. Definitely a family man, which I really appreciate, especially with politcians these days. Very good at business and seems to know alot about the economy. I don't think he has a chance, but he does seem like a really nice guy, and I line up with him on several issues.

John McCain. Former POW. Nuff said. This man could probably beat the crap out of any other nominees even though he is about 80 years old. I think he is on a roll right now, and will probably clinch the Republican nomination easily. I think he would make a good President, and certainly has a good background considering we are in the middle of a war right now.

Mike Huckabee, the former Southern Baptist Minister and Governor of Arkansas. I LOVE him. I line up with him all 99% of the issues, and he will definitely be getting my vote on Tuesday. He is Christian, and conservative, and for me, that seals the deal. I also really like the sound of "President Huckabee." It sounds fun to say, and seems like something out of a Mark Twain book. Oh wait..That's Huck Finn. Never mind.

I think that when the general election rolls around we will see...

vs.

Who do you think will end as President? All I know for sure is that if you don't vote, you don't have the right to complain, so get out the Vote!!

A storm ashore...

The National Weather Service has announced that an off season tropical disturbance has struck central Alabama. It was named Hurricane Jackson, and the damage costs have not yet been estimated. Stay tuned for further details...

How can one child manage to pull out that many toys at one time?

The guilty party... Who me?

Sitting in his carseat in the living room.

Kissing his favorite family member!

Does it get any cuter than this? I think not!!

"So which one of you is sick this time?"

That was the question asked to me when I went to our lovely Wal-Mart pharmacy and spoke to my favorite pharmacist for the 3rd time in 1 week. The answer: Me. I got the hacking cough/cold/congestion/headache/generally feeling like crap syndrome, late Saturday night and due to my blood pressure issues, there isn't a whole lot that I can take that would actually make me feel better. Because I still can't get my bp under control, I can't even take my migraine medicine. Ugh. It made for a super fun weekend! Anyways, I went to my doc again yesterday, and I have an upper respiratory infection. He gave me one of my two favorite miracle drugs in the whole wide world: steroid shot (the other is an epidural...blessings from God above). I feel so much better today and I haven't coughed at all today. Yet. Knock on wood.

In other news, Jackson is doing much better. He is back at school and having a blast as usual. He has decided that Jeremy is his favorite person in the world, and that I can't even hold him unless it is his idea. He literally turned his body to Jello when he and Jeremy got home yesterday and proceeded to wail when Jeremy put him down. I know that it is just a phase, but let me tell you. It STINKS!!! I can't stand it that he doesn't want me. You think maybe if I give him some Ice Cream tonight he would like me again? Just thinking...

For the rest of this, I am going to break down into bullet format. It will make everything so much easier.

• My favorite Sister-In-Law (affectionately known as "The Original Amy Wade") has decided to start her own blog about her and her fiance Adam. I am soo excited that I just can't stand it. Now if only I can get my sister Kellyn to start blogging...
• I made the best strawberry cake last night. Just a normal cake mix, but the icing is to die for. Here goes: 1 box of confectioners sugar, 1 stick of butter, 1 cup of chopped strawberries. That's it..just blend and smooth over the cake. I promise I could eat the entire bowl. Seriously, the cake itself can't compare.
• My Nanny is in town right now staying with my Mom. She is hilarious. She half listens to you, and then gets confused by something she hears. When I was telling everyone that I got a steroid shot, she said, "You got SHOT". Yes Nanny. I got shot today. Didn't you hear? J/K I LOVE my Nanny. She is my last living Grandparent, and she is so funny. You never know quite what she is going to say.

I guess that's all for now. Have a great Tuesday.

Update on Burgess family

I received an email yesterday that had been forwarded from the Scott Dawson evangelism organization that reported that 214 decisions for Christ were made during Bronner's memorial service this past Tuesday. Praise God!!! The Baptist Press has some of the excerpts from Rick's memorial of his son posted, and I wanted to share one of the passages from his eulogy.

Burgess said Satan miscalculated and made a mistake in attacking his family
through Bronner's death."He should have never come after us," Burgess said.
"And when I say family, I speak about this family but I speak about my
family of believers because all of you have gone into action in a way that
is making our Savior smile. If God asked me to give up a son so that some of
you will live in eternity, it is well."

Please take the time to either read this article, or go to Rick & Bubba to view the videos. They are broken down into 3 segments, and I promise your spirit will be blessed by Rick's words.

In Wade family news, Jackson started his new antibiotic this morning for his double ear infection. The medicine has the ever delighful side effect of red Kool-aid colored dirty diapers. I promise, if I hadn't of been warned about that, I would have been driving like crazy to get him to the ER. It would have scared the daylights out of me.

After staying at my Mom's for a couple of days now, Jackson has a few new words. They are:
Boat, Shark, and Mickey Mouse. I have yet to hear any of these, but Jeremy has, and Mom has. What a little monkey. I guess that's it for now. I hope you have a good day.

What else is new...

Hey everyone. I hope you are having a good week. We are still battling the crud at our house, but (hold your breath....) it seems like Jackson is finallly on the mend. BUT...he has a major double ear infection that has popped up since Sunday. The pediatrician is putting him on a new antibiotic, and wants to see him again in one month. If he still has fluid in his ears then, we will be heading back to the ENT for a recheck (and possible a new set of tubes.). So say a little prayer for our little man that his ears heal quickly and that he will be back to his normal self soon.

In other news...Jackson has more tricks that he is loving to show everyone. I seriously think that he has known these for awhile, but he is just now sharing them with us. He can find his: belly button (and yours if you are not careful), eyes, ears, hair, nose, chin, mouth, fingers, and toes. He has also learned how to do the "cheesy kiss". If you say, "Jackson, say cheeeesssseeeee, he will give you the funniest cheesy grin, and then he will try to give you a kiss. It is so funny. Everytime he does this we crack up laughing, and then he starts to clap for himself. He is too cute.

Also, please remember to be in prayer for the Burgess family. Bronner was buried yesterday, and Rick spoke at the Celebration service. The video and audio of Rick's message are posted at Rick & Bubba, and let me just say, there is no doubt that Rick was speaking the word of God. The whole family is struggling, but that are also thanking God for the short time here with Bronner. Rick's words are powerful, and his message is nothing short of an invitation to know Christ. Bronner's short life has been a led so many people to the Lord through his tragic death. If you are intersted, go to the site and hear Rick's message. I promise it will inspire you to be a better Christian. Happy Wednesday, and have a great day!

The Blizzard of 2008

Hey everyone. I am sure that if you are like us, and live somewhere in the south, you saw a little snow this weekend. It hasn't snowed here in 6 years, so obviolsy it was Jackson and Macy's first experience with it. It was so funny. Jackson wasn't sure what to do with it, and Macy kept barking at it. After he figured out that he could play in it, Jackson began to have a ball. When it came time to go back inside, he threw himself down on the front porch and kept screaming, "No No Side. No No Side." I have to say that I found it quite funny, and even took a few pictures of his tantrum.

Me and Jackson in the snow

Jackson looking adorable

Jackson on a mission

Look how stinking cute he is!!

I love this smile!

The beginning of "No No Side!!"

It continues...

I think he finally noticed that I was taking pictures

Our neighorhood

Jackson showing where his belly button is after I changed his clothes

Jackson had to go to the doctor yesterday as I eluded in my earlier post from this morning. He had a bad cough, and was diagnosed with a touch of pneumonia. Please keep him in your prayers as he recovers. Have a great week, and also remember the Burgess family in your prayers.

Pray for the Burgess family...

Please be in prayer for the family of Rick and Sherry Burgess of the Rick and Bubba show. They tragically lost their 2 1/2 year old son, William "Bronner" Burgess, this past Saturday in a drowning accident at their home.

Jeremy and I have been fans of the show for years now, and it seems weird that we both feel like we know them personally. I was in Primed with Jackson yesterday because he was sick, and Jeremy called me and told me the news. I was floored. I have never felt so deeply sorry for any family that I have never personally melt. My heart literally aches for them, and I have cried many tears over their loss. As part of the "Rick and Bubba Army" I feel like I have lost a member of my own family.

When it happened Rick was at a conference in Pigeon Forge, and Sherry was home with the kids. After a day of playing in the snow with the boys, Sherry locked the house up, and sat the kids down in front of a movie to give her time to take a quick shower. When she got out a few minutes later, she couldn't find Bronner. After searching the house, she spotted the back door open, and went outside and found Bronner in the swimming pool. They have a neighbor that is a doctor, and he was immediately called, along with 911, and Bronner later died at Children's Hospital in Birmingham.

The show was on this morning, and was such a testament to the power of Christ. Although we will never know why something so terrible had to happen, the Burgess family has made it clear that they know God is in control, and will do wonderful things out of this tragedy. Please lift Rick, Sherry, Brandi, Blake, Brody, and Brooks up in your prayers, along with their extended family, in the loss of their precious Bronner. May God give them comfort in their darkest hours....

When female Democratic Presidential nominees speak, I hear, "Blah Blah Blah."

I got this in an email and found it be incredibly true. What do you think?

Quarterback for the Packers...In a news conference Deanna Favre announced she will be the starting QB for the Packers this coming Sunday. Deanna asserts that she is qualified to be starting QB because she has spent the past 16 years married to Brett while he played QB for the Packers. During this period of time she became familiar with the definition of a corner blitz, and is now completely comfortable with other terminology of the Packers offense. A survey of Packers fans shows that 50% of those polled supported the move. Does this sound idiotic and unbelievable to you?

Well, Hillary Clinton makes the same claims as to why she is qualified to be President and 50% of Democrats polled agreed. She has never run a City, County, or State. When told Hillary Clinton has experience because she has 8 years in the White House, Dick Morris stated "so has the pastry chef".

Kohl's Schmoles

Let me share with you a little story. Way back at Thanksgiving, when we were visiting Jeremy’s family, I went shopping with Jeremy’s Mom and sister. We had scoped out the ads for the day after Thanksgiving and I set my sights on a Presto Cool Touch Griddle that was on sale for $9.99. Now, I didn’t really need a griddle, but that didn’t stop me from heading out with everyone to get my griddle. When I got to Kohl’s I found a huge stack of the griddles, grabbed one, and after looking around for a little bit longer, we headed for the checkout.

When I got to the front of the line, I found out that the griddles were only $9.99 after a $10 rebate. After I kindly pointed out to the checkout girl that the ad said nothing about a rebate, she commented that some of the ads run the day before had the rebate clause in there, but not all. Hmmm..seems a little shady to me. Maybe a bit of false advertising? Perhaps. I didn’t want to make a huge deal out of it, so I just made sure that I kept up with my receipt for rebate purposes.

3 days after Thanksgiving I mailed off my receipt, model numbers off the box, rebate form. Everything requested for my stupid ten dollar rebate. Then, on Tuesday of this week, 2 months after Thanksgiving, I got a letter back in the mail from Kohl’s with all my rebate stuff inside, saying that they could not process my rebate because “The cash register receipt you submitted does not indicate the correct item purchased, as indicted in the offer requirements.”

Let me just preface my next few paragraphs by saying that I am a nice person. I tip well. I hold doors open for strangers and little ladies. I always throw my trash away in trashcans, not on the side of the road. I always say “please” and “thank you”. I really try to be nice all the time. However, if Kohl’s was betting that they were going to keep my ten dollars because I wasn’t going to be hassled with dealing with this rebate situation, they should think again. No one is getting my ten dollars when it is MINE. Ten dollars may not seem like much, but to a family with a toddler, ten dollars means:

• ½ pack of diapers OR
• 2 huge boxes of Goldfish crackers OR
• 3 gallons of milk OR
• 5 Gerber Graduates meals

My list really could go on and on. So I will move on to my phone call with the Kohls rebate representative who might I say, was extremely rude and snarky. I will call her Gertrude because anyone that ugly over the phone has to have an equally bad name.

Gertrude: “This is Kohl’s rebate center. Can I help you?”

Me: "Hi. My name is Amy and I received a letter in the mail saying that you couldn't process my rebate request."

*long boring part where she gets my name and address

Gertrude: “What is your model number.”

Me: “There are several pieces that I cut off the box that have numbers. I am going to tell you all three of the numbers.” *me telling her the numbers

Gertrude: * in a very snappy tone “None of those numbers are in this rebate. Do you not have the box there in front of you?”

Me: *Biting a small piece of my tongue off to keep from yelling at her “Mam. I’m at work right now. And believe it or not, I didn’t bring my Presto griddle to work with me today.”

Gertrude: “Maybe you should just call back when you have your model number.”

Me: “No mam. I am taking care of this today. I have my receipt and it says Griddle1234567. My model numbers off my piece of the box also say Griddle1234567.”

Gertrude: “They can put anything they want on those receipts.”

*This went on for 5 more minutes before I finally convinced her that I was telling the truth and that I was the proud owner of a Presto griddle. After that was established, her tone was considerably friendlier and she was so helpful. Shocker there huh???

Jeremy always says that he doesn’t want to get on my bad side. I promise that most of the time, my bark is worse than my bite, but I just can’t stand being taken advantage of. Gertrude better be glad she didn’t mess with me when I was pregnant. I was a hot mess then!! I wonder how many people out there shopped at Kohl’s, filled out their rebates correctly, and Kohl’s is just betting that they won’t take the time to resubmit their rebate. So if anyone out there needs help getting a backbone when dealing with corporate America, give me a call, and I would be happy to share some of mine.

Happy Birthday Jason!!

I want to give a big birthday shoutout to my brother-in-law, Jason. He is Kellyn's hubby, and has been such a wonderful addition to our family. He is absolutely hilarious, and you never quite know what he is going to say next. He is great. Jason got his degree from seminary back in the summer, and is now a counselor working with troubled kids at a facility in Montgomery. We are so proud of everything he has accomplished, and know that God has huge things in store for him. We love you Jason!!!

In other news, for the 2 or 3 people out there in blog world that actually care about this, my blood pressure medicine got adjusted on Monday with my visit to my neurololgist, and this morning I got the bp reading of 115/70. Whoooo-hoooooo!!!!! Now, let's just see if I can keep it this low.

Have a great Wednesday!

Jacksonisms

I have to share a cute conversation that I had with Jackson this morning. It brought such a smile to my face. I am seriously crazy about this kid!!!

Me: "Jackson, what does a tiger say?"

Jackson: "GGGGrrrrrrr"

Me: "Jackson, what does a cow say?"

Jackson: "Mmmoooooo"

Me: "Jackson, what does a duck say?"

Jackson: "DuckDuck"

The following pictures are from Mississippi this weekend. We had a great trip, and Jackson discovered that his favorite outside toy in Mississippi is the riding lawnmower, and his favorite inside toy is the tread mill. If only his mother could say the same thing..

Jeremy, Jackson, and Papaw

Jackson loves music and his Papa

Saying goodbye and taking a quick nap

Jackson and Papa

Papa, Jackson, Gigi, and Mimi

Jackson checking out Benj