I have a cute Jack story...Uncle Ben came over last week for pizza. We haven't seen him in a while so when he came in and said "HI" to Jack, Jack looked him square in the eye and said "Uh Oh" we laughed so hard. Jack's never said "Uh Oh" before and hasn't said it since! I know some of you will find it as amusing as we did!

Jack is learning to stand with his walker. I have to help him by reminding him to hold on and by helping him open and place his right hand. I also fix his feet so he has good balance then I can let go and he's standing like such a big boy! I always clap and exclaim how good he's doing and his smile says it all. He's proud too! I can ask him to step and he'll step once with his left leg. I have to ask him again to step and then I point to his right leg and after building up the nerve and confidence he steps again with the right leg. We then throw a HUGE celebration and I pick him up and spin him around. He LOVES this and we do it over and over. He's so happy and proud to be standing and stepping. The walker is quite light (made of aluminum) and it's amazing that he's just using a little bit of support and can stand for a long time. I think he likes the view too.

I took Jack to Wal-mart to get his 2nd year pictures taken. We got a coupon in the mail for a photo session and a nice big photo package for $3.88!!! No hidden fees -- I just had to sit and let them try to talk me into buying a larger package deal. What an excellent deal! Jack was a ham (of course) and was making everyone laugh at the photo place. I think it's going to be a cute picture. We get them back on March 17th.

We also decided to trade in Jason's black Honda Civic for a MINIVAN!!! I LOVE it. It's great. I used to exclaim that I would NEVER have a minivan -- just didn't see what all the fuss was about. Well, let me tell you, I get it now! We went for groceries yesterday and it was so much easier and less of a hassle to load everything! I also don't bump my head (or Jack's) or break my back trying to get him in and out of his car seat. I can't wait for all of you to check it out! It'll be great for our beach trips this year too!

Here is a list of a lot of new things Jack is doing in the last two weeks or so. Some of these we've been working on for OVER A YEAR by now. It feels good that certain things are starting to 'click' for Jack.

• Jack can play patty cake with BOTH HANDS! Upon request…

• He can point to his nose and mouth upon request…

• NO MORE BOTTLE!! Jack has moved on to a straw sippy cup that he sometimes holds on his own for completely independent drinking!!!

• Signs for more

• Can wave bye bye

• Says “Bah” for Ball!!! Only when prompted or reminded

• Says “Bubba” for bubble!!! Only when prompted or reminded

• Is repeating sounds more consistently, like pa pa, ma ma, da da, and ba ba as well as snoring, snorting, coughing and sneezing (he finds these SO FUNNY to repeat!)

• Can pick out objects from a line up like sock, ball, binky, cup, book, paper, etc.

• He can pull to stand very well when placed on his knees

• Is crawling so fast – still on his belly

• Gets back down to sitting position from standing at the furniture

• Can cruise couch without shoes over DAFO’s still won’t budge with shoes on

• Can take steps with hands held

I took Jack to the pediatrician this morning because he still wasn't feeling well and she said he has an ear infection as well as a cold. So we got some antibiotics and hopefully he'll be on the mend soon. She said it was quite an accomplishment to make it 2 years with no infections and having this be our first prescription for antibiotics was great. So we'll be taking it easy this weekend. Jack is continuing to do well in his DAFO's. I think his muscles are adjusting because he's complaining a bit when I put them on -- but once they are on he doesn't mind them at all. I can't wait until his physical therapist sees him this week! I will keep you posted on how he's doing. Send Jack some get well vibes!!

I took Jack to get his DAFO braces this morning. He was less than happy to be at the hospital for yet another appointment but was a real trooper considering he's still not feeling well!

Not 10 minutes after I put his DAFOs on Jack CRUISED THE ENTIRE LENGTH OF THE SOFA to fetch a box of tissues. He continued to stand and pull out the tissues one, by one, by one. We have been practicing cruising for almost a year and he would get one or two steps and then his legs would stop working for him. This completely AMAZES me because I was starting to wonder if he actually had the skill -- here it turns out he's probably had the skill for quite some time he only now has the extra support (DAFOs) he needed. I am excited way beyond words right now. We still have so much to work on but boy is this a great boost when his skills were somewhat at a standstill lately -- gross motor wise that is.

Thanks for reading!!!

YAY JACK!!!

Jack seems to be feeling a lot better this morning. He's coughing some but doesn't seem to be feeling icky anymore. Last night he ate a good dinner (pizza, tater tots, mixed veggies, peaches and milk) and this morning he had 2 pieces of cinnamon toast and a Danimals drinkable yogurt smoothie. I think I have whatever Jack had...I am not feeling so well today. We canceled therapy for today and will get back into the swing of things next week. I got a phone call yesterday afternoon that Jack's DAFO's are ready and we have our appointment for fitting and instructions tomorrow morning. I am curious to see how Jack reacts to the braces. I know it will be an adjustment at first, but I have hope that he will gain balance and stability and he'll see how much they help him! I've added a new photo album called Jack's Preemie Friends -- you must check it out and see all these cuties! There are 3 right now and I will be adding more as I get them. I talk to their moms through an online forum for parents of preemies.

Jack has a cold... and I worry because the last time he got a viral thing he quit eating/drinking and we ended up in the hospital for a couple of days. He's already refusing food and drink but I was able to get a little bit in him regularly yesterday. His doctor said to keep an eye on him, but so far his slight fever (100.5) went down to normal with one dosage of Tylenol and it does not sound like it's in his chest. Please keep your fingers crossed that this passes SOON. This morning Jack is not any better or worse -- he has a close to normal temp now but his congestion seems a little worse...my mom had a huge box of ice-pops in her freezer and was kind enough to bring them over to us yesterday. The first ice-pop didn't go over well. Last night he ate pieces of a grape ice-pop from a bowl...messy but got it in! He is quite cranky but hey, I am too when I am not feeling well! He was worrying me because he really isn't hungry or thirsty but every once in a while he'll take whatever I am offering. This morning it was room temperature white grape juice and diced apples -- and nothing else! But at least it's SOMETHING! I canceled his therapy yesterday and today and hoping he's well enough for tomorrow's session. I will keep you posted!