jason's modern life

Dancing & Clapping!

2009-05-19T21:23:00.005-05:00

Here's Hudson watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse on Playhouse Disney the other morning. He was dancing and clapping and making all sorts of sounds! It was really funny! This isn't the best representation of his excitement as I missed the best part and rewound the DVR to see if he'd do it again. He did, just not as into it as the first time...

Crawling!

2009-05-19T21:13:00.003-05:00

Here's a video (poor quality at that, for that I apologize) of Hudson crawling across the floor!

Hudson yelling at Lucy!

2009-05-19T21:01:00.002-05:00

Lots to catch up on...

2009-05-04T20:02:00.004-05:00

Well, it has been quite some time since I actually wrote a blog entry, but things have gotten a little more busy around here since it's getting warmer out, etc, and a little more exciting! I'll try and keep this as short as possible..but there's a lot...

First off, in case you weren't aware, we were looking for a new home for my yellow lab, Kaia. With everything going on in my life, I just didn't have the time or energy to commit to a high-energy outside dog. I decided she needed to be out in the country, where she could just run free, chase rabbits around for hours, and just lay around in the sun, because being in the kennel all day was just not working for her. I wasn't a bad owner, I just felt my time with her wasn't near the amount of time she needed, and it wasn't fair to her.

Well that search came to an end with a Craigslist ad I posted a couple weeks ago. I was about ready to just give up the search, or at least start posting flyers around town or something. It just wasn't working. I got a couple calls, but nothing ever panned out.

I got an email from someone who had some questions about her. We talked on the phone one afternoon, and their situation was perfect for her! They were looking for a dog for their acreage that would chase away rabbits and deer that came close to their newly planted trees, on top of just wanting a family farm dog. PERFECT! So we exchanged emails with questions and answers for a week or so, and they said they'd like to meet her. I was so excited, the perfect situation for her was going to work!

They came on a rainy afternoon last week, which wasn't the greatest of conditions. After more questions and playing with her a little, they said they needed some time to think about it, because they really wanted an Irish Setter. Mel and I both had a bad feeling about it after they said they wanted a couple of days to decide. Not more than two days later, he called me with an offer for her and all her stuff! We negociated a price and the deal was made! I was so excited for her, yet terribly sick and saddened at the same time. I had to keep thinking to myself that their house was where she was meant to be. After all, I had had her since she was only a couple weeks old. She was like my kid or something.

He came yesterday (Sunday) afternoon to pick her up along with all her stuff. It was, and still is, like I sent a child away to college. They keep me up-to-date with emails of how she is doing, what they are doing with her, etc. It is REALLY nice of them. I didn't sleep very well at all last night, just wondering how she was adjusting to her new home. Sounds like it went pretty well, considering all she's been through. We had some great times, she was an EXCELLENT dog, and I'll never forget her. All in all, it was the best thing that has ever happened to her, and for that, I am extremely happy for her, and her new family.

Now, *sniff* I'll tell you some happy news. Hudson is crawling!!!! Finally, the little guy decided he knew how, and isn't doing it a lot, but anything is enough! I pulls himself around on the floor a lot more than he crawls, but he has it figured out!

AND he has two teeth...

Also, he is pointing at everything, which is really cute. And he shakes his head "no" all the time, and I think he is actually trying to dance, not say "no". It is super cute as well!!

He loves being in our front window as well, pulling the curtain out of the way so he can see out, and just staring out at the neighborhood. He could do it all day long if we let him I think!

We also took him to his first Twins game a few weeks ago. He loved it! He just looked around at everyone and everything and was not crabby at all!
We're taking him again Memorial Day Weekend to a night game, hopefully he won't be crabby at this once since it starts around his bedtime....

I guess that's it for now, he's growing up so fast!

Peek-A-Boo!

2009-04-25T15:03:00.003-05:00

Photos!

2009-04-01T20:54:00.000-05:00

Roller Coaster

2009-03-26T21:12:00.003-05:00

Well the last two weeks have been interesting to say the least....Hudson had another double ear infection, so he was a real happy camper for awhile. We took him to the doctor after he lost his appetite and was generally fussy. Bingo, we should know by now exactly when he has one of those!

Then, during his infection, we had been thinking that he ACTUALLY was teething. (We have been thinking he was teething since he was 2-months old) So to add to his pain and suffering, he was cutting teeth (or so we thought we had finally figured it out.)

THEN, he spiked a fever of 103.8 on Sunday night and was not sleeping at all, so we thought his ear infection was back, and took him in on Monday. His ears looked fine (phew!) but he had come down with a viral infection of some kind, and we just had to rotate Tylenol and Motrin to keep him comfortable and his fever down.

We made Hudson's first trip to Aurelia this past weekend and he had a lot of fun playing outside and riding in the stroller (it was 74 degrees out or so). He has been quite a trooper through all of this. For the most part during the day you can't tell he's sick. It is at night that he is miserable, and so are his parents :(

THEN, Wednesday night during his bath, we noticed that he has a tooth coming in, and it was cut all the way through! How exciting! Hopefully now that it has cut through, he will sleep a little better!

Swing! Swing!

2009-03-16T20:31:00.004-05:00

Hudson and Mel headed to the park today since it was SOO nice out (around 68 in Sioux Falls I believe), so Hudson got his first dose of a swing! As you can see he enjoyed it!

Welcome Anna Kay!

2009-03-11T19:49:00.002-05:00

For those of you who haven't heard, my sister Melissa and her husband Chad welcomed a new addition to the Stambaugh family this past weekend. Anna Kay was born Saturday night at 10:42 pm. She was 6 lbs 10 oz and was 19.5" long.

Mel, Hudson and I were hanging out at the mall in Sioux Falls on Saturday afternoon when my mom called and said Melissa was in the hospital because her water broke. We decided to pack up and leave shortly after, so we grabbed our suitcase and all of Hudson's necessities and hit the road by 3 pm. We made pretty good time (having to stop for feedings and diaper changes) and made our way to the hospital around 7. We made it with plenty of time to spare, her contractions were just getting painful. :)

The rest, you could say, is history, and now Haylie is a big sister! Congratulations Melissa, Chad, Haylie and Reagan on your new addition to your family!

Syllables?

2009-02-19T20:03:00.005-06:00

It seems that, as of today, our little guy has figured out how to say a few syllables. From what I heard of out of him tonight, he said "Ga" "Ba" "Deh" and maybe a few others, but no "Ma" yet (sorry Mel). I tried to capture him in the act, and you can kind of hear one or two after he drops the first toy on the ground! It's pretty exciting around here!

Family Fun Night

2009-02-07T16:02:00.004-06:00

Last night, Mel, Hudson and I went to the Avera Fitness Center (where Mel is a member) for Family Fun Night. We decided that since Hudson is 6-months old now, and that he loves baths, that it was time to take him swimming! We got everything ready to go and were off.

We slowly worked him into the water, starting on the steps. He didn't seem to get it at first, then I got in the water and started swimming and splashing around. He noticed, but still didn't get it. We finally got him all the way in the water, jumping up and down with him in our arms, and he started to have a good time. He turned out to really enjoy it! We took some pictures and video of him in the pool and they were really cute! Then, not thinking at ALL, I took the camera in with me to the locker room....

There was a locker room worker that jumped me right away. "Is that a camera?" "Yes," I said, "I was taking pictures of my son." He then asked me very sternly where I was taking pictures, who I was taking them of, etc. etc. then it dawned on me...Camera + Locker Room + Naked People = Baaaad Sitation. He then explained how I could have taken pictures that I shouldn't have, then uploaded them on the Internet and ruined people's lives. Doh! I can't believe I didn't think of that being an issue. I offered to show that all I had pictures of was my son swimming for the first time. He said he trusted me. So I went on my way, showered, changed and we left.

When we got home, I went to look at the pictures and watch the video, and mysteriously, the memory card was empty. Not a single picture was on it! I'm not sure if it was a fluke, or if there was some sort of security device that erased it at the fitness center, either way, we don't have any pictures or video to show :(. So that's my story of Family Fun Night...

RSV......dum dum dum!

2009-01-28T19:52:00.003-06:00

Hudson had his 6-month well-child check-up yesterday. He is doing great in all his developmental/social milestones. He's keeping up with his growth (even though he had lost some weight since his last check-up, he's been sick). He was 15 lbs. 2 oz. Then he listened to his breathing, and decided he sounded a little wheezy.

He had been to the doctor the week before cause he was sick with a fever/cough, and there was a few RSV cases at daycare, so we had him checked out, only to find out it was just a cold. He started to get a little better, but was still coughing, and started to sound a little wheezy so we decided to just wait until his 6-month check.

Anyway, back to the check-up. Dr. wanted to suction him out to see if that would help. It didn't, so they did the RSV test and checked his oxygen levels. Then they gave him a nebulizer treatment (its basically a giant inhaler with a fun little dinosaur mask). The RSV results came back from the lab positive, so now we have to do the nebulizer treatment a couple times a day to help him breathe. He wasn't showing any signs of discomfort or trouble breathing, so we weren't too concerned about it, and neither was his Dr. Hopefully he gets over it soon!

GLOWORM LOVE!

Hudson!

2009-01-23T21:02:00.003-06:00

6-Months

2009-01-22T20:39:00.003-06:00

Well, time has officially flown by. I cannot believe Hudson turns 6-months old on Monday! He has grown up so fast in the last couple weeks it's almost unbelievable. He's rolling over more often now, and from both his tummy-to-back and back-to-tummy. He is eating rice cereal, oatmeal and pears (he LOVES the pears). He also is making a lot more noises with his mouth, blowing bubbles, babbling, etc. And he can pretty much sit up on the floor by himself for extended periods of time! We still protect around him with a Boppy pillow and other pillows cause he does still fall every now and again. Here are a couple pictures, then I'll finally add a video of him "blowing bubbles" and trying to eat the camera. It's pretty cute!

Happy New Year!

2009-01-05T19:43:00.003-06:00

Once again, I am a couple days late on the big holidays... Of course, we have been busy, and our internet has been on the fritz so it has been difficult to get on here and type away. I don't really remember where I left off, but I'm sure we still had at least one Christmas to attend. All were amazing! It was great to see all of our family, and have a great time, and of course, show off Hudson! He's getting so big! Santa got him a jumper which he loves, and is starting to almost jump in it! He still loves sticking everything in his mouth, so watch out! We had him eating rice cereal until today (it was giving him some digestional blockage, if you know what I mean). Now he has oatmeal, and he absolutely LOVES it. He is also rolling over like clockwork (from his tummy to his back) in literally seconds every time he's put on his tummy, but can't quite get it from his back to tummy. He can sit pretty good, too. We usually have the boppy pillow around him for stabilization and safety, but he doesn't necessarily need it. We're so proud of him!

Lets see....I guess that's about it for now...One of these days I'll put up another video, but for now, here's some new pics...

Christmas Break

2008-12-22T19:17:00.003-06:00

Well, I think I took my own Christmas break, a month too early. I haven't had a post since Thanksgiving time! We've had plenty going on, so I apologize for not getting anything new on here!

Where to start...we'll just talk about Hudson, ok? He has gotten so big lately, it is scary! (Not like fat, just growing like a weed, and doing so many more things) Last week, we decided to start him on rice cereal! Yah! He had been showing so much interest in what we were eating/drinking so we decided it was time to try it. Of course he didn't really get it at first, but now he at least is opening his mouth a little for the spoon, and swallowing the rice cereal. It is pretty exciting!

The beginning of this month, we had Christmas in the Twin Cities with my family. (I know, pretty early, eh? Just how I like it!) Hudson got tons of great toys from everyone. He was really excited! He also got a swing to hang in a tree in our backyard since there isn't any parks nearby, which should be very fun! I won't name everything he got (for fear I'd probably forget something), but he got some great stuff! Thank you to everyone for his (and our) gifts.

Let's see, this past weekend he figured out how to make a noise by blowing air out his lips, while blowing spit-bubbles, know what I mean? Ya, he can do that now, and he does it quite a bit! It is really cute!

He has also been quite fussy the past week, always clingy and whiny, not really crying, not napping very good, not sleeping very good, off-and-on fevers, etc. Well we found out today that he has another double ear infection! Poor guy! He had seemed irritated, but nothing intense enough that we would have thought he was in pain! We feel really bad that it took us that long to figure it out, but I could tell today when I got home from work that he was feeling better already!

We had our little family Christmas last night, because Mel has to work Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, and because we couldn't wait any longer! Santa brought Hudson a Baby Einstein Jumper, and boy was it fun to put together, pause....Not! (Catch that Borat reference?) He seems to like it already though, which is good. He doesn't put his feet down on the ground, though, so he just looks like he's flying when he sits in it. He also got some clothes and books and things.

And I got a ladder from Mel, so I can hang his swing in the spring! Yahoo! And she got a much-deserved purse (or bag, whatever you want to call it) from Coach. I totally caught her off-guard! HA!

Well, I probably won't post again until after Christmas actually gets here later this week, so Merry Christmas to all, and all a good night!

(I just realized how much I put things in parenthesis, I cannot help it, I like them!)

Gobble 'til you wobble

2008-11-30T20:58:00.003-06:00

Happy Late Thanksgiving everyone!

We've been busy here lately, with the holiday and all...Mel worked all last weekend so myself, Hudson and his Aunt Nikki went to Rock Valley for an early Thanksgiving with Mel's whole family. He was quite a trooper, until he got tired. Then, after I finally got him to fall asleep, he woke up and realized he had no idea where he was, and needless to say, the rest of the time was pretty brutal, until we got in the car to come back, then he was fine again.

Then, on Thursday, we headed to Mel's mom's house for Thanksgiving dinner. It was a better trip, I think, because A: Mel was along, so Hudson was a little more calm, and B: there wasn't soo many people around. I think he just gets a little overwhelmed when there are a lot of people around, he'll just have to get used to it!

This weekend, Mel worked overnights Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and I was asked to go on a pheasant hunting trip with my friend Moose by Chamberlain so Aunt Nikki watched him yesterday. (We saw tons of birds, but only got one.) Then last night, he slept from 8:30 p.m. to 7:15 a.m.! Whoohoo! I think that's sleep-through-the-night-night-four, which is great! However, I didn't get as good as sleep as one would think, as I woke up several times to check on him. Oh well, I was proud of him, and thankful for Aunt Nikki to watch him all day and tire him out for me!

I think that's all for now, we're heading to the Twin Cities next weekend for our family Christmas at my sister's house (it's so early due to work schedules, conflicts, etc.) It should be exciting for it's Hudson's First Christmas! I'll post some pictures!

Finally! (Again)

2008-11-16T17:55:00.005-06:00

Alright, finally got him on camera...here it is! He is on his side when the video starts, but I assure you he rolled all the way over on his own!

Finally!

2008-11-13T20:38:00.005-06:00

After almost a week of suspense (and lack of rolling) we finally got video of Hudson rolling over. He hadn't rolled over since last Saturday, and now he rolled over three more times yesterday! Unfortunately, the file was too large to upload here, so instead, here is a video of him chatting away to mommy. Now, today, after bawling most of the day, we found out he has two ear infections. Bummer!

Keep rollin' rollin' rollin'

2008-11-09T10:07:00.003-06:00

It has been a little while since my last post. I apologize. Again. But I have exciting news! Yesterday we were in Rock Valley for Hudson's 3-month pictures and family portraits, which turned out great! (If you want to see them, contact me and I'll give you the website and password) We came home after lunch so Mel could get some sleep as she had to work overnight last night. Well, shortly after she fell asleep, I decided to give Hudson some tummy time. Within seconds, he was propped up on his side, and then rolled over! I couldn't get the camera fast enough, but I knew he was going to do it! I woke Mel up and she was excited, I told her to come watch, cause it happened so fast. I layed him on his blanket again, and sure enough within seconds he was over onto his back. He did it one more time, then I decided to try and videotape him, and ever since, he hasn't done it again. :( Oh well, when I get video of him rolling over I'll add it!

Enjoy your Sunday!

Oh, and we put Hudson in a pumpkin for Halloween. Here is a pic! It was too cute!

Baseball's Youngest Fan

2008-10-30T21:04:00.005-05:00

Well, I regret to inform you all that Hudson is a wreck. Last night the Philidelphia Phillies beat the Tampa Bay (Devil) Rays in the World Series. He was really hoping the Rays would win, and they couldn't get it done...Maybe next year. Here's a video of Hudson cheering them on!

Hudson Complaining

2008-10-12T20:53:00.003-05:00

complain complain complain, that's all he ever does..... not really, this is just him chatting a little...enjoy! :)

Cold and wet

2008-10-12T19:58:00.002-05:00

Yesterday marked a couple firsts, both involving cold.

First of all, it was the first day for South Dakota residents pheasant season. YES! I couldn't go out yesterday, but went out today. It was nice to get out again (this year with Kaia, my yellow lab). You would think with a dog that I would have better luck. Not so much.

I do think the weather had most to do with that, however. We did just get I think over 2 inches of rain in the past couple days, and it was raining on and off all day long, while the sky remained overcast all day long. This is what I blame our lack of success on. I went out with Kaia and my friend Moose. It was his first time out pheasant hunting. I wanted to show him how it works, etc. (even thought its only my second season hunting) to the best of my ability. I didn't do so well as we didn't even see a pheasant. Not walking, not driving, nowhere. I did flush one up in the middle of some trees, heard it fly, but didn't see it. Neither did Moose. Or Kaia. So it's like it wasn't even there. Oh well, it was Kaia's first time too. She still isn't quite sure what she's doing. There's plenty of season left!

Secondly, Hudson (whom you're probably reading this blog for anymore anyway...) came down with the sniffles. Yes, his first cold. We feel bad for him, but it is inevitable as long as he is going to daycare (we think that's where he got it). Poor little guy. He's still in good spirits however, and sleeps ok still, just sounds awful. Still full of smiles and sounds. I want to just put a tissue over his nose, and tell him to blow, but he's just not old enough to know what a tissue is, let alone how to blow his nose into it. He also had a slight fever, nothing to write home to, or probably in this blog, oh well, I already wrote it! He's getting better already I think, though. And that's that!

My mom and I have been working on his Halloween costume and I'm very excited to share it all with you, but you'll have to wait! Its pretty much the best costume ever! Stay tuned for pictures of it! Until then, here are a few new ones!

Just a little prick...

2008-09-30T21:09:00.003-05:00

Borderline inappropriate, until you find out that this post is about shots...

Hudson had his two month old check up on Monday. He was 10 lbs, 13 oz. and 22.25" long. he had three shots, and one "shot" orally. We gave him tylenol like 10 minutes before he had them. They gave him the shots, he cried. After only about 20 seconds, he stopped, and fell into a deep sleep. We've never seen him fall asleep so fast! He's still a little grumpy some, but for the most part he's a trooper. He's also around the 4-month stage on his developmental skills, so he's pretty smart (and advanced!).

He's also on his second week of going to day care. He's doing just fine there, but when I bring him home, it is hit or miss. There have been a couple nights where he has cried for at least an hour straight and I feel so helpless. I try everything. Feeding him, changing him, rocking him, putting him in his bouncy, swing, floor, just holding him, putting him on his tummy. You name it, nothing helps really until mommy gets home. She saves the day again! Other than the few times that's happened, he's handled it really well, and so have his parents!

Other than that, we've been pretty busy around here since Mel went back to work, and there doesn't seem to be a slow-down in sight. Seems like we have something going every weekend from now until Christmas. I guess that's just how it goes...

On a side note...I tip my cap to the Minnesota Twins for a great season. It's too bad it had to end the way it did tonight, but they did a LOT better than everyone anticipated, me included. Now I feel like I'm in high school again, and I've had a girlfriend (the twins) with whom I've spend every night with the past 6 months, and now we just broke up, and its summer time, so I won't see her again until next year.
Bummer...but bravo twins. Bravo.

Whoa nelly....

2008-09-16T21:50:00.003-05:00

It has been awhile. I am trying, really I am. It's just that when I'm on the computer, I don't think about updating my blog. I do, however, check about every day and see if anyone has left any comments about my posts, and it's the same every time. - 0 comments - Bummer.

It's been so long, I haven't even blogged about our exciting weekend we had! We had some visitors two weekends ago. Mr. Robert Waddell, his wife Valerie and their adorable son, Grady, came to visit! I've uploaded a few pictures from their visit below! We went out to eat, and just hung out! It was a great time!

An update on Hudson James. We took him to his day care today to get all the loose ends tied up, find out what to bring, etc. It was nice to see the environment he would be in, the people who would be watching him, etc. It definately made me more comfortable seeing the room in the middle of the day filled with children, just like mine, getting cared for and attended to. I'm sure it won't make the first day that I drop him off there any easier, but it definately made me feel better. I'm not looking forward to that day (its next Tuesday, by the way) but I trust that the people at Go Kids! Daycare at Church of the Gate will take excellent care of our little boy.

In other Hudson news, he went to the doctor on Friday because he has had signs of reflux. He's spitting up, gagging and just not sleeping very well on his back, so we decided to get him checked out. Turns out, it is reflux, so no he is on some medication (peppermint flavored, of all things they flavor children's medicine, its possibly the worst, he hates it!) to help the reflux.

I think that's it for now...

Slacking Daddy

2008-09-05T19:51:00.003-05:00

So I haven't posted in awhile it seems...its not like its been so long that Hudson is walking and saying his first words, but it has been over a week I think, which seems like a LONG TIME!

First an update on me. My job is going great! I love it! I'm also very excited about football season. I have high expectations for the Vikings (not that I've given up on my Twins, although after the past two weeks, I'm sure most people have). I hope hope hope that the Vikings can live up to their high expectations. I've always been supportive and optimistic about T. Jack and if he's terrible this season, I'll look pretty silly! Also optimistic for the Hawkeyes's season. I'm pretty sure they can't be as bad as they were last year...so...its going to be ok this year I think...

That being said, I am still closely following the Twins. I watch them everynight, no matter how bad or good they play, I try to see every out, and I'm sure Mel is sick of it. Good thing the season is almost over (unless they make the playoffs, which they have a great chance to). We're already planning on if it works for our schedules to go up for a Twins playoff game if they make it and its on a weekend! I'm pumped!

Now to the good part. Hudson is still doing great! He's reached all but one of his 2 month developmental milestones! And he's only 6 weeks old (tomorrow)! These include following objects with his eyes, making sounds other than crying, holding his head up, etc. We're so proud of him! Here is a few new pictures from the past week!

Turning over a new cheek.

2008-08-26T21:27:00.003-05:00

Right after I finished my last post about Hudson turning 1 month old, he goes and does this! He was having tummy time, while facing mommy on the floor, next thing we know, he's facing daddy! He turned his head! Milestone! So I got the camera out to see if he would turn it back, and sure enough, he did! Enjoy!

One Month Old!

2008-08-26T17:57:00.004-05:00

One month ago today, Hudson James joined our little family. Time has flown by, but at the same time it feels like he's been with us forever. I guess in a way, he has. He's enjoying his days at home with mommy, smiling, trying to hold his head up, and grunting (not cooing yet). Other than that, he's a happy, healthy little man! Here are some photos!

Baptism and Hudson the Model!

2008-08-21T21:10:00.005-05:00

Last Sunday, Hudson James was Baptised at Holy Spirit Catholic Church in Sioux Falls. We had all of my family here for the weekend, and Mel's family joined us on Sunday for the Baptism/Picnic. Me, my dad, my bro-in-law Chad, and my brother Eric all went fishing on Saturday for most of the day, and the girls (Mel, my sister Melissa, her daughter Haylie, my mom, and Grandma Lois) went to the zoo in Sioux Falls.

The ceremony was after 11 am Mass, and was wonderful! He did so good! He didn't even cry when they poured water on him! Then we headed to Lewis Park and the Grandpas grilled hamburgers, and we opened presents, Haylie played on the playground, and Hudson slept! It was a wonderful day!

He has been quite a model lately...Since Mel works at Avera, and they are opening a new Women's Center, and she was pregnant, she was asked to have her picture taken by Candice Anne Photography to put up on the new unit. Well, she had the baby before her appointment, so they instead wanted to take Hudson's picture. So he had a photo shoot two weeks ago, and we got to view the pictures tonight. They were SO GOOD! He will for sure have a picture up in the Avera Women's Center they told us, so that's exciting!

THEN, he had his 1 month pictures taken in Rock Valley at Van Maanen's Portrait Studio on Wednesday, and boy are they great too! We're having a hard time choosing which ones to order, because they are all so good! He is quite photogenic!

Oh, and my new job is going great! We are SUPER busy, which is good, what better way to learn, than to get thrown into the fire! That's about it for now. I'll probably post when he turns 1 month old on the 26th, if not before!

First trip to church!

2008-08-14T21:20:00.004-05:00

This is the outfit that Hudson wore to church last Sunday, his first trip to church! He did really well! Slept pretty much the whole time!

A little update of his skillz...

Today he lifted his head from one side to the other, while partaking in tummy time. He focuses on more and more things these days, especially my black and gold Iowa Hawkeye hat! :) He has been grabbing for toys, as well as smiling a lot! He is full of personality and is growing up so fast! To think he is not even 3 weeks old!

He's still waking up every two hours to eat, then eating for 45 min - 1 hour. He is a pokey eater! Other than that, as Mel says, "He is like a garden right now, we just water him and watch him grow like crazy!"

I'll post some new pictures soon!

P.S. Sorry the video is sideways!

P.S.S. I thought maybe he'd kick his little feet, that's why I taped his feet! But he didn't :(

30th Post = 1,000 Hits?

2008-08-06T19:08:00.004-05:00

I have to be honest. I had no idea when I started this blog that there would be so many people that read it. I know the number is skewed a little because any one person can go to my blog 10 times a day for 10 days straight and, well you can do the math, but still! I'm approaching 1,000 hits and have only been blogging since June 6th! To me, that seems amazing! So I say thank you to those who read my words. They (my words) mean a lot to me, so it means a lot that people actually care what I have to share with the world.

Now back to your regular scheduled programming...

We are still happily off the Biliblanket, Hudson included! I'm sure he enjoys not having a bright, heat-producing light strapped to his back at all times. I know we enjoy not having to "plug him in" whereever he goes. He has his two week check-up on Friday. They are doing another bilirubin level then to make sure that his body is taking care of the jaundice on its own. I'll post how it goes!

Here are some pictures I wanted to post with my last post, but I kept getting a strange error. So, here they are!

Bye Bye Blankie, Hello New Job!

2008-08-04T19:29:00.003-05:00

Today, we officially got to take the biliblanket back to the home medical store! His bilirubin levels are dropping, and now he's old enough (9 days) to get rid of the rest of the jaundice by himself. Mel also took him shopping for the first time since he didn't have to be plugged in. They went to Old Navy! (Unfortunately he's still too small for any of their clothes)

And now for something completely different...

I have a new job! Starting two weeks from today, I'll be working in Sioux Falls! I got a job with Dakota Beverage as a graphic designer. I'll be designing banners, signs, table tents, etc. for their clients, promoting their products they distribute (Coors Light, Miller Lite, Boulevard, etc.) I am super stoked! So on that note, let's all have a beer!

One week old!

2008-08-02T21:02:00.005-05:00

Seven days ago today, our son, Hudson James, was born.

It's amazing how fast the first week has gone. Between the extra couple days in the hospital, to the diaper changes, it has flown by. His bilirubin levels are still elevated, so we have to keep him on the biliblanket until Monday, when his levels will get checked again. Otherwise, he's smiling quite a bit lately, and he was visited today by his Uncle Eric.

Tomorrow, we're taking him on his first road trip to Rock Valley for a wedding shower. We're really excited to show him off!

Here are some more pictures taken yesterday and today! Enjoy!

Jaundice Update

2008-08-01T16:01:00.003-05:00

We had another bilirubin test done today, and his levels went up again. :( Which means his jaundice isn't getting better and his time on the biliblanket has to go up. We have to get it checked again in the morning, and if it doesn't go down, we'll have to figure out what the next step is. Other than that, he's doing great at home, he's eating great, he sleeps when he isn't eating, etc. We are loving him to death! Thank you to everyone for food, gifts, visits, love & prayers and help around the house! You've made this huge step in our lives a little easier to adjust to!

Finally Home!

2008-07-30T15:00:00.004-05:00

Hudson James and crew (me and Mel) finally got to go home yesterday morning! We had some help from Grandma Kris when we got home, she made some food, did some cleaning up, laundry, etc. She was a lifesaver! It's amazing how little a newborn does, and how exhausting it is at the same time!

If you didn't know, he has jaundice, and that is why we had been in the hospital until yesterday. His bilirubin levels had been lowering consistently, so they discharged him. We had another check-up today, and they went up again, so he has to stay on his bili-blanket until Friday :(. It's not too serious, but it's frustrating.

Other than that, all he really does is eat, sleep & poop (and occasionally cry). He is my favorite. =)

He has arrived!

2008-07-26T13:32:00.003-05:00

Hudson James Davis

Born July 26, 2008 at 2:15 a.m.
7 pounds, 0 ounces
20 inches long
We have a happy, healthy son!

Murder Trial

2008-07-25T14:00:00.006-05:00

Starting this week in little old Luverne, MN is a murder trial, first ever in Rock County. Things have been a little crazier around the newspaper office the past couple weeks.

We've been working on adding video content to our website and what more perfect time to take the bull by the horns. Andrew, my co-worker and I went to the court house this morning and take a short video of Randy Swaney, the man accused of murdering 20-year-old Carrie Nelson in the Blue Mounds State Park in 2001, going into the court house. It was one of the most eerie feelings I have ever felt before. I've never been (to my knowledge) within a stone's throw of a "murderer" (innocent until proven guilty, I guess), and it was CREEPY.

I'm anxious to see the whole trial pan out, they are still selecting jurors at this moment (my other co-worker Chantel got dismissed from jury duty since she works at the newspaper). We're going to be keeping up with the trial on our website, so if you're interested check it out. (Andrew and I have also started doing movie reviews, so check them out!)

Running out

2008-07-24T11:38:00.003-05:00

Since we are playing the waiting game with our soon-to-be born child, I have run out of things to blog about. Sure there is probably plenty of things going on in my life that I could mindlessly drone on about, but I cannot seem to put any thoughts together to make a complete thought. Even this is difficult for me to put together because all I can think about is, "When am I going to meet this child of mine?" It has been a fast nine months for me (I'm sure it hasn't been as fast for Mel), but lately, all I can concentrate on is the anticipation of meeting my son. We are so close to his due date, and I am on edge.

Last night, I kindly asked him to come out and meet us. I assured him that if it was too cold out here, we would wrap him up in blankets and make sure he was comfortable. I also offered to submerge him in some goo if he'd rather it was more like in there, out here. Apparently he didn't budge and is quite comfortable in his current state.

He is consuming my every thought, and the anticipation is driving me crazy!

Grab Bag!

2008-07-19T09:28:00.003-05:00

Renfro Variety Store is a knick-knack store in Luverne where I work. It is owned by a 90-something year old woman who knows everyone, and if she doesn't know you, she finds out your story on the first meeting. I was out-and-about in Luverne yesterday doing some photography for work.

My co-worker and I stopped by at Renfro since I had never been in it, and one of the first things I see as I walk in is a box filled with smaller boxes. It says on the larger box, "Grab Bags $.10". My first thought is "This box itself is probably worth a dime, so I'm already ahead!" I picked out two boxes, the first was the heaviest out of all of them, and also the smallest. The second was just random. I waited until we got back to the office to reveal my prizes. I gave my other co-worker Andrew the rundown, and the first choice of which box he would open.

He chose the smaller, heavier box. I told him fine, I think it's just a bar of soap. First, he pulls out some ribbon. Then, sure enough, a purple bar of soap. Then some more ribbon and some stickers.

Then it was my turn, I was certain there would be an old greeting card in it, among other things. I was wrong. I got a smaller bar of soap, a crocheted heart-shaped magnet, a small, white lace curtain of some sort, a longer, green lace curtain of some sort, a long strand of red lace, and some more stickers.

It was a great investment!

one of the best cartoons ever made. period.

2008-07-17T15:06:00.000-05:00

HOME MOVIES

twitter

2008-07-16T12:59:00.002-05:00

I started a twitter account about the same day I started this blog, thinking, everyone in the internet world is doing this, so I should try it. And as I have failed to update my blog on a daily basis like originally planned, I have COMPLETELY failed at keeping up with my twitter page (Twitter is a service for friends, family, and co–workers to communicate and stay connected through the exchange of quick, frequent answers to one simple question: What are you doing?)

I cannot see myself every taking advantage of the service this page offers. The one thing I can see, however, is updating my twitter page every 5 minutes or so with the following:
Jason Davis is trying to think of what to type for his twitter update.

To me, it seems like a waste of time, unless you, for example, are working for a carnival and are always working on a different ride or game, so you could let your friends know which game or ride to go to if they want to chat with you.

So as of right now, I will not be keeping my twitter up-to-the-minute updated. I just don't have that interesting of a life. You'll all have to settle for this.

Relax, don't do it!

2008-07-12T21:38:00.002-05:00

Between last night and all day today, I've done nothing but relaxed, and I've gotta say, it feels good. I am one who usually likes to be busy, and by that I mean I am usually CONSTANTLY busy doing something, mostly voluntary. I love keeping busy, I love doing things, and I love hanging out with friends. The last to days have been nothing but the opposite. I guess you can say I'm "nesting" in a different way, i.e. staying in my "nest" and enjoying my free time while I have it to myself.

Last night, I went and saw a movie, at the cheap theater, by myself. That is a first for me, and it actually wasn't too bad. Mel was with her friend finishing up our wedding scrapbook before the baby comes, so I was left to fend for myself. So I went and saw Iron Man since I had heard so many good things about it, and I was not disappointed. It was an excellent film, and I'm not too big into the comic book-to-cinema movies (besides Batman of course).

Today, was another big day of doing nothing. We got groceries, went for a walk with the dogs, and that's about it! I relaxed, watched the Twins win again, watched some movies and just enjoyed the weather and the lack of anything to do.

Tomorrow we might hit up the golf course...let the relaxation continue!

Prepared for childbirth

2008-07-08T16:34:00.003-05:00

Mel and I finished our Prepared Childbirth Class last night, 6 weeks of preparing us for childbirth and newborn care. It was very helpful and I must admit I feel a lot more "prepared" now than I did 6 weeks ago. I am not saying this whole thing will be a piece of cake, I know it won't be, but I do think I am ready for the twists and turns the coming weeks will take. Our class was well worth the money we paid to take it!

I think that is the last installment of preparation (organized) that we have planned besides finishing my "The Expectant Father" book (I'm almost done!) Now we just have to wait for our son's birthday. We can't wait to meet him!

So the final countdown begins, less than a month to Mel's due date...

holiday weekend hangover

2008-07-07T10:46:00.004-05:00

No...not that kind of hangover...i am hung-over from relaxing all weekend, and now having to wake up and go to work. BOO!

We got some more things done yesterday in preparation of our soon-to-be addition to our family. We bought a shelf for toys and books at target for the nursery. It has 9 square openings, in which you put baskets for storing things. Its pretty slick, so we had the privilege of putting that together.
Mel helped with the hammering of nails for the back panels...she is quite good with a hammer!

Also, i had to do some work in the closet. i had bought a new shelf to go across the top of the closet (the one that was in there was warped from old age i suppose) and it sat on a ledge made of wooden trim. I bought a new piece of white shelving, but its not wood, and not the most sturdy thing in the world, so it sagged a little bit after setting just one package of diapers on it. Plus it was only about a quarter-inch long enough to reach both edges of trim. this annoyed me, for it was pretty much useless. Not only that, but it sagged down to the pole you hang clothes on so you couldn't get a hanger on it anymore. I wanted to put a bracket support below the middle of it, but because of the trim, I couldn't get it to be flush with the back wall. So yesterday in my home-improvement mode, I ripped the back piece of trim off the wall, borrowed a support from a shelf in the garage, and tah-dah, problem solved!

That is the excitement of what was my Sunday afternoon!

Falling behind...catching up

2008-07-03T10:03:00.002-05:00

Mel and I are anxiously awaiting the arrival of our son! I think we have all of the "necessities" that I can think of to be prepared for his birth, besides maybe a few more blankets, diapers and bottles. I'm sure we'll be making lists and checking them twice, three times, four times before crunch time.

I'm looking forward to having another 3 day weekend (I took last Friday off for a baby appt.). Mel has to work on the Fourth so I'm not sure what I'll do to celebrate. Probably just mow the lawn and relax outside with my yellow lab, Kaia. If anyone as any better ideas (realistically or something that'll make me chuckle), feel free to leave a comment!

congratulations "RN" order!

2008-06-25T14:49:00.002-05:00

Mel found out today that she passed her boards! She's now officially an RN! Yay for her and yahoo for (being done with) school!

Cracker Jacks & Elevators

2008-06-23T12:15:00.005-05:00

We had a wonderful time in the big city. Filled with family, friends, horses (Canterbury Park), baseball, shopping & elevators! However, it's great to be home!

We went to Canterbury Park on Friday night to watch/bet on the horse races. We were accompanied by my sister Melissa, her husband Chad, and my friend B.J. It was REALLY fun! Way more fun than I anticipated. It was cheap, too. It was buy one, get one free on admission and pizza, with $2.50 beer! We only bet on one race (and lost a collective $5 between Mel and myself), but had a blast watching I think two others, picking our favorites and cheering them on! I would definitely go again!

We met up with some other of my friends that night and had a great time just relaxing and catching up!

Saturday, we went to the Mall of America and shopped the day away. The father-in-law and I did some wondering, hat-searching, people-watching and observing of the Midwest Yo-Yo Championships. Impressive stuff!

Mel, her mom, and sister Nikki bought some really cute clothes and shoes for our baby at Old Navy, Carter's and H&M. I can't wait to see them on the little guy (whenever he decides to join us out here).

Then it was time to head to the game. We were in the 7th row out in left field. Our seats were great! The game started off pretty boring (only 1 run scored in the first six innings, along with a collective 4 hits or something close to that) but then in the seventh inning the Twins scored 6 runs and won the game in exciting fashion 6-1!

I got quite an exciting prize in my bag of Cracker Jacks...a beer! They should have prizes like this more often, not silly tattoos or pencil toppers (actually my prize).

Time to ride the train back to the mall and drive to our hotel, the La Quinta Inn. The father-in-law and I checked in earlier in the afternoon and dropped off our luggage and Lucy into our room on the 12th floor. We were impressed with the nice rooms, and overall quality of the hotel. Well on our way back from the game and everything, Mel's brother called and said the elevators were down, all three of them... This did not excite us, and I wasn't sure if he was kidding or not. Sure enough, when we got back, they were down. So I promptly asked the desk if we could switch rooms, because Mel is 8 months pregnant, and I didn't think having the baby in a stairwell of the La Quinta Inn after climbing 12 flights of stairs sounded like my idea of a fun Saturday evening. They said they were full, and could get us a room down the street at the Hampton Inn. No thanks. Then after some other digging they found a handicapped-accessible room on the fourth floor. Ok, we'll take it. Quite a bit of hassle but we got a free night's stay out of the deal!

All in all, we had a great weekend, but sure are glad to be home!

Destination: Twins

2008-06-20T11:37:00.002-05:00

Mel, Lucy and I are on our way to the Twin Cities this weekend to go to a Twins game with her family, as well as see some of our friends and family along the way. A trip to Canterbury Park is planned, but not definite. We've never been there and thought it would be a nice change of pace.

It is also our last opportunity to take a small vacation without a child, our "babymoon" if you will. We're excited to get away, go the mall, and especially, see the TWINS (hopefully win). This will for sure be the last Twins game we go to without our son (even though he'll be at this game, its different in-uterus). I'm trying to figure out if this will be our last Twins game at the Metrodome. Sad. It will probably be, but maybe we can make it to a game next season with our little guy!

I think the Twins definitely made a mistake, even though it would be expensive, when they decided not to put a retractable roof on the new stadium, but that's an entirely different discussion. Maybe a different day, when I have more time.

Sometimes you just gotta...

2008-06-17T14:09:00.004-05:00

CLICK HERE!

Post-Baby Party

2008-06-16T12:47:00.002-05:00

Mel and I had a great time in Aurelia and Rock Valley this past weekend. My parents had a Baby Party in honor of our son-to-be in their garage. We golfed, we played catch, we bbq'd, we enjoyed company of family and friends, we ate delicious food, and we got a lot of GREAT gifts for our son. We thank everyone who has supported us throughout our pregnancy, given us gifts & cards, and those who made it out for our party. We are thankful for having such great friends and family!

We also headed to Rock Valley on Sunday. Spent the afternoon at the Rock Valley City Park with Mel's family. Again, we had some great food, and a great time with family. It was quite a relaxing weekend!

Baby Shower in Aurelia

2008-06-14T18:18:00.001-05:00

Mel and I are in Aurelia tonight for a baby party for our son-to-be. Come if you're in the area. Plenty of BBQ and Beer! Peace.

Encounter and More Sigur Rós...

2008-06-13T09:03:00.007-05:00

While my brother and I were waiting through the tornado attack, he noticed a man who closely resembled Luke Pettipoole of The Envy Corps, an indie rock band from Ames.

He kept telling me, I think that's him, I think that's him, and me only have heard their music, never seen them, didn't know what he was talking about. So after sitting around an hour waiting for the storms to subside, I confronted him. I said, "Hey man, are you in a band?"

He said "Yes" so I proceeded to ask if that band was "The Envy Corps" and he said yes. We made some small talk and got a picture taken with him and his wife-to-be. It was pretty rad.

Back to Sigor Rós...here is the beginning of Svefn-g-englar on my digital camera. Sound quality is kinda bad, but you get the idea. They opened with this song, and everyone went nuts.

After the show I was a little perturbed. First of all, there was a colossal man sitting directly in front of me. I could never see the entire stage at one time. You can see this in my photo from yesterday. He's the giant shadow-like figure on the left of the bright light.

Next, I was disappointed that they failed to play the 90+ minutes the Orpheum workers told me that it was supposed to last. So they played like 85 minutes, close enough. I got over that.

They did not play a few key songs that I greatly enjoy, which kind of disappointed me. Not only would have just one more song satisfied me, it would have also overturned the disappointment of the previous issue.

And now to the good part...

And after all this negativity, I failed to relish in the fact that they played 6-7 brand new songs that have not been released yet. At first I kind of "ho-hum"ed this fact. After a day of recollection, I am very appreciative that I got to hear them live, before most people have heard them at all. This overturned all disappointment I felt about the show, and quickly put it in the top 3 shows I have ever been to. Pretty impressive.

More (blurry) photos from the show...

An evening with tornadoes with a chance of Sigur Rós

2008-06-12T12:10:00.005-05:00

Sigur Rós put on an amazing show last night in Omaha at the Orpheum. It ALMOST didn't happen. The entire area was surrounded with tornado warnings and sirens.

We arrived in the Old Market at around 6 p.m., plenty of time to grab some grub and beverage, right? Well we stopped in Zio's Pizza to fuel up. They were busy, but not THAT busy. It took us 40-odd minutes to get our drinks after we ordered them. Then another 40-ish minutes before we got our food. Great...we're going to be late for the show. Finally, at 7:30 we were able to chow down quickly and pay our tabs with enough time to walk to the venue and find our seats before the show started at 8 p.m.

We were well aware of some severe weather in the area, but weren't quite sure where we were in comparison to the storms. We exited Zio's to find the sky filled with black clouds. The sirens were blaring and the air was still. It was very eerie.

We made it to the Orpheum right before it started raining and they quickly pointed us to the direction of the basement. Do not pass go, do not collect any drinks or merch.

It was tropical sauna-like in the basement, which was very uncomfortable. They said you can go to the basement, or go outside, nothing in between. We chose the basement but many people decided to brave the storm outside.

We were in the basement for a good 30-40 minutes, then they let us upstairs to pick up Will Call tickets. We then had to wait to enter the Theatre until they had everything set up (30 minutes). Finally, doors open around 9, and show begins with Sigur Rós taking the stage at 10 p.m. It was amazing and well worth the excitement and long, hot, sweaty, scary wait.

We made it back to Sioux Falls safely around 3 a.m. Just enough time to get a few hours of sleep before I had to be up for work today. Hurray!

Sigur Rós show tonight in Omaha!

2008-06-11T13:14:00.003-05:00

If you haven't checked them out by now, or want to hear more, here's another video of Sigur Rós performing live. Just trying to give you all the same experience that I'll be experiencing tonight at the Orpheum Theatre in Omaha.

Once again, I plan on taking some photos tonight, so I'll post them if I get some good shots!

Guess the baby!

2008-06-10T21:28:00.004-05:00

Mel has set up a baby guessing game at www.expectnet.com!
Enter davisbaby6 in the invited guest box in the top left of the page to enter your guess! See who can get closest to the birth time, weight and length.

On a side note...

I recently started to play a lot of catch with my co-worker during our "smoke breaks" (no smoking involved, except our smokin'-fast fastballs) at work. Well, my glove was rather old, and decided to break during one catch session a few weeks ago. My lovely wife got me an early fathers day present. A shiny new glove! AND...a tee ball glove for our little one on the way! This isn't the exact glove, but you get the idea.

Happy Fathers Day to me!

Prepared Childbirth Class / Sigur Rós Concert

2008-06-09T13:47:00.006-05:00

Tonight, Mel and I have our second (of six) Prepared Childbirth Class. So far it seems like it should be a pretty good experience. I have no idea what I am doing, or what to expect when "baby time" comes as far as labor, preparation, procedures, etc. After the initial class, I think I should be fairly prepared once we complete the class.

And now for something completely different...

My co-worker Andrew and I are heading to Omaha on Wednesday night to go see Sigur Rós in concert at the Omaha Orpheum Theatre. We are pumped. My brother Eric is meeting us there. My lovely wife got me the ticket for my birthday present. If you haven't heard of them, or heard their music, I highly recommend it. Here is a video of them...it should be AMAZING! I'll post photos if I remember to take them afterwards. Enjoy!

Getting ready for a homecoming

2008-06-07T15:52:00.003-05:00

Last night Mel and I rearranged our bedroom to accommodate a rocking chair and play pen for the baby. It was not easy to get the right set up, for we don't have our play pen yet, but we thought getting it done now would be easier than waiting until the last minute. There were a lot of factors we had to weigh out - which side of the bed the baby would sleep on, would the baby be by the window or air conditioner, where the lamp will be, etc. It ended up being a little more difficult than I anticipated, but I think we have it set up to the best possible arrangement.

We also did some more work in the nursery. We put some more things away and just did some general tiding up. It's starting to get very close to crunch time (under two months) until the baby comes. We're getting very excited!

Here's a picture of his crib!

First post!

2008-06-06T11:07:00.000-05:00

So i finally decided to give in to this wonderful world of blogging. I'm not sure how i'm going to handle it (struggling to keep it up-to-date or updating it every other minute). i've gotten so used to facebook now, where seeing what everyone else is doing is too easy, and letting people know what you're up to seems so hard. i have been getting lazy at letting people know what my family and myself is doing, so this is my attempt to keep things out in the open.

wish me luck!