As a newborn he was easy going...just liked a good party, a drink and a nap. He didn't care who was holding him. Was never really the size of a newborn, as the nurses had to switch the stocked size newborn swaddler diapers for size 1 in the post-partum room.
This is a picture of Jackson (on the left) 1 day old, next to our best friends' daughter Chloe who was 3 weeks old at the time. My nurse got them confused upon walking into the room, as Chloe was the size of the newborn, not Jackson. Excuse my leg by the way.
Jackson had an easy going personality as a baby, but the nursing proved far more difficult than it had with Caroline. Despite a month plus of trying (and I mean really trying, you la leche people out there) it was evident that he wasn't taking to nursing. Jaundice was still kicking around, so we supplemented with formula one day, after he had nursed for 40 minutes. He downed, and I mean chugged 4 ounces. By 2 months old he was eating 12oz of formula (the pumping couldn't keep up with the demand) every 2-3 hours, around the clock. Seriously. I would stop him after 8oz and then try to soothe him in other ways. But he would cry and root until we fed him. Eventually I would cut him off at the 12oz mark. He was drinking about 6 pounds of milk a day. Earning him the nickname chug-a-lug. And very quickly, we realized he was ready for college. This kid can drink faster than anyone I know.
Fast forward a couple of years and his true personality abounds. He's no longer the easiest going person every day, and that's more than OK. But he's the life of the party. Just check out this picture below, it says it all. He's on the right.
And he's loud. He will be the kid everyone can hear without him trying in a crowd. By the way, he literally cannot whisper. Irish whisper they call it - sure to get him in some trouble at school one day.
And as described in a previous post, Jackson loves to streak. Just last week I caught him mooning the neighbors. Great.
My first night of orientation at Boston College people decided to have a toga party in the dorms. Everyone walked around in their white sheets wrapped around themselves. As my memory serves most people wore the toga over their clothes...but I wouldn't be surprised if Jackson were the type to fully embrace the toga and go without.
The combination of chugging milk faster than humanly possible, his hilarious personality, and nudist tendencies makes me think he's ready for a fraternity now. Lord help me in high school.
And then there's the fact that Jackson has fallen asleep on the hardwood floor of our upstairs hallway before. Using a damp bathmat for a pillow. Gross. And didn't seem to be bothered in the least. He had apparently been playing past his bedtime and crashed right where he was. Again, harking to the days of college. How many times have you stumbled upon a friend who fell asleep in some awkward position and place? We have a friend who fell asleep in the bathtub before, thankfully without any water in it.
And last night I awoke to find Jackson opening my door. Clearly he had to use the bathroom but was sleepwalking - having no idea where he was in the house. This is not the first time this has happened. Thankfully I caught him and redirected him in time. He's used his bedroom door as the toilet before, poor kid. And we even found him in his sister's room before - again catching him just in time. That one reminds me of a college friend who awoke to her roommate thinking she was the bathroom. Very unfortunate.
Jackson may be a handful at times, but I love having him in my life. He makes it beautiful, and funny, and entertaining to say the least. And we are thinking about giving him a toga for Halloween.
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