IT WAS IN 2001 WHEN JACKSON CAME TO US, less of a surprise than Liam and more of a much anticipated adventure.  When Liam was born, Margo still lived in Billings, and I remained in Havre going to school.  But with Jackson, we were both together in Havre.  Not only did I get to go through the entire pregnancy with my wife, but I would be able to enjoy watching this new child grow through the earliest stages of life in one continuous flow, rather than weekend snap-shots which were all I could manage with Liam.

Little did I realize the power of a preferred parent, however!  With Liam, for the longest time I was the brief visitor that warranted amused attention and the occasional grin of anticipation.  With Jackson, I figured that I would be the light in his eye every time that I walked into the room, the squeal of delight every time I bent over to pick him up.  And so, when he was born in November of that year, the little scrawny lad with thighs like Lance Armstrong and a body like a pale Ethiopian, I anticipated great things.  Margo was working at the hospital in the evenings, and so I decided that those nights would be filled with nothing but Daddy time.  Liam and Jack and I would have great fun!

The truth was, he was a Mommy's boy, and about the only fun with him that I had those long evenings was watching him finally fall asleep.  As soon as Margo would walk out the door, the bawling began.  And this was major crying, loud enough to peel paint off of a car three miles away.  Almost non-stop this continued, night after night, until Margo would come home after mid-night, or until Jackson fell into an exhausted slumber.  It isn't that I couldn't take care of him, nor is it that he didn't like me.  When Margo was around, after all, he had grins aplenty for me.  But when she was gone, he missed her, and that was that!

Who would have thought that, in a year or so, he would indeed become a Daddy's boy, as he remains to this day.  There's nothing more gratifying, almost as much as it is heartbreaking, to see him fall to pieces when I leave for work or drive off without him.  He and I are great buddies, and I probably enjoy playing with him as much as he enjoys driving his cars on me in the early morning!

As with Liam's pages, what follows are various chronicles of Jack's life, and our adventures together.  And believe me, even when we're just sitting at home watching Shrek, we can have mighty adventures!

From the "Peanut" to Today, being the tale of how Jackson arrived into the world, wrapped up in a tight little blanket, and how he went from being the shrieking devil Himself to Daddy's best friend... Page pending

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All contents of this page © John M. and Margo L. Dollan 2002-2005 unless otherwise noted.
This Page first uploaded May 22, 2005
Most recent update for this page October 9, 2005