Arrival in Salt Lake City

Wow - flight with two young children is CRAZY! Thanks to a huge amount of help from Mel and Cherry, who accompanied us on their way to a wedding (and got us some fabulous seats in first-class!), we made it to Utah alive and with minimal battle wounds. It was a close call, though, because I was a total idiot and left Michael's car seat in the car rather than bringing it on board with us (I have no excuse but stupidity). All through the security line (which is a long time indeed) I was dwelling on images of families being kicked off planes because their young children refused to stay seated... Thankfully Michael did alright - and I plan to buy a car seat while we're out here so that he's well-secured during the return flight!

Even though it hadn't been long since we'd been here last, both Jax and Michael had a tough time adjusting. Jax was just beginning to experience separation anxiety before we arrived and wouldn't leave my sight (and often my arms) for the first week. Michael did better, but his concern for Jax was apparent. Little by little, though, they began to have fun and overcome their fears!

Playing at Home

Jax is quickly upgrading her position from Michael's "baby" and becoming his playmate. This month the two of them developed some new games, one where they play tug-of-war with a soft soccer ball, and another where Michael pulls Jax in her "car" using a jump rope. The two of them have so much fun together. Jax doesn't yet move enough to steal Michael's toys, so there haven't been any altercations yet!

Jax is starting to move a little bit, though. Instead of doing a normal crawl she break-dances across the floor by tucking her knees up next to her elbows and tumbling forward. I've also seen her reach a toy that was too far in front of her by turning a half circle, backing up to it, and then turning back around (she's quite the industrious little thing). As for true crawling, right now she can't decide if it has to do with her knees or her feet - but she's quite sure that it has nothing at all to do with her arms!

Milestones

Jax experienced two big "firsts" during the last few weeks. Her introduction to solid foods came just after her six-month mark. Admittedly, six months may seem late but, truth be told, we didn't wait as long as we did with Michael... The experience taught us that pediatricians are right, introducing solids is much easier when done earlier (imagine that). While Jax was a little hesitent for the first nanosecond, she quickly began grabbing at the spoon to put it in her own mouth, and crying in despair at the long wait between spoonfuls!

We also took Jax swimming for the first time and saw her dare-devil nature in full force. She had no problem getting into the water, despite its cold temperature, and voiced her impatience when Michael jumped in and she couldn't immediately follow. She jumped and played in the water with all of us and, most surprisingly, when she saw Jonathan and Michael put their faces in the water to blow bubbles she tried it out herself - several times!

Halloween

Halloween is an exciting time at our house, as it is Jonathan's favorite holiday (must have something to do with its proximity to his birthday...). This year Michael helped hollow the pumpkins with us, and busily pounded his pumpkin while the other two were carved.

We used costumes that Nicole's sister made last year for her family. Perfect for us, except that we couldn't very well have Jax wear the Yoda costume! Instead we gave her a little "senator" outfit and - voila! - we were transformed into Anakin Skywalker, Obi Wan Kenobi, Padme, and a Senator (or, if you want to merge episodes, Princess Leia).

As part of the Halloween fun we attended a party for Michael's preschool group, and Jonathan met Michael's favorite girl Cami for the first time. The two are so funny together, and have been caught at preschool stealing a kiss on more than one occasion. With the number of chaperones at this event, their hanky-panky was greatly limited.

Jonathan's brother and his family came to our church's annual "Trunk or Treat" and their costumes were so cute! Sophia was a darling little pumpkin and Hannah came as Princess Pocahontas.

Happy Birthday to Dad

Jonathan's birthday was this month - hooray! For some reason we thought he was already thirty-six, so our discovery that he was, in fact, only turning thirty-six this year was nice and unexpected.

Jared and Heather brought their kids up from Blacksburg to celebrate and we had a party at Mel and Cherry's place. Shortcake with strawberry icecream "frosting" was served, as it is every year, while we all tried to figure out if Jared or Jonathan had first tagged it as the birthday favorite.

Shenandoah National Park

We went to Shenandoah for a few days in mid-October and had such a great time! We knew the kids were in good hands with Mel and Cherry, and so fully enjoyed ourselves without any responsibilities, or needless worrying.

We were able to book a great cabin that had the most beautiful view of the valley below and spent several hours just gazing out the window and talking. We also went on a hike that wound down the mountain alongside a stream; it was gorgeous. We stopped at a small pond and watched the fish dart back and forth before wandering back. The hike was nice and easy - though we realized on the way back up the mountain that we should have had T-shirts rather than sweaters.

The Power of Spiderman Underwear

Michael is now potty-trained! It's amazing, the power of spiderman underwear mixed with reward M&Ms. Especially once I discovered, thanks to a tip from potty-training expert Marcia Stewart (a woman who goes to my church), that Michael should get M&Ms for dry pants (!) along with successful bathroom activities...

Yes, I know this isn't quite so interesting to many of you, but if I don't write this down I will not remember, and twenty years from now I'll be claiming something totally unbelievable ("My son Michael was potty-trained at six-months...").