Time flies....

So much to catch up on! Our big trip out west has come and gone already. Jack, as it turns out, is a great plane traveler. He slept through takeoff on our way out, then spent the rest of the flight smiling at other passengers and playing with the lifesavers bag, our sandwich wrappers, our cups... ( He seems to be in a "paper phase" right now, obsessed with anything made from paper or plastic. Straws are a big favorite. ) It was a late night by the time we got to Cheyenne. We decided just to crash and bring Jack to bed with us, and not bother to set up the pack and play. We were promptly reminded of why we don't co-sleep anymore. Little fidget-butt ended up spending most of the night in his carseat, when he wasn't awake and fussing. I really love the idea of co-sleeping, snuggling in with the little one, bonding. But Jack is not a particularly snuggly guy when he is sleeping. He kicks a bit too much.

In Guernsey, most of our time was spent watching Jack as he got to know his Grandfather Jon and grandma Ana in person. All that skyping paid off as he was quite relaxed and friendly with them. He really enjoyed sitting on the breakfast bar counter to eat and for face time with his grandparents. He also developed quiet an affinity for chewing on pens. On Sunday we spent some time in Denver and he charmed Leigh and Blaine, too. We spent some time in the 65 degree, sunny weather, eating Thai food in Washington park. Is it any wonder we love denver more each time we visit??? I am not sure why we as parents do this, but I caught myself almost trying to talk Leigh into trying parenthood herself, when she commented on what a good baby he was, making her think that it would be a good idea.... misery loves company, I guess! As is his pattern, he was an angel baby during the days and a shrieking non-sleeper by night. You'd think we would be used to this by now. Sigh. It was a good trip, but we arrived back home more tired than when we left and Jack is still not back to his new, improved "normal" sleep. Between jet lag and teething, he does have some excuse, but it is sad that our little boy who used to go to bed like a dream, leaning toward his crib and putting himself to sleep easily, is now crying for 40 minutes when we put him down for the night. :(

Speaking of teething, his second tooth has come through! This evening as we were hanging out together, he grabbed my thumb and stuck it in his mouth and there was a second little tooth, right next to his first one, a crooked line of edges emerging in his soft mouth...come to think of it, he was pretty endearing all evening today, lots of crinkly eyed, dimple-showing smiles.

Unbelievably, Jack is 29 weeks old. Here are some of his recent "highlights":
* Jack is learning to clap! He did it several times while we were in Wyoming.
* He is also starting to wave back when we wave "hi" to him. Too cute!
* Jack likes sweet potatoes! Its the first food other than cereal that he'll eat a whole spoonful of without schrinching his face up. We've made our first homemade baby food, baking up 3 big potatoes for him last night.