Last week, Joe got a visit from his Grandma and Grandpa. And his “Crazy Aunt Shelly” came all the way from Oregon to meet him in person for the first time! One of his great-uncles even popped in for a visit from where he was working in North Carolina.

Joe loved all the extra attention, clearly:

He showed off a few of his new shuffly steps, but mostly got a lot of snuggling and laughing in. It is so sweet to see him bonding with his extended family!

Joe is on the edge of a real breakthrough this week.

He’s been getting better and better at standing without help, and now when we let go … he shuffles toward us. Without holding on!

Here he is at a friend’s birthday party, coming at me with one wobbly step. (The next day, he gave Patrick four steps before falling over.)

Because we are working on “Joe time,” it will be a good long while before these first wobbly steps become real, effortless walking. But we are so excited!

Today was the first day of Joe’s second year of preschool. His class has a new teacher and a new location this year.

Joe was very excited to see his bus driver this morning (they became close last year, after his initial bus fear wore off) and rode happily off to school. His teacher was out sick today, but a note from the substitute says Joe had a happy day. (He came home with an uneaten lunch, though. I suspect they didn’t try very hard to get it down!)

An open house is in the works, so Patrick and I will be able to see the classroom and talk with the teacher (this change was rather sudden — and immediately followed by a hurricane, which messed up everyone’s planning). We’ll have more to report then.

In the meantime, look at Mr. Too Cool for School!

…. mine too!

Joe was sitting on my lap at the computer when suddenly we felt a rumbling, kind of like a heavy construction vehicle lumbering up the road.

But then it got louder, and more intense. Frames on the wall started to sway, and things fell off the shelf above the stove. It went on forever. I was thinking, Earthquake? No. It can’t be.

It was! The epicenter of the 5.9 magnitude quake was just a little west of here.

Joe won’t remember it, but we will! (Patrick felt it at work, and called to make sure we were OK.)

Seems like there was no serious damage, so we’re filing this in the “Neat-O Experiences” category.

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2011

It’s summer, and that means that I’m incredibly lazy we’ve been very busy enjoying our free time! But there have been some new developments, so here’s a little update.

Joe had his six-month checkup with the Feeding Clinic at Children’s Hospital. His weight is 105% of what it should be for his height, which is wonderful news. (On our last visit, it was only 91%.) So all of the pureeing, pouring, mixing, mashing, squirting and cajoling is paying off. He’s still below those annoying percentile charts for weight, but since he’s also below the height charts, he is height-weight proportionate. So he’s the size of a kid half his age, but a well-nourished one. (His official stats, for those keeping score at home, are 32 inches, 25 pounds.)

Now that we know the calories are getting to where they should be, we need to work on getting him to feed himself a little. Most people only have to spoon-feed their babies for a few months, and we’ve been doing it for more than two years. Time for him to pull his own weight!

A few days later, he had his first trip to the dentist! With the exception of some slow-moving molars up top, all of his baby teeth are in position and looking good. Patrick, who is Chief of Dental Care as part of his nightly bathing duties, got good marks for keeping Joe’s little choppers nice and clean. And the dentist wasn’t too concerned about the grinding Joe does; she says it’s not uncommon for kids to grind their teeth so loudly that you can hear it from the next room. In his case, it’s not doing any significant damage.

One of his favorite new toys is a big Barbie head (surely there’s a better name for it than that) we found at a thrift store. He likes to chat her up in the mornings and play with her hair:

He is also obsessed with this video:

Tomorrow, we are going to Virginia Beach to attend the Arc’s annual state convention. I recruited my mom to look after him while I’m in meetings and sessions; I hope all three of us will get some beach time while we’re there!

Joe continues to love books more than just about anything else. Last week, he got a surprise package from New York with some Dr. Seuss books his Grandpa found. The rhymes crack him up, and he especially loves The Foot Book:

Thanks, Grandma and Grandpa!

Joe had a great time at a friend’s birthday party yesterday — especially the pool. It combines two of his favorite things: being outside, and taking a bath!