Turning One and being a Jax O'Lantern

This is Jax at one year old. He looks so big and so little at the same time.

For Halloween this year, Jaxon was a Jax O'Lantern. He recieved the costume

from his Grandma O, and was the cutest Jax O'Lantern in town!

Happy Birthday Jaxon Chad

Jax in the toddler part of Chucky Cheese
We had a great time crawling around in the kiddie tubes

This was the token Chucky Cheese character

Jax had fun destroying his cake

I purposefully didn't put frosting on...but he still managed to get pretty dirty

Braydon with his Christmas inspired cake

Jax with his favorite birthday toy and with his favorite cousins Tyler, Quincy, Caden, and Branson

We celebrated Jaxon's 1st birthday last Saturday on the 24th and it was definitely a celebration to remember. Jax's cousin Braydon also had a birthday and he decided that he really wanted to go to Chucky Cheese to celebrate. Since the entire family was going to be there anyway, we decided to combine the parties together. Jax couldn't play the games his cousins were playing, but he LOVED the toddler section. Every time we moved him to a different play area he would cry and scream until he became enamored with the next attraction. One thing I was disappointed in though is that they had completely changed the format of Chucky Cheese. When I was a kiddo they had the big stage with the animatronic characters that put on quite the concert. Now, at least at the Chucky Cheese we visited, have completely done away with the stage show. There was a animatronic Chucky (the mouse... not the horror doll) in some dark corner of the place, but he just didn't capture the spirit of Chucky Cheese to me. Some things about the place never change though. For instance, it still takes about 100 tickets to earn something stupid like a piece of taffy. My nephews played hard for hours (and their parents spent loads of money) and all they had to show for it at the end of the day was a sucker or an airhead candy. No wonder that place is still in business.

After totally exhausting ourselves at Chucky Cheese, we went back to my house for birthday cake. Jaxon's favorite thing in the world is a wheel. Whenever he finds a wheel to spin he will literally sit for 20 minutes at a time and watch it spin. So, I made him a birthday cupcake shaped like a wheel. (Actually, a it was a very easy design) :) Braydon's cake required a bit more work. He really likes Christmas (when I say "really likes" I mean it. That boy has been planning a Christmas pageant since last January. He has been doing chores all summer to earn money to buy decorations for his big show) so we decided to make him a cake in the shape of a Christmas tree. The creation of the Christmas tree was a combined effort. I baked the cake, Chad carved it, and our nephew Branson did most of the frosting and decorating. All and all, I think it was a huge success.

We sang to Jax first and he was totally enthralled by the fire on his birthday candle. (Do I have a future pyro on my hands?) Once the singing was done, we took out the candle and scooted the cupcake over to him. At first all he did was look at it. Then, slowly, he gingerly poked it with his little finger. He looked at his finger, then looked towards us. We all cheered our approval. He broke into a smile, and then launched himself at the cupcake. I'm not sure how much of the cake actually ended up in his mouth, but he did succeed in completely smashing it to pieces. He loved the few pieces that did end up in his mouth, and it was apparent that the sugar had a fast effect on him. His little feet were kicking out of control as he sat in his high chair. Chad and I decided that it was a good thing we hadn't given him sugar up to that point before.

Opening presents was also pretty entertaining. Jaxon's favorite toy was a little turquoise ball. He screeched with joy as he played with it (and he has continued to do so throughout the week.) He didn't pay any attention to his other gifts (except for the wrapping paper they came in), but I think he will like them more and more as the weeks go by. All and all, it was a lovely first birthday for our little boy.

Jaxon's first haircut

This was my initial view of the haircut from the shower.
Jax really loves to sit in the sink. Both Chad and Jax had a good time with this new adventure.

Well, we will get this part right next time...

Baby Mullet be gone!

The end product was pretty cute...or maybe Jax is just cute...

A few weeks ago I was in the shower and I heard some snip snipping coming from outside the curtain. When I peeked out, I saw Jax sitting in the sink while Chad expertly trimmed his "baby mullet" as we affectionately called his pre-cut look. Jax did great during the haircut. He mainly focused on putting all three of our toothbrushes in his mouth and scattering the baby fine hair all over the counter. But at least he wasn't too wiggly. The end product was very cute. As his hair dried though, we saw that the hair around his right ear had been cut WAY too high. So he is a little uneven... but hair grows and we think he is too young to have any self-esteem issues about his first cut.

Paint By Numbers...Or Not...

At first Jax needed a little help to get into painting...
Then he didn't need any help at all!

He progressively got dirtier and dirtier as the painting was created.

Our finished product was a beautiful painting and a beautiful painted boy

A close-up of the painting

Last Monday we painted a picture for Family Home Evening. We have been meaning to paint this picture for my parent's new guest bedroom for nearly a year now, but we've never known what to paint. Chad had the brilliant idea to just put some paint on a plate and let Jax go wild... and so we did. It ended up being a very fun and messy night. I like Jaxon's picture so much though that I hate to give it away. I think we are just going to have to do this activity again so I can get a Jaxon original in my house.

Family Photos

Jax with his GG and Pops
I really love this picture of my two boys

I think Jax sort of looks like a cupie doll in this picture

The Daybell kids photo

Our little family... notice Jaxon's small horn in this picture....

We love to take pictures of Jax, but we've begun to realize that we are appearing in fewer and fewer shots. In an attempt to regain our identity without compromising our new found love of taking pictures of our boy, we decided to get family photos! Last time we were in Utah, dad took us to some pretty spots to get our pictures taken. My brother Paul and his wife also joined us in some of the pictures. All and all, I think they turned out really nice. Thanks Pops!!

My Boy, the Puppy...

Ever since Jax has learned to crawl, he has acted more and more like a puppy dog. We hear him growling often, he puts balls in his mouth, and his favorite thing to do is dig through the trash... (We only allow him to handle the paper trash...what kind of mother do you think I am?) We've always wanted a dog, and his impersonation is very cute. I wonder what kind of animal he will be next week?

"Q" is for NesQuick...

"A" is for Avocado
"B" is for Banana

"C" is for Carrot

"Q" is for Nesquick...

Jax and Dad posing at the store

One of our latest projects has been to create an "ABC" book for Jax using pictures of various grocery items. Last week we went to the grocery store to take the pictures. It started out great, "A" is for Avocado, "B" is for Banana, "C" is for Carrot...but we were stumped by the time we got to "Q." Chad had the bright idea that we should take a picture of 'Quick', you know, the chocolate milk mix. But when we got over there, we saw that it is actually called Nesquick. Now correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't that product called 'Quick' when we I was a kid? When did it change to 'Nesquick,' and if it has changed, why would they do that to such a beloved American product? We just decided to take a picture of the Nesquick because we couldn't think of another grocery product that started with a "Q." Does anyone out there have any great ideas? I have this fear that Jax is always going to go around writing his "Q's" as "N's."