Jane on the Plane

For the most part of her life Jane has remained aloof from strangers. Even when she was a baby and people would try to make her smile at the grocery store she would just stare at them straight-faced. The strangers would try a few more times and then it would all come to an awkward end with the stranger saying something like "Oh she must be tired." And then as a one-year old she clung to mom and dad for dear life and still did not find the antics of other adults very amusing. Suddenly as a two-year old she has realized that the entire world is full of people she can interact with. Oftentimes when I am walking with her to take her to the bathroom in a public place she tells every person she passes, "I go pee-pee on the potty."

So taking her on the plane this last time was a new experience for all of us. Walking through the airports took much longer than necessary. Every few minutes I would have to pause as Jane made a detour to interact with or in some way entertain a stranger. During the actual plane rides we had her pretty excluded though.



During one of our legs I was frantically searching my bag hoping to magically find something that would entertain Jane. And in an obscure pocket I found some old little pom-pon chicks we had made and put into plastic eggs. Jane became enamored with them. She wrapped them in tissue paper as blankets. And of course when the ride was over and we were all waiting to exit the plane Jane showed everyone she could her little baby "ducks". Here she is putting one down for nigh-night.