Josie 11 months

11-month old Josie is just as sweet and cute as she can be. She's super fast at crawling now and usually walks with us holding one hand for support (instead of both hands like the previous many months). She has 8 teeth now (!) and eats a lot. She loves fruit but will eat almost anything. She is still taking two naps but they vary in length from one day to the next. She sleeps pretty well at night although some nights are better than others. She has a few words (mama, dada, more, cat, stop) but we're working on more and trying to teach her signs too. She waves, points, and does high-fives.

11 months old, with Bandit

So big she hardly fits on the blanket

She usually plays whatever Oliver is playing and watching the two of the play together is so cute. If he is playing music, she'll usually either play along on the keyboard or do her version of dancing. That said, she's also pretty good at playing by herself for short periods of time too. She loves books. Just like Oli at this age we read her books in the bath. She loves the Elmo "astronaut" book the best, especially the countdown part. She's pretty attached to both Chris and I but will spend time with others pretty easily. At Oliver's party (a few days after she turned 11 months old) she loved spending time with her aunt Shell and was pretty content to have some of the other party-goers walk her around the park.

wearing Oli's baby suspenders

standing

everywhere we go people say
these two look alike

loves to walk

only needs one hand for support now!

goofy little peanut

I'm holding on to the end of her babyhood with everything I can, but I know it's coming to an end soon. This is such a great age! We love you Jo.

And Oliver at 11 months.

Oliver Turns 3

Oliver turned 3 on Saturday so we had his party on his actual birthday this year. We had a party with friends and family at Wabun Park in Minneapolis. We couldn't have asked for better weather. It was warm and sunny. And the leaves are changing and starting to fall here so it was just a gorgeous day. It was a morning party so we had coffee, fruit, and pastries and then cupcakes later. We've done a color theme every year and this year was yellow. Chris made chocolate peanut butter cupcakes from scratch that were delicious. Oli has been developing his sweet tooth this year so we were surprised that he wasn't that interested. He's been incrementally more interested in his birthday cupcake each year, but still just took a few small bites. Unfortunately we didn't get many photos from the party. We were too busy having a good time. Thanks to everyone who made it!

getting set up

thinking about blowing out his candles

father & son

Later in the day we went to another park and then to Punch Pizza, one of Oli's favorite restaurants where he devoured an entire margherita pizza and then ate some of his cousin's cheese pizza too.

love this expression

serious on the swings

looking like a big kid

swings are still fun

balance beam

At night he opened some more presents and then crashed from a long day. Thanks to all who sent him presents. You're all so generous!

I can't believe you're already 3 years old Oli. Wasn't it just yesterday that your dad and I were eating pizza in the hospital with a newborn baby in our arms? I love you so much. You're smart, imaginative, funny, talkative, stubborn, playful, and sweet. You make us laugh and keep us on our toes. I can already tell that each birthday is going to feel bittersweet. I want to keep you little and I'm also excited to watch you grow. xoxo

3 looks cool on this kid

trying out his new tape player

eating fruit from his edible arrangment

dancing in his cool new t!

And because I can't help but reminisce about all his previous birthdays, here's Oli turning 2, turning 1, and on his birth day. 

Josie 10 months

This month has been a big one for Josie! She went from army crawl to crawling on her hands and knees. She goes from laying down to sitting up and back down again, pulls to stand, cruises and even took a few steps! She's eating a lot more solid food now and will eat almost anything. She really likes fruit (like Oliver) and will also eat veggies (unlike Oliver). We've been enjoying the summer and exploring new parks and wading pools in the Twin Cities. She loves splashing, playing, and walking (with assistance) in the wading pools. She loves the swings too. Her hair is getting really long and when it's humid it gets really curly. I'm curious to see if it will stay curly/wavy when it gets even longer. She has 4 teeth and 4 more are coming in! She and Oli have started interacting together more and it's really cute to see them. She takes a bath in the regular bath tub now instead of her infant tub so they like to splash and play together. She is also really good at playing by herself especially now that she can crawl/cruise. She's just a joy and I'm not ready for her babyhood to end.

And Oliver at 10 months.

Summer travel Part 2: Texas

After our visit in Oregon we flew to Austin, TX for a family reunion with some of Chris' family. We were staying at Chris' uncle and aunt's gorgeous house on Lake LBJ about an hour outside of Austin. I'm going to mostly let the photographs speak for themselves. We had an amazing time catching up with family. Chris and I went out on the jet ski one afternoon while the kids were sleeping and we all went boating a couple times. I was worried about how Oli would do with the life jacket and in the boat but he did great and even took a nap on the boat both days we were out! Josie didn't love the life jacket but did pretty well. Oli had a great time exploring the yard and house and especially loved playing with Chris' cousin Jessica. One day he took a 4 hour nap so we let him stay up late. He had his first smores, danced to music in the moonlight and even got to see his first fireworks. On our flight home we had to make an unscheduled landing in Madison due to thunderstorms in the Twin Cities, but the kids did really well. The flight attendant kept remarking on how Josie was the happiest person on the plane. We had such a good time but it felt good to be back. Thanks for the visit and all the great memories Bock family!

Lots more photos follow after the jump.

Summer travel Part 1: Oregon

Life has been really busy this summer so this post is late coming. We got back from our trip over a month ago now! In June we took a 2 1/2 week trip to Oregon and Texas to visit family and attend a graduation and a wedding. This post will be about our time in Oregon. It was tiring to travel with two kids but we had such a good time! And this was the first time a lot of our family got to meet Josie for the first time! This was also the first time Josie was on a plane. She did great! She didn't sleep much but was calm and happy for most of the time. Oli was a little hyper in the airports, but did great on the plane with snacks, books, and the iPad. Our first stop was my parents where we spent a week. Oli loved exploring their beautiful yard, picking raspberries and cherries, and playing with his grandparents. One of the highlights was the Oregon coast (as usual)! The weather was surprisingly nice at the beach and we had a great time eating at Mo's and playing in the sand and water.

More photos after the jump.

Josie 9 months

9 months old!

Outtakes: It's getting harder to get these monthly photos

This girl is awesome! She's so easygoing, sweet, and funny.

She had her 9-month dr. appointment on her 9-month birthday (July 17) and she weighed 20 lbs 5 oz. I looked back at Oliver at this age and was shocked that he weighed more than her at this age! She has definitely plateaued in her growth. Everything looked good at her appointment though and I'm really thankful she's healthy and growing well. No shots this time (yay) but she did have to get her finger pricked (boo). Surprisingly she didn't cry!

She's been working on crawling a lot recently and right around the 9-month mark she really got the hang of it. She just does army crawl at this point but she can get around pretty well. She seems a lot happier now that she can move around on her own. She does little circles laying down with her belly on the ground and also sitting up. It's fun to see her explore new things her body can do.

Unfortunately nothing new to report on the sleep front. Our vacation kind of moved everything back a few steps, but we're working on it again. She's still taking 2 naps (about 1 1/2 hours each) and is up 1-2 times at night. She's been getting up pretty early (between 5-7 usually) so Chris and I trade off getting up with her and let the other one sleep in a little. That's been nice!

She's been eating more lately. She doesn't eat a ton but she seems to be (so far) really amenable to lots of different foods. She hasn't refused anything we've given her and  even likes spicy food (Chris' kid). Of course she also likes "kid food" like crackers and yogurt too. She drinks water from a sippy cup (with a straw).

Besides being really tired (and part of that is because I've been teaching a new summer class and doesn't have anything to do with her), I'm really loving this age. An infant seems especially easy now that I have a toddler to compare it to ;)

Couldn't love you more Jo! XOXO

Josie 8 months

Josie turned 8 months old while we were in Oregon last month. She took her first plane ride and did great. She took short naps on all the flights but was mostly awake and happy (but squirmy). This month we've been working on sleep. Before our trip Chris was sleeping downstairs with Jo in the pack 'n play in the office. She's been waking up less often so hopefully we're getting somewhere. Around 7 1/2 months or so we started noticing some stranger and separation anxiety. It's gotten stronger in the last few weeks. She babbles and say "mama" a lot which I love of course. Her growth has definitely slowed in the last few months. She weighs about 20 lbs now and wear size 9-12 month clothes. She's been eating more solid food and doesn't seem too picky (yet). She also loves to walk with someone holding her hands. She could do this all day! Jo is mostly really easy going, take 2 naps a day, and smiles and laughs a lot. Happy 8 months sweetie!

And Oli at the same age! It's fun to see their similarities and differences.