23 months old

It looks like I stopped these monthly posts with Jack when he turned 2.  So I guess we'll do the same thing for Max.  It's really helpful to me to record what happened, and things happen so fast in those first 2 years.  But it's always hard to separate the monthly updates from the regular fun posts, so I kind of look forward to just posting about the other stuff.  However, this confirms my suspicions that my kids are getting old and we're really close to leaving baby-land...and I'm not entirely sure how I feel about that.  Part of me is so excited for life to be a little easier and for us all to be more mobile and not so tied to schedules and such.  But the other part of me is so sad.  My baby, is about to be a big boy.  Oh me.  Sometimes life just goes way too fast.

This month Max decided that he didn't like to wear clothes.  Ever.  That doesn't mean he got away with it all the time, don't worry...but if he was at home, he was only in a diaper, for sure.  The minute he walks in the door, he starts fussing to get his clothes off.  I have no idea why.  Our house is not hot.  At all.  No one else walks around naked.  I don't know.  What I do know, is Max marches to the beat of his own drum, for sure.  No part of this picture is staged.  He puts the hat on, he carries a ball EVERYWHERE and he insisted on taking his clothes off.  And the paci is often in.

In related news, he has also started potty training and he's doing really well.  He will go every time you put him on the potty.  And in fact, he likes to do this thing where he'll pee a bit and stop and then say more, and pee a bit more.  It goes on for a long while...but he gets such a kick out of it!  This whole potty training thing was initiated by his teacher.  I will admit the first time she mentioned it, a few months ago, I really thought she was crazy.  She was so sure he was just about ready and I was so sure no boy would ever learn before 3.  But sure enough, she was right.  He even asks to go sometimes and he asks for a dry diaper every 3 minutes it seems, even when it's not really wet or dirty.  So he's certainly aware of what's going on.  

The brotherly love continues.  Sure, there are moments where they scream at one another and fight over toys, but Jack's doing really well with handling it most of the time and Max is always over whatever it is in a few seconds.  So far, so good.  Jack can be so sweet with him - I often am amazed.  Max LOVES Diego.  Jack's kind of over it.  And they get to take turns picking what to watch and Max does not understand or like it when it's not his turn.  Sweet Jack will often choose Diego when it's his turn, just for Max.  And he's so good at making sure Max has what he needs and teaching him lots of great things.  We couldn't ask for any more on that front.  

Max's eating definitely dropped off this month, but I think that's normal. He's still pretty adventurous but just didn't eat as much as he used to.  I think he's starting to enter the "I'm too busy to eat phase" where playing is much more important than food.  

He also started to want fewer snuggles at bedtime but wanted me to hold him during the day a lot.  More than snuggles, I think he just wanted a better/different view on life.  

He's talking more and more, but still not great.  You still have to know him to understand him for the most part.  He communicates his needs just fine and seems light years ahead in other areas, like coordination, so I'm not concerned but sometimes wish he had the words to tell me a little more about what's going on in that mind of his.  It'll come though.  

He's kind of obsessed with the alphabet...oddly...and he's working on his colors, slowly but surely.  He thinks most things are blue.  He started to sing a little bit this month - no words, just kind of hums the tune.  

He definitely knows how to throw a tantrum like the best of the 2 year olds.  But so far, they haven't lasted long.   When he wants to, he follows directions really well.  But he definitely likes to see how far he can push me at times.  We have been working on time outs and he's much more receptive to that than Jack was, but I'm still not sure he really gets the concept.  

He loves books and will look at the same ones over and over and over.  HIs faves this month were "Dear Zoo," "Goodnight Virginia," "Goodnight Atlanta" and one from the library about colors.

I love that sweet smile so much Max Oliver...thanks so much for sharing it with us!

Father's Day

Father's Day!  Remember that?  I know, it was a while ago... We'd planned to all be together in Kilmarnock on Father's Day catching crabs but we had to postpone that due to renovation delays.  That was all well and good except that I had a sweet little red-head who had been counting down the days until he could catch crabs!  So after a quick email to Gramps that read something like "eeeek, where can we pretend to catch crabs this weekend to prevent Jack from losing his mind over the plans changing?" we decided that we would try fishing instead!  Gramps is a fly-fisherman but in a pinch, can do some regular fishing too!  So off we went, back to the lake in the old neighborhood, worms and poles in hand...(and for the record, Jack has turned into such a big kid that while he was disappointed that we weren't going to get to catch crabs that weekend, he was over it in a flash, and excited to get to try fishing instead!  I LOVE 4 year olds! :)!).

Gramps can do it all...fish, hold Max AND baby...

The question is inevitable...and the answer is no...we didn't catch a thing.  But we sure tried and we had a lot of fun doing it!

Kenny spent his afternoon with the boys doing what they all love to do the most...play outside.  This isn't anything special - they do this a lot, but as a mother, there's nothing sweeter than watching your husband delight in playing with his kids.  They played some "flootball" as Jack calls it and just enjoyed life...

Thanks to my Dad (Daddy-O!) and Kenny for being 2 of the very best dad's one could ever know or even imagine...

22 months old

 We're getting so very close to two...and while it's clear from the calendar, it's also abundantly clear when you're around Max. He's so full of spunk and knows how to throw a tantrum like the best of the 2 year olds.  He's adding some 2T items to his wardrobe and getting to join in the big kid fun a lot more often.  It's so fun watching him become a real kid, but I'm not gonna lie, I get really sad sometimes when I think about how little baby time I have left.  While it's exhausting and sometime very overwhelming, I love snuggling these little guys and fear the day they won't let me...


But for now...Max loves snuggles and I'm ready and willing whenever he wants them!  Perhaps he's also afraid of not wanting them anymore because he is definitely getting all that he can get right now.  Its a bit of a clingy phase where Momma is about all that will suit but I know these things don't last and like I said, I'm taking all the snuggles I can get!


He is a MESS.  Literally and figuratively.  But a super cute one!  So very full of personality and so sure about what he wants and doesn't.  He is not easily swayed at all.  He's on a mission.  You can't easily change his path, though if you dig in your heels and insist that no is the answer, he'll fuss a bit and move on.  Convince him that any ice cream will do, not just the special Spidey ice cream his brother has...not a chance.

The good news is that Jack still thinks Max is awesome and so he'll usually share.  And that Jack is 4 and can be reasoned with.  That helps a LOT.


Max became very attached to a lot of animals (or really just their tags) this month.  Among the entourage was George, woof woof, tiger, baby tiger, and backpack.  Backpack has a big tag on the inside so he'd walk around holding an empty backpack and rubbing the tag.  Odd.  

At any given time, he might want 3 or 4 with him, but "baby" was the one he always wanted.  This was the baby we bought for Jack when Max was in utero, for his sibling class.  Jack never cared anything about it, but Max has loved it.

He fell in love with Diego, which he says "day-dough" which is pretty cute.  And he answers Diego's questions.  It's really funny.  His speech is coming along - it's getting clearer and he's talking more often and pointing and grunting less.  He learned to say lollipop this month and it's super cute!  


He still will try most anything to eat and likes everything a little bit better if it didn't come off his plate.  He still loves fruit and yogurt the best.  


He's still in 18-24 month clothes but not for long.  They are getting short and tight, so we'll be moving to 2T here soon I'm sure.  He wears a size 5 diaper and will always tell you when he needs a clean one.  He loves to wear baseball hats, especially backwards.


He likes things to be organized and where he expects them.  He gets this from his father and brother.  They love to organize.  Max's teacher told us one day that she had taken all of their shoes off for water play and had them in a big pile.  Max was upset about it and made sure to pair them up and line them up perfectly straight.  


He's into telling me what he sees in the books before bed instead of listening to the story or me asking him questions.  His favorites lately have been library books, one about city animals and another about animals that do silly things in the house, like the sheep are in the bathtub and the ducks in the kitchen sink.  He thinks it's really funny!  And he still loves the 5 little monkeys book.


He's letting up on the paci a bit.  There are definitely still times when we definitely need it, but he can live without it for the most part.  Kenny is pretty determined to break him of it and he's doing a good job.


He's a good sleeper...he will nap 3-4 hours on the weekend and sleeps from about 8 to 6:30 most nights.  No complaints there.


HIs hair is a bit lighter than Jack's but I think it's just not as thick.  HIs eyes are pretty much the exact same shade as Jack's.  


The best Max trick this month was the "one minute sign."  We often will tell the kids, "one minute until bath" or "one more book and then it's bedtime."  Max learned what that meant and as soon as I'd talk about moving on to something else, he'd hold up one finger and smile!  Jack figured out that we thought this was cute and would often encourage Max to hold up one finger!  Most often this happened close to bedtime.  The boys get some playtime on Jack's bed just before books and as  soon as I'd say "Alright..." he'd look at me and hold up that one finger!  It worked most every time...seriously...it's way too cute...

Love you sweet pea...every single piece of you, inside and out.  

Fun with the Pelletiers

I suppose we owe Jack a thank you for choosing a best bud with such a great family for the rest of us to enjoy.  He picked one with super cool parents and even a sibling the same age as Max, in the same class at school!  Good work Jack!  

We've had a few really fun playdates with Emerson and his family so far this summer, and hopefully many more to come!  A few weeks ago we packed up a picnic and took it over to the elementary school playground.  It was a gorgeous day and we really had such a good time just watching the kids play and enjoying a little lunch.  Jack Lion was so excited, he really had no idea what to do with himself.  Emerson was coming to HIS house and going to HIS playground and having a PICNIC!?  It didn't get much better than that!

Max loved it too, but as long as Max is outside and there's a ball in sight, he's happy...

Sweet Lisette - isn't she beautiful?  She is such a good sport being the only girl around these rowdy boys...

Today they invited us over for an amazing breakfast (seriously, it was DELISH!) and slip and slide fun.  What could be better than good food, good conversation and watching your kids enjoy life?  

Thanks guys for a great start to the summer...can't wait to see what fun we have next!

21 months old

This was a big month!  I think it brought about the most drastic changes so far.  In a good way, at least most of the time.

Max really started communicating - not always clearly but he started saying a lot of things that helped us know what he wanted...he can tell you he wants his paci or breakfast or juice or a snack.  He can tell you he wants to watch George (Curious George) on tv. He can tell you he wants his shoes on so he can go outside.  He will always tell you his diaper needs changing.  He can tell you he wants to jump on Jack's bed.  He can tell me the names of a lot of things in the books we read.  He still isn't completely clear with his words, but they are coming along, for sure!

He started playing with the train set this month, and legos.  And he'll play with the animals and dinos too.  It's clear he's watched Jack and knows what to do with all of it.  Jack didn't get trains until 2 and a half, so I guess we don't know what he would have done at this age with them, but it seems so grown up to me.  I think just because I associate those things with an older Jack.


He had another ear infection this month - I think that's 3 in 2012.  Hopefully that'll be the end of it, but if not, I think tubes were mentioned.  If that'll help, show me where to sign up.  He was old enough this time to tell us what hurt...:(...it's all happening too fast!


Max finally seemed to learn to appreciate snuggles this month! He's never been a huge fan.  Jack has always LOVED snuggles.  Part of me thinks Max decided to like them just because Jack was getting too many! :)  But finally he'd come ask to sit in my lap, just to be held and finally he wanted to be snuggled and rocked at bedtime.  In fact, a few nights, he'd call one of back to his room, point at the rocking chair and insist that we snuggle a few more minutes.  I'll take all I can get...I know they won't be around long!


And speaking of snuggles...he carried this tiger around EVERYWHERE this month.  He's really into tags and this one has 2.  Grams and Gramps got Jack this big tiger at the circus and Max a smaller version of the exact same thing.  He loved that one for a long time but kind of wore out the tags and then moved on to this huge one.  He drug it everywhere by the tail.  It got washed a lot, but it's still kind of gray...

Every afternoon when they come home from school I'm in the kitchen fixing dinner.  Max opens the door, walks in there and says "BOO!"  It's really cute...

I feel like I say it (or at least think it) every month, but he really came to life this month.  I guess we just learn more and more about him and get to see more of who he is each and every day.  He's super cute and for the most part, agreeable...though we've had a few glimpses of the terrible twos on the horizon for sure!  Oh well, that's just part of it and as long as he stops throwing tantrums long enough to smile once in a while, we'll be ok!  He'll be 22 months old in just 6 more days...I am so behind!!  Maybe I should start right now on that post!