Jonas - 7/8 months, Josie - 3+

Josie's 39/40 month stats: 41 lbs, 41 inches, 5T in clothing, big girl panties(!!!), size 8.5 shoes

Josie's favorite book: Snow White, Berenstain Bears' New Baby, Alexander and the Terrible Horrible No Good Very Bad Day (dada just directed the play and we got to see that too!)

Josie's favorite movies: Shrek and Zootopia

Josie's greatest hits:

Scene: We're reading Snow White and Josie has a cold. She sneezed for the umpteenth time and I went to get her a wipe.

Me: "Josie, if you were a dwarf your name would be Wipey." Josie: "No mama! I'm Sneezy!" 

Scene: I ate some salad and was breathing my garlic breath on Jonathan and he was dying pretending to squirm. Josie comes over to perform conflict resolution.
Josie: " Dada, tell me what happened."
Jonathan: "Well mama ate some salad and was breathing her stinky breath in my face."
Josie: "Well, why don't you tell her you don't like that?"
Dada: (giggling under his breath) "Mama, I don't like that."
Me: (resigned) "Okay, dada. I'm sorry, That's not kind."

Scene: We're at the playground down the street and it's Thanksgiving day. 
Josie: (from behind the pretend counter) "I'm Superman doctor! What seems to be the problem?" "This is the Rescue Service. How can we help?"

Scene: Jonathan is lighting a fire in the fireplace.
Josie: "Now dear, you must be organized so you don't get hurt. If there's a fire, we must go to safety."

Scene: Anywhere, anytime, all the time.
Josie: "Poopy, poopy head, poopy butt...booty butt!" (repeat)

Josie's new tricks

This kid took a bite out of a butter stick at Thanksgiving. I wish I had taken a picture because it was something else.

She put on the Elsa wig and somehow became more of herself. Check out this picture and see what I mean. She's forever asking me to fashion a long ponytail out of her muslin blankets and attach them to her head (yes, really). When she was able to wear this wig, she stared at herself in the mirror for a long time. I predict she's going to want long, long hair when she finally grows some. And maybe a long blue dress. And powers.

She can do a forward roll! I haven't been able to capture this yet but trust it's very cute and almost always ends up crashing into person, place, or thing.

She LOVES to cook. Clearly did not get that from me. 

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Jonas' 7 month stats: 21 lbs, 29 inches; 12 mos in clothing, size 4 in diapers, hazel eyes, more hair

Jonas' 8 months stats: 22 lbs, 29.5 inches; 12-18 mos in clothing, size 4 diapers, hazel eyes, and even more sandy, spiky, soft blonde hair

Instead of vocab we'll review his likes and dislikes:

Likes: Giving "kisses" (aka slobbering in a concentrated area, generally one's chin), holding his bottle, STANDING (with support), taking a step here and there (with a lot of support), hugs, screeching to try and talk, more hugs
Dislikes: Going to sleep and staying asleep. Anything about sleep.
Tolerates: Sitting in a high chair to eat (but barely)

Jonas' new tricks

Month 7:

Speaking of talking, Jonas knows what a ball is and is trying hard to say ball:

Month 8:This little man has no interest in being a baby. Here he is having his very first conversation with mama!

In other Young family news...

We celebrated Halloween with Grandma and Papa and Aunt Susan and Aunt Renhilde!

We celebrated Thanksgiving with Grammy and Grampy!

We made turkey placemats under Grammy's creative direction.

We snuggled on the couch.

We went to one of our favorite places: The Thinkery!

Mama got to meet sweet brand new Cousin Elle, who rivals all babies for the cutest baby. Auntie Ashie and Uncle Adam are amazing parents already.

This kids are still crazy about each other.

We got into the holiday spirit!

And mama surprised dada with a Christmas tree!

It's already been a wonderful season filled with family, friends, adventures, and laughter, and we can't wait for what's to come. As writer of this blog I get to chime in from time and time and in this season of thanksgiving, I want to extend gratitude for our dear family and friends. As humans, there's nothing more important and complicated than loving and being loved. We are both so lucky to have so many people to love and who love us back. Thank you to all of you for being ours. Especially our parents, also known as Grammy, Grampy, Grandma, and Papa. Also also know as Hero #1, Hero #2, Hero #3, and Hero #4.

Until next time!

Xoxo,

J Quad

Jonas - 5/6 months!, Josie - 3+

Josie's 37/38 month stats: 40 lbs, 41 inches, 5T in clothing, size 5T in pull-ups, size 8.5 shoes

Josie's favorite book: Pinkalicous 

Josie's favorite movies: Mulan, Boss Baby, and Frozen (a distant third) 

Josie's new sentences and vocab. She is completely communicating now using large and small sentences, but these are this month's greatest hits:

Me: "Josie, check out that rain cloud." Josie: "Is it raining here?" Me: "No, it's probably closer to Austin." Josie: "Austin is in Italy." Me: "Um, do you know where Italy is?" Josie: "I think it's over there (points to Austin and the rain clouds)."

Ask her any question and her reply? "Yeah, of course." It's so matter of fact; three going on twenty-three.

"I love my baby brother. I take care of him."

In the age of YouTube where videos of tutorials are abundant, Josie likes to walk us through her nighttime routine. It goes something like this: "Okay, kids. First we are going to put toothpaste on the toothbrush and you have to touch all of your teeth so Dr. Bain gives you a surprise!"

"I have babies in my tummy and their names are Lovell and Grace. Oh, will you hold them please? I have to go exercise." Josie loves to pretend she's pregnant these days and I can see where she got her inspiration for that but for the exercise? Wasn't me!


Josie's new tricks

Grammie gifted Josie a CD for Frozen and Josie sings along to her CD, which is requested to play on every single car ride. She has very strict rules about who can sing and when - I am often relegated to the ensemble. Jonathan is often allowed to perform in the duets, but only as Anna. I've recorded this many times but none of them ever do the experience justice.

She bakes, she bakes! Auntie Lissie visited and we were inspired to film a cooking show. I'll let the videos speak for themselves.

I issued an apology to the greater Austin area on social media - we seemed to have deployed all sprinkles.

Josie loves to wear my shoes. I often find them tucked behind beds and chairs and couches. It's such a fun game, especially when I'm playing it at 6:45 am, pre-coffee. She will also ONLY WEAR DRESSES. Note to anyone purchasing anything for her. Dresses for daytime, playtime, and bedtime.

Josie took her first dance class! Well, more accurately, Josie and her baby took their first dance class. Oh my goodness - you haven't seen cute until you've laid eyes on a ballet class full of toddlers. Josie was amazing - she was by far the best listener even though she told me several times before class that she was "a bit scared". She danced with the doll until Josie felt she could do it by herself - I was so impressed with her.

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Jonas' 5 month stats: 17.6 lbs, 25.5 inches; 9 mos in clothing, size 3 in diapers, hazel eyes, HAIR! He has hair and it's spiky and dark blonde and sooooo cute. 

Jonas' 6 months stats: 20.10 lbs, 28.25 inches; 9-12 mos in clothing, size 3 diapers, hazel eyes

Instead of vocab we'll review his likes and dislikes:

Likes: JUMPING, Tummy raspberries, bath time, his hand (#1 fav right now), his chiropractor visits, literally pulling my hair out (let it be known that my baldness is not because I am not pulling my hair out myself)
Dislikes: Going to sleep, not being able to jump
Tolerates: Josie's very close thisclose! kisses and hugs, sleeping, his nickname "Buddy Boo"

Jonas' new tricks

Month 5: 
He's rocking and rolling!

He's mastered the letter B. He is buh-buh-buhing all over the place.

Month 6:
He's eating solids! Our first food was bananas and Jonas loved it.

He's sitting up unassisted!

In other Young family news...

We celebrated Rosh Hashana (the Jewish New Year). 

Josie helped me make the most delicious matzo ball soup. 

Auntie Lissie visited, which you got to see clearly in our baking videos. We had such a great time with her!

We got a membership at the Thinkery, our favorite children's museum!

Josie and I had a special Mama/Jojo day and visited an amazing pumpkin patch and farm. Sweet Eats Farm in Georgetown was surreal. Josie hugged goats all day and frolicked through these ridiculous pumpkin settings.

I went to NYC and got to see Auntie Ashie and Uncle Phil and Uncle Adam too!

This isn't really "news" but it is newsworthy to note these kids truly love each other. 

Josie comments a lot on how much she loves being a family and requests "a big family squeeze that we can stay in forever." I don't know what's better than that.

Until next time!

Xoxo,
J Quad

Jonas - 4 months, Josie - 3 years!

Josie's 36 month stats: 39 lbs, 4T/5T in clothing, size 4/5T in pull-ups (as featured in the above photo, oops), size 8.5 shoes, official Preschooler!

Josie's favorite book: Cooper's Big-Kid Day (we affectionately refer to this as "Cooper the Pooper" because...reasons.)

Josie's new sentences and vocab. She is completely communicating now using large and small sentences, but these are this month's greatest hits:

• "Mama, you're so kind so me."
• "I love Elsa and Anna. When I was a baby, Elsa used to hold me."
• "Oh Mama, LOOK! A rainbow! I've never seen one before. It's so beautiful."

• Me: "Josie, what part of your body do carrots help?" Josie: "My eyes!"
• "Let it go, let it go, here I stand and here I stay. The cold doesn't bother me away!" (see the rest of this story below)
• "Why? (I answer) But why? (I answer again) BUT WHY MAMA (I fall over)?"
• In the last month, we've noticed that Josie talks in her sleep. So far we've heard "cookies" and "Peppa Pig!!!"

Josie's new tricks
We have a preschooler! I love that she wants to be a "grown up" when she grows up. That tells you everything you need to know about this spunky little gal. I don't know what sorcery other parents use to generate the obediently smiling children next to their carefully crafted back to school sign photos but please send that magic my way.

Princess Belle wished Josie a happy birthday! You should have seen Josie watch this video and nod in response to the rhetorical questions Belle asked. J and I were dying. I think we'll need to book her for next year's party!

Josie can give herself a pedicure! I say this without hyperbole but she is better than I am at painting her toes. Embarrassingly so.

Lastly, we discovered Frozen and have since watched it 13 times. THIRTEEN. Somehow I am discovering nuances each time because I'm half paying attention for each run but GAH. I did take some interest in the characters and learned I 100% shared lunch with Olaf (Josh Gad) for his entire senior year of high school and my freshman year of college since his h.s. and my college shared a cafeteria so that's a fun fact.

                                 

                                 

Actual photo of the Nova Southeastern University cafeteria

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Jonas' stats: 17.6 lbs, 25.5 inches; 9 mos in clothing, size 3 in diapers, hazel eyes, continued male-patterned baldness. 

Instead of vocab we'll review his likes and dislikes:

Likes: His office, bath time, his hand (#1 fav right now), his chiropractor visits, drooling
Dislikes: When he gets too tired, the process of falling asleep (still)
Tolerates: Josie's very close thisclose! kisses and hugs, the Bumbo, sleeping

Jonas' new tricks

He can go from sitting to standing (with help)! He is a super strong little guy. I have a feeling we'll have an early walker. Still, if he's sitting and holding on to two hands, he'll trigger the standing part and likes to stand more than anything else right now.

He's returned to sweet, easy, mellow Jonas. When he was first born, the nurses remarked that he was so quiet and peaceful. Then he had some of mama's milk and howled for 2 months. Now...he's BACK! He's so much fun and his giggling is so stinking cute. His drooling is less cute and definitely more plentiful.

(insert photo)

In other Young family news...

In the spirit of turning 3, Josie sort of accidentally had 3 birthday parties. Here's outfit #1 for party #1, compliments of Grammy and Grampy. I truly didn't mean for 3 parties to happen but learned a very valuable lesson: don't do that thing again. By party #3 I think we were all feeling about the same as her T-H-R-E-E balloons. Also, party 3 was a pool party and it monsooned for the first time it rained at all in over a month so there was that.

Grammy and Grampy visited like they always do for Josie's birthday parties and we had a great time with them - from inverse twinning...

 to a multi-tasking role play session.

We get to see them again for Thanksgiving and hope they bring Cousin Pierce. He and Josie exchange shrieks and play the occasional game of Show and Tell with the nearest toy over Skype most weekends, and Josie promised to share her toys when he comes! Let's see if that promise is retained over a few months.

Finally, we decided to go on a road trip for Labor Day. I'd been to Salado once before but didn't really remember much about it. We mostly played with puppets and had sweets but it was a good test for our new wheels!

Until next time!

Xoxo,
J Quad

Jonas - 3 months, Josie - 35 months

Josie's 35 month stats: 39 lbs, 4T/5T in clothing, size 4/5T in pull-ups (no more diapers!), size 8.5 shoes, a head taller than everyone in her class even though she just transferred to Preschool Pathways

Josie's favorite book: a custom book from our friends called Josie and Jonas

Josie's new sentences and vocab. She is completely communicating now using large and small sentences, but these are this month's greatest hits:

• "Mama, babies talk and don't talk at the same time."
• "Mama, your hair is crazy!"
• "I love Baby Jonas. He's the best baby brother."
• Me: "Josie, what are you doing? Let's start painting." Josie: "Mama, I am reading the directions."
• I ask Josie to help me make scrambled eggs. "Okay, mama. I will help with the ingredients. Can I stir?"
• Speaking of potty training, we've decided to look to m&ms for help. We explained this to Josie and shared the rules (2 m&ms for an attempt, whether or not its fruitful). Her response? "I don't like m&ms. They have sugar in them and they are not healthy." Josie's parents: Speechless.
• "Shake your booty butt." I can't even.

Josie's new tricks

She's finally in a front-facing car seat.  Jonathan and I have been "arguing" about this for a year now but I finally won. Josie was skeptical at first but now she loves it!

She is officially obsessed with her birthday. It's all she talks about. She keeps asking if it's her birthday yet, and also keeping changing which cupcakes she wants for school.

Finally, she will only wear dresses. I truly don't understand how I have such a girly girl for a daughter. I didn't wear a dress until after college. Now I love them so maybe...duh. I haven't slept much. I'm going to leave that little aha! moment in there because it's proof I am an idiot and also tired.

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Jonas' stats: 16.5 lbs, 23.75 inches; 6 mos in clothing, size 2 in diapers, blue-gray eyes, male-patterned baldness. 

Instead of vocab we'll review his likes and dislikes:

Likes: The swing, bath time, Grandma Anne, his monkey, the jungle
Dislikes: When he gets too tired, the process of falling asleep
Tolerates: His carseat, being put down if its in one of his approved zones 

Jonas' new tricks

As you speak or sing to Jonas, he is really trying to sing and talk. It's so cute. I need to get this on film - it's just hard to know when he's going to do it!

Jonas has found his feet...and his thumb. He's been working on that thumb via his fist for a couple of weeks now. Honestly he's probably just trying to eat it. Look at him. He's enormous.

He's also started to laugh a bit. I was playing a game with him ("game" is generous - I don't know what I was doing but I digress) and I would swing him back and forth singing "do do do do" and then quickly bring him down with a knee bend and sound effect. He thought this was a riot so obviously I did it 600 times.

Speaking of laughing, I'm not sure who gets the trick credit here but check out our new Bumbo action. Josie was BESIDE herself.

In other Young family news...

Jonathan took me to the Counting Crows 25th Anniversary tour for Mother's Day. I think he learned to appreciate my favorite band a little more, but not a lot more. It was 103 degrees and I think we are still dehydrated from the experience.

We had visitors! Tia Crystal, Sara and Lisa, Alex, and Pauly came as I was on leave. Everyone met Baby Jonas, as he's called in our house.

Having Tia Crystal with us was such a gift. We went on hikes and she helped us with many house projects (in her Chip and Jojo way). We missed Uncle Paul - next time!

Josie was truly in heaven with everyone visiting *her*.

Not that there's EVER a shortage of attention for this pint-sized star.

We had so much fun with everyone!

Speaking of people visiting, there's someone I've been meaning to spotlight in our lives: our Jen (as Josie calls her - really she says "my Jen" but in our family we share great people).

Jen is a Young family VIP and we adore her. Thank you Jen for all of the love, always. We're lucky you're in our lives.

That's about it other than family photos are becoming increasingly...difficult. I'll try to end on one from now on but I can't promise quality.

By next blog we'll have a three year old!!

Until next time!

Xoxo,
J Quad