Twelve Months

Jolie is creeping up on 14 months...but here is the post I started on her birthday. It took me a while to go back and finish it.  Perhaps I'm in denial that my baby is so big!

Jolie is a whole year old!  These last twelve months have flown by.  It doesn't seem possible that our little tiny baby is now a one-year-old. 

 

Look how she started out!  Hard to believe she was ever that tiny!

 

 

 

 

Jolie is a busy, busy girl these days.  When being held, she always tries to climb down to play on the floor.  She is getting more adventurous and curious all the time and is constantly getting into something!  She started taking steps around 11 months and after a month of taking a few steps and sitting down, right after her birthday, Jo decided to be a full-fledged walker! She now insists on walking everywhere!

At Jolie's twelve month check up, she weighed 20 lbs 8 oz and was 30 inches long.  She had eight teeth on her birthday and in the two days following her birthday cut two big molars!  A couple of weeks later she cut two more molars on top.  Our big girl has a mouth full of teeth!

I'm amazed by all that her little brain is figuring out.  She is saying quite a bit.  "Dada" is still her favorite word, and she says it all the time.  She says "mama" very infrequently still--I am sure it's is just to make me crazy.  Jolie also says "did it,"  "all done," "got it,"  "no no," and is mooing like a cow.  There are a few other things that she says from time to time but not very consistently. 

Jolie's favorite things to do are pull things out of drawers, stack things or put things inside of a container, and "help" mommy unload the dishwasher.  We've loved playing outside on the warmer days we've had.  We found a playhouse on Craigslist and it keeps her entertained for hours! 

Jolie is still a great night-time sleeper.  She recently went through a phase of not napping much, but seems to be getting back on track and has taken better naps the last several days.  Right before she goes to sleep, we read a Bible story, pray, and snuggle in the rocking chair for just a minute.  She's the best little cuddler and lays her head on my should and strokes my hair...best part of my day! We lay her down awake and she goes right to sleep without making  a peep. 

I know I had a lot to say about Jolie at this age, but there is so much that I want to remember about her!  We love Jolie so much and are so grateful to have been her parents for over a year now!

Christmas Part 1

Since we celebrate Christmas SEVEN times, I will spare you a super long post and break it up into two :)

Little cutie ready to go to the Seat Christmas

 
Grandmom and Jack with all the great grandkids

Jo was smiling big while swinging with Aunt Hollee until Mom got the camera out.

A sweet bear from Grandmom and Jack

Our sneaky girl was stealing presents from cousins.  She really likes cars!

This picture cracks me up!  I love how Marlee is smiling...and the angle makes Jolie look like she's about as big as her cousin!

We tried sitting with Santa again at our church Christmas party...The result was the same.  Maybe next year?

Playing in the backyard at Mimi and Pop's house

Visiting with Grandmother Ford at the Ford Family Christmas

Jolie and Daddy admiring our Christmas lights

We tried to get a family photo in front of our tree.  This one is a little blurry but still cute!

Christmas Eve morning with the cousins minus Marlee...Poor girl wasn't feeling good on Christmas!

 
Jo loving her new baby from Mimi and Pops

Cousin Lilly was sharing her new toy with Jolie...so sweet!

Jolie's head didn't fit in the "My First Christmas" hat too well. 

That's better!  It was a good fit for Josiah.  He's too cute!  Jolie loves little babies and really wanted to play with Josiah.

Three Christmases documented....Four to go!

Christmas Part 2

These pictures begin on Christmas Eve night.  We attempted another family picture.  Success!

 

At Gran and Granpa's house Jolie got to hang out with her cousin, Finley.  They are just seven weeks apart and were so cute together.  Jolie loved to hug him!

Jolie had a good time opening her puppy from Gran and Granpa.

On Christmas morning, at our house I did not get great pictures, but we have some sweet video of Jolie crawling into the living room and clapping when she saw her presents in front of the tree!

Jolie isn't quite sure what to do with her rocking horse, but she sure is cute sitting on it!

A family picture at Granny and Grandad's

I love that Jolie's first Christmas was a white one!  She was fascinated by the snow.

If you look closely, you can see that she was sticking her tongue out trying to catch some snowflakes.

Jolie with Granny and Grandad

Jolie clapped when she was her new vanity from Aunt Mel.  Jolie loves anything with a mirror!

She also loves Elmo...Mommy is so grateful for Elmo some days, too!

Aunt Rachel helping Jolie figure out her new toy

Cole modeling new shoes

Jolie with Nina and Papa at the SEVENTH and final Christmas!

Christmas was so much more fun this year and I know next year will only be better! 

Eleven Months

Jolie is ELEVEN months!  I cannot believe that her first birthday is just a month away! 

Jolie seems to be slowing down in the growth department but is definitely not slowing down in any other way.  She is so busy these days. She wont sit still for any length of time and likes to roam the house looking for things she can get into.  Jolie is extremely curious and wants to investigate everything and is still constantly asking "wassat?" Jolie is cruising along the edges of our couches, tables, and her toys all of the time.  She got a shopping cart and a dog push toy for Christmas and can walk behind them really well.  She isn't walking on her own yet, but I don't think it will be too long before she is.  She has 8 teeth now! You really see them when she's talking and smiling now and they make her look so big! 

Jolie is a fickle eater.  She always eats fruit and breads well, but I never know what she will do with veggies or meat.  She will eat any vegetable pureed but only likes finger food veggies when she's in the mood.  I'm always amazed at the quantity of food that little bitty girl can eat!  She likes food like her mommy :) 

Jolie has been taking two cat naps a day.  We tried to drop one to see if she'd nap longer...nope!   She still only slept for thirty minutes in the afternoon and was cranky all morning.  So, two short naps it is!  She teased us the start of Christmas break and for about a week slept until 7:30.  It was a wonderful Christmas present!  I thought it was going to be our new normal, but she has started waking up early again.  I'm still hopeful!

Loving on her bear :)

I think my favorite thing about Jolie right now is how affectionate she is.  She loves to give hugs and kisses and it melts my heart.  She loves on her dolls and Elmo toy while saying "Awww."  Lately she has been very generous with her kisses while I bathe her.  She plays and splashes, then pauses to pull up on the side of the tub to give me a kiss, and then repeats the cycle about ten times.  I love it!

Getting Ready for Christmas

We put our tree up the weekend after Thanksgiving.  Jolie loves to look at it!

She went to visit Santa at the mall, but was not impressed.  She is very uncertain of strangers right now, even nice ones that bring presents. 

Jolie has a couple of Christmas outfits that I love, and I am making sure to get lots of wear out of them this month!  This is my favorite one, and it's even better because her little friend, Aubree, has it too!

Aren't they cute?? Hard to get a picture of, but very cute!

 
Most of the pictures we took looked like this.  The girls just couldn't keep their hands off each other!

We have our first of six family Christmas celebrations this weekend.  You'll be seeing lots of Christmas pictures from us!