Good Golly, Olly is Five Months and Joey is Two!

Good Golly, Olly is Five Months and Joey is Two!

Last week was a BIG week around here! Not only did we celebrate a brand new year, but Joanna turned two years old, and Oliver turned five months old.

These might be my favorite photos of Joey ever.

On Joey’s birthday we gave her all her favorite things — a cheeseburger and fries from McDonald’s, a chocolate milkshake from Malley’s, ramen from Noodlecat, and a day with her grandparents (we’re pretty sure she likes them more than us!). Then over the weekend we were hosting Andy’s extended family for a Christmas dinner, so we decided to also treat it like Joey’s birthday party and finish the traditional Slovak pierogi dinner with some birthday cake.

Two-year-old Joey is sweet and funny and so much fun to have around. She’s learning new words every day and often surprises us by suddenly saying a word we didn’t know she knew (yesterday she requested to wear a dress… I didn’t know she could do that!). She’s also very opinionated (obviously), very independent and is running full speed into those terrible twos without looking back. I spend my days navigating her wildly changing emotions like landmines, but at the same time she’s getting more and more affectionate, often coming running to us for hugs and kisses, giving hugs and kisses to her brother, our dog, her stuffed animals, her favorite books… Joey was never a cuddly baby, so my heart explodes a little bit every time she wants a hug or to curl up with me to read.

Two is my favorite age yet. Sure it can be difficult and exhausting, but I LOVE seeing her personality develop and LOVE seeing her experience new things. She’s a total perfectionist. Her favorite foods are bananas, tomatoes and bread, but she’s a good eater overall. She loves books more than anything. She has the best laugh. She’s also turning into a pretty great big sister. Most of the time.

Look at that squish! Oliver is so roly poly … and he’s rolling all over too. He can roll front-to-back, back-to-front and in both directions. So basically he can’t be left unattended at all. When he’s awake, I often let him hang out on a blanket on the floor, because he can’t fall off the floor! He also has started playing in his exersaucer (similar), which is a big hit. The first couple times I put him in it, a few weeks ago, he immediately started crying. It was just too much sensory overload! But now he spins around and plays with all the things. Joey loves to help show him what to do, since it’s her old toy. It’s so cute to watch him watch her and then try to do exactly what she did.

Unlike Joey, Olly is the cuddliest of babies. He looooves to be held more than anything and falls asleep in my arms almost daily (IF he’ll fall asleep at all). Of course it’s the sweetest thing ever, but it’s also obviously not the perfect situation for any of us. Sometimes I can successfully transfer him to his crib or swing in super slow motion! The poor guy has also been teething pretty bad for the last few weeks, which is probably hugely responsible for not being able to nap. No teeth yet, but his gums are super sore. He’s still an awesome night sleeper, though, so I’m confident the regular naps will come eventually.

It’s funny to see how different Olly is already from Joey. Besides the cuddles, he just loves to move. He wants to bounce. He wants to swing. He wants to roll. He’s not interested in sitting still. Oh no, when he starts walking we’re in trouble! That kid is going to RUN!

But oh I’ll chase those chubby cheeks anywhere!