Jace Alexander - 11 months

Jace is just a month away from the big O N E. I can't believe it!

Jace is weighing in at 15.8 lbs and roughly 27 inches tall. He still looks so tiny. People are always amazed at how old he is. Jace is definitely on the move. Crawling is nothing and standing is a challenge of the past. Cruising seems to be his preferred mode of transportation if there is something to lean on. That usually means using his push toy to cover every inch of our family room and kitchen. He isn't easily walking yet, but he has taken up to 4 steps. This is usually through bribery of some sort. He took three steps because he was within arms reach of me and four steps because a yummy banana was dangling in front of him. Jace's personality makes us all laugh. He has quite a sense of adventure about him. He will take on any "mountain" whether it is Rylen's bed, a chair or the basket near our window. He will climb to reach the top and then maneuver his way back down. He has even conquered the stairs, both up AND down, though I would never let him do it by himself right now.

Jace is also quite the eater. At his mere 11 months of age, he will tackle turkey pieces, apple chunks, crackers of all shapes and sizes, and if you let him, a bite of your sandwich! Purees are simply baby food, and he is NO baby! I do coax him to eat oatmeal in the morning with pears (a family favorite) and for dinner we can typically get some carrots or sweet potatoes. If it is sweet he is all about it. Peas and Green beans have to be hid in the sweet stuff. But if that green bean or pea is NOT pureed, he is all about it.

Naps have gone down to two a day. If the day is going as planned, they usually occur at 10:30 and 3:00 give or take a half hour. I laugh when I think about a planned day with two kids. Rylen's days were very planned and he thrived on that. I wouldn't have changed that for anything. Jace on the other hand has to go with the flow a bit more. He is also more willing to do that. Sleeping at night is still another challenge. He is stretching a bit more inbetween waking up, but the whole night will most likely not be accomplished until after he is a year old and Mommy's milk is no longer available. Though tired, I am used to this now and feel this is only a short period in our life anyway. I can already tell that he is transitioning out of it.

Last, our little boy is quite the talker. He says mama and dada and even tries to mimick us when we say words. It is crazy to hear him come so close to what we are saying. I already get to hear my boys laugh at each other in the car and while playing with their toys. Soon, i will hear them carrying on conversations with each other...and yes, even arguing.