Many Firsts for Ava!

Wow, what a whirlwind Thanksgiving break! Ava experienced so many "firsts" this weekend that I want to list them out:

• First time out of the state
• First car ride over an hour and a half (in fact, 2 12 hour rides in 4 days!)
• First time swimming
• First Thanksgiving!
• First time to stay in a hotel
  

We left Wednesday morning at 5:00 am to head to Illinois to visit my dad's family. I was a little nervous about how Ava would handle the car ride but she did WONDERFUL! At one point my mom even said she was "an angel" which has never been a way to describe our daughter! :) I was so proud of her because I know she was scared at times with being in a completely new place with all these people she had never seen before.

She did this most of the way there and back

Steph and I entertaining ourselves on the long ride

Forcing Zach to join in the fun (doesn't he look thrilled?)

We made the trip so that my grandparents and aunts and uncles could all meet Ava, but there was one person I really wanted to meet her. My great grandma is still alive and kicking at 95 years old! She doesn't always have great memory recall and didn't really know me or my sister, but she knew my parents and was absolutely tickled to meet Ava. She just held her and stared at her and was so happy. We managed to capture a picture of 5 generations which is so rare so we were excited to have this opportunity.

Ava with her great-great-grandma

Five generations!

My parents, grandma, great-grandma, sister and us

Ava in her Turkey Day attire

Ava and Daddy on Thanksgiving morning

Mommy and Ava on Thanksgiving morning

We also had another exciting first for Ava while we were there. We took her swimming! The hotel had an indoor pool that was heated but it still wasn't warm enough for Ava so she didn't care much for it. I didn't have a swim suit for her so we improvised - my brother Nick bought her three Halloween onesies and I told him to return two of them, but he never did, so she used that as a swim suit.

Right before heading to the pool

Daddy and Ava in the water - she was checking out the water

Ava was sooooooooo excited to get home yesterday. It was so cute how she could recognize being home and how happy she was. She just laid around and played and laughed. It was too cute. We got up this morning and went to church and then had lunch at my parents' house to see my brothers. After that, we headed home and Ava napped while we worked. Zach helped finish catching up the laundry while I made chili and spaghetti (it's so much easier to cook on the weekends and then heat it up during the week) and I also decorated the Christmas tree. Tomorrow is back to work and daycare. We had a nice long break and are sad to head back to work. The last Ava picture is of our little sweetie trying to wake up from a nap today.

My grandparents sent us some pictures from the weekend and it's a good thing we left yesterday because this is what they saw out their front window today! Brrr!!

I hope everyone has a good start to the week!!

Happy 2 years to us!

Wow, I can't believe it's been two years since we got married! How time has flown. It's been a wonderful two years filled with many exciting things: a fantastic honeymoon, fun random trips, Zach graduating college, buying our first home, me graduating with my Masters, and the birth of our sweet baby girl. Each day is a new adventure and there is no one I'd rather be on this journey with.

I love you, Zach!

2 Month Stats

Thursday afternoon I took Ava to the doctor for her two month check up. It seems that all is finally well! Here are her stats:

Weight - 12 lbs even - 75th percentile
Length - 23 inches - 75th percentile
Head - 15 inches - 25th percentile

It seems that her head is disproportionate to the rest of her body! Her cheeks are so chubby though that if you look at her face, it looks like her head is actually big. But apparently not.

Ava had a very good first week at daycare. It has been an adjustment for her - she's not used to not getting all the attention so that's a bit of a change. I'm so proud of her though - now that she's feeling better, she's behaving so much better. I hope it sticks because on Wednesday we are making an 11 hour car trip to visit my grandparents in Illinois for Thanksgiving. It should be interesting to say the least. She usually does good on extended car rides, so hopefully she'll enjoy this one.

It was so nice being home with her again today. She's so much happier now that her little belly doesn't hurt all the time and it's so fun to have extended periods of laughing and grinning. I've been busy today cleaning the house and spending time with my little girl, so this post has no pictures! Awful, I know.

Our big girl is two months old!

This sweet face absolutely makes my heart melt. She is two months old today and I cannot believe how fast the time is passing. It feels like just yesterday we brought her home. She We went back to the doctor last week and finally got the solution to our problems - medicine for acid reflux! I really felt like that was the problem and I finally convinced the doctor and we tried out a prescription and since she's been on it she is a different baby. Her personality is really starting to shine through now that she isn't hurting constantly.

Things Ava can do/is doing at two months:

• Rolling over
• Holding objects we put in her hand
• Holding her head up to sit in her Bumbo seat
• Sleeping 5-6 hour stretches at night (yay!)
• Giggling
• "Talking" - especially when she is laying in her bed waiting for us to come get her
• Grinning/smiling
• Hitting objects that hang above her

Our little girl has had a big week. She started at daycare on Monday. The first day went really well. The second day didn't go so hot. I think it was confusing to her to hear other little kids crying. I went to see her on my lunch hour today to check on her and she was sleeping and I didn't want to disturb her so I didn't get to pick her up to squeeze her. But, it seems like she is getting used to it, so that's good. Mommy still isn't used to leaving her little girl, but her "teachers" absolutely adore her and every time she is dropped off, someone can't wait to hold her and every time she is picked up, someone is holding and loving on her. It makes me feel better knowing she has so much attention.

This little stinker decided she needed to wake up at 4:15 this morning so we are having to get used to both of us working and dealing with long nights. But how can you care when you go to her room and a face similiar to this is how she welcomes you?

She also has developed this nasty shriek. Now that she is feeling better, her little temper is really starting to show. She often wants changed or wants her bottle, and she wants it NOW! She has no problem telling us when we aren't moving fast enough for her and it has developed into this high pitched shriek! I can tell we are going to have our hands full with a very head strong little girl.


Our big girl trying out her Bumbo seat for the first time

Ava with her Uncle Nick after he fed her

Mommy and Ava

Check out this major cheese for the camera! Is it not the sweetest??

Yes, it's about Ava again!

When they say time flies, they aren't kidding. This is my last week at home with Ava and I've been trying to enjoy it as much as possible. I'm really sad about having to go back to work and having to leave her in day care, but I am hoping that it will be a good environment for her. She really loves getting out and going places (not that we do much of that b/c she doesn't behave!) and I'm also hopeful that by going and having a semi-schedule that is the same each day, she might get a little easier to handle. I definitely love this little girl, but she is a handful!

She's sleeping a little bit better at nighttime now and horrnedously through the day! We've actually had two nights where she slept for about 6 hours! At night, we've started using a swaddler that we got. It's kind of funny because she looks like she is in a straight jacket but she really seems to like being cozied up (after the initial few minutes of yelling, of course!)

Check out the pouty face!

I'm not sure why she's stopped napping during the day. She's never been a great napper, but she had gotten a lot better and over the last few days, she's resorted back to her old ways of sleeping maybe 20-30 minutes. It's exhausting - for both her and me! She's actually asleep right now, but only because she's snug in this:

I have attempted to catch some pictures of her smiling, but it seems like everytime she does it, she turns her head right as the camera goes off:

Two different days, two different tries - same result!

But I finally got one good one!

Now then, who else can't believe it's almost Thanksgiving and Christmas???? Seriously, where did this year go?? I've already seen a couple of houses that have their Christmas tree up. (Zach said no to putting mine up.) We went to rent a movie the other night and one radio station was playing nothing but Christmas music already! I must say though that I am over halfway done with all my shopping. I have about 5 things left to get and I'm very excited about that. I also have a lot of my gifts already wrapped! That way when I put my tree up there can be pretty packages underneath. Christmastime is my favorite time of year and I'm so excited to get the season started!

Keep Rollin...

This has been a fairly uneventful week in our house. We once again had to switch Ava's formula. She is now eating soy milk and so far, so good. We're just really praying that this one will do the trick. It's so hard to see her in so much pain so we hope that this is the last time we have to switch.

Each day brings about so many changes in Ava. On Wednesday morning, I had her laying on her tummy on our bed and I was sitting there with her and she started getting a little squirmy (she hates tummy time) and the next thing I knew, she had rolled over!!!!! I thought that must have been a fluke b/c I thought it was way too early for that so I rolled her back over and she did it again! She's done it two more times since then so I guess it's going to be a regular occurance from now on.

She has been a bit fussy today but we think that she is going through a growth spurt. She is not sleeping well and she has been wanting to eat every two hours! Thankfully she has calmed down a little bit. She's been sitting her swing for about the last 20 minutes and hasn't made a peep!

So, I guess that is enough of the update and now I'll move on to what I know everyone comes here for: pictures!

We finally got her to start sleeping in her crib - she just has to be all bundled up nice and snug!

In the process of rolling over...

I'm trying so hard - only a little more

I finally got it!!!!

Whew - I'm tired after all of that!!


No matter what my Mommy and Daddy say, I am happy some times!

Our sweet girl!

Here is our little chunk eating.. She is getting so big!

Halloween, A Grin, & A Thumb

So, I'm a couple of days late but Ava enjoyed her first Halloween! She had a good day and dressed up as a lady bug to go "trick-or-treating".

Her onesie that said "Baby's 1st Halloween" - she wore this most of the day

What is this thing on me?

I'm a cute little lady bug!

Sweet bug!

The backside

Ok, Mom, I've had enough!

Wide-eyed bug!

Since we have switched Ava's formula, she is a new girl. She is eating better, sleeping better and doesn't have screaming fits of pain. She even enjoyed her bath one morning. I was just taking a picture of her because she wasn't screaming, and I caught the cutest grin!

From the day we've had Ava, she has always had her fingers up in her face. She tries so hard to get them in her mouth and gets frustrated because she can't. I knew it was only a matter of time before she got it. Tonight I was walking through the living room where she was sitting with Zach and I heard this loud sucking sound, and sure enough, she had found her thumb!!! We try and use a pacifier to quench that thirst, but she does what she wants!