Giggly Girl

Easter

 

 We were able to go to my Mom's this year for Easter. I wasn't sure if we would be able to go but thankfully everyone was well. It's that time of year where Avery can finally get out and around people some. Colds, flu and RSV are still around but nothing like the Winter months. She's only been out one other time besides Easter. Slowly but surely she'll meet everyone :)

We had her an Easter egg hunt on a blanket. She really didn't care that much about it. I think she was more interested in chewing on a toy. It was more for us than her anyway. 

Ethan was a little bumbed that he had to hunt eggs inside this year. I think he still had fun and even though it was inside he still managed to break a sweat.

Of course we didn't forget the true meaning of Easter. It's not about bunnies and eggs. Unfortunately we weren't able to go to church. Avery's Dr. and her Neonatologists told us church is the worst place for preemies. Everyone wants to touch babies, and people don't want to miss a service even if they're sick. This is so true. Hopefully we'll be able to go this summer. God knows my heart and knows why were not there, and that's all that matters.

Not only did we celebrate Easter we also celebrated my sister's 21st birthday. Yep, that's right she's getting old ;) We had a great time and I look forward to many more family get togethers with the Princess!

 

 

Toes

 Avery's new favorite thing is her toes. She's always holding them and rolling around :) So cute!

Mango and Mum Mum

Today Avery had her first Mango and her first Mum Mum snack. She loved both. I make all her food homemade so I really didn't want to give her the packaged Mum Mum but I caved and got her some.

They have no nutritional value, they're just hard rice disks that melt when she slobbers on them. I guess it doesn't hurt for her to have a little treat now and then. It's not like it's replacing a meal, and she won't get them all the time. I thought it would be good to help her with teething and to teach her to self feed. She has no problem knowing what to do with it, since everything she can get her hands on goes in her mouth.

She's a great eater and has liked everything she's ate thus far with the exception of green beans. However green beans mixed with sweet potatoes or carrots are a big win in her book! Her very first food is still her very favorite, that food being avocado. She would literally eat a whole one if I would let her. She'd take avocado over anything sweet any day!

On a side note I know everyone who reads her blog doesn't have facebook so I've decided to start posting some videos on her blog. I also consider Avery's blog kind of a journal so when I or maybe even Avery (one day) look back on posts there will be videos. I usually on put videos on facebook, frankly because it takes forever for videos to load to the blog. I've found a faster method so here's some videos for all you non-facebookers :)

Lots OF Firsts

 Tuesday night we had very bad storms, unfortunately our power went out. We lost power at about 11pm on Tuesday but it wasn't too bad since it was bed time. When we got up however I quickly realized this just wasn't going to work. Avery has to have a warm bottle otherwise she just won't take it. Hmm spoiled much? We have a car warmer so Josh fixed her bottle and took it out to warm. Well an hour later it was barely warm! UGH! I'm hoping our bottle warmer is just a dud and that all of them aren't this way, if so well then they're pointless. She did take some of it but once it got cold she was done.
Avery really didn't care whether or not the power was on. As long as she had a somewhat warm bottle, a clean diaper, and a toy she was her happy self. We did watch a Baby Einstein dvd on the laptop which she loved :)
At about 3 pm I knew we were going to have to do something different. Her clean bottle stash was going down quickly and I had no way to wash them. I called my mom and said make room for us were coming to stay the night.
My Mom aka Big Momma was so excited. It would be Avery's very first time to go to her house. Not only were we visiting we were spending the night. Also it was Ethan and Leon's (Ethan's dad) first time meeting Avery.
Let me tell you packing for a baby is no easy tasks. It's time consuming and you pretty much pack up the whole house. I single handedly packed and loaded the car (woo go me!) An hour later we were KY bound.
When we got there Ethan was waiting at the door. Saying he was excited is an understatement. He was just beside himself. Not only was excited to see Avery but he hadn't seem me since October of last year :( Ethan said Sissy I took a bath and I used germ buster (his term for germ-x) I'm all clean. He was nervous about touching Avery so he just stood by her and talked to her. She giggled at him and it made his day.
Avery just looked around she really didn't know what to think about her new surroundings. She hasn't ever been in anyone elses house. She adjusted really well and had a blast. Ethan never held her but he would get down in the floor with her and hand her toys. They were so cute. Believe it or not I didn't get a single picture of them playing :( Oh well I have the memory!
Ethan said the sweetest thing. He said "Momma, am I dreaming?" Mom said "No, why" "Well Sissy and Avery are here and I feel like I'm dreaming" Ethan said. How sweet is that? I just love that kid! 
Leon, Ethan's dad came over and it was his first time meeting Avery too. She was asleep when he got there but he held her anyway. She woke up while he was holding her. I was afraid she would cry but she didn't. She really liked him and tried to eat his fingers! lol Not that he's gross but thankfully she never got them in her mouth! I would've freaked out, I don't even let her put my fingers in her mouth. Leon is Ethan's dad but he's been there for me since I was 13, and we're really close. I'm so glad he got to hold her and that they got to meet. It was a really special moment for me and I know it was for him. I love that man, he has such a special place in my heart!
It's very inconvenient when the power goes out, especially with a baby. This time though it wasn't so bad. If it hadn't gone out Avery wouldn't have had all these firsts. First time being at Big Momma's or any other house other than our own. First time staying the night away from home, first time meeting Ethan and Leon and well her first power outage.

Come On Sunshine

Can you tell we're ready for Summer and swimming? We got all of Avery's swim gear in today (swim suit, cover up, sun hat, and sunglasses) so I washed it and decided to have a photo shoot! I mean is that not the cutest swim suit ever! The cutest kid too I might add :) She loves her new sunglasses, they're pretty neat. They have a band like goggles so that they won't fall off and she can't pull them off easily. They sure will come in handy. She HATES the sun in her eyes. I can't wait to take her swimming, I hope she loves the water as much as her Momma...we shall see.

To the Moon and Back

Guess How Much I Love You was the very first book I knew I wanted to get for my girls. It's so sweet and I've always loved it. I bought both of them their very own and Josh and I wrote them each a love note inside.
The girls at this point were at separate hospitals, so we were always at one or the other. We spent 90% of our time with Adison because she was so much sicker than Avery. One day I'll tell all about Adison and what exactly happened, but not today. I don't know if or when I'll be emotionally ready to type it all.
Anyway...Even though the majority of our time was spent with Adison we managed to visit with Avery every day. Avery thankfully had wonderful nurses so that made it somewhat easier to be away. Our hearts were always with both of them even if our bodies weren't. 
They (they being Josh, my Mom and Sister) had to physically make me leave to eat otherwise I would have never left.  July 8th to be exact we ran to a bookstore so I could get them this book. I knew in my heart Adison's time was short so I never wanted to leave but for whatever reason it was important to me to get this book for my girls.
After we got the books we went to visit Avery. Josh and I wrote something special in it and I read it to her. At the end of the story Big Nutbrown hare says to Little Nutbrown Hare "I love you right up to the moon and back" and I said to Avery "Mommy loves you right up to the moon and back" With tears streaming down my face I left Avery to go be with Adison. Even though Adison was the sickest Avery was a sick baby too. I was so worried about both my babies.
When we got to Adison all I wanted to do was read her, her book. Well that didn't happen until after long tough talks with Dr's all night. Josh and I managed to write something special to her in between all the talks. Finally at 4am I was able to read to Adison. It was just she and I. Josh had went to nap for a few hours in the room they gave us. It took me an hour and a half to read it to her, I just couldn't stop crying. I couldn't help but think this is the very first and very last time I'll ever read to her. It broke my heart and still does. When I had made it through I said the same to her as I said to Avery "Mommy loves you right up to the moon and back". She went to be with Jesus that night at 6:03 pm, so it was in fact the very first and the very last time I read to her.
I still tell Avery every single night "Mommy loves you right up to the moon and back"

I say all that to explain this and how special the meaning is...
It's a necklace I had made that has a moon and it says I love you to the moon and back. There's two little charms that has each of their names on it and a little heart charm as well as their birthstone. I just love it! It's how I feel written on silver, worn around my neck close to my heart :)

Miss Independent

 Avery has started to take interest in holding her own bottle. She's helped lots before but now she's gotten this new sense of independence and wants to do it all on her own. I'm thinking I need to find some that aren't so long so it's easier for her to hold up. The Dr Brown bottles are great but they're a lot for a baby to handle. She's getting so big!

Peek-A-Boo

 Avery had just woke up from a nap. I was watching her in the monitor, she was playing with her toes. She rolled over and then discovered she could peek over the top of the bumper :) I watched her for a few minutes then snuck in for a few pics...

We Have A Sitter

                      
Avery is officially sitting all on her own, we're so proud of our little Princess :) She knows she's doing something big and she's so proud of herself. It's so cute!

                            

                            
                            

3 AM

 I woke up to Avery rustling in her bed. I looked over at the monitor and she had rolled over and was getting comfy on her belly. I went in her room to roll her over and she heard me coming so it woke her up. It was dark in her room so she couldn't see me all she saw was the flash from the camera. She went from her belly to her side then to her back with a smile :) I gave her the paci and she went right back to sleep. What a stinker ;)

9 Month Check Up

Yesterday Avery had her 9 month (6 month adjusted) check-up. It went really well and she's doing great. She's right on track with everything she's supposed to be doing at her adjusted age of course. We'll track her development by her adjusted age until she's 2. At 2 she should be caught up and then we'll go by her actual age.
She weighs 16 lbs and she's 25 inches long. She's in the 50th percentile for both which is amazing, most preemies are only in the 20th percentile or lower. Her Dr. was very impressed. Avery (now) has a healthy appetite and of course a stubborn mother who at one point force fed her and went against the Dr's advice on what kind of formula and how many calories/ounce to give her. So I'll take most some of the credit for getting her as big as she is :) Sometimes Momma knows best, and in this case I know I did.
She's reaching all her milestones on time, however she can't sit up completely unassisted just yet. Her Dr. said she should be sitting up all by her self now but everything I've read says otherwise...
Sit unassisted. While many infants start to work on their sitting skills at 6 months, their ability to sit well (in other words, without tipping over and hurting themselves) takes some time. By 7 months, the average infant can sit while leaning on both hands for support. By 8 months, he will progress to sitting alone without support, and by 9 months, most can reliably sit unassisted for longer periods of time.
The above excerpt is pretty much what I read from every website. Nothing I've read says at 6 months a baby should sit completely unassisted it's more like 8 months. I know all babies do things on their own time so I'm not worried one bit. She sits well she's just a bit wobbly at times so I don't just put her on her butt in the floor and leave her. I always sit with her. She's just starting to develop her righting and propping reflexes so once she masters those she'll be sitting up all by her self.
Her first word she said about 2 weeks ago it was Daddy, not dada but Daddy! She said it twice in one day but hasn't said it since. Josh is one proud Daddy. She now says Ma-ma. Sometimes she'll say it just like that and other times it's ma-ma-ma-ma-ma. Either way it makes my day :)  I've yet to get it on video. Trust me when I do you will see it, that's a promise!
I need to brag a bit on Josh too. He's on midnights right now so he sleeps during the day, but he chose to go to Avery's appointment instead of sleep. He's never missed a single appointment of hers. He also never missed any of my OB appointments when I was preggo :) He's the best Husband and Daddy ever. We are 2 blessed girls!
Avery is so cute and precious. She jabbers, yells, rolls, and plays all day long. I love everything about being her Mom. She's just a ball of fun. I love watching her discover and learn new things. There's never a dull moment with this baby girl around :) 

                          

Avery In A Bubble?

A bubble outfit that is! Bubbles are by far my very favorite for Summer. So cute and sweet, just like Avery :~)

Not Happening

I wanted to take pics of Avery being all cute, well I mean when is she not cute ;) Anyway, I got 2 decent pics then she was done and it just wasn't happening. The pictures tell the story...

She says oh well hello shoes
Manages to kick one off
Scoots down and shows off that cute chubby belly
She pulls the blanket down and she's over it
My kid is cute even when you can't see her face