15 Months

Ava is 15 months old and just had her latest well baby visit. She is 24lbs (in the 69th percentile) and 29 3/4 inches (one inch taller than she was at a year). For the second time in a row they measured her wrong at the doctors office so in their records she is much taller and in the 90th percentile for her age! Not true, I'd say she's much closer to average.

Her sense of humor is off the charts and she loves to laugh and make us laugh at the simplest things. Example: Just yesterday Blair snuck up behind Ava and yelled, "Boo!", thus introducing Ava to her new favorite activity. This was quite surprising as she still cries at loud or unexpected sounds, is very cautious of new things and gets startled easily, but this she loved! We have since been taking every opportunity to scare her and she runs around the house saying, "Bo! Bo!" and laughing hysterically. She hasn't gotten the surprise factor down yet though, Blair was lying on the floor this afternoon and Ava walked over, put her face three inches away from his and said, "Bo."

Ava is getting very good at her baby sign language and loves reading her Baby Signs book and practicing. She can do the signs for milk, more, all done and please, and uses them regularly around the house. My favorite is when she looks at me with those sweet little eyes, points to a cookie or some other treat and signs, "please?". How can I resist?

At 15 months Ava has about 11 words that she says regularly including hi, hello, daddy, mama, ducky, ball, uh oh, thank you and good job (both sound very similar and resemble, "tah tu" and "do do"), banana (baba) and just yesterday, Elmo (melmo)! I feel like she must say more words than this since she communicates with me constantly but I'm realizing not everyone is fluent in her babble and body language! She has also continued this month to grow in her babbling technique; adorable sentences come out often and we have so much fun trying to translate. She loves to talk on the phone, she'll walk around with it at her ear and I'll hear gibberish with the occasional "daddy" as she talks. My favorite is when she gets sad and she'll come to me with a pouty lip and babble for a good thirty seconds as if to say, "Mommy, you said I could go outside but I'm not outside yet!"

Ava's also become very interested in dressing herself this last month, though almost everything goes over or on top of her head. She loves going through my drawers and putting on whatever she can find, though embarrassingly enough that is usually my "delicates". Just as long as this dress up party doesn't happen while company is over. She loves trying to put on and take off her shoes and oh yes-- brushing her "hair" and putting makeup on with mommy in the morning. She has her own blush brush and old foundation tub, watches me putting mine on and then brushes on her cheeks and wherever else she feels like. She is a mommy's girl and I love it!

Other big girl things that Ava is doing include washing herself in the tub (she also loves washing her feet with a wipe on the changing table) and climbing up stairs! She is however very afraid of going down stairs and trembles at the top if the gate is open. She is getting better at pointing to body parts too, her favorite of which is her belly!

I mentioned that Ava loves playing with her pots and pans, spoons and bowls, but this month she has perfected the skill of taking the lid off of a milk carton. This is one of her favorite things to do so we've given her a carton of her very own and she enjoys twisting the lid on and off. For her birthday from her Aunt Erin and Uncle Jon she received an ingenious gift, a plethora of wooden fruits, veggies and breads that are held together by velcro and come with a wooden knife and cutting board. These last few weeks she's gotten much better at actually putting each item on the cutting board and cutting through the velcro slits with her knife, and of course tasting each piece and offering up her goods!

This month we went swimming for the first time with Ava (that she remembers), and she loved it! We weren't sure what to expect since she doesn't love the bath and doesn't like getting her face wet, but she did very well. She loved bouncing through the water with us, playing with the balls and noodles that our local YMCA provides and watching all the other swimmers. We also took our first visit to the Philadelphia Zoo this month with Heather, Nat and Ava's cousin Miles. It was, again, a treat to see her react to all the new things and to seeing in person the animals she's read about. She especially loved the monkeys and gorillas and did all her animal sounds on cue! We checked out the children's petting zoo but Ava was not so sure about this whole petting-dirty-animals-among-hundreds-of-other-kids thing. She at least stretched a hand out to pet a goat and a sheep and then promptly fell and stuck her hands in goat poop. Mommy was delighted, to say the least. All in the name of new experiences!

On the matter of teeth: There are still none to speak of and frankly I'm tired of writing, "any day now!" since she was 6 months old. We've had many nights and days of tough teething and were convinced she'd pop one or two out by morning but alas... nothing. I won't say that she should have teeth in the next month or two, I am done guessing. But, I can say firmly that there are at least 6 teeth that are visible under her gums and yes, will come before she goes to kindergarten.

Ok, now on to boring details of size and schedule for mommy to keep track of her growing girl:

At 15 months Ava's between 18 and 24 mos clothes, fitting into 2T in some items. She is wearing size 4 diapers.

Her bedtime routine consists of changing into pj's, drinking milk and reading books with daddy around 7:30, then she sleeps until at least 8:30am and often as late as 9:30am! She also takes two 2-hour naps (on a good day). She has stayed true to her infant self and loves her sleep (as do I).

If you missed them with the last post, check out the most current pictures of our sweet girl in the albums to the left!

A Picture Post

There are a ton of new pictures in the albums "May 2010" and "June 2010" to the left. Here's a sneak peek of what Ava's been up to this last month!

14 Months... came and went!

I am a little shocked that Ava's 14 month birthday came and went and I have yet to update our blog. We have had a very busy month and Ava's been even busier! We have a million new pictures (stay tuned, I will get them posted eventually) and much to report of our growing girl.

Here are some new things Ava is doing:

1. Cleaning One of her new favorite activities is to ask for a tissue/wipe/cloth and go around "cleaning" everything in sight. We've known of her love for cleanliness for a few months now as she regularly comes over and hands me little "fuzzies" to throw out, but now she likes to throw things away herself! She will pick food off the floor, sometimes eat it, sometimes throw it out, and will take over to the trash anything else she deems worthy. We are working on the selection process as I've caught her throwing away tupperware and taking yogurt lids off the top of the trash to play with...

2. Cooking She also spends much of her time stirring in whatever bowl or pot she can find and then eating and offering up whatever delicious imaginative food she's made!

3. Climbing There will be pictures to follow documenting this new hobby. Ava loves to empty out baskets and bins and climb inside, and then out, and then back in, turn over anything that might get her higher and then climb on top, use her step stool to look out the window or hop up onto a chair. Pretty much anything that her wobbly little legs can climb, she has tried! She'll even turn over a puzzle and hop on top in triumph, a quarter of an inch higher than she was before. Ta da! Surprisingly she hasn't succeeded in climbing out of her crib yet and for that we are grateful.

4. Babbling In the last week or two Ava's babbling has really picked up and she now strings together sentences of incomprehensible words. It must be so frustrating, trying to get her point across so adamantly and not knowing why we don't understand! She takes it all in stride though and thankfully we can usually figure out what she means in context. I look forward to there being more real words to listen for! She is now interested in trying to say words though which is very cute.

"Ava, say strawberry"

"Bobetty"...

"Close, say STRAWberry"

"Blubunam"

"Good try honey..."

5. Walking and Jumping I know this has been a post topic for months now but we can now say that Ava is a 100% walker and very good at it! Not yet a runner but she loves walking and exploring her independence. This has made her much more gregarious in public, going up to strangers at Starbucks, picking gift cards off the rack at Giant and handing out merchandise to shoppers at garage sales we visit. Ava has also started "jumping", though her feet never leave the ground. It is the cutest thing you'll ever see, "Ava, can you jump?"--the fists clench by her sides, she squats and then pushes up with all her might and a big "Wooo!".

6. Animal Sounds These are the things we pull out and show off at parties. Ava can growl like the Nittany Lion, moo, meow, pant, and the newest addition is the cutest little monkey "ooh ooh ahh" you ever heard.

Here are some pictures of our precious girl, so proud of her new talent!

big-girl stroller

Ava and I went for a walk this afternoon and it was a huge success. First, we got to blow on her first dandylion, then we saw two bunnies chasing each other across the path. Then her favorite--we came upon two friendly dogs who we said hi to and one of them licked her toes! Delight. When they continued on their way, Ava burst into tears (no amount of "say bye bye doggies" would console her) so I handed her her precious ducky and tried out the lounge feature in her new big-girl stroller. She loved it! We strolled for another twenty minutes or so and she loved snuggling with her duck. It was getting close to her nap time and I am pretty convinced that she would have fallen asleep if we kept walking. This is a big deal, we've been curious as to whether she would sleep in her stroller at this age and I my guess is now- yes! At least I hope so.

In other news, Ava has had a great last few days and is definitely growing up. She's now walking full-time and loves it, is now on par with her other walking friends and it's so fun to see her interact with them. We had a busy weekend these past few days and we definitely saw a difference in Ava's curiosity and independence while out and about. At a picnic and a restaurant we went to she happily walked off on her own to explore, she pointed and waved hello to strangers and was much more outgoing. She also did very well spending a lot of time with our friends Erin and Jon while Blair and I were out celebrating our birthdays--she slept well at their house, let them put her down easily to sleep for the night, etc. All great strides in her growing up! It's SO much fun to see her independence blossom more and more.

Never a sweeter 13 month old face

At 13 months our little Ava is busier than ever! The biggest news is she has officially begun walking now. Though she's not walking exclusively, she does often prefer it over crawling. She can walk across the living room or take up to 10-15 steps but is still very wobbly. She's definitely on her way though, claps for herself when she takes a few steps and is now much more excited about walking. She also loves to walk with her stroller, shopping cart or car push toys and has just recently learned how to steer them. She will tear off down the hallway, banging into the walls and doors, get to her room, usually pick up a stuffed animal or something else and put it in her stroller/cart and then come on back to the living room, kitchen, turn around, back down the hallway... endless fun!

(here is ava with one of her carts, carrying her ducky and a box!)

A few days ago Ava learned how to rock her baby doll and it is the sweetest thing to watch her rock her baby, feed it a bottle and give it kisses. She will hand me her "baba" and ask me to rock it, then she will take a turn. She is also saying a few other semi-words such as "sh" (shoe), "ba" for banana and ball, "bigun" (big one) when she wants a big piece of banana in the morning instead of little pieces, and the old standby's "daddy", "hello", and "duck". She's also now saying "this" and "that" and we spend many hours a day pointing at "that?" and mommy says what "that" is. It's clear though that she understands 99% of what I say during the day and can follow pretty complex directions which is so neat to see. She can also answer yes and no questions by nodding so that adds to our conversational abilities. Often throughout the day Ava will point to a "no touch" item in the house and shake her head "no". A particularly special example of this was when she picked up a shoe, put her tongue out to lick it and then stopped, pulled her tongue back in and shook "no"! She didn't know I was watching and it was a priceless moment to see our little girl actively make a decision between right and wrong and exercise some self-control.

We are at the age now where we can teach Ava pretty much anything we want and she'll repeat it so we are taking advantage. She initiates most of these cute show-off-for-company types of talents but we run with them! One of these is, we can say, "Ava, show me your muscles!" and she will curl up both biceps and shake feverishly while she flexes her little arms!

Ava learned the motions to the song "If you're happy and you know it..." and can clap her hands, stomp her feet and pat her head at the right times. Also, up until a few days ago the only animal noise she knew was how to pant like a dog, but now she can "moooo" like a cow! She also has a newfound love for bugs and likes to try to "buzzzz".

Ava LOVES to kiss, now regularly offers kisses to mommy and daddy and has kissed such things as the bathtub, the slide at the playground, the TV, her highchair, her bottle of baby motrin (this is warranted) and daddy's "ouchy" on his finger. She is a sweet-hearted little girl and loves to show affection (we love it too)!

Finally, after a long long wait, Ava is actually getting teeth! There are four that I've been able to spot (with Erin's help), her bottom two center teeth and the top two canines (aka fangs). None have poked through the gums yet but the bottom two are clearly visible and the right canine comes down to a nice gummy point. That one I'm sure is painful, it's literally sticking down half the length of a tooth but has yet to break through so she's been getting lots of motrin, tylenol and love. She's been pretty fussy and hasn't been napping well because of it but today I tried a great new remedy--frozen waffles! She likes the taste so it keeps her interest (more than an ice toy) and it feels good on her gums to gnaw on the cold hard waffle. Mom's, take note! Though I'm ready for it to be over, all in all Ava has been a much better teether than expected. She is still sleeping well through the night and the whole process hasn't been the "horror" we'd been warned about.

Here's a final precious picture of our cutie pie at the park. There are also a few new pictures in the April 2010 album.

Summer Baby

This post will be mostly pictures, just to show off how cute the little Ava doodle is! She loves being outside and we can't wait until she can run around on her own!

Sippy Sippy

Last night was the first night I didn't breastfeed Ava before bed (or at all). It went pretty well, she definitely wanted to but still went to sleep pretty quickly thankfully. I was a mess but we had guests over (on purpose) so that was a good distraction. I was weeping through the whole night but thankfully Ava slept well, woke up late and was acting normal and happy this morning which is making it easier on mommy. Everything in my body was screaming last night, "You're making a mistake! Start breastfeeding her all over again!" but I knew it was time. This was definitely one of the best things I've ever done, especially as she got older and it got easier and more interactive, and I will miss it! I hear this detachment gets easier though so I'm waiting for that. Ava is also getting more independent with her sippy cup, sometimes she will sit in my lap and drink it but often now she wants to do it on her own. My little baby is not so little anymore...

This morning I had a fantastic mommy-baby moment though and I cherish those! I came into the living room and laid down on the floor. Ava threw herself at me so she was lying on my tummy and smooshed her cheek into mine. She stayed like this for a good 45 seconds or so, smooshing and laughing and then lifted her head up and gave me three big wet kisses on the lips. I LOVE this new affectionate little girl and I soak up every bit of it I can!

Smooches

This afternoon was one of the most fun I've had with Ava all year! She is teething, so this last month or so she has been fussier than usual, clingy and not napping well. Today I discovered the lifesaver that is Motrin (as opposed to tylenol which has been useless), Ava slept for 2+ hours in the afternoon and awoke a totally different girl! I literally was shocked, I've never seen her more happy, independent and doing so many new things in one day.

While I was cleaning up after her dinner, Ava was playing by herself in the living room and literally making herself giggle! She's a happy girl but that has never happened. She was "talking" to her daddy on her phone and then I went to check on her again and she was doing somersaults with her ducky (which looks more like rolling) and sucking her thumb. When she'd see me peek in at her she would normally cry and come cling to my leg but instead she just giggled and went back to playing.

When I went in to play, I laid down on the floor and she came over and started climbing all over me, laughing, doing her somersaults onto me and leaning in to give me kisses! As seen in the above picture, that is her new thing, she loves to give kisses and is for the first time giving real ones on the lips or wherever she can reach. It is so adorable! I loved snuggling and rolling around with my giggling little girl, I truly don't think I've ever seen her in such high spirits. Thank you Motrin!

Other recent news: Unless I have a weak moment tomorrow night, tonight was my last time breastfeeding Ava. I am very sad, I will miss it a lot, but am so proud that we made it past a year with her still breastfeeding well, and ended on a great note. I will miss that closeness, the built-in quiet time with her and seeing her so quickly comforted, satisfied and relaxed. But, I know this will open a door to new things in the future, more freedom for both of us and new ways to express that mommy-daughter connection. I am so attached to her still, I think this will be good for both of us as she learns to express her independence more and I learn to let her. It's hard but good... I'm afraid this is the first of many "letting go" moments in my future and I'm not looking forward to them! One day at a time...

We also had Ava's 12 month well baby appointment last Friday and got her height and weight. She is 21 lbs 5.6 oz which is the 56% and the nurse measured her at 31 inches long which was totally wrong! That would have been a huge jump and put her in the 99% for height. We measured her at home and got 28 3/4 inches so we're sticking to that! She also officially is in size 18 months clothes now and I think size 4 shoes though we're still trying to feel that one out as we enter into shoe territory. I can't wait for more warm days as we've bought her tons of cute summer clothes and all her winter stuff is too small!

Daaaa-Dee!

This morning Blair got a wonderful wake-up. We hopped into bed with him and Ava said, "Hi Daddy" and gave him a real kiss on the lips! So precious, it just warms our hearts.

Yesterday for the first time Ava said both "Dad" (with a solid "D" at the end) and "Daddy" clearly! This is a very exciting step up from "Da". It's amazing to hear her little voice say it's first full and understandable word. For the last two days she has been talking on her phone to "Daaaa-dee!" non-stop and it is adorable!

Here is a typical conversation with Ava:

Ava: (hands mommy the phone with longing eyes)

Mommy: Do you want to talk to Dada? (mommy opens the phone, fake dials and then smiles) Dada! Oh hi!

Ava: (squeals and wriggles with delight while reaching for the phone) Dada!

Mommy: (hands Ava the phone)

Ava: Hi Daddy! Daaaa-dee! Daaa-dee!

Mommy: (walks away and comes back five minutes later to...)

Ava: Daddy, hi! Hi Daddy! Daaa-dee!

And this goes on and on. Ava looooves her Daddy.

Jellies

Few things say summer like new jellies and Ava is in love with hers. Even though it's chilly today she's happy to wear them with socks!

The Smartest and Cutest

Here are two examples of Ava's incredible and unending cuteness. Tonight after dinner Ava was getting tired and we needed an activity to get her through the two hours until bedtime. So, we decided to go for a walk with her grocery cart outside and get some exercise. This has really been the first week that Ava's been outside that she can probably remember, and she LOVES it. The funny thing though is I can't get her to walk very far before she just plops right down and starts picking at the grass or the driveway. So today I decided to entice her by showing her the leaves along the way, the sticks and other interesting things to keep her moving forward. During one sit-down in the middle of the sidewalk, after examining her surroundings and choosing a leaf, Ava stood up, put her leaf in her grocery cart and started walking again. It was the sweetest little gesture and so fun to watch her pick that one leaf above the rest, for whatever reason. Nothing else went in the cart tonight, I'd try to put other things in there that I thought might be special and she didn't want them! She loved that leaf and it was adorable.

The second sweet moment was as we were getting ready for bed. We had just spent awhile outside (after our walk) petting our neighbor's dog, talking with them and eating wood chips (her, not me). Needless to say, Ava was a little wound up. She didn't want to sit with me and read books like usual so I let her roam, play a little and pick out some books to look at herself. As I sat and watched, she opened her "Baby Giggles" book to the page with the sleeping babies and gave them each kisses! Later when we were reading that same book together, she turned to the page "Angel baby, hug your bear", looked around for her ducky, then snuggled into me and sucked her thumb while I finished reading. I'm amazed at how smart she is, what connections she makes and how quickly she picks up on things.

Happy Birthday Ava Grace!

It has happened. Our little baby just turned one! Is it normal to feel like I aged about three years while she aged just one? Hopefully that will not become a trend. Though this year has been a whirlwind and it seems impossible that she is a year old, when I look at Ava it also feels so right and natural to pass through this milestone. She has grown up SO much and is starting to become such a little person. It is a delight (to say the least) to be her mommy and watch her grow and change every day.

I've always understood why parents might be proud of their kids when they graduate high school or college, or when they do well on a test or win something. I was not prepared, however, for the feelings of immense pride in my little girl for simply turning one. She didn't have to "do" anything per say to make it happen but my goodness, I find myself bursting with pride every time she stands, takes a step, says a little word, makes eye contact, shows off her sense of humor, figures out how to get herself from one place to another--because all of these things are things I saw happen for the first time. And then saw her work to perfect them. It is an incredible feeling to see your little one come so far and to see and love the emerging little kid within.

I find myself wanting to "reward" Ava with a little more independence but am daily reminded that she is still just a little pipsqueak. One example: Lately Ava's been interested in looking out the window and we have one where the sill is just about at nose height when she stands on her tippy toes. One afternoon I was doing dishes and could see Ava out of the corner of my eye. In what seemed like seconds I looked over at her and she had pulled her daddy's guitar case over to the window, climbed up on it, and was teetering on top to see out the window! Needless to say: One-year-old does not equal self-sufficient but it has given me a little nudge into toddler country. Now is the time to let Ava skin her knee and get a splinter in her hand and bang her head, all in the name of exploration of her world. It is fun to loosen the reigns a little and see what she does with a little more freedom. She is such a sweet girl, cautious and observant; we love watching her make choices and learn about her abilities and boundaries.

At one year, here are some of Ava's favorites:

Favorite books: Other than the old standards, some recent favorites are Busy Little People, A Night Night Prayer and Pat the Bunny. She also still loves Baby Giggles, Tickle Tickle, Goodnight Moon and First Words.

Favorite items (we'll start with this since she likes these better than toys): Pillows!, Shoes (hers and ours), TV remote, her baby bottle, anyone's cell phone and all the plastic bottles that need to go down to recycling. Also flowers, balloons and pictures of babies!

Favorite toys: Any that play music or make noise including her Leap Frog alphabet spinner, musical telephone and crawl ball, yellow jingle ball, pretty much all her new birthday toys including her baby stroller, leggos, stacking blocks and play food.

Favorite foods: Blueberries (by far), Strawberries, Banana, Peas, anything off mommy's plate though a favorite is pizza!

Must haves: Ducky. When we travel or go anywhere the only thing we know we need is this. Duck Duck. Everything else is replaceable.

Favorite Activities: Dancing, somersaults or any other gymnastics or death defying tumble, hide and seek, chasing, walking (mostly with help), petting friendly dogs, and going through drawers in the kitchen and emptying out all contents.

Favorite Songs: It is interesting how much of a preference she shows but she definitely loves music. She loves Happy Birthday & Itsy Bitsy Spider the most right now. Oh and the theme song to the cartoon "Dragon Land"!

Ava... Where is She Now?

Ava is in between sizes 12 and 18 months and in size 4 diapers. She drinks well from a sippy cup now and is doing two cow's milk feedings and two breastfed. She is down to two naps and thankfully with the coming of daylight savings is waking up later! She wakes at 8am and naps from 10-12 and 2-4, then goes down for the night at 8pm. The most consecutive steps she has taken on her own is 4 but her interest in walking with help is high and she loves to practice. No hair. No teeth. Her 12 month doctor's appointment isn't until the 26th so we'll have to wait until then to know her height and weight but we know she's at least over 20 lbs. Definitely not the heavyweight champ she was as a baby though, she has slowed down in that department!

Personality Traits at 1 Year: Cautious, careful, deliberate, content, smiley (happy), low-key, quiet, loves people but slow to warm, loves to dance and show off for company, cuddly, GREAT sense of humor, very aware and curious about her surroundings, studies new people, very loving.

We had a wonderful birthday party for Ava on the 14th, an album of our favorite shots is posted to the left. A lot of family and friends were present and made her birthday so special for us. Again I was not prepared for how big of a deal that day would be for me emotionally, to have conquered the first year and also to know that my baby is growing up. I am so glad we could share it with so many people who we love and who love Ava! She did wonderfully, despite missing a morning nap--she loved the attention, the new toys and clothes, and sort of enjoyed the cake! On her actually birthday (the 15th) I was home alone with her and tried filling her day with sweets and surprises but she wasn't too interested. I made pancakes in the morning which I thought for sure she'd enjoy but she much preferred her banana! And then I tried giving her some cake again at lunch but she was totally uninterested. She does like powdered donuts I've found but otherwise really isn't into sweets. She definitely got that from her dad.

Now we enter the second year. I am so looking forward to it and all the new milestones that we'll hit in the coming months. What excitement each day brings when you have a little person running around who is taking all the world in for the first time. Ava's character and personality are so precious and so fun to watch blossom as she gets older. Most mom's always say, "every stage is your favorite until the next one comes" and I never really could figure out why that was true. But, I think it's because regardless of what new challenges each stage brings, it also opens up a new door to getting to know your child better. The first time Ava started smiling and laughing brightened my world but now she has a sense of humor and can do things solely because she knows it will make me laugh. As her personality becomes more evident it somehow allows me to love her even more as there is more to love! It's an amazing process and one that I am so thankful and grateful for. We are so blessed to be Ava's parents and she has taught us SO much. We love you baby girl!

One Step Forward, Two Steps Back

An update on the walking: Ava is still excited about walking but now only while holding a hand or occasionally taking one step on her own. I think her unassisted steps are mostly by accident when she really wants something and makes a move toward it! She was so confident the other night that I expected her to be walking on her own within a few days but she has been consistent with her personality: cautious and patient until she knows she can do it well. More and more often these last few days though she has fussed when I walk away and tell her to follow me. When she doesn't come I will go over and offer my hand--up she stands and walks happily with help. She is often more interested in walking than crawling but we'll have to wait a little bit longer for those cute little legs to start running!

We Have a Walking Baby!

Yes, we have a walker! Today Ava took her first real unassisted steps and many semi-assisted ones. Linda (who is living with us for a few months) had her friend over and they were cooking in the kitchen when Ava and I joined them. Ava loved Veronica's pajama pants and kept pointing to the frogs on them. Then, without warning, she got up and took one or two steps toward Veronica and then grabbed one of my hands and took about ten more fast steps across the room. I screamed to Linda, "Um, she's walking!!" and we couldn't believe it! I picked Ava up and gave her lots of kisses and then tried to sit her back down on the floor but she wouldn't sit and just started walking again, all over the room! She wanted to do it mostly while holding at least one of my hands but I am confident in a day or two she'll be running around on her own. She was very excited and proud of herself but unfortunately this was about five minutes before bedtime. After about the fifth time that I sat her down across the room and then called her to me she just started to cry and wanted to be picked up and put to bed! Ok... shows over mom. I'm hoping she wakes up with the same excitement and we can catch the little steps on video tomorrow!

Two, Two and Two

Two is the magic number for today to sum up Ava's life this week: Two feedings, Two naps and only Two weeks left until her first birthday!

My attempt to start weaning was thwarted after two weeks--Ava came down with what we think was a virus and was having some significant tummy trouble. The doctor suggested that we stop all dairy (just because it is harder to digest, he didn't think it was the main factor in her upset tummy) and go back to only breastmilk, plus a fat and fiber rich diet to bulk up her system. Within a few days Ava seemed to feel better and then we started her slowly back on cow's milk. So far so good! So... we're back to two breastfeedings a day and two cow's-milk-in-a-sippy-cup feedings. She does pretty well but definitely has a hard time concentrating with the sippy cup so we've started letting her watch cartoons while she eats. It's a luxury but pretty cute to watch her suck suck suck and then giggle at something on the TV and all the milk in her mouth runs down her chin onto her bib!

In the last two days we've also started moving Ava to just two naps a day instead of three. I have considered myself a lucky mom that we made it almost through the first year with Ava still taking three naps a day. However, in the last couple of weeks (partly due to not feeling well) Ava has not been sleeping well for any of those naps. After a few days of sleeping barely at all, I decided to try switching to two naps. Yesterday she slept for two hours in the morning (perfect) but then only 45 minutes in the afternoon! Not so perfect. But, she surprised me by staying happy and chipper for the next 5 hours until bedtime. This morning was a similar story, she slept for two hours and is now down for her second nap--we'll see how it goes! If we successfully switch to two naps her schedule will look something like this:

7am wake, breakfast

9-11am nap

11am wake, lunch

1-3pm nap

3pm wake, dinner

7pm milk feeding

7:30pm bedtime

And last but not least, we are just two weeks away from Ava's first birthday! It is coming fast and we are so excited. I've been singing "Happy Birthday" to get her used to the song and she now dances along with my singing which is pretty cute. I've been on a hunt for the perfect birthday party outfit with no luck--it's times like these that I wish I still lived near Exton where there are more places to buy baby clothes. :(

Ava's newest love? Babies! She loves them, on TV, on cereal boxes and yogurt cartons and in real life. Our neighbors just had a little girl on the 23rd and Ava has really enjoyed going to see her. She points, squeals and I'm sure would try to lick her (aka kiss her) if we let her get close enough! We can't wait to go visit Ava's newest cousin Brody who was just born on the 24th!

Dancing Queen

Ava LOVES to dance and here is a small glimpse of the little dancer at work! She especially likes to dance for company but gets shy for the camera so this was quite a catch!

Big Girl Bathtime (and other big girl things)

I am beginning to see that with all Ava is doing and saying, I may need to post something more than just once a month! Just three weeks after my last post I have much to say so we'll update you all a little early.

Now let's take a moment first to point out the biggest news of the month: Ava is growing hair! Well "hairs" I should say--only a few and they are about two inches long on the top and sides of her head but... they are there. Hurray! Proof that she won't be bald forever. In the lovely and someday embarrassing photos of her in the bath we've accentuated the tufts mohawk style for all to see.

Along with a few hairs, Ava's vocabulary is growing this month and there is a new and distinguishable difference between "guck" (duck) and "kack" (quack). I've also caught what I believe are "this" and "that" and she is now much better at making noises to get her point across even if she isn't using words yet. It's so fun! I love being able to have little conversations with her. Her babbling is now out of control and adorable--the kind where you know she knows what she's saying but it comes out sounding like fluent chinese. So cute.

For the first time Ava has been making two toys interact or making a toy interact with it's surroundings which is very exciting. She also makes kissing sounds (though beware, if you go in for a kiss you'll get a good lick on the nose), and loves to dance. Her favorite activity? She puts her arms behind her head (giving you about two seconds notice) and then falls backwards and begins wiggle-dancing on the floor. She will also arch backwards while sitting in your lap, eating, going down for a nap... and want you to tickle her under her neck. She loves to be upside down and especially look at herself upside down in the mirror.

Our bedtime book routine has changed this month from mommy or daddy picking out a few books and quietly reading them together in the chair, to Ava taking all of her books out of their basket and finally handing you one and trying to climb back up onto the chair. At first I thought she would never sit still for a book again until I was amazed when she found the one she wanted and then sat quietly through the whole thing, oohing, ahhing, pointing and smiling. It's so awesome to see her taking an active part in her life, showing preferences and communicating what she wants!

The eleventh month marked a milestone in becoming a big girl when Ava started bathing in the big bathtub! She was doing so well in her little tub and it's so easy for us that we were hesitant to switch it up, but after one or two baths Ava now LOVES it. She wasn't so sure at the beginning but now she loves standing at the edge, watching with anticipation as the tub fills with water and we unleash all her floating toys. It is so much fun to watch her explore and move around, the other day she actually wanted to lay down, so I put her on her back with her ears under the water and she sang to herself for a good 2 or 3 minutes! It was HILARIOUS to watch her experiment with the new-sounding world from under water.

In the last couple of weeks Ava has been less and less interested in nursing during the midday so on February 8th I tried giving her cow's milk in a sippy cup before her lunch. She did great and didn't miss the breastfeeding one bit! So... this means we are officially weaning. I'm hoping to do so fairly slowly over the next two months or so (for both our sakes) but I think we both are ready. I have mixed feelings--I have LOVED breastfeeding and will miss that bonding time but am also very ready and excited to have some more freedom to leave her with other people during mealtimes. My goal was to breastfeed until she was a year so this was definitely a successful run!

In the last month Ava has started dairy and is enjoying it immensely. She's getting better and better at drinking from a sippy cup and loves cheese and yogurt. She also tried blueberries for the first time and she LOVES them! We've given her small bites of more adult foods and she regularly asks for whatever we are eating. We are definitely entering that time in our lives where we can't eat anything in front of her that we won't let her have! Goodbye midday chocolate chip cookies, I will miss you.

Ava has been very clingy to mommy lately and so this month we instituted crib-playtime. This is where she gets some playtime alone and can grow in the skills needed to occupy and entertain herself without mommy's help. The first few times she threw every toy out of her crib within the first few minutes and then cried for me to come get her. But, in the last week she has had a string of successful play times and has stopped throwing all her toys! She seems to enjoy the time in there and doesn't cry anymore but instead... Well, let me preface this by saying that it is somewhat unheard of for an almost-one-year-old to still be taking three naps a day. Ava LOVES sleeping and so the last three or four times she's been playing in her crib, it gets quieter and quieter in there and I go in to find her lying down, sucking her thumb amidst all her toys! I've tried opening the blinds, putting on music and turning all her musical toys as loud as they will go but nothing will stop her. So... I now know I can't leave her too long or she will fall asleep but at least I get a little peace and quiet in the morning and Ave is actually doing much better in the clingy department.

As I write this Ava is playing happily among a sea of pillows I piled in the living room, emptying a bucket of shapes and trying to fit the bucket on her head. I marvel at how big she is getting, how independent and fun! I took a video of her today doing her famous "dance" (you've got to see it to believe it) among her many pillows. If I can figure it out I'll post a bit of it so you can all see the little ham doing her thing.

Shelled Peas

And now for a non-Ava sort of of post... or less-Ava I guess. I have been wanting to change up our blog for a while and to do so in an artsy yet relevant way. Today I actually was one step away from posting the usual black and white family photo when Ava woke up and soon I was sitting at the kitchen table shelling peas for my hungry girl. I looked down and thought... ah ha! Just the artsy yet relevant moment I'd wanted to capture. Shelled peas. This does sum up quite well my life right now--spending many hours shelling peas, cutting blueberries into unrecognizably small wedges and eating squares of cheese off my daughter's little fingers when she offers them (how generous of her). Some days I think, "this is the life", when she plays quietly in her highchair while I eat my breakfast and drink my coffee. Other days when shelled peas become mashed-on-the-floor peas, I think I might need a day off. But, thankfully, God gives me mercy and grace every day to enjoy even the not-so-great moments and to want to shell peas for my sweet girl (which is not an easy task, I must say).

So... a snapshot of the shelled peas will be our welcome to those visiting our blog, a welcome into our life of messy fingers and messy diapers and ministry of all kinds. Enjoy!

Ava is 10 Months Old!

Every month we say is our favorite... and this one was no different! The baby that we knew 30 days ago was just a glimpse of the emerging little lady we know now. It's amazing how much Ava is learning and changing every day.

Our cute little "doodle bug" is adding tricks and skills to her repertoire daily. She has a few words that emerge regularly,

including mama and dada, "uh oh", "kah" (book), "hello" and "hi" (accompanied by waving), "duh" (duck), and "all done". She also claps on cue, pants like a dog when you say "What does a dog say?", plays peekaboo

(usually by putting objects on top of her head) and has a great sense of humor. Just the other day she face planted into the fuzzy bear in her touch-and-feel book and started laughing hysterically... she knows when she's doing something funny and cracks herself up (and us)! She will pick up my phone or the TV remote and say, "Dada, hello!", goes crazy for dogs in person or on TV (she starts squealing and panting), and loves music.

Ava is still primarily breast fed but is also eating a variety of fruits and veggies and has started eating more finger foods. We've tried peas, corn, broccoli, cantelope and pineapple. She still struggles with them since she's toothless (and hairless--poor baby) but she's getting the hang of it. She loves to feed herself and enjoys the independence. We are about to try dairy products, tofu and egg whites which will give more variety to the finger-food-eating. We have introduced the

sippy cup a couple of times with water--she thinks it's great until she sucks real hard and gasps for air like she's drowning! She'll get the hang of it but for now it's just a great chew toy.

Ava is standing well now and frequently stands hands-free for longer and longer stretches. She's still wobbly and needs to know there is something close by to grab onto if she needs it but she continues to

experiment and take risks. She is very mobile but still isn't usually in any hurry to get anywhere which I'm thankful for. She will also take steps while using a laundry or toy basket as a walker, we're anxious to see how long it takes her to master those little legs!

As each day comes and goes we are truly shocked that her one-year birthday is just around the corner. We marvel at our hundreds of pictures, can't believe she was ever "that small" and wonder what she'll be like when she's four, five... twelve. What an adventure. We are quite positive God blessed us with the sweetest little girl on the planet!

*Updated albums "Ava in November", "Ava in December" and "Ava in January" are to the left!

Slightly more boring details for mom and company to keep track:

Ava is still in size 12 clothes though they are getting tighter, and has moved up to size 4 diapers. Her schedule is similar to what was posted previously but she's inched it earlier (starting around 6am) and isn't sleeping as long for her three naps. I'm trying hard to hold onto all three, I don't think she's ready for two naps yet, but we'll see how long that lasts. I'm trying to move her day to start a little later but this is usually what it looks like at the moment (on a good day):

6:15am wake, breastfeed, breakfast, play

8:15am-9:45am nap

10:15am wake, breastfeed, lunch, play

12:15pm-1:45pm nap

2:00pm wake, breastfeed, play

5:00pm-6:15pm nap

6:15pm wake, breastfeed, dinner

7:15pm books and to sleep for the night

9 Months: Crawling, Standing and Dancing!

Ava is just about 9 months old and it is hard to believe! Everyone warned us that time would fly but it is hard to believe that this mobile, giggly, be-boppin' little lady is the same tiny baby we rocked to sleep not too long ago.

Ava started crawling just before her 8 month birthday and is now cruising around happily. She is a very curious little girl and loves to explore. She is very sweet though and before she touches anything new she looks back at me to get the "ok". One of her favorite activities is emptying our TV cabinet and basking in her homemade pile of DVD's and videos. I have noticed that she is rarely in a hurry to get anywhere or move on from something--she will carefully take one thing at a time from a shelf, is a great observer, and has a very long attention span. She can do almost anything as long as music is playing, even if I hum a little tune (she LOVES upbeat Christmas songs) she will start bopping to the music and dance her little heart out. Sometimes even when no music is coming from a toy she'll dance and say "eh" until I make it play again. I've tried teaching her how to press the button herself but I think it's just more fun when mommy does it for her!

Ava's most recent and most favorite thing now is to pull herself up on anything that will hold her weight (and some things that will not). Just a couple of days ago we went in to get her from a nap and she was standing in her crib waiting for us! What a cute moment to see the little nose and eyes peeking over the side of her crib, so proud of herself. She is a daring (or trusting) little girl, she assumes we will always be there to help her stand so she frequently lunges for us, ready-or-not. Consequently, she regularly has little bumps and bruises on her head these days but she wears them proudly! It is so exciting to see her personality come out in her risk-taking, discovering a new world at standing height, and trying new things.

Last week we went to get a Christmas tree and had Ava all bundled up. Despite the fact that she was coming down with her first bad cold and ear infection (we'd find this out the following day), she was a good sport. Above is a photo of her on that day, her pudgy cheeks overflowing her pink hoodie. It's been so fun to celebrate Ava's first Christmas season, to see her eyes light up when she saw our Christmas tree and experienced her first big snow. We can't wait to watch her tear into (and eat) her Christmas presents in a few short weeks!

Since our last post Ava has also switched to a four hour schedule successfully and is taking three 1 1/2 to 2 hour naps each day. She sleeps about 11-12 hours at night, though she never really adjusted to daylight savings time and so our day sadly starts around 6:30am. She eats solid food three times a day and has now tried 10 different fruits and vegi's. Her favorites are sweet potatoes, bananas and mangos and she dramatically gags up anything green. She is very skilled using her pincer grasp to pick up small pieces of cereal and though she has no teeth yet, she would love to get her hands on more big-people food!

We just had Ava weighed at her doctor's appointment a few days ago (when we got antibiotics for her ear infection) and she's holding steady at 19 1/2 lbs. Though she hasn't gained much in the last month the doctor was happy with how much she'd gained since her 6 month appointment. Clearly she could live off her own cheeks for a few weeks if need-be so there's little to be concerned about there!

In the last couple of days Ava has grown immensely and keeps surprising us with new things. I hear that's to be expected at this age and it's so exciting! Yesterday she started playing Peek-a-boo all on her own and today I think she said her first word! Time will tell but while she was playing with a toy that plays music, I would say "more?" and she would press the button again and dance to the tune. After a few minutes she started saying "Ma" and then it turned into "Mo", a new sound for her and it really seemed as if she was trying to say "more". She is all of a sudden interested in words, pays attention when I tell her the names of things and often tries to mouth the first consonant (sometimes silently when she thinks I'm not looking--it's very cute).

Once again we are in awe of how much we love this little bundle of cuteness and that there's a whole little human in there--learning, growing and taking in so much information. We were not prepared for how much she would change our lives and our hearts and had no idea how awesome it would be to love our own little baby. A baby that we MADE! Ha! It's incredible. That joy continues to grow and there is nothing better than having your own little one see you, smile at you, crawl over to you and put her arms out so you'll pick her up and give her a squeeze. Needless to say, we love love love being Ava's parents and can't wait to see what the next month brings!