Free Blogger Backgrounds

Being the design-loving blogger that I am, I was so excited to discover a new range of free backgrounds for blogger offered by The Cutest Blog on the Block.  I visit their site probably once or twice a year but have rarely found backgrounds that suit my taste.  This time around I hit the jackpot!  Here are a couple of my favorites from the selection.

2 1/2

Ava had her 2 1/2 year appointment with the doctor on Wednesday and is doing well.  Thankfully her lungs are sounding much better and her cold has subsided.  Ava's height and weight came in at 36 in (60something%) and 35 lbs (99%), confirming the rolly polly stage we thought she was in!  At her last visit the percentiles were switched and even though she's growing 'thick' as the doctor put it, thankfully he didn't seem concerned.  He is happy with her healthy diet and said it could be due to her quiet nature and the amount of exercise she is getting compared to her 2 1/2 year old counterparts.

That was all I needed to hear to spur me on towards plans for an active winter.  I already have been researching all the indoor toddler activities in our area, both for exercise sake, my own sanity and to thoroughly enjoy this time as a mother of one.  This week already we've gone swimming and to a toddler play time offered by the YMCA and it's been wonderful!  I have to encourage this little snuggling wall flower to dance when the music plays and run when there's a place to do so, but she loves using up energy once she gets going.

Despite her tendency to be the least rambunctious kid in the room, Ava is extremely social, loves to talk and makes friends everywhere she goes.  This summer we made the switch to a new church and with that decided to do whatever it took to get Ava to stay in Sunday School for the whole service.  After she and I both left bawling the first Sunday we tried (she was terrified and I'm hormonal), I thought this effort might take months.  But, the next Sunday she stayed for about twenty minutes, crying the whole time but at least staying in there alone, and last week she successfully stayed in her class for the whole service!  This was a HUGE victory for us as 1) Blair and I have never sat through a whole church service alone since we had Ava and 2) Ava has been incredibly clingy and adamantly opposed to being left apart from us since I got pregnant.  This gives me a lot of hope for the months to come.  The best part was watching her wave goodbye to all her new friends when we left and walk the halls like a 5th grader who owned the place.  Confidence is priceless!

Lastly, these recent months have been unfortunately marked by Ava's disobedience and unforeseen entrance into the terrible part of the twos.  It is a huge challenge for me but I keep the perspective that the learning during this time is crucial for both of us and in many ways developmentally exciting.  Though the process is exhausting, I relish the opportunity to shape and grow her little stubborn will and guide her in the way she should go.  Now that I am feeling a little bit better into the second trimester, I feel more capable of handling the immense amount of energy that she requires every day!  Ava's sleeping habits have continued to falter since the onset of my pregnancy and she is often sleeping from about 8:30 or 9pm until only 6 or 6:30am and then taking a short nap in the afternoon, sometimes for only 45 minutes or less.  This is leaving her (and me) exhausted and truly unable to control herself at times.  I'm praying that all of these issues will begin to work themselves out soon!

Despite all the challenges, 2 1/2 is also proving to be a really fun age and I love watching this little girl grow and learn.  She is so smart and thoughtful and quirky, I can only sit on the edge of my chair, waiting to see what she'll do next and what each new month will bring!

Little Monkey

I can't help but share this adorable moment.  A couple of nights ago Ava brought this ladle in the bathtub and after a few minutes I hear her giggle and then burst into roaring laughter.  I look over and she's just losing it, looking at her own reflection in the ladle and spurts out between laughs, "Look mom!  I'm a monkey!"

Joy.

Ava's Journal

The last few days Ava has taken to a new delight--writing letters and words and stories on lined paper.  With a ball point pen.  Like a six year old.


In the mornings she has picked up on my quiet time, where I sit at the table with my coffee and my Bible and journal.  She has adopted the Bible I had when I was a child, and a few days ago asked if she could have a journal too.  Since then she writes everything she can think of and then runs to show me what she's done.  The markings she makes are really quite adorable, a stark contrast to the long lines and circles that used to frequent her pages.  She notates these little tiny "letters" and whenever she is remotely close to the triangle of an "A" or the lines of an "F" she squeals in excitement and pride at what she's done.

I love watching my baby girl lie on her belly with her brow furrowed and her lips pursed off to the side in concentration.  As I sit here eating chocolate cake in the middle of the day (the baby needs it) and prepare for life with an infant again, I can't believe how much my just-barely-toddler is now becoming a little girl.

Breath

Ava is currently in the middle of her third cold since this "season" has begun (a depressing fact since it's hardly fall yet).  Last winter she was sick almost constantly from September to May and though I had high hopes that this year might turn out better for us, it's not looking that way.

Yesterday, Ava's cold took a turn for the worst and we had to make an evening trip to the doctor's office.  We've had our fair share of fevers, coughs and sniffles but yesterday's nap time brought on a whole new enemy.  Ava woke from her nap twice, kicking, screaming, speech slurred, and not quite awake--very night terror style which we've dealt with a couple times before.  The second time however she was wheezing very badly and I decided to try and wake her and assess how she was really doing.  Once she calmed down and sat with me for some cartoons, it was clear she was having trouble breathing.  She would try and talk to me and could barely get words out through her strained breath, and her normally silent breathing was replaced by a loud, raspy sound that was not music to this mommy's ears.  I decided to call the doctor and they had me bring her in.  Over the course of an hour her breathing did quiet slightly as her chest cleared a little bit, but she was still wheezing noticeably with every breath and the doctor heard some unwanted movement in her lungs.

Thankfully, Ava's oxygen level was normal and a chest x-ray ruled out pneumonia.  She screamed through a nebulizer treatment in the doctor's office (the fishy mask she got to take home as a souvenir, pictured above) and was prescribed a steroid and an Albuterol inhaler. The doctor said to keep an eye on her--this could be a one time occurrence or could be the start of some asthma brewing.  As a long-time asthma sufferer I really hope that is not the case for her!

Let me add a side-note.  The x-ray adventure really was a sight to behold and Ava did such a great job.  She talked to and entertained everyone we met, was so excited to get her "picture" taken, and really hammed it up for the camera.  She stood still, smiled big, couldn't hold in a deep breath but kept her arms up and feet in place and loved the special skirt she got to wear that matched Daddy's x-ray blocking dress.  Afterwards she was a little disappointed when she saw the pictures that had been taken and didn't quite understand what she as looking at, but when she received a sticker with a dinosaur skeleton on it (to go along with the 5 Dora stickers she got from the sweet nebulizer-giving nurse), she was content.

Ava really was a champ, left the office with her very first lollipop and though she has yet to complete a whole 6-breath inhaler treatment, she's on the mend.

Two and a half

We've had a shortage of pictures this summer since I've been feeling so lousy (and we've done very few things worth capturing on film) so I took a few today to document the growing girl.  In a couple days she will be 2 1/2 and boy is she as cute as ever!

I Got Jesus in my Heart

The sweet girl with her favorite boy-- baby Brayden

As previously mentioned, Ava has had a hard time with my pregnancy so far and has developed an unwavering need for her mommy.  One way that this manifests itself is during sleep times.  Ava has not only continued to get out of her bed at night but has begun waking mid-nap and crying out for me, "I need my mommy!" and crying for snuggles, milk, a blanket, anything that might get me to come into the room.

Without wanting to delve deep into my parenting style, I will say this.  Since Ava was a baby I have erred on the side of crying-it-out, for many reasons, and have stuck to that ideology because even for a toddler I believe that action and consistency speak volumes.  Now, in this case, with two-year-old emotions flaring and flexing, some compromises have had to be made.  But overall I've tried to keep with my instincts and not start Ava on a habit of crying for mommy many times a night or nap.

With that in mind, after a few conversations that went nowhere, trying to explain to Ava why it is better for her to sleep by herself or why she needs to go back to sleep without me, the Holy Spirit nudged me with a great realization.  This is a perfect opportunity to talk about her relationship with Jesus--not just the story of baby Jesus but the role that he plays in our lives.

The first night I decided to go into her room and I sang her a new song:

...I've got the love of Jesus love of Jesus
Down in my heart
Down in my heart to stay
...And I'm so happy, so very happy
I've got the love of Jesus in my heart!

I explained that Jesus lived in her heart, and in my heart, and that whenever she felt lonely or sad or afraid, she could tell Jesus and he would hear her.  I told her that sometimes she might miss mommy and daddy when we're not there but that Jesus will always be with her.  Watching her eyes light up, she responded, "Yeah!  That's a good idea mommy!  Baby Jesus lives right here in my heart!"  I melted.  She was smitten.

Since then we've had some more rocky sleep and awake times, but they have been great opportunities for me to introduce her more and more to Jesus.  What a sweet job that is.  With the onset of some pretty ugly, defiant behavior we've been able to talk about how God tells us to obey our parents and how it makes God feel when she disobeys.

A few nights ago, Blair and I were both awake as Ava cried and cried for me from about 1-4:30am.  I went in a number of times but short of sticking her back in the womb there was no giving her enough comfort to calm her.  At one point I reminded her that though mommy had to go back to her room, Jesus would be with her and she could pray to him if she was sad.  I left and within minutes she was crying for me to return.  Blair and I listened for awhile, Ava finally calmed down a little and then we heard her yell loudly and happily, "Mommy!  I told Jesus I'm sad!"  We giggled in bed.  I can't tell you what work and yet what a joy this time is!

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

"Be joyful always; 

pray continually; 

give thanks in all circumstances, 

for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."

5 Years

Yesterday we celebrated our five year wedding anniversary.  It's hard to believe that much time has gone by (and yet how much has happened in such a short time).  I'm beginning to think we look young in our wedding photos and think back with nostalgia to how 'simple' life seemed on that day.  Ha!  God had less than simple plans for us but I've been so blessed to go through the hard and the remarkable with my best friend by my side.

Puberty, 7 1/2 years of dating, illness, health, numerous moves and job changes, and almost two kids later... I love you Blair!

The first 12 weeks

It is time to announce a most exciting addition to our family--one of the 12 weeks along, itty bitty baby variety!  On March 4th, just in time for Ava's third birthday, we are expecting our second child--still a mind-blowing concept that is hard for us to believe.  Despite my initial feeling in July, that the days were dragging by and I would never reach the end of the first trimester, we have arrived and it really did go very quickly.

Here is a recap of all that I would have updated over the last 12 weeks, had we wanted to fully disclose and had I felt remotely up to it.

How I've Felt  Overall I've been feeling pretty lousy but the severity has been up and down.  From weeks 6-8 I was very nauseous and extremely fatigued but thankfully my body became a little more predictable after that.  I've still been very nauseous but it's usually in the late afternoon and evening and most days have been doable with a solid afternoon nap.  One of the unexpected hardships this time around has been the emotional toll--not of the pregnancy itself but of how it has affected Ava, her behavior and our relationship.  More on that in a minute!

At 7 weeks we had a major scare, I woke up with some bleeding and the doctor wanted us to come in that day for an emergency ultrasound.  I was of course a wreck; nothing can prepare you for the reality that something might be seriously wrong with your baby.  After hearing the heartbeat (...relief) and getting our first glimpse of the 'tadpole', we were so grateful that everything was ok.

The Belly  Though not much of one yet, here it is at 12 weeks.  This picture makes me look a lot taller and slimmer than I actually am, don't be fooled!  I'm down to one pair of shorts that I can actually close, but for now just look and feel a bit thicker around the middle.  I am anxiously awaiting the arrival of an actual bump, the feeling of kicking feet and hopefully a little more energy in the weeks to come.

Ava's Reaction  When we first told Ava, she was very excited that mommy had a baby in her belly.  She said, "A baby from God!  Like in my Jesus book!" remembering the story of Mary having baby Jesus.  Little does she know this was not an immaculate conception, but we told her yes, the baby was still a gift from God!  Our good friends had had a baby a few months prior (a baby whom Ava is madly in love with) so she had that big-belly-to-little-baby transformation fresh in her mind and I do think has an idea of what's to come.  She however has no patience for the long wait.  She asked often that first week to feel the baby kicking, to talk and sing to the baby, to hold it and to even take pictures of my belly.  But that excitement wore off and a good bit of anger and sadness took over when mommy became all but incapacitated at times and definitely not as much fun.

This is an interview I did with Ava on July 17th:
mommy: Ava, do you like the baby in mommy's belly or not like it?
ava: Not like it.
mommy: How come?
ava: Because she's sad (meaning mommy).
mommy: Why am I sad?
ava: Because she's sick.  I like when she's happy.

From there Ava's sadness turned into a mixture of clinginess and anger at me, defiance of a whole different breed as well as having a lot more potty accidents and getting out of her toddler bed (something she's been great about since we initially switched over).  It's been quite an energy zapper, both physically and emotionally.  I've had many moments of feeling like I'm not doing what's best for my baby by having another baby as well as feeling a little defeated in my lack of energy and patience to deal with the issues at hand.  But, I know that we'll get through this together and I'm already learning quite a lot about my changing role as a parent of two.

Boy or Girl?  Ava is adamant that this baby is a boy, though with her aforementioned love for the most recent baby in her life (who is a boy) and her persistent reference to baby Jesus growing in my belly, this makes sense!  I too however have had a strong feeling that this baby is a boy from very early on and had a dream that I had a boy, born healthy at 8 weeks (ha, wouldn't that be a treat?)!  With Ava I only ever had dreams that she was a girl, so we'll see!  We'll find out (hopefully) in mid-October.


And so it begins... the countdown to baby's arrival and the impending craziness that will undoubtedly overtake our household!  We really couldn't be more excited and ready.  I am definitely already feeling the time crunch--though we have about 6 months to go, I'm realizing how quickly time flies when you have a two-and-a-half-year-old in the mix and a brain already incapable of keeping order and getting things done like it used to.  Nonetheless, we are preparing as best we can and trying to enjoy it!

The Little Lady

We've been uber busy these last weeks and will have much to update you on when things slow down a bit.  Until then, here's a picture worth sharing.  Ava loves taking pictures with me using the camera on our mac and this is one of my favorites from today.  She's the best little buddy to have around!  Or as she likes us to call her, "Little Lady".  I love her!

Little Helper

Another tale to demonstrate the dear, sweet, helpful and thoughtful little girl we have.

Last night we returned home from a weekend trip and hurriedly unloaded the contents of the car into the living room and hallway.  I unpacked only the necessities and quickly started rummaging the cabinets and bare fridge for a suitable dinner for Ava.  She was getting into things and whining (as was I after our long day) and at one point I caught her taking all of the stuff out of my weekend bag.  I snapped at her to put everything back and said that I needed to take all the bags to their correct rooms and then unload them later and put everything away.  She cleaned up the mess she made and I went back to making her dinner.

After she'd finished eating, Blair came home with some takeout for him and I to share, and we did so ravenously.  A few minutes went by and I realized we hadn't heard a peep from Ava in awhile.  I yelled out, "Ava, what are you doing sweetheart?"  We heard the quick pitter-patter of feet, she whirled around the corner into view, muttered something and then booked it back to her room in a "follow me" type manner.  I thought, 'uh oh' and followed quickly behind.  Sure that she had made a huge mess somewhere, I went into her room and found her standing next to her diaper pail quietly with a face like that of a puppy leading it's owner to an accident on the floor.  "I did that," she said, and pointed.  I looked and found her dresser drawer open (where I keep her large trash bags), bags strewn, and one all scrunched and gnarled into position in her empty diaper pail.  She had been trying to put a new bag in since we left it to air-out while we were away.   Then I saw that she'd dragged her travel bag into her room and had tried to unpack a few things into her drawers.  I looked at her with a smile and said, "Great job Ava, were you trying to help mommy?"  and her puppy-dog eyes turned to a big, proud grin as she replied, "Yeah, I did!"

Love her.

Vocabulary of our two year old

Once Ava really started talking around 18 months, her vocabulary grew quickly, gradually migrating toward full sentences a few months ago.  Now however, she's begun spitting out much more long and complicated words amidst clear sentences, leaving us literally speechless sometimes!  Though my attempt to compile a list of the words I've heard her say over the past month or so would no doubt be incomplete, many of the words are ones that leave us wondering when she even picked them up.

One example I do remember was when she came up to me holding a vibrating massager that we have (which she hadn't played with in maybe 6 months) and said, "Mommy, I do the vibrating?"  To which I of course replied, "You do the what??"

And, on our trip to Mimi and Pappy's, one of their favorite conversations with her was after she came down from a fitful nap (during which she woke and cried a lot for me to come get her).  They asked her how she slept and what happened during her nap and she said, "I was frustrated!"

She's a sponge I tell you!

This past weekend we went down to Virginia for my cousins wedding and had a wonderful time.  We saw many cousins and aunts and uncles but the highlight of Ava's trip was no doubt the plentiful presence of boys her age wearing dress pants and ties.  Little did we know, our shy little girl is quite the little romantic.  She was following around every boy she could find trying to hold their hands and get them to dance with her, turning to us to say, "I dance with boys?"

Another of my favorite stories from this past month is when Ava asked me to sing a particular song from one of her books at nap time.  I couldn't remember which song went with a particular page in her book (it came with a companion CD) when finally I said, Oh, I think it's ---- .  She smiled at me with the most genuine smile you've ever seen and took a deep breath and said, "Oh, you're so smart mommy!"  Ha!  I about lost it and thought, my two year old just encouraged me!

With the increase in language skills that Ava is possessing, she's starting to be able to recall and tell us about her dreams at night.  I've always wondered what infants dream about and though that's still a mystery, it's been so fun to hear about some of the things she's dreaming of now.  Though she's talked about butterflies and squirrels, my favorite (after the fact) is this.  Blair and I were watching her on our new video monitor one night, she'd awoken and was sitting crying in her crib.  After a minute she went quiet and started sucking her thumb.  I was relieved until we realized she had fallen asleep sitting up and then did a dead fall, her little head knocking right into her bed rail.  She of course starting screaming hysterically and we ran in to comfort her and make sure she was ok.  She fell asleep again surprisingly quickly and I laid her in her crib.

Not ten minutes later, she awoke screaming again and this time wasn't settling so I went in.  She was wide awake and when I asked her what was wrong and if she wanted to lay down, she said, "The car! The car went fast on my neck!"  "What?" I said, a little perplexed and wondering if she'd suffered any real consequences from her earlier fall.  She replied with vigorous hand motions, "Daddy's purple car went fast on my head."  I started to realize what had happened, "Did you hit your head really hard?" I said.  "Yeah, the car went really fast on my head, right here" she pointed.

What a sweet little heart, she'd slept through the whole ordeal and was now awaking from a nightmare in which her dad's car ran into her head!  We did our best to stifle our laughter and comfort our baby girl and convince her that it was a bad dream.  Though it was awful for her I'm sure, it was a great moment for us as parents to watch that whole thing play out and to see her use her words to communicate so well with us!

Summer (free) Time and a Trip to Mimi and Pappy's

I am a little shocked at the length of time between posts here on our blog, especially since it is one of my favorite things to do!  I thought that once my husbands schedule eased up a bit in the summer I'd actually get some (gasp) "alone" time and maybe more time for things like this.  However, the opposite has been true!  Since Blair's had more time off this summer we've gotten swallowed up by house projects (this is in general a good thing) and I've been spending every moment that Ava is sleeping doing some manner of painting or gardening.  This has left you, our faithful readers, longing I'm sure for some recent photos of our sweet toddler and her activities.

To quench your thirst for cuteness, here are some photos of our trip up to my mom's a couple of weeks ago.  Mimi and Pappy's house is, for a two-year-old, the perfect no-cost vacation.  A huge, old house brimming with nooks and crannies just begging to be explored, gardens full of new flowers and bird feeders, a waterfall and pond with fish to feed and croaking frogs, and of course the big dog and elusive kitty that lie in wait for the toddler pounce.

 Eating a picnic after our hike

 Feeding the fishies their breakfast

Picking strawberries for our breakfast

(and eating most of them) 

Sitting by her baby pool

 Playing Mimi's Piano

Taking a breather during her first hike! 

Throwing rocks and wading in the creek 

Looking for fish/frogs/bugs with Daddy

With no 'before' pictures, our house projects are less than exciting to write about.  But, we have finished repainting our basement and carving out a spot for our new garden out front.  I can't wait to show off the 'after' pictures and complete our other to-do's like painting furniture and planting flowers.  I love being productive which makes me LOVE summer!

Mothers Day

I had a wonderful 3rd Mothers Day, in no small part due to my sweet husband and daughter.  Even though Blair goes to bed a lot later than I do, he woke up with Ava on that morning while I got to lay in bed for a few extra minutes.  Though I've lost the ability to sleep in, the luxury of getting out of bed on my own terms is priceless to me and would have been gift enough!

I heard clattering and squealing from the kitchen and then Ava pitter-pattering into my room to say, "Happy Modders Day Mommy!" and snuggle with me for a few minutes in bed.  Again, that too would have been gift enough!

We had breakfast as a family (a rare occurrence for us) which my husband prepared with the "help" of Ava (I hear she washed the strawberries) and got ready for church.  After a great service visiting at our friend's church, we made it home just in time to avoid a total baby meltdown, whip up a quick lunch for all and get Ava down for a nap.

To top it all off, in the evening I settled down with my favorite Entenmann's Chocolate Cake.  Mmmm.  I love being a mom more than anything and feel so blessed to have the family that I have!

Here are a few token family photos taken after church that day.

My Good-dirl Bed

A few weeks ago, when Blair's schedule had him out of the house for almost all of Ava's and my waking hours, I decided to take the two of us on an impromptu visit to my mom's house.  Upon arrival, I set up Ava's pack 'n play and she slept in it that night--the only sleep it would see during our 4 day stay.  There was a single bed in her room that she decided on day 2 she was old enough to sleep in and she proved herself right!  She did so well, stayed in it for the most part, calling for me when she needed something or woke up, and slept in until a decent morning hour.

Once we arrived back home, Ava was much less enchanted by her baby crib.  After refusing her nap that afternoon, I decided to take the plunge and transform her crib into it's toddler counterpart and see how she did.  Needless to say, Ava was elated and smitten with her new big girl bed (which she calls her "good-dirl bed") and newfound freedom!

Ava did so well in her bed for a couple of days, coming into our bedroom in the morning but otherwise sleeping well and showing us what a big girl she really was.  However, after the honeymoon period it was as if a switch went off and Ava no longer wanted to impress us and instead couldn't have cared less if it meant she could leave her bed in the middle of the night.  Not only did she start waking frequently and getting out of bed, but she would do so often without a sound and I would wake up and realize she was standing outside my door just sucking her thumb in the dark!  In the morning as well, she was waking as early as 5:30 or 6 (instead of her usual 8:30ish wake time) and definitely not understanding the concept of staying in her room until mommy said it was okay to come out.

It took a few weeks and a few tricks (the turning point for us was keeping Ava's door open at night when we put her down.  Who knew?) but we are doing much better with her bed now and Ava is a champion when it comes to staying in her room and calling for me.  I was determined not to use a gate, lock her in or use another method of restraint before giving good old fashioned training a solid effort and it paid off!  She is still waking up a lot earlier than she was, somewhere in the 7-7:30 timeframe, but it is a huge step up from where we were and it's a wake up time that mommy approves.  Most mornings I wake up to her standing at her door asking to go potty which is a much less slow and peaceful way for me to wake up but I am so proud of my little girl--potty trained and keeping within the boundaries that I have set for her!  What a victory as a parent.

So proud of herself in her good-dirl bed

Two side notes with this post:

Video Monitor
I have been wanting a video monitor for some time now, knowing it would have helped me through so many of Ava's phases over the last year.  Being able to see whether she was calling for me while lying down or standing up, whether she'd dropped her beloved ducky or otherwise had a need that required my presence or if I could let her put herself back to sleep--all of these things would have been made easier.  However, I never took the financial plunge and kept reminding myself that I didn't need it.  With the introduction of the toddler bed though, I decided it was time and put a good portion of my birthday money towards a really nice video monitor and it's been awesome!  I got one that allows me to press a button on the receiver and for Ava to hear my voice through the camera.  More than once in the last few days I've been able to catch her getting out of her bed, tell her to get back into bed and watch her fall back to sleep without having to go into the room.  Love it!  Not necessary but well worth the money in this house.

Potty-Training
When we got back from my mom's and made the bedroom switch, Ava began having trouble keeping her panties dry.  I don't know if it was too much too soon or she was distracted but she just couldn't keep herself from having accidents.  I did notice however that when we left the house in a pull-up she could keep herself dry for hours, even at times when she said she had to go and I told her she had to hold it until we got home.  So, I've started putting her in pull-ups all the time and she is keeping them dry, even at home.  It's a little backwards for me, I would think she'd be more likely to pee in a pull-up but whatever it is about them, it has gotten her back on track.  I will slowly start to do more panty time as she shows me that she's ready but for now I'm happy to reuse pull-ups as long as she's keeping them dry!

Swim Lessons

This spring Ava has been enrolled in her first ever swim lessons at the YMCA (Ava calls it the YNC).  We've been to four of the six classes so far and she is having a blast!  At first she was very nervous, especially when the teacher came close enough to give us personal instruction, but with the introduction of multiple pool toys, song time and repeated exposure to the water, she's doing amazingly well.

On the first day Ava would not let me let go of her hands as I climbed into the water and would not jump into my arms without holding on.  While in the water she was clinging to me like a monkey and was not happy with the instructed baby-hold which involved only mommy's hands in her armpits.  But, by the fourth class she was sitting pool-side with little hesitation, jumping freely and dunking her head under water quasi-willingly.  We are so proud of her!

It is also worth mentioning that pool-swimming has greatly increased Ava's bathtub confidence and acrobatics.  Not only does she now stick her face in the water to blow bubbles and "go under" as she says, but tonight she got on her knees facing one direction and then whirled around and around saying, "I face dis way!  Now I face dis way!  Now... dis way!"

Ava's best friend Ruthie is in the same class and it's been so much fun to experience this new adventure together.  Kicking, blowing bubbles, and learning to wait patiently at the side of the pool until mommy says it's time to get in--such a joy to see our girls growing up together!

nail polish

The last few weeks have ushered in a lot of firsts for us, not the least of which was Ava's introduction to nail polish.  At the sight of my toenails for the first time in flip flops, Ava noted that my polish job left much to be desired.  I asked her if she wanted to join me in a homespun mani-pedi and she gleefully said yes!  Hot pink it is.  And fyi, nail polish CAN be washed out of clothes with Oxy Clean.

Photos with Maryn Lee Photography

I have about ten posts in the lineup that need to be finished but this one can't wait.  A number of weeks ago we had the privilege of doing a family photo shoot with our friend Maryn from Maryn Lee Photography.  She is so talented and I am in LOVE with the photos that came of our time together!  What a treasure to have.  Maryn, thank you so so much!

You can view all of the pictures from our shoot on Maryn's website HERE.

Haircut

Yesterday, with no flair or hurrah, I cut Ava's hair.  I've considered it before but it seemed wrong, given that her hair started growing only a few months ago and is still so short and thin.  My initial instinct was to be patient, let it grow out and see if it evened itself out as it got longer.  However, after seeing the pictures from her birthday party in which her baby mullet was glaringly obvious, I thought it was time to see if I could remedy the awkward hair-growing situation.  That led to a secretive snip during her bath time, which led to an uneven trimming of the sides, which led to a whole-head cut and a shorter but cuter hairdo.  I really do think she looks older without her long straggly ends and a little cleaner around the edges.  Bye bye baby mullet!

BEFORE

Ava's baby mullet at her birthday party, with the added

bonus of bald sides

 AFTER

This one is just too cute not to include.

Ava loves her pockets.