I know you.

Tonight Avery demonstrated something that they say happens around 18 months, so she's a bit ahead of schedule here.  Beyond a doubt, she recognizes herself in a mirror - or at least in the phone camera.  When I pulled up snapchat and had a filter that added ears to the top of her head she saw this and reached up as though to grab them off of her head.

A full dozen

The matching lateral incisor on the bottom is finally doing its thing.  We're now up to 12 teeth, unless there are others working their way up that I wasn't able to spot just yet.  She has been a bit drooly but not too much in the way of diaper rash (thank goodness) with this one.  She was pretty unhappy last night too - enough that I gave her a bit of Tylenol to dull the ache for her.

That's a wrap

Avery's second Christmas is in the books.  Along with that were a lot of miles on the road and a whole pile of presents.  She may not have liked Santa very much in person, but she was starting to figure out how to unwrap presents.  Some of her favorites so far include an Elmo doll from Aunt Jackie, a new travel shape sorter from Aunt Karla and Uncle Carl, some bath toys and a coloring tablet from Mummy and Daddy, and a beautiful rocking pony from Aunt Bethany.  She isn't enamored with the pony when it's making noises just yet, but she does like rocking on it.  Santa did a pretty good job with Little People toys too.

I'm very proud of her.  She's also doing a decent job signing "thank you"!  It sounds like she's also saying "Please" and a few other things like "uh-uh" (as in no).

There was so much running and activity that Avery slept in an extra hour 3 out of 5 days through this extra long weekend.  My extra time with her was my favorite gift this holiday.  I love her bunches.

Evil Avery Kinevil

This kid.  Last night she climbed onto the rolling ride on horse and proceeded to climb up on the seat.  She stood straight up and then got back down.  (Picture one of those videos of a guy standing up on the motorcycle seat while it speeds down the highway.)  She did it again tonight.  I guess that wasn't daring enough because then she headed to the coffee table and started swinging those legs up.

Yup, she can now climb up onto the coffee table.  At least she was smart enough to put her belly down and slide off backwards.

More more more

I'm pretty sure she tried to say "all done" and sign "thank you".  When I asked her to pick up the blue circle she grabbed it straight away from the pile of shapes.  For quite a while Avery has also been great about doing things I ask her to do "can you bring Mommy the red triangle *pointing*" and sure enough she goes over, picks it up, and brings it back.

Bed time is quite routine now.  Avery is great about heading to bed on her own after a quick cuddle post prayers.  All I have to say is "sheepie" and she points to her crib where her beloved bedfellow awaits to cuddle and zonk out.

The hugs are also getting bigger and better.  There is nothing better than a hug from this little girl.

Change

We had a note come home on Friday saying that the owner of our daycare is retiring. It breaks my heart a bit and scares even more.  Someone else is taking over.  I don't know them, but I guess I didn't know the current owner a year and a couple of months ago either.  Then my mind starts to turn:  will the rates go up?  will the flexibility go down?  will we lose our favorite teacher?

I just don't do well with change.  Hearing it is coming right with the stress of the holidays has me quite tense.

As Avery is now saying quite consistently "uh oh".

My world is spinning

Avery now will spin in circles on her own, giggling and having a grand old time.  She also is making the first attempts to jump on her own.  It's pretty cute to see her put her all into it and barely bouncing.  Half the time she then topples down onto her bum.

We continue to work on ASL.  She'll tell you "more" when she's ready to eat and correct it to "eat/food" when you ask her if she wants to eat.  If you ask if she wants a "drink" or "water" she is trying to make one of those signs, it kind of comes out a bit muddled.  She also will babble while holding up her thumb and pointer finger (pinky isn't out yet) to respond when you say "I love you".

Word wise puppy is starting to sound more like what she's saying at times, but Saffy still gets a "Gigi"  She'll also stand there babbling while looking at a book.  I'm sure she is trying to tell me something, but it isn't coming across just yet.

We're still fighting on many foods, but we did have some success with pieces of spaghetti and meatballs last night.  She also seems to enjoy gnawing on a pretzel stick on her own.  The pieces of fruit continue to go in, get chomped on a little and get spit out.  I tried to get her to take bites off of a banana this weekend but they too kept coming back out, until I started putting a hunk of banana on a spoon w/ a bit of pb.

It begins

I know at some point I'll tire of hearing "Mama", but for now I'm excited that calling to me has returned to Avery.  She's also saying "up" periodically.  A few days ago I had her shaking her hand (not getting the sign anywhere near right) and babbling consistent sounds in an attempt to respond in kind to me when I signed and said "I love you" to her.

The youngest puppy is learning from the older ones

This morning Avery woke up a bit too early, so I brought her to my room to cuddle for a few minutes.  She didn't want to go back to sleep.  Instead she started mimicking Danika, who was panting.

I suspect she was a little sore as she had a shot in each leg again last night.  First her second dose of the flu vaccine and then her last DTAP.  At least we're getting to the point where we'll be done for a few years.  But we did go to the chiro prior, so that could help.

The pieces are coming together

This weekend Avery demonstrated the ability to both get the puzzle pieces (animals) into the right slots and to put the shapes into the right places on the sorter.  It's like everything locked in with her, not only is she making the connection between the opening or matching image but she's getting the dexterity to spin them around the right way to place the piece properly.

I'm also hearing her making more and more sounds that are clearly attempts at forming words.  Out of context I wouldn't have a clue what she was saying.  But when you say quack quack and she makes two mimicking sounds, you know she's on to something.  She'll also make a barking sound after dogs barking (as we learned on our walk today) and howl after Danika howls.  She's also making sounds like she's trying to tell me things, but obviously her message isn't coming across which sometimes has her sqwaking at me and appearing frustrated.

A shot in the wrong arm

The pediatrician gave Avery a break last night.  Instead she only had her well visit, no shots.  Instead I got a flu shot there.  Here are her current statistics:
24 lbs 6 1/2 oz (75%)
31" tall (75%)
18 3/4" head (90%)

Taking off

We had a nice Thanksgiving.  Avery was not up for getting passed around this year, but she did warm up and was social enough.  It was hard this morning to load her into the car seat and take her back to school and I mean literally hard, she was scooting herself back out with force.  She was however happy when we arrived at school to see her friends, and didn't cling to me, so that made it a little easier.

She did get past that vaccine last week without issue, thank goodness.

Avery's latest accomplishment is taking off her shirt.  She pulled it off several times yesterday before I gave up and allowed her to wander about unfettered.  It was pretty warm yesterday (near if not in the 50s) so the house wasn't too cold.

A few bites and a shot

Last night Avery received her MMR vaccine.  Maybe she was spaced out but she actually willingly ate some mandarin oranges! I've tried offering them to her several times and over the side they would go, but we had success last night.  Tonight was pizza, which she is willing to gnaw on.  She still seems happy and well. I hope I'm not speaking too soon, but it would be nice to get through a vaccine without her starting to feel unwell in the next two days.

Jaws

Tooth #11 was confirmed tonight.  Her top right lateral incisor.  I got a good look when she was throwing herself backwards and laughing while I brushed her teeth.  I'm not surprised as she hasn't wanted me brushing her top front teeth for the past week.

Today she took a mega nap - 3 hours.  On one hand this is good as I want her rested up for the holidays and her vaccine on Monday.  On the other hand it meant she was awake for an extra half hour this evening.

To report back on the food saga, I stuck to my guns for most of today.  She didn't scream, only glared at me when I presented her carrots first thing this morning.  By evening (after the mega nap) she resisted the carrots more stringently.  I caved and made her some oatmeal mixed with fruit and snuck a few bites of carrots in with that.

Up and down

Nothing wants to go in the mouth.  She doesn't even try with most foods, just straight over the side of the high chair.  That is, unless of course it is a cracker, cereal, or snack.  She'll stand there and tell me she's hungry and wants more and wail when I present her with something she doesn't want.  I know I have to stick to my guns.  I hated it, but she's gone to bed last night and tonight without a full stomach.  I'm thinking this weekend is going to need to be very focused.  Either you eat chunks or you don't eat.  I need to get her moving forward.

Tonight she spent time practicing on the stairs.  Under my watch she went up the first two stairs and back down, up and down, up and down. I'm trying to convince her that she needn't walk on the stairs trying to come down but instead scoot down on her butt of back down.

Since I previously heard she wasn't using her paci at daycare for naps I gave a brief try of putting her down without it tonight but was instantly met with a wiggly whiny child.  Fair enough - we'll wait a while on that one, especially since she is now happy to go straight into the crib after her prayers without cuddle time.  I know that as she gets a bit older there will be cuddling on the couch etc, but right now I'm missing those pre-bed cuddles, but I know it's important for her to be able to go down on her own.

Winter Storm Avery

The first winter storm rolled through last night and the weather channel dubbed it winter storm Avery!  True to form it seems pretty mild, especially here.  This morning it was all rain and only in the past hour has the deck shown a little bit of ice forming.  I guess the same cannot be said for Maryland and back in Johnstown.  Truly though, it's the middle of November and I've only noticed a flake or two flittering by so far.  That pleases me greatly.

I am obsolete.

Just out of curiosity, tonight I put Avery straight into her crib after getting her ready for bed, no cuddling in the rocking chair.  She didn't care - not a peep.  I think her sheepie has made me obsolete.

Lovey dovey

Avery has taken to cuddling with her sheepie in her crib.  I'm glad that I can put a blanket over her on colder nights now and offer her something that brings her comfort when she wakes.

It is pretty darn cute to walk in there and see her sitting up with her sheepie in her arms and a smile on her face.

The horsey says...

That 10th tooth seems to have finished popping through.  While Avery doesn't want me brushing her front teeth, which hints that it may still be tender, her rash has 99% subsided.

Early this week we met with our photographer for a milk and cookies photo session, so I have some photos ready for Christmas now.  They turned out pretty decent.  Once again she was crying as soon as we got there.  Fortunately, she seemed contented pretty fast after being handed a cookie.

Tonight we practiced animals and noises while putting our puzzle together.  I'm pretty sure she's understanding the horse and duck.  It sure sounds, and repeatedly at that, like she tries to say quack quack when I ask what the duck says and she whinnies back when I say horse and whinny at her.  I think I've reported previously that she can find her belly and belly button quite consistently.  This of course means you have to lift up your shirt you know.

Feeling better

Avery's rash has tamed back down again, thank goodness.  I have seeing that girl in pain.  Amusingly though she starts wiggling her little butt the second you go to use a wipey on her.  I am sure it is anticipation of pain, but absent that pain it is pretty amusing.

We went to the pediatrician on Monday, scheduled for the MMR vaccine, but were advised to wait a little longer between the variacella and MMR, so instead she got her flu shot.  I need to go get one myself.  We'll be back to the doctor a couple more times in the next month for the second flu shot (which they advise for little ones) and her MMR.  It could be a rough month if any of these make her feel less than well.

On a bright note, we were scheduled for another 30 minute photo shoot yesterday - a "milk and cookies" session.  Avery started crying right at the onset again, I don't know what it is about our photographer that makes her wig out a little.  This time it didn't last too long (I'm sure handing her that cookie helped) and I am pretty sure she got some cute photos of her.

Most definitely teething

A week and a half fighting diaper rash, this is definitely the longest struggle we've had thus far.  This time we're seeing distinct wound spots.  I firmly blame the desitin at this point for amplifying things when we first noticed the rash starting - the rest of it is headed to the garbage.  I seem to get things tamed down and then she has a day with 5 or 6 poops, which makes it pretty hard to not flare it back up.

We can now see her first upper lateral incisor trying to push through and her molars on the bottom are still in progress.  Regardless, that incisor makes #10, we're half way home.

Avery's Halloween costume was a big hit at daycare and with neighborhood folks, many commenting it was the most creative they've seen in a while.  She sure made for one cute little Cabbage Patch Kid and she did look a good bit like Trixie in her red sweat suit and eyeliner freckles.  She did score her first candy from the neighbor which her Dad and I ate, but I did share a twix with her today and she really liked it - look out world.

Another pumpkin and lots of mud

The sun was out on Sunday, it was unexpected and I wanted to take advantage.  This is why Avery and I headed to Simmon's Farm to do the hay ride to pick out another pumpkin in the patch.  To my surprise the patch is one of mud. I mean, sure, we've had a lot of rain, but I wasn't expecting that.  You see so many people posting pictures of their kids picking put pumpkins and it looks lush and pleasant.  This was hard.  I managed to stay upright, but still got a nice coating of mud.  Avery's bum went down once when I tried to stand her up for a photo.  She promptly wanted nothing more to do with moving on her own.  Do you know how hard it is to carry my pumpkin AND a pumpkin across a muddy angled ground?

I'm glad we went, but I won't lie, it wasn't the fun I hoped for and there aren't great pictures of the event.

My Pumpkin

Today Avery and I headed out and braved the rain. Initially didn't think I was going to be able to take her to get a pumpkin due to the weather but the opportunity arose to go to the Washington Trolley Museum. I'm glad we went! The trolley ride was enjoyable and while we "pumpkin patch" was inside, it was amongst a lot of pretty neat looking trolleys, including one from Johnstown.

We also made a big leap today in that I finally flipped her mattress to the toddler side. I know she could have had this flip two months ago, we'll just say I've been resisting her being anything more than my baby for a while - and it will continue!

Let's talk

Avery isn't saying too much that's clear.  Just a breakthrough here and there that might be by chance (like the day it sounded like she said "Hi Neen" to Danika).  But she is getting on board with her hands.  We can now point to our belly and nose with success.  Of course, the belly requires trying to lift up her shirt and sometimes the nose is moreso mouth.

She is also quite proficient at signing 'more', 'milk', and 'finished'.  She has not however strung them together, nor has she distinguished that she needs to sign 'eat'.  Instead she says 'more' even when she hasn't just had something, but I know what she's telling me.  Instead of signing when she wants more of something she'll also make this distinct squawk, to which if I ask 'more?' she'll then sign.

Mastering the art of flight

Since our last post, Avery has flown on an airplane - twice!  We made the trip to Texas to visit her Aunt Jackie and Uncle Bob.  While there we tried lots of new things and had a few breakthroughs.  First, we shifted to size 4 diapers.  There were lots of pretzels and other things to chomp on, and she's doing better eating a few more chunks, but we still  need to see progress on the healthy chunks!  As to food, beyond the donuts, pretzels, cereal-os, persimmons, and plenty more - including getting foods she's eaten pureed into her hands as chunks.

We woke up this morning, preparing to fly home with a brand new case of vibrant diaper rash.  Poor girl. This is definitely the worst I've seen on her.  She started wailing before I even opened her diaper this evening to change her.  It breaks my heart, but goodness, you have to wipe her after a poo, even if it is the 6th one of the day.

Maybe it's teething, maybe not.  We were using a different wipe than normal all week, but you'd think she'd react faster.  There has been a little more drool and fingers in her mouth too.  She was a bit dry and down to two pellet like poos for a couple of days and then a shift in this direction.  It doesn't seem to have rhyme or reason.

Snuggling up on cold nights

It's been an interesting and varied week.  Sunday night Avery woke back up at 10pm crying.  She was thrashing and hard to even keep a hold of at points.  Several attempts to get her back down later I finally figured it had to be teeth bothering her.  15 minutes later the half dose of children's tylenol settled her down enough to sleep.  I'm glad that happened the night it did, because if it happened the next day I would have been quite worried.

That next night, Monday, Avery got her varicella (chickenpox) vaccine.  She only took a very slight fever after, but did end up a bit unwell on Wednesday - mayhaps unrelated.  She threw up once at daycare in the afternoon, but looking back on her day sheet she ate her lunch and a yogurt around noon, went down for a nap, woke two hours later, and drank her bottle.  We've had a runny/stuffy nose off and on, again probably thanks to those teeth, so we think there was also some mucus in effect on top of all of that food and out some of it came.  She didn't want to eat later, but who does after they've thrown up?  Thursday she seemed okay, despite not being a voracious eater, so back to school she went and fortunately hung in there without issue.

During this week the weather went from summer to very autumn with the temps now going into the 40s over night and the day time not warming up.  Our walks are nice, it's brisk and only long sleeves/pants and a blankie for Avery and we're good to go.  The house however has cooled off enough that I did have to turn on the heat this evening just to take the chill off.  We also pulled out Avery's fleecy nighties, so no worries, her hands were nice and warm when I kissed her little forehead goodnight.

Groomed to Achieve

I'm pretty sure there is an upper molar in too, that would make 8 teeth, but I can't get a good look.  We've shifted to a 'normal' toothbrush, so I can't feel through the rubber nub like I did before to try and seek out the new teeth.  I guess I could take a pass with the old brush to try and feel around and help ensure that we're getting a thorough brushing.

The other thing Avery has taken to lately is trying to brush her own hair.  She will pick up both the hairbrush and comb and put them to her head.  Of course her coordination isn't quite there, so sometimes she's moreso patting her head with them, that is, at least when they're facing the right way so she's not smacking herself in the head with the plastic part.

I was pretty excited yesterday, I managed to take an hour nap while she went down in the morning.  She woke us just in time to hurry out the door to Little Gym.  If she hadn't woken we wouldn't have gone - I was out!  That's definitely a first and record achievement for "sleep when they sleep".

I may have neglected to mention that we've fully shifted to the 18 month clothing at this point.  There are a few of those items that hang like sacks on her, but for the most part it was very necessary to avoid bellies sticking out and floods.

and another!

Tooth #7 for sure is up, another molar.  I've bought the more adult style of toothbrush now for Avery.  It's quite surprising how difficult it is to use them instead of the little rubber nub ones that go over your finger.  She only gives you a limited time in there before her mouth clamps shut, so I'm going to have to get faster and more efficient.

Avery has become more consistent about wanting to go to bed before 8 and I'm often waking her in the morning, not even a stir before I go in, perhaps this is due to the change in seasons and it taking longer for the sun to come up.

So chill

Once again this little lady demonstrates how incredibly chill she is.  We went to Jumonville for a church retreat this weekend, which meant sleeping away from home and a bit of deviation from her normal schedule.  She was, as always, quite the trooper.  Everyone seemed pretty impressed with her sleeping so peacefully through both nights.  She slept for part of the drive there Friday night, so that nap helped ensure it wasn't an issue that she went to bed a little late.

Today, she was awake for the drive home and not the most thrilled about it, but still relatively content with a toy and a paci.  Of course, after we got home (post stopping at Big Lots for their 20% off day to gather more baby food - since someone is still at best only eating a couple of bites of the chunks from my meal) and she ate it was time for a nap and she's been down for the past two hours.  I suspect she's quite happy to be back in her own bed.

6 from West Virginia

Well there are definitely six teeth through.  I caught a glimpse of the sixth one when she put her head back to play with the wind chime tonight.

We now have the top and bottom front two (central incisors), the bottom left lateral incisor, and what is either a top right canine or first molar.

Her hair also seems to be in a growth spurt.  It easily gets in her eyes, so I have been trying to get decent looking piggie-making skills honed.

I spent some time this evening going through her closet, pulling many 12 month items and putting the 18 month ones into play.  I t always makes me so sad, but at least she won't look like the person clinging to their two-sizes too small wardrobe while bulging out of it.

Straws and Spoons

Just a general update about feeding developments.  At present, Avery still is very selective about the chunks she'll accept (instead of spitting them out with a look of disdain).  Teether cookies are fine, as are corn flakes and an occasional bite of chicken or pork, but most anything else that is not pureed is spat back out.  This is a normal phase, but dang it's an annoying one.

I was able to trick her into a bite or two by putting the spoon in her hand and helping her to guide the food into her mouth.  Being able to do this pleased her greatly.

When it comes to our drinks, we'll take the sippy cup for water, but not milk.  Oh no.  That simply must be in her bottle.  At least there hasn't been an ounce of resistance (or reaction beyond her control) to the milk transition.  Of course, I have enough formula that, served at this slower pace, will last us for a while.

The other discovery was that Avery is able to use a straw, a skill she no doubt developed thanks to the sippy cup practice.  I handed her my water with a straw in a restaurant and to my surprise I quickly felt the cold of the water under my fingers where I held onto the top of the straw.

Chompers

I may not have mentioned that a 5th tooth popped through.  It's on the bottom, which feels odd compared to the order they tend to tell you to expect them (tooth 5 and 6 should be up top - lateral incisors).  Yesterday daycare noted that they spotted several other teeth.  Of course, I can't get the girl to open her mouth on demand, so I can't see anything back further.  I shouldn't worry everyone is different, but I do.  She's just too pretty to end up with jacked up teeth.

Look what I can do...

I feel like I'm behind in recording some of the things Avery has started to do.  I don't want to forget these tidbits, so here they are!

In addition to the pointing Avery now puts up one finger like a point and waves her hand in a no motion.  It's a nice addition to her shaking her head no with a huge smile on her face.

You know how Donkey in Shrek pops his lips?  I do that at Avery and she make a lip smacking noise back.

She also has a crazy talent for finding the one chunk in her puree and spitting it out better than a dog can find a pill in a hot dog.

We also have a noted improvement in her ability to use the shape sorter toy and more than half the time I'd say when I point to the hole where a certain shape goes she'll try to place it there.  She has a decent success rate at getting them oriented properly too.

Have I mentioned she is an expert at pulling the velcro on her shoes to open them?

I've wanted to use more sign language than we have, but she has picked up on "finished" and does it periodically at the end of a bottle or meal!  A few times it looked like maybe she was also signing "more".

High fives are also a little more consistent now and she's willing to hit your hand in a variety of locations.  This too is often done with a smile or a laugh.

She also grabs her hair brush and puts it to her forehead.  She isn't getting it in the right direction to use it, but she knows what it is for.  With a little help she'll even brush your hair for you - ALSO smiling the whole time.

Vital Stats

I realized I didn't post the official one year appointment measurements.  Hence:
28 1/2" tall (up 2" since her 9 month appointment), 22lbs and 10 oz (up 2lbs and 4.5oz since her 9 month appointment), and 18 1/2" head (up another 1/2" since her 9 month appointment).  She remains in the higher percentile for her head and weight, but in a mid-range for her height.  Also, I am happy to note that her lead levels were lower/in a safe range - thank God.

Last night while we were out running we also stopped in to have her feet re-measured.  She's officially a 3 1/2w at this point, which is the size of the shoes she currently is in, but they're wearing out.  I'm on the hunt for cute 4 or 4 1/2 wides for the cooler weather.

Food wise there aren't a ton of things to introduce her to at this point, but we have found a blend we tried that added leeks to her repertoire.  I'm also slowing shifting her bottles to milk.  We're at about 1/3 milk and 2/3 formula right now, which had her pretty hungry yesterday.  I guess she was ready to keep eating at lunch time - so additional food has been sent to daycare for backup.  She also was jealous of a classmate eating their yogurt, so I guess we'll keep yogurt there.  It is probably a better mid-afternoon snack than puffs anyhow.  I'm glad she likes it!

Auntie B!

This weekend Avery and I took to the road with her Nonna and Nonno to go visit her Auntie B!  Do to her heavy work schedule this past year, this ended up being their first meeting.  Unfortunately, both Avery and Auntie B were recovering from some ick that came around (Avery's settled in around the same point of that post-inoculation fever), but they at least got to check each other out.  We also got to meet Auntie B's "friend" :)

The drive was long, but went well - meaning both that the weather was good and traffic didn't crush us, but also that Avery handled it well.  Our accommodations were comfortable and Avery and I got to share space for the first time in a few months.  It was nice to be right there with her and to get to play and be close all weekend.

Her schedule was in a bit of a state of upheaval, but Avery handled that very well too.  She got to see a pony, some horses - including all three of Auntie B's babies, rabbits, turkeys, and guinea hens up close.  It was a fun adventure.  But I'll admit, I'm glad to be home and climbing into my own bed tonight.

Kicking off the new year

Along with a birthday comes a visit to the doctor.  I am so grateful to report that Avery's lead levels were good for the follow up check from her 9 month appointment.  She got two shots as well, a pneumococcal and hep a vaccine.  Today she woke up a bit toasty - likely a result of the shots.  I still took her into daycare as it was a mild fever, after giving her a little bit of baby Tylenol.  Well, didn't daycare call mid-afternoon saying she was unhappy, wanted to be held, and was running a fever.  The temp I got when she got home wasn't as high as what they saw, and was lower than this morning, so I'm not sure what's up, but she did go down for a nap pretty quick.

While we were in the pediatrician's waiting room Avery decided to show off something else she has learned how to do - point!  She pointed to tweety bird, she pointed to minnie, she pointed at pooh... and so on.

Happy Birthday Avery Violet!

My little girl is 1.  How fast this past year has gone.  I look back at photos and video and marvel - she's grown and evolved so much.  She continues to amaze me every day - and even more so amazing is that I love her more each and every day.  I'm so proud.  I'm so full of joy.  I'm so in love... and it's all for this blessed baby - I guess I can't call her a baby anymore, she's officially a toddler.  Let's modify that with a "my" - MY baby.

I took Friday off to spend it with Avery for her birthday, but of course, the activities to prepare for her party today took over a good bit.  At least I can say my house is reasonably clean right now.  We did make a trip out to the grocery store and for some ice cream on Friday, so we had some special moments.

We had quite the full house today all for sweet Avery.  She didn't dive into the cake like I thought she might after having had previous exposure.  Avery continues to be happy getting passed around and the large crowd didn't bother her much. I didn't get to take too many photos, so I am hoping that they will come in from others in attendance.  It's hard to do everything and talk to everyone as I'd like at busy events.

Taking a Walk

Aunt Jackie is here! And just in time too...

I arrived to get Avery from daycare to find her trying to motor.  Her one teacher turned her around to walk to me and she most definitely took more than the 2-3 shuffles that she had up to this point here at home.  After we got back to the house, post picking up her Aunt, and she continued to demonstrate her skills.

Little Gym Graduate

Today was Avery's last class in her first session at Little Gym.  We have a week off, but we did sign up for the fall, so we'll see how she progresses over the next few months.

Today we took our family photos and the remainder of the first birthday shots.  The smash cake photos turned out decent all things considered.  Avery was still a little unhappy today, but she was rested and had her moments of happiness to capture.  One thing for sure it was pretty hot out there, so I'm glad our time only lasted an hour.

I found a baby food that had eggplant and sorghum, so we've now added those things to our list of edibles.

Let them eat cake

This past Saturday we met with a new photographer to get some shots of Avery in preparation for her birthday with a smash cake.  She was not happy at the onset of the session, it is so unlike her, I don't know what she was worried about.  I'm hoping we still got some cute photos, even if a tear is streaming.  Once we convinced her to try the icing the tears stopped and she started to enjoy.  I brought home a purply-blue baby who colored her bathwater, but fortunately it all washed off reasonably easy.

This coming weekend we return for some family pictures with the same photographer.

I also gave Avery one of her birthday presents - a set of multi-texture balls

When I said first few steps I meant walking

This kid!  On Monday after little gym her Daddy brought her home while I got my hair done.  He allowed her to discover the stairs and told me she was interested.  Curiosity got the best of me yesterday, so I allowed her to walk to the stairs and give it a go.  I was RIGHT behind her hands hovering and brushing her to grab if necessary.  But didn't the little bugger go the whole way up the flight of stairs.  My mind is blown.  Needless to say I moved the stair barrier over to the bottom of the stairs so it is ready to deploy as required in the evenings.

When I picked Avery up from school yesterday I was talking to one of the little boys, Leo, who was also leaving with his Mom.  His Mom said "this is Avery?" when I said yes she told me that Leo talks about her at home.  Oh boy!

We've been pretty busy this past week... a chiro appointment, little gym, and swimming today.  I was really hoping we'd see those first few steps this weekend, but it didn't happen.  It seems like Avery clings to the very edge of things for a while and instantly masters them, versus a few tries/fumbles.  She's getting to be quite the expert at going while holding on to my hands, and sometimes only one hand.

Now that we have the diaper rash back in check (for the time being), we've added orange to our repertoire.

Major Tumble

Friday night we had our first major tumble.  It was about 45 minutes before bedtime, she was cruising about and stepped to move between her octopus ball toy and the coffee table.  Well, the coffee table was a bit further away than she had estimated.  I watched it from part way across the living room as she went forward, smashing her nose and lower face into the side of the coffee table.

Her nose was bleeding and talk about inconsolable crying.  I am not going to lie, I was terrified.  I held her and we dabbed the bit of blood.  Debating if we needed to go to the ER, her Dad searching the internet, and I clung to her, trying to get her calmed.  About 15 minutes later as she calmed down she started to seem drowsy, but it was close to her bedtime - tell me that doesn't compound your worries, even if you know she didn't hit the upper part of her face/head.

We got her totally calmed and down to bed with just a bit of tylenol for pain, but then woke her lightly 2 hours later to make sure she still seemed herself.  I didn't get a lot of sleep last night - no surprise, right?  She woke and cried out a few times requiring consolation and holding which is SUPER abnormal for her. I suspect she rolled and bumped a tender part.

Once I felt better that there wasn't a big concern of major issues and my mind calmed a little all I could think was "her beautiful face... please Lord, protect that beautiful face".  I fully expected to find two black eyes this morning.  Thank God she looks wonderful today, maybe a slight bit of swelling across her nose and that's it.  When she woke from her nap today she had a little more snotty blood coming out.  That and a small mark on her lip that looks more like she scratched herself and that's it.  We are so lucky.

This just was a bad week for sure with her going down ill and her fall. In between I went down a bit ill, probably with whatever she had, but fortunately it wasn't coming out as vomit.  Friday evening was quite a challenge to keep up with her as she was feeling well again, but I certainly was not - and very weak.  Thank goodness I went to bed immediately after she did on Friday night and I got 10 1/2 hours of sleep to help keep me covered for my lack of sleep the night before and then after she fell.

Another new food to report as well - rhubarb!

Our first bout of vomit

Yes, that title is abrupt, but it paints the picture of what we experienced on Wednesday afternoon/night.  Avery came home slightly early from daycare after vomiting twice.  Normally when this has happened I believed it to be a case of overfeeding or just spit up.  Not this time.  The vomiting continued at home and she wasn't able to keep anything down for the rest of the night.

I think the two worst parts were seeing how upset it made her when she got sick and putting her to bed, worried that I wouldn't hear her get ill in the middle of the night (somehow) and that she could choke.

Fortunately, she went down easily and stayed down, despite not having had much to eat since before 2:30 that day (since the 2:30 bottle came back out).  She woke up the next morning with a reduced appetite, but able to eat and keep food in there.  I'm so glad that it didn't even last 24 hours, that was stressful.  I'm even more grateful that it took 11 months for us to ever experience this.  Let's hope that this remains a very infrequent visitor.

I will say this, the saddest little face in the world is the one that crawls over, lying down in front of you on the floor with its head on your leg.  Poor kiddo.

As to new foods, we are about out.  But I did give her some alphabet pasta cooked in chicken broth so she could eat on her own. Of course, this happened the day before she got ill, and she had leftover ones at school that day, so my mind even combed over that with worry.

It's kind of a big dill

Our weekend together started early so I could enjoy my birthday with Avery.  Friday we met up with her Nonna at the Phipps Conservatory.  It was quite the nice day out and Avery enjoyed seeing the butterflies, flowers, plants, and kinetic items.

Today, started with Little Gym, which Avery seems to enjoy for the most part, at least when she's had a bit of a nap before.  Then we drove back into the city for Picklesburgh!  It was a bit warmer out today and super crowded. Avery hung in there pretty well though.

Since my last report Avery has tried another grains blend, black currant, and tomatoes.  I had put off the tomatoes, thinking that some of these acidy foods were partly to blame for the diaper rash issues we were having, but I'm firmly thinking it is a teeth situation.  We've been managing to keep the rash at bay, but it does require some care.  I could swear I spotted teeth slightly pressed through on Friday while we were out, but today I see nothing obvious.

Back to Sunshine and Rainbows

Fortunately, we're back to a healthy looking bottom again, so I'm able continue shopping for those rainbows to decorate for Avery's birthday party.  Today we made it up to Build a Bear (perhaps you saw the mayhem that ensued this past week when they had a pay your age promotion) to use the coupon we got.  So for $10 Avery has her first unicorn - it will serve to help decorate for her birthday as well.  Unfortunately, despite the website saying they had both unicorns in stock they neglected to clarify that the ones they had were already stuffed.  So she didn't get to pick out a little heart for him or assist in the stuffing, hence there are no photos of the event.  This makes me a little sad, but it's okay, I know we'll have other trips there in our future, right?

Hurting from top to bottom

Poor kiddo.  This past Friday Avery work up a bit snotty and stuffy.  It wasn't enough to make me think she was actually sick, so we went about our weekend plans to go to a family reunion, where she got to see quite a few Aunts and cousins that she's only met one other time so far.

Come Monday, by the time she left daycare her rear was quite red and unhappy.  Ahhh diaper rash.  The drool has picked up a bit, so maybe it is teething, who knows.

I bought a kiddie pool to entertain her last night while we sat out back bare bummed trying to get some air to help us out.  I also picked up corn starch.

Our favorite daycare worker noted the pattern that she had a little flare up after having the grapes/plum mixture before too, so we'll put that on the backburner for a while.  Similarly in my research I also saw cause to put off pineapple, tomato, citrus, and strawberries in addition to grapes and plums.  This means that two items that were coming up soon for new tastes will be delayed.

New foods since my last report:  navy beans, beef (which she hated in the soupy like stuff but was okay with from my burger!), asparagus, and figs.

I also want to note that I started in earnest to gather supplies for Avery's first birthday.  It's only a little over a month away after all.  I am hoping the little skirt and headband I ordered arrive quickly, so if they're too big I can find something else.  Our theme is unicorns and rainbows, so I'm having fun finding the goodies to decorate and to put a little spin on our food presentation.

Hitting the Pool

I'm so glad I had won some free passes to the Goldfish Swim School's open family swims.  It is incredibly hot here, so to try and cool off a bit we took Avery to the pool for an hour yesterday.  She kept a stern face for a brief period, but lightened up and had some fun.  It was nice to get to play with her and hold her close while we spun and bounced and splashed.  She did some kicking and we practiced a few dips into the water.

We also had an epic fail on the second baby gate I bought for the top of the stairs.  The first one we decided not to use after finding so much saying to use hardware gates for the top of the stairs.  It makes sense, but eesh, I don't want those holes.  I've conceded though - for her.  So the second was a hardware gate that was a bit taller.  It came highly recommended by friends and I thought it would be nice to have an easier reach to open/close the gate as we come and go.  Yeah, it's too tall.  So now I have to ship it back - fortunately, they do free returns, hopefully there isn't a restocking fee that I missed reading about.  I've now ordered another gate - hopefully it will arrive soon as I've been stressing for a couple of weeks now about not having a gate up at the top of the stairs.

First Trip to the Gym

Earlier this week I signed up for a trial class at the Little Gym.  So off we headed today for Avery's first workout.  There was bubbles, balls, parachutes, rings, mats, rolling, and songs.  It took her a little while to try to explore on her own, but eventually she headed through one of the foam tunnels.

I did sign us up to finish out this 'semester'.  We'll see how it goes.  The way pricing works you get the lot in the class you sign up for (Saturday morning) and a free other class if they have availability (you have to text that day).  Well, the only other class that works for working parents is Monday at 5:15.  I was assured that there is typically room in that class, so we'll see how this goes.

More Moving and Waving

We've been working on waving, enough that this morning when I asked her to she waved goodbye to Safyre and hello to her friends at daycare.  Of course a few seconds later she waved goodbye to me - I felt like I was having music played to get me off of the stage.

Last night she also was happy to walk holding my hands and did a great job.  We made it from the kitchen down the hall and on another trip from the kitchen to the computer room.  I don't think it will be long before she's headed off on her own.

Our final movement to report on is dancing.  I've been able to get her to bounce a little when I sing to her or when I play music that moves her.  Last night, in an effort to encourage her I made a fool of my self for her - dancing while she stood in the exersaucer playing her drums.

I'm also happy to report that cranberries were also a big success.  That's my girl!

Who gave my child sugar and caffeine?

I don't know what on earth was going on, but Avery was NOT going to sleep last night.  We headed up a little late to get her bathed etc due to circumstances, but not so much so that she should have struggled.  However, she just sat there - eyes wide - for over a half an hour (I'm usually putting her in her crib in 3-5 minutes of sitting down to rock with her).  I tried putting her down and was called back shortly thereafter.  This went on for a while.  I even brought her to my bed and when she rolled to her belly (as she often does when she falls asleep) I tried taking her back again.  At this point she stood right up but was quiet.

I watched and waited... and then her dad went in.  He said she was standing there, leaning on the crib wrap, almost falling asleep.  It was probably still another half an hour or more until she fell asleep for him.  I've never seen her like this.  Her legs tend to kick a little when she's tired and fighting it a bit, but she was just wiggling and moving.  I worried maybe her stomach was upset or whatever, but she made no indications of not feeling great.

She napped for two and a half hours across noon, but didn't take a second nap - so by the time it was all said and done the girl was running on her 9th hour awake, so she had to have been over tired at that point.  It's interesting that they say that around the 10 month mark you might see some changes in sleeping and eating behaviors - I just never expected to be 10 month ON the mark.

Surprisingly she woke up right on time this morning and seemed happy enough.  I guess we'll see how she was at daycare.  I suspect she'll be grumpy simply because of the food I sent in - which when I gave it to her yesterday she was shaking her head no and waving goodbye at me.  Admittedly it did smell like chicken soup and looked like congealed chicken soup.  This mix has some cauliflower in it, which is what we're currently working on.  She also has now had papaya (with cardamom) and grapes along with this cauliflower.

Longer naps and other changes

This past weekend Avery took significantly longer mid-day naps.  I wish I had known she was going to stay down for 2 hours, I would have also napped!  They say around this age things evolve to consolidate naps.  Of course, with the activity at daycare I suspect she'll remain a short napper there, and ready to take another good one after getting home.

We've also noted an uptick in the need to use aquaphor or rash cream.  I don't know if it's the warmer weather or an increase in the number of daily poos (and thus more wipes) getting her.  This morning she struggled a little on her poo, even started to cry a bit at the end, and what she produced definitely reflected that it would have been more difficult than her normal movements.  On one hand I think we might have cause to pull out the prune food tonight, on the other hand I'll also note that she's been pooping about 5-6 times a day, so I'd hate to encourage more.

Bathroom Safety

I picked up our first toilet seat lock from resale - it was a style I had looked at on Amazon, but couldn't decide.  I figured for $2.50 (instead of $7) it was worth giving one a try.  We decided to put it in downstairs in the half bath, but obviously have plans to procure for the other bathrooms too - once we know if this is a design we want to stick with.

Now that it is in place I hope one of my next posts isn't about me wetting myself because I failed to get into the lock fast enough after returning home.  It's hard to use public facilities w/ the little one in tow - and sometimes you get home REALLY needing to go!

No more cuddles

Now that Avery is standing and crawling the last thing she wants to do is sit on my lap, that includes in the morning after her bottle.  That also means I am not getting the cuddle time I want and I miss it already.  Fortunately, she does still chill with me a bit when she's going down for a nap or the night.  I know the time will come when she's very cuddly, but I'm not rushing it.

Since my last comment on food we've added cheddar cheese, blackberry, kale, black bean, and a big one - peanut buttter!  I was nervous and eager to get PB out of the way.  I definitely didn't want the kid who was allergic.

Avery at the Aviary

I took the day off today, as did Avery and we had some girl time with Nonna.  Our destination was the National Aviary in Pittsburgh.  It was nice and I think Avery enjoyed seeing some of the critters there.  I love the penguin area and of course the flamingos (I don't know why I love them so) and the bats.

Not who I used to be

Avery has been a different little girl for a few days.  She's still probably more pleasant than most babies, but we've seen/heard our share of tears lately (for no apparent reason).  Today she'd cry every time she was back w/ her Dad and I tried to get things done, but would settle for me (as I carried her about).

Friday daycare called and sent her home before noon as she threw up.  I worry it was another overfeed situation. I sent her the same amount of milk as I had other days, but I also sent yogurt (to replace her oatmeal) so that morning bottle didn't have 1 1/2-2 ounces poured off.  If the kept pushing it on her, she'd over drink and pop.  She did appear to have a _slightly_ elevated temp that afternoon, but it dropped down quickly.  She didn't get sick again all weekend though - so...?  But like I said, she's been a bit moodier, so maybe it's teeth.  That could cause lots of extra mucus too, which could cause the throwing up as well.

Her cribwraps arrived and I'm very pleased.  They are a higher quality/finished product than I expected.  They're very soft, the perfect color, and waterproofed on the back side.

Tonight I got her down a little early, despite a nice long nap earlier in the day and a shorter second one that was a bit late and not waking until 8am.  It does seem like she might be willing/able to shift to an earlier bed time without waking too early.  I was up pretty much all night last night due to a friend visiting, so I really should be in bed myself.

Last related item of the weekend:  on Saturday I got a bill from the hospital (actually care providers there) stating I still owe several hundred dollars from Avery's birth.  She's almost 10 months old.  Are you kidding?  Of course, I see nothing correlating those numbers w/ my healthcare (as having been paid - for that matter never billed, but they claim to have gotten money from my plan).  Regardless, I was maxed out last year, so good luck with that.  But it's annoying that I have some calls to waste my time on tomorrow.

Crabby Climber

Last night I peeled Avery's onesie off, put her arms into her sleeper, and then set her in her crib for a minute so I could get spray on the would-be onesie stains.  (Side note - her proficiency at making a mess while eating has also on point lately.)  I was gone, what, 40 seconds?  I returned to Avery standing, clutching to the railings, and bouncing up and down.  She then reached up and grabbed the mobile and started tugging.  I did take the mobile down and put it in the closet immediately.  She then tried to chomp on the railings while I videotaped the moment - so after she was tucked in for the night I ordered cribwraps to protect both the crib and her teeth.

Last night she was in a bit of a mood.  It may be teething given how much she wanted to chomp on the crib and the plastic bumpers on the corners of the coffee table.  We haven't found a normal teether yet that she has any interest in - they all get tossed to the side.  She was just fussy and discontent for our evening time together.

This morning she was once again standing at attention by the time I got back upstairs with her bottle in hand.  So this is definitely a thing we do now!

Sad Things

I find myself sitting here thinking about how big Avery is getting, once again.  On one hand it will be nice to get the swing and the exersaucer out of the living room, freeing up a good bit of floor space (only to add other toys I'm sure); but on the other hand, I don't want to move these things - I want her to stay in them forever and I'm just not ready.

The swing has a max weight limit of 25lbs.  Since she's a bit under 21lbs we are nearing that limit.  It isn't like she uses it often anymore, maybe once a week - but when she naps there she looks so peaceful and happy.

The exersaucer is now latched into the tallest position.  She doesn't care so much to play in there as she does to get to move around, now that she's able, and who can blame her?  It does still get more regular use as it buys me a minute to step away from her to use the restroom or to get something prepared for dinner without worrying.

I had these pangs of sadness when we parted ways with her By-my-side Sleeper as well.  I know her childhood will be a series of these feelings - from all of these milestones to watching her climb on a school bus and all too soon graduate; each step towards independence feels like a moment lost to time.

Crawling Pro

It is safe to say that Avery is now a pro at crawling.  She was headed into the computer room earlier tonight and towards the kitchen and hall.  Go go go.  Then up up up as she pulls up constantly to standing.  I guess the one good thing is that we'll soon be done with a few larger items that are hogging up space in the living room (the swing and the exersaucer), but I'm not ready as it's just another sign that she's getting so big!  In the mean time, I snapped the exersaucer up to the last/tallest setting.

We are once again snotty all of a sudden.  Teeth?  Is that you?

Since my last report, Avery has added spinach, pineapple, and beets to her list.  Beets were way too fun, talk about Halloween in June - from the first bite she looked like a little vampire and quickly looked like a freshly fed zombie.

I also discovered another baby-proofing item that I didn't know existed - power strip safety covers that.  I ordered a couple of those and I plan on lifting some of the wires that run in front of my fireplace (since it isn't an option to get conduit run to hide them more eloquently at this time).  I also ordered some little stoppers that prevent the doors from closing onto little fingers.

Forward and up!

Last night Avery finally crawled forward in my presence, while we were visiting at Jay and Jenn's.  It was only a little bit forward and then she stopped, but her form was perfect - knees bent fully and looking very coordinated.  This morning she was sitting up in her crib when I went in to get her, which while I've seen her sit up periodically, this is the first time I've found her as such in the morning.

Today she is making some attempts that sound like they're towards Dada and more towards Puppy (she's tried a little in that direction recently too).

I've not been good keeping track of the food she's tried, so here is a bit of a catch-up:  chickpeas, chicken, broccoli, kiwi, lentil, apricot, zucchini, raspberry, tumeric, and eggs (a big milestone in my mind since as this allergy would be miserable).

Taking the Plunge

Today Avery had her very first swimming lesson!  I would love to see her get into swimming some day, but I know I can't push for things.  Regardless, today was a big day to me.  Avery didn't crack a smile the whole time, but it wasn't a lesson full of tears either - other than when the instructor took her for a split second.

During her lesson she did a bit of kicking and patting her hand on the water, which she does in the tub too, but it definitely made me feel like she was comfortable enough with the water.  We were also able to take her under several times for a brief second.  I couldn't be more proud.  Of course, you can see my pride in every photo taken of her and I, as I tend to have this goofy smile on my face when I'm looking at her.

Heavy Metal Baby

Avery was 9 months old yesterday!  Unfortunately for her, other than a few photos with a 9 month sticker the biggest event of the day was heading for her 9 month well visit.  Fortunately she only needed one shot on this trip, but she also had to have her sweet little toe stuck for blood.

Even sitting her down on the table in the examination room just to get her down to her diaper she knew something was up (I swear she remembers it already) and she started crying.  When I picked her up she nestled into my chest hiding.

All is well with her, except the blood test says that her lead levels are slightly high.  You can imagine I'm surprised and my mind is everywhere trying to figure out what on earth could be the cause, such that I can eliminate it.  The house is newer, so it isn't lead pipes - at least not IN my house, but at the same time, I make all of her formula from bottled water, not tap.  I was ready to take her pacifier clips away, as she insists upon putting the metal end in her mouth if she can get to it, but all of those clearly state on their listings that they are lead free.  I'm thinking through everything we have for her.

The more you look into it, the scarier it becomes -- baby food testing positive for lead and arsenic, toys.  Does Amazon sell a baby bubble?  Oh wait, that could be contaminated too.

I did mention it to daycare, just in case another parent reports something similar - and they said they'll reassess toys again too.  Maybe it was from while we were on vacation?  The only thing I know for sure is waiting until her 12 month appointment to test again seems like a very long time.

She weighed in at 20# 5 1/2oz, measured 26 1/2" tall, and had a 18" noggin.  She is low in the percentile for height (no surprise if that measurement is right as she only grew a half an inch) but higher on the weight.

First Communion

I almost forgot to mention that this past Sunday Avery took her first communion at church.  It isn't the big to do that it is in the Catholic church by any means - and obviously, she's not old enough to understand fully what it is.

Last month Pastor was ready to offer her a piece but I passed as she hadn't tried much in the way of bread to that point, but I noted that we'd make it a goal to be ready when communion came around again (we do it periodically, not every week, in the Methodist church).  This time we were ready and Avery had her piece of bread, sans grape juice.

Waving like the Queen

I kind of figured she'd pick up waving soon, after all, on the cruise EVERYONE was waving at Avery.  Sure enough, when I walked in to pick her up yesterday she turned (in a walker) looked up, grinned, and waved.  She often has her little hands moving, moving, moving when she gets excited.  When she's doing this her fingers all go like she's plotting some evil plan.  Instead this was nearly like the queen waving to me - fingers straight and the whole hand moving.  I'm told she was practicing it all day.  I'm trying to catch it on video.

She has continued saying Mama, and periodically throwing in what I believe is Baby after.

Up, Up, but not Away Just Yet

Today Avery started using me like a ladder:  putting her hands on my leg to push her butt up off of the floor and using my stomach or arm to stand the rest of the way up.  Every day I believe more and more that she will walk before she crawls forward.

But it isn't a Holiday

It seems like the only time we get to visit with most of the family is at holidays (or funerals).  Friday I tried to break that by texting one of Avery's Great Aunts to see if their house was free and agreeable to company and we stopped in for a visit amidst other running up 'in their area'.

So Much Love from Such a Little Girl

Friday I picked Avery up from daycare and they helped her out, preparing a sweet purple and yellow pansy plant in a purple pot. Apparently she helped pick which one for me by reaching for this one in specific.  It has a lovely tag thanking me for always loving her - it even had a little orange autumn looking puffy leaf on the tag!  This girl knows me well.

Today to make my first Mother's day weekend even more special, Avery started saying Mama.  She said it this morning in the exersaucer while I was in the kitchen, but I dismissed it.  I had her with me while at an event a member of my church was holding and a few ladies there absolutely confirmed that they were hearing Mama loud and clear and that they believed she knew what she was saying.  Back at home, eating her lunch I caught it on video - not only clearly saying Mama, but what also seems like Baby... Mama Baby (Mummy's baby is something I often tell her she is).  I am loved and my heart is so full.

Our First Thank You for Allowing me to be your Mama Day

I never thought there would be a day when someone wished me "Happy Mother's Day"  either out of not realizing I didn't have children or because they knew how much I loved my dogs and addressed them as my babies, but here we are.  This weekend I celebrate my first Mother's Day with my baby in my arms (I guess in my mind I allowed myself to celebrate a little last year too, but this year it's so very real).

I joked that Avery took me for dinner (Chic-Fila) and shopping last night.  I ended up buying myself a couple of pairs of shorts and a beautiful rose gold and diamond ring on which I splurged as a memory of my first Mother's day.  While we were at Chic-Fila I went about as I normally do, eating and talking to her, holding her on my lap when I am not working on eating the sandwich, tickling her, giving her kisses, and allowing her to explore things (like the crumpled up bag).  In general - enjoying her and trying to ensure that she isn't disrupting anyone else around us.

As the table across from us left a woman stopped and said how much she enjoyed watching our interactions (noting all of the kisses) and stating "she is truly a loved baby".  My heart is touched.  I love this little girl so very much and I'm glad that you can see that from a mile away.  I know I won't get everything right, heck I'll be lucky to get half of it right, but last night I felt like a good Mom and I appreciated hearing it.

Baby's First Vacation

Our family has returned from Avery's first vacation.  Her first cruise couldn't have been on a better ship as we took Grandeur, a gal we love and have shared with so very many people that are important to me (her Dad of course, my Mom, my Aunt, my Sister, my Niece, Beff, Rex, Slips, Tonya, and this is where we met and resailed w/ the Chics too!)

We knew this would be a slower paced trip.  For example, we didn't even try to hit the evening shows and didn't plan to leave the ship in Miami or Port Canaveral.  I had looked forward to putting her toes in the sand and water in Cococay, but unfortunately that call was cancelled as it was unsafe tendering.  Instead we had an extra day in Nassau, so we booked an excursion on the ferry to Blue Lagoon.  The water was a bit chilly, so I am hoping that is why she was crying about the water, but I'm puzzle by her tears when the toes hit the sand (no, the sand was not hot - it was overcast and a bit rainy).

The drive was quite long - an extra hour to Baltimore from here than it was at my previous place.  Avery handled it remarkably well, a bit fussy on the way home only for the last half an hour or so.

Regardless, it was a lovely time.  Avery was adored by all onboard and was often greeted by name as the trip progressed.  It blows my mind how many people tell me how beautiful and sweet she is.  But she is very pleasant and has a smile for everyone - that surely helps.  She was very well behaved the whole time and not unhappy other than when we screwed up her schedule, resulting in her being beyond over tired.  The best part about the past week and a half was being with her constantly for 11 days.  I am really not looking forward to returning her to daycare.

Many of the 9 month summer outfits we took along are very much so her current size.  I weighed her today and she is at 19# 2oz by our scale.  The 12 month clothes are slowly working their way into the drawers.  How can they look so big but be where she's very nearly at?!

8 months, 2/3 of a year!

Avery is 8 months old today.  Isn't that crazy?  She's wearing mostly 9 month clothes, but as with all women's clothes the sizing is all over the place, so she still has a few 6 month items that fit, some 9 month items that already seem too small, and some 12 month items that are already in rotation.  Nothing like starting the kid off with a complex immediately.

I realized too that some of the breast milk I had pumped and stored away in the freezer is nearing the 6 month mark, so I'm trying to pull some to use with feedings.  She is a little stuffy again (maybe teeth?) but I'm hoping the breast milk with work some wonders and help her out - while giving her a little immune boost.

Food wise we've now also tried chicken and broccoli.  I've also given Avery a little bit of bread as we have a goal that she can participate in communion at church.  Speaking of - I've been trying to say a prayer with her every night.  It's hard, but I was never "taught" how to pray, other than being taught the Our Father and Hail Mary when I was young.  I want her to be able to have a relationship, a dialog, a conversation, and a friend in our Father.  My prayers are that He guides me on how to teach her.  I know we need to start saying prayers at meal time too.  I'm ashamed to say that's a hard habit to get into.

Sloppy Kisses

I looked back through posts and don't see where I commented on this before, but I could swear I did.  Sorry if this is a repeat, but it is cute enough to warrant seeing it again.  Avery is definitely giving kisses.  At first it seemed like a coincidence, but now she seems to get it and even tries to make a little noise sometimes (you know that muahhh), but more often than not I make the kissy noise for her.  Either way, there is nothing better than getting a kiss back.

Since every parent wants to think their kid is advanced, I do look to see when wee ones typically do certain things.  Some of the sites say this happens around a year.  Sure she isn't crawling forward on her own yet, but if she's "advanced" in being affectionate, that's a win.

Exotic Tastes and a Little Bit of Exotic Weather

Rice and peppers are now in the books - yes, peppers. One mix was pear, sweet potato,and pepper - and it was quite tasty!  I also cheated a little and gave her the smallest taste of grape jelly one morning and, at her Dad's prompting due to his love of pickles, allowed her to taste my dill pickle.  She made quite the sour face but kept opening up wanting more.

At last we climbed into the 70s yesterday and the 80s today.  Yesterday we got a walk in and today we went out and walked around the outlet stores briefly.  I had the windows open today, which means the house warmed up a bit.  The upstairs is warm enough that I put Avery to bed without a sleep sack or socks tonight.  She was so confused that her little feets were bare.  (Don't worry, I'll make sure before I go to bed that it hasn't cooled down too much for those bare feet.)  If only the weather would stay nice I think she'd finally play with her feet like most little ones do at some point.

Threes

This weekend Avery put on her first size 3 diaper.  We're still trying to work through the open pack of size 2s, but I knew a potty was on the horizon and I wanted the extra stopping power. My timing was sage.  We also moved her car seat straps up into the third slot.  She's getting so big!

While we don't really need more clothes I couldn't resist going to the consignment sale at the Iceoplex on Saturday.  I did pick up a few cute things, but I also almost started crying there.  You see, Avery has already outgrown the entire first row of clothing - all of those teeny tiny cute things, too small, we're over in the next aisle and it made me sad how quickly it is all going.

That's how we roll

This week we added pumpkin and turkey - our first meat!  This kid is officially ready for Thanksgiving, but I guess we have plenty of time for that.

Yesterday I took Avery to the chiro after mentioning to her at my appointment the day before that she only seems to want to roll from her back to stomach in one direction (over her left arm) and that she wasn't really pulling her legs up in attempts to crawl yet.  She was adjusted in the lower back/sacrum area and she popped a little - enough that it scared Avery (I hope not hurt her) and she gave a hard cry, even after I held her close for a little while.  But I'm happy to report that when I picked her up at daycare she showed me she can roll over that right arm - and she did it a few more times at home, immediately followed by pulling those knees up under her a little.  She is still moving only backwards when on her stomach, but I do believe that this correction was good for her.

After the chiro we went to the doctor's office for yet another round of shots.  Thank goodness the little one is finally getting a month off - and we don't need to return until her 9 month checkup.

Happy Easter!

Avery and I had a very active Easter weekend.  Friday night we went to the Good Friday service at our sister church.  She was a very good girl with only a few minor noises.  Saturday evening we went to our church for the egg hunt and the movie Risen.  She was a little fussy after playing for a little while during the movie, but then quickly settled and fell asleep on me, so I could watch the whole thing.

Sunday we were on the road visiting with family for Easter and she was once again a delight, handling all of the attention and being passed around super well.  She fought going to sleep as to not miss anything, but once again I got to have her fall asleep in my arms.  She's so darn cute.

Paddy Cake Giving the Baker a High Five

Our latest food list now includes strawberries and spinach!  I have also tried to evolve Avery's love of clapping into a high 5, or at least paddy-cake.  Her aim is pretty true with that left hand.  We also had a nice session of call and response last night where I repeated after her and we kept going back and forth with "Aaah".

Golf clap

Avery has mastered the perfect golf clap last weekend.  My understanding is that she took every opportunity to demonstrate it this week at daycare.

Something not about her

So this post isn't all about me I'll note that we've added cherries and corn to our food repertoire!

It's time I post something about me and how my body is doing post-baby.  The hair falling out has slowed down, thank goodness.  I'll be getting my hair cut and colored tomorrow in the hopes that I'll feel more human.  All I've been doing is pulling my hair back all the time which leaves me feeling like a frumpy mess.  I guess the fact that I still need to get on top of loosing more weight doesn't help there either.  When the weather gets consistent it will be so much easier to at least get some walks in, since Avery does seem to enjoy a post daycare stroll.

I guess the biggest thing about how I'm physically doing since baby is probably the biggest TMI.  You've been warned to click away now, should you choose.  My period first returned in January and waited until early March to come back, but then it reappeared a few days ago (that's two in March).  So it looks like I'm going to be wacky again.  I'm starting to think one ovary mis-fires.  I wonder if I tracked every other month if that has a more distinct pattern.

Regardless, the other change of note here is the lack of coverage when trying to use products to deal with said period.  Let's be blunt - things are different down there.  As a result, I'm having some leaking around tampons and such.  I know it will get better, but no one talks about it.  The other factor is - today I can't always drop everything and run into the bathroom like I could in the days before I'm often feeding/holding/rocking/burping/entertaining a baby.

Just the two of us

What a great weekend.  Avery and I went to the kids fest that was going on at a local mall on Saturday.  The event itself was little more than an overcrowded mess, but we did leave there w/ another single pass for the swim school and both a $10 gift certificate and a pre-sale pass for the next big consignor event.  Sunday after church we headed north to the mall to do a little wandering about.  I really feel like we got to hang out and enjoy each other this weekend.

She has begun bouncing at every chance she gets, and just when you don't think it's possible - yes, I think she got even cuter.  She is getting so big.

Since last report Avery also has tried apricots (as part of a blended food).

Cute Personality

This girl.  I wanted to document some of the cuteness before I forget the time frame in which it all happened, so here you go...  I need to get video of these, but it's hard to do without an extra hand and some way to keep her from spotting the phone/camera.

For a while now, Avery gets excited when she notices you have a drink.  She makes a big O with her mouth, clenches her hands, and vibrates.  That's in addition to when she spots her bottle and starts reaching for it excitedly.

Last night while sitting on my knee she also started bouncing trying to get me to bounce her more.  It was only two or three days ago that she realized the Exersaucer allows her to bounce too and she loves it.

Last night when I turned on her show before bed (we've been watching and loving Word Party), she started to turn to look at the TV right at the start of the intro music.

Since my last post, I also need to report that we've tried pears.

Also, while we put her down for the night on her back she is on her belly every morning.  The crib was dropped down lower too just in case the first time she decided to pull herself up to standing was in the crib.

Finally, I want to note that her Easter Basket arrived and is absolutely beautiful.  I went with the handwoven oval pink/purple/white one from AmishBaskets.com.  I had them do a purple liner and a brass name plate that reads "1 Corinthians 13:13 God bless Avery Violet".

Bunny Teeth

This past weekend was hopping.  Sorry, I couldn't resist the joke.  Saturday we noticed not one, but two teeth broke through on the bottom!  If they were on top Avery would have looked just like the Easter Bunny, whom she got to visit on Sunday at our consignment store.

Our consignment place does their own Easter Bunny and a visit is free with any purchase.  This was tremendously time and stress saving over going up to the mall in Upper St Clair.  You also can take your one photos, so I got several of her staring curiously up at the big rabbit.  You'd think they'd get along well what with her favorite food being carrots and all.

My purchase was of another stroller (rather than an article of clothing).  Yes, why do we need three right?  Well the umbrella stroller (IMHO) is more for a toddler and will not provide enough sun coverage on vacation whereas the big SUV stroller is just that - huge and space consuming.  I love the SUV one for walks in the neighborhood but getting out and about is a challenge with it, so I knew taking it on vacation would also be painful, never mind how much space it would hog up in our room.  This stroller also will allow her carseat to lock in, so that was a bonus as well.

This weekend we also introduced Avery to blueberries using the ones we froze up in little ice cubes.  It was convenient to pop one out, and one day to also pop out a banana cube to mix them together.  She seemed to enjoy the blueberries and I think her clothing made it through relatively unscathed.

She remembers.

Last night Avery returned to the doctor, this time for her 6 month visit and two more shots.  She looked at the doctor a bit skeptical during her exam.  While we waited for the nurse to return we giggled and played peek-a-boo.  All of those giggles came abruptly to an end when the shots came.  This time there was screaming.  I picked her up and she would not take her eyes off of the nurse.  I'm pretty sure she was burning this lady's face into her brain.  She also cried most of the ride home and was a bit cranky this morning.  Poor girl.

Yesterday we weighed in at 16lbs 15oz, putting her I believe they said at the 75th percentile for weight; 26" I believe was 50th percentile, and a big ol noggin at the 90th percentile.

The only other food addition since my last post was whole wheat (cereal) as to give us a little more mixing variety.  Tonight we're ready to add something else to the list - what will it be?  I'm thinking maybe mango or pears, although I'd like to get the blueberries sampled as well.

More veggies

Last night we took on butternut squash and it also went very well.  The girl just loves her veggies, which is a wonderful thing.  It was nice to get to sit at home with her last night after two evenings on the move.

I'm also slowly starting to get a bit of a pre-bed routine started with her.  Often it includes watching an episode of the show I found that holds her attention (and I also enjoy) - Word Party.  We also take a minute to read a book and then to read a page from her prayer book before I rock her for a few minutes and put her down.

I've also realized that when she fusses a bit around 5 if I go and put a paci back in her mouth it buys more time than if I allow her to just fall back asleep on her own.  But even if I am too lazy to get up and re-deploy the paci the good news is she is pretty good about putting herself back to sleep after a few seconds of noise.

Consonant Sounds and the 6 Month Mark

Since my last post Avery has added green beans, and a necessary trial of prunes, to her diet.  I can say that the prunes work very well.  She was making some pretty good effort to get the nuggets out prior.  They weren't hard, but they remained balled up in her tiny crack.  After the prunes however a little bit of effort managed to get it all out... and up her back and on the (new) couch and on Daddy's hoodie.  This happened after her bath, so bonus.

This past Thursday, February 22nd marked 26 weeks for Avery, but Saturday was the 6 month mark if you go by the date on the calendar.  Either way, my baby is a half a year old already!  She's already knocking out the 6 month milestones as I've heard b-, d-, and p- sounds from her.  We joked that one comment from her was "I pooped".  Of course with the d- sound coming already I'm trying to prepare myself that "Mom" won't be the first word, but who knows - I think I'm still in the running.

Barley, Carrots, and tears - oh my

Since I last checked in we tried barley.  This way I can send the container of oatmeal into daycare with her (tomorrow - early for her 6 month birthday - so she can start having sit down meals 2x a day) and still have something bland and grain here.  I guess at some point we need to also do rice, maybe one of the mixed grain containers would work.

Last night we also tried carrots and from her first bite the girl looked like she was in love.  Quite convenient since I got several jars of carrots for free!  It started with a smile and she sat there eager, like a little bird with her mouth open and I couldn't get the carrots in fast enough.  Despite having eaten a bit of oatmeal prior to the carrots she finished the whole small jar!

Have I mentioned what an awesome and patient little girl I have?  Well even that has its limits.  The weather was so nice yesterday and I was off for a holiday, so we headed out and shopped our little hearts out.  She napped a little, but not like she normally would at home (not that those naps are long by any stretch).  Well she ended up pretty wiped out.  After her carrots and a bath she went down hard for a nap.  When she woke up an hour later screaming... like teenager meltdown screaming at top of her lungs w/ her little eyes clenched shut, face red and tears streaming.  It took me a while to get her calmed back down (she wiped back out).

So this morning she woke up with her eyes crusted shut.  After some time with a warm wash cloth she was able to open them but she still looked a little glassy and puffy.  I'm hoping it was from the crying jag (we've all been there the morning after a mega cry, right?) and not an allergy or something else.  I did check in with the doctor's office.  I also read a lot online.  Yes, with the few drops of breastmilk I am still able to produce I do plan on putting a few drops in her eyes.

Just Peachy

Next up... peaches.  Still was still making little sour faces while she ate and these were not tart!  In order to not waste the rest of the container, since we were eating straight from it and you cannot store them away after doing so, we made a peach smoothie for her with her formula to get the rest down.  I'm pretty sure she won't let me trick her for too long, this girl is too smart.

Baby's First Bank Account

It's official, Avery finally has her own first savings account opened.  I admit I'm behind on this, I was thinking about what to do before she was born.  The 529 information felt overwhelming and left me uncertain.  With the gifts once again showered upon her for her Baptism, it was finally time, as I needed somewhere separate and distinct to put that money.

I also need to start back filling as I had intended to put something away for her each paycheck.  I guess it's good this is open now rather than later as I'm sure she would charge me interest.

Avery's Baptism and Sleeping in the Crib

On Sunday, February 11th we celebrated Avery's Baptism.  The weather warmed up enough that despite some rain there was safe travels and we were blessed with several people coming in from afar.  As with any of these events I wish there was more time to sit and get to talk to every single person, but it was still good to get to see everyone.

For her own record I want to note that her Nonna and Nonni were here along with her Great Aunt Karla, Great Aunt Lori, Great Aunt Dawn and Great Uncle Greg with cousins Morgan and Maddie, Great Aunt Donna with cousins Kimberly, Isabella, and Levi, Brian and Angela L, Jay and Jen L, Lori L, Brian, Amy, Erin, and Fae M, and of course Aunt Jackie, her Daddy, and I.  Great Aunt Diane, Nichole, and Melissa were also at the church but couldn't come to the house.  It was a full one!

I'm so grateful to have had my sister here to help, there is no way I could have pulled all of that off here at the house without her.  She made some amazing grub, helped me get the house ready, and did most of the cleaning up after while guests still lingered.

Avery is such a happy girl and she doesn't mind getting passed around and loved on by everyone.  She definitely made her rounds.  You'd think she would have been extra tired as a result, but dang if she wasn't up a half an hour before the alarm this morning and flipped over in her crib.

Yep, I said it - in her crib.  I put her in there to sleep on Friday night and we survived it, so that was night number three.  The first night I flipped on the monitor quite a few times and saw how she shifted.  I'm glad I looked at 3am that night and saw her scooted down, because by 5am she wasn't in the view of the video camera and I found her rotated 180 degrees and half way across the bed.  Saturday morning after she woke I brought her back to my room and we cuddled for a while.  I'll miss being able to just reach over and love on my wee one, but here she is already working on her independence and self-confidence.

Visiting with Aunt Jackie

Kiddo returned to the doctor last night for a few more shots (it seems like there is an endless list of them).  Since we were already there I did ask them to have the doctor come in to peek in her ears and listen to the rattly breaths.  All seemed fine to the doctor.

Today Avery stayed home from daycare to hang out with Aunt Jackie, as she will a few days during her visit.  This will give us more opportunities for her to nap in her crib and to get her eating off of a spoon.  This week we have an avocado ready to mash up for her.  Late last week she got through a small container of apples.

I want to cry when I'm tired too.

I feel like we're shifting to the patterns prescribed for a 6 month old already.  I know, every baby is different and there isn't a clock that they look at and say "oh, today is my 6 month birthday, I need to start behaving like _this_ now".  I'm just saying I'm glad I read ahead a little.

The past few days after daycare Avery has been rather unhappy and not her normal talkative and pleasant self.  She doesn't want to eat oatmeal or veggies, just suck down some bottle and cry.  She's rubbing her eyes, so I know she's tired, but I do believe we're hitting over-tired.  From there she's ready to go down by 8pm (6 months olds need an average of 11 hours of straight sleep a night hmm).

Her naps at daycare have shortened, so I've asked them to try whatever they can to get her to stay down a little longer during the day.  So even if she still wants to wipe out early, maybe it can be done without a half an hour of inconsolable screaming.

I do guess too this pushes me harder towards getting her acclimated to her own crib.  I won't leave her in the by my side sleeper while I'm downstairs for more than a few minutes and it cannot be as restful for her to sleep in the pack n play and then get relocated later in the evening.  Ok, there, I acknowledged it - but I am probably going to be slow to make this transition as I don't want to.  It might be good to try while my sister is here and we have an enthusiastic about getting up in the middle of the night to help with baby person available.

My little sweet pea

I ended up starting off with peas.  All went pretty well (except the fact that I think all bibs should be dark colors as to not make it an instant stain-fest).  After a few bites she made a bit of a face, perhaps too much of one flavor.  It did take a couple of feedings to get through the one small jar and I noted that she does like to have a drink after a couple of bites.  I also am clearly seeing how, if she is not hungry enough or too hungry, trying to sit down with food and a spoon is not a good option.

But since my last post, we have also opened a jar of sweet potatoes.  She seemed to be happy enough with them, but no distinctly different reaction than from the peas.  It is amazing how fast they learn to open up when the spoon is presented.  She continues to amaze me.

I've picked up a few other things for her to get a taste of in the near term, but I also have plans to make some of our own goodies and freeze them using ice cube trays, as I am not seeing the full spectrum of options based upon what everything says she should be able to try at this point.

Size wise we are one small growth spurt away from all of the 3mo and 3-6mo items going to the finished pile.  I have pulled out a couple of 6mo items.  It seems like she needs the length but not the girth, which is surprising since she was weighing and measuring at the 50th % for both height and weight at our last doctor visit.  As for me, I need to start watching what I'm eating as I saw the scale tick back up a bit.  I'm guessing this is partly due to the fact that we only have her on the breast twice a day to get what she can.

You're how old?

...and just like that, I have a 5 month old.  I think we will celebrate today by trying out something beyond oatmeal, the question is peas or sweet potato?

She wiped out on me last night at 9 while I tried to burp her, so I rolled with it.  I fully expected to be up in the middle of the night to feed her.  Instead the dogs had me up at midnight and 4am.  Avery, in the meantime, slept right through.

Big girl, big chair

The replacement straps I ordered for the high chair came and I didn't think they were going to work at first but after A LOT of fighting I managed to get them through.  Moving them to the taller option will be fun, but that is a ways off.  With the straps in, the whole seat scrubbed down, and the cover laundered, Avery was able to sit in her high chair for the first time last night while we ate our dinner.  I didn't feed her in the chair, but she did get to check it out and she seemed to really enjoy sitting there with us.  She still looks so tiny in the big chair, but I know it won't be long before she can reach every inch of the top and her legs will no longer dangle above the highest footrest setting.  5 months is only a few days away, and I am not ready for it!

I could do without for another year

I am reminded of the scene in Sixteen Candles where Sam's sister is about to be married and the mother says something to the effect of "I don't want to tell the whole church she has her period!"  Well guess what "church".  I had some pain a little while back, I guess that was ovulation, because it's definitely back.  I had some spotting once before too, but not something I'd call a real period.

This coincides with another drop in production - I'm getting so very little milk that I do think it's time to all but stop.  I will try to nurse her in the morning when we get up and maybe pump once during the day for now to see how long that lasts.

I'm sad about it, I've been sad that I haven't been able to make that the primary method for a while now.  There is this huge feeling of not being able to go back too.  I'm trying to focus on how much of a time savings it will be.  If we're up early in the morning it will be hanging out with Avery not feeding feeding feeding.  I won't need to be topless and freezing at multiple points during the day.

A slightly less free item

When I closed on this house I was still aglow with the newness of being pregnant (not that this ever faded).  I was very pleasantly surprised to come in after closing and find that they neglected to take (or throw away) a decent looking high chair!  I covered it up with a plastic bag and moved it to the basement for future use and was thrilled to have just saved $100+ by happenstance.

Yesterday, since we're starting to eat like a pro, I brought the high chair upstairs to give it a good scrub when I quickly realized 4 of the 5 straps are missing and the 5th one is caked with something and gross.  I ordered what I hope will work as replacement straps through eBay, but I guess my free high chair is no longer free, but $19 is still a very small price to pay.

Giggles and Rolls

This kid!  Last night we caught her first giggles while daddy was shaking her doll baby (it rattles).  Today as I reheated some food she rolled over from her back to her stomach in the pack and play!  Today we also made our third attempt with oatmeal and more of it went in the baby than on the bib or remained in the bowl - major progress!  Today we also spent a little more time in the exersaucer and maintained contentment.  It feels like I need to not look away for even a second right now.

First Taste of Food

Since we got the go ahead from Avery's doctor and the necessary supplies from Target, Avery got to have her first taste of oatmeal today.  She scrunched up her face a little and I'm pretty sure it all came rolling back out, but it was a good first try.  We can practice for a while with the oatmeal to make sure she knows how to navigate it to the back of her mouth - wouldn't want her loosing any of the yummy fruits when we get to try those out!

She knows more people than I do

There is nothing like realizing your baby knows more people than you do.  We made a run into Target and at the checkout we hear "Avery!  hello!" It was Miss Joyce from daycare.

Lucky number 13

Avery's 4 month appointment was a little late what with her actual 4 month mark being Christmas eve and all.  But we were at the doctor's yesterday, despite the cold weather.  I've known she's gained a good bit of weight but now we have proof.  Avery is now 13 lbs 2 1/2 oz, putting her in the 50th percentile and 24" tall also putting her in the 50th percentile.  Her head on the other hand is in the 75th percentile - and the doctor told me I have a big head too... so I have that going for me.

She just glared at the doctor and started crying when the doctor took her to weigh her.  It is early for her to not like strangers.  But after two shots I'm sure she'll remember the doctor for next time!