Little Nittany Lion
It’s been a while since we’ve posted, but we’ve been travelling for the holidays and haven’t had much time. We had a great Christmas visiting family in PA, OH and NY.
I’ve also posted some additional pictures of Ava.
Here are a few of our favorite pictures from the holidays:
Ava and her cousins
Ava and Gi Gi
Ava passed out after opening gifts
Ava and her Raggedy Ann and Andy
Ava and her Grandparents
I’ve posted some more Christmas pics.
Here is Ava doing her latest trick.
Ava sticking out her tongue
Yesterday was my 31st birthday. As birthdays go, it was pretty low key, bordering on yucky. No, it wasn’t necessarily the number that made it yucky, although, if I could do something about that, I definitely would! Shawn and I caught a stomach virus a few days ago. I thought that things seemed to be on the mend yesterday, until I tried to do anything. If I showered, I needed a nap. Walking downstairs involved a nap on the sofa. Eating? Don’t even go there. My stomach felt steady until I tried to eat something, then it became a series of roller coaster dips.
Birthday was officially postponed as neither of us felt much up to showering, let alone actually going out to do anything. Instead, we decided to hit my parents up for some free babysitting while in NY and go out to dinner there. I always was very good at milking birthday out for a month…..
Furthermore, I seemed to have shorted out my laptop. My link to the world outside of baby. While I was dying of this plague, I had the laptop with me in bed. I chatted with friends through Google chat, answered emails, checked Facebook constantly (how did Facebook become so addictive?) and surfed the net for new recipes and answers to weird questions that popped into my head (why does Pepto turn your tongue black?) In the spirit of trying to remain hydrated while calming my queasy stomach, I had glasses of flat Coke, ginger ale, Gatorade and water next to my bed. This also saved me from having to make multiple trips for beverages throughout the day, trips that I was completely unable to make! I steadily worked through them all and was down to the glass of water. Finally, 11:30 rolled around and it was time for bed. Shawn had conked out at 6:30, the baby too. I was a bit wired from all of my naps throughout the day and watched a Christmas special on the Hallmark channel (why are Christmas movies so lovable?) I was just cleaning up in the dark so that I wouldn’t disturb Shawn when my glass of water tipped over onto my laptop. All of the lights went out like a candle in a storm. I knew I was in trouble. I must have sworn or something as a very sick and very irate Shawn gave me the “son of a B****” lecture while dry heaving. Great throw in a dry heave to emphasize your point. Nothing like a little emotional blackmail to further the effect of your lecture. Reminded me of those “now this hurts me more than it hurts you” speeches that used to proceed any sort of grounding punishment while growing up. As if the punishment didn’t hurt, throw in the “I’m gonna make you feel 2 inches tall” speech. Very effective, though. That was the effect of the dry heaves.
Shawn did try to boot it up, after a day to dry out. The system loaded, but the keyboard would not. Laptop is password protected, so the keyboard is a bit important. I’m SOL here. I’m using our desktop now and it is just not as comfortable as sitting on the sofa with the Christmas lights.
Today is a little bit better, but I have not eaten and I have been sitting around for most of the day. I really hope I am on the mend. My final insult to injury on my birthday? I have vomited everything I ate from Monday forward. Same with Shawn. So how is it that he lost 6 punds and I gained 2? Argh!!!!! If I wasn’t afraid of my stomach dips and if I didn’t care if I supported the Democratic Party, I would so bust into a pint of Ben and Jerry’s Cherry Garcia right now.
Ava loves Bo. Every time she sees him, she starts smiling, laughing and squealing. When she gets close enough, she also tries to reach out and pet him.
Bo, on the other hand, really isn’t into the baby all that much. Whenever she starts laughing and squealing, he gets up and goes somewhere else.
It’s an endless cycle.
Ava and Bo
I know it’s been a while since I’ve posted a pic, but we’re still dealing with feeding issues. We’ve tried everything — new bottles, new nipples, sippy cups. Whenever we get near her with the bottle, she screams. She does eat solid food, but she’s not getting the amount of fluids that the doc says she should be getting for her weight.
Chem was at the pediatrician for 3.5 hours on Tuesday, and they couldn’t find anything wrong. She called back today to ask if maybe the culprit is infant acid reflux. Ava is showing most of the symptoms — refusing feeding, vomiting, and arching her back. However, despite the doc policy of returning all calls within an hour, they never called her back. We’ve been considering changing pediatricians for a while, and this is the straw the broke the camel’s back.
Chem called a new doctor (recommended by a couple of our neighbors) and has an appointment tomorrow. Hopefully we can get this resolved soon.
Anyway, Ava is really close to crawling now. She has gotten really quick with the backwards scooting, and she’s figured out how to get her legs under her. She just hasn’t gotten the movement down. Even scooting backwards, she’s completely enamoured with the presents under the tree.
Ava likes getting into the presents
What takes my Mom and Dad , Shawn’s Aunt, Uncle and cousin, a Walmart, three Targets, a Babies R Us, a Harris Teeter, hours scouring the internet, Facebook pleas and several friends? No, I promise you it is not a bad joke. The answer? The solution to my nearly 7 month old daughter’s sudden eating situation.
I have written about Ava’s sudden decision to stop eating briefly before. The short story? The Sunday after Thanksgiving, Ava woke up and wouldn’t take a bottle. She refeused subsequent bottles. She would only eat solid food. I started panicking everytime she refused a bottle and gave her solid food instead, knowing that she would at least eat the solids. By Ava’s pediatrician’s appointment on Wednesday, Ava had eaten little more than 12 ounces a day of liquids, had developed dark circles under her eyes, was cranky and lethargic and not at all like my little girl. I was a wreck. The doctor told me to discontinue solids because Ava was one of those babies that prefers solids to liquids. I, of course, took the blame for this and immediately stopped the solids to try to get Ava back on track. Thursday, gripped with fever, Ava took every last ounce of liquid, but still wasn’t herself. I knew the doctor had to be right and Ava was eating like she should. Friday, Ava refused the bottle again. I continued to withhold the solids, thinking that she maybe full from yesterday. That night, we were up several times. She was fussy and hungry. I actually decided to pump and dump because I NEEDED coffee. All day Saturday, she was not herself AND she still wouldn’t eat. Saturday night and Sunday was more of the same. We called family. We emailed friends. We went to every store (BIG mistake two Sundays before Christmas!) that sells baby things. We received all sorts of advice ranging from switching formulas and trying juice/water to switching bottles and trying sippy cups. We took every suggestion to heart and, yeah, I realize its not a short story.
We bought every brand of item, whether formula or bottles, etc, that was suggested to us. Yes, overborad, I know, but desperation has no limitations. By the time we got home, Ava was SCREAMING in hunger. While Shawn changed her diaper, I boiled the bottles and nipples and washed the sippy cups. I made a bottle using a nipple that resembled her favorite pacifier. She screamed at the bottle. I changed out the milk for a juice and water mix. She took an ounce and we thought we finally found a way to get a liquid in her, at least a temporary solution. Then she refused the bottle with an ear-piercing scream. We decided that maybe the nipple was too slow. Shawn went back out into the holiday traffic to find fast flow nipples at a Babies R Us (we had been warned that the fast flow was really fast in this particular brand and the Targets only had the medium, so we took this as a sign. We were wrong!)
In the meantime, I tried to put Ava down for a nap. NO GO. She was too hungry and too tired to sleep. I gave in, at a friend’s suggestion and gave her solids. She GULPED it down. I’mfairly certain that I could have put anything down in front of her and she would have swallowed it whole. Until I tried the bottle. Then the screaming began. I was starting to shake. Maybe I messed up by giving her the solids. What if she wouldn’t take another drop of liquid. Would I ever sleep again? Yes, I was concerned about sleep because, as the lack of sleep increased, the stupidity and irrational thoughts proportinately increased. Shawn chose that moment to come home with his spoils. He found some fast flwo nipples and another type of bottle if this didn’t work. He also brought home another type of formula.
I went and washed the new items and Shawn played with the baby. Then we played together as a family, hoping to distract her from the eating difficulties. A little while later, she showed us as only a hungry baby can that she wanted food and she wanted it now. With fist in mouth, she let out a shriek so loud, that Ava closed her eyes and bunched up her cheeks to get it all out. Dinner time it is! We SCRAMBLED into action. I only put an ounce in the bottle because I was sooo tired of wasting money. Plus, the reason that we’re on formula is that I don’t produce enough milk. We mix the milk in with the formula so that she gets the benefits of the milk, but the substance of formula. This cuts down on the cost of the formula, too! However, lately, everydrop of liquid gold (have you PRICED formula?!) has been going down the drain.
She drank that milk like a hiker lost in the desert on a hot, sunny day. There was only an ounce in there. I raced to put together another bottle, but wasn’t fast enough. By the time I got the bottle ready, she was no longer interested. I could have cried. Maybe I did. I was too tired to remember. Shawn eased the entire bottle into her, though, and she was ready for bed!
She passed out the minute her head hit the pillow. She finally had a full belly and was ready for sleep. We decided that it would be worth it to fill a bottle and waste it, rather than play it safe and she want more. She loses interest too quickly and, by playing it safe, we miss the window of opportunity if she should want more.
We woke her at 10:30 to change and feed her again. She took all 6 ounces! Whenshe woke us this morning (at 7 AM!), we knew we were back on track! She has been much happier today. She is showing an interest in her toys, pulling diapers out of the tray, grabbing my necklace and Shawn’s glasses. She even was lunging at my puppy slippers. I wear them a lot now as she loves them.
So far today, she has taken 7 ounces of liquids, had three substantially wet diapers and a one hour nap. We are doing much better and my paranoia is starting to lessen. In fact, she is sitting at my feet as I blog with my cup of tea, playing with her laptop from GDad and Gma. Thanks to everyone who listened and offered advice. I am now inclined to believe that she is teething, but it was the hard sucking on the too-slow nipples that was the problem. I think it was both irritating her gums as well as coming to slow and frustrating her into not wanting to eat. After a good night’s sleep, I think I am rational and better able to cope. We’re calm, happy and well fed- the way a Pecze should be!
Last night, Ava was really out of sorts. We didn’t even watch Rudolph and our Christmas tree only has lights- but some of those lights go on and off on their own. By 11 PM, Ava had only taken 18 ounces of liquid and no solids. She was NOT feeling well. She slept from 3:40 until 6:15-ish. By sleeping, I mean waking and whimpering every time she moved. She was in pain. By the time she finally woke, it was obvious that she was not rested and was not feeling well. She was not interested in any toys either and even Shawn had to work hard for even a smile (forget laughing). I, of course, stood no hope of even a smirk.
She went to bed about 8 and we knew we were going to be in for it. She would be hungry and in pain. At 4:15 AM, she fussed. Shawn went in, rolled her to her back, and gave her the pacifier. We don’t normally give her a pacifier in bed, but, when she doesn’t feel well, it seems to calm her. We know it works and it isn’t like we can give her a stuffed animal to snuggle with yet. She is still too young. Although, we keep a stuffed bunny in the diaper tray on the changing table, as you saw from an earlier picture of the day, Ava loves to pull things out of the tray. The bunny distracts her and she plays with him instead. We also use it when distracting her in order to take her temperature. Yesterday, she wouldn’t let the bunny go and carried it with her everywhere. Anyway, she went to sleep for another half hour and woke up screaming. Shawn went to change her and I went for a bottle. Through the monitor, he exclaimed that she felt very warm. He took her temp and told me to call the doctor. It was 102.8. She has never had a temperature that high and we were told by the pediatrician that, should Ava’s temp exceed 102, to call right away. Otherwise, we were told to wipe her head with a cool cloth, give tylenol, apply cold compresses to her injection sites, etc. I called the on-call doctor and, paying the after hour fees, was told not to worry that this was normal and to give her tylenol, cold compresses,etc. I was pretty upset. Why work us up into a state of fear if you expect temps up to 103. Why not tell us to call when the temp is OVER 103? It is 4:30 in the morning. How rational would you expect me to be PLUS I was following their orders in the first place! The on-call treated me as if I was some super-paranoid idiot and talked to me in some patronizing-fake-calm voice. Doctors have to keep in mind, medicine is their JOB. They went through the training and, even as medicine is not an exact science and no two patients are the same, they still know more about these “normal” situations than I do. For me, it is a vague gray area with fear surrounding it. It is my daughter’s life and I am entering into an arena and I have no previous experience on which to draw. If you tell me to call when a temp reaches 102 and my daughter is 102.8, fussy and not eating, then YEAH, I’m going to call you. Speak to me like the concerned parent I am and not some freak waking you from your nap. Not only was I concerned about Ava, but now I was embarrassed, feeling as if I had overstepped some boundary.
We did give her the Tylenol. We put cold cloths on her head and applied ice packs to her injection sites. With in an hour and a half, while still very fussy, her temperature returned to a more manageable 100.4. She is still quite warm to the touch. Her cheeks and body are blotchy with fever flush, but she is taking some of her bottle, we’re up to 7.5 ounces for the day so far. She is drooling again and has had 4 VERY wet diapers, so the risk of dehydration seems to have passed. Her eyes are very bright and moist and she has smiled some at me since her fever abated slightly.
She is very clingy today and wouldn’t let go of my sweater when I put her down for a nap. She keeps chirping when she moves, so I will apply more ice when she wakes. It really breaks my heart to see her like this. She is a very stoic little girl and mostly will only stare at us with her big brown eyes rather than cry, even when in pain. Today, she only wants to sit on my lap and play with her toys rather than be placed on the floor and, I have to admit, I love having her sit on my lap. I am soaking up the Ava-love as much as I can get. As far as I can tell, this I-Love-Mommy moment is the only bright spot of my vaccine adventure.
Today was Ava’s 6 month check up at the pediatrician’s. Yes, I realize that she is 6 and a half months old now, but she had the flu at her 6 months and we had to cancel. Then Thanksgiving happened and we weren’t able to reschedule until now.
I have been worried that Ava isn’t taking her bottle. She will only eat solids (and boy can she do some damage to those solids!) Yesterday, Ava developed dark circles under her eyes and I was concerned that the number of wet diapers have decreased a little bit, but the quality of the wet diapers have diminished significantly. I am very fearful that she may becoming dehydrated. This was my main concern when meeting with the Pediatrician and did not want any shots until this was taken care of.
The doctor weighed her and she is up to 16 pounds. This puts her in at the 50th percentile. The doctor said that her weight gain is steady and good. After examining Ava, the only really notable symptom of possible dehydration are the evident purple smudges under her eyes. All other tells for dehydration were negative (she has a wet mouth, wet a diaper in front of the doc, soft spot healthy, eyes moist and alert, etc) She looked in her mouth and checked her for illness as well. Her gums are not currently inflamed nor does she have any signs of illness. Infact, the doc said that she is quite perfectly healthy.
She asked what Ava was eating. I explained htat she takes both isomil and breastmilk. I also have introduced solids and this is the only thing she will touch. the doc asked how much. Since discontinuing her bottles, I have been panicking and now give her as much as 7 ounces in a day. the doc explained that some babies prefer solids to the milk. Solids at this stage are only for training purposes and most nutrition will come from the milk until about a year old. Ava should only be taking 2-4 ounces of solids a day. She is getting too full on solids and only prefering solids. She said to reduce the solids and when Ava is hungry, she will eat what is given to her.My panicking over the situation had, in fact, only fueled the situation.
We tried her advice for the next feed. I had met Shawn’s mom, Bobbi, at the mall. She would not take the bottle. Maybe (strong maybe) took an ounce. So we missed a feed. I was getting nervous again. I did not get home until 3:30. She took 4 ounces then. We’re only up 6 for the day though. i am a bit worried and hope that her next feed is more successful.
Ava also got her shots today. She is not comfortable at all and is very fussy. I put her down for a nap, but, I think, everytime she moves her legs, she wakes. I hear her wimpering. She is sooo tired and not feeling well now. I can’t help but cry for her on shot days. Poor thing is sooo miserable.
The doctor did a development evaluation and tried to put her on her tummy to check her motor skills. The instant she was put down, Ava went into her plank and was scooting backwards on the table. The doc had to catch her before she crawled off the back of the table! She also managed toget her legs under her. the doc said that she was very impressed with Ava and that she has a baby only days younger than Ava who is not anywhere near her developmentally. I couldn’t help but feel proud. My “schooling” has paid off for her!
The doc declared Ava absolutely perfect, developmentally and physically. She said that we didn’t have to be back until Janurary (for flu booster) unless Ava refuses to resume her bottles. Then she will need to be reexamined for dehydration and discuss other options then. Keep your fingers crossed for Ava!
Ava has figured out how to get her pacifier back into her mouth. Now that she’s learned, it’s funny to watch her take it out, look at it, and put it back in.
Ava and her pacifier
I love Christmas. I love the cookies, the lights, the music, but in particular, I love Rudolph The Red-nosed Reindeer. Just a reminder to everyone (I tend to get in trouble when I fail to send out this reminder) Rudulph will be on CBS tomorrow (Wed) at 8PM.
Another reminder to my male readers, the new holiday classic, Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show, also airs Wednesday on CBS at 10:00. If you’re too old to stay awake to watch women parade in their undies, don’t forget to set your Tivo! What’s Christmas without lingerie anyway?
I’ll see you tomorrow on CBS, it’s a date!
Last night, we went to pick out our Christmas tree. Chem was begging me to go on Sunday, but it was raining here, and I didn’t want to bring a wet tree into the house.
It was cold and windy last night, so we had to bundle Ava up in her snow suit. Between the hoodie she was wearing, the snow suit and the hat Chem put on her, she had 3 things covering her head. I don’t think she was happy about that. We looked at a few trees before picking out a 6.5′ Red Fir.
Ava liked looking at the lights and the inflatable decorations (that means we need to get more for our house, right Chem). Now when I set her on the floor in the living room, she just stares at the tree. I haven’t had a chance to put the lights on yet, so that’s tonight’s project.
Ava's First Christmas Tree
Yesterday, I stepped on the scale and saw a number that had only ever been seen durring my pregnancy days. for a while, I had been maintaining the status quo and, infact, it seemed that no matter what I ate, I wouldn’t gain weight. i was even eating two dinners and a lot of junk durring the day. I am not sure what changed, but the Thanksgiving festivities are not so festive on the scale! I was horrified!
Shawn and I went to Charleston earlier in November and went to my brother, Eric’s, 5K run. Ever since, Shawn has been jabbering on about running a 5K. I know us. We Peczes are not running people. We are more of a cheesecake hoarding, milkshake guzzling and Peanutbutter cup gobbling variety. I did not see this 5 K training as great idea. I did not think that it would be anything more than a passing inspiration. Until the day we stepped on the scale.
Let me tell you how serious we are. We threw out the rest of the pumkin pie and Cool Whip. We threw out all things fattening and delicious. We’re having grillen chicken and salad for dinner tonight. Seriously. Eric pointed us to some website dedicated to training for a 5 K. Last night, Shawn mapped out a 5 K run in our neighborhood. I have to admit, I got sucked in.
We decided to kick off this self-improvement fest with an ab workout on our yoga balls. Big mistake. i was fine until about 2 PM and now, with each passing moment, it is becoming more and more difficult to breathe. I decided to compound injury by walking/running two miles with Ava this afternoon. According to the website, you’re supposed to walk for a minute, run for a minute and a half, etc. The last time I ran, I was 13 years younger, 50 lbs lighter and in much better shape and didn’t have a heavy stroller to push! I also hadn’t become addicted to Arby’s or had my stomach sliced open to deliver a baby. It did not go well. My inspiration is rapidly withering. I was gasping for air after a 30 second run. I didn’t even make it a block before I had to walk again. Now, I am really regreting those cheesecakes, milkshakes and peanutbutter cups. Almost. They were pretty tasty!
As you can see from the pic of the day, Ava is really close to crawling. Her growth amazes me every day. She is trying to crawl all of the time, even in sleep. this morning she had me up at 2 AM as she was stuck in a corner! She was so wound up, that we did not get back to sleep until 4:30AM! I wasn’t able to sleep until about 5. I am so beat today, but I am afraid to nap now (it’s almost 5 PM) for fear that I wont sleep later.
Ava laughs a lot at Shawn. he can make her giggle without much provocation. it’s a struggle for me to get a giggle, but I get big, wet grins! Today I made her giggle. I am not sure what I did. She just laughed. I’ll take it.
She sits up very well and loves to play with toys. She can be left to amuse herself. I wont let her out of my sight, but I am comfortable sitting on the sofa while she plays on the floor nearby. She loves her blocks, Froggie, PDA, and laptop. Yes, she has a kiddie laptop. She gets the biggest grin when she sees it.
She is eating a lot of solids. She has gotten to the point where she will eat everything, but there are a couple of vegetables that she would rather not get if she has the choice. Today,she discovered peas. This was an instant favorite.
I hope this news hold you over for a while. This is going to be a crazy month. We’re planning on attening a couple of neighborhood Christmas parties, I have a couple of Junior League commitments, and we are planning to do a lot of traveling. I hope to see as many of my friends from back home as possible!
Ava has started to try to crawl. She hasn’t quite got all of the mechanics down, but she is persistent. She either ends up scooting herself backwards or getting into a plank position. Her main problem is that she can’t quite bend her knees and pull them under her body yet. She almost had it last night, but ended up face planting into the carpet.
I’m guessing by Christmas, she’ll be crawling around.
Ava in the plank position
Ava and Santa
Ava's stuffed
Our little turkey
Ava likes to help
Ava's first snow
Ava's first snow
On our last night in Charleston, we went to James Island Park for their yearly Christmas light display. The lights were spectacular. It was very odd walking around in 77 degree weather looking at the lights.
While we were there, Ava got to ride her first carousel. She was so adorable, that the ride operators gave us all a free ride!
Ava's first carousel ride
While we were in Charleston, we took a visit to the Charleston Tea Plantation — the only place that tea is grown in North America. Although the harvest was done for the year, it was neat to take the tour to see how the tea is harvested and processed. I was amazed at how quickly it’s done — less than 24 hours from harvesting to final tea leaves!
They also have a one-of-a-kind machine that they call the “Green Giant”. They drive it through the fields, and it cuts off the tops of the tea bushes and sucks the leaves in to a bin. Using this machine, they can harvest their fields with only 3 workers.
A few days later, we went back because Eric was running in a 5k. He ended up finishing 4th (not bad considering he pulled a muscle in his calf while training).
Ava misses her Uncle Eric
While Chem’s parents were in town, we went to Charleston, SC, for a few days to visit Chem’s brother Eric and his wife Michelle.
This was Ava’s first trip to Charleston. Back in June, we took her to the Outer Banks because one of my college friends was there on vacation. However, Ava never made it down to the ocean. So, this was Ava’s first offical trip to see the ocean.
Ava's first trip to the ocean
Ava had her grandparents here last week. It was a great visit, and she was sad to see them leave yesterday. Not to worry, though, as we’ll see them in a few short weeks for Christmas.
Ava and Grandma
Ava and G-Dad
Sorry for the lack of posts recently. I’ve been swamped at work. We’ve also had house guests and went out of town this past weekend.
While Chem’s parents were in town, her dad helped me hang new lighting and a pot rack in the kitchen. It really wasn’t as tough as I though it’d be, but it was definitely a 2 person job.
Here is a picture of the original light. I forgot to take a before pic, so this is from when we were painting the kitchen, so ignore the grey/green color on the walls:
Original Light
And here is the final result:
Project Complete
Ava loves Pooh Bear
I'm Ava Pecze, and I approve this message
Yesterday, we took Ava to get her 6 month portraits done. Since it’s so close to Christmas, the studio was doing holiday themed scenes as well, so we were able to get some Christmas portraits of the 3 of us.
Ava
Pecze Family
Ava
A little late with this today. The time change has me really messed up. Plus, we had a special errand to run that took most of the day (more on that tomorrow).
But, I finally posted the rest of the pics from our trip to Asheville.
Enjoying the last bit of Indian Summer
Ava's first trick or treat
Ava is a lady bug
Ava went down for her nap, so I thought I would take a moment to check email (yes, I did yell at Shawn for not posting any more pictures) and blog.
Ava has learned to love the sweet potatoes and now her favorite foods are sweet potatoes, peaches, applesauce and pears. The green beans are still not a favorite. I went wild and crazy and bought carrots. We shall see… If she’s my daughter, she will refuse the carrots! I’m jsut waiting for the opportunity to let her try one of my all time favs, mashed potatoes. I’ll have to wait until after May, though, as they are made with milk and butter.
She has really mastered the rolling and will roll onto her tummy from either side, but favors rolling to the left. She actually remembered how to go from tummy to back the other day and gave me this giant surprised grin. I was so proud of her.
Shawn has become a pro at getting Ava to giggle. I am insanely jealous. She will not giggle for me. He rubs noses with her and she will giggle. If I try, she grabs my nose like a doorknob and twists. I have fingernail scratches on my nose and am slightly afraid to get too close to her razor sharp talons! He also gets her to laugh with belly kisses. I tired and she cried! Then I cried. It was bad. I got one giggle from this cradle-hold swing squat thing I did the other day, but haven’t been able to recreate it enough to elicit another laugh. I was trying to keep her entertained. She has been wanting to go to bed for hte night at 6 PM. Shawn misses out on seeing her if I give in, so if I can keep her occupied, she will make it until he comes home and he can put her to bed.
This morning, Ava woke at 4:45. I hvae been getting up to take care of her in the mornings to let Shawn sleep a little more, but, for some reason, I couldn’t fall asleep until 1 AM and was NOT in the mood to change a diaper. I kicked Shawn out of bed to check on her and make sure that she was not on her tummy. He came back to bed, syaing she was on her back. We elected not to do anything to enfore the sleeping all night thing. we don’t want to reverse all of the sleeping through the night by answering her early morning call. By 5 AM, Shawn was passed out and it was increasingly obvious that Ava was not going to return to blissful slumber and, therefore, neither was I. I figured, even if by some miracle, she fell asleep right then, I owuld only get another hour of sleep anyway and would probably be more tired then when I started so I got up.
I was instantly rewarded with the biggest Ava grin ever. That made my morning right there. Then she was calm all through the diaper change and while I made her bottle, except to hold my hand and give me giant grins. She was in a fantastic mood this morning and, selfishly, I was not willing to share. It took me about 30 minutes to change her, make and then give her her bottle. She was looking content, so I put her in her bouncer while i pumped in the dark. Finally around 6, she was looking drowsy. She is not used to being up yet (7 is her normal wake up time) so I called for Shawn to take her to bed. Finally, he came and got her. she slept until about 7 and then wanted up.
Shawn put her in the highchair while we ate breakfast and then he went to shower I wheeled her around in the high chair while I washed baby bottled and the pots from lasts night’s dinner. She babbled and sqealed to me and I had a great morning!
Shawn thought that he would go and change her clothes. I had laid out an outfit, but he either didn’t see it or had his own agenda. I thought, “well, this can’t be good!” and finished folding the load of laundry. I brought it upstairs to put away and peeked in on Shawn and Ava. He nervously showed Ava in the outfit he selected. It was an adorable velour yellow overall and white longsleeve onsie outfit. He even matched a yellow and white pooh bib and white lace “girl” socks so that people would know she was a girl! He was looking at me like a man awaiting a verdict to a murder trial. Death penalty or life iwthout parole. He got a “not guilty” instead! Shawn told me that he was not going to believe me until tomorrow to see if there were going to be any daddy/clothes faux pas blogs. I am blogging about this so he can rest assured. It is 2:50 PM and I have not changed Ava’s outfit (he accused me of plotting which outfit I owuld change herinto after a convenient barfing incident once he left for work. You know, you do that once and it sticks with you forever! Where is the trust?) She is adorable and likely to stay that way until pajama time!
Well, I hear Ava stirring. I better prepare a bottle and some applesauce or I’ll be in serious trouble!
Sorry for no pictures over the weekend, but we were out of town. I surprised Chem with a trip to Asheville, NC, to visit the Biltmore Estate.
This is our second trip to the estate. We went there in December 2002, and that’s where I proposed to Chem. I wanted to go back, this time to see the estate with the fall colors.
Ava was a trooper for the whole trip. She slept the whole drive there on Friday evening.
Being that Asheville is in the mountains, we really had to bundle her up because of the wind. She didn’t seem to mind it at all, though as we wheeled her around the grounds.
When we toured the house, I put her in the Baby Bjorn. About 1.5 hours into the 2 hour tour (it was very crowded), she fell asleep.
Afterwards, we had lunch, fed and changed Ava and continued to tour the gardens.
We had planned on going into Asheville to walk around, but we were so exhausted from all the walking at the Biltmore, that we decided to just go back to the hotel.
At the Biltmore Estate
Ava and her favorite rattle
Ahhh..Peace and quiet. It is nearly 9 AM and I have kicked the hubby out the door for work (not before insisting that he post the picture of the day!) and Ava has settled for an early morning nap. The only sounds in the house are Ava’s occassional soft cooing through the monitor and the whirring of the dishwasher and heater. Yes, heater. It was 38 degrees this morning! Fox News said it was 46 in NYC! So jealous…I believe that fall has settled in with a vengence. I heard it is only going to be a high of 60 today; that’s practically winter! Brrr!
How am I marking the time? I could be washing baby bottles, they never seem to go away, but instead, I am curling up with my apples and cinnamon candle, a comfy throw blanket and my laptop to blog about Ava’s new talent (I wish I had made a cup of hot cocoa, too!)
As you saw from Ava’s video, she has been rolling over onto her tummy. I have mentioned before that we have “school” after her morning nap. She is most alert then and more receptive to learning. We go over colors, numbers, ABC’s, rolling, sitting, standing, and playing in front of the mirror. I also read to her from all of her books, which are Halloween themed right now as we are in my favorite season! Mom and Dad sent a care package of fall themed items for Ava, including a hat and jacket, a squishy pumpkin toy (which she LOVES), a pumpkin rattle, pumpkin booties, My First Boo bib ( I LOVE ghosts and can’t pass up anything with a ghost on it, so I LOVE the bib!), a pumpkin trick-or-treat bag, and a bunch of Halloween board books. There is a Cordouroy Trick or Treat book ( we love Cordouroy, Eric and Michelle bought Ava the original story book for Christmas last year), a touch and feel Halloween book, and a Curious George’s Halloween book. Shawn bought Five Little Pumpkins, so we have plenty of festive reading material. I have worked with Ava so that her attention span will get me through two to three books at a time before fussing. She will not look at the pages, unless she is trying to chew on the book, but she will remain calm and listen to my voice for those books now. This is quite an accomplishment.
All of this “schooling” has gotten Ava to the point where she is rolling over on her own. She has been doing this for a little while now, but we have finally actually seen her do it. Moslty it was happening without us there and we would hear her cry and look to see that she has rolled over. I think she has forgotten how to roll on to her back. Now that she has mastered the belly, I think rolling the other way doesn’t occur to her and she still really hates being on her tummy.
This morning, it was a little chilly, but the heat was on. Shawn and I were soooo comfortable snuggled up in bed, dreaming away when the crying began. I looked at my alarm clock. “Nooooooo,” I wailed. 5:45 AM. I was so tired and I was used to her sleeping until 7. She also went to bed after 8 PM last night, which is much later than usual. I was counting on extra sleep. Shawn actually checked on her as I was still deciding whether I should get up and start the day since it was so close to my usual wake-up time or sleep just a little bit more. Apparently, Ava loves her new trick so much that she is practicing in her sleep, but, again, hates being on her belly and cries. Last night, when we put her down, she flipped onto her belly and wedged herself in a corner. This did not make her happy. This makes me nervous as we put the bumpers back in her cribs.
From everything we have read and from what the pediatricians and hospital said, etc., we have been conditioned that the bumper is a very bad thing and can elevate the risk of SIDS. A couple of weeks ago, we woke early to Ava’s crying. She had apparently gotten her leg wedged in between the slats of the crib. I couldn’t get her leg out and was afraid of hurting her. Shawn was finally able to free her, but she SCREAMED. I was so scared. I kept checking her leg all day, but she was fine. It didn’t hurt her and there was no bruising. I called my mom. I really wnated to put the bumper in to protect her, but I didn’t want to suffocate her either. Mom told me I slept with a bumper. I know plenty of other mom’s have bumpers in their children’s cribs. I guess I just wanted reassurance that this was OK. Besides, Ava can roll and she cries when anything touches her face, even in sleep, and doesn’t like being on her belly. However, I am still a Nervous Nellie.
Ava’s other accomplishment is that her sitting has become quite good. On a hard surface like the floor, she will sit for sometime before falling. She doesn’t flail about as much as she did before. She has become quite strong and steady. When she does fall, she hits her head and this startles her into crying. I have taken to teaching her to sit on the bed, but this is a soft surface and I don’t think she is quite strong enough for that. You could see that in the video from the other day. While she is steady, she can’t seem to hold the sitting position for long on the bed.
She is still very much interested in anything with push buttons like the remote control, telephone, and laptop. Mom says that is my fault for playing with her in the activity center. She has taken to CLIMBING over me (she can’t crawl, but can climb?) to get to the interesting object. I think we’re going to have to get her a toy phone or remote, etc. to give her so that we can use the “adult” version in peace. When she does get hold of the remote, she turns the channel to Fox News (it has happened three times now- can’t be a coincidence, right?), so I can’t say I blame her there! A budding Republican. We have taught her well.
News unrelated to Ava. Shawn and I have resumed Ballroom dance lessons and Kerrie has been generously babysitting for us. This is our one night a week where we concentrate on being a couple, to focus on us, and recharge to be a better family. Last night, we were excited as it was Cha Cha and Swing night. Those are our two favorite dances. We warmed up with Swing, and since the music has the similar timing and a lot of the steps can cross over, we tried to remember the Cha Cha as well. We would later find out that the focus of the class would be the Cha Cha. The time flew by and all too soon, it was time to leave. We left and Shawn realized that he forgot his coat. I was waiting outside for him when a couple from our class walked out. Shawn was right behind them and I noticed the guy from our class was wearing a Citadel jacket. Having no social filter, I blurt out, “Did you go to the Citadel?” He replied no, but that both of his sons went there. I exclaimed that both of my brothers went there. He wanted to know what years. I said ‘00 and ‘03. He said that his oldest graduated in ‘03. I jokingly told him to ask if his son knew John Zink. He looked gobsmacked and said that he knew John Zink and Eric, as well as their parents quite well. Their son was in the same company as John. At first, I thought he was joking, but then he gave detailed information on even Eric. Then he told me his name; the Wells family. I recognized the name instantly! We briefly caught up on the other family’s life with messages to say hello. What a small world!
Ava and Bo
Well, Michelle, if you thought yesterday’s video was boring….just wait till today’s!
Well, Penn State played Michigan today. Even though the Nittany Lions were favored by 24, I never feel comfortable with these games — considering that Michigan has beaten Penn State in 9 straight games over the past 12 years. Meaning — I haven’t seen Penn State beat Michigan since my freshman year of college.
Tonight was different, though, and Ava had a blast watching the game with me.