Fall has been fun!

Ava is the best. She started taking some small steps this week. I am in no hurry for her to be walking. As soon as she gets it down, she will be all over the place! She has been saying "dada" and "uhoh", and she loves anything dangerous. She has such a wonderful personality. She loves life, and she plays hard.

The last four months...

So, I apparently am not very good at keeping blogs updated. How do people find the time? So much has happened in the last four months of Ava's life.

Let's start with the summer. We enjoyed out time together, although it was so hot, we stayed indoors most of the time. This was the hottest summer I've ever had in Austin, and it basically trapped us in the house most of the time. We did get to the pool a few times, and Ava enjoyed swimming and splashing.

The highlight of the summer was out trip to Ft. Lauderdale with Lyndi, Aric, and Stella. We stayed right on the beach and Ava saw the ocean for the first time. She got a kick out of it! We swam and laid on the beach. It was nice to get out of the texas heat, and get some ocean air.

We also headed up to Cedar Creek Lake with cousins Ericha and Andrew and the pups. That was a nice get away before school started.

The summer was filled with milestones for Ava. She had her first solid food. At first we gave her rice cereal, but that seemed to upset her stomach. We replaced it with oatmeal and she did much better with that. Her first veggie was carrot, and she has pretty much liked everything we've given her. She loves to eat! Her bottom two teeth came in at the end of August. I never knew teeth could be so cute.

Ava sleeps through the night now, thanks to Dr. Ferber. It was only about two days of torture, but worth every minute to be able to sleep through the night, especially now that we started school. She cried the first few days of school, but seems to have gotten used to it. I still hear her crying when I pass by at times, but it doesn't last long. I think she likes to be around other babies. They tell me she's feisty, which I kinda already knew. She definitely has an opinion. Having her in day care is not the ideal situation for me, but at least she is close by and I can check in on her often.

It was August 26th. It was a hot day, just like any other day we've experienced for the last month. But there was a difference in little Ava. She crawled for the first time. No more whining and crying out of frustration. No more sad face telling me "Please help me, I'm stuck!". Watch out world, the girl is on the move! She has been so much happier since that day, and she has made me so proud.

Ava was sick for the first time this weekend. Guess I should consider ourselves lucky that we went 7 months without anything major. She had a cold, as did I. She had a low fever and was pretty fussy for two days, but we made it through it just fine, and plan to enjoy the remainder of our three day weekend!

Month Three

Ava is growing so fast! She is talking, screeching, and making the cutest noises. She is smiling almost all the time, like she is just so happy to be alive. She has been trying to grab things, and has succeeded partially. Today she grabbed her toy and took it to her mouth for the first time! I could not be more in-love. She is a happy healthy baby that brings joy to everyone around her.

Catch up...

Everyone knows the labor story by now, so I am not going to blog it. I am going to keep record in Ava's journal, so don't fret! So it is one month and 5 days after the most amazing thing that will ever happen to my life happened, and I can say I am completely in-love with Ava. I am not going to lie and say it's been all sunshine and rainbows. We have had ups and downs, but the undeniable love is always there.

The amazing things: the first time she looked at me and realized I was her mother, when she stared at her hand for a few minutes, every time she smiles..okay now I realize this could go on forever.

She has rolled on her side three times already, and she is holding her head up for several minutes at a time. She is sleeping 5 to 6 hours at a time during the night.

Things we need to work on:

I don't know how to cut her nails. I tried this morning and clipped her finger tip. We were both crying for many minutes.

She doesn't go to bed until 11, hopefully that will change!

All in all, just love. She rocks.

Almost ready....

This has been a hard week. Knowing that Ava could be here any day is a bit stressful, but very exciting.

As of January 14...

Reporting a 1 cm dilation at this point, and Ava is weighing in at approximately 6 lbs 7 oz! I have been having some Braxton Hicks contractions, but nothing major yet. I need one more week to get my business settled at work, so I need my baby girl to hold off for a few more days. Will she come early? Only she knows!

Christmas

I have had this fear that Ava is going to come out a boy after I have everything all set up and ready. At the last sono, the sonographer assured me that she was a girl, and showed me her labia up front and close. So, I washed all her clothes, finally. However, now I am getting scared that she's a penguin. She moves so much, she going to come out like happy feet.

I am very thankful this Christmas for all that I have, a wonderful family, great friends, and a baby girl on the way. I am especially thankful for my wonderful husband, who is going to be an incredible father. I am extremely happy!

People keep asking me me if I can hardly wait for Ava's arrival. I can, actually. I am enjoying this time being pregnant. I cherish every moment of this experience, and would not want to rush it for anything.