7 Months Old

 

 Oh sweet girl, you are ever changing. It seems like you have grown so much physically and socially in the past month. It's now on to 6-9 months clothes for you as well as size three diapers. Your hair is coming in a lovely shade of copper while your eyes seem to be in the midst of changing from blue to....not sure.

It has been fun seeing you explore as you have learned to rock back and forth on all fours and manage to "boot scoot" your way across the floor. You are also getting the hang of sitting up and standing with some support.

 

Anything and everything would go in your mouth if we let you put it there. Gavin really doesn't like it when you get slobber on his toys or animals but willingly shows his love by holding your hand or talking baby talk. We really don't know where he picked this up.

And speaking of your brother, he is also growing much too fast. Gavin's vocabulary has taken off and just last night for dinner he ate two hot dogs complete with bread and cheese, half an apple, grapes, a yogurt, 2 glasses of milk, a spoonful of peanut butter and a chocolate chip cookie. Growth spurt!

 

Ava, a few of your nicknames are Boot Scoot, Missy Moo, Sister Roo or Sister Rooey, Little Red, Ava Grace Grace, and Sweet Girl. You have a way of studying people or things and are sometimes somber when you first wake up. But when you get that gummy smile going, it's nonstop. Lately, your daddy is getting a kick out of you screeching in response to his screeches. We used to call Gavin Screech Owl, but as your daddy pointed out, your screeches sound more girly.

As soon as we moved, I started you on solids other than just rice cereal. You tried sweet potatoes first, then bananas, avocado, oatmeal and butternut squash. You definitely favor your rice cereal but are an overall good eater with a fairly consistent feeding schedule of 8am, noon, 4 pm and 8pm.  I'm loving this new schedule.

 

The following outfit I put on you for Independence Day. Let's just say the bow and the dress were big and bright much like this Texas girl. The dress reminds of the one in the Pollyanna movie. 

I'm not sure what to think of your personality yet, but you are always making us laugh with your many faces.

We love you to the moon and back and more Ava Grace.

Mama

Ten Years

During my newlywed days, I remember hearing about couples who had been married ten or more years and thinking "wow, I know we will get there, but it seems so far off." Well, we are there and I can't believe how fast time has flown. I couldn't be any more blessed to be married to my best friend. We couldn't be anymore alike or anymore different if that makes any sense. It's been fun during the ups and I feel like the downs have drawn us even closer to each other.

Enough of the sappy stuff. I don't think I could post without including pictures, so here's two of the very few pics I have on my laptop (we have yet to set up the computer since the move). However, once we do, I want to post about our ten year anniversary trip that we took last year. Hopefully, when I do, that last sentence will make more sense.

Then

 And Now

A Doll in Her House

Can you spot her?

 Let me zoom in.

 A little closer.

  

 Aww, that's better.

I think she's going to like her new room.

6 Months Old

Yesterday, Ava turned six months old which means Christmas is officially six months from today. Don't say you haven't been warned. I think Ava turning six months old has flown by even faster than when Gavin was six months if that's possible.  I'm going to make this post short and sweet since I have boxes calling for me to be packed.

Ava Grace, you continue to be a delight. You giggle and "talk" so sweetly. You are pretty easy going except when you get sleepy, but even then you give us warning signs with your little whimper. I'm afraid it won't be long before you are really mobile. Once you get your arms to cooperate with the incredible strength of your legs, you will be across the room in no time.

I'm loving the routine you have down now. Around 7:30, I hearing you cooing in your bed and am greeted with a sweet smile when I get you up. You eat and play, and by 9:30 you are ready for your first nap. It's usually the longest one where you sleep until 11 am.  By noon I feed you and give you your first bit of rice cereal. After we move, you'll start getting your first tastes of veggies and fruit.  Around 2:30, it's nap number two and  then you are up by 4. I'll feed you again and if brother is still napping, you and I get some time to giggle and snuggle. It's been working out that you are ready for your last nap, the shortest, at 6 pm just when I'm preparing dinner. At 8, I'll feed you again and give you your second bowl of rice cereal. I love a good routine, so getting to this point has been really nice. Of course, we will have to make some adjustments because swim lessons are this week and we will be in the midst of moving.

 

Tomorrow, I am taking you to the doctor for your six month check up so I'll try to come back and update your stats. You are in six to nine month clothes and what has to be your last box of size two diapers. Your hair is steadily growing in this pretty shade of auburn and your eyes are grayish blue. This weekend was the first time I could get a bow in your hair without using a headband and I thought it looked so sweet.

When we took your six month pictures, your brother wanted to climb up next to you. This picture just melts my heart. We love you truly Ava Grace.

Mama 

4 Years Old

It would have been more appropriate for my little ray of sunshine to have been born at the crack of dawn instead of nearly midnight. You, my dear boy, are the epitome of a morning person and I love it (except for maybe those first few sleep deprived weeks of baby sister waking up every three hours). I also love going in at the first sound of "Mama, I'm awake now!" and seeing your little body pop up and start the day jumping.

Gavin Liam, you have been nothing but joy these past four years. Once you got the smiling thing down after a few weeks of being born, you have not let up.

  

The dimple on your face is an old friend who gets little rest time. I'm not sure there are many kids who give two hugs, one on each side. Maybe it has something to do with your French history. As I was looking through our picture files, I found this one and couldn't resist posting it. Even then, you were a character.

Your mommy and daddy, grandparents, aunts and uncles alike have known what a caring boy you are, but I think you brought it to a whole new level when your sister was born. The one you affectionately call "Ava Grace Grace" is the recipient of many pats on the head, hand holding and talks from a four year old who speaks like a 30 year old baby talker.  Hmm, wonder where you get that from.

 

We still think your sister is trying to figure you out by the looks she gives you. I have a feeling it's going to be an interesting dynamic between the two of you.

You are definitely a boy's boy with your love of action figures, superheroes, and trains. Just today, you were asking me to help you hang from the ceiling fan because you wanted to climb like Spiderman. However, you know a good color when you see it and chose a pink spoon yesterday. Your mommy and daddy are amazed at your puzzle building skills. Other kids your age are also probably building 80 piece puzzles on their own, but in our minds we think it's unique for someone who just turned four.

 

I was trying to keep track of your funny sayings in a book I will one day give you, but I think I have already packed it. Here are a few you have said lately:

(Gavin's birthday fell on Father's Day this year.)
Poppy: Happy Birthday Gavin!
Gavin: Happy Birthday Poppy!
Us: No, tell Poppy, "Happy Father's Day."
Gavin: Happy Father's Day Poppy.
 Nee Nee: Happy Birthday Gavin!
Gavin: Happy Mother's Day Nee Nee!

Upon seeing broken down school buses, you said, "Those school buses are dead."
Nee Nee: They are not dead.
Gavin: They are if they don't exercise.

One day, I was giving you a hug and thinking about how big you were getting. I told you that you couldn't grow anymore (Daddy has joked that we should stop feeding you) because I wanted you to stay my baby. You promptly told me that you had to keep growing to get to five. When I asked you why five, you told me so that you could eat gum. I had told you this many, many months prior but it must have made an impression. I have a feeling I'll have to live up to my part of the bargain as long as we get it straight between now and then that it's "chew" gum.

Your vocabulary is taking off and many sentences begin with "Probably..." I can understand about 95% of what you say but that's "probably" because I'm around you all of the time. However, it took me awhile to figure out that "Thomas" = pajamas.

After you got your vaccines at your four year check up, I took you for some frozen yogurt. Upon seeing other boys at the frozen yogurt place, you said, "I bet those boys got their shots."

Speaking of check up, you're growing right we expected based on your growth history. You weigh 29.8 pounds (nearly 4th percentile) and are 38 inches tall (9th percentile).

You still sleep with Ra Ra and have been resisting sleeping under your sheets and comforter only wanting to be covered with the same lightweight blanket you have been using for the past three years.

We love you to the moon and back and more Gavin Liam!

Mama

Father/birthday?

I am so blessed to be able to celebrate my two boys yesterday. Father's Day was extra sweet this year because Gavin's 4th birthday fell on it for the first time. Even though he was born two days after Father's Day, I'm sure Hunny would concur that he is the best Father's Day present.

I couldn't have asked for a better partner to help raise our children. He is kind, compassionate, hard working, creative and hands down has the best smile.

 

Our kids think the world of him too. Ava lights up when she hears her daddy and gets a kick out of his scruffy faced tickles behind the ear.

  

 And Gavin's favorite super hero is his daddy. There is no one who plays light sabers or action figures better. I love hearing the different voices from Gavin's room when they are reading a book or fighting some bad guy. Most of all, he loves Jesus and wants for both of his kids to as well.

 

Tomorrow, I'm taking Gavin for his four year check up, so I'll do a separate post on that special little guy.

Boxed In

When I opened my blog, I nearly laughed out loud when I saw the title of my last post. "Be Still" is anything but that around here. Let's play a little game to guess what's been going on. Your clue is this.

If you guess we are trying to create anything resembling the awesome cardboard city over at Nessa Dee, you would be sadly mistaken and so will my little one.  Gavin would have more luck if his daddy stepped in to help although I can draw a pretty mean stick figure. I digress.

No, we are actually packing everything up to move in approximately two weeks. It's been fun in the country for the past three years, but look out city, err suburb life, here we come. Cue the theme song for Green Acres. And, if that were not enough, I am trying to put together Gavin's fourth birthday party for this weekend as long as figure out how to make Sunday feel equally special for the birthday boy and all of the fathers in our immediate family.  And, I just received a call from the much sought after swim teacher that she has a cancellation and can teach Gavin the week we close on the house. I need a nap just typing all of that out.

However, and this is a big however, I am not feeling too stressed. I keep telling myself to keep it simple, prioritize, get in lots of snuggles with the nearly four year old and tons of giggles with my nearly six month old who, by the way, is turning into an inchworm.

I need to go make sure I didn't pack the birthday candles.