Dinner at the in-laws

We set off for the mountains for dinner with the in-laws who we haven't seen in a while. Shortly after getting there Graham and I took off to try out a motorcycle that the in-laws have for sale. Uncle Peter came along. Apparently Aunt Claire got bored waiting for us to come back because we found lots of random pictures on my camera...

the cars....

The motorcycles that were left behind..Peter's wife, Alissa getting some studying done...Alissa's mother, Cheryl playing with Avaand some lovely self portraits of the photographer, Auntie ClaireMaybe someone needs to take that wine away!After a mildly scary ride around the neighborhood we returned.

And found Ava waiting for us.

Ava showed us a new trick she figured out. Stair climbing!We don't have any stairs in our house (except for the basement) but Ava climbed them like an ol' pro.

Next time we'll have t be sure we actually get some pictures of Ava with her grandparents.

Double date

Ava and I set off today for a play date with my friend Angela from work and her 4.5 month twin boys.

Here is Jeremiah.And here is Ben.These are twins I can actually tell apart because Ben is a lot bigger than his brother. In fact he weighs just a few ounces less than Ava.

Ava was a big fan of being on a play date with two handsome boys. She was so excited this is the only picture I was able to take of the three of them because Ava turned into a wild child and I spend the rest of the time wrestling her off the babies.

You can really see him, but there is a baby seeking refugee from Ava in his Mommy's lap.Ava also got to spend a little time on the swings. She seemed to like it.But spend most of her swinging looking at the ground, making me worried she was going to topple out so I cut her fun short.

It was a great day to spend time catching up!

Bye Bye Bentley

We've had some changes in our lives recently that unfortunately requires me to down size my horsey herd. This weekend my lovely Thoroughbred, Bentley has found a wonderful new home. As difficult as it is to rehome an animal you love I feel really good about Bentley's new owners. They have 35 amazing acres in Steamboat (which is breath takingly beautiful!) They have 3 other Thoroughbreds and they just adore Bentley and they don't mind me being a pest and emailing everyday to see how he's doing. It's the right move all around for our family and for Bentley.

Right now he is just on a 10 day trial period, but I don't imagine he will be coming back.

Bye Bentley. You are a great horse and we will miss you!

Pool Party!

Last summer, when I was hugely pregnant and the air conditioner just wasn't cutting it I went out and bought a inflatable kiddy pool to soak my hugely pregnant self in. I can just imagine what our neighbors thought...me in a bikini with my giant pregnant belly and Graham beer in one hand cigar in the other hanging out in a inflatable pool. But it really is awesome!


So awesome in fact our good friends Amanda and Dave called us up on Saturday and invited themselves over for a little pool party. I'm so glad they did. It was a hot day and Ava had yet to have a chance to try out our pool. So the air compressor and garden hose came out and Amanda, Dave and Bella came over.The water was pretty cold at first but Ava didn't seem to mind. We stuck her in her floaty and she cruised around from one side of the pool to the other trying to get the attention of Bella. Afterwards I had a craving for Beef Wellington so we all had a fancy dinner after our red neck pool party. Fun day!

PLay Date with Logan

I was asked by my manager at work to teach the new RN's order Entry at work. Of course the class took place in the middle of the day, when my family is working. So Ava got to spend some time my coworker and good friend Courtney and her little boy, Logan who just turned 1.
When I came back I found these cute pictures on my camera.Ava has her eyes closed in this picture, but how cute is Logan? He looks so grown up! Hard to believe Ava is only 2 months behind him!

Fun at the Fair

My Dad used to own a record store where he sold well, records. As well as a lot of homemade jewerly, incents and things of that sorts. Now he has taken his store on the road. His plan is in the next few year to travel around the US from fair to fair seeing the world and selling. But for now he does Festivals around our neck of the woods. Most of the time we have stuff going on so we aren't able to go, but this weekend the stars aligned and we went to a festival celebrating one of our towns 40th birthday.

We walked around trying to find my Dad's booth. We failed finding my family but did find a Fire truck that was just Ava's size.

Apparently this is a real, working fire truck! We checked out the rides.And finally we found Grandpa, who showed Ava around his booth.Next was fireworks time! These were Ava's first fireworks since the three of us slept through them on the 4th of July.And they didn't disapoint! Ava cheered them on with Aunt Kimmy.

A PSA from Ava and ADA

Just a friendly reminder to brush twice a day.

Even if you only have two teeth!

Block Party

We got Ava some new blocks this weekend so we took them out to the front yard to play.

Can you spot the baby?

But alas, blocks get boring when you can't really do anything with them but chew on them. So Ava moves on to more adventure, Rottie climbing.What's that Lola? A chain? Lame!

Here, I'll free you!

Darn, busted!

No rest for the weary

The other day Graham came home from work after Ava was in bed. He heard her stirring so he went in to say hello. Imagine our surprise to find her like this! This was the first time she pulled up and stood in her crib! She was beyond delighted with herself and we were beyond proud! A while ago we had two different friends who had babies take a spill out of their cribs. Learning from their lessons we wanted to take no chances so a quick lowering of the mattress took place. Much better! There's no escaping now!

Although, this milestone didn't come without it's price. Now that she knows she can stand in her crib we can't keep her laying down!

Ava- Stands. Hangs out enjoying the view. Feels her little legs getting tired. Wants down. Can't figure out how to get back down. Cries.

Or scene 2- Ava- Stands. Hangs out enjoying the view. Feels her little legs grow tired. Falls. Gets scared. Cries hysterically.

Amber- Goes in. Helps show her how to sit and lay down. Comforts. Replace pacifier. Walks out.

Lather, rinse, repeat every 4 minutes.

Gone are the days of my good napper. Yesterday neither of us got a wink of sleep. Not good when I depend on her naps to make it through my 12 hour night shifts.
Hopefully she picks up how to get down without falling soon!

Vocabulary Lesson

Ava may be "behind physically" but mentally she is exceptional!

Here are some words Ava says:
-Mama
-Dada
-Ba Ba (bottle)
-Hi
-Bye Bye
-Milk
-Clap
-Bella (Amanda's dog. She won't say our dogs names, but Bella she has down!)
-Ball

Ava also knows these words in Sign Language:
-Milk
-More
-All Done

Ava caught on to Signing so quickly. I found this website and we are now working on "Diaper Change" and "Food."

It's amazing how fast she picks things up! She really is a brilliant little girl!

9 (+1) Month Appt

Ava had her 9 month appointment, a month late last week. She is doing perfect in our eyes. The PA on the other hand kept telling me Ava is was behind since she is not:

-crawling with her belly off the floor
-cruising
-did not get her top teeth right after getting her bottom two
-nor is she drinking well from a sippy cup.

According to the PA, "A lot of 9-10 month olds are off a bottle at this age." "Get their top teeth with a few days of getting their bottom teeth." and, "Are cruising all over the place." I just kept calmly telling her babies do things in their own time and it's not a competition.

I'm really glad I know better. Ava is not behind. It's normal for a 5 month old to have several teeth and normal for a 10 month old to have none. It's also normal for some babies to never crawl at all, some experts will argue crawling isn't even considered a milestone anymore. Every baby does things in their own time. I work with the Pediatrician in the office and really like her, but it is like pulling teeth to get in to see her. So after going through 2 PA's (and waiting a month so I didn't have to see the first PA, who annoys me) I think I'm going to find another office that is closer to home and is more current in their literature. I also plan on talking to my current Ped to let her know why I'm leaving and tell her that the PA's in her office are giving misguided information. I can imagine how freaked out a parent who has done no research on her own or had babies within a similar age would be if a PA told them their baby was behind.

Ava's stats at this visit are:

Weight: 17 lbs 6oz- (25% at 9 months) (*15% for 10 months)
Length- 26 3/4 in -(25% at 9 months) and (*10% for 10 months)
Head Circ- 18 1/4in -(96% at 9 months and (*90% for 10 months)

*The Peds office counted her stats for her being 9 months, but since we were in a month late I wanted to remember what it was for 10 months too.

Sleeping Beauties

While Aunt Kimmy was watching Ava last week she caught Ava and her dog, Champ taking a snooze.

Leaving on a Jet plane.

Ava helps Daddy pack for another business trip. Thankfully I have a wonderful family who is great about jumping in and offering to help with Ava while I work. I'm sure she is going to have a lot of fun with Grandpa and Aunt Kimmy this week! Thanks guys!