Ava: Four Months Old! :)

Here is our little punkin at 4 months:

Seriously. Can't get enough of her.

I'll have official stats after her well visit, but here are my guesses:

Weight: around 12 1/2 pounds

Length: 23 inches

Clothes: 3 months (starting some 6 months if they run small); all pajamas are 6 months for baby long legs :)

Diapers: size 1

This month has been so much fun! Ava has really started to get into a great routine and a PRECIOUS personality! She wakes up between 6 and 7 these days... and she just wakes up happy! I love that! We hear her on the monitor just talking away and when we go in, she is so excited! :) She has breakfast and plays for about an hour or so and takes a good nap in the morning. She wakes up for lunch around 11:30 or 12 and is up for a few hours. This is her best play time. Usually, she goes down for an afternoon nap by 2, but here lately she has just been taking little cat naps throughout the afternoon. That could be because we are always on the go so it's hard to get a good afternoon nap... or I think it may be her teeth bothering her. Either way, she's usually fine to be awake as long as she still has her Zantac for her reflux. Don't ever forget that stuff. Oye. I made that mistake the other night and we were gone longer than expected. Epic Mom Fail. Never again. We are putting a serving of her medicine in my purse so we can avoid that situation if at all possible! :) Anyway, she takes her bath between 8-9 and is usually out shortly after that. She either wakes up once to eat or not at all. She is sleeping really well lately considering the teething...

Speaking of teething... Ava constantly has her hands in her mouth just grabbing her gums. I honestly hate this for her just like I did with Addie. I mean, it has to hurt! :( Now that Ava can hold things, that has helped. She can grab some things and get them to her mouth (teethers, toys, etc.) and when she can't, she will let us hold it so she can chew on it for a while. God love her. I know this phase will last a long time... I just pray that we can find something to make her feel better through it all. :)

Ava loves to laugh now! Quite possibly the cutest thing you've ever seen... she's doing very well following objects and voices and she always watch you walk away or walk into the room. She can focus on her videos for about 20 minutes these days and she loves playing on her playmat, too. Tummy time is not her favorite, but it's getting better! No rolling yet, but plenty of holding that big ole melon up and looking around! :)

Her exersaucer has helped a lot with head control! She loves looking up at the toys and pressing the buttons. I can't believe she's already big enough for it! :( Time is flying!

Check out that concentration! :)

This month, Ava went on her first road trip. We drove to Mississippi for the week of the Fourth of July, and Ava did great! We only had to stop a couple of times each way, so in my book, it was a win! I sat in the back with the girls and entertained them. :) I love the pics in this collage. She was in a happy mood!

The trip was fun for both girls! Addie had a blast since her cousins were there and she was spoiled by my mom and dad... and Ava seemed to love being there, as well. :) We did a lot of relaxing since it rained all but one day we were there. We did get some swimming and boat riding in, too. Very fun! :) Most of our pics are on my mom's camera. I'll have to do a separate post. :)

I did get some pics of her at 3 months in one of my favorite outfits of Addie's. :) Love this girl.

Happy baby!

Grabby Grabberson.

Sweet Ava...

Love you more than words, sister.

Mother's Day and Father's Day

We had a lot to celebrate this year with our two little miracles. PTL for these girls for the mothers and fathers that Eric and I are blessed to have in our life. :)

When I think back to our life before these two, I remember dreaming about what they would look like... how their voices would sound... what things they would like to play... how much sleep I would lose... :) Now that they are here, I literally look at them every day and think, "Wow. They are SO much better and more amazing than I imagined!" I mean, really, I know all parents think this, but Addie is pretty much the coolest person on the planet. She is hilarious, people... and I just know sweet Ava is going to continue to brighten my days as she grows. :)

All of these pictures were before she really smiled, so she doesn't look too impressed with our photo sessions. Ah, well... get used to it, sister. :) ha

I definitely would not be the person/mom I am today without this amazing woman. God really broke the mold when He made my Mama. If you knew my Mimi, you would see a lot of her in my Mama. I'm not going to even try to describe her because there aren't enough adjectives in the world to adequately describe her... plus, I'll start crying. Hormones rock. We'll just sum it up by saying that I love her VERY much. :) ...and obviously her grandgirls do, too! I am so thankful that she was with us on Mother's Day this year. We actually met my brother for dinner the night before so I'll have to get pictures from our dinner. We also met Eric's mom for dinner on Mother's Day... have to get those pics, too. Obviously, remembering my camera was not on the top of my list with that little newborn in the mix. :) ha

We didn't get to spend Father's Day with my dad, but as you can tell, he is well-loved by my girls. Again, God just really blessed me with this man. Sometimes I can't believe how much he does for me, for us... I love him VERY much, too!

The night before Father's Day, we went to Eric's dad's for a cookout/swim. As you can tell, Addie was excited! Sweet little fish. :)

I didn't get many pictures because of a sweet little teething infant... but this picture shows you how much fun was had. She didn't make it to the house before crashing. :)

I received my Wife of the Year award after taking my hubby to his favorite place for wings, Hooter's. On Father's Day. Yes, you read that right. I asked him where he wanted to go, and he said, "I want some wings from Hooter's, but we don't have to go there." We all know that means, "Let's go there." So we did. I actually really like the food there, too, and Addie always eats well. Win-win. :)

Sweet baby enjoyed her first Hooter's experience. :)

Side note: my mom actually sent Eric the gift cards for Hooter's, so she wins MIL of the year. :)

Addie and I made this double doozie cookie cake in lieu of naptime that afternoon. Well worth it! :)

I had to take pics of these three jokers by myself... this one is my absolute favorite! :)

Oh, wait. I love this one of Ava, too! ha :)

Eric is such a great Daddy to my girls. He works so hard for us and we are very thankful! Thank you, Jesus, for choosing me to be his wife! I am beyond blessed!

Ava: Three Months Old!

Hard to believe our little peanut is already three months old!

Here she is with her signature head tilt. :) We're working on head control. ha :)

Weight: TBD

Length: TBD

Clothes size: 0-3 month

Diaper: size 1

This child is becoming so much fun these days! Her sweet smile will light up any room. She loves to see people and hear them talk. She follows your voice and watches you walk away... and even whimpers when she can't see you anymore. :( One of her favorite voices is Addie's. I LOVE listening to Addie say things to her that we say... "Hey there pretty girl..." "You are just precious!" "Aw, it's okay Sissy." "I just love you, Sister!" :)

Ava's absolute favorite place is her changing table. She loves being in her room and some days her demeanor changes as soon as we walk in there! Speaking of, here are some pics of her nursery since I haven't posted any.

When we found out we were pregnant this time, I knew that I wanted to incorporate my favorite color (blue) into the nursery in some way... whether we had a boy or a girl. When we found out about Ava, I found this bedding and fell in love with it! It's called My Baby Sam: Pixie in Aqua. I love the combination of colors and the paisley/polka dot combo. My girls got me the mobile and the hamper (not shown). I'm so glad they did. Ava loves that mobile!

Took me a while to decide on her letters, but Hobby Lobby had these aqua ones that were just the right color. I added the little ribbons and they really stand out on the brown walls (we left the walls the color that was in this room before we turned it into the nursery. So glad we did! It looks fab with the colors of her bedding). Thankfully, she has a short name, so three letters were super cheap!

A friend of mine, Brooke, hand painted these for me! I LOVE these... so special!

This is a work in progress. All of the furniture was Addie's, so she still loves to use all of these books. We haven't found a good bookshelf for her room, but when we do, a lot of these will move to her room. For now, it works because she loves to read to Ava while Ava plays on her playmat. :) My mom found those little baskets at Hobby Lobby. Perfect match!

We made a shadow box of Addie's NICU things, and we liked it so much that we decided to make one for Ava. :) Her's contains her coming home dress, her hat from the hospital, her first diaper size, her "sunglasses" from her day under the billiruben light, her bracelet and crib sign, and a picture of her as Thursday's Baby. All I need to add is a picture of the Thursday's Baby display in the hospital.

My favorite part of the nursery: the curtains! I saw ruffled curtains on Pinterest a while back and my mom said she would make them for me... but we searched the internet to see if they were carried anywhere, and Pottery Barn Kids had them on clearance! Score! They were cheaper than she could have made them, so we went with them and LOVE them! I am probably going to get them in purple for Addie's big girl room! That rocker was my parents' that they used for my brother and me. We've used it for both girls. Love.

There are a few other things I'm working on in her room that I'll post later when I get pictures. :)

Ok, back to Ava. :)

She eats about every three-four hours during the day... and on average, she goes about 5.5 hours at night. We're having more nights at 6 hours, so that is super nice! One night we even went 8 hours! Holla! To be honest, I'm okay getting up with her. I think because it's our last baby I am savoring every second with her as a baby. She depends on me to eat and survive... and, selfishly, I love that. :) She takes simethicone (gas drops) with just about every feeding, and she lets me know when I forget to give them to her! :( She is still taking Zantac twice a day for her reflux.

Ava is just the sweetest thing... have I mentioned that yet? ha :) She still enjoys her Baby Einstein movies, looking at her "friends" in her carseat, napping in the swing, looking at her mobile, playing on the playmat, and being outside (when it's not too hot!). She also loves to be held facing forward so she can see what is going on around her. :)

My little love,

You literally light up our life. Your name, Ava, means "life" so that is not surprising at all. :) We all look forward to your smiles each day and how you are learning more and more all the time. You have the BEST big sister! She loves you and is always making sure you are okay. I am so happy that you will have her to grow up with and learn from... You'll learn to love her like we do. :)

We love you so much!

Mama and Daddy (and Addie :)

Library time :)

Now that it is hot as blazes outside, I try to find as many fun indoor activities as possible for my little three year old! The public library is one of her favorites! She's a little overwhelmed with the group activities (there are lots of "big kids") so we have been sticking to the books, computers, train tables, and other toys. She also loves checking out books and movies!

She ran to the train table the first time we went. :)

There are such fun, educational games all around... teacher's dream!

Paused for a moment to look Mama's way :)

Happy Sissy :)

Addie loves the city carpet! Her imagination is one of my favorite things about this age! She is so much fun! :) Invisible Lexi usually goes with us everywhere we go. She was totally in this picture. :)

Ava is always at home in the library... nice and somewhat peaceful. :)