my sick little babe

Ava came down with a pretty bad case of hand-foot-and-mouth disease over the last few days. Her little mouth looks like a severe herpes outbreak. It's pretty dang scary.

but no worries, through all of the discomfort she's still smilin'. 

tiny fingerprints

I love picking up my glasses to find the lenses smudged with Ava's tiny little fingerprints. Sometimes I wish I didn't need to wear them so I could keep those smudges forever.

Here's a video to accompany the previous post.

sweet taters

Ava's first taste of sweet potato. I finally put my new Beaba! into motion and whipped up some tasty taters for her tonight. 

nakie baby

I came into Ava's room this morning to this:

Apparently she's figured out how to take her diaper off.  Thank the good lord that diaper wasn't dirty! 

squinty eyes

Ava loves her crib. She absolutely loves it. After her naps, she'll turn on her belly and play with her bunny or scratch at the bumper. I'll walk in, surprise her, and we'll play this little game of peek-a-boo through the crib rails. I love the way her little squinty eyes, all smiles, peek over the top of the crib.

rice cereal aka "nastiest stuff i have ever tasted"

Mike and I finally, FINALLY started feeding Ava rice cereal. Yay! Her first solid food! I have to admit, it wasn't a disaster, but it was one of the funniest things I have ever seen. Oh man, the faces this child makes are absolutely priceless. I have to agree with her obvious distaste, the stuff is pretty bad. And when I say "pretty bad", what I really mean is even if you offered me $100,000 I wouldn't touch it with a ten-foot pole. Yes, it's really that bad.

toofers

Ava sprouted two little chompers on her bottom gums probably about a month and a half ago (so what, 4 1/2 months?). Poor little babe cut them within two days of each other, and boy, did my heart feel for her. I cannot wait until her teething misery is over. 

As excited as I was that she grew herself some teeth, it was nearly impossible to get a picture of them. It was nearly impossible to even see them in person, for that matter. The second I'd touch her mouth to get a good look at them she'd stick her tongue out at me or try to suck my finger. So naturally, when I stumbled across this photo (that Mike must have taken), I was surprised and elated to have proof of her teeth! 

Geez, that smile.

Disneyland

Mike and I have decided to celebrate our anniversary this year by taking a vacation and going to Disneyland. Call me cliche, but Disneyland is my absolute favorite place on earth. I really do think it's magical, and every time I go, or even think about it for that matter, I get as giddy as a five-year old girl doped up on funfetti cake opening birthday presents. Seriously, I am a die hard Disneyland fan. If we lived in LA, you bet we'd own annual passes. And you bet we'd be there every weekend. Every day. Every waking hour they were open. You get the picture.

Anyway, so we planned a little trip. Booked a flight, hotel room, bought 2-day Park Hopper passes, yada yada. We did this probably a month ago, and while I've thought about it nearly every day since then, I only just realized this afternoon that we will be leaving in less than two weeks. And while I am so extremely overly-excited for this trip, I am also so extremely overly-anxious even thinking about leaving Ava for three nights. Yes, I know that we are leaving her in the safest of all hands, but still, this will be the first time that we spend a night away from her. And it won't just be one night, it'll be three. Three! Three whole nights! Ninety-six consecutive hours we will be away from her. 

I am sure that I will suffer total mental breakdown on more than one occasion before then, and I know that kissing her goodbye and leaving her will be equivalent to having my heart ripped out of my chest, rolled around in the dirt, stepped on, and blown to pieces with a shotgun, but it is something I must do. Something I must learn to accept. As a mother. I must do it and accept it as a motherly duty. But six months is so soon to separate! Shouldn't she be eighteen, packing up for college, and driving into the sunset only to return for holidays and occasional weekends?

I understand that I am blowing this completely out of the water, but yes, I am nervous. And sad. And I don't want to leave my baby. Even if it does mean I get to visit the most Magical Place on Earth. 

But this is something that I owe to myself. And I owe to Mike. And we owe to each other. So yes, I must do this. And I can. And I will. Just as long as I can make 2192890183 phone calls to check-in and reassure my unnecessary anxiety. 

I mean, come on, how am I going to ever be able to leave this face?

No I am not going to cook my Baby!

Mike and I decided long before Ava was born that once she starts feeding on anything other than breast milk she will be on a mostly (if not all) organic, healthy diet. So far we've gotten the formula part down alright by using Baby's Only Organic Soy formula. Seems there are only three or so organic formulas on the market, and after lots of internet research I found this brand to be the must nutritious, affordable, and reputable. Problem is, I can only find it at Sprouts, so I am constantly grabbing an extra can in fear that they may not have it one day, one week, two weeks, indefinitely. Meaning I usually have a good supply of at least three cans going (although the last couple of weeks I've let it slip to the bare minimum before re-stocking). 

We can put Ava on rice cereal any time we want now, and even though I've had a can in the cupboard for a good two weeks now, we have yet to get around to it. No, no, I am not depriving my child of anything - technically we have until she is six months to introduce solids. I mean, I'm ready and everything, I even bought cute spoons and a cute bib. And so you ask why. Why am I not eager to sit my child in a highchair, feed her a bowl of mush, have her throw it at me and rub it in her hair, getting it everywhere but in her mouth? Who knows. Anyway, I'm mentally putting it on my next week's to-do list. I'll let you know how it goes. 

In the meantime, however, I'll tell you about my brand new babyfoodcookerextravaganzacontraptionamazingness! Lo and behold, Mike and I purchased a Beaba Babycook. Apparently it's some hot product in Europe and all the cute little European parents are raving about it, so we decided to order one for ourselves. I suppose I haven't even told you what exactly this special device does. It is an all-in-one babyfood maker. Processor, steamer, defroster, oh my! Sure, call me lazy. But if I can choose between making a mess of a steamer basket, pot, processor, and using the stove, or using one, tiny little all-in-one machine, you can bet your life I'm going to go with the latter. I am so extremely excited to use it I can hardly wait for Ava to hit that six month mark. Of course, I must first get her to cover herself and the entire house in rice cereal, oh yeah, and maybe eat a little some of it. 

I also purchased the Williams-Sonoma Cooking for Baby cookbook and let me tell you, I will be eating that mushy goodness right alongside Ava. Can you say sweet potato puree? Sweet pea puree? Potato and butternut squash stew? How about roasted red pepper and goat cheese puree? And when she's older there are dishes such as succotash, blackberry and ricotta parfait, minced pork and pear, root veggie medley, baby's curry, meatballs with polenta, lentil burgers with mint-yogurt sauce, pumpkin soup with alphabet pasta, turkey minestrone, buckwheat crepes, orzo with rainbow vegetables and OH MY GOD I THINK I MIGHT JUST EAT BABY FOOD FOR THE REST OF MY LIFE.

Love this Laugh

Mike is amazing at getting Ava to laugh. I don't know what he does, but he just looks at her and she starts cracking up. I, on the other hand, have to work my butt off to get even a giggle out of her. So while Mike bats his eyelashes and causes an uproar, I'm doing jumping jacks, shouting Ava cheers (complete with A-V-A hand motions), and doing the Salsa all while balancing eighteen books and a fruit bowl on my head. Here is just a little preview of what Mike can get simply by doing "the claw" at her. God, I love my husband. 

Baby Be Belly Sleepin'

Ava conquered the difficult task of rolling from back-to-stomach at four months old. I feared the day she'd discover stomach-sleeping is much more comfortable than back-slumber. I was lucky for a solid month and 13 days. I came in one afternoon to her sleeping on the floor on her belly and I just about had a heart attack. I instantly jumped to the ground and rested my hand on her still back to check for breathing. "Mike! Mike! She's not breathing!", I screamed. "Yes she is, I just checked on her". Turns out it's just a little more difficult to feel her breathing when she's on her belly. After my near-anxiety attack subsided, I turned her over on her back and faced my fear not-so-boldly in the face. The belly sleeping has indeed arrived. 

Now that she's a belly-sleeper, she doesn't stay in one spot during the night. She'll turn on her side, turn on her belly, back onto her side, shimmy sideways, stick her butt in the air, make a 180, pull her blanket free from it's tucking, kick the bunny across the crib, spit her pacifier 8 feet across the room. Seriously, what is it with this child's sleeping habits? I thought I moved a lot in my sleep, but apparently not as much as this crazy kid. I'm beginning to think she inherited all of Mike's sleeping habits, who is unknowingly performing advanced Yoga positions while dead asleep. The first time I slept in a bed with Mike I nearly died when I saw him bent in two at the end of the bed -  I didn't see him at first and thought he got up and left in the middle of the night. So, I guess I now have two wacko sleepers on my hands. 

Just so I can remember how adorable this wrinkly little armpit is.

Security Bunny

Ever since Ava was born I've been anticipating the arrival of her "security blanket" and wondering which little stuffed animal, blanket, toy, whatever, she'd decide to set her heart and hopes on. After she began sleeping in her crib, we always put her to bed with a little pink and white stuffed bunny that rattles. I guess at first it was just there, but it seems recently she's developed a liking for the bunny and now she can't sleep without it. It's pretty much the cutest thing ever. Oops, I'll stop myself right there (I don't want to go too mom-crazy on you). All I'm going to say from here is that Step One: Discovery of the Security Blanket is now over and I look forward to Step Two: Naming the Security Blanket (but for right now we'll just call it 'Bunny'). 

Memorial Day Weekend

My, my it has been quite a while since I've shown the blog some lovin'. I hope that over the next several days I can make some time to update all of the (now old) news! Unfortunately, because I'm positive I still suffer from that rusty pregnant mind, let us start with the more recent and hope that I may successfully make my way back.

For starters, Ava is now 5 1/2 months old! Holy jesus, I had no idea time would fly this quickly. Every day is a new learning experience, for both her and I. I cannot tell you how much I love being a mother and watching my baby grow into a healthy little person, with a vibrant, sweet personality, and the most lovable smile I've ever laid eyes on. I am absolutely crazy about her every minute of every day. How did I ever live without this dearest wee one in my life? How did Mike and I make this intensely complicated, yet so very beautiful, tiny creature? A human! Gee golly, I've officially gone "mom". So, I guess now that that's done and over with (for now anyway), let's get back to the rest of the good stuff: family vacation!


Mike, Ava, and I made our first family overnight vacation to Page for Memorial Day weekend to hang out with Nana, Tots, and the good ol' Harris family. It was so great to leave the city - Mike and I were in desperate need of a getaway. The drive up wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, minus the last forty-five minutes of Ava screaming her little lungs out. We had to stop in Flagstaff to feed Ava, but we stopped at a Starbucks so I can't complain (I have to admit it was rather nice taking our time). When we finally arrived, we were greeted by three crazy kiddos and four just as equally crazy adults (I use this term loosely in the sense that these people are nothing but FUN). We couldn't wait to get unpacked and catch up! Of course the baby was instantly ripped from my arms and passed around - Mandi's family hadn't yet met her so they made their introductions, and the kids had a blast playing "boo!" with her.

I could go on and on and on about the details of the visit, but instead I'll just give it a quick sum-up. It rained. A lot. A whole lot. And when it rained I mean it POURED. For 23892838 straight hours Mother Nature unearthed her maternal wrath upon us and flooded the streets, peoples homes, and my poor mother's windows. Okay so it wasn't really 12898898 hours, but it was definitely a long time. All of Thursday evening/night and the majority of Friday.

After the rain died down a bit Friday we headed out to Lone Rock where Tots and Mackay set up camp. It was overcast and very chilly, but we enjoyed it nonetheless. Personally, I'm glad the sun took the day off - we have more than enough sunlight in Phoenix right now, and we will for months to come. I'll never curse an overcast day, even if it is supposed to be bright and sunny and beachy! We hung out at the lake for several hours and after dinner Mandi, Hallie, Momma, Mike, Ava and I turned in for the night and headed home to sleep. Here's a first: Nana shared her bed with Ava for the night! It only took me eight bouts of paranoia and separation anxiety to agree, but I'm glad I did in the end. 'Twas nice having an uninterrupted night to get some much needed sleep. Thanks, Nana!

It was a quick trip: we left early afternoon on Saturday. While I wish we could've stayed longer, I am so glad that we had the time we did to see family and have some fun. Hopefully sometime in July we'll be able to visit Rob & Mandi in Henderson (don't worry mom, we plan on going when you guys go).

Toes to the Nose!

Ava has recently discovered her feet. She is now oh-so-helpful with providing me easy access during diaper changes.

It's surprising to me how much the media condemns women for formula feeding their children before the age of 1. I've recently decided to stop pumping my breast milk for Ava and instead put her on an organic soy formula diet. Research on discontinuing milk supply proved to be extremely conversational and, I must add, very discouraging. I did not find one website that supported a mother weaning her child from breast milk for reasons other than what is considered to be "appropriate": the mother has issues with milk supply, disease, or the child has irreparable feeding problems.

Personally, I am choosing to stop breast feeding because I am tired of the inconvenience. Call me selfish, but I can no longer wake up three times a night to pump for a screaming, hungry baby. I have been pumping breast milk since Ava was six weeks old and let me tell you, pumping every 3 hours for almost an hour is downright obnoxious. When I began breast feeding I vowed to myself that I would breast feed Ava until she was at least 10 months. I felt guilty even thinking about formula feeding her, mostly for health reasons. Will she receive all of the nutrients she needs? Will formula upset her belly? Will she develop health issues later in life?

After plowing through and ignoring all of the negative responses to weaning, I was able to find some valuable information concerning a baby's health and breast milk/formula. During the first three months of life, it is essential they receive x amount of nutrients to build immunities, and yes, they are found more in breast milk than formula (however there is NOTHING wrong with formula feeding from day one, for whatever reason). Having breast fed Ava for almost a solid four months, this puts my mind and the guilt at ease. I am excited, ecstatic really, to wake up and not have pumping be the first thing on my mind. I am looking forward to not having to drop everything I'm doing and start pumping, hoping the baby stays happy during the entire forty-five minutes that I am stuck to the pump.

I was having guilty thoughts of weaning as early as her first month, but I stuck to it for four months, and I am proud of myself for that. Breast feeding is difficult, very, very difficult, and I am glad it is over. Yes, this was a very difficult decision to make, but with formula nowadays, I can trust that my baby is receiving all the nutrients she needs to be and stay healthy. Now the only thing I have to worry about is the cost of formula (which will be SO worth it!).

It just dawned on me that I am very, very, very overdue on my blog music. Christmas music anyone?! Yikes, this is comparable to a Christmas tree in July...

But instead of updating my music player, I give you this:

teething together always makes it better

Ava has recently started teething. Poor baby, she usually does pretty well during the day, but nights are the hardest. I hope she cuts some teeth soon!


And while Ava has been waiting for her little chompers to sprout, I finally had some of my removed! I had my four wisdom teeth pulled (or rather cut out of my mouth by an oral surgeon) this morning. All impacted! Yay for me! No, it really wasn't as bad as I was anticipating it to be. Actually, it's been a breeze! I am probably speaking too soon, though, because supposedly symptoms don't really flare up until the day after. Hmph. Let's cross our fingers!


This picture is so not in my favor, but Mike thought it was funny that I couldn't open my mouth wide enough, let alone feel it, to get the pudding I was eating actually into my mouth. What can I say? At least my cheeks aren't super swollen! Well, maybe they are just a tad. :)

Numero Dos

Ava's two-month wellness check-up was today. Here are her new measurements:

11 lbs 3.5 oz, 22.5 inches long

Her weight and head circumference (lol) are in the 50-55th percentiles, while her length falls *short* in the 34th percentile. She's gonna be a shorty,  just like her Mommy and Daddy! 

Also, apparently she has a broken collar bone. Ten seconds later, when our hearts started pumping again, we were told "not to worry, it most likely happened during birth, and it'll heal itself and she'll be perfectly fine". She's supposedly not in pain, but I'm still being cautious, hoping it might heal itself a little faster. There is a noticeable bump on her left side where the scar tissue is forming. Poor baby. 

She was supposed to receive immunizations today, but they were out of one so we decided to wait until next week when all shots were available. I secretly wish that vaccinations were just a bunch of hulabaloo that we could skip on, but I am not so lucky. For now though I will be happy with having been able to postpone them one week. But oh, how my heart will ache.

Things I have learned during month two:

If they're fed and dry, it is okay to let them cry (but only for a few minutes!). 

Handicap bathroom stalls are the gatekeepers of public changing tables.

A smile is the most precious expression.

It is okay to have a bad night. Don't take it personally, in the morning things will be good again.

Don't feel guilty about going out for a few hours and leaving the baby safely at home (with a sitter, of course ;)).

Ava loves having her diaper changed. Or maybe she just loves being in her birthday suit? Either way, less fuss = lucky me!

Baby carriers are absolutely genius. 

I need to be taking many, many more photos.

Ava, thank you for sharing a little more of your sweet, sweet personality this month. I can't wait to see what else you have in store for us!