Monday, October 19, 2009

Avery at 5 and 6 Weeks

Time has flown. I find myself saying this over and over again and I am sure it will continue to be a frequent thought that I have. Although it is bittersweet to see Avery get bigger, it is so much fun to watch her grow and become more interactive. In the past couple of weeks I have definitely felt more like myself and have actually been able to accomplish several things per day around the house. I have also gone out without her several times too, which has been nice. However, I am always super excited to get back home to see her! I am very nervous though about transitioning back to work. My first day back will be November 11th and I already starting to be anxious about its arrival. Please add this to your prayer list!

Avery sleeping through the night was no fluke. Since she turned 5 weeks old, she has been consistently sleeping from 11:00 until 5:30 (sometimes later) each night. Even the trip home did not deter her from doing this. A stuffy nose led to one exception in the routine, but that has been it. I am looking forward to 7 or 8 straight hours, but what a blessing to get 6.5!

Since she was born, she has done really well with holding her head up, but at 5 weeks she started keeping it up for extended periods and really began to want to watch everything and everyone. So at 6 weeks, we decided to try out the Bumbo seat. She loves it! Now she spends about 20 minutes of her wake time in it, just taking in the scenery. Since I can take it an sit her anywhere that I am, it has really helped me out too. She has watched me blog, dry my hair, fold clothes, you name it, from the Bumbo seat :)

Avery loves to be talked to. She gives the sweetest smiles and coos during our conversations. She doesn't save all of her sweetness for me either. Pretty much anyone who gives her attention is privy to her cuteness. She also loves her swing. Anytime she will not complete a nap or we just need to get some things done, the swing is out go to. She will sit and talk to herself in it, which for us is a lot of fun to watch.

Right now, she is good with everyone and doesn't fuss at all when being held. In fact she is so comfortable with other people, she will usually fall asleep if they hold her long enough. I hope this trend continues and she doesn't go through too much separation anxiety. Don't get me wrong though, this girl has thrown a fit or two...She isn't completely perfect :)

I can distinguish between her cries and loves her tired one the most. It is so very half hearted and melts my heart! Her eyes are still blue and oh, last but not least, at 5 weeks Avery weighed 9.11 and at 6 weeks 10.5. She is definitely a growing girl! She developed Baby Acne at the end of 4 weeks, but now at the end of 6 weeks it is clearing up. Avery is our little doll and we can't wait to see what the coming weeks have in store!

Monday, October 12, 2009

Grands, Greats, and Everyone In Between!

This past weekend we made our first overnight trip with Avery to our hometown. We worried about how she would do during the 3.5 hr car ride home, but she ended up sleeping almost the whole way there and back. Since we have been back though, it has been hard to get her back on schedule due to her and us being sooo tired and then her having a very stuffy nose :(

She got to meet lots of very special people, as well as visit with a few she already loves. Levi and I are blessed to have all four of our grandmothers and one grandfather still with us. Little Miss was a hit with all of them this weekend! We both love showing her off to everyone. This is such a special time in our lives and we are trying to savor each moment. Avery also attended her first church service and was a little doll the whole time. It was fun to introduce her to people at church who have known Levi since he was born and some who even knew his dad when he was little. It was a whirlwind of a trip but a blast nonetheless.

Her MaMaw Brown (My Mom's Mom)

Four Generations of Extraordinary Women!

Her Granny Smith (My Dad's Mom)

Her Grandmother Christeen (Levi's Dad's Mom)
Her Maw Mize (Levi's Mom's Mom)

Maw Mize and Daddy Mize

Her Papa Tim (My Dad)

Her Grandaddy George (Levi's Dad)
Her Grandmommy (Levi's Mom)
(This picture is from when she was a week old)

Her Uncle Sam and Aunt Alyssa
Her Aunt Pam from MA (Levi's Mom's Sister)

Her Cousin Hayden

Her Cousins Brooklyn, Anna Kate, and Emma Sue
(We are missing Briley and Karrigan who were also born this year!)

Monday, October 5, 2009

1 Month Old!

As hard as it is to believe, Avery is 1 Month Old! Just a little over 4 weeks ago, I was still pregnant and waiting on our little miracle to arrive. Now, we are spending our time in awe of just how awesome she is, and how fast time flies. Last Thursday when I weighed her, she was 8 lbs. 11 ozs. This girl knows how to eat!

While we have had a couple of rough nights, the overwhelming majority of them have been pretty easy. Although, I think it might be a fluke, last night at 4 weeks 5 days, she slept from 11:00 p.m. until 5:45 a.m. To say that we were blown away was an understatement. I cannot tell you how rested I felt this morning! We will see if it happens again. I don't think she is ready to skip that middle of the night feeding every night just yet. I will keep you updated...

At four weeks she took her first "real" bath, courtesy of Daddy, and loved it! She has had a couple since then and just looks so content. As you can tell, Levi is not in love at all with her :)

Avery gazes so intently at everyone as if she is taking everything about you in. We both really love just sitting and talking to her. She is also doing really well at holding her head up. She can still wear newborn diapers, but is getting very close to being in size 1. I am so sad, yet so excited and anxious to watch my tiny sweetie grow. To us right now, she seems so much bigger, but everyone else still thinks she is tiny. After all, some babies are born as big as she is (Levi) at 1 month.

Until next time...