Sunday, October 7, 2012

Amarillo Visit

The weekend of September 14th, we visited Gigi, Pagger Don and Aunt Stacey in Amarillo. Connor had been there recently when he stayed by himself in late August, so he was very excited to return and show Mommy and Daddy all the fun things there are to do there.

We had amazing weather and since it was still so hot in Sugar Land, spending all of our time outside was so great. We played all sorts of ball games, took a Christmas picture, and made it to the Potter County Fair.

Since Aunt Stacey will be back on her cruise ship on actual Thanksgiving, we managed to squeeze in a Thanksgiving style meal on Saturday. What a treat that was. Gigi had all the tasty fixin's finished off with pumpkin pie of course. Avery didn't get to taste any, but I think she was eyeing her favorites for next year when she's old enough to eat Thanksgiving food. Of course Connor's favorite was the pumpkin pie and the homemade whipped cream.

We'll get to see Aunt Stacey one more time before she heads back to her cruise ship when they visit us in a few weeks for football fun, but this weekend was still a special time to see Connor and Avery bond with their Aunt who they don't get to see very often. We also got to meet Aunt Stacey's boyfriend, Tony, who drove up from Colorado to meet us and enjoy Thanksgiving on Saturday.

We left Sunday morning and couldn't believe how fast the time flew by. What a fun trip.

Gigi and Avery getting their snuggle on.
Connor loves dressing up as a cowboy and immediately he put on his cowboy boots, hat, and started roping a horse.
Nice form Connor. Pagger Don showed him how.
Now that he's got him roped, it's time for a ride.
Clearly from the look on the group in the background, you can tell that Connor is the dinner entertainment.
Connor also loves to dress up as a pirate. Here he is showing off the homemade sword Aunt Stacey made and his muscles of course. "Arrgh"
Connor bonding with his Aunt Stacey.
It was chilly in the mornings, so Avery rocked her puma, velour sweatsuit. She looked so funny in it.
Can you see her hands in her pockets. Ha! "Yo, I'm just chillin'"
Now he's got a homemade sword, bandana, and an eye patch. What a scary pirate.
Connor "helping" Aunt Stacey bake a cake. It was yummy and only had a few egg shells in it. Just kidding.
Gameday gals. Gig 'Em.
Thanksgiving came early this year. Yum!
Connor chowing down on his pumpkin pie.
Avery contemplating what food she will eat next year.
Connor won this huge "Rasta Banana" at the Potter County Fair. Avery liked batting at his dreads. Hee hee.

Friday, September 21, 2012

Avery Turns 5 Months Old!

Avery turned 5 months old on September 10th! Boy is she growing. She has had a few notable advancements this month.

1st, she got two teeth. They popped up on the bottom after weeks of heavy drooling and a few sleepless nights. Apparently, not only do I produce large children, I also produce early teethers. Connor got his first teeth by 5 months and so did Avery. Unfortunately, as you can imagine, babies don't like when sharp teeth poke through their baby gums, so it's not always pleasant, but mostly it doesn't seem to affect her sunny disposition.

She also has really increased her rolling and can roll from front to back and back to front. It's actually funny, because sometimes I put her under her play gym and go into the kitchen and then come back and she's rolled off of it onto the floor. This has become a bit of a problem during naptime though, because I can't get her to stop rolling onto her tummy and then because she's in a sleep sack, she can't get back over so she starts to cry. I have to go in and flip her back over. I am starting to let her stay on her tummy if she isn't fussing though and that seems to help.

We are working on sitting up on her own, but she's still pretty wobbly. That's a six month skill supposedly, so we're in no rush, but she does seem to be getting stronger and more stable every day. 

We don't have a doctor appointment at 5 months so I don't know her stats, but I'm guessing she's about 18 pounds. She is wearing 9 month and 12 month clothes. She's a big girl with lots of snuggly rolls. I love them and her so much. 

She still gets up once in the night, sometime between 2 and 4am and then when she wakes up for good in the morning changes. For about 10 days she was getting up at 5:50 am for the day and that was pretty harsh, but the last three days she has been getting up closer to 7:15am, so who knows. I wish she would get on more of a schedule so I could plan her naps and such, but she just doesn't seem to be cooperating in that regard. Some days she is ready for a nap by 8am and sometimes she can make it until 10am. Who knows.

She does still give me a good afternoon nap from maybe 3:30 to 5 or 6. The good news with that is that time is when Connor typically naps, so that is a lovely time in my day. When the naps don't align it's not as easy, and it does happen more than I'd like.

She still tends to be a very happy baby. People tell me that all the time. She'll smile at strangers and is generally very happy. She is laughing more and that's pretty awesome. I love her little smile. It melts me every time.

For now, she only drinks breast milk, but this next month, we plan to start solids. Very exciting. Stay tuned.

Our jolly Avery at 5 months.
Hello everyone, I'm 5 months old!
Avery has grown out of her swing already, but we tried it one day and she looked cute so I snapped some pictures.
Sweet girl, big cheeks, wild hair.

Avery constantly has her hands in her mouth and sometimes she actually sucks her thumb, but usually she just stuffs 4 fingers in her mouth at once.
Showing off her tummy time strength. Looking at her all pushed up.

Wearing her Aggie dress and getting in on the football action.
Just a little photo shoot of our little girl with her mommy. These may be the first pictures I'm actually in since she was born. 
I am such a sweetie!
I love this little sly face she's making.

She still loves her pacifier.
Showing off her length and her leg rolls.

For those people who don't ever see her cry. She does cry, I swear. Also, if you zoom in, you can probably see her two little teeth on the bottom.
Avery's pretty blue eyes.

Now here is a video of Avery being silly and giggling in the bath tub. You'll hear Connor walk in and ask why she's in his tub. It's funny. She grew out of her baby bath tub and likes the big tub to kick in. Connor by the way, continues to be an AWESOME big brother. We couldn't ask for more.

http://youtu.be/s0BQrjJwU60

Monday, September 10, 2012

Bryan fun and the Michigan Game

We have visited College Station twice recently. First was just our immediate family as my parents are still traveling and then the second time was with my Dad and my sister's family over Labor Day (My Mom was still in Colorado with my sister Julie and her new baby boy Dixon). Connor always has a ball with his cousins and it's just so fun to see. 

The Saturday of Labor Day weekend also kicked off college football season, so Jeff and I drove to Dallas to see Michigan take on Alabama at Cowboys Stadium. Michigan lost badly, but it was still a really cool experience.

Enjoy our pics.

Baby Avery swimming with Daddy during our family visit to Bryan. I will say, it was nice having a pool for a weekend.

Connor having fun in the spa.

Um, you can't have a beer yet Miss Avery.
During this weekend, Connor got really into using goggles and looking underwater.

On Sunday afternoon, we decided to have lunch over at the Miramont pool. Connor loved the pizza and the swimming.

Avery liked kicking her legs in the shade.
Our little water baby after some pool time.

Now this was taken Labor Day weekend. I just wanted a shot of her in this all pink outfit.
Happy girl.
Showing off her kicking skills.

The gangs all in the pool.

It was cute, the kids liked to sleep in the same room. In here we've got Martin, Winnie (on the floor), and Connor.

Avery dressed in her Michigan cheerleader outfit. While Jeff and I attended the game, Avery stayed with my Aunt and Uncle in Dallas, and Connor stayed in College Station with his cousins.

Michigan girls.

Avery looking quite at home at my Aunt and Uncle's house in Plano.

Admiring the huge Cowboys stadium when we first arrived.

Me and two of my lacrosse teammates at a pre game tailgate.

Standing in front of the huge jumbotron from our field level suite. We actually got on it 3 or 4 times. Very cool.

Watching warm ups from our suite.

Admiring our view. It really was a cool experience despite the loss.





Avery rocking her water hat before some pool time.


Cousins and Erin eating and drinking smoothies by the Miramont pool.




Grandpa and Avery poolside.



Night time swimming. The video below is of the night swimming. It's dark but you can get a sense of the fun.






Connor and Libby are best buds. It's really cute seeing them interact. Here they are in the tub and the video below shows some of the fun.


The D'Andrea kids loved their baby cousin. Here Libby gets to hold Avery and Martin (second grade this year) is being silly.