Birthday Party was a Success!

We had so much fun at her First Birthday party! Ava just knew she was the center of attention and loved it, until we all sang Happy Birthday to her. She just gave that look, like what are these weirdos doing? We had all our family and Ava's friends from music and playgroup were able to come and that was great!

She LOVES Music Class

Not only was Ava giddy from all the excitement of it being her birthday, she was having a "ball" in music class this week! It was our season finale, we've been going since she was 4 months old, and we start again in a few weeks. I highly recommend a program similar to this one, http://www.heartsongmusictogether.com/

She loves Ms. Carey and the guitar

Obviously, she's not a big fan of sitting in my lap, or being near me for that matter, as there is so much to see and do! Here she is "dancing" on center stage.
Can you see her in there rolling around in the balls?

Having a "ball"!

Happy 1st Birthday My Sweet!

It's finally here! Ava's FIRST Birthday! It has flown by, but in a lot of ways, it seems like she has been in our lives forever. It's hard to remember life before Ava, as she is our world now.

Happy Birthday my love!

A Few of My Favorite Baby Things

From our first year:

Ava's first belly laugh - I will never forget the sweet sound

After bathtime - the smell of sweet, clean baby

Awaiting daddy's arrival home from work everyday - if you want to know what pure, sheer excitement looks like, that's what I'll always remember

Of course, the first time Ava said "mama" - melts my heart

First steps - the look of determination in Ava's eyes. I have a feeling we are going to see that look A LOT

The look on your face as Ava would come running into our arms

The way in which Ava wants and needs to learn about everything around her and her ability to retain it. I was blown away at how much of a little sponge she is. It hands-down is the most amazing thing I've seen in her.

Our days together, being able to stay at home and being the most fulfilled I've ever been. I'm so fortunate (Thank you Ryan!)

Reaching my goal with breastfeeding - knowing I've provided Ava with such valuable nurishment is rewarding

Open-mouth kisses - especially when they are spontaneous and given for no apparent reason, only she knows why she gives them

Footed jammies - OMG, she looks so cute in these!

A letter to my Daughter on the Eve of your 1st Birthday

My Sweet Ava,

I'm blown away right now at the thought of my baby girl turning ONE year old tomorrow. I'm going to try to express a few of my emotions, but there are so many. For one, I'm ecstatic that we've (you, me and daddy) have made it through a whole year together. Trust me, for awhile there, time seemed to be going by so slowly. I now know that it was due to sleep deprivation and insecurities on my behalf that those first few months were so hard. But, oh, what I'd give now to do it all over again and not change a single thing. Nope, I wouldn't and do you know why? I wouldn't have the same baby that I have right now. Perfection. Ava, you are the most perfect and beautiful child that anyone could ever ask for.

Just watching you grow and change allows us to get a sneak peek into what you're personality is going to be like (or for the most part--already is) and we love the person that you are and will become. You are so inquisitive and thoughtful, silly and sly, smart and sassy, stubborn and loving. A perfect recipe for a well-rounded girl.

On this Eve of your birthday, I also find myself sad. Sad that I no longer have a baby that I can cuddle and rock, feed and burp. But realistically, you cannot stay a baby forever. My sadness turns to joy when I think about how much you've grown and how proud I am of you. Daddy and I are so proud to call you our baby girl.

I wish you nothing but happiness on your first birthday. I love you so much! Thank you for being you! Happy Birthday, Ava!

With all the love I have,

Mommy

"Nigh, Nigh"

I couldn't resist getting a video of Ava going down for a nap. She just finished saying "Night, Night"(without the "t" at the end) to me so I ran and got the camera for her to do it again. As you can see, she said it again but I got her all riled up when I left....Ooops!

Not sure what I was thinking....

...doing a DAILY countdown? Between all 3 of us being sick and Ava walking everywhere, I don't have time to update a DAILY picture. So, I'll just have to sporadically add a fave picture here and there.

Today's pic (11 days??? til her birthday)

23 days and a favorite photo

Where's Ava?

There she is!! Being her usual silly self. She crawled into the exersaucer and stood up.

24 more days until she's one

One of my favorite pics from this past year.....

I walked into her room expecting to find her laying down and saw this! She was sitting up all on her own before she was even 6 months old. In hindsight, that is incredible! She has always been so strong.

The countdown continues....25 days

Here is today's favorite pic of my twins! Ava was about 3 months old here.

Time for a video

Ava is obsessed with animals and their sounds. She mostly picks them up when we are reading and is such a fast learner, that it only takes one or two times to hear what an animal does or says and she starts showing us. It's hilarious! She is a true genious, people.

http://s71.photobucket.com/albums/i146/mnallen79/?action=view&current=Videoanimalsounds.flv

26 days til the BIG ONE!

I had just fed her a 3rd bite of pears and after trying to tell me she was not a fan of them, she finally got the point across!

27 days (A little behind)

I love, love, love those little thighs! They're still there at 11 months, but not nearly as chubby and scrumptious!

28 Days and counting....

My favorite pic for today is.....

She was almost 8 months old in this pic and working on those fine motor skills. Obviously, she got them down pretty early!

The countdown begins....29 days!

Ava has officially hit her last and final month before turning ONE YEAR OLD!! I can't even believe it you guys!

So, to borrow an idea from our good friends Paisley and Melissa (http://www.paisleypigpress.blogspot.com/) I am going to try to post a favorite picture from this whirlwind of a year everyday up until Ava's one year birthday, March 4!

Here is my first favorite: There's no explanation needed for this one. This is the day our we met our beautiful baby girl.

This one's for the girls...

This post is gonna be all about Mama!

Stop reading now if you are looking for an Ava update.....this is not the post for you.

Last night I went to Mommy Monday (a.k.a. girls night) w/ our playgroup, minus the babies. We had such a great time just chatting about everything from tantrums to thai food. I managed to drink A. Whole. Beer. Woohoo! That has happened in a very long time.

Here is a picture of the 6 of us!

From left to right:

Keri the "Creative Confidante"

Melissa the "Confident Fashionista"

Sherrill the "Spanish Vixon"

Nikki the "Rockstar SuperMama"

Carissa the "Brave Heart, Gentle Spirit"

And Moi! Below is a very important picture because.....

Are you ready?

I'm sporting my favorite PRE-pregnancy jeans! Man, I feel like a whole new woman!

What is it about ELMO?

That babies/kids go gaga over?

Add Ava to the list.

Ava has been saying "Mama" for a few months now, but she has really stepped it up and saying it at random times when she is not even looking at me or needing me. For example, when she is playing with a stack of diapers, clean ones, if you were wondering. She'll go on an d on....mamamama.

Not so fast....Elmo is on her diapers. She's not saying "Mama" all the time instead she has learned to say "Elmo", but it it more of a "Momo" which in turn, sounds like "Mama". So, she hasn't really been saying "Mama" (though she does say it), but really she is saying her BFF's name...."Momo".

http://s71.photobucket.com/albums/i146/mnallen79/?action=view&current=Videosayelmo2.flv

Randomness....

Just some new pics of Ava.


Umm, this is what she likes to do. Throws her blankie over her head and just blindly walks. I wonder where she gets her sense of adventure? Not me.

She loves to wear her shades.

Ava and daddy

Where did my baby go?

I was looking at pictures that I took the other day and I came across this one where Ava looks more like a little girl to me than a baby. I don't know if it the teeth or more hair (humor me!), but she looks like such a little girl.

And....she's OFF!!!

My goodness, just look at her go!

http://s71.photobucket.com/albums/i146/mnallen79/?action=view&current=MOV05879.flv

Cram Session: Ava's Tricks

I thought I would try to cram into one video, for our viewing pleasure (and convenience), some of the new things that Ava is doing:

Body parts: head, tummy (not seen), mouth, and nose

Waving

Sounds of a snake.

Take a look!

http://s71.photobucket.com/albums/i146/mnallen79/?action=view&current=video10monthtricks.flv

Spaghetti 1 vs. Ava 0

I have to pinch myself...

....to really believe I'm looking at my baby as she's wobbling on two legs across the room! I just can't fathom that this is my Ava, the helpless little baby who has depended on me for 10 months. I just wanted to share a few pics of the walking Ava. She is such a tough little cookie as you can see in the last pic, that was quite a spill!

BIG NEWS on the eve of her 10 months bday....

We have a walker! I guess I can officially call Ava a walker. She can stand up on her own and go forward, several steps. She just keeps at it, trying and trying. She is still wobbly, but what can you expect? I have several videos, none perfect, but I got so teary eyed when I watched my BABY walk into the kitchen!!! What???

http://s71.photobucket.com/albums/i146/mnallen79/?action=view&current=videowalkinginherroom.flv


http://s71.photobucket.com/albums/i146/mnallen79/?action=view&current=videowalkingintothekitchen.flv


http://s71.photobucket.com/albums/i146/mnallen79/?action=view&current=videowalkinginthedark.flv

Video: First Steps!

While she is not a full-blown walker yet, Ava is attempting to walk by taking 3, 4, 5 steps at a time. Here she is on Christmas Eve w/ Daddy and I, practicing. She was trying so hard and we actually got it on camera.

http://s71.photobucket.com/albums/i146/mnallen79/?action=view¤t=videowalking.flv

We WON!!

Thanks to all our friends and family for your effort in securing a win! We had nearly 400 votes! WOW!! Thanks again!

We Need Your Vote!

The company who did our Christmas Cards, secretstorksurprise.com, has a Holiday Photo contest going on. As a customer, through a consent form, I gave my permission to them to use our photo in the contest.

Soooo, thanks to the determination of Ryan and myself, my MIL (MOSTLY), and now BIL (Uncle Aaron), we are currently a contender for first place. We need to pull through to close the deal!

Here is the website:

http://secretstorksurprise.com/gpage10.html

We are picture #9.

Sadly, voting is limited to 1 per IP address so feel free to email this to your friends and family!

Thanks so much!!

I promise I've been good, Santa

Pleeeeeeease don't put me on the naughty list. I'll work on my sleep, I promise. My mommy says I am so so good!

Listen to what Ava has to say....

She has learned something new....

I wasn't quite sure that she put two and two together w/ Santa and "ho, ho, ho", but it was confirmed this morning while we were at the grocery store.

We were at the grocery store and just cruising around, I'm all in my element and just jibber-jabbering back and forth w/ baby girl. She was holding the grocery list for me. All of a sudden she starts in on her "ho ho ho ho" thing. Once she starts, she does it for like 5 minutes. There was no Santa around so I figure, well, I guess she doesn't quite get that "ho ho ho" goes w/ Santa, but whatever, it must just be a new word/sound. Well, about 3 minutes later I look down while she is still saying it and she is concentrating so hard on the shopping list and what do I see at the bottom of the paper? A santa hat! It was on the SPCA note pad we got and it had a dog w/ a santa hat! So she DOES get it! She was saying "ho ho ho ho" to the santa dog. So CUTE!!

Getting ready for the Holidays!

We actually decorated for Christmas this year in a timely manner, so we get to enjoy the decorations for a whole month as opposed to a few weeks. It was so nice, as always, to get the tree out (pre-lit and fake--how very un-green of us) and decorate it. Ava was a big help, as you can see. We listened to Christmas music and thought about making hot chocolate, but since it was in the mid 70's here and we were both sweating, we decided water would suffice. Christmas is one of my favorite times of the year and I have such fond memories of it. I can only hope that Ava will one day feel the same way.

Here is Ava "helping" us w/ the ornaments:

Such a Silly Girl

Ava's little personality is so cute these days. She has learned to crinkle her nose and sniff. Check her out in this video. I love it!!

http://s71.photobucket.com/albums/i146/mnallen79/?action=view&current=videoavablowingnose.flv

We made it!!

Here's the fam at Grandma Laurie's house in Tulsa:

Here we are at Gigi and Poppy's house in Dallas:

We are back in the ATX now after a long journey to Dallas and then on to Tulsa and back to Dallas. Ava hung in there, but by the last day, she was tired and cranky and ready to go home, as were we. She showed off all her new tricks and of course everyone thought she was so cute!

She's waving hi and bye-bye

She's saying "mamama"

She's flipping her lips w/ her fingers and making a humming sound (does that even make sense?)

She's crawling faster than ever

She's pulling up and letting go and standing there for a few seconds

She's semi-signing "milk"

And most importantly, she gave both sets of grandparents KISSES!! Open mouth and all!

She visited w/ a lot of family and friends this Thanksgiving and it was so nice to spend time w/ everyone.

Ava and Grandma Laurie:

4 Generations of Girls: Great Grandma Smalley, Grandma Laurie, Mommy, and Ava

Ava w/ the boys, her daddy and uncle Aaron:

Gigi and Poppy with Ava:

She also got to meet her uncle Austin and Aunt Gretchen (not pictured, oops, I didn't get a picture....darn!) and see her cousin Rylee and Aunt Rachel again:

Happy Turkey Day!

Ava can say this knowing good and well what turkey tastes like, so it will be a happy turkey day for her! She likes to feed herself chicken (in finger food form, not pureed, as I couldn't bring myself to puree meat....yuck!) and tried turkey the other day at Rudy's BBQ. It was seasoned, so I wasn't sure she would like it, but who am I kidding? She LOVED it, of course.

So, in case we don't post for awhile, as we will be heading out to Dallas and Tulsa to visit the grandparents, Happy Thanksgiving!

Here is Ava styling her new onesie created by moi (my "inpiration" came from another mommy on my mommy message board, thanks SAB717)! As you can see, Ava is less than thrilled to be posing right now b/c I couldn't wait to put it on her, even if it was right after she woke up from her nap. She looks cute anyhow.

Oh, and a tooth update for ya!

Not one.

Not two.

Not three.

Not four.

Not just five.

But SIX teeth now!

If you did the math, this little lady got 6 teeth in 6 weeks! She handled it like a trooper though. She is all business when it comes to getting a job done. Determination I tell ya, every once of her, from her crawling to her teeth! This is the best picture I could get. I probably won't be able to get any closer to her mouth until she is about 2!

Belated Halloween pics

Sorry it took awhile to get the pics of the cutest chick in the world on here, but here they finally are. I will also include a link to the Halloween photo book I made for Ava.

http://share.shutterfly.com/action/project/8EbsWzZm5aMqO/landing;jsessionid=82C87C4267E0A4D2EB41596336ED5A95