Baby Shower for Ella Rose

Two of our best friends, Katie and Mark, are expecting their first little baby girl at the end of September! We are blessed to have such sweet and precious friends and we cannot wait to meet little Ella. We hope that her and Avery will be the best of friends! We had the privilege of throwing them a BBQ Baby Shower this weekend...here are some pictures :)

 

A Very First: Solid Foods

I am going to start documenting a lot of Avery's big "firsts" on the blog for her! 

Last night, we introduced Avey to her first real solid food. We picked pears to start her off...If she is anything like her mom, she definitely will have a sweet tooth =) At first, she was very confused. I think she really liked the taste, but the texture was something totally new to her! We noticed that she did use her tongue to take a few bites back into her mouth to swallow, but most was just pushed out. We will attempt real food once a day until she gets accustomed to eating. I can't wait to find out what her favorites are!

Just for Fun Monthly Collage

I plan on making a big one of these when she turns a year old, but I wanted to see how much she has grown over the first four months of her life!

Avery Monthly Update - 4 Months

Avery is 4 months old today!! Her personality is growing by leaps and bounds every day. She is the sweetest little baby, but is definitely learning how to get what she wants. I guess this is when we really have to start thinking about our parenting "methods" =) For now we are still taking it day by day and enjoying this little angel that God put in our family.

Dear Avey,

You are 4 months old today!! What a crazy month this has been in your life! This month (July), we sold our condo and bought/moved into a house we fell in love with that we will raise you in! You have the prettiest light pink stenciled nursery, an awesome playroom and a big yard. Your playroom was my special project...I decorated it with HUGE flowers and forest animals. We will have some fun times in there. I cannot wait for all the memories that await our family in our new house with you!

Your summer nanny is about to go back to school and your permanent nanny (Gamston) is starting in a few weeks. You will have to share her with Anniston, who is 3 months older than you. I hope that you two will become precious friends over this next year and that you love your nanny! She is SO excited to start and is the sweetest girl ever. I think this will be a great year in your life, although you will never remember it =)

Your personality has continued to grow and grow this month. You are still the sweetest little bug ever, but you are starting to learn that when you whine, you get a response from us. No longer do you just cry when you are wet, hungry or tired...but now you cry to get what you want. Which is mostly to be held. We will let it slide for now, but hopefully your nanny share will help this ;)

We went to the doctor last week for your 4 month check-up and you weighed 12lbs 8oz (29th percentile) and we're 62 inches (60th percentile). You love to eat every 3 hours, but you rarely finish your 5oz bottle! We aren't going to start you on rice cereal for a while, because you still need all the calories from the formula. Maybe in a month or two! I bet you will love it!

This past month you rolled over!! We had to change you from your woombie to a sleep sack at night. You still sleep all night, but sometimes you whine to let us know you need your paci in your mouth to continue sleeping...we are working on this too =) This past month you also discovered your feet! You LOVE laying there and playing with your feet. Another one of your favorite things to do is swing on the new swing we hung out on the back deck! You are getting very good at tummy time and holding your neck up. I swear I think you will take off crawling any day now. You also love sitting up in your bouncer! Sometimes you strain your whole body because you want to sit up so bad instead of lay down. We still have to help you do this, but you are so close to doing it on your own! You absolutely cannot get enough of your hands...unless there is a paci in, your hands are in your mouth at ALL times. This causes quite the mess on my shirts, but I am use to it now and don't mind a bit...at least it dries clear right? =)

You are still a very happy and content little baby! You LOVE attention, but as long as you are getting that, you are good to go! Your favorite time of day right now is in the morning with your daddy. You get him to yourself for a whole hour since I am already at work. He loves feeding and snuggling with you on his shoulder. My favorite time of day is when I get home from work and scoop you up from the nanny. You are always so happy to see me and that just makes my day.

We love you so much Avey Rae. You are the sunshine in our life and we cannot wait to see what this next month has in store for you and us!

Love,
Mommy

Here are some pictures from your 4th month of life-

And a few videos-

Avey Post Bath Playtime Pics

I try to constantly remind myself to put down my iPhone and pick up my Nikon. It doesn't always work , but when it does, I am so thankful. Here are some post bathtime pictures from tonight...one of my favorite times when we all just smile and play for a few minutes before we say goodnight!