Avery's 1st Christmas

It started out with a blizzard Christmas Eve.  A literal blizzard.  Something like the third time a blizzard warning had ever been issued in Oklahoma.   But Rob and I are nothing if not foolish determined so we decided to go ahead and make the trip to Claremore.  Despite the fact that when we had gone to Target earlier in the day for a few last minute items and it had started sleeting Rob had told me we were "irresponsible at best" for taking Avery out (despite the fact that she was bundled up in her carseat carrier which was covered with a blanket). 

We got to Claremore just fine and had a great evening.   After a seafood dinner (of which Avery got none-next year!) Avery opened her first gifts.  I think she rather enjoyed it.  It was definitely worth the hour drive home in the blizzard for Avery and us to spend Christmas Eve with family. 

Christmas morning came and with it we had the first white Christmas in 7 years.  We had a nice morning at home exchanging presents.  Rob cleared a path on the deck so the back door would open and Arthur could go out.  Then he had to clear the driveway and part of the street so we could get out and go to Tulsa.

 

We braved the icy roads to head to Mom's in Tulsa.  Our usual brunch turned into lunch by the time we got there, but it was all worth it.  We stuffed ourselves as usual, then it was time for the lucky girl to open some more presents.  Avery of course doesn't get the concept of a gift, but she did like the paper! 

 

 

We had a wonderful Christmas.  In fact, we both agreed the best yet. 

Genius at Work

The first in what I'm sure will be a long line of  "my baby is a genius" posts.  But really, she is.

Avery received this toy for Christmas:

You might have had one as a kid too.  As soon as she opened it we popped all the "friends" up.   She immediately reached over and shut them all.  Genius at work, people!  Not to mention this toy is for NINE months and up.  Nevermind that she hasn't really figured out how to open them yet.  All in due time.

We are seeing that she likes to close things.  She also received a baby laptop for Christmas.  Whenever you try to show her all the buttons and lights she reaches over and closes it as if to say "no more work!"  A rare moment of "working":

I have a video exhibiting the above mentioned skills (it also contains a few waves) but I can't get the video to upload.  If I figure it out I will add it later!

Last Weekend

Last weekend the annual Davis Christmas party was held at my aunt's house.  I wasn't able to go because I was seeing these two get married:

 These were the two crazy groomsmen:

My mom took Avery to the party and my cousin Summer took some great pictures of her:

I also got to meet this brand new little girl.  She belongs to the guy up there.  Not Rob, the other one.   

 

 

Congrats to Dale and Jennifer on baby Harper and best wishes to Heath and Jamie.

I Said I Wouldn't Do It

Wait in line to have my baby's picture taken with Santa.  What's the point?  They always cry.   Always.

But yet I found myself in line at Utica Square on Sunday.  We waited our turn to get up to the little workshop that housed both Santa and Mrs. Clause (the photographer).  For $5 they will take a picture and give you a copy or you can use your own camera.  We decided to use our own, and the following three pictures are the only ones we got and you can see exactly how it all went down in the time span of about 45 seconds:

7 Months

Here is what Avery is up to:

-We ditched the baby tub last night and put her right in the bathtub. She did great!

-Starting to hold her arms up/out to be picked up.

-Sits in the high chair at restaurants and in the shopping cart.

-Favorite foods so far are pears and apples. She tolerates carrots and continues to gag at sweet potatoes. Not a fan of green beans either. Or yogurt. In my fridge to make next: butternut squash and peas.

-Does great with feeding herself puffs-they are helping to develop her pincer grasp. She gets most of them in her mouth and what she doesn't, Arthur takes care of.

-Starting to work her fingers and hands more. I think she'll be waving soon.

-Army crawls some and rolls everywhere.

-Has two bottom teeth.

-Still loves to watch Arthur and is captivated by him when he's around.

-Figuring out the sippy cup. She immediately knew how to pick it up and put it in her mouth, but she is still learning that she needs to tilt it up.

-Still sleeps great with occasional hiccups here and there.

-We've seen signs of her trying to mimic us, which is so neat to watch.

Still a happy and healthy girl! We can't believe she is already 7 months old. It is bittersweet to be putting away certain things like the bouncy seat, baby tub, infant toys, clothes, pacifiers, etc. Days are numbered for the Boppy (yes, we still use the Boppy), the swing, and the Snap N Go carseat and stroller as she is quickly outgrowing them. It is going way too fast!

From the bloopers reel:

Where have these been all my life?

Or at least the last few months? Baby shoes that actually stay on!!!!! I can't believe it but I've now seen it with my own eyes. These shoes are awesome! They literally stay on all day. And...they're inexpensive! Target has tons of them.

She only has one pair so far. These:


They are knockoff Robeez which cost over twice as much.

Thank you Ministar!

The First Thanksgiving

Avery's that is.

We had a great day. Avery received lots of love and attention. She sat at the table like a big girl. And she stayed up until 10 pm!

Happy Birthday, Dad!

You can't make fun of Mom for being 30 anymore!

Look What I Can Do 3rd Edition

What do you call this?

Teeth

Yep, two little teeth. We didn't even know they were there until last Sunday, when I felt the corner of one that had broken through. I know they're hard to see, but they're there!

Look What I Can Do 2nd Edition

6 Month Slideshow

6 - Create slideshows online

Bathtime

Avery likes taking a bath.

Exhibit A

She doesn't even care when water gets in her eyes. She has a new thing where she tries to "grab" the stream of water from the faucet. She'll open and close her hand around it. That's what I was trying to capture on this video.

Exhibit B

6 Month Appointment

15 lbs 3 oz

25 inches

Doctor B. prescribed a nebulizer for Avery. She thinks her runny nose and coughing are seasonal. It looks somewhat like this with a mask piece that goes over her mouth and nose. The mask dispenses the medication in a mist.
Getting her to sit still with this over her face for any amount of time is akin to bathing a cat I would imagine....although I've never bathed a cat. Anyway, she's not too crazy about it. She likes it only slightly more than this
Hopefully this helps clear up her congestion!

6 Months

Here is what Avery K is up to at 6 months:

-Sits up

-Sleeps great at night (usually down by 8).

-Still not a great napper but makes up for it at night.

-Loves to be out and about (shopping, walking, etc).

-Laughs sometimes and smiles all the time

-Has tried avocado, banana, and sweet potato. She hasn't been overly enthusiastic about anything yet, but we will continue to experiment with new foods.

-Wants to grab anything within her reach.

-No teeth yet but loves to chew on everything.

-As of today she will be on formula with the exception of one bottle of breast milk per day until the freezer stash is gone.



And as usual, some outtakes:

6 Month Preview

Brandon gave me a few unedited samples yesterday. We should have all of them next week.



It looks like summertime in these, but it was November 1st and 75 degrees! She got to wear this cute outfit Erin got her when she was tiny.

Firsts

First time sitting in the shopping cart

First Halloween

We went to visit Mimi, then the Thomas' Sr came over for dinner.

First time trying sweet potato (not bad...)

We had her 6 month pictures taken by Brandon today at Woodward Park. The weather was AMAZING. She enjoyed sitting in the leaves (and trying to eat them). He said he would have the pictures ready this week. I can't wait to see them!