Hurts and Hugs Vol. 2

Child's Name:  Avery


What Happened:  Avery and another child got into an altercation over a toy and the other child bit Avery on the right cheek.


What We Do: Tried to apply ice pack on it.  She really wouldn't let us.

I got no further than Avery and another child got into an altercation and died laughing.  From the back seat, Avery chimed in and started laughing too.  Of course I don't think it's funny that my child was hurt (which she really wasn't) or that she was involved in an "altercation."  I suppose it was the wording...

Notice how the other kid is referred to only as "child" to protect his or her identity. Hahahahaha.

Rob got the whole story this morning when he dropped her off.  The hot item that started it all was a bouncy seat...yes, like, for babies.  Avery didn't want to share and the other child went all Mike Tyson on her.    Infant room turf wars!

Avery's 1st Zoo Trip

Last Saturday was a beautiful day to go to the zoo.  I think a lot of people thought so too because it was busy, but Avery loved watching the people.

Wheeeeeee

Huh?  What's a camel?

Snake!

Nope, I'm not touching a goat

Time to eat

I like the zoo

Broccoli Alfredo

Thought I'd share a recipe I've made a couple times from Real Simple magazine.

Broccoli Alfredo

Real Simple photo by Monica Buck

Serves 4
Hands-on Time: 15m
Total Time: 15m

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon salt
• 1/2  1-pound box dry fettuccine
• 4 cups (8 ounces) broccoli florets
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 1 cup freshly grated good-quality Parmesan
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg (optional)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper

Directions

1. Place the salt in a large pot of water and bring to a boil. Add the fettuccine and cook according to the package directions for al dente. During the last 3 minutes of cooking, add the broccoli. Drain in a colander, reserving 1 cup of the water; set aside.

2. Place the butter in the pot, reduce heat to medium-low, and stir until melted. Add 1/2 cup of the reserved pasta water, then stir in 1/3 cup of the Parmesan. Add the fettuccine and broccoli and the cayenne and nutmeg, if desired; toss.

3. Remove from heat and sprinkle with another 1/3 cup of the Parmesan and the pepper. Toss again, adding more pasta water if the fettuccine is too sticky. Serve in bowls and sprinkle with the remaining Parmesan. 

It stands alone but is perfect topped with a grilled chicken breast.  Let me clarify-it stands alone for me.  It doesn't so much stand alone for husbands who, when served a meatless meal, walk around the rest of the evening whining about how hungry they are.  That is where the chicken comes in. 

I love that it doesn't have a ton of ingredients and is pretty quick to put together.    I am always looking for healthier homemade or semi-homemade recipes that don't take a long time to make. In order to make dinner after work and be able to all eat together it has to be fast as Avery is usually asleep by 7 or 7:15.

Also, this is a really inexpensive dish.  Assuming you have the seasonings and butter/margarine already on hand:

1-pound box dry fettuccine (enough to make twice)-$1.50

Parmesan (the recipe calls for "good" quality but I just used Sargento & the container is enough to make twice)-$2.60

Broccoli, 2 crowns (about 1 crown per recipe) $3.00

=$8.00 to make this TWICE so 8 servings

=$1.00 a serving



Of course these prices are general and the chicken isn't included, but still.


Avery really likes this.  I cut everything into bite sizes for her and she goes to town.

Weekend

This weekend we saw both rain and shine (we much prefer the shine) and took all opportunities to get outside when it wasn't raining.  Friday evening we walked over to some friends of ours that live in our neighborhood to see their new baby.  Avery had to make an important call on the way over.

Saturday we attended a family bridal shower and Avery got to hang with some of her second cousins...or third cousins...or cousins several times removed...whatever!  

Sunday afternoon we finally had some nice weather and we took the opportunity to head to Mayfest.  

Avery showed off her walking skills.

 

After we got home we were able to let her play on the slide we got for her birthday.  It has been pretty rainy so she hasn't been able to play outside much. 

For dinner I made macaroni and cheese from the Deceptively Delicious cookbook.  I will spare you the picture (of course there is one) but she loved it and had it everywhere!

Wanted

So I bought this cute growth chart at a craft market a while back.  I wanted to document her height for the first time tonight and of course we had to take pictures. The poor thing looks like she's posing for a mug shot!

 Animal Cracker Bandit on the loose

Wanted in three states

Considered armed and dangerous

*The little bandit measured 27 inches tall

1st Birthday Party

For her birthday we had planned a luau.  Luckily the weather cooperated (you never know in May) and it was a windy but sunny day.

Cupcakes made by my mom and toppers made by me

Pulled pork (not shown) made by Rob and pretty fruit done by Rob's mom

Ready for a cupcake

Mmmm...

Testing out the new slide

That way, minion

Lucky girl opening a present

Aunties and Uncle

Even Arthur got in on the action

Having fun

Avery seemed to have a good time and absolutely crashed later that afternoon.  

All I can say is Avery is a lucky girl.  Not just because of the nice presents she received but because she is so loved by so many people including grandparents, great-grandparents, and pseudo aunts and uncles to name a few.  It makes Rob and I so happy to know our baby girl is so well loved.  

Happy 1st Birthday, sweet girl!

1 Year Appointment

Length: 29 inches (47th %)

Weight: 19 lbs 6.5 oz (22nd %)

Head: 17 3/4 in (54th %)

Avery is doing great and we were able to answer "yes" to all the doctor's questions about her motor and verbal skills.

She does have another ear infection.  Dr. B went back through her records and her first ear infection was in January and she has had one every month since then.  She gave us two options.  The first is to treat this one with antibiotics, follow up to make sure it clears up, and see how she does throughout the summer.  Her hope is that with warmer weather coming she will have less colds/congestion hence less ear infections and will essentially outgrow them.  The other option is to start talking about having tubes put in.  We chose to treat this one and see how she does throughout the summer.

She checked out her teeth and asked if she had chipped one of her top front teeth.  Ha ha...um, no actually it grew in that way.  She has a jagged edge on this tooth creating a quasi-fang.  It would be humorous except it hurts when she bites.  Dr. B said that doesn't mean her permanent tooth will be jagged.  If it is or later on this one could be filed.  Good to know!  She also said to start brushing her teeth.  So I purchased her first toothbrush and toothpaste.

 Awwwww

Here is a video from last Friday of her taking some steps.

One Year

My big girl

I could go on and on about how I can't believe she's one (I can't), how fast this year has gone (very), or how surprised we are that time is flying by (it is).  Instead I will try to focus on the fun stuff that she is doing now!

-Walking-well, kind of.  This week she has taken 4-6 steps on several occasions.  She is really warming up to the idea.  

-Talking.  She says (in no particular order): mama, dada, bye bye, no no, and a few others that make you scratch your head and wonder "is she saying that?"  Such as, da or do for dog, nana for banana.  She also kind of says "hi" sometimes.  And the ever-present "Ba."  Ba is any-and-everything.

-She loves to look at books.  Her favorites are still the touch and feel books.

-LOVES to close/open doors, cabinets, and drawers still.  She will shut a door in your face.

-One thing that makes her really mad right now is getting her diaper changed or getting dressed.  She cannot stand to lie down on her changing pad.  She can, in fact, sit straight up from a lying down position and is constantly fighting you to do this.

-Still sleeps great, approximately 12 hours at night.

-Eating more "people" (why do I always call it "people?") food.  She is down to three bottles a day and I am going to slowly start integrating milk over the next couple days.

-Has stranger danger.  It is not unusual for her to start crying when an unfamiliar person talks to her.

-Her one year checkup is Monday so we will know weight and all of that then.

We love this little girl more than anything.  We're very much looking forward to celebrating her birthday tomorrow with friends and family. 

What To Do...

So Miss. I'm-Almost-One has gone on an all out strike against any kind of baby food.   I am having a hard time figuring out what to send her for lunch at school.  Today she refused the food I sent so they gave her some green beans from the kitchen.  Sure, she likes green beans.  They also pointed out that she can eat the lunch that is offered there, which I'd never really thought about before.  Our daycare is a private school that goes up to (I think) 3rd grade.  So this is the lunch for everyone. 

Problem is, well, *whispers* I'm kind of picky about what she eats.   I just really want her to have good eating habits and eat a variety of good foods.  I want to avoid that toddler I-only-eat-chicken-nuggets phase.   Now, to be fair I'm not a health nut by any means.  I would consider myself health conscious, even though I eat plenty of unhealthy things.   I do try to make sure that 90% of the food we bring into the house is decent.  I have made quite a bit, but not all, of her food up to this point.  Now I'm looking at this menu they sent me home with and I see things like...little smokies and *gag* beanie weenie's.  Little smokies are great for the Super Bowl but do I want her eating them on a weekly basis?   

It looks like there is a main dish, veggie or legume, and fruit at most meals.  Here are a few examples:

pizza bites, green beans, applesauce

corn dogs, baked beans, mandarin oranges

bean and cheese burrito, corn, pineapple

spaghetti O's, pears, carrots

pb&j, apples, chips

chicken nuggets, corn, pineapple

grilled cheese, sun chips, grapes

cheese pizza, carrots, bananas

soft chicken tacos, beans, grapes

 Now, I don't expect them to serve Whole Foods free-range all white meat natural hand breaded organic chicken nuggets (although that would be cool, if such a product exists) but a lot of the main dishes seem kind of junky. 
It would be nice for her to eat this lunch though because a) I wouldn't have to worry about making/packing her lunch and b) it is included in the cost and darned if I wouldn't like to get every penny's worth!

I think I'll put a poll in the sidebar so anyone can hide behind the cloak of anonymity when they tell me I'm a crazy control freak.  I know it's our decision, but I'm curious to see what others do, would do, or have done with their children.