Avery's First Halloween

For her first Halloween, Avery went as a tempermental, teething giraffe.

While she was napping, I had set up this little backdrop to get some pictures before we left the house.  Tyson volunteered to be my test subject.

Then of course the princess took the throne:

 We first made a stop at Lizzy's house to show off Avery's costume. Lizzy had on a white wig and lots of eyeshadow, and even after she took the wig off, Avery still wouldn't go near her! I think it's the first time that Avery chose me holding her over Lizzy. 

Lizzy is the favorite, and I'm usually her second choice,

with Daddy coming in a close third at the moment.

We then spent the evening at my Aunt Julie & Shannon's house in Orange. Their neighborhood goes all-out with the decorations, haunted houses, lights and graveyards.  Julie & Shannon usually get well over 100 trick-or-treaters each year. Of course Grandma had to stop over too to see Avery's costume.  (She was still in a "mood" so required tickling in order to get a good smile for the picture!)

Then we decided to take Avery trick-or-treating to just a few houses since she can walk while holding someone's hand.  Here are a few shots of the obligatory first Halloween trick-or-treating excursion, and the reason my back is so incredibly sore!

Being that she was one of the smallest and most unsteady on her feet, she drew a lot of attention despite the fact that there were dozens of kids filling the streets.  

Strangers were even taking pictures of her.  We eventually stopped at one house where the lady said, "Oh, aren't you cute. Well, you're a little small, so this is probably more for mom and dad," as she put the candy in Avery's bucket.  I felt like we had been called out at that point, so the charade was over!

So we went back into Julie & Shannon's house, where Avery made herself comfortable on Ken's shoulder. She doesn't see him all that often, so I guess she just really took a liking to him tonight. She kept climbing on him and reaching for him, and wanted to give him more hugs when we were saying goodbye.  So sweet!

Last but not least, I was determined to get a picture of the "My First Halloween" bib.

This was the point at which I finally got an opportunity:

Fun With Daddy

 The jammies say, "Daddy's Angel" and have wings on the back:

 The tornado that hits our house every morning:

Click HERE for more fun with Daddy!

Some Monday Sunshine

Click HERE for some more happiness!

Hurry or You Might Miss It.....

I have come to realize that if you don't capture a trick on video as soon as Avery learns it, sometimes you will miss it, because she might stop doing it after a few days.  For example, the tongue trick is no longer in her repertoire.  So, for the moment, I have captured her hugging the rally monkey that Boompa gave her:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81-T_fv-z-w
And climbing the stairs:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bk6PVDMLBWc

The Moment Has Arrived...

Miss Avery took her first 2 steps last night! Ever since she was born I have been so worried that she would take her first steps at Lizzy's house and I would miss it.  In fact, I had even considered telling Lizzy not to tell me if it happened at her house so I could just believe that I saw it first.   So I was pretty excited last night when I was walking her along in the kitchen, and then let go, and she took 2 steps without my help before plopping onto the floor.  (I confirmed with Lizzy that these were, in fact, her first real steps). 
My mom was here and got to see it, but unfortunately Josh was at school and missed it.  Avery hasn't walked for him yet, but I know there are many repeat performances just around the corner.

Wearing the hat that Lizzy made her (and making a hilarious face):

Removing the hat that Lizzy made her:

Eating Graham Crackers (her favorite food) with Daddy:

Two in a Row!

Right as I was posting the pumpkin patch pictures, this was going on in the living room! I ripped the SD card out of the computer and jammed it back into the camera as fast as I could to catch this moment...

Grandma Mel bought Avery this pink basketball set before she was even born. Avery really loves the ball, but we have never set up the basket. Now that Avery is getting ready to walk, Josh thought he would bring out the basket today and show her how to use it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vadQ52n9SB4

A Little Punkin in the Pumpkin Patch

Avery and I took a trip up to the Cal Poly Pomona pumpkin patch this afternoon to meet up with Paula, Julie, Haylee and Audrey.  Patrick and Melissa were selling caramel apples at the festival, so we stopped over to their booth to see them and Autumn too. 

It was hard to keep Avery clean without Josh there to help me. I really wanted some pictures of her next to the pumpkins, but she was mainly interested in the dirt.

I Heart Kitties

My mom got Avery this cute outfit a couple weeks ago:

What is so funny about it is that Avery DOES "heart" the kitties, but the kitties do not "heart" her!

When Avery was much smaller and could not chase after the kitties yet, Piper was a little more willing to be friends with her, or to share a lap with her.

But after having their fur yanked out one too many times, 
both cats have concluded it is better to hang out in places that are out of Avery's reach.

(Video here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n5TL7Ou6rsc)

When I was pregnant, many people asked me if we were going to get rid of our cats when the baby came. Of course I wouldn't dream of doing such a thing, but I guess there are a lot of old wives' tales about cats climbing into the crib to suffocate the baby, or biting/licking the baby's face to get some milk.  These tale-tellers should know that the only time the cats are within 10 feet of the crib is when the baby is nowhere near it! 

Latest Trick

We worked on a new trick this weekend. (We are so proud). Watch the video here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6pperipwesI

 



A Day in the Life

So this morning we had our second meeting with little Sophia before her return to Washington. I am regretting not getting my camera out sooner! Avery took a little nap in her stroller, and then when she woke up, I got the camera so I could get a cute picture of the girls together, only to find out that Sophia was now asleep on her mom's shoulder, and they were about to leave! So although I didn't get a cute smiley picture of the two of them sitting together like I had hoped, I did get a very sweet picture of Avery giving the sleeping Sophia a gentle hug goodbye.

Ok so it wasn't all perfect and innocent... Avery of course tried to steal Sophia's headband. (Stealing is much easier when your victim is asleep).

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Since I got a little behind on blogging this week, I thought I would offer a breakdown of our daily schedule.  It's tough to squeeze in a blog post during the week sometimes, because I am pretty thoroughly exhausted! Here's why...

5:45 am:  Alarm goes off, get up and shower, pack my lunch, eat breakfast

6:30 am:  Avery wakes up, Josh changes her and makes her a bottle

7:20 am:  Josh puts Avery in the car while I haul all her stuff and my stuff downstairs

7:45 am:  Arrive at Lizzy's, sign Avery in and kiss her goodbye (the worst part of my day!)

8:00 am:  Arrive at work, where I will spend the next 9 hours

1:00 pm:  Workout at the gym

2:00 pm:  Back to work

5:00 pm:  Pack up, leave work

5:15 pm:  Pick up Avery at Lizzy's (the best part of my day!)

5:45 pm:  Arrive home (Often Avery is asleep, so I try to get prepared for the next day before she wakes up.  This entails handwashing all the bottles from Lizzy's house, packing a fresh change of clothes for her, packing up bottles for the next day, packing up my gym clothes, feeding the cats, changing the litterbox, taking out the trash, etc.  All the while I am running down the stairs and out to the car every 2-3 minutes to make sure Avery hasn't woken up)

6:15 pm:  Avery is usually awake by now, so I bring her upstairs and change her, then play with her on the floor of her room or in the living room

7:15 pm:  Try to get Avery to eat some baby food in her highchair

8:00 pm:  Bathtime (sometimes this happens earlier if she is especially cranky)

8:10 pm:  Get Avery lotioned up, comb her hair, put her jammies on, and make her a bottle

8:15 pm:  Rock Avery to sleep

8:45 pm:  Put Avery in her crib, start getting myself ready for bed

9:30 pm:  Target bedtime, which usually ends up being 10:00 or later... Drop into bed and pass out, so I can do it all over again in 8 short hours!