When I first found out I was pregnant mom bought Avery this ADORABLE outfit from the Gap. So, here's a few pics of Avery in her first pair of GAP Jeans!

Not so bad after all!

Wow, what a week it has been! The day before I went back to work I cried! I didn't realize I would dread it as much as I did. I kept feeling so guilty about having to leave her. But once I got back to work, I remembered how much I love my job and the people I work with. And to be honest, I was starting to go a little stir crazy around the house. One day I got so tired of watching TV, I turned it off and just sat there looking at the wall! lol. So work has actually been great and I've felt a little guilty, but knowing she's at home with daddy and her Gran-gran has made it much more easier. I think one reason I was dreading it was because before I came back I would say I did 90% of 'Avery Duty'. I just felt like since I was off work and Charlie had to work, my job was being the full time mommy. Of course, he did change a diaper every once in a while or feed a bottle to her, but I did most of it. So I was worried he would be harrassing me all day at work, lol, and eventually ask to hire a full time babysitter - which would be extrememly expensive (for someone to actually come to the house all day long). Boy, was I wrong! Charlie has been AMAZING!!! I was stunned. He hasn't complained one time all week. He works till midnight so he goes to sleep around 2am and I try to put her back to sleep before I leave, but she usually wakes up again around 8am, so he is more sleep deprived than I am. And on his days off - Monday and Tuesday he keeps her all day long for me, which is not really a 'day off'. It has been so wonderful. And they are really having some daddy-Avery bonding time. She is already a daddy's girl! I will post some pics below that he emailed me at work one day. He was tickling her and she was laughing! They are the cutest pics we have of her so far! So, I have been EXTREMELY busy, but what working mom isn't? I've decided updating the blog, grocery shopping, cleaning the house, paying the bills and all those other chores have to wait for the weekend. So, I'm getting into a nice little schedule and I know its going to be just fine.

In other news, Avery slept through the night last night and the night before. Maybe that will be her new thing now? I am super excited about that! Also, someone came to look at our house yesterday and they are going to look at another house but they may make an offer and someone is coming tomorrow morning to look at it from Arkansas. So, it looks like I need to find an apartment in Monroe ASAP, Any suggestions? We've never lived in an apartment, so I'm pretty nervous about it, but I always get nervous about change. And we're not going to settle for a low selling price. We want to make a good bit of money and if we can't, we'll stay here until the market comes back up! Okay, enough of the boring talk, now for the pictures taken this week!

Nonna and Poppa came to visit!



Memorial Day


Fun with Daddy

A Day of Firsts

If you read my previous blog you'll see that Avery slept through the night for the first time last night. I guess we can call this a day of firsts because she also pooped all over everything and everyONE (which means me) today as well. I was changing a wet diaper and she decided, what better time for a poopy? I barely had the new diaper under her so I lifted her butt to move the new diaper all the way under her and at the same time...well you get the point.

But who couldn't love this face?


Besides, she loves me...her feet told me so...

GUESS WHAT...!?!

Its 5:58 am and I just woke up from 8 hours of sleep...and no, I did not have to bribe Charlie this time! AVERY GRACE SLEPT THROUGH THE NIGHT!!! I put her down at 10pm last night and at 5:30 I woke up and realized there was light coming through the sunroom. Charlie was awake drinking some water, which he does a million times a night and I asked him what time it was, "5 something" he said. I told him Avery had not woken up yet to eat and we decided I should go check on her. I crept in her room and the little angel was snoozing. I tried to go back to sleep but I was so excited, I couldn't! This is basically my last day to sleep in, I have a lot of family coming in town tomorrow and they'll be here through Monday and Tuesday I'm back to work, but I'm too excited to sleep. I want to go in there are wake her up so bad, but I'm going to see how long she'll sleep. In fact, while I was laying in bed trying to go to sleep I noticed the monitor light up, so I turned it up. She was just 'grunting' which she does constantly, so I have the monitor low enough so that I don't hear every grunt. But I went back to her room again and she was still snoozing, so I'd figured I'd blog about it!

I had imagined that sleep would be the number one downfall of parenting, because I LOVE my sleep and always have! But the 3am feedings haven't been so bad. Spending another hour with her is an hour well spent, such a blessing, whether its 3am or not. I do think its really neat that God is going to let her sleep through the night now that I'm going back to work...that is a blessing too! : ) And if anyone is wondering, I did NOT start rice cereal. I asked Dr. Khanfar at the 4 month appt and he said do not give her anything but milk and formula at least until our 6 month checkup. So those 8 hours of sleep are after mommy's milk and nothing else!

Lil Avery Einstein

OK...I'll admit it, I've been picture happy this last week. I guess knowing I'm going back to work and I won't have time to take as many pics I've gone crazy! Oh well! Here are some more from today. Avery enjoyed reading Green Eggs and Ham, as you can see!

Reading at 4 months...who says preemies have catching up to do? HA!



"Hello mom, as you can see I'm reading...a little privacy, please?"


"Look lady, I said quit flashing that thing in my face while I'm reading!!!"


"Now, back to the book."


The End.

4 Months Old Pics

HAPPY BIRTHDAY AVERY!

Here are some 4 month old pics and a video!











Avery holding her maraca's...what a big girl!

4 MONTHS OLD!

Today is Avery's 4 month old birthday! We saw Dr. Khanfar this morning and he is very pleased with her progress. Her are her stats: She weighs 9 lbs, 10 oz, she is 21 1/4 inches long and he says she is doing excellent. Because she is doing so well he is going to keep her on the Neosure (every other feeding) until she is 9 months old. By that time she should be caught up to her developmental charts. She is still not caught up right now, but she is definitely progressing normally. She would need to weigh a little over 11 lbs to be in the 5th percentile and 14 lbs to be in the 50th percentile, so we still have some catching up to do - which is normal for a baby born at 2 lbs! Overall, he thinks she is doing very well. He told me I could put off her 4 month immunizations for 6 wks, which I was very excited about. She just had her 2 month immunizations a month ago so I really did not want to pump her full of more of that stuff right now! She is eating almost 5 ounces now and eats every 3-4 hours. (sometimes in the day she will only go 2 hours between feedings, and at night she is sleeping at least 6 hours in a row - which is great!) He sent us to have blood work drawn to check her platelet levels and see if we should continue iron. I hate, hate, hate that part. My poor little baby girl laying on the table while 2 nurses poke and prod her little arm. This time they couldn't find a vein and it probably took about 1 minutes, but it felt like 30 minutes with Avery screaming. So after her well deserved nap we'll take some 4 month old pics!

In other Avery news, Denise (her therapist from Early Steps) came yesterday and said she can really see a difference from 2 weeks ago. She said Avery is focusing very well now and she got to see her smile a few times and even coo! She was really excited and said Avery is acting like a mature 2 month old. (Which is her adjusted age). So, we still have some work to do, but she is catching up quickly. This is the last time I'll be here when Denise comes, unless I can get my work schedule switched around, so that really stinks but at least Charlie will be here.

I heard back from my third sitter choice and she said her boss cannot work around those hours. Since I'm out of options my lovely mamaw and papaw have agreed to temporarily move to Monroe (they have a motor home, so they will have somewhere to stay) until I can figure out what to do. Daycare, whether at a business or in someone's home, is just not an option at this point. When I go back to work I'm going to explain the situation to my boss and see if there is anyway I can leave at 2:30 (2 hours early) on Wed, Thurs and Friday. I feel confident that I can still get all of my work done, but if I ever had a lot to do I could stay later on Monday's & Tuesday's or come in early any day to get it all done. I'm not asking to be paid of course, just to be able to leave early and keep my job! Please say a prayer that this will work out...if not, I'll have to put an ad in the paper and set up nanny cams and I just don't feel good about that at all. It would be such a blessing if either me or Charlie could keep her, at least until January when she is a year old.


Thank you all for your continued prayers for Avery. There is no doubt in our minds that the prayers are the reason for all the little and BIG miracles we've experienced. We know that because of your prayers Avery will be caught up in no time!

Watching the Cubbies with Daddy

Getting ready for her head shot

Strike a Pose!

OK MOM, ENOUGH WITH THE CAMERA!

Her favorite pastime...staring at the lights!

This is a video of Charlie joking about how Avery is going to pay for her $204,000 bill at St. Francis. Notice her Air Jordan socks...guess she'll have to auction those on EBay! HA!

Beautiful Smiles

In the mornings Avery usually wakes me up when she's hungry, but today I set my alarm so I could go shopping for some work clothes. I heard her making little noises (coos?) and went in and she jumped when she saw me (I think I startled her!) Anyway, then she let out some of the biggest smiles. I ran to get my camera and caught a few of them. In some of these I think she looks a little like my baby pics. I guess I'll get these beautiful smiles every morning when I go in to wake her and feed her before I go to work! What a blessing. She is the most adorable, precious little blessing I could've ever imagined. I've been putting together the scrapbook of all the pregnancy journal entries. It is looking so cute, too bad there's no way to put it online! Maybe I'll take some pics of it? :)

Well, we have a big Memorial Day planned. My mom and dad and brother are coming for a cookout. We are going to grill steaks and veggies. I'm going all out and making homemade Raspberry Lemonade and a Berry Patch Brownie Pizza! YUM YUM! I guess it'll be my last big hoorah before I go back to work. After that life is probably going to get very, very busy.

We go for our 4 month appt on Wednesday to Dr. Khanfar. I'm interested to hear when we can start feeding her cereal and solids. I'll let you know what he says.

Enjoy these beautiful pics!

Well hello there, mom!
(It is amazing how she wiggles her arms out of the Swaddle Me in the night!)

This is the one that reminds me of some of my baby pics:


All Smiles

Random Pics

For anyone who didn't see, these are some of the pics done by Jami Ainsworth. She is the BEST. Visit her blog at japimages.blogspot.com to see more of her work












Now here are some other pics I took that aren't nearly as interesting or cute!

I tried to take Avery on a walk but about 2 houses down she started screaming and wouldn't stop! So, we ended up coming back after about 2 minutes...better luck next time!



HOUSE FOR SALE!!!



This is on our trip to Nonna and Poppa's. I love how she holds her little hands up in the air while she sleeps! I remember her doing it in the NICU too.



The cutest lil Weepublican I've ever seen!



Yes, I think Avery has definitely made her choice for the 2008 elections!



Helping momma clean the kitchen



She loves her Bumbo...what a big girl!

I took Avery to Dr. Khanfar's office today to have her weighed. Lil chubby is 9 lbs 4 oz! WOW! She is still gaining about 1/2-1 ounce per day! She has grown out of most of her preemie clothes and is almost out of newborn diapers!!! I'm starting to notice little changes every day. Today she reached out for one of her toys. She also smiled really big at me and Charlie this morning. I love those smiles. Still not too many coos but she is starting to 'talk' without grunting more and more. Her head control is excellent.

We had a great time in Vidalia on Monday and Tuesday. Avery got to spend Monday with her Poppa since he is off work on Mondays and Tuesday she got to meet her Papaw Charles (Charlie's dad). Of course, nonna had her all the time in between! Her and nonna had a fun time playing Tuesday night, she was in such a good mood. We had one person look at the house while we were gone, but no offer. I imagine it will probably be on the market at least 3-6 months with the market the way it is right now. But there's no rush! Well, I go back to work in one week. OMG i can't believe the time has gone so fast! At least I have monday off for Memorial Day. I think my parents are coming for a BBQ. The sitter situation is still up in the air. The girl I've asked now is asking her boss if he can work around it (she has another job) but he is on vacation this week, so she'll call me on Monday. So say a prayer for that please! The back up plan is that my mamaw can come until I can find someone or figure it out. Well, here are some pics from this weekend.

Smiley Face

Well, I think Nonna is having Avery withdrawals and needs a video...so here it is! Avery is wearing an adorable dress that Charlie's mamaw bought for her.

In other VERY exciting news, I'm ECSTATIC to announce that Avery had her first 'social smile' on May 9, 2008. I was sitting in the recliner and she had been sleeping on me for about an hour and she started to wake up. She was staring straight at me with big, wide eyes and I was telling her how beautiful she is and how much I love her. She gave me the most beautiful, precious smile I've ever seen. A big, open mouthed social smile - followed by 2 more! I burst into tears. Ok, I know I'm pathetic. But smiling is one of the things we've been working on with the therapist and I was starting to get worried so I've been praying every day that God would let her smile and I would be sure it was a 'social smile'. And I've never been so sure. Isn't it amazing that he answers all the big prayers and all the small ones too? Thank you, Jesus! Now we're looking forward to (and praying for) that first coo!!!

Her daddy dressed her up like a little boy! Oh well, GO CUBBIES!!!

Sleep isn't all it's cracked up to be!

I just woke up from a full 8+ hours of sleep! (No, she did not sleep through the night!) Charlie bribed me. LOL. He wanted a new iPhone, which I was NOT thrilled about because he JUST got the new BlackBerry he BEGGED for, and so after a few hours of convincing and bribery, I gave in! I thought 2 nights of sleep (that was our deal) would be worth it. It was nice, and this is going to sound so corny, but I really missed her when I woke up this morning. And each time Charlie got up with her I was not really sleeping much anyway. This was the first night since January 21 that I haven't been up at all during the night. (Even while she was in the NICU I had to wake up to pump). And another thing, I feel about the same as I do on any other morning. I don't feel amazingly rested or anything. Before the baby I was a woman who LOVED my sleep. I always thought without 8 hours I would not 'function' during the day. But life changes and you realize things that you thought you couldn't do...you actually can and they aren't so bad after all. No one tell Charlie, but I may not even make him 'work' the 2nd night! hehe.

In other news, I'm still having sitter troubles. Two people that I know and thought would be able to do it, can not. I have one person left in mind who says that she may be able to do it, but she has another job that interferes and has to see if her boss can work around it. I am a VERY planned person and the fact that I go back to work in 2 weeks and have no idea who is going to keep Avery is SCARY for me. I do have a back up plan though - my mamaw said she can come until I find someone, but that is not a long term option. I guess my next option is to put an add in the paper??? Talk about scary! If thats the case I also need to purchase some Nanny Cams. I think I'm about to go on a shopping trip to EBay!

House for Sale!

Omg I'm kinda freaking out. The realtor just left and there is a for sale sign in my front yard. I hate, hate, hate change so I feel really nervous right now. I guess mostly because I don't know what the future holds. I know we want to move to a better neighborhood, we haven't had any problems in our 3 years in our first house but it isn't the best neighborhood. But that brings me to the biggest question: should that neighborhood be in West Monroe, Monroe, OR VIDALIA! And I have no idea. I really would like to be closer to my family and hometown, especially since I go back to work in 3 weeks and still cannot find someone to sit with Avery 6 hours a week!!! But the houses in the Vidalia market are really high right now so I don't think its the right time to buy for us. Which is fine. We've owned this home since before we got married and it hasn't been the easiest thing. We've replaced a washer and dryer and had the AC and Heat and plumbing worked on numerous times. It'd be nice to just call the landlord and say "come fix it." On the other hand, I'm not crazy about living in an apartment. For some reason it feels like one step forward, two steps backward and we are happy in this little house! I guess the major problem is that we have decent jobs here and there aren't many oppurtunities in Vidalia. So we don't even know if we can find jobs to pay what we make now. I guess I'm just really nervous and tired of all this change. I'm 23 and for the first 18 years of my life I lived in the same town (for 15 years the same house!) went to the same schools with the same friends and known all the same people and since I was 18 life has gone too fast!!! I've graduated high school, moved to Ruston to go to Tech, moved to Monroe to transfer to ULM, bought a house, got married, changed jobs, had a miscarriage, got pregnant again unexpectedly, had our wonderful lil 2 lb Avery and now I'm selling a house! WOW! It's time for life to slow down a little bit!!!

Pics I Promised...

In her 'Flutter Dress' from my favorite high school teacher...Mrs. Ulmer!

And the beautiful bonnet her Nonna bought her!

And the preemie shoes Mrs. Penny gave her...


Thankfully, the rest of the weekend went pretty well. No more broken $90 plates!