You turned 6 months old a couple of weeks ago and I'm just now getting around to writing this post. I'm not too worried about the timeliness of it, though. Spending time with you is more important.
This month you started pulling up to standing! I can't believe how much you have grown and learned. It's amazing to watch you figure out new things. You are crawling all over the place and can sit up very well. You haven't been sleeping very well, but we are working on that. I'm glad that I have the summer off to help you develop good sleep habits. You have definitely started to have some separation anxiety. You cry as soon as I leave the room. As long as there is another person in the room with you, you don't cry, though. You babble all the time and say "bababa" which I think is you trying to say "Bar Bar" since you love the puppies so much.
You love to eat veggies and fruits. You don't like meats, yet, but we will work up to those. You are still nursing like a champ. I never knew how much I would love nursing, but it is one of my favorite parts of being your mama.
You had your 6 month check up last week and Dr. Wallace was astounded that you are already crawling and sitting up so well. I knew you would be a fast learner, though. ;) You are 27.5 inches long and weigh 14 lbs 2 oz. You are VERY tall and VERY skinny. Everyone always comments on how small you look, but to me you look so big!
I love you so much, Ava Lynn. You and your daddy are my most favorite people in the world. I am so happy it's summertime and I get to spend so much time with you!!
Ava Lynn, how are you already 5 months old?! I can't believe how fast time is flying by. You weigh 12 lbs 13 oz. I'm not sure how tall you are, but I'm guessing over 26 inches by now. You are one long baby! This month you started sitting up and crawling! I can't believe how soon you started crawling. Even your doctor said not to expect you to crawl before 6 months, but you like to show everyone how smart you are. I think it helps that you see the other babies crawling at Mrs. Julie's house. You love going to Mrs. Julie's. You have so much fun playing with the other kids there and they love you, too! I love when I drop you off and the big kids come to see you and tell you good morning. They like to sing songs to you and play with your hair :) You have slept through the night 3 times now (although not 3 times in a row...haha). You usually wake up at least once a night still. I'm okay with it because I get extra snuggles. You are so worth every minute of sleep I lose. You are eating every 3 hours. You nurse when you're home and take about 5 oz of breastmilk when you're at Mrs. Julie's. You're a lot better at nursing now that you're older. It was so hard in the beginning, but I'm glad I've stuck with it. You have been eating oatmeal cereal and squash this month. You're a big fan of both of them! You like to take the spoon away from me and try to feed yourself.
I love you so much, Ava. You are one of my greatest blessings! I am so thankful to be your momma.
You are 4 months old today! I can't believe that you are already 1/3 of a year old! Time sure does fly when you're having fun and I'm having so much fun being your mommy.
We went to the doctor for your 4 month check up and shots on Friday. You weigh 12 lbs 4 oz and are 25.5 inches long. Since you got so sick you haven't gained a lot of weight, but I know you'll be okay! You seem to put all your growing into your length. I bet you'll be tall like dad.
This month you started rolling over from back to belly. Since you figure out that fun little trick, you almost always roll over in your sleep to sleep on your tummy. You like to stick your booty up in the air while you sleep. It's very cute! You give us lots of smiles, but we've only heard you laugh a couple of times. I'm hoping you'll give us some big belly laughs soon. You love your jumperoo. It's definitely your favorite thing to do when you're not being held.
You still wake up at least once a night, but I know you'll sleep through the night soon. I'm not too worried about it. I like the time we get to spend just the two of us in the middle of the night. You suck your fingers in your sleep which is very cute and helps you sleep. I love watching you sleep.
I love you so much, Ava. I thank God for you every day!
One year ago, I found out I was going to be your mommy. As soon as I saw the line appear on the test, I knew you were a girl. I was so excited that I couldn't wait to tell your daddy. I woke him up and told him the good news. I don't think he fully understood what I was saying since he was mostly asleep. i had all these cute ideas for how I was going to tell everyone I was pregnant with you, but I was just too excited to wait!
I called your Mimi and told her the good news and asked what I was supposed to do next (since I'm not very good at being a grown up). Then, I had a bowl of Fruity Pebbles. I don't know how I remember that, but I do. :) a little later in the morning, I Facetimed Aunt Sarah and Uncle Robbie. They were so excited! The next person up was your DoeDoe. She was at a birthday party and couldn't react big like she wanted. She called us back later and screamed with joy though. Sometime in the afternoon, we Facetimed with your PopPop and Uncle Brandon. PopPop couldn't believe it! Uncle Brandon was a little grossed out. Haha! We finally got a hold of your PeePaw. Your daddy told him "you're gonna be a PeePaw!" And PeePaw said "y'all getting another dog?" Once he finally realized that I was pregnant, he was overjoyed!
One year ago today, I started praying for you, Ava. I prayed that you would be safe growing in me. That you would be healthy when you arrived. That you would one day know Jesus as your Lord and Savior. Being pregnant with you was one of the hardest things I have ever done. I had to pray constantly for my anxieties to go away. I had to learn to fully rely on the Lord. My relationship with God was strengthened because of you, Ava.
I pray with you every night as we rock. I cant wait for you to be older to say those prayers with me. Being your mommy is the most amazing adventure ever. You are my biggest blessing. One year ago today, I had no idea how much I would love you.
How are you 3 months old?! This has been the fastest three months of my life. I love getting to know you, Ava. It is so amazing to get to watch you discover new things. You love being with momma and I love being with you!
This month you started daycare at Mrs. Julie's house and you love it! When we walk in your face lights up because you know you're going to see your friends. I'm so happy that you have a safe place to go while momma and daddy are at work. Daycare makes you verrrry tired. You started sleeping from about 8-3 when you wake up for a feeding and then you go back to sleep until 6 when its time for momma to get up and get ready for work.
You already had your first ambulance ride and hospital stay. Those are two things I would have been fine with you never experiencing. I've never been so scared in my life. I'm so glad that the doctors and nurses took such good care of you, Ava.
You are my world, sweet girl. I absolutely adore you and can't wait to see how you continue to grow. I love you, Ava Lynn.
How is my baby already 2 months old?! These past 2 months have absolutely flown by. They've also gone extremely slow at times (hello growth spurts!). I go back to work on Monday and Ava will start daycare. I'm so thankful that I had these 2 months with her. I have loved every day that we've lounged around the house or run errands. I have seen how her personality has started to take shape. She has changed so much in these past 2 months. I will definitely miss her more than anything when I'm away from her, but I know that she will be in great hands.
At her 2 month check up Ava measured 24 inches long and weighed 11 pounds 0.5 ounces. The doctor said that she is taller than 100% of girls her age. I'm hoping she will be tall like Thomas! She can hold her head up for a long time and can roll from belly to back occasionally. She eats every 2-3 hours, except overnight. She usually goes 4-6 hours from her last feeding before bed before she wakes and wants to eat again. She nurses very well and is great at taking a bottle. She only takes a pacifier if she's very tired or over stimulated.
I am so thankful God chose me to be her mommy. I think back to March 21, 2015 very often. The day I found out I was pregnant. I was so shocked (in a good way!) that I didn't even try to tell Thomas in a cute way. I just woke him up and told him that I was pregnant. In fact, all of the cute Pinterest-y ideas I pinned to tell our families didn't get used at all. I was way too excited to wait to tell anyone. I immediately called my mom (who wasn't surprised at all) and then we called the rest of our family members throughout the day. I can't believe that little peanut is here now. I thank God for her every day.
I figured since Ava is already 6 weeks old I would break my blogging silence and write her birth story! I love reading birth stories! Reading about how a new life entered the world is just so beautiful.
Friday, Nov. 20: I was on my 2nd day of maternity leave and decided to run to some errands. On my way to Target I started having mild contractions that were 10 minutes apart. They didn't hurt so I wasn't worried about going to the hospital. I did my shopping and headed home in case they got closer together and I needed to go to the hospital. By the afternoon the contractions had mostly stopped. I was so upset! I was ready to have this baby! That night, they started back up and got close enough together that I decided we should go to the hospital. Around 2 or 3 in the morning the doctor in the OBER told me that I was only 1 cm dilated and that my contractions weren't real labor. I was so sad! We went back home and tried to sleep.
Saturday, Nov 21: After getting a couple of hours of sleep I got up and made plans with my mom. We got lunch and went to a little craft fair to do some walking. I was still having contractions, but they weren't consistent. I got a decent nights sleep.
Sunday, Nov 22: I honestly don't remember a lot of the day. I was having contractions all day, but they still weren't consistent. Even though they weren't consistent, they were extremely painful. Around 9:40 at night I noticed that they were getting closer together. I timed them for an hour and they were coming every 3-5 minutes. I told Thomas we needed to go to the hospital. We got to the hospital around 11:30. The OBER nurse checked me and told me that I was 4 cm dilated. I was so surprised! I fully expected them to send me back home again. I called my mom and told her they were admitting me and that Ava was going to be born soon.
Monday, Nov 23: I was moved upstairs to a delivery room. The nurses were so nice. I am so thankful that they were kind and easy to get along with. I got my epidural at 12:30. I was really scared about getting something out in my spine, but it didn't hurt at all. The IV in my wrist hurt way more than the epidural. My mom came in shortly after that. At 2 am the nurses checked me and I was 5 cm dilated. They told me to try to get some sleep. Thomas and I kind of slept for a couple of hours. The nurses came back at 4 am and checked me again. This time I was already dilated 9 cm. I couldn't believe how quickly I had progressed. They came back in an hour and when the nurse went to check how much I was dilated she broke my water. My doctor wasn't on call, so the plan was to have the on call Doctor deliver her. I wasn't necessarily happy about this, but I could deal with it. A little bit later the nurses told me that my doctor had called up there and when he found out I was in labor said he was coming to deliver Ava. (Side note: my OB is the same doctor that delivered me and my siblings, so it was really special that he delivered Ava 😊) Around 6 I started pushing. This was definitely the hardest part for me. I couldn't feel anything from the waist down, so trying to productively push was very difficult. Thomas held one of my legs and my mom held the other. I'm so thankful they were there with me!I pushed for a little over an hour before Ava was born. I remember seeing her for the first time. She had so much hair! The nurses from the NICU were in the room because she was at risk for breathing in or swallowing some meconium. Thankfully she didn't and I was able to hold her soon after they checked her over. I cried as soon as they handed her to me. She nursed a little while after that and then we had our families come in to meet her. It was absolutely one of the best days of my life! I am so thankful that God chose me to be Ava's mom.
