New Blog Name!!

We added a new member to our family 10 months ago!! I guess it is well overdue that we change the name of the blog to incorporate her. I hadn't changed it because well, firstly I haven't had a lot of free time on my hands, and secondly, because I couldn't think of a good name that really represented what I wanted the blog to represent. But, I think I finally nailed it.

Sepia Tone Loving...

Says it all. You probably won't understand it, and that's ok. You don't need to. Maybe one day I will explain, but sometimes it's nice to have a little mystery in life. I'd love to hear your interpretations though! Let me have them!

Dear Avery, 9 months old

My Dearest Avery,

9 months old already eh? Well I can tell you baby girl, you are something else. You had your 9 month Dr. appt last week. You are now 16.4lbs and 76cm. Just a little peanut still. You are in the 50th percentile for weight, but only the 26th for weight. In fact, you have grown 5cm since your last appointment at the beginning of November, and it is now January 31st and you haven't gained any weight at all. My guess is that it is because you are mobile. Nope, still not crawling, but man do you have that bum scoot down! You can race around here very quickly on that little bum of yours.

You actually just stopped nursing this month... I wasn't ready to stop nursing you yet, but I had a three day flu that decreased my milk enough that you couldn't get what you needed so we had to start you on formula. You took to it right away (not surprisingly since you pretty much like everything) but you were getting really sick from the formula, vomiting and gassy and you just looked like you weren't feeling well when you drank it, so I switched you to lactose free and you have been fine since then. In fact, you wouldn't drink more than 3oz of the regular formula, but are drinking up to 6oz now. You are sleeping better at night now without your before bed meal too. You are now having dinner at 4:30pm, then a bottle at 6:45pm and are fast asleep for the night by 7pm. Sometimes you still get up around 3-4am for another bottle, but it is rare. I can't believe you are already sleeping through the night. As tired as I was getting up with you, I really did love having that special time just with you my baby.

The Dr. wants to see you again next month to see if you gain some weight. She wants me to start giving you more formula and less food, but I have a hard time filling you up, so I assume you will just take the extra formula in addition to your food. Daddy says every time he sees you, you are either eating or drinking something, and he's not far off, you usually have some kind of snack with you, or at least your water cup (which you hold on to for dear life) at all times. You just love having your own water cup now, It is the cutest thing to see you and Addison drinking your sippy cups together on the couch while you watch your shows. I just love how you follow her around and play together. I couldn't be happier with my two girls.

While we're on the subject of your favorite things... you have a new hobby! Pulling all the DVD's out from under the coffee table. You get so mad when you scoot all the way over there and someone pulls you away. In fact, you are getting very vocal about the way you feel now. You waste no time yelling at us. It is pretty funny. I'm sure you are trying to tell me how mad you are that you put so much effort into scooting all the way over just to be pulled away. Addison yells at you for it, but I have given up. You aren't hurting them, and it doesn't really take much time to put them back, so if it makes you happy to pull all the DVD's out, then go nuts!

Your biggest milestone this month, is learning to pull yourself up to stand! You prefer to do it with us than with objects, so I will sit and grab your fingers and you pull yourself right up! You are soo proud when you do it too. And you should be. You are so little, that must take a lot of effort! I think you enjoy the new perspective, because you can stand like that forever, and you make your legs stiff when I try to sit you down after. You just LOVE to stand.

Have I ever told you that you gleek when you eat? Especially if you are really hungry, like when you are waiting for your lunch after your nap. You can shoot spit all the way across your highchair tray! haha it is really funny kiddo. It's not like you do it once in awhile either. You pretty much do it every time you open your mouth wide for a spoonful of food.

Every single day now you are learning something new and getting stronger. I am really planning your birthday party now, and it is hard to think of you getting so big. I can't believe my little peanut is almost a toddler. Just so we are clear, no matter how big you get, you will always be my baby. I love you so much Avery Leigh. More than you will ever know.

Love you forever,
Mama
xoxoxoxooxoxoxox

Dear Avery. 8 months oldI

Hi Sunshine!

Guess what? You are MOBILE!! No, you aren't crawling yet, though I am very surprised you aren't because you are soo close to crawling. You are a bum scooter. And you are very quick on that little bum of yours! You figured out how to scoot around on your bum and have lost a lot of interest in trying to crawl when we put you on your belly, even though you can almost do it.

Christmas was so much fun this year. You didn't really know what was going on of course, but it was really cute to see you and Addison opening your presents (and by opening, I mean chew on for you) together. Avery, you are an eater. And thank goodness for that, because we STILL can't get your sister to eat much. Daddy and I wonder if you are going to start a new tradition on Christmas morning or if this year was an exception. Daddy and I usually get our coffee and then we all open presents and have breakfast after. But this year, we had to take a break about 20 minutes into the present opening to feed you. Addie we couldn't feed at all, she was too excited, but you, you started falling apart and needed that food. It was really funny. Santa brought you lots of baby food and rice puff snacks in your stocking, and you were very quick to figure out how to feed yourself.
You girls are so loved. You have so many people that buy you gifts. You girls got so many presents that it was almost embarrassing when people came over and saw our tree. Aside from your snacks, your favourite present was the little tikes garden activity center that Santa brought you. It is really cute. You like to open the door and play with the little chimes, and sit inside and play with the phone on the wall. You also like to sit outside while Addie pops in and out of the slide and plays peek a boo with you. You are still a peek a boo fanatic! I am looking forward to having many more Christmas mornings with my girls. I just love watching you two together.

This was a busy month for you. You learned how to bum scoot and started pulling yourself up to stand when we grab your hands! My favourite thing you did recently though, was to say "mama". It was the sweetest sound I have ever heard, and I think you know what you are saying because you call "mama" from your crib when you want out! You also learned how to clap and to sign "more" and "food".

A little about you at this age: you are wearing your cloth diapers during the day, and you wear a size 3 disposable diaper to bed at night. You started waking up every two hours again this month, so a couple weeks into that, I decided you needed a 4th meal, so we give you a bedtime bowl of cereal now and you sleep from 8pm to 3 then nurse and go right back to bed until about 7am. You always have huge smiles when Addie comes in when you wake up. She is always the first one there and yelling at us "come get Aralee, Aralee's awake". When you go sleep for a nap or bedtime, you like to have your sleepsheep on "ocean sounds" and to be rocked. If we just put you in your crib, you will just lie there playing, you need to be rocked. You love to run the satin of your birdie blanket through your fingers while we rock you, and you like to pull your left ear. I try not to let you pull your ear though, because your nails are always sharp, even though I cut them all the time, and you have little scratches on the backs of your ears from the pulling. My favourite new thing, that you just started is reaching out to us. You reach one little hand out and spread your fingers wide open. I just love it when you reach for me. You are a real eater. I feed you cereal and fruit for breakfast, veggies and fruit for lunch and dinner, and a bowl of cereal for bedtime snack. But you also still nurse 3-6 times a day and are enjoying your rice puffs and rice crackers too. You love feeding yourself, but Addison loves to feed you too, so we have to watch you when there is food around. So far we've caught you with cookies and chicken finger pieces and french fries. All given to you by your big sister. She also likes to give you stickers, which we have to watch because you eat those too.

My boss emailed me this week about returning to work. I have to tell you, it is a really difficult decision for me to make. I am not ready to go back to work yet. I just love spending my days at home with you girls, and making our little trips to the library, or the early years center, shopping, or visiting friends. The problem is, I don't think I am ever going to be ready to go back to work and leave you girls in daycare all day. We can't afford for me to stay home right now, but I just can't stand the thought of not being with you all day. I love you so much, and I just don't want to miss a thing. I would miss you more than you could ever know.

I really do just love you to pieces. I have already started planning your birthday party, and can't wait to see what you learn and how you grow next month.

Love forever and always,
your adoring mama

Dear Avery, 7 Months

Oh my dear Avery Leigh, the little sunshine in my day. You are already 7 months old little one, and getting so big! You haven't gone through any major growth spurts yet, and our scale is broken, so I really don't know what you weigh, but you are growing so much intellectually, it is amazing.

You discovered how to shake your head "no" and "yes" and you don't really have any reason to do it, you just think it's fun so it has become a new game. You really like to shake your head "no" when we are rocking you to sleep. It is pretty funny, I swear you know what you're doing and it's your way of asking to stay up later.

You started screaming this month. It is hilarious, you get quite a bit of attention from it, and you love it. You especially like to scream at your sister, and you copy her now when she is screaming or singing. It is really cute in the car, because we can't really see you, but we can hear you and Addie screaming back and forth at each other, like it's your own special game.

You have started skipping a nap a day this month. You can either skip your morning nap when we are out, and I don't blame you. I wouldn't want to nap either if I were you and we were out at the early years center or the library. There is far too much to look at and play with there! Or you skip your afternoon nap on the days we are home and play with your sister all afternoon. You want so badly to go where she goes and play with what she is playing with. She is really good about bringing you toys and playing with you though. Your sister just adores you.

You finally started sleeping through the night again. I wasn't sure if you were going to start again, but you have. Not consistently, but most nights you do. I really don't mind the nights you wake up a lot though, every time I go into your room, you flash me that beautiful smile and I feel blessed to have some extra time with you. Even if it is in the middle of the night.

You had a really bad cold this month. It is only the second time you have been sick since you were born, but it was awful. You were so congested and stuffed up that you could barely breathe, and I had to sit with you in the bathroom with the shower steam going to give you some relief. You are such a little trooper though. You hardly complained at all.

You are really enjoying your swimming lessons these days. You get in that pool and your little arms and legs start going like a little fish. Daddy and I just love watching you swim, and Addison couldn't be prouder to show you how to jump in and encourage you when you do it.

I know I keep saying it my love, but you are the happiest baby ever. You are so easy to take care of and just such a happy little spirit to have around. I miss you soo much when you aren't with me.

I am so excited to spend your first Christmas with you. We have almost finished our shopping, and Addison even wrote a special part in her letter to Santa about something you would like too. I can't wait to see you and your sister together in your Christmas jammies unwrapping all those pretty presents under the tree. I am so blessed to have you sweetheart.

I love you so much!
Love Mama