wow it's been a loooong time!

Wow, having THREE children 3 and under is a lot of work! Having two toddlers was sucking up most of my time, adding a newborn to the equation makes it even harder to get anything done. But we are adjusting and doing alright. I think everyone is pretty happy with things the way they are and the kids are happy kids, and that's what matters most right? Speaking of kids, I guess I need to update this blog and add our new addition to it. Hard to believe miss Mya is already 3 months old.
Here she is, My beautiful Mya Rian. Who knew we wanted another daughter? Not me, but since she's been here I couldn't imagine life without her, and couldn't have ever known how much I wanted her until I got her. She is such a sweet tempered baby, so good and so happy! We love her to death.

 And what about the other two little beauties? Well believe it or not, Addison is almost FOUR now, and starting school this coming September. She is our little firecracker. Full of drama, loud, and impatient. But also very loving and thoughtful, and adores her family. She is so proud to be a big sister.

 And Avery? She's going to be TWO this weekend!! Where is the time going? Avery is so funny. She is hilarious, she knows she's funny, and she's into EVERYTHING. She is so curious and messy, and funny and sweet. She knows she's cute and it's so hard to discipline this kid because she is so innocent and happy.

Aren't they cute? 

More updates to come as I get time!

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

Dear Avery, 6 Months

Dear Avery,

Are you really half a year old already? That must have happened while we were playing. Time flies when you are having fun, and my little peanut, we sure do have a lot of fun together. You just LOVE to play! Your favourite game right now is peek a boo, and you could literally play it all day long and not get tired of it. This is just one thing that  I don't ever want to forget about you at this age my baby. There are lots more though. You started giving kisses this month! This is my favourite thing you have learned to do so far. My neck is covered in little scratches from your little nails grabbing me and pulling me in for kisses. Big slobbery, sucking kisses! And I wouldn't trade it for the world! You know they are kisses now too. I can ask you for a kiss and you do it. I love the way you get so excited when you haven't seen me for awhile. You have just started screaming excitedly when you see me and I LOVE it!! You said "dada" for the first time this month, and even Addison heard it the same way I did. You love your new found vocal skills and are "dada'ing" all the time now. It is the cutest thing baby girl.

You have gotten really good at sitting up. You don't really need anything behind you anymore, but you are so used to having the boppy behind you, that you flop backwards on purpose all the time. Of course you don't realize when it is gone so you end up banging your head on the floor. So we will keep the boppy out for as long as you need it.

Every morning when you wake up, Daddy grabs you and puts you into bed with me. You usually play for awhile until Addie comes in. I love when you see Addie in the morning. You grab her and give her big hugs and kisses. You always have huge smiles for her too. I hope you are always close to each other like this.

You have been very busy increasing our grocery bill this month! I can not believe how much food you eat now! You already eat more than Addison, and you love to eat. It is so much fun cooking all your food for you, making you new things to eat and even feeding you is fun. You start bouncing around and kicking your feet as soon as we put the bib on you. If you are in your highchair and see the bowl of food, you start yelling at us until you get to eat it. I have to make sure it is the right temperature before you see it now so you don't get upset. We cannot spoon it into your mouth fast enough either. I am trying to teach you to sign "more" but you get mad at me for putting the bowl down for a second to show you the sign.

You are hit and miss with the sleeping these days. You absolutely will not nap unless you are home in your bed and Addison is not around. If you see Addie you just want to play with her. And if you are in your carseat, you will only sleep while the car is moving. As soon as we stop, you are awake and want out. You still aren't sleeping through the night anymore. You are pretty much up every two hours. You nurse for a few minutes and go right back to sleep though, so I don't mind getting up with you. There have been one or two nights that you have slept for 5-6 hours straight, but that is when you skip your afternoon nap, or are very tired after swimming lessons. We stopped swaddling you this month at nap and bedtime, and I think you are adjusting to that. You still love to be swaddled, but it is just too cold for it now. You need your sleep-sack now so we had to stop swaddling.

You do love going swimming. I am so happy that you love to swim sweetheart. It is so much fun taking you swimming. You kick both your feet at the same time, and you look like a little dolphin in the pool. Daddy and I love watching you swim! I wish I had some pictures, but the YMCA won't allow us to take any.

Music is another thing you love right now. You can sit and listen to your mobile, or the musical crib toy for hours. Any toys that make music or sing are your favourite toys right now, and you smile so big and dance when you hear them.

We just got our family pictures back, and everyone (including the photographer) is commenting on how gorgeous you are. Even Aunt Nikki showed some of her friends at school and everyone thinks you should be a baby model. I agree, you are stunning. After Christmas, I would love to have a portfolio made for you and see where it goes. It would be so much fun having your pictures done.

You are now in 6-9 month clothing, and your sleepers are getting a little short. I just started putting you in 12 month sleepers, they are too big, but better than having your toes squished in the 9 month ones. It won`t be long before you grow into them.

I have already started your Christmas shopping, I am so excited for your first Christmas! Avery, you just light up my life. I am so happy to have you, and to be blessed enough to have this time off to spend with you. I love you so much my little peanut.

Love, your mama
xoxoxoxoxox

Dear Avery 5 months

Dear Avery,

We are thinking of changing your name. Don't worry, we probably won't actually do it, but it is very tempting, especially since you don't even respond to Avery anymore.  Addison can't say Avery, so she started calling you "Aralee" as a combination of Avery Leigh and it's stuck. We seem to call you "Aralee" more than anything else, and you respond to it, I think you like it. We even get a lot of compliments on it when we are out in public and people ask Addison what your name is. No matter what we call you though, you are always answering with smiles and giggles. And those eyes.... Oh Avery your eyes are absolutely stunning!! I cannot look at you without being in awe of your beauty. Everyone that meets you comments on your eyes, and how captivating and beautiful they are.

You are so beautiful, and so chubby! I can't get over how adorably chubby you are. You are only 14lbs, which is the 46th percentile for weight, and you are in the 94th percentile for height. So you are really an average sized baby, but since Addie was so tiny, I am thrilled to have my chubby little baby. You are already wearing size 6-9 month clothing, which is what Addison wore when she was about 8-9 months old, so we had to buy you all new clothes for your first fall and winter. I was really happy that we got to get you all new clothes. I love that you have all your own things. We even got you your own Halloween costume. I didn't want you to have to be a duck just because Addie's old costume would fit you, so we got your own costume. You are going to be the most adorable ladybug we've ever seen!

I can hardly believe that we are already preparing for your first fall. In many ways, it feels like spring just started and you were just born. On the other hand though, I feel like I have known you all my life, and have loved you forever. You just fit so perfectly into our lives.

It's been another busy month for you. You sat up all by yourself this month! You have only been doing it for a week but are very sturdy and love to sit up and play with your toys. You absolutely love playing in your exersaucer, you grab all the toys and pull down what you can to chew on them. Addie is always bringing you new toys to play with too, so you never get bored. You also love jumping and rocking around in it. We just put your swing away today because you don't have any interest in that any more. Now that you can sit, you want to be around in the action, not in the swing all alone.

My favourite thing to watch you do right now is play with your sister. You follow Addison around with your eyes all day long, and she just adores playing with you. You give her the biggest belly laughs, and the way you rock and reach toward her shows us just how much you want to be mobile so you can run around and play with her. If we put you on your belly, you even creep forward already. She is the best motivation we could have to get you to crawl, and I have a strong feeling that you will crawl earlier than Addie because you want to be with her.

You have decided that you no longer want to nap when we are out of the house. It's pretty cute. You fall asleep in the car, but the second the car stops and the door opens, your big blue eyes pop open and you are as alert as you could possibly be to check out the sights wherever we are. No matter how long you go without a nap though, you are always happy, and never fussy. At home, I have to babygate Addie in the livingroom and put a movie on for her so I can take you up to your room to put you to sleep. If you see Addison, you just turn your head to follow her and smile and laugh. You are only 5 months old and we are already separating you two so you can sleep. I can picture you both as you get older, Daddy and I having to yell up the stairs to go to sleep as you are whispering to each other and running back and forth between your rooms. It brings me such joy to see how much you love each other already, and Daddy and I hope so much that you will always be best friends growing up, and will always be there for each other. Avery, no matter what happens, no matter how much you may fight, or disagree about something (even everything), no matter how much you may hurt each others feelings along the way, know that you are sisters forever, and you will always have each other. Addison will always love you, as you will love her.

My baby girl, this goes without saying for your Daddy and me as well. We will love you unconditionally, and support you unconditionally all our lives. You mean the world to us, and there is absolutely nothing that could ever happen, nothing you could ever do to change that. We will always be here for you.

I love you more than anything my sweet girl.

Love your Mama
xoxoxoxox