Hollyhand House

The Itsy Bitsy Spider

2012-01-31T13:21:00.003-06:00

The itsy bitsy spider climbed up the water spout.

Down came the rain...

and washed the spider out!

Our weekend

2012-01-30T21:51:00.000-06:00

We didn't do very much this weekend and I have to admit I really like those kind of weekends sometimes! We are really enjoying this spring-like weather in January!!

On Saturday morning, Ava Kate got her first taste of solid food. I decided to try oatmeal rather than rice cereal this time and she really liked it.

Anna Riley spent most of the day outside with her Daddy. Since it was windy and AK is getting over her cold, she and I stayed inside most of the day.

Saturday night, my parents decided to come for a visit. My Dad will not be able to come to Anna Riley's party next weekend so they brought her a present. Her big present is a Barbie Jeep to keep at their house to play on when she is there but she hasn't seen it yet. She loved the Dora dress up set she got though! She even took a bath with the necklace and wand!

I guess playing all day tuckered these two out! Anna Riley wanted her Daddy to "rock rock" her and usually he rocks her for a few minutes and lays her down. I was in the back feeding Ava Kate and fifteen or twenty mintues had passed and they were still in the den so I went to see what was going on and both were passed out!! I went to get the camera and Riley woke up (because his mouth was wide open! haha)

No, I do not make my child wear a bow to bed, she begs to wear one all the time and she wanted one in before bed. :)

Sunday morning, Ava Kate went to the nursery for the first time. She did great but I knew she was sleepy when we dropped her off, but she didn't sleep at all. So when we got home, sweet girl took a 3 hour nap and I had to wake her because she had already slept through a feeding.

This is what happens when I say
"Take a sweet picture!"

I love this picture because this is how
Ava Kate watches her Big Sister
all the time!!

And yet another "sweet" picture! :)

Hope you had a great and relaxing weekend!!

My little bundle of cuteness!

2012-01-26T07:00:00.000-06:00

sweet cousins

2012-01-25T10:31:00.002-06:00

My sweet nephew, Duncan, got to come play with Ava Kate on Monday morning while Anna Riley was at school. I had not seen him since Christmas since we had rounds of the stomach bug and colds we didn't want to give him our germs! So I was so excited to get my hands on him again! He had gotten so big since I had seen him last!! When we put him and Ava Kate on the quilt together, AK immediately grabbed his hand...they are going to be such sweet cousins! I can't wait to see these two grow up together!

Ava Kate 3 months 2 weeks
Duncan 6 weeks

So sweet!

Duncan just stared at AK the whole time! haha

AR's heart update

2012-01-18T18:51:00.001-06:00

We went back to UAB yesterday for Anna Riley's one year check on her heart with Dr. Carlo. We didn't get the news we really wanted but it wasn't necessarily bad either. We were hoping that she had outgrown the premature heart rhythms that she was having last year. Dr. Carlo said he is still hearing the same thing he did last year but that she really might not ever outgrow it. The good news is, it doesn't really affect her. He said she might notice a difference and eventually be able to tell me her heart feels funny at times (kind of like people with heart murmurs). He still wanted her to wear the holter for 24 hours again to monitor her heart to make sure there weren't any other irregularities. I was a little worried about her wearing it this time but she did great...she kept calling the actual monitor part her phone! haha. The nurses all bragged on her yesterday too because she would just lay back and let them do what they needed to do. She was such a big girl. She also wore her monitor to school today and did great with it. She was very excited to take it off after her nap though! We get the results back in a few days.

What a difference a year makes!

Miscellany Monday

2012-01-16T18:59:00.001-06:00

Weekend:
We had a very low key weekend and it was quite nice! We celebrated Talon's 1st birthday on Saturday afternoon (forgot my camera!). Courtney did such a great job with his party!! It was a winter ONEderland theme and it was just adorable!
Sunday was the first time in a long time that Anna Riley went to her class at church without any tears!! YAY! Ava Kate also did great in the sanctuary with us. So we celebrated with lunch at Fig...she picked a big piece of chocolate cake for dessert of course! We spent the rest of the day outside playing since it was such a beautiful day!

Party Planning:
I knew what I was going to do for Anna Riley's birthday this year probably the day after her party last year! :) There were lots of different themes I really wanted to do but she loves Mickey and Minnie so that is what it will be! The preparations are taking place but I am really trying to do things simple this year.

Sickness: With the weather constantly changing...we all have colds again! Uugh! Poor Ava Kate always seems the worst but I think its just because she is so stuffed up and can't breathe...poor thing! And its not going to get any better since it will be rainy tomorrow, really cold Wednesday and then in the mid 70s this weekend!! Oh my!!

School:
Anna Riley started school last week and she went on Monday and Wednesday mornings. I really think she is going to love it! On Wednesday, I just went through the carpool line and did not walk her in. I had been telling her all morning what would happen and that I would drop her off and one of her teachers would come to the car to get her and then I would be back at lunch to get her. She just kept saying "okay, Mommy!" When we got there and she saw Ms. Ashton come to the door she started waving her hands and saying "no,no,no!" but when she got her out she was fine and she never had any tears. They said she is doing great but still gets a little upset during transitions. She didn't have school today because of the holiday.

Sewing:
I got an embroidery/ sewing machine combo for Christmas and it is finally out of the box! I have been a little intimidated to get it out!! I am now trying to get all the supplies I need to get started. I wanted it mainly to monogram and applique some of the girls clothes but I really want to learn to sew a few basic things. I feel like a lot of the clothes I buy, especially for Anna Riley right now, are clothes that would be pretty simple to make. I have been talking to Jennifer Clark (Livi Stitches) since she makes beautiful clothes for her girls and she taught herself how to do it! I know a little bit about sewing but not enough to make anything. I purchased three basic patterns from Jennifer. She has been great to help with all of my questions. My first goal, however, is to figure out the monogram/applique stuff.

And just a few pictures just because:

Zero Doubt

2012-01-10T09:22:00.001-06:00

National Champions!!!

ROLLLLLL TIDE!!!

Anna Riley's first day of Day School

2012-01-09T14:34:00.003-06:00

Today was Anna Riley's first day of Day School. She will be going to Noah's Ark at St. Mark on Monday and Wednesday mornings. I knew without a doubt that she was going to cry when we dropped her off but she actually did much better than I anticipated! We had been talking to her about "school" for a few days now and telling her all the fun things she would get to do. Riley met me at school this so he could come meet her teachers. She cried for just a few minutes but by the time we were out the door, she wasn't crying anymore. We stood in the hall and talked to the director for a few minutes and didn't hear any crying or screaming so I felt really good about it!

I was so anxious to pick her up and see how her day went!! They said she had a pretty good day and only got a little upset when they would change activies. Everytime I ask her if she had fun and did she like school, she just starts laughing! On Wednesday, I won't take her in but they will come get her in the carpool lane so we will see how that goes!

All dressed in our houndstooth for the
Big Championship Game Day!

First Day of Dayschool

I tried getting a picture of the girls before we left...
Can you tell something is on TV and Ava Kate is
so amazed with the dots on her pants! :)

Her Daily Report for her first day!

Ava Kate--3 months

2012-01-08T16:20:00.000-06:00

Ava Kate turned 3 months old on January 6th. She is changing so much everyday and becoming much more interactive now!

(This post has lots of pictures but she has the cutest expressions...I can't pick just a few!)

At 3 months old, Ava Kate is wearing size 2 diaper and wearing 3-6 and even some 6 month clothes.

I am not sure how much she weighs, but I am positive she has gained what she needs to...we call her our little "Chunky Monkey!" I just love it!!

She is really starting to get on more of a schedule.

She eats 6 oz. every 4 hours. and her last feeding is usually around 8pm. She has slept through the night several times and sometimes she still wakes up once.

She takes roughly 3 naps a day if she can get a good nap in...sometimes her big sister wakes her or she just gets woken up somehow and doesn't get to finish resulting in a few cat naps. But on our good days, she takes a morning, afternoon (when AR sleeps) and a short evening nap (usually when we are eating dinner).

She rolled over for the first time on January 5th from tummy to back and has did it several times since.

She is getting so strong and can hold her head up really well now.

She loves playing with her toys and on her floor mat and recently in the exersauser. She is not as interested in the swing anymore.

I brought out one of Anna Riley's "Baby Einstein" videos for her to watch while I got ready and she loved it. She kicked and cooed the whole time.

She still has brown hair and her eyes are a green/hazel color (more like mine). She has her Daddy's skin tone and the cutest, chunkiest cheeks! I get mixed emotions on whether she looks like Anna Riley now or not...I think they have similarities but she is looking less like her and more like well...herself! :)

She "talks" all the time. She makes the sweetest cooing sounds.

She gets so excited when you are talking to her. She smiles so big and has even started laughing some.

It seems that she maybe has outgrown the colic she had. She is so much better and only has those fussy gas pains occasionally now. She seems to be a much happier baby now, too!

She loves watching her big sister! Anna Riley loves her so much! If Ava Kate isn't in the room, she has to know where she is. I can't wait until the two can really play together...they will have so much fun together!!

She makes to funniest facial expressions! Her eyes get SO big sometimes! She really looks like her Daddy's baby pictures especially when she makes her "big" eyes!

Just to compare: Ava Kate on the left and Anna Riley on the right.

23 months

2012-01-07T08:09:00.000-06:00

I can't believe this little girl is about to turn 2 in just a month! Oh where has the past two years gone?? She is growing so very fast and amazes us everyday with the new things she is learning! She keeps us on our toes and laughing all the time!!

-At 23 months, she weighs 28 lbs. and I am not sure how tall she is. We will find out next month.

-She wears a size 4 diaper, 2T clothes, 6 shoe.

-She takes 1 nap a day and goes to bed between 8 and 8:30 at night...wakes up at... well some weeks its 8:30 or 9 and some weeks its 6! She goes through phases of early waking and sleeping in...hopefully we can get back to our consistency here!

-Her favorite foods at the moment are: yogurt, apples, oranges, crackers, cheese, Popsicles, chicken, sweet potatoes, green beans, eggs with ketchup (she gets it from me and her PawPaw), pancakes, corn on the cob and of course COOKIES! (or "kahkis" as she calls them)

-She is pretty good at using her utensils now. She uses them most of the time and gets the majority of the food actually in her mouth.

-She FINALLY will drink out of a regualar sippy cup. She has always drank out of straws and never could drink out of the regular kind until recently. (I know very backwards from most kids!) She can drink from just an open cup fairly well until she decides to pour it on herself...so lid goes back on!

-She talks non-stop these days. I can understand more and more of what she is saying which really helps our communication because she can tell me what she wants most of the time! It's funny though because there are a few certain things such as popsicles and yogurt that she has just made up words for...I mean it sounds nothing like that word she is trying to say. I know what she is talking about but most people would not even know where to start! I always correct her but she must like her word better! Who knows?!

-She is talking in mostly phrases and sentences now. One thing she says all the time now is "No, I don't think so Mommy" and if I ask her a question she will say "oh-tay, Mommy!" The other day she was taking a bath with her Ava Kate and was about to dump water on her and I told her no and she said "I not mean, Mommy" (I have never told her she was mean so not sure where she got that) and I said well good you should be sweet and she said "I tweet, Mommy"

-Anytime she hears something out of the ordinary or an airplane especially she always says: "Whats that? You hear it?" And she puts her hand to her ear..."Its a airpwane" or whatever it is.

-She is still working on her colors. She still recognizes blue, yellow and red always but the others she gets confused on.

-She still loves to count and counts everything. If we give her M&Ms or Reece pieces, she wants to take them to the coffee table and count them first.

-She still loves animals and recognizes most of them and their sounds.

-When she sees any pictures with babies its always her "sissy" and if she sees a picture with her in it she says "thats you!" Haha...She's just a little confused. I guess because we say that to her.

-She is saying more people's names now. And she is stubborn and still won't say certain names! It is no lie that this girl loves her PawPaw and she says his name all the time and she loves Granna too but she is so stubborn and will not say Granna very much. I think because Mom has worked with her since she started cooing on saying her name and she knows she wants her to say it so bad. Its not that she can't...she wont! I mean how stubborn is that??!! When you ask her to say Granna, she says "hmmm...PawPaw! haha" She did say it the other night when she was looking at her picture but she won't say it to her. She has even called her by her real name which I won't allow!!

-She is all about her babies. She is constantly strolling one of them or putting them in the swing or bouncy. She helps take care of her "sissy" too! When she wakes up in the morning she usually ask for "sissy!" She likes to give her the pacy and get us the burp cloth.

-She loves to play with her makeup that Granna and PawPaw gave her at Christmas. She is really starting to get into the girly dressing up stage now.

-She still hates to have her picture made and actually will run when she sees a camera!! UUGH...did I ruin my child with so many pictures when she was little??

-She has her fair share of meltdowns and tantrums! Wow...if 3s are worse than 2s then I might go crazy! haha. She has some weeks where she does great and others where she spends a lot of time in timeout and throwing fits. This too shall pass...I have to keep reminding myself of that.

-She loves to play outside and on her new swing set. The past couple of months she has been scared to slide down the slide again. I think a slide she went down went really fast and it scared her. So, now when she slides down she sings "I did it, I did it" (from Dora).

-Her favorite shows now are Mickey Mouse, Dora, Little Einsteins, Super Why and she loves Elmo ("mo-mo") but doesn't really care for Sesame Street. I downloaded PBS video app on the ipad and my phone and its such a great app and its free! It has all the pbs videos on there so she has discovered new shows she likes such as Super Why.

-When she wants to watch Dora she says " I want Backpack, I want Boots"...I thought Dora was the main character?! haha

She also calls Pluto on Mickey Mouse "PooPoo"! haha

-She starts preschool on Monday! I am not sure how she will do. I know it will be a big adjustment for both of us but I know it will be great for her! Where did my little baby go????

Anna Rileys first haircut

2012-01-04T08:25:00.000-06:00

The week before Christmas, I finally decided it was time to shape Anna Riley's hair up. Her hair is so thin and kind of "ratty." I had been asking Janet when when we should get it trimmed and she said to wait to give the sides time to grow out a little so we decided it was time. I was really worried she wouldn't sit still and might have a meltdown but she did so great! She was such a big girl!! I don't know if it was the diet Mt. dew and suckers that Janet was bribing her with or what but it worked! Haha!

Before

Getting Started

"Ok, Mom...are you going to do this the whole time??"

Taking the first cut

Such a big girl!

After...
It wasn't a lot taken off but it made a
lot of difference in her hair and hopefully
it will help it grow better!

I think even she was proud!

Oh she looks so big!!

Thank you Mrs. Janet!!

Visit from friends

2012-01-04T08:03:00.000-06:00

On Friday, December 16th, Becca was in town for Christmas with Zach's family, so she got to stop by for a visit! It was so nice to spend some time catching up with her...well in between the "girls, you need to share...girls, what is wrong, why are you crying?" We just don't get to see each other enough so the time we have together goes by too quickly!

The girls watching Mickey Mouse and eating a snack
(Kendall came along to play too!)

Sweet little Evan

How sweet is this??
Already trying to hold hands! :)

Ava Kate & Evan
2 1/2 nonths apart

Goodbye 2011--Hello 2012!

2012-01-01T16:44:00.000-06:00

2011 was a pretty great year for us!! We found out that our family would be growing in February and welcomed our sweet Ava Kate in October! Anna Riley is growing so fast and really amazes us each day with the new things she is learning! God has really blessed me with two beautiful, healthy little girls and a wonderful husband and I could not be more thankful!!

I, like most, have goals for 2012. My goals are really things that I was already doing but just really need to work on doing them better and being more consistent. Since Ava Kate, I feel like we have been just on survive mode. But now, things are getting better there so I can focus on these things as well.

--Of course, I want to be healthy. No diets here...just a healthy lifestyle...healthy eating and exercising. We are for the most part pretty heath conscious anyways but lets just say the holidays throws everything out of whack so we definitely need to get back to this! Of course, my hopes are to loose weight, but being healthy is so much more than loosing weight to me! Also, I have never been a "runner" but I started jogging today! Yay! I was very proud!
--Being organized and staying organized. I love to organize...I really do! BUT...its so hard to keep it organized when you have two small kids! My goal is to try my best to stay on top of it so I don't have to spend a long time organizing! Cleaning out closets and decluttering definitely needs to be done soon!
--Reading in my bible more. This is a big one that I really have to work on! I guess right now, I am exhausted so when I sit to read, I get so sleepy! But I really have to make it a priority!
--Being a better wife and mother
--And this is one that Riley insists that I make a goal: Being able to say no to things and not feel like we have to do it all! I often run myself to death just trying to make sure we do all these activities that honestly Anna Riley would probably not even care about and not even remember. I just don't want my kids to miss out on anything and so its hard to say no. This year the holidays exhausted me because I never even took time to recover from having Ava Kate...I was taking Anna Riley places the next week and never even took time to rest so by Christmas, I was exhausted! SO...I will work on this!

I hope everyone had a wonderful start to the year!!

Christmas Day

2011-12-31T14:33:00.001-06:00

Last of the Christmas posts...promise!

After we opened presents and got ready, we headed to "Pop Pop's" house for breakfast.

Sweet John-Ross

John-Ross and Ava Kate
(John-Ross is almost 9 months and AK is almost 3 months!)

Santa Came to our house...

2011-12-30T10:04:00.000-06:00

Ava Kate got up around 7 to eat and we ended up waking Anna Riley up close to 8. I wasn't sure how she would be because she is one child that really doesn't care about opening presents. She likes the present, but really doesn't care about opening the present or playing with the paper. She was like that last year too! When she came in and saw her tricycle, it was over. That was all she needed to be happy. I opened most of the other presents, because she just wanted to play on the tricycle. She did decide to open a few while sitting on it! Ava Kate sat in her bouncy and watched Big Sis open everything. She will be in on all the excitement next year. We enjoyed seeing her eyes light up and I can't imagine how much fun the coming years will be!!

This picture is so funny to me...She would NOT
leave the tricycle! haha

Make-up brushes like Mommy's!!

Christmas Eve Night

2011-12-28T15:08:00.000-06:00

Last year, Riley and I started a few traditions with our family on Christmas Eve. It starts with the Christmas Eve Candlight Communion service at church that night. I sent both girls to the nursery so we could enjoy it (and actually they were the only ones since we have 3 times you can go...everyone with young kids went to the first service, but we couldn't do that this year). I love this service and I usually find myself crying through most of it! I feel like with all the hustle and bustle of the holidays, you sometimes loose track off what the real meaning of it all is. And of course the music gets me everytime! I also think about Riley's mom and how much she loved the Christmas eve service, too and how we wish she were here with us all the time but especially during the holidays. I just remind myelf she is having the best Christmas in heaven celebrating Jesus' birth!

When we got home from church, we got baths and got in our pjs. I get the girls a new ornament each year and then we have a new family ornament each year that we hang on the tree on Christmas eve. Riley reads Luke 2 and then I read The Night Before Christmas. We get cookies and milk ready for Santa and then its off to bed for the girls! After the girls are in bed, Riley and I always watch the movie Christmas Vacation (our favorite) on Christmas eve and get things ready for Christmas morning!

All ready for church

Of course we had to have the sippy cup in the picture! :)

Pop Pop, Riley, Anna Riley and Ava Kate before leaving
for church (and the sippy cup yet again!)

Christmas Eve 2011
(AND my child is smiling for the camera!! YAY!)

Anna Riley and Daddy hanging her ornament on the tree

Hanging the family ornanament on the tree

Leaving cookies and milk for
Santa or "HoHo" as Anna Riley says

Sorry Santa...Anna Riley couldn't resist taking a bite of
your cookie!!

Christmas Eve lunch with Granna and PawPaw

2011-12-27T18:24:00.000-06:00

We had lunch with my parents on Christmas Eve. Mom fixed lots of wonderful food and we ate and watched Anna Riley open her presents. Ava Kate will get to join in on the fun next year! Both girls got lots of fun stuff. I don't remember everything but Anna Riley got a keyboard, leapfrog laptop, play makeup, a doctor set, a baby doll, and a latch puzzle from uncle Wesley, and movies and books for both to share. Ava Kate got a sound machine for her room, a toy bar for her carseat, and some winter clothes.

Paw Paw helping AR open her presents

Daddy and Ava Kate watching
Anna Riley open presents

Anna Riley is very picky with baby dolls that she likes...
Granna finally found another doll that she likes!

Anna Riley and Uncle Wes

Getting more goodies out of her stocking

No trip to Berry is complete without
riding on the golfcart!

PawPaw putting Anna Riley's makeup on! HAHA

No wonder she loves him so much!!

Playing Doctor on Granna

Sweet baby was worn out from the
excitement!

I love this picture!!
Anna Riley playing Doctor with Granny Boo!

Hollyhand Christmas

2011-12-27T16:12:00.000-06:00

Saturday, December 23rd, we celebrated with first with the Hollyhand extended family with a potluck dinner (which I didn't take any pictures of) We got to see lots of family that we don't get to see often Then, we came back to Mr. Doug's to open presents and celebrate with the immediate family. I am so thankful for such great inlaws! I couldn't ask for a better family to be a part of!

Mimi and Ava Kate

Wesley and Duncan (not even 2 weeks old)

Sweet Brilyn

So sweet! This is what it is all about!! :)

Duncan was able to sleep throughout all the chaos and
my bright flash! :)

Ainslee showing us what she learned in gymnastics!

Present time!

All the grandkids get a bigger gift from
Papa Doug and this was Ainslee's!
She was the only one that actually had
her gift there...ours was part of a swing set.

She was sweet enough to let Anna Riley pretend to drive!

Family picture fail once again!
I will look back on this year one day and laugh at the pictures
that Anna Riley is refusing to take!

Earnest Christmas

2011-12-27T14:58:00.000-06:00

Saturday, December 17th, we had our Earnest Christmas gathering. We always do it the week before Christmas so we don't have so much the week of. This is one of my favorite gatherings during the Christmas season because we do all appetizers and party foods and we always have so much food! I wish I would have taken a picture of all the food we had because it was unreal. My Mom always makes homeade eggrolls and they are so good. She only makes them once a year usually because they are time consuming to make but it is requested she bring them each year!

It is also always great to see my family! This year, Anna Riley really loved playing with her cousins. We don't see them all that much but she just loved playing with them. She felt like such a big girl and they were so sweet to let her play. At one point, I went to check on her and she came to the door to close it and she said "bye, bye Mommy...see you later!" Talk about getting so big!!

Allee Beth and Anna Riley

Granna (or Gigi...I think Anna Riley
changed her name this weekend!)
and Ava Kate

Granny Boo and AR

Granny Boo and Ava Kate

Allee Beth, Addison and Anna Riley
They were so cute playing together!

Telling secrets! ;)

Paw Paw's girl!

Aunt Kat and Ava Kate

Mom and I

The party was at Janet's house and her dogs just had puppies
so Anna Riley got to pet one. I think they were hoping we
would take one home...that's not happeneing yet anyways!

Ava Kate and Janet

My little Chunky Monkey! :)

Paw Paw and his Girls...He will kill me for
putting this on here with stains on his
shirt from feeding AR but I just
had to it was too sweet of a picture.
Sorry Daddy! :)

Baby Duncan's arrival

2011-12-22T17:06:00.001-06:00

Riley's sister, Amanda, had her baby on December 11th. Amanda had the smoothest delivery! She was induced that morning and we met little Duncan early that afternoon. I am so happy for them...I know they will be wonderful parents!

Wesley hugging his Mama after he told us he was born.

The Proud Daddy Giving us all the details about Duncan

Sweet Little Duncan...6lbs 1.5 oz. 19 1/2 inchs long

Amanda with her brothers: Brian and Riley

Mimi and her great-grandson

The new little family!

The pinterest inspired wreath I made Amanada
(Had we had Hobby Lobby,
his whole name would
be on it but of course Michales doesn't
carry enough stock of letters!)

Ava Kate's first time at church

2011-12-22T15:55:00.002-06:00

Sunday, December the 11th was Ava Kate's first time to church. We had actually planned to go a few weeks sooner but since both of the girls had colds, we waited. We go to the 9:00 service so it was a lot more challenging to get us up, fed, ready and out the door on time but we did it and actually made it on time! Anna Riley was not happy about us leaving her but she was having so much fun when we went to pick her up, I think she wanted to stay a little longer! We kept Ava Kate in the sanctuary with us and she did good too. She was supposed to eat during the time we were at church so I had a bottle ready just in case but she slept most of the time and ate when we got home.

It is not always the "easy" thing to do to get us to there, but I am so glad that my girls will be raised in church and grow up knowing about Jesus!

Our Annual Christmas party

2011-12-22T15:41:00.001-06:00

I have had a Christmas party every year (with the exception of last year since we weren't living in our house at the time) since I was in college. I will say the parties have changed quite a bit since my college days with kids running around but its still so fun to get friends together during this time of year. We decided to just have a few couples and their kids over this year...which is still a house full because of our growing families! :) I do wish all of my friends lived close enough to come each year!!
We had tons of food! My family always "over do it" in the food department so I guess I get it from them. We also had a surprise visit from SANTA!! The kids HATED him! Ava Kate and Lily grace were the only kids that sat in his lap without crying and AK doesn't count. Lily Grace was so sweet and told him exactly what she wanted. Some kids had nothing to do with him and wouldn't even come near him and the others just screamed for their life!! Anna Riley kept saying "No, mommy! No, Mommy!" He was great with the kids though and he went in the playroom and sang Christmas Carols with them and they all warmed up to him a little but we didn't try pictures again. I figured we had traumatized them enough for one night!

All the kids actually sat down together to eat at the table.

I think Audrey made about 3 trips to get more food...
or maybe just cupcakes?!

Sweet little Talon!

Ava Kate with Miss Mandy

Lily Grace with Santa

Poor Chloe did not like Santa!
I do love this picture though!!

Talon also hated Santa...

Audrey looks like she was being
forced to sit! haha

And once again, Santa is having to force another
child to sit in his lap! haha...poor Emma!

Caroline was okay wth Santa as long
as she could have her flashlight!

Anna Riley would not sit in his lap so we just stood by him!
She did reach over and touch his hat but we didnt get a picture of it!

Peyton and I felt bad that no one wanted their picture
with him so we got ours with him! :)

Courtney and her precious boys, Tucker and Talon,
singing Christmas Carols with Santa

Santa singing Christmas Carols with the kids

Lily Grace with Ava Kate...
she is so sweet with babies!

Talon checking out his future girlfriend!! :)

Baking Cookies

2011-12-19T19:49:00.000-06:00

Anna Riley loves to help me cook, especially when we are baking cookies. She just doesn't understand the baking process. She gets upset everytime they go in the oven to bake!

We usually make chocolate chip cookies but we made sugar cookies this time so we could ice them and decorate them with sprinkles.

Anna Riley got very sprinkle happy. I had to keep reminding her to decorate more than one cookie!

Our finished product...pretty huh?! haha I can't blame the bad icing job on the toddler even though it looks like she did that part too!

Riley Christmas Lunch and a Triplet Birthday

2011-12-19T15:48:00.000-06:00

The Riley side of the family (Riley's grandmothers family) got together in Bessemer at the Bright Star for a lunch to kick of the Christmas season! We never get to see all of Mimi's family, so it was great to have everyone together.

That evening, we headed to celebrate Emma, Caroline and Audrey's 3rd birthday! Can't believe these precious girls are already 3 years old!!

Is it already Christmas??

2011-12-19T14:33:00.001-06:00

Just like everyone else, we have been super busy around here. I feel like I have been running a marathon since Ava Kate was born. I do bring a lot of it on myself because I don't let things such as, oh having a newborn slow us down. In the spare time I had to blog, I was working on another project that took up all my "blogging time" so now that it is finished maybe I can get back to it.

Here is a quick recap of somethings we have been doing this month thus far. I plan to do separate posts with pictures in due time.

-We started the Christmas festivties off the first weekend in Decemeber with a Christmas lunch at the Bright Star with Riley side of the family (Riley's grandmother's sisters).
-We have had a three birthday parties this month (next year it will be 5 just in Decemeber!)
-Anna Riley has taken after her Mommy and loves to bake. We have baked cookies a few times.
-Anna Riley really liked looking at the Christmas lights this year!
- I hosted two Christmas parties in one week at our house. One was for my Bunko group on a Thursday night and I had planned to have my month to host be December last Christmas so it was before I knew I would have a newborn. SO...crazy me thought we would just have a small party that weekend too! Why not?! haha...oh the things I do to stress myself out! Both parties were great though!
-I have a new nephew! Riley's sister, Amanda had her first baby on Decemeber 11th!
-Anna Riley got her first haircut!!! I can't wait to share the pictures!
-Becca, Zoe and Evan came to visit!
-We celebrated Riley's birthday with his favorite birthday meal...Spam and Mac and cheese! (weird, I know!)
-We have did a lot of painting and Christmas crafts. Anna Riley LOVES to do the handprint crafts. But, now everytime we paint, she automatically starts paiting her hands!
-We went to the Earnest Christmas party this weekened...complete with my Mom's famous egg rolls!!

Pictures to come....

2 months

2011-12-11T20:26:00.001-06:00

This post is just a little late. As everyone else, we are crazy busy around here and blogging has been put on the back burner! Hopefully, I will get everything posted one day soon!

Look who is growing like a weed!!

Ava Kate is 2 months old as of December 6th.

-At her 2 month check-up she weighed 13.2. (95%) she and AR both gained exactly 5lbs from birth. I will have to look up her length but it was 75%.

-She just moved up to the size 1-2 diapers. She wears 3 month clothes (some 0-3 and some 3-6).

-She still has dark brown hair but is losing a lot of it. It is still thick in the back. Her eyes are like mine...kind of a hazel, blue/green color...not sure if they will stay this way. She has a small skin tag on the back of her ear lobe on the right side. She favors her Daddy's baby pictures more to me than AR's did. I will have to scan one in and compare soon.

-She has the cutest, skinniest feet.

-She has chubby little cheeks that are just the cutest!

-She eats 6 oz. every 3-4 hours during the day and only wakes up once at night and that time varies. Sometimes its 2 or3 but the past several nights, I have fed her at 9:30-10ish and she slept until 5.

-She usually has a fussy period around 8 or so at night. This is getting better though! The only thing that really soothes her then is standing up and patting her bottom!

-She was spitting up quite a bit, but she is doing better with that. She does gag really easy. If she doesn'tthe pacy, she will gag sometimes!!

-She is cooing and smiling all the time now. She is really a happy baby most of the time. I love her little expressions she makes!

-She likes her swing and bouncy seats but these definitely do not soothe her or calm her down if she is fussy. They probably just make it even worse! She does like looking at the mobile and little toys on the swing now.

-She is still in our room now and she sleeps on the boppy pillow because of the elevation. I had AR sleeping in her bed by now but for some reason, I keep putting it off! Hopefully, I will do that soon.

-She went on her first trip to Fairhope on Thanksgiving and did pretty well traveling. Since we went from Berry, it took us an extra hour and that extra hour got us with both girls. But other than that she did great!

-She is grabbing hold of things now. When she lays on the changing table, she will grab my shirt.

-She has a big sister that loves her so much! She is constantly wanting to hold her and "rock rock" her. Ava Kate loves watching her big sis!

-She had her first cold this month but was such a trooper!

-She is such a cuddler and loves to be held.

-To save on time, I often put AR in the shower and Riley will bring Ava Kate to me and she gets in the shower. She really likes it!

Anna Riley at 2 months (left) Ava kate 2 months (right)

22 months

2011-12-07T21:46:00.001-06:00

Anna Riley is 22 months old! I can't believe she will be 2 years old in just 2 short months!! Wow, time sure does fly!! She is getting so big and doing so many new things these days...here are some things she is doing at 22 months old:

-She wears size 24 month and 2T and a size 6 shoe. She wears either a 4 or 5 diaper.

-We had to go to the doctor the other day to get checked out for a lingering cold and she weighed 28 lbs.

-I don't remember how tall she was, but she is always above average in her height! She is always getting comments on how tall she is.

-She is very strong willed and impatient!! haha Riley says the impatience comes from me! She gets frustrated very easy!! If things aren't done a certain way and in a timely fashion a meltdown is sure to happen!

-She goes through spells with her sleeping. She sleeps great most of the time but we have times where she either doesn't want to go to bed and cries and bangs on the door or she gets up in the middle of the night again.

-She eats very little some meals and great some meals. But she sure does love those cookies when she does eat good! She will beg for cookies or cake!

-She is so funny these days. She is constantly making us laugh. She is just starting to get into dressing up. These were some of my old scarfs that I gave her to play with. She wanted them all tied to her.

-She LOVES shoes!! I guess she comes by it naturally. She would sleep in shoes if I would let her!

-She likes to watch me put on makeup and pretend that she is too. On Thanksgiving day, we were running a little late because we were leaving from Berry to go to Fairhope so we had to make sure we were all packed so we were kind of running around and I had not noticed that she had gotten in my makeup. When I went to put her in the car, I noticed that her eyes looked really sparkly and brown and finally realized it was my bronzer that she had put on! It looked like someone hit her in the eye!! haha

-She loves to play in boxes...what child doesn't though?! And those soap.com boxes are the best!

- When she wants us to go somewhere or get something for her, she gets our hands and drags us where shewants us to go.

-She is starting to like "pretend play"...she is constantly picking up pretend things off the floor to give to us and she will say "here you go, Mommy"... if we don't get it and do something with it, she will just keep giving it to you!

-For a while, she did not play with her babies as much, but they are back now! She loves all of them and is constantly pretending to give them food and sips of her drink. We still have the exersaucer in the playroom and she puts her babies in it to play. She recently got the little people nativity set and I caught her suctioning baby Jesus' nose out a couple of times!!

-Speaking of babies, she is all about her baby sister right now! She wants to hold her a lot and "rock rock" her. She will say " want rock rock baby"...but she only wants to rock her in the little vibrating chair or the carseat! I am afraid she is going to think Ava Kate is her new baby doll now so I have been keeping a close eye on them. Anna Riley has always did great and never tried to pick Ava Kate up or anything but she is all about being a little mother right now.

-Her vocabulary has really expanded this month! She is saying more and more phrases...some of the regulars are: "give me that" or "give me that back" (we have had to work on this), "no" and "no way" (and she is usually shaking her head and hands), and recently she says "no ma'am (she says this to RIley as well) "hear it?" "lets go bye bye", "see you later", "want to play outside...car...phone, "there you go or here you go", "I want that." and so many more I just can't think of them all. These are just the ones I hear the most.

-She is constantly saying our names...she walks around the house saying "Daddy, Mommy, Sissy!"

-She has been able to count to 10 for a little while but would rarely do it. Now she counts all the time and counts everything she sees. But she usually starts at five for some reason! She knows 1-5 not sure why she doesn't say it, but says 5-10 perfectly and every once in a while I hear a 13 in there?!

-We have really worked on colors this month. Last month she was only interested in knowing the color blue but now she knows blue, yellow, red and pink and sometimes green. The other day she brought me one of the red ornaments that I let her play with and held it to my red pants and said "red, Mommy! red"

-She also points out things she sees that are the colors she knows when we are going somewhere or if she seems them on T.V. or in a book.

-She would be snack all day if I let her!

-She LOVES popsicle! Most mornings, we I telling her no popsicle and its only 8am!! At least now, I am buying sugar free!

-She also loves fruit snacks! She runs to the pantry all the time and wants fruit snacks.

-I let her play with my phone a lot especially while I am in a store. I have realized that she is calling so many people!! Sometimes she take my phone while at the house and goes and calls people. She calls Riley and my parents a lot and will talk and talk and I will have no idea that she has called them!

-I call her my little tornado, because she literally destroys everything in her path!! She is into everything right now!!

-She really likes doing anything outside but she loves things that aren't toys like the lawnmower, our cars, golf carts, 4 wheelers. She just likes to ride on anything!!

-She loves her rain boots and calls them her "Paw Paw boots" because my Dad wears boots a lot so she thinks she has boots like him now...even though I don't think he would wear polka dots!

-She LOVES playing inside the car. This would entertain her for a good hour. She likes for you to close the door and just let her play. She will say, "bye bye Mommy...see you later!" "I go bye bye!" We have had many meltdowns because she couldn't play in our cars at a certain time!

Even though she can be a mess sometimes and is constantly into everything right now, I couldn't imagine my life without this precious little girl!! She means the world to her Daddy and me! We love her SO much!

Thanksgiving weekend in Fairhope

2011-12-05T13:52:00.000-06:00

After filling our bellies, we loaded up headed down to Fairhope for the rest of the weekend. For the past couple of years, my parents have been able to go down with us and Riley's Dad. It is so great to have both of our parents there and boy does Anna Riley love all the attention she gets!! I am pretty sure she wore them completely out! I did not take that many pictures for some reason. And some how Mr. Doug managed to not get in any of them!

I would love to say we spent the whole weekend just relaxing but that was not the case! Mom and I shopped most of the weekend. The men were wonderful to keep the babies for us so we could do some Christmas shopping. We did not do the crazy mid night maddness, however we are the crazy people that go to Walmart at 9pm to get groceries on this crazy sale night!! The police officer that was standing in the produce section where the line for some tv was wrapped around to, really got a good laugh at us for only coming to get groceries!! But, its Thanksgiving and no grocery stores are open and even though we have a some staple items at the house, we really needed other items and I didn't want to wait until morning! But, it wasn't bad since the sale started at 10...it was actually the quickest I ever shopped in Walmart! It was so great spending some quality time with my Mom.

Anna Riley played outside the whole time we were there, I think! We could not have asked for better weather. It was perfect!! The girls that live in the house down the road, kept her entertained for a while on their golf cart. Anna Riley rides my Granny's golfcart in Berry everytime she goes and loves it so she was so excited that they ask her to play! They are 8 and 9 and the sweetest little girls! They would come and knock on the door to see if Anna Riley was awake and could play! :)

Saturday, Mom and I fixed some snacks and we watched the game at the house! All I can say is ROLL TIDE!!!

Earnest Thanksgiving

2011-12-02T07:39:00.000-06:00

We headed to Berry on Thursday for Thanksgiving with my family. Our family has grown so much that we have outgrown my Granny's house so we had lunch at the church fellowship hall. Lunch was amazing, as always! The women in our family can definitely cook!! Almost everyone in the family was able to come this year so it was great to see everyone!!

Thanksgiving with Riley's family

2011-11-28T10:40:00.000-06:00

We got together with Riley's family for a small Thanksgiving dinner last Sunday. I just love everything about t Thanksgiving and the holidays around it except the fact of the weight that I gain (especially at a time when I am trying to lose baby weight!)...but oh well!! :) The food was exceptional as always and spending time with family is the best!
We always attempt a picture for Mr. Doug to include in his Christmas cards. This year he requested it to be he and Mimi (Riley's grandmother) and the grandkids. Well, can you believe Anna Riley did not want to cooperate during picture time?! haha! She wanted me to hold her. But, of course, Papa Doug said that was just fine, he thought it would be funny to have one with her crying! I have a feeling we will not have good pictures of our family for a few more years!

Wesley and Amanda...and little Duncan (she is due in just a few weeks!!)

Burke/Hollyhand Family

Thanksgiving 2011

Brian (Riley's Brother), Leigh, Brilyn & Ainslee

My little Roll Tide babies

2011-11-22T20:34:00.000-06:00

This was actually a couple of weekends ago but I have been slow with the blogging this week!

Anna Riley and Maggie all dressed i their uniforms...Bama and Georgia

Best Friends!

Thankful

2011-11-15T16:35:00.000-06:00

I have so many things to be thakful for but I am especially thankful for these two precious girls!! God has really blessed our family with beautiful, healthy children and I can't thank him enough!

Disney on Ice

2011-11-12T15:19:00.000-06:00

We took Anna Riley to see Disney on Ice on Sunday afternoon. I have been waiting for this day for a while because I always loved going to Disney on Ice when I was little!! I wasn't for sure how long it would entertain Anna Riley but she did better than I thought. There were parts that she got bored in such as the segment with Lilo and Stitch since she has never seen that movie. After the $24 light up toy and $10 cotton candy, she was content for the mean time! Haha....they really make the money on that stuff!! I can't imagine how it will be when both of the girls are going and asking for all that stuff! She didl ove seeing Mickey and Minnie and really liked the Little Mermaid and Peter Pan. We stayed for most of it, but we could tell she was getting tired so we left a little early.

The cotton candy did come with this little flower that Anna Riley used as hat.

Playing with her toy before bed.

Watching airplanes

2011-11-12T15:12:00.000-06:00

Last Saturday morning, we took Anna Riley to watch all the airplanes coming in for the LSU game. Our airport is very small but wow there were a lot of airplanes that day! Anna Riley and Fischer had the best time watching the planes fly in and land! Fischer is also slightly obsessed with airplanes!

Anna Riley kept saying, "Hear it, hear it...airpwane!"

They even got to sit in the Tuscaloosa Police helicopter! Anna Riley loved this since she loves playing and pretending to drive our cars!!

Bama v. LSU

2011-11-12T15:02:00.000-06:00

Last weekend, Mom and Dad came and kept the girls so Riley and I could go the the Bama v. LSU game. This was supposed to be the biggest game of the decade since it was SEC's #1 and #2 playing. This was the one game we got to go to this season. Unfortunately, it wasn't the best game resulting in a loss for us! Even though it ended bad, we still had such a great time tailgaiting and seeing friends and going to the game together.

1 month old

2011-11-11T13:50:00.001-06:00

On Sunday, November 6, Ava Kate turned a month old! Where did this month go??? We are SO in love with her, she brings so much joy to our lives!

-I am not for sure how much she weighs but I am thinking over 9 lbs.

-She has outgrown all her newborn clothes and is in 0-3 months. She wears a size 1 diaper.

-She definitely loves to eat! This week, she started eating around 6 oz. Now that she is eating that many ounces, she goes about 4 hours during the day and sometimes 5-6 hours at night. I usually feed her before bed (if its not time for a feeding, I try to just give her a little anyway so she has a full belly) and then she usually eats sometime around 3am and then again around 7 or 7:30.

-She is a really good baby so far. She is usually content for the most part. She does have days where she wants to be held more.

-She is still sleeping a good bit. But her awake times are lasting a little bit longer. She is awake for the longest stretch of time in the mornings and now she is starting to be awake more at night before bed.

-She is such a snuggle bug! I could just snuggle with her all day.

- She really loves to lay on your chest and her bottom to be patted!

-She prefers to sleep on her side rather than her back. I am sure she she is able to roll over, she will be a stomach sleeper too!

-She rarely cries but she grunts a lot!

-She still has dark brown hair, blue eyes and a dark complection. She has long fingers and the skinniest long legs! She has pretty plump lips.

-She likes her pacie but I have noticed her thumb in her mouth a few times. I just take it out and put the pacie in!

-She really loves her bath time but she hates to be cold!! So she is usually not a happy baby when she gets out of the tub.

She is such a great baby! We love her so much!

This is Anna Riley's one month picture (on the right) and Ava Kate's (on the left).

I think they look a lot alike but they each have their own special characteristics too!

21 months

2011-11-11T13:20:00.002-06:00

Anna Riley turned 21 months last Thursday, Nov. 4. Here is what she has been up to this month:

-I am not for sure how much she weighs right now but she wears 24 month/2T clothes, size 6 shoe and size 4 or 5 diapers (5s seem to work better at night).

-She does not eat as well as she used to! She would much rather just snack all day long...what kid wouldn't?! I let her have snacks but I definitely have to cut her off or she would never eat a real meal!

-She still loves fruit and sometimes that is the only part of her meal she will eat. For breakfast her favorites are scrambled eggs or a nutragrain bar. She still only drinks milk or water and an occational capri sun roaring water. She just doesn't really care for juices.

-She loves popsicles and starts first thing in the morning begging for one!

-We had a hard month with all the changes. She had been trying to cut her two bottom eye teeth the week before I had Ava Kate. She was very whinny and just wanted me all day long and threw many tantrums when she didn't get her way (not so much with the teething there as it was just being a toddler!) Well all of that just got worse when Baby Sister arrived!! She was acting out for attention and didn't feel well at the same time! I thought we were all about to go crazy! Luckily, when her teeth came through, things got better...a lot better!! She still throws a tantrum here and there and that is going to happen but it is not like it was and that makes me a happy Mama! I had really missed my happy baby!!

-She LOVES puzzles and books so much! She gets one book after another for us to read or will sit and look at books on her own. She loves puzzles now that she can do them on her own!

-She likes for you to ask her where a certain animal/object is in the book and she will point to it. But, sometimes she wants to point to the wrong one first and she will say "nooo" and then she will point to the right one.

-She loves to count and if she sees several things lined up she will point to them and say "count" because she wants us to count them with her. She can count to 10 but will not do it when I ask her to. One of her favorite games on the ipad is a counting game.

-She loves playing her games on the ipad. She works it really well and if you are using it she will come up and say "PEEEZ" so she can have it.

-She thinks that saying please means she gets it!

-The reason she says please so much is because she was saying "Give me that!" We would get on to her and tell her she had to say please! haha

-She might have had a hard time when Little Sis first arrived, but she is such a good Big Sister now. She doesn't like when the baby cries and if she is in her swing, she will run over and start pressing the buttons to turn the music on for her. She will just walk by her and say "Hiya Sissy!"

-She is a good little helper, too. I can ask her to bring me the burp cloth or throw something away and she loves to know she is helping me.

-She is constantly grabbing our hands to show us something. I will be glad when she can communicate things a little better so she can just tell us!

-She walks around with either her first and middle fingers crossed or her middle and forth finger. It is so funny.

-When she wants you to hold her, she says "EEEE"
-She has recently been asking to "rock rock" before nap and bedtime. I think this has to do with a baby being in the house or possibly trying to prolong bedtime because she has never really wanted to be rocked. I do enjoy rocking her when she lets me though.
-When I rock her, I usually sing "Jesus loves me". The other day, Mom was going to rock her and she started singing Jesus loves me and Anna Riley said "No...Mommys!" I guess she thinks that is just my song!

-She still loves animals and is constantly making the animal sounds.

-Her favorite thing is to look for airplanes. She will put her hand to her ear and say "hear it, hear it...airpwane!"

-She still loves to watch Mickey Mouse but she will now watch a few other shows. She likes Dora, Little Einsteins and Sesame Street.

-She loves to be outside. She doesn't understand when it is too cold or raining. She could stay outside all day long!

-She also loves to paint now. She will come get me and take me to the playroom closet so I will get the paints out for her. She is usually good about only painting paper but recently she has wanted to paint herself a lot!

-She is always wanting us to come sit in the recliner so she can pop the foot part out. She thinks it is so funny! It reminds me of that part of the movie, Sweet Home Alabama!

-She jabbers all the time until she is around people she doesn't know all that well and then she is so quiet!

-She is really starting to talk more in phrases rather than just words. She is so curious about what everything is. She wants you to name EVERYTHING! She will point to things and say "what's that?"

-She says "gazuntite" when you sneeze because that is what her Daddy often says.

-She is a Daddy's girl!! Now that Ava Kate is here, she really wants her Daddy a lot. Sometimes on the weekends, he will take her to check on some of their jobs they are working on with him and he has been taking her jogging with him in the afternoons a lot. She loves that one on one time with her Daddy!

2011-11-10T12:24:00.000-06:00

I have lots to blog about! Our computer had a nasty virus and so it was being fixed. Now hopefully I can find the time to sit and blog at some point!

Little Bo Peep and her sheep...

2011-11-01T17:38:00.000-05:00

Last night, we took the girls around to a few houses in our neighborhood and the came back home and let AR pass out candy. I think she enjoyed giving out the candy as much if not more than going around to the houses. Everytime the doorbell would ring, she would run to the door and grab two handfuls of candy to put in their bags.

She actually wore her hat so you could tell she was Little Bo Peep this time!

Checking out all the good candy! She was definitely on sugar overload last night!!

The most precious Sheep!!

I just love these two girls!!

2011-10-29T14:00:00.000-05:00

Trick or Treating on Sorority Row

2011-10-29T12:50:00.000-05:00

Anna Riley has had a hard time adjusting the past couple of weeks it seems (more on that in another post) so I thought it would be great to spend some one-on-one time together. We met some friends on campus to trick or treat at the sorority houses. Anna Riley was a little overwhelmed when we first started because all the girls are lined up and dressed in costumes to hand out candy.

Little Bo Peep...She refused to wear the hat!

The group getting ready to go...

Feeling a little overwhelmed at the time!

Starting to get the hang of it...

Me and my Little Bo Peep

(sister is the sheep but we left her at home with Daddy)

Critter Creek Farms

2011-10-27T10:31:00.000-05:00

One thing I love about fall, is all the fun activites. This year we decided to do things low key since we had a newborn. We went to a small pumpkin patch/petting farm on Sunday afternoon. Next year, I really want to go to one of the big pumpkin patches but traveling to those just wasn't in the cards this year!! We decided to go to Vance (30 minutes away) to Critter Creek Farms. They had a petting zoo, a few wildlife animals (a bear and cougar!), a hayride, they got to pick a small pumpkin and a playground.

Saturday on the quad with the Phillips family

2011-10-25T11:06:00.000-05:00

Saturday, the Phillip's family came to visit and we took the kids on the quad to play and get Big Bad Wolves BBQ nachos and just walk around!! The weather was perfect!!

Our new family of four!

Anna Riley and Zoe had fun playing on the jumpy.

Isn't this the cutest little cheerleader?!

WHEEEE!!

Ava Kate enjoyed her first visit on the quad...can you tell??

Once we got back home and had a nap, the girls played outside.

I am so sad that I didn't get a picture of Evan and Ava Kate or of Evan period!

We had so much fun watching the game and catching up! Spending time with them really makes me wish they lived closer!!

2 weeks

2011-10-21T09:51:00.001-05:00

My sweet girl is 2 weeks old and she is changing everyday!

-Ava Kate weighs 8lbs and 9oz. (up 6 ounces from birth) and is 21 inches long (up 1 inch). They forgot to tell me her percentages.

-She is still wearing a newborn diaper and newborn and a few 0-3 month clothes.

-Even though she is a bigger baby weight wise, she is still so petite and tiny. She has the skinniest, long legs!

-She has been a great baby!! She eats every 3-4 hours during the day and every 4-5 hours at night. She is already up to about 4oz. and has both breast milk and formula but mainly breast milk.

-Her awake times are getting longer now.

-For the most part, she is rarely fussy. But when she is, she lets it all out!! We have had a few fussy moments and a couple of bad nights with a gassy tummy ache that left she and I sleeping in the recliner all night...not fun! Thank goodness for gas relief drops!

-When she burps, it is usually very loud and long...sounds like a man! :)

-She has really dark brown hair, deep blue eyes and a dark complection and looks a lot like her big sister when she was a baby but has her own special features too!

-She loves to be held and to snuggle!!

-Dr. Roberts was very pleased with how well she was growing and said everything looks good. She got her foot pricked but no shots until 2 months. They will also check her hips at 2 months since she was breech. I'm so thankful and blessed to have two healthy girls!!

Sisterly Love

2011-10-19T14:23:00.001-05:00

"Having a sister is like having a best friend you can't get rid of.

You know whatever you do, they'll still be there."

~Amy Li

"You can kid the world. But not our sister."

~Charlotte Gray

"In the cookies of life, sisters are the chocolate chips!"

"There's a special kind of freedom sisters enjoy. Freedom to share innermost thoughts,

to ask a favor, to show their true feelings. The freedom to simply be themselves!"

I can't wait to watch these two grow and be not only sisters, but best friends!!

Ava Kate's first bath

2011-10-17T16:00:00.001-05:00

We gave Ava Kate her first bath on Sunday night. We decided to bathe the girls together and it worked out great. Anna Riley didn't seem to mind having the company and Ava Kate liked her bath!

I think Anna Riley is warming up to this Big Sister thing! :)

Busy weekend (with lots of pictures!)

2011-10-17T09:16:00.001-05:00

We had a busy weekend but to me October is always a busy month! Mom had stayed with us all week and she left on Friday afternoon. She ask if Anna Riley could go home with them for the weekend. I thought it would give Riley some time to spend with Ava Kate and since they were going to have to come back and watch Anna Riley Saturday night, it worked out perfect.

I had dressed the girls alike on Friday and they looked so cute.

You can't really tell, but that is a pumpkin hat on Ava Kate (it kind of looks like the orange hunting hats in the picture..haha)

Finally a picture of my two girls without any tears!!

Saturday, Riley got some snuggle time in with Ava Kate while I met my friend, Frances Ann for lunch and some shopping!

Saturday night, we went to a tailgaiting baby shower for my Sister-in-law, Amanda. We pretty much brought gifts, ate, watched the game and socialized...that's my type of shower!! :)

She is due in December and we can't wait to meet James Duncan!!

I am so happy we will have babies close in age!

Back in Berry, Anna Riley was having the best time at Granna and PawPaw's house.

She LOVES going to the country and staying with them!! Mom had sent me several text pictures while she was there. She loves their dog, Lucky!!

The whole time she is there, she wants to be outside the entire time riding the 4wheeler or golfcart or playing with the dogs. My Dad said everytime they would go in for a litte bit, she would bring him his hat and boots so they would go out again!

Mom put her hair in a ponytail for the first time...shes getting so big!

Anna Riley and Hailey pretending to drive the golf cart.

Anna Riley went to church with Mom and Dad on Sunday morning. Mom teaches her age's Sunday School class.

When Mom and Dad brough Anna Riley back home, she had a friend to play with. Kimberly, Cory, Carson and Collin had stopped by for a visit on their way home.

We got some quick hugs and kisses and it was off to our niece, Ainslee's, birthday party.

Anna Riley had a blast at the party. I was afraid she would be whiny because it was during her nap time. We left a little early and she fell asleep as soon as we got home!

Papa Doug and Anna Riley at the birthday party

Ainslee at her Hello Kitty party...can't believe she is 3!

Ava Kate had fun too...she ate and slept and was held the whole time! :)

Riley and his brother, Brian and sister, Amanda at the birthday party

And one last picture of Miss Ava Kate...because I don't already have a ton of pictures on this post! :)

Our week at home

2011-10-15T22:23:00.000-05:00

We had a pretty good first week at home. My Mom stayed with us this week to help out. It was so nice to have her here to help around the house and with Anna Riley while we got settled and used to our new schedule.

Ava Kate is a great baby! For few nights, she had a fussy period and she just wanted to be held and rocked during this time. She is sleeping pretty good at night also. Right now she wakes up around every 4 hours to eat...which might change when she isn't sleeping so much. The past few nights I get up at 1ish and again around 5. I feel like with Anna Riley, I always worried that I needed to wake her to feed her, but I have did better this time and Ava Kate definitely lets me know when she is hungry!

I feel like I have felt so much better this time. With Mom here, I would run a few errands when both girls went to sleep. It helps to get out and have some "me" time! One day, I just went to Target and walked around for an hour with my starbucks! The first few days, I did take a nap when AR did and that was nice too! :)

Riley has had to spend a lot of time entertaining Anna Riley. I am not supposed to pick her up for another week, which has not been quite as bad as I thought it would be but I feel like Riley hasn't gotten as much one on one time with Ava Kate as he would like. He went back to work on Monday but he took most of Tuesday off because my Mom couldn't be here that day due to her brother passing.

Anna Riley has had a harder time adjusting. We are at the age right now where terrible two's have begun and that does not help at all! She is also getting her two bottom eye teeth and they were hurting her so bad the other day that she even pointed to her teeth to tell me it hurts. SO...mix all that with the changes we have at the house and it makes for a very unhappy toddler!! She has had a lot more tantrums and meltdowns lately.

For the first part of the week, she didn't even pay attention to Ava Kate which surprised me because she LOVES babies and anytime she is around one, she won't leave it alone. She is warming up to her a little more now. She will give her a kiss here and there and if she is in the swing, she will go and push her. She does not like when she cries at all!! It sometimes makes her upset too. The other day, Ava Kate got fussy while in the swing and Anna Riley ran over there and said "I get her, I get her!"

Because we know there is so much change for Anna Riley, we have really tried to keep her routine the same as much as possible. Riley and I have always given her a bath and put her to sleep together and so we have tried to keep doing that. Hopefully, things will get better and better each week!

This week will be a little more challenging since I will have the girls by myself and since I still am not supposed to pick Anna Riley up!

1 week old

2011-10-13T20:00:00.000-05:00

I can't believe this sweet girl is one week old today!!

We are already so in love with her!

Coming Home

2011-10-13T14:36:00.001-05:00

Luckily, we got to come home early. C-section patients are supposed to stay 3 nights, so I was not supposed to come home until Sunday but since I was doing well, my doctor said I could go home on Saturday. We were so ready to be home and Riley was super excited to be home to watch the game!!

We were in this same room with Anna Riley...how neat is that?

Big Sister Party

2011-10-12T20:07:00.000-05:00

The hospital gives a sibling party during your stay. We had ours on Friday night. Anna Riley was beyond excited about her cake, ice cream and balloon. I am not real sure how she feels about being a big sister but she definitely loved her party!

"Yeah Mom she's pretty neat but I am really more intersted in my ice cream right now!"

Day 2 (in pictures)

2011-10-12T19:46:00.001-05:00

Aunt Kat and Hailey came to visit.

Granny and Ava Kate

Uncle Wes and Ava Kate

Miss Katie and Ava Kate

Day 1

2011-10-11T13:18:00.000-05:00

Our first day with Miss Ava Kate was wonderful! Our immediate families were there that morning to welcome her to the world and then everyone left and Riley and I got to rest and relax and just enjoy our new bundle of joy! That evening we had several more visitors. I tried to take pictures of those that came but I got a little sidetracked.

Unlike most newborns, Ava Kate was very alert her first day and wanted to nurse often...which she made up for the lack of sleep the next few days.

I forgot to mention in the last post that Ava Kate has dark hair and blue eyes.

Mom and Dad brought Anna Riley back to the hospital that afternoon so we could spend a little more time with both girls!

PawPaw and Granna

Aunt Amanda

(we can't wait to meet James Duncan in December!)

Papa Doug

Lily Grace & Peyton

Uncle Brian

'Aunt' Fran

Welcome to the world Ava Kate

2011-10-10T11:36:00.003-05:00

Ava Kate Hollyhand

October 6, 2011

8:25 am8lbs. 3oz.

20 in. long

We are overjoyed to welcome our new baby girl!! Ava Kate arrived at 8:25 on Thursday morning. We are SO in love with this baby girl and feeling so blessed with our family of four!

For my memory, I want to write down the events of Ava Kate's birthday.

Riley and I arrived at the hospital around 4:45 on Thursday morning. I probably got a few hours of sleep the night before. I was excited, nervous and anxious. I laid awake just thinking about what she would look like, how Anna Riley would react and prayed that she was healthy and things went smoothly. My parents had stayed at our house so that they would be there with Anna Riley when we left and they could bring her to the hospital closer to time. When we got there, they started my iv and began getting me prepped for surgery.

We were fortunate enough to have Kim Lawson come take pictures of our special day so many of these are courtesy of her.

The c-section was scheduled to start at 7a.m. so Mom and Dad brought Anna Riley around that time so they would be there when she was born. Unfortunately, the surgery was delayed until 8 a.m. but it gave me some time to be with Anna Riley before going back.

They took us back close to 8 and Riley got his outfit to put on and they took me back to get my spinal. The spinal was so much better than the epidural I had last time. I did start feelin nauseous when they laid me down after giving the spinal. I wasn't surprised because I got very sick with Anna Riley. They gave me medicine and I felt much better! When everything was ready, Riley came in and everything got started. Everything was really calm and went so smoothly. I felt great at this point but I did cry through most of the surgery...happy tears of course. It didn't take long at all and Dr. Poist said he was about to get her out. Much to our surprise, miss Ava Kate had turned at some point and was breech! That explains why I always felt what I thought was her bottom sticking out on my left side...it was her head! Good thinng we had already planned on a c-section!! He pulled her out and she was completly covered in vernix (the white cheesy stuff) so it was hard to tell much about her. They cleaned her up real quick and weighed her and Riley brought her to me. We said immediatley that she looked like her big sister!

She weighed 8lbs 3oz and was 20 inches long which was very close to Anna Riley's size (8lbs and 20 3/4 in.)

Riley, then took her to meet the family and they finished working on me for the next 20 minutes.

Anna Riley had fun while waiting for little sister. She spent her time being pushed on the iv pump!!

Anna Riley finally meeting her little sister for the first time!!

Riley got to take everyone back one at a time to get a closer look at Ava Kate while she was in the nursery.

I went back to recovery and waited until they were finished with her in the nursery. Anna Riley got to come sit with me and keep me company.

After a few mintues, Riley brought Ava Kate to me! I just couldn't believe I was finally holding her in my arms...such a special moment!

Anna Riley wasn't sure what to think about this new addition!

I nursed Ava Kate and then they took me back to the room.

Everything with this birth went SO smooth and I was really able to enjoy every second of it! I was amazed at how much better I felt during and after this time section compared to last. I am so thankful for such a healthy baby girl! God has truly blessed me and my family!!!

20 months

2011-10-05T21:18:00.000-05:00

Anna Riley is now 20 months old! Can't believe she will be 2 in just four short months!!
Here is what she is doing at 20 months:

-She wears mostly 24 month/2t clothes but can still wear 18 month in dresses. She is in a size 5 diaper.
-We decided to drop her morning nap and move her afternoon nap up a little. Sometimes, I feel she still needs that rest time, but she always falls asleep and then she doesn't take a good afternoon nap and I would much rather an afternoon nap than morning.
-So, in trying to adjust to just one nap, she has been more whiny than usual and she is throwing quite a few tantrums. I know some of this is due to teeth that have and are coming in and not feeling, changes that are slowly taking place, but mainly just the "terrible twos!"

-She has gotten really good at saying "NO!" Sometimes this is to tell us she doesn't want something but many times it is just being definant!
-Even though she has had a few behavior issues this month, she can still be the sweetest thing! She really loves to cuddle and she will say "cuddle, cuddle, cuddle" real fast. She is always laying on us or giving us hugs and kisses.
-When she hugs you she says "awww" and sometimes when you ask for a hug, you might just get the "aww" with no hug at all! Haha
-When her feelings are hurt, she curls her bottom lip and her eyes get big.

-Her vocabulary is getting bigger and bigger everyday. She is constantly saying or doing something new. She is now saying more phrases. Her favorite phrases right now are "I get it!" or "There ya go"
-Many times when we ask her a question she will say "yeah"...much better than no all the time. The other night I said "You know Mommy loves you so much" and she said "I know!" :)
-She loves animals and can name most of them and their sound. Barn animals are still here favorites.

-We are still working on people's names. We work on this the most and I think she is just stubborn and will say them when she wants. She does say Mama but she started calling me Mommy more, Daddy, PawPaw (my dad), Granna (She is stubborn with this one but she has said it a few times), PopPop (Rileys dad...who is really Papa Doug), MiMi (Rileys grandmother). We are working on aunts and uncles and others but she says the ones she wants to say.

-She has started saying "WOW" or "cool" a lot. When she says wow, she really drags it out...its so cute!
-She can count to 6 (on a good day) by herself. She holds out her fingers and tries to count them. Seven really throws her off but she will say 8,9, 10 and clap! But, if she is counting objects, she will just say "pive, six, pive, six"
-She LOVES the song "wheels on the bus." I often hear her "singing" the tune and then doing the motions. She knows all the motions now and her favorite is that the babies go "wah, wah, wah"
-She likes to "help" me clean.
-Sometimes when she is really tired, she will point to her room and say "night, night"
-She still loves books and is now really intersted in her puzzles.

-Mickey Mouse is still a favorite and she really has started liking Pete. She talks about him when the show isn't even on. One day, a neighbor of ours was running while we were outside and I ask her if she knew who that was and she said "Pete"...its funny because he isn't even a main character on the show.
-She crosses her pointer and middle finger all the time. I think she just realized she could do that.
-She is obsessed with the games on the iphone and ipad. I have to admit, she is pretty good at them and knows how to use them probably better than many adults I know! But, it gets frustrating when we are using them and she tries to get them from us. She will now say "Peas" but she thinks because she says that, she can have it!

-She is obsessed with shoes. She wakes up in the morning wanting to pick out a pair of shoes in her closet. She also loves to take our shoes off and put them on her or on someone else.
-She really likes to watch me put my make-up on. Isn't it funny how little girls already love this stuff?!
- She wants to be "out-tide" all the time!!!
-She is more finally getting more intersted in coloring and painting and she played with playdough for the first time the other day.
-She is going to be a BIG sister tomorrow!

39 weeks

2011-10-05T13:20:00.000-05:00

Well tomorrow is the big day!! I can't believe it is already here. I just got home from the pre-admission testing, so we are ready to go! My parents are coming tonight so they can stay with Anna Riley in the morning and bring her to the hospital. They are going to keep her tonight so Riley and I can go out to eat by ourselves. :) Please say a prayer for us for a safe delivery and healthy baby...and that I can get some sleep tonight!!

Symptoms:

I honestly feel so good for it to be the end! I mainly just have bad back pain in the evenings and at night. A hot shower really seems to help.

Weight Gain:

28lbs. I didn't keep up with everything as well last time so I am not for sure the exact amount I gained, but it was at least 40..so I did a little better in that department this go around.

Sleep:

Sleep has been pretty good. Anna Riley hasn't slept too well this week because of her cold but it hasn't been too bad. Last night, it took me forever to go to sleep...I couldn't stop thinking about everything! So I don't imagine I will sleep well tonight either and I have to get up at 4am.

Movement:

It has slowed down but I often can feel her bottom and she presses her feet out a lot...to the point where I could probably almost count toes! She has had the hiccups a few times also.

The top picture is 39 weeks with Anna Riley and the bottom is today. I feel like my stomach is probably just as big but I didn't gain as much in my face this time.

Our last weekend...

2011-10-02T10:26:00.000-05:00

This was our last weekend as a family of 3! We are so excited that our little family is expanding and soon we will have two precious girls. But, there will be a lot of changes, especially for Anna Riley. She is really too young to understand what is going on but I think she already senses that things are about to change a little. This week has been pretty difficult with her. She has been acting out a lot more and her the tantrums have been horrible and frequent. I know that a part of this is due to the fact that two of her eye teeth finally popped through and I am pretty sure the other two are not far behind because they are look swollen and a part of it is just simply the terrible twos entering at full force. But, I do think she senses change. I have also been a little emotional thinking about the alone time I spend with AR coming to an end but I am overjoyed thinking about all the fun things that are to come with my two girls!! Hopefully, adjustment will go smoothly for all of us!
We wanted to plan a few fun things to do with Anna Riley this weekend. So, Friday, Riley took a long lunch and we went to the Barnyard and to Jalepenos for lunch. I could tell a big change in her since we took her in April. She loves animals and knows all their names now. She was so excited and just ran from one animal to the next. She was saying the sounds that all the animals say. She loved riding the pony and feeding the baby pig with the bottle.

Saturday, she woke up with a little cold. We took her to the Airport Park in Northport, so we could watch the small planes land and take off. Unfortunately, we didn't get to see too many and the wind was blowing too much to stay out there too long. I think most of the planes had probably made their way to Gainsville for the game. She did get to play on the playground for a little bit and then we headed to Chick-Fil-A to play for a while.

When we got home, we played in the yard with Maggie, one of our neighbors.

These two are 4 months apart...I predict they will be getting in lots of trouble together when they start school!

They were having a yard sale and Maggie's two older siblings set up a Lemonade & Cookie stand that the young ones decided to take over! When Anna Riley went down for a nap, I went for a much needed prenatal massage and pedicure...so relaxing!! :)

Saturday night, we celebrated Granna's birthday and went to Cypress Inn to eat. Anna Riley was still not feeling all that well and her feelings were on her shoulders so everyone pretty much took turns taking her to see the fish. She was just pitiful and anytime anyone would say anything to her she would curl her bottom lip and start crying. I had made dessert, so they came back to our house to eat dessert and so Mom could open her presents. After all of that, it was game time!!

Today, we are just laying around. We decided to stay home from church since AR didn't feel well and none of us really slept all that well.

We had a wonderful weekend together and I can't believe that next weekend we will be a family of four!

38 weeks

2011-09-30T09:37:00.000-05:00

I can't believe we have less than one week to go!!

Symptoms:

I have felt pretty good this week! I just have lots of back pain, mostly in the evenings and at night. I haven't had any swelling or anything like that. I am feeling more pressure also. But considering how close I am, I really feel great!

Weight Gain: 28 lbs.

Maternity Clothes:

Dresses or tunics and tights are the most comfortable and of course my pjs!!

Sleep:

I have slept pretty good this week. I have been able to go back to sleep pretty well after getting up for the bathroom. I still have to get up at least 3 times during the night to pee though.

Movement:

Movement has slowed down a bit but she still gets very active at times! I really feel like she has no more room to move!

Cravings:

I don't have as much of an appetite anymore so I really haven't craved anything lately.

Drs. Appointment:

I went to the doctor yesterday and everything still looked great. Her heartrate was 152. We mainly talked about what would take place next Thursday with the Csection and he answered any questions that I had. I have to be at the hospital at 5am and my surgery starts at 7. Can't believe it is almost time!!

Getting Ready:

I mentioned in my post on Monday how I have been in full force nesting mode! I feel like things are pretty organized and ready and then of course I find some other cabinet that needs cleaned out! I guess this is the spring cleaning that I didn't do in the spring!! I started back at the end of July planning our meals months at a time and it has worked out SO great for us. I am not longer waiting until Sunday night to figure out what to cook and what groceries I need for the week. So, I decided to go ahead and do our "menu" through December! It didn't take long at all (I only cook 2-3 days a week and we eat leftovers the other and often go out or grill on the weekends). I also stocked up on all of our toiletry items (thanks to Soap.com) and bought the non-perishable ingredients I need for all the meals until November!! haha! I love planning and getting things organized and I know how busy we get during the fall not to mention having an extra member of the family now so that is one less thing I have to think about! :)

Dads of Daughters

2011-09-27T13:45:00.002-05:00

I saw this on Pintrest and wanted to share. Click here for the actual link.
I am so thankful that my girls will have such a great Daddy! Relationships between fathers and daughters are just so special!
Here are 50 rules for Dads of Daughters:

1. Love her mom. Treat her mother with respect, honor, and a big heaping spoonful of public displays of affection. When she grows up, the odds are good she’ll fall in love with and marry someone who treats her much like you treated her mother. Good or bad, that’s just the way it is. I’d prefer good.

2. Always be there. Quality time doesn’t happen without quantity time. Hang out together for no other reason than just to be in each other’s presence. Be genuinely interested in the things that interest her. She needs her dad to be involved in her life at every stage. Don’t just sit idly by while she add years to her… add life to her years.

3. Save the day. She’ll grow up looking for a hero. It might as well be you. She’ll need you to come through for her over and over again throughout her life. Rise to the occasion. Red cape and blue tights optional.

4. Savor every moment you have together. Today she’s crawling around the house in diapers, tomorrow you’re handing her the keys to the car, and before you know it, you’re walking her down the aisle. Some day soon, hanging out with her old man won’t be the bees knees anymore. Life happens pretty fast. You better cherish it while you can.

5. Pray for her. Regularly. Passionately. Continually.

6. Buy her a glove and teach her to throw a baseball. Make her proud to throw like a girl… a girl with a wicked slider.

7. She will fight with her mother. Choose sides wisely.

8. Go ahead. Buy her those pearls.

9. Of course you look silly playing peek-a-boo. You should play anyway.

10. Enjoy the wonder of bath time.

11. There will come a day when she asks for a puppy. Don’t over think it. At least one time in her life, just say, “Yes.”

12. It’s never too early to start teaching her about money. She will still probably suck you dry as a teenager… and on her wedding day.

13. Make pancakes in the shape of her age for breakfast on her birthday. In a pinch, donuts with pink sprinkles and a candle will suffice.

14. Buy her a pair of Chucks as soon as she starts walking. She won’t always want to wear matching shoes with her old man.

15. Dance with her. Start when she’s a little girl or even when she’s a baby. Don’t wait ‘til her wedding day.

16. Take her fishing. She will probably squirm more than the worm on your hook. That’s OK.

17. Learn to say no. She may pitch a fit today, but someday you’ll both be glad you stuck to your guns.

18. Tell her she’s beautiful. Say it over and over again. Someday an animated movie or “beauty” magazine will try to convince her otherwise.

19. Teach her to change a flat. A tire without air need not be a major panic inducing event in her life. She’ll still call you crying the first time it happens.

20. Take her camping. Immerse her in the great outdoors. Watch her eyes fill with wonder the first time she sees the beauty of wide open spaces. Leave the iPod at home.

21. Let her hold the wheel. She will always remember when daddy let her drive.

22. She’s as smart as any boy. Make sure she knows that.

23. When she learns to give kisses, she will want to plant them all over your face. Encourage this practice.

24. Knowing how to eat sunflower seeds correctly will not help her get into a good college. Teach her anyway.

25. Letting her ride on your shoulders is pure magic. Do it now while you have a strong back and she’s still tiny.

26. It is in her nature to make music. It’s up to you to introduce her to the joy of socks on a wooden floor.

27. If there’s a splash park near your home, take her there often. She will be drawn to the water like a duck to a puddle.

28. She will eagerly await your return home from work in the evenings. Don’t be late.

29. If her mom enrolls her in swim lessons, make sure you get in the pool too. Don’t be intimidated if there are no other dads there. It’s their loss.

30. Never miss her birthday. In ten years she won’t remember the present you gave her. She will remember if you weren’t there.

31. Teach her to roller skate. Watch her confidence soar.

32. Let her roll around in the grass. It’s good for her soul. It’s not bad for yours either.

33. Take her swimsuit shopping. Don’t be afraid to veto some of her choices, but resist the urge to buy her full-body beach pajamas.

34. Somewhere between the time she turns three and her sixth birthday, the odds are good that she will ask you to marry her. Let her down gently.

35. She’ll probably want to crawl in bed with you after a nightmare. This is a good thing.

36. Few things in life are more comforting to a crying little girl than her father’s hand. Never forget this.

37. Introduce her to the swings at your local park. She’ll squeal for you to push her higher and faster. Her definition of “higher and faster” is probably not the same as yours. Keep that in mind.

38. When she’s a bit older, your definition of higher and faster will be a lot closer to hers. When that day comes, go ahead… give it all you’ve got.

39. Holding her upside down by the legs while she giggles and screams uncontrollably is great for your biceps. WARNING: She has no concept of muscle fatigue.

40. She might ask you to buy her a pony on her birthday. Unless you live on a farm, do not buy her a pony on her birthday. It’s OK to rent one though.

41. Take it easy on the presents for her birthday and Christmas. Instead, give her the gift of experiences you can share together.

42. Let her know she can always come home. No matter what.

43. Remember, just like a butterfly, she too will spread her wings and fly some day. Enjoy her caterpillar years.

44. Write her a handwritten letter every year on her birthday. Give them to her when she goes off to college, becomes a mother herself, or when you think she needs them most.

45. Learn to trust her. Gradually give her more freedom as she gets older. She will rise to the expectations you set for her.

46. When in doubt, trust your heart. She already does.

47. When your teenage daughter is upset, learning when to engage and when to back off will add years to YOUR life. If you succeed in doing this, tell me how.

48. Ice cream covers over a multitude of sins. Know her favorite flavor.

49. This day is coming soon. There’s nothing you can do to be ready for it. The sooner you accept this fact, the easier it will be.

50. Today she’s walking down the driveway to get on the school bus. Tomorrow she’s going off to college. Don’t blink.

Miscellany Monday

2011-09-26T13:43:00.000-05:00

NESTING:
I have been in full nesting mode the past couple of weeks. I have cleaned out and organized so many closets and drawers! There are still a few things I would like to tackle before next week. I think its so funny that you go through this phase of nesting. I mean the baby is really not going to know if her Mommy's closet is perfectly organized! But...I am enjoying having the energy to get it done because I can't stand a dirty/ unorganized house anyway!

WEEKEND:
We had a wonderful, relaxing Friday night. Riley picked us up food on his way home and we ate and spent the evening outside playing and socializing with our neighbors. Anna Riley loves to play with them and I am so thankful we have such great neighbors that we love and our kids play together so well!
My parents insited that Anna Riley come spend the night Saturday night. They would get her every weekend if I would let them! She LOVES going to her Granna and PawPaws and never is ready to come back home! While she was gone Saturday, Riley and I met up with Cyndee and Dan since they were in town to see her parents. Riley and I watched the 1st half of the game downtown and then came home to watch the 2nd half. It was a very good game and another win for Bama! :)

BABY SHOWER:
Last Sunday, two of my friends and my two sisters-in-law threw me a monograms and diaper shower. Ava Kate got SO many cute things and lots and lots of diapers! She is one blessed baby girl!

Mom and I

My hostesses: Frances Ann, Leigh, Amanda & Peyton

A guests wrote a special note to Ava Kate on a onesie.

All the monogrammed gifts Ava Kate received

Diapers, Diapers and more diapers!!! :)

37 weeks

2011-09-25T16:25:00.000-05:00

As of Thursday, I am 37 weeks! I can't believe how close we are!!

Symptoms:

I have felt SO great until Thursday! I had so much energy this week and just felt so good. I was able to get so much done. But Thursday, I woke up feeling not feeling so great. I felt nauseous all day and got sick twice. I also had some mild menstrual type cramping and was just so tired! I felt somewhat better Friday and much better Saturday. I have not had much of an appetite this week...I think I have ran out of room to put any food!!

Weight Gain:

Down one from last week...probably due to being sick and not having as big of an appetite. So I am now at 26 lbs.

Maternity Clothes:

Choices are very getting very slim! I feel most comfortable in a tunic and leggings.

Movement:

I feel like at time she is dancing in my tummy! We love to just sit and watch my stomach move...its a weird feeling but I love it!

Cravings:

Nothing really

Dr. Appointment:

I went to the doctor on Friday. He said the nausea could be just have been a touch of a bug or just end of pregnancy stuff. He said everything looked fine. I am still measuring fairly big...I measured closer to 40 weeks. He said he doesn't predict a huge baby but she will definitely be of good size!!

Playtime

2011-09-21T07:12:00.000-05:00

Last week, Anna Riley got to play with her friends Audrey, Emma and Caroline three days in a row so she was in heaven! She loves those girls!!

Wednesday, we met Mandy and the girls at the library for Storytime. We really missed storytime during their break in August. As soon as the girls got there and came to sit by AR, she started waving really big and said "Hi Guys!"

After storytime, we went to ChickFilA for lunch and more playtime.

These pictures are with my phone so they aren't great!

She LOVES the cow! As soon as we pull into ChickFilA she starts screaming "Cow, Cow, MOOO." She would much rather sit on that cow the whole time!

Thursday, I had a doctor's appointment and my usual sitter had class and Riley had a meeting come up last minute so Mandy kept AR for me. Mandy sent me this picture while I was at the doctor. They got to make smores for a snack! She didn't want to come home and cried when we had to leave!

Friday morning, we went to Bama Bounders (a gymnastics place) for Preschool Playtime. This was our first time going because you have to be at least 18 months to play. I tried taking pictures but trying to keep up with her was hard enough. Ane the ones I took didn't really turn out because I realized my camera was on the wrong setting the whole time!!

She loved running up and down the long trampoline.

We then met Daddy for lunch at Tazikis...YUM!

Ava Kate's nursery

2011-09-19T17:52:00.000-05:00

I love the way Ava Kate's nursery turned out. It is totally different from Anna Riley's and I like that. There are still a few things I will add later. I would like to get a shelf to go on the wall on the right when you come in and also I will hang one or two of the maternity pictures up as soon as I find frames I like.

Yes, the frame has Anna Riley's picture in it...it was left over from AR's birthday party and I forgot to take the picture out.

Football Saturdays

2011-09-19T14:15:00.000-05:00

Oh how we love Football Saturdays!! I have to admit though, we have kind of enjoyed doing things low key this year. We LOVE tailgaiting but it is a lot of work. We have really enjoyed tailgaiting at home this year. Bama played a night game this weekend so we decided at the last minute to just go to campus and walk around and eat lunch. The weather felt great and I really felt good so we walked quite a bit. We took Anna Riley to see the statues, had lunch on the quad and let Anna Riley play on the blow-ups for a while. She and I were both worn out by the time we got back to the car. She fell asleep on the way home and slept for 3 hours! We spent the rest of the day being lazy and watching football all day! It was a great day in football too: Auburn lost, Tennese lost and Bama won! :)

I tried to get her to stand on the National Chapionship we won 2 years ago

when I was pregnant with her but no such luck!

Giving Coach Saban high five