Avaree's favorite song...

I sing this song over and over to Avaree, and as she giggles and looks up at me with those big blue eyes, I finally understand the words. :)

He's got the whole (wide) world in his hands.

He's got the whole (wide) world in his hands.

He's got the whole (wide) world in his hands.
He's got the whole world in his hands.

He's got Avaree Grace Barton in his hands.
He's got Avaree Grace Barton in his hands.

He's got Avaree Grace Barton in his hands.

He's got the whole world in his hands.

He's got Mama and Daddy in his hands.

He's got Mama and Daddy in his hands.

He's got Mama and Daddy in his hands.
He's got the whole world in his hands.

February: food and the frosty fun!!!

" You want me to go outside for what?" :) (This face cracks me up!)

I took Ave out Friday afternoon after it had warmed up a bit! She just stared! :)

It's been awhile since you've seen a pic of just the two of us, eh? :) I loooooove the snow!

Our snowy wonderland early on Friday morning!!! I wasn't able to play in it while it was falling b/c it was just Ave and me, so I made Brandon go out with me early Friday was she was sleeping!! :) By the way, Brandon didn't get in until 11pm Thursday night, so the snow on his car was just what fell after that! :)

"Really, Mama? Daddy sent these to your school?" YES! My husband sent me flowers for the first time in five years! It was such a suprise and so sweet! Ave and I have certainly enjoyed them!

We learned the trick: Give Avaree her own spoon, so that she won't try to take the one we're feeding her with! :)

"You want a piece of me, Daddy?"

Daddy feeding his girl!

The child literally had it ALL over her. We had to go straight to the bath after I fed her. I even found it in her hair! It was hilarious!

Can you see it on the table too? :) She tried to grab the bowl out of my hand and it went EVERYWHERE! :) Too funny!

This week has been a crazy week for us. Daddy started a new job and we are adjusting to him being gone four nights a week AND we had SNOOOOOW--beautiful, perfect snow! We all three got to be home on Friday for our first SNOW day! It has been GLORIOUS!!!! Thank you, Lord, for a beautiful display of your creation!!!

Sweet baby girl: Our week in pictures!

She has perfect, irresistable cheeks!!!

Pretty girl!!! She got all dressed up to go to Jamie and Daniel's Shower! :) I think she was a hit!

I feel like we are actually swallowing some rice cereal now! Avaree has also really begun to watch Brandon and I eat and I think she's getting ready for some solid food, but we're going to stick with the rice cereal for awhile. The doctor said that we could start her early, but that she doesn't NEED more solid foods for another month.

One night this week, Avaree decided that she wasn't going to go to bed at her usual time, but, instead of crying, she just raised her little head up and looked at me (I was in the doorway watching her) and then smiled! Of course, I had to get the camera and I got her out and loved on her a little more before she had to go night night. Who could resist this face?

This week's highlight was Avaree holding her lovey. She loves it so much. She drools on it, holds it, shakes it, etc. I even let her take it to Mrs. Donna's one day and she held on to it all day! :)

"Mama, come rock with me!!" :)
"I will get you in my mouth, Mr. Ducky."
"Okay...maybe i'll just hold you instead."
Blue eyes... :)
Playing in her jumper! Thank you, Colton and Keller, for letting me borrow your toy! My favorite parts are the lights on the piano, the music and the yellow sunshine! I escpecially like it when I can bounce myself a little!! (Thanks Lauren and Kent for letting Ave use this! We love it!)

Our little pumpkin is 4.5 months old! Every day, Brandon and I fall more in love with this little bundle of joy. Being parents has certainly changed our lives in a myraid of ways, but the BEST change has come through one little person with a precious, beautiful smile and an infectious laugh! :) Enjoy the pictures!

Cereal, Earaches and Spit...oh my! :)

Warm and snuggie! Trying to ward off a fever!

YAY for bathtime! My ducky is my friend!

Deep in thought... :)

"Here, I will share with you!"

"So you want me to swallow this?" Hmmm...

Hi Mama! :)

Have I told you lately that I LOVE MY MOBILE? :)

Pretty pumpkin... :)

Is there any doubt that she is her daddy's daughter? :)

Avaree trying to crawl and playing with Granpapa and her pink puppy (our only pet right now, ha!)!

Oh this week was HARD! On Sunday, we noticed that Avaree wasn't really acting like herself, but paranoid Mom that I am, I had already taken her to the doctor once with such symptoms, only to be told that she was just "off of her routine." So...on Monday morning, I asked Mrs. Donna to watch her closely and let me know if she pulled on her ears or began acting lethargic. She was perfect for Mrs. Donna, but when we got home on Monday, she started pulling on both of her ears and just wanted me to hold her (not that I minded this at ALL). Tuesday morning I brought her to Mrs. Donna's and sat with her for awhile (I was late to school--oops--because she just was not herself and it worried me!) and then went on to school. I called the doctor's office once they opened and made her an appt for 10:50. I couldn't go (since my maternity leave took ALL of my sick leave and we didn't want to be docked again) so Daddy went and picked her up and brought her to the doctor. Of course, I couldn't get much accomplished at school and balled my eyes out (yes, in front of my kiddos) when Daddy called and told me that she had a double ear infection and was just moaning! Sweet Daddy waited for her medicine, took her home and cuddled her until I could get there. I knew that he was taking wonderful care of her, but still, I wanted to be there soooo bad. So, my sweet friends at school helped me get out of my classroom as quickly as I could and I was home by 3:30. I ended up staying home with her on Wednesday and, to make a long story short, she is FINALLY (on Saturday) better. Thursday and Friday she was just very lethargic, didn't have an appetite and was in pain anytime that she was laying flat. So, Mama did a lot of holding in the middle of the nights and even slept on the couch with punkin one night, but we are sooooo happy that she is showing signs of recovery! Of course, she smiled through it all, or at least tried to. I never expected to be so upset about it, but it broke my heart--especially when I couldn't be there to comfort her. Thank you, Lord, for antibiotics and baby tylenol! :)

The earaches took up the bulk of our week, but other eventful news comes in the Daddy department! Brandon has taught Avaree how to make "sherbert" sounds with her mouth and spit everywhere. As if we didn't have enough drool at our house, we are adding spit to the equation! I keep telling him that it may be cute now, but will not be cute when she is 3 and spitting on people! Oh well, at least she's smiling and I'll deal with Daddy later! :) haha!

First Rice cereal... Great video!

Our little princess had her first taste of (somewhat) solid foods and we decided to share it with everyone. Have a blessed day!

Our little four-month old...in pictures!

Look at me, Mama! I'm a big girl! :)

I can hold it! :)

Look at me...I'm my Daddy's favorite!!! :)

Wrapped up like a burrito! :)

On our way to "school" every morning, Ave has to sit by herself in the back seat, so if Mama gets to ride with her in the back...she is ALL SMILES! :)

Avaree has been such a precious little angel this week. Poor baby had to get FIVE shots--in the form of three syringes--at her doctor's appointment and ran a little fever, but she was such a trooper! She still has little red spots on each of her legs. We are so thankful for her sweet little personality and in love with her disposition! When I picked her up from Mrs. Donna's on

Friday afternoon--the BEST part of my day for sure!--she told me that Avaree held on to everything she could get her hands on! We've really noticed that her hand/eye coordination is improving significantly! She is napping right now, but we're going to give her rice cereal before her next feeding! I'll post the video soon, so stay tuned! :) Love to all!

Happy 4 months, pumpkin girl!!

I just put our sweet little pumpkin to bed! Today is her four-month birthday! I sang "Happy Birthday" to her this morning and several times this evening: She just grinned! :) One of the best things about Avaree is that she could care less what kind of day I've had or how I look, she just loves me unconditionally. Being a Mom has certainly changed my life! I now understand how God must feel about us: he doesn't care how we come to him, as long as we come. When I was a teenager, we sang a praise song that said "If I could just sit with you a while: I need you to hold me." How true!
We went to the doctor this afternoon and learned that Avaree weighs 15 lbs, 7 oz and is in the 75th-90th percentile for her weight. She is in the 90th percentile for her height at 25 and 1/4 inches and the sweet little baby is still in the 50th percentile for her head! :) We had a wonderful visit with Dr. Weiser and learned that Avaree can start adding rice cereal (with a spoon!) to her diet!! :) How fun! Brandon and I are certainly anxious to watch this...but we're going to wait until we can set the video camera up and do it right! :) Thanks for checking up on our sweet baby girl! I will post pictures this weekend! Love!

Week SIXTEEN!

Isn't this priceless? Avaree and Daddy watching football!

All wrapped up at ready to head to Mrs. Donna's at 6:15 am. She's such a trooper and has her little routine pretty much down.

Sweet pumpkin pie...she looooves to lay flat and kick her legs! :) We do it every afternoon when we get home while she "tells me" about her day! :)

Avaree STANDING UP with very little assistance! :) She does not like to sit much anymore...

(see above) which is why it was so AMAZING that she let Daddy hold her like a baby! She's growing up sooooooooo fast!

This week Avaree has discovered that she can hear herself "talk." We have gotten an array of vowel and consonant sounds along with lots of other "squeals!" It is such a delight to hear her and watch her grow and develop! :) We made it through week two of daycare and it is getting easier. A friend of mine at school (her daughter also stays with Mrs. Donna) told me that it never gets "better," but it will get easier. Though I didn't believe her at first, she was right! I still have a hard time with Mondays (as does Avaree), but am really seeking to be content in all circumstances as we are so blessed. My heart has been aching for the children in Haiti this week. I want to just go get ten (not that such would even make a dent in the needs there) of them and bring them to my home. Alas, praying and giving will have to be sufficient for now, but oh Lord please rise up some families to adopt orphans from Haiti.

Please enjoy the pictures of my sweet, healthy, precious baby girl.

Week 15...daycare and dreaming

I can sit up all by myself! :)

We love this onesie from Papa and Nana D (especially since Avaree pooped twice the day she wore it! ha!).

holding her rattle!!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR! (That is what her shirt says--hehe!)

Avaree and Daddy "working out" together! :)

Big girl in Mama and Daddy's bed on Saturday morning!! :) She's watching the fan/adoo!

This week was haaarrrd, but good. Let me explain: Avaree started daycare on Monday. When I say daycare, I must clarify that she is not in a daycare facility with lots of kiddos; rather she is with Mrs. Donna and three precious little kiddos that all love her dearly. Of course it was hard for Mommy to leave her baby, it really feels like Avaree is with family. If you know me; however, you know that even though that is better than other options, it is not my ideal. Monday I went through a myriad of emotions, including: "She won't understand." "Will she think I abandoned her?" "Will she think that I wanted to leave her?" "She doesn't have anything familiar around her." I stayed up most of the night Sunday night thinking about all these things and when I left her with Mrs. Donna on Monday morning she let me hold her as long as I needed to and just told me it would be okay. She also told me that I could call as many times as I needed to. :) She probably regrets that now... (just kidding, I only call once a day!) It certainly is taking some getting use to though. Daddy has to get up early and help us so that we can get out the door on time as it usually takes around 30 minutes to get there (except for Thursday morning when it took us one hour and 20 minutes b/c of the ice--eek!) so I try to feed Avaree at the last possible moment so that she can get more sleep and I can keep her schedule to where Mrs. Donna only feeds her twice before I get there. So...Daddy was invaluable this week (not that he isn't invaluable every week!) as he fed me breakfast while I was feeding Avaree and then he got her ready while I finished getting ready AND he made dinner every night. :) My sweet friends at school are so accustomed to me crying (especially on Monday mornings) that they just hold out there arms and that was helpful too, though nothing ever really fixes that ache inside. God bless Mrs. Donna and her sweet hands that hold my sweet baby when I can't. Thank you, Lord, for giving her to us!!

Anywho...(even though I teach my big kiddos that such a word is an inappropriate transition--ha), we made it and are so happy to be together for the weekend. Thank you, Lord, for the weekend. Can you imagine life without them? :) I hope you enjoy the pictures!

At 15 1/2 weeks, Avaree has begun the following: squealing (she loves to hear herself), holding on to objects (and my hair!!!) and standing up with all of her weight (on our laps of course!). We are pretty sure that she will bypass crawling and go straight to walking (or running, for that matter!)!

Avaree talking! :)

Happy 2010!!!!!! Thank you, Lord, for our sweet baby girl!