Its a BOY

We had our 4d ultrasound done and sure enough we are having a little boy. Johnny and I couldn't be more excited cause now we have the final puzzle to our little family. He is very active and wouldn't sit still for even a second to let us get a good picture of him.

So after writing down at least a 100 name combos we have finally decided to stay with the name we first had thought of and name our lil boy after Johnny. His name will be Michael John and for short we will call him MJ since we call Avery AJ. So far this pregnancy has been rough but we are hanging on and getting the room ready for little Michaels arrival. We are just hoping he decides to hang out in my belly for a while longer since I have already started heavy contractions and we still have 17 weeks to go.

Avery is getting bigger and bigger each day and I think she at least gets a bruise a day since we have a little daredevil. We are amazed at how much she knows now and certain words she will copy when we say them. My favorite is when we are in the grocery store and she screams HI to a complete stranger...luckily they get a kick out of it because of her gummy smile!!

One Year Old!!!

So I apologize I have not been the best at this lately...due to that we have alot going on so let me catch you up! Aves has turned one and thats what this post is mostly about she is such a big girl now, and is even walking all over the place. It amazes us to watch her grow and see how much she learns day by day. We had a party for her and she loved all the attention and definetly the cake! She is getting so much personality and her favorite game to play is "Im gonna get you" she will go running and scream...its hilarious to watch!

We had a huge surprise happen to us lately and we found out that we are expecting again so we are excited for baby #2 to come aboard and be a part of this fun family. I cant wait for avery to have a sibling to play with and grow up with. We are due July 6th and are well into our pregnancy and things are seeming to go well.

Well here are some new pictures of avery and we will try to keep this updated now since we have so much changing so quickly

Six months already!

So lil aves is already six months old...seriously where does the time fly? I remember bringing her home and being scared Iwould break her because she was so small and fragile and now she wiggles around so much and has so much muscle and is strong as can be. She has started patting her leg to get the cat to come over to her and its the cutest thing. She adores ozzie and he adores her and lets her kick him in the face acting like its a massage...silly cat. I seriously think she she gets more fun each day and is always learning new stuff it amazes me!

My happy camper!

I keep telling Johnny I need to update our blog so here I go. Avery is getting more and more fun each day, her laugh is sooo divine and makes me giggle too. When she smiles she totally lights up the room and her eyes sparkle. She can now sit up on her own while holding onto something and she is loving her feet as well and when you put her on her back thats the first thing she grabs. She also has a huge love for cats, her and ozzie have become good friends and everytime she sees him she sticks out her hand so that he will come near her and she can pet him, its very cute! We took her on her first camping trip and she loved it! She loves nature and was a very good kid, I taught her how to roast her first marshmallow haha. I will attach a picture of her in her bed in the camper trailer. Here are some of her most recent pictures some of which we took on the fourth of July and also her first swimsuit pics....such a diva!

Avery sayin I love you

We always say that Avery copies us in her facial expressions and words. At the very end of the video is when she says I love you.... Sorry it's so dark the tv was goin.... oh yeah just pause the music at the bottom of the blog...

4 Months Old and still Teeny Tiny

So we had Avery's four month doctors appointment and she came in at 9 lbs 10 oz haha so little I was hoping we had at least hit the 10 lbs mark but that's okay my baby can stay small for that much longer! She came in at negative 25 percentile on the charts in weigth, and she was 23 inches in length so that puts her at the 10 percentile, and her head was in the 75th percentile (we have a very smart baby). The doctor also said that she has alot of muscle for a baby and was impressed with her thigh muscle and how well she stands. Shots were not fun this time mostly because she was happy and smilin at the nurse and then WHAM she started screaming and her cry has never sounded so sad.

Johnny got her to giggle the other day and it was the best sound on this entire earth I just wanted to hear it over and over again, who knew that a babies laugh was soooo divine! Avery has also started eating solids we started with carrots then went to sweet potatoes and then peas....I think she likes the peas the best even though I think they look nasty haha but I hope she will always love her vegetables.

She now has two new favorite toys which is in the pic above, her little stuffed duck and her taggy blanket, it's so cute how she gives them kisses and rubs in face in both of them! I love it!

Mothers Day

So I am super excited that it's my first mothers day coming up.... mothers day will always be special since that is the day Johnny proposed to me but its even more special now that I am a mother. I never thought I would be celebrating this day myself. Now I understand how special it is to be a mother and I also just wanted to say thanks to my mother and let her know that I love her lots and appreciate all she does for me....

Before I was a Mom
I had never been puked on
Pooped on
Spit on
Chewed on
Peed on
Or pinched by tiny fingers

Before I was a Mom
I had complete control of:
My thoughts
My body
And my mind
I slept all night

Before I was a Mom
I never held down a screaming child
So that doctors could do tests
Or give shots
I never looked into teary eyes and cried
I never felt my heart break into a million pieces
When I couldn't stop the hurt
I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin
I never sat up late hours at night watching a baby sleep

Before I was a Mom
I never held a sleeping baby just because I didn't want to put her down
I never knew something so small
Could affect my life so much
I never knew that I could love someone so much
I never knew I would love being a Mom

Before I was a Mom
I didn't know the feeling of having my heart outside my body
I didn't know how special it could feel to sooth a crying baby
I didn't know that bond between a Mother and her child
I didn't know that something so small
Could make me feel so important

Before I was a Mom
I had never gotten up in the middle of the night every 10 minutes
to make sure all was okay
I had never known the warmth
The joy
The love
The heartache
The wonder
Or the satisfaction of being a Mom

I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much before I was a Mom.

Smiley

I still can't believe how big Avery has gotten but I am loving her every minute. More of her personality comes out each day and she is just so much fun. She has started talking and smiling alot more which cracks me and Johnny up. She gives us a reason to smile and laugh each day.

Three months today!

So sad but very exciting at the same time...Avery turns 3 months old today. I truly cant believe that it has been three months since she came into our lives. Yet Johnny and I could not ask for anything better she has blessed our lives. Avery has found her hands now and can't keep them out of her mouth no matter how much we take them out and put the binkie in. She also has found her voice because she loves to talk to us and is very loud in doing so which is hilarious. Its gotten fun too because when she see us smile she will smile back. Its so cute to watch her and Johnny; he will get her smiling then he will start crackin up because he thinks it funny and she then thinks its funny too. I love it!

Johnny goes back to work this Saturday after having three months off from his knee surgery and I am totally not ready for him to go back. Its been nice for him to be off and help with Avery and she adores him so I know it will be hard on both of them!

My favorite sound

So last night Aves was really tired from going to the tulip festival and being in her car seat as long as she was. When we got home she was incrediably fussy and usually I would get tired myself when I can't calm her down. Yet last night it really hit me as I sat there and stared at her of how lucky I truly am that I have a baby fussy and all. To think of how many people don't even get that chance. I am truly blessed I have her and she is healthy. I look back at the long road and the tiring process it took to get her here but she is here now and I can enjoy that. I now realize that long road was very short and I would do it all over again for her. Life is so fragile and so short that you need to love every little bit of it the good and the bad. Before I had a child my friends with children would talk about unconditional love and now I understand what they mean. I love her more than words will ever describe and that will never change cause I somehow fall more and more in love with her everyday. Last night at her 1 oclock feeding I was changing her and she just sat there looking at me smiling and talking. It brought tears to my eyes cause it truly made me appreciate what I have and that I have an opportunity to be a mom. I just hope I can be the best mother to her ever and give her everything possible. So Avery you can cry as much as you need too baby cause I love being able to hear the sound of your voice, its the best sound in the world!!!

Preemie Purple Heart

This goes out to Yesenia who recently lost her little one to the fight of being a preemie. He is an angel now watching over her and my thoughts and prayers are with her......

One day a child was born, too early, too small but loved as much as any child could be. As the parents of this child entered this journey they found themselves feeling alone. They had joys of being new parents but the fear of losing their child, the thrill of giving birth, the grief of a lost dream. This was supposed to be a joyous time, not time filled with grief, anger and pain. Little did these parents know they were not alone.

The Preemie Purple Heart is born of an idea borrowed from the US Army, a medal given for being wounded in battle. What bigger battle is there than the battle for life and the wounds of premature birth live on with the infant and family forever. The colour was once reserved for royalty, making it special and gender neutral. The heart is not a solid colour and the stripes in each heart are a little different, just as every child and every journey is a little different, but the basic design is the same just like the basic experience is the same. The heart is made of glass - it is strong but not so strong it could withstand a crushing blow. The premature child is strong but not invincible. It is a heart because the heart is our centre, it's very beat renews life and hope, it symbolizes love. At the bottom of the Preemie Purple Heart is a teardrop, it is symbolic of the tears shed during the journey of a premature family, good and bad, joy and sorrow.

The Preemie Purple Heart is an outward sign of unity among a special group of people. A group that knows no country , language, economic, ethnic or religious bounds. A group with one common goal; hope for the future of premature children. This group includes not only parents and children but also sibling, grandparents, aunts, uncldes, cousins, nurses, doctors, clergy and friends. This group shares a bond beyond words, a bond only the heart knows. The heart can be with you when you feel alone, remind you there are hundreds of others who keep you in their hearts. It can give you a change to share your story.

Avery Jean

I can't believe she can hold up her head already, she is soo strong for as little as she is and she loves to study people it's fun to watch her listen to you talk.



Still my all time favorite picture.... the first time we really caught her smiling on camera


So I kept saying that I would start a blog and started this one shortly after Johnny and I were married but then I just forgot about it. We then had Avery and I told myself again that I needed to get our blog going to keep our friends and family informed. So here I go again starting a blog and if I get off track please call and tell me to update....

So most of you know already but Aves was born on January 29th, 2010 she came 5 weeks early via c section and was soo tiny. She weighed 4 lbs and 2 oz and went down to 3 lbs 13 oz. She stayed one week in the NICU and the only reason they kept her for as long as they did is because she couldn't keep her body temp. She is such a great kid and is growing so fast. Johnny and I have been dealing with her reflux lately and that has been a tiring and long process. My heartbreaks everytime she spits up and crys because it hurts. Johnny took her to the doctor today to make sure she was still gaining weight and she is becoming our little chunk now weighing 8 lbs 9 oz, the dimples on her elbows are sooo cute. We are going to try a new medicine and maybe some new formula (nutramigen). They also gave us this huge wedge to put in her crib for her to sleep on instead of the car seat so I hope this helps. If anyone has any other suggestions please let us know I think we want to do anything that will help her.

My One and Only!

Johnny and I were married on June 29, 2007 and have been very busy and incredibly happy since then. Johnny currently is working for lowes as there electrical pro and they love him! I am working for a storage facility as a onsite manager and being a full time mom which is the best job in the world.