Too cute not to share

Avery's smiles are so sweet!  She smiles non stop in the mornings!  I finally managed to catch a precious video.  The quality is not the greatest, but I still love this clip!  You will love her big yawn in the beginning, too!  Enjoy!

Happy Monday!

Sweet Avery at 7 weeks old

Sorry for the picture overload, but I just want to document how itty bitt and cute our little girl is!  The other day, we took an evening walk.  It doesn't look like it, but we were seriously sweating so badly.  It was like 95 degrees at 6:30pm!

She's giving her Daddy a thumbs up!

We get some comments that Avery looks like me and then some that say she looks like Nate.  We can't tell, but think she's the perfect mix of both!  I think she's all him from her nose and up, then all me from nose down. :)  She does look just like me in my baby pictures though.  I need to get one and scan on here it to compare.

Pretty girl!  Her eyelids get kind of red when she's really tired.  Don't we all have that? haha  She's still got that long, crazy golden/brown hair.

Here's some pics of our pretty girl in her sweet elephant dress.  Her headband and bow is from her friend Teagan. :)

We love her big grins and her cheek dimple!

She was cooing when I took this picture.  Look at those gums! lol

"Momma, how's my Elvis look?" ha!

Big girl, working on that head control!  She's always got those hands in tight fists.

Big big smiles from my honey girl!

We're kind of biased, but we think she's a doll!! :)

7 Weeks

Avery,

You are 7 weeks old today!  Time is flying by so fast and you are growing like a weed!  You are still just the greatest baby and Momma and Daddy love you so much!  Once you learned to smile "on purpose," you just took off and now you smile all the time!  It seems like everything we say to you makes you smile.  You are one happy girl!  Morning time is your favorite.  Sometimes Daddy will change your diaper before he leaves for work and you will give him the biggest, sweetest smiles!  It makes it hard for him to leave, that's for sure.  You are very consistent and have been going to bed for the night around 10 or 10:30pm.  You will sleep between 5-6 hours (one night you slept 7!!), then you will wake to eat and go right back to sleep for another 2-3 hours.  We are loving it!  During the day, you will have one or two long naps (2-3 hours) and a few shorter naps (45 min- an hour).  You pretty much nurse on demand, which I hadn't planned to do, but since you sleep well at night, then I really don't mind.  You are still a little snacker, so you eat pretty often during the day.  You love to get out and go places with us.  You do very well in your car seat and riding in the car.  It is pretty easy to take you places.  We just make sure the diaper bag has diapers, wipes, burp cloth, and paci, and we're good to go!  You still love bath time and getting your hair washed.  I have started leaving you in the bath for longer periods (not until it gets too cold though).  You like to kick in the water and you like when I pour water on your belly.  I need to take the camera upstairs so I can get some bath time pictures while you are still an itty bitty baby.  You really like baby massage time!  You are so calm and will lay so still when we rub your arms and legs.  We are still using cloth diapers 90% of the time.  We will use a sposie when we need to use Desitin, when the cloth diapers aren't dry, or if we don't have one downstairs when we need one.  You just love being talked to and sung to.  You will coo back at us and it just looks like you want to have a big conversation.  We love these times!  When you are falling asleep or waking up, you make the funniest little mouse noises and squeaks.  We lay in bed and laugh at your little sounds.  We estimate you to be around 10 lbs now.  You are a growing girl.  Sometimes it looks like you've literally grown overnight.  You are really filling out and you are getting so strong and holding your head up very well.  You are still very snuggly and we are soaking that up!!  You will only be little for a short time. :)  We love you so much, Avery, and we love watching you learn and grow, just don't grow up too fast, ok?  You are a pure joy!!

Love,

Momma & Daddy

Our Weekend!

We had a pretty fun weekend as a family!

When Nathan got home from work on Friday, we decided at the last minute to go out to Texas Roadhouse for dinner.  Avery was so good and these old people waiting next to us just loved on her.  Actually, they touched her feet, which I didn't care for, but whatever! haha  She does have cute feet!  I guess they are a little too irresistable.

The wait was so long though, that baby girl got hungry by the time our food came, so I did the unthinkable and nursed her in the booth with my cover for just a few minutes.  A year ago, I would have laughed if you had told me I would do this in the future. haha  Baby's gotta eat when she's hungry!  I just didn't look up because I didn't even want to know if anyone was looking.  Don't you love the fancy burp cloth in her seat?  My friend Lauren made it for her and we love it!

Saturday, we got up bright and early, even before Avery woke up, and got ready to go to the Great Cloth Diaper Change event.  These events were hosted all around the world, in 16 countries.  There were three going on in the Phoenix area and we went to the one in Tempe.  It's basically an advocacy event to get the word out about modern cloth diapering.  They literally had a countdown, super corny, for us all to change our babies into a cloth diaper at the same time, in order to break the guiness book of world records for most cloth diapers changed at one time.  I was like, do I really have to do it?  Then I realized that every mom there was participating, so I laid down her changing pad on the grass and changed her diaper! ha ha!  Totally random.  It was also a swap, so you could take your diapers and price them to sell on your own.  I sold one of mine but I still have a few others to sell.  By the way, if anyone is in the market for some infant prefolds, Thirsties covers size XS and S, BumGenius 3.0 one size hook and loop (2 of these), or a brand new Dinkledooz one size pocket diaper...I am listing those to sell on C.raigslist.  We came out on top because we made it there early enough to get a "swag bag" which had some cloth diaper detergent samples and a small wet bag and we also won a one size diaper as a door prize!  It was also my second endeavor at nursing in public.  Ha!

Here's a pic from the event.  I am near the middle, changing Av's diaper and this little girl is standing over us, watching. haha!

Then we went to Target and ran some other errands.  We had taken Avery out of her carseat because she was acting like she needed to be burped.  Then she fell asleep on her Daddy, so he just walked around holding her. :)  Of course everyone stops to look at her and ask how old she is and tell us she has lots of hair. ha!

On Saturday night, we went to a friend's house for a birthday party.  Here are some pictures we took before we left...

She slept most of the time we were there...

Silly girl.  She loves sleeping with her arms up.

Her new thing is flashing huge smiles!  It's so adorable!  If you tell her she's a pretty girl, she will grin from ear to ear!  She is the most smile-y in the morning and just after eating. :)

Here's a few I've tried to catch with my phone...

We love our sweet girl and her precious smiles!  Although, she's making it hard for her Daddy to leave for work in the morning when she gives him the sweetest looks!  I hope I can catch her smiles on my real camera so the pictures don't turn out so grainy!

On Sunday, we ran in to Babies R Us, since we're looking at getting a car seat carrying bag to cover her seat for when we fly.  I know they get thrown around and dirty, so we want to try and protect her seat when we fly to Kentucky soon.  We also picked up two new cloth diapers.  She will be styling in her artist print BumGenius diapers!  And the rest of the day was spent cleaning up around here.  We did attempt to take some dusk pictures outside last night.  I think it was still around 95 degrees when we were out there, but I think we got a few good ones.  I'll try and post some this week.

Happy Monday!

Friday iPhone photo dump

She loves when her Daddy gets home from work, but waiting up is hard work!

Testing out my crib

Watching some Louisville basketball

Getting too big for the bassinet sleeper!  Like Mario, breakin' bricks!

Daytime naps in my crib!

Liking my cloth dipes!

Love my Daddy!

On the way to church for Easter service

Being so good in her seat while we had Easter dinner with friends

Lunch at ChickFilA on Daddy's day off!

Loves looking at the fans

Big Ol Happy Heinys diaper!

Dressed for the summer 'cause it's gettin' hot!!

Little Monkey

Tummy Time

Avery's Birth Announcement

Now that we have sent out Avery's birth announcement to our close friends and family, I thought I would share it on here for all of our blog friends!  Many of you girls have followed my blog, even before pregnancy and also gave me support (and numerous sweet comments) throughout pregnancy and that meant so much!  So, thank you!

Without further adieu...

6 Weeks

Avery,

I'm in denial that you are already 6 weeks old!  It is so hard to believe that time can slip by this fast!  You are a growing girl!  At your one month appointment (you were actually 5 weeks and 1 day), you weighed 9 lb 6 oz (44th percentile) and were 21 3/4 inches long (77th percentile).  You're noggin' was 14.75 inches (81st percentile).  We thought you looked like a long and lean baby!  We are thankful that you are a healthy babe!  You are still nursing well and the doctor says that's all you should need for at least six months.  You did well getting your shot.  Sorry, Momma couldn't watch, but I scooped you up just as soon as it was over and held you close!  You only cried for about 2 minutes, then you nursed, and you were good to go, like nothing ever happened.  The doctor said all you need to do between now and your 2 month appointment is to grow and gain weight.  We can do that!  You are holding your head up really well.  Every day you hold it up for longer periods and are less wobbly.  I'm sad for that newbie stage to pass, but I also know it's really good for you to hold your head up!  Thankfully, you don't mind tummy time as of now.  You are smiling a lot now and it's the cutest thing!!  You hair is still as full and crazy as ever.  It's a light brown color with golden and ginger "highlights" still.  It looks darker when it's "dirty".  Everyone loves your hair.  You like your swing, but don't love it.  You are noticing the mirror and little birdies at the top of the swing and that keeps you occupied for a while.  You also like the music and sounds from the swing.  Above all, your most favorite thing to do is snuggle!  We are eating.that.up!  I always wanted a snuggly baby!  You still go down for bed drowsy and fall asleep on your own (no paci--yay!), so I don't mind to give you unlimited snuggles during the day.  Daddy sure doesn't mind either!  I pass you off to him as soon as he gets home and I will make dinner while he catches up with his girl.  He misses you lots during the day but I send him many pictures of you to help the days go by fast for him. :)  You also went to church for the second time (first time on Easter), and you did so well during our Sunday school class.  Christa had dibs on you and snuggled you the whole time!  I fed you before the service (and you plowed through about 5 poopy diapers, no joke), then you just slept during the service, even during the worship music.  We think you really like music, but it tends to make you sleepy.  We also Skyped with Momma K and Poppa Si this weekend.  You got to see Daniel, Jordan, and Micah as well.  And as a special treat, somehow Daniel rigged up Skype on two computers and your cousins Alissa and Kai got to see you all the way from Japan!!  Alissa (5 years old) says you are a pretty princess!  We agree!  We can't wait to visit Kentucky soon so you can meet everyone in person!  I am loving being a Mommy, your Mommy, and I'm so so so thankful to be able to stay home with you and take care of you.  We are very fortunate.  I love seeing you grow, documenting your life, attempting to take your picture, and yes, I even like changing your diapers!  Remind me in a year that I said that. :)  You are such a blessing and we just love having our very own baby and not have to give you back to anyone, ha ha!  You bring so much joy and laughter to our lives.  Don't grow up too fast, honey girl!!

Love,

Momma & Daddy

Faces of Avery

Don't mind her greasy hair!  She was so happy after eating one morning, I tried to catch her smiles on camera.  This is what I could get! ha ha!

Iced coffee, anyone?

My mom recently tried making the Pioneer Woman's version of iced coffee.  She said hers turned out really good!  I told her I didn't want to make such a large batch and that's when she told me I could have the same result with just chilled coffee from the fridge.

So here's what I did and it is SO good!

You will need chilled coffee, La Lechera condensed milk, 2% milk or half and half, ice, and a tumbler cup.

Brew some strong coffee (I use Dunkin Donuts) in the evening, take it off the burner as soon as it's done, and let it cool for about an hour or two.  Then, set it in the fridge for over night.

I just store the coffee in it's pot in the fridge.  You should probably put it in some kind of air tight container to keep it even more fresh, but this worked for me.

In the morning, fill your tumbler cup to the top with ice.  Lots of ice.  Then fill the cup 3/4 full with coffee.  Add 3 tbs condensed milk (this squeeze bottle is easier than opening the kind in the can, plus they have a caramel kind).  Then add a splash of milk or half and half.  Stir it up and you're good to go!  Just a note: half and half makes it much better, more creamy, but we all know where that goes straight to.  You can rotate it with other milk of your choice on other days of the week haha!

That's a fine cup of iced coffee for probably less than 50 cents.  That saves you like 3 bucks from getting one at Sbucks or Dunkin.  You should try it!  It's very easy.  I can even make a cup of it with a baby in my arms!

Cloth diaper wash routine

We have been using cloth diapers for about 3 weeks now, so I've done several loads of cloth laundry and have figured out what seems to work.

When the diapers are dirty, they are stored in a wet bag or pail (kitchen size trash can with a waterproof, washable pail liner).  If I am downstairs and don't have either handy, I will just put the dirty diapers in a wal-mart/Target bag and take them upstairs at the end of the day.  I don't fill the pail with water!!!  You are not supposed to soak these types of diapers before washing.  Especially, no bleach.

I do a load of wash when I reach about 14-16 dirty diapers.  So, sometimes that is every day and half to every 2 days.  I have gotten into the habit of putting them in the wash first thing in the morning and hanging them to dry on the rack all afternoon in the sun.  So when I say I wash every other day, it is really not a ton of work.  I do it just like getting up and brushing my teeth.  Anyway, I wouldn't go more than 2 days without washing because it could get stinky!

So when I take a dirty diaper off, I just make sure the tabs are stuck down to the laundry tabs, if it is a hook and loop style, so they don't stick and pull on the other fabrics.  If it's a big poo, I'll spray it with BumGenius odor remover.  That helps with stains and odor.  Since Avery is EBF (exclusively breas.tfed, for future reference), the diapers can go straight in the wash without being rinsed off, since the poo is water soluble.  It does not stink up the washer, leave residue, or anything and every bit of poo gets washed out.  If the diapers come out of the wash with any stains at all, an hour or so in the sun bleaches it right out.  I really didn't think they could possibly come out clean and white with all of that yellow poo on there (especially with only 2 tbs of detergent), but they DO!

Then I dump all of the contents of the wet bag/pail into the washer, including the bag and cloth wipes.  I set it for a quick (mine is 18 min) cold rinse and spin cycle, no detergent, to get most of the yuckies washed off.

Then I set it on my saved cloth diaper setting.  I usually come back and do this when Avery takes her first morning nap.  That is, high soil, hot temp, normal action (not delicate), and extra cold rinse.

So, it's a hot wash with 2tbs of Rockin' Green detergent with a cold rinse, then an extra cold rinse to make sure all of the soap and suds are gone.  You don't want any soap build up or else the pee will repel and the diapers will smell.

The inserts can go in the dryer, but since I am using a lot of AIO diapers with the inserts already sewn in, I don't have too many loose ones to dry, so I will just line dry them with everything else.  So, I just take them from the washer and hang them on the drying rack in the guest room in front of the window that gets a lot of afternoon sun.  Everything is dry by the evening and I will put them back at the changing areas to use the next day.  I have enough diapers to use all day while a whole load is in the wash.  However, I could use another medium or large sized wet bag to keep downstairs!

So here's the quick version:

1) Short cold rinse and spin, no detergent (optional)

2) Hot wash with detergent, cold rinse

3) Extra cold rinse, no detergent

4) Line dry or put inserts in the dryer

Note: I have a top loading machine, so I haven't run into this problem.  If yours is front loading, you may want to add a soaked towel to the wash load to make it heavier and trick the washer into thinking it needs more water.  Otherwise, it may not use enough to get the diapers really clean or to get all of the soap out.

Here is an AIO diaper.  It really is all-in-one, just like a disposable.  The insert is sewn into the inside.  No stuffing inserts into pockets (but there is a pocket in the back if you want to add an extra layer of absorbency).  I like these because they are SO easy.

If you have any questions about cloth diapering, ask away.  We are just figuring it out ourselves, but I did a lot of research and asked my bloggy friends a LOT of questions before baby.

One of my favorite cloth websites is The Cloth Diaper Whisperer.

The next CD post will probably be on our favorite brands so far.

Easter 2012

We attend a huge church in Chandler, AZ and they had asked all of the "regulars" to come to an Easter service on Saturday instead of Sunday, to leave open seats for new people to come on Sunday.  They had 3 services on Saturday and 4 services on Sunday, wow!  We met some of our small group friends at the first service on Saturday.  It was our first time taking Avery to church.  She did well, but she poo'd just as the sermon was starting, so I took her to the cry room to change her, then ended up feeding her, and had to change her again.  Sooooo, I got to watch the service on the TV in the cry room.  Ha!  At least she didn't cry!  She just happened to have to potty and eat during that time.

Then we went out to eat for an early dinner with two of our great friends.  Christa is my prayer partner and her husband is Nate's prayer partner.  We have been meeting since January.  This week, our small group randomly drew new prayer partners to switch it up, so it was nice to have dinner with our old prayer partners before switching.  I am sure we will still get together a lot.  They have THE cutest 9 month old boy and I already told Avery that he's been approved.  haha  We are the only couples in our group with babies, but hopefully that will soon change!!

We had them take a few pictures of us after dinner.  We weren't dressed up much.  It is hard to find something to wear a few weeks after pregnancy!  Plus, we haven't switched out our "winter" clothes yet.  Let me tell you, it was 90-something degrees and I was pretty much dripping sweat.  It is going to be a bear getting a hot baby into a hot car seat when it's 110 degrees out this summer!

Look at those long legs!  Nathan thinks she will be a fast runner :).  She also has long "piano fingers" like her Daddy.

We tried to get a few pictures of Avery in her Easter dress but she was hungry at the time, so she has the paci in most of them :/  I was trying to buy a few more minutes before feeding her.  Well, babies have their OWN schedule!  lol!  The little bunny is from her Grand Mommy and Grand Daddy!  The dress is from Nate's boss and his wife.  And her shoes....the SHOES!  Cuteness.  They are from her grandparents as well!

"Momma, do we have to keep taking pictures?  I'm tired and hungry!"

We hope you all had a great Easter!  Let's all remember everyday, not just on Easter, that Jesus is alive and we celebrate his death and resurrection!  Annnnnd every time I think of that, Newsboys' "God's Not Dead" song gets stuck in my head.  ha!

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² There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. ³ His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. ⁴ The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.
 ⁵ The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. ⁶ He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. ⁷ Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.”


Matthew 28:2-7