Avi Grace got her first haircut this morning! She has had some longer hair in the front that never fell out when everything else did, and it had gotten really long. Drew has been asking to cut it for a while now, and as we were getting ready for church this morning, we finally took the plunge and trimmed the longer pieces. It actually looks so much better! I am pleased with the outcome. You can weigh in with your opinion after looking at the before and after pictures above!

Our little girl is growing up. Last week I was just thinking that she was never going to start trying to sit up. Every time I would try to help her sit up, it seemed as if she wasn't limber enough to do it! However, this weekend she has really started doing much better with it! We got her floor nanny out that Nana gave her for Christmas, and she did very well sitting up in it, as you can see from the other pictures above! She really tried to eat Baby Tad (Austin's favorite), and she liked playing with her new Mr. Beeps bear (purple bear) that Wan and Granddaddy gave her.

Have a great week!

Some wild hair, first cereal & first V-day!

 

 

 

Well, as you can see we have been having lots of fun at our house lately! Avi Grace tried her first cereal 2 Saturdays ago. She didn't love it and she didn't hate it. She was kind of indifferent with it! She has since moved to oatmeal, which she is still trying to decide if she likes...the jury is still out on food in general, I think! Tonight I was "feeding" her some oatmeal, and she hit the spoon with her hand as I was trying to put it in her mouth. As you can see from the pictures, it ended up all over her face! She wasn't sure what to think about it, but she smiled when I got the camera out to take a picture of her!

She also enjoyed her first Valentine's day. She got to wear her adorable "Love Bug" shirt that her friend Emily Adkerson gave to her. Thanks, Emily, for the shirt. Avi Grace looked adorable in it! Too bad we didn't get a picture of the two of you in your shirts together!

I just couldn't resist taking pictures of her very wild hair one night after bath time! I always dry her hair with the towel, and I think I got a little carried away on this particular night! It was sticking straight up when I removed the towel...it was so funny looking that I had to take pictures!!

Avi Grace is doing great. She loves to grab her feet and put them in her mouth, especially if her feet are bare! That is one of my favorite things that babies do, and I love to see her grab them!

I want to give a shout out to Judy Coffey, the sweet, sweet lady that keeps Avi Grace on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Avi Grace loves her, and she is great with Avi Grace! So, I don't know if she reads our blog, but thanks to Mrs. Judy for being so sweet to my little girl!

Y'all have a great week!

Whirlwind of a Week!

 

Whew! Well, Avi Grace is doing just great. She is adjusting to her somewhat complex weekly routine very nicely! As you can see from the pictures, she has graduated to her bumbo seat and her exersaucer. She really likes both of them, but she gets mad sometimes when she is in her exersaucer because she can't get things in her mouth just as she wants to! She is definitely developing a mind of her own, and she lets us know when things aren't going her way! Don't get me wrong, she is still a sweetheart, but she is becoming a little more vocal about things these days!

As for me, my week has been quite eventful. Last Friday, I had some excruciating pain, and I went and had a CT scan done. It showed I had two 7 mm kidney stones on the right side. So, I had lithotripsy done on Wednesday to try to break up the stones. The procedure went well, but about an hour after the procedure, I started having VERY bad pain because the broken up stones were moving. I stayed at home in very bad pain all afternoon until we finally went to the emergency room Wednesday evening about 6. I got a lot of IV fluids and some pain medication, which helped me feel a lot better, thankfully. It was awful. Worse than any pain I have ever experienced (I've had 2 c-sections)! Anyway, I am still feeling better, but it has been a whirlwind of a week with all of this going on!

Drew's practice is going great. He is staying very busy and they are beginning to figure everything out. Things seem to be running smoothly now!

 I think about Austin every day. Some days he is on my mind more than others. Today is one of those days that I am thinking about him lots and running all of the wonderful memories through my head. I went Christmas shopping in Jackson back in December, and I heard a song, "Bring The Rain," by MercyMe. I'm not sure how long the song has been out, but that was the first time I had heard the song. It brought tears to my eyes, and when I got home, I searched until I found the song. The lyrics are beautiful, and they really spoke to me. The song reminds me of how I felt when Austin was sick. It also reminded me that God wants us to praise him in everything that goes on in our lives. So, below I have posted the lyrics to the song. The song also plays on the tunes that I have playing on this page if you would like to listen to it. Remember to thank God and praise Him for everything that you go through.

"Bring The Rain" by MercyMe

I can count a million times
People asking me how I
Can praise You with all that I've gone through
The question just amazes me
Can circumstances possibly
Change who I forever am in You
Maybe since my life was changed
Long before these rainy days
It's never really ever crossed my mind
To turn my back on you, oh Lord
My only shelter from the storm
But instead I draw closer through these times
So I pray

Bring me joy, bring me peace
Bring the chance to be free
Bring me anything that brings You glory
And I know there'll be days
When this life brings me pain
But if that's what it takes to praise You
Jesus, bring the rain

I am Yours regardless of
The dark clouds that may loom above
Because You are much greater than my pain
You who made a way for me
By suffering Your destiny
So tell me what's a little rain
So I pray

Holy, holy, holy
Is the Lord God Almighty

Four Month Appointment

Avi Grace had her 4 month doctor's visit on Monday. Unfortunately that meant getting shots, but she managed to do pretty well with them. She only cried about a minute or two after she got them. Here are her stats: 14 pounds 2.5 ounces, 24 inches long. The doc was pleased with her growth, and he said everything looked good!

She is growing and doing new things every day! She has really started making a lot of noises...she squeals and really likes to hear herself "talk." She is rolling from her tummy to her back. She did that for the first time last Friday evening. You can't put her on her tummy now without her rolling over! It is almost automatic. She is also laughing out loud. She did that for the first time last week while she was at the babysitter's house! However, tonight was the first time Drew got to hear her. She laughed several different times, which was so much fun! She is just developing such a little personality!

Happy New Year!

Hi everyone. Sorry it has been a little while since I have posted. We have had a busy holiday season. We got to visit with so many family members and spend lots of time playing with Avi Grace. We have also been busy with Drew opening his own medical practice, Starkville Family Practice! His first day was last Wednesday, and needless to say, it has kept us, mostly Drew, very busy! However, we are very excited about this opportunity. So far it has gone well!

I also went back to work today, which was hard. Avi Grace had a good day today with my mom keeping her, so that made it a little easier. I was very busy at work, making the day go by fairly quickly. It was so nice to see Avi Grace when I got home this afternoon! Her smile always makes everything better! It will take us a while to get into a routine, but hopefully we will fall into it pretty quickly!

Enjoy all of the pictures. The ones at the top were taken by my good friend Laura Walton...she's very talented! The one of Avi Grace and I with our friends Caroline and Kathleen is a picture I have been meaning to post for a while now. Obviously it was taken around Halloween (Avi Grace and Caroline have the same outfit on!). It is such a small world...Kathleen and I met when Austin was at Children's Hospital in Birmingham. Kathleen's son Zach was also in the hospital. He was diagnosed with Spinal Muscular Atrophy, a terminal genetic disease, when he was about 7 or 8 weeks old. Kathleen and her husband Andy also live in Starkville. Kathleen and I met each other in the lactation room at Children's. Who would have thought that we would have to be going through the toughest times in our lives and in a hospital over 2 hours away from where we both live for us to meet. It was definitely the hand of God. Kathleen and Andy had a little girl, Caroline this past summer. Avi Grace and I have enjoyed reconnecting with Kathleen and Caroline through a mommy group that Kathleen started!

Happy New Year to you all!

Whoozit is wonderful!

 

Avi Grace loves to play on her Whoozit play mat (in picture collage). Emily and Brian Lesley gave this play mat to Austin before he was born. He loved to play on it too! I think by the time Avi Grace gets finished with it, it will be on its last leg! We sure have enjoyed it, though!

Some of the pictures to the right aren't the best, but they still show how cute she is! We started giving her rattles this week, and she loves them, but she goes nuts trying to put them in her mouth! She gets frustrated when she can't get them in her mouth because they are too big! It is quite funny, actually!