Ava's First Birthday (Party)

The theme was stripes. (You can see more photos on my other blog).

I got helium balloons for the kids to take home with them, and Ava loved them. All afternoon she stared at them and pointed. When Ryan came home, she immediately pointed at the balloons to show him. And the next day when her balloon didn't float anymore, she loved it all the more because now she could grab it and squeeze it and bite it and push it around. (She got tangled in it a few times too). And by the way, she loves her bunny slippers.

She also got a set of Hello Kitty books from Grandma Cook (remember "kitty" was her first word), one of which, appropriately, begins with stripes!

The ULCER

No, not a stomach ulcer. THE ULCER. Utah Lake Century Epic Ride. Ryan did it last Saturday (it's a 109-miler around Utah Lake). He did well and Ava and I were there to greet him at the finish line. To me 100 miles is a big deal, something to train for. To Ryan, it's no biggie. But I'm still celebrating for him! Way to go!

Flat Out Broke (the tires, I mean)

How many flat tires have you had in your life? I bet Ryan can beat your record. This month alone, he has had 4 flats on the truck (the fourth was one of the new, two-week-old tires), and 6 flats on his bike in one day. I think he's on a first name basis with the guys at the tire shop. And when he got all the bike flats, he was riding with a seasoned bike mechanic, who also inspected and concluded it was just bad luck. I think we should probably invest in the rubber/tire market.

Camping and Hiking

Last weekend we went here:

and hiked this steepness:

To get to this lake:

 

Ava was a champ, did so well on the hike. Of course she wasn't the one carrying the weight...

(Pittsburg Lake, near Mineral Basin--back side of Snowbird--via American Fork Canyon)

It got very cold at night, so I had to share my sleeping bag with Ava. She's kind of a bed hog. I didn't get much sleep, but Ryan took her out for a drive (aka "nap") in the morning so I could sleep in. A fun time was had by all.

Ava's 11 month report

So the report and the photo are both a bit late. She's now up to 16lbs 8oz. Moving like crazy (I only got 2 still photos, the rest are blurry because she won't ever be still). Sleeping well (we got past that house-moving hump, thank goodness), and lots of fun. She likes to make fish lips and she does a one legged sit-crawl, which is giving the sat-upon leg some good rug burn. She likes when I walk my fingers toward her (she giggles); and when Ryan "attacks" her with his "claw" hand, she laughs and laughs!

See, blurry:

And this is how she likes to eat now. One leg up. Very lady-like.

And here's a cellphone pic of the fish lips, it's the only one I've been able to capture.

Ava's First Crawl

Ryan texted me this morning and told me that she finally crawled! She has gone in reverse a few times, but not forward until today. He said she looks like a spider.

Ava's 10-and-a-half Month Report

Ava just weighed in at 16 lbs. Boo.
I thought she was doing better than that. But she's now 28 inches, which is 50th % for a 10 month old, higher I'm sure for a 9 monther (her adjusted age). But weight-wise I'm not sure she was even on the chart.
Her doctor told me to try to increase nursings, and supplement with formula if needed. Actually he first recommended whole milk, but I'm a little nervous about that because of my family's tendency toward milk allergies/sensitivities. I may go ahead and try it though.... Her doctor is actually not to worried, because she is continuing to grow. I already add butter/olive oil and rice to her veggies (now her preferred food), oatmeal to her fruit, and I give her avocado several times a day. Avocado is by far her favorite food. She would probably eat a whole one if I let her. (That would have some negative consequences). She's gonna be the skinniest child ever to have a heart attack. Maybe the the oatmeal compensates for the butter?
Her first conscious word appears to be "kitty". And her bottom teeth are starting to come through, after many months of teething.
I'm thanking my lucky stars that she hasn't had any ear infections, and hoping that continues. I'm going crazy trying to sleep train her all over again after our move. It's harder this time. Harder on me, and probably harder on her too.