I know it's late but...

Merry Christmas from our family to yours!

We are looking forward to the New Year...

~Momma to Bug~

I like to describe Averi as a very happy baby. She really only cries when she is hungry and tired and even then her cries sound more like tiny sobs. Oh and she cries in the car if she is awake and it's not moving but don't they all at this age?

Today Averi was not a happy baby. She had her two month immunization shots and they made her very sad. I have discovered over the past several weeks that Averi is a sensitive girl. She doesn't like to be touched or held too much. Averi cried for ten minutes after she received the shots, unlike her big sister who forgot about them after one minute or so. She didn't even smile after she woke up and saw me staring at her which she ALWAYS does. I knew she was really unhappy when I tried to feed her and she still cried and cried and cried. Nothing soothed her so I had to use the Tylenol. It worked and she slept through her sister's entire Pre-Kindergarten Christmas show this evening.

Did I mention that for the past two nights Averi has slept for about nine hours straight?

Good night Averi Bear...I hope you feel better in the morning!

~Momma to Bug~

Disney World 2009

We were fortunate enough to have the opportunity to take Arielle to Disney World again this year...

Arielle got to meet most of her favorite princesses for the third year in a row {lucky girl}...

Momma and Averi did not go but Zak, Arielle and Gaby had a great time! Zak took Arielle & Gaby on Space Mountain {she was barely tall enough}. Had I been there I would have convinced Arielle otherwise seeing how she was so afraid on the little kids roller coaster at the pumpkin patch. Needless to say, Arielle was very scared but she was proud of herself for trying it out! Gaby didn't enjoy it much either.

The teacups and Winnie the Pooh rides were much more enjoyable!

The day ended as they watched the parade go by...

~Momma to Bug~

A Walk on the Beach

We enjoyed a nice walk on the beach at Siesta Key...

~Momma to Bug~

On Vacation in Florida

Hello from Florida! We are on our 7th day of vacation visiting the Beach Family. The weather has been cold and rainy for most of the time but we managed to get some warm weather yesterday. Averi stayed home while Zak and I took Arielle to the beach. She was ECSTATIC! She loves the ocean, sand and salt! Earlier yesterday morning we were at the park right next door to Gaby & Tee's house and while Arielle was picking flowers she stepped into a pile of fire ants and got stung. You wouldn't believe the crying and screaming that followed {who can blame her?}. A little mixture of bleach and water applied to the bites seemed to sooth her but according to her this was "the worst day ever".



Averi seems to change every day while we are here. She is becoming more alert and playful. Her head control has improved significantly too. The best thing she has done so far is put herself to sleep occassionally for naps and bedtime. She just goes to town sucking on her fist and sleeves until she tires herself out. This morning Averi woke up with a little cold and has been sneezing and coughing. This cold has been going around the house so I'm not surprised; I'm just hoping it doesn't turn into anything worse {fingers crossed}. Averi has also pleasantly surprised us a couple of nights by sleeping without eating for over 7 hours!

I'm looking forward to Christmas decorating when we get home!


~Momma to Bug~

Averi ~ 6 weeks

Averi is really starting to become social {when she isn't so sleepy}. I love hearing the little baby sounds that she makes and seeing every smile on her face. They are priceless! She has been sleeping well during the night, waking up to eat at 3-5 hour incriments and falling back asleep on her own in her crib! She is still trying to figure out how to get herself to sleep during the daytime which has been our biggest struggle but she loves to sleep in her car seat which is the opposite of Arielle. We leave for vaction to Florida in 2 weeks. I don't know whether to cheer or to cry about it. So much planning has gone into it, I just hope that we all are able to enjoy ourselves.

Enjoy the video {even if it is sideways} & the lastest pictures!

~Momma to Bug~

The little things

Averi was all smiles this morning which couldn't have come at a better time considering we had a pretty long night. Yesterday she was so sleepy that she slept through most of the day so she wasn't very sleepy in the middle of the night. I suddenly came down with a fever and sore throat too which didn't help. I took her to see the pediatrician for her upset stomach and much to my surprise she weighed 9 pounds, 14 ounces! The doctor put her on a prescription medicine to reduce the pain from her tummy aches so we are crossing our fingers that it works. Every day I look forward to more little things to come...the smiles are just the beginning!

~Momma to Bug~

One Month

Averi turned one month old today! She is doing really well and seems to have less and less tummyaches as the days go by. She is still eating every 3 hours, sometines 4 during the day. I have gotten a few big smiles in the past couple of days which truly melt my heart! Now if only we could get her to enjoy sleeping in her crib as opposed to the vibrating bassinet that she is going to outgrow any day now. Everytime we put her in the crib for a nap, she wakes up 15 minutes later. And if I set her down in it as she is going to sleep she wakes right up with no chance of going back to sleep as opposed to the bassinet that I can gently rock her back to sleep.

One thing at a time I guess.

Zak pointed out that I actually took the one month picture when she turned four weeks but it's close enough!

~Momma to Bug~

Trick or Treat Girls

Arielle dressed up as Barbie Mariposa this year {a butterfly fairy}. She looked beautiful as always! Zak and I both got to go trick or treating with Arielle while Grandmom stayed home with Averi. We organized a neighborhood trick or treating group so Arielle got to go with three other 4 and 5 year old girls. She kept saying, "Come on girls!" to them the whole night. She is such the motherly type.

Thanks to the Cook family for Averi's Halloween outfit!

~Momma to Bug~

I should be sleeping but...

I just can't resist the urge to post some pictures of Miss Averi. We haven't taken any in the past few days and I can assure you she has grown a bit since the last picture we took. She is mostly expanding in her big ol' belly and her double chin but I can tell she is filling out nicely! Her eyes are blue and will definitely stay that way and her hair could go either lighter or darker, most likely lighter. She is still wearing newborn clothes but the newborn diapers will be too small by the end of the week for sure.

Time is precious these days and most of it is spent nursing Averi (at least every three hours) and trying to get her to sleep. I think she has smiled at me a time or two but for the most part she is battling tummy aches and/or gas pains and cries a lot. Right now she is sleeping in her crib for the first time! We have been using the bassinet and swear by the vibrator feature that it has. We'll have to break us of that before it is too late. For now, enjoy the pictures and I'll be back to post more after I get a little more sleep.

~Momma to Bug~

Pumpkin Patch Fun

We managed to make it out of the house last weekend to visit the pumpkin patch. It was a very warm day so we just couldn't resist. Arielle had a blast enjoying the activities even though we didn't stay for long. Best of all, she got to go on a roller coaster! You should have seen the look on her face and the way she had her arms wrapped around the bar as if she was hanging on for dear life. It brought me to tears to see the fear in her eyes but she didn't shed one tear. She just got off and said, "that was really scary". Averi slept the whole time {thankfully}.

~Momma to Bug~

October 2, 2009

Averi Jaye was born on Friday, October 2, 2009 at 8:11 am. She weighed 7 pounds, 7 ounces and measured 20 inches long (although Zak took a picture of them measuring her in the operating room and she is easily half an inch or more longer). Everyone keeps telling me how beautiful she is and how much she looks like me. She really looks just like she did in the ultrasound pictures but now we can see that she has bright blue eyes and silky, light brown hair. Her facial features are so well defined from her ears to her forehead to her chin. She is so perfect and sweet that I just can't stop looking at her and wanting to hold her!

Within 24 hours Averi dropped down to 6 pounds, 15 ounces then she lost another 2 ounces the next day. By the time we left the hospital three days later she was down to 6 pounds, 11 ounces. We have since taken her to the doctor and she is back up to 6 pounds, 15 ounces. She is nursing well but I am having to work with her on opening her mouth wider. Hopefully when she gets a little bigger it will be easier for both of us. She eats every two to three hours and last night she went for a near four hour stretch!

Averi has been sleeping so much as newborn babies usually do. The hardest part of the day has been between 10-12 pm because this is when she is wide awake and all I can do is think about going to bed. Averi is such a content and relaxed baby. Just last night we let Arielle hold her while we read bedtime stories and Averi fell asleep in her big sister's arms almost instantly. That was so sweet! Arielle is really enjoying being a big sister but I can tell she feels a little sad. I think it is mostly because she is going to school while mommy and daddy stay home with Averi. We felt it was important to keep her in her normal routine as much as possible although it is hard not to feel guilty about not having her home with us.

I am enjoying every minute of this new life that we created and looking forward to every minute left to come.

~Momma to Bug~

Tomorrow

Tomorrow is the day that we will welcome Averi Jaye into our lives as our newest family member! We are all quite anxious and tired of waiting so long for her arrival. Arielle is very excited to be a big sister and meet her baby sister. She says nothing but good things about what is to come which absolutely amazes me and makes my heart flutter. She has yet to say anything negative about having a new baby in the family or show any doubt that this is a good change for us. I watch her play with her dolls and listen to how she talks to them and I have no doubt as well that she is going to be a loving, caring sister.


I feel as though I have been waiting forever to bring this baby into the world. Time goes so fast yet as I wait for something so big and life-changing I can't help but feel like the day is never going to come. I am thankful for the time I have had to spend with Arielle as an only child but very ready to start the next chapter of our lives with another child to love. I am worried about so many things, yet I feel as though I have gotten this far with one child that doing it all with another one will be a piece of cake. Some things will be different this time though, some big things. Like the fact that I have a four year old to look after and make sure I provide her with the same amount of love and attention that she is used to so she does not become resentful. Also, going back to work after 3 months instead of the 7 months that I had with Arielle is different and will be difficult to go through. Even with these things in mind, I am thinking positive and know I will give it my all so that is what matters the most.


~Momma to Bug~

Averi's Nursery Room is Complete

After months of planning and preparing, Averi's nursery room is finally complete! I made a few final purchases and placed a couple more things on the wall so I think I am finally satisfied.

First, I had a leftover quilt clip so I decided to hang the pillow sham that came with the crib bedding. It was either that or turn it into a throw pillow which I did not have a need for so the wall art was an obvious choice. I hung it over the bookshelf to draw your eyes up on that wall and give it height. We found the cutest pink and white bird lamp to replace the boring, old satin nickel lamp with plain white shade that sat on the bookshelf. We got the lamp at Home Goods for only $30 and it looks just like the Pottery Barn Kids one only much less expensive!

I also purchased a pink, wooden toy bin at Home Goods for $50. It can be used also be used as a nighstand or table and it can hold a lot of toys so it was worth every penny!

I finally got around to stopping at Goodwill and found a wicker basket with tags for $5 and made my own liner out of pink gingham fabric that I already had. The basket is sitting next to the rocking chair for easy access to anything that I'll need for feedings but it could also be used as a laundry basket.

My favorite addition has been the wooden wall letters that spell "AVERI" which we hung above the closet doors. They came from Hobby Lobby and only cost $2 each. I painted them the same light pink that is on one of the walls in the room. I really want to add brown and/or white polka dots to the letters to make them stand out more.

The final total spent for this nursery room on a small budget is right around $500.

~Momma to Bug~

Arielle's Birth Story

Arielle's 3-D Ultrasound ~ 29 weeks

My first born daughter arrived on April 7th, 2005. My due official due date, the date I had been counting down to for nine months, was April 3rd. When my due date came and went with no sign of Arielle showing any interest in dropping down for her arrival my doctor {hesitantly} scheduled an induction.

A photo of me on my due date, April 3rd, 2005

Zak and I headed to the hospital on the evening of April 6th not having any idea of what to expect about when or how our precious little girl would make her appearance. We got settled into our room and shortly after that I got started on my induction meds. I think we watched some television but I don't remember much because they gave my a sleeping pill so I could have my last full night of sleep for a long time to come. From what I remember, I actually did sleep all night and was very comfortable too.

The next morning I started to feel the contractions and requested the epidural. Shortly after they administered it, less than an hour before Arielle's arrival, there was a flurry of activity. The nurse came in to give me an internal exam so she could check on the progress of my dialation but she became very uneasy in an instant. "I think this baby is breach!" she said, to which we replied that we had an ultrasound the night before and that was not the case. I think she might have attempted another internal exam or maybe she just went to get another nurse for a second opinion, I'm not exactly positive but I remember starting to feel uneasy.

When the new nurse arrived and performed her exam she was quite overwhelmed by what happened next. "The baby just sucked on my finger" she said and she told us that she could feel the baby's nose too. I didn't think there was anything wrong with this and thought it was quite cute! However, the nurse explained that this meant that the baby was presenting herself face first instead of head first which is not an ideal position for a natural delivery. They told us that while it wasn't impossible to deliver a baby in this position, it could cause complications and it was a risk that they didn't think was worth taking. Immediately the nurses began prepping me for surgery...an emergency c-section followed very soon after.

Arielle's first photo taken by Zak on his cell phone camera minutes after she was born.

While I wasn't exactly thrilled about the fact that I wasn't able to deliver Arielle vaginally, I accepted the fact that this was Arielle's birth story and I was happy with the outcome. Arielle turned out to be a healthy, happy baby and I recovered from my surgery within a few short days. Sometimes I wonder how this story would have changed if we had the patience to wait a few more days for Arielle to make her arrival instead of scheduling an induction. But I really believe that everything happens for a reason and I wouldn't change anything about it if I could.

Having said all of that, when I found out that I was pregnant again and my doctor said a VBAC (vaginal birth after c-section) was definitly an option I felt happy to have another chance at a natural birth . I recently learned that there is a 1% chance of major complications arising from a VBAC and only 60% of women are ultimately able to deliver vaginally after a c-section. That pretty much made my decision for me and my life, and the new baby's life, is not worth taking that risk. The only option in my mind is for a planned c-section.

October 2nd, 2009 is the date. This time we both have a pretty good idea of what to expect.

Wish us luck!

~Momma to Bug~