95 and 5

Tonight, family gathered at The Harbor Inn, in Burlington to celebrate Nannie's 95th birthday! Nannie is Matt's great-grandmother (Ava's great-GREAT-grandmother). It's unbelievable that 1) Nannie is 95, and 2) She is doing unbelievably well for her age. Happy Birthday Nannie!

This next picture is one of my favorites! This photo captures 5 generations of family. Right in the center is Ava, then her Dad (Matt), her Mimi (Kim), her Mema (Judy) and her Nannie (Lucille).

This is a picture of Nannie with her grandchildren (left to right): Robyn, Kim, Penny, Chris, Lisa, Laura, Britt and Brian.

Next is a picture of Nannie with her great-grandchildren (left to right): Josh, Ashley, Anna, Matt, Owen & Adam (we missed you Erin)!

Finally, here is Nannie with her great-great-grandchildren (we missed you Jack and Finn)! Ava is the youngest addition to the great-greats.

It was a packed house. I believe there were about 35 people in attendance to celebrate Nannie's birthday. All of these people and families... All because of one wonderful woman!

Ava was cooing and babbling up a storm with Tim and Lisa. Of course the picture I took doesn't show the talkative side of Ava. What a great picture of Tim and Lisa though!

I am so thankful that Anna not only loves Ava, she loves holding Ava too! Thank you Anna for taking such great care of Ava tonight... and for giving me a chance to eat! :)

On to some new toys Ava has been fascinated with recently...

We bought her a mobile for her crib this past week. It's pretty fancy... The animals spin in circles, the leaves open and close and there are 4 different music/sound options. Ava loves looking at it and listening to it's music before falling asleep for her naps.

Ava also loves this musical toy. Ideally, this toy is used to help little ones sit up. Ava is definitely not ready to sit on her own yet, but she enjoys kicking the instruments with her feet. She also likes being held in front of the toy, or sitting in her Bumbo in front of it. Maybe along with those long fingers, she also inherited my musical abilities. Who knows, we may have a piano prodigy in our midst!

Earlier this week, Matt asked me if I thought Ava would be ready for her Exersaucer. My immediate thought was, "No." I quickly remembered though how well she did in her Bumbo seat well before I thought she was ready for it. So, in the Exersaucer she went! You can tell by her first reaction that she wasn't quite sure what to think about all of the toys...

Once she realized that the toys weren't going to jump out and hurt her, she really became quite interested in everything. By far, her favorite parts of the Exersaucer are the sun....

The animal sound/musical toy. Don't you think it looks a bit like the old school 'Simon Says' game?...

And the spinning thing. Real technical name, I know. Give me a break here. It is 11:30, I am tired, and I think I'm getting my daughter's cold. 'Spinning thing' is the best I can come up with at this point. :)

Say Cheese!

While down in Bluffton this past weekend, Matt's sister surprised us by setting up a photo shoot for our family. One of Erin's friends met us at this BEAUTIFUL church on the May River near Downtown Bluffton. I honestly can't say how much this photo shoot means to me. I love pictures. I love family pictures. I love that I will forever be able to look back on this day, and this time in our lives through these pictures.

We had a beautiful setting, beautiful weather and a beautiful baby for the pictures. Take a look!

Photo Shoot

Erin, we thank you from the bottom of our heats for setting this up for us!

A Lot of Ground to Cover...

...I mean that both figuratively and literally. It has been a while since our last post, so I have plenty of pictures and stories to tell. We also just returned from our biggest road trip with Ava. A 300+ mile drive to visit Matt's sister, Erin, and her family in Bluffton, SC! So, let's get started...

A few weeks ago, Ava got to spend some time with her Oma and Opa. With only a 2 hour drive separating my parents from their grand-daughter, they don't stay away long! :) I am very thankful that Ava has both sets of her grandparents relatively close to her. I spent a pretty decent amount of my childhood on the opposite side of the country from my grandparents. It was hard on me, and even harder for my grandparents, I'm sure.

While my parents get to see Ava pretty frequently, I'm sure it isn't as often as they'd like. Every time Oma and Opa visit, they can't get over how much Ava has grown and how much more she is able to do.

I finally got a picture of Ava in her Baby B'Jorn. She no longer looks like a limp sack of potatoes like I had mentioned in a previous post. She does a great job holding her head up while facing the front. For the past few weeks she has been facing forward and let me tell you, it's a whole new world for her. Her eyes dart back and forth looking at everything the grocery store has to offer. The Baby B'Jorn is the reason that I am able to go grocery shopping. It's a wonderful thing.

Matt and I can't seem to get enough of Ava, period. This is especially true when she is smiling and laughing. I guess you could say it makes us feel good to see our little girl happy. It also doesn't hurt that it makes us feel like we're at least doing something right as parents. Hopefully.

Could this next picture be any cuter? I think not. Chubby cheeks. Pudgy fingers. Toothless grin. Button nose. Squinty eyes. She sure does make us happy!

You know that pudgy finger I just mentioned? Yup, Matt is getting wrapped around it tighter and tighter everyday. I am so thankful that the Lord gave me such an amazing and Godly man as a husband and father to Ava. He's the best!

This past weekend, we took Ava to see her Aunt Erin, Uncle John and cousins, Jack and Finn. A normal drive (without a baby) from Greensboro to Bluffton takes anywhere from 4.5 - 5 hours. The drive with a baby takes a bit longer. We had to make 2 stops on the way down so Ava could eat and be changed (yet another blowout). 

Fortunately for us, the minute you put Ava in her car seat, she falls asleep. This made for a very peaceful drive down to Bluffton and a not so peaceful evening once we arrived. I think that being asleep for roughly 5 hours really messed up her routine. Go figure. If I got to sleep for 5 hours on the drive down to SC, I'd be a happy camper. Baby sleeping in the car for 5 hours on the way to SC = baby crying for the rest of the evening. Our apologies Ussery family! Hopefully our next visit won't be so tearful!

In between crying spells, Ava did manage to put on a happy face. Here she is with Aunt Erin. Ava and Erin certainly have one thing in common... they are both surrounded by BOYS! Erin's household consists of her husband, 2 sons and her MALE dog, Scout. Ava has almost all boy cousins and most of our friends with children have... boys! Erin and Ava appreciate the bond they share with each other... estrogen!

Ava also enjoyed spending time with her cousins, Jack and Finn. Here she is lounging around with Finny-Finnster. Somehow Matt and I did not get a picture of Ava with Jack. That will be a must on our next trip. 

Not only did Ava enjoy spending time with Jack and Finn, Matt and I did too. Those little nephews of ours are stinkin' adorable! They both have the biggest hearts and they say the funniest things! Being around them this past weekend really makes me look forward to when Ava can talk. Below is a quick list of some of the funny statements made by our nephews this past weekend. With or without the context of the situation, their words are hilarious!

Jack & Finn-isms

- "Fergie, stop licking me! You're going to lick the citrus off of me!"

- "What in the tarnation?"

- "Uncle Matt, you and I had such fun times in the bathroom!"

- "I don't want to talk to Ava. She's just shy."

- "Why can't you hush that baby up in there?"

Last, and well.... least, is a picture of Fergie and Scout. They're kindred spirits. Compatible companions. Best buds. Why? They both know how it feels to be neglected after children enter the picture. Oh Scouty! Fergie misses you and can't wait to see you again soon!

In Loving Memory

This blog post is dedicated to my wonderful grandfather, Jack Shaw. At age 93, he passed away early this morning. Opa (the name my brother and I called him), was one of the people I loved most in this world. 

I have always had a very special relationship with my grandparents. After I was born, my grandparents kept me during the day when my mom went back to work, until I was 2 years old. So many of my first memories take place at my grandparent's house, while under my grandparent's care. My Oma and Opa were great at being grandparents. What does that mean? They spoiled me ROTTEN! Anything I wanted, I got. Anywhere I wanted to go, we went. Did my parents appreciate how much Oma and Opa spoiled me? Absolutely not. (Although, with the arrival of Ava, I think my parents understand how easy it is to spoil a grandchild.) Here is a picture of my Oma and Opa with me as an infant.

The following picture is probably one of my all-time favorites. I vividly remember wanting nothing more than to sit on my Opa's lap. No matter what time of day, what kind of mood he was in, or what he was doing, my grandfather was more than willing to offer his knee for me to sit on.

I could write a novel filled with all of the wonderful memories I have of my grandfather. Whether or not a novel gets written, the least I could do was publish this post, sharing a few pictures and a few memories to give you a glimpse of my loving grandfather. 

The last time that I was able to spend time with my Opa was Christmas, 2008. The following picture was taken at my grandparent's house during our trip. 

My mom, Ava and I were supposed to fly out to Utah this morning so that Oma and Opa could meet their first great-grandchild. Without getting into all of the details, we were advised by my grandmother not to fly out because my grandpa wasn't feeling well. It was a tough decision, but my mom and I opted to cancel our trip and reschedule for sometime next month. Sadly, when we do make our trip to Utah in the coming weeks, Ava will miss the opportunity to get to know her wonderful, loving Opa. My mom and I are thrilled however, that Ava will surely lift the spirits of my grandmother!

Here is yet another picture of our family taken during our December 2008 trip to Utah. Left to Right, Top/Bottom: My Dad, Oma, Opa, My Mom, My Brother (Ryan), Me and My Hubby!

Jack Maurice Shaw

June 1, 1916 - February 11, 2010

Love you, Opa!

(Your "Little Girl")

Who Does She Look Like?

So, when babies are born, one of the first questions people ask is, "Who do they look like?" Initially, most everyone thought Ava looked like me. The first picture below is a picture of me while I was still in the hospital. The second picture below is Ava right after she was born. We both have full lips, puffy/closed eyes and similar skin coloring. I had some meat on my face, but clearly she did not get those cheeks from me. Actually, she didn't get them from Matt either. We're not quite sure where those bad boys came from.

The next two pictures are my hunky husband, when he was a baby. I'm usually not the best at determining which parent babies look like. I think it's pretty safe to say in this case, that Ava looks like her Daddy! Take a look at the third picture (Ava). She has Matt's eyes, lips,.... ears! 

The other night, Matt and I were looking at old home movies from his childhood. While Ava definitely favors Matt, she really looks like her aunt Erin (Matt's sister). I found the following picture on Matt's computer and couldn't help but post it. So stinkin' cute! I'll be thrilled if Ava turns out to look like autie Erin. Erin was beautiful as a baby and is even more beautiful now! 

I can't believe it, but Ava turned 2 months old this past Wednesday. She's growing up so fast! Her 2 month check-up isn't until Monday, so I'm not exactly sure of her current measurements yet. I do know that she is only 2 months old and already fits in her 3-6 month old clothes. Poor kid... I can already tell she will have some of the fashion dilemmas I had as a child. Her legs are so long, she'll never find a pair of jeans that fit just right. Her feet are so big, I will have to buy women's high heels for her to play "dress-up" in. True story. My mom had to do that for me when I was little. My feet were always too big to fit into the pretty pink plastic shoes that came with dress-up costumes. Haunts me to this day.

Anyway, below are 2 pictures taken next to the same teddy bear from one month ago. How time flies!

On a side note, I have heard from a few people that the video link from the last post doesn't work unless you have Facebook. I will try to get the video posted to the blog in the near future for you non-Facebookers out there. Happy Friday everyone!